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THE HERO OF 
 STONY POINT 
 
^Wayne aimed and fired one of the field pieces himself.' " 
 
 [page 71] 
 
THE HERO OF 
 STONY POINT 
 
 ANTHONY WAYNE 
 
 BY 
 
 JAMES BARNES 
 
 AUTBOB OF "filFLE AND CAHAVAN," "gIANT OF THREE WABS,' 
 OF EBIE," ETC. 
 
 
 ILLUSTRATED BY 
 
 T. DE THULSTRUP 
 
 D. APPLETON AND COMPANY 
 NEW YORK LONDON 
 
 1916 
 

 COPTKIGHT, 1916, BT 
 
 D. APPLETON AND COMPANY 
 
 OCT 30'mi6 
 
 Printed in the United States of America 
 
 'CI.A446173 
 
CONTENTS 
 
 CBArrcB 
 1. 
 
 School Days at Chester— The Fighting 
 Dunce 
 
 II. The Great Snow Fight 
 
 III. The Prelude to Great Deeds 
 
 IV. Colonel Wayne at Trois Rivieres 
 V. Anthony Wayne Asks for Action 
 
 VI. The Campaign of 77 . 
 Vn. From Whitehorse Tavern to Germantown 
 VIII. Valley Forge and the Long Dark Days . 
 
 IX. Rear Guard Fighting and Monmouth 
 X. The Climax— Stony Point . 
 
 XI. Wayne Wins the Disaffected 
 
 XII. Leading up to Yorktown . 
 
 XIII. In the South 
 
 XIV. The End of the War ^ 
 XV. Called Back to the Army . 
 
 XVI. Fighting the Northern Savages 
 XVII. The Government Commissioner and 
 clusion 
 
 Con. 
 
 1 
 
 14 
 
 22 
 
 32 
 
 45 
 
 58 
 
 72 
 
 85 
 
 98 
 
 113 
 
 128 
 
 142 
 
 150 
 
 160 
 
 177 
 
 184 
 
 201 
 
LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS 
 
 "Wayne aimed and fired one of the field pieces him- 
 self" Frontispiece 
 
 rAOINQ PAGE 
 
 *'The great snow fight" 16 
 
 " Torward, my brave fellows, forward !' " . . . 122 
 "The treaty with the Indians" 202 
 
THE HERO 
 OF STONY POINT 
 
 CHAPTER I 
 
 SCHOOL DAYS AT CHESTER— THE FIGHTING 
 DUNCE 
 
 A SMALL boy of eleven sat on the end of 
 a newly felled log in a clearing of the 
 Chester woods. He was a sturdily built, thick- 
 set youngster whose appearance would have lit- 
 tle suggested the occupation at which we find 
 him. With compressed lips and a deal of squint- 
 ing he was trying to force through the eye of a 
 much too small needle the end of a much too 
 large thread. After many trials, pursued with 
 an infinite patience, he succeeded. On the log be- 
 side him lay two stiips of red cloth. Tucked 
 into the edge of his small three-cornered hat, 
 was a bundle of turkey feathers that only a 
 half an hour before had been proudly spread 
 
 1 
 
THE HERO OF STONY POINT 
 
 by the old gobbler, wbo, panting and much di- 
 sheveled, was biding in an angle of the chicken 
 yard fence a few rods away. The boy had had 
 his eyes on the tail feathers for many a long 
 day and had waited for the moment when, with- 
 out fear of interference, he conld despoil the 
 old gobbler of his principal adornment. 
 
 With remarkable skill the boy began to sew 
 the feathers between the strips of red cloth, and 
 having basted them in so they stood firmly up- 
 right, he measured the band round his head, 
 sewed the two ends together and, going down to 
 a pool in the brook, looked at his reflection with 
 all the self-satisfaction of a Narcissus. Going 
 back to the log where he had left his coat and 
 hat, he discovered that there was a rent in his 
 coat sleeve; sitting down, he mended it neatly 
 before putting it on. 
 
 Although incongruous, the Indian-like decora- 
 tion became the boy's face better than the old 
 three-cornered hat, for he had the high cheek 
 bone, the deep-set eyes of the red man, and his 
 little hawk-like features needed but to be a 
 shade or two darker than the coat of tan that 
 
 2 
 
SCHOOL DAYS AT CHESTER 
 
 covered them, to make him, to all appearances, 
 a juvenile member of the Seven Nations. 
 
 Carrying his hat under his arm, he walked 
 along the path through the blackberry bushes, 
 heading past the chicken yard where the hen 
 turkeys had not yet settled down from the ex- 
 citement they had undergone in witnessing the 
 struggle and discomfiture of their lord and 
 master. Reaching a bam and stable made of 
 rough hewn logs, the boy bent down and, lifting 
 aside an old barrel-head, disclosed a hiding- 
 place in the stone foundation. It was here that 
 he kept the things most near and dear to him ; 
 a bow whittled out of a hickory limb, a bundle 
 of cleverly made arrows, and an actual Indian 
 tomahawk that had been given to him by a man 
 who had made a trading trip out into the great 
 western forests. The boy carefully deposited 
 the head-dress with his other treasures, then 
 hastening round the corner of the bam he ran 
 through the garden toward the large stone 
 farmhouse owned by his father, who, on this 
 day, had been away attending court down at 
 Chester — an absence which, to tell the truth, 
 
 3 
 
THE HERO OF STONY POINT 
 
 was one of the main reasons for the raid on the 
 old gobbler. 
 
 The reason for the boy's running was the fact 
 that down the road that stretched in front of 
 the farmhouse, he had discerned a figure on 
 horseback coming along at a steady trot. As 
 rather breathlessly he entered the back door 
 the rider dismounted at the front veranda. 
 The two met in the long hallway. 
 
 **Well, Anthony, my son," said the tall, well- 
 set-up man as he looked down with a quizzical 
 smile, **have you lost anything?" 
 
 **No, father," replied the boy, '*not that I 
 know of." 
 
 Isaac Wayne took something from under his 
 arm. 
 
 **I found your school books 'tother side of 
 the road near your Uncle Gilbert's house; I 
 did not know whether you had dropped 
 them." 
 
 ' * I left them there, ' ' said the boy frankly. ' ' 1 
 was going to return and get them, sir." 
 
 **Too heavy to carry home, Anthony?" 
 
 **No, father, but old Jess started a rabbit 
 4 
 
SCHOOL DAYS AT CHESTER 
 
 by the side of the road and we chased it down 
 by the edge of the clearing. I dropped the 
 books there. ' ' 
 
 Mr. Wayne opened a copy book, very ragged 
 and dog-eared. * ^ Will yon tell me, my son, what 
 is the meaning of all this?" 
 
 He pointed to a page covered with lines and 
 strange markings. 
 
 ** Jnst a plan, sir," the boy replied, fidgeting 
 a little, although he was looking his father 
 straight in the face. 
 
 '*A plan of what?" 
 
 '*0f a battle, father." 
 
 **And when and where was this battle!" 
 
 **It has not been fought yet, sir. I was just 
 making it up." 
 
 Mr. Wayne closed the book with a smile that 
 quite belied the seeming sternness of his next 
 words. 
 
 **If you spent more time over your books and 
 less in dreaming, you would make a more useful 
 citizen, Anthony. I don't want you to grow up 
 a know-nothing." 
 
 **I'd like to be useful, sir." • 
 5 
 
THE HERO OF STONY POINT 
 
 **Well,'' replied Mr. Wayne, **go out in the 
 pasture and bring in the cows. I'll take you 
 at your word if I have to make a farmer of 
 you ! ' ' 
 
 *^Yes, sir," said the boy, and went out of 
 the house. 
 
 Young Anthony Wayne came quite naturally 
 by any leaning toward military dreaming; his 
 grandfather had been a soldier and his father 
 had fought in the campaigns against the In- 
 dians in Western Pennsylvania and the borders 
 of what is now Tennessee. It was in 1722 that 
 Anthony Wayne, the grandfather of our hero, 
 had moved from Ireland to Chester, Pennsyl- 
 vania. He was a man of great independeaice of 
 character, as evidenced by the fact that he had 
 left behind him a very good country estate in 
 County Wicklow, because he did not like the 
 way the Irish peasantry had been treated after 
 the defeat of the forces of King James the 
 Second by those of King William. With this 
 military emigrant came his wife and four sons. 
 Three of the sons settled quite close to one 
 another on the Pennsylvania uplands, where 
 
 6 
 
SCHOOL DAYS AT CHESTER 
 
 their father was the owner of sixteen hundred 
 acres. The site of the old homestead is now 
 the site of Waynesboro that has perpetuated 
 the family name, but it is by no means the only 
 place where it is to be found on the map. His 
 youngest son, Isaac, possessed more of his 
 father's character than the others, who seemed 
 content to take up the quiet life of farmers or 
 the sedentary occupation of a schoolmaster, 
 which was followed by Gilbert. When the elder 
 Anthony died he divided his estate among the 
 three sons that survived him, and to Isaac fell 
 the best of the farms. Isaac had married the 
 daughter of Eichard Iddings, who was also a 
 wealthy land owner in the same county of Ches- 
 ter. Elizabeth Wayne was a woman of remark- 
 able character. 
 
 Having thus introduced the younger An- 
 thony's forebears, let us take up his life at the 
 very interesting period when he began to de- 
 velop individualities of his own. There were 
 many of the neighbors' sons who also went to 
 school at ** Uncle Gilbert's" and many of these 
 scholars were to be closely associated in the 
 
 7 
 
THE HERO OF STONY POINT 
 
 stirring and troublous times in the wars that 
 were to come. 
 
 A short time, perhaps it might have been only 
 a week or so, after his father had found his 
 school books in the lane, Anthony, known to 
 his comrades outside of school hours as **Sha- 
 bo-na" — ^the Gray Fox — and the best shot with 
 a hickory bow of all the tribes that he himself 
 had organized, sat on a stool in the comer of 
 the schoolhouse, looking as little like an Indian 
 chief as any small boy could look. Instead of 
 the crown of feathers on his head he had a 
 conical ornament made of ordinary brown pa- 
 per, on which was printed very legibly, in his 
 Uncle Gilbert's back hand, the word, ** Dunce." 
 But if the position was ignominious it cannot be 
 said that Anthony's demeanor was in the least 
 humble. From under the edge of the tight- 
 fitting paper rim he surveyed his schoolmates 
 with a look of defiance, if not of open challenge. 
 
 He held not the slightest resentment toward 
 his Uncle Gilbert, for he was perfectly aware 
 that the punishment he was undergoing, if such 
 it could be called, was well earned, but there was 
 
 8 
 
THE HERO OF STONY POINT 
 
 a comforting thought in his mind — and in the 
 schoolmaster's also — that he did not care for 
 study ; the dead languages did not appeal to him 
 and he had fully decided that so far as he was 
 concerned the longer they stayed dead the bet- 
 ter. At figuring, when Anthony had cared to 
 apply himself, he was as good as any boy in 
 school. There were few popular histories in 
 those days and juvenile literature was confined 
 mostly to rather stupid tales that pointed ob- 
 vious morals or trite advice as to conduct, 
 habits, and spiritual training. There was 
 hardly a book, however, in his father's library 
 that dealt with anything military that Anthony 
 had not read from cover to cover. 
 
 There were sixteen boys in Gilbert Wayne's 
 school, the eldest being but fourteen. At four- 
 teen the days of instruction practically ceased, 
 except for those lads whose fathers were 
 wealthy enough to send them to one of the col- 
 leges or academies in the larger towns where 
 the learned professions were taught. Anthony 
 Wayne's father was well to do and he had con- 
 ceived some ambitions in regard to his son's 
 
 9 
 
THE HERO OF STONY POINT 
 
 career, but often the boy had puzzled him, as 
 he was now puzzling schoolmaster Gilbert, who 
 had his own ideas of disciplining his young 
 charges. He was one of the few schoolmasters 
 who did not believe in the use of the rod and 
 never had he lifted his hand in chastisement, 
 even for breaches of behavior that deserved 
 strenuous handling. 
 
 When the school was dismissed, this day, the 
 boys trooped forth ; one of them, Peter Iddings, 
 a distant connection of Anthony's on his moth- 
 er's side, came out last, holding something be- 
 hind his back. It was the duncecap that had 
 so lately adorned our Hero 's brow. Beneath the 
 humiliating label he had found time to print the 
 words, '* Anthony Wayne, His Hat." With 
 some ceremony he presented it to its late 
 wearer. No champion's gauntlet thrown in 
 challenge ever produced a quicker result. The 
 small boy flew at Iddings like a tiger cat. It 
 was a battle that had long been pending between 
 the two and it was interrupted by the appear- 
 ance of the schoolmaster, who dragged the 
 somewhat disheveled and bleeding belligerents 
 
 10 
 
SCHOOL DAYS AT CHESTER 
 
 apart and, contrary to his custom, cuffed each 
 one soundly and leading them bac(k into the 
 schoolhouse, gave them a long talk on the bene- 
 fits of peace in general. But, as it is with 
 nations, so it is with individuals; it is some- 
 times better to have it out to a finish, for smol- 
 dering fires are more dangerous than fully ex- 
 tinguished ashes. Under the big red oak tree 
 within half an hour of the schoolmaster's hom- 
 ily they were at it again. It was a prolonged 
 and bitter struggle and ended in the younger 
 boy extracting from his fallen antagonist the 
 smothered sentence, '*IVe got enough. *' The 
 fight established Anthony's prestige in the 
 school. No duncecap as a bit of personal prop- 
 erty is a disgrace to a champion fighter, and 
 Sha-bo-na was established as one who not only 
 must be listened to in council but respected on 
 the battlefield. 
 
 The scholarship, however, did not improve, 
 for it was about this time that Uncle Gilbert 
 indited the following letter, which was handed 
 to Mr. Wayne by no less a faithful messenger 
 than his son: — 
 
 11 
 
THE HERO OF STONY POINT 
 
 '*I really suspect," says Gilbert, **that pa- 
 rental affection blinds you ; and that you have 
 mistaken your son's capacity. Wbat lie may 
 be best qualified for, I know not ; but one thing 
 I am certain of, that he will never make a 
 scholar. He may make a soldier ; he has already 
 distracted the brains of two-thirds of the boys, 
 under my direction, by rehearsals of battles and 
 sieges, etc. They exhibit more the appearance 
 of Indians and harlequins than of students ; this 
 one, decorated with a cap of many colors ; and 
 others, habited in coats as variegated as Jo- 
 seph's of old; some, laid up with broken heads, 
 and others with black eyes. During noon, in 
 place of the usual games and amusements, he 
 has the boys employed in throwing up redoubts, 
 skirmishing, etc. I must be candid with you, 
 brother Isaac: unless Anthony pays more at- 
 tention to his books, I shall be under the painful 
 necessity of dismissing him from the school.'* 
 
 Isaac Wayne finished the letter without lift- 
 ing his eyes to the face of the boy who, slightly 
 flushed, was standing beside him at the old 
 mahogany desk in his father's office. When he 
 
 12 
 
SCHOOL DAYS AT CHESTER 
 
 had finished, without comment, the father 
 handed the letter to the boy. As the latter read, 
 his chin trembled a little but he stood all the 
 straighter. He knew that his father had been 
 touched in his most vulnerable part — ^his pride. 
 For a father's affections differ from those of 
 a mother, who, no matter what her child may 
 do, still has her heart and her arms open and 
 her forgiveness ready before it is asked for. A 
 father's love depends largely on his pride and 
 his trust. It is reflective, as a mother's is in- 
 stinctive. 
 
 As Anthony placed the letter back in his 
 father's outstretched fingers he waited for what 
 might be coming. Was it to be a punishment — a 
 restriction of privileges I His father was a man 
 of few words — ^that the boy knew well — ^but he 
 could make every word a stinging blow, harder 
 to bear than bodily chastisement. The only 
 thing the elder Wayne said was this : 
 
 **It's in your hands, my boy." 
 
 **Then give it to me, father; let me keep it 
 until I can hand you another one." 
 
 There was no more said. 
 13 
 
CHAPTER n 
 
 THE GREAT SNOW FIGHT 
 
 IT was a very early winter — ^that of 1759— one 
 long remembered for the depth of the snow- 
 fall that by the end of November covered the 
 hills. Back at Gilbert Wayne's school were 
 the same boys grown a little taller and heavier. 
 One of them had changed in more than appear- 
 ance. From the very first lesson of the term 
 Anthony Wayne had shown that he had every 
 intention of carrying out his promise to his 
 father. So marked was this improvement that 
 before a month had gone by Isaac Wayne had 
 been informed that there was no fear of his 
 son's ability to learn; the boy's ambitions had 
 been awakened. To remain on a farm and to 
 do the physical drudgery and to undergo the 
 actual hardships of the pioneer farmer, was 
 something that Anthony did not care to look 
 forward to. He would have jumped at the op- 
 
 14 
 
THE GREAT SNOW FIGHT 
 
 portunity to enter the Army or Navy, but very 
 few of the sons of the Colonists at that time en- 
 tered the service of the mother country, and of 
 either Army or Navy in the proper sense the 
 Colonies possessed none. Anthony was work- 
 ing toward a definite ambition, for without say- 
 ing anything to anybody he had chosen his pro- 
 fession. There was plenty of employment for 
 civil engineers, for the country was in a slow 
 process of development and an engineer who 
 had besides his technical skill a reputation for 
 good judgment and integrity was sure of both 
 honorable and remunerative employment. The 
 life, also, was in the open and had in it the ele- 
 ment of adventure. And this possibly influ- 
 enced young Wayne as much as anything else 
 in making his choice. But before he left his 
 Uncle Gilbert he had a splendid opportunity 
 to prove that he did, undoubtedly, possess the 
 gift of leadership. 
 
 In the middle of the winter the only other 
 school in Chester was disbanded on account of 
 the sudden death of the schoolmaster. And Gil- 
 bert Wayne found the numbers of his scholars 
 
 15 
 
THE HERO OF STONY POINT 
 
 exactly doubled. He was forced to take on an 
 assistant to aid him in his teaching. 
 
 The new boys, of course, held together and 
 brought with them the reflex of their previous 
 companionship. Gilbert's scholars, of which 
 young Wayne was now the leader, naturally 
 held together also, and the result was many 
 clashes; even the discipline of the classroom 
 hardly prevented them at the outset from show- 
 ing this feeling of antagonism. In front of 
 the old schoolhouse the boys had built a large 
 snow fort, and on coming to school one morn- 
 ing, the followers of the Gray Fox discovered 
 that by some preconcerted arrangement the new 
 boys held possession. They had laid in a large 
 supply of snowballs soaked well in water, and 
 hard as ice could freeze. Every attempt of the 
 late comers to approach the school was with 
 volleys of these missiles. When Anthony 
 Wayne arrived he found his companions hold- 
 ing back at the edge of the little clearing. 
 Quickly he surveyed the field, and retiring out 
 of sight into the pine trees, laid out his plan 
 of battle. There was a slight hill behind the 
 
 16 
 
^^V)\'^^^ 
 
 "The great snow fiojit. 
 
THE GREAT SNOW FIGHT 
 
 schoolhouse and half way up a shed containing 
 an old ox sleigh. A brilliant idea had crossed 
 the young leader's mind. Dividing his forces, 
 he directed Iddings to lead five boys by a cir- 
 cuitous route over the top of the hill and take 
 possession of the ox wagon. It was his inten- 
 tion that they should come coasting down upon 
 the rear of the snow fort, while Anthony and 
 his little handful kept up a constant bombard- 
 ment from the front, and thus claim the enemy's 
 attention. It required some courage to face the 
 hard frozen ice balls while replying merely with 
 those made of the soft new-packed snow. Nev- 
 ertheless, despite ' bruises, and in fact, much 
 bodily discomfort, the attacking party held 
 their ground. 
 
 Suddenly, there was a shout; down the hill 
 came the ox wagon, steered by Iddings, and with 
 such impetus did it strike the snow fort that 
 it plowed through the wall, and for an instant 
 it appeared to the astonished schoolmaster as 
 if there would be real casualties instead of only 
 a few bruised elbows and blackened eyes. As 
 the ox wagon struck the rampart, Anthony led 
 
 17 
 
THE HERO OF STONY POINT 
 
 Ms own men forward and tlie battle was now 
 one of actual conflict with hands and fists. It 
 was interrupted by the appearance of Gilbert 
 Wayne and his assistant, who had some work 
 to tear the antagonists apart. 
 
 Being a man of peace, as he claimed, Gilbert 
 Wayne was also a man of justice, and although 
 he formally declared the action a draw, he sub- 
 sequently drew Anthony to one side and gave 
 him a private decision that undoubtedly if they 
 had been left to fight it out his own old boys 
 would have proved the victors. 
 
 Perhaps this little burst of confidence brought 
 the schoolmaster and his pupil closer together 
 than before. But it could not have been that 
 newly awakened friendship that stirred Anthony 
 entirely. Back in his mind was his promise to 
 his father and a growing determination to put 
 into his hand a letter that would entirely erase 
 the one which his father had given him, some 
 months before. 
 
 So well did he hold to this idea and so faith- 
 fully did he keep to his tasks that at the end 
 of that school year he had made such progress 
 
 18 
 
THE GREAT SNOW FIGHT 
 
 that Gilbert Wayne wrote the following letter 
 to his brother Isaac : 
 
 ** Anthony has so greatly improved in his 
 attention to duty, his scholarship and deport- 
 ment, that I cannot speak of him in too high 
 praise. His advancement has been so rapid 
 during the past year that he has learned all 
 that I can teach him, and I recommend that he 
 be sent to an Academy where he may follow 
 any natural bent he may possess." 
 
 This letter, which was the second one of its 
 character that Gilbert Wayne had written, An- 
 thony handed to his father in the little front 
 office of the old stone house. And then and 
 there he told of his ambition to take up the call- 
 ing of a surveyor aud civil engineer. At the 
 Philadelphia Academy, to which he was sent, 
 Anthony kept up the good record, and at the 
 early age of eighteen was fully competent to 
 take up the work of setting boundary lines, 
 running levels, and the use of the surveyor's 
 compass. Plenty of opportunity came to him 
 — ^he was always accurate and always just. His 
 figures aad his maps might have been worked 
 
 19 
 
THE HERO OF STONY POINT 
 
 out and made by a man of many years' experi- 
 ence. In 1765, when only twenty years of age, 
 he was selected by tbe directors of a company 
 that bad on its lists many of the best known 
 names in Pennsylvania, including, by tbe way, 
 that of Benjamin Franklin, to go to Nova Scotia 
 and to survey a large grant of land that had 
 been given the company by the Crown, and 
 upon which it was proposed to found a large 
 settlement and farming community. He was 
 absent quite a year and his maps and reports 
 were spoken of as models of good workmanship, 
 while his advice and judgment were listened 
 to by his elders and followed out to the letter. 
 He was now established and completely inde- 
 pendent and, as was the way of young men in 
 those days who were self-supporting, he looked 
 for someone else to support also. And as soon 
 as he came of age, in 1766, he hied himself to 
 Philadelphia, and after a swift and victorious 
 campaign so completely won the affections of 
 the beautiful daughter of Bartholomew Pen- 
 rose, that she capitulated after a siege of seven 
 days and was married also in what was then 
 
 20 
 
THE GREAT SNOW FIGHT 
 
 almost record time. But Anthony Wayne was 
 one of those impetuous spirits with whom de- 
 cision spelt action, and as he had begun to take 
 himself very seriously, and his whole life was 
 filled with serious things and problems of great 
 moment, not only to himself but to his country, 
 it is time perhaps that we take up his life more 
 seriously, also. No man, perhaps, has been 
 more misjudged than the hero of Stony Point. 
 The nickname of '^Mad Anthony'' hardly de- 
 scribes him, although it has been taken by 
 many casual readers of history to describe his 
 character. 
 
CHAPTER ni 
 
 THE PRELUDE TO GREAT DEEDS 
 
 IN the spring of 1774 Anthony Wayne had 
 already been a farmer and surveyor for 
 eight years. At Waynesboro, in the County of 
 Chester, he owned and cultivated an extensive 
 and well-ordered farm, as well as a large tan- 
 nery. These were callings at which a man could 
 become wealthy in those days, and undoubtedly 
 young Wayne enjoyed his full share of such 
 prosperity as his contemporaries called wealth. 
 He was, moreover, considered the most capable 
 surveyor in his region — the fame gained during 
 his brief experience in Nova Scotia still en- 
 dured, and had gained him a wide acquaintance ; 
 his decisions in boundary disputes among his 
 neighbors were accepted as finalities. In addi- 
 tion to all these favorable conditions, Wayne 
 was also better educated and possessed of a 
 wider knowledge and experience of life than 
 
 22 
 
THE PEELUDE TO GREAT DEEDS 
 
 his immediate associates. He was endowed, 
 moreover, with a peculiarly attractive person- 
 ality that endeared him to all and valuably as- 
 sisted his leadership in all public and com- 
 munity activities. Hence, it is not remark- 
 able that we learn that he was widely regarded 
 as the proper man to head any general move- 
 ment among the people : he was evidently bom 
 to be a general — a fact early recognized by his 
 schoolmaster uncle. 
 
 With all these advantages, it is to be ex- 
 pected, perhaps, that he might display some of 
 the weaknesses common to humanity. We learn, 
 accordingly, that he was somewhat vain in his 
 manner, rather extravagant in his dress, and 
 often given to boasting and to large assump- 
 tions. When we meet a man addicted to habits 
 such as these we suppose, usually, that he is 
 more capable in talking than in doing. With 
 Wayne, however, as with some of the other 
 famous men of history, it would seem that the 
 high talk he indulged in indicated merely a cre- 
 ative imagination and that opportunities for 
 action were wanting. So it was that among his 
 
THE HERO OF STONY POINT 
 
 neighbors his boastful speech was taken quite 
 seriously. In fact, people seemed always to 
 have taken him **at his own estimate of him- 
 self. ' ' Nor, as subsequent events amply proved, 
 were they at all in error. 
 
 The coveted opportunity for action that the 
 boy leader had so often dreamed of came at 
 last in the exciting times just before the out- 
 break of the American Revolution. It was then 
 that his ability to do came to be fully demon- 
 strated. He was literally the leader among his 
 fellows in every movement for the defense of 
 the colonies against the hasty and ill-advised 
 usurpations of the British Ministry, and, it is 
 gratifying to record, he was a wise leader also. 
 We have learned to call him '^mad" Anthony 
 Wayne, but his * 'madness" was not the obses- 
 sion of the wanton agitator, even against aggra- 
 vated abuses. Although determined in his 
 opposition to the measures of Government to 
 take away the autonomy of the colonies, he 
 was to a very late date inspired with the hope 
 that the matters in dispute might yet be settled, 
 and the Americans reconciled with the Mother 
 
 24 
 
THE PRELUDE TO GREAT DEEDS 
 
 Country. Thus, in September, 1775, as Chair- 
 man of the Chester County Committee of Safe- 
 ty, he wrote : 
 
 ** Whereas, some persons evidently inimical 
 to the Hberty of America have industriously 
 propagated a report that the military associa- 
 tors of this County, in conjunction with the mili- 
 tary associators in general, intend to overturn 
 the Constitution by declaring aa independency 
 . . . and as such report could not originate but 
 among the worst of men for the worst of pur- 
 poses, this Committee have thought proper to 
 declare, and they do hereby declare, their ab- 
 horrence even of an idea so pernicious in its 
 nature, as they ardently wish for nothing more 
 than a happy and speedy reconciliation on con- 
 stitutional principles with that State from whom 
 they derive their origin." 
 
 Nevertheless, about a year before the date of 
 this declaration, above quoted, Anthony Wayne 
 had signed another which emphatically asserted 
 the ** right of every English subject to the en- 
 joyment and disposal of his property," of which 
 no power on earth could legally divest him, and 
 
 25 
 
THE HERO OF STONY POINT 
 
 that ^Hhe attempted invasion of that right was 
 a grievance which should be redressed by con- 
 stitutional means. ' ' From these expressions we 
 may understand that Wayne was in hearty 
 agreement with most of the wisest leaders of 
 the colonists. Independence, the founding of 
 a new nation, separate from England, was an 
 after-thought with nearly all of them, an *' evo- 
 lution,'' as we would say today. The real 
 grounds of contention were the attempts to ab- 
 rogate the rights of self-government — placing 
 all the colonies under the direct administration 
 of the Crown and its ministers — and the making 
 of laws for the colonists in which they had 
 had no representation, in fact in regard to 
 which they had not even been consulted. The 
 succession of governmental blunders looking 
 toward these ends was what made the taxation 
 of tea, paper, etc., so odious to all Americans, 
 especially to the people of Boston and vicinity, 
 and was the occasion of the familiar slogan 
 of the times, ** Taxation without representation 
 is tyranny." This latter sentence was orig- 
 inated, probably, in the expressions used by 
 
 26 
 
THE PEELUDE TO GREAT DEEDS 
 
 John Adams, when defending John Hancock 
 on the charge of smuggling wine in 1770, but, 
 even with Adams and Hancock, no greater con- 
 sequences were expected to their protest than 
 the granting of the right of representation in 
 making the laws for their own government if 
 not for their separate government. 
 
 Such, however, was the attitude of the King 
 and his ministers at this period that the rep- 
 resentations of the colonists were treated with 
 contempt. The unwise zeal of such men as 
 Governor Edmund Andros, and others, had con- 
 firmed the opinion in England that the Ameri- 
 cans were essentially rebellious and turbulent; 
 and, consequently, that they were to be curbed 
 by severe measures only. As the logical cul- 
 mination to the strained relations so long exist- 
 ing between the Mother Country and her colo- 
 nies, the incensed Bostonians plotted together 
 and committed the depredation known as the 
 ^* Boston tea party," in which a whole ship's 
 cargo of tea was thrown overboard, because of 
 the odious import tax. At once their city was 
 placed under martial law. Violence now was 
 
 27 
 
THE HERO OF STONY POINT 
 
 requited with more violence, and in every case 
 it begat its own kind; the dispute grew daily- 
 more aggravated. Even in such colonies as 
 Pennsylvania and Virginia, where, as yet, the 
 valued institutions of the people had not been 
 interfered with, the conviction gained ground 
 steadily that only an armed opposition could 
 convince the Crown that the Americans were 
 determined to maintain their liberties under 
 their charters. The raising and equipping of 
 military companies in all the colonies seemed at 
 the time merely a measure of ** preparedness" 
 — a word that every American should know by 
 this time and take to heart. 
 
 Among the most prominent leaders in Penn- 
 sylvania against the prevailing acts of the Brit- 
 ish Ministry was Anthony Wayne himself. In 
 July, 1774, he was Chairman of the County 
 Committee that adopted resolutions condemn- 
 ing all these acts of oppression. In January, 
 1775, he was a delegate to the Provincial Con- 
 vention of Pennsylvania, which took measures 
 to encourage home industries and manufactures, 
 in opposition to the taxed imports from other 
 
 28 
 
THE PRELUDE TO GREAT DEEDS 
 
 countries. In the following May he originated 
 a proposition that the * 'freemen" of Chester 
 organize for military defense; later in the same 
 year he served on the County Committees of 
 Safety and Correspondence, and in December 
 he was nominated for the Provincial Assembly 
 from his County. In the meantime, also, he 
 was busily engaged in recruiting a regiment- 
 it was known as the Fourth Pennsylvania Bat- 
 talion—and in January, 1776, attired in a re- 
 splendent uniform, he was commissioned its 
 colonel. 
 
 With his elevation to the colonelcy of this 
 ** battalion," Wayne attained at last to the kind 
 of position for which his instincts, abilities, and 
 much of his previous study had amply qualified 
 him. Even in the midst of his engrossing en- 
 gagements at farming, tanning and assisting 
 in the government and public affairs of his 
 county and province, he had followed out his 
 boyhood bent and had always been an eager 
 student of military science and strategy. This 
 is shown by his frequent references in after-life 
 to such books as ** Marshal Saxe's Campaigns," 
 
 29 
 
THE HERO OF STONY POINT 
 
 and *' Caesar's Commentaries on the Gallic 
 War." And the idea of military essentials 
 which he seems to have derived from his studies 
 may be judged by the fact that he early showed 
 marked tendencies to become a ** martinet," or 
 stickler for form and discipline. He required 
 that each company of his command should have 
 its own barber, and that the men should be 
 carefully shaved, and have their hair plaited 
 and powdered. He announced, moreover, that 
 he would severely punish ** every man who 
 comes on parade with a long beard, slovenly 
 dressed or dirty." In a letter to Washington, 
 justly famous for its frankness, he says: 
 
 *^I have an insuperable bias in favor of an 
 elegant uniform and soldierly appearance, so 
 much so that I would risk my life and reputa- 
 tion at the head of the same men in an attack, 
 clothed and appointed as I could wish, merely 
 with bayonets and a single charge of ammuni- 
 tion, than to take them as they appear in com- 
 mon with sixty rounds of cartridges. It may be 
 a false idea, but I cannot help cherishing it." 
 
 It might seem to some readers that all such 
 30 
 
THE PEELUDE TO GREAT DEEDS 
 
 matters are too trivial to occupy the attention 
 of a commander of troops, whose business is, 
 first place, **to do and to die," if, indeed, dying 
 comes in the line of duty. But one must not for- 
 get that, just as in any mechanical device pro- 
 duced by human ingenuity, derangement in a 
 small part may finally grow into a large de- 
 rangement in the whole machine ; so, in an or- 
 ganization of people, in an army or even in a 
 deliberative assembly, all rules and regulations 
 that promote uniformity of action and coopera- 
 tion are valuable and necessary. Experience 
 teaches us also that nothing so promotes the 
 efficiency of a corps of soldiers as strict disci- 
 pline in such small matters, as we might regard 
 them, as those of personal appearance and be- 
 havior. We see, therefore, that Wayne showed 
 the instincts of a real commander in his in- 
 sistence on such matters, rather than the mere 
 desire to make a fine showing on parade. The 
 performance of his men in action throughout 
 the war amply demonstrated the wisdom of his 
 scheme of discipline. 
 
 31 
 
CHAPTEE IV 
 
 COLONEL WAYNE AT TROIS EIYIERES 
 
 IT was at the battle of Trois Eivieres, or 
 Three Rivers, in Canada, that Colonel 
 Wayne and his gallant command were for the 
 first time under fire. The result of this engage- 
 ment was a defeat, a defeat by no means inglo- 
 rious, although, as one historian remarks, in 
 referring to this early American reverse, they 
 '4ost almost everything belonging to them save 
 their hair and their beards!" It was a sad 
 blow to the members of the regiment upon whom 
 their Colonel had expended so much care and 
 solicitude. It was the disastrous end of an 
 ill-conceived expedition, the attempted invasion 
 of Canada in 1776 with the object of enlisting 
 the sympathies and cooperation of the recently 
 conquered French colonists in the common re- 
 sistance to the British Crown. The unsuccess- 
 ful assault on the stronghold of Quebec was the 
 
 32 
 
COLONEL WAYNE AT TROIS RIVIERES 
 
 culmmation of the failure, from which the 
 American forces under Generals Montgomery 
 and Arnold were compelled to make a hurried 
 and disorderly retreat. 
 
 According to the judgment of most of the 
 American leaders at the time, the sympathies 
 of the French Canadians should have been 
 easily obtained. By race and traditions alike 
 they should have been more than willing to 
 throw off the British yoke for the prospects of 
 self-government. But as it happened, the 
 policy of the Crown toward these new acces- 
 sions to the British dominions had been a wise 
 and eminently acceptable one. Probably be- 
 cause the main prerogative claimed by the 
 King, direct government by the Crown through 
 a royal governor, and without representative 
 legislation, had already been established, it 
 seemed possible to allow the concessions that 
 the old French law should still hold in all ad- 
 ministrative matters, especially land tenures, 
 that the posts of greatest honor should be re- 
 served, as formerly, for representatives of the 
 French aristocracy, and, most valuable of all, 
 
 33 
 
THE HERO OF STONY POINT 
 
 that the Catholic Church should be guaranteed 
 in the possession of its vast estates. This latter 
 provision insured the influence of the priest- 
 hood for the British, on the ground, apparently, 
 that, since the influence and position of the 
 Church were thus secured by law, the welfare of 
 the people was certain to be established. Nor 
 could the influence of even so distinguished a 
 clergyman as the Rev. John Carroll, subse- 
 quently Catholic Archbishop of Baltimore, avail 
 to change the attitude of his coreligionists in 
 Canada. Undoubtedly, the Catholic priesthood 
 and hierarchy of the province knew perfectly 
 well that, in the event of their joining, and if 
 the American cause were overthrown, the first 
 movement of reprisal by the nominally Protes- 
 tant State of Great Britain would be the confis- 
 cation of all Church holdings. Consequently, 
 the mighty influence of religion was enlisted in 
 support of the existing order, as against all the 
 inducements offered by the American colonists 
 and their predominantly Protestant Congress, 
 The French Canadians assisted effectively in 
 the defeat of the attempted invasion. 
 
 34 
 
COLONEL WAYNE AT TROIS RIVIERES 
 
 Colonel Wayne's command was attached to 
 the Pennsylvania Brigade commanded by Gen- 
 eral William Thompson, which, in addition to 
 the Fourth Battalion, consisted of the Second 
 Battalion, under Colonel Arthur St. Clair, and 
 of the Sixth, under Colonel William Irvine. 
 This force had been sent forward to assist the 
 American army already in Canada, and started 
 from home, undoubttdly, in high hopes of par- 
 ticipating in a glorious and apparently certain 
 conquest. Wayne's command, which had been 
 variously delayed by the necessity of securing 
 proper arms and equipment, reached a point 
 known as Fort Sorel, midway between Montreal 
 and Quebec, on June 5, 1776, and there joined 
 the retreating remnant of General Montgom- 
 ery's army, together with the other com- 
 mands belonging to Thompson's Brigade, under 
 the command of General John Sullivan. Imme- 
 diately after their arrival, Wayne's men, to- 
 gether with the other Pennsylvanians, were 
 ordered by Sullivan to attack the British force 
 under General Burgoyne, then stationed at 
 Trois Rivieres, some fifty miles down the river. 
 
 35 
 
THE HERO OF STONY POINT 
 
 The precise advantages to be gained by making 
 tMs attack are not very evident, but the Penn- 
 sylvanians responded cheerfully to the call of 
 duty, and went forth eagerly to their baptism of 
 fire. 
 
 The force sent to the attack on Trois Rivieres 
 was 1,400 strong, all from Pennsylvania, ex- 
 cept the small New Jersey Battalion, under Col- 
 onel William Maxwell. They came down the St. 
 Lawrence River in boats, landing at a point nine 
 miles above the town in which the British were 
 quartered, at about two o 'clock on the morning 
 of June 9. The plan was to march forward, 
 and to surprise Burgoyne's men about dawn, 
 a daring plan in which, in all probability, the 
 Americans would have been victorious. As it 
 happened, however, they were misled on the 
 road, came in sight of the enemy's outposts 
 about 3 o'clock, and were compelled to make 
 their further progress through a thick and deep 
 swamp, in which marching was both slow and 
 painful. After four weary hours of dark and 
 dismal floundering, the brave Americans 
 emerged upon an open expanse of solid ground 
 
 36 
 
COLONEL WAYNE AT TROIS RIVIERES 
 
 where they were met by a large and well-formed 
 detachment of British regulars. Although the 
 Pennsylvanians were aided by the fact that 
 they were proceeding through a wood, which, as 
 Wayne himself relates, was * ' so deep and thick 
 with timber and underwood that a man ten 
 yards in front or rear would not see the men 
 drawn up," they were also seriously disadvan- 
 taged in not being able to see other portions 
 of their own force, and in being unable to form 
 before reaching the open. In this difficulty 
 Wayne's genius for generalship under condi- 
 tions of actual warfare was first manifested — a 
 man learned in the theory of strategy, a reader 
 of books about the world's great military 
 achievements, he proved to be a real general 
 prepared to command! Sending for Captain 
 Samuel Hay, he gave the brief order: 
 
 **Take you, sir, your company of riflemen, 
 and a detachment of the light infantry of the 
 Fourth Battalion, and advance carefully 
 through the thicket, keeping the enemy under 
 fire." 
 
 Having created this diversion, which, as he 
 37 
 
THE HERO OF STONY POINT 
 
 stated later, was intended merely to ** amuse" 
 the enemy, lie succeeded in forming the re- 
 mainder of his men in good order, prepared to 
 advance. The British, receiving the fire of 
 Hay's men, moved forward in their direction, 
 which was precisely the result anticipated by 
 Wayne himself. He then moved his own men to 
 meet the oncoming enemy, and issued his com- 
 mand to Hay to separate his force into two 
 companies, one on either wing of the American 
 line, and attempt a double flank movement, ex- 
 posing the British to fire from three directions. 
 This move was highly successful, as far as it 
 was effective, for the British line was broken, 
 and the men fled in disorder to their own camp. 
 The Americans followed them up to the breast- 
 works of their fortifications, in the face of a 
 galling fire from musketry, field pieces and 
 howitzers. All of the colonial forces now 
 rushed on to follow up their advantage, includ- 
 ing those under the command of Colonel Wil- 
 liam Maxwell, who had wandered far to the 
 left of the other American forces in a dense 
 thicket in the midst of the swamp. The show- 
 
 38 
 
COLONEL WAYNE AT TROIS RIVIERES 
 
 ing made by all, who advanced with a bravery 
 notable in men under fire for the first time, 
 served well to impress the enemy, and to per- 
 suade them to remain within their own earth- 
 works. 
 
 Finally, however, the combined fire of the 
 naval vessels on the river and land forces of 
 the British became too intense, and left no al- 
 ternative but retreat. At the close of the ac- 
 tion in the open, Wayne was left on the field 
 with only twenty men and five officers, imper- 
 turbably directing* the retreat, and retiring only 
 when all were safely in the cover of the swamp. 
 Even after he also had retired, he remained 
 behind the main body of his troops to direct an 
 incessant small fire, intended to keep the enemy 
 within their own lines, and to cover the retreat. 
 After about one hour he withdrew also, follow- 
 ing a road to the point at which the party had 
 entered the swamp in the morning, collecting 
 in the course of the march about 700 stragglers, 
 whom he quickly formed into order, continuing 
 the march without further difficulty than that 
 which comes from lack of all provisions. 
 
 39 
 
THE HERO OF STONY POINT 
 
 About nine miles from tlie scene of battle a 
 detachment of the enemy, about 1,500 strong, 
 waylaid tbe Americans, and attempted to cut 
 them off, but, separated as they were from 
 tbeir ships and great guns, they were able to 
 do little damage. Three days later, a weary 
 band of 1,100 men, who had suffered from all 
 sorts of hardships, including hunger and lack 
 of sleep, reached the American camp at Fort 
 Sorel. They had lost 300 of their number, in- 
 cluding General Thompson and Colonel Irvine, 
 who were taken prisoners, and Colonel St. Clair, 
 who wandered into camp alone several hours 
 later. 
 
 The net result of the gallant attack on Trois 
 Rivieres was to discourage the British forces 
 from following the Americans further, thus, as 
 Wayne records, availing to save the army in 
 Canada. Nor did he hesitate to claim such credit 
 as belonged of right to his able efforts ; remark- 
 ing in a letter written to Dr. Franklin, **I be- 
 lieve that it will be universally allowed that Col. 
 Allen and myself have saved the army.'' Nor 
 was this service either needless or ill-timed. In 
 
 40 
 
COLONEL WAYNE AT TROIS RIVIERES 
 
 the words of General James Wilkinson, who had 
 been dispatched by Arnold to solicit aid in the 
 retreat of his own forces, every house and hut 
 on the route was *^ crowded with straggling men 
 without officers, and officers without men." All 
 were suffering from privations, and many were 
 sick and wounded. Finally, as Wilkinson re- 
 cords, he met with Lieutenant- Colonel William 
 Allen — ^he who seceded from the Americans- 
 after the Declaration of Independence — to 
 whom he communicated his orders for a detach- 
 ment. ^* Wilkinson/^ said Allen, **this army 
 is conquered by its fears, and I doubt whether 
 you can draw any assistance from it; but Col- 
 onel Wayne is in the rear, and if anyone can do 
 it he is the man. ' ' 
 
 Wilkinson's meeting with Wayne was a 
 memorable scene. *^I met that gallant officer," 
 he writes, *^as much at his ease as if he was 
 marching on a parade of exercise." No trace 
 of fear or excitement was to be seen in the face 
 or carriage of this hero, who had shown the 
 courage of a seasoned warrior in his first ex- 
 perience of real fighting. He was '*to the man- 
 
 41 
 
THE HEEO OF STONY POINT 
 
 ner bom," apparently, just as if there were 
 truth in the old teaching that we are reborn into 
 the world after death, and he had already, as 
 he had dreamed of a former life, led his legions 
 to victory and glory on a hundred fields of bat- 
 tle. On hearing "Wilkinson's demand for men 
 to assist Arnold in his extremity, Wayne acted 
 promptly. Stationing a guard at the bridge he 
 himself had just crossed, he gave orders to stop 
 every man who seemed alert and capable of 
 further immediate service, and quickly recruited 
 a detachment sufficient for all needs. *'Then," 
 says Wilkinson, *Hhe very men who only the 
 day before were retreating in confusion before 
 a division of the enemy now marched with alac- 
 rity against his main body." 
 
 Fortunately, in spite of his fears, Arnold 
 had, meantime, succeeded in making good his 
 escape from the trap into which the British 
 commander had sought to draw him. Wayne 
 missed, therefore, another immediate oppor- 
 tunity to achieve distinction under fire, and 
 was obliged to return to rejoin General Sullivan 
 at Fort Sorel. On the way back an event oc- 
 
 42 
 
COLONEL WAYNE AT TROIS RIVIERES 
 
 curred that served to show the character of the 
 man in a new light. When about two miles 
 from the American camp, the detachment under 
 Wayne's command was sighted by Sullivan's 
 men, as it slowly made its way along the oppo- 
 site bank of the Sorel River, and was mistaken 
 for a hostile force. Wayne himself, in full sight 
 of the American camp, viewed their hurried 
 preparations for an attack with both amusement 
 and surprise. He is reported to have remarked 
 briefly : 
 
 * * They should have been better prepared for 
 an attack. Then, had we been friends or foes, 
 our welcome would have been equally as 
 warm." 
 
 In the retreat of the army from Canada, 
 Colonel Wayne commanded the Pennsylvania 
 regiments as the ranking officer — General 
 Thompson and Colonel Irvine having been made 
 prisoners, and Colonel St. Clair having been 
 seriously wounded. Wayne himself had not 
 escaped unhurt, for he had received a gun-shot 
 wound at Trois Rivieres — he described it to 
 Franklin as **a slight touch in my right leg'' — 
 
 43 
 
THE HERO OF STONY POINT 
 
 but lie allowed himself no rest from his duties, 
 and by bis strict discipline actually trans- 
 formed the straggling and disheartened crowd 
 of his soldiers into an orderly and compacted 
 fighting force. It was in this period, curiously 
 enough, that he made his famous statement pre- 
 viously quoted, that he '* would expect his offi- 
 cers to enforce regulations about personal 
 cleanliness and neatness of attire,*' adding that 
 he considered it their duty ^'to see that their 
 men always appear washed, shaved, their hair 
 plaited and powdered, and their arms in good 
 order. ' ' Yet this was the man to whom much of 
 the credit is due for leading the Almerican 
 forces safely out of the clutches of Burgoyne 
 to the safe haven of Fort Ticonderoga. 
 
CHAPTER V 
 
 ANTHONY WAYNE ASKS FOR ACTION 
 
 THE return of the American army from 
 Canada found Anthony Wajme already 
 famous as a capable commander and resourceful 
 strategist. As we have already learned, the 
 battle of Trios Eivieres had left him the rank- 
 ing officer of the Pennsylvania troops, with the 
 duty of leading them to a safe retreat at Fort 
 Ticonderoga. The enemy's forces followed the 
 little army — not closely, but at a safe distance. 
 Instead of attempting a general engagement, 
 which might have resulted injuriously to the 
 Americans, they contented themselves with oc- 
 casional skirmishes. But now followed the bat- 
 tle of Lake Champlain, in which Arnold's fleet 
 was destroyed. The British, however, were con- 
 tent merely to threaten an attack on Ticon- 
 deroga, and then withdrew until the following 
 season. In these days of titanic modern war- 
 
 45 
 
THE HERO OF STONY POINT 
 
 fare, involving the engagement of hundreds of 
 thousands of men, it seems a small matter in- 
 deed, the maneuvering or counter-maneuvering 
 of a few regiments on either side. But war was 
 a different game in those days, and important 
 issues hung upon the outcome of a single small 
 engagement. Both sides were uncertain, also, 
 as to the real effective strength of their antag- 
 onists, and were naturally unwilling to risk ac- 
 tions that might result in disastrous defeat. 
 The confidence of the Americans, however, is 
 well expressed by Colonel Wayne himself, when 
 he wrote to his wife under date January 3, 
 1777, *^The British Rebels may be successful 
 for a time ; they may take and destroy our towns 
 near the water and distress us much, but they 
 never can, they never will, subjugate the free- 
 bom sons of America. Our growing country 
 can meet with considerable losses and survive 
 them ; but one defeat for our more than savage 
 enemies ruins them forever." 
 
 For nearly a year Wayne was stationed at 
 Ticonderoga, then, according to general opin- 
 ion, the second most important post in the whole 
 
 46 
 
ANTHONY WAYNE ASKS FOR ACTION 
 
 of the colonial territory. On November 18, 
 1776, he was appointed by General Schuyler 
 commandant of the fort and its dependencies, 
 and so continued until the following April 
 twelftli. The responsibilities of his new com- 
 mand, having to do with the strengthening of 
 the extensive fortifications, and the discipline of 
 a force of men varying between 2,500 and 7,000, 
 who were frequently discontented with their 
 conditions and occasionally were mutinous, 
 fully occupied his attention. He was restive, 
 however, at the continued lack of opportunity 
 for real fighting and apparently exerted every 
 means at his disposal to obtain a transference, 
 if possible to Washington's army, which was 
 during this same period passing through ex- 
 citing adventures. The place also evidently 
 sorely depressed his spirits, as may be judged 
 from a remark in one of his letters : 
 
 ^'It [the country about Ticonderoga] appears 
 to be the last part of the world that God made, 
 and I have some ground to believe it was fin- 
 ished in the dark. That it was never intended 
 that man should live in it is clear, for the peo- 
 
 47 
 
THE HERO OF STONY POINT 
 
 pie who attempted to make any stay have for 
 the most part perished by pestilence or the 
 sword. . . . The soldiers make tent pins of the 
 shin and thigh hones of Abercrombie's men." 
 With all his earnest longing after more ac- 
 tion, and his constant solicitation that he be 
 transferred, it is gratifying to record that he 
 wasted no time — ^that he seemed inspired with 
 the ambition to discharge the duties of even an 
 unacceptable post with the utmost care and at- 
 tention. The men were frequently short on ra- 
 tions, were ill-equipped, were suffering con- 
 stantly from the inroads of epidemic disease, 
 and the commander exerted himself to the ut- 
 most to supply their needs — ^now writing long 
 and insistent letters to his superiors, both in 
 army and government positions, now sending 
 requisitions to the neighboring colonies of Mas- 
 sachusetts and Connecticut for both men and 
 supplies. As the result, undoubtedly, of his 
 rigid discipline, the Pennsylvania troops won 
 great distinction, although, in the words of 
 Colonel Francis Johnston, the ^^Pennsylvanians 
 were originally designed for soldiers," possess- 
 
 48 
 
ANTHONY WAYNE ASKS FOR ACTION 
 
 ing a degree of ** vigilance, assiduity and res- 
 ignation to bad usage, fatigue and the strictest 
 discipline. ' ' 
 
 The grand qualities of the Pennsylvania 
 troops, be they original or from consistent dis- 
 cipline, found eminent illustration during the 
 fighting following the defeat of the American 
 fleet on Lake Champlain. The news of this dis- 
 aster reached the camp at Lake George where 
 several hundred Pennsylvanians were confined 
 in the hospital, ^^ emaciated with disease and 
 sickness of the most malignant kind. ' ' But, even 
 while many of the troops were eagerly hoping 
 for the day of their discharge — others speaking 
 and behaving mutinously, because compelled 
 to remain after the expiration of their term of 
 service, until reenf or cements should arrive — the 
 invalids and *' incapacitated" rose to a man, it 
 is related, and '* fixed on their military ac- 
 couterments.'' Then, entirely without orders 
 or compulsion, they marched to the scene of 
 conflict, determined to conquer or die with their 
 countrymen. **As two privates of the First 
 Battalion commanded by Colonel De Haas 
 
 49 
 
THE HERO OF STONY POINT 
 
 passed through our encampment," writes Col- 
 onel Johnston, *'they were asked if no more of 
 the Pennsylvanians were coming, to which they 
 answered with indignation, ^Yes, confound you, 
 every sick man amongst us that could possibly 
 crawl; but we led the van from our rank.' " 
 Some of these same men had even received their 
 discharges, and had been kept at the hospital 
 merely because, in the judgment of their offi- 
 cers and advisors, they were incapable of mak- 
 ing the journey home. Yet these men, as John- 
 ston relates, came ^* swearing by everything 
 sacred that they would have ample revenge ! ' ' 
 Prom his meager defensive force of not 
 **more than 6,000 effective men, of which some- 
 thing less than one-half, i. e., about 2,600, will 
 bear the brunt of the day, the remainder being 
 on Mount Independence on the opposite side 
 of the Lake," Wayne speaks proudly in one 
 of his letters of his own Pennsylvania contin- 
 gent. **I thank my God," he remarks, **we are 
 left partly alone. I have yet 1,500 hardy vet- 
 erans from Pennsylvania; would to Heaven I 
 could for a day lead them to the assistance of 
 
 50 
 
ANTHONY WAYNE ASKS FOR ACTION 
 
 poor Washington. I would risk my soul that 
 they would sell their lives, or liberties, at too 
 dear a rate for Britons to make purchases." 
 In another letter to General Schuyler he speaks 
 of the approaching discharge of a part of this 
 force, not without the same pride as of old, and 
 with perfect confidence in their consistent in- 
 tention to serve the cause of independence to 
 the end of the war. *^I have," he writes, 
 ** ordered one regiment of the Pennsylvania to 
 march tomorrow [January 23, 1777]. The 
 others will follow as soon as possible with 
 orders to proceed in good order to Philadelphia. 
 I have lately received letters from General St. 
 Clair and other gentlemen in General Washing- 
 ton's camp which made me think it advisable 
 to keep these regiments embodied until they are 
 dismissed by the board of war. Their time 
 expired the 5th of this instant: they will be 
 settled with in Philadelphia agreeable to prom- 
 ise, when I have reason to expect the greatest 
 part will reengage." 
 
 Speaking of these same troops some time pre- 
 vious, Wayne remarked: ** 'Liberty to come 
 
 51 
 
THE HERO OF STONY POINT 
 
 down for one month when relieved' carries with 
 it an idea of being immediately sent back to a 
 place [Ticonderoga] which they imagine is 
 very unhealthy. They say, * March us off this 
 ground and then we will cheerfully reengage/ 
 Added to this, their anxiety about their friends 
 in the Jerseys and Pennsylvania makes them 
 impatient to be led to the assistance of their dis- 
 tressed home country. They likewise see the 
 eastern people running away in the clouds of 
 the night, some before and all soon as their 
 times expire. Colonel Whitcomb's regiment, 
 all the sailors and mariners, the whole of the 
 artificers, and all the corps of artillery, except 
 Captain Roman's company, which consists of 
 but twelve men, officers included, are gone off 
 the ground." 
 
 Wayne, as it seems, was incapable of under- 
 standing the motives behind such doings. Home 
 and family were as dear to him as to any of 
 those who, as he complains, deserted, or made 
 a precipitous departure. But, with him, the 
 sentiment of patriotism and the soldier's honor 
 were altogether too high and valuable for any 
 
 52 
 
ANTHONY WAYNE ASKS FOR ACTION 
 
 kind of compromise. To deserters he frequently 
 applied the then highly opprobrious term ^'cai- 
 tiff/' which we also might consider insulting, 
 had we not quite forgotten its use and meaning. 
 His firm and decisive treatment of mutinous 
 and insubordinate soldiers is exampled in the 
 following account embodied in one of his letters : 
 ''Yesterday morning [February 11, 1777], at 
 gun fire, I was informed that Captain Nelson's 
 rifle company— who used to do duty in my regi- 
 ment—were under arms with their packs slung 
 ready to march, and determined to force their 
 way through all opposition. On my arrival at 
 their encampment I found them drawn up in 
 order and beginning their march. On asking 
 the cause of such conduct, they began in a 
 tumultuous manner to inform me that the time 
 of their enlistment was expired last month, and 
 that they looked upon themselves as at liberty 
 to go home. I ordered them to halt— that I 
 could not answer them all at once. I directed 
 their leader to step out and speak for them. A 
 sergeant advanced. I presented a pistol to his 
 breast. He fell on his knees to beg his life. I 
 
 53 
 
THE HERO OF STONY POINT 
 
 then ordered the whole to ground their arms, 
 which was immediately complied with. I then 
 addressed them, when they with one voice 
 agreed to remain nntn the 20th instant and re- 
 turn to their duty. This was scarce over when 
 a certain Jonah Holida of Captain Coe's com- 
 pany in Colonel Robinson's regiment en- 
 deavored to excite them to mutiny again. . . . 
 I thought proper to chastise him for his in- 
 solence on the spot before the men, and then 
 sent him to answer for his crime to the main 
 guard. 
 
 *^The colonel waited on me and very inno- 
 cently informed me that he had a complaint 
 lodged against me, that he was very sorry for 
 it, but was obliged to take notice of it, and then 
 delivered the within paper. On inquiring I found 
 it was wrote by Captain Coe. I had him brought 
 before me. He acknowledged the writing, and 
 also that he knew the cause for which the soldier 
 was struck and confined, but was of the opinion 
 that every soldier had a right to deliver his 
 sentiments on every occasion without being 
 punished, upon which I orderd him in arrest 
 
 54 
 
ANTHONY WAYNE ASKS FOR ACTION 
 
 as an abettor of the mutiny. I wait for your 
 orders to send them down to Albany, where you 
 will take such further measures as you may 
 deem necessary.'' 
 
 There was probably considerable reason for 
 the dissatisfaction expressed by both Wayne 
 and his men, who were practically marooned in 
 a lonely and unhealthful spot, with no chance 
 of real fighting, except with hunger, discomfort, 
 privation and disease, and compelled to con- 
 stantly urge the authorities to supply the mer- 
 est necessities of life — food, clothing, ammuni- 
 tion and medicines. All such conditions are 
 confidently ascribed by historians to the famil- 
 iar evils, politics and incompetence in high of- 
 fices. So strong, indeed, was the sentiment 
 that ** polities'' even then ruled the administra- 
 tion of government, that, strange as it may seem 
 at the present day, even the adoption of the 
 Declaration of Independence was viewed with- 
 out enthusiasm in many quarters, as a mere 
 ** party triumph." 
 
 On February 21, 1777, Colonel Wayne was 
 advanced to the rank of brigadier general, and, 
 
 55 
 
THE HERO OF STONY POINT 
 
 in spite if Ms tireless loyalty and efficient ser- 
 vice to the cause of freedom, was advanced to 
 no higher rank during the whole period of the 
 war. It was not, in fact, until October, 1783, 
 that he was advanced by Congress to the major- 
 generalship, and then only by brevet. Just as 
 he had discharged a brigadier's duties at Ti- 
 conderoga, with only the rank and pay of a 
 colonel, so during the remainder of his service, 
 to nearly the end of the war, he did the work of 
 a major-general on the pay and with the rank 
 of a brigadier. We might strongly suspect that 
 ** politics" had had an influence in shaping 
 public policy in regard to him. Yet he never 
 complained on this score. He was anxious only 
 to get more action, to lead his troops to victory 
 against a cruel and revengeful enemy ; and with 
 this end attained at last, he seems to have been 
 actually content. In a letter to General Schuy- 
 ler early in 1777 he refers to the reverses in 
 New Jersey and Pennsylvania, and adds that 
 the '* alarming situation . . . causes us most 
 ardently to wish for an opportunity of meeting 
 those sons of war and rapine, face to face and 
 
 56 
 
ANTHONY WAYNE ASKS FOR ACTION 
 
 man to man." Wlien some of his troops began 
 to be impatient at the delay in securing their 
 discharges, he wrote, **I want to go also. It 
 would be in my power to do more with them in 
 case of necessity than perhaps any other offi- 
 cer: I kaow these worthy fellows well, and 
 they know me. I am confident they would not 
 desert me in time of danger. If you think it 
 would be for the benefit of the service, I 
 should be glad to be immediately relieved in 
 command with orders to march with the last of 
 the southern troops.'' 
 
CHAPTER VI 
 
 THE CAMPAIGN OF 77 
 
 THE day of Anthony Wayne's deliverance 
 came at last. On April 12, 1777, he was 
 directed by "Washington to report for duty with 
 the main body of the American army, then 
 located at Morristown, New Jersey. He was 
 succeeded in the command of Ticonderoga by 
 General Arthur St. Clair, and on his arrival at 
 Washington's camp was assigned to the com- 
 mand of a division of eight regiments of the 
 newly organized Pennsylvania Line. It con- 
 sisted of about 1,700 men, many of whom had 
 been members of the original troops from Penn- 
 sylvania, and had reenlisted. He had, there- 
 fore, as nearly as possible, the realization of his 
 long-expressed desire to command his Penn- 
 sylvania veterans in real warfare. Washing- 
 ton's total command at this time consisted of 
 only five divisions, or forty-three regiments, 
 
 58 
 
THE CAMPAIGN OF 77 
 
 representing a total of about 7,300 men. So 
 Wayne was given command of about one-fourth 
 of the effective force in men, a distinct tribute 
 to Ms reputation as a capable commander. 
 
 As a matter of fact, the assignment of "Wayne 
 to this command, composed in part of seasoned 
 troops, was no accident, nor yet even a compli- 
 ment to his character and abilities. He was 
 deliberately chosen as the best available officer 
 to handle effective forces in aa army subjected 
 to unusual and trying conditions. A large part 
 of Washington's command at this time was 
 composed of fresh recruits, whose training 
 necessarily occupied much of the time and at- 
 tention of his officers. Until these men, who had 
 been sent from several states south of the Hud- 
 son, to take the places of those whose times of 
 enlistment had expired, it was manifestly im- 
 possible to give battle to the enemy in open 
 field. Washington retired, therefore, to the high 
 lands around Morristbwn, carefully entrench- 
 ing and fortifying his positions, and maintained 
 a *^ Fabian policy" of awaiting the enemy's 
 movements until his raw recruits had been 
 
 59 
 
THE HERO OF STONY POINT 
 
 ** whipped into shape." By his masterly move- 
 ments in the battles of Trenton and Princeton 
 he had compelled the enemy to retreat, and now 
 he held the position of advantage, threatening 
 to cut off Howe^s forces in any attempt to ad- 
 vance on Philadelphia; also serving to protect 
 the entrance to the country west of the Hudson 
 Eiver, including the way to West Point, Albany 
 and the hill country to the south. Howe was 
 thus subjected to the constant danger of a flank 
 attack in any movement he might have attempt- 
 ed, either to attack Philadelphia, or to form a 
 junction with General Burgoyne. 
 
 Although Washington was in a state of con- 
 stant anxiety lest his position should be as- 
 saulted by a large and well-trained force of 
 the enemy, being afraid that the comparatively 
 unprepared condition of his own troops should 
 be known to them, it is interesting to learn that 
 Howe and his men were by no means as con- 
 fident, nor as well informed, as might have been 
 suspected. A small detachment under Gen- 
 eral James Grant had, to be sure, been ad- 
 vanced as far as Brunswick, with the appar- 
 
 60 
 
THE CAMPAIGN OF 77 
 
 ent object in view of attempting to cut off the 
 expected advance of General Sullivan, then at 
 Princeton. But, instead of making any dem- 
 onstration against the Americans, he carefully 
 fortified his camp, and waited. As one his- 
 torian has remarked. General Wayne seems to 
 have *' entertained a most sovereign contempt 
 for the enemy,'' commenting on the fact that 
 ^Hhey dared not face us without the cover of 
 an entrenchment." In a letter to Sharp De- 
 lany in June, 1777, he writes : 
 
 ' ' The enemy are all at work in fortifying their 
 camp. We have fairly turned the tables on 
 them, for whilst we are usefully employed in 
 maneuvering they are at hard labor. Our peo- 
 ple are daily gaining health, spirits and disci- 
 pline—the spade and the pickaxe are throwed 
 aside for the British rebels to take up. They, 
 notwithstanding, affect to hold us cheap, and 
 threaten to beat up our quarters, if we don't 
 beat up theirs first, which is in contemplation; 
 but of this in time." 
 
 In the repulse of the British detachment at 
 Brunswick and its retreat to Amboy, General 
 
 61 
 
THE HERO OF STONY POINT 
 
 Wayne played a conspicuous part. Washing- 
 ton had determined to dislodge them, and dis- 
 patched the Pennsylvania troops under Wayne 
 to attack them. The result was so successful 
 that the British withdrew hurriedly from their 
 fortified camp ^^with circumstances of shame 
 and disgrace," as Wayne expresses it. An 
 amusing account of this afeir is found in one 
 of Wayne's letters. He writes: 
 
 ^*We offered Greneral Grant battle six times 
 the other day. He as often formed, but always 
 on our approach his people broke and ran, after 
 firing a few volleys, which we never returned, 
 being determined to let them feel the force of 
 our fire, and to give them the bayonet under 
 cover of the smoke. This Howe, who was to 
 march through America at the head of 5,000 
 men, had his coat much dirtied, his horse's head 
 taken off, and himself badly bruised for having 
 the presumption at the head of 700 British 
 troops to face 500 Pennsylvanians.'' 
 
 The ''deadlock'' could not endure much 
 longer, however. So able a general as Howe 
 must inevitably find some means of circumvent- 
 
 62 
 
THE CAMPAIGN OF 77 
 
 ing tlie plans of his opponent and gaining Ms 
 ends, without endangering his own safety in a 
 flank attack, snch as he mnst have suspected 
 Washington was planning to deliver to a force 
 advancing in any direction. Accordingly, Howe 
 solved the difficulty by determining to transport 
 by sea a force sufficient to attack Philadelphia, 
 and toward the end of July, 1777, withdrew his 
 troops from New Jersey, and embarked them at 
 Staten Island. About the same time that the 
 news of this movement was received at the 
 American camp, the unbelievable disaster of 
 the capture of Fort Ticonderoga was also com- 
 municated to them. This fort, so carefully for- 
 tified by Wayne, at the expense of time, labor 
 and human lives — for many men contracted dis- 
 ease in the prosecution of the work — ^had one 
 absurdly weak point. The fortifications were 
 commanded by the heights of Mount Defiance to 
 the rear, a fact pointed out by both Wayne and 
 Trumbull some months before, but without suc- 
 cess in persuading the authorities to provide 
 for the occupation of this position. The British, 
 however, were not slow to seize the advantage 
 
 63 
 
THE HERO OF STONY POINT 
 
 so invitingly afforded them, and when their guns 
 and men were perceived there, General St. 
 Clair immediately capitulated, without firing 
 a shot, or attempting any resistance. They 
 were well prepared for a long siege, also to 
 repel assaults on their works, but not to suffer 
 from the galling fire of a battery mounted on 
 the heights to their rear. 
 
 Astounding as the new complication of af- 
 fairs must have seemed, Washington was equal 
 to the emergency. He was convinced that he 
 had nothing to fear from the forces of Bur- 
 goyne in the north. Consequently his attention 
 was devoted to providing to prevent the capture 
 of Philadelphia. With this object in view, he 
 issued these orders to General Wayne: 
 
 * ^ The fleet having gone out of the Hook, and 
 as Delaware appears to be its most probable 
 destination, I desire that you will leave your 
 brigade under the next in command, and pro- 
 ceed to Chester County, in Pennsylvania, where 
 your presence will be necessary to arrange the 
 militia who are to rendezvous there. '^ 
 
 In obedience to this order, Wayne at once 
 64 
 
THE CAMPAIGN OF 77 
 
 returned to his home county, and plunged into 
 the midst of the heavy work of organizing the 
 militia. So quickly was the final work accom- 
 plished that on August 23, about one month 
 after Howe's departure from New York, the 
 forces were sent to the front, marching through 
 Philadelphia on the way to Wilmington. Even 
 though so near to his home at this time, Wayne 
 could not even visit his family, and saw them 
 hut once, apparently, during the entire period. 
 This may be judged from a letter written to his 
 wife on August 26: 
 
 **I am peremptorily forbid by His Excellency 
 to leave the army. My case is hard. I am 
 obliged to do the work of three general officers. 
 But if it was not the case, as a general officer, I 
 could not obtain a leave of absence. I must, 
 therefore, in the most pressing manner, request 
 you to meet me tomorrow evening at Naaman's 
 Creek. Pray bring Mr. Eobinson, with my lit- 
 tle son and daughter." 
 
 About three days after the writing of this 
 letter to his wife, Wayne had arrived with his 
 division, which had followed him from Wash- 
 
 65 
 
THE HERO OF STONY POINT 
 
 ington's camp, at the American position near 
 Wilmington. There preparations were imme- 
 diately begun to meet the enemy's forces, which 
 were reported advancing from the landing place 
 on Chesapeake Bay. The eastern shore of the 
 Brandywine River was selected as the most 
 advantageous position to meet the expected 
 attack, or, at least, to prevent the British forces 
 from crossing the river, as was expected, at a 
 place known as Chad's Ford. Wayne evidently 
 examined the ground thoroughly, and made a 
 strong recommendation to Washington, in a 
 letter dated September 2, that a strong de- 
 tachment of the American army be detailed to 
 make a flank attack on the British as they were 
 attempting to advance. This opinion he forti- 
 fied by copious references to the strategies of 
 Caesar and other great commanders of the past, 
 who by sudden flank movements had succeeded 
 in routing and demoralizing an already all-but- 
 victorious enemy. The plan did not seem to 
 have appealed to Washington 's judgment, since 
 he directed the plan of battle on an entirely 
 different theory. The American forces drew 
 
 66 
 
THE CAMPAIGN OF 77 
 
 up near Chad's Ford, and attempted to pre- 
 vent the enemy from reaching it, but, in spite 
 of exceptional bravery and a most determined 
 defense, were finally compelled to retreat. 
 
 In this fight, as was quite to his liking, un- 
 doubtedly, Wayne bore the brunt of the severest 
 fighting, his force being directly fronted by 
 the seven thousand Hessians under Baron Wil- 
 helm von Knypenhausen, who vainly attempted 
 until sunset to pass by and gain the ford. Then, 
 however, he was compelled to retire, even 
 though in good order, because of the fact that 
 his supports had been driven from the field, 
 when the two divisions under Generals Sullivan 
 and Greene, forming the right wing of the 
 American line, had been turned back by the 
 fierceness of Cornwallis' assaults. Wayne was 
 then compelled to retire, Knypenhausen being 
 in front and Cornwallis in the rear. 
 
 Undoubtedly, had it not been for the tenacity 
 and courage of the British regulars, the out- 
 come would have been different, perhaps even 
 a complete American victory. Despite the fear 
 and hatred of them felt by their contemporary 
 
 67 
 
THE HERO OF STONY POINT 
 
 enemies, these '^Hessians" of Knypenhausen's 
 were a poor lot of people. They were not the 
 trained German soldiers of the present day, 
 but miserable creatures, recruited, for the most 
 part, from workhouses and by press gangs, ac- 
 cording to the custom of the Eighteenth Cen- 
 tury in all European countries. They were fre- 
 quently compelled to fight for the cause in which 
 they had no earthly interest, by threats and 
 compulsion, and large numbers of them seized 
 any available opportunities to desert. Wayne's 
 men deserved high credit, undoubtedly, for suc- 
 cessfully withstanding for so long a time the 
 fierce assaults of an overwhelmingly superior 
 force, but, apart from the fact that, in those 
 days, at least, it would have taken a long time 
 to kill and disable a force of seven thousand 
 men, or even to drive them oif, they might 
 easily have withstood them indefinitely. From 
 the standpoint of our knowledge of operations 
 in recent wars, with the terrible engines of 
 destruction now in use, it seems difficult, indeed, 
 to understand the conditions of military fight- 
 ing at the period of the Revolution. Usually, 
 
 68 
 
THE CAMPAIGN OF 77 
 
 in musketry fighting, at least, the two opposing 
 forces would line up opposite one another and 
 continue firing until an opportunity appeared 
 to adopt other tactics. That such affrays were 
 not more bloody than they were can be ascribed 
 only to the inefficiency at long range of the mus- 
 kets of the period, combined with general poor 
 marksmanship. Thus, as records show, one 
 regiment engaged at Brandywine—the Thir- 
 teenth Pennsylvania, commanded by Colonel 
 Walter Stewart—lost but sixteen men in this 
 battle and in the later affray at Germantown. 
 The nature of the fighting done by this corps 
 may be judged from the following account left 
 jy one of its lieutenants, James MacMichael: 
 '*We attacked the enemy at 5:30 p. m., and 
 we were first obliged to retreat a few yards, and 
 formed in an open field, when we fought without 
 giving way on either side until dark. Our am- 
 munition ahnost expended, firing ceased on both 
 sides, when we received orders to proceed to 
 Chester. This day for a severe and excessive 
 engagement exceeded all I ever saw. Our regi- 
 ment fought at one stand about an hour under 
 
 69 
 
THE HERO OF STONY POINT 
 
 an incessant fire, and yet the loss was less than 
 at Long Island, neither were we so near to 
 each other as at Princeton, our common distance 
 being fifty yards.'' 
 
 Undoubtedly, the greatest danger to such 
 a force would have been its envelopment by the 
 enemy, with close-quarters fighting, in which 
 bayonets would be used and the sheer physical 
 force of a massed weight of men would have 
 been the greatest factor on either side. It was 
 to avoid this very disaster— the speedy crush- 
 ing out of its life by the superior numbers of 
 the enemy on both sides — that the right wing 
 retired before Comwallis, and later, also, the 
 center, under Wayne himself, before the hordes 
 of Knypenhausen. Wayne's retreat did cover 
 the rear of Sullivan and Greene, discouraging 
 any attempt to follow by the British regulars. 
 Thus the American forces were able to retire 
 in good order, even retrieving several pieces of 
 artillery which had been deserted on the field. 
 A spirited account of the rescue of the guns is 
 left for us by one of the American officers 
 (Colonel William Chambers), who writes: 
 
 70 
 
THE CAMPAIGN OF 77 
 
 ''The general sent orders for our artillery to 
 retreat, and ordered me to cover it with a part 
 of my regiment. It was done, but, to my sur- 
 prise, tlie artillerymen had run and left the 
 howitzer behind. The two pieces went up the 
 road protected by about sixty of my men, who 
 had very warm work, but brought them safe. I 
 then ordered another party to fly to the howitzer 
 and bring it off. Captain Buchanan, Lieutenant 
 Simpson, and Lieutenant Douglass went imme- 
 diately to the gun, and the men following their 
 example, I covered them with the few I had 
 remaining [Wayne aimed and fired one of the 
 field pieces himself] ; but before this could be 
 done the main body of the foe came within 
 thirty yards and kept up the most terrible fire 
 ever heard in America, though with very little 
 loss on our side. I brought all the brigade 
 artillery safely off, and I hope to see them again 
 fired at the scoundrels. Yet we retreated to the 
 next height in good order in the midst of a 
 very heavy fire of cannon and small-arms. Not 
 thirty yards distant we formed to receive them, 
 but they did not choose to follow." 
 
 71 
 
CHAPTER VII 
 FROM WHITEHORSE TAVERN TO GERMANTOWN 
 
 THE American forces retired in good order, 
 and that same night encamped at Chester, 
 eleven miles from the field of battle. On the 
 following day they marched sixteen miles to 
 SchuylMll Palls, with the intention of forming 
 a junction with Washington's army and barring 
 the road to Philadelphia. In the operations pre- 
 ceding the occupation of that city by the British 
 there seem to have been a long series of un- 
 fortunate circumstances. Letters containing 
 important commands were lost, or captured by 
 the enemy, and Wayne, Greene, and other com- 
 manders were left to follow former orders, to 
 the disarrangement of Washington's astutely 
 conceived plans to oppose the advance. But 
 for such unfortunate occurrences, coupled with 
 the information given to the enemy by Tory 
 spies, it is more than probable that the British 
 
 72 
 
WHITEHORSE TAVERN— GERMANTOWN 
 
 could, even then, have been held off. This opin- 
 ion seems to have been shared by contemporary 
 writers, among them "Wayne himself, who re- 
 cords in one of his numerous letters of the 
 action near Pawling Mill that, but for several 
 unfortunate causes of confusion, they might 
 have achieved a ** victory that in all human 
 probability would have put an end to the Ameri- 
 can war. ' ' 
 
 Such explanations of conditions are neces- 
 sary, in order to explain the apparent derelic- 
 tion of General Wayne, which led to his trial 
 by court-martial on serious charges specifying 
 neglect of duty. These charges grew out of 
 a most unfortunate affair: the attempted sur- 
 prise of his camp, known to history as the 
 **Paoli Massacre." Wayne, according to 
 orders from General Washington, had en- 
 camped his division at a point on the old Lan- 
 caster road, midway between the Paoli and 
 Warren taverns, in order to be in position to 
 attack the British rear guard on the following 
 morning, it being his intention to capture its 
 baggage train. He had advanced with the 
 
 73 
 
THE HERO OF STONY POINT 
 
 greatest secrecy, as was necessary in any such 
 undertaking, but missed the golden opportunity 
 to lead a brilliant and, perhaps, successful ac- 
 tion through the treachery of some Tory spies, 
 who betrayed the location of his encampment. 
 Consequently, the British rear guard com- 
 mander determined in his turn upon a surprise 
 attack, which was partially successful, al- 
 though, as Wayne claims, and his superiors 
 were convinced on his representation, he had 
 been previously informed of the intended at- 
 tack and posted his guards with his usual care. 
 The enemy came on in such numbers, however, 
 that they were able to **rush" the guards, and 
 were upon the camp before the formation of 
 troops had been completed. Indeed, as one his- 
 torian remarks, they had **a force so large that 
 two of the British regiments of which it was 
 composed were not engaged in the horrible work 
 in which the rest were so conspicuous, their 
 services not being required." Wayne's report 
 of the affair is as follows : 
 
 ** About 11 o'clock last evening (September 
 20, 1777) we were alarmed by a firing from one 
 
 74 
 
WHITEHORSE TAVERN— GERMANTOWN 
 
 of our out guards. The division was imme- 
 diately formed, wHch was no sooner done than 
 a firing began on our right flank. I thought 
 proper to order the division to file ofE by the 
 left, except the infantry and two or three regi- 
 ments nearest to where the attack began, in 
 order to favor our retreat. By this time the 
 enemy and we were not more than ten yards 
 distant. A well-directed fire mutually took 
 place, followed by a charge of bayonet. Num- 
 bers fell on each side. We then drew off a little 
 distance, and formed a front to oppose to theirs. 
 They did not think prudent to push matters 
 further. Part of the division are a little scat- 
 tered, but are collecting fast. We have saved 
 all our artillery, ammunition and stores, except 
 one or two wagons belonging to the commis- 
 sary's department.'' 
 
 With the curious reluctance, so often noted by 
 contemporary writers, the British troops 
 neglected to follow up the advantage already 
 gained, although, with their superior force, 
 they might have inflicted even further damage 
 upon the American lines. As at Brandywine, 
 
 75 
 
THE HERO OF STONY POINT 
 
 and at other engagements still to be recorded, 
 the probabilities are that a determined advance 
 upon the retreating foe would have transformed 
 defeat into a rout, and made future progress 
 far easier. We must not forget, however, that 
 any such pushing on after an advantage meant 
 precisely one thing, *^cold steeP' — and man- 
 to-man fighting is distinctly repugnant to the 
 modem soldier. It is one of the results fol- 
 lowing the use of firearms as the principal 
 element in battle. Nothing could better illus- 
 trate this contention than the fact that this 
 affair has been always known as a ^'massacre.'' 
 Sixty-one Americans were killed, mostly by the 
 bayonet, and the ** atrocity" of the thing long 
 oppressed patriotic minds and imaginations. 
 The same popular ^^horror'' was also visited, 
 in part, upon Wayne himself, who was roundly 
 blamed, first, for pitching his camp so near to 
 the enemy, and second, for providing insufficient 
 guards to prevent the disorder following an 
 attack. A court of inquiry found against him 
 on both these charges, and he immediately de- 
 manded a court martial, by which he was thor- 
 
 76 
 
WHITEHORSE TAVERN-GERMANTOWN 
 
 ougWy acquitted. His defense was that Ms 
 camp was at least two miles from that of the 
 enemy, and that it could not have been other- 
 wise located, in obedience to Washington's 
 conunaads, and in view of the fact that he wa^ 
 expecting to make a junction with the force 
 under General William Smallwood. He was 
 also vindicated on the matter of properly placed 
 guards. The entire affair consisted in the con- 
 fusion due to loss of letters from Washin^on, 
 directing changes of plans outlined in previous 
 orders. These letters probably fell into the 
 hands of the enemy, and enabled them to cir- 
 cumvent all movements made by Wayne. 
 
 Thus^ three times within a week Washington 
 had changed his orders, on account of the chang- 
 ing conditions in the situation. On September 
 15 Wayne had arrived at the White Horse 
 Tavern on the Lancaster Road, with the inten- 
 tion of carrying out his orders to make a flank 
 movement against the British army as it at- 
 tempted to ford i^ie river. Here a small skirmish 
 occurred on the following day. On the seven- 
 teenth the orders were again changed, so that, 
 
 77 
 
THE HERO OF STONY POINT 
 
 as already stated, Wayne should be able to take 
 a position from wbich he could attack the 
 enemy's rear while the main army under Wash- 
 ington should resist its passage of the fords. 
 Finally, both orders were rescinded, and Wayne 
 was ordered to join Washington at Potts' 
 Grove. Owing, perhaps, in part to the con- 
 fusion following the non-delivery of these let- 
 ters of command, the original plans miscarried, 
 and Howe forced his way to Philadelphia. Be- 
 fore attempting to occupy the city, however, the 
 British commander dispatched large detach- 
 ments of his troops to reduce the American 
 fortifications at Billingsport, Mud Island and 
 Red Bank on the Delaware River, in order to 
 gain free access for the fleet in bringing up 
 supplies. Thus, with an apparent lack of good 
 judgment, he left himself in a weakened con- 
 dition in his camp within a few miles of the 
 city. Washington, acting on his own opinion, 
 and against the strongly urged judgments of 
 ten out of his thirteen general officers — only 
 Generals Wayne, Smallwood and Scott favored 
 it — determined to attack the British before 
 
 78 
 
WHITEHORSE TAVERN— GERMANTOWN 
 
 their detached columns could return to camp, 
 and without waiting for the reenforcements ex- 
 pected from the north. 
 
 In the arrangement of the line of battle the 
 right wing was assigned to the command of 
 General Sullivain, to -whose division that of 
 Wayne was also added. The left wing was 
 under the command of General Greene, but, 
 most unfortunately, did not succeed in reaching 
 the field in time to join in the battle. Several 
 other corps failed to make a good showing in 
 the fight, with the result that, as seems to have 
 been his fate on numerous occasions, Wayne's 
 men bore the brunt of nearly the hardest fight- 
 ing of the day. Indeed, had all the troops been 
 of the same mettle, and under as good discipline 
 as those under Wayne, it is not improbable that 
 the British army would have been utterly 
 crushed. 
 
 The most interesting part of the whole affair, 
 for the present, at least, is the experience of 
 Wayne and his men. Here, again, as in many 
 other instances, he has left us a clear account 
 of the day's doings in his familiar and graphic 
 
 79 
 
THE HEEO OF STONY POINT 
 
 style. In a letter to his wife, written two days 
 after the fight, he writes: 
 
 '*0n the 4th instant at the dawn of day we 
 attacked General Howe's army at the upper 
 end of Germantown. The action soon became 
 general. When we advanced on the enemy with 
 charged bayonets, they broke at first without 
 waiting to receive us, but soon formed again, 
 when a heavy and well-directed fire took place 
 on each side. The enemy again gave way, but, 
 being supported by the grenadiers, returned 
 to the charge. General Sullivan's division and 
 Conway's brigade were at this time engaged 
 to the right or west of Germantown, whilst my 
 division had the whole right wing of the enemy's 
 army to encounter, on the left or east of the 
 town, two-thirds of our army being then too 
 far to the east to afford us any assistance. How- 
 ever, the unparalleled bravery of the troops 
 surmounted every difficulty, and the enemy re- 
 treated in the utmost confusion. Our people, 
 remembering the action of the night of the 
 20th of September, near the Warren, pushed 
 on with their bayonets, and took ample ven- 
 
 80 
 
WHITEHORSE TAVERN— GERMANTOWN 
 
 geance for that night's work. Our officers ex- 
 erted themselves to save many of the poor 
 wretches who were crying for mercy, but to lit- 
 tle purpose ; the rage and fury of the soldiers 
 were not to be restrained for some time, at 
 least not until great numbers of the enemy 
 fell by our bayonets. The fog, together with 
 the smoke occasioned by our cannon and mus- 
 ketry, made it almost as dark as night. Our 
 people, mistaking one another for the enemy, 
 frequently exchanged several shots before they 
 discovered their error. We had now pushed 
 the enemy near three miles, and were in pos- 
 session of their whole encampment, when a large 
 body of troops were discovered advancing on 
 our left flank, which being taken for the enemy, 
 we retreated. After retreating for about two 
 miles, we found it was our own people, who were 
 originally designed to attack the right wing of 
 the enemy's army. The fog and this mistake 
 prevented us from following a victory that in 
 all human probability would have put an end 
 to the American war. General Howe for a long 
 time could not persuade himself that we had 
 
 81 
 
THE HERO OF STONY POINT 
 
 run from victory, but the fog clearing up he 
 ventured to follow us with all his infantry, 
 grenadiers and light horse, with some :field 
 pieces. I, at this time, was in the rear, and, 
 finding Mr. Howe determined to push us hard, 
 drew up in order of battle, and waited his ap- 
 proach. When he advanced near we gave him a 
 few cannon shot with some musketry, which 
 caused him to run with the utmost confusion. 
 This ended the action of the day, which con- 
 tinued without intermission from daylight until 
 near twelve o'clock.'' 
 
 Wayne's account is graphically supplemented 
 by another from the pen of General Hunter of 
 the British army. He writes : 
 
 * * The first that General Howe knew of Wash- 
 ington's marching against us was by his at- 
 tacking us at daybreak. General Wayne com- 
 manded the advance and fully expected to be 
 avenged for the surprise we had given him. 
 When the first shots were fired at our pickets, 
 so much had we all Wayne's affair in remem- 
 brance that the battalion were out under arms 
 in a minute. . . . Just as the battalion formed, 
 
 82 
 
WHITEHORSE TAVERN— GERMANTOWN 
 
 the pickets came in and said the enemy were ad- 
 vancing in force. They had barely joined the 
 battalion when we heard a loud cry, *Have at 
 the bloodhounds, revenge Wayne's affair!' and 
 they immediately fired a volley. . . . We 
 charged them twice till the battalion was so 
 reduced by killed and wounded that the bugle 
 was sounded to retreat ; indeed, had we not re- 
 treated at the time we did we should all have 
 been taken or killed, as two columns of the 
 enemy had nearly got round our flank. But 
 this was the first time we had ever retreated 
 from the Americans, and it was with great dif- 
 ficulty we could get the men to obey our orders. 
 **The enemy were kept so long in check that 
 two brigades had advanced to the entrance of 
 Beggarstown, when they met our battalion re- 
 treating. By this time General Howe had come 
 up, and seeing the battalion retreating, all 
 broken, he got into a passion, and exclaimed, 
 ^For shame, Light Infantry, I never saw you 
 retreat before. Form! Form! It is only a 
 scouting party. ' However, he was quickly con- 
 vinced that it was more than a scouting party 
 
 83 
 
THE HERO OF STONY POINT 
 
 as the heads of the enemy's columns soon ap- 
 peared. One coming through Beggarstown with 
 three pieces of cannon in their front imme- 
 diately fired with grape at the crowd that was 
 standing with General Howe under a large 
 chestnut tree. I think I never saw people enjoy 
 a discharge of grape before, but we really felt 
 pleased to see the enemy make such an appear- 
 ance, and to hear the grape rattle about the 
 Commander-in-Chief's ears, after he had ao- 
 cused the battalion of having run away from a 
 scouting party.'' 
 
CHAPTER VIII 
 VALLEY FORGE AND THE LONG DARK DAYS 
 
 IN spite of the gallant behavior of the Ameri- 
 can troops at the Battle of Germantown, in 
 which, as Wayne writes, they were all but vic- 
 torious, or, at least, must have been, but for cer- 
 tain untoward happenings and ill-judged ar- 
 rangements, the British army succeeded in oc- 
 cupying Philadelphia. The next reverse of the 
 American cause lay in the capture of the forts 
 on the Delaware Eiver, which had hitherto 
 effectually prevented the British ships from 
 reaching the army at Philadelphia with sup- 
 plies. In the first place, lack of sufficient avail- 
 able forces for defense had led early to the 
 abandonment of the post at Billingsport, in 
 order to strengthen those at Red Bank and 
 Mud Island nearer to the city. Both these places 
 had been effectively fortified, and were able to 
 withstand a determined attack by a large force 
 
 85 
 
THE HERO OF STONY POINT 
 
 of ** Hessian" troops on October 22, repulsing 
 them finally with the loss of 200 men and their 
 commander, Count Donop. With the intention 
 of applying a more promising method of attack, 
 Howe then planted a strong battery on Province 
 Island, opposite to Fort Mifflin on Mud Island, 
 and made elaborate preparations to bombard 
 the works. Washington, although strongly 
 urged by several of his advisors — ^Wayne among 
 them — to assault and destroy these new works, 
 declined, on the ground that his forces were 
 insufficient, and that nothing could be done be- 
 fore the arrival of reenforcements from the 
 north. In spite of this decision of the Com- 
 mander, Wayne made the bold suggestion that 
 he be allowed with his corps to attempt the 
 capture of Howe's batteries, but this proposal 
 also was rejected. So, with the policy of cau- 
 tion consistently adhered to, the result was that 
 Howe completed his preparations without in- 
 terference, and, in his own good time, proceeded 
 to cannonade Fort Mifflin, compelling the gar- 
 rison to withdraw, after a gallant defense, 
 simply because there was no fort left to defend. 
 
 86 
 
VALLEY FORGE 
 
 This defense Washington characterized as cal- 
 culated to *' reflect the highest honor upon the 
 officers and men of the garrison." 
 
 It seems regrettable, indeed, that no attack 
 on the British battery was attempted, and that 
 General Wayne thus missed an opportunity to 
 add still further to the record of his glorious 
 deeds. That he would have given an excellent 
 account of himself in any such attempt cannot 
 be doubted. He might even have been success- 
 ful. Fort Mifflin f eH on October 15, 1777, thus 
 closing a campaign full of brilliant deeds of 
 bravery neutralized by one long succession of 
 blunders and miscarriages of plans, which 
 served to snatch victory from the very grasp 
 of the American patriots over and over 
 again. 
 
 The season was then so far advanced that 
 further operations had to be delayed until the 
 spring of 1778, and the dreary and dismal days 
 of Valley Forge began. While, as there can be 
 no doubt, the American cause was largely ham- 
 pered by actual poverty and the difficulty of 
 always obtaining necessary supplies at the time 
 
 87 
 
THE HERO OF STONY POINT 
 
 required, it is also humiliating to record that 
 further obstacles were interposed by political 
 corruption, official incompetence and an almost 
 unbelievable tendency to subordinate public 
 necessity to personal considerations. Thus, 
 while Washington's army, which had been so 
 carefully preserved from the risks of unsup- 
 ported attacks on Province Island, and other 
 points, were suffering at Valley Forge from 
 lack of clothing, shoes, and even food, all kinds 
 of preposterous excuses were made for the 
 wanton delay in supplying these necessities. 
 Particularly conspicuous for dereliction in this 
 respect was the Clothier-General of Pennsyl- 
 vania, a certain James Mease, who actually re- 
 fused to supply the clothing needed for the sol- 
 diers, without a properly attested Order of 
 Council, and even then persisted in all kinds 
 of delays until the winter was passed and 
 spring again opened. 
 
 Unless history entirely misrepresents this 
 gentleman, he was a wholly incompetent block- 
 head, swelled with the pride of an important 
 office, and far more solicitous to obtain personal 
 
 88 
 
VALLEY FORGE 
 
 adulation, and to persist in his own methods of 
 doing things, than to see that the soldiers were 
 properly cared for. He seems to have spent a 
 large part of his time in traveling from home, 
 and on his return to have observed a policy, 
 which he may have considered ** economical," 
 of retaining as much cloth as possible in stor- 
 age. In striking contrast to such a person 
 stands the heroic figure of Anthony Wayne, 
 who, unmindful, as usual, of the hardships suf- 
 fered by himself, wrote constantly, and at great 
 length, to the authorities, urging, protesting, 
 complaining and demanding, as action on the 
 matter of supplies was constantly delayed. 
 From January until April he wrote these let- 
 ters to anyone and everyone who could at all 
 avail to assist him, if so disposed; to Richard 
 Peters, Secretary of War, to Thomas Wharton, 
 President of Pennsylvania, to the Speaker of 
 the State Assembly, and to the nearly unap- 
 proachable Clothier-General himself. But even 
 the best and ablest of these people seems to 
 have been so hampered in his powers by party 
 conflicts, incompetence in responsible positions 
 
 89 
 
THE HERO OF STONY POINT 
 
 and general ^*red tape," that nothing resulted 
 from any of them save promises and excuses, 
 the latter almost as ingenious as absurd. Thus, 
 his appeal to the State President (or Governor) 
 is answered by the allegation that the clothing 
 asked for had been prepared, but that its de- 
 livery was being held up because of the **want 
 of buttons." On another occasion the excuse 
 is that an ''immense quantity of clothing" had 
 been ordered, and that its non-delivery was a 
 real mystery. In order to expedite matters 
 somewhat, Wayne ordered and purchased a 
 quantity of cloth for uniforms, which he pur- 
 posed having made up in camp, but he was in- 
 formed that the merchants declined to deliver 
 ''until they know where to receive their pay," 
 and that "the Clothier-General has peremp- 
 torily refused paying Col. Miller's orders in 
 favor of these merchants." 
 
 Late in March, after nearly three months of 
 hunger, cold and nakedness in camp, Wayne 
 dispatched Colonel Stephen Bayard to Lancas- 
 ter with requisitions for the sorely needed 
 supplies. Nearly four weeks later, on April 
 
 90 
 
VALLEY FORGE 
 
 23, this oflScer wrote from Lancaster, as fol- 
 lows : 
 
 **Mr. Mease came home yesterday, and con- 
 sented at last to let me have linen for twelve- 
 hundred shirts, provided it could be made up 
 here. Mr. Howell, Major Werts and myself en- 
 gaged it should, and for that purpose we have 
 been in and through every family in this town, in 
 order to get them made up, and I have the satis- 
 faction to inform you that they are to be ready 
 in eight days from this. As the expenses of stay- 
 ing here are great, I would gladly know whether 
 I must remain, and bring them with me, or 
 come immediately to camp. It gives me pain 
 to relate the difficulty of getting anything from 
 Mease. Waiting his slow motion, dancing at- 
 tendance, etc., are insufferable. Had I full 
 powers, it should be otherwise, but he prides 
 himself upon his being confined to no particular 
 state." 
 
 Even at this late date matters progressed 
 with the familiar slowness. Supplies of necessi- 
 ties that should have been promptly dispatched 
 to camp continued to come in in small quanti- 
 
 91 
 
THE HERO OF STONY POINT 
 
 ties. On one occasion, Wayne relates in a 
 pathetic letter to Mr. Peters the whole situation 
 and gives a pen picture of Valley Forge: **I 
 hoped to be able to clothe the division under my 
 connnand, but the distresses of the other part 
 of the troops belongiag to this state were such 
 as to beggar all description. Humanity obliged 
 me to divide what would have in part clothed six 
 hundred men among thirteen regiments, which 
 was also necessary in order to prevent mutiny.*' 
 
 In another letter to Mr. Peters, he writes, 
 after a brief absence : * * On my arrival in camp 
 I found the division in a much worse condition 
 for the want of clothing and every other matter 
 than I had expected. I am endeavoring to 
 remedy the defects, and hope soon to restore 
 order, introduce discipline and content, all which 
 was much wanting and desertion prevailing fast. 
 I flatter myself that I have so much the esteem 
 and confidence of my troops that desertion will 
 no longer take place. I am happy to inform you 
 that there is not a single instance since my 
 return.'* 
 
 In another place he remarks in a way that 
 92 
 
VALLEY FORGE 
 
 shows the depths of misery achieved at the 
 camp : **I am not fond of danger, but I would 
 most cheerfully agree to enter into action once 
 every week in place of visiting each hut of my 
 encampment (which is my constant practice), 
 and where objects strike my eye and ear whose 
 wretched condition beggars all description. The 
 whole army is sick and crawling with vermin." 
 The bitter fruits of official incompetence and 
 corruption, including the excuseless blunder of 
 retaining such creatures as Mease in important 
 positions, and the preposterous wranglings of 
 opposing parties in the state councils, had 
 doomed hundreds of brave men to the hardships 
 mentioned. For they did not suffer from cold 
 alone, nor even from difficulty in always secur- 
 ing food, as was perhaps inevitable, but from 
 the utter lack of necessities that could readily 
 have been supplied by a well-organized and effi- 
 cient management, for the government, though 
 sometimes pressed for money, was by no means 
 bankrupt. As late as May 4, 1778, Wayne wrote 
 to President Wharton : 
 
 *^ Enclosed is the return of the thirteen regi- 
 93 
 
THE HERO OF STONY POINT 
 
 ments belonging to the state of Pennsylvania. 
 You will observe that tbey are very weak. The 
 chief part of those returned sick at present is 
 for want of clothing, being too naked to appear 
 on the parade. Our officers in particular are in 
 a most wretched condition. I can't conceive 
 the reason why they are not supplied. I pur- 
 chased cloth, etc., at York, last January suffi- 
 cient to clothe a great part of them, but have not 
 heard what has been done with it. I know it 
 must be distressing to your excellency to hear 
 so many repetitions of our wants, but whatever 
 pain it may give you, I hourly experience much 
 more from the complaints and view of worthy 
 fellows, who are conscious of meriting some at- 
 tention, and whose wretched condition can not 
 be worse. They think any change must be for 
 the better, and too many have risked desertion. 
 The enclosed order has lately put some stop 
 to it, and had we clothing I am confident that 
 we should not have any more leave us, where we 
 now have twenty." 
 
 In view of all the difficulties besetting him 
 daily, it is scarcely remarkable that Wayne 
 
 94 
 
VALLEY FORGE 
 
 writes in one of his letters to Peters, in the lat- 
 ter part of January, as nearly a complaint as 
 ever escaped him. ''I am too much interested 
 in the freedom and happiness of America," he 
 says, *Ho withdraw from the army at this 
 crisis. I believe I have a much greater share 
 of care and difficulty than ought to come to the 
 proportion of one officer. Unfortunately, 
 there is no other general in the Pennsylvania 
 Line belonging to this army. We derive but 
 little assistance from the civil authority, and 
 every let and hindrance in the power of the 
 Clothier-General seems to be thrown in the way. 
 So that I am. almost tempted to. But I will, 
 at all events, provide for my poor fellows before 
 I consult my own ease and happiness." 
 
 There was never any intention in Anthony 
 Wayne's mind of resigning. He only hoped to 
 convey the bitterness of his feelings. But 
 while he and other commanding officers were 
 engaged in struggling to keep their soldiers 
 from dying of starvation, cold and disease. 
 Congress saw fit to still further embarrass their 
 efforts to secure order and efficiency by the 
 
 95 
 
THE HERO OF STONY POINT 
 
 passage of laws cutting the pay of military offi- 
 cers, or rather providing that they receive their 
 remuneration for services in the form of half 
 pay for seven years after the end of the war. 
 This may have been a necessary step — ^it prob- 
 ably was, in the almost exhausted state of 
 finances, but it created great opposition and 
 disaffection among those immediately affected, 
 many of whom were by no means wealthy, none 
 of ihem favorably impressed with the idea of 
 the buying power of the then greatly depreci- 
 ated currency. Wayne, as usual, sincere patriot 
 that he was, took the most favorable view of the 
 matter, and registered no complaints whatever 
 on his own behalf. His remarks upon the 
 matter were concerned solely with the suffer- 
 ings of others. In a letter to a good friend of 
 his, Sharp Delany, in May, 1778, he writes : 
 
 **The difficulty I experience in keeping good 
 officers from resigning, and causing them to 
 do their duty in the line, has almost determined 
 me to give it up, and return to my Sabine fields, 
 but I first wish to see the enemy sail for the 
 West Indies. . . . For my own part, I have a 
 
 96 
 
VALLEY FORGE 
 
 competency, and neither look nor wish for any 
 gratuity, other than liberty and honor; but the 
 discontented say that seven years' half pay 
 would not near make up for the depreciation of 
 the money." 
 
 Only the spirit of self-sacrifice and the great 
 devotion to a great cause kept the little army 
 together during the dark days of the winter 
 of 77. 
 
CHAPTER IX 
 
 REAR GUARD FIGHTING AND MONMOUTH 
 
 DURING the long, hard winter at Valley 
 Forge, amid all the sufferings resulting 
 from hardship and official neglect, such prep- 
 arations as were possible for soldierly effi- 
 ciency were constantly in progress. Most con- 
 spicuous, perhaps, among these was the engage- 
 ment of Baron Wilhelm von Steuben, a Prus- 
 sian general of high reputation, who, from gen- 
 erous interest in the cause of American liberty, 
 had freely offered his services to help train the 
 army. Although without friends or connec- 
 tions in this country, and wholly ignorant of 
 the English language, he cheerfully worked at 
 the difficult task of drilling and training the raw 
 troops in Washington's camp in the manual of 
 arms aad the maneuvers familiar to the armies 
 of Europe. He is credited with promoting 
 singular efficiency in bayonet work — some have 
 
 98 
 
REAE GUAED FIGHTING 
 
 said that lie introduced the bayonet to the 
 American army, which seems to be untrue, as it 
 was an inheritance from their British ancestry. 
 But he is to be credited, undoubtedly, with orig- 
 inating much of the efficiency displayed by the 
 troops in the succeeding campaign. Such men 
 as Steuben, Lafayette, and our own Wayne, 
 who continued working and fighting for an ideal, 
 even in the face of all the discouragements 
 heaped up by nature and by human rascality, 
 are as bright and shining lights in the midst 
 of otherwise cheerless prospects. Why can not 
 the noble examples of such heroic characters 
 oftener excite the reverence and emulation of 
 the rest of the world'? They were men, indeed ! 
 We have learned already of Wayne's untir- 
 ing efforts to secure from Congress, as well as 
 from the Government of Pennsylvania, relief 
 for the sufferings of his soldiers. We have read 
 of the specious promises, pompous excuses and 
 shifty evasions of public duty, not only on the 
 part of the inglorious and useless Mease, but 
 even from those who stood higher and much 
 better in official life. But, as if all his labors 
 
 99 
 
THE HERO OF STONY POINT 
 
 had been in vain, and all his protests and peti- 
 tions unheard, we read in a letter from Wayne 
 to Sharp Delany, under date May 13, 1778, the 
 following piteous appeal: 
 
 *^For God's sake give us, if you can't give 
 us anything else, give us clean linen that we 
 may be enabled to rescue the poor, worthy fel- 
 lows from the vermin which are devouring them. 
 . . . Some hundreds we thought prudent to 
 deposit some six feet under ground, who have 
 died of a disorder produced by a want of cloth- 
 ing. The whole army at present are sick of the 
 same disorder, but the Pennsylvania line seem 
 to be the most infected. A pointed and speedy 
 exertion of Congress or appointing another 
 doc'r [doctor?] may yet remove the disorder, 
 which once done I pledge my reputation we 
 shall remove the enemy. For I would much 
 rather risk my life and honor and the fate of 
 America on our present force neatly and com- 
 fortably uniformed than on double their number 
 covered with rags and crawling with vermin. 
 But I am determined not to say another word 
 on the subject." 
 
 100 
 
EEAE GUARD FIGHTING 
 
 Even Anthony Wayne had at last reached the 
 limit of his patience with official incompetence 
 and the criminal neglect of the brave men under 
 him. He vowed to say no more upon the sub- 
 ject, and no more did he say. His soldiers went 
 forth in rags to meet a well-disciplined and 
 thoroughly equipped army, and, thanks almost 
 wholly to the inspiration of their brave com- 
 mander, did more than their duty. 
 
 Until nearly the middle of June the army 
 remained in camp, availing themselves of such 
 reliefs to their sufferings as were occasionally 
 afforded. At the same time the able-bodied 
 were constantly drilling and maneuvering under 
 the direction of Steuben and other drill masters. 
 In the meantime only an occasional light skir- 
 mish had occurred with the enemy, notably one 
 in the middle of May, in which a strong British 
 force from Philadelphia attempted to flank and 
 surround a detachment of about 2,500 men, 
 sent under Lafayette to occupy the city, upon 
 their expected evacuation. The Americans 
 escaped without losses, but their rear guard, 
 backed by a troop of Oneida Indians, put the 
 
 101 
 
THE HERO OF STONY POINT 
 
 enemy to flight with some serious damage. 
 The long-expected evacuation of Philadelphia 
 occurred on June 18th, when the entire British 
 army, under the command of Sir Henry Clin- 
 ton, crossed the Delaware River below Glouces- 
 ter, and took its march to the eastward through 
 New Jersey. The forces, in excellent condi- 
 tion, after a winter of ease and comfort in the 
 city, consisted of about 12,000 men, and were 
 followed by a baggage train twelve miles long. 
 Three days later "Washington, with his entire 
 command, crossed the Delaware above Trenton, 
 and proceeded to cautiously follow the enemy, 
 with a view either to dispute his passage of the 
 Raritan River, or of cutting off his baggage 
 train. For a considerable distance he paral- 
 leled the British line of march, sometimes at a 
 distance of only a few miles. Finally he held a 
 council of his generals to fix upon a method 
 of attack. As usual, the majority of these peo- 
 ple were in favor of a *' Fabian policy," as it 
 were, or a continuation of extreme caution in 
 any moves to attack so powerful a body. Only 
 Wayne, supported in this case by General John 
 
 102 
 
REAR GUARD FIGHTING 
 
 Cadwalader, and partially by Generals Greene 
 and Lafayette, advocated an immediate and 
 vigorous attack. Washington, as on several 
 other occasions, rejected the advice of his other 
 officers, and adopted that given by Wayne; de- 
 termining to attempt a surprise on the enemy *s 
 rear guard, so as to harass the baggage train, 
 and capture as much of it as possible. He ac- 
 cordingly asked Wayne to outline his plan in a 
 letter to himself, and followed the advice given 
 in all of the main details. 
 
 The plan of action adopted was that a de- 
 tachment of about 5,000 men under the com- 
 mand of General Charles Lee and Marquis de 
 Lafayette was ordered to hang on the enemy's 
 rear, and attack him as soon as possible in the 
 morning ; the remainder of the army being held 
 in reserve to support this detachment, in case 
 of repulse. For, as Wayne confidently asserted 
 in his letter to Washington, the ^^ enemy dare 
 not pursue success, lest they be drawn into some 
 difficulty from which it would not be easy for 
 them to extricate themselves." 
 
 The appointment of Charles Lee to lead this 
 103 
 
THE HERO OP STONY POINT 
 
 attack was, if possible, nearly the greatest error 
 that could have been committed at the time. 
 His sole apparent qualification for the service 
 was that he had been appointed by some order 
 of official favoritism to the rank of a major 
 general. But such soldierly qualities as he may 
 have possessed were exceeded by his laggard 
 methods and his personal animosities. The 
 latter evil trait was well demonstrated when, on 
 the morning of the battle of Monmouth (June 
 28, 1778), he ordered Wayne to proceed with a 
 detachment of 1.200 men and attack the British 
 left rear. 
 
 ''This, Sir, is a post of conspicuous honor, 
 worthy of so brave an officer as yourself, and I 
 trust that you will acquit yourself worthily in 
 the performance of the duties which it im- 
 plies," was his supercilious address to Wayne. 
 
 That he may have hoped that the ''honor" 
 involved would also mean Wayne's permanent 
 removal from all military activity, thus reliev- 
 ing the army for all time of " so noisy and bois- 
 terous a fellow" [as he had often characterized 
 him] , is strongly suggested by his own behavior. 
 
 104 
 
REAR GUARD FIGHTING 
 
 Instead of remaining with the balance of his 
 division to support Wayne's men, he almost im- 
 mediately withdrew, greatly to the disgust of 
 his own command, and to the exasperation of 
 Washington himself, who promptly ordered him 
 court-martialed. In his attempted defense, this 
 ** caitiff,'' as Wayne would probably have called 
 him, had he been speaking to intimates, sought 
 to accuse Wayne of disobediefnce to orders, and 
 to besmirch the characters of several other 
 prominent officers. The result was that he 
 was promptly challenged to duels by Wayne, 
 by Colonel John Laurens, and by the brave and 
 soldierly Steuben himself. But, enough of Lee; 
 his record is part of history. 
 
 Wayne went forward with joy [to his death, 
 as Lee probably supposed], and promptly en- 
 gaged the rear of the enemy. His attack was 
 met by a body of American tories, known as 
 Simcoe's Rangers, who made a furious charge 
 upon the Pennsylvania regiment commanded 
 by Colonel Richard Butler, a devoted friend of 
 Wayne's, and his constant companion in arms 
 until the end of the war. Butler's men fired a 
 
 105 
 
THE HERO OF STONY POINT 
 
 tremendous volley of musketry, which threw 
 their assailants into disorderly retreat, but the 
 advantage could not be followed up, because of 
 the lack of cavalry. At this juncture the main 
 body of the British rear began to advance, a 
 force estimated at about 2,000 men, which was 
 rapidly increased by new detachments from the 
 front. This was the condition in which Lee was 
 to have supported Wayne, in order to prevent 
 the annihilation of his command. But Lee 
 failed him; he was already withdrawing his 
 men to a safe distance. Nothing remained for 
 Wayne, therefore, but to follow him ignomin- 
 iously. At the old Tennent Church, on the road 
 to Freehold, Lee met Washington, who, as re- 
 ported, was ** angry beyond restraint. '^ That 
 Lee 's career was not terminated on the spot was 
 due, undoubtedly, to the fact that Washington 
 was just and humane, even in ^* anger unre- 
 strained." However, it is reported that the 
 usually calm Washington used stormy lan- 
 guage. 
 
 As events proved, Lee's stupid or intended 
 blunder endangered not only Wayne and his 
 
 106 
 
REAR GUARD FIGHTING 
 
 men, but also General Washington himself, and 
 narrowly escaped exposing the entire army to 
 an assault in force by the enemy that might have 
 led to a great disaster. Washington had barely 
 more than fifteen minutes to meet the onslaught 
 of the British forces which had faced about 
 and were beginning to move in his direction. 
 Even in that brief period, however, his masterly 
 qualities as a general were demonstrated. Hast- 
 ily calling to Wayne, who had just come up, 
 he ordered him to take two regiments and check 
 the assault of the enemy. These troops were 
 drawn up in an orchard flanked on either side 
 by hills, upon which artillery was quickly 
 mounted, to enfilade the advancing British. 
 Under Wayne's command at this time were 
 three regiments of the Pennsylvania Line, one 
 from Maryland and another from Virginia. 
 These sufficed to hold the position until the main 
 body of the army, sununoned from the rear by 
 Washington, had arrived. They met the rushes 
 of the English grenadiers, the best regiments 
 in the service, first from the right of Wayne's 
 position, then from the left, but were repulsed 
 
 107 
 
THE HERO OF STONY POINT 
 
 on both attempts by the withering volleys of 
 musketry and the constant fire of the field guns. 
 Then came the most dramatic event of the 
 terrible day. The ** crack" regiments of the 
 Guards were brought up, a corps renowned for 
 bravery, dash and perfect discipline, and or- 
 dered to charge the American position. Their 
 line was drawn up within a short distance of 
 Wayne's front, and their Colonel, Henry Monc- 
 ton, a brother of Lord Galway, and one of the 
 most conspicuous and brilliant of the young 
 aristocrats sent out to crush the **vile rebels" 
 of America, as the English contemptuously 
 termed those whom we call ** patriots," deliv- 
 ered a stirring and eloquent address, appealing 
 to their soldierly pride, their esprit de corps, 
 their loyalty to the King, and other high and 
 noble sentiments. He then commanded them 
 to advance and carry the position at the point 
 of the bayonet, and he himself, with courage 
 worthy honor and renown, led them against the 
 ragged men who had suffered the torments 
 of hunger, cold and exposure, while he was 
 safely housed in the hospitable city of Phila- 
 
 108 
 
REAE GUARD FIGHTING 
 
 delphia. By all calculations of liuinaii prob- 
 ability, these splendid soldiers should have 
 driven the *^ embattled farmers'' in confusion 
 before them, and discouraged the advance of 
 reenf orcements from the American rear! They 
 advanced at double quick, a formidable and ter- 
 rifying array, confident of easy victory, and 
 keyed to the uttermost in the performance of 
 their duty. Wayne's men, who had heard al- 
 most every word of the ColonePs stirring speech 
 and at least had seen his gestures, stood their 
 ground, waiting until their would-be assailants 
 were nearly upon them, and then opened their 
 fire with murderous effect. The gallant British 
 Colonel had made his last appeal on earth: he 
 fell riddled with bullets, his face to the foe. 
 Scores of his veterans fell around him, and still 
 the Americans kept up their fire, dropping six 
 men out of every ten at the murderously short 
 range, and throwing the survivors into a con- 
 fused rout. Some of the more intrepid, with 
 touching bravery, tried vainly to advance far 
 enough to rescue their commander's crumpled 
 body, but even they could not weather the awful 
 
 109 
 
THE HERO OP STONY POINT 
 
 hail of the American musketry, and, at last, they 
 were all gone, save only the dead and the des- 
 perately wounded, who could not move. 
 
 "While Wayne's men were holding back the 
 determined assaults of the British, Washington 
 had had time to reform his army, and was ad- 
 vancing all along the line. A fierce cannonade 
 was kept up on both sides, and many assaults 
 were made upon the American positions, but the 
 final result was that the British turned and fled 
 at all points, leaving nearly 1,500 dead and 
 wounded on the field. 
 
 Wayne's stand at Monmouth is one of the 
 heroic events of history. It has been compared 
 to the stand of the Greeks at Thermopylae, and 
 is scarcely less conspicuous. In both cases a 
 mere handful of brave and determined patriots 
 withstood the seasoned warriors of a powerful 
 army, their superiors in nearly every particular 
 except in courage and steadfastness. In both 
 cases, also, they repulsed their assailants with 
 heavy losses, and with every circumstance of 
 humiliation. Seldom has a warlike achievement 
 been more enthusiastically acclaimed by all 
 
 110 
 
EEAR GUARD FIGHTING 
 
 parties. Wayne became an idol with the peo- 
 ple as he had always been among his troops. 
 Only one voice among them all was raised in 
 criticism of his performance, and that was the 
 voice of General Charles Lee, who attempted 
 to clear himself of the serious charge of dis- 
 obeying orders by arguing the ** temerity and 
 folly, and contempt of orders of General Wain'' 
 [for so he spelled the name in his letter to Rob- 
 ert Morris], who, as he alleged, had audaciously 
 provoked a battle with * ^ the whole flower of the 
 British army . . . amounting in all to 7,000 
 men. ' ' According to popular understanding of 
 his orders, Wayne and Lee had been expressly 
 commanded to do something closely resembling 
 this very thing. Nor was Wayne guilty of any 
 breach of discipline, as we must insist, even 
 though, in Lee's words, his * 'folly" was mani- 
 fested '4n the most extensive plain in America, 
 separated from our main body the distance of 
 eight miles." 
 
 What Wayne began, rashly or not, on the 
 plains of Monmouth, he and his men were 
 amply prepared to complete, and they did com- 
 
 111 
 
THE HERO OF STONY POINT 
 
 plete it. As he wrote to Eichard Peters some 
 two weeks after the engagement : 
 
 **The victory of that day turns out to be much 
 more considerable than at first expected. . . . 
 By the most moderate computation their killed 
 and wounded must be full fifteen hundred men 
 of the flower of their army. Among them are 
 ' numbers of the richest blood of England. Tell 
 the Philadelphia ladies that the heavenly, sweet, 
 pretty Bed Coats, the accomplished gentlemen 
 of the guards and grenadiers have humbled 
 themselves on the plains of Monmouth. The 
 Knights of the Blended Rose and Burning 
 Mount have resigned their laurels to rebel offi- 
 cers, who will lay them at the feet of those vir- 
 tuous daughters of America who cheerfully gave 
 up ease and affluence in a city for liberty and 
 peace of mind in a cottage." 
 
 Even in the midst of his triumph, Wayne was 
 still the humorist and the solicitous command- 
 er. To this spirited epistle he adds the follow- 
 ing postscript: **We have not received the 
 least article of clothing since you saw us at 
 Mount Joy, and are now — ^naked." 
 
 112 
 
CHAPTER X 
 THE CLIMAX— STONY POINT 
 
 WHILE the Americans had decidedly the 
 best of the day at Monmouth, and while 
 the moral effect of the battle was excellent, the 
 results were otherwise small. No booty was 
 captured from the vast British baggage train, 
 and the army was not turned back from its 
 advance on New York. All that the American 
 army could do after its victory was to hang 
 on the rear of the enemy, and, after he had 
 gained his haven in New York, to so dispose the 
 lines that any attempt to advance on the coun- 
 try to the north, on the west baok of the Hud- 
 son, could be effectually checked. In the midst 
 of this irksome idleness, during the succeeding 
 summer and autumn months, Wayne again re- 
 newed his attempt to persuade Congress and the 
 authorities of Pennsylvania to send the needed 
 supplies to the soldiers. The results were as im- 
 
 113 
 
THE HERO OF STONY POINT 
 
 satisfactory as formerly, however — a plethora 
 of large promises and a vacuum of practical 
 performance. Finally, in March, 1779, he suc- 
 ceeded in effecting the passage of a law by 
 Congress giving officers half pay for life; ex- 
 empting from taxation all land held by soldiers 
 during their lifetime, and, wonderful to re- 
 late, providing that they should receive a suit- 
 able uniform while in the service. 
 
 Wayne, however, was too zealous in the serv- 
 ice, too bold in his demands, too entirely de- 
 voted to the welfare of the men under him. 
 Such a man as he could be requited only with 
 the highest honors, or merely passed over with 
 mere mention. The latter was the fate of 
 Wayne, the indefatigable commander, the brave 
 soldier and the real victor of Monmouth. As a 
 part of the '^new arrangement'' of the Penn- 
 sylvania Line in February, 1779, he was quietly, 
 even contemptuously, superseded in his com- 
 mand by General Arthur St. Clair, who was 
 best known to his contemporaries as the man 
 who had — needlessly, as it was alleged — evacu- 
 ated Fort Ticonderoga, and to posterity as the 
 
 114 
 
THE CLIMAX— STONY POINT 
 
 *'most unfortunate officer in the Revolution.'* 
 This was, of course, an occasion of the greatest 
 chagrin to Wayne, who was so angered and dis- 
 appointed that he actually contemplated for a 
 time resignation from the army and return to 
 civil life. His patriotism and better judgment, 
 however, finally persuaded him to ask only for 
 a leave of absence until his services should be 
 required to command a new corps of the army. 
 During his period of retirement he busied him- 
 self in pleading the cause of the army with the 
 government, and in securing such benevolent 
 legislation as has been mentioned in the recog- 
 nition and rewards of both rank and file. 
 
 On Wayne's retirement from the army on 
 leave of absence. General Washington had 
 promised to secure his appointment as com- 
 mander of a Light Infantry Corps, then in con- 
 templation. This corps might seem to have 
 been organized expressly for Wayne, and its 
 officers and men picked expressly because quali- 
 fied to serve under him in his daring military 
 movements. On the announcement, in May, 
 1779, that he was to command this corps, a large 
 
 115 
 
THE HERO OF STONY POINT 
 
 proportion of the field officers of the Pennsyl- 
 vania Line earnestly solicited permission to be 
 transferred to it. So numerous were petitions 
 of this nature that Wayne wrote to Washington, 
 **I had better be absent while the corps is being 
 organized, lest it be supposed, however er- 
 roneously, that partiality of mine for certain 
 officers had tended to bring them into the 
 corps." 
 
 Wayne assumed command of this newly 
 formed body in the latter part of June, 1779, 
 scarcely three weeks before the momentous ex- 
 ploit in the capture of the fort at Stony Point, 
 with which his name will be forever associated. 
 In this corps were one and one-half battalions 
 of Pennsylvania troops, with two regiments 
 from Connecticut and one from Virginia. In 
 the words of Colonel Francis Johnston, in a let- 
 ter to Wayne, the command was ** preferable to 
 that of any in the army. ' ' Excellent as the per- 
 sonnel was declared to be, and, indeed, as it 
 showed itself to be, it could be no more than 
 worthy of its gallant commander. He had made 
 Mmself a new Leonidas in the orchard at Mon- 
 
 116 
 
THE CLIMAX— STONY POINT 
 
 mouth, and was destined to make even greater 
 history in the famous surprise and capture of 
 Stony Point. 
 
 The fortified post of Stony Point was on the 
 west side of the Hudson River to the south of 
 West Point, and directly opposite to Ver- 
 planck's Point, on which was another fortifica- 
 tion. The position was upon a rocky promon- 
 tory 150 feet in height, surrounded on all sides 
 by water, when the tide was high, and access 
 from land was possible only through a stretch 
 of mud flats, when the tide was out. The 
 British had gained possession of it early in 
 June, and had greatly strengthened its defenses, 
 as a preliminary to a determined onslaught 
 upon West Point. Indeed, the possession of 
 West Point, then regarded as the most im- 
 portant fortress in America, was so strongly 
 desired by the British that Howe and Burgoyne 
 had attempted to make a junction, with the view 
 of investing it, in 1777, and, now, the occupation 
 of Stony Point and Verplanck^s had been ac- 
 complished as a move in a new and well-pro- 
 jected campaign. The defeat of Burgoyne at 
 
 117 
 
THE HERO OF STONY POINT 
 
 Saratoga had destroyed the British hopes in 
 1777, and the capture of the position by 
 Wayne again thwarted them. They made but 
 one more attempt, when, in the following year, 
 they succeeded in corrupting General Benedict 
 Arnold, whose proposed surrender was pre- 
 vented only by the capture and subsequent ex- 
 ecution of Major John Andre, a talented man, 
 capable of better things and worthy a nobler 
 end. 
 
 It is decidedly indicative of Washington's 
 strong confidence in Wayne 's soldierly abilities 
 that he waited impatiently for the latter 's return 
 to the army that he might entrust him with the 
 hazardous undertaking of an attempted sur- 
 prise on Stony Point. Certain it is that Wayne 
 had not been many days installed in his new 
 command before he was at work upon his plans 
 for the attack. Both Wayne and Washington 
 carefully examined the position, and took into 
 consideration every possible plan for entering 
 the fort with the smallest loss of men. A gen- 
 eral assault that day would have been out 
 of the question, since the position was amply 
 
 118 
 
THE CLIMAX— STONY POINT 
 
 fortified against the fire of any artillery then 
 in use, and could be approached near enough 
 for an attempt at assault by infantry in mass 
 only after a most appalling loss of life. The 
 plan adopted, therefore, was that Wayne, with 
 a picked body of men, should attempt a sur- 
 prise attack. 
 
 So we come to the night of July 15, 1779, 
 when the surprise attack was made, and the cap- 
 ture of the fort accomplished. Every detail 
 of the work was carefully mapped in advance, 
 nothing had been forgotten or overlooked. The 
 troops, drawn up into separate parties, each 
 with its own particular duty to perform, were 
 fully informed. There were three columns in 
 all. Two were advance columns consisting of 150 
 picked men, one to work up to the fort on the 
 left side from the land, the other, on the right 
 side; each of them preceded by a '^forlorn 
 hope*' of twenty tried and trusty volunteers, 
 destined to swift death or lasting renown. 
 These detachments were to prepare the way for 
 their more numerous supporters by clearing 
 away the abatis, dispatching or capturing the 
 
 119 
 
THE HERO OF STONY POINT 
 
 pickets, and finding the paths over which the 
 remainder could move in approaching the for- 
 midable works. The third party was to charge 
 up the slope in the center, and, as the others 
 reached given indicated points, to open a tre- 
 mendous fusillade, with a view to drawing the 
 fire of the defenders, and thus covering the ad- 
 vance of the surprise detachments on either 
 hand. The left-hand column was commanded 
 by Major Jack Stewart, of Maryland, the right- 
 hand by Colonel Louis Fleury, a French officer 
 in the American service, who was supported by 
 the column under command of Wayne himself. 
 The center was under Colonel Murfrees, of 
 North Carolina. 
 
 The attacking corps marched from their camp 
 near New Windsor to Stony Point, a distance of 
 fourteen miles, after dark, arriving in time to 
 open the attack at 11 :30 o'clock. The way was 
 wholly along unkempt country roads, upon 
 which the men were often obliged to march in 
 single file. Utter silence was commanded as 
 the prime requisite, and the men were forbid- 
 den to drop out of the ranks on any pretext 
 
 120 
 
THE CLIMAX— STONY POINT 
 
 whatever. Wayne was still the exacting dis- 
 ciplinarian, who sternly required literal obedi- 
 ence to the military law. In his address to the 
 men of the Light Infantry, on assuming com- 
 mand, he had said: 
 
 ' * Should there be any soldier so lost to a feel- 
 ing of honor as to attempt to retreat a single 
 foot, or skulk in the face of danger, the officer 
 next to him is immediately to put him. to death, 
 that he may no longer disgrace the name of a 
 soldier, or the corps, or the State, to which he 
 belongs. ' ' Nor can we doubt that he gave pre- 
 cisely similar directions to these same men on 
 this, the most momentous evening of his 
 career. 
 
 All the precautions were well timed to effect 
 a successful issue. The British, in a calm sense 
 of perfect security, believing that the fort could 
 be assaulted only by a front attack, enfiladed 
 by their cannon, had retired for the night, after 
 posting only the usual number of guards. No 
 one had heard or seen the advancing Americans, 
 who were already on the slopes below the work 
 even before the pickets had detected their ad- 
 
 121 
 
THE HERO OF STONY POINT 
 
 vance guards. The attacking column on the 
 right, under Colonel Christian Fehiger, and 
 General Wayne, were obliged to wade through 
 deep water, which considerably delayed their 
 progress. Once they reached the abatis, how- 
 ever, the path was quickly cleared, and the ad- 
 vance was rapid. Suddenly, from Murfrees' 
 men, moving up the slope in the center, a noisy 
 and continuous fusillade burst forth, awakening 
 the garrison, who soon began answering the 
 fire with musketry and grape shot. The 
 American advance on the left suffered severely, 
 finding the removal of the obstructions more 
 difficult than did their comrades on the right, 
 and being caught in the midst of a hail of bul- 
 lets. Seventeen out of the twenty men in their 
 '^forlorn hope'^ were stretched dead or 
 wounded on the ground, and the advance column 
 suffered severely also, before the sally port of 
 the fort was finally gained, and the defenses 
 were at their mercy. The three columns arrived 
 at the door of the fort almost simultaneously, 
 and there began a fierce hand-to-hand fight, in 
 which there was no firing — only cold steel and 
 
 122 
 
" 'Forward, my brave fellows, f onvard !' " 
 
THE CLIMAX-~STONY POINT 
 
 the steady pressure of an overwhelming mass 
 of men. 
 
 Jnst before entering on the fight, "Wayne had 
 written a personal letter to Sharp Delany, 
 whom he addressed as *^my best and dearest 
 friend," bidding him an affectionate farewell, 
 as he did not know whether he should breakfast 
 ** within the enemy's lines in triumph or in the 
 other world.'' Even his dauntless spirit was 
 impressed with the awfulness of the situation 
 and the desperate character of the attempt upon 
 which he was about to enter. But in nothing did 
 he show that he was afraid to die. About half- 
 way up the laborious slope a musket ball 
 plowed a jagged furrow across his scalp, so nar- 
 rowly avoiding the infliction of a fatal wound 
 that the gallant General fell stunned and help- 
 less in his tracks. Small wonder that he sup- 
 posed his end was come, for such a wound is 
 both staggering and keen. But he roused him- 
 self to a shout: 
 
 ** Forward, my brave fellows, forward! Vic- 
 tory is already in your hands ! ' ' Then, to those 
 beside him he added: 
 
 123 
 
THE HERO OF STONY POINT 
 
 ''If I am fatally injured, carry me within the 
 fort, and let me die there in triumph. ' ' Having 
 bound up his hurt, his men lifted him on their 
 shoulders and carried him forward to the top 
 of the rise. The rumor spread quickly that 
 General Wayne had been killed, but the soldiers, 
 far from falling back discouraged, rushed for- 
 ward all the more eagerly, determined to extort 
 an even heavier penalty in their revenge. In 
 such a moment as tliis the lust of blood rushes 
 in upon men ; they turn blind, deaf and senseless 
 to all save the ecstasy of battle ! 
 
 Only a few minutes more, and the Ameri- 
 cans were within the works driving the defend- 
 ers before them. It was a slaughter grim and 
 merciless, no firing, no sabering, but the con- 
 tinuous stabbing of the bayonets, thrust and 
 thrust! Sixty- three of the British fell by the 
 bayonet within the fort — ^precisely the number 
 sacrificed in the Paoli ''massacre," a life for a 
 life — ^before the driven regulars threw down 
 their arms and cried for quarter. Nor were the 
 captors relentless. No f oeman begged for mercy 
 who was not spared! And they could afford 
 
 124 
 
THE CLIMAX— STONY POINT 
 
 to be lenient. They were victors ! Among the 
 American officers Colonel Fleury was first upon 
 the walls. It was he who lowered the British 
 standard, declaring the fort captured. In his 
 broken English he shouted in the hearing of all, 
 above the noise and turmoil of the fight, ^*Ze 
 fort is ours.'' 
 
 The advance of the American lines began at 
 11:30, and at 2, Wayne dispatched a note to 
 General Washington, brief, soldierly, generous, 
 with no reference to his own most painful 
 wound : 
 
 *'The fort and garrison with Colonel John- 
 ston are ours. Our officers and men behaved 
 like men who are determined to be free.'' 
 
 There were taken with Stony Point 543 pris- 
 oners of war. The Americans lost fifteen killed, 
 and forty-three wounded. Of the British an 
 even sixty-three were killed, and many more 
 seriously injured, something like twice that 
 number. 
 
 Immediately on capturing the fort the guns 
 were trained on the works on Verplanck's Point 
 and on the British ships in the river. Before 
 
 125 
 
THE HERO OF STONY POINT 
 
 morning the river and its shores were clear of 
 British soldiers and sailors. 
 
 The reputation of General Wayne's victory at 
 Stony Point was immense. He received con- 
 gratulations from the most distinguished per- 
 sons in military and government circles, among 
 them his old enemy Charles Lee, who wrote with 
 what seemed to be evident sincerity: 
 
 **I do most sincerely declare that your action 
 in the assault of Stony Point is not only the 
 most brilliant, in my opinion, through the whole 
 course of this war on either side, but that it 
 is one of the most brilliant I am acquainted with 
 in history. Upon my soul, the assault of 
 Schweidnitz by Marshal Loudon I think inferior 
 to it. I wish you, therefore, joy of the laurels 
 you have so deservedly acquired, and. that you 
 may long live to wear them.*' 
 
 The American Congress, also, a body so 
 curiously insensible to Wayne's earnest, persist- 
 ent and long-continued appeals for clothing and 
 supplies for the suffering soldiers, voted him 
 a grand gold medal, inscribed in excellent Latin, 
 after the manner of the times, ^^ Antonio Wayne 
 
 126 
 
THE CLIMAX'-STONY POINT 
 
 Duci Exercitus" (**To Anthony Wayne, Leader 
 of the Army"), and to several of his foremost 
 officers, silver medals to the same effect. Thus 
 was Anthony Wayne received among those 
 whose fame is imperishable. 
 
CHAPTEE XI 
 WAYNE WINS THE DISAFFECTED 
 
 DURING the months following the success- 
 ful assault on Stony Point, Wayne's sol- 
 dierly qualities were occupied, not in fighting 
 with an armed enemy, but in contending end- 
 lessly with official incompetence and negligence, 
 in the vain hope of having his command prop- 
 erly supplied with food and clothing. It seems 
 to have been his evil destiny to be ever embar- 
 rassed by these ignoble elements, which, more 
 than hardships, discouraging difficulties, or the 
 opposition of a formidable enemy, served to 
 impede his activities. The nearly unbelievable 
 futility and indifference of the authorities were 
 the only agencies that ever thwarted his daunt- 
 less courage. Repeatedly, after earnest, per- 
 sistent and unselfish efforts in behalf of his men 
 and their welfare, he was obliged to give it up, 
 utterly baffled and discouraged. Even the gal- 
 
 128 
 
WAYNE WINS THE DISAFFECTED 
 
 lant Light Infantry Corps, whose service at 
 Stony Point had shed a halo of glory on the 
 American arms, were not spared the lofty dis- 
 dain of the commissary department. Nor did 
 Wayne's indignant protest avail to alter the 
 situation in any particular. Matters pro- 
 gressed in regular order from bad to worse, 
 and by the opening of November, as he reported, 
 one hundred and twenty of his command were 
 shoeless. Nor did this sad condition at all ex- 
 cite official compassion. By the end of Decem- 
 ber few, if any, of the men had been pro- 
 vided for, as is sho^oi in Wayne's note to Wash- 
 ington on the order of Congress that the Vir- 
 ginia regiment be detached from the Light In- 
 fantry Corps and proceed to Philadelphia. His 
 reply was brief and to the point : 
 
 ** Colonel Febiger will march tomorrow at 
 8 A. M., but for want of shoes he must carry a 
 great many of his people in wagons.'' 
 
 As if it was the opinion of the authorities 
 that the only way to silence the protests of so 
 persistent a protester as Wayne was to be 
 rid of him, the next move was the disbandment 
 
 129 
 
THE HERO OF STONY POINT 
 
 of tlie corps itself. Accordingly, witliin four 
 weeks from the departure of Febiger's men, 
 Wayne again found Mmself without a command. 
 On February 4, 1780, he wrote to Washington 
 asking that he might be employed in any capa- 
 city he might think proper, and then returned 
 to his home iq Chester County, Pennsylvania, 
 again compelled to wait patiently and submis- 
 sively for another opportunity to server his 
 country with his splendid talents. For nearly 
 fourteen weeks he led the life of a private citi- 
 zen, presumably caring for his farm and other 
 properties, while waiting eagerly for the sum- 
 mons to return to the service of his country. 
 It came at last, a brief letter from General 
 Washington, contaiaing the strong tribute : * *I 
 shall be very happy to see you at camp again, 
 and hope you will, without hesitation, resume 
 your command in the Pennsylvania Line.'' 
 
 Probably Wayne was as happy to be back in 
 camp as was Washington to have him there, but 
 little of importance occurred during the cam- 
 paign of 1780 that could excite the ardor of 
 even the keenest soldier. Washington's army 
 
 130 
 
WAYNE WINS THE DISAFFECTED 
 
 confined itself principally to watcMng the move- 
 ments of the British forces at New York, and 
 to guarding the country between that city and 
 West Point on the north. A few skirmishes 
 occurred, an unsuccessful attack on a Britsh 
 block house — ^which was celebrated in a series 
 of highly satirical stanzas from the pen of the 
 unfortunate Major Andre — ^but for the most 
 part mere marchings and counter-marchings, 
 patrolling the country, and awaiting a decisive 
 move by the enemy. Thus, during the su mm er 
 and early autumn, did the time pass tediously 
 along. Then came a really momentous event, 
 the capture of the same witty and unfortunate 
 Major Andre, and the revelation of Arnold's 
 tremendous treasonous plot, which through 
 Washington's quick action was effectively 
 thwarted. For a time, during the exciting weeks 
 following this event, there was plenty to do in 
 the way of guarding positions and preparing 
 to head off expected movements of the enemy, 
 but no fighting. In fact, if we may judge by the 
 records of the time, the whole army came near 
 to perishing of simple ennui. 
 
 131 
 
THE HERO OF STONY POINT 
 
 In tlie midst of the tiresome inaction of the 
 year Wayne experienced all over again the con- 
 stant annoyances due to the maladministration 
 at the hands of the pompous incompetents who 
 held control of the affairs of his state. There 
 was no improvement worth mentioning in the 
 food problem, nor in the clothing problem, per- 
 ennially before the eyes of the General. But, 
 added to this, there was a growing spirit of dis- 
 content in the Pennsylvania Line. Officers com- 
 plained that they had not received the recog- 
 nition and promotions due to their services, nor 
 yet the pay sufficient to the demands of their 
 positions. The men protested that they were 
 sparingly fed, wretchedly clothed — or unclothed 
 — paid only in currency that was either so de- 
 preciated as to represent merely a fraction of 
 its face value, or to be utterly worthless in 
 purchasing necessities, and that they were com- 
 pelled to continue serving long after the expira- 
 tion of their times of enlistment. Discontent 
 seems to have been still further aggravated by 
 the unwise policy of Congress in appointing to 
 responsible commands men who had seen little 
 
 132 
 
WAYNE WINS THE DISAFFECTED 
 
 or no service in the war, over the heads of sea- 
 soned veterans who had worked and suffered 
 unremittingly in the cause of freedom. A 
 notable occasion for protest was the appoint- 
 ment of a certain William Macpherson, a native 
 of Philadelphia, and at the beginning of the 
 Eevolution an adjutant in the British service, 
 to the rank of major by brevet. This was in 
 1779, but in the following year the folly was 
 consummated by the detailing of this officer to 
 the Pennsylvania Line with his brevet rank. 
 The result was that the officers of the Line, with 
 an almost complete unanimity, threatened to 
 resign from the service, and letters of protest 
 were addressed by Wayne and Irvine to Gen- 
 eral Washington. Macpherson himself seems 
 to have been as unwise and precipitate as his 
 sponsors, for he took part in the controversy by 
 addressing a semi-contemptuous letter to 
 Wayne, bidding him, in effect, to **keep his 
 hands off. ' ' The matter was finally settled only 
 by discontinuing the formation of the new Light 
 Infantry Corps, to which Macpherson had been 
 appointed. 
 
 133 
 
THE HERO OF STONY POINT 
 
 All such occasions of discontent led finally to 
 the famous and dramatic incident known as the 
 ** Revolt of the Pennsylvania Line." Wayne 
 himself, fully aware of the justness of the pro- 
 tests on nearly every point, was keenly appre- 
 hensive of the consequences that must follow 
 persistent inaction, when, on the first of Jan- 
 uary, 1781, the enlistments of most of his men 
 were due to expire. According to his habit, 
 he wrote letters of warning, protest and advice 
 to President Reed of Pennsylvania, and others 
 who should have helped him in the extremity, 
 had they so chosen. To Reed he writes : * * Our 
 soldiers are not devoid of reasoning faculty, nor 
 callous to the first feelings of nature. They 
 have now served their country for nearly &ye 
 years with fidelity, poorly clothed, badly fed, 
 and worse paid. I have not seen a paper dollar 
 in the way of pay for more than twelve months. * ' 
 
 When, even at this crisis, the inertia of the 
 Government could not be neutralized, private 
 philanthropy took up the cause of the soldiers. 
 Several prominent ladies of Philadelphia, under 
 the leadership of Mrs. Sarah Bache, wife of 
 
 134 
 
WAYNE WINS THE DISAFFECTED 
 
 Eichard Baclie, then postmaster-general, and 
 the only daughter of Benjamin Franklin, pur- 
 chased cloth and superintended the manufacture 
 of the sorely needed and much-asked-for cloth- 
 ing. Mrs. Bache collected large sums for this 
 cause by personal solicitation among her 
 wealthy friends, and at one time had as many 
 as 2,200 women constantly at work sewing on 
 the clothing thus paid for. But, as is too often 
 the case with philanthropic efforts, these serv- 
 ices were rendered too late to prevent the final 
 grand explosion of the fury that had been 
 smoldering for months in the breasts of the 
 suffering soldiers. 
 
 The storm broke on the evening of January 
 1, 1781, when the men of the Pennsylvania Line, 
 almost without exception, rushed from their 
 squalid quarters, formed under arms on the 
 parade ground, disarmed, although without an- 
 imosity, disregarded all officers who attempted 
 to interfere with their lawless movements, and 
 proceeded to possess themselves of ammuni- 
 tion, food supplies, horses, and other desirable 
 equipments, including two pieces of artillery. 
 
 135 
 
THE HERO OF STONY POINT 
 
 Wayne, accustomed to quelling mutinies, and 
 given to measures of severe discipline, even 
 when in full sympathy with his men, rushed for- 
 ward fearlessly, pistol in hand, and ordered an 
 immediate dispersal. The only answer to his 
 command was the presentation of a dozen 
 bayonets at his breast and the stern words of 
 the mutineers' spokesman: 
 
 *^We love you, we respect you, but you are 
 a dead man if you fire! Do not mistake us: 
 we are not going to the enemy ; on the contrary, 
 were they now to come out, you would see us 
 fight under your orders with as much resolution 
 and alacrity as ever." The mutineers then 
 broke camp, and started on their march to 
 Philadelphia, carrying along with them, al- 
 though without compulsion, General Wayne 
 himself, and Colonels Eichard Butler and Wal- 
 ter Stewart. The southward march was at- 
 tended by no acts of lawlessness or depredation, 
 and was made, as one contemporary has said, 
 **with an astonishing regularity and disci- 
 pline." 
 
 To the inhabitants of Philadelphia, especially 
 136 
 
WAYNE WINS THE DISAFFECTED 
 
 to the members of Congress, awake at last to 
 the consequences of their persistent neglect of 
 the faithful soldiers fighting for freedom, the 
 day of reckoning seemed at hand. Even Wash- 
 ington, who was prevented solely by the neces- 
 sities of his position from taking severe meas- 
 ures to quell the insurgents, seems to have con- 
 sidered the affair as of the utmost significance. 
 He wrote, some weeks later: 
 
 **The weakness of this garrison, and still 
 more its embarrassment and distress from want 
 of provisions, made it impossible to prosecute 
 such measures with the Pennsylvanians as the 
 nature of the case demanded, and while we were 
 making arrangements, as far as practicable, to 
 supply these defects, an accommodation took 
 place which will not only subvert the Pennsyl- 
 vania Line, but have a very pernicious influence 
 upon the whole army." 
 
 The British authorities were, of course, elated 
 at the *^ revolt,'' and confidently expected that 
 the mutineers would quickly come over to their 
 lines. Indeed, messengers were sent to meet 
 them from Sir Henry Clinton's camp near 
 
 137 
 
THE HERO OF STONY POINT 
 
 Elizabethtown, New Jersey, offering them most 
 favorable terms to join the British army. The 
 messengers were roughly handled, and confined 
 as spies, while their letters were brought to 
 Wayne himself, with full assurance that, in the 
 event of an attack, they would submit to his 
 command, in order to sufficiently punish those 
 who had suspected them capable of *^ becoming 
 Arnolds, '* as their saying was. 
 
 Wayne must have been perfectly well aware 
 that the aims of his disaffected troops included 
 no designs for treasons or treacherous violence. 
 But the members of Congress were painfully 
 apprehensive lest they should occupy the city of 
 Philadelphia, and compel the passage of laws 
 for the relief of their distress; they could not 
 disabuse their minds of the conviction that the 
 affair would result in bloodshed. Consequently, 
 a committee, including President Joseph Eeed 
 himself, was delegated to meet the soldiers at 
 some point distant from the city, and to treat 
 with them upon their demands. On the way 
 most of the committee lost courage to face these 
 men whom, in their swollen pride, they had con- 
 
 138 
 
WAYNE WINS THE DISAFFECTED 
 
 temptuously neglected for so long a period, 
 and Reed, who seems to have had the virtue of 
 conrage to offset any defects in his character, 
 proceeded alone to meet the men in their camp 
 near Princeton. Here conferences were held, 
 J;he demands of the soldiers seriously considered, 
 and the whole affair concluded by a tardy jus- 
 tice, on the one hand, and a loyal submission to 
 authority, on the other. 
 In their final form, the agreements were : 
 
 1. No more enforced service after the expiry 
 of terms of enlistment; also an immediate dis- 
 charge for all who enlisted under compulsion. 
 
 2. The appointment of a board to pass on 
 the question whether an enlistment was for 
 three years only, or for the period of the war. 
 
 3. The acceptance of the $100 bounty from 
 Congress on reenlistment not to constitute evi- 
 dence of enlistment for the whole war. 
 
 4. Auditors to be appointed at once to settle 
 the matter of soldiers' pay. 
 
 5. Clothing for all men found entitled to a 
 discharge. 
 
 6. General amnesty and oblivion. 
 
 139 
 
THE HERO OF STONY POINT 
 
 The result of the examination made by the 
 Commission is well expressed in a letter from 
 Wayne to General "Washington, as follows: 
 
 *^The Commissioners of Congress have gone 
 through the Settlements of enlistments of the 
 Pennsylvania Line, except a few stragglers, and 
 have ordered about 1,250 men to be discharged 
 out of the aggregate of the infantry (2,400 
 men), and 67 of the artillery, so that we may 
 count upon nearly 1,150 remaining. ' ' 
 
 Later he wrote: 
 
 **We shall retain more than two-thirds of 
 the troops. The soldiers are as impatient of 
 liberty as they were of service.'' 
 
 Beyond doubt, Wayne's presence with the 
 mutineers restrained them from such acts of 
 violence as the less worthy among them might 
 have counseled. The love and respect of his 
 soldiers for him personally — although some 
 complained bitterly that * ^ they had experienced 
 more restraint and strict duty than usual in 
 winter" — undoubtedly led them to submit will- 
 ingly, after their indubitable wrongs had been 
 righted. Washington was not tardy in recog- 
 
 140 
 
WAYNE WINS THE DISAFFECTED 
 
 nizing these facts. Indeed, lie wrote in a letter 
 to Wayne, at the conclusion of the affair: 
 
 '*I am satisfied that everything was done on 
 your part to produce the least possible evil from 
 the unfortunate disturbance in your line, and 
 that your influence has had a great share in pre- 
 venting worse extremities. I felt for your situa- 
 tion. Your anxieties and fatigues of mind 
 amidst such a scene I can easily conceive. I 
 thank you sincerly for your exertions.'' 
 
CHAPTER Xn 
 LEADING UP TO YORKTOWN 
 
 IMMEDIATELY after tlie settlement of tlie 
 mutiny of the Pennsylvania Line, the work 
 of reorganization was begun. Of the 1,250 men 
 discharged by the Commission of Congress, 
 very many reenlisted at once, so that, as "Wayne 
 stated confidently, **more than two-thirds of 
 the troops '* were immediately enrolled. This 
 matter satisfactorily settled, Wayne wrote to 
 General Washington asking that he be assigned 
 to active field duty, rather than to recruiting. 
 Washington's reply was that active service was 
 then **not possible,'' although Wayne was ex- 
 cused from the arduous duties of recruiting. 
 
 Wayne's return to active service in the field 
 was not long delayed. On February 26, 1781, 
 he was ordered to take a detachment of the 
 Pennsylvania Line, and reenforce General 
 Greene, then operating in South Carolina. His 
 
 142 
 
LEADING UP TO YORKTOWN 
 
 corps, consisting of six regiments, about eight 
 hundred men, had their rendezvous at York, 
 Pennsylvania, and were expected to march in 
 the near future. From various causes, includ- 
 ing not only inclemency of the weather, but also 
 the usual preposterous delays about arming 
 and equipping the soldiers, the detachment did 
 not march until after the middle of May. Even 
 with the lesson of the recent mutiny fresh in 
 their memories, the authorities still insisted in 
 paying off the men in the depreciated, almost 
 worthless currency, against which they had 
 formerly protested so strongly. This excited 
 the fury of certain malcontents, who cried out 
 against it on parade, with the result that, in 
 order to nip the tendency to revolt in the bud, 
 they were immediately tried, sentenced and shot 
 before the assembled troops. 
 
 Wayne's corps did not march from York un- 
 til May 20. By that date Cornwallis had al- 
 ready withdrawn his army from South Caro- 
 lina, and was proceeding northward, to make 
 a junction with the forces under General Phil- 
 lips on the James River in Virginia. Wayne 
 
 143 
 
THE HERO OF STONY POINT 
 
 was now ordered to reenforce General Lafay- 
 ette, then leading the sole American troops m 
 Virginia, and to do his best in heading off the 
 raiding parties constantly sent out by the enemy 
 to prey upon the surrounding country. While 
 engaged upon this duty Wayne and Lafayette 
 were further ordered by General Washington 
 to prevent, if possible, the retreat of Cornwal- 
 lis into North Carolina. With this double pur- 
 pose in view, the two generals constantly hung 
 upon the rear of the British, annoying them as 
 much as possible, while avoiding a general en- 
 gagement, for which they were not in sufficient 
 numbers nor sufficiently well equipped. 
 
 The persistent plan of rear-guard fighting 
 was carefully adhered to at all times, the only 
 exception, and the nearest approach to a gen- 
 eral engagement, being at Green Spring, where 
 an attack was attempted under an entire mis- 
 apprehension of the enemy's strength. On July 
 6 Lafayette learned from his spies that the 
 British were crossing the river, in order to 
 send columns down on both banks on the way 
 to Portsmouth. According to the understand- 
 
 144 
 
LEADING UP TO YORKTOWN 
 
 ing given him, Lafayette supposed that by far 
 the larger portion of the enemy's forces had 
 crossed to the opposite shore, leaving only a 
 small part exposed to the attacks of the Ameri- 
 cans. Wayne was sent at once to reconnoiter 
 the position, with a force of about 800 men, but, 
 on coming up with the enemy, he found that by 
 far the greater force was still opposed to him, 
 and that he was several times outnumbered. 
 In approaching the enemy the small American 
 force had been obliged to cross a marsh, which 
 was passable only by a narrow causeway. Ee- 
 treat was, therefore, impossible, and nothing 
 remained but to make such showing as they 
 were able until the arrival of reenforcements 
 from the camp five miles to the rear. 
 
 The action began, and continued for some 
 hours, by a constant and ^^ galling'' fire of 
 Wayne's riflemen. Finally, at five o'clock in 
 the evening, the British lines began to advance. 
 This was the signal for a spirited attack by 
 Major Gal van, a French officer in the American 
 service, who maintained a gallant fight, until 
 driven back by the British columns. With the 
 
 145 
 
THE HERO OF STONY POINT 
 
 arrival of a small detachment of infantry, under 
 Major Willis, at this juncture, a heavy fire was 
 resumed by the Americans, and was continued, 
 until it was evident the British were preparing 
 to surround them. Wayne, perceiving that he 
 was in imminent danger of annihilation or cap- 
 ture, determined on one of the bold moves so 
 characteristic of his military genius. Having 
 by this time been strongly reenf orced, he deter- 
 mined to save himself by making a sharp and 
 short attack on the advancing columns, which 
 should throw them into disorder, thus giving 
 him the opportunity to withdraw from the trap 
 and thus prepare for any further movements. 
 Accordingly, within seventy yards of the British 
 lines, he opened a furious attack, with both can- 
 non and musketry, which lasted about fifteen 
 minutes, and served to seriously disconcert his 
 opponents. In the temporary advantage thus 
 gained, he withdrew his troops across the 
 marsh, and reformed on the other side of a piece 
 of woods commanding the only path upon which 
 the British could follow him. Although less 
 spectacular, perhaps, than some of his other 
 
 146 
 
LEADING UP TO YORKTOWN 
 
 notable exploits, this charge served to save his 
 cominand from envelopment by a force of five 
 times their number, and has been universally 
 praised by military authorities. 
 
 After the battle at Green Spring Comwallis 
 resumed his march to Portsmouth, where he 
 carefully fortified himself, and prepared to 
 make a lengthy stay. Lafayette was afraid, 
 however, that he might use this city as a base 
 for further marauding expeditions, and ordered 
 Wayne to cross the river, and take up a posi- 
 tion at a place known as Westover. In this po- 
 sition of vantage he could effectually oppose 
 any attempt to gain the open country in the 
 direction of Norfolk and Petersburg, and, at 
 the same time, would be barred from a retreat 
 into North Carolina. 
 
 Thus, these two faithful commanders did 
 their best to carry out the instructions of Wash- 
 ington, but the Commander-in-Chief had other, 
 and even greater objects in view, which included 
 nothing less than the investment and capture of 
 Cornwallis and his entire command. So ably 
 did Washington dissemble his real plans that 
 
 147 
 
THE HEEO OF STONY POINT 
 
 Sir Henry Clinton was led to suppose that he 
 intended making an attack on New York, backed 
 by the forces under Rochambeau, then stationed 
 at Newport. Accordingly, with singular fatuity, 
 he ably assisted Washington's real objects by 
 ordering Obrnwallis tof select the most con- 
 venient position near the mouth of the Chesa- 
 peake, and there await the cooperation of the 
 British fleet under Admirals Hood and Graves. 
 In giving these commands, he was ignorant, of 
 course, that Washington had information that 
 a powerful French fleet, under Count De Grasse, 
 was on the way from the West Indies, and would 
 enter Hampton Roads late in August, also that 
 another fleet, under Barras, had sailed from 
 Newport to make a rendezvous at the same time. 
 De Grasse 's fleet carried 3,000 troops, while 
 that of Barras brought down the heavy siege 
 guns and full stores for the army. Thus, on 
 the arrival of Washington, on September 26, 
 after his wonderful march from New Jersey, 
 the investment of Yorktown was already begun. 
 The combined French fleet engaged the British 
 ships outside the mouth of the Chesapeake, and 
 
 148 
 
LEADING UP TO YORKTOWN 
 
 so disabled them tliat tliey could take no further 
 part in the conflict. 
 
 There was little opportunity for brilliant and 
 dashing military movements in this affair ; nor 
 was any attempted. Wayne's corps was present 
 during the entire period, as a part of the di- 
 vision commanded by Baron von Steuben, tak- 
 ing their part in the daily routine duties of the 
 siege. The situation for Cornwallis was des- 
 perate. No resistance was possible that could 
 at all contribute to his relief. Consequently, 
 on the morning of October 19, 1781, he surren- 
 dered himself and his entire command prisoners 
 of war. 
 
CHAPTER Xin 
 IN THE SOUTH 
 
 LET ns go back to the spring of 1780. Gen- 
 eral Wayne had been ordered to go South 
 with a detachment of the Pennsylvania Line, 
 800 strong, and join General Nathanael Greene, 
 then commanding the southern department. In 
 his correspondence Wayne gives as his reason 
 for his failure to advance immediately upon 
 receiving orders that ^^the troops were retarded 
 in advancing to the general rendezvous (York, 
 Pennsylvania) by the unaccountable delay of 
 the auditors appointed to settle and pay the pro- 
 portion of the depreciation due the men." The 
 fact is that he was face to face with another 
 mutiny. Later he was delayed by the advance 
 of Comwallis into Virginia ; and so it was not 
 until January 4, 1782, that he and his detach- 
 ment, consisting of Colonel Butler's, Colonel 
 Walter Stewart's, and Colonel Craig's Battal- 
 
 150 
 
IN THE SOUTH 
 
 ions of the Pennsylvania Line, and Colonel 
 Gist's Maryland Battalion joined General 
 Greene at Round 0, in South Carolina. In the 
 meantime, General Greene had won the battle at 
 Eutaw Springs, by which, quoting from Wayne 
 again, ' * The British were cooped up in Charles- 
 ton till the end of the war/' 
 
 Immediately following the arrival of Wayne 
 at his camp. General Greene sent him to the 
 aid of Georgia, where a most distressing condi- 
 tion of affairs had come about — not so much 
 as the result of the British operations as the 
 culmination of the bitter partisan feelings that 
 had, for a long time, been rampant between the 
 inhabitants of that state. In the bitter, malig- 
 nant hatred subsisting between the Whigs and 
 Tories, every man's hand was against his 
 brother; in the background was the common 
 enemy — ^the Indians; slender protection could 
 be procured for life or property, no matter by 
 whom despoiled. Taxes were not to be collected, 
 and so impoverished was the state's exchequer, 
 that, in 1782, the Legislature of the state passed 
 a law authorizing the governor to seize upon the 
 
 151 
 
THE HERO OF STONY POINT 
 
 first ten negroes he could find and sell them, 
 the proceeds to go toward the payment of his 
 salary. The most lamentable outrage, prac- 
 ticed by both Whigs and Tories in their inter- 
 necine strife, was the custom of putting pris- 
 oners to death after surrender. 
 
 The only British garrison in Georgia which 
 assumed any proportions was stationed at Sa- 
 vannah. It was composed of 1,300 British regu- 
 lars, 500 well organized and well armed Tories, 
 any number of Tory refugees, and, in addition 
 to these, several hundred Indian allies. To op- 
 pose these Wayne had at his command about 
 one hundred of Moylan's dragoons, three hun- 
 dred mounted men from Sumpter's brigade, and 
 one hundred and seventy volunteers, the whole 
 totaling 570 men, besides the artillery, which 
 numbered less than one hundred men, practi- 
 cally all raw and undisciplined troops. With 
 this discouraging outlook, it is small wonder 
 that the General ^s heart cried out for his tried 
 Pennsylvania troops who were retained in 
 South Carolina by General Greene. To the lat- 
 ter he wrote a pathetic but unavailing letter: 
 
 152 
 
IN THE SOUTH 
 
 ''Pray give me an additional number of Penn- 
 sylvania troops. I will be content with one bat- 
 talion of Pennsylvanians. They can bring their 
 own field equipage without breaking in upon 
 any part of the army. I will candidly acknowl- 
 edge that I have extraordinary confidence and 
 attachment in the officers and men who have 
 fought and bled with me during so many cam- 
 paigns. Therefore, if they can be spared, you 
 will much oblige me." 
 
 In spite of the disadvantages enumerated, 
 General Wayne's forces established themselves 
 at Ebenezer, twenty-five miles up the river from 
 Savannah, and made preparations to isolate this 
 garrison from the rest of the state — and par- 
 ticularly to accomplisii its separation from the 
 Indian allies. In the meantime, while his prep- 
 arations for military activity were being made, 
 Wayne carried his campaign into other quar- 
 ters by recommending to Governor Martin, of 
 Georgia, that he issue a proclamation offering 
 pardon and protection to the Tories who would 
 join the patriots, and which, by the way, indi- 
 cated also the scant courtesy that would be ex- 
 
 153 
 
THE HERO OF STONY POINT 
 
 tended to the Royalists within the state in the 
 event of the success of the patriot army. It 
 was hoped this would produce salutary effects. 
 His preparations completed, Wayne at once 
 proceeded to the execution of his arduous task. 
 Crossing the Savannah River, February 19, 
 1782, he applied himself to the seemingly hope- 
 less task of detaching the Indians from the 
 British service. While near the Ogeechee River, 
 fifteen miles from Savannah, he heard of a num- 
 ber of Creek Indians on their way to Savannah. 
 Promptly dressing a number of his men in 
 British uniforms, he sent them to meet the 
 chiefs, who fell victims to the strategy, and were 
 easily captured. After taking from them the 
 provisions which they were carrying down to 
 Savannah, he pointed out to them the failure of 
 the British, the certainty that the Americans 
 would capture Savannah, and made the request 
 that they remain neutral, adding, however, that 
 if they preferred the hatchet to the olive branch, 
 the Americans were ready to meet them. This 
 done, he sent them home. On the twenty-fourth 
 of February Wayne wrote: '*It is now upward 
 
 154 
 
IN THE SOUTH 
 
 of five weeks since we entered the state, during 
 which period not an officer nor soldier has once 
 undressed, except for the purpose of changing 
 his linen, nor do the enemy lay on beds of 
 down." This waiting period terminated 
 abruptly on the night of the twenty-first of May, 
 when Wayne encountered the greater part of the 
 Savannah garrison, under General Brown, who 
 had come out to meet a band of several hundred 
 Creeks. Acting upon his maxim, **that the suc- 
 cess of a night attack depends more upon the 
 prowess of the men than their numbers,'' he led 
 his three hundred infantry and one hundred 
 dragoons through forty miles of swamp to the 
 enemy's camp. His vanguard — one-fifth as 
 strong as the British force — charged with such 
 impetuosity that Colonel Brown's whole comple- 
 ment, picked infantry, Hessians, and Tories, 
 were defeated and scattered. 
 
 After this action. General Wayne removed 
 bis camp to Sharon, five miles in front of Sa- 
 vannah. At one o 'clock in the morning his rear 
 guard was attacked by a large body of Creek 
 Indians, who were evidently not impressed with 
 
 155 
 
THE HERO OF STONY POINT 
 
 the advantages of remaining neutral and who 
 were under the leadership of Gueristersigo, the 
 most famous of Creek warriors. After a slight 
 recoil Wayne's forces recovered from their 
 surprise and charged with such undaunted 
 valor that the savages were routed and driven 
 into the swamp. Gueristersigo was slain, and 
 in one of his letters relating to this encounter, 
 Wayne relates a dramatic episode which prob- 
 ably has reference to the warrior chieftain. He 
 says : * ^ Such was the determined bravery with 
 which the Indians fought, that after I had cut 
 down one of their chiefs, with his last breath, 
 he drew his trigger, and shot my noble horse 
 from under me." At daybreak, the British ap- 
 peared, but were driven back to their garrison. 
 Although the House of Commons had voted 
 against the continuance of the war, in February, 
 1782, and by proclamation had ordered Savan- 
 nah, as one of the weaker posts, to be the first 
 evacuated, such was the stubborn disposition 
 of its defenders that only after the success of 
 the operations of the Americans narrated above, 
 could they see the wisdom of evacuating the city. 
 
 156 
 
IN THE SOUTH 
 
 This they finally did on July 11, 1782. Shortly 
 afterward, the situation of Colonel Greene in 
 South Carolina became critical, and "Wayne was 
 ordered to effect an immediate junction with 
 him. This he did in August. The light in- 
 fantry and legionary corps, which had rendered 
 him such important service in Georgia, were 
 added to his command, and, in the latter part 
 of November, he pushed on toward Charles- 
 ton. On December 14, 1782, he took possession 
 of this city, the last stronghold of the British 
 in the South. 
 
 General Wayne, notwithstanding the sobri- 
 quet, '^Mad Anthony," had once more proved 
 himself a tactful and diplomatic, as well as 
 brave and fearless leader, and at the end of his 
 Southern campaign he was gratified by the fol- 
 lowing letter from General Greene: 
 
 ^^Dear Sir: 
 
 * ^ I am very happy to hear that the enemy have 
 left Savannah, and congratulate you most 
 heartily on the event. I have forwarded an ac- 
 count thereof to Congress and the Commander- 
 
 157 
 
THE HERO OF STONY POINT 
 
 in-Ckief, expressive of yonr singular merit and 
 exertions during your command, and doubt not 
 that it will merit their entire approbation, as 
 it does mine." 
 
 Thus brilliantly closed General Wayne's ac- 
 tive campaign in the Revolutionary War, and 
 the only sole command for the conduct of which 
 he had been personally responsible. His ex- 
 ploits in compelling the evacuation of Savannah 
 had won him the admiration of citizens and 
 soldiers alike ; he was hailed as a military genius 
 and was referred to '*as incomparable as a 
 general and strategist," the hero who had res- 
 cued an oppressed people from the harrowing 
 anarchy of internal disorders. The gratitude 
 of the people of Georgia, in spite of the dire 
 poverty of the state and its inhabitants, took 
 a most commendable form, by voting, through 
 their Legislature, 3,900 guineas, with which 
 they purchased a rice plantation and presented 
 it to General Wayne as a practical token of their 
 gratitude, and also, it might be remarked, with 
 the ulterior view of inducing him to become a 
 
 158 
 
IN THE SOUTH 
 
 citizen of Georgia at the close of the war. We 
 shall have the opportmiity, later, to contrast 
 the attitude of the State of Georgia with that 
 of General Wayne's native commonwealth to- 
 ward the one man who, more than any other, 
 had given Pennsylvania her greatest share of 
 glory at this greatest and most critical period 
 of national history. In referring to this negli- 
 gence of the State of Pennsylvania to make 
 suitable acknowledgment as to the worth of 
 her greatest general, one of Wayne's old com- 
 rades in Georgia pungently remarked: '*It 
 gives great satisfaction to the generous souls 
 among your friends here, to think that the peo- 
 ple of more Southern climes have paid some 
 deference to your merits, and have demon- 
 strated it in a more solid manner than empty 
 praise. This is an article of no more worth 
 here than the Continental currency." 
 
CHAPTER XIV 
 THE END OF THE WAR 
 
 WITH the end of the war General Wayne 
 found himself confronted by serious 
 problems. Almost immediately after reaching 
 South Carolina he had found his health se- 
 riously impaired ; in consequence of the fatigue 
 and exposure to which his strenuous campaigns 
 had subjected him, he fell an easy victim to the 
 malarial infections of the Southern swamps; 
 and never afterward did he regain his full health 
 and vigor. Descriptive of this phase of his life, 
 he wrote his friend, Dr. Rush, a characteristic 
 letter: **My physicians, after trying the pow- 
 ers of almost the whole gamut of materia med- 
 ica, have directed the substitution of regimen 
 and moderate exercise. ... Be that as it may, 
 I have this consolation, that neither idleness nor 
 dissipation has so injuriously affected my con- 
 
 160 
 
THE END OF THE WAR 
 
 stitution; but that it had been exhausted and 
 broken down, by encountering almost every ex- 
 cess of fatigue, difficulty, and danger, in the 
 defense of the rights and liberty of America, 
 from the frozen lakes of Canada to the burning 
 sands of Florida.'' He nevertheless continued 
 with the army of the South, taking his share of 
 the labors that fell to the officers of the depleted 
 little band of men. During the winter, he con- 
 cluded treaties of peace with the Creek and 
 Cherokee Indians, as one biographer remarks, 
 ** completing the work that he had begun with 
 the sword. ' ' Also he received the allegiance of 
 the disaffected portion of the inhabitants of 
 North and South Carolina, thus ending his 
 work of pacification. 
 
 In 1783 General .Wayne received a tardy 
 recognition of the extraordinary value of his 
 services to his country by his appointment as 
 major-general by brevet, by Congress on rec- 
 ommendation of the executive council of the 
 State of Pennsylvania. In all the annals of 
 army history there is found no parallel case 
 to the failure to make Wayne a major-general 
 
 161 
 
THE HERO OF STONY POINT 
 
 by promotion; and it does not improve one's 
 opinions of the political methods of his day to 
 learn that this signal neglect of a man whom all 
 knew to be one of the most patriotic and effi- 
 cient officers of the patriot army was the result 
 of well meant efforts on the part of Congress 
 to avoid incurring jealousy on the part of the 
 states which had furnished the greatest number 
 of men for the field. Pennsylvania had a suf- 
 ficient quota of men in service to entitle her to 
 three major-generals, but since a part of them 
 were dispersed on the frontiers, this state had 
 but two commissions ; one of these was held by 
 General Mifflin, and the other by General St. 
 Clair, both of whom, it must be admitted, had 
 claims to political influence. Had there been a 
 third commission, its holder would undoubtedly 
 have been Anthony Wayne. Certainly, it is 
 curious to note that, although there was no dis- 
 senting voice as to General Wayne's sMU as a 
 strategist or record for personal bravery, Con- 
 gress was compelled by political necessity to 
 withhold from him all public recognition, until 
 his services had been of so conspicuous a nature 
 
 162 
 
THE END OF THE WAE 
 
 that to have longer withheld his commission 
 would have been a national scandal. 
 
 About this time, too, much unpleasantness 
 and actual sorrow overtook Wayne in connec- 
 tion with his affiliation with and the prominent 
 part he took in the formation of the Society of 
 the Cincinnati, a fraternal association estab- 
 lished among the surviving officers of the Revo- 
 lution for the laudable purpose of aiding each 
 other, and, at the same time, commemorating 
 their valiant deeds. With what seems to have 
 been the characteristic attitude of those who 
 were guiding the helm of state during this criti- 
 cal period of our national life, every effort was 
 made by politicians to discredit the motives of 
 the sponsors of the Society. They were hailed 
 as aristocrats, denounced as the forerunner of 
 the entire loss of national liberty; and some 
 malcontents and hot-heads declared it should 
 be possible to disenfranchise every member of 
 the Society— and, if necessary, *Ho drive every 
 soul of them out of the state. ' ' General Wayne, 
 who had borne without complaint all slights to 
 his own personal dignity, as he himself had said, 
 
 163 
 
THE HEEO OF STONY POINT 
 
 ^^ solely because of his love for his country and 
 his sense of duty,'' felt keenly the unjust and 
 ungenerous suspicions which were being circu- 
 lated concerning the good intentions of the pa- 
 triotic founders of the Society and expressed 
 his sorrowful and indignant, but clear-headed, 
 view of the situation in a letter to his friend, 
 General Irvine. He wrote: 
 
 **Dear General: The revolution of America 
 is an event that will fill the brightest page of 
 history to the end of time. The conduct of her 
 officers and soldiers will be handed down to the 
 latest ages as a model of virtue, perseverance 
 and bravery. The smallness of their numbers, 
 and the unparalleled hardships and excess of 
 difficulties they have encountered in the defense 
 of their country, from the coldest to the hottest 
 sun, places them in a point of view hurtful to 
 the eyes of the leaders of the factions and par- 
 ties who possess neither the virtue nor the 
 fortitude to meet the enemy in the field, and see- 
 ing the involuntary deference paid by the people 
 to the gentlemen of the army, — envy, that green- 
 eyed monster, will stimulate them to seize with 
 
 164 
 
THE END OF THE WAR 
 
 avidity every opportunity to depreciate the 
 merits of tliose who have filled the breach and 
 bled at every pore." Again he descants upon 
 *^ Caitiff" ingratitude, going back for his pre- 
 cedents to the story of Greece and Rome, and 
 possibly to the early teachings of his Uncle 
 Gilbert. 
 
 General Wayne's solicitude for his men did 
 not end with the war, and his anxiety that the 
 return of his soldiers to civil life should be 
 made as easy and simple for them as possible 
 was yet another source of friction between his 
 ideas and those of the government of the state. 
 On April 20, 1783, he wrote President Dick- 
 enson, the governor of Pennsylvania, the fol- 
 lowing letter: **You are pleased to ask my ad- 
 vice on anything respecting the troops under 
 my command belonging to the state. ... I 
 fondly flatter myself that the wisdom and jus- 
 tice of the Executive and Legislative bodies of 
 Pennsylvania will receive the returning soldiers 
 with open arms and grateful hearts, and I can- 
 not entertain a doubt that they, on their part, 
 will cheerfully and contentedly resume the 
 
 165 
 
THE HERO OF STONY POINT 
 
 garb and habits of the citizen." What must 
 have been his feeling in regard to the disgrace- 
 ful occurrence which accompanied the discharge 
 and disbanding of his beloved Pennsylvania 
 troops ! 
 
 In June, 1783, the soldiers of the American 
 army received a six months' furlough, and, a 
 definite treaty of peace having been agreed 
 upon in the meanwhile, they were discharged 
 in the following December. The soldiers of the 
 Pennsylvania Line were paid off with notes of a 
 nominal value of twenty shillings each, but 
 which were discounted to one-tenth of that 
 amount; and some recruits from the western 
 counties went in a body to Philadelphia to de- 
 mand justice, an action concerning which there 
 was an unwarrantable misunderstanding. With- 
 out the slightest intention or sign of violence 
 on the part of these troops, some of the mem- 
 bers of Congress became alarmed and adjourned 
 to Princeton, alleging that their liberty was 
 threatened by a mob, a statement which failed 
 to win either the sympathy or the credulity of 
 the populace. There was, in truth, small need 
 
 166 
 
THE END OF THE WAR 
 
 for disturbance, since the first two companies of 
 Wayne's veterans had just arrived from South 
 Carolina and were quartered in the city bar- 
 racks. Had the disgruntled recruits, many of 
 whom had never been in the field, really been 
 dangerous, the general's loyalty would have led 
 him to give the authorities any necessary pro- 
 tection. 
 
 General Wayne saw the last of his Pennsyl- 
 vania troops embarked from Charleston, en 
 route to Philadelphia, July, 1783. So shattered 
 was his health by the fever and privations he 
 had undergone, that he was prevented from 
 being a participator in the impressive cere- 
 monies that attended Washington's farewell to 
 his army. Also, he was unable to appear in line 
 with his chief on his triumphal progress through 
 Philadelphia on his way to Mount Vernon. 
 Wayne now settled down on his patrimonial 
 estate in Chester county, and gave the time 
 which he had freely bestowed upon his country 
 to the service of his state. 
 
 In 1776 the Constitution of the state of Penn- 
 sylvania had created a Board of Censors — a 
 
 167 
 
THE HERO OF STONY POINT 
 
 body of men who should be elected once in seven 
 years to review the work of the various 
 branches of the state government; and to de- 
 termine whether this same government had been 
 well or ill conducted; also they were to make 
 a report of their findings to the people — in all, 
 a most comprehensive program. To this Board 
 of Censors General Wayne was elected late in 
 the year 1783, and he became at once one of its 
 most active members. As the chairman of the 
 committee appointed to ascertain how far the 
 provisions of the Constitution had been carried 
 out by legislation, and in what way, if at all, 
 they had been violated, he made a memorable 
 report. In this he showed his anxiety that, now 
 that peace was restored, conciliatory measures 
 should be adopted and such a course pursued as 
 to make the transition from a state of revolu- 
 tion to a condition of normal citizenship as sim- 
 ple a matter as possible. Among the impor- 
 tant measures advised by the committee, of 
 which General Wayne was spokesman, was a 
 report strongly urging the revision of the Con- 
 stitution for the reasons thus frankly stated: 
 
 168 
 
THE END OF THE WAE 
 
 **It is known how in times of danger, the Con- 
 stitution of 1776 forsook us, and the will of our 
 rulers became our only law. It is well known, 
 likewise, that a great part of the citizens of 
 Pennsylvania, from a perfect conviction that 
 political liberty could never long exist under 
 such a frame of government, were opposed to 
 the establishment of it, and when they did sub- 
 mit to it, a solemn engagement was entered into 
 hy its friends, that after 7 years should be ex- 
 pired and the enemy driven from our coasts, 
 they would concur with them in making the 
 wished-f or amendments. ' ' 
 
 On his retirement from the Board of Censors, 
 in 1784, General Wayne was elected to the 
 General Assembly to represent his native county 
 of Chester, serving with distinction during the 
 years 1784-1786. This post found him as active 
 and as aggressive in the interest of justice and 
 humanity as past record had proved him to 
 have been in the performance of any duty to 
 which he was called. His chief desire was to 
 make the Revolution and its results a source of 
 blessing to all, and with this in view, his efforts 
 
 169 
 
THE HERO OF STONY POINT 
 
 were mainly directed to the tmiJ&cation and gen- 
 eral satisfaction of all who made up the body 
 politic of the state. In this endeavor, his at- 
 tention was necessarily directed to the notorious 
 *^test laws" of Pennsylvania, passed in 1777 
 and 1778, and which disenfranchised forever, 
 as suspected, Tories, Royalists, and others who 
 had refused, before November, 1779, to take the 
 oath renouncing allegiance to the King of Great 
 Britain and declaring fidelity to the state of 
 Pennsylvania. Among those to whom this law 
 bore great hardship were the Quakers, who 
 from religious scruples were opposed to aU 
 political tests, and who formed the most praise- 
 worthy part of the state. In all, these acts af- 
 fected nearly one-half of the population of 
 Pennsylvania — ^if the amount of taxable 
 property be taken into consideration, more than 
 that — and those who refused to subscribe were 
 declared incapable of electing or being elected, 
 or holding any place under the government, they 
 were precluded from serving on juries, keep- 
 ing schools, except in private houses, and for- 
 ever excluded from taking said oath afterward. 
 
 170 
 
THE END OF THE WAR 
 
 By reason of his distinguislied military ca- 
 reer, General Wayne was particularly adapted 
 to the task of amending this grievance to the 
 citizens of his state, and here, as elsewhere, he 
 showed himself a fearless and persistent fighter. 
 His first petition asking for the ahandonment 
 of these ** tests," presented in March, 1784, 
 was defeated. In September, and again in 
 December, propositions made by General 
 Wayne were voted down, a committee reporting 
 on the latter occasion, *^that it would be im- 
 politic and dangerous to admit persons who had 
 been inimical to the sovereignty and independ- 
 ence of the state to have a common participa- 
 tion in the government so soon after the War." 
 A bit of sophistry as short-sighted as it was 
 lacking in ingenuity. The struggle began in 1784 
 and continued until 1789, when a motion was 
 adopted to repeal all laws requiring any oath 
 or affirmation of allegiance from the inhabitants 
 of the state. 
 
 In 1787 General Wayne was a member of the 
 Convention called in Pennsylvania to ratify the 
 Constitution of the United States, and it is need- 
 
 171 
 
THE HERO OF STONY POINT 
 
 less to say that lie was one of the most ardent 
 supporters of its adoption. His distinguished 
 public career had, however, for a long time 
 been harassed by the unfortunate state of his 
 domestic concerns. By the year 1790 it was 
 clear to all that the brave and resourceful gen- 
 eral was a very poor business man — ^if success 
 meant the ability to compete with the money- 
 makers of his time. It was a disgraceful period, 
 when low, thievish methods of transacting busi- 
 ness were looked upon with the greatest indul- 
 gence. Also, the sanguine nature which had 
 been one of his most valuable characteristics in 
 enheartening his soldiers and bringing his mili- 
 tary campaigns to a victorious end, became in 
 private life his most serious drawback ; and with 
 the fatality which seemed to attend him, the 
 plantation in Georgia, with which its citizens 
 had presented him with such good intentions, 
 now became the source of his deepest unhappi- 
 ness and humiliation. 
 
 He had devoted much of his time since his 
 return from the army to the rehabilitation of 
 his handsome patrimonial estate in Chester 
 
 172 
 
THE END OF THE WAR 
 
 county, which had suffered severely in the hands 
 of the agents in whose hands he had been 
 obliged to commit his interests during his long 
 absence in his country's behalf. In the mean- 
 time, he was seeking to devise a means by which 
 his rice plantation in Georgia could be made 
 productive. This could not be managed with- 
 out the purchase of slaves to a considerable 
 number, and for this outlay he did not have the 
 means. Someone, probably his friend Robert 
 Morris, suggested to him that he negotiate a 
 loan for that purpose in Holland. Acting upon 
 this hint, Wayne wrote the Minister Resident of 
 Holland in this country, Mr. Van Berkle, a letter 
 wherein he set forth the nature of his security 
 and his needs in picturesque terms that bear un- 
 mistakable evidence of the integrity with which 
 he expected to carry out his share of the bar- 
 gain. After some formal information as to lo- 
 cation, etc., he says : 
 
 ''The estate used to net Sir James Wright 
 from 800 to 1,000 guineas per annum — ^it is 
 therefore an object of considerable consequence 
 to me to set to work again as soon as possible, 
 
 173 
 
THE HERO OF STONY POINT 
 
 for whicli purpose I shall proceed for that Quar- 
 ter in the course of a few weeks in order to pre- 
 pare it for a crop in the Spring, but I shall want 
 the aid of about 4,000 guineas to stock it with 
 negroes. 
 
 **I will punctually pay the Interest by annu- 
 ally remitting rice to Amsterdam, altogether 
 with the principal in the course of two or three 
 years.'' 
 
 It is a sad commentary on the state of our 
 national credit at the beginning of our history 
 as a united people that neither in this country 
 nor in Europe could one of America's greatest 
 military heroes borrow four thousand guineas 
 on the security which included both his Georgia 
 plantation and his Pennsylvania estate. Unfor- 
 tunately it did not occur to the general that such 
 a state of things could exist, and thinking the 
 loan concluded, he drew bills for that amount on 
 his correspondents, probably, as evidence goes 
 to show, using the whole amount for the pur- 
 chase of negroes. The bills fell into the hands 
 of a Scotch agent in Savannah who demanded 
 immediate payment. After many difficulties 
 
 174 
 
THE END OF THE WAR 
 
 and embarrassments, Wayne was ultimately 
 obliged, in order to save his patrimonial estate, 
 to sacrifice his Georgia property. In full justice 
 to him let it be here said that he had made this 
 propositien in the beginning of the controversy, 
 and that the only answer to this was a suit in 
 law, the only object of which was to make both 
 his estates liable for payment. 
 
 In 1890, although it was quite apparent that 
 all hope of his becoming a resident of Georgia, 
 even for a part of the time, as he had intended to 
 do, was past, a large number of his friends there 
 determined that General Wayne should repre- 
 sent them in Congress. Accordingly he was 
 returned as elected on January 3, 1791; but 
 at the instigation of his opponent the House in- 
 vestigated and on March 16, 1792, set forth 
 that ** Anthony Wayne was not duly elected a 
 Member of this House. " At no time was it ever 
 charged that Wayne had any knowledge of or 
 part in the irregularities charged to his over- 
 zealous friends. His own version of the matter, 
 given soon after the decision of the House, is no 
 doubt the correct one. He says: **Both Fed- 
 
 175 
 
THE HERO OF STONY POINT 
 
 eralists and Anti-Federalists pronounced in the 
 halls of Congress, after the fullest investiga- 
 tion, my character stood pure and unsullied as a 
 soldier's ought to be.'' 
 
 After the chagrin attendant upon the unfor- 
 tunate Georgia controversy, it was small won- 
 der that General Wayne felt an overwhelming 
 desire to go back to military life. In line with 
 this he urged one of his friends, a member of 
 Congress, to petition for his appointment to 
 the command of the forces which his judgment 
 with regard to the dangers that menaced his 
 country convinced him would be needed at no 
 distant date to repel the incursions of the Creek 
 Indians. Only a few days after the question of 
 his Congressional election had been decided 
 President Washington evinced his confidence in 
 him as a man of honor and the foremost mili- 
 tary leader of the young Republic by appoiutiag 
 him General-in-Chief of the army. 
 
CHAPTER Xy 
 CALLED BACK TO THE AEMY 
 
 THE magnitude of the trust reposed in 
 General Wayne by President Washington 
 can only be understood in the light of the seri- 
 ous conditions prevailing on the Northwestern 
 frontier at the time of General Wayne ^s ap- 
 pointment. After the cession of the lands north 
 and west of the Ohio River to the United States 
 by Virginia and Connecticut, a territorial gov- 
 ernment had been formed in that region, by the 
 ordinance of Congress of July 13, 1787 — a fa- 
 mous document in American history — and Gen- 
 eral Arthur St. Clair was appointed governor. 
 Emigrants were offered every inducement, and 
 large bodies of them sought homes in this 
 Northwest Territory. These pioneers lived in 
 constant fear of the savages, for the Indian 
 allies of Great Britain had refused to bury the 
 hatchet when peace was made, some historians 
 
 177 
 
THE HERO OF STONY POINT 
 
 clainung that, actuated by the hope of acquiring 
 the Northwest Territory and the Canadas in 
 time, the British had persuaded the red men to 
 fight for their lands. Add to this supposititious 
 case a determination on the part of the savage, 
 quite independent of any quarrel with the 
 whites, that the white man should never occupy 
 the lands west of the Ohio, and the true source 
 of the frequent raiding and scalping parties is 
 apparent. From 1783 to 1790 it was estimated 
 that no fewer than 1,500 selttlers, including 
 women and children, had been slain or captured 
 by the Shawnees and Delawares who occupied 
 the region. 
 
 These tribes, reinforced by the Wyandottes, 
 the Miamis, the Chippewas and the Pottawato- ' 
 mies, concentrated near the Miami and the Mau- 
 inee rivers and Lake Erie. Here they had ac- 
 cess to the Indians of the interior, to the Ca- 
 nadians, and the British, who were still holding 
 Detroit and other posts northwest of the Ohio. 
 Both of these latter, no one doubts who searches 
 the records, aided and encouraged the Indians 
 in their forays by the loan of organized forces. 
 
 178 
 
CALLED BACK TO THE AEMY 
 
 In January, 1789, Governor St. Clair, finding 
 that he was unable to compel the Indians to 
 stand by their treaties, determined to send a 
 military force to the rescue of the helpless fron- 
 tiersmen, and in 1790 General Harmar, who had 
 been one of the most distinguished officers of 
 the Pennsylvania Line, was dispatched to put an 
 end to the Indian atrocities. This army, badly 
 equipped and undisciplined, led by officers who, 
 though they were brave, were lacking in experi- 
 ence in the ways of the wily red man, met the 
 Indians in force at what is now Fort Wayne, 
 Indiana, and, practically annihilated, were 
 forced to retreat to Fort Washington (Cincin- 
 nati). The moral effect of this failure was dis- 
 tressing; the savages were only the more in- 
 censed and confident in their own prowess, and 
 made their attacks with greater ferocity than 
 before. 
 
 General St. Clair himself was now sent to the 
 Northwest with a picked band of men, consisting 
 of 2,300 regular troops. On November 3, 1791, 
 he encamped where Recovery, Mercer County, 
 Ohio, now stands. Here was the man of destiny, 
 
 179 
 
THE HERO OF STONY POINT 
 
 and the eyes of the nation were fixed upon him 
 with lively solicitude. The fight began at sun- 
 rise of November 4. Eegular military tactics 
 failed completely; officer after officer was shot 
 down, until upward of sixty were slain; and 
 when the Indians penetrated the camp of the 
 militia at the end of the line the result was a 
 total rout. Besides the officers enumerated be- 
 fore, 630 soldiers were killed, and of the remain- 
 ing 1,400 who survived we are told that * * scarce 
 half a hundred were unhurt." Altogether it 
 was the most disastrous defeat sustained at the 
 hands of the savages since the historic defeat of 
 General Braddock ; and it proved an even great- 
 er disaster by reason of the great depression 
 felt by the American people. In this battle were 
 killed many of the most distinguished men in 
 the Pennsylvania Line under Wayne's com- 
 mand, and that leader was also deprived of his 
 heroic and brilliant friend, General Richard 
 Butler. 
 
 The dismay and consternation into which 
 these defeats, especially that of General St. 
 Clair, threw the country made capital for the 
 
 180 
 
CALLED BACK TO THE ARMY 
 
 opponents of the administration; while from 
 continued ill success the people looked with dis- 
 favor upon a military life as a calling, the only- 
 certain reward of which would be to fall by the 
 rifle, the tomahawk, or the scalping-knife, for 
 the Indians were well armed and provided with 
 powder and ball. The cost of maintaining the 
 army in the present low condition of the na- 
 tional treasury was another reason against an- 
 other campaign; and the many abuses which 
 had crept into the management of the St. Clair 
 campaign — insufficient arms and wretched food. 
 All these things furnished proofs to the public 
 mind of gross misconduct on the part of the 
 administration, and were made liberal use of to 
 accomplish party ends. Congress, however, had 
 sufficient strength to support the President in 
 his views, and by an act approved March 5, 
 1792, authorized him to reorganize the army. 
 
 It can now be readily realized that at this 
 critical juncture the selection of the command- 
 ing officer was more important than at any time 
 since the commencement of the Revolution. 
 Washington must risk his own fame, even, in 
 
 181 
 
THE HERO OF STONY POINT 
 
 this one act, for failure would mean tlie most 
 deeply humiliating consequences. A man was 
 needed who possessed sound judgment, the 
 greatest caution and coolness, a broad knowl- 
 edge of military science; he should be a strict 
 disciplinarian, and, above all, a patriot. Envi- 
 ous officers and statesmen who had the ear of 
 the President constantly represented to him 
 that ** Wayne was brave and nothing else''; his 
 unsuccessful business ventures had created an 
 ill impression which his strong integrity had not 
 counterbalanced; and his love of fine clothing 
 and display were vulnerable points of criticism. 
 Nevertheless, Washington found that much- 
 needed man in General Wayne, and appointed 
 him to the command of his expeditionary forces 
 in April, 1792. 
 
 The United States army as it was then organ- 
 ized consisted of 5,120 non-commissioned offi- 
 cers and privates, one major-general, four brig- 
 adier generals, and their staffs, the whole known 
 as the Legion of the United States. This Legion 
 was to be subdivided into four sub-legions, each 
 to consist of 1,280 non-commissioned men and 
 
 182 
 
CALLED BACK TO THE AEMY 
 
 privates. With this force of men General 
 Wayne set out on his expedition May 24, 1792, 
 stimulated and forewarned by the parting dec- 
 laration of Secretary of War, General Knox, 
 that ** another defeat would be inexpressibly 
 ruinous to the reputation of the Government." 
 Wayne 's only stipulation was that the campaign 
 should not begin until his Legion was filled up 
 and properly disciplined, wherein we may see 
 that he put his trust in good management rather 
 than in good fortune. 
 
CHAPTER XVI 
 FIGHTING THE NORTHERN SAVAGES 
 
 GENERAL WAYNE went to Pittsburgh in 
 June, 1792, and straightway began to as- 
 semble and organize his Legion. A hard task 
 it was! His recruits were gathered from the 
 slums and prisons of the Eastern cities — the 
 refuse of the nation. Tales of the horrible mu- 
 tilations inflicted by the Indians and the plenti- 
 fuLiiess of whisky about Pittsburgh were hardly 
 calculated to inspire these wretched beings with 
 devotion to the cause. Desertions followed to 
 such an extent that the recruits fled in squads, 
 fifty-seven leaving a small detachment on the 
 road to Pittsburgh at one time, and of those who 
 remained Wayne wrote the Secretary of War in 
 a letter dated August 10, 1792 : 
 
 *^ Desertions have been frequent and alarming 
 — ^two nights since, upon a report that a large 
 body of Indians were close in our front, I or- 
 
 184 
 
SLIGHTING THE NORTHERN SAVAGES 
 
 dered the troops to form for action, and rode 
 along the line to inspire them with confidence, 
 and gave a charge to those in the redoubts, 
 which I had hastily thrown up in our front and 
 right flank, to maintain their posts, at the ex- 
 pense of blood, until I could gain the enemy's 
 rear with the dragoons ; but such is the defect 
 of the human heart, that from excess of cow- 
 ardice one-third of the sentries deserted from 
 these stations so as to leave the most accessible 
 places unguarded." 
 
 To add to his difficulties, since so many of 
 his most dependable officers had perished in the 
 disastrous campaigns of Generals Harmar and 
 St. Clair, he was confronted with the necessity 
 of drilling officers as well as privates. For a 
 time he worked as best he could in Pittsburgh, 
 then, on November 28, shipped his recruits, who 
 had been immeasurably improved in discipline 
 and numbers, down the Ohio River to a camp 
 twenty-seven miles below Pittsburgh, which he 
 called Legionville. Here he settled down to a 
 winter of hard work as drill-master. 
 
 In the meantime, mindful of his duty to his 
 185 
 
THE HERO OF STONY POINT 
 
 Grovemineiit and the American people, Wayne 
 had left no stone unturned to ascertain the dis- 
 position of the Indians towards peace. He 
 made every effort to impress them with the ear- 
 nest desire of the United States to accept any 
 terms that would be just and honorable. In an- 
 swer, the Indians continued their depredations 
 on the frontier, and, claiming superiority, sent 
 repeated and boastful messages as to their hopes 
 on seeing the Legion advance into their coun- 
 try. Colonel Harding and Major Truman, who 
 went to them — ^not, it must be understood, by 
 the order of General Wayne, but from the Gov- 
 ernment — ^were received at first with every man- 
 ifestation of good-will and then foully mur- 
 dered, despite the fact that they carried flags 
 of truce and were unarmed. Still anxious to 
 conciliate, Wayne sent an invitation to a coun- 
 cil to Complanter, and other chiefs of the Six 
 Tribes who had been disposed to be friendly. 
 In a dramatic toast given at the general's table, 
 Cornplanter said: **My mind and heart are 
 upon that river'' — ^pointing to the Ohio — *^may 
 that water ever continue to run and remain the 
 
 186 
 
FIGHTING THE NOETHERN SAVAGES 
 
 boundary of lasting peace between the Ameri- 
 cans and the Indians on its opposite shores.'' 
 This sentiment of the * ^friendly Indians/' 
 fanned and sustained by British policy, became 
 the obsession of the hostile tribes, who de- 
 manded that the Americans renounce all claims 
 north and west of the Ohio, regardless of treaty 
 or fair purchase. It was, therefore, upon the 
 ground of the protection of unquestionable 
 rights, as well as for the purpose of curbing 
 Indian ferocity, and not from a policy of aggres- 
 sion, that Wayne advanced at last into the coun- 
 try of the savage. 
 
 At Legionville, during all that winter, the 
 resourceful and tireless Wayne wrought won- 
 ders with his hopeless material. A review of 
 the work he did there gives us a new view — 
 that of thoroughness — of the fastidious Revo- 
 lutionary general who had **an insuperable bias 
 in favor of an elegant uniform and soldierly ap- 
 pearance," and who was * ^determined to pun- 
 ish any man who came on parade with a long 
 beard, slovenly dressed, or dirty." He in- 
 structed his riff-raff mob in military tactics and 
 
 187 
 
THE HERO OF STONY POINT 
 
 duties; more than that, he made men of them, 
 as he marched them np and down the parade 
 grounds. What he accomplished that winter 
 has led one historian to remark: *^ Anthony 
 Wayne— * Mad Anthony' — ^was not only an ideal 
 leader of men in time of battle, but he was the 
 most capable drillmaster the American army 
 ever had." 
 
 Of the result of his efforts, General Wayne 
 wrote to Secretary Knox, March 30, 1793, ''The 
 progress that the troops have made both in 
 maneuvering and as marksmen astonished the 
 savages on St. Patrick's day; and I am happy 
 to inform you that the sons of that Saint were 
 perfectly sober and orderly, being out of reach 
 of whisky, which baneful poison is prohibited 
 from entering this camp except as the compo- 
 nent part of a ration, or a little for fatigue duty, 
 or on some extraordinary occasion." With 
 characteristic hopefulness he was now inspired 
 with such confidence in the success of his expe- 
 dition that he solicited the secretary of state 
 to send him ''certain legionary distinctive 
 decorations; also a legionary standard, and 
 
 188 
 
FIGHTING THE NORTHERN SAVAGES 
 
 sub-legionary and battalion colors/' On 
 receiving them lie wrote: ''They shall not 
 he lost!'' 
 
 In May, 1793, General Wayne moved his camp 
 to Fort Washington — the present site of Cincin- 
 nati — ^where he continued his efforts to maintain 
 a well-disciplined force. From the administra- 
 tion and from the prevailing conditions of the 
 time, all adverse to obtaining cooperation and 
 obedience essential to the preservation of an un- 
 broken front, he had small encouragement to 
 pursue his work. In January, 1793, Secretary 
 of War, General Knox, had written : 
 
 * ' The sentiments of the citizens of the United 
 States are adverse in the extreme to an Indian 
 war. ' ' 
 
 A commission, consisting of three prominent 
 Americans, General Lincoln, Colonel Pickering, 
 and Beverly Randolph, Esq., of Virginia, were 
 sent by the government to treat with the In- 
 dians who had indicated a disposition to con- 
 sider peace ; and while these negotiations were 
 pending. Secretary Knox again wrote : 
 
 **It will therefore be still more and more nec- 
 189 
 
THE HERO OF STONY POINT 
 
 essary even than in the past summer, that no 
 offensive be taken against the Indians. ' ' 
 
 Moreover, it is said, that at the instigation of 
 the British who accompanied these peace com- 
 missioners, the latter wrote Secretary Knox a 
 strong protest against Wayne's work on the 
 drill-ground, as *^this procedure on his part 
 angered the Indians, and that the British con- 
 sidered it unfair and unwarrantable." Never- 
 theless the generaPs experience with the sav- 
 ages had convinced him that they would not 
 yield, and he persevered in perfecting his army. 
 He was justified in his convictions, for when 
 the peace commissioners reached Detroit, Au- 
 gust 13, 1783, they received from a general 
 council the following message: 
 
 ** Brothers : We shall be persuaded that you 
 mean to do us justice if you agree that the Ohio 
 shall remain the boundary line between us. If 
 you will not consent thereto, our meeting will 
 be altogether unnecessary." 
 
 A battle was now inevitable, if not a pro- 
 longed war, and Wayne, who had sent to Ken- 
 tucky for mounted volunteers while awaiting 
 
 190 
 
FIGHTING THE NORTHERN SAVAGES 
 
 the end of tlie negotiations, was ready. At last, 
 in September, 1793, General Knox wrote : 
 
 **Tlie Indians have refused to treat . . . 
 every offer has been made to obtain peace by 
 milder terms than the sword; the efforts have 
 failed under circumstances which leave nothing 
 for us to expect but war,'* continuing with the 
 oft repeated warning, *'Let it therefore be 
 again, and for the last time, impressed deeply 
 upon your mind, that as little as possible is to 
 be hazarded, that your force is fully adequate to 
 the object you purpose to effect, and that a 
 defeat at the present time, and under the 
 present circumstances, would be pernicious 
 in the highest degree to the interests of our 
 country. ' ' 
 
 To this suggestion General Wayne sent a for- 
 cible reply : * ^ I pray you not to permit present 
 appearances to cause too much anxiety either in 
 the mind of the President or yourself on account 
 of the army. Knowing the critical situation of 
 our infant nation, and feeling for the honor and 
 reputation of the government (which I will de- 
 fend with my latest breath), you may rest as- 
 
 191 
 
THE HERO OF STONY POINT 
 
 sured that I will not commit the Legion unneo- 
 essarily." 
 
 Wayne now started on his advance into the 
 Indian country. On October 7 he left *^ Hob- 
 son's Choice, '^ as he called his camp near Cin- 
 cinnati, with his legions of troops on the march 
 through the wilderness. On October 13, he en- 
 camped on a spot which he named Greeneville, 
 in honor of his old friend and comrade, Gen- 
 eral Greene — a post six miles north of Fort Jef- 
 ferson and eighty miles from Cincinnati. This 
 place he fortified for his winter quarters, and 
 here the command spent several months cut 
 off from all communication with the govern- 
 ment at Philadelphia, and surrounded by hostile 
 savages. There were frequent encounters with 
 these when convoys of provisions were sur- 
 prised and their escorts murdered. As a means 
 of giving his troops experience, on December 
 23, Wayne sent several companies of soldiers 
 forward to the battlefield on which St. Clair 
 had met his defeat in 1791, with the double pur- 
 pose of burying the bones of their comrades 
 who had perished there, and to fortify the site. 
 
 192 
 
FIGHTING THE NORTHERN SAVAGES 
 
 In order to encourage the troops who were or- 
 dered to this service, Wayne personally ad- 
 vanced to the same spot. 
 
 After the erection of this fort, which he 
 named **Fort Recovery,'' General Wayne re- 
 ceived some overtures of peace from the In- 
 dians, to whom, although he had no faith in 
 their professions, he expressed himself as highly 
 gratified and agreed to open negotiations, 
 only asking that, as proof of their sincerity, 
 they should deliver to him the captives they 
 had taken. This was never done, and nothing 
 more was heard of pacific proposals. On the 
 contrary, the situation became every day more 
 difficult; it needed the exercise of the widest 
 vigilance and wisdom on the part of the com- 
 mander of our army and the utmost loyalty of 
 his followers. With the impressment of Ameri- 
 can seamen, the confiscation of our cargoes, 
 and other hostile acts of the English thus going 
 on, there was every prospect of war with Great 
 Britain. Moreover, the British, who still main- 
 tained strong garrisons on the frontier, built a 
 fort at the foot of the Maumee Rapids (Fort 
 
 193 
 
THE HERO OF STONY POINT 
 
 Miami), which the Indians believed to be im- 
 pregnable and the erection of which no doubt 
 encouraged them to hope that, in case of battle, 
 they would be supported by tried battalions of 
 English allies. 
 
 From these circumstances it may be seen that 
 General Wayne's position was such that one in- 
 judicious move on his part might certainly be 
 the means of bringing on a second war with 
 Great Britain. In this emergency the prudence 
 of his conduct was such that at last he obtained 
 the tardy approbation of his government. A 
 communication from the Secretary of War, 
 dated March 31, informed him that the way in 
 which he had taken a position on the scene of 
 General St. Clair's defeat, and the manner in 
 which he had treated the false peace proposals 
 of the hostile red men, were ** highly satisfac- 
 tory and exceedingly proper.'' The secretary 
 proceeded to say : 
 
 '^It is with great pleasure, sir, that I trans- 
 mit to you the approbation of the President of 
 the United States for your conduct generally, 
 since you have had the command, and more par- 
 
 194 
 
FIGHTING THE NORTHERN SAVAGES 
 
 ticularly, for the judicious military formation 
 of your troops; the precautions you appear to 
 have taken in your advance, in your fortified 
 camp, and in your arrangements for a full and 
 abundant supply of provisions on hand ^'— a 
 commendation most flattering in view of the re- 
 verses encountered by his predecessors, Har- 
 mar and St. Clair. Later, General Knox wrote : 
 ^^If therefore, in the course of your opera- 
 tions against the Indian enemy, it should have 
 become necessary to dislodge the party at the 
 rapids of the Miami (meaning the English gar- 
 rison), you are hereby authorized in the name 
 of the President of the United States to do it." 
 Thus was **Mad Anthony" Wayne given 
 power to conduct the war according to his sole 
 discretion; also to take the step which might 
 have led to war with England. 
 
 Hostilities opened on the morning of June 
 thirtieth, 1794, when, under the walls of Fort 
 Recovery, an escort under Major M'Mahan was 
 attacked by a large body of Indians and driven 
 into the fort. Major M'Mahan and other valued 
 officers losing their lives. An assault was then 
 
 195 
 
THE HERO OF STONY POINT 
 
 made on the fort, and tlie Indians, who were re- 
 pulsed with heavy loss, gained from their dis- 
 comfiture some degree of respect for the new 
 American Commander-in-Chief and American 
 arms. About the middle of July General Wayne 
 was joined by a strong mounted force from 
 Kentucky, under the command of Major-Gen- 
 eral Scott. He now judged his preparations 
 complete and moved up to the English garrison 
 at Fort Miami. Here he constructed a fortifi- 
 cation at the junction of the Le Glaize and Mi- 
 ami rivers, which he appropriately called Fort 
 Defiance. Although now fully prepared to strike 
 the blow which would forever settle the ques- 
 tion of supremacy on the American frontier, 
 Wayne made one more attempt to secure peace 
 without bloodshed, and sent the Indians a propo- 
 sition by a special flag. Confident of the assist- 
 ance promised by their white allies, and secure 
 in their own prowess, the savages rejected all 
 proposals, and one of the most memorable In- 
 dian battles in all history followed. 
 
 On the morning of the fifteenth of August 
 the army advanced from Fort Defiance; and 
 
 196 
 
FIGHTING THE NORTHERN SAVAGES 
 
 on the eighteenth arrived at Roche de Bout, at 
 the head of the rapids ; they camped there until 
 the nineteenth, while scouts examined the en- 
 emy's ground and small fortifications. On the 
 morning of the twentieth the Americans ad- 
 vanced in two lines through a thick wood ex- 
 tending for miles on every side, where the sav- 
 ages lay in wait. The ground of the forest was 
 covered with fallen timbers, the aftermath of 
 a tornado, and the whole situation was an ideal 
 one for the foe. In a location such as this the 
 cavalry were practically useless, while two miles 
 below was the British fort, from which the In- 
 dians expected help in extremity. Five or six 
 miles below the camp. Major Price, with his 
 advance guard, saw Indians and charged. Upon 
 that, the enemy in full force in the midst of the 
 tangled tree trunks opened a galling fire that 
 threw the Kentuckians back on Wayne's main 
 army. It was the supreme moment. Wayne 
 now ordered the militia, under General Scott, 
 to turn the enemy's right, and the dragoons 
 of the Legion to cut in between the river and 
 the enemy's left. At the same time the line 
 
 197 
 
THE HERO OF STONY POINT 
 
 of infantiy, 900 strong, with bayonets fixed, 
 was stretched before the enemy's fighting front ; 
 while a second line was placed in the rear as 
 reserve forces. When the word was given to 
 charge, every man leaped forward, yelling with 
 the joy of the fight; they bayoneted the red 
 men and their allies behind the logs, and shot 
 them down as they fled, until they had driven 
 them past the British forts (which were tightly 
 closed) and scattered them in the wilderness. 
 Thus the bayonet charge decided the fate of the 
 battle and practically ended the long warfare on 
 the frontier. A few small raids were after- 
 wards made, but the tribes lost hope of victory. 
 In this engagement the American loss was 33 
 killed, and 100 wounded. The Indians lost 
 several times as many. The army now returned 
 to Le Glaize by easy marches, reaching that 
 post on the twenty-seventh of August; thence 
 they marched to Fort Defiance and back to 
 Greeneville. 
 
 Although suffering acutely from an attack 
 of the gout on the morning the battle began. 
 General Wayne was able to prevail over his 
 
 198 
 
FIGHTING THE NORTHERN SAVAGES 
 
 physical disability, and spent much of the next 
 day, with his staff, in reconnoitering the British 
 fort, thus giving great offense to the com- 
 mander. Major Campbell. As the result of this 
 incident the following epistolary exchange of 
 views took place : 
 
 *^ Major Campbell to General Wayne. 
 
 <<! 
 
 Sir, — An army of the United States of 
 America, said to be under your command, have 
 taken post on the banks of the Miami for up- 
 wards of the last 24 hours almost within reach 
 of the guns of this fort, being a post belonging 
 to his Majesty the King of Great Britain, oc- 
 cupied by his Majesty's troops, and which I 
 have the honor to command, it becomes my duty 
 to inform myself as speedily as possible in 
 what light I am to view your approach to this 
 garrison. I have no hesitation, on my part, to 
 say that I know of no war existing between 
 Great Britain and America. 
 **I have the honor, etc., etc." 
 
 Neither did General Wayne have any ^* hesita- 
 tion,'' for he replied to this effect: 
 
 199 
 
THE HERO OF STONY POINT 
 
 a 
 
 Sir:— I have received your letter of this 
 date, requiring from me the motives which have 
 moved the army under my command to the po- 
 sition that they at present occupy far within 
 the acknowledged jurisdiction of the United 
 States. 
 
 ** Without questioning the authority or the 
 propriety of your interrogatory, I think I may, 
 without breach of decorum, observe to you that 
 you are entitled to an answer. The most full 
 and satisfactory one was announced to you from 
 the muzzles of my small arms yesterday morn- 
 ing in the action against the hordes of savages 
 in the vicinity of your post which terminated 
 gloriously to the American arms, but had it 
 continued until the Indians, etc., were driven 
 under the influence of the post and guns you 
 mention, they would not much have impeded 
 the progress of the Victorious Army under my 
 command — as no such post was established at 
 the commencement of the present war between 
 the Indians and the United States." 
 
CHAPTER XVn 
 
 THE GOVERNMENT COMMISSIONER AND 
 CONCLUSION 
 
 THE importance of General Anthony 
 Wayne's services in forcing the decisive 
 battle at the Falls of the Miami, which resulted 
 in the complete subjugation of the Indians of 
 the Northwest, cannot be overestimated. He is 
 entitled to lasting fame and to the enduring 
 gratitude of the millions of prosperous people 
 who now inhabit the fertile lands lying between 
 the Ohio and the Mississippi rivers, as the man 
 who opened this magniificent domain to the 
 home-seeker, and obtained for him the consti- 
 tutional, and actual, right to life, liberty, and 
 the pursuit of happiness on his own lands. By 
 the brilliant success of this victory over the 
 combined tribes, the government gained im- 
 measurably in lands and in power; while it 
 was still more far-reaching in aiding the Amer- 
 ican ambassador, John Jay, in bringing to a 
 
 201 . 
 
THE HERO OF STONY POINT 
 
 reasonable conclusion tlie terms of the treaty 
 lie was negotiating with the English ministry 
 in regard to their retention of garrisons on 
 American soil. The news of this battle reach- 
 ing London, it was felt that all hope of further 
 aid from the Indians was at an end, and orders 
 were given for the evacuation of the British 
 forts in American territory. Also, the battle 
 of the Miami put an end to vexations arising 
 from a cherished dream of the Spanish authori- 
 ties that their dominion in America might some 
 day be recovered. Nor must it be forgotten 
 that in the flush of victory, the factions at the 
 national capital were reconciled for a season, 
 and the stain of recent defeats wiped from 
 American arms. 
 
 On September 14, 1794, after having accom- 
 plished his purpose, General Wayne and his 
 army left Fort Defiance and returned to Greene- 
 ville for winter quarters. Preliminary articles 
 were entered into, January 1, 1795, and hos- 
 tages left with General Wayne for the safe de- 
 livery of prisoners in possession of the Indians. 
 Elated at the victory of his commander-in-chief, 
 
 202 
 
The I real V willi I lie liidii 
 
THE GOVERNMENT COMMISSIONER 
 
 President Washington forthwith issued a com- 
 mission, appointing General Wayne sole com- 
 missioner, with full powers to negotiate and 
 conclude a treaty with all the Indians north and 
 west of the Ohio. In these negotiations Gen- 
 eral Wayne displayed the same wisdom and 
 prudence, tempered by humanity, that had made 
 him conspicuous as a military leader. He 
 treated the chiefs and warriors with the great- 
 est courtesy and frankness ; explained to them 
 the views of the government, and just what it 
 expected of them. In return for their cession 
 of lands they received $20,000 in goods, which 
 were distributed among the Indians present, 
 while another annuity, amounting to $9,500, 
 was granted to the tribes represented. By this 
 straightforward course he gained their confi- 
 dence and respect. As a last word, he told 
 them that they were ** children and no longer 
 brothers.'' Definite terms of peace were con- 
 cluded on August 17, 1795, and the Indians re- 
 turned to their homes well pleased. 
 
 The treaty of Greeneville also met the warm 
 approval of the government, for by its terms 
 
 203 
 
THE HERO OF STONY POINT 
 
 a vast tract of territory west of the OMo and 
 northwest to Detroit was ceded to the United 
 States. The lines enclosing the Indian territory 
 were drawn from Lake Erie along the Cuyahoga 
 River to Portage, hence west to the Maumee, 
 down that river to the lake (Erie) and thence 
 to the place of beginning. Within these lines 
 the claim of the Indians to territory was ac- 
 knowledged, and beyond them lay the land of 
 the whites. By its favorable terms the treaty 
 of Greeneville had thus procured for the gov- 
 ernment land to the value of millions, and, what 
 is of more importance, a peace which lasted un- 
 interruptedly for seventeen years. 
 
 The treaty concluded, General Wayne, who 
 had lived in the wilderness for three years, prac- 
 tically without news of the outside world, re- 
 turned to Pennsylvania. His progress was that 
 of a conquering hero. On his approach to Phila- 
 delphia all business was suspended, and four 
 miles from the city he was met with three 
 troops of light horse. The newspapers of the 
 day give the following account : **0n his cross- 
 ing the SchuylkiU a salute of 15 cannon was 
 
 204 
 
THE GOVERNMENT COMMISSIONER 
 
 fired from Centre Square by a party of artil- 
 lery. He was ushered into the city by the ring- 
 ing of bells and other demonstrations of joy, 
 and thousands of citizens crowded to see and 
 welcome the return of their brave general, 
 whom they attended to the City Tavern, where 
 he alighted. In the evening a display of fire- 
 works was exhibited.'' This was his one great 
 day — ^when all men acknowledged the worth of 
 his work. 
 
 President Washington, in a message to Con- 
 gress, gratefully acknowledged the exploits of 
 General Wayne and the vast consequences 
 likely to follow them and an attempt was made 
 to have fitting acknowledgments made in the 
 House of Representatives. Again party jeal- 
 ousy deprived the general of his just deserts, 
 and the House adopted the following resolu- 
 tion: 
 
 ** Resolved Unanimously, that the thanks of 
 this House be given to the brave officers and 
 soldiers of the Legion under the orders of Gen- 
 eral Wayne for their prudence and bravery." 
 
 During the winter of 1796, opposition to the 
 205 
 
THE HERO OF STONY POINT 
 
 enforcement of Jay's treaty had become so vio- 
 lent that the probable refusal of Congress to 
 make the necessary appropriations for carrying 
 it into effect led to the belief that another war 
 with Great Britain was impending, a war loudly 
 demanded by the * * Jingoists ' ' of that day. Since 
 the treaty involved the right of the English to 
 retain their fortifications on our frontier, and 
 by holding that vantage ground on American 
 territory they might again seek the alliance of 
 the Indians and involve the Western lands in 
 warfare, it was of the utmost importance that 
 the articles of the treaty be promptly carried 
 out. On April 30, the memorable debate on this 
 bill was concluded, and by a vote of 51 to 48, 
 the House decided to make the appropriation 
 in question, and orders were sent to the British 
 These measures had been taken just in time, 
 commanders to evacuate their forts, 
 for news came that the English had been solicit- 
 ing the aid of the Indians for a new campaign 
 in the Northwest Territory, and at this critical 
 juncture, General Wayne was selected as the 
 one man who could accomplish the delicate and 
 
 206 
 
THE GOVERNMENT COMMISSIONER 
 
 hazardous mission of taking possession of the 
 British strongholds in the name of the United 
 States government. One writer says: **He 
 knew the English on the border, with their 
 allies, the Indians, and they knew him. More- 
 over, the man who had won the territory was the 
 one to whom the honor of receiving it was due." 
 Under these circumstances, charged with full 
 discretionary powers, General Wayne was sent, 
 in June, 1796, to the British posts at Detroit, 
 Michelimackinack, Oswego, and Niagara. On 
 his approach the Indians at once became 
 friendly; he was received in the most courteous 
 manner by the English officers in command of 
 the garrisons of the different forts; and in no 
 case did he meet any obstacle in rendering his 
 last great service to his country. He reached 
 Detroit in September, where he was welcomd by 
 demonstrations from the settlers he had saved, 
 and the red men who had been his foe. After 
 remaining for two months at this post, on the 
 seventeenth of November, he sailed from De- 
 troit for Presqu'isle, the site of the present city 
 of Erie, the last station on his itinerary. The 
 
 207 
 
THE HERO OF STONY POINT 
 
 day before he landed, he was seized with a vio- 
 lent attack of gout, and was taken ashore in 
 a dying condition. 
 
 He was at once removed to the quarters of 
 the commandant of the post, and lay for many 
 days in the most excruciating agony. Surgical 
 skill was unable to reach him, and at last, on 
 December 15, he breathed his last a few weeks 
 before his fifty-second birthday. He was buried, 
 according to his wish, at the foot of the flag- 
 staff on a high hill, called Garrison Hill, north 
 of the site of the present Soldiers' Home. In 
 1809, Colonel Isaac Wayne caused his illustrious 
 father's remains to be moved and interred in 
 the family burying ground attached to St. Da- 
 vid's Church, at Radnor — ^the same St. David's 
 a writer has thus beautifully described : 
 
 **As a place of worship, its location is essen- 
 tially happy. But not until you are almost upon 
 it, as you approach it is the unobtrusive little 
 sanctuary seen, peeping from among the trees 
 which conceal it from view — ^thus, as it were, 
 shutting out the world and all those cares and 
 
 208 
 
THE GOVERNMENT COMMISSIONER 
 
 objects not in unison with the feeling of holy- 
 meditation. . . . There is, however, in the yard, 
 one, at least, whose name fills a conspicuous 
 place in the page of his nation's history — a 
 monument more enduring than brass. The in- 
 dividual alluded to is the late Major-General 
 Anthony Wayne. ' ' 
 
 In 1876, the empty grave at Erie was dis- 
 covered, and in 1879, the Legislature of Penn- 
 sylvania appropriated $1,500.00 for the erection 
 of a suitable monument on the spot. The com- 
 mittee on erection adopted as a model for the 
 monument which now stands at Erie, the old 
 block-house in which the hero died. The follow- 
 ing is the inscription which commemorates his 
 deeds : 
 
 MAJOE-GENERAL 
 
 ANTHONY WAYNE 
 
 BORN AT WAYNESBURGH 
 
 IN CHESTER COUNTY 
 
 STATE OF PENNSYLVANIA 
 
 A.D. 1745 
 
 APTER A LIFE OF HONOR AND USEFULNESS 
 
 HE DIED IN 1796, 
 
 209 
 
THE HERO OF STONY POINT 
 
 ox THE SHOEES OF LAKE ERIE 
 
 COMMANDEE-IN^-CHIEP OF THE AEMY OF 
 
 THE UNITED STATES. 
 
 HIS MILITARY ACHIEVEMENTS 
 
 ARE CONSECRATED 
 
 IN THE HISTORY OF HIS COUNTRYMEN. 
 
 HIS REMAINS 
 
 ARE HERE DEPOSITED 
 
 All of which is true ; but the last sentence has 
 caused some confusion to exist as to his final 
 resting-place. 
 
 Well might it be written of Anthony Wayne 
 as was written of a great explorer and inscribed 
 on his tombstone, 
 
 **He was a man who cherished a task for its 
 bigness and took to it with a fierce joy.'' 
 
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