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t»j, by R. S. King Pub, co.
DE SOTO ON THE MARCH.
Designed and engraved expressly for The Story of America.

THE
STORY OF AMERICA
CONTAINING
THE ROMANTIC INCIDENTS OF HISTORY, FROM THE
DISCOVERY OF AMERICA TO THE
PRESENT TIME.
WRITTEN BY
ELIA W. PEATTIE,
AUTHOR OF

"THE EXECUTIONER OF THE REVOLUTION," "A STORY OP BLOCK ISLAND," "GRIZEL
COCHRAN," "THE VOYAGEUR," "MICAH ROOD," AND
OTHER HISTORIC TALES.

CONTRIBUTOR TO

ST. NICHOLAS, WIDE AWAKE, THE AMERICAN MAGAZINE, AMERICA, COSMOPOLITAN,
I.IPPINCOTT'S, JUDGE'S YOUNG PEOPLE, EVERY OTHER SUNDAY,
DAUGHTERS OF AMERICA, AND MANY
OTHER PERIODICALS.

CHICAGO:
R. S. KING PUBLISHING COMPANY,
1889.

Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1889, by
R. S. KING PUBLISHING COMPANY,
In the office of the librarian of Congress, at Washington.

JVAtk

HE desire throughout, in the writing of this
history, has been to record the heroic adventures
and celebrate the picturesque incidents that make
our history romantic and memorable. Such
incidents as awaken patriotism and enthusiasm
are those which are most worthy of preservation,
and the influences they have upon the imaginative and
generous minds of the young are incalculable. If some
of the duller pages of the congressional debate and
ineffectual law making have been neglected for these
more brilliant chapters, it is not the young who will
reproach us.
For the minds of the young select with unerring
instinct those things which are of actual importance.
They read with passionate tears of the martyrdom of the
devoted; they are fired with heroism and lofty pride at the accomplish
ments of the heroic, and they condemn with bitter contempt the
intrigues of the mean, and the cowardice of the time-serving. To
arouse the noble impulse, and keep alive the love for patriotism,
fidelity, bravery, and true holiness, has been the aim of the book.
It contains little that is new; but it has been sifted from the best
histories, and the latest ones. It is, however, the first book to record
the events of the last ten years, and these events it has tried to deal
with impartially, unblinded by the conflict of parties, sects, or factions.
If injustice has been done in any way, it has been unwitting. If it
conveys, in understandable language, the most memorable occasions of
our national history, condemning and praising where condemnation and
praise are due, then it has accomplished all that it aimed to for its
young readers.
ELIA W. PEATTIE.

The Spider Web, Woodlawn Park, Ills., Jan. i, 18

TABLE OF CONTENTS.

Chapter. I. Mastodons and Mystery.
Earliest Inhabitants — The Mound-Builders — The American
Indians.
II. The Legendary Century.
The First Discoverers of America — Myths, Legends and
Traditions — Journey of the Norsemen.
III. The Dreamer of Genoa.
Columbus and His Voyages — Amerigo Vespucci — The
Cabots.
IV. Across the Dark Water.
Ponce De Leon — The Fountain of Youth — The Discovery
of the South Sea by Balboa— De Soto— His Death.
V. The Limes of France.
France: Her Explorers and Settlements — The Fight Be
tween French and Spanish Colonies.
VI. A Lodge in the Wilderness.
The English — Their Search for the Northwest Passage —
Frobisher's Explorations — Sir Humphrey Gilbert's Set
tlement — The Colony of Sir Walter Raleigh — Gosnold's
Failure.
VII. Founding the Old Dominion.
The London and Plymouth Companies — The Virginian
Settlement — Captain John Smith and His Wonderful Ad
ventures — Pocahontas — The New Charter — The Wreck
of the ' 'Sea Adventure. ' '
VIII. Through Death to Victory.
From the Bermudas to Virginia — The Starving Times —
The Arrival of Lord De la Warre — Help from England —
The Beginning of Slavery — The First Blow at Intem
perance.
IX. NORUMBEGA, THE BEAUTIFUL.
The Settlement of Maine — The Voyage of the English —
Champlain and Vermont — The Settlement of Mt. Desert.

8 Table of Contents.
Chapter. X. Conquest of the Wilderness.
Nova Scotia and the English Despoliation — The Settlement
of New Hampshire— The Mode of Northern Colonial
Government.
XI. The Dutchmen of New Netherland.
The Settlement of New York— The Dutch: Their Explora
tions and Settlements — Their Dealings with the In
dians — Their Success.
XII. The Mayflower.
The Puritans — Their Trials and Wanderings — The Landing
at Plymouth Rock — The First Winter.
XIII. The Daily Round.
The Next Three Years — The Order, Civil, Martial and Re
ligious, which they Maintained — The Manner of their
Daily Living, etc.
XIV. The Reward of Treachery.
The Massacre at Jamestown — Lord Baltimore and the Set
tlement of Maryland — The Liberal Laws of the Baltimore
Settlement.
XV. The Peace-Keepers.
Prosperity of the Maryland Settlement — Conspiracies Against
Them — The Triumph of Virginia Over Them, and the
Persecution of the Catholics — Calvert's Success and the
Return of the Jesuits.
XVI. A Brief Authority.
New Jersey — The Settlement Under Peter Minuet — Oppo
sition of the Dutch — The Triumphs of the Dutch Under
Peter Stuyvesant — End of Swedish Independence in
. America.
XVII. Old Wine in New Bottles.
The "Patroons" of New Netherland — The Settlement at
Manhattan — The Manners and Customs of the Dutch-
Establishment of Popular Land Laws.
XVIII. Knickerbocker Days.
The Government of William the Testy — Trouble with the
Indians — The Night Attack on Pavonia — Revenge of the
Indians — Dismissal of Kieft and Arrival of Peter Stuy
vesant.

Table of Contents.

9

Chapter. XIX.

XX.

XXI.

XXII.

XXIII.

XXIV.

XXV.

XXVI.

The Old Bay Settlement.
The Massachusetts Bay Company — The Trials of the First
Year — Arrival of Roger Williams — John Eliot — Perse
cution of Williams — His Settlement at Providence.
The Ravages of Civilization.
The American Indian — The Destruction of the Block
Island Indians — The Extinction of the Pequot Tribe — ¦
The Federation of the English Colonies.
The Pride of the Righteous.
The Religious Law of Boston — Gorton and His Beliefs —
The Settlement at Shewanet — Persecution of the Gor-
tonites — Persecution of the Baptists — The Obtaining of
a Royal Charter for Rhode Island and the Providence
Plantations.
Through Pain to Peace.
The Quakers — Their Persecution — George Fox and His
Friends — Mary Fisher and Ann Austin — The Quaker
Children.
The Royalist Colony of Virginia.
Governor Berkeley and His Reign — More Trouble with
the Indians — The Puritans A?ain Victorious — The Re
turn of the Stuarts to Power.
"Hey, for St. Mary's!"
The Colony of Virginia — The Indians — The Uprising of-
Bacon and His Friends — Restriction of the Governor's
Rights — Return of Berkeley — Desertion of Jamestown —
Death of Bacon — Breaking up of Bacon's Party.
Each for Himself.
The Carolinas — The Proprietors and Their "Grand
Model" — The Albemarle Settlement — The Removal of
Charleston — The Spanish Buccaneers — Seth Sothell —
Quaker Rule.
Man's Inhumanity to Man.
Attack of Indians on New Netherland — Destruction of
Pavonia — Persecution of Lutherans and Quakers at
New Amsterdam — Slavery Among the Dutch — English
Encroachments — Surrender of New Netherland — Settle-
of New Jersey.

IO

Table of Contents.

Chapter. XXVII.

XXVIII.

XXIX.

XXX.

XXXI.

XXXII.

XXXIII.

Our Country, Right or Wrong.
Political Policy of Massachusetts— Efforts of England to
Recover the Charter— Edward Randolph — Coin of the
Colony— Sir Edmund Andros — The Episode of the
Connecticut Charter — Arrest of Andros and Election
of Phips — Death of Phips.
Days of Dread.
King Philip's War— Fight at Brookfield— Fight at Had-
ley — Fight at Deerfield.
A Passing Madness.
How the Witchcraft Hallucination Started — Samuel Par-
ris and His Witch-craft Library — The Trial and Death
of Giles Corey and Other Victims of this Hallucination.
A Gentleman.
William Penn — The Settlement of Pennsylvania — Re
markable Growth of the Colony — Change of Govern
ment — Restoration of Penn — His Death — The Slavery
Question — Benjamin Franklin.
The Dutchman's Fireside. ¦
The Rule of Lovelace at New York — The Dutch Retake
the City — It Again Reverts to the English by Patent —
Governor Andros and His Unpopular Rule — Leisler
Assumes Control — Trouble with New France.
Frontenac the Fighter.
Frontenac's Attack Upon New York— The Massacre at
Schenectady — New York is Fortified by Leisler —
Sloughter is Sent to Supersede Him — Leisler's Defense
Gets Him Into Trouble — The Governor's Dastardly
Taking Off.
The Pest of the Pirates.
The Rule of Governor Fletcher — Fletcher Succeeded by
the Earl of Bellomont — The Commission of Captain
Kidd, and How it was Carried Out — Lord Cornbury
Becomes Governor — The Expeditions Against Port
Royal and Quebec.

Table of Contents.

ii

Chapter. XXXIV.

xxxv.

XXXVI.

XXXVII.

XXXVIII.

XXXIX.

XL.

The Holy Voyageurs.
The French and the Discoveries in the Northwest —
Fathers Joliet and Marquette Discover the Source of
the Mississippi and Sail Down the River — Death of
Marquette — The Expedition of La Salle and Henne
pin — Louisiana Discovered and Named.
The Chevalier La Salle.
La Salle Lands on the Shore of Texas — He is Mur
dered — The Hut in the Wilderness — The Expedition
of d' Iberville — The Settlement of New Orleans, and
the Mississippi — Scheme of John Law — The Massacre
of Chopart — Bienville's Ill-fated Expedition Against
the Chickasaws.
The Land of Gold.
California — Spanish Explorers — The Journey of Sir
Francis Drake — The Coast Indians — Expedition of
Espejo — Overthrow of the Jesuits — Onate and His
Labors — The Missions at the South — The Decline of
Spain and Her Colonies.
The Carolinas.
Sir Nathaniel Johnson in Carolina — Strategy at Fort
Johnson — Religious Differences — Massacre of 171 1—
Uprising in South Carolina — The Yemassees — The
Buccaneers — Rebellion Against the Proprietors.
From Alleys and By-ways.
How Georgia Came to be Settled — The Emigrants — The
Wesleys and Whitefield — The March of the Slaves —
The Spanish Attack — Georgia as a Royal Province.
The Cavaliers of Virginia.
Culpepper in Virginia — Governor Effingham — Nicholson
and Andros — The Growth of Industries — Maryland —
The Clergymen of Virginia.
A Reign of Terror.
The First Trial for Libel in America — The Negro Plot
in 1 741 — The Burning of Quack and the Hanging of
Ury — The Mingling of Dutch and English in New
York — The Government of Lieutenant-Governor
Clark.

12

Table of Contents.

Chapter. XLI.

XLH.

XLIIL

XLIV.

XLV.

XLVI.

XLVIL

The Clash of Arms and Ideas.
Lord Bellomont's Rule Over New York, New Hampshire
and Massachusetts— Dudley's Rule— The French and
English War of 1702— Taking of Port Royal— The
Lumberers' Difficulties in Maine and New Hampshire.
"Americans Are Born Rebels."
Expedition of Maine and New Hampshire Against the
Norridgewocks — The Command of Captain John Lov-
ell — William Drummer in Massachusetts — Whitefield's
Revival and Shirley's Administration — Louisburg —
The Surrender.
"They Nurse Treason With Their Milk."
The Growing Spirit of Independence- The First Expe
dition Against Fort Du Quesne — TP* Colonists for
Aggression and Offense — Braddock's Ill-fated Expedi
tion — George Washington's First Appearance — Brad-
dock's Defeat and Death.
Desolated Acadia.
French and English Settlements in Nova Scotia — The
Rivalry Between the Settlements — Colonel Winslow
Drives Out the Acadians — The Pathetic Exodus — Per
secution of the Exiles.
The Lion or the Lilies.
Operations Against the French in the North — The Battle
at Bloody Pond — The French Take' Forts Oswego and
William Henry — The English Retake Louisburg — The
Battle of Carillon — The English Retake Oswego and
Capture Frontenac and Du Quesne.
The Paths of Glory.
The Expedition Against Quebec — The Night Attack and
the Fight on the Plains of Abraham — The Death of
Montcalm and Wolfe — New Orleans and the Mississippi
Valley Given to Spain.
A Blow for Liberty.
Pontiac, Chief of the Ottawasc— Arrival of Rogers' Men
at Detroit — Pontiac' s Conspiracy — Beginning of War—
The Siege of Detroit— The Battle of Bloody Bridge.

Table of Contents. 13
Chapter,XLVIII. Cesar Had His Brutus.
The Stamp Act — Condition of the Colonies — The Oppo
sition to Taxation — Repeal of the Stamp Act — Refusal
of the Assembly to Provide for the Troops Sent Over
by England.
XLIX. The Boston Tea-Drinkers.
Trouble in Boston— "The Boston Massacre" — The Tea
Tax — Attitude of Governor Hutchinson — The Boston
"Tea Party"— The Boston Port Bill.
L. The Blood of Patriots.
The First Blood of the Revolution— The Men of Bille-
rica — Fight at Concord and Lexington — The Siege of
Boston — The Battle of Bunker Hill.
LI. Liberty or Death.
Ethan Allen and the Green Mountain Boys — Surrender
of Ticonderoga — Washington Chosen Commander-in-
Chief — The Lack of Powder — Recall of General Gage —
Small Naval Conquests.
LIL The Plains of Abraham.
The Designs for the American Conquest of Canada —
Montgomery's Move Against Montreal — Arnold's Fail
ure at Quebec — The Union of the Forces — The Second
Defeat at Montreal — The Americans Fall Back Upon
Ticonderoga and Crown Point.
LIII. The Palmetto Logs.
The Feeling in England — The Hiring of the Hessians —
Attitude of New York — The Conflict with the South
ern Colonies — The Defense of Fort Moultrie.
LIV. The Sons of Liberty.
The Growth of a Desire for Independence — The Declara
tion of Independence — The Forming of State Consti
tutions. f
LV. The Continentals.
Washington at New York — Arrival of Thirty-two Thou
sand British Troops — Overtures for Peace by the
British— Battle of Long Island— The Battle of Harlem
Heights — Destruction of New York — Battle of White
Plains.

14

Table of Contents.

Chapter. LVI.

LVII.

LVIII.

LIX.

LX.

LXI.

LXII.

LXIII.

Battle Field and Bivouac.
The Jersey Campaign— The Battle of Trenton— The Battle
of Princeton— Winter Encampment of Washington at
Morristown."
The Year of the Three Gallows.
State of the American Army — The Pennsylvania Cam
paign—The Battle of Brandy wine— The "Paoli Massa
cre" — The British at Philadelphia — The Battle at Ger-
mantown — Washington Winters at Valley Forge.
Tattered Conquerors.
Washington's Camp at Valley Forge — Neglect of Congress —
The Conway Cabal — General Steuben — Burgoyne in the
North — The Siege of Ticonderoga— The Battle of Oris-
kany.
"Elbow Room."
The Raid on Bennington — General Gates Given Command
at the North — The Battle of Freeman's Farm — Battle of
Bemus Heights — Surrender of Burgoyne.
Sabre and Musket.
Evacuation of Philadelphia by the British — The Battle of
Monmouth Court House — Firing of Bedford and Fair-
haven — The Wyoming Massacre — Warfare in the West.
The "Bon Homme Richard."
British Reduction of Georgia — The Destruction of New
Haven — The Americans Capture Stony Point — The Great
Naval Engagement of John Paul Jones.
The Six Nations.
Expedition Against the Six Nations — The Civilization of
the Indians — Humiliation of the Six Nations — Expedi
tion up the Mississippi from Louisiana — Triumph of
Clinton in the South.
"Whom Cak We Trust Now?"
Plans of the Two Armies — Siege of Charleston by the
English — Capture of the American Army at the South—
The Burning of Connecticut Farms — Arrival of Rocham
beau — Treason of General Arnold.

Table of Contents.

15

CHAPTER .
LXIV.

LXV.

LXVI.

LXVII.

LXVIII.

LXIX.

LXX.

LXXI.

LXXII.

LXXIII.

"I Have Sent You a General."
Cornwallis and Gates at the South — The Command of the
Southern Force Given to General Green — The Battle
of King's Mountain — Battle of Guilford Court House.
The United States of America.
Arnold's Expedition — Battle Between Cornwallis and
Lafayette — The Siege of Yorktown and Surrender of
Cornwallis — The Sacking of New London by Arnold.
The Plowshare Versus the Sword.
Condition of the Country at the Close of the Revolution —
John Adams Made Minister to England — The Disband
ing of the Army — The Call for Delegates to Construct
a Constitution.
"First in War, First in Peace."
The Forming of the Constitution — Washington Elected
President.
Starting the Wheels of Progress.
Hamilton's Policy as the First Secretary of State — In
crease of American Commerce — The Question of
Slavery — Frontier Troubles at the West.
The Courtly Times of Washington.
Death of Franklin — The Humor of Washington's Time —
The Policy of Hamilton — The Pennsylvania Whisky*
Riots.
A Democracy.
The Political Parties of the Young Nation — The Jay
Treaty — Election of John Adams to the Presidency —
Alien and Sedition Laws — Trouble with France.
A Modern Lucifer.
The Fries Insurrection — Selection of the National Capi
tal — Death of Washington — Louisiana — Aaron Burr.
Decatur's Tribune.
The Piracy of the Barbary States — War with Tripoli —
Exploits of our Naval Heroes — Triumph of America.
"Jeffersonian Simplicity."
Exploration of the Northwest — Introduction of the Steam
boat — Passage of a Law Forbidding the African Slave
Trade — The Jeffersonian Policy — Maritime Troubles.

i6

Table of Contents.

Chapter. LXXIV.

LXXV.

LXXVI.

LXXVII.

LXXVIII.

LXXIX.

LXXX.

LXXXI.

War Again.
Administration of James Madison — The Southern War
Party — Declaration of War and Popular Protest — The
Troubles on the Western Frontier— The Chicago Mas
sacre — Surrender of Hull.
"Never Give Up the Ship.'
War of 1812 — The Niagara Campaign — The Battle of
Queenstown — Naval Operations — The Six Triumphs
of the Americans — Affairs in the West — The Conflict
on the Lakes — Perry's Victory.
"Blue Lights."
The War with the Creeks — Jackson's Campaign — Affairs
on the Sea-board— "Yankee Strategy" — The Treaty
of Peace.
A Country Without a Capital.
Jackson's Campaign Among the Creeks — Discourage
ments on the Northern Frontier — The Battle of
Lundy's Lane — The War on the Sea-coast for 1814 —
The Capture and Destruction of the City of Washing
ton — Vicissitudes at the South — The Battle of New
Orleans.
A Transient Amiability.
The Era of Good Feeling — War with Algiers — Finan
cial Condition of the Country — The First Seminole
War — The Missouri Compromise.
The Second Adams.
Monroe's Administration — Election to the Presidency of
John Quincy Adams — The Assertion of State Su
premacy in Georgia — Tariff Disputes — Andrew Jack
son Elected President — The Financial Crisis of 1837.
Fiction and Truth.
The Literary History of the Last Fifty Years — The
Abolitionists.
A House Divided Against Itself.
Second Seminole War — Election of Van Buren — Finan
cial Depression — Election of William Henry Har
rison — The Dorr Rebellion — The Mormons — Annex
ation of Texas.

Table of Contents.

17

Chapter. LXXXII.

LXXXIII.

LXXXIV.

LXXXV.

LXXXVI.

LXXXVII.

LXXXVIH.

LXXXIX.

The Sad PlaIn of Monterey.
The. Administration of Polk, and the War with.
Mexico — Various Severe Battles — Conquest of Cali
fornia and New Mexico — Occupation of the City of
Mexico — Treaty of Peace — Birth of the Free Soil
Party and Election of Taylor.
Gold and Iron Chains.
Death of Taylor, and Administration of Millard Fill
more — Discovery of Gold in California — Slavery
Agitation — The Trouble in Kansas.
The Truth Goes Marching On.
Sacking of Lawrence— John Brown and the Destruction
of Ossawottomie — Election of Buchanan — Assault
on Sumner — The Mormons — Election of Lincoln.
"We Are Coming, Father Abraham."
Secession — The Southern Confederacy — Attack on
Fort Sumpter— The First Call for Troops — The
Three Years' Enlistment— The Battle of Bull Run.
The Union Forever.
Attitude of Foreign Powers — Bombardment of Forts at
Hatteras Inlet — Conquest of Charleston Harbor —
The Campaign West of the Alleghanies — Grant at
Forts Henry and Donelson — The War in Missouri. «
With Shot and Shell.
The Capture of New Orleans — Fight Between the
"Monitor" and the "Merrimac."
Shiloh and its Sequel.
The Campaign at Island No. 10 — The Battle of
Shiloh— Siege of Corinth— The Conflict at the East
Under McClellan— Siege of Yorktown— The Battle
of Williamsburg — The Battle of Seven Pines —
Battle of Chickahominy— Battle of Malvern Hill.
Close of the Peninsula Campaign.
The Army of Virginia Under the Command of Pope —
General Halleck Made General-in-Chief — Battle of
Cedar Mountain — McClellan Leaves the Peninsula —
Battle of Groveton — Loss of Generals Stevens and
Kearney.

i8

Table of Contents.

Chapter. XC.

XCI.

XCII.
XCIII. XCIV. XCV.
XCVI.
XCVII.
XCVIII. XCIX.

The Bloody Field of Antietam.
Lee's Army Moves Northward — The Battle of South
Mountain — The Battle of Antietam.
"All Us Niggahs is Free!"
Burnside Made Commander-in-Chief of the Army of the
Potomac — The Battle of Fredericksburg — The Eman
cipation Proclamation — Battles of Perryville, Iuka
Corinth, Murfreesboro and Chancellorsville.
The Deadly Parallels. '
The Battle of Gettysburg and the Siege of Vicksburg.
The Martyrs.
Why the War Did Not End After Gettysburg— The New
York Riots — Atrocities in the South — Southern Prison
Pens.
The Swamp Angel.
The Siege of Charleston — Dupont's Defeat — Gilmore's
Siege — The "Swamp Angel" — Morgan's Raids.
"The River of the Dead."
Campaign at the West Between Generals Rosecrans and
Bragg — Battle of Chickamauga — Battle of Chatta
nooga — The Sanitary and Christian Commissioners.
"Forward by the Left Flank."
Grant Given Absolute Command — The Battle of the
Wilderness — "Forward by the Left Flank" — Second
Battle of Cold Harbor.
The Confederate Cruisers.
The Confederate Privateers — Fight Between the "Kear-
sarge" and "Alabama" — The International Court of
Arbitration — Sherman and the Western Campaign.
"After You, Pilot!"
Sherman's March to Atlanta — The Bombardment of Mo
bile — Destruction of the "Albemarle."
From Atlanta to the Sea.
The March from Atlanta to the Sea — The Entrance to
Savannah — The Siege of Richmond — Burnside's Blun
der — The Burning of Chambersburg.

Table of Contents.

J9

C. Whirling Through Winchester.
Sheridan and the Shenandoah Campaign — Sherman's March
Northward from Savannah — The Burning of Columbia.
CI. "Oh, Captain! My Captain!"
Closing of the Virginia Campaign — The Evacuation of
Richmond — Surrender of Lee at Appomattox Court
" House — Assassination of President Lincoln.
CII. "Ye Cannot Serve Two Masters."
Administration of Andrew Johnson — Capture of Jefferson
Davis — Reconstruction — Impeachment of President John
son — Purchase of Alaska — Returning Prosperity to the
Union.
ClII. A Hundred Years of Liberty.
Administration of Grant — The Ku-Klux Klan— The Chi
cago Fire — The Custer Massacre — The Panic of 1873 —
The Centennial Exposition — Administration of President
Hayes — Railroad Riots of 1877.
CIV. The Old Haymarket.
Election and Death of President James A. Garfield — Ad
ministration of Arthur — The Anarchists of Chicago.
CV. Civil-Service Reform.
President Cleveland's Administration — Civil-Service Reform
and Pension Bills — Many Noted Union Generals Pass
Away — Death of General Grant — Prominent Events of
Four Years of Democratic Power.
CVI. President Harrison's Inauguration.
The Members of the Cabinet and the Foreign Ministers —
The Celebration of the Centennial Anniversary of Wash
ington's Inauguration — The Opening of Oklahoma Ter
ritory — The Samoan Disaster.
CVII. The Great Calamity.
Bursting of a Reservoir in the Conemaugh Valley, Penn
sylvania — Appalling Rush of Water Down the Valley —
Destruction of Johnstown — Thousands of Lives Lost and
Millions of Dollars' Worth of Property Destroyed.
CVIII. Of the Making of Good Books, Etc.
The Literature of the Last Thirty Years.

20 Table of Contents.
Chapter.CIX. The Supreme Court of the United States.
Its Organization and Duties — The Lives of the Chief Jus
tices.
CX. The United States Navy.
Its Old Ascendancy — The Invention of the Monitor — The
Deterioration of the Navy, After the Civil War — Appoint
ment of the Advisory Board — The New Navy — Improve
ments in Naval Artillery — Organization of the Navy De
partment — Sketch of John Ericsson — Uses of the Navy.
CXI. What's To-morrow?
Naturalization Laws of the United States.
List of Presidents and Vice-Presidents.
Constitution of the United States.
Reference Readings.
Record of Important Events.

Columbus Frightens the Indians, etc. , 30
Viking Boat, Found in Denmark, 34
Columbus — The Yanez Portrait, - 39
Columbus and His Son Begging, 35
Amerigo Vespucci, - 40
Sebastian Cabot at Labrador, - 44
Meeting Between De Soto and the Indian Chieftainess, 47
Burial of De Soto, 46
A Spanish Soldier, 50
Spanish Armor, - 51
Wolpi, - 52
Queen Elizabeth, 59
Last Voyage of Henry Hudson, 87
A Puritan Type, 92
Miles Standish Filling Rattlesnake Skin with Bullets, 98
Peter Stuyvesant Defiant, - 125
Mary Dyer Going to Execution, 147
Charles I, 152
Oliver Cromwell, !55
Benjamin Franklin, - 196
William Penn's Residence, - 203
Scene on the St. Lawrence River, 218
A Cavalier of Virginia, - 252
A Moravian Settlement, - 256
Frozen In, - - - 265
George Washington in His Youth, 273
Quebec, - 287
George III, - 295
Sir Robert Peel, - 3°°
Building where the Tea Plot was Hatched, 307
Bunker Hill Monument, 3*5
A Spouting Geyser, 3X9
Death of Montgomery, 326
Signing of the Declaration of Independence, - 338
Old Liberty Bell, 344
House in which the Declaration of Independence was Signed, - 345
Independence Hall, 34^
Washington Crossing the Delaware, 354
Washington on the Hudson, - 356
Marquis Marie Joseph Paul de Lafayette, 362

22 Illustrations.

I LL U STR ATIO N S-Continued.

Baron Von Steuben, ..... 366
The Assault on Stony Point, ..... 382
Red Jacket, - .... 388
Escape of Benedict Arnold, - - - - - 398
George Washington, - - - - 415
Washington's Treasure Chest, - - - 422
Franklin's Grave, - .... 427
Washington's Grave, - - - .437
Duel Between Burr and Hamilton, - - - 439
The White House, Washington, .... 447
Brock's Monuments, - - 457
Indian Burial in Tree-tops, - - - 469
The Fort at Pensacola, - - - 472
Fall of Table Rock, - . 482
Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, - - 494
Border of Great Salt Lake, - - 506
P Catching Wild Horses in Texas, - - - 510
Oldest House in the United States, - .513
Henry Clay, - - - - 519
Salt Lake City and Mormon Temple, ... 525
Abraham Lincoln, ... . 527
Capture of John Brown in the Engine House, - 531
Jefferson Davis in 186 1, - - - 535
The Confederate Flag, - - - - 538
Stonewall Jackson, ... 540
Birthplace of General Grant, - ... 545
Federal Iron-clad River Gunboat, - - 547
Admiral David Farragut, - - 552
General Benjamin F. Butler, - - - - 553
The "Merrimac" Sinking the "Cumberland," ... 555
General Robert E. Lee, - - - - 563
A Railroad Battery, - - - 568
United States Military Telegraph Wagon, - 582
Gunboats Passing Before Vicksburg, - - 585
View of a Cotton Chute, - 592
Horace Greely, - - 596
The Tombs Prison, New York City, - 598
Flight of Negroes from Fort Pillow, - 601
Picking Cotton, ----- g22
Lieutenant Cushing' s Attack on the "Albemarle," - 628
Jefferson Davis in 1888, ... g^
View of Salt Lake City, - - - - 6r0
The "Maid of the Mist" Going Through Whirlpool Rapids, 654

Illustrations. 23
illustrations-Continued.

Denver, Twenty Years Ago, .... 659
James A. Garfield, .... 664
The Haymarket Riot, ------ 667
Haymarket Monument, - - - 671
Gfover Cleveland, - .... 676
Benjamin Harrison, - • - 687
The Johnstown Disaster, .... 705
Bird's-Eye View of the United States, - - - 750

THE RIVER' TIME.
BENJAMIN F, TAYLOR.
Oh! a wonderful stream is the river Time,
As it runs through the realm of tears,
"With a faultless rhythm and a. musical rhyme
And a broader sweep and a surge sublime,
As it blends in the ocean of years!
How the winters are drifting, like flakes of snow,
And the summers, like birds, between,
And the years in the sheaf, how they come and go
On the river's breast, with its ebb and its flow,
As it glides in the shadow and sheen!
There's a magical isle up the river Time,
Where the softest of winds are playing;
There's a cloudless sky and a tropical clime,
And a song as sweet as a vesper chime,
And the Junes with the roses are straying.
And the name of this isle is the "Long Ago,"
And we bury our treasures there;
There are brows of beauty, and bosoms of snow,
There are heaps of dust— oh ! we loved them so—
There are trinkets and tresses of hair.
There are fragments of songs that nobody sings,
There are parts of an infant's prayer;
There's a lute unswept, and a harp without strings,
There are broken vows and pieces of rings,
And the dresses that she used to wear!
There are hands that are waved when the fairy shore
By the fitful mirage is lifted in air,
And we sometimes hear ..through the turbulent roar,
Sweet voices we heard in the days gone before,
When the wind down the river was fair.
Oh! remembered for aye be that blessed isle,
All the day of our life until night;
And when evening glows with its beautiful smile,
And our eyes are closing in slumbers awhile,
May the Greenwood of soul be in sight.

THE STORY OF AMERICA.

COLUMBUS FRIGHTENS THE INDIANS INTO LENDING HIM ASSISTANCE BY FORETELLING AN
ECLIPSE OF THE MOON — ONE OF THEIR DEITIES.

CHAPTER I.

lastohims nnh ©^$br^+

EARLIEST INHABITANTS — THE MOUND-BUILDERS — THE AMERICAN'
INDIANS.

|HE plans of God are very wide. No
nation may have the right to say, "We
are the people, and wisdom shall die
with us." Traces are left of so many great and perished nations, that
we are constantly reminded that a thousand years is but as a day in His
sight, and that the work and progress we are so proud of may disappear
and leave but little hint of us by which the coming race may guess
what we were like.
In the skeletons of the huge animals called the Mastodons and
Mammoths, which once roved this country, and which have ceased to
exist for so many thousand years, there are found flint arrow-heads,
which must have been made by men who lived in that time, and by
which these wild and terrible creatures were slain. Besides the many
animals which belonged entirely to that age, and which there is nothing
like now, there were many then upon this continent which we read of
now only in foreign countries. The monkey was here in what we call
United States, and the camel and rhinoceros. What the character was
of the people who lived at that time it is impossible to guess.
The first race which has left any distinct traces of itself was the
Mound-builders, and it hardly seems as if they could have lived at the
time of the Mastodon, for they made pictures of all the things about
them, and among those pictures there is nothing which resembles these
huge animals. This race of men was not savage, in one sense of the
word. They worked hard, a thing which the savage seldom does.
They had skill, and loved the beautiful. They are called the Mound-
builders, because they have left behind them thousands of immense
mounds; some curved, some square, some in the shape of a snake.
Sometimes these earthworks have from fourteen to sixteen miles of
embankment. Some look as if they may have been the dwelling-places

32 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
of their kings. Others seem as if they may have protected temples or
altars where they worshiped.
This people understood the smelting of ores, and mining. Their
pottery was far from rude, and their implements of warfare very
serviceable. They buried their great men under huge pyramids of dirt,
but the common people, to judge from the great stack of bones which
had been found in parts of the country, were doubtless thrown together
and left in the open air. At the time they lived, this country must
have been thickly populated. It must have taken millions of men to
do what they did. No one can guess what became of them, or why
they left the possessions upon which they had spent so much time and
labor. They disappeared many years before the American Indians
roamed through our forests.
The American Indians, as the European discoverers of this country
found them, were not the race that we know. They were said to be
well formed, winning, gentle and trustful. They were 'gracious in
their speech and friendly in their manner, with soft, brown bodies,- and
delicate movements. They had little strength for work, but great
endurance in running. Here they lived, free as birds, without need of
much work, with no cares, no sorrows except natural ones, until the
civilized warriors drove them west, and ever west, setting an example
of treachery and cruelty which the Indians were not slow to follow.
FOR FURTHER READING.
History— Squire and Davis1 "Ancient Monuments."
Baldwin's "Ancient America."
Foster's "Prehistoric Races of America."
Drake's "Aboriginal Races of North America."
Jones' "Mound Builders of Tennessee."
Shaler's "Time of the Mammoths."
"American Naturalist," iv: 148.
Fiction— Matthew's "Behemoth: A Legend of the Mound-Builders."

CHAPTER II.

iip Jregatkr^ Mttr^

THE FIRST DISCOVERERS OF AMERICA— MYTHS, LEGENDS AND TRADI
TIONS^ — JOURNEY OF THE NORSEMEN.

ITTL,E children, standing on the shores of Europe
and looking toward the west, could make no
guess at what lay beyond the water. They were
told it was the "dark water," from which all the
spirits and goblins came, things unknown and
unnamable. The winds seemed always to blow
toward the west. Even the mariners believed that
it did so. If, by any chance, a sailor drifted out of his
course toward the west, he was filled with alarm. It
seemed possible to him that the waters might run off,
somewhere, into a terrible nothingness. It is hard to
tell which of the nations first found men courageous
enough to cross these unknown waters. There are tradi
tions that the Chinese did so, and that these Buddhists
wandered down to the California shore, and went deep
into the country that we now know as Mexico. There
are traditions, too, that the Breton fishermen cast their lines upon the
Newfoundland coast. It is certainly true that North American Indians
have been met with whose languages were mixed with French. The
Welshmen also claim that a number of their countrymen came to
North America and settled there. The traditions concerning this are
peculiarly romantic. Two brothers, David and Medoc, quarreled for
the throne of Wales. The younger gave up his right, and, fitting out
a ship, sailed west. The next year he returned, and said that he had
found a fruitful country. He called upon his friends to follow him, and
filled ten ships with men, women and children. They sailed away,
and were never heard of again. Five times in American writings there
are references to them. They are described as a race of white Indians,

i

34 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
using many Welsh words, and having a manuscript copy of the Bible,
in the Welsh language, with them. The last reference to them speaks
of their living among the upper courses of the Missouri.
But the journeys of the Northmen to America are well known.
These Northmen were splendid seamen, and splendid fighters. TEey
had been all over the known world. They had frightened even the
great emperor, Charlemagne, in France, and had put their horses in his
palace. Wherever they went they seemed to conquer, until at last
they were driven from Scotland. Then, on the melancholy island of
Iceland, they made their republic. Two-thirds of the year they lived
in twilight. Books were their consolation, the sea their play-ground.
It was no wonder that they went this way and that, wherever their
fancy prompted, and wherever they felt they could fight with weaker
men. They discovered Green-
winds — along the coast of Nar-
A VIKING BOAT, FOUND IN DENMARK. °
ragansett Bay, Newfoundland
and Nova Scotia. He went back to Iceland with the tales of what he
had seen. ' 'What, ' ' cried Erik the Red, a wild Norseman, who had been
banished from his native country for murder, "you saw a new country
like that, with green fields and trees, and never put a foot on it ?' ' He
talked so much, and so long and loud on the subject, that his son, Leif
Erikson, made up his mind to find out what kind of lands these were
which were so much talked about. He bought Bjarne's ship from him,
took thirty-five good seamen, and went far away to the southwest.
They landed in Newfoundland, which they called Helluland, and in
Nova Scotia, which they termed Markland. They looked about these
countries a little, gave them names, and sailed away, and were two days
at sea before they saw land again. Then they sailed into a sound. It
was a beautiful place. There were larger salmon there than they had
ever seen, and grass, which looked wonderful to these men from a
barren country. They found luscious grapes growing wild, grapes
from which wine could be made with wonderful ease, and a German
among them named it Vinland. We have changed the name very
little. We call it Martha's Vinyard now. This was in the year iooo.

Copyright 1889, by R. S. King Pub. Co.
COLUMBUS AND HIS SON BEGGING.
Designed and engraved expressly for The Story of America.

THE LEGENDARY CENTURY. 37
When Leif Erikson reached home, his brother made the complaint that
he had brought home much too little news. ' 'You may go in my ship,
brother, to Vinland, if you like," said Leif, and thus Thorbald, in
1 002, went to Vinland, and stayed there three years. It is thought that
the skeleton in armor, found' near Fall River, in Massachusetts, in
1 83 1, was that of Thorbald, who was killed by a poisoned arrow from
Indians. Skraellings, the Norsemen called the Indians, because they
were so scrawny, compared to themselves; and, indeed, there are tradi
tions, among the eastern Indians, of the great, fair giants, who had
come to the eastern shore, which shows that there must have been a
great difference in the stature of the Norsemen and the red men. In
1005, the last son of Erik the Red started to Vinland, to try and fetch
the body of his brother Thorbald. His ship was blown out of its
course, and he never reached his destination. Then came Thorfinn
Karlsfenn, with his handsome wife, Gudrid, and with them one hundred
and fifty-one men and seven women. For three years they lived at
Vinland, and, perhaps, built the tower that still stands in Newport, and
wrote the inscriptions on the blocks near the Taunton river. The con
stant fights with the Indians decided them at last to leave their beauti
ful bay and go back to Iceland. They carried with them little Snorre,
the first child of European blood born in America. Snorre was three
years old when they took him back to Iceland, a little blue-eyed boy
with golden hair. There are stories of other journeys by the Norse
men, in the years ion and n 21, and accounts of their going as far
south, along the Atlantic coast, as to what we now call Florida. It is
believed that the Welshmen came later than this, in n 70. The tower
which stands at Newport, which is the only substantial monument that
the Norsemen left of their visits, is low and round. It has two
windows and- a fire-place, and the cement with which the stones are put
together is still strong, and but for the fact that the roof is gone, it could
hardly be called a ruin. It is covered with ivy now, and serves the
purpose of amusing the chance tourist. Longfellow has made this
tower the subject of his poem, "The Skeleton in Armor." Perhaps it
was Thorfinn Karlsfenn who was his hero, and the "viking wild."
FOR FURTHER READING.
History— Iceland's "Fusang, Discovery of America by Chinese."
"America not Discovered by Columbus."
Bowen's "America Discovered by the Welsh."
Anderson's "Discovery of America by Norsemen."
Beal's "Buddhist Records of the Western World."
Fiction— Ballantyne's "Norsemen of the West."
Poetry— Whittier's "Norsemen. "
Longfellow's "Skeleton in Armor."
Montgomery's "Vinland."

CHAPTER III.
>}p Jlrsamsr ti §mtm.

COLUMBUS AND HIS VOYAGES — AMERIGO VESPUCCI — THE CABOTS.
EAVING cloth or combing wool
patiently in Genoa, there lived in
the fifteenth century an Italian by
the name of Columbo. In the
year 1435 his son was born, whom
he named Cristoforo. Perhaps the
comber of wool in his dull shop
used to dream of the sea, and the
delights and freedom of it. There
could have been little other reason
for his sending the little Columbus
to school, at ten, to study naviga
tion. At fourteen, this restless Italian boy went to sea, and from that
time till he died, he never left it, unless, indeed, it was to draw charts
for other seamen. He loved books, too, and read much. He read the
books of great scholars, and it is more than possible that some of these
planted in his mind the idea that the world was round — an idea which
was to double Christian civilization. Christopher went on numerous
voyages with the celebrated admiral of his time, who bore the same
family name, Columbo, and it is thought he may have traveled with a
certain wild corsair, named Colon. The years between 1470 and 1484
Christopher spent in Portugal. Everyone was talking about the dis
covery of new lands. The Portuguese seamen were going down the
African coast. Prince Henry was making presents of islands to his
navigators, and he gave the island of Porto Santo, of the Madeira
group, to a man named Prestrello. Columbus married the daughter of
this man, and on the island of Porto Santo was born Columbus' son,
Diego. It was not the children alone who wondered about the great, dark
water. The Spanish seamen were vastly curious. It seemed to them
that the earth was a flat surface, with this grea,t river of water running

THE DREAMER OF GENOA.

39

around the land. Like the children, they were terrified by the thought
of what might be on the other side. A few scholars thought that it
might be a sphere, but they never dreamed that it could be large enough
for more than one continent; so it seemed quite simple to them, that if
it was a sphere, it would be possible, by sailing westward, to reach
Asia — the land from which the luxurious merchants of Spain and
Portugal brought their richest wares ; the land from which the spices
came, the silks and the inlaid work, the gold and jewels.

COLUMBUS.
The Yanez portrait, Madrid Library.

Certain of these learned men, among them Toscanelli, the Italian,
corresponded with Columbus. . They drew up charts with his help, and
laid out the plan by which one might cross into India, and Tartary, and
Cathay. Columbus was a great dreamer, and these plans filled him with
wild visions. He thought of nothing and talked of nothing else. He
talked with sailors who had found pine trees washed upon the Madeira
coast where no pine trees grew, and those who had seen tropical cane

40

THE STORY OF AMERICA.

stalks upon the European beaches. He was restless and excited ; he could
never keep still. He even went to Iceland, and it is possible that he
talked there with the descendants of the men who had been at Vineland.
Gudrid, too, had been at Rome, and it may be that she left traditions
there of the three years which she had spent in the beautiful country
across the water. Though Columbus could interest many people with

AMERIGO VESPUCCI.

tales of all he fancied, and all he hoped, it was difficult to win the
hearing of those who could give him help. It is said that he went,
or sent, to King Henry VII, of England, with the hope of gaining
his assistance. It is almost certain that he tried to get the help
of the King of Portugal, and it is possible that he sought the aid of

THE DREAMER OF GENOA. 41
some of the cities of his own country, Italy. At last his wife died. He
took his boy, Diego, and seems to have wandered about, in a desolate
way, for a year. One day he went with Diego to the Franciscan con
vent of Santa Maria de la Rabida, asking for bread. He interested the
prior, and the prior in turn interested a gentleman of importance, Mar
tin Alonzo Pinzon, and he carried letters of credit with him from these
persons to Cordova, where the king and queen were. But King Ferdi
nand was busy, and it was a long time before he could listen to Colum
bus. For seven years, or at the very least five, Columbus hung around
the Spanish court. The courtiers laughed at him, and Isabella and
Ferdinand seemed to have little confidence in his plans. At last, a day
came when Columbus was treated with such contempt that he burst
into a sudden fit of rage, flung himself out of the court, and, taking to
his horse, rode toward France. Isabella, fearing both that the kingdom
might have lost a good thing, and that Columbus' feelings were
severely hurt, sent after him. He was brought back, and in three
months an expedition was ready to sail, part of which was fitted out at
the credit of Isabella's own kingdom, Castile. It was not very strange
that the sailors were afraid to go. How could they tell what they were
running into? They had to be driven to their task by force; but
at last Columbus left with* three ships — the Santa Maria, the Pinta, and
the Nina. The Santa Maria was ninety-six feet long and carried
sixty-six seamen. It was decked all over, and had four masts — two
with square sails and two with lateen sails, 'the other vessels were
smaller and without decks. They all carried provisions for a year, and
Columbus had with him an agreement signed by Ferdinand and
Isabella, by which he was made High Admiral and Viceroy in these
lands, and given one-eighth of the possible profits in return for the
eighth of the costs which he advanced. Columbus hardly knew how
to show his happiness. He vowed that if there were any profits, they
should be used to free the Holy Sepulchre from the Moslems; sp, with
much hope, and many prayers, he left with his discontented sailors,
leaving his son in care of the royal household.
It was on the third of August, 1492, that Columbus and his men
sailed from Palos. In a month they had reached the Canary Islands.
After that they passed many desolate days on the water, with the sailors
discontented at day and weeping at night. It took all of the tact that
Columbus had at his command to quiet them. Once the sailors plotted
to throw Columbus overboard, but he was keen and watchful, and, above
all a man of prayer, and his stern dignity of character held them in

42 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
check. At length, however, he was obliged to tell them that he would
turn back if they saw no land within three days. The anxiety which
he felt can be imagined. Was it possible that he would be forced to
give up his long-nursed hopes and forego the glory of discovery, and
all because of a handful of fearful and ignorant sailors ? But the out
come was as strange as a miracle. In the morning of the third day, a
sailor, standing aloft with his seaman's glass, espied land. The joy-guns
were fired, to let the men upon the other vessels know of this wondrous
fact. They sailed all day toward land. Anchor was cast over night,
and the following morning they rowed Columbus to the shore, with
music and waving banners, and, highest of all, the great flag of Spain, all
red and gold. With him came his captains, with green flags, which bore
the cross upon them. The island he called Guanahani. It is thought
it may have been the island we call San Salvador, but this is not cer
tain. It was a flat island, with a shallow lake in the centre, and not
especially inviting, so the men sailed on and visited Cuba, Hayti and
other of the West India islands. He did not doubt but that he had
found the eastern extremity of Cathay.
He was not a little proud when he went back to Spain, and the rea
son that he stopped at Portugal may have been to let the king.know all
that he had lost, in not giving him a chance to find these new dominions
for him. In Spain, he was received with much honor, and, when he
started back for the new land, he had seventeen vessels and 1,500 men.
On this journey he discovered the Windward Islands, part of Jamaica
and Porto Rico, and founded his colony in Hayti. Hayti he called
Little Spain, or Hispanola. In the winter of 1497-98, Amerigo
Vespucci, a friend of Columbus, succeeded in some manner in obtain
ing ships, by which he reached the mainland of the new continent.
Everyone was going to the ' 'New Spain' ' who could possibly get there.
All of the men who had laughed at Columbus before, seemed now to
be trying to get as much of his territory and honor away from him as
possible. Those who had sneered, "Look at the Admiral of Mosquito-
land," and who had made light of Columbus' discovery because he
brought home so little treasure, were, nevertheless, glad to start out to
find what they could. If Amerigo made this voyage, as he said he did,
he touched upon the mainland before any other Spaniard. In the same
year John Cabot, a merchant, born at Venice, but living in England,
also went to America, and touched upon the coast of Labrador.
Sebastian Cabot, a son of John, a year later (1498) sailed with two ships
and three hundred men. In his second voyage, he became persuaded

SEBASTIAN CABOT AT LABRADOR.

• THE DREAMER OF GENOA. 45
that the land which they had found was not Asia. He discovered
Hudson's Bay upon his third voyage. He loved the sea always, and
lived upon it as long as he had strength. Meanwhile, Columbus, his
mind still filled with visions, and believing that he was inspired of God,
went upon his third journey. With his six ships, he reached the main
land of South America. Touching at his colony of Hispanoia, he
found his people quarrelling bitterly, and much dissatisfied with his
government as admiral. He was arrested by Bobadilla, a Spanish com
missioner, and carried on board ship in chains. These he wore till he
reached Spain, although his captors would willingly have taken them
off. The chains had the effect which he had expected; the monarchs
were ashamed, the people horrified. He was released. He wished
then to keep his vow, to wrest the Holy Sepulchre from the infidels, but
Ferdinand and Isabella would not permit him to do so. Then he asked
to go once more to America. He was given four vessels, and took with
him his brother, and his younger son, Fernando. By the time they
had reached the American coast, Columbus was, ill. He lay upon the
deck, and watched the land as the ship sailed around by Honduras, for
they had passed beyond the islands. He tried several times to found a
colony, but the Indians were shy and crafty, and very naturally resented
the invasion of their land. Two of his ships were lost. His crew
mutinied, and no one would send him any relief. At last he went back
to Spain, only to find his friend, Isabella, dead. He died on May 20, .
1506, with the chains he had worn upon his return to Spain hung by his
bed-side. They were put in his coffin, and he was buried with the monu
ment : ' 'To Castile and Leon, Columbus gave a new world. ' ' About two
centuries after that his remains were carried to the cathedral of Havana,
that they might lie in the soil of the new world which he had found.
It was better for his peace of mind that he never knew that the land
he reached after so mueh suffering of mind and body, was to bear the
name of another man. But, after all, justice will always be done in the
Lord's good time, and, in the minds of everyone, America is the monu
ment of Columbus, and not of Amerigo Vespucci.
FOR FURTHER READING:
History— Prescott's "Conquestof Mexico."
Biography — W. Irving's "Columbus."
W. Irving's "Companions of Columbus."
Dexter's "Letters of Columbus and Vespucci."
Travels — Hakluyt's "Voyages."
Kohl's "Discoverers of the East Coast of America."
Fiction — Bird's "Calavar" and "Infidel."
Wallace's "Fair God."
Poetry — Barlow's "Colombiad."
Lowell's "Columbus."
Rogers' "Columbus."
Sir Aubrey De Vere's "Sonnets on Columbus."

CHAPTER IV.

Jttrim % J)ark H[afer*
PONCE DE LEON — THE FOUNTAIN OF YOUTH — THE DISCOVERY OF THE
SOUTH SEA BY BALBOA — DE SOTO — HIS DEATH.

HE islands of the Atlantic became rapidly peo
pled with Spaniards. "Everyone," complained
Columbus, before his death, "even the very
tailors, are bent upon discovery," and, as the
islands filled with Europeans, the Indians were
crowded out. The manner in which they were killed, and the awful
sufferings they endured at the hands of men who called themselves
Christians, is told most pathetically in the chronicles of Las Casas, one
of the few friends which these unhappy people had. They were carried
to Spain as slaves, or worked with cruelty upon the new possessions in
the Atlantic. The tender-hearted old man, Las Casas, made the mis
take, in his firm defence of the Indians, of advising the young king, who
then reigned over Spain, to let each resident in Hispanoia bring a dozen
negro slaves from the African coast; and it was thus, in about 1518, that
negro slavery was first introduced in America.
Juan Ponce De Leon, a gay and courteous cavalier, who had been
with Columbus on his second voyage, had made up his mind to go to
the countries of the new world upon his own account. It was in 151 3
that he set sail, with three caravels well fitted with men. He had been
a brave soldier and a very active man, and hated, as all such men must
do, the thought of growing old. His ambition was to maintain his
youth, and he was filled with the pleasant stories of some luscious
fountain of clear water in the new world, from which all men might

m

'§MNp *k~~

Copyright jS8q, by R. S. King- Pub. Co.
MEETING BETWEEN DE SOTO AND THE INDIAN CHIEFTAINESS.
Designed and engraved expressly for The Story of America.

ACROSS THE DARK WATER. 49
drink and become eternally young. He was made Governor of the
island of Porto Rico, but even this honor would not tempt him to rest.
He pushed on westward in search of the wonderful fountain, and at last,
on Easter Sunday, he saw land. The Spaniards called Easter Sunday
the day of flowers, and Ponce De Leon named the new land Florida.
He landed near what is now St. Augustine, and, with his men, went
about the woods and coasts there for many weeks. Five years later he
came back again, and was wounded with a poisoned arrow, and went
sadly back to his country to die. He had escaped old age, but not by
drinking from the fountain of youth.
Vasco Nunez de Balboa, an adventurous Spaniard, was the first to
cross the isthmus which divides North and South America. Looking
down from a mountain, he saw the great western ocean stretching before
him. He called it the South Sea, and took possession of it in the name
of his Christian Majesty, the King of Spain. Meanwhile, Cortez was
exploring in Yucatan and Mexico. By this time the King of Portugal
deeply regretted that he had not accepted the services of Columbus
when they were first offered to him. He grew envious of the rich pos
sessions of Spain, and fitted out ships in 15 19, under the leadership of
Magellan, a sailor of wide experience, and a man whom the king counted
among the greatest of his realm. Magellan passed the Indies and bore
southward, sailing entirely around South America, marveling at the
' 'mountain of fire, ' ' and rejoicing over the placid world of water which
rolled in peaceful majesty before them. He named it the Pacific Ocean,
because of its tranquility.
The unhappy relations between the Indians and the Europeans grew
worse, instead of better. The white man gave the Indian lessons in
treachery, which he was not slow to profit by. A party of gentle St.
Dominican Brothers, who had come to America to make a ' 'conquest of
peace" among the savages, were captured, upon their landing, and
brutally murdered. It was too late for kindness to be understood — too
late for the word of the white man to be believed.
In 1 519, a planter named D'AUyon, a man of wealth and high
family, came to the American coast in search of slaves. He landed
where South Carolina now is, and, kidnapping natives there, put them
in the Spanish slave markets. His adventurous nature would have
made him of much value to his country, but he fell a victim to his own
evil works. On his second voyage he was murdered by the angry
Indians. Eight years after this, an expedition in quest of gold was led
out from the West Indies by Pamphilo de Narvaez. He and his

5°

THE STORY OF AMERICA.

companions landed near Tampa Bay, and went westward along the
Gulf of Mexico. The sufferings of Narvaez' men were very great.
Their number rapidly decreased. They were restless with the spirit of
adventure, and were not willing to settle down and wrench a living from
the soil. Cuba put forward every effort to find the men, but was not
successful. All but four of them died. These four were made slaves
by the Indians, and wandered from tribe to tribe for six years. They
came out at last near the Gulf of California. But it was a long time
before they were heard from.

|S-

K.m vm/m$
A SPANISH SOLDIER.

Hernando De Soto held a grant of the province of Florida from the
crown of Spain, and landed not far from the spot where his fated
predecessors had in Tampa Bay. This was on May 30, 1537. He was
very ambitious, and wished to found a great empire, over which he
should rule. Blinded with ambition, he had no pity for any one. In
all that he did he was fierce and shamefully cruel. Following him was

ACROSS THE DARK WATER.

51

a splendid retinue of noblemen. They were tricked out in the most
fashionable costumes of Spain, and glittering with inlaid armor, which
recalled the magnificence of the crusades. None but a leader of iron
will could have governed men so proud and ambitious. He took his
companions through the lakes, streams and everglades of Florida. They
lived upon water-cresses, shoots of Indian corn and palmetto leaves.
Their policy was to fight the natives wherever they met them — an odd
policy for men whose chief boast was their Christianity. Wherever
they went, they left behind them
burned wigwams and aching hearts.
Once, De Soto was met by a certain
Indian chieftainess. She was a grace
ful young savage, with courteous
manners, and went to meet De Soto
in a canopied canoe, carrying gifts with
her, among them a necklace of pearls,
which she flung about the neck of the
Spanish leader. But her people were
used as slaves, and herself taken pris
oner in spite of her gentleness. De
Soto still went westward. He sent
men to explore for gold, and took all
the treasures from the Indians which
he could find. He went up the Mis
sissippi for some distance, and then
westward, nearly to the Rocky Moun
tains. After his return to his post, in
trying to force an opening through the
swamps about the Mississippi river, he
sickened and died. He was dropped,
in the silence of the night, into the
deep waters of the Mississippi, the,
victim of his own stubborn pride, for
he could have had help and rescue had he been willing to accept it;
but he refused to take his men back, shorn of their fine trappings and
lessened in numbers. A few of his men, long months afterwards,
reached the settlement of their countrymen on the Gulf of Mexico.
The Spaniards in the north of Mexico were greatly excited when
the four unfortunate men who had escaped from the expedition of
Narvaez reached them, with wonderful stories of the countries they had

SPANISH ARMOR.

52

THE STORY OF AMERICA.

seen. They told of stately cities, in which there were buildings of
stone and a great quantity of jewels, besides silver and gold in plenty.
In a short time an expedition was sent to explore this country, going up
the coast of California, and exploring part of the Colorado river.
They found the well-built cities, but the gold, silver and jewels were in
small quantities. Later, a Spanish explorer name Cabrillo, went up the
Pacific coast as far as Oregon. Following him came Sir Francis Drake,
the celebrated English voyager. The history of his exploits is not full,
but it is known that he was received pleasantly by the natives, and, after
a brief exploration, crossed the ocean to the East Indies. England,
however, never claimed California on the score of Drake's discovery.
In the year 1580, an expedition of travelers followed up the river Del
Norte, and made a settlement upon the site of the present city of
Santa Fe. This expedition was under Onate. That city, with one
exception (St. Augustine), is the oldest in the United States.
FOR FURTHER READING.
History — Parkman's "Pioneers of France."
Parkman's "France and England in North America."
Reynold's "Old St. Augnistine."
Baird's "Huguenot Emigration to America."
Jones' "De Soto and His March Through Georgia."
Fiction — Simm's "Damsel of Darien," "Vasconselas" and "The
Lily and the Totem."
Drama— Mrs. L. S. McCord's "De Soto."
Poetry — Butterworth's "Dream of Ponce de Leon."

WOLPI.

CHAPTER V.

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FRANCE: HER EXPLORERS AND SETTLEMENTS — THE FIGHT BETWEEN
FRENCH AND SPANISH COLONIES.

ONG before this time, France was growing im
patient to have a foothold in the new world; so
she sent westward a mariner, named Verazzano,
with a single ship. He reached the shore of
North Carolina, and followed it southward for a
time, trading with the Indians as he went. He
carried home full accounts of what he saw, and a de
scription of the Indians and their ways, and said that
' ' these new countries were not altogether destitute of
the ' drugs and spiceries, pearls and gold, ' for which
everyone was looking." It was he who first gave an
accurate idea of the true size of the globe, and of the
western continent. France rested content with this
triumph for some time, and it was ten years later before
she sent out Jacques Cartier, who set up the cross of France in New
foundland, where the people, so he said, were the poorest in the world.
In 1535 he made another journey, carrying the lilies of France up the
St. Lawrence, and to the mouth of the stream which he named the St.
Croix. The Indians received him as some great spirit, who could heal
the sick and perform miracles, but he, like the Spaniards, seemed to
forget that he belonged to a Christian country, and though the Indians
treated him with much civility, made a treacherous return. When he
set sail for his own land he seized a friendly chief and nine of his tribe,
and, amid the wailing of the amazed Indians on the shore, carried them
away across the sea. It was little wonder that the Indians remembered
these things against the invaders, and that when the French returned, in
1540, and set up a colony near the mouth of the St. Lawrence, they
found the Indians hostile. It was in vain that the lying Frenchmen

54 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
told them that the Indians they had carried over seas with them had
been made into great men in the land, and lived in palaces of marble.
The Indians had learned that one would expect nothing but lies from
men with white faces; and the truth was that all of those proud-spirited
Indians had died of broken hearts, except one poor lonely little maiden,
whose duty it was to show herself at fetes for the curious French ladies to
wonder at and exclaim over. Two forts were built to protect the new
colony, one at the mouth of the St. Lawrence, and the other at the
mouth of the St. Croix.
France also started a colony far south. At the head of this was
John Ribault, and with him a band of soldiers, seamen and gentlemen.
This was in the midst of the great religious reformation of Europe,
when the Huguenots had been driven in large numbers from France to
Holland. These oppressed people decided to set up their reformed
protestant church in the wilderness, and for the first time made the new
world the shelter of the scorned and the outcast. So, with a sword in
one hand and a cross in the other, staunch John Ribault led his band of
faithful worshipers into a land where they hoped to find peace. But it
was not to be. When the King of Spain became aware that the French
had planted a colony upon this territory, he sent Menendez, one of his
most formidable generals, to oust them. Rene Laudonriere was tempo
rarily in charge of the fort at Port Royal, where the Huguenots were,
and John Ribault was hurrying over seas with supplies and additions to
the settlement. The fleets of Ribault and Menendez had some thrilling
adventures at sea, in which the Spanish general was outwitted. He re
tired to the coast and founded the city of St. Augustine, the oldest city
within the present boundary of the United States, older even than
Santa Fe. Here men, women and children were settled. Amid music
and the thundering of guns Menendez landed, and kneeling to kiss the
cross took possession in the name of Philip II, King of Spain. A few
days after this, while Ribault was still at sea, a terrible storm broke
over the country, which seriously disabled his fleet. Menendez guessed
that Ribault would not have had time to reach Port Royal, and
saw that a safe opportunity for attack had come. Hurrying overland
he fell upon the French in the fort. The surprise was complete. The
French were put to the sword. One hundred and thirty-two were killed
that night, and in the morning ten of the fugitives were captured and
hanged. Over these Menendez hung the label, "I do not this to
Frenchmen, but to heretics." Among the number who escaped were
the younger Ribault and Rene Laudonriere.

THE LILIES OF FRANCE. 55
Ribault did not know that Port Royal had been taken. He had
been wrecked on the coast with his three hundred and fifty men. He
begged Menendez to spare them, and even offered a heavy ransom, but
Menendez refused. Such as laid down their arms and surrendered to
Menendez were butchered. Among these was Ribault. A few went
southward, preferring to try the perils' of the wilderness. In a few days
the fort at Port Royal, which the Spaniards had re-named San Mateo,
caught fire, and burned to the ground.
Three years later, the French sent over another expedition, under the
command of De Gourgues. His purpose was to be revenged upon the
Spaniards. He made friends with the Indians, who were ready to join
in any enterprise which would be likely to make the Spanish suffer.
De Gourgues fell upon the Spaniards exactly as Menendez had on Fort
Caroline, and left only fifteen of the Spanish garrison living. The
soldiers upon the other side of the river were also massacred. The
party went on to San Mateo, which the Spaniards still held, and killed
nearly all of the soldiers there. Those that were captured were hung,
and De Gourgues put on the trees, ' 'I do not this as unto Spaniards,
but as unto traitors, robbers and murderers. ' ' St Augustine was finally
burned by Sir Francis Drake. FOR FURTHER READING:
History — JefFeiVs "French Dominions in America."
Jones "Antiquities of Southern Indians."
Las Casas' "Narrative and Critical History of America" in 2 vols.
Parkman's "Jesuits in America."
Schoolcraft's "History and Condition of the Indian Tribes."
Fiction — Chateaubriand's ' 'Atala."
Poetry— Levi Bishop's "Jesuit Missionary."

CHAPTER VI.
% Jbbgs in % l(Htoitm+
THE ENGLISH — THEIR SEARCH FOR THE NORTHWEST PASSAGE — ¦
FROBISHER'S EXPLORATIONS — SIR HUMPHREY GILBERT'S
SETTLEMENT — THE COLONY OF SIR WALTER
RALEIGH — GOSNOLD'S FAILURE.

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ipo

B A C CQ_ ™ fJFOTATiQES-

T was the glowing stories which the
Huguenots told in the flight which
some of them made from Florida to
England, after the massacres, that
induced the English navigators to
secure that land. They tried to find
the northwest passage, for which Cabot
had looked, and in 1578, Sir Francis Drake sailed up the Pacific coast,
plundering, in the wicked fashion of those days, Spanish settlements as
he went. He went as far as Washington Territory. But no slight
failure could discourage the English. The land for which they looked
wore such a dazzling aspect to them that neither the loss of men or
money could stop them in their search for the way to Cathay. Pictures
of the wonderful country of Kublai Khan filled them with dreams.
Here, so they had heard, were twelve thousand cities, all near together.
The estate of the king, spreading over ten miles, was a luxurious gar
den, watered with clear rivers and filled with the music of fountains,
There were marble palaces, summer houses indescribably beautiful and
airy, wonderful armies of trained soldiers, and magnificent fortresses.
From here all the finest silks, the brightest gold and the richest spices
came. And yet, for all their attempts, more than one hundred years passed
from the time of the landing of the Cabots before an English colony

A LODGE IN THE WILDERNESS.

57

was planted on American soil. It was in 1527 that one of the futile
attempts was made. Two fine ships set sail from London and went
toward the northeast, but encountering a sea of ice there, turned back.
Only one of the ships reached England.
In 1536 the determined English sought once more for the mysteri
ous passage, but so ill provided was the expedition, that when the men
reached Newfoundland they were reduced to killing each other that all
might not starve. The captain, who had thought at first that the loss
of his men was due to wild beasts, or to Indians, finally discovered the
truth, and set forth their sin in the strongest words of which he
was master. The miserable men stopped murdering each other, but
it was not long before hunger drove them to cast lots for the choice of
one who should die to save the rest. Fortunately for them a French
ship, with plenty of food on board, arrived that night. The desperate
Englishmen managed to get possession of the boat and put to sea, leaving
the Frenchmen their empty vessel. However, the Frenchmen finally
reached England, and were recompensed by the king for their losses.
It was in 1553 that Sir Hugh Willoughby, a most valiant gentle
man, well born, renowned for singular skill in the service of war,
started out- with four vessels. They were well built and well provided,
and one of them was considered quite a marvel of skill and strength.
No expedition which left England went with more display. The whole
court came to Greenwich, and the noblemen came running out to see
the ships. The windows were crowded, and people looked down from
the tops of towers. The shore was black with sight-geers. Sailors
crowded the ships in the harbor. The American-bound vessels set sail
amid salute after salute from the royal guns, but the cruel northern seas
wrecked them as they have so many since. Two of them were found
years later by some Russian fishermen, and in the cabin of one sat Sir
Hugh Willoughby, with a pen in his frozen fingers. Scattered about
both ships lay the bodies of the perished crew, every man of them
frozen to death. The sailors tried to take the ships back to England,
but they foundered at sea. But, though this expedition was so tragic,
it was not absolutely useless, for some of the crew in one of the other
ships reached Archangel, and traveled overland to Moscow, and com
merce between England and Russia was opened. This was of great
value to England.
England could not quiet her enthusiasm on the subject of the new
world, and in 1576 Martin Frobisher set sail with his three small vessels.
Queen Mary, leaning from her windows,' condescended to wave her

58 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
hands to the passing ships as a farewell token of her good wishes. The
first journey of Frobisher brought few results; one of them was some
what humorous. He brought with him a few black stones, which he
had picked up on the island of Cumberland. These he gave his wife
as a souvenir of his journey. She put them into the fire, and when
they were taken out, they proved to be gold. This filled Frobisher with
impatience to return. He started with fifteen ships, all of which were
to come back laden with ore, and so they did, but the ore had in it no
gold. Frobisher found the strait into Hudson's Bay which bears his
name, and which he supposed was a passage into the sea of Suez. Just
what these ship-loads of black stones cost England, it would be difficult
to guess. In time, however, even the most saving forgot about that
unfortunate waste, and another northern expedition was planned in 1585,
under the charge of John Davis. Davis' Strait is all that serves to
keep alive this voyage. Then came the scheme of Sir Humphrey
Gilbert, a very distinguished gentleman, as full of ideas as he was of
bravery. He sailed in 1583, with a fleet of five ships, and with a com
pany of two hundred and sixty men, among whom were refiners of
minerals and mechanics of all trades. They settled, for a time, near
the mouth of the St. Johns river, in Newfoundland, and set up a pillar,
with the arms of England carved upon it. Indeed, there was more
display than work, with the usual unhappy results. Many of Sir
Humphrey's men deserted, and some died.
At the colony at St. Johns, a conspiracy was started to seize the vessels
while the admiral and captains were on shore. Gilbert, therefore, found
necessary to send home as many of the sick and insubordinate as could
be spared. Soon after this, those remaining resumed their voyage. One
of the ships was lost, but Sir Humphrey was still in a comparatively
happy frame of mind. Had he not found ore which the assayer said
held silver? But the mines, or what he thought were the mines, proved to
yield nothing after all. On the way to England, the Golden Hind
foundered. Gilbert himself was on the ship. It was the smallest of the
fleet, but Gilbert refused to let any of his men stand a peril that he did
not share. In the midst of the terrible storm, in which the boat sank,
Sir Humphrey sat quietly in the stern with a book in his hand, and
called out cheerfully, when the companion boat offered help: "We are
as near Heaven by sea as by land." When Sir Gilbert died, his ambi
tious projects were taken up by Sir Walter Raleigh, his half-brother.
No more charming figure than he ever figured in American history.
;He was a soldier, a sailor, a statesman, and a most polished gentleman

A LODGE IN THE WILDERNESS. 6 1
a graceful poet, a historian and a thinker. He had sent numerous ships
to America at his own expense, being very eager for England's glory,-
but the men on them offended the Indians by their bad conduct, and
were always forced to return to England. Finally, he sent out a, colony
which he felt sure would succeed. It had as a governor a respected
Englishman by the name of John White; with him was his family, many
friends, and a corps of mechanics and farmers. John White established
his company on Roanoke Island, and having settled them as well as
possible, left for England to obtain more supplies. Before he left,
White's daughter, the wife of Ananias Dare, gave birth to a daughter —
the first little English girl born on American soil. White was gone a
long time — a strangely long time, considering everything. When he
returned the colony had entirely disappeared. It is true that they found
the word ' 'Croatoan' ' carved upon one of the trees. This was the name
of one of the islands not far distant, and it had been agreed upon by
the colonists, at the time of the departure of their governor, that, should
they see fit to leave for any reason, they would write the name of their
destination where it could be found. But John White was only a
passenger upon the vessel which visited the spot where the colony had
been, and he was taken to the far south. Sir Walter Raleigh sent out
ship after ship to search for the v lost colony, but every captain found
excuses for not obeying his commands, and the unfortunate people were
never definitely heard from. After the gallant Sir Raleigh was impris
oned in the Tower of London, no one thought more about the matter.
They were probably killed by Powhatan. Sir Raleigh has the distinction,
among greater ones, of having made the use of tobacco fashionable in
England, as well as having introduced potatoes to English tables. He
himself never visited the North American colony which had cost him so
much money and anxiety. The two trips which he made to America
were to the mouth of the Orinoco river, in South America.
The next colonial failure was in charge of Bartholomew Gosnold.
He, also, started for the great extent of territory which Raleigh had
named Virginia after the virgin Queen Elizabeth, and which included
all the region lying between Canada and Florida. Gosnold' s colony was
attempted on Cuttyhunk Island, but he and his company only stayed
there a few months. FOR FURTHER READING:
History— Buchanan's "History, Manners and Customs of North American Indians."
Biography— Oldys' "Lifeof Raleigh."
Southey"s "Life of Raleigh."
Fiction— "First Settlers of Virginia."
Poetry— Longfellow's "Sir Humphrey Gilbert."

CHAPTER VII.
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THE LONDON AND PLYMOUTH COMPANIES — THE VIRGINIAN SETTLE
MENT — CAPTAIN JOHN SMITH AND HIS WONDERFUL AD
VENTURES — POCAHONTAS — THE NEW CHARTER —
THE WRECK OF THE "SEA ADVENTURE."

l^^fHE English king saw that it was
necessary to take fresh measures
if he ever wished to establish a
successful colony in America. He
therefore formed two large compa
nies, one of which he called the
London Company, and the other
the Plymouth Company. The
first of these was to go to the
south, and the other to the north,
and they were to build no dwell
ings nearer to each other than one
hundred miles. It was evident
that the king understood the
quarrelsome nature of his sub
jects. Each of these colonies was
to be governed by thirteen men,
who were appointed by the king; and should any of them die, or resign
their positions, they were at liberty to choose a man to fill the place
themselves, provided that the man was not a clergyman. The king, it
will be remembered, was James I, a man of muth learning, though not
of so much wisdom, for his learning was not of a sort which taught him
kindness. In the summer of 1606, two ships belonging to the Plymouth
Company sailed away from England. One of these ships was taken by
the Spaniards, but the other one coasted off Maine and made a hasty
return. The general report of the captain pleased Chief Justice
Fopham, who made up his mind, on the following year, to send his
brother, George Popham, and Raleigh Gilbert, a son of Sir Humphrey,

FOUNDING THE OLD DOMINION. 63
to settle a colony; but they made no permanent settlement, and
it remained for the London Company to make the first permanent
village. In this there were one hundred and five men, and no
women. Among them were mechanics, soldiers and servants, and,
if the truth must be told, rather too many gentlemen. Their ships
were the "Sarah Constant," the "Godspeed" and the "Discovery,"
and Captain Christopher Newport was their commander. They
were foolish enough to go by the old route of the West Indies,
stopping along by the way in the pleasant towns of the Spaniards, and
wasting both food and time. There were too many proud men among
them for such a thing to be advisable, for they were certain to get into
quarrels. The London Council had told them not to break the seals of
their letters of instruction until they had landed on the shores of
Virginia, so no man know which was greatest, and all tried to exercise
authority. One of the most disagreeable among them was John Smith.
This young man was always energetic and nervous. He wanted to do
a great many things, and do them in his own peculiar way, and had
very little patience with slower and duller persons, so he very naturally
fretted at the wasteful way in which matters were being conducted, and,
as a consequence, found himself suddenly arrested. It was in the lovely
month of April when they sailed into the Chesapeake Bay, and giving
names to Cape Henry and Cape Charles, went eagerly to work. The
sealed box was opened, and the names of the council were heard.
They were Bartholomew Gosnold, John Smith, Edward Wingfield,
Christopher Newport, John Ratcliff, John Martin and George Kendall.
They spent half a month in looking for a suitable place for their
colony, and fixed at length on the spot where Jamestown still stands,
and which they named in honor of their king. All of the council,
except Smith, who was still in disfavor, were sworn into office. Then
work began seriously. Try to imagine how they cut the trees and
pitched their tents, how they split the logs for boards and made gardens,
planting the seeds they had brought with them, and braided nets from
twine. Imagine, too, how heartily they must have talked, laughed,
sung and quarreled. They had been instructed by the council to see if
an opening could be found by some river or lake from Virginia to the
South Sea, and Captain Newport fitted out a shallop, and went with
quite a number of men up the James river, toward the Appalachian
mountains. The Indians received them with kindness, and fed them
with the best that they had. The best was not bad. It consisted of
venison, turkey, maize, strawberries, mulberries, dried nuts and tobacco.

64 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
The returns which Newport's men gave for these dainties was princi
pally beads and whisky. It seems as if always the invading Christian
was the first to do a wrong thing. One of the remarkable characters
they met upon this voyage was a strong, manlike queen, who refused to
be scared at the sound of a gun, although her braves were so. New
port and his men went on till they came to a great waterfall, and then
turned back, noticing, with some fear as they did so, a change in the
manner of the Indians. When they got back to the camp they found
that several men had been wounded and one boy killed. A fort was
built for further protection, and in a short time Newport set sail for
England. While he was gone, those remaining at the settlement quar
reled frightfully. For one thing, they were suffering from hunger. It
seemed as if they never had enough to eat. With game in the woods
and fish in the rivers, why this should be so, it is difficult to guess.
Disease broke out among them, occurring principally from the want pf
food and proper shelter. For, instead of building substantial houses of
logs, they crowded into one miserable, insecure building. Each man
had for his daily allowance but half a pint of boiled wheat, and another
of barley, infested with worms. At last it became necessary for the
president, Wingfield, to set aside such sack and vinegar as was left, to
use in case of extreme sickness, and for the communion table. It was
this action largely which caused the hungry and selfish men of the
colony to find fault with Wingfield, and to depose him from his position
as president. John Smith, Ratcliff and Martin were the men who took
the principal part in this, and from that time on, John Smith seems to
have been the moving spirit of the colony, although many of its best
actions were suggested by Gosnold, a man very wise and pious. That
any of the colony lived over that dreadful summer was owing largely to
the kindness of the Indians, who brought them provisions. In the
autumn, things went more peacefully, as the game became more plenti
ful and the harvests were gathered. Smith then went upon one of his
journeys into the interior, where he came very near losing his life at the
hands of some strange Indians. It is said that he tied his guide to his
own body with his garters, and as his guide was an Indian, his foes
would not shoot at him. At length, however, he was obliged to surren
der, and was taken before the king of the tribe. Then he displayed all
of that matchless ingenuity which made him so interesting to all. He
showed the Indians his round compass made of ivory, and explained to
them the movements of the sun, moon and stars, the shape of the earth,
the comparative differences of the land and sea, and told them of all the

FOUNDING OF THE OLD DOMINION. 65
sorts of men about which he knew anything. But notwithstanding this
entertainment, the Indians tied him to a tree and were about to shoot
him with arrows, when the king, suddenly concluding that he would
like to save a man who knew so many curious things, released him.
They fed him so well that Smith became alarmed. He was quite
sure they were fattening him before they killed him. Finally they
promised him his liberty, and even offered to give him some land and
women, if he would help them attack Jamestown. But he told them
of the great guns which the English' had, and frightened them into
giving up the plan. Then he capped the climax of their wonder by
writing to the fort for a quantity of presents for the Indians, who were
unable to imagine how paper could speak. At last he was taken to the
greatest king of all, Powhatan, who received him with much state, with
a young Indian girl upon each side of him, and rows of men and women,
much decorated, around about. He was treated with great ceremony
and distinction, which, however, according to Smith's account, ended
in rather a peculiar way. He was dragged to a great stone, upon which
his head was laid, and by which stood men with clubs ready to beat out
his brains, but at this very dreadful moment, Pocahontas, the king's
dearest daughter, threw her arms about his head and laid her face
across his, to prevent them from touching him. His life was spared.
The story is so romantic that there is a reluctance to doubt it,
especially when it is remembered that Pocahontas was only twelve years
old at this time.
The little princess, Pocahontas, figured largely in the history of the
colony. She shocked the decorous gentlemen exceedingly by turning
somersaults about the fort, but conciliated them by frequently bringing
them food, and by warning them of attacks from the Indians. Years
afterward she was baptized and re-named Lady Rebecca, which was a
much more respectable name than Pocahontas, which means "Little
Wanton," and was given to her because she was noticeably wild, even
among the Indian maidens. In course of time she married John Rolfe,
an English gentleman, who took her to England, where she was pre
sented to the Queen by Lord and Lady de la Ware. She sickened with
small-pox just before taking the ship to return to America, and died at
the age of twenty-two. No woman of those days has so extended a
reputation; no other one has been so much written about. She is the
subject of many novels and poems, and even the dullest historian has
not been able to pass her by without some mention of her kindness of
heart, her wayward impulsiveness, and her beauty. It was not strange

66 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
that John Smith wished to publish the fact that she showed some interest
in him. Her father, Powhatan, has also been much written about. He
was the most powerful of all the Indian chiefs of Virginia; perhaps the
most wily of them as well. He is described as being very stalwart and
well-shaped of limb, and with a sad countenance and thin grey hair.
So proud was he that he could not be made to kneel when the council
saw fit to crown him after the English manner. King James, of Eng
land, sent robes and a crown that the ceremony might be carried out in
a king-like manner, but neither threats nor coaxing could make the
disdainful old savage bend a knee, and it became necessary for two of
the noblemen to press heavily upon his shoulders, so that his head was
sufficiently bowed to suit popular prejudice.
Meanwhile, Smith was having a most melancholy time. Several
times he was taken captive. Once he was condemned to death by his
own colony, because two Englishmen lost their lives fighting the Indians,
under his command. But upon the very day when he was to be killed,
Captain Newport fortunately returned from England, where he had been
for supplies, and interceded for Smith's life. Smith was also stung by
a poisonous fish when he was wading the creek, and was so severely
poisoned that his friends had no doubt of his near death, and hastened
to dig a grave for him, but this redoubtable hero unexpectedly brought
himself to, and helped eat the fish that came so near ending him. By
this time, what with malaria, lack of food and exposure, the colony had
been reduced in nine months to about forty persons, but Newport's ship
brought one hundred and twenty men, besides a stock of provisions,
farming implements, and of seeds. It seemed, however, as if good
fortune was never to be theirs. Hardly had they got in better mood
from Newport's help, than the fort was almost destroyed by fire. Worse
still, the company became wildly excited over some hills of yellow mica,
which they supposed to be gold, and this fever of happy excitement had
its re-action, which left them more miserable and despondent than
before. Smith spent the summer in sailing upon the waters of Virginia,
along the bays and rivers, and in becoming acquainted with the different
tribes of Indians. On the return from the last expedition, Smith was
made president of the colony, a position which he had always desired.
About the same time, Newport arrived again from England with a
second supply of men and provisions, and with him the two first women
of the colony, Mistress Forrest and her maid, Ann Burras. It is
unnecessary to say that it was not many weeks before Ann Burras was
married.

FOUNDING OF THE OLD DOMINION. 67
Upon this occasion, Newport had orders from the London Council
to bring home a lump of gold, to discover the passage to the South
Sea, aud to find the survivors of the Roanoke colony. It goes without
saying that he was able to do none of these things. All of his ingenuity
was bent upon keeping the friendship of Powhatan, and he was
aided in this, to a certain extent, by John Savage, an English lad, who,
for thirteen years, lived with Powhatan, acting as an interpreter
between the English and the Indians. History says little about his
youth, and, indeed, his name is the only thing remembered of him, but
he must have led a very wild and exciting life — indeed there must have
been an uncertainty about his life which, of itself, made existence
interesting. John Smith had difficulty in keeping the colony from
starving. He relied chiefly upon the Indians for food, for the colonists
were too lazy to protect the stores brought from England, but allowed
them to decay and to become infested with the rats, which came in the
ships, and which, like themselves, found a settlement on the shores of
the new world. Smith's greatest trial was in trying to persuade the
gentlemen about him that they were able to work, for they would
neither plant, fish, nor hunt, and would shirk, like schoolboys, each
task given them. It is said that two of them did go to work felling
trees, and worked so hard that the president wrote that forty of them
would be worth a hundred common men, but they failed to keep up
their labor. At length, the entire council of the colony, with the
exception of Smith, was drowned. Smith then became more necessary
to the company, and more important in his own esteem than ever. The
way in which he slew Indian chiefs of gigantic size, and, alone, routed
great armies of savages, is more like the history of some modern Jack
the Giant-Killer, than of any ordinary man. The colony was in very
bad humor. Sometimes members of it mutinied, and two Dutchmen
fled to the Indians, and inspired a conspiracy with Powhatan for the
entire destruction of Jamestown. Smith learned of their plans, how
ever, and brought -even Powhatan into a state of humility. But for
all of his bravery, the colony was steadily failing. The cost by which
it had been maintained was great, and, in 1609, the king found it nec
essary to form a new corporation to sustain it. This was composed of
the most distinguished and wealthy men of England, and a fleet of nine
ships, carrying five hundred people, left England in the month of May
— a month when England is most beautiful — for the tragic shores of
America. Seven of these reached the settlement in August, but one of
them foundered at sea, and another, the Sea Adventure, on board

68 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
which was the admiral, Gates, Captain Newport, William Strachey
and Summers, also failed to appear. This vessel was wrecked off the
Bermudas, in a storm so terrible that the description which William
Strachey afterwards gave of it served to inspire Shakespere's descrip
tion of the storm in the first act of "The Tempest." "Such was the
tumult of the elements that the sea dashed above the clouds, and gave
battle unto Heaven. It could not be said to be rain. The waters, like
whole rivers, did flood into the air. Winds and seas were as mad as
fury and rage could make them. ' ' They passed three days and four
nights in this dreadful strait, and, on the last night of their struggle,
were cheered with a strange, fantastic light, that trembled up among
the shrouds and stayed there till the morning watch. When morning
really came, they found the boat lodged between two rocks, in still
waters. The passengers and crew of the Sea Adventure spent their
winter on the island. The climate was delightful. There was hunting
and fishing, as well as plenty of berries and wild fruits. A few persons
died, others married, and there were two births. One of the little
children born there, in the midst of the Atlantic ocean, was named
Bermuda; the other, a boy, Bermudas. In May, a year from the time
when they had left England, they started once more for the Virginian
colony. FOR FURTHER READING:
History— Smith's "True Relation of Virginia."
Campbell's "Virginia."
Doyle's "English Colonies in America."
Fiction — Hopkins' "The Youth of the Old Dominion."
Moseby's "Pocahontas."
Poetry — Hillar's "Pocahontas."
Seba Smith's "Powhatan."
Mrs. Heman's "Pocahontas."
Mrs. Sigourney's "Pocahontas."
Drama — Owen's "Pocahontas."
Seagull's "Eastward, Ho!"
Shakespere's "Tempest"— ist act.

CHAPTER VIII.

FROM THE BERMUDAS TO VIRGINIA — THE STARVING TIMES — THE
ARRIVAL OF LORD DE LA WARE — HELP FROM ENGLAND —
THE BEGINNING OF SLAVERY — THE FIRST
BLOW AT INTEMPERANCE.

ssHEN Sir Thomas Gates and his men arrived at the
Virginian colony, they found things in a most
distressing condition. Once more the people
were without food, and were begging from the
Indians. For one reason and another the Indians
were becoming sullen, and were more inclined to
fight than to give favors. Various smaller settle
ments were started around about, and John Smith, in
visiting one of these, met with a serious accident by the
explosion of gunpowder, which made it necessary for
him to go to England. Percy became president in
the place of Smith, but he was a character of a very
different sort. It needed Smith's overbearing deter
mination to control the men of the colony. Smith had
been able to make the colonists work a little. Percy was not able to do
this. What with hard drink and idleness, and all of its various conse
quences, the men were reduced in health and in courage. They
had killed the domestic animals and eaten up all the supplies which
Smith had seen to the storing of. That horrible winter is known as the
starving time, a name which is remarkably appropriate, for at the time
of Gates' arrival only sixty out of five hundred were alive. These
were hardly alive, and a few of them came crawling out to welcome
Gates when he arrived. This was in May, 1610. No scene more
disorderly and desolate could be imagined. The very houses had been
torn down for firewood, because the colonists had been afraid to venture
into the woods. Gates thought it best not to live in a place so associated

7° THE STORY OF AMERICA.
with terror and death. There were two vessels in port, and Gates was
possessed of two which his men had built on the Bermudas. They
boarded these and were about riding out of the harbor when word was
brought them from Lord de la Ware that he was coming to their help
with men and provisions. Lord de la Ware was chief of the London
Company, although up to this time he had not himself visited the colony.
It had been with much care that Commander Gates saved the block-house,
where the people had huddled that terrible winter, from being burned,
for the colonists, like a set of crazy schoolboys, were much fonder of
destroying than building up, and if they could have had their way,
would have set fire to everything in Jamestown. They had reason to
be very thankful that Gates' wiser advice had been followed, and that
upon the command of Lord de la Ware to return, they had a place to
go into. Whatever these gentlemen of the old time did, they did with
ceremony. They may have been very ragged and very worthless, but
they were always dignified and pretentious. The landing of Lord de
la Ware was a matter for much ceremony. It began, as did all their
demonstrations, with prayer. Though Lord de la Ware was so successful
and brilliant a nobleman and governor, he bore always a spirit of true
and sincere humility. He was, above all things, deeply reverential, and
though he could be severe, he could also be gentle. It was the time
now to be severe, and he determined there should be no more idleness,
no more hard drinking, and much less playing of games among the
wayward colonists. He began trading with the Indians for corn, built
two substantial forts, and started various schemes, some of which were not
successful. In a year the malaria, which had affected so many of the
colonists, overpowered him, and it was necessary for him to return to
England. Shortly after his leaving Virginia, Thomas Gates and another
commander, Sir Thomas Dale, arrived from England with fresh expedi
tions. They had not only men, but what was actually more important at
that time, victuals and domestic animals. Sir Thomas seems to have
understood, better than any who had preceded him, the economy by
which a young nation should preserve itself. To each man he gave
three acres of ground, which should belong to him absolutely. He no
longer allowed them to live upon the public stores. It became necessary
for them to make their living, or starve. He insisted upon their building
houses for themselves, and checked the disease which had spread so
rapidly when they persisted upon crowding into one poorly ventilated
shed. New settlements were made about this time, and though they
were under the same local government, it extended the cultivation of land.

THROUGH DEATH TO VICTORY. 71
For the first time streets were laid out, and the plantations had definite
boundaries. This progress was slow, but under these two determined
leaders, it was sure.
Stories of the wildness and drunkenness of the men of "Virginia
had been carried back to England, and the dignified members of the
London corporation there determined to uproot these evils by a set of
laws. They must have imagined that the natures of Englishmen were
very much changed by crossing the Atlantic, for it is certain that no
Englishman living in their native island ever obeyed such laws as these.
There was a penalty of death for wilfully pulling up a flower, a root or
an herb when set to weeding. He who uttered an oath had a bodkin
thrust through his tongue at the second offense, and at the third offense
suffered death. If he was absent from the place of public worship, he
was deprived of a week's allowance for the first offense, publicly
whipped for the second, and killed for the third. No one was allowed
to kill any domestic animal, not even a chicken or a dog, though it
might belong to the person who killed it. A tradesman who neglected
his business was sent to the galleys for four years if he persisted in the
offense. It was evident that the great waste of money, time, oppor
tunity and supplies of which the colony had been guilty had irritated
the London Company into making these ridiculous regulations. Still
more severe than these were the martial rules, which each private
citizen was expected to know and obey.
For the first time the colony began to make some money. It came
from the sale of tobacco, and, for the raising of this plant, the cultiva
tion of corn was neglected. It was through the taxation of tobacco in
England that the colony came to open its first trading with Holland,
and the indirect outcome of it was the first quarrel with England. A set
tlement was finally made, but not for several years. From the extreme
of idleness the colonists went to the extreme of industry, as soon as their
love for money prompted it, and those who owned no land did not hesi
tate to plant tobacco in the very streets of Jamestown. England began
to see that the wealth of Virginia did not lie in gold, nor its advantages
in a passage to the southern seas. Tobacco charmed them, as the
prospects of Cathay had bewitched them before. Men were sent ovei
in ship-loads, and most of these men were criminals, who had been con
demned to serve out a term of years. Others were paupers, who sold
themselves into this voluntary slavery for a given period of time, with
the understanding that at the end of that time they were to become free
citizens. Worse, still, so valuable did men become, that in 1619 a

72 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
Dutch ship came to Jamestown with a cargo of negroes, from the coast
of Guinea. And thus the negro was brought under the American-
English government for the first time. It was the beginning of slavery
in the colonies of the new world.
Perhaps it is hardly worthy of mention — of such slight importance
were things of this nature — that Captain Argall, who was for a
time governor of the colony, saw fit to destroy a little colony of French,
at Port Royal, in the Bay of Fundy. The destruction of a few men in
those days mattered but little, and even the historian would only think
this worthy of mention, because it was one of the first outbreaks
between the French and the English. Governor Argall set the example
of greediness. He and his colony gave themselves up to a near-sighted
plan of money-making, neglecting all those things which were neces
sary for the real comfort of their homes, and for the better mode of
living. The distinguished Lord de la Ware was sent out to displace him,
but he died on his way. Sir George Yeardley was made President of
Virginia, which now numbered about six hundred persons. Their
reduction had come from the same old mismanagement. There was a
scarcity of food. To put them in better position, Yeardley gave them
the power of self-government, and on July 30, 161 9, met the first legis
lative assembly in this country. It had twenty-two representatives, a
governor, and the council.
Here, the first blow was struck at intemperance. There was an
enactment against drunkenness, making it a punishable offence.
Three hundred members of the colony died the next year. The
king determined to replace these men. He sent one hundred felons
from the jails of England. Sir Edward Sandys, one of the most
thoughtful, courteous and cultivated men in Virginia, did what he
could to turn this mistake into an advantage. He founded a university
at Henricho, one of the smaller settlements, where both Indians and
whites were accepted as pupils. About this University were ten
thousand acres of land, and here, in less than two years, one hundred
men were settled. Then, a fortunate thing happened. One hundred
English maidens offered to come to the colony, as wives for the young
men. After this there were homes. Wherever there are homes, there
is order. For the first time, it began to look as if there might be a
new and prosperous England on the shores of America.
Another thing that marked this year was the sending out of many
poor boys and girls, from the overcrowded factories of England, to
serve as apprentices in America. These boys and girls, who, in the

THROUGH DEATH TO VICTORY.

73

condition of England, might have been doomed to a life of constant
drudgery, laid the foundation of some of the best and most
distinguished families of this conntry. Within a year 1,261 persons
•came to this country, either through Sir Edward Sandys, who was
.treasurer of the company, or through private ventures. Sir Edward
Sandys should be remembered by all who love books, and have
enjoyed the blessing of a free-school instruction, as the founder of the
first school in America, and the writer of the first book. This was a
translation of Ovid, made in leisure hours, upon the banks of the
James river. FOR FURTHER READING:
History— Jefferson's "Notes on Virginia."
Jefferson's "Old Churches of Virginia."
Biography— Spark's "American Biographies."
Fiction— Thackeray's "Virginians."
Cooke's "Virginia Comedians."
James' "Old Dominion."
Defoe's "Jacques."

..-J=»

CHAPTER IX.

Tfarorafaga, lip Jfeulifoi

THE SETTLEMENT OF MAINE — THE VOYAGE OF THE ENGLISH — CHAM-
PLAIN AND VERMONT — THE SETTLEMENT
OF MT. DESERT.

-EANWHILE, there were settlements far to the
north. Maine was a most attractive country to
the voyager. Its innumerable lakes and beautiful
rivers, its magnificent coast, its hills and meadows,
were all tempting. For three-fourths of a century,
or nearly that, explorers had dallied about it. often
stopping for a while and making insecure settlements.
Not only had the English been enamored with it
through all these years, but the French, as well, had
loved to coast along its shores and explore its interior,
and both nations had given names to its rivers and bays,
its capes and islands. In nothing more than in this
naming, was the different policy of the two nations
shown. The English made the . mistake of insisting
upon the use of their own favorite names. The French used the Indian
names, and seemed to bend to the customs and prejudices of the race whose
country they were invading. This was a very sure way of winning and
keeping friendship. The French went further. They dressed as the
Indians did whenever it was possible for them to do so; they hunted
after the fashion of the Indians, and fished with Indian tackle. Imita
tion is the sincerest flattery, and it could not fail to have its effect even
upon a race of savages.
Innumerable voyages were made by both French and English to
Norumbega, which was then the musical appellation of that country,
but no one ventured to put a king's name upon the soil or to found
a lasting colony. The first actual settlement made in Maine was led by
De Monts, a governor of the province of Spain. With him came Samuel

NORUMBEGA, THE BEAUTIFUL. 75
de Champlain. Both of these men had previously been to Maine upon
expeditions, but this time they came with a charter from Henry IV.
De Monts was created Lieutenant-General of Acadia, as the country
was called, from the fortieth to the forty-sixth degree of north latitude.
De Monts was a Huguenot, one of the despised sect, but he had given
such signal service to Henry IV that it was decided to trust him with
this important venture; but while he was to follow his conscience in the
matter of his own personal religion, it was agreed that the savages over
which he had ruled were to be converted into Catholicism. The
merchants of Rouen and Rochelle constituted the company which held
the letters patent to the trade in furs and fish in Acadia. With De
Monts came certain distinguished noblemen, Jean de Vincourt, the Baron
de Pontrincourt, and Champlain. These gentlemen were anxious to
find a quiet spot, to which they might bring their friends and families
and live in peace, undisturbed by the politics of the Old World. It took
the expedition two months to reach the eastern coast of Nova Scotia,
and a month to explore the coast. They decided to settle their
colony on a little island in the St. Croix river. Their history is similar
to that of the colonies who settled farther south. There were the same
hardships, the same carelessness and lack of forethought, and the same
suffering. Champlain coasted far to the south, taking in the innu
merable points of the bewildering coast, and turning up the mouth of
every river which he came to. The Indians were not inclined to be
amiable. Doubtless they had had too many previous experiments with
invaders. So wretched did the condition of the colony become, that it
became necessary, in the course of a few months, to move it to a harbor
in Acadia, and here for several years it lived feebly.
- It will be remembered that the Virginian colony was sustained by
a company which had its headquarters in London, and that this was
one of two companies which the king granted patents to. The northern
company sent out, in 1605, a fleet of ships, under the care of George
Weymouth. The experiences of Weymouth and his sailors were not of
the usual sort. They were delightful. They landed upon the pleas-
antest of spots, and encountered beautiful weather. They found pearls
in the shells on the beaches, and excellent clay for brickmaking, and
trees whose gums smelled like frankincense. The Indians were friendly
and hospitable, but the return made was that which could always be
expected; Weymouth kidnaped five Indians, and carried them to
England. The report which he brought to England hastened the
action of the northern Virginia company in sending out that vain

76 THE STORY OF AMERICA. '
expedition of theirs, under the charge of Raleigh, Gilbert and George
Popham. A few months, as has been said before, ended the existence
of the settlement. Then the French made a second attempt. This
was in 1608. The expedition was under the leadership of Champlain,
who sailed to where Quebec now stands, and founded that ancient city.
He finished a fine, if primitive, fort there, saw that garden plots were
laid out and planted, and then left the colony to its own industries,
looking in on it from time to time in the midst of his many voyages.
No more adventurous spirit than he ever lived. His story reads
like a romance, and one of his adventures is too interesting to pass.
He started up the great river St. Lawrence, with a few companions,
giving names as he went to the tributaries. So appropriate were these
names that they cling to this day. At the mouth of the Richelieu river
he met, by appointment, a party of natives. These were on the war
path against the Iroquois. He went with these Indians, sending back all
but two of his men. The light canoes were carried from water to
water, and at last they reached the magnificent lake of Champlain, the
only thing which this great voyager ever gave his name to. After
several days they met their foes. All night they camped upon the
banks of the river, taunting each other with wild cries, and in the
morning the savages confronted each other. The two parties approached
until they were within a few hundred feet of each other, then Cham-
plain's party of Indians opened, and let the astonished Iroquois behold
the spectacle of three white men. The well-aimed guns of the French
wounded three Iroquois, and the entire party took to flight. After this
battle, Champlain returned to Quebec, and lived there in some primitive
state as governor. With one interruption, when the French yielded
their possessions to England, he was governor until 1635. The little
struggling colony in Maine, which had been planted by De Monts, had
but a sorry time. As might have been expected, De Monts' authority was
finally taken from him, because of the prejudice existing against Hugue
nots. However, he managed to get over in 1606, just in time to keep
the discouraged colonists from starting for France. About this time
Pontrincourt returned from France, with orders to make the new settle
ment a central station for the conversion of the Indians, and brought
with him a number of Jesuit missionaries. These, and the missionaries
that succeeded them, have been very prominent in religious work of this
continent. The patroness of these voyages was Madame la Marquise de
Guercheville, who was a very devoted member of the Catholic Church,
and who later held the grant, not only of Acadia, but the entire territory

NORUMBEGA, THE BEAUTIFUL. 77
covered by the United States. In 1630, she sent other ships, with two
more Jesuits. These settled upon Mt. Desert, one of the loveliest
places, every one will admit, on this continent, with mountains which
reach down to the sea and lakes beyond the mountains, with valleys
and grand meadows. Flowers of all sorts grew here, and berries, all up
the green mountain sides, which reached two thousand feet above the
sea. The Indians were friendly, and turned willing ears to the preaching
of the priests. The settlement was comfortably established, when
Argall came up from the Virginian colony. Without any warning, he
opened a cruel warfare upon the peaceful people, stole the commission
of their leader, and, under the pretense that they had settled without
royal consent, arrested them. Many of them he took to Jamestown.
Others were left to find their way in an open boat to Port Royal.
FOR FURTHER READING:
History — Williamson's "Maine."
Lodge's "English Colonies in America."
Voyages of Samuel de Champlain."
Thompson's "Vermont."
Fiction— D. P.Thompson's "Grant Gurley."
Poetry — Whittier's Norumbega."
Whittier's "Bride of Pennacoek."
Whittier's "Mogg Megone."

CHAPTER X.

iuropsi t& lip ll[HWttm+
NOVA SCOTIA AND THE ENGLISH DESPOLIATION — THE SETTLEMENT
OF NEW HAMPSHIRE — THE MODE OF NORTHERN
COLONIAL GOVERNMENT.
1 NSTEAD of disapproving of this cruel
action, the Governor of Jamestown
sent him back to the pleasant hamlet
of Acadia, where the French had a
settlement, so thoroughly national
in all of its characteristics that it
seemed like a little piece of France
set down upon the shores of the new
world. None of the other colonists,
then or later, accepted all of the trials
which they experienced in an uncul
tivated country, with more bravery
and jocularity of spirit. They were
fond of dancing and all sorts of
merriments. They built their houses
neatly, sustained their church, rever
enced their priest, and from the first
encouraged home industries. They had herds of fine cattle and sheep,
and well cared- for fields. All of these possessions Argall destroyed. He
burned the fort, drove away the cattle, and putting all the Acadians
upon ships, with such of- their worldly goods as he did not care to
confiscate, sent them away from the home which they had, with the
Frenchman's effusiveness, already learned to regard with so much
affection. Long years after, when some of the Acadians were very old,
they came sadly back to die near the spot which they had learned to
love so warmly.
In 1 614 Captain John Smith, who could not by any series of mis
fortunes be kept in England, came over to see what might be going on
along the coast of Maine. He and his men were looking for gold, but as
fishing seemed at that time to be as paying a business as gold mines, and

CONQUEST OF THE WILDERNESS. 79
as fishing was a bird in the hand, while mining was still in the bush, he
concluded to lade his ships with a cargo of the best fish to be found
along the coast. He carried home, in addition to this, twenty-seven
savages, seized by his shipmaster, who were taken to Spain and dis
posed of there at a profit. But these were rescued by some Spanish
friars, and finally returned to their native home. After laying the mat
ter of cod fishing before the English king and lords, he made another
attempt to reach America in 1615, but was driven back to port by
storms, and history tells little or nothing more of him.
About this time Ferdinando Gorges, who was president of the
Plymouth Company in England, determined to send out a settlement at
his own expense, since none of the companies seemed to second him in
his aspiration to establish a successful fishery. The man whom he chose
to carry out his plan was Richard Vines. So many selfish and con
temptible characters figured in the early history of America, that it is a
relief to think of one man who was thoroughly good and noble in all
that he did. Richard Vines was associated with no great discovery or
conqest. He did not bring his nation any great wealth, but his life was
one which everyone is glad to think of. He reached Sago Bay in 161 7,
and found that a terrible plague had broken out, which was rapidly
thinning the Indian tribes. Vines could easily have left and gone back
to England, or to some other port, but he stayed among the plague-
stricken Indians as a physician, and attended them constantly through
all of their trials. Neither he nor his men were ever ill, although they
laid in cabins where the Indians were dying with the disease. His
work of exploration through this tedious winter was very careful. He
made the coast more thoroughly known to the English, and ventured
far into the interior. It is said that he was the first to describe the
White Mountains, if not the first to venture among them. Another
thing that distinguished him from other Englishmen, was the fact that
he always opposed the giving of rum to the Indians.
Gorges sent out other expeditions, which, for various reasons, had no
satisfactory results, though one of his mariners discovered Long Island
Sound. The Northern Company of Plymouth had much difficulty
about its charter at this time, not being satisfied with the relations
which they bore to the Virginian colony. The French here put in a
claim that the London Company was encroaching on the south.
The Dutch had begun to creep in the slip which was left between
the boundaries designated by the London and Plymouth grants. Just
how all of this was finally divided up, it would be wearisome to

80 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
write, and wearisome to read, and, since none of the grants were very
enduring, it is perhaps best to pass over the geographical division.
But one of these, the Laconia grant, given in 1623, should be
especially mentioned, because from it came the settlement of New
Hampshire. This was owned by Gorges and John Mason, and these
two men sent over a ship-load of settlers, some of whom were fishermen,
and others farmers, with a supply of food and tools. A part of this
company settled at Strawberry Bank, which they named because of the
beautiful wild strawberries growing rank over the fields. What was
Strawberry Bank, is now Portsmouth, New Hampshire. The other
party went up the river a few miles and settled the plantation of Dover,
which was very near the place where the present city of Dover stands.
About this time, the English trade on the American coast had so
increased, that in one year fifty ships came into English ports, with
cargoes of various sorts, from America.
The settlement of the Maine coast went on slowly. Many expeditions
were sent out, which promised, in the beginning, to be successful, but
the Englishmen seem to have been afflicted with home-sickness, and
were forever leaving their cabins on that stern coast and going back to
their milder country. A certain merry captain, by the name of Levitt,
started a plantation at the place he called York, which stands near the
present city of York, and many other men built similar plantations, and
fishers scattered huts along the beach, which protected them upon their
fishing expeditions. At this time, all of the Plymouth company was
under charge of the Governor, Robert Gorges, the son of Ferdinando. He
visited America, but did not like the country, and only remained a few
months. It was not until 1625 that the company from Bristol, under
the patronage of Robert Aldworth and Giles Eldridge, came to Monhegan
Island, which these two wealthy merchants had purchased. They also
bought the Point of Pemaquid, and established there a vigorous colony.
A little later, the towns of Biddeford and Saco were founded by Richard
Vines and John Oldham. In 1631 Mason and Gorges divided their
grant, drawing the boundary between Maine and New Hampshire,
Mason taking New Hampshire, and Gorges such portion of Maine as
belonged to him. Gorges offered to bring planters to his dominion,
promising to give them land at a very low rate, and, if they would consent
to form a city or town, to give them such laws and liberties as they had
enjoyed in England. His system of law-giving had in it a touch of
feudalism, although this arose from its simplicity, aud not from any
desire of Gorges to play the tyrant. He did more than any other one

CONQUEST OF THE WILDERNESS. 8 1
man in the Northern Company towards settling America, but his repu
tation had suffered, because he was thought to have prejudices against
the Puritans, who by this time were clinging like barnacles to the stern
rocks of Plymouth.
More interesting to the present American than the details and dates,
is the life of those early settlers. One likes to think about them living
among these magnificent Maine woods, which already began to furnish
the ships of the rich countries of the Old World with spars and masts.
The colonists were poor, it is true, but their wants were few. People of
all stations made their morning and evening meal of boiled corn and
milk, or pork and beans, or pork and peas. They drank home-made
beer and cider. Tea and coffee were not yet brought to this country.
Their bread was usually of rye and Indian meal. They were not gay
people like the French. They lived sternly, with rigid laws, and had
a very high standard of morality. If vice was not punished with death,
it was followed with such disgrace that the culprit had no longer any
desire to live among his old friends. The laws here, however, were
much milder than those of the other New England colonies, and people
persecuted by the Puritans found that they could take refuge in Maine.
On the other hand, there were disadvantages in being so close to Canada,
for the French and Indians continually threatened the English colonies,
and many Englishmen were carried captive up through that gap called
Crawford's Notch, where the Sago river winds in creek-like narrowness,
and which Richard Vines was the first white man to pass through. The
traditions of Crawford's Notch are many and pathetic.
The Indians had good cause to be bitter. There were acts of such
wanton cruelty and contempt on the part of the settlers that the Indians
would have been less than human had they not retaliated. At one
time Massachusetts, fearing for the remote New Hampshire settle
ments,, sent one hundred and thirty men to Dover to join the force of
Major Waldron, who commanded there. He desired to punish the
Indians for some massacres of which they had been guilty, and gave
orders to his men to seize all of the Indians who had been guilty of
murder. He invited the Indians, who were disposed for peace, to come
to him under flag of truce. This was in 167 1. He then drew his men
up in line of battle, and asked the Indians to take part in a mock
training. Anything of this sort suited their nature well, and they went
at the sport with enthusiasm. At the command to fire, their muskets
were emptied into the air, and then the troops closed around them, and
took them all prisoners at the-point of the bayonet.. It had been

82 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
Major Waldron's intention to retain only those interested in the massacre
referred to — which was not extensive, though very heart-rending in its
details — but little care was taken to look into the personal character
of the Indians, and two hundred were sent to Boston and sold as slaves.
It is no wonder that such treachery was punished. Murders among the
outlying farms became frequent, and in 1689 Major Waldron's mock
training bore its fruit. He had sown the wind and reaped the whirlwind.
At Dover, there were five garrison houses, secure and well built.
With such protection Waldron thought the people safe, and allayed the
suspicion of some, who noticed the unusual actions among the Indians,
by telling them to go back to their pumpkin planting; that he could
attend to the Indians. One fair June day, at every garrison house two
squaws asked that they might be allowed to spend the night. The peo
ple let them in. At midnight the squaws arose, unbolted the gates and
admitted the Indians. Old Major Waldron, now eighty years of age,
was sleeping securely in his bed when the savages entered, fierce with a
pent-up indignation of thirteen years. His determination and strength
had not deserted him for all of his old age, and he drove the Indians
from room to room by the soldierly method in which he handled his
sword. But their number was too great for him. They seated them
selves at the table, on which they had placed Major Waldron in a
chair. The women of the house they forced to serve them. After they
had eaten, each of the Indians slit some part from the body of the
Major. His nose, ears and right hand were cut off, and when, at last,
he failed from loss of blood, they held a sword so that he might fall
upon it. Everything of value was taken from the house, and it was
set on fire. Throughout the settlement there was a . general conflict.
Twenty-three persons were killed, and twenty-nine were taken to
Canada and sold to the French. , But it was the stealing of women and
children from the farm-houses, the terrible captivity, the long marches^
the strange and savage life, not unfrequently accompanied by torture,
which held the people in the northern settlements in the greatest fear.
The details of the various fights with the Indians are too sad to tell.
There was no time entirely free from hostility, and, in 1690, when the
Governor of Canada organized expeditions of French and Indians
against the colonists in New England and New York, and the northern
settlements, of course, suffered intensely. Traditions of great heroism
have come down from those times. The endurance of the people was
wonderful, and it is difficult for us to believe how much they could
undergo and live.

CONQUEST OF THE WILDERNESS.

83

The settlements of Maine, Vermont and New Hampshire have now
been touched upon. Their colonies grew very slowly. At one time
New Hampshire was connected with Massachusetts in government, and
at another time with New York, but finally, in 1741, it became a sepa
rate province, with a royal governor, who lived in great elegance at
Portsmouth. Englishmen of great wealth and learning settled here,
building substantial houses' and furnishing them with massive and
costly goods. The northern townships constantly filled with immi
grants from Scotland and Ireland, and, by the time of the American
Revolution, New Hampshire was a very sturdy and independent colony.
It was one hundred years from the time that Champlain first entered
Vermont that the European settlers built there, and, until the time of
the Revolution, it was not known as a separate colony, but was called
New Hampshire grants. FOR FURTHER READING: ,
History— Parkman's "The Old Regime in Canada,"
Beamish's "History of Nova Scotia."
Belknap's "New Hampshire."

CHAPTER XI.
Wp JWdjmim ti Tf &tt ^Bl^rkttit*
THE SETTLEMENT OF NEW YORK — THE DUTCH; THEIR EXPLORATIONS
AND SETTLEMENTS — THEIR DEALINGS WITH THE
<*j INDIANS — THEIR SUCCESS.

N the beginning of the seventeenth century there
were three European colonies established — none
of them very strong. This was when the French
were still in Acadia, the Spanish at St. Augus
tine, and the English on the James river. Spain had
grown strong in Mexico and Peru, and in the conquest of
those countries had gained enormous riches, but the other
nations had received little return for the money and
enterprise lavished upon the New World. Spain, puffed
up with pride, here lost, by following a selfish policy in
every direction. The Indians were being persecuted,
the inquisitiou was in force and the Netherlands were
being heavily oppressed. Great sums of money had been
taken from the Netherlands, and a revenue drawn from
them out of all proportion to their possessions. They were intelligent
aud liberal people, but were not allowed to have institutions of the sort
that they demanded, and were treated more like slaves than a nation of
great merchants and farmers. A most brutal governor was placed over
them, and out of his cruelty grew the long series of wars, which finally
ended in a struggle for independence. At the close of it, the Netherlands
became one of the most vigorous nations of Europe, and a refuge for all
who were oppressed in other countries. Everyone knows how they
seemed to snatch their lands from the very arms of the ocean. Their
farms flourished with wonderful luxuriance. Their cities became
leading commercial cities of the world, and their dykes barred the
ocean from their possessions, only admitting it when it could aid them.
The East India trade, which for so many years was one of the chief

\j

THE DUTCHMEN OF NEW NETHERLAND. 85
sources of income to Europe, was almost monopolized by them, and
they had the sole right to send trading vessels around the Cape of
Good Hope and through the Straits of Magellan. They also established
a company for the purpose of trading at the West Indies, though for
sometime this was not successful. As their interests were so associated
with those of the Eastlndies, they, as well as other nations, had looked
for that never-to-be-found northwest passage. The voyages which they
sent out were many, but all of them failed. At last their little country,
which gave out such wonders of wealth, seemed to be cultivated almost
to its last acre, and they began to turn their eyes toward the New World.
They had watched the English voyages with much interest, and had
heard of the skill of a certain navigator, Henry Hudson, who had been
employed in one of these expeditions. For this man they sent, and
signed a contract with him which was to give him a certain sum of
gold for his family during his absence, and to give his widow a sum of
money in the event of his death, if he would search to the best of his
ability for the pathway to India. On Saturday, the 4th of April, 1609,
Hudson sailed from Amsterdam, on the Half Moon. His crew was
composed of English and Dutch sailors — rather an unfortunate combina
tion. The Half Moon went up the Norway coast toward North Cape,
and toward Nova Zembla; but so crowded was the sea with jangling
bergs and floating cakes of ice, and so impatient was his crew, that he
was obliged to turn back. Acting upon their advice, he concluded to
sail westward, and, reaching the American coast, to search for the
possibility of an opening, by way of a river, to the desired Indian sea.
He anchored in Penobscot Bay on July 18th, and remained there
several days, while his crew repaired the vessel. They treated the
Indians in a murderous way, and found it necessary to leave the bay in
haste. He went close to the entrance of Chesapeake Bay, but did
not visit his friends at Jamestown, perhaps because he did not wish
to be seen in the service of another country. He turned northward
again, and coasted until the 2d of September, when he reached a most
beautiful bay, and saw the hills of Neversink to the northward. The
men were delighted with the wonderful harbor that lay before them,
and passed beyond Sandy Hook, up into the Narrows. The small boats
were put out to explore and fish, and on the 4th of August the first
European stepped upon Coney Island. Finally the strait beyond the
Narrows was explored, and grassy shores, pleasant flowers and goodly
tiees were all examined. They had a disastrous encounter with the
Indians, who killed one of the sailors and wounded two others, and

86 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
then Hudson decided to push his boat up the great river which opened
before him. It was in the midst of August, and oppressively hot, though
clear. It can easily be imagined that the hills of Staten Island and all those
wonderful woods of Long Island were at their best. The boat went up
with the tide, anchoring at night. The Indians were much delighted
with the novel 'sight, and crowded out to the ship, bringing corn and
tobacco with them. Nearly two centuries of civilization have not been
able to spoil the Hudson, but one can guess that it must have been even
more majestic then than now. So silent was it, so wild and rugged,
that the sailors were awe-stricken as their boat turned slowly up the
stream, and floated by the wooded hills and the Palisades to the High
lands. At length the stream got too narrow for the Half Moon to go
farther, and Hudson was obliged to content himself by sending portions
of his crew, in small boats, as far as the present site of Albany. With
much regret, he was forced to believe that this was only a river running
north, through which he could hope to find no opening to India. It
was then that Hudson gave to certain Indian chiefs, with whom he had
had pleasant trading, the banquet which lived in Indian tradition one
hundred years, and which even the Dutch settlers along the banks of
the Hudson have been glad to relate of Hendrick Hudson and his merry
crew. The Indians saw him depart with much regret, for he had
furnished them with a very novel excitement; but it seemed as if Euro
peans were never to visit this country without being guilty of some act
of great injustice to the natives. Hudson's men did not leave the
beautiful ' 'River by the Mountains, ' ' as they called it, without brutally
killing a couple of Indians. The affair led to a general fight. Hudson
started for Holland, but stopped at Dartmouth harbor, in England, and
was held there by the English government, which saw that it had made
a mistake in letting a man of such ability pass into the employ of a
foreign nation. He was retained in the service of the Moscovy
Company, for which he had previously sailed, and in 1610, made that
last fatal voyage to the northwest, when he discovered the bay which
bears his name. There among that white and desolate waste his men
mutinied, tied him hand and foot and threw him on board a boat, with
his son and a few companions. No one ever heard of him afterwards,
but the little children living up among the highlands on the Hudson
river still say, when the thunder rolls, ' 'There are Hendrick Hudson and
his crew playing nine-pins among the hills. ' '
Holland did not seem to be especially interested in Hudson's

Copyright l88g, by R. S. King Pub. Cf.

LAST VOYAGE OF HENRY HUDSON.
Designed and engraved expressly ior The Story of America.

THE DUTCHMEN OF NEW NETHERLAND. 89
discoveries. It was not anxious, like Spain and England, for great ¦
territorial possessions. Since it could not have the northwest passage,
i1 cared little about America and her virgin soil. But, though the
government was indifferent to the matter, certain private merchants
thought they saw a way to make much money, by exchanging trifles
for costly furs. The experiment worked well, and, in a short time, a
very brisk trade had sprung up between the Indians and the Dutch ; the
funny little vessels of the Hollanders going along the coast and up the
streams, visiting the Indian hamlets and giving a few beads, or some
other such trumpery, in exchange for beautiful skins. A sort of fort
and store-house was built on Manhattan Island, as a station for their
wares. The Netherland merchants soon saw that they had struck a
good thing, and began to push their territory north and south.
Incidentally, they added some fresh discoveries to the few which their
country had made. Among the captains distinguished in these discov
eries were Hendrick Christaensen, Adriaen Block and Cornells Jacob-
sen May. Adriaen Block was the first European to pass through Hurl-
gate. This was in 1614. He, too, discovered and named the rocky
little island which raises its head fifteen miles out of the New York
harbor, and which bears his name to this day. He spent the winter of
i6i3-i4on Manhattan Island, having lost his >ship, the Tiger, by fire,
and finding it necessary to build another. This he named the Onrust,
meaning the restless. It was he who first traversed Long Island
Sound and sailed up the Connecticut river. He went along the New
England coast as far as Nahant, and called that the limit of New
Netherland. He entered the blue Narragansett Bay, and saw there the
red island, or Roode Island, as he called it, from which our • State of
Rhode Island takes its name. Cape May was named after Captain May.
Hendrick Christaensen built the first great trading post up the Hudson
river, on Castle Island, close by Albany. He was an excellent agent, of
adventurous spirit, and was rapidly acquiring power and wealth, when
he was killed by an Indian whom he had taken on a voyage to Holland,
but had safely restored to his home. His position as Governor was
taken by Jacob Eelkens. Out of the many Dutch navigators, these
three men are especially remembered for their faithful services to
Holland. The merchants who had first opened trade about Manhattan and the
Hudson became alarmed at the number who had followed their example,
and succeeded in getting an ordinance to protect themselves. In this
charter the name of New Netherland was officially given to that strip

90 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
of land which lay between the 40th and 45th degrees, and which had
the London Company upon one side and the Plymouth Company on the
other. This was four years from the time that Hendrick Hudson's
men pushed the Half Moon into the Narrows. The merchants desired
that this be given them for a term of three years, for they saw nothing
in the venture except chances for successful trade. They were satisfied
with their own, which, indeed, was the most advanced of the age, and,
having no desire to settle on their new possessions, merely wished to
get what wealth they could out of it. Their trading grounds extended
widely, and their relations with the Indians were friendly. The shores
of Delaware Bay and river were explored, and the trade for seal skins
opened with the natives. They went as far south as the cape they named
Henlopen, and wished to have a charter for the ground to this limit,
but the Republic of Holland was afraid that it might be an encroach
ment upon the bounds of Virginia, and refused. The trading post on
Castle Island was moved to a safer spot, where the spring freshets could
not disturb it, and put in a more secure building. In 1618, the charter
for which the Holland merchants had asked expired, but they continued
to trade with much the same freedom as before, and with so overbear
ing a policy that few ventured to trespass upon the ground which
they claimed. So, inv 1621, the West India Company, which had
never really done anything previous to this, secured a charter which
gave it great power. Among other things, its authority over the
Dutch territory in America was absolute. It had a right to appoint all
of the governing officers, and to rule with what laws it chose. It was
to build forts, and to insure the protection of its own possessions. It had
a board of nineteen delegates in the brave little country at home, and
these ruled the great stretch of land by the Hudson. Thirty-two ves-
sels-of-war and eighteen armed yachts were at the service of the com
pany, in case it needed protection.
The first ship which went over with settlers was in 1623. On her
was a large company of Walloons. These Walloons were not Dutch
men, but Frenchmen, who had been driven from their home on account
of their religion, to find a settlement in free Holland, for in France
they had been treated in a most cruel and relentless manner. They
were a class quite by themselves, and had kept, for many generations,
their old French words and customs, so that they neither belonged to
France of that day nor to any other country. They were quite
distinguished for their mechanical cleverness, and for their saving
industry. It is easy to see how such people should have an ambition to

THE DUTCHMEN OF NEW NETHERLAND. 9 1
enter a country which they could call their own, and the West India
directors, hearing of this aspiration, made them offers which they
accepted. They sailed under Captain Cornelis Jacobsen May, and
settled on the site of Albany. In a short time they had a group of
comfortable bark houses, a goodly field of corn, and a pier, at which
the round-prowed vessels of the Dutch could anchor. A part of the
Walloons, and of the New Netherland passengers also, settled at Fort
Orange. Some went to the north of the Connecticut river, and others
to the western end of Long Island. A- fort was built on the South
river, and a trading establishment on Manhattan Island. So the Dutch
now traded peaceably along the coast of the New Netherlands, and,
being thrifty people, who were willing to treat the Indians with fair
ness, and with a love for buying and selling, they soon became quite
prosperous. The Dutch settlements had three different governors
during this period of its existence, the last of whom, Peter Minuet,
succeeded, after a series of successes and mistakes, in making Man
hattan the central point of interest. The first pictures of this are
very curious. They show groups of new buildings of wood and bark,
and Fort Amsterdam, with its quadrangular stone walls, and a great,
awkward Dutch wind-mill, which the ships in the harbor dwarfed to
insignificant size. Under Peter Minuet, the colonists tried to come to
an understanding with the Plymouth Company, but, though many
courtesies were exchanged on both sides, the English frankly said that
they considered the Dutch intruders.
A great need was felt for some more substantial scheme of govern
ment. It was evident that the Dutch were not sufficiently interested in
the country to which they had come, and that it was a mistake to take
all of the products to Holland and bring so few in return.
FOR FURTHER READING:
History— Dunlap's "History of New Netherlands."
Barnes' "Early History of Albany."
Clute's "Annals of Staten Island."
Fiction— Irving's "Knickerbocker History."
Irving's "Legend of Sleepy Hollow."
Mrs. H. F. Parker's "Constance Aylmer."

CHAPTER XII.

ilp fHa^flmttsr*

THE PURITANS — THEIR TRIALS AND WANDERINGS — THE LANDING AT
PLYMOUTH ROCK — THE FIRST WINTER.

NOVELIST feels at liberty to go from one
place to another, that he may keep the
reader advised as to what all his characters
are doing, in different places, and under
different circumstances. History, like
fiction, forces the writer to constantly go
back, and reach his Rome by another road.
Thfe Dutch had become well acquainted
with what we call New York before the
greatest of all the colonies was settled,
that of Plymouth. No other colony has
such a fascination for the American
reader. No other seemed to hold in it,
to such an extent, the elements which
went to make up the best in our
republic. These people, as well as the
settlers of Manhattan, came from Holland,
though they were Englishmen. For
vears the Puritans had been persecuted in England. The cause for
their persecution was, that they objected to the ritual of the Church of
England, and desired to have a simple gospel, with unpretentious
teachings. They did not believe in what they called the Anti-Christian
greatness and tyrannical power of the established church. This frame of
mind was an offshoot of the Reformation. James I had no patience with
these Puritans. He boasted of having peppered them soundly, and was
well pleased with any one of his magistrates, or sheriffs, who persecuted
them. They were scattered throughout England, and existed in large
numbers in Yorkshire, Lincolnshire, and Nottinghamshire. They were
inspired by certain simple orators, who had a remarkable gift of
eloquence. Almost all of the Puritans were yeomen, simple, sturdy

THE MAYFLOWER. 93
folk, direct of speech, and strong of muscle. They were acquainted
with no luxuries, although they seemed to have had enough money to
enable them to emigrate to another country, when they found that they
could no longer live, in liberty, in their own. They were not without
education, and one of their chief ambitions was to send their sons to
the universities. Being educated, they were all the more determined
to protect their rights, and to insist upon being allowed to worship after
their own manner; therefore, when they were hunted and imprisoned,
their houses beset with spies, and their means of livelihood taken from
them, they decided to leave England. In this, Brewster, their leader, a
man of much experience, who had been a successful courtier and an office
holder under the government, sustained theni. But though the English
did not wish them within their neighborhood, neither did they seem to
wish them to leave. It may have been, merely, that they never allowed
them to do anything they wanted to do. On several occasions, when
the Puritans had secured means of reaching Holland, where they
understood every one was allowed to follow his own faith, they were
detained by mobs of people and brought back, to suffer the jeers and
cruelties of the hard-hearted people about them. Imprisonment was
the general punishment for any such attempt to escape. At length
they engaged a Dutch ship to take them on board, at a quiet place
between Hull and Grimsby. They gathered from various directions,
with all of their goods which they could carry, and were waiting there
when a mob of country people, armed with all sorts of rude weapons,
rushed upon them. A boat load of Puritan men had been taken to the
ship, and these had to witness the cruelty with which their wives and
children and the small force of men left on shore were treated. The ship
master of the Dutch ship, frightened at what he saw, set sail, and
carried the despairing men out to sea. The greater part of the
unfortunate Puritans who were left on shore were arrested. After this
their experiences were most pitiful. No magistrate seemed willing
to decide upon their case, and they were driven from one place to
another, until their money was exhausted, and all of their goods lost.
Finally, some people of note and money were moved by their pathetic
condition, and secured means by which they reached Holland, where
they were united with their friends. In the midst of opulent Holland
they succeeded, in spite of their simple ways and meagre experiences,
in earning a living, and were always treated with kindness and
consideration by the Dutch. But as time passed on, they felt it a pity
that their English children should grow up in the midst of Dutch
6

94 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
surroundings, learning a foreign language and strange, un-English
ways. It is not strange that the reports of America delighted them.
They believed it to be a land where they would have fewer difficulties
to struggle with, and where they might find an Eldorado where gold
was plenty and ease ensured. They corresponded, therefore, with
some of the leading men of Jamestown, especially with Sir Edward
Sandys, who had been a friend of Brewster years before.
He probably advised them to obtain* a patent, for they sent two of
their most trusty men, Robert Cushman and John Carver, to England
to see if the king would grant them one. After many delays and much
evasion on the part of the king, they got one, although it was never
used. It was a grant of land somewhere near the mouth of the Hudson
river, and the Puritans, who were under obligations to the Dutch,
probably did not feel as if they cared to infringe upon their trading
ground. Holland offered them its protection, but this also was refused,
being unwilling to vex their native countrymen, the English. It will
be seen that they were very wary and discreet people, anxious to be at
peace with everyone.
In the month of July, 1620, at the Puritan Church in Leyden,
Holland, the good pastor, Robinson, held a day of prayer, singing many
psalms and feasting. The last night they spent with their friends in a
long, long talk, and in the morning departed very sorrowfully, with
many tears, from the spot which had been their dwelling-place for twelve
years. The two ships, the Speedwell and Mayflower, carried one
hundred and twenty people from Southampton, on August 5 th, but the
Speedwell proved unseaworthy, and the Mayflower finally went alone,
carrying one hundred and two persons for the new colony, besides the
crew. The ship was not strong, and half way across the ocean they
were on the point of returning, but prayerfully decided to go on, and,
on the 9th of November, saw Cape Cod. They cast anchor in the
harbor, where they could be free from the winds, and a few of them
went on shore, where they fell upon their knees and thanked God for
the perils which they had escaped, and for the new life which was
opening before them. More than a month was spent in looking for a
spot where they might settle. During this time they made a compact
of government, in which it was agreed that they should bind themselves
into a civil body politic for their ordering and preservation, and should
feel at liberty to enact laws from time to time for the good of the colony.
AU of the profits in trading, fishing, planting or anything else, were to
•go, for a period of seven years, into common stock, and at the end of

THE MAYFLOWER. 95
that time were to be equally divided among all who had contributed
money to the enterprise, and those who had engaged in it personally.
Every person over sixteen years of age was rated as owning a single
share, or ten pounds, and if he provided his own outfit to the amount of
ten pounds, he was entitled to two shares. This was according to the
advice of Thomas Weston, who had helped to supply ships and money
for the enterprise. The captain of the Mayflower was impatient to land
his passengers and return to England, and, therefore, they landed at
last upon this "stern and rock-bound coast." Many journeys were
made to the mainland, and one place was found where there were corn
fields, and little brooks of running water. Here it was decided to build
the colony, and on the 15th of December, the Mayflower left her harbor
at Cape Cod, and dropped her anchor half way between Plymouth and
Clark's Island. Ten days later a shallop left the ship with the distinct
purpose of landing the pilgrims upon the spot of their future home.
Men, women and children went to look it over and say what they
thought about it. The first shallop was filled with sailors, for the most
part, but there were a few women aboard, and in the prow sat John
Alden, the young scholar, and Mary Chilton, a gay young girl, who
was the first to spring upon the rock. It was not until the 21st of March
that all of the company went on shore. Shelter was still insufficient,
and provisions were poor and scanty. Disease began to spread among
them, and when spring came, almost one-half of the little company was
dead. Miles Standish, the stalwart captain, was a widower, and half a
dozen of the most reliable men of the company were in the same unfortu
nate state. John Carver, the Governor, died in April. Mary Chilton,
the light-hearted girl, was left an orphan. There was great fear from
the Indians, although they did not disturb them. One can see, in
imagination, their poor little houses, built of logs, cemented with mortar,
the low, thatched roofs, and the oil-paper which served as window glass.
Side by side in the rooms stood the beds, as many as could be crowded
into an apartment. There was a great shed for the public goods, and a
melancholy little hospital for the sick. On the top of the church stood
the four brass cannons, pointing toward the several directions.
FOR FURTHER READING:
History — Palfrey's and Elliott's "New England."
Barry s "Massachusetts."
Young's "Chronicles of Massachusetts."
Fiction — L. M. Child's "Hobomoc."
H. V. Cheney's "A Peep at the Pilgrims."
J. L. Motley's "Merry Mount."
Poetry — Longfellow's "Courtship of Miles Standish."
Mrs. Heman's "Landing of the Pilgrims."
Rev. John Pierpont's "The Pilgrim Fathers."

CHAPTER XIII.

THE NEXT THREE YEARS — THE ORDER, CIVIL, MARTIAL AND RE
LIGIOUS, WHICH THEY MAINTAINED — THE
MANNER OF THEIR DAILY
LIVING, ETC.
ALTHOUGH we now see fit to hold the Indians in
such contempt, the early settlers realized that
they owed much to them. Such knowledge as
they had of planting corn and other indigenous
productions, they had to thank the Indians for.
The pilgrims at Plymouth had seen but little of the
Indians through their tedious winter, but when March
came, they were surprised one day by the sight of a
naked Indian walking into their camp and looking
around with unfeigned curiosity. This man's name
was Samoset, and he gave them much knowledge of
the country and of the Indians near them. Indeed,
he opened friendly relation between them and the
Indians round about, for he was able to speak the
English tongue, having had dealings with certain explorers, whose
settlements had been unsuccessful. Samoset introduced them to Massa-
soit, the Sagamore of that region. These northern Indians seem to
have lacked that dignity of carriage and grace of manner, which made
the Indians of the'islands in the West Indies so attractive. Samoset had
an Indian friend who visited the colony much, and taught the colonists
many things, for which they owed him a great debt of gratitude, and he,
later, acted as guide for the ambassadors from the colony, when they
made their treaty of peace with the surrounding Indians. The health
of the people improved as the soft New England spring opened, and
they gained courage from the very influence of the budding vegetation
about them, and from the sea, which was always in sight. The ground
was carefully cultivated, and fishing became a fine art, so that at last it

THE DAILY ROUND. 97
became possible for them to make journeys into the country, and become
acquainted with the region about them. They explored the cape, and
went as far as Boston harbor, and were filled, it is said, with regret that
they did not settle upon this pleasanter spot, which was so sheltered and
secure, compared to the bold and barren place which they had selected
in the dreary January weather. The summer passed, and in November,
a ship came from England, It was the first news that they had heard
from home, and the eagerness with which they read their letters, and
received their share of the supplies, can better be imagined than
described. The Fortune brought, also, a new patent, issued to John
Pierce and associates by the Plymouth Company, and for the first time
establishing the Puritans legally.
The London adventurers had the hardihood to send a letter filled
with reproaches that the Mayflower had been sent to England
without a cargo from America. They seemed to have no thought of
the difficulties which the colonists had had in merely preserving life
and beginning their settlement. What they expected as a cargo they
did not say. There could have been very little to send them at that
time. Bradford was now Governor, and he returned a quiet letter, that
so general had been the disease through the winter, that the living had
scarcely been able to bury the dead, and the well not in any means
sufficient to attend the sick. However, they succeeded in putting some
lumber and peltry on the Fortune, on her home voyage, only a part
pf which reached England, as she encountered a French ship, which
overhauled her. The second winter passed calmly, and with much less
suffering than the previous one. It was a very orderly community, not
indulging in much pleasure, and yet not without quiet enjoyment.
There were few books in the colony besides the Bible and hymn book,
of which, indeed, there were very few copies.
A little revelry was attempted on Christmas day, by some of the
young men who had come over in the Fortune, but this was promptly
checked by Governor Bradford. The young men had said that it was
against their conscience to work on Christmas day, and had, therefore,
been excused from their tasks, but when the Governor returned at noon
and found them playing at ball and pitching quoits in the street, he
remarked that it was against his conscience to let others play while he
worked. No doubt, however, there was good fellowship among the
people, and many an hour of not unpleasant gossip in the twilight. The
firm, religious faith of the people, and their sincere devotional exercises,
were a great source of gladness and strength to them, and a help to that

9«

THE STORY OF AMERICA.

statesman-like order which made their little settlement so admirable.
The Narragansett Indians at one time showed hostile intentions.
The best description of their dealings with the colonists can be found in
Longfellow's "Courtship of Miles Standish." They sent a bundle of
arrows, tied together with the skin of a rattlesnake. It was a challenge
to war. Miles Standish, swelling with rage, stuffed the snake skin full
of bullets and returned it. It was answer enough. The Narragan-
setts left the colonists undisturbed, but it was thought best to palisade
the town, and to keep the men in martial order, ready at any time for
an attack. Toward spring, a fort was built on the spot called Burial
Hill.

MILES STANDISH FILLING THE RATTLESNAKE SKIN WITH BULLETS.

In the summer of 1622, a number of men were sent to the colony,
who were of a very vicious nature, and this occasioned the first actual
difficulty with the Indians. They were a lazy, mischievous and dis
orderly set of men, whom it was a great burden for the colony to
support. It became necessary to send them away, such an offense
were they to the upright and moral founders of the community, and
Plymouth rejoiced greatly when these unruly fellows set up a separate
colony at Wessagusset, which we know as Weymouth. The manner
in which these young men treated the Indians was shameful. Not only
did they deal unfairly with them, but were guilty of actual crimes
toward them, and toward their women, which made them most obnox
ious. Even an Indian is a judge of character, and they soon perceived

THE DAILY ROUND. 99
that they had to do with a lot of bullies, who, like all people of their
class, were lacking in true courage. One of the colonists stole corn from j
the Indians, and his fellows decided to hang him, to appease their
wrath. They had some doubt, however, about the advisability of
wasting a strong and vigorous man, as the culprit chanced to be, and it
was proposed by an economical wag to hang an old and feeble man in
his place* but fortunately for the old and feeble man, this was overruled.
So offensive did this colony become that the Massachusetts Indians
finally made up their minds to kill the whole of them off, and be well
rid of them. They supposed that such an act would greatly offend the
Plymouth colonists and call for active revenge, and, therefore, thought
it best to kill all of the English. A very slight accident prevented the
entire massacre of the colonists. Massasoit, the great Sagamore, fell
very sick, and two delegates from the Plymouth company were sent to
his place to express sympathy, and give help, if possible. They found
the chief very ill, but by careful nursing and some simple medicine,
restored him to health. The gratitude of the Sagamore was great, and
he revealed the plan against the colonists. Captain Standish started
out with eight sturdy men, and visited their disorderly neighbors at
Wessagusset. He found them in a bad state, physically and morally,
and! quite unwilling to do anything in their own defense. Standish,
therefore, engaged in a hand-to-hand struggle with the chiefs of the
hostile tribles, and succeeded in killing two of them. Afterward, there
followed a skirmish in an open field, but without loss. The head of
one of the chiefs was taken to Plymouth, and exposed as a warning to
the natives. As for the Wessagusset men, part of them went up to the
Maine colonies, and the rest joined the pilgrims at Plymouth. The
peace-keeping Puritans over in Holland heard of this engagement with
deep regret. They could not well understand how their old friends
should have reached a point where they could shed blood. It was
quite impossible for them to know anything about the conditions.
A little later than this, another colony was started by Robert Gorges, .
who was now Governor of the entire territory known as Massachusetts,
upon the very spot where the Wessagusset colony had been, but his
people became discouraged in a short time and only a handful
remained. So dissatisfied did the people become with their articles of agree
ment with the London adventurers, which called for so much work,
and from which they personally reaped no benefit, that it became
necessary to make some change. They followed the example of the

IOO THE STORY OF AMERICA.
Virginian colony, and gave to each man a certain quantity of land to
work on his own account. As in Virginia, also, this was the beginning
of prosperity. The colonists took a deeper interest in the land which
they now could call their own.
At another time they had a struggle to preserve their independence,
because John Pierce, procuring a second patent, wished to make them
his tenants. This would have started a land system like that in England,
but, fortunately for the colonists, Pierce met with such losses in send
ing a ship to America that he was persuaded to return the grant. The
Puritans still remaining in Holland were very anxious to join their
friends in Plymouth, but the London Company objected to this, and
wished to force upon the devout Puritans people of a different sort. To
this end they sent over a minister, named Lyford. He had been in
Plymouth but a short time when he tried to introduce the old service of
the Church of England. The Puritans resented this with pride and
fierceness, and finally sent the minister and his friends from the colony.
He had drawn about him many discontented spirits, among them John
'Oldham, who was finally expelled, with much disgrace, at the butt ends
of the muskets of the sturdy Puritans. The company in London defended
the action of Lyford, and finally refused to be responsible for the fate of
the Puritans. This left the colonies without protection. They could
no longer rely upon supplies from England, and were left to work out
their own destiny. With such brave and stalwart men, nothing better
could have happened. To be independent with them was to be success
ful. They sent for their friends in Leyden, but their dear old pastor,
Robinson, whom they looked forward with so much pleasure to meet
ing, died, like Moses, in sight of the promised land. The colonists did
not hear the last of Lyford for some time, for the London adventurers
saw fit to send him over again to found a colony upon Cape Ann, a
district which the pilgrims protested belonged to them, by right of a
patent made out to Robert Cushman and Winslow.' The choleric Miles
Standish nearly got into an engagement with the Englishmen at Cape
Ann, but finally made a compromise, by which they were to work
together in the production of salt, and so lived amicably. But this
colony came to little, though a company was formed at Dorchester,
England, which sent out for three successive years men and cattle.1 The
colonists went back to England, or scattered along the coast, and a few
of them settled on the spot we now call Salem. Meanwhile, the
Plymouth colonists had got some cattle, three heifers, and a great white
bull.

THE DAILY ROUND. IOI
The days went on peacefully now. On Sundays, everyone who was
not sick met at the little church. The men sat upon one side and the
women on the other, with those of noble rank quite by themselves.
The little boys, very impatient at the long service, were crowded on the
pulpit stairs and guarded by constables. These constables each had a
wand, with a hare's foot on one end, and a hare's tail on the other.
They used this to keep the people from sleeping. A woman's forehead,
if by any chance she nodded, was only touched with the tail, but if any
naughty little boy went to sleep, he was promptly pounded with the
hare's foot. The services were three or four hours long, and the sexton
stood near the minister, turning over the great hour-glass as it emptied.
It was not until 1836 that they got the Metrical Bay Psalm-Book, with
its great black notes and rugged lettering. They knew less than a
dozen tunes, and sung these over and over, year in and year out. The
houses were scrupulously neat. Most of them were one story in
height, built of logs, with very steep roofs. In course of time a few
wood and brick houses were built, two stories high in front, and one
behind. The windows had many panes, and opened on hinges like
a casement, and the huge fire-places admitted logs which would burn
for nearly the whole day. There were no clocks, only sun-dials, and
many of the houses were built facing the south, so that the sun at noon
would fall square on the floor, and tell them it was mid-day. The law
allowed none of them to wear finery, unless he or she could prove that
it could be afforded. All through the week the women wore home
spun, and on Sunday brought out from their chests the silk hoods or
lace neckerchiefs which had been brought across the sea. Miles
Standish kept the soldiers well drilled. They had match-lock muskets,
fired by a slow match instead of a percussion cap. So heavy were
these weapons that even these sturdy soldiers had to have a large iron
fork stuck in the ground to hold them. They were belted with bando
liers, which contained a sword and a dozen tin cartridge-boxes. Steel
helmets and iron breast-plates were not unknown, although many of the
colonists wore padded overcoats to keep off the arrows of the Indians.
To be a voter, one must also be a church member. In everthing,
religion ruled. The State had no existence without the Church.
FOR FURTHER READING:
History— Cheever's "Journal of the Pilgrims at Plymouth."
Biography — Anderson's "Women of the Puritan Times."
Fiction— H. M. Whiting's "Faith White's Letter-Book."
E. N. Sears' "Pictures of the Olden Times."
Mrs. J. B. Webb's "The Pilgrims of New England."
Poetry— Whittier's "The Garrison of Cape Ann."

CHAPTER XIV.

THE MASSACRE AT JAMESTOWN — LORD BALTIMORE AND THE SETTLE
MENT OP MARYLAND — THE LIBERAL LAWS OF THE
BALTIMORE SETTLEMENT.

f^BOUT the time that the little Plymouth colony
became alarmed at the threatening attitude of the
Indians, the colony in Jamestown, Virginia, suffered
a great calamity. The condition of the colony was
peculiar. In one way it did not lack prosperity.
The raising of tobacco was continued to the exclu
sion of everything else. Laws were made to regulate
this, but it is a well-known fact that a law is good for
nothing unless the people will agree to enforce it, and
the people of Virginia did not wish this law enforced.
King James had begun to look upon the colony with
some suspicion. He suspected treason, and not without
reason, for it was quite true that they did not care to be
dictated to by their governors at home. Sir Edward
Sandys was thought to be a man of too much intellect to safely act as
treasurer of a community which was so rapidly increasing in power,
and the Earl of Southampton was appointed in his place. Sir
George Yeardley retired from the governorship in 1622, giving place to
Sir Francis Wyat. These were all men of sense, and they did what
they could for Virginia. They tried to raise grapes for the purpose of
making wine, but they do not seem to have understood the art very
well, for the wine had a trick of souring before they got ready to drink
it. Mulberry trees and silk worms were brought over to start the
cultivation of silk, but for all of that, most of the colonists were dressed
in rags. Workmen were brought from Italy and employed in the glass
works, and about the same time iron works were started. The
Americans began making their own salt, and building their own ships.

THE REWARD OF TREACHERY. 1 03
and saw-mills were put up by Dutchmen, but this work was very
slow, and none of it really successful. They spent all their time,
strength and money in the raising of tobacco, so that, fourteen years
after the colony was started, there was next to no barley, oats or peas in
the country, and even at this period they were frequently threatened
with starvation. In the meantime, they treated the Indians with the
same selfishness and lack of wisdom which they showed in all other
matters. The Indians had, no doubt, long intended to take revenge.
However that may be, suddenly, on the 22d of March, 1692, the Indians,
loitering about the village, rushed upon the people in the fields and in
the houses and slaughtered them.
They did not even spare the little children, but killed all, regardless
of the innocence of their victims. They went further than this, and
hacked at the dead bodies with a wild cruelty of which only the
American Indian is capable when he becomes imbruted by the sight of
blood. The houses and barns of the people were burned and their
animals killed. This did not occur in Jamestown, but in the little
outlying villages and plantations. Jamestown would have suffered the
same fate, but for the warning which one friendly Indian carried the
night before. All who could, took refuge within the city, and took
every possible means for defense. The panic was wide-spread. Some
of the smaller places were entirely deserted, and it was many years
before the plantations recovered from the harm which this did to them,
for men were afraid to remain in isolated places. After this there was
no mercy shown upon either side. The English were quite as cruel
and remorseless as the Indians had been. The corn-fields, the fishing
weirs, the villages of the natives, were entirely destroyed. Whenever a
white mau saw an Indian he shot him, and blood-hounds and mastiffs
were trained to follow and tear them to pieces. The King seemed to
blame the colonists for the present state of affairs. The company was
still more dissatisfied than the King, and out of the various misunder
standings which grew from this, and the disregard the colony paid to
the King's wishes, came the breaking up of the Virginia Company.
The government of the colony was put into the hands of a commission,
with Sir Thomas Smith at the head.
The unhappy people of Virginia were long in recovering from their
calamity. The people were crowded once more into close quarters, and
there was a great deal of sickness, of discouragement, and of hunger.
Their viciousness took another, and yet more dreadful form. It was
turned from wantonness and selfishness to revenge. They prayed, with

104 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
a show of devotion, that the Indians might fall into their hands to be
murdered and bereft of all that they owned. There was no longer
any show of Christian kindness. If the colonists were filled with
revenge, they were none the less troubled with fear, and it was a long,
long time before they dared venture back to the cultivation of their
plantations. This great anxiety about home matters made them rather
indifferent about the whims of the London Council, and they worried
little because their patent was taken away from them. After King James
died, very little attention was paid to them one way or the other, and if
they received no benefit, neither did they receive any checks from across
the ocean. Four colonial governors served in turn, but they were
displaced for the first royal governor, Sir John Harvey, who was sent
over by the English King to administer royal laws after the King's own
views. How the people, who had so long been independent, detested
this arrangement, can well be imagined.
Shortly before the appointment of Harvey, Jamestown had had a
distinguished visitor. It was Lord' Baltimore, a Catholic English
nobleman of much wealth and culture. Virginia was quite in excite
ment about the visit of so distinguished a gentleman, and the council
grew so curious that they officially inquired why he had come, and how
long he was going to stay. The Virginians were neither the Church of
England people nor Puritans — the Puritans having come later — and
they objected to a settlement of Catholics among them. They, there
fore, put the oath of allegiance to the colony to him, which was of such
a nature that he could not take it, for religious reasons, and the colonists
were glad of this excuse to ask him to return to England. Seeing that
his visit was disagreeable, he courteously withdrew from the colony, but
left his family behind him at Jamestown. One reason why he was
disliked at the colony was because he was principal Secretary of the
State to King James for the last five or six years of, that monarch's life,
and the difficulty between King James and the colony was naturally
visited upon Lord Baltimore. He held a grant to some lands in the
southeast part of Newfoundland, and had there a Protestant colony,
which he had established. It was after visiting this, and finding the
climate not to his liking or at all suited to his delicate health, that he
came to Virginia. This was in the spring of 1629. Leaving Virginia,
he visited Chesapeake Bay, was charmed with that region, and begged
the King to give him a patent to it. This the King willingly did, but
before the patent was signed, Lord Baltimore died, and it was left for
his son to carry out his plans. The new Lord Baltimore named the

THE REWARD OF TREACHERY. 105
region Maryland, in honor of the Queen. The charter included all the
country lying in the irregular triangle formed by the 40th degree of
latitude, the Potomac river and Chesapeake Bay, as well as that part of
the Peninusla between the ocean on the east, and Bay of Chesapeake on
the west, with a line dividing it from the rest, drawn from the head
land, called Watkins Point. With very slight changes, this is the State
to-day. The grant gave this property to the Lords of Maryland abso
lutely, as long as they were faithful in their allegiance to the King.
Not even taxes were required. No gift could have been more complete.
All the acknowledgment required of Lord Baltimore was that twice a
year he was to send to the King two Indian arrows as a token of fealty.
But the charter did not overlook the rights of the colonists. It gave the
people the right to call themselves together to take part in framing the
laws which were to govern them. No religious nor political distinctions
were made, but Maryland was to be the home of all Englishmen who
wished to move there. Lord Baltimore found himself unable to go
with the first expedition, and sent his brother Leonard in his stead, and
with him two friends, also cultivated and able gentlemen, Jerome
Hawley and Thomas Cornwallis. The Catholics were being greatly
persecuted at this time, and Maryland became a refuge for them. In
addition to the many gentlemen of wealth and influence who resorted
thither, were many mechanics and laborers, and two Jesuit priests,
whose simple and tender lives have made a white page in history.
These were Father Andrew White and Father John Althan. The
former of these wrote the only narrative which was kept of the
experiences of the colony, which was composed of about three hundred
souls. They were borne to America on The Ark and The Dove,
starting November, 1633. They encountered many dangers on their
passage from storms, pirates and war-like Spaniards, bnt at length
reached Jamestown, where they were entertained for a week by Governor
Harvey. The early part of March they sailed to their own possessions,
and turning up the Potomac river, were enchanted with what they
found. The groves of beneficent trees, the many inflowing streams
and stately bluffs persuaded them that they could not have found a better
place for a settlement. They landed first upon Blackstone Island,
which then covered four hundred - acres of land in, the midst of the
Potomac. It is now two centuries since, and nothing is left of these
islands but sandy shoals. The 25th of March, the day of the landing,
was the day of the annunciation of the most Holy Virgin, and they cele
brated mass upon the beach, at the close of which they planted a cross

106 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
of wood upon the highest part of the island, taking possession of it for
our Savior and for our Sovereign Lord, the King of England.
They used much tact in their first dealing with the Indians, asking
permission of them to settle upon their land. It was a piece of good
fortune for them that they chanced to meet with Captain Fleet, an
Englishman, quietly trading in peltries upon his own account. He had
been a prisoner for several years among the Indians, and was on
excellent terms with them. Through his influence the colonists were
soon in friendly trade with the natives, and the danger of hostility was
averted. Fleet guided them through the forests and up the rivers,
showing them the best points of the country, and advising them about
the site of their first town; and at the end of the broad harbors on
the noble bluff they decided to build. Behind it lay the beautiful
valley which the people of Baltimore know, with growths of nut trees
and oak and springs of clear water. On the bluff stood a huge
mulberry tree, and standing by this, Leonard Calvert, the brother of
Lord Baltimore, made his treaty with the Indians, who had a village
upon that spot. The tribe was called Yaocomico, and for a certain
payment in goods prized by the Indians, the strangers were to share
their town with them until their harvest was gathered, after which the
savages were to move elsewhere. The first village of Maryland was
called St. Marys, and the expedition being managed by men of states
men-like quality, and having in it workmen of strength and common
sense, they immediately began building and planting. The Indians
were of much help to them, teaching them not only how to plant native
vegetables, but how to cook them in the best manner. Religious
services were held from the first, and as soon as possible a neat little
chapel was made. By the time the Indians had left them, quite a little
town had been built, and some public buildings started on the bluff.
Winter found them well provided, and already the liberality with which
the government was conducted, began to invite the oppressed, not only
from England, but from the Jamestown and Plymouth colonies as well,
for in the Jamestown colonies Catholics were disapproved of, and in the
Plymouth colonies the slightest deviation from the orthodox principles,
as the Puritans held them, was promptly punished.
Lord Baltimore's city was the first one in America where every man
was allowed to worship God after his own conscience.
FOR FURTHER READING:
History — McSherry's "Maryland."
Griffith's "Annals of Baltimore."
Fiction— Paulding's " Konigsinark. ' '
Kennedy's "Rob of the Bowl."

CHAPTER XV.

"PROSPERITY OP THE MARYLAND SETTLEMENT — CONSPIRACIES AGAINST
THEM — THE TRIUMPH OF VIRGINIA OVER THEM, AND THE
PERSECUTION OF THE CATHOLICS — CALVERT'S SUCCESS
i AND THE RETURN OF THE JESUITS.

^IRGINIA disapproved of the new colony of Mary
land. There was, certainly, ground enough upon
the Atlantic coast for both of those settlements,
but whether there was policy enough, was quite
another question. The Virginians, it will be
remembered, had lost their royal charter, and the
fact that Lord Baltimore's colony came with the royal
grant, and with the royal encouragement, made them
very envious. One man in the Virginian colony,
especially, resented the settlement of Maryland. It was
the secretary of the Virginian Council, William Clay-
borne. He had taken possession of Kent Island, in
Chesapeake Bay, and built a store-house there, for the
beaver and other furs, in which he traded extensively.
When Baltimore's people came, Clayborne said that he owned the
island, and he refused in advance to leave it.
The Virginians had sent a protest to the King against the settlement
of Maryland, but it had been decided in England that Baltimore's
patent should not be destroyed, and both colonies were advised to be as
amiable as possible. Amiability, however, was not in Clayborne' s line.
He had worked hard upon the ground where the Marylanders now
settled, and he felt that he had a right to it.- Being a willful and strong-
minded man, he took the worst methods for preserving that right.
He incited the Indians against the colonists, who found it necessary to
build a block-house for refuge, in case of attack ; but as the Indians met
with nothing but kindness from the settlers, they became persuaded at

J

108 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
length that Clayborne had misinformed them. The Marylanders tried to
capture Clayborne, but he knew the ways of the woods too well for them
to succeed, and reached Jamestown, where he worked upon the promi
nent men, and won them to his side of the case.
When the spring of 1635 came, and Clayborne wished to carry out
his usual trading trip, he started for his island with a small vessel,
called- the Long Tail. The Marylanders met him with two armed
pinnaces, under the command of Cornwallis. The Long Tail was
seized after a vigorous fight, two of the Virginians being killed and
one of Cornwallis' men. Then the people of Jamestown were in a
great state of mind. They gathered in the streets, and talked and
talked. They called an assembly and talked some more. No one had
any sympathy with the Marylanders' defense of their property, except
the royal Governor Harvey. So indignant did the people become with
him that they sent him to England to be tried, but he was promptly
sent back again by the King, with an inquiry as to what right they had ,
to arrest a governor appointed by him.
The people in Maryland, finding that they were to be protected,
went on working busily. Their harvest was a great success. They
stored away enough corn for the winter, and sent one thousand bushels
up to Plymouth, asking for salt-fish in exchange. The cattle and
poultry which they had purchased from Virginia had been so well
managed by certain experienced breeders of stock, that it had greatly
increased, not alone supplying them with eggs, but allowed them plenty
to kill and eat. The people were not long satisfied with the rude build
ings which they had first built. They had met with sufficient
prosperity to be able to send to England for bricks and other building
material, and the houses which they erected were firm, and to some
degree elegant. A manor was built for Governor Calvert, and within
two or three years an excellent State House, in the form of a cross, was
built upon the bluff. In front of it stood the famous mulberry tree,
under which the first treaty had been made with the Indians, and upon
this were nailed all the notices and State papers which the Governor
issued. Here the little armed force gathered for drill, and here the
town punishments were made. A little further back stood the church,
and about it the church-yard.
Certain fashions were set in the building of those days which are
noticeable now in the city of Baltimore. The ground floor and base
ments were made of red brick, or paved with square red tiles. Some
of the houses were of red brick, ornamented here and there with black,

THE PEACE-KEEPERS. 109
There were high, red brick walls, and stout chimneys built upon the
outside, with the fire-places paved in red tile. Plantations began to be
cultivated around the town, tobacco being the chief staple raised for
exportation. In 1635, Lord Baltimore began to make grants of lands to settlers.
To those who had come upon the first voyage extensive grants were
made, so that the pioneers became, to an extent, lords of the property.
Mills were built, both at St. Mary's and on the plantations, so that it
became possible for them to make their own flour, and to start various
other home industries. Under these fortunate conditions people
crowded to the colony, and, in 1635, it was found necessary to make
a new code of laws. The simple rules, which were at first sufficient to
control the community, were no longer adapted to their growing and
complex civilization. But Lord Baltimore did not approve of the laws,
and refused assent to them. Two years later he made out a code, but
the assembly of the people would not accept his laws any more than he
accepted their' s. It was not because they objected to the laws that he
made, but because they wished to govern themselves, and at last they
had their way, though it was not for several years.
The Indians who lived about St. Mary's were always friendly to
the settlement, but the Susquehanna Indians were the enemies of the
Yaocomicos, and, therefore, of all whom the tribe were friendly to. In
1642 the Susquehannas opened quite a warfare with the Marylanders,
which lasted for two years, when treaties were made.
The kindness which the Catholics of Maryland had shown to all
people of other religions did not meet with a proper return. The
Catholics were the friends of the King in England, but the Protestants
preferred the Parliament, which, at this time, was having much
difficulty in getting along with the King. So when the revolution
came in England against the King, the people of Maryland were divided
on this subject, and it put the Catholics against the Protestants in a
way which made much trouble in the colony. Leonard Calvert became so
troubled about the quarrels of the people he was trying to govern,
that he sailed for England, to have a talk with his brother, Lord Balti
more, leaving Giles Brent to look after the colony.
This was a splendid chance for Clayborne to have revenge upon the
Marylanders. He went to St. Mary's and stirred up the Protestants, or
the Parliament faction, against the government of Baltimore, and his
plans were aided in an unexpected way. Brent ordered that a vessel
.belonging to the Parliament party should be seized when it got to St.

IIO THE STORY OF AMERICA.
Mary's, and its commander arrested on a charge of treason against the
King. This made the Protestants very angry, and they allowed
Clayborne to come in and take possession of his old island of Kent; so
when Calvert returned he found everything in a very bad state, and he
and his council and their friends were driven from the colony, and had
to go to Virginia for safety. Captain Edward Hill, a Virginian, was
made Governor, but everything was done about as Clayborne said.
Though he was such a determined man, he did not understand how to
govern, and while he remained, there was constant quarreling and
dissatisfaction in the colony.
The Jesuit priests had to leave St. Mary's. They built a mission
on the Bay of St. Inigo, and here Governor Calvert erected a fort, with
a mill inside and a few buildings about, besides a chapel. Calvert
collected his friends on the Virginia border, and in April surprised St.
Mary's, and took it with but little trouble. The people seemed to have
been glad to get back a man who would govern them with firmness and
order. Captain Edward Hill was sent back to Virginia, and Clayborne
escaped to Jamestown. Governor Calvert died in 1647, leaving Thomas
Green to be his successor, and Mistress Margaret Brent the adminis
tratrix of his enormous possessions. She was a remarkable woman,
with great strength of will, and a good understanding of business and
government affairs.
Maryland continued to be free to people of all religions, and the
gentle Catholic missionaries continued their work. In many ways this
was the most successful colony in its beginning upon the Atlantic coast.
Its leaders were men of good blood and training, with a sincere rever
ence for God, and some experience in government. Their laws were
suited to the time and the people, and Lord Baltimore's name is still
held in high regard in the city which is called after him.
FOR FURTHER READING:
Biography— Spark's "Calvert."
Mill's "Founders of Maryland."
Fiction— Mathilda Douglas' "Black Beard."

CHAPTER XVI.
X Jritf jttt%r%

NEW JERSEY— THE SETTLEMENT UNDER PETER MINUET— OPPOSITION
OP THE DUTCH — THE TRIUMPHS OF THE DUTCH UNDER
PETER STUYVESANT — END OP SWEDISH
INDEPENDENCE IN AMERICA.

EW JERSEY was the only State settled by the
Swedes. In 1614, when the first Dutch settled
their fort on Manhattan Island, they built also a
redoubt on what is now the New Jersey shore,
and the whole of this region they called New
Netherlands. But little attention was paid to
this, and the ground was practically unoccupied.
Ten years later, William Usselinex, of Antwerp, who
had first succeeded in establishing the great Dutch West
India Company, visited Sweden. Gustavus Adolphus was
King of Sweden then, and before him, Usselinex laid
the plan of founding a Swedish colony in America,
telling him of the great profits which might arise from
the trade there. The King was much impressed with
the business-like eloquence of the Dutchman, and perhaps still more
impressed with the idea that another Christian church might be built
upon savage shores. He felt that Sweden had been behind the other
nations, and it would greatly add to his power and reputation if he were
to further such a scheme. The Diet of Sweden favored the King's
project, and, therefore, when Gustavus Adolphus was killed, in 1632, on
the battle-field, the plans which he had laid were carried out. It was
several years, however, before the company was formed, calling itself
the Sweden West India Company. Peter Minuet, who had been dis
charged from his post as Governor, asked to have charge of its first
expedition. It was given him, on account of the experience he had
had, and in the autumn of 1637, he set sail from Gottenburg, with two

112 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
vessels and fifty emigrants. These vessels entered Delaware Bay and
sailed up the river, which they named after their Queen, Christina.
Minuet bought of the Indians all the land on the west side of South
river, from Cape Henlopen to near where Trenton now stands. As
usual in such purchases, the land was to run westward indefinitely.
They built a fort near the present site of Wilmington.
The Dutch promptly resented this intrusion upon their territory,
and sent down a sounding proclamation, which warned Minuet, in the
most serious terms, that he was trespassing upon their rights; but the
Swedes were charmed with the country so in contrast to their bleak
native land, and were in no mind to leave it. Minuet had said, in
answer to the first question asked him by the Dutch, that he came for
wood and water, but as the Swedes began gardening and building, he
was forced to confess the truth. To the Dutch proclamation, however,
he paid no heed, but went on working upon his fort and trading house
and establishing commerce with the Indians. Twenty-four men were
placed in possession, and vessels were sent home well laden, to return
with more emigrants. Though the Dutch were very indignant, they
hesitated to venture against the determined and well-armed Swedes, who
took a very flourishing trade away from the Dutch West India Company.
The first summer and winter passed pleasantly with them, but in
the second winter their supplies became low, and they seriously thought,
at one time, of going to the Dutch at Manhattan, or of finding a way
for returning to their native home. In the spring, however, matters
became better. Some trade was established in New Netherlands, and
further additions to the colony came from Sweden, bringing with them
abundant supplies. They were an exceedingly industrious and saving
people. Their selection for a settlement had been most happy; they
lived at peace with each other and with the Indians, and in a short
time their little towns began to wear a look of vigorous prosperity,
especially in the autumn, when more colonists came, with tools and
mechanics to use them. Three ships, at least, came in the autumn, and
it is said that many were anxious to come, but had been unable to do
so for want of ship-room. The following summer (i 641) Minuet died
in the fort which he had built. The Swedes were much attached to
him, and mourned him deeply. A Swede — Holleandare — became Gov
ernor in his place.
The English pursued toward them the policy which has made them
the greatest nation in the world. They were bent on conquest, and
constantly interfered with their quiet neighbors. At length a number

A BRIEF AUTHORITY. 113
of New England colonists, under the charge of Robert Cogswell, left
Connecticut and came to the South river, having heard that that region
was especially beautiful. William the Testy, Governor of the Dutch,
protested in his usual high-flown language, but the English quietly
worked on, and before the end of the summer, had planted corn and
built trading posts on Salem creek and on the Schuylkill. New Haven
took these towns under her especial protection, and William the Testy
knew that it would be useless to come in conflict with the New Eng
land confederation of colonies. The Swedes, as well as -the Dutch,
were vexed at this intrusion of the English, and in 1642, when the
Dutch sent a commissary to force the intruders away, the people at Fort
Christina gave them all the help they could. The English were obliged
to yield. They were taken prisoners to Manhattan, and then sent to
their own homes. New Haven thought it best not to resent this insult
to her dignity.
About this time a fort was built twelve miles below where Philadel
phia now stands, and called the New Gottenburg. The building of
this was superintended by John Printz, a cavalry lieutenant in the
Swedish service, who had been sent out to take the place of Holleandare
as Governor. Near the fort, Printz built a manor house, magnificent
for that time, which he called Printz Hall. The home government
appropriated a large sum of money for the support of the colony, and
promised to keep it supplied with soldiers. Printz was a very over
bearing and proud man, who, from first to last, managed the affairs"
of the colony with decision and dignity. Neither English nor Dutch
were allowed longer to take liberties with the Swedes. His fort of New
Gottenburg compelled every vessel to show her colors as she passed, and
no trade was allowed which did not pay tribute. The Dutch continued
to send out fierce letters, but to these, a man like Printz was not likely
to pay any attention. The English tried to trade on the rivers which
the Swedes now claimed, but they were promptly arrested by order of
the Governor, and the English learned that for once they were not to
be allowed to have their own way.
In 1645, the rather amiable commissary at the Dutch fort, Nassau,
was removed by William the Testy, of New Amsterdam. The officer
who took his place was more aggressive in his nature, and seized the
first opportunity to put the authority of the Swedes to test. Disputes
began between the governors of the colonies, and much diplomacy, and,
to tell the truth, no little deceit was used. When Hudde, the new
Governor of the Dutch fort, tried to start a settlement on some land

114 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
which he had bought near the present site of Philadelphia, Printz sent
some men to stop it, and the Dutch arms were torn down and used in
a manner which greatly outraged the feelings of the patriotic colonists.
Letters of great stateliness and hostility were exchanged, but the choleric
Governor Printz refused to listen to the sensible advice of Hudde.
When the sergeant, by whom Hudde had sent his letter, reached Printz
Hall, and had got through the army of servants around it to where the
Governor stood upon the steps, the letter was snatched from him and
thrown carelessly to a man in waiting. After standing about unnoticed
for some time, the Dutch soldier begged for a reply. This request was
met in a way peculiar to the plethoric Printz, who weighed about four
hundred pounds, and was a man of extraordinary muscle. He picked up
the unfortunate sergeant and threw him violently out of doors, taking a
gun for the purpose of shooting him. After this there could be nothing
but quarrels between the two nations. The Dutch trade was rapidly
decreasing, for the Swedes kept both them and the English off the
valuable lands which they occupied, and from which the Dutch had
formerly made much money. Large companies of settlers continued to
come to New Sweden, and these later settlers were of a much better
class than those which had come at first. When New Netherland was
at its most abject state, under the mismanagement of William the Testy,
New Sweden wore an air of considerable prosperity. From the mouth
of the Schuylkill to the Capes of Henlopen and May, Governor Printz
held absolute control. It was one of the richest territories on the
Atlantic coast, with sweeping hills and magnificent forests of trees.
Not only did they claim the lovely waters of the Delaware, but many
streams and winding creeks as well. Before them lay the bay, one
hundred miles in length.
When Peter Stuy vesant was appointed Governor of New Netherlands,
the policy was somewhat changed. For several years Stuyvesant could
do little but support Hudde in the position which he had taken, and to
sustain, in a negative way, the title of the Dutch, but at length he found
time to visit the Swedish territory, and, being an old soldier, saw
immediately the cause of the Dutch failures. Fort Nassau, instead of
being at the mouth of the Delaware, was far up the stream, and quite
useless to protect against invasion. The Swedes had taken possession
of the mouth of the Schuylkill. At the confluence of these two rivers,
trade even then found its center. Printz had seen that this must be the
case, and had built his forts there and barred the approach to that point
by others further down the Delaware. Modern commerce has improved

A BRIEF AUTHORITY. 115
the selection of Printz, by concentrating the shipping trade of Philadel
phia at exactly this point. Stuyvesant saw that Fort Nassau was
useless, and ordered its destruction. He bought from the Indians all
the land from Christina to Bombay Hook. Within this territory, about
four miles below the mouth of the Christina, is the bold promontory,
which commands a view of the Delaware both up and down. On this
point, where the town of Newcastle now stands, they built Fort Casimir.
Governor Printz was indignant, and said that this was an invasion on
the soil of the Swedes, but Stuyvesant seems to have quieted him in
some way, and the Swedes no longer commanded the Delaware. Their
fort at the mouth of the Salem creek was abandoned as useless, but
Printz was too proud to tell the real reason for its evacuation, and gave
it out that the mosquitoes had been to bad for them to remain there
longer. The Swedes and the Dutch were united about this time in a common
fear. They dreaded the English much more than they did each other,
and made a compact of mutual protection. It is certainly true that the
English continued to cast envious eyes at the beautiful stretch of
country with its genial climate and broad, noble hills. Besides, English
men do not like to be beaten, and will hardly admit defeat. They had
not forgiven the Swedes and Dutch for uniting to drive them from this
place a few years before, and, shortly after the compact between the two
governors, sent a company of fifty persons from New Haven to make
another attempt at an English settlement on the Delaware. They
stopped at New Amsterdam to visit Governor Stuyvesant, and to tell
him their purpose, but the independent Governor arrested them
promptly, and only let them go when they promised to return to New
Haven. Printz, however, had nothing of the diplomat in his composition,
and could not abide the Dutch so near him, so he sent to Sweden for
aid, but his impatience would not let him wait until he received an
answer, and he sailed for Sweden himself, passing on his way John
Rysingh, with a force of about three hundred men, who had been sent
out to his relief. The first act of this force was to demand the capture
of Fort Casimir. The fort yielded without resistance, for they had no
powder. The bark of the Dutch was apt to be much worse than their
bite. Thus the Swedes were again in absolute possession of the South
river, and all the Dutch in and about the fort were made to take the
oath of allegiance to Sweden, or else forced to leave that part of the
country. Fort Casimir was called Fort Trinity, because it was taken

Il6 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
on Trinity Sunday. It can be imagined that the excitement in New
Amsterdam was great, and that the indignation meetings among the
hot-headed Dutchmen were many. Governor Stuyvesant felt, with some
justice, that he had been unfairly treated, and seized every opportunity
for retaliation. In this, the directors in Holland sustained him, but
the winter passed and spring came before he was able to make prepa
rations for humbling the Swedes. At length a fleet of seven vessels,
manned by a force of from six hundred to seven hundred men, sailed
toward the South river. This was not until the ioth of September.
All the Swedes in the country did not number .more than half the
invading force. Resistance was absurd. The Swedes surrendered, and
a part of them were made to take the oath of allegiance to the high and
mighty lords and pratroons of this New Netherland province. Next,
Fort Christina was taken, and after a siege of twelve days, a third fort
surrendered. The invaders destroyed the little village of Christinaham,
burning the houses and killing the cattle and seizing all the plunder
they could. At length Rysing surrendered, conditionally. It was
declared that the property belonging to the Swedes was to be unmolested,
and that all who wished could have free passage to Europe. So ended
Sweden's rule in America. Some Swedes still lived along the banks of
the Delaware and cultivated their farms, doing much to develop early
the best resources of that country.
Stuyvesant appointed Johans Paul Jaquet as Governor over the
southern territory of the West India Company. The Swedish colony
was now called New Amstel, and the burgomasters of Amsterdam
became much interested in their new possessions, making great offers
to those who would move thither. The following years, however, were
full of discontent. Malaria, as in all new agricultural settlements,
weakened and dispirited the colonists, and though the farms promised
well, the harvests were not plentiful, for insects of various sorts nearly
destroyed the crops. Death became very frequent, especially among the
children, and they came so near famine that they were obliged to use their
seed corn for food. The Amsterdam Company no longer sent them sup
plies, as it had promised to do, and began to tax them. The colonists lost
hope. Many moved to Virginia. Some returned to their own countries,
and those who had contracted with the company to remain for a given
length of time, escaped through the forest to the southern settlements.
FOR FURTHER READING:
History — Carpenter's "History of New Jersey."
Smith's "History of the Colony of New Jersey."

CHAPTER XVII.
©fit W{tm in Tfom j>alfe+
THE "PATROONS" OF NEW NETHERLAND — THE SETTLEMENT AT
MANHATTAN — THE MANNERS AND CUSTOMS OF THE
5 DUTCH — ESTABLISHMENT OF POPULAR
LAND LAWS.

1 T will be remembered that we left the Dutch in
their settlements upon Long Island and the
Hudson, just at the time when they were begin
ning to feel the need of a firmer government.
None of the settlements had been prosperous
until they were given an interest in the land they
occupied. It was certain that this scheme must be used
with the Dutch, for New Amsterdam settled but slowly,,
and it was seen that trading-posts were not the best
means of establishing civilization. Only poor emigrants
came for a long time, but after a while rich men from
Holland were sent out, and given privileges by the
Dutch West India Company. Each of these important
^ gentlemen was allowed to found a colony of fifty
persons, and to own a tract of land sixteen miles in length on any
shores or streams not yet occupied. Westward there was no limit placed
on his possessions, which were allowed to run into the interior as far as
they might — to the Pacific coast, had he but known there was a Pacific
coast. His colony was to be established within four years from the
time the land was granted him, and he was required, by just provision
not usually employed, to pay the Indians for his land. His estate was
called a ' 'manor, ' ' and it was quite independent of colonial government.
He was actually a lord of the soil, and lived in much elegance and with
a full sense of importance, such as the men of his time and nation were
apt to feel. These "patroons" as they were called, were allowed all
privileges, except the manufacture of woolen or cotton goods, which
the West India Company wished to keep a monopoly of. The company

Il8 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
supplied the manors with negro slaves, which they imported from
Guinea, but after a time this feudal system began to give way. There
seemed to be something in the air of the New World which was opposed
to the pretentions of nobility. Even the stately patroons came to see,
after awhile, that they were regarded more as land-holders than as
lords. It was so easy to see the injustice of giving a man such advantages
over his fellows that the people would not patiently endure it. Nothing
could more firmly prove that the plan of the government of Europe
was, and is, false and wrong, since it fails to give men equal opportu
nities. It has existed so long in the Old World that it has almost come
to seem right. Here, where it could be seen at its beginning, it was
recognized as altogether wrong. The company had had a selfish reason
for employing the feudal system in the New Netherlands. It believed
that if it intrusted the care of immigration to the patroons it would be
saved the expense of sustaining the government, and if each patroon
protected his own property, with men established under him as serfs,
there would be no need of any officers to do so. For, indeed, the people
under these Dutch lords were little else than serfs. No "man or
woman, son or daughter, man servant or maid servant," could leave a
patroon' s service during the time he had agreed to remain, except by
his written consent. On the other hand, the patroon was under no
obligations to his people, but could do as he saw fit. It brought about
evils almost as great as those of slavery.
The right which was given to the patroons to settle upon any terri
tory not yet occupied, soon began to affect the great West India
Company. They had wished to secure and retain a monopoly of trade,
but by the short-sighted means employed they defeated this. A number
of the Amsterdam directors availed themselves of this opportunity, and
settled upon immense tracts of land, to which they gave high-sounding
names. When it was too late the company perceived what it had done.
The enterprising directors hastened to settle colonies upon their land,
and so settlements were spread down to the South river, along the
shores of what we now call Delaware Bay, and to the present town of
Louiston, Delaware. One director went over to Cape May and bought
a large tract of laud there. One of the largest settlements was on
Bear's Island, about twelve miles below Albany, to Smack's Island, and
extended two days' journey inland. Afterward this estate was carried
to the confluence of the Mohawk, and thus it was again extended.
Another director acquired a vast quantity of land opposite Manhattan

OLD WINE IN NEW BOTTLES. 1 19
Island, and gave it the name of Hoboken — Hacking Island. This man
afterward got the whole of Staten Island, and then the region where
Jersey City now stands. Upon this estate the owner bestowed the name
of Pavonia. The patroons were not satisfied to confine themselves to agriculture.
They began a most profitable trading in peltries, so that the exports of
Holland, in 1626, were valued at six thousand guilders. This, of
course, was an infringement upon the rights of the Dutch Company,
which drew up an order forbidding any one to deal in peltries, maize
or wampum. The constant disputes which arose out of this greatly
delayed the progress of New Netherland.
The colony founded in Delaware, where Louiston now stands, was
called Swaanendael, or the Valley of Swans, and here a curious thing
happened. A pillar had been set up bearing the arms of Holland, in
token of possession. This an Indian chief saw, and thinking it would
make delightful pipes, took it down and proceeded to make it up into
them. But to this piece of symbolical tin the Dutch attached a great
deal of importance, and the officer left in charge of the colony fretted
and fumed, with many high-sounding Dutch words, until the Indians,
thinking that their chief had committed a terrible crime, put him to
death in hopes of regaining the friendship of the Dutch. The officer
explained then that his wild gestures and oaths had simply meant that
he wished to have the chief reproved. The Indians were naturally out
of patience to find that they had made such a sacrifice to so little a
purpose, and soon after, a party scattered themselves through the town
in a friendly manner, and then fell upon and murdered every person at
the post, leaving nothing but the ruins of the burned houses. Peter
Minuet, returning from Europe at this time, thought best to make a
treaty of peace with these Indians, and with the representatives of all
other tribes which he met. He went to Jamestown instead of visiting
the Dutch colony, which was at that time without a governor.
A short time after this Wouter Van Twiller was sent over from
Holland as Governor. He had married a niece of Van Rensselaer, the
chief of the patroons, and came in much state and great finery. He
had just got settled in his manor at New Amsterdam when an English
vessel came into the harbor. The officers of the vessel dined with Van
Twiller and his ceremonious Dutch friends, and made a great show of
courtesy, but they coolly announced their intention of going up the
river to trade with the Indians. Of course, all the Dutchmen fell into
a rage. They swore that the English should not trespass upon their

120 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
grounds, and in a warlike fever caused the flag of Orange to be raised
over the fort and saluted with three guns, while the English quietly
sailed on their way up the stream. Van Twiller saw that more active
measures would have to be taken, so he got all the people in the fort
before his door and ordered a barrel of wine to be brought out.
Upon this he mounted and set the example to his men of drinking
glass after glass in defiance of the Englishmen. In the meantime the
English had sailed out of sight. Several days after a force of soldiers
did go after the scornful Englishmen and compelled them to return,
but the Governor's reputation was gone.
Though the settlement at Manhattan was twenty years old, it was
still little more than a trading post. The company seemed to sap its
strength. The interest was not so much in the soil as the money that
could be got out of the country. Some new houses had been built
which were firm and substantial, and three great wind-mills had been
erected. About one hundred soldiers were well quartered. A good
church had been built and shops established by various tradesmen.
But it was lacking in that appearance of permanence and domesticity
which characterized the New England colonies.
Nothing could have been more crooked than the streets. The
houses were of wood, with gable ends built of small black and yellow
bricks, brought over from Holland. The doors and windows were
many, and the date of the building of the house was put in iron letters
in the gable; frequently the name of the builder was added. The
Hollanders were noted for their cleanliness. Indeed, the people of
Holland were scrupulously clean, at a time when the most cultivated
people of England were walking on dirty rushes and had not yet
learned to clean out their courts. The Dutch in the New Netherlands
spun linen as they had done in the old country, and heaped up their
closets with it. Their silver and brass- ware was kept perfectly polished.
The floors were covered with white sand, on which figures were traced
with a broom. Their stately furniture had claw-feet of metal. The
time was told by hour-glasses and sun-dials, and neither of the time
pieces were allowed to keep the pompous Dutchmen in a rush. They
ate plenty and drank plenty, knew how to tell a good story and how to
laugh at it, and were forever having betrothal feasts, wedding banquets
and gala days. Christmas, as we celebrate it, is a custom introduced
by the Dutch. They taught us how to make and exchange colored
eggs at Easter, and but for them, we should never have had the practice
of New Year's calling. They loved to smoke and to drink, and their

OLD WINE IN NEW BOTTLES. 121
hospitality was very great. The reputation for this their descendants
have never lost. Then, as now, the Dutch housekeepers were excellent
cooks, and were especially noted for the delicious cakes and cookies
which they made, and which everyone who went to their houses had to
share with them.
Though religion was not, as in Plymouth, the object of their lives,
they went to church steadily and held their ' 'dominies' ' in high esteem.
There was a great deal of comfort, but little money, and wampum or
beaver skins were frequently used in the place of money. The women
dressed as they had done in Holland, with short, bright-colored, quilted
petticoats, and knitted stockings of bright green, purple, or red. About
their heads were white muslin caps, beneath which their hair was
plastered down with pomatum. The portly Dutchman — and they were
all portly — wore coats of linsey-woolsey, with wide skirts and large
buttons of brass or silver. They sported several pairs of knee breeches,
one over the other, with long, knitted stockings and immense buckles at
their knees and on their shoes. One of their chief industries was ship
building. They were very proud of their vessels, and gave them
remarkable names, such as ' ' The Angel GabrieP ' and ' '¦King Solomon. ' '
Van Twiller became so ridiculous in his management of the New
Netherlands that he was removed, and William Kieft, who afterward
acquired the name of "William the Testy," was sent out. He found
things in a very bad state. There had been altogether too much
drinking, too much smoking of pipes and telling of stories. The walls
of the fort were down, the houses in need of repairs, the work shops in
a useless condition. William the Testy began to straighten out things
at once, not as may be imagined in the most amiable way. The
company had bought back Pavonia and the Valley of the Swans, and
thus checked some of the abuses of the patroons' rule. Affairs reached
a crisis, for the people were becoming impatient at having first one
monopoly and then another over them, and, therefore, the council of
nineteen, at Old Amsterdam, decided that each man should have as
much land as he could properly cultivate, and the Dutchmen were given
free passage to New Netherland. Affairs began to improve imme
diately, not only along Staten Island, but away up to Albany.
But with the English there had been many difficulties, and they
were steadily encroaching upon the land claimed by the Dutch.
FOR FURTHER READING:
History— Davis' "History of New Amsterdam."
Fiction— P. H. Myres' "The First of the Knickerbockers."
P. H. Myres' "The Young Patroon."

CHAPTER XVIII.
]|ttitforfodbr J)atp*

THE GOVERNMENT OP WILLIAM THE TESTY — TROUBLE WITH THE
INDIANS — THE NIGHT ATTACK ON PAVONIA — REVENGE
OP THE INDIANS — DISMISSAL OF KIEFT AND
, ARRIVAL OP PETER STUYVESANT.

<ILLIAM THE TESTY was no wiser in his
treatment of the Indians than in his government
of the Dutch. The frauds of which the trades
men were constantly guilty were not checked by
him, and the serious mistake was made of
placing guns in their hands. The Mohawks were
enabled to arm four hundred men. This made
the other Indian tribes very envious, and even while the
Mohawks remained friendly, the other tribes were
gradually becoming hostile. When at last, in 1640, a
a tax was laid upon the Indians, exacting corn,
wampum, and furs from them, the injustice was enough
to bring about an open war. The Raritan Indians
destroyed the settlement on Staten Island, in revenge
for which William the Testy offered a bounty for the head of every
Raritan which should be brought to him. Later in the year — this was
in 1 641 — a young Indian chief murdered "a farmer in retaliation for the
killing of his uncle. Another private murder was committed by an
Indian, and these two crimes aroused the enmity of all of the Dutch
settlements. At the same time, the people considered it wisest and
best to use policy. Governor Kieft, however, had nothing politic in
his nature. He wished to send out an armed force against the Indians,
and would have done so immediately had the people not protested.
The tribes at the lower part of the river were not a prey to the enmity
of their white neighbors alone, but were constantly harassed by the
powerful Mohawks. Many of them had to flee from the coast into

KNICKERBOCKER DAYS. 1 23
those dark and interminable forests which stretch westward. Some of
these unhappy Indians at last had to take refuge with the whites, so
merciless were their Indian foes, and by some of the whites they were
treated with great kindness. But certain of the twelve selectmen of
New Amsterdam insisted upon attacking the Indians at Pavonia,
across the river; and, though the wiser men of the community tried to
dissuade them from this action, an armed force was sent to fight them
in the dead of night. Perhaps one thousand Indians in the encamp
ment were sleeping quietly in their tents. So sudden was the onslaught
that the unfortunate victims believed that it was the Indians from
Fort Orange who had fallen upon them, and some of them actually fled
to the Dutch settlement for protection, only to learn who their true
enemies were.
One hundred and twenty Indians were murdered that night, with
horrible and indescribable tortures. The limbs and arms were hacked
from the little children. They were bound to boards, then cut to
pieces. Some of them were thrown into the river to make their
parents go after them, where they were kept at bay, by the muskets of
the Dutch, until they were drowned. Those who escaped, and came
out in the morning to beg for food, were killed in cold blood. Some
were drowned, and some burned to death. The troops, marching back
to the fort in the morning, were received with many praises.
Then, over all the colonies, broke a wave of war and outrage.
Everywhere in New Netherland, farmers were killed and wives and
children carried away into a terrible imprisonment. Now and then a
sort of a half peace was made, only to be broken — first on one side,
and then on the other. Late in the summer the tribes on the
Hudson Highlands began an open warfare, and made it impossible
for trading boats to come up the river. Ann Hutchinson, the witty
woman preacher, was killed near New Rochelle. Savages crept into
the very villages and murdered men in the twilight. The people had
no longer any patience with Kieft. They felt that his terrible cruelty
had been responsible for all this suffering. He appointed a council to
help him decide upon this difficult matter; and, under this council,
a large force of soldiers were armed and thoroughly drilled, with John
Underhill at their head. John Underhill was a Massachusetts captain.
A petition was sent to the states general of Holland for help — a
petition eloquent with fear and suffering. Through the winter which
followed, they lived in a terrible state of anxiety, crowded together at
the southern end of the island, and being afraid to venture beyond their

124 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
own doors. Occasionally, the Dutch would sally out and succeed in
making a small skirmish, which only added to the Indians' hatred.
There was a little settlement called Hempstead, on Long Island, where
a number of English families were settled. These had been exceed
ingly annoyed by the Indians near them, and prayed that they might be
protected by the Dutch. Consequently, one hundred and twenty
soldiers made an attack on two Indian villages, which they sacked,
killing more than one hundred braves, and carrying some to Manhattan,
where they were tortured.
Later, the little army marched through the snow-covered forests
upon the principal village of the Long Island Indians. This they fired,
and furnished light to do a most murderous deed. Only sixty-eight of
seven hundred Indians escaped. The Dutch had fifteen men wounded.
After this, the proud spirit of the Indians was broken, and, when a
fresh force of one hundred and thirty soldiers was sent to New Nether
land, the Indians sulkily retreated to their forests.
These soldiers were a terrible burden to the poverty-stricken settle
ment, and Kieft made the great mistake of taxing beer for their sup
port. This was the one thing under the sun which the Dutchmen
would not have taxed, and they begged for Kieft' s dismissal. They
had to wait a whole year before their prayer was answered. In the
meantime, the Indians lurked under the very palisades which they had
built for their protection, and which stood on a line with the present
Wall street, which, of course, took its name from that ancient fortifica
tion. The following spring the Indians signed a treaty of peace with the
Dutch, and gathering upon the spot still known as the Battery, smoked
the pipe of peace with them. In the wars of the last few years sixteen
hundred of the Indians had been killed, and nearly all of the Dutch
settlements had been destroyed. In all the province there were no more
than three hundred men capable of bearing arms, and the settlers
prayed for a new Governor, who should bring to them peace and
quietness. In the Connecticut valley, the English had steadily crowded upward,
until Dutch control was gone. Fort Nassau, however, was still retained
by the Dutch, and established as an important Indian trading post.
On May 27, 1647, Peter Stuyvesant, the new Governor of the New
Netherlands, arrived. He was an old soldier of bravery arid experience,
and lost a leg in his country's service. He wore, in the place of that
member, a wooden leg bound with silver. The solemn burghers met
him with uncovered heads, and he allowed them, it is said, to stand in

Copyright l&fy, by R. S. King P.

PETER STUYVESANT DEFIANT.
Designed and engraved expressly for The Story or America.

KNICKERBOCKER DAYS. 1 27
the sun for several hours in this way, and seated himself with great
ceremony while they remained standing. These king-like airs were
not well received, but, in a short time, the honest vigor of the man
began to be felt in the colony, and his very tyranny was in happy
contrast to the former governor's weakness. The men who had brought
a complaint against Kieft were not sustained by Stuyvesant. He said
it was treason to petition against magistrates, very wisely thinking that
it would not do to allow such an example to pass unreproved, for
he knew that he himself might soon meet with popular disfavor. The
men who had complained of Kieft' s abuses were tried and condemned
to suffer severe punishments
The West India Company was no longer much interested in the
colony, and left the severe and angry-natured Stuyvesant to do as he
pleased. As for Kieft, he started to sail for Holland, but his ship was
pounded to pieces on the Welsh rocks, and, at the last, he was seized
with repentance for the murders which he had committed and the
cruelty with which he had treated his friends. The two men who had
been persecuted, because' of their complaints against him to the
Governor at Holland, were on the ship with him, and he called them to
him, saying: "Friends, I have been unjust toward you; can you forgive
me?" Governor Stuyvesant began to lay heavy taxes upon the people, and,
though in many ways they lived safely and well under him, with a
sense of security in his firmness and courage, they nevertheless felt that
he was an unjust Governor. He was assisted in his affairs by a board
of nine men. These men were only allowed to advise the Governor.
They could make no laws, and give no orders without his approval.
One of the first things which Governor Stuyvesant tried to do, was to
come to a pleasant understanding with the English; but though the
English wrote polite letters, they were not inclined to remove their
boundaries farther from the Dutch, and they even claimed that they
held the first title to Long Island. Finally, a Dutch captain seized an
English ship, and, against this high-handed act, Governor Eaton, of
New Haven, protested vigorously. Henceforth, he and Governor
Stuyvesant wrote hot and furious letters to each other, and the two
Governors quarreled about things which school-boys might have been
ashamed to get angry over. He got in disfavor with his own colonists
at the same time, by putting a check upon their tradings with the
Indians, for, in spite of his forbiddance, they sold the Indians arms and
ammunition. It was through this cause that he got into his fierce

128 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
quarrel with the young patroon, Van Rensselaer, for the old patroon of
that name was now dead. He could not well control a lord owning
such vast extent of territory, and used to exercising such power, without
getting into trouble. When the young patroon defied Stuyvesant' s
authority, the Governor sent a squad of soldiers to enforce it. These
he ordered to take stone and timber from the patroon' s land for the
purpose of repairing the fortifications at Fort Orange, but the people of
the village around about, who were loyal to the young lord, would not
permit such intrusion, even from their great Governor, and, for once,
Peter the Headstrong failed to have his way. So, with many jealousies
and small envies, the next few years of the New Netherland colonies
went on. Any one wishing to study the history of New York can find
plenty, both amusing and instructive, in the pages of the old State
chronicles, but, for one who wishes to take a broad and hasty view of
national history, it is hardly worth while to linger over the foolish
quarrels and pretensions of these Dutch burghers.
FOR FURTHER READING:
Fiction — Cooper's "Water-Witch."
J. H. Paulding's "The Dutchman's Fireside.
''Woolfert's Roost" and "Rip Van Winkle," from
Washington Irving's "Sketch Book."

CHAPTER XIX.
3p ©fit m JWlbm&tt

THE MASSACHUSETTS BAY COMPANY — THE TRIALS OF THE FIRST YEAR-
ARRIVAL OF ROGER WILLIAMS — JOHN ELIOT — PERSECU
TION OF WILLIAMS — HIS SETTLEMENT
AT PROVIDENCE.

•NE of the most important colonies has not yet
been spoken of, for, though it had much influence
in forming the United States, it was not made
until June, 1629, when the other settlements were
well under way. Six vessels, with their crews,
four hundred and six men, women and children, one
hundred and forty head of cattle, forty goats, and a
large quantity of provisions, tools, arms and building
materials, left England, and arrived at Salem, Massa
chusetts. It will be remembered that a few rude
buildings had been put here by people who, for one
reason or another, saw fit to leave the colony at
Plymouth. Like the Plymouth colony, this had a
deep and dignified purpose, and for this reason it and
the Plymouth colony are the best remembered and the most talked of to
this day. These English wanderers did not come to make money. They
came to worship God as they saw fit. They were Puritans. Not like the
Puritans of Plymouth, pilgrims who had journeyed from one place to
another, but people who had protested against the practices of the
Established Church of England and who had found it necessary to seek
the new land if they wished to live the life of their liking. They had
come out under the royal patent of the Massachusetts Bay Company,
which had been formed at Dorchester. John Endicott was made
Governor. He was a stern man, who, having made up his mind that
a certain thing was best to do, never yielded or gave way. He showed no

130 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
mercy toward any one who broke his rules. He was very honorable md
straightforward, but he wished everyone to be of his way of thinking.
This was shown by his treatment of the Reverend Ralph Smith, one of
the several ministers who came over in the fleet. It is hard to find in
what small particular Mr. Smith differed from his fellows, but he had
some shade of belief which did not agree with their' s, and he was not
suffered to stay in the colony, but was obliged to take his family and go
to Nantasket, where he became so poor and underwent such hardships
that the Plymouth people took pity on him and invited him to their
settlement. Before the colony had been established six weeks, a day of
fasting and prayer was held. One of the ministers who had come over
to aid as counsel to Endicott was chosen pastor, and another teacher.
A delegation was invited from Plymouth to witness the ceremony of
establishing the government of the colony. The very life and conver
sation of men was to be subject to the rules laid down. The book of
common prayer, belonging to the Church of England, was discarded,
and a covenant was set up according to directions found in the New
Testament. It was hard to get all of the ministers who came over as counsel, to
agree. One of them went back to England, as he could not approve of
the methods of the Reformed Church. Two of his followers, John and
Samuel Brown, men of a good deal of importance, would have nothing
to do with the new church, but called about them all who still had
sympathy with the Church of England, and held separate meetings,
worshiping after the Episcopalian method. Of course, Endicott would
have none of this. He summoned the Browns before him. The
Browns held, that if men had come to America to escape intolerance,
they should not be persecuted because of their religion, but the
ministers held that they had come because they wished to escape the
sinful corruptions of the church, and the Browns were sent back
to England. Thus the Massachusetts Bay colony showed at the first,
why it was started, and how it intended to govern. It did not wish to
be governed by the council in London, nor looked after by a corrupt
church, and a still more corrupt court. They therefore begged for
a transfer of government, and in the course of a few weeks they were
allowed to become an independent colony. This showed great courage
and force of character, for the protection of the King was thought by
all but these men to be a great thing.
Endicott and his friends had the pluck to take matters upon their
own shoulders. It was necessary now to make new appointments, and

THE OLD BAY SETTLEMENT. 131
John Winthrop was elected Governor, with six men as council. John
Winthrop was a lawyer of good birth, with quite a fortune for that day.
He had a gentle nature and great tenderness of heart, though he did
not lack in firmness. He was in England at the time of his election,
but sailed immediately for Salem. He found the colony had suffered
from the experiences which met most settlers during their first winter
in America. Eighty of them had died, and they had many tales of woe
to tell. Within a short time one thousand persons followed Winthrop
to Salem. Settlements were made at many places along the coast, and
quite a large one at Charlestown. Winthrop thought it best to
strengthen his hold on the possessions of the colony by settling all
along the coast. Some of them went up the Charles, and the beginnings
of Dorchester, Medford, Watertown, Cambridge, Roxbury, Lynn and
Charlestown were made. Boston Common was settled on because of
the excellent spring of water there, and Ann Pollard, a merry young
girl, was the first person, according to tradition, to leap ashore where
Boston now stands.
There was a great deal of sickness in all of these settlements —
partly from want of proper shelter, partly from the malaria, which
always comes with the clearing of ground, and. more than all, from the
want of a variety of wholesome food. In Salem, some had reached such
a bad condition that a day of fasting and prayer was ordered. Their
prayers seemed to meet with prompt answer, for Captain William
Pierce, who had made so many journeys over the Atlantic, appeared at
the right moment with a large supply of provisions. On that ship was
a man named Roger Williams. Williams was a young man about thirty
years of age. On all subjects he was thoroughly radical. The condi
tion of his mind then was like that of most Americans now. He
believed that every man had a right to do a thing in his own way. He had
no respect for anything simply because it was established and approved
of by the majority. He must have been an attractive young fellow,
with a good deal of personal magnetism. Governor Winthrop liked
him very well, but he shocked the Governor by his out-spoken ways.
He was invited to act as teacher of the Boston church, but upon
examination it was found that he did not agree with their religious
beliefs. That ended it, of course. He would not even join the church,
because the members would riot openly express their repentance for ever
having communed with the Church of England. He held, too, that
the magistrate had no right to punish a breach of the Sabbath, and that
civil government and religious government should not be confounded.

132 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
His eloquence was attractive, and he was chosen minister of the Boston
church, in spite of these heresies. Endicott, down at Salem, heard of
this, and gave them no peace until he was driven from the church and
had taken refuge at Plymouth. Governor Bradford had no fault to find
with him, and he did much active work in the course of the next year.
Little by little the Massachusetts Bay colony grew into a common
wealth. It is true that it had enemies. There was one gay Sir
Christopher Gardiner, who laid conspiracies against Winthrop, but he
was finally arrested and sent back to England. Morton, of Merrimont,
had never forgotten the time when Endicott had grimly marched over
and pulled down his May-pole, around which he and his hard-drinking
friends were dancing with a company of Indian girls. This was a little
colony called Merrimont, of which Morton was the leading spirit.
Captain Standish had been obliged to take this man prisoner for his
disorderly conduct, and to send him over to England in the custody of
John Oldham, who had worked himself into favor with the Puritans
again. Sir Ferdinando Gorges also quarreled with the Massachusetts
Bay Company about patents, and the Browns were still sulky, but none
of these did the colony any great harm. The ministers largely con
trolled matters, and to be a good citizen, according to the status of tbe
colony, was also to be religious.
One of these reverend gentlemen, John Eliot, of Roxbury, was
renowned for his saintliness of character, and the work he did among
Indians. For years he studied the Indian dialects, and was finally able
to preach to them in their own tongue. He made an entire translation
of the Bible into the Indian tongue, one of the most important philo
logical works ever published in the United States. Copies of it are
still extant, and sell at fabulous prices to collectors of Americana. He
converted a whole tribe of Indians, who were known afterward as the
praying Indians, and for whom the rest of the savages had a great
contempt. Eliot's work was very difficult. The Indian was strangely
lacking in moral sense, and it was necessary to teach him many things,
which an European would know by instinct, about matters of right and
wrong. Even the colonists seem not to have thought very well of the
praying Indians. They preferred to have the native left in his savage
state. Another minister of especial note was John Cotton, a man of such
winning and triumphant eloquence that he influenced all who cime
near him. After a time Roger Williams came back to Salem, and
immediately got into trouble. Governor Bradford, his friend, was

THE OLD BAY SETTLEMENT. 133
bound to admit that Roger had some very strange ways of thinking and
acting, and he warned the church at Salem against him. But the
young man was so attractive that he overcame prejudices of this sort,
and the Salem brethren took him into the church, where he began
prophecying. His prophecies were not liked by the Salem people, and
they arrested him for a treatise which he had written while in Ply
mouth, relating to the Indian title to the country, for he did not believe
in the expulsion of the Indians. Nothing could be proved to his harm,
however, on that charge. But Mr. Williams could not keep quiet.
He certainly had very peculiar ideas. He convinced all of the women
that it was immodest for them to go out of their houses unless they
were veiled. Very naturally this was approved of neither by young
men nor old men, and Mr. Cotton, the melting preacher, was called
upon to persuade the wives and virgins that it was not necessary for
them to hide their fair faces. Mr. Cotton went further, and repeated
his sermon in the Boston lecture course, where Endicott fiercely got up
and quarreled with him on the subject, and the debate got so hot that
the Governor had to put a stop to it. Endicott was a fervid follower of
Williams by this time. He went around looking everywhere for signs
of anti-Christ, and actually cut St. George's cross out of the flag of
England one time when he found it in Salem streets. The English
soldiers very naturally refused to march after a flag -which had been
shorn of its sign of victory, and Endicott' s rash act made such a disturb
ance among the soldiers that he was dismissed from the council, and it
was some time before he was readmitted.
Williams and his friends asked the council for a grant of land at
Marblehead, but it was not granted them. It was the first time that a
church had been refused land to build on, and, of course, it only
strengthened Roger Williams' following. Endicott' s protest was so wild
that he was imprisoned until he was ready to apologize. Williams was
accused of unheard-of heresies. He held that the State had no right to
meddle with a man's conscience or religious opinions. He was right,
but he was also disagreeable. He would not bend to the advice of the
court, nor take the warnings of the other ministers, and he was finally
banished, though he was allowed to remain in town until spring.
There was an attempt to put him on board a ship and send him to
England, but he escaped and fled to the woods. There he lived, on the
best of terms with the Indians, for whom he had a great respect and
affection. His dealings with them were upon a basis of equality.
Canonicus, chief of the Narragansetts, gave Williams a large tract of

134 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
land, but the generous minister kept little for himself, and he gave
away his lands to all that he thought in want. The place where he
lived he called Providence, in his gratitude to God for having escaped
from his enemies.
Many persons persecuted for their religious beliefs in the different
colonies came to live with him. Among these was Ann Hutchinson, a
woman with a high sense of humor and of independence, who had
mimicked some of the dry old preachers in Boston, and had drawn about
her a number of people fond of a more simple and straight forward
doctrine. Ann Hutchinson, although she is almost forgotten, was one
of the most remarkable women of the early history of this country.
The new colony, after much trouble, obtained a charter under the name
of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations. Never was there a more
radical man than Roger Williams. The laws of his colony were based
upon a plan of perfect religious toleration. He held that the most
Paganish, Jewish, Turkish or anti-Christian conscience should be pro
tected in his colony. Such a thing was unheard of. It was new to the
world. Thus was Rhode Island settled.
FOR FURTHER READING:
History— Arnold's "Rhode Island."
Fiction— Miss Sedgwick's "Hope Leslie."
Holland's "Bay Path."
Longfellow's "Rhyme of Sir Christopher."

CHAPTER XX.
Hfp I^tragss uf Simfoaltotn
THE AMERICAN INDIAN — THE DESTRUCTION OF THE BLOCK ISLAND
INDIANS — THE EXTINCTION OF THE PEQUOT TRIBE —
THE FEDERATION OF THE ENGLISH
COLONIES.

HE white man's first business in America was to
destroy the forests. Before he could build him a
home he laid his axe at the foot of a tree. From
the very first, he showed how he differed from the
Indian, for the Indian lived in the forest; he wished
to preserve it. The game in it was his means of
livelihood. The wilder the streams, the better the
fishing, and the only sort of warfare which he knew had
to be conducted in the solitudes and fastnesses of the
woods. His superstition had made it holy to him; his
loves had made it dear, and from the first, the most
thoughtful of the Indians had looked with great dread
upon the growing power of the white man, and wondered
if it could be possible for two nations so different in
everything to live together in harmony. In the begin
ning, although the Indian was subtile in his dealings with his enemies,
he was true to his friends. He had the naturalness of a child. When
he gave his word, he could be trusted. He could endure pain with a
' bravery only equaled by the old heroes of Sparta. In him was a love
of liberty that centuries of injustice has not been able to crush, and in
certain directions his mind was trained in a manner unequaled by any
except the mystics of Asiatic India. He knew every sign of the forest,
and the most timid animal had no match for his cunning. The soli
tudes were an open book to him, and the best power of his intellect was
spent in evolving a philosophy from its pages. He held mental and
moral qualities in high esteem, and was willing himself to do but little
manual labor, leaving that for the women of his tribe. Few nations in

136 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
the world have been found so swift of foot, so keen of sight and hearing,
and so clever in detecting signs which no others might see. He was
not without imagination or poetry, and for him, mountains, woods, lakes
and streams were filled with spirits, good and bad, who watched over his
destiny, or thwarted him in his ambitions. His life satisfied him, and
so did his religion. It is not strange that the religion which the
Englishmen offered him in place of his own was received with coldness.
The lives of the Puritans did not set a good example to the Indians.
Crimes of a certain nature were very frequent among them, and it is
certain that the Christians did not teach the Indians honesty. Too
much theology and too little religion naturally confused the Indian as
to what the Christian faith really was, so when they saw themselves
being driven inland, mile after mile, they knew that it meant the
extinction of their race. They were forced to leave behind them the
places which they cherished with a love almost fierce in its nature.
The places where their dead lay buried, the monuments to which, day
by day, the children added a stone, must all be left behind. The sea
was no longer theirs. They saw that in a short time there would be
nothing for them to do but march toward the setting sun, leaving the
beloved sea behind them.
This brooding hatred and distrust had its results. Captain Oldham
had once more been taken into the favor of the Puritans, and when his
boat was found drifting at sea, with a band of Indians upon it and his
dead body on the deck, the colonists made up their minds to revenge
his death; so in August of 1636, nearly one hundred men, in five small
vessels, sailed from Boston to Block Island — for it was the Block Island
Indians who had murdered Oldham. In command of this expedition
was John Endicott, the sternest Puritan of them all. To land at Block
Island, eveu in fair weather, was a difficult thing. To do it in a
heavy wind was a most dangerous one. Any seaman would shrink
from it, but the Boston force did it in the midst of a shower of arrows
from the Indians. The invaders stayed upon the island two days, laying
waste the two hundred acres of land under cultivation, burning the
maize already harvested, as well as the wigwams and all their furniture.
Not one of the Englishmen was harmed, but such of the Indians as
were left alive remained upon the island without shelter or food, or
canoes in which to escape. Most of them perished wretchedly, but a
few must have lived, because much later than this, the Indians of Block
Island are referred to.
Endicott took his men to the mainland near the mouth of what is

THE RAVAGES OF CIVILIZATION. 1 37
now the Thames river. Proud of his victory over the Block Islanders,
he wished to take revenge upon the Pequot Indians, for their murder of
a Puritan named Stone. He asked that the Pequot chief be brought to
him, but the chief would not come, and the Englishmen and Indians
had some engagements, in which the Indians suffered severely. After
burning the Indian villages, Endicott's men coasted on up to the mouth
of the Connecticut river, where there was a fort under the command of
Captain Lion Gardiner, who was much distressed when Endicott stopped
there. He had tried to keep on friendly terms with the Indians, and was
much more afraid of starving to death than of being killed. Events
show that Gardiner was right. The Indians were greatly irritated and
were determined to be revenged for the injustice done to the Block
Islanders. They came upon the English at all sorts of unexpected
places, and destroyed a large part of the corn which Gardiner had
planted. It was hardly safe for the men to venture without the fort,
for the Indians lurked about it constantly — never seen, but frequently
felt Cattle were killed or stolen, and the settlements near were greatly
harassed. Men went to church carrying their weapons in their hands,
and were afraid to labor in their own yards. Both men and women
were fallen upon in the fields and murdered or carried into captivity.
Had the Indians wished, they might have exterminated the English.
Roger Williams saw the great danger. No man knew better than
he the strength and qualities of the people on both sides. His diplomacy
alone prevented a concerted attack by all the Indian tribes upon the
colonies. Governor Winthrop and the rest were very glad to receive
help from the man whom they had driven out in the dead of night and
of winter because of his daring to differ from them. .The efforts of
Williams secured the friendship of the Narragansetts, who had long
been enemies of the Pequots. The Massachusetts General Court
decided at their May meeting to go to the help of the people in the
Connecticut valley. They knew that the red cloud of war might sweep
on to Massachusetts. Feeling that it was a common peril, the Bay
people called upon Plymouth for help, but Plymouth held back. She
had certain quarrels to pick with the Bay government. Both Massa
chusetts and Plymouth could take time to think. They were not — like
the dwellers on the plantation of the Connecticut — being murdered in
their beds, by their well-sweeps, and in their doorways-
But in May, a force of ninety men, under the charge of Captain
John Mason, sailed from Hartford for Fort Saybrook. Here they were
joined by the friendly Uncas, the great Mohegan chief, with a body of

138 THE STORY OP AMERICA.
Indians. Mason decided to attack the Pequots in the rear, although this
was in disobedience to the orders of the general court. In pursuance of
this plan, Mason left the fort and bore away for Narragansett Bay. The
Pequots thought he was retreating, and late into the night they sang
and boasted that their superior numbers had put the woman-hearted
Englishmen to flight. But Mason landed near the entrance of Narra
gansett Bay, and marched eighteen or twenty miles distant on the
Pequot frontier. The Narragansetts had a fort here, and Mason was
anxious to make sure of their friendship. On the 25th of May the
little army made the tedious march through the woods, with little to eat
and less to drink, and encamped at night at the head of the Mystic
river. Near that was the principal Pequot fort, crowded with men,
women and children.
Very early in the morning, when the east was first streaked with
light, Mason awoke his men. Uncas, the Mohegan chief, guided them
near to the palisaded village. There seemed to have been no sentinels
about the fort, and, but for the barking of a dog, the Indians would not
have known that the Englishmen were upori them. A part of Mason's men
rushed in on one side, and the rest upon the other. The Indians could
do but little, and, mad with terror, tried to rush for the woods, but there
was little chance of escape. Mason was not satisfied with the rapid work
that guns and swords were doing, but cried, "we must burn them,"
and snatching a brand from one of the smouldering fires at which the
evening meal had been prepared, thrust it among the dead leaves that
carpeted the wigwams. Some of the Indians, rather than die at the hands
of their hated enemies, ran with a pride past all taming into the flames
and perished there. Others, seeing that their wives and children could not
escape, threw themselves upon the swords of the Englishmen, who
stood in an unbroken circle around the village, and behind whom was a
yet sterner and more cruel company of their own countrymen.
It was hardly an hour from the time of the attack when the burned
and bleeding bodies of nearly seven hundred Indians lay among their
smoking wigwams. Only two of the English were killed.
There was another Indian village belonging to the Pequots not many
miles distant, and in this there were still three hundred and fifty warriors.
A handful of men had escaped the morning massacre, and flying to this
village, told their countrymen the particulars of the morning slaughter.
Mad with sorrow and anger, these were soon upon the trail of the
English. Mason's men, exhausted with the terrible fight, a third of
them wounded, and all suffering from hunger and the intense thirst which

THE RAVAGES OF CIVILIZATION. 139
follows such excitement, were in a very weakened condition, but they
were able to repulse the Indians, and in the course of the day were met
by a reinforcement of forty men from Boston.
The Pequots were now the enemies of all the other tribes of Massa
chusetts and Connecticut, for the Narragansetts and Mohegans allied
themselves with the stronger side. This the Indians always did in war
fare. So the Pequots were hunted mercilessly through the forests.
They hid themselves in rocks, and caves, and bushes, and wherever
they were found they were killed. The worst of it was that they were
seldom killed immediately, but were tortured in the most terrible ways.
Twenty young Englishmen sometimes pulled the legs and arms of an
Indian from their sockets by sheer brutal force. Few of the women
and children were killed, but were sent to the West India Islands as
slaves. In July, the remnant of this tribe were ensnared in a swamp.
Here they fought like wild beasts, with the ferocity of despair, but
most of them were killed or taken prisoners, and such as were left met
with a fate still more hateful to them. They were permitted to become
either Mohegans or Narragansetts, and lost their individuality as a tribe.
They were a brave race of warriors, and their pitiable downfall and
overthrow cannot but touch the heart of any who admire courage and
patriotism. A few who fled to the Mohawks were treacherously killed,
and their scalps sent to Governor Winthrop as a sign of Mohawk friend
ship. The Pequot war lasted five months. This great tribe, numbering
over one thousand warriors, was extinguished by a force of two hun
dred Englishmen. It is true that the Narragansetts and Mohegans had
helped them, but they were never to be relied upon. There is no more
striking proof of the superiority of civilized warfare.
After this, for many years, the Indians of Connecticut were subdued.
They were sometimes annoying, but seldom dangerous, and while the
Dutch were suffering all the terrors of Indian conflict, the New
England settlements remained for forty years in a state of comparative
peace. The heavy expense of this war had fallen upon the people of the
Connecticut valley, and the colony was badly in debt. Its strongest
and best men had been called to military service, leaving the women to
look after the farms, and it seemed as if there might be a great lack of
food for the coming winter. Active measures had to be taken to
prevent this, and every kernel of corn was carefully gathered and
preserved. Companies of home soldiers were well drilled at every

140 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
settlement, and the young colony had begun to feel its strength
and firmness so well now that within eighteen months from this time
the new government adopted a constitution. This constitution was
very simple and eloquent, and said that the people of Connecticut
recognized no allegiance to any other power, not even that of England.
It constituted a popular government, in which all the freemen were
equal before the law, promising to maintain the liberty of the gospel of
our Lord Jesus.
For two hundred years this was the basis of the law of Connecticut.
John Haynes and Edward Hopkins served as Governors for many years,
sometimes one and sometimes the other holding the position. The life
of every man and woman in the community was carefully watched by
the magistrate, and no license of speech was permitted. No one was
allowed to say what he or she thought about the minister's last sermon,
or allowed to laugh at the peculiarities of his or her neighbors. From
the very strictness of the laws, now and then some man or woman
broke out into a strange frenzy of viciousness or crime, which would be
seldom heard of in a less severe community, where light amusements
and diversions are allowed. The stern monotony of life seemed
to make the heart prey upon itself, and the people broke into vice to
supply the necessary excitement. In 1643 a confederation was made,
embracing Massachusetts, Plymouth, Connecticut and New Haven.
Their distance from each other was so great that it was not practical to
have a single government for them all, but they had desired to link the
English plantations together, that they might defend themselves against
the people of several nations and strange languages who were settling
around them. England, occupied with her own troubles, could pay
little attention to her colonies, so they looked for no further help from
the home country. The main object of this confederation was an
offensive and defensive league in case of war. In all other things each
colony held the right of self-government. This was the germ of the
Federal Union, which has grown great among the nations as the United
States of America. FOR FURTHER READING:
History — Penshallow's "Indian Wars in New England."
Biography— Winthrop's "Life and Letters."
Fiction— L. M. Child's "First Settlers of New England."

CHAPTER XXI.

nm.

THE RELIGIOUS LAW OF BOSTON — GORTON AND HIS BELIEFS — THE
SETTLEMENT AT SHEWANET — PERSECUTION OF THE GORTON-
ITES — PERSECUTION OF THE BAPTISTS — THE OBTAINING
OF A ROYAL CHARTER FOR RHODE ISLAND AND THE
PROVIDENCE PLANTATIONS.

HE Boston people had come to America to worship
God in what they believed to be the right way.
If that was the right way, all other ways must be
wrong, and they allowed no one to differ from
them in the smallest shade of belief. When Ann
Hutchinson was driven from among them, they
had hoped that all these ' 'notable errors' ' of belief were
done with, and that God would reward them with con
tinued peace for driving such heresies from their
midst. Indeed, they believed that God devoted the
most of His time and attention to them, and the mis
fortunes of all others were counted to their own glory.
If any one who had opposed them or criticised them
fell sick or met with misfortune, they believed it another
sign of the Lord's care. To be a citizen, it was first
necessary to be a member of the church, and the court
of justice was little more than a religious examining seat. If any one
made remarks upon the preached word or showed any contempt of the
preacher, he was called a "Wanton Gospeller," and stood for two hours
openly upon a block four feet high, on a lecture day, with a paper on
his breast with "A Wanton Gospeller" written thereon in capital
letters. It was this firm belief in their own righteousness which caused
the people of Boston to persecute so many people at different times on
account of religious differences.
One of the men who suffered most from this unforgiving spirit was

142 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
Samuel Gorton. No one of a later day was able to tell just what this
man believed, but it was certain that he believed something different
from the people around him. He was one of the early settlers of
Portsmouth, Rhode Island, and was given to advertising new theories,
and to standing by them in a manner not so wise as it was determined.
He visited both Boston and Plymouth, and while at Plymouth got into
his first fight with the authorities because he defended a servant of his
own family who so far forgot herself as to smile in church, and who was
therefore declared to be a heretic. At length he was driven out,
and, very naturally, went to Acquidneck, Roger Williams' settlement,
where everyone was welcomed. In the year 1641, Gorton bought land
at Pawtuxet. This was where Cranston now stands, and was within
the bounds of Providence. Of the people of Providence, Governor
Winthrop had a very poor opinion. He said that some of them were
against the baptizing of infants, and that others denied all magistracy,
and claiined that Gorton was their captain. ,
Roger Williams managed to keep them (the Gortonites) peaceful for
a time, but at length arguments waxed so hot between them and their
neighbors that blows followed. .A man named Arnold, and a dozen
others, appealed to Massachusetts for aid against Gorton and his friends,
who seemed to have had certain socialistic ideas in regard to land, very
offensive to people used to complicated government. Boston, however,
refused to send help to the people of Pawtuxet, since they did not live
under the government of Massachusetts, as both parties had found
Boston so little to their liking that they had run away from it. They
were not willing to submit themselves to its government again even to
win their point, but at length the quarrels grew so hot that they sent
again to Boston for help. This appeal was sent out by four men, of
whom Arnold was one. These four men submitted themselves to
Boston, with their lands and possessions, and as these were very
desirable, Boston consented to give them help. Having got the lands
in this cheap way, the Massachusetts magistrates gave the four men
leave, if they had a just title to anything which Gorton and his friends
possessed, to proceed against them in court. This they did immediately,
the case being, of course, decided in favor of Arnold and his friends.
By this very simple method, Massachusetts gained possession of that
beautiful garden of the Narragansett.
There were about twelve men of the Gorton party, and these imme
diately deserted their homes and gardens in Pawtuxet, and moved away
in search of a new place. They settled about twelve miles south

THE PRIDE OF THE RIGHTEOUS. 1 43
of Providence,, calling their settlement Shewanet. Before going there
Samuel Gorton sent a remarkable letter to the Boston magistrates,
which set forth all of their religious beliefs. ' The magistrates seemed to
know what it meant, for they found twenty-six blasphemous particulars
in it, though no one since has been able to tell what Gorton's theology
was. The land at Shewanet was bought of Miantonomo, the young
sachem of the Narragansetts, and it was so far from the settlement
of any one else that they hoped they might be left in peace, but Arnold
was not the man to let a personal matter drop so quietly, and he
induced the Indians to say that they had been forced to sign the deed
giving title to Gorton's people, and two small sachems, who were hired
to tell this lie, were received as subjects of the Massachusetts govern
ment. That these two new subjects might be properly protected, the
twelve men of Shewanet were asked to appear before the general court
at Boston. This, Gorton and his friends refused to do, and the colony
sent back a threat which showed the Shewanet people that they were in
danger of their lives. A band of soldiers and Indians charged upon
the village, and the troops did not disdain to level their muskets upon
women and children. Some of the people ran for the woods; others
waded out into the river to reach a boat, which some Providence people,
in pity for their condition, had brought to the place. Though none of
them died at the time, a number died afterward from the exposure and
suffering. The men had not supposed that the Boston troops would
trouble their wives and children, and had fortified themselves in one of
their log houses. They stood the siege for several days, but without firing
a shot — for they did not believe in the shedding of blood. Their
houses were pillaged, their cattle driven off, and their wives and
children, who lurked in the woods near by, were fired at.
At length the Gorton men promised they would yield, and go to
Massachusetts to be tried, if they could go as free men, and not as
prisoners. This the soldiers promised, but as soon as they got in the
house, the arms were taken from the Gorton men and they were marched
off as captives. In Boston, they were received as if they were the most
dangerous and dreadful men.
The clergymen called the people together in the open streets to
thank God for his goodness in giving them the victory, and Governor
Winthrop went out and publicly blessed the soldiers. The trial lasted
four days, and the elders declared that the offense of these men was
deserving of death, but the large body of the delegates would not
permit this sentence. The men were imprisoned. The winter they

144 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
spent in jail did not, however, keep their doctrines from spreading, and
and at length Governor Winthrop thought it best to set them free.
Within three days, however, they were told to depart out of the town
before noon. They had nothing to do once more but to take to the
wilderness, where they lived among the Indians. In time they succeeded
in getting from King Charles a. document which let them pass safely
through any town of New England, and which gave them an order for
the grounds at Shewanet, from which they had been evicted by Arnold
and his friends. Of course, they had much trouble in carrying this
into effect. The Earl of Warwick was the president of the Board of
Commissioners who had seen to the rights of the Gorton party, and in
gratitude Shewanet was named Warwick. Warwick became a part of
Providence plantation under a charter got by Roger Williams, in 1644.
This charter Williams carried to Boston and made them recognize its
power, but they treated him with no more friendliness there than they
did before. He did not need to mind, however, when he was received
at home with so much love. When the people heard that he was
returning, the river was crowded with canoes, and the people gathered
upon the banks to welcome him. This charter gave to the people of
the Providence plantations full power and authority to govern and rule
themselves, and all others who came within their boundaries. It was
the first colonial charter of the sort that had ever been given. When
the first general assembly met under it at Portsmouth, they declared
that the form of government established in Providence plantations was
democratic; that is to say, a government held by the free and voluntary
consent of all, or the greater part of the free inhabitants. It granted
to every one absolute freedom of conscience.
By this time political parties had begun to be felt in America.
Men who had been Whigs and Tories in England, were Whigs and
Tories here, and this declaration of democracy greatly offended the roy
alist party, who thought it an insult to the King. Some of these asked
to be united to Massachusetts, but were refused unless they would allow
that their land came within the Plymouth patent. This, of course,
they would not do. It came about in time that a royal charter was
obtained from Charles II, after he was restored to the throne, which
united Rhode Island and the Providence plantations. The events which
led to this are interesting, and form another chapter in that marvelous
book of religious persecutions which go to make up so great a part in
colonial history.
The Reverend John Clark was one of the most popular citizens of

THE PRIDE OP THE RIGHTEOUS. I45
Rhode Island, and the pastor of the Baptist Church at Newport. The
Baptists were one of the exiled sects who had come within the protec
tion of Roger Williams' strong arm. Holmes and Crandall were also
Baptist ministers, and these three went together to Lynn, in Massa- •
chusetts, to visit one of their faith who was old, sick and blind, and had
desired to see them. While they were visiting this old man they held
divine service in his house, and were arrested by constables for daring
to preach the despised religion on Massachusetts territory. They were
sent to the Boston jail until the court set, and, after ten days' confinement
there, were found guilty of being Baptists. They were sentenced either
to be whipped or pay a fine, and when they .asked what they had been guilty
of, Endicott replied that they denied infant baptism, and John Wilson, the
pastor of the Boston Church, so lost his temper that he struck Holmes.
Friends paid the fine of Clark and Crandall, but Holmes' conscience
would not allow him to be released that he might escape a painful
punishment, so he was led out of the prison into the presence of the
people to be whipped. The coat which he had put on with much
neatness, that he might look worthy of the Lord, was taken from him,
and he was given thirty strokes with a three-corded whip. When the
sheriff had finished, and even the hardest-hearted of the bystanders
turned sick at the sight of his bleeding back, he turned smilingly to
the magistrates by, and said: "You have struck me as with roses."
The political quarrels of the different towns of the Providence
plantations had weakened their government, but the manner in which
these Providence preachers had been treated determined them to see to
$ieir rights in the future, that they might be able to retaliate with
proper force should Massachusetts interfere in this way again. Clark
was sent to England to obtain the royal charter, which he did after
working and waiting for several years.
FOR FURTHER READING:
Biography— Spark's "Gorton."
Fiction— J. Banvard's "Priscilla."
Hawthorne's "Scarlet Letter *'

CHAPTER XXII.
fljrtmglj fnm k fmu.

THE QUAKERS — THEIR PERSECUTION — GEORGE FOX AND HIS FRIENDS
— MARY FISHER AND ANN AUSTIN — THE
^QUAKER CHILDREN.

JEE Boston church seemed to feel for a while that
it had done its duty, but after a time some
strange people were found in their midst, who
were called .Quakers. Once more the church
was up in arms. It wanted to know who the
Quakers were. They found that they were the followers
of George Fox, a man who mingled much poetic
mysticism with the stern and self-denying religion. It is
said that he had the power of perceiving evil thoughts
in others, and could not pass by a wicked person
without stopping to point out the path of reform. His
own life was beautifully pure and sanctified, and it was
certain that he could read minds and influence people
as it is given to only a few to do in this world. The
doctrine of the Friends, as the followers of Fox were called, was to
be at peace with all the world, to put aside vanities and show, to trust
to the guidance of the inner spirit, and to put scholarship and holiness
above gain in all cases. They used no titles, and would not permit
steeples on their churches, and dressed in plain garb of uniform color,
in protest against all the gay ruffling and slashing which they saw in the
streets of England, where Fox was born. Plainness of speech, as well
as plainness of dress, was held to. Fox dressed in a suit of leather, but
it may not have been so much to be different from other men as for the
convenience of having one durable suit to wear upon his long journeys,
and to keep out the damp and cold of the many dungeons in which he
was placed. One of the things which most irritated the magistrates
¦was the habit which the Quakers had of continually wearing their hats,
believing that they should pay no more honor to one person than

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THROUGH PAIN TO PEACE. 149
another, and that it was a waste of time and sense to keep up so foolish
a ceremony. The Friends insisted upon speaking in the churches, and
interrupting the ministers when they overheard a remark to which they
could not give their support. They believed that they had a call to
bear their "message" into the very strongholds of their adversaries, and
sometimes launched speeches against them so fiercely that it is little
wonder that the Puritan ministers were irritated, especially as. the
Quakers objected to their receiving any money for their services. The
fight they made against "hireling religion" was very bitter. The
personal life of the Quakers was thoroughly pure. Indeed, to such a
high strain did their minds grow, that it is difficult for any one in this
busy and more commonplace age, to appreciate the fervor and beauty
of their visions, their sacrifices, and their prophesies.
The Friends were first called Quakers by Justice Bennett, of Derby,
in 1650, because the people trembled or quaked when they listened to
the powerful words of Fox. Fox even had the courage when he was
taken to London, in 1654, as a prisoner, and lodged in the old Mermaid
Tavern, which Shakspeare and his friends made famous, to write to
Cromwell, protesting against the drawing of the sword of war. The
English had grown to fear the Quakers, even before they came to America.
In July, 1656, the first Quakers came to Boston. These were Mary
Fisher and Ann Austin, who were imprisoned upon their arrival and
sent back to the Barbadoes, from whence they had come. Mary Fisher
had traveled, not alone over Europe, but in parts of Asia, preaching
the word, and in the autumn of 1653, three years before her imprison
ment at Boston, she had preached to the Cambridge students. Endicott
was absent, when the ' 'Swallow' ' arrived, with Mary Fisher and Ann
Austin on board, but the deputy governor had their baggage searched, and
all of their books and tracts taken, and an order was issued, which was
the first act of Massachusetts against the Quakers, in which the women
were called preachers of corrupt, heretical, and blasphemous doctrines.
While they were at Boston they were confined in the jail, with the
windows boarded up. No one was allowed to speak to them, or render
them any assistance. They were stripped, and examined for signs of
witchcraft, but as they fortunately had no moles or freckles upon them,
they were cleared of that charge. The people were even cautioned not
to feed them, but Nicolas Upshall, an old gentleman of Boston, who
held very grave ideas of justice, gave the jailor money to provide for
them. He was arrested and thrown in jail, and upon release, was
exiled. They would not receive him at Plymouth, and he went to live

150 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
among the Indians, who had a friendly feeling for any who, like them
selves, had the Puritan religion so obnoxiously thrust at them. The
Swallow was barely out of sight, when a vessel from London arrived
with eight Friends on board. Their boxes and chests were immediately
searched for ' 'hellish pamphlets, ' ' and, after many questions, they were
sent to jail. They were ordered to return on the vessel which brought
them, and when the master refused to take them at his own expense,
he was imprisoned until he yielded. The people became dissatisfied
with measures which could not be sustained by the laws of the colony,
and on October 14th a law was passed which made every ship-master
bringing Quakers to New England subject to a payment of one hundred
pounds, or imprisonment until the money was forthcoming. Any
Quakers who arrived should be put in the house of correction, severely
whipped, kept at constant labor, and forbidden to talk with any one.
There were also fines for bringing or sending Quaker tracts to the
colony. Four of the federate colonies adopted this, but Rhode Island
refused, and very cleverly held that the Quakers would not care to come
to Rhode Island if they were not persecuted for doing so. Not that the
Quakers had any desire to become notorious, or wished a vain martyr
dom, but they naturally insisted upon trying to reform and soften the
people who most reviled them.
It is not necessary to repeat the particulars of each of their abuses
of these gentle Friends. They were all much alike in cruelty, and it
became common to whip them from town to town and to keep them for
many days in jail without food, with not even a bunch of straw to lie
upon. The instrument used for whipping them was a three-corded
knout, with knots tied in it. But the more the people suffered, the
more converts they made. No one was allowed to entertain a Quaker
without punishment, but for all of that, plenty of kind hearts were
found who were willing to shelter them. Women were stripped naked
and whipped, and one of them was whipped with a little babe only a
few days old clinging to her breast.
Even the little children did not escape. Lawrence and Cassandra
Southwick were banished from the colony under penalty of death,
leaving behind them their poor little boy and girl in extreme poverty.
They were fined for not attending regular worship, and having no
money to pay the fine, were to be sold as slaves. It was hoped that
they might bring ten pounds each, and so the treasury got the money
which it ached for, but not a sea captain in the port of Boston would
take them away, and the magistrates had no choice but to let them stay.

THROUGH PAIN TO PEACE. 151
Another little child, Mary Wright, fourteen years of age, whose sister
had been banished from Massachusetts, found her way from Long Island
to Boston, that she might protest against the cruelty they were showing
to these innocent people. Her words were so simple that even the
hardened men about her were moved, and the secretary cried: "What!
shall we be battled by such a one as this? Come, let us drink a dram. ' '
Sweet Mary Dyer, hearing of some friends in prison, visited them,
and was arrested for it and put under the same roof. She was banished,
but returned to Boston to again visit the persecuted Friends, bringing
with her linen to wrap the dead bodies of those who were to suffer.
With her came a party of Friends, four of whom were women. They
had guessed right; some were to suffer death, and Mary Dyer was one
of them. The 27th of August she and two men were led to the Boston
Common, with a great force of soldiers about them, and the drums
beating. Mary Dyer walked- as if to some great victory, with a smile
upon her face. The two men were hung, and just as they had tied
Mary Dyer's clothes about her feet a cry came ringing across the
Common announcing a reprieve, which her young son had got for her.
She was banished, but in a few months returned again to Boston. It
was required of her, she said, to take her message there. Her husband
wrote a letter begging that she might be spared, but Endicott would
show no mercy, and the tender appeal for Friend Dyer's "most dearly
beloved wife" only irritated him, so on a certain sad day, with a strong
body of soldiers about her, for fear of the people who were moved to
much pity in her case, she was led to the Common and hung there, for
others to take example by, so her judges said.
The last man to be hung on Boston Common was William Leddra,
who had dared to return after having been banished. He came into
the court dragging a log behind him to which he was bound with chains,
and answered all questions put to him with a fearlessness which all of
his sect showed. But by this time the severity of the judges began to
defeat itself. The people could not stand such cruelty, and they were
frightened by the wild prophecies of Wenlock Christison. He was
whipped through Boston, Roxbury and Dedham, and cast into the
wilderness, but his prophecies remained behind him to frighten and
subdue the people, for oddly enough many of them came true.
At length the King of England put a stop to the cruelty with which
the Quakers were being treated, and the order was placed in the hands
of Samuel Shattock, a Quaker, who had been banished from Boston
under penalty of death. When Shattock walked before Endicott, with

152

THE STORY OP AMERICA.

his hat upon his head, he was met with the usual brutal questions, but
when he showed his order, Governor Endicott, overcome with mortifica
tion, yet not forgetting his courtesy to an embassy from his sovereign,
replaced the hat which he had snatched from Shattock' s head and
removed his own. The King ordered that all prisoners should be sent
to England. This, it goes without saying, Endicott and his friends
would not dare permit. They, settled the question by dismissing the
prisoners. However, the cruelties against the Quakers were revived
later, and men and women were frequently tied to the end of a cart and
whipped from town to town.
The last time a Quaker was imprisoned was at the time of Endicott' s
burial. An old woman, sixty-five years of age, made some remarks,
true but not savory, about the dead magistrate. These persecutions
lasted ten years in all, until again the King interfered, sending to Massa
chusetts and Connecticut orders that all persons of civil lives would
fully enjoy the liberty of their conscience.
FOR FURTHER READING:
History— Mather's "Magnalia3'
Poetry— Whittier's "Cassandra Southwick."
Longfellow's "John Endicott."

Charles i, of England. (From the painting by Anton van Dyck.)

CHAPTER XXIII.

Hip IJfltpfisi iolontj rf Yirginm*
GOVERNOR BERKELEY AND HIS REIGN — MORE TROUBLE WITH THE
INDIANS — THE PURITANS AGAIN VICTORIOUS — THE
RETURN OP THE STUARTS
j TO POWER.
FTER King Charles I had been beheaded, and
7 Cromwell, the great dictator, ruled, many of those
who had stood by the King, and were now in dis
favor and poverty, hastened to the Virginian
colony. This was the only one of all the colonies
which had steadfastly believed in the cause of the
King. So the disappointed royalists of England
were glad to come by hundreds to the only spot in the
New World in which all that they loved'was respected
— where they could have the church service which
they wished, and where no one reviled the dead King.
They brought with them their old ways. Used to the
life of court and camp, they lived carelessly, spending
their money without thought of its value, and caring
little for the rights of those poorer or less powerful than themselves.
They were a merry and elegant set, and even when their clothes were
worn to rags, they were still wonderfully polite and lordly in their
manners. One of the pleasantest chronicles of colonial life has been left by one
of the men who came over iri the way described. This was Colonel
Norwood, a young man of much bravery and originality, who was
wrecked with his company on an island near Virginia. They starved
there for ten days, and were taken to the mainland by a party of Indians
who chanced to pass. Among the Indians they were treated with much
kindness, and finally were guided from plantation to plantation through
the hospitable Virginian colony until they reached the settlement. In
these careless and genial old days, hospitality was not alone a matter of

154 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
impulse. There was a law ordering that any stranger coming to the
house should be cared for as a guest, unless an agreement in writing
was made with him before he entered. It can easily be imagined that
not one person in a thousand would do such a thing, especially in an
age where inhospitality was considered the worst of crimes.
After Governor Harvey had been sent back by the King to govern
Virginia, the troubles between Maryland and Virginia continued to
grow worse. In course of time he was succeeded by Sir Francis Wyat,
and he, in time, by Sir William Berkeley, the best known of the James
town governors. He came to Jamestown early in 1642, amid the
enthusiasm of the people. Nothing was so dear to him as his King,
and he followed the royal commands in everything. Under his rule
the colony prospered. But the colony took some very ill-advised
measures, and in 1643 enacted laws which broke up the Puritan
churches. When, a little later, there was a sudden rising among the
Indians, and a great number of Virginian planters were killed, the
Puritans saw in it a meting out of God's justice to their persecutors.
The Indians were treated as enemies, and it was declared that there
should be no peace between them and the whites, and that a savage
might be shot whenever he was seen. The Indians planned a cunning
revenge, and killed from three hundred to five hundred of the English
in return for this cruel law. But for some reason which has never been
explained, they drew off and retreated to the woods, instead of con
tinuing their slaughter, as they might easily have done. This was
twenty-two years after the Virginian massacre, which had so nearly
extinguished the colony. But now the province was of more than
thirty years' standing, with good rulers and well-organized means of
defence. All the forces of the colony were turned upon the Indians,
and they were driven from one point to another, many of them taken
prisoners, and, finally, the great chief who ruled over all of those lands
where Powhatan had once been King, was taken and brought to
Jamestown. This chief's name was Opechancanough. He was nearly
one hundred years old, and so crippled with paralysis that he could not
even open his eyes to look at his victors, who crowded about him as he
lay dying in prison. It had been the intention to take him to England
to show the people there a man who had kept the colony in a state of
terror for years, but he was cruelly shot by one of his guards, and so had
the good fortune to die in his own country which he had loved deeply
and fought for with extraordinary fierceness.
During all the time of the great Revolution in England, the Virginian

OLIVER CROMWELL.
Cut on wood, in imitation of the mezzotint of I. Faber, 1740. Painting by P. Lely, 1653.

THE ROYALIST COLONY OF VIRGINIA. 1 57
colony was in a state of unusual prosperity. Tobacco was the chief
export, and even in the midst of the war, men would not stop using
tobacco ; therefore, their income did not decrease. In England, there
was no time to attend to colonial affairs, and Virginia grew stronger
under home rule. There was plenty of skilled labor among the fifteen
thousand Englishmen who made up the colony, and smelting works,
hemp and flax culture, vine-raising, indigo-making, and the manufacture
of bricks succeeded well. The plantations grew, and in the midst of
them were built those hospitable, porch-surrounded mansions which we
still associate with the colonial period. More than thirty vessels
brought out English goods every year, and took back cargoes of native
productions. Virginia had had the courage to openly denounce the execution of
King Charles I, and had made a law calling it treason for any one to
speak against him, so in 1650 the Parliament in England said that there
should be no more trade with these uncompliant colonies, and sent over
commissioners to force allegiance to Cromwell. With these commis
sioners came a regiment of soldiers and one hundred and fifty prisoners
of war, who were to be sold as servants in Virginia. They demanded
the surrender of Jamestowri, and' it was found necessary to yield. The
Puritans were more than a religious party at this time. They were a
political party as well, both in England and America, and Cromwell's
men who came to demand the surrerider of the Virginian colonies
represented the Puritans. The terms of the surrender were not unkind,
and even gave consent that the common prayer book should be used for
the next year. Consideration was shown Governor Berkeley and his
officers, and they were given liberty to sell their estates, if they wished
to leave the colony. A government was established, with William
Clayborne and Richard Bennett at its head. They were men highly
esteemed and very generous in their government. Clayborne, although
he had had such quarrelsome experiences with Maryland, was a very
sensible and clever gentleman, from one of the best families of England,
and was one of the strongest upholders of the Protestant faith. Though
he did not forget his old troubles with Maryland, and the serious
grievance he had against Lord Baltimore, he was, nevertheless, con-'
siderate at first in his government of Maryland, now that it was partly
in his power.
Governor Stone, now at the head of the Maryland colony, was the
second Governor since Leonard Calvert. The few months that followed
the triumph of Cromwell were very bewildering to Governor Stone.

158 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
Now he would have a message from the Long Parliament, saying that
he must proclaim to his subjects the supremacy of the Dictator and give
an oath of fidelity, and again would receive indignant letters from Lord
Baltimore, saying that he owed allegiance to him. Several times he
issued different manifestoes, until finally Bennett and Clayborne them
selves made a proclamation saying that Maryland belonged to the
Protector, and removing the Catholic officers, they appointed a Board of
Puritan Commissioners.
So at length the Puritans, who had been so much abused, began to
be the stronger party in both countries. They were men of determined
characters, who believed that God led them in everything. Lord
Baltimore protested against the easy way in which Stone had yielded
to the Puritan will, and under his influence Stone gathered his forces
and seized the State archives and all the arms and ammunition he could
find. Then he took his force of two hundred men and embarked on
twelve boats, which went up Chesapeake Bay to Severn, opposite Kent
Island, where the Puritans were settled. Stone intended to enforce
their submission. In the Severn was a large ship, the Golden Lion,
which sent out shots among the advancing fleet as they came into the
harbor, and Stone hurried his vessels farther up the creek and took his
men on shore, with a good deal of noise and bluster. But while they
were gone, the Puritans took possession of all their vessels, sending a
detachment by land to force the Catholics up the peninsula. While
they were retreating, they suddenly met one hundred and twenty men
who had come out from Providence to meet them. With enemies on
both sides it was necessary to fight, so crying, ' 'Hey for St. Marys, ' '
they rushed at the enemy. But the Puritans cried, ' 'In the name of
God, fall on; God is our strength," and elated with that stern frenzy
which carried them through such awful trials, they killed and wounded
fifty of the Catholics and took all but four or five prisoners. Only four of
the Puritans died in consequence of the engagement. Four of the
leaders were killed, and Governor Stone was sentenced to death, but
some of the Puritans begged for his life and he was spared.
And now a letter came from the Protector, forbidding the Virginians
to have anything to do with the affairs of Maryland until the bound
aries could be settled. Lord Baltimore was permitted to send out a
deputy governor to keep his colony quiet, but it was two years before
matters were settled, and the liberal laws of Maryland ratified by the
English government. For several years all went well in Virginia.
Bennett resigned his office in favor of Edward Diggs, who was followed,

THE ROYALIST COLONY OF VIRGINIA. 159
in turn, by Governor Mathews. There were still two distinct political
parties in Virginia, but their interests were too closely allied for them
to keep quarreling with each other, and in these peaceful years many
laws were passed which were of great value to the colonists.
After Cromwell died, the Puritans began to lose strength in Virginia,
and when King Charles II was put on the throne of his father in
England, the old royalist party of Virginia once more became the ruling
power, and Sir William Berkeley was elected Governor. He sent a
glad letter to the King telling how happy he was to serve the royal
family again, and a day was set apart to the memory of King Charles
I, to be kept alive by yearly feast on the 13th of January. Berkeley
did not put the distinguished Puritans out of office, but let them
continue under him. The House of Representatives was not to
meet unless there was positive need for it, so it, chanced that for
fifteen years there was no popular election. Tobacco currency was the
money used in paying the State officers, and the salary of the Governor
was equal to the whole annual expenditure of the colony of Connecticut.
The slavery of negroes was steadily increasing, and a law was made
condemning all children of mixed blood to serve as slaves for life.
There were a great many white slaves, also, brought from the jails and
slums of England, and these were much lower than the blacks, for they
were vicious, while the negroes were only ignorant. The Church of
England once more became the established church of the colony, but
the Puritans were not persecuted, although they were held in check
and not allowed to preach, even in private. In 1662 a fine was imposed
upon all persons who would not subscribe to the orthodox religion. The
Quakers here, as elsewhere, were held in disfavor, and many of them
were driven into North Carolina. Penalties were still imposed for the
purpose of making the colonists raise more corn and less tobacco, for
the supply of tobacco was greater than the demand for it.
The English made an effort to confine all the foreign trade to them
selves, but this they found it very difficult to do. In 1663 a plot was
discovered to overthrow the government. This may have been the
outcome of the discontent which the people felt at having these trade
laws enforced. The plot was discovered and four of the ring-leaders
hung. After this a day was set for thanksgiving for the defeat of the
conspiracy, on the 13th of September.
FOR FURTHER READING:
Fiction— W. A. Carruthers' "The Cavaliers of Virginia."

CHAPTER XXIV.

u

kfy far Jit ffenpr

THE COLONY OF VIRGINIA — THE INDIANS — THE UPRISING OF BACON AND
HIS FRIENDS — RESTRICTION OF THE GOVERNOR'S RIGHTS —
BACON USURPS THE GOVERNMENT — RETURN OP
BERKELEY — DESERTION OF JAMESTOWN —
DEATH OF BACON — BREAKING UP
OF BACON'S PARTY.

(-IRGINIA was founded upon a wrong basis. In
1670 there were forty thousand people under the
Virginian government. The militia of the province
mustered eight thousand men. Of these forty
thousand, two thousand were negro slaves and six
thousand were white servants bound for a term of
years. Many of these were soldiers who had risked
their lives for liberty in England, and failing, had been
brought as prisoners of war to the colonies. Every year
fifteen hundred white servants were brought over, and
the reason that the colony was not much greater was
that four-fifths of them, when put upon the new planta
tions, died. They had but little clothing and but poor
shelter, for money was not plenty. In England, the
price of tobacco had been reduced, and the price of goods which the
tobacco was sent in exchange for had been raised to extravagant prices.
The Virginia planter, therefore, got but little, and as they all took it
upon themselves to maintain large mansions and generously entertain
great numbers of guests, they economized at the expense of their slaves.
The colony was not a religious one at any time, and though Mary
land and Virginia did quarrel upon religious grounds, this was but a cover
for politics. It is true that there were forty-eight parishes in the colony,
but most of these were illy provided with ministers. Nearly all of
them were sixty or seventy miles in extent, and could not have

"HEY, FOR ST. MARY'S !" l6l
been well attended to even by the most zealous ministers, which
the Virginian clergymen were not. They liked the free living of the
colony as well as did their flocks, and were not held in much awe.
There were no free schools in the colony, nor was there any printing,
for which Governor Berkeley was sincerely thankful. The taxes grew
worse from year to year, and the officers of the government more purse-
proud and arrogant. The people had no voice in the government at all.
Finally, in 1673, the whole colony was given as a present by the King
to two of his favorites, Lord Culpepper and the Earl of Arlington.
This meant more taxes, and the people became thoroughly discon
tented. The Indians, also, were a great source of annoyance and
anxiety to them, and the colonists wished to organize an armed force
for protection, but Governor Berkeley was afraid of injuring the Indian
trade, from which he drew a large revenue, and would not permit the
people to organize for defense. But when a quiet farmer was found
murdered at his own door, the colonists determined to take revenge,
regardless of what the government might say. Two forces, one under
Captain Brent and the other under Colonel Mason, started out. They
invaded two wigwams, killing at least twenty-four Indians. This was
the signal for a general Indian war. Four great Indian tribes united to
take revenge — the Susquehannocks, Doegs, Senecas and Piscataways.
Both in Maryland and Virginia the planters were badly alarmed, and
they united in an expedition, sending out one thousand men, with
Colonel John Washington and Major Thomas Truman, of Maryland.
They surrounded the fort where the Susquehannocks had taken refuge,
and were cruel enough to kill five of the chiefs who came out to peace
fully parley with them. Such a dishonorable act, opposed as it was to
all rules of warfare, brought a severe reproof from the Governor and
Council. But the Indians entered upon a systematic revenge. Before
spring came, sixty of the colonists had been killed upon their farms,
and the Indians were forever lurking in the shadow of the bushes, and
under the river banks. No one felt safe. The people crowded together
in the strongest houses, and at night barricaded their windows, and
slept with their arms beside them.
The colonists begged the Governor to give them some protection,
but that rich old gentleman, rapidly making money for himself,
and contented with his own fine living, paid no attention to their
appeals. The young men, especially, became indignant at his selfish
ness and carelessness, and made up their minds that if he did not come
to their aid, they would give open war on their own account. Among

1 62 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
the young men was Nathaniel Bacon, who lived upon an estate called
"Curies," not far from Richmond, where Bacon Quarter Branch still
stands. He had a plantation, and it chanced that his overseer upon
this place was one of the unfortunates on whom the Indians chose to
take their revenge. Bacon was much attached to his overseer and he
swore that these outrages must be stopped. Though he was not
yet thirty, he was such a daring and independent young man that all of
his neighbors looked to him as their leader, and when he had sent again
to the Governor, asking him for a commission against the Indians, and
been met with silence, he determined to march out against the savages,
regardless of consequences. A large force of men gathered about him ;
but even after that, Bacon sent once more to the Governor asking for a
commission. As it did not come, they started on their march. They had
gone but a little way when they were overtaken by a messenger from
the Governor calling them all rebels, and forbidding them to proceed in
any warlike action. The question was, then, whether any of them
dare disobey the government of the colony. Fifty-seven of them had
the courage, and went on with Bacon into the forest, but some of them
feared that their property would be confiscated, and deserted him. In
a short time they had annihilated the tribe of the Susquehannocks and
returned to their farms.
The Governor had sent a troop of horses after the ' 'rebels, " as he
called them, and while the capital was thus deserted a revolt broke out
among the planters at the south of Jamestown, so that when the
Governor returned he found everything in such a turbulent condition
that he had to yield to some of the demands of the citizens. They
asked that they might no longer be taxed for the several useless forts
which their hard-earned money had to support, and also that the
assembly, which had not been changed for fifteen years, might be
dissolved, and the people allowed to elect their officers. It showed how
well the people thought of Bacon that he was one of the new members
elected. Bacon, confident and proud, came promptly to Jamestown,
notwithstanding the fact that the title of ' 'rebel' ' still hung over him.
Governor Berkeley met him in great state. ' 'Mr. Bacon, ' ' said he,
' 'have you forgotten how to be a gentleman ?' ' ' 'No, may it please
your honor, ' ' the young man replied. ' 'Then I will take your parole, ' '
said the Governor. Later, in the presence of all the assembly, Bacon
delivered a written apology to the Governor for his independent and
headstrong actions. The Governor seemed to be really attached to
him — and indeed few could help admiring his courage and brilliancy. But

"HEY, FOR ST. MARY'S !" 1 63
Bacon did not trust the Governor, and thought he was trying to deceive
him, and he ran away from Jamestown to rejoin his neighbors. Some
people say that he was afraid he would be arrested again, and
that he had to flee for his life. Perhaps he did think so, but it is
hardly possible that the stern old Governor would have dared to treat a
young man of high family so, although he was careless enough of the
lives of the poor. In a few days, Bacon came marching back to James
town, with an army of five hundred men. The Governor tried to
gather the militia about him, but their sympathies were with Bacon,
and in a short time the insurgents were in the capital, camped
upon the green near the State House, and holding all the streets. The
assembly was called together, and Bacon stood by the corner of the
State House, guarded by a double file of soldiers.
Berkeley came out on the steps, while the assembly hung out of the
windows and cried to Bacon to shoot him, but the young rebel swore
that he would not hurt a hair of his head nor any other man's, but that
he wanted a commission to save the lives of his neighbors from the
Indians, and reminded the Governor that he had often promised to give it
to him and had broken his word. When the Governor turned and walked
away, followed by the council, and Bacon saw that no attention was
to be paid to his command, he grew furious, and swearing that he would
kill Governor, council and assembly, and himself last, told his men to
point their fusils at the windows. All the people shouted for the
commission, and finally a handkerchief was waived from the window in
sign of peace. The soldiers were sent away, and Bacon went alone to
the assembly room, giving them some of his hot eloquence. But every
one was afraid to act, and the Governor would do nothing. By morning
the Governor changed his mind. He probably saw that there was
nothing to do but to yield. Bacon got his commission, and immediately
began organizing one thousand men to start a campaign against the
Indians. After the Governor had .yielded one point, he was forced by the people
to yield many. The Governor's fees were restricted, and he was no
longer allowed to have a monopoly of the foreign trade. Taxes were
regulated upon a certain system; so hot and furious did the members of
the assembly grow in-talking over these matters that many feuds were
started in Virginia families, which continued over one hundred years.
As soon as Bacon's back was turned; the Governor once more declared
him to be a rebel, but when he ventured to say this before twelve
hundred men whom he had collected about him for the purpose of

164 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
forming a militia, they turned their backs upon him and deserted, and
let the fields ring with their cries of "Bacon!" "Bacon!" As soon
as Bacon learned that he was once more proclaimed an outlaw, he
promptly marched to meet the Governor, who fled hurriedly across the
Chesapeake, leaving the province of Virginia to the will of his vigorous
young opponent. Practically, Bacon was now Governor, and he began
reorganizing immediately, calling a convention for the purpose of
revising the laws. The matter was a very grave one, and the men who
stood about Bacon knew that at any time they might be defeated and
suffer the penalties of rebellion. The national revolution itself did not
call for sterner constancy.
One of the best inspirations of these men was a lady, Mrs.
Drummond the wife of one of Bacon's closest councilors. Her advice
was followed in many matters, for she was a woman of great spirit and
eloquence, and seemed to influence all who came near her.
But Berkeley was not without friends, and succeeded, through the
treachery of some of Bacon's men, in getting possession of an armed
fleet. As soon as the royalists through the country saw that there was
a show of success for the Governor's arms, they came flocking to him,
and in a short time he was in possession of a very large force. He took
Jamestown on September 17th, and at once re-established the old form
of government and reinstated his friends in their places. Bacon had
dealt some terrible blows to the Indians, and thinking that there was
no need of keeping his men from their plantations, had allowed his army
to dissolve. He called them together again and hurried across the
country to the capital. Throwing up some rude breastworks on a hill,
he awaited the attack of the Governor. It is said that he captured
certain Virginian ladies from Jamestown, and taking them to his camp,
sent word that he would hold them as hostages, and that they were to
be placed before his men, in case the people of the town should make a
sally upon them. If this was the case, it was no wonder that the men
of Jamestown could not make a respectable defence. The gentle
women, be it said, were safely returned in course of time. Berkeley
and his friends fled from Jamestown, getting upon their boats in the
night and taking away their household goods, and everything, either of
private or state nature, belonging to them. When Bacon entered the
town in the morning, he found a deserted city, in which there was not
¦even victuals for his men. He determined that the wasteful and
arrogant cavaliers should never return, and ordered his army to set fire
±0 the city. Every house in Jamestown was burned to the ground.

"HEY, FOR ST. MARY'S!" 1 65
Thus perished the oldest English settlement in America. Bacon
settled at Gloucester Point, and from there continued his raids upon the
Indians, but in the midst of his victories he sickened and died. To this
day the people of Virginia have not ceased to quarrel about the character
of Bacon. A man so brilliant and determined could not but have warm
friends and warmer foes. His party did not live long after his death.
As soon as Berkeley heard what had happened, he sent out a force which
captured several of the leading rebels. A proclamation of peace was
made xfrom which Bacon's friends were excepted. At length their
stronghold at West Point was lost. Drummond, Bacon's dear friend,
was taken. The old cavalier Governor met him with much ceremony,
and said, with a show of courtliness, "Mr. Drummond, you are more
than welcome. I am more glad to see you than any other man in
Virginia. Mr. Drummond, you shall be hanged within half an hour. ' '
Worse, his accomplished wife and het five little children were driven
out from the town into the forest. Many of the rebels were killed, and
the bones of Bacon were everywhere looked for, that they might be hung
in chains upon the gibbet, but to this day the place of his burial has
never been discovered.
Affairs became so serious after a time, what with imprisonment,
banishment, confiscation of property and many sorts of tortuous punish
ments, that the King sent some trusted men from England to inquire
into the state of affairs. Berkeley was taken to England, where he died
without having had a chance to defend his conduct to the King whose
approval he had always been so anxious for. It is said that he died of
a broken heart, because the King disapproved of his conduct, and called
him an old fool. Bacon had shown the people how strong they were,
and planted in the colony a stern determination to preserve legislative
rights. When the time of the national revolution came, Virginia was
one of the strongest pillars of the new edifice.
FOR FURTHER READING:
Fiction — Carruther's "The Cavalier of Virginia."
Carruther's "The Knights of the Horseshoe."

CHAPTER XXV.

JJtdj for If tm$$If+

THE CAROLINAS — THE PROPRIETORS AND THEIR* "GRAND MODEL"-
THE ALBEMARLE SETTLEMENT — REMOVAL OP CHARLES
TON — THE SPANISH BUCCANEERS — SETH
SOTHELL — QUAKER RULE.

' T is odd that the beautiful stretch of coast lying
between Florida and Virginia should so long have
escaped permanent settlement. Possibly there
were many unknown settlements of a quiet nature
upon it, and that many a coaster had landed upon
its fruitful shores and strayed among its silken
grasses. It is known that one Quaker, by the name of
George Durant, who was fond of solitude, built a cabin
on the Chowan river, and paddled his canoe about
between the banks of moss-hung trees. A company of
New England men had also purchased land at the mouth
of Cape Fear river, but for some mysterious reason left
the settlement and their herds of cattle behind them,
returning to New England with a very bad report of the
spot they had visited. But it is quite possible that they were too indo
lent to undergo the hardships of new colonization, or that their treat
ment of the Indians obliged them to leave. They left a paper hidden
in a post, warning everyone who landed there against the country.
This paper was found by a company of men from Barbadoes, but they
were not dissuaded from settling there, the country "lying commo-
diously by the river's side" being more eloquent than the written words
of the men from New England. These settled about twenty or thirty
miles up Cape Fear river.
A very short time after this, settlement under a king's charter was
made in this country. The King gave to certain gentlemen all the ter
ritory, which included the present States of North and South Carolina

EACH FOR HIMSELP. 167
and Georgia, with the usual indefinite western boundary. The pro
prietors to whom the King gave this present were nine noble lords, one
of them being Clarendon, Lord Chancellor of England, another being
Duke of Albemarle, who was the leader in the restoration of the King
to the throne. Besides these were Lord Berkeley and the Earl of
Shaftesbury. These men laid great plans for their colony. It was to
be the model settlement of the world. The constitution was prepared
by John Locke, the great philosopher and statesman. So carefully pre
pared was this fundamental constitution that the colonies had already
been established three years before they were finished. It is really worth
while to quote from this ' 'Grand Model. ' ' Eight proprietors were to
be constituted lords, the eldest to be Palatine of the province, and
upon his death the eldest of the survivors to succeed him. Seven other
offices, of admiral, chamberlain, chancellor, constable, chief justice,
high steward and treasurer, were to be divided among the others — the
eldest always to have choice of a vacant place. All the rights of
property were hereditary in the male line; in lack of direct male heirs,
male descendants through the female line succeeded, and after them,
heirs general. There were orders of hereditary nobility called land
graves and cassiques. The domains of the proprietors were called
seigniories. Every seigniory, barony and colony contained twelve
thousand acres; each county four hundred and eighty thousand acres,
of which three-fifths were to be owned by the people and two-fifths by
the hereditary nobility. There was an absolute prohibition against the
entrance of any common people into the titled class, and the highest
dignity to which a common man might attain was to become lord of the
manor, which manor must consist of not less than three thousand
or more than twelve thousand acres. There was another small honor
to be gained under the jurisdictipn of the lords of the seigniory. The
men who attained to this dignity were called Leetmen. There were
eight supreme courts and very elaborate laws for a parliament. The
very amusements of the children were arranged, as well as the fashions
of the women's gowns. All entertainments and decorations, marriages,
burials, and every other circumstance and happening of home-life, was
arranged for as accurately as if men were dices upon a chess-board.
In the three years that Locke spent preparing this remarkable and
elaborate system of government, two colonies had become very well
established in Carolina, as the proprietors called their new possession.
On May 29, 1664, Sir John Yeamans brought over the first expedition.
The province of which Yeamans was appointed Governor extended

1 68 THE STORY OP AMERICA.
fr«m Cape Fear to the St. Johns, in Florida. Sir William Berkeley, of
Virginia, was asked by the proprietors to establish a government on the
Chowan. At the head of this he placed William Drummond, the man
who afterwards was Bacon's faithful friend in the Virginian revolution.
This settlement was called Albemarle, and here, while this wonderful
piece of law-making for their benefit was going on over in England,
the busy people of the settlement had made practical and simple laws
quite sufficient for their needs.
The fact that they could never be more than leetmen or lords of
manors, was not troubling them at all. They were building houses and
canoes, clearing land and planting fields, quite unconscious of the fact
that a great, imaginary population of landgraves and cassiques was going
to watch over them. The New England people began to come down and
settle along the coast, and a company of Bermuda people had taken up
lands by the Pasquotank river.
Inducements were offered by the settlement at Albemarle to
English maidens and widows, promising them honest and stalwart hus
bands if 'they were dnly civil and under fifty years of age. The colony
had also the appearance of offering a refuge to runaway debtors, for it
had a law which permitted no debt contracted outside of Albemarle to
be sued for within five years. As a consequence, the reckless spend
thrifts of London found this a very convenient place of abode. Marriage
was a civil contract, probably because there were so few ministers in
the colony. There was no wish to discourage colonial lovers by making
their wedding difficult. As for the great fundamental constitution, no
one paid any attention to it, and though some men rejoiced in the title
of landgraves and cassiques, their inferiors gave them little added
respect on this account, and the ' 'Great Model' ' was finally rejected by
the assembly of South Carolina in 1698.
In July, 1669, Captain William Sayie was sent over with the first
expedition which the proprietors had directly made. Sayie was com-
.missioned Governor of that part of Carolina lying south and west
of Cape Carteret, or Cape Romain, as it is now called. Sayie and
Joseph West reached Port Royal in January of 1670, and finally chose
a place for settlement on Ashley river. This they named Charleston,
which still bears the name that they then gave it. This colony did not
succeed very well, for the proprietors kept a heavy drain upon their
treasury. Most of the hard labor was done by negro slaves. There
were too few industrious and worthy men in the country, and far
too many of the dissipated and vicious class of English criminals. Sir

EACH FOR HIMSELF. 1 69
John Yeaman's management had been extendea over these people with
whom he was unpopular, and when he retired he had a large fortune,
wrenched from the people and the Indians. Joseph West was appointed
Governor in his place. West was immensely popular, and affairs, under
his administration, began to improve immediately.
Meanwhile, the people of Albemarle had begun to express open
discontent, and sent an address to the proprietors asking for a Governor
who could understand their necessities. Many plans were tried, and a
great deal of money spent on these people, who seemed unreasonably
hard to manage. Governor after Governor was tried, but none proved
efficient, and at length Seth Sothell arrived, in 1683, to take his position
as Governor, to which he had been appointed some time before, but
having been stolen by the Turks on his way over, had been held in
captivity for some time. While Albemarle was passing through aV
this trouble in Northern Carolina, Charleston, under the management
of Joseph West, was continuing in prosperity. It is true that there
were feuds between the Puritans of New England, who had come
down, and the royalists whom the proprietors in Old England had sent
out. The Huguenots of France also came here, and a large company
of French artisans and farmers, who understood silk manufacture, vine
growing, etc.
As for the people on the Ashley river, they saw that they had made
a mistake in settling so far up the stream, and in 1680 the old town
was abandoned and the foundation of a new Charleston laid upon the
present site of the city of that name. As they had time to lay this
with care, they saw to it that the streets were large and capacious, and
that good spots were reserved' for the building of churches and a town
house, and artillery grounds for the exercise of their militia, and
wharfs for the convenience of their trade and shipping. The people
came to this colony in great numbers, from England, Ireland and the
•West Indies. It goes without saying that the manners of this mixed
company were rather loose, though for this very reason less likely to have
severe church and political differences. West was a man of determina
tion, and saw to it that his militia was kept well armed and the colony
well protected from the Indians. But out of their greed for money
grew a most dishonorable method of conflict, which placed a price upon
the head of every Indian captive, who was then sold to slave traders.
When this was brought to the notice of the proprietors, however, -they
put an immediate stop to this barbarous practice. The old Spanish
buccaneers found Charleston a most convenient retreat, and so careless

170 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
were they with their money, and such good drinkers and story-tellers,
that the citizens encouraged their coming, and when one of the
Governors imprisoned some of them, the people protested so that he
was obliged to release them.
One act of cruelty on their part, however, brought about the enmity
of the Carolinians. A company of Scotch Presbyterians had come,
under the leadership of Lord Cardross, and made a settlement at Port
Royal, in 1684. Three Spanish galleys appeared suddenly before this
little colony in 1686, and destroyed the place. They landed again south
of Charleston, at Bear's Bluff, and sacked the settlement and took
Governor Morton's brother prisoner. They intended to keep these
depredations up along the coast,, in retaliation for the wrecking and
despoiling of some of their galleys by the colonists, bufe they were met
by a terrible hurricane, and the galley on which Morton was held was
run ashore, so that she could not be got off. The Spaniards set fire to
the galley where Mr. Morton lay in chains, and he was burned to death.
England would not permit the colonists to move against the Spaniards
at St. Augustine, however, fearing that it might involve the two great
home nations in war.
Seth Sothell, who has been mentioned as the Governor appointed in
1683, proved to be a treacherous and selfish man, and used the govern
orship of North Carolina for his own gain. When he heard that there
was dissatisfaction in South Carolina, he called his followers together
and seized the government of the other colony. Having everything
Under his control, he began to pile up a great fortune by a system of
oppression and taxation. The proprietors were in despair, but finally
appointed one Governor for all the province, north and south, who was
to have his residence at Charleston. Philip Ludwell was this general
Governor. He was sent over from England, and having no experience
in colonial affairs, soon showed that he was not strong enough to
hianage the discontented settlers. Thomas Smith, one of the Caro
linian planters, was put in his place. He was a quiet, discreet and
judicious man, who, without governing brilliantly or decisively, brought
many benefits to the colony during the two years that he ruled. It was
during his administration that rice was first planted in this country.
The rice grew wonderfully in the marshes along the rivers, of a superior
quality to that of the east. It was but a short time before it became
one of Carolina's most valuable products. Thomas Smith found the
complexities of government too much for him, and wrote to the
proprietors asking them to send over one of themselves to govern.

EACH FOR HIMSELF. ' 171
They did so, choosing John Archdale, a Quaker, who had bought out the
interest of one of the older proprietors. With his hat upon his head,
dressed in his quaint Quaker garment, this moderate and deliberate man
stood before the assembly of the Carolinas, and told them gravely and
firmly how he meant to manage them. He kept his word, with the
quiet faithfulness of his sect. He inquired patiently into every com
plaint which reached his ears, selected a council from among his citizens,
and, in spite of the fact that he was a Quaker, and opposed to war,
trained the militia better than it had ever been trained before, looking
to every detail of military matters himself. There were already many
other Quakers at Albemarle, and these increased in numbers, and
became, it goes without saying, his warm supporters. All of the colo
nists recognized his judicious rule, and after having got the colony into
a wholesome state, appointed a successor, Joseph Blake, and returned
to England. Joseph Blake ruled for four years over a colony now well
established and well ordered. FOR FURTHER READING:
History — Ramsay's "South Carolina."
Williamson's "North Carolina."
Fiction — Skitt, "Fisher's River."
Simms' "Cassique of Kiawah."

CHAPTER XXVI.

\nn$ %n\nmmity k f|mt+

ATTACK OP INDIANS ON NEW NETHERLAND — DESTRUCTION OP
PAVONIA — PERSECUTION OP LUTHERANS AND QUAKERS AT
NEW AMSTERDAM — SLAVERY AMONG THE DUTCH 
ENGLISH ENCROACHMENTS — SURRENDER
OF NEW NETHERLAND — SETTLE
MENT OF NEW JERSEY.

JHILE Peter Stuyvesant was absent conquering
New Sweden, a terrible calamity fell upon the
Dutch behind him in the settlement. The
Indians, realizing that this would be a fortunate
time for attack, swarmed through New Amsterdam
one day. The people, knowing their helplessness,
treated them with as much policy as possible, and suc
ceeded in getting them to leave the place at sunset and
cross to Governor's Island. It was hoped that, by a
conference between the chiefs and the magistrates, some
arrangements for peace might be made, but it was not
yet night when the Indians grew bolder, and the military
had to be called from the fort to protect the people.
The Indians fled before the soldiers, took once more to
their canoes and paddled out across the dark waters, yelling and howling
as they went. The people watched with anxiety to see what would
happen next, and in a short time a light springing up over Pavonia
and Hoboken told them that the Indians had fallen upon the helpless
settlers there. In a little while the fires died down, and at New
Amsterdam they knew that Pavonia and Hoboken were burned to the
ground and the people killed. As it proved later, only one man of
each settlement was left alive, but the women and children were carried
away as prisoners. The people at Staten Island knew neither of the
threatenings of the Indians at New Amsterdam or of the destruction of

MAN'S INHUMANITY TO MAN. 1 73
the villages, and were sleeping when the savages, mad with thirst for
blood, came upon them. Twenty-three of the ninety people who lived
among the beautiful hills of the island were killed, and all the houses
were burned.
And now the people would have given all they possessed for a
glimpse of the one-legged old soldier whom they had so frequently
abused, and they sent for Stuyvesant with all possible haste. He
returned, full of determination, and gave heart to the people as soon as
he appeared among them, though now for three days the Indians had
been everywhere, ravaging and killing. No man knew better than he
when to fight and when to treat for peace, and now he urged the people
to cultivate friendly relations with the Indians and to rescue the prisoners
with ransoms. Far north upon the Hudson, at Rensselaerswyck, the
sturdy young patroon, Van Rensselaer, had already been following this
policy, and had secured a renewal of the treaty with the Mohawks, so
that that part of the country was spared. For several years compara
tive peace was kept between the Dutch and the Indians, but in 1658
trouble began. Peter Stuyvesant, after the massacre of 1655, just
related, had induced the people to build fences about their villages
and prepare themselves more carefully against attack. He also advised
them to treat the Indians with fairness, but this they would not do, and
the trouble of 1658 was brought about because a band of Indians were
fired upon for being noisy and drunken. It is needless to say, however,
that the whisky which put them in this condition was obtained from
the Dutch. For this wanton killing the Indians took a prompt revenge
by murdering farmers and burning their houses, and for six years the
Esopus Indians and the Dutch were almost continually at war with each
other. In 1663 the Indians fell upon the village of Wildwyck, plunder
ing the houses and setting fire to them. Many men were killed, and
over forty women and children taken as prisoners. Then the Dutch
were aroused to a wholesome resistance, which ended in a subduing of
the Indians for a short time.
But, in spite of all this discouragement, New Netherland continued
to prosper. Gradually, the people gained power and their governors
yielded some of their arbitrary rights. The English towns upon Long
Island became more numerous, but for the most part they lived quietly
with their Dutch neighbors. Much less religious than the Massachusetts
government, there was far less persecution among them. Holland was
the most tolerant of countries, and her colony kept, to a certain degree,
the policy which had animated the mother country in dealing with men

174 THF STORY OF AMERICA.
of new and unpopular religions. Yet at one time the Lutherans were
forbidden to hold meetings in New Amsterdam, and a poor shoemaker
was imprisoned for addressing them. The Quakers, too, were persecuted
for a time, but it could hardly be expected that any class of men, how
ever patient, would care to be railed against as the Dutch were by the
Quakers. The women who spoke upon the streets against the steeple
houses, the hireling preachers and the empty ceremonies to which the
Quakers so intensely objected, were thrown into prison. One Friend,
Robert Hodgson, was treated most shamefully, being chained to a
wheelbarrow and made to do hard work, while a negro beat him with a
four-inch tarred rope. At night he was thrust into a dungeon. This
continued for several days. His sentence condemned him to hard labor
two years, but at length he was terribly whipped for speaking his
message to those about him, and was so torn with the rods that his life
was despaired of for a time. A sister of Peter Stuyvesant prayed that
he might be released. When Hodgson recovered he was released, but
banished. The Quakers increased rapidly, a& they always did where
they were persecuted. Finally, a quiet English farmer who professed
the faith was sent to Holland to appear before the directors in Amster
dam. Peter Stuyvesant' s ambition to have the sect crushed had
overleaped itself, for the directors of Amsterdam reproved him severely
for the manner in which he had treated these people, and told him that
everyone in the colony should be allowed to follow his own conscience.
After this, the Friends were no longer molested, and the director had
the grace to be a little ashamed of his actions.
Slavery was rapidly increasing in New Amsterdam. By 1664,
/? fricans were brought by hundreds to New Netherland, but the Dutch
themselves were fond of agriculture, and did not grow to have that
complete dependence upon the negro which the Virginians had.
Slavery, therefore, never developed its worst feature among the Dutch.
The English kept steadily encroaching upon the land which the Dutch
claimed. Lord Baltimore asserted that the whole South river regfion
was included in his patent, and sent a delegation from Maryland to
demand a surrender for the province. The people in the South river
country were willing enough to yield. They were dissatisfied with the
management of the Dutch West India Company, and were perfectly
willing to swear allegiance to any who would give them more comforts
and protection. The claims remained unsettled until after the surrender
of New Netherlands. Then the Dutch and Swedes of the South river
district quietly yielded to the government of England. New Haven

MAN'S INHUMANITY TO MAN. 175
and the other English towns along the Sound and on Long Island were
brought under the jurisdiction of Connecticut, by a grant of land which
John Winthrop got from Charles II. This new patent covered not only
Long Island, but all northern New Netherland.
Peter Stuyvesant was greatly alarmed for the independence of his
countrymen. For two years he fought it as best he could. He was a
man of statesmanlike ability and his policy was clever, but the English
were very determined. They sent men to stir up discontent in the
English towns situated in New Netherland, and forded Stuyvesant to
consent that the Dutch should not interfere in the least with the English
towns in his province. One John Scott was sent to inquire into the
English titles upon Long Island and carried with him the news that the
King had granted all Long Island to the Duke of York. The English
towns of that district, Hempstead, Gravestead, Flushing, Newton and
Jamaica, united, choosing John Scott as their president. He started
through Long Island, with a force of one hundred and fifty men, to
reduce the Dutch towns to obedience, but he succeeded in doing but
little,- and was finally, imprisoned by the magistrates at Hartford for
asserting his own rights, instead of those of the country he represented.
The English continued to buy up ground from the Indians which
the Dutch had already purchased from them, and the King kept on
giving grants of land to his favorites, which included the territory that
the Dutch had long occupied. In April, 1664, a force of three or four
hundred men under the command of Colonel Richard Nicolls, who
acted as Lieutenant-Governor for the Duke of York, sailed for England
to enforce the Duke's claims to New Netherland. Peter Stuyvesant
heard of it, and did all he could to prevent it. To him, Dutch
independence was more than life. He had the fortifications repaired
and enlarged, raised money, procured ammunition, stored provisions in
the fort and drilled his men, but in the midst of these preparations he
got word from the West India Company saying that the fleet under
Nicolls had been sent to force the obedience of the Massachusetts
colonies, and that New Netherland need have no fear. Stuyvesant
believed that this was so, and went up to Fort Orange on business.
Though it was true that Nicolls had come to see to Massachusetts
affairs, he had also come to reduce New Netherland, and, in the course
of a month, brought his four ships up the bay before New Amsterdam.
His men seized the block-house on Staten Island and blockaded the
harbor. Then a proclamation was sent out that none should be harmed
who submitted quietly to the King of England. Stuyvesant hurried

176 THE STORY OP AMERICA.
down from Fort Orange, and prepared to make a defence, but no one
would stand by him. When he tore up a letter from Nicolls demanding
surrender, the people made him put it together again, and the mortified
old Governor, who would so gladly have died for the sake of his colony,
had to yield to them. He stood on the walls of the fort by the side of
a gun while the ships passed by him up the harbor and dropped their
anchors near the fort. He did not order the gunner to fire. He feared,
perhaps, that his people would not sustain him, and that in the end the
Dutch would suffer more for such an act, but it can be imagined that
his proud old heart broke at the humiliation.
He wrote to Nicolls asking that a consultation might be held, but
received answer that the white flag must be hung from the fort or
Nicolls would come upon the town with ships and soldiers. The people
of the town got up a petition asking Stuyvesant to yield. They said
that they could see nothing but defeat, with all its terrors, before them,
whereas if they yielded, the enemy generously promised them protec
tion. The hired soldiers in the fort were as ready to prey upon the
town as to fight the Englishmen. Stuyvesant knew this, and on
September 8, 1664, New Netherland surrendered. The troops were
put on a ship bound for Holland, and the English flag was raised over
Fort Amsterdam, which was henceforth called Fort James. The
Englishmen called New Amsterdam New York, and Fort Orange was
given its present name of Albany.
A few weeks later, New Amstel, on the Delaware, was reduced, and
the Dutch no longer had any authority on American soil. They
seemed to take very kindly to their change of government, and matters
went on with them very much the same as they had before. There
was no feeling of bitterness between the two nations, and the English
had the wisdom to appoint some of the Dutch to the government of
offices. The city officers were left unchanged. Patroons owning the
great outlying tracts of land had only to change their patent and take
an oath of allegiance to England. The Duke of York gave many
grants of land to Englishmen. New Netherland was divided into two
provinces, one of which was given to Lord Berkeley, the elder brother
of Sir William Berkeley, of Virginia, and the other to Sir George
Carteret. Carteret's province was named New Jersey, and in June,
1665, Captain Philip Carteret, a brother of the proprietor, arrived as
Governor, with a company of men. He settled his thirty emigrants
at the point which he named, and which is still known as Elizabeth-
point. In 1666, Newark was settled by a party from Connecticut.

MAN'S INHUMANITY TO MAN. 177
These were joined in a little time by English people from other settle
ments, who made it a conditiori of their joining the company, that none
should be admitted as freemen, or have the right to vote or hold office,
who were not members of the Congregational Church.
Massachusetts was much alarmed with the fear that it might be
forced to come under the Duke of York's patent. The Duke of York was
a Catholic, and to have been placed under his authority would be the
greatest pain for the Puritans which could be imagined. She, there
fore, refused to help Nicolls, although Connecticut and New Haven
gave them what help they could against the Dutch. After the surrender
of New Netherland, the Duke's commissioners held a conference with
representatives from Connecticut, and the boundary lines of the
provinces were decided upon, Long Island being given to New York.
The Duke's laws were put in force, and though there were objections to
some portions, they were accepted in peaceful discontent. Nicolls
ruled for about three years, while England and Holland, on the other
side of the wo! Id, were engaged in war. When peace was declared,
Nicolls asked that he might be permitted to go home. He had always
greatly resented the loss of New Jersey, and thought the Duke of York
had made a great mistake in giving away this beautiful country.
Colonel Francis Lovelace succeeded Nicolls as Governor. He served
very honorably for four years. In no colony of America were so many
people of different nations and tongues gathered. At the time of the
surrender of New Netherland eighteen different languages were spoken
in New Amsterdam. Though it was under English rule, it continued
to be Dutch in its peculiarities. The people were hospitable and kindly,
though very simple and a little slow. They educated their children
with care, and were proud of their respectability. The houses were well
built and their inhabitants solid and worthy citizens. Their gardens
and orchards prospered wonderfully. Along the river bank were lines
of locust trees, under which the people walked in the evening. A
canal was built to help commerce and. a bridge constructed over it. An
exchange was started for trading purposes and commerce rapidly
increased. The fort held forty pieces, of cannon, and was well built,
being of stone, with a thick rampart of earth. Within this stood the
mansion of the Governor.
In 1672 Peter Stuyvesant died, at the age of eighty, and was buried
in the little chapel which he had built upon his farm.
FOR FURTHER READING:
History — Whitehead's "New Jersey."
Fiction— Paulding's "Dutchman's Fireside" and "Book of St. Nicholas."

CHAPTER XXVII.

®itr Smrataf, ]|igt[i nr H[rnng+
POLITICAL POLICY OF MASSACHUSETTS — EFFORTS OF ENGLAND TO
RECOVER THE CHARTER — EDWARD RANDOLPH  COIN OF THE
COLONY — SIR EDMUND ANDROS — THE EPISODE OF
THE CONNECTICUT CHARTER — ARREST OF
ANDROS AND ELECTION OF PHIPS —
DEATH OF PHIPS.

1ROM the first, Massachusetts, as a colony, had
been ambitious for political independence.
Though the commonwealth had in it little
liberty, it was in many respects excellent, The
people were determined, and determination is
the best corner-stone of government. No good
intentions can make up for weakness. If the
people of Massachusetts erred, it was upon the side of
too much sternness and inflexibility of purpose.
They believed that there was a right way of doing
things; that their way was the right way, andr all
other ways were wrong. Liberty of conscience seemed
vicious to them — for was not the conscience capable
of great error? But being so determined in religious
matters, made them equally so in political affairs, and no wheedling
diplomacy or threatenings of the government of England could make
them lose sight of their charter, which they loved as dearly as their
own lives, and which they protected with no little danger to themselves.
Charles I had insinuated that they were governing without authority,
and in many different ways had tried to get them to return their charter
to England. His letters were passed over without replies from the
colonial government. To refuse directly, would have been treason. To
consent, would have been loss of liberty. To keep silent, was to con
tinue a delay which might end in victory for them.

OUR COUNTRY, RIGHT OR WRONG. 1 79
At this time the King had prohibited the Puritans from leaving
England for Massachusetts, and on several occasions had made com
panies of them disembark from the ships on which they had taken
passage. Two of the men who took passage for Massachusetts among
the company of Puritans were Cromwell and John Hampden. Had
they been allowed to get away, the most attractive of the Stuarts might
have kept his head upon his shoulders. After the King was dead and
the Long Parliament was in session, the charter was again threatened,
but the temporizing policy of the colonists again stood them in good
stead. They wrote a letter to Cromwell which touched that religious
strain he held in common with the Puritans of Massachusetts, and won
his valuable friendship. At one time he was seized with an idea
of removing the Massachusetts people to the Island of Jamaica, that they
might undertake the conversion of the Catholics about there, but the
general court pointed out the bad economy of such a step, and the matter
was dropped. When Charles II was restored to the throne, the two
regicides, Whalley and Goff, fled to America. Massachusetts, in sym
pathy, of course, with the Protestant revolution, protected these men,
and when a royal order was sent for their surrender, succeeded in
helping them to escape. But at the next general court a letter was
given to Charles II which protested the loyalty of the colony, and
asked for the protection of their government. The King sent a reply,
but demanded again the surrender of the regicides. The Massachusetts
people met this with their usual irritating silence, and the King's feel
ing toward them ceased to be amiable.
In May, 1661, two men were sent to investigate the humor of
the colony and see why it refused to obey the King and return
the charter. The people explained as well as they could that it was
the foundation of their colony and their protection; that they were loyal
to the home government, and desired a royal confirmation of the
charter. It was granted, but with conditions which the colonists deeply
resented. Every ordinance passed during the rule of Cromwell was to
be pronounced invalid. Members of the Church of England should be
free to worship as they chose, and all should have the right of suffrage,
without regard to their religious opinions. As none but the Puritans,
who worship after the Congregational method, were allowed to vote,
this was naturally very displeasing to the Massachusetts people.
A few years later the royal commissioners, under Nicolls, came
to secure the conquest of New Netherland, and incidentally to enforce
the obedience of the Massachusetts colony to the King. This commis-

l8o THE STORY OF AMERICA.
sion returned to England after the surrender of New Amsterdam
There had been a thorough attempt on the part of this commission to
enforce the authority of the King, but the general court was quite as
firm. Its conscience would not allow it, it said, in Puritanic phrase, to
swear allegiance to the King except under the protection of the
charter. The commissioners returned to England baffled. Then came
the great plague of London, and after that the historic fire. The
colony was prompt to send all the assistance it could. Its generosity
was remarkable, considering its size. By this time New Hampshire
and Maine were included in the government of Massachusetts, and the
spars sent to England from Maine forests were invaluable to an army
engaged in naval warfare, as the English were with the Dutch at this
time. These evidences of loyalty might have conciliated the home
government had not the dissatisfaction felt toward the colonies been
kept alive by Edward Randolph, a man who had been sent to settle the
question of the New Hampshire government previous to its incorpora
tion with Massachusetts. This man was heartily hated in Massachu^
setts. He was far too good a servant of the King, and carried stories
to him which greatly damaged the colony in the royal ears. Especially
did he complain that they broke the navigation laws, which, under
heavy taxations, confined and limited the trade of the colony. They
admitted that they did so, but said it was necessary to their prosperity.
They offered, however, to cover the matter by an act of their own.
Randolph would have none of this. He asked the general court to
help him, but they followed their usual policy by paying no attention.
Even the Governor seems to have kept a discreet silence.
Another charge brought against them was that they coined their own
money, which none but the King had a right to do. One clever gentle
man who had visited New England was sent for by the King that he
might learn something about the matter. This man, whose name was
Thomas Temple, showed the King some of the colony coins. They
were of the old pine-tree variety. The King looked at them suspiciously,
but Sir Thomas, being something of a courtier, told the King that the
pine tree upon them was a royal oak ; that the Massachusetts people did
not dare to put the King's name upon their coin, and had, therefore,
put on the oak, which, as everyone knew, had preserved the King's
life. This money had followed wampum, the exchange of the Indians.
At one time early in the history of Massachusetts musket bullets had
been used in the place of money. There was a very large coinage of

OUR COUNTRY, RIGHT OR WRONG. 181
the pine-tree money, and it was used for a long time. At last, in 1681,
came another letter from the King, asking that deputies should be sent
to him to tender the submission of the colonies. Massachusetts dared
delay no longer, and sent two men to England, armed with a letter of
such firm pride that the King grew angry, and issued a writ against the
colony, demanding to show by what warrant it held its charter.
When Charles II died and James, his brother, became King of
England, he put Sir Edmund Andros over all of New England. He
was a proud Englishman of high birth, one of the old-time loyalists,
who thought obedience to the King a much greater thing than the
liberty of a people. His manner of living was very disagreeable to the
Puritans. He gave large drinking parties and made much display of
his wealth and authority, while it was their habit to live quietly.
By this time many of the men of Boston were rich. They were
naturally proud of all that they had done and the respect in which
they were held, but their manners were without show. The loss of the
charter which they so loved, the dissolving of the general court, and
the setting up of an arrogant and selfish Governor over them, filled
them with an angry discontent. Randolph, whom they so hated, was
made licenser of the press, and other men as overbearing and disagree
able were put in office. No respect was shown for Puritan principles,
and in the Old South Meeting-House, dedicated to Puritan worship,
Governor Andros insisted upon holding Episcopalian service. He
levied taxes pretty much to please himself, and was filled with great
indignation when the people protested. He even made the land
owners give up their titles to him for examination, and said that the
deeds from the Indians were not worth the scratch of a bear's paw. He
made conditions, however, by which these titles could become legal;
but the people would not accept them, since it was a matter of conscience
to them not to give approval to his rule. In New Hampshire, Andros
had but little trouble. In Maine, he had succeeded in ousting the
Baron Vincent de Chastine, Lieutenant of the French government of
Acadia. His next work was to deprive Connecticut of its charter. In vain did
the people protest. They set forth all they had suffered in subduing
the soil and overcoming the Indians, and defended their claims to
independence, but the plea had no effect. Andros insisted upon having
the charter. The distressed Connecticut magistrates sat about the table
of the little council chamber listening with anxiety to the royal
governor. They talked about the matter all the afternoon and until

1 82 THE STORY OP AMERICA.
evening had deepened and the candles were lit. Outside of the building
crowds of excited citizens gathered. Andros made a final demand for
the charter. It was no gust of wind that blew out the candle. In the
darkness, the charter disappeared. The crowd outside dispersed. They
were contented. The Governor, baffled and furious, entered an account
of the meeting upon the State records, and wrote ' 'finis' ' at the end.
No one in Connecticut appeared to know where the charter was. It
was snugly hidden in a great oak tree on the grounds of Samuel
Wallace, one of the magistrates. But Connecticut had lost its individ
uality. It was now a part of the royal province, and in a little while
New York and New Jersey were also a part of New England, under
Andros. But his authority was almost at an end. The pride of the people
could stand no riiore, and when they heard that William of Orange had
landed in England and the throne of King James was tottering, they
wrote and read to the citizens of Boston a declaration of their inde
pendence from royal rule. This was read from the balcony of the
town-house, on which were gathered the most prominent men of Boston.
On Beacon Hill, tar barrels were blazing. All through the streets
the boys were beating drums. Flags flew bravely over the city. The
declaration declared that it rejoiced that the Prince of Orange was upon
the throne of England and that the power of the Stuarts had been over
thrown. The royal servants were arrested and thrown into jail, Andros
among them. Simon Bradstreet was made president. He was eighty-
seven years of age, but he was strong with the determination of the
Puritans. The Massachusetts deputies, who visited the Prince of Orange, had
permission to use their old charter until a new one could be made.
This hardly satisfied the people, but they were better contented when
Sir William Phips was made Governor of New England. Phips had
been born on the Kennebec, in Maine, and was therefore welcomed by
the colonists. He had been a sheep-tender on the Maine hills, and had
worked as a carpenter in the great Maine shipping yards. He mar
ried a Boston widow who had money enough to start him in business.
Having a romantic character, he built him a ship for the purpose of
dragging lost Spanish treasures from the sea. He went to the West
Indies and hunted about for the sunken Spanish galleys which had lain
there for years. One of these he found, but did not get a large amount
of spoils, and was anxious to search for another which he thought more
valuable. He soon interested the King of England in his project, and

OUR COUNTRY, RIGHT OR WRONG. 1 83
was given a man-of-war, well fitted in all respects. For two years he
searched without effect, having many odd experiences, and successfully
stopping a mutiny of his sailors.
In spite of his failure to secure the Spanish treasure, he had so
much determination and eloquence that he was equipped for a second
voyage. This time he found the ship, richly laden with treasure. He
received a good share of the bullion, coin and plate, and was given a
cup, valued at one thousand pounds, by the Duke of Albemarle, who had
sent out the expedition.
The King knighted him, and he returned to New England, wealthy
and famous. It was this man who was appointed Governor of New
England. It was during Phips' administration that a fleet was sent
northward for the purpose of subduing Canada. The idea was to take
Quebec and Montreal. The New England soldiers fared badly. They
sailed along the coast and up the St. Lawrence in so lazy a way that
Frontenac had time to prepare for defence. Phips was not a soldier, and
Wallace, who was with him, was a coward. The combination was
fatal. They made continual mistakes, and at last, with many men lost
and many more sick, were obliged to turn their ships toward Boston.
One of the ships was never heard of, one of them burned, and a third
was wrecked.
- The expense of the expedition had been so great as to bankrupt the
treasury, and it was necessary to issue paper bonds. These soon fell in
value thirty-three per cent. , and Phips redeemed them from the soldiers,
to whom they had been paid, with money from his own private fortune.
He also made an expedition to Maine, against the Indians, with but
small results. His impulsiveness and generosity was not sustained by
wisdom or quiet determination. Though a picturesque and attractive
man, he did not make a good Governor, and the vexations of his office
did not improve his temper, which was always hot. At length he was
ordered to England to answer certain charges against him, arid in
London, in 1694, he died of a fever. He was one of the most adven
turous and romantic of all the men who at that time distingushed
American history. FOR FURTHER READING:
History— Trumbull's "Connecticut."
Fiction— W. Seaton's "Romance of the Charter Oak."
R. Dawes' "Nix's Mate."
E. Charles' "On Both Sides of the Sea."

CHAPTER XXVIII.

Imp uf J) vmb.

KING PHILIP'S WAR — FIGHT AT BROOKFIELD — FIGHT AT HADLEY-
FIGHT AT DEERFIELD.

ORTY years after the destruction of the
Pequots, there broke over the New England
colonies another wave of Indian war. Phips
was in England, and William Stoughton, the
Lieutenant Governor, was attending to the
colonial affairs. There had been no direct
and flagrant insult to the Indians which prompted
this, but, through all the long years, there had been a
contemptuous treatment of them. For one thing, the
Indian did not understand that when land was
purchased of him for a few blankets, or scissors, that
he was to yield it up forever. His understanding
of it was that he gave the white man permission
to come upon it; but when the white man came
and steadily drove him out, when his friends were treacherously
murdered, or sold to slavery, he perceived too late what was intended.
The Narragansetts had much reason to hate the Englishmen. They
had never forgotten the treacherous murdering of their young and
beloved chief, Miantonomo. He had been executed, without cause, by
the Massachusetts commissioners, away back in 1643, more to please
Uncas, the Mohican chief, who was the friend of the whites, than for
any offence which he had committed. At the present time, the son of
Miantonomo was reigning over the Narragansetts, and he allied himself
to Philip, the second son of Massasoit, the sachem of the Wampanoags.
Massasoit, it will be remembered, had been a good friend of the
pilgrims of Plymouth at the time when they needed friends. In 1660
he died, leaving two sons, to whom he had given English names,
Alexander and Philip. A year after Massasoit's death, the elder of

DAYS OF DREAD. 1 85
these brothers, Alexander, was carried as a prisoner to Plymouth,
because he was suspected of joining the Narragansetts for the purpose
of moving against the English ; but the chief died before they reached
Plymouth. His wife, who was a queen among the Indians, believed
that they had poisoned Alexander. When, fourteen years later, she
heard that her brother-in-law, Philip, was going to make an effort to
wipe out the bitter injustice and humiliation which had come to the
Indians in all those trying years, she took her three hundred warriors and
joined him. It was a fatal move for her. Within a year all but twenty-
six of her braves were killed, and the young queen, trying to swim the
river, was drowned. When the Englishmen found her body washed
ashore, they cut her head from her comely shoulders, and set it up
where her disheartened warriors could see it, and around it the broken
hearted braves set up a most dismal wailing.
Philip, himself, was a man with many friends. The natural vigor
and determination of his character, his frank and convincing way of
speaking, his upright carriage, and penetrating eye, forced the admira
tion of all. He had tried to treat the white man with fairness; had
answered to his many unjust suspicions with dignity and calmness,
but in return had received many wounds which rankled. He was
made to deliver up all the English arms which his tribe possessed.
This humiliated him and his tribe deeply. Another incident irritated
him also. One of the Indians whom Eliot had converted, warned the
people at Plymouth that there was a growing anger among the Indians,
and danger that they might soon break into war. The Indians probably
learned of the story which the man had told, for he was found
murdered and thrust into the ice of the river. Three Indians were
accused of the deed, and a trial by jury was held, in which six white
men and six Indians were impaneled. The accused Indians were
executed. Philip hastened preparations for war. On a fair June day
in 1675, the people of Swansea appointed a day of prayer and fasting
that they might be spared from the horrors of war. Going home from
church, a man was killed by an Indian in ambush. Several were
wounded, and two who hastened for a surgeon were killed. Over by
the garrison six more men were killed. A number of houses and barns
were burned. This was the beginning of the war. It was the torch,
so to speak, which called together the bands of savages. All through
the remote settlements many houses were burned and much property
destroyed. Cattle were driven away, and frequently farmers were
murdered. Eighteen houses were destroyed in Providence. Through

1 86 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
the months of July and August these crimes went steadily on. In
August the general court sent a number of men to hold a peace confer
ence with some Indians at Brookfield. The Indians did not appear
there as they had promised to do, and Captain Wheeler, with twenty
men, went to look for them. The Indians had prepared an ambush for
them, and eight of the twenty Englishmen were killed. The captain
and many others were wounded. They hurried to Brookfield to give
the alarm to the people. Pell-mell the men, women and children
rushed into the strong house in the settlement. Three hundred savages,
as mad as wolves at the taste of blood, thronged into the village. They
burned every house except the one where the frightened people were
gathered. For two days and nights the men in that log cabin held out. The
Indians had ammunition and guns, and kept up the fight from all sides.
At night they would crawl along the ground and build fires against the
walls of the building. They tied fire-brands to poles and tried to thrust
them through the cracks in the logs, and attached burning stuff to their
arrows. But the fires were put out by the besieged. Even when
burning sulphur was poured upon the roof, it was extinguished. The
white men had become as cunning as the savages. They could fight
them upon their own ground. ¦ The third morning came, and with it
despair. The Englishmen felt they could not hold out much longer.
The Indians prepared a terrible machine. * It was a cart piled high
with hay and hemp, and blazing fiercely. This was pushed up against
the building. It seemed as if there could be no escape. Either the
brave men must see their wives and children burn there in the fire, or
what was worse, let them suffer the horrors of Indian captivity. Pray
ing and weeping, the women prepared to take their children in their
arms and venture out; but at that moment a cloud overspread the sky.
There was a clap of thunder and a sudden down-pour of summer rain.
The fire was extinguished. So wet did the building get that there«was
no longer any chance of burning it. The besieged held out during the
afternoon, and before evening, Major Simon Willard, of Boston, with fifty
or sixty men, dashed into the town and routed the Indians, eighty of
whom were killed or wounded.
The war spread steadily. Philip's influence was great. He went
from tribe to tribe, haranguing, encouraging and threatening. Those
he could not win to his side in any other way he bought up with
wampum and gifts. No white man felt safe at this time. Every house
and every church was an arsenal in which ammunition was stored.

DAYS OP DREAD. 1 87
Men carried their arms everywhere, to church, to dinner and to bed.
Flint-locks were already known in America, although they were not yet
in use in England.
The stories which could be told of this time would fill volumes, so
many were hurried into captivity, so many tortured and mutilated.
One of the fiercest fights was at Hadley, on the Connecticut, three or four
weeks after the Brookfield fight. Hadley was a place for military
supplies and had a garrison. Most of the soldiers were away at the
time, and as at Swansea, the people were holding a feast day. Some one
brought the alarm that the Indians were coming. Men had their arms
at hand, and gathered about the door, while the women and children
crowded into the corners of the building. The meeting-house was not
a strong structure, and the Indians made an unusually savage onslaught.
Resistance looked almost useless. The men were unnerved with fear.
As the Indians surged up, and the first men who ventured to the open
door were met with well-directed arrows, they fell back with despair in
their faces. Suddenly an old man stood among them. No one had
seen him before. He was tall and soldierly, with masses of flowing
grey hair about his shoulders. He drew his sword like one used to
wars, and stepping out with intrepid bravery, led the colonists to an
attack. No one asked who he was. They simply felt that God had
sent a deliverer. The Indians were chased to the woods, into whose
murky depths they disappeared, and the colonists looked about for their
leader, but he was gone. Not till long after did they know that it was
Colonel Goff, the regicide, who was then in hiding at Hadley, and on
whose head the King of England had fixed a price. No soldier with
his experience could see a crowd of brave men perish for the want of
a leader. On the very same day Deerfield was attacked, and here, later in the
month, the people were fired upon as they were going to the meeting
house. The block-house at Northfield was besieged, and a number of
persons killed.
Near Hadley a company of young men, eighty in number, were
sent out to complete the threshing and load the wagons with grain.
They were under the command of Captain Lathrop. In these days a
soldier was at the head of every venture. Returning in the middle of
the month to Hadley, the company stopped in a large grove beside a
brook, and tbe men broke their ranks and rested themselves in a
pleasant spot. Suddenly, with no warning, seven hundred savages
were upon them, and only seven of the men escaped. This was how

1 88 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
Bloody Brook got its name. Captain Mosley, who had been left behind
to protect Deerfield, heard the firing, and hurried to the spot with one
hundred and sixty men, part of whom were Mohegans. The attacking
Indians were driven off.
The English, realizing that there was no prospect of peace, decided
that it was best to begin a systematic warfare. Soldiers were called for.
Massachusetts gave five hundred and twenty men, Connecticut three
hundred, and Plymouth one hundred and fifty-nine. The Mohegan
Indians gave one hundred and fifty warriors. The idea was to march
under Governor Winslow, of Plymouth, to the country of the Narragan
setts, in Rhode Island. There they had a strong fort, occupying six
acres of dry ground. About it was a swamp, and beyond this a high
palisade, protected by a chevaux-de-friese. There was a deep snow on
the ground by this time, for it was now December. To reach the one
entrance of the fort, it was necessary to get over a log as high as a man's
breast. Under a fire from the Indians, four Massachusetts captains were
killed, and three of the Connecticut leaders. But Captain Benjamin
Church, putting those firm lips of his together, marched around to the
rear, and entered there, carrying three bullets in him, but still in
fighting condition. The savages were driven out into the swamp and
beyond that, leaving seven hundred dead behind them. Three hundred
of their wounded men died later. A great many of the old and feeble
were burned in the wigwams which the Englishmen were foolish enough
to fire, within the fort. The colonists also lost heavily.
In spite of this terrible battle, Philip was determined not to yield.
He felt, no doubt, that it was the turning point in his countrymen's
history. If they lost their independence now, it would never be
regained, but if they could succeed in exterminating the hated English,
all might be as before. Solitude would be theirs again, and liberty
their own. They could paddle their canoes at peace upon the wild
rivers. The deer would return to the forest. The clam banks upon
the coast would be unmolested. They would no longer be the victims
of the white man's pride and cupidity. In February, Lancaster was
attacked, but after that, for a month or two, affairs were quiet, and the
colonists were rarely disturbed. In May, a large party of Indians
gathered on the desolated fields by Deerfield, and began planting them.
This news was brought to Hatfield, and Captain Turner rode twenty
miles, with one hundred men at his back, reaching the Indians in the
night. The roar of the fall on the river kept the horses' hoofs from
being heard. Leaving the horses in the ravine, the soldiers fell upon

DAYS OF DREAD. 1 89
the Indians just at day-break. The Indians, dazed with sleep and
entirely unprepared for the attack, could not do themselves justice. One
hundred and forty of them took to their canoes, but, in the panic, went
over the falls and perished. Many were shot, and others took refuge in
the rocks, or were put to the sword. Turner lost but one man; the
Indians lost three hundred. But another large party of Indians, not far
distant, heard the fight, and soon overtook Turner and his men. The
brave captain was killed, with many of his followers, but -most of them
reached Hatfield safely.
Philip had a fishery near the falls, from which he had intended to
provide his men for the winter, and the breaking up of this greatly dis
turbed him. He made an attack upon Hatfield, but was defeated, and
soon after he led seven hundred Indians against Hadley again, but
many of them were slain and they were obliged to hastily retreat.
Then he moved farther south. Town after town was sacked and
burned. Now he was in Rhode Island, now in Connecticut, and now in
Massachusetts. In these days every man became a fighter. Even the
boys were enemies to be dreaded, and on more than one occasion whole
families had been saved, in the absence of men, by the pluck and readi
ness of mere urchins. It was a great blow to the Indians when
Nanuntenoo, the proud and revengeful son of Miantonomo, was taken
captive. He was executed, of course, but was glad to die, so he said.
, All through the spring and summer of 1676 the colonies were in
terrible fear. When Sudbury was attacked and partly burned, Captain
Wadsworth, hurrying to the relief, was caught in ambush and killed,
with sixty of his men. Captain Pierce was surprised, and his company
of fifty Englishmen massacred. Only one of them escaped. Major
Talcott, with a force of three hundred mounted men, surrounded
a larger body of Narragansetts. in a swamp in Rhode Island. All of
them were either killed in the assault or put to death afterward.
Philip was becoming discouraged. He saw that his men were
breaking down under the strain. The white man had learned all his
secrets. He understood the decoy, the night attack, and the stealthy
waiting as well as the Indian, now, and to this he united greater
endurance and courage in the face of heavy odds. Twice Philip had
barely escaped capture. He had been obliged to disguise himself. At
last, worn out and disheartened, he fled to his home on the isthmus of
Mt. Hope. An Indian betrayed his whereabouts to Church. Church,
whom Philip feared more than any other living man, started for the
place at once. It was the middle of the night when he reached there.

190 THE STORY OP AMERICA.
Across a swamp, on a bit of. upland, slept the great chief, with
his Indians about him. The Englishmen sent a heavy fire into the
camp. Philip sprang to his feet, gun in hand, and rushed forward. A
minute later he was dead, with his face in the dark swamp water.
The Indians could do little more. Their great leader, whose
eloquence was such an inspiration to them, whose courage was inex
haustible, and whose plans had been so daring and ingenious, was
dead. The power of the Indians over all that section of the country
was gone. Many rushed westward, and many, alas! served as slaves in
the West Indies. Others sought the powerful friendship of the white
men. All over New England there was mourning, for hardly a house
had been left untouched by death.
FOR FURTHER READING:
History — Abbott's "History of King Philip."
Fiction— R. C Sands' "Yatnoyden."
Cooper's "The Wept of Wish-ton-wish."
G. H. Hollister's "Mount Hope."
Pierce's "Narragansett Chief/'

CHAPTER XXIX.

HOW THE WITCH-CRAFT HALLUCINATION STARTED — SAMUEL PARRIS
AND HIS WITCH-CRAFT LIBRARY — THE TRIAL AND. DEATH
OF GILES COREY AND OTHER VICTIMS OP
THIS HALLUCINATION.

T is a pity that children should have been respon
sible for some of the most dreadful crimes which
disgraced New England. It was they who started
what is known as the witch-craft delusion. It was
a strange time. In Europe, as in America, the
people were morbid. A series of misfortunes made
them open to this disease of the mind, which physicians
now recognize as a sort of hysteria, but which at that
time even the wisest and best of men supposed to be the
work of the devil. Every one believed that there were
witches, and the Bible said that witches should be hung.
Men like Bacon went to the trouble of inventing a
medicine for witches' ointment. Statesmen made laws
concerning it. Ministers preached about it from the
pulpit. To tell hideous stories of bewitched people about the win
ter fireside was one of the favorite amusements. Every one who wore
scarlet, or who chanced to be peculiar, was sure to be thought a witch.
This fearful disease had raged in Europe for a good many years before
it reached the new world. So extensive had it become that a great
many books had been written on the subject, and these books had been
brought in considerable numbers to America. Samuel Parris, a man
who had been a merchant in Barbadoes, but who had become a minister
upon moving to Salem, had a number of these books in his library. In
a town where books were comparatively few, they were naturally much
borrowed and read, and appealed, as the horrible and mysterious always
does, to the imagination of the people in general, and to children in

192

THE STORY OF AMERICA.

particular. In Parris' family also was Tituba, an old slave, half
negro and half Indian. She knew all the ways of witch-craft, and it was
supposed that she could conjure up spirits with her black, bony hands,
or, if she chose, ride through midnight storms, safely seated on a broom
stick. Not only has she figured in history, but in fiction and poetry,
and all who know anything about those dreadful days know about
Tituba and John Indian, her husband. Tituba had a habit of secretly
gathering the children of the Parris and neighboring families into the
kitchen, and there, by the flickering light of the fire, when the house
was still and the old people away, she taught them all the dark secrets
of her imaginary art, and instructed them in the way the bewitched
children acted, telling them about the little Goodwin girl whom Cotton
Mather had taken to live with him because she was bewitched. He
wished to have her near him that he might study the actions of Satan
in her, and it was through watching her that he came to believe in
witch-craft, and did so much harm by advocating it. The little Good
win girl had accused a quiet Irish washer-woman of having bewitched
her. Whenever the woman came near, she fell into spasms and sank
upon the ground. Three other children did as they saw her do, and the
poor washer-woman was hanged. Tituba told these stories with delight,
and the company of little girls practiced the actions of the bewitched.
The children imagined such dreadful things that at last they were
really no longer able to control themselves, but did really suffer almost
as much as they had at first pretended to. So dreadfully did they act
that doctors were called to visit them. They immediately said they
were bewitched. The next thing then was to find the witches. The
Reverend Parris, believing as he did in the existence of such a thing,
was not illy pleased to have it come within his reach. If he really did
not encourage the children in the matter, he at least influenced them to
declare against his enemies. The first person they cried out against was
Sarah Goodwin. She was accused of pinching them, and running pins
and needles into them. The justices tried her, and sent her to prison.
Many more were sent after her. Then came the charge against Giles
Corey, a staunch old farmer, who was foolish enough to believe in
witch-craft. The children cried out that he tormented them, and they
fell into a strange illness, so real that the people had no choice but to
believe in their sufferings. Corey was pressed to death and treated with
great contempt in every way. The acquisitions came faster and faster.
A court of seven judges was appointed to decide upon the many cases
brought before them. Among the children the epidemic spread. So

A PASSING MADNESS. 1 93
strong a hold did it have on them, that they actually declined until they
were little more than skin and bones. A sort of second sight, or
clairvoyancy, mingled with their hysteria, and the actual things which
they foretold, or, being at a distance, correctly related, helped to confirm
the popular belief. It got dangerous for one to have the least pecu
liarity. Any spot on the body — a mole or mark — was sufficient to convict
one of being a witch. Gentle Rebecca Nourse, a farmer's wife, living
in her own house and quietly tending her children, her house and her
cows, was accused of being one of these baleful creatures, and was
taken from her home, executed and thrown into the pit which was set
apart for the witches, Christian burial not being allowed them. Here,
at midnight, when no one was watching, came her little children and her
husband to search for her poor body and give it a more gentle burial.
Longfellow writes of Bridget Bishop, a jolly woman, fond of jests
and bright dresses, who was condemned as much for wearing a scarlet
petticoat as for anything else. Everyone who had an enemy saw a
quick way of taking revenge upon him, by accusing him of being a
party to the strange wickedness. The prison became crowded. As for
the children, they seemed to have found themselves the most important
and dreaded personages in the community. They grew very clever at
imitating the people whom they accused of bewitching them, and chil
dren with soft voices acquired the power of talking like a man in deep,
bass tones. It was not all imagination. It became insanity. One child,
more conscientious than the rest, realized after a time that she did not
feel all that she said she felt. She confessed, and accused the other
children of deceit. The children promptly denounced her as a witch.
But the matter had aroused the suspicions of the people. The wiser of
them began to think it was a ,plot, and when at length Mrs. Hale, a
woman of great beauty of character and of high station, was accused,
the sympathy of the people was with her. Captain John Alden, a man
of high character and good family, was accused. He made a sensible
defence, which had no effect upon the justices, but at length he escaped..
At last the children even dared to accuse the Governor's wife, and
when they came to imitating some members of the Mather family,
even Cotton Mather, the Methodist divine, concluded there must be
a mistake somewhere. The matter ended almost as suddenly as it had
begun. Governor Phips released one hundred and fifty persons from the
jail. Several hundred more had, at one time and another, been impris
oned there, but only twenty were killed — not counting the two poor
dogs which were formally executed for being familiars of witches.

194 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
For one especial cruelty was Parris responsible. He hated, with all
the narrowness of a minister of the time, the Reverend Stephen
Burroughs, who seems to have had a belief which did not exactly
agree with that accepted as orthodox by the Salem people. Parris had
him driven out of the colony, and he took refuge with his family in
Maine. At the time of the witch-craft excitement Parris succeeded in
getting him accused and having him brought away down to Salem to be
tried. An elder and two constables were sent to bring him, as Parris
had chosen to given him the reputation of a dangerous man. He went
with them cheerfully enough, having no thought that the matter was
So serious. He was a remarkable man, of much animal magnetism, with
a very commanding and penetrating eye, and all who came near him
felt his influence. It was this power, added to his eloquence, which
had made Parris jealous, and indeed had laid him open to suspicion,
for it was not safe in those days to know very much. He understood
wood-craft as an Indian does, and being a man remarkably strong and
unusually clever, had done many things which his more stupid asso
ciates could not understand. Having a reputation of this sort, the
terrified constables and the elder who were sent after him were
distracted when he insisted upon leading them at night through a
pathless forest, the way which he knew as well as his own garden. A
terrible storm, with most violent lightning, broke over them, fright
ening the horses, breaking the trees, and driving the men half mad with
terror. To this day the spot in New Hampshire is called Witches'
Trot. Once at Salem, all was over with him. He never went back to
his wife and children beyond the forest. This dreadful chapter of
Massachusetts history was very short. It was confined to the year 1692.
In no time was it so sharp as it had been in the Old World, but it was
bad enough, and made a great blot of ignorance and superstition on the
fair page of native history. In 1720 a second attempt was made to stir
up this old frenzy, but civilization had gone too far. The people would
have none of it. FOR FURTHER READING:
History— Upham's "History of Witch-craft."
Fiction— J. Neal's "Rachel Dyer."
Poetry — Longfellow's "Giles Corey."
Whittier's "Witch of Wenham."
Whittier's "Mabel Martin."

Whittier's "Changeling."
Whittier's "Wreck of Rivermouth."

BENJAMIN FRANKLIN.
"THE FUR CAP."
After an engraving by Desnoyers.

CHAPTER XXX.
WILLIAM PENN — THE SETTLEMENT OF PENNSYLVANIA — REMARKABLE
GROWTH OF THE COLONY — CHANGE OF GOVERNMENT — RE
STORATION OF PENN — HIS DEATH — THE SLAVERY
) QUESTION — BENJAMIN FRANKLIN.
great State of Pennsylvania was settled by the
Quakers, or Friends. In speaking of Pennsyl
vania, it is necessary to speak of William Penn.
He was the son of a noted admiral of England,
who was not only a man of much intellect, but of
great humor and affability as well. His mother
was an unusual woman also, and gave her son
lessons in kindness and amiability which influenced him
all his life, and had no little effect upon the history of
this country. From his earliest years he was unusual.
When he was a school-boy of eleven, he had strange
visions in which the works and glory of God were
revealed to him. It was by such things as this that the
growing Society of Friends was distinguished. But at.
this time, Penn knew nothing of the Friends nor the fre
quency of these visions in England. Yet Penn was no dreamer; he
was a gay, active boy, very strong of arm, capable of swift running.
and fond of that jollity which forms so large a part of the schoolboy's,
life. In the course of time, a great preacher of the Society of Friends
came to Oxford. Young Penn became a willing and enthusiastic
convert. A short time after this, it was ordered that the surplice should
be worn by the Oxford students. Penn could not permit this evidence
of Episcopal pride to pass unchallenged. He and some of his friends
tore the detested garments over the students' heads. He was expelled
from school and banished from home. The tears of his mother, how
ever, softened the heart of t the proud admiral, who forgave his son and

198 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
sent him to Paris, in the hope that its allurements might win him from
his fantastic ideas; and for a time they did, and he was as gay and
heedless as any of the youths who lounged about Paris. He was bright
and intelligent, and charmed London society -with his graceful manner
and witty speech ; but it was only a short time that he gave himself up
to this light manner of living. Again he was drawn to the meetings of
the Friends, and after this, sincerely 'devoted his life to their service.
At one time he was fined for attending their meetings; at another he
was thrown into the Tower for writing a book, setting forth their views,
but while there, he continued to write as his conscience prompted him.
It was seven months before he was released. Soon after this, his father
> died, reconciled to his son's strange beliefs, and leaving him a
large property, which Penn spent for the most part in the cause of the
Friends. It was Penn's ambition to start a colony in the New World; already
he had been interested in some settlements there. New Jersey, it will
be remembered, had been granted to Lord Berkeley and Sir George
Carteret, but the people of New Jersey protested against their ruling,
which was overbearing and unfair. There had been an insurrection;
two colonies had been made — East and West New Jersey — and Berke
ley had sold his share to a company of Quakers. William Penn was
one of this company. A few years later, Sir George Carteret died, and
his rights in East New Jersey were sold to twelve Quakers, and in this
purchase William Penn had a share. But here there were so many
Swedes, Dutch and Scotch, that no effort was made to make the
colonies distinctly Quaker. Over these, Andros, the royal Governor,
ruled. Penn was anxious, as 'has been said, to make a settlement of
his own, and after his father died, he told the King, who was seriously
in arrears with the admiral's pay, that he would liquidate this debt if he
would give him a grant of territory in America. Penn's courtly air and
handsome face and form, and his experience in diplomatic matters, stood
him in very good stead. In 1680, he obtained a grant from Charles II,
including forty thousand square miles of territory between Maryland
and New York. To this the King gave the name of Pennsylvania.
So well known was he in Europe, not only as the son of the dis
tinguished admiral, but as a man of great originality and courage, that
the sturdy, industrious people of Germany, as well as those of his own
.country, were anxious to follow him. He did not, like George Fox,
neglect everything aesthetic, and dress himself in a not very clean suit
vof leather, and though he wore the garb of the Friends, he saw to it

A GENTLEMAN. 199
that the fabric was good and the fit excellent. Dress and address are the
two first things which one notices in a stranger. William Penn was
too much of a statesman not to appreciate this. He knew that one
could afford to be eccentric, but not disagreeable. It is uot strange,
however, that he was popular.
His principles of government were of a broad nature. There was
to be perfect liberty of conscience and political freedom for all — even
the Indians. Only murder and treason were to be punished by death.
Penn would not even have had these laws had he chosen himself, and
while he lived, no gallows was ever erected in the province. He
believed that a prison should be a place of reform. No oath was
necessary to the man of good conscience. All pleasures which had in
them any possibility of evil, such as cock-fighting, bull-baiting, card-
playing and theatre-going, were forbidden. His scheme of government
included one act which might be well imitated now — lying was
punished as a crime. There was to be a trial by jury for all cases of
injury, and Indians were to be among the jury, whenever Indian
rights were in question. A German company bought fifteen thousand
acres from Penn, and hastened to emigrate thither in 1681. It was in
1682 before Perm and his friends set sail. Penn had an audience of the
King, at which he astonished his Majesty by telling him that England
had no right to molest the savages upon their own • soil. "What,"
cried the King, ' 'have I not the right of discovery ?' ' ' 'Just suppose, ' '
said Penn, in his calm way, "that a canoe full of savages should
by some accident discover Great Britain; would you vacate, or sell?"
When Penn reached New Castle, on the 27th of October, the Dutch and
Swedes gave him a very cordial welcome. He naturalized all the
inhabitants of the province, and then hastened up the river to Upland,
which is now Chester, where he met the delegates who had already
been selected by his commissioners. This was the first assembly.
Everyone caught the infection of his sincerity and gentleness, and the
arrangements made there by the assembly were remarkable for their
justice and liberality.
Penn was delighted with the new country. The abundance of
natural fruits and berries, the beauty of the woods and hills, and the
clearness of the river, charmed him. He went up the river himself,
looking for a suitable site for the prospective city, and decided upon
the sweeping peninsula around which the Delaware flows. This he
named Philadelphia, that all might know the sentiment which prompted
its founding. Penn called it his ' 'holy experiment. ' ' He laid out the

200 THE STORY OP AMERICA.
city himself, upon a great scale of squares; all of the avenues to be
lined with trees, and houses to be set so that they might be surrounded
with gardens. In the first year twenty-three ships filled with colonists
came to Penn's province.
The Indians, for the first time, were treated with absolute equality;
there was not a touch of the arrogance of the Spaniard, the sternness of
the Puritans, the commercial greed of the Dutch, or the bewildering
mysticism of the French Jesuits. Penn was simple and direct. He ate
with the Indians, out-ran them in jocular contests, and tried leaping
matches with the sprightly young braves. Under the famous elm tree
at Shackamaxon, the old resort for Indian councils, he held a treaty
with the Indians. He and his followers wore no arms, and Penn was
distinguished from his followers only by a sash of blue silk netting,
falling like a soldier's scarf across his shoulders. The sachem of the
Indians carried in his hand a chaplet, and when he donned this, the
savages flung their arms to the ground, in token that the treaties were
inviolable. The address which he made to the Indians won their hearts
completely, and in a short time he had learned their language, and no
longer had need of an interpreter. This increased his popularity among
them. The driving bargains of his officers in after years were nevei
laid to his charge.
Very early in its history, Pennsylvania had a school. Enoch Flowei
was the teacher's name, and for four shillings a quarter he taught the
boys and girls of Philadelphia to write, and for six shillings, to read.
He would take boarding-scholars, giving them ' 'diet, lodging, washing
and schooling for ten pounds the year. ' ' Nor was it long before a
printing press was set up. Penn had a friend, James Claypool, who
was quite an eminent scholar, and who may have inspired these move
ments to an extent. Penn built him a mansion, called ' 'Pennsbury
Manor, ' ' at Bristol, on the Delaware river. Here he lived happily for
two years, when he found it necessary to go to England, to answer some
of the charges which his envious enemies had brought against him.
He remained in England fifteen years, during which time affairs did
not run as quietly in the colony as might have been desired. There
were religious quarrels and political quarrels, until the colonies were so
misrepresented in England that the government was taken away from
Penn and given to a royal commissioner. In 1694, however, William
and Mary restored the province to Penn's absolute government — no one
had ever questioned his proprietorship — and in 1699 Penn himself came
from England, not a little weary of courts and the friction of cosmo-

A GENTLEMAN. 201
politan life, intending to pass the remainder of his years in his beautiful
home on the Delaware, surrounded by those who knew and appreciated
his noble qualities of heart and mind.
Not a little astonished was Penn when he saw Philadelphia, then a
little more than eighteen years old. Doubtless he had carried in his
mind's eye a picture of the colony as he left it, largely made up of
rude huts, with chimneys of mud. When, therefore, he saw the noble
city of over two thousand houses, most of which were built of brick,
in that chaste, placid architecture of the Friends, and when he saw tl e
wharfs and viaducts with their busy trade, he must have received' quite
a shock, in his sudden realization of the growth and success of his
"holy experiment." He took for his own residence the slate-roofed
house which stood in Second street, at the southeast corner of Norris'
alley, until the year 1868, when it was torn down.
John Penn, always called ' 'The American, ' ' to distinguish him from
William Penn's other children, was born in this house, of Penn's second
wife, Hannah Callowhill, a delicate, sweet woman, whom Penn dressed
with much pride in silks and jewels in spite of the stern Quaker regula
tions in regard to costume. She preferred the country seat up the
Delaware, and here Penn lived the greater part of his time, in some
thing of that state in which he had been raised. The house stood upon a
hill, and was approached by an avenue of poplars. On one side ran
the river, with the bank terraced down to it. The lawns were as well
kept as the greener ones of England, and the gardens were planted, not
alone with trees indigenous to Pennsylvania, but with many others
brought from Europe and the tropics. The "forest primeval" of
native elms and oaks was undisturbed, and in this were no formal walks,
but only winding, woodland roads, made by accident, rather than
design. Penn, like most Englishmen, was fond of good horses, and kept a
stable of blood animals. Hannah Penn, tending her baby, or embroid
ering a screen in her boudoir, sat among satin-covered chairs, damask
curtains, and silken blankets. The furniture was solid oak, spider-
legged and carved. Rare china and plate filled the dresser. To all,
there was an open house at Pennsbury Manor; every one was welcome,
regardless of his or her standing, for Penn could never see a distinction
of persons, and showed as much courtesy in the society of Indians as he
did in his converse with kings. One entertainment which he gave to
the Indians upon the lawn was so extensive that a hundred roasted turkeys
were prepared as a part of the bill of fare. At a time when wild turkeys

202 THE STORY OP AMERICA.
frequently turned the scales at forty -six pounds, the banquet must have
been ample. Penn accepted hospitality with as much grace as he gave
it, and did not drop his courtly manners when he entered the wigwam of
the Indian and ate hominy and acorns with him. There is a story
told of his riding to the Derby meeting with little Rebecca Wood, a
bare-legged country girl, sitting behind him on his well-groomed horse
— himself immaculate, no doubt, as to attire. Those two years spent
at Pennsbury Manor were, without question, the happiest of his life.
He was one of the first men in America to dimly perceive that an
immorality lay in slavery. The truth did not come to him openly, for
he and the rest of the Friends might well ask, "Did not the Bible
sustain it?' ' Penn himself was an owner of slaves, but he felt in fhem,
as in all the men he met, the common current of humanity, and in his
will he gave freedom to his blacks. He tried to procure the passage of
a law for the regulation of marriage of the negroes, but this law the
assembly rejected. In 1701 he was obliged to leave the colony and
return to England, and never again did he return to that peaceful spot
upon the Delaware where the most placid years of his life had been
spent. In England, he met with much trouble. At one time the
charter of his province was threatened; again a lien was put on it
through misrepresentation and fraud. He found himself heavily in debt,
and was arrested and lodged in Fleet Prison for nine months. But
even the evil reports which came from his beloved colony concerning
the mismanagement of government were not so distressing to him as the
folly and selfishness of his eldest son, William, whom he sent to
America in hopes that he would find more wholesome companions than
in profligate London. In Philadelphia, his debauchery and drunkenness
were borne with much patience, because he was the son of their dear
Governor, but he was finally arrested in a tavern brawl; the court
brought an indictment against him. Governor Evans, who was then
administering affairs in the province, was his boon friend, and had
been in the' same disgraceful brawl at which Penn was arrested, but
neither Penn's name nor his powerful friends could move the Quakers
when they had determined to do their duty by a sinner, and he left the
province in disgrace, leaving a large company of disgusted creditors
behind him.
So dissatisfied did the people become with the Governor that they
actually defied his authority, and it was found judicious to dispose of
him. Charles Cookin succeeded to the governorship in 1709, and ruled
quietly, but without much distinction. His troubles were of an abstract

A GENTLEMAN.

203

kind, relating entirely to religious obligations, subtile enough to have
satisfied Puritan Salem. Following him came Sir William Keith, a
governor of more sense, though of little more force. Philadelphia had
but little sympathy with the warlike actions of the other colonists; she
was at peace with the Indians herself, and did not take a personal
interest in those numerous expeditions against the French and Indians
which disturbed the northern and southern colonies and steadily sapped
¦ their strength.

WILLIAM PENN'S RESIDENCE.

As for Penn, he lived till 17 18, and passed the last six years of his
life in tranquility at Ruscombe, his English estate. Slowly and steadily
his disease destroyed his powerful mind and wrecked his active body.
In 1732 Thomas Penn, his second son by his second marriage, moved
to Philadelphia. He was never popular, but his elder brother, who
came two years later, had something of the magnetism, vivacity and
cordiality which distinguished his father. This was under Patrick
Gordon's administration, and a time of great prosperity. Though the
colony was the youngest on the continent, it had more white inhabitants
than all Virginia, Maryland and the two Carolinas. Philadelphia was

204 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
incomparably the finest city in America, and second in magnitude. Its
trade was very extensive and its manufacturing excellent. When
Gordon died, in 1736, George Thomas followed him, and quietly ruled
for nine years.
Philadelphia, like Boston, had become the resort for enterprising
boys. One of these boys was Benjamin Franklin, a rather comely printer's
boy of seventeen, who quarreled with his elder brother, and made for
the great ' 'City of Brotherly Love. ' ' Everyone knows how he walked
down the pavementi lonesome and hungry, eating his roll of bread;
everyone knows of his unfortunate engagement with the printer, and
how Governor Keith finally took him into his favor, or pretended to do
so, and sent the eager lad to London. There Benjamin found out how
little the Governor's promises were worth, and returned to Pennsylvania.
After this he prospered, and in 1728 was one of the men who established
the Pennsylvania Gazette, a paper which lived for 120 years. He had
previously written for the New England Current, his brother's paper,
and, indeed, it was on account of these articles on public affairs, that he
had quarreled with his brother. Through his efforts, a library was
started in Philadelphia in 1731. In 1741 he founded a philosophical
society, "and in 1749 a university in Pennsylvania. This was at a time of
great national perplexity, which must be left for another chapter.
Collectors of rare American literature cherish a few copies of ' 'Poor
Richard's Almanac," which are still extant. This he issued for twenty-
five years. It was a collection of saws and sayings which have passed
into the phraseology of our country until they have become classic.
The annual sale of this almanac was about ten thousand copies. These
were handed down from family to family by country people, until they
were worn to shreds. Franklin wrote many papers on political, financial
and scientific subjects, and even now and then dipped a lighter pen in
ballad-writing. He was the first great scientist of America. To him
belongs the honor of showing that lightning is electricity, and the
invention of the lightning-rod is his. Indirectly, all of our great
electrical experiments are traceable to him.
FOR FURTHER READING:
History — Sypher's "Philadelphia."
Biography— Ellis' "Penn."
Fiction— W. H. G. Kingston's "A True Hero."
Poetry— J. G. Whittier's "Pennsylvania Pilgrim."
Drama— Schmidt-Eber's "William Penn."

CHAPTER XXXI.

tip JMdpmt's Ifim&s,

THE RULE OF LOVELACE AT NEW YORK — THE DUTCH RETAKE THE
CITY — IT AGAIN REVERTS TO THE ENGLISH BY PATENT-
GOVERNOR ANDROS AND HIS UNPOPULAR RULE —
LEISLER ASSUMES CONTROL — TROUBLE
WITH NEW FRANCE.

NETHERLAND was governed by the Eng
lish with such happy results that the Dutch had
no objections to any change of governors which
might be desired, and when Nicolls wished to
return home, the people gave a cordial welcoriie
P to Colonel Francis Lovelace. His rule was quiet
and popular, and entirely without difficulty at the capital,
although upon the borders there were some disturbances.
At one time the men of the Long Island towns refused
to give any money for renewing the New York fortifica
tions. Lovelace ordered their votes to be publicly burned,
and this gave rise to difficulties which continued for a
long time. In the north, the French were disturbing,
and at several times it was thought that war must be
declared against Courcelles, the Governor of Canada. But, while the
people of New York were still thinking about the subject, they were
given matters of more serious interest to attend to. England was again
at war with Holland, and from time to time rumors reached New York
that a Dutch fleet was on its way northward from the West Indies to
retake the harbor. Lovelace was absent for the time being, and paid
no attention to the summons from his Lieutenant-Governor.
On August 7, 1673, twenty-three Dutch ships, carrying sixteen
hundred men, sailed into the bay of New York. The Dutch of the city
rejoiced at the sight of their countrymen, and were not long in telling
them the true condition of affairs. Such a force of men could well

206 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
afford to laugh at the fret and fume of the village, in which men were
running to and fro as if they had lost their heads. Drums were beaten
about the streets. One nervous smith set to work on fire-locks, and the
militia of the surrounding towns was called for. The Dutch commander
quietly demanded surrender, and when the English came to treat with
him and to beg for time, he quietly turned an hour-glass over and said
that if the English did not surrender within half an hour he would
open fire. He did as he said, and a few in the fort were killed, and
others wounded. Six hundred Dutch landed on the banks of the
Hudson. The fort surrendered, and the Dutch again took possession
where Peter Stuyvesant had once stumped about in martial pride.
The Dutch names were restored to cities, forts, rivers and bays. The
Dutch burgomaster took the place of the English mayor.
Antony Clove was chosen temporary Governor. Two ships-of-war
were left him for protection, and the rest of the fleet sailed quietly
away. New England was very much frightened when it heard of the
success of the Dutch, but the Puritans were cautious, and though they
took means for defending themselves, they did not venture to give the
English of New York any assistance in ousting the Dutch. New York
was easy to manage. So the citizens escaped plunder and outrage, they
cared but little who their masters might be. The lawless class, which
makes change of government in older cities so much to be dreaded, had
no existence in the colonial towns.
Over in Europe, events were taking a new direction. Peace was
made between England and Holland, and though the States-general
were really the winners of peace on their own continent, they never
theless gave up their possessions in the New World to the English. A
patent of the New Netherland territory was given to the Duke of York
in 1674. Major Edmund Andros was appointed by him to govern New
York. The English names were restored, the officers reinstated, and all
went on as it had under the rule of Nicolls and Lovelace. This was
fifteen years before the time that Boston impeached the government of
Andros and put him in prison. He thought but little of New York,
which contained only six or seven thousand people, while New England
had at least one hundred and twenty thousand — such a difference
was there between the easy-going Dutch and the fiercely-determined
Englishmen. Under English rule, a more rapid growth came to New
York. There was not a little emigration from England. The industry
of whaling, which brought so much wealth to Long Island, was taken
up. All together there were twenty-four towns in the settlement and a

THE DUTCHMAN'S FIRESIDE. 207
remarkable increase of farms, on which not only wheat and tobacco
was raised, but even horses. Fish, peltry and lumber were quite
heavily exported. In a very short time the manufacture of flour
became an important industry.
When Andros chose to visit New York he was received with great
pomp, which must have been a balm to his pride, hurt by the contempt
with which the people of the southern colonies treated him. He went
to Albany for the purpose of holding a council for the chiefs of the five
nations, and succeeded in securing the promise of their friendship.
Perhaps one reason that the New Yorkers had so little against Andros
was that they saw so little of him, and that he thought the colony of
too slight importance to greatly interfere with.
In New York were two decided political parties — or religious parties,
for at this time it was hard to separate the two. James, the Catholic
King of England, had been obliged to flee to France. William and
Mary, the Protestants, had been proclaimed the King and Queen of
England. The thoughtful saw that there would be danger of a conflict
between the Catholic and Protestant factions. When Andros was
deposed by the Boston Committee of Safety, the government of New
York was left in the hands of the Lieutenant-Governor, Nicholson, and
of the council. The Dutch inhabitants of New York were in sympathy
with William and Mary. The English of New York were very largely
Catholics. In New York, no proclamation of William and Mary was
made, and the chaplain at the fort continued to pray for the infant
Prince of Wales, and that the dethroned James might be victorious over
his enemies. In consequence, there was a steadily increasing discontent
shown among the Dutch. Nicholson feared that the question was
getting too troublesome for him, and resigned his position and sailed
for England. The council was very much frightened, which, as it
lacked both brains and courage, it might well be. No one was
appointed to take command, and it came about quite naturally, that
one of the captains of the militia, with more vigor than the rest, should
assume the control of affairs. It is such times of need which make
leaders. This man was Jacob Leisler, who was willing to do no end of
work and face a great deal of danger. The council would do nothing
although the disposition of the colony grew steadily worse. Leisler saw
the full danger, and when it came his turn to guard the fort with his
company, he called all the trained bands together and made them sign
a declaration by which they said that they held the fort for William
and Mary, and would protect the Protestant religion. The council,

208 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
frightened at the threatening look of things, dispersed, some of the
members going to Connecticut and others to Albany. Leisler, a
merchant by trade, and a man of little education, was left in the entire
control of affairs. He called a convention, at which he was appointed
captain of the fort, and the delegates made themselves into a committee
of safety. At the very outset Leisler was called upon to deal with some
very serious matters.
King James had fled to France, and was the guest there of Louis
XIV. Louis sent word to Frontenac, who was then Governor of
Canada, that he should take it upon himself to search among the inhabi
tants of New York, and to send all French Protestants to France. The
English Protestants were to be exported to New England, France or
other places. The French Catholics were to be unmolested in their
homes. Enough artisans and farmers to provide for the colony were
to be left as slaves. Frontenac was not slow to obey the orders for
invasion. FOR FURTHER READING:
Fiction— Noah Brooks' "In I,eisler's Time."

CHAPTER XXXII.
^rmtbmtt tip l^fer*

FRONTENAC'S ATTACK UPON NEW YORK — THE MASSACRE AT SCHENEC
TADY — NEW YORK IS FORTIFIED BY LEISLER — SLOUGHTER IS
SENT TO SUPERSEDE HIM — LEISLER' S DEFENSE GETS
HIM INTO TROUBLE — THE GOVERNOR'S
DASTARDLY TAKING OFF.

N February, 1669, Frontenac marched down to the
frontier. He had three war parties of chosen
men. One was to attack Albany, one New
Hampshire and one Maine. A part of the men
were Christian Iroquois. All three parties were
led by LeMoyne, a young French gentleman of
courage and spirit, to whose family France was greatly
indebted for services in the New World. They crossed
Lake Champlain on the ice. The Indians were afraid
to attack Albany, and compelled the French to march
upon Schenectady. They did so on the eighth of the
month, late in the evening. The sun had rolled down
like a red ball along the curve of the southern mountain
— a peculiar effect, which, perhaps, cannot be seen any
where else in the world. About it, even the Indians had poetic
legends. There had been a festival at the village, but it ended early,
as all gayeties did in those days, and everyone was in bed sleeping as the
double line of warriors approached the palisaded town. There were no
sentinels at the gate; instead there stood two gigantic snow figures, put
up there by the boys and girls in jocund mockery of danger.
One whoop from the Indians, and the men fell to work. In two hours
sixty persons were killed, and eighty or ninety taken prisoners. Some
ran through the snow and storm to Albany, but they were few. The
village was burned. The commander at Albany saw that there was
immediate need of reinforcement. Albany was the only town in New

2IO THE STORY OF AMERICA.
York which had not admitted Leisler' s government, but now she was
forced to do so, and Leisler set to work to provide her with the men and
supplies. Leisler asked all the other colonies to send delegates for the
purpose of forming an expedition against the French. Sevn lelegates
attended the first colonial congress, which met on May i, 1690. All of
these seven men will be mentioned again in history, so it is well to re
member their names. They were Stoughton, Sewall, Gold, Pitkin,
Walley, Leisler and De la Noye. It was agreed that Leisler should
appoint the commander; that New York should provide four hundred
men, Massachusetts one hundred and sixty, Connecticut one hundred
and thirty-five, Plymouth sixty, and Maryland one hundred.
Leisler hastened to rebuild the fortifications of New York. He
captured some French cruisers at sea, which were of considerable force
to use at his need. The year was a busy and stirring one. The times
were turbulent. Leisler was a merchant by education, a leader and
fighter by temperament, and kept everyone well at work. It goes with
out saying that he was heartily hated by the Catholics of the colony.
They were not only the Catholics, but, as it chanced, the aristocrats of
the place, for the Protestant movement was the movement of the
people. When William found time to send over a royal Governor he
found plenty of complaints awaiting his ear. This royal Governor was
Colonel Henry Sloughter. But it was not he who first appeared at New
York, but Richard Ingoldsby, captain of a company of grenadiers, who
arrived in New York a few weeks before his Governor, because
Sloughter had chosen to go by way of the Bermudas. Ingoldsby seems
to have had a very high idea of his own position, and on entering the
port and finding that Leisler was in command of the fort, he ordered
him to surrender. Leisler treated Ingoldsby politely, gave him quarters
for his troops, but told him that he would not deliver the fort to any
save he who held a warrant from the King. Ingoldsby had the
impertinence to fire upon the fort for several hours. Leisler was not
the man to let a fire go unreturned. A number of soldiers were killed.
Several weeks passed, with Leisler still governing and Ingoldsby
protesting, before Sloughter arrived. The friends of Leisler say that he
sent two gentlemen immediately to congratulate the Governor upon his
arrival and to offer him the fort and government, but that the Governor
would not listen to them, and threw them into jail. But Colonel
Sloughter always said that he sent Ingoldsby to demand the fort, and
that Leisler said he would own no Governor without orders from the
King directed to him. However it may be, Ingoldsby marched into the

FRONTENAC THE FIGHTER. 211
fort. Leisler' s men surrendered. Sloughter issued a warrant for the
arrest of Leisler and his council. They were tried for treason and
murder. Leisler and seven others were found guilty and sentenced to
death, but all of them were reprieved until they should know what the
King's pleasure was in the matter.
The Catholics, so long irritated by Protestant rule, saw that their
time for revenge had come. They used all the influence which they
could bring to bear against Leisler. The Protestants were terrified,
especially when they remembered the tragedy of Schenectady, and
inferred from that what Jesuit rule might mean in New York. They
sent in petitions for Leisler' s pardon, while on the other hand the
Catholics pressed petitions upon the Governor, begging for Leisler' s
execution. But Sloughter refused to sign Leisler' s death-warrant.
The assembly and various of the rich Catholics of New York prepared
a feast, to which Sloughter was invited. Wine was plentiful, and
under its influence the Governor was got to sign the death-warrant.
The eight prisoners were executed before the Governor had recovered
from the effects of his drinking. Leisler' s young son had the question
of his father's guilt argued before a committee of the House of Lords at
London, three years later, and the judgment of the New York govern
ment was reversed. It was judged that Leisler was neither guilty of
treason nor of murder. The family of Leisler was given its honorable
reputation, and also a sum of money, in return for the charges made upon
his private property during the time of his government. Sloughter
only ruled over New York for four months. He died suddenly, and it is
not unlikely that the friends of Leisler saw a special providence in this.
FOR FURTHER READING:
History— Broadhead and O'Callaghan's "New York."

CHAPTER XXXIII.

Up Jni ti ip fm\n.

THE RULE OF GOVERNOR FLETCHER — FLETCHER SUCCEEDED BY THE
EARL OF BELLOMONT — THE COMMISSION OF CAPTAIN KIDD,
AND HOW IT WAS CARRIED OUT — LORD CORNBURY
BECOMES GOVERNOR — THE EXPEDITIONS
AGAINST PORT ROYAL AND
QUEBEC.

OR a short time Captain Ingoldsby attended to
the duties of governorship, but was relieved
by Benjamin Fletcher, Governor for the King.
His commission gave him command of the
militia of the New England colonies as well as
his own. It was thought necessary for the
safety of the colonies to have a general commander to
protect them from the Indians. The colonies believed
themselves to be independent, and certainly were
under governors of their own, if one could tell any
thing by their charters. Connecticut sent a repre
sentative to England to complain of the violation of
their rights under the charter. Rhode Island also
sent an agent to protest to the King. While these
men were in England, Fletcher came to Hartford and ordered the
militia under arms. Governor Treat refused to let Fletcher assume
command of his troops, but the militia was permitted to muster at Hart
ford. Fletcher ordered his commission and instructions to be read to
the troops. In command at the front was Captain Wadsworth, and as
soon as the reading began he cried, ' 'Beat the drums ! ' ' and all the
sturdy Puritan drummers fell to raising such a noise that the voice of
the reader was entirely drowned. The more the Governor shouted for
silence the louder the hot-headed Wadsworth shouted for them to drum,
until finally the Governor had to yield, leaving Treat in command.

THE PEST OP THE PIRATES. 213
Fletcher sold licenses to privateers and pirates, and under his rule New
York and the surrounding islands gained the reputation of being a nest
of pirates. In the north, Frontenac was still active. The Mohawks had been
won to the side of the English, and three years after the massacre of
Schenectady the French took three of the Mohawk towns. Major
Schuyler, of Albany, was sent hurriedly after the French. In a few
days he had overtaken them. They had three engagements, in which
the French were repulsed each time. Then came a terrible fall of snow,
and, hungry and cold, the troops on both sides were forced to retire to
their rude fortifications. On both sides were Indian allies. The Indians
had a dislike for the Christian mode of warfare, and always shrank
from open attack. For this reason they delayed the action constantly,
first the French, then the English allies refusing to move. It was on
this account that the French finally escaped by the floating ice on the
Hudson, and got out of Schuyler's reach. Frontenac's party, suffering
for food, straggled back in small parties to Canada.
Fletcher had shown such greed and dishonesty in his administration
that he was deposed from office, and the Earl of Bellomont put in his
place. It was found by this time that the southern colonies could not be
dealt with easily, and that their rights could not be disposed of without
protest. The experiment which had failed with Fletcher was not tried
with Bellomont. He was appointed Governor of New York and Massa
chusetts, but only Captain-General over the military forces of
Connecticut, Rhode Island and the Jerseys. One of the first things
which Bellomont did was to get from the New York assembly an
acknowledgment of the error under which Leisler was condemned,
and he had his body taken up from the private ground and reburied
with public state in the Dutch church. His vigorous action gave
strength to the Protestant party and the promise of a fair and deter
mined administration.
Honest commerce had been almost choked under Fletcher's rule,
and it was Bellomont' s ambition to get rid of that class of French
seamen who, under the excuse of war commissions, seized upon every
ship whose cargo tempted them. These rovers made a journey upon
the sea a thing of risk and terror to peaceable people. One of this
class was Captain Kidd. This valorous but unfortunate personage,
about whom so much has been written and told, was the friend of great
men. One of Bellomont' s methods for getting rid of the pirates was to
send out a ship, at the expense of a joint stock company, for the purpose
13

214 THE STORY OP AMERICA.
of capturing pirate vessels. A number of great noblemen, and the
King himself, were to receive parts of the profits of the adventure.
Bellomont and his friends provided a ship for Kidd's use, paying four-
fifths of the cost. The rest was paid by Kidd. The crew was not to
take more than one-fourth of the prizes captured. If nothing was
taken, Kidd was to return the cost of the galley before March i, 1697.
Kidd's previous reputation had not been particularly bad. He was a
sea rover, and even then was known as a man of unusual adventure and
daring. For this very reason he was thought a fit commander for the
one hundred and fifty lawless men put under his charge.
At that time Madagascar was a great resort for pirates. There they
lived in barbaric splendor, in a manner not unsuggestive of the marvels
of Monte Cristo. The first time Kidd was heard of he was living
among these sumptuous outlaws. It seems that he had been unable to
capture any of the pirates whom he had been sent out for, and had gone
to Madagascar in the hope that he might fall in with some better luck.
After a time he took to the sea again, and went as far as India, but
meeting none of the vessels which he was authorized to overhaul, he
finally preyed upon merchant vessels for his own benefit. For several
years he followed this adventurous life, and in 1699 sailed uncon
cernedly into the New York harbor. Bellomont did not arrest him,
because Kidd assured him that he could prove his innocence of the
crimes of which he was accused, and he was allowed to go to Boston.
There, however, he was arrested. He was thrown into jail, and tried
to get out by telling of forty thousand pounds of treasure which was
hidden in the West Indies, and which would be lost unless he himself
went for it. Kidd was sent to England, where he lay in prison for a
year. The Tories were determined that he should be convicted, since
he had been the friend of the famous Whigs, and of Bellomont, the
Governor.' He was tried and convicted of the murder of a gunner
whom he had accidentally killed in a brawl. And so Captain Kidd, the
daring rover, was hanged. He was more famous than many better
men, and it will be long before the youths of this country and England
have ceased to feel interested in his daring exploits.
When Lord Bellomont died, in 1701, Lord Cornbury, a cousin of
Queen Anne, who, a year later, came to the throne, was appointed
Governor. Truth to tell, it was only by quitting the country that he
could escape being imprisoned for debt. He was a very worthless man,
given up to drink and debauchery of all kinds, and the only interest
that he took in his new office came from the hope that he might rapidly

THE PEST OF THE PIRATES. 215
enrich himself. This year (1702) a dreadful yellow fever epidemic
broke out in New York, which carried off more than five hundred
within ten weeks. Cornbury was so unscrupulous that he did not
even take pains to conceal his greed. He gathered large sums of money
for the purpose of building a fortification at the Narrows, and then
calmly kept the money for his own use. After this the assembly
insisted upon giving all the money for public purposes into the hands of
a treasurer of their own. The Governor immediately appealed to the
crown, protesting against the insult to himself, but the crown refused to
take his part. He was a fierce religionist, for all of his bad ways, and
showed as great a lack of scruple in the matters relating to the church
as in other affairs. One story which is told of him illustrates clearly
the temper of the man. When the yellow fever was so bad in New
York, he went to a town upon Long Island until it should be over.
The Presbyterian minister there had the best house in town, and he
courteously yielded this to. the Governor to use during his stay. When
the Governor no longer needed it he handed it over to a few represent
atives of the Established Church of England, who lived at the place,
and said that the ground attached could be leased for the support of
Jkeir church. He persecuted the Presbyterians throughout the colony,
and would not allow a school teacher or clergyman to teach or preach
except by a special license.
Down in Massachusetts the royal Governor, Dudley, was making
matters disagreeable, and continually fighting the charter governments.
But there was a strong element in the colonies now which could not
easily be crushed. The popular party had some brilliant men in it who
were neither afraid to speak nor to suffer, and the arrogant governors
knew they could go but so far. Everything which Cornbury did was
disagreeable to the simple and industrious colonists. For one thing, he
dressed like a woman, in great splendor, saying that it was proper that
he should be so clothed to more fittingly represent his sovereign
mistress, the Queen. He insulted the Quakers, who were no longer the
wild and ill-advised creatures who had shocked the Boston meetings,
but grave and dignified citizens. The people appealed to the Queen
for protection, and Cornbury was recalled. He was arrested for debt
and thrown in jail, where he remained until he became Earl of
Clarendon, through the death of his father. Lord Lovelace was
appointed Governor, but died in a short time. At this time New York
was intending to send an expedition against Canada, and as the treasury
was empty, issued bills of credit, the first ever put out by New York.

2l6 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
But the English fleet was routed, and it was necessary to think of other
means for subduing the French province.
At this time the five nations were the friends of the English, and it
was thought best to take advantage of their fickle friendship. Schuyler,
with five Indian chiefs, was sent to England to beg for help in the
conquest of the French. He was given ships and men for an expedi
tion, and joined with the New England men in the taking of Port
Royal. Robert Hunter had succeeded Lord Lovelace as Governor of
New York. He was in favor of pushing the war against the French.
The New England people had received most of the credit of the capture
of Port Royal, and the New Yorkers were anxious to do something as
brilliant. The fleet was a large one. There were sixteen men-of-war
and twenty transports, which started in the summer of 17 n, under Sir
Hovenden Walker, for, the attack upon Quebec. Altogether there were
seven thousand men. But the fleet had only sailed ten leagues up the
St. Lawrence, when ten or eleven of the ships drifted upon the rocks,
and one thousand men were drowned. Meanwhile, a detachment had
marched from Albany to attack Montreal. Hearing of the disaster to
the ships, those troops fell back. England won nothing, but the
French were much alarmed.
In 17 1 9 Hunter retired, and Burnet took his place. He was
devoted to the interests of the people, but was not popular. He con
ceived a new plan for the conquest of the French. Most of the
Canadian supplies were got from Albany, and he proposed to prohibit
all trade between his own province and Canada, but this did not please
the tradesmen, although it did the assembly. Few merchants care
enough for national independence to see their trade decrease. The
trade with Canada was carried on as if the Governor had not prohibited
it. In the face of this opposition the Governor was not able to keep his
temper, and did some ill-advised things. In 1727 he was removed and
transferred to Massachusetts Bay. He was fonder of writing works on
the Bible than governing, perhaps, and would no doubt have succeeded
better as a private citizen than as a leader of men. The next Governor
died shortly after his arrival, and Rip Van Dam, the eldest member of
the council, acted as Governor until Colonel Cosby arrived, in 1732, to
take the head of the colony. FOR FURTHER READING:
History— Parkman's "Frontenac."
Fiction— J. H. Ingraham's "Captain Kyd."

SCENE ON THE ST. LAWREKCE RIVER.

CHAPTER XXXIV.

i]p Ifufy Ya§mj8tr&

THE FRENCH AND THE DISCOVERIES IN THE NORTHWEST — FATHERS
JOLIET AND MARQUETTE DISCOVER THE SOURCE OF THE MIS
SISSIPPI AND SAIL DOWN THE RIVER — DEATH OF MAR
QUETTE — THE EXPEDITION OF LASALLE AND HENNE
PIN  LOUISIANA DISCOVERED AND NAMED.

HE English treated with the Indians, the Dutch
traded with them, and the French lived with
them. More imaginative than the English or
the Dutch, they saw at once the picturesqueness
of savage life, and appreciated the wild delights
of adventure and discovery. Champlain had ar
rived in Quebec on July 3, 1608. This was only a year
after the settlement in Jamestown. Four years later he
discovered Lake Ontario and Lake Nipissing. It was
impossible to content that gallant explorer while he
lived. Ever restless, he went from one point to another
of the great unknown continent which stretched west
ward, and about which the English seemed to have had
comparatively little curiosity. There grew up in Quebec
a race of men half Indian in habit, who preferred
the wilderness to civilization. They were absolutely fearless, good
fighters, capable of endurance, fleet of foot, excellent hunters, and sin
cere Catholics. They carried the cross of Christ in one hand and their
muskets in the other, so to speak. The jaunty songs of these
voyageurs made the wilderness ring. Jean Nicollet was one of these
men, who went as far west as what we know as Wisconsin.
In the year 1640 the Fathers Chaumonot and Brebceuf coasted
along the northern shore of the State of Ohio, through the fair chain
of waters by Detroit, and up the eastern shores of Michigan as far as
the Straits of Macinac. Fourteen years later, two young traders went

220 THE STORY OP AMERICA.
far west upon Lake Superior, and heard there of the great tribe of
Sioux. When these traders returned to Montreal, in 1660, with six
teen canoes packed with furs, they excited great interest in the city,
and quickened the love of adventure which already existed among
the Frenchmen. The French had had many unhappy experiences with
the Indians. The latter could not understand the mysticism of the
Frenchman's religion; in his burning tapers, his altars, robes and
crucifix, they saw the symbols of superstition, and thought the French
men must be the familiars of evil spirits. The French who had
ventured to settle near Onondaga for the purpose of converting the
Indians there, had been glad to escape with their lives. Father Jogues
had been treacherously murdered, in 1646, by the Mohawks, in the
Mohawk valley, simply because of the fear which his missal and altar
produced. But undismayed by such catastrophes the zealous Jesuits
continued to establish new missions.
In the summer of 1660 Father Mesnard founded a mission on
a point of the southern shore of Lake Superior, known then and now
as Chagwamegan. He lost his life in some mysterious way, and in
1665 Father Allouez took up the mission there, preaching in the Algon
quin language to twelve or fifteen different tribes. Even the Sioux
heard of him, and it was through them that he heard first of the Mis
sissippi. In 1669 Father Aloney, with Father Dablon, went as far as
the Fox river, learning from the Indians not a little about the
geography of the country.
But the more thorough enterprise began when Jean Talon was
appointed overseer of the trade of Canada. He called a council of
Indians at the fort of Lake Superior, in 1671. An adventurer who
knew the language and customs of the Indians was there, and repre
sentatives of Louis XIV. Chiefs of tribes from Hudson Bay and the
head of Lake Superior and Lake Michigan were there. A cross was
erected to which the arms of France was fastened, and possession was
taken in the name of the French crown, and /the chiefs promised to be
loyal to the great King of France. Under this guarantee of friendship,
Louis Joliet and Father Marquette started on an expedition in 1673.
They discovered the source of the Mississippi, and went as far south as
the mouth of the Arkansas. Father Marquette was a delightful writer,
and left an account of his travels, full of romance and piety. The
Indians everywhere were friendly, and the travelers even saw at one
village a cross erected and adorned, which showed that the religion of
the Jesuits was creeping among the tribes. With two Indian guides,

THE HOLY VOYAGEURS. 221
they were shown the passage from the Fox to the Wisconsin river, and
from the St. Lawrence to the Mississippi river. Down this wild river,
many hundred leagues from their own countrymen, the two peaceful
but courageous Frenchmen floated, seeing little life besides great herds
of buffaloes. They slept in their canoes at night for fear of being sur
prised. It was a good many days before they found any traces of men.
Following up a trail which they had discovered, they came upon a party
of Illinois Indians. These Indians were more demonstrative than those
of the east. They indulged more in ceremonials, and had a more com
plex religion, at least so one must believe from the accounts left of
them, though the difference may have lain largely in the fact that the
Frenchmen were appreciative.
The chief of the Illinois village came forth from his wigwam,
naked, to welcome Joliet and Marquette, raising his hands to the sun.
About him danced other braves, with the red calumet, or pipe of peace,
in their hands. They were invited to visit the Indian village, where
they were given a feast and led in a sort of triumphal procession to see
the town. The people went with them to their canoes, with every
expression of pleasure and courtesy which they could give.
Soon after this the explorers saw the painted rocks, so famous after
ward. These were rocks on which the Indians had painted, in a way
which Marquette protested to be as good as anything that could be done
in France. They were ruthlessly destroyed by quarrying, in the present
century. They theri struck the great, muddy flow of the Missouri,
staining the blue Mississippi with its repulsive streak. Marquette
hoped that he might reach the Gulf of California, of which the Spaniards
had given such glowing accounts. Marquette saw iron mines up the
Ohio river near its meeting with the Mississippi, which showed that the
French traders had already been as far as that point. They met with
Indians who had guns, powder, knives, hatchets and cloth, which they
had got from the Europeans on the eastern coast. Again and again the
calumet saved Marquette and his friend from attack by the Indians, and
at length, fearing that they might fall into the hands of the Spaniards,
they turned northward again.
When they reached the Illinois river they followed the course of
that stream and made a portage into Lake Michigan. ' 'We have seen
nsthing equal to this river for the goodness of the land," said Marquette.
"The prairies, wood, cattle, deer, goats, bustards, swans, ducks, paro
quets, and even beaver, abound here. There are many little lakes and
little rivers. ' ' They had started in June, and by September were back

222 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
to the French mission at Green Bay. Marquette lived for two years
among the Miami Indians. His death is very touching. The gentle
old man was making his way in his canoe to Macinac, in 1675, and
stopped on the eastern shore of Lake Michigan to raise an altar and
celebrate the mass. He seemed unaccountably sad, and asked his
companions to leave him alone a little while. They did so, and when
they came to him, found him dead.
When Joliet reached Montreal with his story of the expedition,
Robert Cavalier de La Salle, a Norman gentleman who had established
a trading post at Lachine, not far from Montreal, felt that the time for
an expedition had come. Frontenac gave La Salle letters of introduction
at court, and he succeeded in getting all he asked for. With thirty
men, plenty of stores and tools, he marched to Lake Ontario, made the
portage by Niagara Falls to Lake Erie, and at Port Frontenac built a
ship of forty-five tons. He named it the Griffin. She was armed with
seven cannons, and well built, considering the disadvantages of her
construction. She sailed westward in 1679, reaching the settlement of
Green Bay in September. The Griffin was freighted with fur, and
La Salle, with some of his men, walked to St. Joseph, at the head of
Lake Michigan, nearly opposite the river Chicago. Here he waited for
the Griffin, but it never appeared. Depressed, but determined, he
pushed westward, and established in the present La Salle county, in
Illinois, Fort Creve-Cceur. La Salle sent Father Hennepin to trace
the Illinois to the mouth, which he did,, and then went up the Missis
sippi as far as the falls of St. Antony. He was taken prisoner by the
Sioux. They allowed him to return to his own country, with the
promise that he would visit them the next year.
La Salle decided to return to Niagara, and left Henri de Tonty in
charge at Creve-Cceur. The Iroquois Indians drove Tonty and his men
from the fort, and as he hurried down the west side of Lake Michigan,
La Salle came up the east side with reinforcements. Bitterly dis
appointed at finding the fort deserted, La Salle returned to Montreal,
where he succeeded in making arrangements with his creditors — for the
loss of the Griffin had seriously embarassed him — for another expedition.
La Salle sailed in 1681, with twenty-three Frenchmen and eighteen
Indians. The Indians took with them ten of their wives. With the
party were the Chevalier Henri de Tonty, Father Zenobe, and Dautray,
the son of the Procureur General of Quebec. These crossed the lake to
the Chicago river, and it may interest the thousands who daily pass
over that torpid and ill-smelling stream to know that they named it the

THE HOLY VOYAGEURS. • 223
' 'Divine River. ' ' They stopped for a time upon the present site of
Chicago, and then went on to the mouth of the Illinois. La Salle went
on down the river as fast as the ice would permit him. On each side
lay the shores, snow-clad; the trees glittering through the long, quiet
nights with fairy frost. The stillness was absolute. It was not until
they had sailed forty-five leagues that they heard the sounds of men.
La Salle knew they had been seen by the savages, and thought it best
to build a fort. He sent the calumet of peace to the Indian chiefs, and
established pleasant relations immediately. He speaks particularly of
the gayety of these southern Indians as compared with the severe and
sombre natives of the north. He left a cross there with St. Louis'
arms, and upon his return found that the Indians had surrounded it
with a palisade that it might not be harmed. Next he passed the
village of the Arkansas, where a superior people lived, with well-built
houses, having roofs of canes, fixed so as to form a dome. They were
ornamented with barbaric but effective paintings. They had furniture,
also, and understood the making of cloth. Next they came across the
Natchez Indians, and passing them, pushed on in the hope of finding the
sea. At last the water of the river tasted salt. A little further on and
it became saltier. A little further yet and they looked upon the sea.
Planting the cross, with the arms of France, they took possession of the
mouth of the Mississippi in the name of King Louis. The expedition
made its way back slowly, La Salle suffering from severe illness. The
report of his great discovery was sent to France, and finally La Salle
himself crossed to confer with King Louis. He was given power for
the colonization of Louisiana. Louisiana, as La Salle named the
territory for the King, included the present State of Louisiana and all
the territory north of the line of Texas and west of the Mississippi to
the Rocky Mountains. FOR FURTHER READING:
History— Parkman's "France and England in North America."
"La Salle's Discovery of the Great West."

CHAPTER XXXV.

BptraJfer Jb jSalk

LA SALLE LANDS ON THE SHORE OF TEXAS — HE IS MURDERED — THE HUT
IN THE WILDERNESS — THE EXPEDITION OP D' IBERVILLE — THE
SETTLEMENT OF NEW ORLEANS, AND THE MISSISSIPPI
— SCHEME OF JOHN LAW — THE MASSACRE OF
CHOP ART — BIENVILLE'S ILL-FATED
EXPEDITION AGAINST THE
CHICKASAWS.

A SALLE set sail from France on the 24th of July,
1684, with four vessels and a fine equipment, but
one accident after another delayed him, and it was
almost a year before he neared the mouth of the
Mississippi. Through a miscalculation he passed
beyond the mouth of the river and landed farther
west. La Salle was sure that a mistake had been
made, but could not induce the captain of the fleet to
return, and had no choice but to land his goods where
he was. By this accident Texas was first of the Gulf
States, after Florida, to be settled by Europeans. The
ship master cruelly deserted La Salle, and returning to
France, abused the ear of the King with stories about
the great discoverer, which so injured him in the esteem
of the court that no relief was sent to him — relief which
he was in great need of. Fortunately the Indians were gentle and
hospitable, and helped to supply the wretched little colony with food.
La Salle spent his time in unavailing searches for the Mississippi, which
came to seem to him at last like some mythical stream, having no
existence. It was on one of these journeys that the gallant and unfortunate
explorer met his death. He left the post in charge of twenty of his

THE CHEVALIER LA SALLE. 225
colonists, and taking as many more with him, started out with no
guide but a compass and no protection from savages, except that fur
nished by a few arms and his conciliatory policy. They had been out
about three months, when La Salle sent out a party in search of some
supplies which had been left upon a previous journey. This party
killed two buffaloes and sent back for horses to bring the meat to camp.
La Salle's young nephew, Morangetand, and two others, went with
the horses. Morangetand flew into a passion because the hunters had
get apart a portion of the meat for themselves. This the law of hunting
clearly entitled them to, but Morangetand was a hot-headed young
fellow, who had the pride of La Salle without his gentleness.
The hunters laid a plot for the killing of Morangetand and two
iaithful servants who were with him. This they did at night while the
men were sleeping. The hunters lacked the courage to meet La Salle,
and lingered so long that the Chevalier grew anxious, and calling a
friar for company, walked in search of them. There is a tradition that
as he went a great sadness came over him. He talked of his successes
as if they were things of the past, and all the philosophy of the gentle
friar was not able to arouse him from this melancholy mood. As he
neared the place where he knew the hunters to be, he fired his pistol to
let them know of his approach, and they crossed the river to meet him.
He asked where his nephew was, and was answered insolently. La Salle
rebuked him, and the hunter fired, shooting him through the brain.
He was only forty-six years old, and in all his able life was never more
full of vigor and enterprise. Had he lived, the history of the Missis
sippi valley would have been very different.
There was a quarrel among the murderers, in which the man who
fired the fatal shot was himself killed. The rest of the colony were
eager to get out of the wilderness as soon as they could. The good
friar and four .others decided to push toward Canada, and mounting their
horses, bade their friends farewell. What became of those who
remained at the colony is not known. The friar and his friends, jour
neying northward, came suddenly upon a cottage built in the French
style. Near it stood a cross. The bewildering effect of such a sight in
the heart of the wilderness can be imagined. It was the dwelling of
two of Henri de Tonty' s men, Charpentier and De Launay, who had
been left on the banks of the Mississippi two years before. Here one
of the friar's friends remained. These three Frenchmen were the only
living souls left to mark the adventures of the French in the valley of
the Mississippi — Louisiana, the French called it.

226 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
It was ten years after La Salle's death before France made
any strong effort to renew the colonization of the Mississippi valley.
Sieur Lemoyne d' Iberville, son of the distinguished Baron Longueuil,
of Canada, was then given the command of an expedition fitted out by
the King for the planting of a colony. Baron Longueuil had eleven
sons, not to mention numerous young kinsmen, all of whom were men
of spirit. Many of them were concerned in the fierce fights of the French
and English at the north. D' Iberville had two frigates under his
charge when he left France, and the three vessels joined him at Saint
Domingo. This was in 1699. With him was that same friar who was
the friend of La Salle in that ill-fated colony, St. Louis. He it
was who pointed out to d' Iberville the strong, turbid flow of the
Mississippi, staining the blue gulf. Up the river they found Indians
who had cloaks which La Salle had given them, and a breviary which
the friar had left in 1682. The boats were moved from Biloxi Island
to the Mobile Bay, on d' Iberville's first journey. The second time he
came, he found a point on the Mississippi river about thirty-eight miles
below the present city of New Orleans. This settlement, established in
1700, was the first really made in Louisiana, as we know the State now.
That on the Mobile Bay was abandoned in a short time and re-estab
lished on the Mobile river. By this time communication was established
between Canada and the settlements of Louisiana, by way of the great
river, Lake Erie, and the Miami Portage. About this time an English
man by the name of Coxe sent out an expedition to explore and take
possession of the Mississippi, under a charter given to Coxe by Charles
II for the territory west of Florida. This expedition was met by one
of the Frenchmen, Bienville, the brother of d' Iberville, and when
inquiry was made concerning the situation of the Mississippi, Bien
ville, with a Frenchman's calm and polite exterior, told him that it was
farther west. The Englishman turned into that dismal country where
La Salle had wandered so long. He who rides down the Mississippi
may still know the place where the Englishmen went into the wilder
ness, by the name of "English Turn." Fortunately for the little
French colony, Spain and France were in alliance at this period, and
the Spanish governors of Mexico and Florida were willing to give such
help as they could. The King granted the whole territory to Antoine
Crozat. Crozat appointed as his Governor, Cadillac, a soldier, who came
to the colony in May, 17 13. It was but natural that Bienville, who
had done so much practical work there — for his brother, d' Iberville, was
now dead — should resent the coming of the new officials. Their

THE CHEVALIER LA SALLE. 227
quarrels were the beginning of parties, which lasted for many years.
Cadillac was a determined explorer, and sent an expedition into
Texas which had much to do with the early history of that State.
When he returned to France, in two years from the time of his coming,
M. de L'Epiany was appointed Governor in his stead. But Louisiana
was to have a success which no half-way colonial enthusiasm could
make. With the death of Louis the Magnificent, in 17 15, began the
reign of the Regent, Duke of Orleans, and with him there came into
power in France a company of determined financiers, unscrupulous
men, who tried to avert the bankruptcy of the kingdom. Foremost
among these men was John Law, an Englishman, who was already
noted for daring business schemes, and who had laid out a plan for a
national bank which was far superior to anything of that day. France
was terribly in debt, and John Law proposed a bank discount which was
to issue bills redeemable in coin on merchants' notes. The Duke of
Orleans was the patron of this bank. Law asked and obtained Crozat' s
privileges to the Mississippi trade, and formed a company which united
the commerce of Louisiana and the fur trade of Canada. This was
called the Western Company, and grants were given to it for twenty-five
years. It had a nominal capital of 100,000,000 livres — an actual capi
tal of about 40,000,000 livres. Unsubstantial as the actual value of this
property was, and as Louis must have known it to have been, it never
theless satisfied the depressed merchants of France. Law worked hard;
he had troops sent over as well as vessels of colonists. Bienville was
once more made Governor-General of Louisiana. He selected New
Orleans for the capital, and in February, 17 18, left fifty persons to
secure the loan and begin the building of houses. Vessels brought
large parties of colonists here the following years.
John Law's scheme seemed to succeed, and in 1 719 he so gained the
confidence of merchants, that he was able to join with the East India
Company of France. The name of the corporation was changed to the
Indian Company. New shares were now issued at a par of 500 livres,
and no one was allowed to take any new shares who had not four old
ones to show. For the first time for many years France found herself
in a seemingly prosperous condition. John Law's scheme did not show
its hollowness, until at length the actual value of the bonds were put to
test. The Indian Company would not even accept their own shares as
collateral for the purchase of new shares. It goes without saying that
no one else would accept them in exchange for things of actual value.
All that vast stretch of land by the Mississippi, valuable enough to

228 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
form the basis of a nation, had no value then, lying uncultivated and
uninhabited. Among other serious mistakes, France had made that of
sending adventurers and fortune-hunters, instead of industrious peasants,
to Louisiana. The great bubble burst in 1770. Law was protected from the
consequences of his fatal scheme by becoming a Roman Catholic and
securing an appointment as minister. The valley of the Mississippi
ceased to be of great commercial interest to France, and was left to the
quiet attendance of the Jesuit missionaries; John Law's scheme had
brought to Louisiana several hundred colonists and had not been so
unfortunate an affair as might been expected from its magnitude and its
false basis. The Germans whom Law had brought over had been
deserted by him, but their habits of hard work and their love of nature
had been their preservation. There still exist above New Orleans, on
the German coast, luxurious farms and homes, built by these exiles and
sustained by their, descendants.
The French settlement at Natchez was the most prosperous of the
trading posts upon the river. The Natchez Indians were a very inter
esting tribe, not lacking in some good form of government. Like all
of the rest of the southern Indians, they had imagination and warmth
of temperament. They were sun-worshipers. Their chief was called
Brother of the Sun. The temple in which he worshiped was built in
the shape of a dome, with walls of smooth clay. Three wooden eagles,
one red, another white, and the third yellow, perched above it. Mats
of braided straw were placed upon the top to furnish protection from
the rain. Around it was a palisade, in which' were placed the skulls
the Natchez had brought back from battle. The palace of the chief
was not unlike the temple. It was built upon an artificial hill, so that
the first rays of the sun might awaken the chief, for the door fronted
the east. With many wild howls to the sun, he lighted his calumet
and devoted his first puffs to his mighty kinsman. He then directed
his course through the heavens by moving his hands from the east to
the west. The royal descent was traced through the female line. The
royal princesses were allowed to marry none but men of low family. It
was their sons who succeeded to the throne, and as soon as an heir
presumptive was born, a number of infants nearest his age were selected
to be his guard. All through his life he was taken care of by these
servants, who hunted for him and farmed for him, and when he died,
permitted themselves to be strangled, that they might continue to serve
him in another world. All this is described by Charlevoix, who left

THE CHEVALIER LA SALLE. 229
Canada in 1720 to visit the Canadian missions, and stopped at Kask-
askia, in the present State of Illinois, the oldest settlement in that
State. Going down the river in a canoe made from a large walnut
tree, he visited the German coast, New Orleans and Natchez. Charlevoix
says that the Natchez Indians had decreased rapidly in number, and
that in six years they had lost two thousand fighting men.
The commander of the fort at Natchez, in 1729, was Chopart, a man
both narrow and selfish. He sent to the Brother of the Sun and told
him that the French wished the Natchez to leave the site of their beau
tiful village and give it up to the French. This the Natchez promptly
refused to do. Chopart insisted that they must move away, within two
months. Up to this time the Natchez had been friendly to the French,
but they now made up their minds that they must get rid of them.
They got the Choctaws to join in the plan, and little bunches of sticks
were exchanged between the chiefs to indicate the number of days
before that selected for the massacre, but unfortunately the little son of
the Natchez chief saw his father burning the sticks in the temple, and after
his father had left, burned two more which he added to the pack. This,
of course, misled the Choctaw chief. When the day appointed by the
Natchez came, they gave a dinner to Chopart. He ate and drank with
them till 3 o'clock in the morning, and then returned to his home. In
a little while the Brother of the Sun came out with his warriors, who
bore the calumet high on a stick. They went to Chopart' s house
pretending they had come to bring him the tribute which he had told
them he would exact if they did not move from the village in two
months. Chopart, without dressing, opened the door and asked them
to enter. At that time, in every house in the settlement were one or
more Indians. Most of the chief's warriors went to the river, where a
well-laden galley had just come from New Orleans. Every Indian
picked out a man among those working on the galley, and firing, killed
him. This was the signal for a general slaughter. In every house the
Indians fell upon the settlers. Only one soldier escaped from the
garrison. Some of the women were killed, but most of them were
taken to be held as slaves. Two hundred Frenchmen were killed
within an hour's time, Chopart among them.
Two days later the Choctaws, down by New Orleans, sent a delega
tion to the Brother of the Sun, and learned that the Natchez had already
moved against the French. The Choctaws, not understanding the
reason of the mistake in the day of the attack, turned all of their anger
against the Natchez. Fugitives from the massacre began to arrive from

230 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
New Orleans and Perier. The commander of the fort there formed an
army, in which the Choctaws joined, to move against the Natchez
Indians. The Natchez Indians surrendered, leaving their town and
moving up the Red river. The next summer Perier moved after them
again. Once more they surrendered to him, and two hundred of them
were sold as slaves to Saint Domingo. Three hundred escaped, and
their descendants are living at this time upon the farms in the valleys
of the Ouachita river.
The Western Company, hearing of the difficulties, represented its
losses to the King, and he assumed the responsibility of it by making it
a royal province. Bienville, who had been in France for some time,
was again sent over as Governor-General in 1736. The first thing he
did was to prepare an expedition to the remnant of the Natchez Indians.
The Chickasaws at that time were allies of the Indian colony, and sure
of their strength, refused to yield up the Natchez Indians, who were
given to them for protection. Bienville sent word to the fort at
Kaskaskia to meet him with as many men as he could muster on the
ioth of May, in the Chickasaw country, so Bienville himself led out the
army from New Orleans to Mobile, on sixty small craft. He was met
by the Choctaws, his allies, and on the 24th began the building of a
rude fort seven miles distant from the Chickasaw village. When they
moved against the Chickasaw stockade they met with a heavy loss, and
were obliged to retreat. They were much puzzled at seeing Europeans
among the Chickasaw Indians. These they supposed to be Englishmen,
but they were the Frenchmen from Kaskaskia, who had moved upon
the day set by Bienville and had been taken prisoners. The Indian
allies had forced the commander to attack, instead of allowing them to
wait, as his judgment told him, for the reinforcement from New Orleans.
After the retreat of Bienville on the 24th, this unfortunate commander
and all of his followers were taken to a plain, tied to stakes, and burned
to death. Bienville's warriors, who had been left upon the field over
night, had their bodies cut to pieces and their heads stuck defiantly on
the palisades of the Chickasaws.
Four years later, in 1740, Bienville led another expedition against
the Chickasaws by way of the Mississippi river. He had heavy reinforce
ments from Fort Assumption, which was near the site of the present
city of Memphis. The Chickasaws were alarmed, and offered to
surrender all the white slaves in their possession on condition of peace.
Bienville accepted the terms. After an absence of ten months the army
returned to New Orleans. Fort Assumption was torn down, and no

THE CHEVALIER LA SALLE. 23 1
other military post was put in its place for one hundred and twenty
years. In 1741 Bienville returned to France.
Three years later than this there were but 1,700 white men, 1,500
women, and 2,020 slaves in the whole Mississippi valley, after thirty
years of expensive colonization. Ffteen years later, when Louis XV
had come to the throne, there was a falling off of these homes. For
-eight years after the return of Bienville to France, the Marquis de
Vandreuil held the position of royal Governor. The colony was in
constant alarm from fear of the English by sea and the Indians by land
— alarm which was greater than the case called for. In 1751 the
Marquis had two thousand soldiers under his orders and the expenses of
the colony were entirely out of proportion to its comforts. It was the
farmers, quietly working upon their plantations, who conquered the
Mississippi valley and made it valuable. Cotton was being raised, gin
and sugar manufactured, indigo cultivated, and the common vegetables
and fruits raised for the personal use of the settlers. Already in Illinois
wheat was becoming so successful a product that it was exported to the
distant seaport. The mines of copper and lead were being developed
in the Northwest, and silk and tobacco were being introduced.
Following, came the administration of Kerleric, which lasted for ten
years. At the end of that time he was thrown into the Bastile, accused
with misappropriating money. FOR FURTHER READING:
Parkman's "France and England in North America."

CHAPTER XXXVI.

ip Jbnir rtf (Mb*

CALIFORNIA — SPANISH EXPLORERS — THE JOURNEY OP SIR FRANCIS
DRAKE — THE COAST INDIANS — EXPEDITION OF ESPEJO 
OVERTHROW OF THE JESUITS — ONATE AND HIS
LABORS — THE MI&SIONS AT THE SOUTH 
THE DECLINE OP SPAIN AND HER
COLONIES.

ALIFORNIAv did not receive its name as the
other States did. It took it from a certain fantastic
romance, written by a Spanish author. This
romance pictured an imaginary kingdom glittering
with gold and diamonds, in which the most
extraordinary events were constantly taking place,
and where riches were free to everyone. The
name of this remarkable land was California, and, oddly
enough, its imaginary riches were hardly greater than
those which the most western of our States actually
contained. Cortez, always ambitious and eager for con
quests, sent out Hernando Grijalva, in 1534, on an
expedition of discovery to the Pacific coast. It is not
strange that the Spaniards gave the name of the
romance to a country whose charms are so great that the people marvel
over them to-day as they did then. The methods of Grijalva were too
languid to suit the nervous and impatient Cortez, and the following
year, taking four hundred Spaniards and three hundred slaves with him,
he himself embarked for California. Not only was he impatient for
the conquest of this productive land, but was anxious to see if he could
learn the fate of a small expedition which he had previously sent north
hy land. He had only well started on his journey of discovery, when
he heard that his civil power had been taken from him and given to
the Viceroy, Mendoza. His military position was all that was left him,

THE LAND OF GOLD. 233
and he was obliged to returri to Mexico, after coasting on both sides of
the Gulf of California. Francisco de Ulloa was sent to take up the
exploration. Pearls were found in the Gulf of California at the very
first, and the pearl fishery that has continued to this day was systemat
ically taken up then. Reports of the richness of this country excited
the jealousy of Mendoza, the ruler of Mexico, and he determined to
send out an explorer himself in the same direction that Ulloa had
taken. The Spaniards were excited with the reports brought to them
by the four men who had started with Narvaez from Florida. These
men, it will be recollected, traveled alone from Florida to the Gulf of
California. They brought tales of seven wonderful cities which
contained castles built of gold, silver, turquoise and diamonds.
Vasquez Coronado was the man chosen to go in search of these. It
was not long before he reached the territory which the men had
described as the "seven cities" but in them, alas! was found no gold,
silver, diamonds nor turquoise. There were, however, very substan
tial buildings, three or four lofts high, with ladders leading from one
story to another. The people wore cotton dresses and had taste in
cookery. But Coronado was not after evidences of civilization, but in
search of gold, and he pushed hastily on. Two years of disappoint
ment followed, until at length the perplexed and disheartened Spaniard
went mad, and his party returned to Mexico. Meantime, in 1543 a
voyage was made northward along the coast, which laid open to the
Spaniards a portion of California. This was under the charge of
Cabrillo, who went as far north as Cape Mendosino. He found it too
cold to go farther. From this point the Spanish fleets, for long years
after, took their departure on their journey to the East Indies. Other
Spanish voyagers made much the same trip, but none of them discov
ered a seaport in California.
This, Sir Francis Drake, the English seaman, who has been written
of in the first chapters of this book, did. It will be remembered that
he passed through the Straits of Magellan and came up the Pacific
Ocean in 1578. One of his vessels was lost in a gale, the second
deserted him, and he was left to make his voyage alone in the Pelican.
His crew suffered terribly from the cold, on reaching forty-eight degrees
north latitude, although it was in the month of June. He hurried
away from this discouraging port and landed in a ' 'goodly bay, ' ' which
some identify with the beautiful Bay of San Francisco.
When the Indians heard of the arrival of the white men, they
gathered in large numbers to see them, and the King, a man of

234 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
dignified stature, came, with a guard of a hundred brave*, to welcome
him. In front of the King marched a tall man carrying a sceptre of
black wood a yard and a half long. Upon it hung two crowns, and
dangling from these were chains of bone. Each link was a mark of
honor. All of the Indians wore skins, and the King wore rabbit's
skin — a mark of royal distinction. Their heads were decorated with
feathers of rare birds. They entertained Drake with a long ceremony,
ending in a dance, after which they asked the Englishman to be King
of their country. The crown was set upon Drake's head, and all the
chains of honor hung about his neck. Drake thought it wise to accept
these honors in the spirit which they were given, and took the country
in the name and for the use of Queen Elizabeth. It must not be
forgotten that this was away back in 1579. Then followed a wild
scene in which all the common people yelled and howled, and tore the
skin from their faces with their nails, meaning to offer sacrifice to their
new and mysterious Governor. Drake and his friends made a visit into
the interior, where the Indian villages were. They found the country
fruitful, filled with game and excellently adapted for settlement
Neither Drake nor his men would have objected to lingering longer
among these friendly tribes in a land of such unusual beauty, but their
disabled ship, was repaired and there was need for hastening back with
reports of the voyage. A monument was left in the port composed of
a copper plate, fastened to a wooden post. Upon this plate was engraved
the right of Queen Elizabeth to the kingdom, the Queen's picture and
Drake's arms. The Indians mourned exceedingly when Drake left
them, and built bright fires on the cliffs to cheer his departure over the
waters. In 1 58 1, Augustine Reyes, a Franciscan Father, went northward
and rediscovered the pleasant land of which Coronado had written, and
was able to guess at the site of the "seven cities." Reyes started
thither, with two brethren of his order and eight soldiers, for the
purpose of making converts to the Catholic faith among the Indians.
But one of the friars was killed by the Indians, and the soldiers, fearing
for their safety, deserted, leaving the two friars to go on alone. When
the soldiers passed Santa Barbara, they confessed the state they had left
the unfortunate Fathers in, and aroused the indignation of Antonio de
Espejo, who hurried to their relief with a caravan of fifteen horses and
mules and some Indian guides. Espejo discovered many interesting
tribes of Indians who had progressed in the arts and industries to an
unusual extent. Some of them wore cotton garments, striped with

THE LAND OF GOLD. 235
white and blue. Others understood the tanning of leather so well that
the Spaniards held it to be as fine as anything done in Flanders. The
great rivers and mighty forests, the mountains and the fruitful plains
delighted them, but they were obliged to press on after the priests whom
they were hurrying to succor. In the country which they named New
Mexico, they found people dressed in cotton and leather, with good
boots and shoes. At last they learned that the poor Franciscan Fathers
had been killed, and Espejo devoted himself merely to exploration,
leaving a large part of his company in camp near the Tiguas tribe of
the ' 'sixteen towns. ' ' He found idols in some of the houses ; umbrellas
decorated with the sun, moon and stars were in use by one tribe, and
many had wrought the precious metals into forms of ornament. Espe
cially interesting was the town of Acoma, which was inhabited by six
thousand Indians. It was built on a high cliff, fifty platforms in height,
and reached by steps cut out of the rock. The water was drawn from
cisterns. Of course no crops could be raised upon the site of this rocky
city. The farms lay two leagues away and were irrigated by artificial
means. Espejo at length visited the country which Coronado. had entered
half a century before. Here he found Christians and some baptized
Indians, who understood the Spanish language. This was the great
province of Zuni, which still holds its name and keeps the old customs
as Espejo saw them in the last half of the sixteenth century. After
journeying still farther, Espejo came to rich silver mines, but it is not
known in what direction he journeyed. When Espejo rejoined his
party he found most of them determined to return to Santa Barbara.
He, with eight soldiers, concluded to explore the river Del Norte. It
was two years before he ended his journeyings.
Until 1595 the great western territory remained undisturbed. Then
the Count Monterey, at that time Viceroy of Mexico, and Juan de Onate
went into New Mexico to plant colonies in the valley of the Rio Grande.
Sante Fe, which was one of Onate' s settlements, was founded before
Jamestown, and is, therefore, next to St. Augustine, the oldest town in
the United States. This 'settlement had in its beginning one hundred
soldiers and five hundred settlers, and the number continued to be about
the same for a hundred years. Indian raids were not infrequent, and
the people could offer but little resistance until 1692, when Diego
de Barges established Spanish garrisons in the valley. El Paso, on the
Mexican frontier, was one of Onate' s settlements.
Farther west, on the ocean coast, Spain followed up the discoveries

236 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
of Drake. It is not necessary to mention each one of these. Spanish
names were given to the coast, and Spain claimed it as her own,
although she took but very languid interest in it. It was the Jesuits,
anxious for the saving of souls, who finally settled upon the peninsula
of California. Francisco Kino, a devoted brother of the Jesuit society,
infused with a noble enthusiasrii, undertook to Christianize the penin
sula. A series of missions were founded by him, and in 1697 he
succeeded in getting a mission built in lower California. On the west
side of the gulf was Father Salvatierra, and on the east side Father
Kino. These two men, both systematic and capable of clear leadership,
constantly helped one another. The system of the Fathers was very
complete. The Indians were taught the Spanish language, and were
induced to attend religious services every day. Those who did so were
supplied with rations. The sick, old and helpless were provided with
food. All of the Indians were given coarse cloth, cloaks and blankets.
The missionaries instructed them in the cultivation of their fields, but
finding that the Indians would not harvest and preserve the crops, they
themselves took care of them. Wine was one of the first products of
California, bnt the Fathers soon found it was necessary to keep it from
the Indians.
By the time that the missions had existed in California for a gener
ation they were surrounded with a semi-civilized set of men and women
who gave up the wild life of the forest for the more laborious and quiet
one of the farms.
Lonely and desolate, the little missions stood out from the savagery
of the villages. In them there were often but two Spaniards, a Father
and a soldier. The missions were well built, with a touch of that
Moorish architecture which the Spaniards had made their own. Not
alone were the missions the schools, the churches and the depot for sup
plies, but they served for courts of justice as well, and any culprit was
punished there according to the judgment of the Spaniards. The
children were educated in reading, writing and singing, and many of them
were sent to Soreto, the chief station. Such of these as showed unusual
intelligence were made church- wardens at the various rancherios.
One Father taught his Indians to spin wool and weave it, and he him
self made the staffs, wheels and looms. This was opposed to the
policy of Spain, which wished to force all her colonists to purchase man
ufactures direct from home. It was this same policy which kept the
settlements of the Spaniards so far behind those of the English and
French. Cortez tried to encourage manufactures in the colonies, but

THE LAND OF GOLD. 237
his policy was overturned, and the people , received from Mexico the
cloth which had been made in Holland and sold in Spain. The Fathers
continued to form new missions whenever some benefactor could be
found who would give an endowment of $10,000, $6,000 of which was
put at interest and devoted to the education and care of the Indians.
Each Father kept a chronicle of all which happened to him, and these
engaging narratives helped not a little in the collection of money in
Mexico and Spain. The mines of Arizona began to be richly devel
oped, and it is still possible to see the remains of old mining operations
there. Every little while the Indians, who seemed so obedient and
trustful, would uprise suddenly and war with each other in their old
savage fashion. In their hearts they resented this easy conquest of the
Spaniards. The eloquence of their orators was leveled against the
woman-like patience with which the braves sat down to eat the bread of
charity, and from time to time the well-fed proteges of the missions
were lashed into insurrection. After the death of Father Kino, in 1711,
the missions began to decay. He had baptized more than forty thou
sand infidels, founded numerous churches, and conducted valuable
explorations. Spain, herself, was losing her glory, and it was not strange that the
little missions, to which she had always been more or less indifferent,
should suffer early from her decline. After this comes a history of
revolts, and at last, June 25, 1767, came the decree of the council
chamber of Charles III for the expulsion of the Jesuits.
The land upon the Gulf of Mexico had not been entirely neglected
by the Spaniards. In 1690 a mission was established at the spot where
La Salle's unfortunate colony had been. Other missions and military
posts were established about Texas and New Mexico. But in 1693 the
Spaniards were driven from them by the Indians. However, there still
remained, on the west side of the Rio Grande, the posts known as
Presidio del Norte and El Paso.
In 1712, Louis the XIV gave the grant of Louisiana to Antonio
Crozat, which included the land reaching to the Rio Grande on the
west. Between this country and Mexico there has always been a brisk
smuggling trade. The first Texas missions were founded by the Fran
ciscan Fathers, who used much the same plan that the Jesuits had done
farther west. When the war of 1718 was declared between France and
Spain, the little settlements on these distant frontiers thought it
behooved them to imitate the home countries, and war with each other.
One large expedition was fitted out to move against the French settle-

238

THE STORY OF AMERICA.

ments of the Upper Mississippi. The Spaniards lost their way and fell
in with some Indians who massacred them and took all of their arms.
After this Spain made no other attempt to settle on the land of the
Upper Mississippi. In 1728 the Spanish government transported four
hundred from the Canary Islands to Texas. A portion of these settled
at San Antonio, Texas, but the growth of Texas was very slow, and the
deadly policy of Spain took the life from the colonists.
FOR FURTHER READING:
History — Bancroft's "History of California."
Hittell's "History of San Francisco."
Help's "Spanish Conquest of America."
Kip's "Early Jesuit Missions in North America."
Curtis' "Children of the Sun."

CHAPTER XXXVII.

ip darofitms.

SIR NATHANIEL JOHNSON IN CAROLINA — STRATEGY AT FORT JOHNSON
— RELIGIOUS DIFFERENCES — MASSACRE OF 17II  UPRISING
IN SOUTH CAROLINA — THE YEMASSEES — THE BUC
CANEERS — REBELLION AGAINST THE
PROPRIETORS.

pFTER Governor Moore's administration in South
Carolina, which, through his ill-advised move
against St. Augustine, plunged the colony so .
heavily in debt, Sir Nathaniel Johnson was
appointed to office in Moore's place. Johnson
was a man who had more of the instincts of a
general than of a ruler. His administration was
marked by one of those religious disputes which made
so much trouble in all the early colonies. It arose
from an act passed by his first assembly, taking away
the civil rights from all who blasphemed the Trinity, or
refused to believe in the divine authority of the Bible,
and condemning them to three years' imprisonment.
Following this, came a law which required every
citizen who belonged to the assembly to conform to
the religion of the Church of England. By this law every Puritan of
whatever shade of belief was robbed of his civil rights, though these
dissenters were far greater in number than the Episcopalians. This
Episcopal minority, of course, represented the Lord Proprietors who
governed the colony. The dissenters sent John Ashe to England to
beg the protection of the Proprietors, but he got no satisfaction from
them. Another agent, Joseph Boone, was sent to England to make an
appeal to the House of Lords. They referred the petition to the Queen,
with a prayer that the wrongs of the colonists might be righted, and
Queen Anne declared the laws to be null and void.

240 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
Though Johnson was so injudicious a ruler, he had some qualities
which were not to be despised. At one time, when he learned that an
attack was to be made upon Charleston by the French and Spanish, he
superintended a pretty piece of strategy, which is worth relating. On
James Island, in Charleston harbor, Fort Johnson held a few men for
the protection of the city. William Rhett was placed as admiral over
the militia of the province, which, with guns and ammunition, was put
on board six merchant vessels which were in harbor. These prepara
tions had barely been completed when the invading fleet, consisting of
a frigate and four smaller vessels, under the command of Captain Le
Feboure, sailed up and demanded a surrender. The man who brought
the demand was blindfolded and taken from fortification to fortification.
In each one of these he saw a well-armed and uniformed force, and
never guessed that the men in each fortification were always the same,
and that they hurried quietly before his blindfolded eyes. He went
back to his commander and reported the extent of the force. Rhett
managed his little fleet of merchant vessels with such skill that Le
Feboure was unable to make a landing, and in a few days the French
retreated. The religious differences of the colony were not easily quieted. In
spite of the fact that John Archdale, -the Quaker, was one of the
Proprietors, the Friends were at one time refused seats in the assembly.
The war of words between the dissenters and the Episcopalians was
constant. These disputes led to serious political complications. After
Johnson was removed, South Carolina was in doubt for some time as to
who was really Governor, such misunderstandings and contentions
were there. When the claimants for office tried to summon an armed
force and to move against each other, the militia quietly refused to
obey. It was not until 1713 that Charles Eden was appointed Governor
by the Proprietors and that religious freedom was allowed to be the
right of every man in the Carolinas. During the last four years the
colonies had not only been rent by internal rebellion and bitter perse
cutions, but by savage wars with the Indians as well. In 17 11 the
Tuscaroras succeeded in uniting in North Carolina all of the smaller
tribes, as well as the half-civilized Indians about the colonies, in a
general conspiracy against the English. On an appointed morning a
single war-whoop was given just at break of day and in every house the
servants rose against their masters. All about the villages lurked bands
of savages waiting to fall upon the settlements in an unguarded moment.
Few Indian massacres were conducted with so much fierceness and

THE CAROLINAS. 241
decision. In most cases there was a blunder somewhere, but here,
unfortunately, there was none. Many hundred were killed within that
hour at day*-break through all the settlements, and for three days the
tide of murder swept on from south to north, stopping at last for want of
more victims to kill. In all Indian warfare the burning of houses and
destruction of property was as much a part of the fight as the killing
of men. Governor Hyde begged Virginia and South Carolina for aid.
Governor Spotswood, of Virginia, interceded with the Indians, but
Governor Craven, of South Carolina, sent a body of militia and several
hundred friendly Indians hurriedly through the wilderness to the aid of
the sister colony. In an open battle the Tuscaroras suffered heavy loss.
The distracted remnant of settlers in North Carolina kept shut up in
their garrison. The crops they had planted with so much care were
destroyed. Little was left of the pleasant farms and villages. The
little store of wealth which had been accumulated through the patient
years was gone, and in almost every family there was mourning for the
murdered. Through the long winter of 17 13 this remnant of a colony
dragged out a wretched existence, owing what little life it had to the
protection of the soldiers from the South. A treaty was made at last
with the Indians, and the soldiers retired to their homes. When the
Indians were freed from their presence they broke their treaty, and the
following summer was spent by both the English and the Indians in
preparations for a renewal of the war. At the close of the summer
Governor Hyde died, and Colonel Pollock was chosen Governor. He
used the best means in his power for the protection of his colony.
Realizing its limited resources and how few men it had to defend it, he
sowed division among the Indians, weakening their party. Help came
both from Virginia and South Carolina, and in an attack upon the
Indians, in the spring, many of them were killed and eight hundred
taken prisoners and carried to South Carolina as slaves.
The next colony to suffer from the Indians was South Carolina
itself. In the spring of 1715 there was a sudden uprising among the
Yemassees, the tribe who had been the allies of the South Carolinians
in their conflict with the Tuscaroras. As in North Carolina, a day was
agreed upon, and the outbreak came with horrible suddenness. More
than four hundred were murdered, and many hundred homes were
burned. There was in the whole colony only one proof of friendship
between the races. Sanute, a Yemassee chief, had a great reverence
for a bonny Scotch woman who lived with her husband upon the
frontier. After the habit of his race when they vowed friendship, he

242 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
had washed his face with scented water and crossed his hands upon his
breast, vowing that he should eterrially be her friend. When the
massacre was agreed upon, he warned her, and she and her husband fled
to the coast. An organized force was led against the Yemassees by
Governor Craven, and the Indians were defeated, and pushed through
the wilderness across the Florida border. The Indians were now
practically driven from the Carolinas — a country full of traditions for
them and for which they had bravely fought. All the lands which had
been reserved to the Yemassees were taken possession of by the colony,
but these the Proprietors wrenched from them for their own use, and
the new emigrants, hastening over to the territory which was opened
up to them, were ruined by the demands for rent and purchase money:
Governor Craven, of South Carolina, was succeeded by Robert Johnson,
a son of the former Governor, Sir Nathaniel Johnson. He took charge
of the colony under great difficulties. The Proprietors had taken away
all independent legislation from the assembly, and assumed the right to
reject and repeal all laws as they saw fit. The revenue was taken off
the imported British goods, which had been used for the support of the
colony, and the pirates who lurked about the Carolinian coast had
become so bold that it was necessary to incur the expense of open
conflict with them. The vessels of these buccaneers were so well armed
and manned that they were able to capture merchantmen within sight
of Charleston. When any person fell into their hands they extracted
a ransom from the government. The admiral of these rovers was the
famous Blackbeard, who had a squadron of six vessels under his
command. He and his dare-devil captains had a station at the mouth
of Cape Fear river. From here they could sally out upon any vessels
bound for Charleston, and thus seriously injure the commerce of the
colony. William Rhett, who had so cleverly managed the little fleet of
merchantmen at the time of the French invasion, was put in command
of a ship sent out to capture Steed-Bonnet, one of Blackbeard's most
dreaded allies. It had been thought almost impossible to take him, but
Rhett attacked his pirate vessel with its crew of thirty, captured them
and took them to Charleston, where they were hanged. Another of
the pirate captains, Morely, angered at his companions' fate, soon after
this sailed defiantly into the mouth of the harbor. Governor Johnson
took command of his ship himself, and went out to meet him. The
Governor's crew was triumphant, and boarded the pirate, killing every
one except the captain and one of the crew. These, though bleeding
with many wounds, still refused to surrender, and were taken to

THE CAROLINAS. 243
Charleston and hurriedly hung, that the Carolinians might have the
satisfaction of seeing them swing. A royal proclamation had been
made some time before, promising pardon to all pirates who would
surrender, and Blackbeard, with twenty of his friends, went to Governor
Eden, of North Carolina, and took advantage of this proclamation. He
rioted about the village for a time, and then took to his life on the sea
again. Governor Spotswood, of Virginia, offered a large reward for his
head. Two armed sloops were fitted out and sent after him. He heard
of their coming and made preparations. His twenty-five men were
ready to fight to the death. He boarded one of the sloops, which had
got aground, with the expectation of making an easy victory, but a
large reserved force of men who had been kept below, sprang upon the
deck as the pirates poured over the sides. A hand-to-hand fight
followed, and the two captains closed upon each other. After they had
fired their pistols they fought with dirks, until Blackbeard fell. The
successful Virginian party boarded the pirate vessels and made prisoners
of the rest of the crew. A negro had been put with a fire-brand at the
magazine, with orders from the captain to blow up the ship as soon as
she was taken, but he was discovered, and the act prevented. Black-
beard's head was stuck upon the end of the bowsprit, and the young
commander of the Virginian troops, Lieutenant Maynard, sailed proudly
back into the Chesapeake.
South Carolina had just got this well off her mind and was freed from
the depredations of the buccaneers, when she was threatened with
Spanish invasion. Governor Johnson promptly called for money to
prepare defences. The assembly said there was no money, and that the
tax upon imports ought to be enough. The Governor reminded the
assembly that the Proprietors had repealed the law. The assembly
replied that they had nothing more to do with the matter. There was
no Spanish invasion, as expected, but the difficulties between the Pro
prietors and the assembly had reached a climax. The people prepared
for revolution, feeling they could stand the tyranny of the Proprietors
no longer. Governor Johnson was held in respect and affection, in
spite of the fact that he represented the hated Proprietors. His sin
cerity and good sense had won the hearts of the people, but notwith
standing this, they refused now to obey him or pay any attention to his
orders while he voiced the will of rulers so tyrannical and unjust. The
people elected a Governor for themselves — Colonel James Moore — and he
was inaugurated on the same day that the militia was assembled for the
revolution in Charleston. Governor Johnson had been at his plantation,

244 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
and when he came into Charleston he found the city alive with excite
ment. Drums were beaten about the streets, the ships were decorated
with bunting, work was given up, and in the town square stood the
militia of the whole province. Johnson tried to reason with the lead
ing men. Some he indignantly reproved, and he ordered Colonel
Parris, who was at the head of the troops, to disperse his men at
once. This Parris refused to do, saying that he was there in obedience
to the orders of the assembly, and when Johnson insisted upon having
his commands obeyed, the soldiers were ordered to present their guns,
and Johnson was told that he came nearer at the peril of his life. No
one came to Johnson's side, and he saw that although he had not one
enemy among those around him, the cause of the Proprietors was lost.
He was led politely from the field by one of the leaders of the uprising,
more popular than ever, perhaps, for the courage with which he had
faced the loaded muskets of the troops. Both parties sent agents to
England to present their sides of the difficulty, and in 1721 the govern
ment was taken away from the Proprietors and became a royal province.
Sir Francis Nicholson, who seemed to be the favorite adjuster of diffi
culties in the colonies, was sent over by the King.
Queen Anne was dead, and George I had been King for over six
years. Nicholson showed his usual good sense. He understood what
the people needed, and was nothing if not a diplomat. He secured
peaceful relations with both the Spaniards and the Yemassees. He
signed treaties with the Cherokees and Creeks, on the west, and encour
aged the building of churches and the laying out of parishes, sending to
England for pastors. This was not so much that he had any personal
religious enthusiasm, as that he knew the church was one of the corner
stones of government, and that it would greatly help the people in
educational as well as religious and social affairs. There had not been
a public school in the whole province when he came, but he constantly
urged the necessity for them, and even used his private means, until at
the close of his four years of administration a fair system of education
had been begun. In 1729, both the northern and southern colonies
were purchased by the crown, Lord Carteret refusing to sell his share,
and retaining all the territory from 340 35' to the boundary of Virginia,
and from the Atlantic to the Pacific Ocean. After this, North and
South Carolina became legally two separate provinces. Burrington was
the first royal Governor of North Carolina, but in a short time was dis
placed by Gabriel Johnson, who was appointed in 1734 and remained
Governor of the colony for twenty years. In South Carolina, Robert

THE CAROLINAS. 245
Johnson, the Governor who had been so determined under the rule of
the Proprietors, was sent back with a royal commission. He was wel
comed with enthusiasm, and for the four remaining years of his life
worked to restore order, peace and prosperity. The colony was a
mixed one, including English, French, Irish, Scotch and Spanish, dif
fering in taste, religion and educational prejudices. Besides these,
were about twenty- two thousand African slaves, not to mention the half-
civilized Indians who hung about the colonies. There were a great
many white slaves at this time, and from these degraded people came
the "poor whites" of the South. With such a population as this, Gov
ernor Johnson's difficulties were many, especially as the debts of South
Carolina were heavier than ever before. But the colony was now too
strong for its life to be again in danger. Its prosperity was assured.
FOR FURTHER READING:
History— Ramsey's "South Carolina."
Williamson's "North Carolina."
Fiction—^. G. Simms' "The Yemassee."
A. J. Requier's "The Old Sanctuary."
Matilda Douglas' "Blackbeard."

CHAPTER XXXVIII.

Uraro JHfetp attft Jfyj-ttraij**

HOW GEORGIA CAME TO BE SETTLED — THE EMIGRANTS — THE WESLEYS
AND WHITEFIELD — THE MARCH OF THE SLAVES — THE
SPANISH ATTACK — GEORGIA AS A
ROYAL PROVINCE.

HE English colonies of the North had been settled
by men who thought themselves righteous.
The most southern colony of the English —
Georgia — was settled by men who were manifestly
unrighteous. They were taken largely from the
jails of England. It came about through a
movement for the reformation of English jails. James
Oglethorpe, a humane gentleman, taking great interest
in the poor and criminal classes of England, came to the
conclusion that in another country they might be made
good citizens. He procured a grant of land in the
summer of 1732, which was granted to twenty trustees
for the benefit of the poor of the kingdom, and included
all of the land between the Savannah and Altamaha
rivers. Oglethorpe was a gentleman of courtly manners
and of very noble family. He was also a soldier of experience. Sub
scriptions were obtained through England for the benefit of this colony,
and a company of people were carefully chosen from the destitute
among the large cities. They were largely laborers out of employment,
or debtors who had long been imprisoned by their creditors. Ogle
thorpe himself took charge of the first company' of emigrants. This
contained about one hundred and fourteen persons. The place which
they selected for settlement was the site of the present city of Savannah.
Under the intelligent direction of Oglethorpe, matters went well
with the settlement from the beginning. The people were divided into
three parties. One prepared land for cultivation, a second felled trees,
and a third built palisades. Until the town was built they lived in

FROM ALLEYS AND BY-WAYS. 247
tents. Their first care was to prepare a battery and a magazine.
Laborers were brought from Charleston to help in building, and
Oglethorpe laid out the plan of the beautiful city of Savannah, which
has been preserved to this day, and which stands as a monument to his
judgment and taste. Even the names of the streets are, in many cases,
the same which he gave. In a short time other colonists were sent over
from England. A treaty was made with the Indians, and local govern
ment was established. South Carolina was most friendly to the colony,
and gave it much help. As soon as possible substantial dwellings were
put up in place of the cabins first erected. The manufacture of silk
was made one of the principal industries of the colony, and a light-house
was built on Tybee Island, ninety feet in height. A company of
Highlanders built Fort Argyle, on the Ogeechee river, as a defence
against the Spanish. In the first year and a half the colony increased
to nearly five hundred persons. Besides the poor of England, there
came many Highlanders from Scotland, and they took most kindly to
American life, being used to hunting and to the cultivation of a sterile
soil. Their half-barbaric, picturesque garb, the music of their bagpipes,
and their love for a life in the wilderness, won the admiration and
friendship of the Indians.
There came, also, a company of Salzburgers to Georgia. These
people were of a religious sect which had been persecuted for centuries.
For a time a handful of them had found comparative peace in the
valley of Salzburg, a province of Bavaria, but as they increased in
numbers the wrath of the church was again turned against them,
and they were driven from their homes, wives and husbands separated,
and children taken to be raised in the Catholic Church. Twenty
thousand of them found refuge in Prussia. Some fled to Holland arid
some to England. In England, they were kindly received, and it was
thought that a safe asylum might be provided for them in the American
colony. Fifty families, still living near Salzburg, accepted the invita
tion, and marched through Germany to the northern coast, carrying
the young and old, with their few provisions, in rude carts. When
they came through a Catholic district they were persecuted, but when
the district was a Protestant one they were treated with great kindness,
the peasants even carrying the women and children in their arms from
one town to another. It was many, many weary months before they
reached Savannah. Their industry and their long acquaintance with
privation made them very valuable to a new colony, although, like the
Friends, they did not believe in the taking up of arms, and would

248 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
furnish no men to the fighting force of the community. Lands were
given them on the Savannah river, which they selected themselves, and
named the place Ebenezer. Soon after their arrival, in the spring of
1734, Oglethorpe went to England, returning in the winter with about
three hundred persons. With him came two young men by the name
of Wesley, who stayed in Georgia but a short time. The people did
not guess at that time the lofty strain of genius which ran in them,
and which was to bring such powerful influence to bear on all
Christendom in after years. John Wesley had a church at Savannah,
and when he left, his friend, George Whitefield, who was to be no less
noted than himself, took his place there. He and Wesley had been
friends at Oxford. Oglethorpe brought with him on his second voyage
two acts of Parliament. One of them prohibited the introduction of
spirituous liquors in the colony and the other forbade the bringing of
slaves. Unfortunately neither of these laws could be enforced. White-
field fought the introduction of slaves for a time, but at length he
himself yielded to it, and worked large plantations with them, using
the money for the benefit of an orphan asylum which he built near
Savannah. His influence had much to do with the introduction of
slaves in Georgia.
A large part of the emigrants which Oglethorpe had brought over
with him were put on the Island of St. Simons, at the mouth of the
Altamaha river. The island was made formidable with forts and
batteries. The Governor made an unfortunate move against St. Augus
tine, and was severely repulsed there. On his third visit to England he
obtained a military commission which included South Carolina as well
as Georgia. In the summer of 1739 he learned that the Spanish were
trying to make allies of the Creeks, Choctaws and Chickasaws, who
had formerly been friendly to the English. Zomo Chi-Chi, the
friendly chief whom the first settlers of Savannah had used as an
interpreter, begged Oglethorpe to attend a council three hundred miles
northwest of Savannah, at which the chiefs were to gather. It took him
one month to go and return, going through an unbroken wilderness, which
no settler had previously entered. Not alone did he have the intermi
nable forests of the South to pass, but the bewildering swamps as
well. He met chiefs of numerous tribes, who could bring seven thou
sand warriors into the field, and gained such influence over them that it
was a protection to Georgia through all his life, and indeed long after that
useful life had ended. Shortly after this, the slaves of Carolina arose
and began a march toward Florida, destroying the plantations and

FROM ALLEYS AND BY-WAYS. 249
killing the whites as they went, but getting badly intoxicated, they
were surrourided by a body of militia and dispersed, a few being taken
prisoners and others killed.
In 1742 the Spaniards made up their minds to retaliate for the
English expedition against St. Augustine, and sent a fleet of thirty
vessels, with a force of five thousand men, against Georgia. Oglethorpe
got his Highland forces together from Darien, and all Indian allies who
were in reach. A force of about eight hundred men were put in the
field. Oglethorpe's action in this was gallant, though he only had a
merchant vessel of twenty guns and two schooners of fourteen guns
each. When the fleet of vessels sailed up St. Simons harbor, Ogle
thorpe himself took command of the vessels. He put eight schooners,
with one man each, out for the purpose of harassing the vessels or of
conveying himself from one place to another. He directed the batteries
on shore as well. The fight lasted twenty hours, and the Spanish fleet
fought their way through the fire of the batteries to the shore.
Oglethorpe spiked his guns, destroyed all the provisions, and fell back
upon Frederica, on St. Simons Island. The English were now behind
those fine defences on which they had prided themselves. The head of
the bay was difficult to navigate, and no ship could get through without
' 'going about. ' ' As she did so, the batteries were so placed that she
could be raked at once from three directions for three-fourths of a mile.
The Spaniards dared not attempt this, and landed the fleet four miles
below the town, with the intention of attacking the English at the rear
with their force of five thousand men. A road ran southward from
Frederica between a marsh and one of the tangled southern woods. At
one place this road had a crescent shape, with a width of about sixty
feet. The crescent ended in a wood, and here Oglethorpe left a detach
ment of troops, with some Indian allies. The Spaniards had no
difficulty in driving this handful of men before them. Word was sent
to the general, who hurried up, met the Spaniards at the entrance of
the crescent and drove them back through the wood, into the open
country beyond. Leaving a force of men there, he went back to
Frederica, fearing an attack from the front. Finding all quiet there,
he took a large \reinforcement and started once more down the road.
He met his men flying before the Spaniards. He turned them back
and hurried on, for he knew that if the enemy once got through the
narrow road to the prairie, Frederica could not long stand out against
five thousand men. The Spaniards had marched on, and two or three
hundred of them lay in the crescent of the road. The Englishmen

250 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
had fled before them. From the rear there was no danger of attack,
and they quietly went into camp there, and began to prepare a meal.
But the rear guard of the Highlanders, who had been so far behind
that they could not aid their comrades, had leaped into the wood when
the panic had seized their fellow-soldiers. They were hidden completely
in the dense woods, and the Spaniards swept by them without dreaming
that any man either could or would enter that dark tangle. With the
Highlanders were a few Indians, who understood well this method of
warfare. The Highlanders and Indians waited in perfect silence, not
allowing one sound to escape them, until all of the arms of the Span
iards were stacked and they were resting on the ground and quietly
taking their dinner. Then two Highland caps were raised in the air at
different points. This was the signal for attack. Fire was poured in
upon the Spaniards. The Highlanders were in no danger, for they could
not be seen, and consequently could not be fought: The men in the
roadway were falling with every shot. By the time Oglethorpe had
reached the place the firing had ceased, and the Highlanders and Indians,
shouting with triumph, stood in the midst of the Spaniards, hardly
one of whom escaped. The Spaniards gave up the attempt of making
an attack by land, and were easily defeated on the water, when, a few
days later, an attempt was made to approach the town that way. The
Spanish general, in the course of a few days, put his whole army on
board his vessels, and went back to St. Augustine, persuaded that the
English force must be a heavy one. Oglethorpe promptly manned his
three boats and chased the fleet out of the sound.
In 1744, General Oglethorpe returned to England, but he never, to
the end of his ninety-six years of life, lost his interest in the colony.
After his departure from Georgia, William Stephens was appointed
president of the trustees. The colony had not kept up its first happy
promise of prosperity. The manufacture of silk and of wine had both
been unsuccessful. So much time had been spent in active warfare that
lands had been neglected, and the prohibition of slave labor caused
much discontent. The trustees, feeling that they could not govern the
people to the satisfaction of either party, gave back the charter to the
crown. For ten years after it became a royal province its growth was
slow. In 1754, when a convention of delegates from the several
colonies met at Albany to form a union, Georgia was not represented.
FOR FURTHER READING:
Histpry— Jones' "Georgia."
Fairbank's "Florida."
Carpenter's "Georgia."
Jones' "Zomo-Chi-Chi."

CHAPTER XXXIX.
Wp Smrafer* ti Ytfjmta*
CULPEPPER IN VIRGINIA — GOVERNOR EFFINGHAM — NICHOLSON AND
ANDROS — THE GROWTH OF INDUSTRIES —
MARYLAND — THE CLERGYMEN
OF VIRGINIA.
5\|FTER the triumph of Berkeley over Bacon in
Virginia, the Royalists were very overbearing.
Morals had become very loose. Every one in
the colony worked for himself. There was an
absence of that public pride, which was the
strength of Connecticut, Rhode Island and Massa
chusetts. In 1675, Lord Culpepper came to Virginia
with a commission for life over the province, to take
up the affairs of the colony where the proud old
Governor Berkeley had dropped them. Culpepper's
only interests in the colony were personal ones. He
oppressed the people with fresh taxes. There was an
over-production of tobacco, the only staple of the
colony, and therefore a steady lowering of prices.
Few towns sprung up, and the people living upon isolated plantations
could not work in unity. The Assembly clamored for the rights of the
people. They protested that a stop must be put to the over-production
of tobacco. A few head-strong men undertook to put an end to this
over-production by cutting the young plants. This may be known as
the earliest American strike. Like most strikes, it only increased the
difficulty. There was much distress, too, because the currency of the
colony was not worth its face value in gold.
In 1684, Culpepper surrendered his patent and ceased to be governor.
Virginia was once more a royal province. Lord Howard, of Effingham,
became the ruler of affairs. He levied new duties, invented new
oppressions, and hung the foolish plant cutters. Imprisonment was
common for slight offenses. Effingham repealed many laws of the
Assembly, and revived laws which were hateful to the colonies. Small

252

THE STORY OP AMERICA.

rebellions were numerous during his rule, and the slave element con
stantly increasing and growing more turbulent, threatened the lives of
the free population with insurrection. Affairs were bettered some when
Effingham went to England, and Colonel Francis Nicholson became
g^s Lieutenant-Governor. Though Nichol-
Sfij son had made so foolish a figure of him-
V 3 P ¦_ - jjjj self in New York, he seemed to have a
Sj healthy influence upon Virginia. More
J liberal, modest, and unselfish than before,
he went to work with a will to straighten
out the complicated affairs of the colony.
He visited every part of his province,
that he might become familiar with the
people and their condition; he gave
entertainments, and himself superin
tended athletic sports. By his enter
prise, a great public road was built
through the province, and a public post-
office instituted. He decided that the
best way to stop the over-production of
tobacco was to encourage other industries,
and he saw to it that flax was grown,
leather manufactured, and that the trade
with the Indians flourished. Drunken
ness he made a misdemeanor, punishable
with the stocks, and instituted an almost
Puritanic mode of living among the care
less, luxurious, and wine-loving Virgin
ians. He aided in the establishment of
William and Mary College, which had
v | been established by the Rev. James
Blair, the head of the Established Church
of Virginia. This college was used then
mainly for the education of men intending to be clergymen, and here,
at the time of Nicholson's endowment, there were over a hundred pupils.

CAVALIER OF VIRGINIA.

Though Nicholson only remained in

Virginia

about two years, he

made many radical improvements. Sir Edmund Andros was sent over
in his place. Like Nicholson, Andros had learned wisdom with expe
rience. He came among the Virginians in a somewhat humbler frame
of mind than he had when he was first set over New England. Perhaps

THE CAVALIERS OP VIRGINIA. 253
the stern lessons which the Puritans taught him was not forgotten, and
in any event he was more likely to be popular among the Episcopal
royalists of Virginia than among the Puritan Whigs of Boston. He
brought with him the charter of William and Mary College and began
a good work in the colony by completing the post-office' which Nich
olson had started. He also encouraged domestic manufacture and intro
duced cotton, although it did not succeed in Virginia. But the slave
trade lay like a blight upon the colony, putting a check to true
industry. A contest between President Blair, of William and Mary
College, and Governor Andros resulted in the displacement of the latter
from office, and Nicholson was called from Maryland to take his place.
When Nicholson left Virgiriia, after his first administration there,
he returned to England, and when a revolution in Maryland had
deposed the government of Lord Baltimore, thus becoming a royal
province, Nicholson was made the second royal Governor. In Maty-
land, now the Catholics and now the Puritans were uppermost in polit
ical matters. In religious matters it was always liberal, and people of all
faiths were welcomed there. The conflict between the Puritans and the
Catholics was political, rather than religious. An armed revolution
was brought against the Catholic government in 1681, and Baltimore's
government was overthrown. The Protestant assembly took upon
itself the direction of the affairs of the colony.
Nicholson ruled here with satisfaction until he was recalled to Vir
ginia. He substituted the Church of England for the Catholic Church.
This, it can easily be imagined, was a difficult matter. There was a great
lack of clergymen in Maryland, and Nicholson had a considerable number
brought over. Public worship was forbidden to the Catholics. The
Puritans and the Quakers were not interfered with, although they were
greatly discouraged. Nicholson had a school built in each county of
the province, and a school embracing the higher branches, called King
William's School, was opened at Annapolis, in 1694. Annapolis had
been made the capital of the province by Nicholson. In a short time
everyone of the thirty parishes had a small library, in each of which
there were about fifty volumes. At Annapolis there was a larger
library, containing eleven hundred volumes. All of these books were
free to everyone in the colony.
When Nicholson, fresh from these labors, went to Virginia, he found
that the colony had grown in his absence. It now had a population of
forty thousand. This second rule was not so satisfactory to the people as
the first one had been. The House of Burgesses, which represented the

254 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
people, had grown very strong. He had an open quarrel with the
members because he desired that Virginia should contribute to the
building of forts for the protection of the northern provinces against the
Indians. The burgesses refused to give anything. Nicholson felt
that the colony was disgraced by this refusal, and said so in terms more
unmistakable than polite. He became unpopular, also, because he
took away the power of the vestries in the churches. These vestries
had the right of controlling, to an extent, the action of the clergymen.
These clergymen, be it said, were rather a rollicking and prodigal set.
Frequently they were not even as orderly in their private living as were
their careless parishioners. Their drinking was notorious. When
Nicholson was guilty of the error of taking away the powers of the
vestries the people felt that they were at the mercy of a lawless set of
leaders, and complaints were sent to England against the Governor.
These complaints were not all of a public nature. Nicholson had,
unfortunately, made himself ridiculous in his love suit to a lady who
refused to marry him, and he threatened the lives of her father and
brothers. A thing of this sort naturally made him many enemies.
Before he was deposed he laid out the town of Williamsburg, which
wa3 made the capital of the colony, and here, in the second year of its
settlement, was held the first commencement of William and Mary
College. This was nearly sixty years after the first commencement
day of Harvard College, in Massachusetts.
Nicholson was recalled to England, and for five years the colony
managed its own affairs, under the council. Then Alexander Spots-
wood arrived, bringing with him the writ of habeas corpus. Governor
Spotswood was still young. He was full of life and ambition, with an
inborn sense of justice and a true appreciation of happiness. He set
about immediately reforming the courts, and tried to regulate the taxes.
He was interested in the colony, and assisted it by raising a large fund
for its support. He established a school for the education of Indian
children also. Young and adventurous, he was not willing to stay
cooped up in the settled part of his province, but desired to go beyond
those beautiful mountains which raise themselves in blue mists at the
west. In August, 1716, he started from Germantown, on the Rappa
hannock, to cross the Blue Ridge. With him, on fine horses, were a
company of gentlemen, filled with as much curiosity and gayety as him
self. Troops of hunters and servants went with them, and liquors and
provisions were carried upon a train of horses. Every day this gallant
company marched and hunted. With their trumpets, their guns, and

THE CAVALIERS OF VIRGINIA. 255
their songs, they awoke for the first time the hoarse echoes of the moun
tains. They crossed beyond the dividing ridge of the mountains, where
the waters parted, and took possession of the beautiful valley beyond. In
six weeks they returned, having traveled more than two hundred miles.
Spotswood, in memory of this charming expedition, founded the order
of the Knights of the Golden Horseshoe, giving each comrade who had
accompanied him a little golden horseshoe to be worn as a badge. But
it was sixteen years after this before the Shenandoah valley, which he
and his merry companions had visited, was settled; and then the
intruders came, not from Virginia, but from Pennsylvania, and were
constituted largely of Scotch-Irish Presbyterians. Germans from Penn
sylvania also scattered themselves through this fertile country.
Spotswood secured a treaty with the Indians, which gave to the Eng
lish all of the region east of the Blue Ridge and south of the Potomac.
This treaty was of much value to Virginia. In 1722, Spotswood ceased
to be Governor, but as a private citizen he was still valuable to the com
munity. He found beds of iron ore on his forty thousand acres of private
property, and he was the first to establish a furnace and foundry in Vir
ginia. Following him came Hugh Drysdale. The building up of the val
ley beyond the Blue Ridge brought many emigrants direct from Germany,
and in the first half of the eighteenth century the population of Virginia
was doubled twice. A better class of men began to come, who desired
liberty and independence rather than riches, and who were willing to
work themselves, instead of depending upon the toil of unhappy slaves.
The people who came now were of the middle classes, self-respectful,
industrious, and temperate. They had neither the arrogance of those
of gentle blood, nor the viciousness of those unhappy creatures dragged
from the slums of London. A more vigorous religious life was
apparent, too. Following Drysdale, came Governor Gooch, and he was
in power when the great preacher, Whitefield, was welcomed on his
first journey to Virginia. Governor Gooch, be it said, did not take part
in this welcoming, but the people made up for his lack of enthusiasm.
In 1736 a printing press was set up, and William Parkes published a
weekly paper at Williamsburg. The colony was no longer made up
entirely of plantations. Prosperous towns sprung up about the coast
and the rivers. Norfolk, Fredricksburg, Falmouth, Richmond and
Petersburg were founded and flourished. The life of the richer planters
of Virginia was very luxurious. The women were renowned for their
beauty and their coquetry. The men prided themselves upon their
hunting and good fellowship. The entertainments of the day were cere-

256

THE STORY OF AMERICA.

monious and stately, in violent contrast to the simplicity cultivated in
Massachusetts. In Maryland, the government had once more passed into the hands
of the Baltimore family. Now the Baltimores represented the Protest
ant faction, having seceded from the Catholic Church. Six Lord Bal
timores ruled over Maryland, the last of them dying in 1771. Their
rule had always been wise and manly, and when Maryland passed into
the hands of the royal government it was in a prosperous condition. In
1750 the population was about one hundred and thirty thousand. Iron
was being developed in the State, and a large number of furnaces and
forges were working successfully. Woolen, linen, tanning, shoe-
making and other trades were succeeding, but here, as in Virginia, too
large a proportion of the people were slaves; there was an over-produc
tion of staples and an element of discontent.
FOR FURTHER READING:
Fiction — Caruther's "Knights of the Horseshoe."

A MORAVIAN SETTLEMENT.

CHAPTER XL.

% \mp uf Ibrror,

THE FIRST TRIAL FOR LIBEL IN AMERICA — THE NEGRO PLOT IN
1 741 — THE BURNING OF "QUACK" AND THE HANGING
OF URY — THE MINGLING OF DUTCH AND ENGLISH
IN NEW YORK — THE GOVERNMENT OF
LIEUTENANT-GOVERNOR CLARK.

iHEN Colonel Crosby came to New York, in 1732,
to act as Governor, his coming brought about a
difficulty which was the only thing to make his
administration memorable. Rip Van Dam had
been attending to affairs before the Governor's
arrival, and was asked to give an equal partition of
the salary and perquisites of the office in the interval
between Crosby's appointment and his actual appearance
in New York. The popular party sympathized with
Van Dam, and, as usual, the aristocratic portion of the
city was in sympathy with the royal Governor. A suit
in equity was 'brought about, and the New York Weekly
Journal laughed in rather an indiscreet way at the
Governor. Two ballads were printed whose humor was
considered to be of a libellous sort. It was decided that they should be
burned in the public square by the common hangman, in the presence
of the magistrates. The hangman burned them, but the magistrates
refused to be present. The editor of the paper was arrested and brought
to trial. The case was brought before the jury, and the prisoner was
acquitted. It was held that the editor said nothing which was not true.
It was perceived that to speak against people in power might not
always be wrong, and that to tell the truth, however disagreeable, was
a thing which should not be necessarily punished as an offense. This
was the first trial of the kind in this country, and furnished a precedent
which was long quoted.

258 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
Crosby only lived four years after his appointment, and George
Clark, a member of the council, quietly ruled over New York for seven
years. His administration was marked by one dark tragedy, for which
he was not personally responsible any more than the city full of people
about him. This was what is called the negro plot of 1741, when all
New York went mad together. There were a few Spanish negroes in
the place, who, though they were freemen in their own country, had
been enslaved in New York. It was known that they were resentful,
and when a large number of fires broke out about the city the blame
was laid on them. The Governor's house was burned, and within a
few days numerous other houses were found smoking. In most of the
cases the fires were extinguished before they did much harm. But the
people became excited over the matter, and when the crowd cried that
the Spanish negroes had caused the fire, everyone was ready to take it up.
It is true that the negroes had faithfully worked with the white men to
extinguish the fires, but this was not thought of. All negroes found in
the streets were arrested. Vague stories, lacking foundation, spread
like wild-fire. It was thought that there was a plan to burn all of New
York to the ground. A set of disreputable people who kept a saloon of
the lowest order said that they knew of a conspiracy among the negroes.
Among these people was one young girl, Mary Burton, a servant, who
had been raised in the lowest surroundings. She was met by the
dignified council and all of the most powerful men of New York, and
urged to tell the truth. Anxious to save herself from any blame,
frightened, and naturally vicious, it is not strange that she stated that
there was a terrible plot to burn the city and to murder and rob its
inhabitants. Every member of the bar wished to plead in behalf of the
government, and not one person offered to' present the cause of the
friendless and quaking negroes who were imprisoned in the jail. The
people demanded victims. They were willing to believe any story that
might be told, even that of the lying, frightened child of fifteen.
Others were found as willing as she to tell stories about the negroes,
hoping to bring themselves into favor with the judge — for every
doubtful person of New York was under suspicion. A few, indeed,
thought their might be no truth in it and took pity on the poor negroes,
but these were a hopelessly small majority. The negroes were wild
with fright, and confessed to crimes which they had never committed.
Standing on a pile of faggots which were presently to be lighted for their
own consuming, it is not strange that they told of others implicated in
the matter in the hope of saving themselves, but this it never did.

A REIGN OF TERROR. 259
They said that a few negroes had intended to watch the doors of Trinity
Church on some morning, and: to kill the congregation as it came out;
that they were then going to murder the rest of the inhabitants, assume
rule, and select a king from among themselves. The court believed
this ridiculous story. The most influential citizens of New York urged
punishment, and in two or three months more than one hundred and
fifty negroes were imprisoned. Over one hundred were convicted as
conspirators, twelve of them were burned alive at the stake, eighteen
were hanged, and seventy-two were transported as slaves to other
countries. In the few cases where their masters came forward and
protested their innocence, attempting to prove an alibi, the evidence
was paid no attention to whatever. The terrified negroes were ready
to confess to anything. One poor negro, named Quack, admitted that
he set fire to the Governor's house; that he took a brand from the
kitchen fire and put it on a beam under the roof; that the roof did not
catch fire, and that the next day he did the same thing, puffing at the
brand until it flamed. The truth of the matter was, that a plumber
had been up on the roof with an open furnace of live coals; that the
wind was high and some sparks lodged in the shingles. As the
excitement grew the people began to fear a Popish plot. They hunted
the town over for Catholic priests, but found none. There was a rumor
that priests were coming to New York in the guise of dancing-masters,
school-masters, music-teachers, etc. One quiet school teacher, John
Ury, was arrested on suspicion. Mary Burton, the child who had
brought so much trouble on the negroes, said that he was one of the
men in the habit of frequenting the place at which she had lived, and
which was supposed to be the gathering spot of the conspirators.
Though many protested that Ury was an honorable and quiet man of
godly life, he was hanged. At last Mary Burton went too far, and
began to implicate gentlemen who wore ' 'ruffles, ' ' and who offered her
presents of silk dresses. The judge and his friends thought this a good
time to bring the examination to a close.
Although this childish and abject excitement spoke so badly for
New York, it was, as a\ matter of fact, growing in power. It had
become the key of the colonies, so to speak. Presbyterians had come
from Ireland and Protestants from France, toward the end of the seven
teenth century, and in 17 10 three thousand of the Protestants who had
fled to England, at the invasion of the Rhenish palatinate by Louis
XIV, crossed to New York, settling upon the upper water of the Mohawk
and Schoharie creeks. The Scotch, Scotch-Irish, Dutch and English

260 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
came in large numbers to the colony, spreading over the country and
cultivating the land. School-houses were built among the villages.
New York itself wore a most attractive appearance. It had a reputa
tion for great cleanliness and order. The beautiful Holland tiles and
bricks still held place in their house-building. The English lived with
great luxuriance and wore fashionable clothes, but the Dutch clung for
the most part to the quaint and picturesque costumes of their father
land. The life for all was pleasant, and amusements were much more
sought by the people of New York than by those of New England.
In 1756 the population of New York City was twelve thousand. In
1738 Lieutenant-Governor Clarke founded a school for the teaching of
Latin, Greek and mathematics. The other colonies were beginning to
send their products to this port for shipment across the sea. The
royalists and common people were constantly at verbal war with each
other, but they united sufficiently to increase the mercantile value of
their place. They reluctantly took part in the movement against the
French or Indians, and gave money grudgingly. The Governor was of
warlike spirit, and felt it a shame that the people under him were so
reluctant to do their share of fighting for the defence of the confedera
tion of the colonies, but the assembly and the militia united in
disregarding his orders, and he realized, as did De Lancey, who
followed him, that the time had come when concessions must be made,
even by the King, to the stalwart burghers of the New World.
FOR FURTHER READING:
History— Brodhead's and O'Callaghan's "New York."
Fiction — F. Spielhagen's "Deutsche Pioniere.'
J. F. Cooper's "Satanstoe."

CHAPTER XLI.

Wp %h%\ ti jlrras nnt %bm.
LORD BELLOMONT' S RULE OVER NEW YORK, NEW HAMPSHIRE AND
MASSACHUSETTS — DUDLEY'S RULE — THE FRENCH AND ENG
LISH WAR OF 1702-— TAKING OF PORT ROYAL — THE
LUMBERERS' DIFFICULTIES IN MAINE AND
NEW HAMPSHIRE.

?

?ORD BELLOMONT' S rule over New York, New
Hampshire and Massachusetts was a pleasant one.
Though he was a member of the High Church
of England, he deferred to the Puritanism of his
colonies. The assembly refused to vote him a
salary, as it had done with all of the Governors
who preceded him. But the money which it
appropriated for him was considerable. The assembly
1 insisted that it should have the right to make such
appropriations as it pleased from year to year. The
amount depended entirely upon the popularity of the
Governor. By this means the colonies kept to them
selves a reserve which would send any obnoxious or too
tyrannical ruler back to his own country. Governor
Bellomont made an effort to check the unlawful priva
teering of Rhode Island, for this little State had become the home of
pirates. It was not unusual for some ship, hovering about the shore, to
make out after a vessel at sea, capture it, bring it to shore, and
appropriate its cargo. The harbor was never closed with ice, as was
that of New York. The Gulf stream, flowing around the rocky shores
of Rhode Island, kept it free through all the seasons, so it became the
favorite resort of the sea rovers. Rhode Island had once had a poor reputa
tion for harboring those obnoxious persons who dissented from the Con
gregationalism of Massachusetts; it now gained a worse reputation from
the favor it showed to the pirates.

262 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
For many a long year Connecticut and Rhode Island quarreled with
each other about boundary lines, and it was not until 1703 that Connec
ticut was willing to' accept the Pawcatuck river as her eastern line.
When Bellomont died, Stoughton became Governor for a short time,
when he also died, and Dudley was sent to manage the affairs of
Massachusetts. In May, 1695, that Board of Trade was organized in
London which regulated the colonial and commercial affairs until
the American Revolution. Its interference with trade and commercial
liberty was a constant source of vexation to the people. The detested
Randolph was again sent over as surveyor-general. Dudley tried to
carry into effect an article of the new Massachusetts charter which gave
the Governor the power to reject the nominations of the General Court.
Cotton Mather headed a strong party, which included all the leading
clergy of the province, to put Dudley from office. But Dudley also
had a strong party among the royalists, and this dispute served to keep
up that internal dissension which Massachusetts was never free from.
For five years there had been peace between the French and English,
and those terrible Indian raids upon New Hampshire and the province
of Maine had ceased. But in 1702 war was again declared between
France and England, and the French and Indians of Canada once more
felt free to vent their native hatred against the English colonies of
America. Never had the Indians been more cruel, subtle and suc
cessful. The town of Deerfield, in Connecticut, was surprised by three
hundred French and Indians one morning in February, 1704. The
town had been guarded by sentries, for an attack was suspected; but the
savages in the woods waited until they retired at daylight, and then
rushed upon the people, who were just arising for the labors of the
day. Fifty were killed, and a hundred of them were carried to Canada.
Among these were children, who were given to the Jesuit priests that
they might be raised in the Catholic faith.
Many of the young women were married to Indians, and with
that began the race of half-breeds, which filled' the northwest with such
good trappers and guides. It was not infrequent for the children stolen
in this way to acquire such a love for Indian life that they could never
bring one back to the dull restraints of Puritan civilization. The free
woods were dearer to them than the tedious town. The delights of the
chase were preferred to the labors of the field.
The French claimed the whole of Maine as far as the Kennebec,
and had established a trading and missionary post among the Norridge-
wock Indians, who dwelt among the upper waters of the river. The

THE CLASH OF ARMS AND IDEAS. 263
French and Indians united in their efforts to keep the English east of
the Kennebec, and every English fishing vessel found in Canadian
waters was seized upon by the French men-of-war. Governor Dudley
saw with apprehension the growing enmity of the Indians, and asked
the Norridgewocks to meet him in council. The Indians did so, prom
ised friendship, and helped in the building of two great cairns of stone,
which was a sign of lasting friendship. All of the time that the
Indians were feigning to be in such an amiable mood, they were
preparing to seize the Governor and his suite and give them into the
hands of the French. The plan was not carried out, because a French
party expected did not arrive in time. In less than six weeks after this
an attack was made upon the settlements between the Kennebec and
the Piscataqua. All over the province the people hurried to the garrison
houses. The fields were no longer worked, except under the protection
of a force of armed men. The settlers armed themselves and went in
pursuit of the Indians, but could not find them. Several of these
unsuccesful tramps were made upon snow-shoes through the unbroken
snow of the wilderness. Colonel Church, the celebrated Indian fighter,
came up from Massachusetts with over five hundred men to protect
these northern settlements. But aside from destroying some villages and
killing a few of the enemies in chance engagements, he did little.
In the midst of winter the New Hampshire men fell upon the
Indian village of the Norridgewocks, burning the French chapel and
the wigwams. This made the Indians more unrelenting than ever.
Within a few months they attacked many of the settlements of Maine,
New Hampshire and Massachusetts. The difficulty then, as in all
Indian warfare, was that the Indians would never meet their enemies in
open field, and more danger and expense was encountered in finding
them than in fighting them. A high price was paid to everyone who
brought in an Indian scalp to headquarters, a man's scalp being worth
one hundred pounds, and that of a child or woman fifty pounds.
Dudley was firm in his purpose to move against Canada and
"conquer it. This seemed to him the only way of freeing the colonies
from their enemy. Colonel March was sent with a force of a thousand
men, in 1707, to reduce Port Royal, in Noval Scotia. All through the
winter and the spring the men fought in vain. They had been
reduced from one thousand to two hundred in number, principally from
the hardships of the winter in that latitude. Then came Nicholson's
campaign with the New York men, which also failed. In 1710 the
place was taken by five regiments of troops which sailed from Boston
16

264 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
harbor. General Nicholson, of New York, commanded the expedition.
Only forty lives were lost among the English, and Nova Scotia ceased
to be a French province.
In 1 7 14 Governor Dudley was removed from office. The Whigs
had grown to be the stronger party, and they declared that the office of
Governor was vacant. Following him came Colonel Burgess, who sold
his commission to Samuel Shute. At the time Shute assumed authority
Massachusetts contained ninety-four thousand inhabitants. It had one
hundred and ninety vessels. Iri the fisheries were one hundred and
fifty smacks. Manufactories of many sorts were flourishing to the great
vexation of the English, who tried in vain to keep down colonial
industry. About this time inoculation was first introduced in the colonies.
Boston had suffered frightfully from small-pox. At three different times
it had raged in the city. When vaccination was introduced by a
physician named Boylston, it was fought not only by the doctors, but
by the ministers as well. Cotton Mather was one of the few who
encouraged the brave physician.
Shute had the same trouble in Massachusetts which his predecessors
had had. The assembly refused to vote him a fixed salary, and this,
as usual, was made the subject of many quarrels. The currency of the
colonies had fallen far below par, and the financial condition was gen
erally bad. Upon the north the Indians were constantly intrigued.
The country was likely at any time to be plunged into continuous war.
In matters of theology there was less sternness. Newspapers were
becoming more common. Jonathan Edwards was writing his books on
Calvanistic philosophy, and following him were a number of theolog
ical writers for whom he furnished inspiration. Increase Mather, the
father of Cotton Mather, did not cease, even in his old age, to write
religious pamphlets. Benjamin Franklin at this time was writing with
versatility and vigor. A few years later than this, William Livingston,
a journalist, and Governor of New Jersey, wrote a poem on philosophic
solitude. William Smith, at one time president of William and Mary
College, wrote an excellent history of the first discovery and settle
ment of Virginia. This was published in 1 747. Cotton Mather, of
course, expressed in newspaper and pamphlets his vigorous and com
bative ideas on the subjects of the day.
The lumberers of Maine and New Hampshire suffered great injustice
at this period from the King's surveyors, who went through the forests
selecting the best of the trees and marking them with a broad arrow.

THE CLASH OF ARMS AND IDEAS.

265

These the settlers were not allowed to touch. The farmers had a legal
right to the land on which these trees stood, and they resented bitterly
the stealing of their property. They were also kept from shipping
timber to foreign countries — a matter which they felt concerned no one
but themselves. In 17 18, a number of Scotch Presbyterians came to
New Hampshire. They introduced the manufacture of linen, the spin
ning of wool and the cultivation of the potato. In 1723 Shute left for
England, and Wentworth became Governor of New Hampshire. The
year before this the third Indian war had broken out in the northern
provinces. FOR FURTHER READING:
History — Drake's "Indian Wars."
Cotton Mather's "Magnalia."
Thornton's "Historical Relations of New England to the
English Commonwealth."

FROZEN IN.

CHAPTER XLI I.
"jtottrianw Jlrs Jjarit J^&tk?
EXPEDITION OF MAINE AND NEW HAMPSHIRE AGAINST THE NOR
RIDGEWOCKS — THE COMMAND OF CAPTAIN JOHN LOVELL —
WILLIAM DRUMMER IN MASSACHUSETTS — WHITE-
FIELD' S REVIVAL AND SHIRLEY'S ADMIN
ISTRATION — LOUISBURG  THE
SURRENDER.

ETWEEN the years 1722 and 1724 a harassing war
fare was kept up by the Indians. The savages crept
in small bands about the frontiers of Maine and New
Hampshire, falling, at the most unexpected times,
upon unprotected homes. If a woman ventured
\C alone into her yard, she was apt to be seized by the
prowling Indians. A man journeying home in the
twilight, knew that he did so at the imminent risk of his
life. In 1724, Massachusetts and New Hampshire
decided that an expedition must be sent out against the
Norridgewock Indians. Twice before attempts had been
made to break up the settlement of these Indians.
Among them was a brave and determined man, Father
Sebastian Rasle, a French priest who had gained immense
influence over the Indians. He had lived among them thirty-seven
years, and though he was a schqlar, dropped his own language for that of
the Norridgewocks and adopted their manner of living. The Indians
loved him with all the intensity of their wild natures and were willing
to meet any danger in his defense.
The Englishmen knew that if they wished to succeed in subduing
the Indians, they must first capture Rasle. Twice they had failed.
On the 12th of August, 1724, they succeeded. Two hundred English
men rushed upon the Norridgewock village when most of the warriors
were absent. Such as escaped from the rifles and swords flew into the
woods, and Father Rasle, in attempting to turn the attention of the

"AMERICANS ARE BORN REBELS." 267
enemy from these flying women and children, was himself killed. ' The
Englishmen stuffed his mouth with dirt and hacked his poor old body
horribly. It wanted only this to inflame the Indians. Captain John
Lovell organized an expedition which started in April, 1725, against
the Pequawkett Indians, of Maine. The Indians lay in ambush for
Lovell, and he and eight of his men were killed. The remaining
twenty-three retreated under cover of night to the stockade, taking
with them the men who could walk. One brave-hearted fellow, Lieu
tenant Robbins, who was mortally wounded, asked that a musket be
left beside him so that he might have one more shot before he died.
The men, after their weary march, found the stockade deserted, and in
continuing their inarch homeward, some of the wounded died on the
way. There were few left of the Pequawkett Indians.
But the English saw that yet sterner measures must be taken.
They concluded, therefore, to move against the French, without whom
the Indians might have lacked the courage to keep up their continuous
fighting. Some commissioners were sent to the French Governor to
inquire into his reasons for disturbing the treaty between France and
England. The Governor was entirely under the influence of the Jesuit
priests, who believed that it was to the glory of their religion to fight
the Protestant Englishmen whenever they could. The commissioners
succeeded only in getting the Governor to procure the release of some
captives. A treaty was made between the English and the Eastern
Indians in 1725, and for twenty years there was comparative peace.
Thus closed the third Indian war.
New Hampshire was very anxious for a Governor of her own, who
should in no way be beholden to Massachusetts authority. It was not
until 1740 that she succeeded in getting the consent of the Crown to
such a measure and that the boundary line which divided her from
Massachusetts was definitely decided upon. Benning Wentworth, a son
of Lieutenant-Governor Wentworth, was made the first Governor. He
brought to his office all of the dignity which the New Hampshire
people could have desired. With a troop of guards about him he rode
in a pretentious coach, and lived in a house which, for those days,
was little less than princely. The story of how he married pretty
Martha Shortredge, one of his servants, is told so well by Mr. Long
fellow that it would be foolish to repeat it.
In Massachusetts, William Drummer, the Lieutenant-Governor,
was looking after the forces of the colony while Shute returned to
England. Following, came Burnet, who had some bitter quarrels with

268 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
the assembly on the old question of a fixed salary. In 1730 Jonathan
•Belcher was sent out from England as Governor. He refused to accept
the grant of money voted him by the assembly, and dismissed the
house. This had no effect upon the people, and at length the King
was obliged to yield the point and consent that Massachusetts should
do as she pleased about the payment of Governors.
This was one of the strongest steps toward national independence —
it was the greatest concession which the Crown of England had yet
made. William Shirley who succeeded him in office, was much liked.
He was the first of the royal Governors who succeeded in keeping up
cordial relations with the people. Whitefield's great religious revival,
which was shaking New England from its foundation, may have had
something to do with these amicable relations. It may seem surprising
that there was much need for a revival of this sort in Puritan New
England, but the truth was that the people had begun to feel the
reaction which naturally followed in the wake of religious discipline so
stern as that the early Puritans imposed. People had grown indifferent
and worldly, but their religious traditions made their remorse all the
more sharp, when they were awakened to a sense of their falling-off by
a man of Whitefield's eloquence. The religious excitement grew so
high that even the coldest could not stand out against it. The more
sensible people did not approve of this excitement, and thought it was
doing great harm to the nervous and impressionable.
In 1744 the French and English in the old country became involved
in another war. The Governor of Breton, as soon as he heard of it,
moved against a settlement of English fishermen on the island of
Canso. The French had been very jealous of the English fishermen,
and were glad of an excuse for striking a blow at them. The settlement
at Canso was destroyed and the men sent to the French fortress at
Louisburg. Governor Shirley at once began preparations for war. He
made up his mind to take Louisburg. This was the strongest fortress
in America. It had been twenty-five years in building, and cost
France thirty millions of livres. At the southeastern point of Cape
Breton was a walled town, two miles and a half in circumference. The
stone rampart was over thirty feet high and in front of this ran a ditch
eighty feet wide. The harbor was defended by a battery of thirty 28-
pounders. Upon a little island just opposite was a battery of still
larger guns. The town was entered over a draw-bridge which was
guarded by a circular battery of thirteen 24-pounders. The batteries
and six bastions could mount one hundred and forty-eight cannons.

"AMERICANS ARE BORN REBELS." 269
Shirley's preparations were made in secret. Only the New England
troops consented to join the enterprise. Shirley took with him 4,500
men. Whitefield encouraged the expedition, and his influence was
very valuable. Colonel William Pepperell was persuaded by Whitefield
to take command of the expedition. The French heard nothing of the
matter. All over the provinces a day of fasting and prayer was held.«
The troops met on the island of Canso; then, on April 29, 1744, they
sailed for Cape Breton. A part of the English landed and set fire to
some large warehouses filled with spirits. The smoke, drifting inland,
so frightened the French that they spiked the guns of their battery at
the bottom of the harbor, and taking boats, retreated to their walled
town. Thirteen men who were reconnoitering found that the battery
was deserted, and took possession. As they had no flag with them, one
of the soldiers went up the flag-staff with a red coat in his teeth and
nailed it up, that the French might know they claimed possession.
The French attacked them, but were held off until reinforcements came
up, when they again retreated. On May 5th, Pepperell threw up three
batteries near the city. Guns and ammunition had been dragged
through the swamps during the past fourteen days, and these were
hurried into the batteries. Another battery was thrown up within a
short distance of the draw-bridge, but the town was not easily forced.
Pepperell knew that the island battery must be taken. This could
only be done by sending a fleet up the harbor. Commodore Warren,
who was cruising around outside of the bay, had captured a French
ship having sixty-four guns, six hundred men, and a quantity of
military stores on board. From the men on the captured ship, the
English learned that the French were expecting a large reinforcement.
The English decided to move at once. Pepperell tried a night attack
with his scaling ladders, but his men were repulsed with a loss of sixty
killed, and one hundred and twelve taken prisoners. The siege was
still continued from the batteries. Pepperell was getting very short of
ammunition, and some of his best guns burst. By the first week in
June, fifteen hundred of his men were sick. Commodore Warren kept
the French from carrying the news of the siege to Quebec. But the
French were not alarmed, and felt no great need of reinforcement.
They were well- trained soldiers; their enemies were farmers and
mechanics, many of whom knew little about the use of their fire-arms.
Pepperell built another battery within range of the island battery in the
harbor. He had nearly ruined the draw-bridge battery by this time.
Commodore Warren and General Pepperell decided to make an attack

270 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
together. Warren's fleet was drawn up in line and the land forces
were put in a position to attack. This was the 15th of June, 1745.
The French lost heart. They asked that hostilities might be suspended
and terms of capitulation made. On the 17th of June, Pepperell
marched into the fortress at the head of his plucky men. Governor
•Shirley hastened up and was given the keys of the place by the general.
Six hundred and seventy regular troops, thirteen hundred militiamen,
six hundred sailors and two thousand inhabitants were sent to France,
The English had lost one hundred and thirty men. The French lost
three hundred. General Pepperell was made a baronet, and was the
first American to receive that honor. Warren was made admiral.
Pepperell was also given high honors in the English army and
presented with a table of silver and a service of plate by the city of
London. For a year Louisburg was garrisoned by New England
troops. FOR FURTHER READING:
History— Leake's "England in the Eighteenth Century" (Chapter on Whitefield.)
Poetry— Whittier's "Mogg Megone."
Whittier's "Mary Garvin."

CHAPTER XLIII.
"IHjitf If itra THrmtm lpf[ Wpiv

tt

THE GROWING SPIRIT OF INDEPENDENCE — THE FIRST EXPEDITION
AGAINST FORT DU QUESNE — THE COLONISTS FOR AGGRES
SION AND OFFENSE — BRADDOCK'S ILL-FATED EXPEDI
TION  GEORGE WASHINGTON'S FIRST AP
PEARANCE — BRADDOCK'S DEFEAT
AND DEATH.

N Boston, in the year 1747, there was an occur
rence which marked the growing independence
of the colonies, and showed how near they were,
even then, to revolution. Commodore Knowles,
commanding an English man-of-war, sailed into
Boston harbor, and to supply places of some
sailors who had deserted, he took a press-gang from the
merchant vessels of Boston. As soon as the people
learned that some of the Boston boys had been forced
on the King's ship, they armed themselves with clubs
and stones and hurried to the Governor's house, where
the officers of the ship were being entertained. All day
they surrounded the house, and in the evening they
\-> became so threatening that it required the utmost efforts
of the Governor and other influential citizens to keep them from
violence. Even then they sent brickbats crashing through the win
dows of the council chamber, and demanded that every officer in town
belonging to the fleet should be seized and held till the Boston boys
were released. The militia was ordered out next day by beat of drum,
but the drummers were in full sympathy with the kidnaped sailors,
and refused to obey orders. The mob was made up mostly of mechanics
and laboring men, and by their authority alone the officers of the ship
were held in custody for three days. Commodore Knowles threatened
to bombard the town if they were not released. Governor Shirley,

272 THE STORY OP AMERICA.
disgusted with the disorderly conduct of the citizens^ went to the castle
on the harbor that he might be out of a town where law was so disre
garded. The General Court passed a series of resolutions which
expressed sorrow for the behavior of the citizens, but declared that the
House would exert themselves to redress their grievances. The militia
came out promptly, ready, and perhaps even anxious, for conflict
Governor Shirley returned to the city, and the Boston sailors were
exchanged for the British officers of the man-of-war. When Knowles
sailed out of the bay, everyone in Boston gathered on the wharves and
shouted at the discomfiture of the Commodore, who went back to
England with an appreciation of the fact that the people in the colonies
would do pretty much as they chose.
In 1748 a treaty was made between France and England which
returned to France the fortress of Louisburg, which the English had so
gallantly taken. There was not a man in the colonies who did not feel
this to be a personal insult. It seemed as if the mother country set a
low price upon the lives of her subjects. The engagement had plunged
the colonies heavily in debt, also, and it was some time before Parlia
ment voted the money to pay it. The treaty between the countries in
the Old World had little effect upon the colonies in America. Hostilities
were kept up on the border constantly, and when open war was resumed,
in 1755, there was but little change in the attitude of the French Cana
dian and the English settlements, The French had built a chain of
military posts along the great lakes and upon the highways of the river
system. About these grew up little settlements. They even com
manded a part of the Mississippi. The English were pushing their
settlements westward, and in 1748 the Ohio Company was formed,
which made use of the river communication by the Potomac and the
eastern branches of the Ohio. A road was built over the mountains
from Cumberland to Pittsburg, and exploring parties were sent out in
1750 and 1751, under Christopher Gist, who was surveyor of the com
pany. In 1753, Major George Washington, a young Virginian, was
sent out with Gist and others to visit the French forts which were
encroaching upon the land which the English considered their own.
The reports which he brought back in January, 1754, determined Vir
ginia to fit out an expedition immediately. This was done. Washington
was made second in command under Colonel Joshua Fry. The French
were under Contrecceur, who soon met a detachment of the English,
drove them from the fort which they were building and occupied it
himself. Washington, who had command of the main body of the

"THEY NURSE TREASON WITH THEIR MILK."

273

army, had a gallant engagement at Great Meadows, but was defeated
and forced to surrender.
It had been proved that the colonies could not work independently.
Benjamin Franklin and other of the wisest men of the colonies thought
it was best to have a union. Congress assembled at Albany. Massa-

GEORGE WASHINGTON IN HIS YOUTH.
After the painting by C W. Peale, and the engraving of J. W. Paradise.

chusetts Bay, New Hampshire, Connecticut, Rhode Island, New York,
the Jerseys, Pennsylvania, Maryland, Virginia and North and South
Carolina sent delegates. Chiefs from six nations also met them there.
This congress wished to meet annually, but the Board of Trade in

274 THEi STORY OF AMERICA.
London would not permit it, thinking that it gave too much power to
the colonists. In the convention it was agreed that war with Canada
was necessary.
In 1754, Edward Braddock was made Commander-in-chief of all the
fortresses in North America. Six thousand regular troops were given
by the Crown, ready for service, as well as the money for the purpose
of raising a colonial army. It was Braddock' s intention to march
against Fort Cumberland. Unfortunately, Braddock started from Vir
ginia, because the road had already been built from there. But this
made his march an exhausting and expensive one. He did not
understand the nature of warfare in America, although he was a man of
much experience and bravery. He was used to the well-regulated
warfare of Europe, and could not, or would not, understand the savage
methods which the frontiersmen used, owing to the fact that the
Indians were always allies with them and they had no choice but to
employ their methods. Braddock had one thousand regular soldiers,
thirty sailors, twelve hundred provincials, a train of artillery, and
wagons and horses which Benjamin Franklin had procured for him,
beside the brave, friendly Indians. This line stretched along the narrow
road. Had the Indians chosen at any time to attack it, as it wound its
way through the great forest of white pines and the desolate mountains,
it could have cut it into a dozen pieces.
Washington was sent ahead with twelve hundred men, about half
of the force, leaving the rest with the baggage and the horses at Little
Meadows. There were not more than a thousand men under Contre-
cceur holding the French fort. Contrecceur thought that it might be
safest to surrender at once, but De Beaujeu, one of his captains, asked
permission to lay an ambuscade for the British. The Indians put on
their war-paint and followed him. The Frenchmen were wild with
enthusiasm. Braddock, proudly confident of his strength, moved on.
Washington said afterward that he never saw so beautiful a sight as the
British troops made on that morning when they were ordered as if on
dress parade, and with their flying colors, their martial music and
glittering uniforms, hastened toward the fort. Suddenly Beaujeu,
dressed in a French hunting dress and wearing a silver gorget, bounded
down hill. Behind him came the French and Indians. At a signal
the Indians disappeared. The French fired upon the English, then all
about from the hollows and the woods came the fearful shrieks of the
Indians. The English stood steady in a compact body and returned the
fire. Beaujeu was killed, but his men, fighting from behind trees and

"THEY NURSE TREASON WITH THEIR MILK." 2'/5
in ravines, worked terrible destruction among the Englishmen, who
were fighting after European methods on the clear ground. Washington
wanted Braddock to allow the men to use the methods of the natives,
but this was not soldierly, according to Braddock' s idea, and he would
not permit it. Braddock had four horses shot under him, and was
finally wounded himself. His army beat a wild retreat A few faithful
friends carried him with them. He died, giving up his command to
Washington, and was buried at Great Meadows. The army marched
to Philadelphia. FOR FURTHER READING:
History— Spark's '%ife of Washington."
Columbus' "I.ife of Washington."
Parkman's "Pontiac."
Fiction— C. McKnight's "Old Fort Du Quesne."
Wright's "Marcus Blair."
Thackeray's "Virginians."

CHAPTER XLIV.

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FRENCH AND ENGLISH SETTLEMENTS IN NOVA SCOTIA — THE RIVALRY
BETWEEN THE SETTLEMENTS-^-COLONEL WINSLOW
, DRIVES OUT THE ACADIANS — THE PATHETIC
EXODUS — PERSECUTION OF THE
EXILES.

IVING upon the basin of Minas, in Nova Scotia,
was a company of people called the French Neu
trals. They were British subjects, for at this time
Nova Scotia was an English possession, but they
were constantly suspected of being in sympathy
with the French and would take no oath of alle-
giance»which did not contain a proviso that they
were never to take up arms against France. The people
of the community were very industrious and frugal, and
they gained wealth rapidly. Their religion held them
together, and kept them from mingling with the Prot
estant English. The French and the English united in
holding them in suspicion, feeling that they must be
dangerous if they would give the allegiance to neither
one nation nor the other. England was anxious to have
Nova Scotia, or Acadia, settled with hearty British subjects, and in
1749, Colonel Edward Cornwallis led an expedition of nearly two
thousand five hundred persons into Chebuctb harbor and settled the
town of Halifax. The nearest settlement was that of the French, on
the basin of Minas. A little cattle path ran through the woods for
twenty miles, connecting the two towns.
The garrison was removed from Louisburg, and assisted in the work
of the young settlement at Halifax. The English imagined that their
French neighbors were setting the Indians upon an attack upon the
colony, and all through the winter of 1749 the people lived in fear of

DESOLATED ACADIA. 277
an attack. There was also a French settlement at the mouth of the
St. John, and it was feared that the two colonies would unite in a move
against the English. To avoid such danger, the English decided that
the people of Grand Pre must be made to take a complete oath of alle
giance or else be removed altogether from communication with the
French. After several years of suspicion and dissatisfaction a crisis was
reached in 1755, when the people of Minas begged to have the arms,
which had been taken from them, restored. There was a rumor that a
French fleet was in the Bay of Fundy and that the Acadians intended
to join the forces and attack the English garrison. The Governor
ordered the French inhabitants to send delegates to Halifax for the pur
pose of giving the oath of allegiance. They refused to take it. It was
therefore decided that the French inhabitants should be sent out of the
province. An expedition was sent from Massachusetts, under the com
mand of Edward Winslow. The French fortifications were taken, the
Acadian Indians disarmed, and some of the Acadians pressed into English
service. The farmers of Grand Pre were then asked to meet the English
in the little church at, 3 o'clock in the afternoon to hear what the
English officers had to impart to them. ' The old and young men, and all
the boys of ten years of age, were required to be there. They assembled,
unsuspiciously, to the number of four hundred and eighteen. The
church was put under guard. Colonel Winslow told him that it was
his Majesty's instructions and orders that all lands and tenements,
cattle of all kinds, and live stock of all sorts, were forfeited to the
Crown. Only their money and household goods were allowed them.
It was promised that families should be kept together, and that removals
should be as easy as it could be made. The poor French farmers were
surrounded by troops, and their prayers and protests were of no avail.
The men were kept in the church for some time, waiting for the arrival
of the vessels which would transport them. When they came, all the
young unmarried men were placed upon the vessels first, then all of the
young married men. Only the very young or the very old were left on
shore. There was no chance for a revolt. It was many weeks before
the rest of the transports arrived in which the families were to be placed.
In the meantime, the unhappy women spent their days in packing up
their goods and arranging for departure.
Colonel Winslow grew tired of his bitter task. The weeping of the
women worried him, and their prayers were harder to face than the fire
of an enemy would have been. On the 21st of October the remaining
transports arrived and the people were embarked. There were at least

278 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
two thousand of them, possibly more. The exiles were scattered
through a number of the colonies. Some of them returned to France.
There was a colony planted in Louisiana, and a few returned in time.
In Massachusetts, they were persecuted. The children were taken
from their parents and driven from town to town. Everyone refused to
care for them.
No doubt the Puritans thought that they were serving the Lord in
this persecution of the Roman Catholics. In Pennsylvania, the exiles
were distributed among country towns and provisions were made for
them from time to time. They were always gentle under the wrongs
which were heaped upon them. FOR FURTHER READING:
History — Haliburton's "History of Nova Scotia."
Fiction — Mrs. Williams' "The Neutral French."
Haliburton's "The Old Judge."
De Mille's "The r,ily and the Cross."
Poetry — JUmgfellow's "Evangeline."

CHAPTER XLV.

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OPERATIONS AGAINST THE FRENCH IN THE NORTH — THE BATTLE AT
BLOODY POND — THE FRENCH TAKE FORTS OSWEGO AND
WILLIAM HENRY — THE ENGLISH RETAKE LOUISBURG 
THE BATTLE OF CARILLON — THE ENGLISH
RETAKE OSWEGO AND CAPTURE
FRONTENAC AND DU
QUESNE.

|GENERAL plan had been laid out by the English
for the reduction of France in the New World.
The unfortunate expedition of Braddock was but
a part of this. He was to take Fort Du Quesne
and move on to Niagara. Governors Shirley and
Johnson met with their forces at Albany. Gov
ernor Shirley was to move against Niagara, where he
was to be joined by Braddock's men. General John
son was to move against Crown Point, a French
garrison on the southern shore of Lake Champlain.
While Governors Shirley and Johnson were waiting
in Albany for the arrival of the last of their troops,
they received word of Braddock's disaster. The men
were inexperienced and impatient. Fighting, they
could understand, but waiting and planning, which
is so large a part of the success of war, was distasteful to them.
Shirley was obliged to wait so long before making his attack upon
Niagara that a fall storm set in. Many of his men deserted him, and
he thought it best not to venture upon so long a march, amidst the
inclemency of the coming weather, with a reduced force of men. He
learned, also, that the French, under Baron Dieskau, were intending to
attack Oswego., He strengthened that place by increasing the garrison
there to seven hundred men. The French were anxious for Oswego, for

28o THE STORY OF AMERICA.
though Forts Niagara and Frontenac commanded each end of Lake
Ontario, Oswego, upon the southern bank, held the key to the Ohio
valley. So long as this was not in the possession of the English, the
French traders were not likely to be interfered with. Dieskau was, indeed,
upon the point of moving against Oswego, when he heard of General
Johnson's intentions to move against Crown Point. Dieskau abandoned
his first intention and hurried to meet Johnson. He had two thousand
men, whom he took up Lake Champlain to Fort St. Frederick, at Crown
Point. There he waited for the English. General Johnson's forces
had been sent northward, under General Lyman, in mid-summer. They
spent their time in building a fort on the east bank of the Hudson while
they waited for General Johnson to arrive with the necessary stores and
equipments. It was the 8th of August, 1755, when General Johnson
set out to join Lyman. Ammunition, provisions and all other necessaries
of a campaign were carried fourteen miles to Lake George. Here they
were obliged to wait for their boats, but built a fort in the meantime.
Here Indians from the Six Nations joined Johnson from time to time in
small numbers. Lyman's men were engaged in strengthening the
fort; Johnson encamped farther south on the lake, in a spot protected
by the lake on one side and a marsh on the other.
Dieskau left a strong party at Crown Point and marched southward,
with the intention of taking Lyman's men, thus cutting off Johnson
from his supplies. Could he do this, there would be nothing between
him and the New England border. The Indians were full of objections.
They were always reluctant about attacking forces, having a terrible
fear of cannon. They refused to believe Dieskau when he told them
that Lyman was entirely unprovided with them. Dieskau was, there
fore, obliged to march against Johnson's camp. Johnson heard of their
approach and went to meet them. Dieskau prepared an ambush in the
shape of a horseshoe, intending, when the English marched into it, to
bring around one of the long lines and close about them, attacking
from all sides. Hendrick, the chief of the Mohawks, and a detach
ment of Johnson's men, marched into this. Upon three sides of
them the French and Indians rose with a yell and fell upon them.
Bloody Pond, on the east shore of Lake George, still marks the spot
where those unfortunate men fell. Reinforcements covered the flight
of the remnant of the English back to the rude barricade which
Johnson had hastily raised and where he had placed his few cannons
which he had brought up in boats.
The Canadian Indians would not pursue the fight when they saw the

THE LION OR THE LILIES. 28l
cannons. The Mohawks, on the English side, had already fled. Their
chief, Hendricks, had been killed. The provincial soldiers, hiding
behind their barricade of trees, picked off the French regulars until
they were obliged to take to the woods. Johnson had been wounded
and Lyman took command. The French, protected by the trees, crept
up close to the breastworks, and the battle became a hand-to-hand fight.
Lyman kept the cannons busy sending a raking fire through the swamps
where the savages were lurking. The French were obliged to fly.
Johnson gave orders that his men were not to pursue them. The French
rested and began preparations for a meal, for they were half starved.
Just then a detachment of two hundred New Hampshire troops marched
down from Fort Lyman. These fell upon the French, and besides
doing much execution, got their baggage and ammunition. The French
lost about five hundred, the English between two and three hundred.
There was the greatest rejoicing in the colonies. Johnson was
made a baronet and given a large sum of money. In Albany, the
people knew that they had been saved from destruction. The English
proceeded to build a strong fort at the south end of Lake George. It
was called Fort William Henry. That and Fort Lyman were both
well garrisoned. The French took possession of the pass at Ticon
deroga and fortified it. Governor Shirley, since the death of Braddock,
had been at the head of the English army in America. The plans
which he laid for the coming year, 1756, were a repetition of the year
before. The desire was to capture Fort Du Quesne and Crown Point;
Niagara, Frontenac, and Ticonderoga were to be taken, if possible.
The British and French governments formally declared war in May,
1756. Lord Loudon was made Commander-in-chief of the English
forces, and the Marquis De Montcalm was placed at the head of the
French. The Englishman was indolent and unambitious. He waited
for this thing and that, while the army in America was suffering for
his presence. Montcalm was very different. He hastened to Canada
with two thousand men and a large quantity of stores. Under his
directions the French cut off supplies intended for Oswego. They
captured small English forts, took a considerable number of prisoners,
and succeeded in winning the alliance of the Six Nations. The French
succeeded in capturing Fort Ontario, with a slight loss to themselves.
The English lost as prisoners of war, sixteen hundred men, including
eighty officers, one hundred and twenty pieces of artillery, a large
store of ammunition, and the seven armed ships and two hundred
batteaux which were to have been sent against Niagara and Frontenac.

282 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
The English, weakened by the languid and ineffectual command Jf
Lord Loudon, continued to be inactive. The force had dwindled, by
sickness, from seven to four thousand. Montcalm returned to Montreal
for the winter. The English plans for the next year were to confine
hostilities to a single expedition. This was. to be against Louisburg,
which the English had taken once before so gallantly. Four thousand
more men were raised in the colonies. The troops met at Halifax and
were joined by Loudon with six thousand regulars, but when Loudon
learned that Louisburg was well garrisoned, he concluded to put off an
attack for a year and returned to New York. When Montcalm heard
of this, he made up his mind to move against Fort Willian Henry.
This fort had been badly situated. Some of the hills by it commanded
it absolutely, and around it were marshes and low-lying ground.
Montcalm, with fifty-five hundred Canadians and regulars, and sixteen
hundred Indians, made his way from Ticonderoga across the portage to
the upper part of Lake George. Here he divided his men. Part were
sent in batteaux and canoes down the lake with all the baggage, and
twenty-eight hundred followed the Indian's trail by the side of the lake.
These last mentioned were under the command of De Levis. Montcalm
landed on the west side of the lake, about two miles from the fort, and
demanded its surrender. Colonel Monroe, who was in command,
promptly refused, thinking that he could rely on the assistance of
General Webb's men at Fort Lyman, fifteen miles below. But Webb
had the stupidity to advise Monroe to surrender, since he could give no
aid to him unless General Johnson arrived with reinforcements. The
French intercepted this letter, learned the nature of the men they had
to deal with, and sent the messenger on his way.
General Johnson did arrive with reinforcements, but Webb would
not permit him to give the assistance to poor Monroe, although the
common soldiery were wild for action, and outraged at the meanness
which left him to his fate. The siege lasted for six days and Monroe
was obliged to surrender. Montcalm made liberal terms but the Indians
had been inflamed with liquor and their thirst for blood aroused.
Montcalm had promised that the troops should be marched to Fort
Lyman safely. He tried to keep his word, but the Indians broke from
all control and fell upon the Englishmen. In their panic the English
even fled to the French for protection. It has never ceased to be a
subject for dispute among the friends and enemies of Montcalm, as to
whether he inspired the Indians in this treachery or not. Montcalm
burned Fort William Henry and returned to Canada.

THE LION OR THE LILIES. 283
The Indian depredations continued all along the English frontier as
far as the valley of the Shenandoah. Oswego, the key of the Ohio valley
and the great lakes, had been lost. It is true that the English held
Acadia, but the silent and desolated villages were not a proud possession.
Fortunately, at this time, a man who was always a friend of the
American colonies came to their relief. It was William Pitt, the
English statesman. At this time he was Secretary of State, and he
took vigorous measures for sending armies, ammunition and a general
equipment from England. He also called for a large number of
colonial soldiers. All the New England men needed was encourage
ment and example, and they responded to the call with enthusiasm.
Admiral Boscawen and Sir Jeffrey Amherst were placed in command of
the forces which were called to attack Louisburg. On June 2, 1758,
these forces arrived at Louisburg, and a well-planned assault was made.
The French surrendered and the English took six thousand prisoners.
This was very important to the English, for there now stood nothing
between Louisburg and Quebec, the strongest and most impregnable of
the Canadian cities. New England began to take courage once more,
and looked to Brigadier-General Wolfe, who played an important part
in the engagement, for a leadership of more power. Abercrombie,
who had taken the place of the ineffective Loudon, was aiming at the
capture of Ticonderoga. With him was Lord Howe, a general of
bravery and dash, trusted by his officers and beloved by his men.
On the 5th of July, Abercrombie came up Lake George with fifteen
thousand troops, both regulars and provincials, in a fleet of batteaux.
The scarlet uniforms of his English regulars, the plaids of his Highland
troops, and the motley garb of his provincials making a picturesque
spectacle. The French had been sent to keep the English from landing.
One body of them was driven back, the other took to the woods, and
wandering there bewildered, encountered a body of horsemen, who were
also lost. In the engagement which followed, nearly all of the French
(three hundred and fifteen) were killed. The English lost heavily also,
and Lord Howe was shot. His loss was a greater disaster to the
English than twice the number of the French slain would have been.
On the 8th, a regular attack was made upon Carillon. Abercrombie
sent his regulars again and again to the deadly abatis. The huge
trunks and roots of the trees afforded the best protection in the world
for the French. Lord Abercrombie, unused to this method of defence,
did not sufficiently value its strength.
At sunset the English gave the fight up as hopeless and withdrew to

284 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
the lake. The discouraged men encamped upon the ruins of Fort
William Henry, and counting their numbers, found that they had lost
over two thousand. Meanwhile, Bradstreet, with three thousand men,
had once more secured Oswego to the English. He then rode down the
lake to Frontenac and captured its garrison, and then returned to
Albany to join the men who remained. The third expedition which
had been sent for the recovery of Fort Du Quesne, under General Forbes,
was successful. Forbes did not march by the road which Braddock
had followed, but started from Bedford, Massachusetts. With Forbes
was Colonel Washington and his Virginian troops. A great deal of
time was wasted in building bridges and leveling woods after the
manner of European warfare, which the commander followed and
Washington protested against. The march was so long that the
provisions were exhausted, and it was feared that the expedition would
have to return without having accomplished anything. The French
did not feel strong enough to venture resistance, and they set fire to their
magazine. So the English conquered almost in spite of themselves.
The key to the lakes and the Ohio valley was once more in their
possession. A terrible disaster befell the army a few days later, when
Grant's detachment of men, consisting largely of Highlanders, were
surprised by seven or eight hundred Frenchmen, and nearly all killed.
Pitt continued to send supplies and men over to America. By the 6th
of July, the English were before Niagara. The general first in
command was killed by the carelessness of one of his soldiers, and Sir
William Johnson took his place. The French knew that their garrison
was too small to hold against the besieging force, and sent to Detroit
and Presque Isle for reinforcements. These the English met and
defeated in a spirited engagement. When the French at the fort were
convinced of this disaster, they surrendered. Meanwhile, Amherst had
brought eleven thousand men to awe the little garrison of Ticonderoga.
The French did not attempt resistance, but blew up the magazine and
retreated northward. Amherst went on cautiously to Crown Point,
only to find that the French had retreated still farther north. The rest
of the year was employed by Amherst in building those massive works
on Crown Point, which are still the wonder of tourists. Rogers was
sent with his rangers against the Indians, but the great interest of the
English campaign lay with General Wolfe.
FOR FURTHER READING:
Fiction— James' "Ticonderoga."
Cooper's "Last of the Mohicans."
Poetry— Whittier's ' 'Peutucket."
Whittier's "St. John."

CHAPTER XLVI.

ip Jntip ti §for^

THE EXPEDITION AGAIKST QUEBEC — THE NIGHT ATTACK AND THE
FIGHT ON THE PLAINS OF ABRAHAM — THE DEATH OF
MONTCALM AND WOLFE — NEW ORLEANS
AND THE MISSISSIPPI VALLEY
- GIVEN TO SPAIN.

* HOUGH Wolfe was a man of much strength of
spirit, he suffered constantly from bodily weak
ness. Nothing but a fierce determination to
restore the honor of the English colonies could
have kept him up through those trying expedi
tions. He rested in England for a time after
the taking of Louisburg, and then returned to prepare
for the capture of Quebec, suffering, meantime, from a
deep melancholy and a presentment of death. At the
close of June, 1759, the English forces left Louisburg
and encamped on the Isle d' Orleans, in the St. Law
rence, a little below Quebec. A detachment was put on
the promontory of Point Levi, on the southern shore of
the river, and still nearer the city. Montcalm learned
of their coming, and made preparations for defence.
Rocky bluffs rose straight up from the St. Lawrence, and for years these
natural fortifications had been considered impregnable. Montcalm had
about three thousand men, in fortified camps, protecting the city. Across
the St. Lawrence was a dam, with vessels sunk behind it and barges in
front. The St. Lawrence, on the south side of the city, was about a
mile wide, and at that place was a swift-flowing river. Montcalm's
forces were much larger than Wolfe's, and the English soldiers were
inclined to the belief that an attempt against such forces and fortifica
tions was useless. Wolfe did not depend upon strength, but on strategy.
An attack was made on the French camp near the falls of Montmorenci.
The Englishmen made a bold attack, but in the end were forced to take

286 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
to their boats and retreat. The expedition was a sorry failure, and at
least five hundred men were lost by the English.
The siege was kept up for another month. Little effect was made
upon the upper town, but the lower one was almost destroyed. Wolfe was
sick and melancholy. The inaction was dispiriting to the troops.
What they desired was to force Montcalm to meet them on open field.
At length Wolfe, lying ill in his tent, hit upon a plan which made him
immortal. In the time which they had lingered there, Wolfe had
become well acquainted with the country, for his men had reconnoitred
faithfully. Therefore, on the night of the twelfth, a moonless night,
Wolfe rose from his bed and led sixteen hundred of his men. They
dropped silently down the river with the current, and landed beneath the
overhanging heights above the city. Up these wooded bluffs were steep
paths, and fourteen volunteers led the way while the sixteen hundred
men followed. Once they were challenged by a sentinel. A High
lander replied, in the French tongue, that they brought provisions.
There was no other interruption. It was the Highland boys in their
plaids that sprang ashore first. They were used to mountain climbing,
and rushed up the steep. The little guard at the head of the path was
soon overpowered. When the morning light broke, Quebec was
astonished to see an English army on the Plains of Abraham, the great
table land behind the city. Montcalm hurried thither with twenty-five
hundred men.
He had been on the other side of the St. Lawrence river, and had to
cross the bridge of boats and pass through the city before he reached
the Plains. The English had already begun to intrench themselves.
The French had no time for preparations, and one gun was all they
had been able to drag after them. The Canadians crouched in the corn
fields and began the attack, and the French regulars, in three divisions,
moved upon the centre and the flanks of the English. The French
kept up a steady fire, but the English did not level their guns until
their enemies were within a few feet. Then, of course, the fire was
deadly, and the English followed it up by a hand-to-hand attack. The
Frenchmen fell into disordered rout.
Wolfe was wounded. He had one ball in his side, and another in
his breast. Some one carried him to the rear and laid him on the grass,
where he lay almost unconscious, but when a man cried, ' 'See how they
run!" Wolfe raised himself suddenly and asked, "Who run?" When
he heard it was the enemy, he gave his last orders:
"Tell Colonel Burton to march Welb's regiment down the St.

THE PATHS OF GLORY.

287

Lawrence river and cut off their retreat from the bridge." Then he
died peacefully. Montcalm was also killed, and was buried in a cavity
of the earth made by the bursting of a bombshell. It was the burial
he had asked for. On the 18th of September, 1759, the British took
possession of Quebec, the French withdrawing their troops to Montreal.
With the opening of the river in the spring, De Levis came down
from Montreal with an army of seven thousand men. The English
moved out with soldierly spirit, and a second battle was fought upon
the Plains of Abraham. The English were worsted, and the French
began a siege. Both forces waited in quiet for some time, expecting
reinforcements. They came to the English first, and De Levis threw
his guns into the river and retreated. On the 8th of September the
city surrendered. In the terms of capitulation were included Detroit,
Michelimackinac and all the French forts farther west. The French
fleet, which arrived upon the coast soon after, was entirely destroyed
by the British squadron. Canada, Nova Scotia and Cape Breton now
belonged to Great Britain. FOR FURTHER READING :
History — Warburton's "Conquest of Canada."
Fiction — Hall's "Twice Taken."
Tiffany's "Brandon."

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QUEBEC.

CHAPTER XLVII.

PONTIAC, CHIEF OF THE OTTAWAS — ARRIVAL OF ROGERS' MEN AT
DETROIT — PONTIAC' S CONSPIRACY — BEGINNING OP
WAR — THE SIEGE OF DETROIT — THE
BATTLE OF BLOODY
BRIDGE.

HE chief of the Ottawas, Pontiac, claimed all
the land upon the southern and western sides of
Lake Erie. He is said to have commanded his
Indians with great skill at the time of Braddock's
defeat. In 1746, he and his warriors defended
the French with bravery, against the Northern
<-""¦ Indians. Practically, he was the principal chief of three
great tribes, the Objibewas, the Ottawas, and the Potta-
watomies. At the time of which we write he was a
little past the prime of life, but was still one of the most
intelligent and formidable men of his race. He was
haughty and eloquent, not lacking in statesmanlike quali
ties, nor in a certain poetic imagination.
When the English detachment was sent to take pos
session of Detroit, under Major Rogers, Pontiac came in
person to inquire what right he had to pass through the country. He
was told of the conquest of Canada and that the party were on the way to
accept the surrender of Detroit. Pontiac retired to turn the matter
over in his mind for the night, and on the following day made a speech
in which he affirmed his friendliness towards the English and prom
ised that they should be unmolested. That he was sincere in his pro
testations of friendship is proved by the fact that when Rogers and his
famous rangers arrived at the Detroit river, Pontiac persuaded four
hundred Detroit Indians, who were lying there in ambush for them, to
disperse. Had he not done so, this would have been the last adventure

A BLOW FOR LIBERTY. 289
of that picturesque band of men whose exploits have been the delight
of all American boys.
But the English were never so attractive to the Indians as were the
French, and after a time the grim old savagd, Pontiac, began to long
for his more entertaining friends, who had so long lived near him in
good fellowship. He could not understand why a large garrison of
Frenchmen should lay down their arms and surrender to a handful of
English rangers, and he listened with satisfaction to the tales which the
French poured into his ears. They said that the great French Father
had been asleep, but that he would awaken now and avenge the wrongs
of his children. Pontiac, solitary and gloomy, pondered upon this in
the depths of the Michigan forests, and laid plans for driving the Eng
lish from the country. This was to be done by attacking all the forts
in a single day, as well as all the frontier settlements. He had heard
that a large French fleet was on its way down the St. Lawrence,
and he hoped to win the good will of the commander. With him, he
would march upon the older English settlements and drive the people
back across the Atlantic. Ambassadors were sped to the several
Indian nations with a red-stained tomahawk and the wampum war belt.
The Senecas, Algonquins, Wyandots and some southern tribes became
allies of Pontiac. Each tribe was to dispose of the garrison nearest it
and then turn upon the adjacent settlements. On April 27, 1763,
Pontiac called a great council on the river Ecorces and addressed his
warriors there. He recounted all the wrongs the Indians had suffered
at the hands of the English, and he told of a tradition that a Delaware
Indian had been allowed to enter the presence of the Great Spirit, who
told him that his race must return to the customs and weapons of their
ancestors, give up the whisky which the white men had taught them
to use, and throw away the implements with which he had tried to
chain them to the dull drudgery of civilization. Pontiac assured his
friends that the French were coming down the St. Lawrence with a
' large fleet of soldiers who would stand by them and be their friends.
The insurrection was to be on the 7th of May, and Pontiac was to lead
the attack on Detroit.
On the ist he visited the fort with forty warriors, and danced the
the dance of peace before them. He retired to finish his plans of war.
He and one hundred chiefs were to enter the fort for the purpose of
holding a council with the commander. Pontiac was to make a speech,
and when he presented the wampum belt wrong end foremost, it was to
be the signal for the Indians to fall upon the officers and kill them.

290 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
The Indians waiting outside about the streets were to do the same
deadly work among the soldiers and citizens. The plans were well
laid, but on the 5th, one of the English women visiting in Ottawa vil
lage to make purchases of maple sugar and venison, saw many warriors
cutting off the barrels of their guns with files. She wondered why they
could wish the barrels of their guns to be made shorter. There was
only one conclusion; they wished to hide them under the folds of
their blankets. One of the beautiful young Indian girls who were in
the habit of visiting the fort left with so much reluctance on the night
before the attack that she was questioned until she confessed the details
of the plot. Pontiac made her suffer severely afterward for this
treachery to her race.
The force of Pontiac about Detroit was from six hundred to two
thousand. The English garrison consisted of one hundred and twenty
men. The fort was a square enclosed by a palisade twenty feet high.
At each corner was a wooden bastion, with a few light pieces of artil
lery, and over the gateways were block-houses. Two armed schooners
were anchored in the river.
Pontiac came at the appointed time and entered the gate with his
warriors. He saw at once that his plans had been discovered. "Why
do I see so many of my father's young men standing in the street with
their guns?' ' he asked. Gladwyn, who was commanding, replied,
lightly, that they had been out for exercise. Pontiac began his speech,
doubtless turning over in his mind the possibility of an attack even
now. Once he lifted the wampum belt. Gladwyn replied with a
slight movement of his hand. There was a rattle of arms at the door
and the roll of a drum. Pontiac sat down in dismayed silence. The
Indians were finally conducted to the gate by the soldiers, and ushered
out in sullen silence.
Pontiac and three chiefs came back the next day with a calumet and
- told Gladwyn that evil birds had sung lies in his ear. The following
day he came with a large crowd of warriors, to find the gates barred.
He was told that he alone would be allowed to enter. The war-whoop
which his followers gave was the declaration of hostilities. Some of them
ran to the defenceless English houses outside the fort, killed the inhabi
tants, and shook their bloody scalps at the soldiers. Pontiac' s village
was hastily moved across the river to the mouth of the creek we now
know as Bloody Run, a mile and a half north of the fort. On the ioth
he began a regular siege, fighting in the usual savage manner, behind
barns and fences, keeping well out of reach of return fire. Two Scotch

A BLOW FOR LIBERTY. 29 1
officers responded to Pontiac' s wish to hold a council with the Eng
lish. Both were detained as prisoners and one was murdered.
The Wyandots joined Pontiac and the siege was renewed with great
vigor. It had taken Gladwyn some time to realize the extent of the
conspiracy. But now he removed everything about the fort which
could obstruct the sweep- of his guns. He carefully economized the
provisions, and dug wells in the fort. These wells were not alone
needed to provide against thirst, but to extinguish the fires as well, for
one of the chief methods of Indian warfare was to tip the arrows with
burning tow. Under cover of darkness the friendly Indians across the
shore brought over supplies. Pontiac' s soldiers had not been prepared
for sustained conflict, and before long were short of provisions. The
old chief was not lacking in dignified ideas of war and would not permit
his men to prey upon the Canadian farms. He made a large number
of promissory notes upon birch bark, which were to be exchanged for
provisions. After his disastrous war had closed it is said that, he
redeemed all of these riotes.
Reinforcements were on their way up Lake Erie for Gladwyn. He
knew of this, and sent one of his schooners to hasten their approach,
but the schooner missed them, and they continued to slowly creep up
the coast, not knowing of the siege, and were captured by a band of
Wyandots, who killed or took as prisoners sixty men. Only two boats
escaped. The Indians hid in the boats which they had captured and forced
the crew to sail into the harbor. The Indians hoped to enter the fort
by this strategy. At the fort they had watched the approach of the
boats with great delight, and the disappointment when they were seen
to be laden with Indians, was almost unbearable. The two boats which
escaped hastened to Niagara and told their .story. An expedition for
relief was formed. The Indians made an attempt to capture this also,
but it reached the fort in safety.
The approaches to the fort were guarded by the schooners, of which
the Indians stood in great fear. They made several attempts to
destroy them with fire-rafts, but were not successful. The Wyandots
and Pottawatomies exchanged prisoners with Gladwyn and sued for
peace, but the Ottawas and Ojibewas kept up the conflict. On the 29th
of July a reinforcement of two hundred and eighty men reached
Detroit, and revived the spirits of the exhausted garrison. They now
felt strong enough to march out from the fort and openly attack the
Indian camp. But the Indian never could be made to fight in fair field.

292 THE STORY OP AMERICA.
They hid behind every tree and clump of bushes. Dalzell, who led
the expedition, could find no enemy, and after going as far as the deep
ening twilight would permit, turned his men back toward the fort.
Then every bush, tree and hill became alive with savages who had
lain in ambush. Dalzell was killed. Rogers took possession of a house
and defended some of his men there. The cellar of the house was
crowded with women and children, and upon the trap-door, which
covered it, stood an old man who needed all his little strength and his
eloquence to keep the soldiers from rushing, in their terror, into the
cellar. Rogers held out until the batteaux, which had gone down the
river with the killed and wounded, returned. This was called the battle
of Bloody Bridge. In it the English lost fifty-nine men and the Indians
about twenty. The great desire of the Indians was to keep supplies
from reaching the fort. One of the schooners returning to the fort
from Niagara was attacked in the Detroit river by a large number of
Indians, who swam silently through the water with knives in their
teeth. The crew fought them with spears and hatchets, and succeeded in
saving the boats from capture, but the captain was killed and several
men badly wounded. The boat would have been lost, had not the
mate given an order that the magazines should be fired. The Indians
understood enough English to take warning. The next expedition
which was sent to the fort from Niagara was overtaken by a storm.
Seventy men were lost, besides all the store of ammunition.
The Ottawas finally sued for peace, and Pontiac raised the siege in
October and returned to his melancholy forest. That portion of the
war which he superintended himself had not been successful, but his
allies had been more fortunate. At almost every fort in that country
the work of destruction had been successfully carried out. Forts
Sandusky, St. Joseph and Quatanoir, on the Wabash, were all captured,
and in most cases the garrison were murdered. At Michelimackinac, a
very crafty plan was laid for the taking of the fort. The Indians invited
the officers to witness a game of ball on the plain in front of the fort
From early morning till noon the soldiers looked on, well pleased
with the sport. Finally the ball was thrown near the gate of the fort.
The Indians made a rush for it, seized the two officers, who were stand
ing near, and bound them, while the savages poured into the fort.
Inside were the squaws, with weapons concealed under their blankets.
These the men seized and fell upon the soldiers. Seventeen were killed
instantly, and six were tortured to death. The English traders were
led into captivity. The French, quietly looking on, were not touched.

A BLOW FOR LIBERTY ' 293
At Prasqui, near the present town of Erie, Pennsylvania, the fort was
was besieged for two days and a half. Here the Indians mined the fort
and the English were obliged to surrender. They were taken as pris
oners to Pontiac' s camp. At Fort Le Bceuf, a block-house, in which the
garrison had taken refuge, was set on fire, and the garrison of fourteen
men dug a hole in the ground in the rear and crept stealthily into the
forest, while the Indians stood dancing around in the belief that they
were burning to death. The men started for Fort Pitt, but some of
them died of hunger by the way. At Fort Venango, on the Alle
ghany, the garrison was butchered and Lieutenant Gordon slowly
tortured to death. Fort Pitt itself was well fortified. It had a good
supply of water and provisions, and the attack was not successful. A
command was sent out from Philadelphia, under Colonel Henry Boquet,
to strengthen the garrison at Fort Pitt. He had five hundred men with
him, mostly Highlanders. These marched through a desolate tract of
country at the western part of Pennsylvania. Many settlements there
had been laid waste and the inhabitants murdered. A fierce attack
was made on him near the stream called Brush river, where the men
had encamped. His little army was entirely surrounded, and his
horses, unused to the blood-curdling shrieks of the Indians, were
unmanageable. The Scotchmen fought firmly, rather than bravely,
and their very lack of excitement won them the victory. The fight
was resumed the next day at the first break of light. The Scotchmen
were placed at a terrible disadvantage. They stood in an open space
in a-compact mass. The Indians were dispersed through the woods
and fought from behind trees. Boquet feigned retreat. The Indians
supposed that their prey was about to escape, and made a furious
attack. This was exactly what Boquet desired. In a short time
the Indians were flying before the Scotchmen. The march was
resumed, and the force arrived at Fort Pitt, having lost eight officers and
one hundred and fifteen men.
In a short time general peace was made, but for many months after
the people in the frontier villages lived in terror of their lives. Two
thousand whites were killed. Several costly expeditions had been
entirely destroyed. Pontiac, still revengeful, tried to start another con
spiracy, but failed. He was murdered in 1769 by a Kaskaskia Indian,
on the spot where St. Louis now stands.
FOR FURTHER READING:
History — Parkman's "Conspiracy of Pontiac."
Drama— A. Macomb's "Pontiac."

CHAPTER XLVIII.
Imnt Bait Bis Bntlus*

THE STAMP ACT — CONDITION OF THE COLONIES — THE OPPOSITION
TO TAXATION — REPEAL OF THE STAMP ACT — REFUSAL OF
THE ASSEMBLY TO PROVIDE FOR THE
TROOPS SENT OVER BY
ENGLAND.

1 OR a time after the close of the war a pleasant
tranquility reigned in the colonies. George
Washington, writing to a friend in England,
confessed there was really nothing to say.
' 'Happy the people whose annals are tiresome, ' '
says Montesquieu. For a time it seemed as if
life in New England was to resolve itself into this
fortunate monotony. But the young King George III,
in England, had ideas which brought this tranquility to
an end. He believed that the colonies were rich
enough to help him in carrying out one of his famous
schemes. He wished to build a great palace which
should rival the splendor of Versailles. To do this, it was
evident that a prodigious sum of money was necessary.
There was no easier way to raise it than by taxing the American
colonies. In 1763 a bill was introduced in Parliament which tested the
whole question of the possible revenue to be derived from that source. It
required that stamps varying in price, none of them less than one shilling,
should be placed upon the records of all commercial transactions. An
amendment to the sugar act was also introduced. The duty on foreign
molasses was changed from six pence a gallon to three pence, and new
duties were imposed on coffee, pimento, East India goods, and wines
from Madeira and the western islands. George III was not mistaken
in thinking that there had been a rapid increase of wealth in the
American colonies. Between the years 1765 and 1775 two-thirds of

(Oj%*2^^cA^^

CAESAR HAD HIS BRUTUS. 297
the foreign commerce of Great Britain was that which she conducted
with America. Between 1700 and 1760 the value of property in
England increased fifty per cent. William Pitt claimed that this was
due wholly to the American colonies, and said that Great Britain reaped
a profit of two millions a year from them. At this time there were
three millions of people in America, and these purchased alrnost every
manufactured article from Great Britain, exporting, in return, fish,
tobacco, indigo, rice and naval stores. England sent goods amounting
to two million pounds annually to New York and Pennsylvania alone.
But to the indignant Americans who turned the stamp act over in
their assemblies, there seemed to be no reason why they should be
imposed upon simply because they were prosperous. That peculiar form
of lawlessness which was so much stronger and more dignified than law,
and which the people of New England had shown before, was
thoroughly roused now. Samuel Adams, the leader of the popular
party in Boston, inflamed the people by his indignant eloquence. ' 'If
our trade may be taxed, why not our lands?' ' said he. ' 'Why not the
produce of our lands, and, in short, everything we possess or make use
of? If taxes are laid upon us in any shape, without our having a legal
representative where they are laid, are we not reduced from the
character of subjects to the miserable state of tributary slaves?' ' Such
speeches, and James Otis' passionate pamphlet on the rights of the
colonies, filled every American with courage and a determination to
resist. Quietly, and to an extent secretly, every man in America armed
himself. The speeches of the assemblies should have fairly warned the
English ministers, but they were anxious to gratify the caprice of their
half-mad King. , A Continental Congress met at New York, in which
there were delegates from the nine assemblies to consider what had best
be done. Most of the assemblies had already met in the province and
had made their individual protests. In Virginia, Patrick Henry had
drawn up his famous resolutions denouncing the right of the mother
country to tax her colonies. These were warmly opposed, and Henry,
' rising in the house, cried, ' 'Caesar had his Brutus, Charles I his Crom
well, George III" — "treason!" cried the men from every part of the
house — "may profit by their example," continued Henry, firmly. "If
this be treason, make the most of it'"
The Continental Congress at New York was composed of the most
distinguished men in the colonies. On the roll were the names of many
men who, in the end, sided with the Crown. Among them was
General Timothy Ruggles, of Massachusetts who was president of the

298 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
Congress. He and several others were staunch Tories. The resolu
tions were not impertinent, nor even passionate. They were dignified,
moderate, and absolutely firm. The thirteen articles of these resolu
tions iad a single purpose — a protest against taxation. Meanwhile,
the piles of stamp paper which were to produce this new revenue
arrived in the different sea-ports. The collectors who brought the
stamps were hung in effigy and waited on by mobs. Most of them
were compelled to resign. In Boston, the mob entered the house of
Oliver, the agent, and broke his windows. Then they gathered at the
house of his brother-in-law, Governor Hutchinson, one of the richest
men in Boston, and threw everything into the street. The militia was
called out to arrest the ringleaders, which they made pretense of doing,
but released them willingly enough, when they were ordered to do so
by the mob. The newspapers were filled with letters of protest from
private citizens. The opposition was led chiefly by the "Sons of
Liberty," an association in New York.
The royal governors and the officers under them were very bitter.
Lieutenant Cole, of New York, swore that he would cram the stamps
down their throats with the sword. The distributor of the stamps in
Maryland was obliged to fly to New York, and was finally visited by a
delegation from the Sons of Liberty, and forced to take an oath to the
effect that he would not resume the duties of his office. In South
Carolina, the stamp act was publicly burnt, the bells of Charleston
were tolled, and the flags of the ships in the harbor were at half-mast.
Nor was it alone the young men, fond of novelty, who conducted these
proceedings. The older and more dignified took part in them with
equal enthusiasm. The colonies also took more radical and business
like methods of resistance. They agreed among themselves not to
import English goods, and orders which had gone< forward were
countermanded. The retail dealers agreed neither to buy nor sell such
goods as were brought into the country. A fair was opened in New
York devoted to domestic manufactures. That the growth of wool
might not be interfered with, it was determined that no lambs might be
used as food. No mourning goods were manufactured in America and.
it was agreed that they should not be purchased. Some of the ship- '
masters bringing them over were forced to return with their cargo.
In England there was a new ministry — a ministry which had not
yet made up its mind what its attitude should be toward the colonies.
For the first time in a year, William Pitt appeared in the House. His
speech upon the situation was most sarcastic. He said that Americans

Wo

SIR ROBERT PEEL.

CAESAR HAD HIS BRUTUS. 301
were the sons, not the bastards, of England, and closed his speech with
the celebrated words: "The honorable gentleman tells us that America
is obstinate; America is almost in open rebellion. Sir, I rejoice that
America has resisted. Three millions of people, so dead to all the
feelings of liberty as voluntarily to submit to be slaves, would have
been fit instruments to make slaves of all the rest. ' ' Benjamin Franklin
was present, and was examined thoroughly on the question. The
stamp act was repealed. Throughout the colonies this was received
with the greatest enthusiasm. Joy bells were rung in the churches,
liberty poles raised, and pictures of Conway and Barre hung in Faneuil
Hall. Conway was the man who had brought in the resolution for the
repeal of the act. Barre was the man, who, when the stamp act was
passing through Parliament, replied to the remark that the colonies had
been planted by the care of England, with this indignant speech:
"They planted by your care! No, your oppressions planted them in
America. They nourished up by your indulgence! They grew by
your neglect of them. As soon as you began to care about them, that
care was exercised in sending persons to rule them in one department,
and another who were perhaps the deputies of deputies to some member
of this house, sent to spy out their liberties, to misrepresent their
actions and to prey upon them; men whose behavior on many occasions
has caused the blood of those Sons of Liberty to recoil within them!"
Statues of George III and Pitt were erected in Virginia and Maryland.
In New York, statues of the' King and Pitt were also erected and liberty
poles raised, at the bases of which hogsheads of punch were drank.
But the people had rejoiced too soon. The habits of loyalty was
still strong in them, and they desired to have cordial relations with the
home government. They had taken the repeal of the stamp act for
more than it really meant. The sugar act was not modified, and still
collected a revenue. It was still required of the colonies that they
should provide fire, candles, vinegar, salt, bedding, utensils for cooking,
beer, cider and wine for all the troops who might be sent to America.
Again the ministry of England had changed, and now had at its head a
man who was determined to tax the colonies as he pleased. He insisted
that military garrisons should be kept up in all the large colonial
towns, and that they should be supported by colonial taxation. In
June of 1768, Sir Henry Moore, the Governor of New York, sent a
message to the assembly, asking them to make provisions for the
troops, then on their way to the colony. The assembly refused. They
were willing, they said, to bear a share in the support of the troops on

302 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
their way through the province, as they had always done, of their own
free will. But they would contribute nothing to the quartering of
troops in the colony. Parliament ordered that all the legislative rights
of New York should be stopped until Jhis command had been complied
with. The sympathy of all the colonies was with New York. At
this time port duties were levied on wine, wools and fruit, if shipped
direct from Spain and Portugal, and upon glass, paper, lead, colors and
tea. This revenue was to be used for the support of the civil officers
of the colonies. It will be remembered that the assemblies had always
insisted upon the right to care for the royal governors in the way they
considered best, and that the sum given to the Governor annually,
depended partly upon the prosperity of the province, and partly upon
the benefit which the Governor had actually been during the year. A
letter of supplication was promptly sent to the King. The reply was
a letter from the Secretary of State of England, to the General Court
of Massachusetts, commanding them to withdraw the resolution which
gave birth to the letter. If they refused, the government was to dissolve
the court. The assemblies of the other colonies received word that they
would also be dissolved if they were disobedient. A letter so insulting
and patronizing showed the absolute ignorance which England was in
regarding the character of the American men with whom they had to
deal. Four regiments of soldiers were then quartered in the town of
Boston. Every man was curious to know why they were there.
Americans could not grasp the idea of a standing army. They believed
that the soldiers were there for no reason but to menace the community.
The idea entertained in England, that it was a compliment to have
troops stationed at a town, could not be understood by them. This
Puritan town, forced by law into habits which were almost ascetic, and
ruled by a government which was largely religious, could not tolerate
the gayety, not to say debauchery, of the soldiers. The town had
refused to prepare quarters for them. At a town meeting it was
requested that every inhabitant should provide himself with fire-arms
for sudden danger, in the case of a war with France. There was, as
everyone knew, no likelihood of a war with France, but the fiction was
sustained, and every man obeyed the bidding. When the troops arrived,
one regiment was quartered in Faneuil Hall, another in the town hall,
and one encamped on the Common. The Irish regiments, which arrived,
a few days later, were added to those on the Common. A fleet of
eighty men-of-war, having in all over one hundred and eighty guns, was

CAESAR HAD HIS BRUTUS. 303
anchored off the town. It was with difficulty that the wisest among
the Bostonians prevented an outbreak. The people were not only
willing to fight, but they were anxious to do so.
The very boys shared the popular discontent. There had been quite
a quarrel between them and the soldiers, for the soldiers were in the
habit of destroying the snow-slides which .the boys had prepared for
their sleds. The boys appealed in vain to the captain, and finally went.
to the British general. He said: "Have your fathers been teaching
rebellion, and sent you here to exhibit it?" "Nobody sent us here,"
said one of the boys. "We have never injured nor insulted yoUr troops,
but they have been spoiling our snow-slides so that we cannot use them
any more. We complained, and they called us young rebels and told us
to help ourselves, if we could. We told the captains of this and they
laughed at us. Yesterday our slides were destroyed once more, and we
will bear it no longer. ' ' The general ordered the damage repaired and
told General Gage about the matter, who said that it was impossible to
beat the notion of liberty out, of people who had it planted in them
from childhood. FOR FURTHER READING:
Biography — boring's "The Hundred Boston Orators."
Tudors "Life of Otis."
Wells' "Life of Samuel Adams."
Sparks' "Franklin."
Adams' "Life of John Adams."
Wirt's "Patrick Henry."

CHAPTER XLIX.

ip jtoion Ifea-Jhifer*,

TROUBLE IN BOSTON — "THE BOSTON MASSACRE" — THE TEA TAX-
ATTITUDE OF GOVERNOR HUTCHINSON — THE BOSTON
"TEA PARTY" — THE BOSTON
PORT BILL.

RRITATION in Boston reached its height on
March 3, 1770. For a long time there had been
many quarrels among the common soldiery and
the Boston seamen. Probably there was little
choice between the ignorance and brutality of
both parties, but the popular sympathies were, of
course, with the Americans. On the evening of the 3d,
some soldiers had agreed to hold a sort of free fight with
a company of rope-makers. In the rough hand-to-hand
fight several men on both sides were wounded. On the
following night an attempt was made to renew the
squabble, and it was suppressed with some difficulty.
The soldiers were resentful and naturally had a strong
^ partisan feeling. On the night of March 5th, two
young men tried to pass a sentinel at the foot of Cornhill. The senti
nel told them that they could not pass. A struggle followed and a
crowd gathered. The sentinel was snow-balled. A file of troops was
sent out to defend the sentry, and succeeded in getting him into the
barracks safely. But the blood of the crowd was up. The actual indig
nities which had been heaped upon them made them anxious for
revenge, and they can hardly be criticised if their methods were petty.
Another sentinel was espied, who had, it was said, knocked down a
Boston boy a few days before. The ill-nature of the mob was turned
against him. He tried to enter the building and escape, but found the
door locked, and was forced to call for the main guard. Six men were
sent to his relief. Captain Preston, the officer of the day, was at an

THE BOSTON TEA-DRINKERS. 305
entertainment in the city. A messenger was dispatched for him. The
mob grew every minute, and the bells throughout the city were set
ringing as if for fire. Captain Preston and six more men came on the
ground. The men presented only their bayonets by way of defense
against the mob, and fell back in front of the custom-house. They
were ordered not to fire, and, in spite of the missiles and epithets hurled
at them, managed to control themselves. But when a soldier received
a severe blow from a club, he lost his sense of discipline, leveled his
gun, and fired. Seven or eight more soldiers followed his example.
When the mob had fled, three men were found dead on the ground.
Two others were mortally wounded, and six slightly. The exploit
afforded the Bostonians a certain grim satisfaction. The strain upon
their patience had ended. The longed-for opportunity for action had
come. The twenty-ninth regiment answered the beat of arms, and soon
formed in King street. From the balcony of the State House, Governor
Hutchinson, a man of old New England blood, promised that a thorough
investigation should be made. Captain Preston, before daylight, sur
rendered himself and was placed in jail. The selectmen lost no time in
waiting upon the Governor and assuring him that the troops must be
removed from town. The Governor replied that the regiment that had
had the fight with the rope-makers might be marched to the castle.
This answer was carried to the town meeting, where the selectmen
awaited it, in the Old South Church. Samuel Adams said that if there
was authority for removing one regiment, there was authority to remove
two. ' 'Nothing short of the total evacuation of the town by all the
regular troops, ' ' said he, ' 'will satisfy the public, mind and preserve the
peace of the province. ' ' Hutchinson knew the humor of the New Eng
land men, and though all England laughed at him afterward for his
compliance, he had all the troops removed. It delayed, beyond a doubt,
the War of the Revolution, just Ave years. Preston was tried for mur
der, but was acquitted. Two soldiers were found guilty of manslaughter
and sentenced to be branded in the hand.
In the English cabinet it was decided that tea was still to be
retained as a subject of taxation. An effort was made by the wiser
members of Parliament to repeal this in less than a year after the act
had been passed, but Lord North carried it by a majority. Lord North,
who was minister, and the ' 'Friends of the King, ' ' were now directing
English affairs. The half-distraught young King was in no position to
be either wise or generous, had he wished to be so; in truth, he was
seriously out of patience with America, and was well pleased to vent his

306 THE STORY OP AMERICA.
irritation upon her. The tranquility which had followed the removal
of the troops from Boston was soon disturbed by the poor policy of Lord
North. The Crown of England was interested in the prosperity of the
East India Company. The United States steadily refused to import tea
from England, and as a consequence the East India Company found
itself burdened with seventeen million pounds of tea in its English
store houses. To save it from bankruptcy the government lent it a
million and a half of money. The directors of the East India Com
pany wished to be allowed to land the tea free in America. They
knew much better than the English minister the humor of the men
with whom they had to deal. The King insisted there must be one
tax to keep up the right. The tax was only three pence a pound —
half of that which was paid in England — but the English subject had the
right to cast his vote upon the matter. American colonies were not
represented. In this distinction lay all the difference between slavery
and freedom. To their great chagrin the people in Boston discovered^
at this time, that their Governor, Hutchinson, was writing letters
which they considered treasonable. He talked about the establishment
of a patrician order, and in one letter said that there must be an abridge
ment of English liberties among the people of the colony. These
letters were shown to Franklin, who was in England, and he obtained
permission to send them to America. The Massachusetts assembly
begged the King to remove Hutchinson and the Lieutenant-Governor
from office. Edmund Burke, the young English statesman, says the
council which met to consider this letter had the fullest meeting he ever
remembered. Wedderburn, a lawyer, and one of Lord North's favorites,
spoke for three hours against the petition, and turned a storm of per
sonal abuse upon Franklin, who was present. Walpole and Pitt
made the day famous — one by an epigram, the other by a reproof.
Franklin was quiet and apparently undisturbed, but he laid aside a suit
of velvet clothes which he wore that day with the remark that he would
never put them on again until Wedderburn' s insults were avenged. It
was ten years before he enjoyed that privilege, and then, as Plenipo
tentiary of America, he signed, with the English Plenipotentiary, the
treaty by which England acknowledged the independence of Franklin's
country. To add to the excitement of the council in England, news
had just reached them that three cargoes of the taxed tea which had
been sent to Boston had been thrown overboard.
The Dartmouth, the first of the tea vessels, had arrived in Boston
on November 24, 1774. A town meeting was called the next day at

THE BOSTON TEA-DRINKERS.

307

the Old South Meeting-house. Samuel Adams moved that the tea
should riot be landed, that it should be sent back to the place from
which it came, and that no duty should be paid on it. These resolu
tions were passed unanimously. The owner and master were directed
that they were neither to enter the tea at the custom-house nor to land
it. A watch was put on the ships, and six horsemen were appointed

OLD BUILDING AT BOSTON, "WHERE THE TEA PLOT "WAS HATCHED.
to notify the country at once of any effort to land it by force. In every
town, it will be remembered, were a company of minutemen, well
equipped and drilled, who were marksmen of no mean order.
It was understood that in twenty days from the arrival of the first
ship, the collector would make a formal demand for duties. The
twenty days passed and the Governor would not permit the ship to

308 THE STORY OP AMERICA.
return to London, even if she had desired to do so. Ships-of-war
crowded the channels so that no vessel without a pass could go by the
castle outward bound. The town meeting, which was held daily at the
Old South Church, had rapidly increased, and on the twentieth day
there was a throng. Messengers were sent to the Governor to make one
last inquiry as to whether he would give the pass permitting the ship
with its lading to leave the harbor or not. He refused. Samuel
Adams arose in his seat, and said, with significant emphasis: "This
meeting can do nothing more to save the country. ' ' Then there was a
rush for the wharves, and in the hurrying crowd were seen two bodies
of young men, disguised as Mohawk Indians. They took possession of
the tea ship, and bidding the captain furnish them with ropes and tackle,
they elevated the chests on board, split them open and poured the tea
into the harbor. There was no noise, no shouting or rejoicing. The
matter was too serious. Every man who stood there, gravely watching the
performance, knew what it meant, and that the responsibility assumed
by the act was not small. It was nearly dawn when the young men
had finished. Who they were no one to this day has ever learned.
One man named Captain O'Connor, a devoted tea-drinker, tried to
fill his pockets with the tea. Some more patriotic person seized him
as he leaped from the vessel, and Captain O' Connor left the skirts of his
coat in the hands of the man who tried to stop him. O'Connor's coat
was nailed to the whipping-post next day as a punishment for his lack of
public spirit. Boston was not the only place which refused to accept the
taxed tea. The ship sent to Philadelphia was stopped before she reached
the city, and the captain was forced to turn her toward home. The tea
sent to Charleston was landed, but was purposely stored in damp cellars.
It would be safe to say that not one cup of tea was ever made from that
which North tried to force upon the American colonies. On March 14,
1775, North introduced the Boston port bill, which, by way of punish
ment for the insubordination of the place, closed the port. After June
1 8th no person was to be allowed to load or unload any ship in the
harbor. The council was hereafter to be appointed by the crown and
the magistrates by the Governor. Government was provided for Quebec
and all persons who had taken part in the late disturbance were to be
tried in England. FOR FURTHER READING:
History — Bord's "Boston Massacre."
Scudder's "Boston Town."
Poetry— "The Boston Tea Partv." See Ford's Poems of History.
Charles T. Brook's "The Old Thirteen."
Philip Frenlaw's "An Ancient Prophecy."

CHAPTER L
ip J0ffl& ti

THE FIRST BLOOD OF THE REVOLUTION — THE MEN OP BILLERICA-
FIGHT AT CONCORD AND LEXINGTON — THE SIEGE OP
BOSTON — THE BATTLE OF BUNKER HILL.

' HERE was never a time when the people of the
American colonies liked to be called traitors.
Their habits of loyalty to the King of England
made them lay all blame of oppression upon the
king's ministers. The bills which had caused so
much dissatisfaction were called ministerial bills ;
the army whose presence so outraged them was called a
ministerial army. Yet, if George III was determined in
anything, it was to subdue and humiliate his colonies in
America, which he deemed woefully arrogant and lacking
in reverence. Besides, from no other source, he believed,
could the treasury of England be so easily and rapidly
replenished. The pushing of this policy on the part of
the king, and the sturdy resistance on the part of the
people, brought matters to a crisis. General Gage sent
a small detachment of soldiers to Marshfield, in Plymouth county, for
the purpose of protecting Tories there from insult. The people made
no resistance or complaint about the matter, and General Gage
gathered confidence from their apparent indifference. On the twenty-
sixth of February, 1775, he sent out Colonel Leslie with a considerable
company of men, to seize some cannon at Salem. The soldiers landed
at Marblehead on Sunday morning, while the people were all at
church, but the news of their landing was hurriedly carried to Salem
by a messenger loyal to the American cause. The soldiers were
allowed to march unmolested through the town of Salem, but when
they came to the North Bridge, beyond which the cannon lay, they
found that it had been drawn up — for it was a draw -bridge. The

3IO THE STORY OF AMERICA.
people standing there quietly told Colonel Leslie that it was a private
way, and that no one could be allowed to use it without the owner's
consent. Colonel Leslie's reply was to put his men on board a couple
of scows. The owners of these scows jumped into them and began to
scuttle the boats. The soldiers drove them out with their bayonets. In
this way the first blood of the Revolution was shed. There were no
further hostilities then. The minister of Salem had a short talk with
Colonel Leslie, and got him to accept a compromise. The draw-bridge
was lowered. Colonel Leslie and his men walked over it and back
again — but without the cannon. Then he retreated to Marblehead,
and to Boston, while about him, as he retreated, sprang up the ready
minute-men, who did nothing, however, but watch him. To detail all
the irritations which deepened the feeling of resentment on both sides
would be tedious. Not only was the feeling of anger steadily increasing
between the English and Americans, but a stricter line was being drawn
between the Conservatives and Radicals. A dispute as to where loyalty
ended, and treason began, divided neighborhoods, churches and families.
The Provincial Congress at Massachusetts was quietly providing arms
and provisions. The magazines of the province were at Concord and
Worcester. Almost every town had its own little magazine. The
confidence of these little hamlets is something really amazing. What
they lacked in strength, they made up in determination. At Billerica,
a citizen had bargained with a soldier for a gun. There was an act
against trading with soldiers, and the citizen was locked up all night by
the officers of the guard, and in the morning was tarred and feathered,
without a hearing. The soldiers paraded him through the streets with
a placard, on which was written, "American Liberty; or, a Specimen
of Democracy. ' ' There were fifty voters in Billerica. These sent this
portentious paper to General Gage: "May it please your excellency, we
must tell you we are determined, if the innocent inhabitants of our
country towns must be interrupted by soldiers in their lawful inter
course with the town of Boston, and treated with most brutish ferocity,
we shall, hereafter, use a different style of petition than complaint."
These petty defiances were really not without their effect upon General
Gage. He was fully convinced that the country was a hot-bed of
rebellion, and that it could not be taught a lesson too soon. He sent
two officers to reconnoitre about Concord and Worcester, where the maga
zines of the province were. On Tuesday evening, the eighteenth of
April, eight hundred men were given instructions to seize and destroy
the guns, ammunition and stores at Concord. The troops marched

THE BLOOD OP PATRIOTS. 311
at night. They left Boston, under command of Colonel Smith, embark
ing at the water edge of the Common. They landed at Leshmoor's,
which is now called Cambridge, and marched across the salt marshes,
striking the road to Menotomy. This excursion had long been expected.
The Americans had prepared for it. Doctor Warren had returned to
Concord from the meeting of the Provincial Congress at Boston. As
soon as Gage launched his boats, Warren sent word to Hancock and
Adams by Paul Revere. Paul Revere was a coppersmith and engraver.
He had been one of the thirty mechanics to patrol the streets of Boston
at night all through the winter, in order to watch the movements of the
English troops. Revere carried his message to Hancock, and passing
through Charlestown, agreed, with, a number of gentlemen there, that if
the British started out by sea, two lanterns should be shown in the
North Church steeple, and if by land, one as a signal. On the night
that General Gage moved, Warren sent in great haste for Revere and
begged him to set off for Lexington. He took his coat and boots with
him for his ride and was rowed across the river to Charlestown. The
night was clear and frosty, with stars overhead. Revere found a good
horse and waited for the signals. At eleven o'clock, two lanterns were
hung in the belfry of the Old North Church. Revere began his famous
ride. At every farm house, in every town, the people were aroused.
At Lexington he told Hancock and Adams. Here, also, he was joined
by Dr. Prescott and William Dawes. On the way, Dawes and Prescott
stopped to alarm a house, and Revere was taken prisoner by four
English officers. Dawes was also detained, but Prescott escaped to
ride on with the news. Colonel Smith, at the head of the English
detachment, had made every effort to keep the news from spreading.
When he found that the alarm had been given, he sent to Boston for
reinforcements. As he had taken all the boats with him which were
at the command of General Gage, the reinforcements were obliged to
march by land in a roundabout way. General Gage's men were not
used to rapid action of this sort, and it was nine o'clock in the morning
before they had even gathered upon the Common ready for the march.
It was very different, however, with the minutemen of the colonies.
Waking and sleeping, for weeks, they had thought of nothing but such an
opportunity. The Lexington minutemen were soon drawn up in
array. They were under the command of John Parker, a veteran of the
French war. Parker saw that his men were largely outnumbered,
and tried to withdraw his men. Colonel Pitcairn, who commanded the
column, rushed forward, crying, "Disperse, rebels, disperse!" No

312 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
other words, however carefully selected, could have so inflamed the
Americans. But there was a great desire on both sides not to have the
responsibility for beginning the war. To the last the commanders of
both forces ordered the men not to fire. Both commanders always
insisted afterwards that their men did not fire first. What really
happened is not known, nor does it especially matter. There was a
general firing on both sides. The shots from the Americans hurt no
one. The firing of the English killed and wounded many of the
Lexington party. Seven were killed and ten wounded out of the little
force of seventy, that, in the grey light of the early morning, fought on
Lexington Common. The English troops pressed on to Concord. The
whole country was alarmed and the people were rising rapidly. There
are traditions still in Middlesex and Worcester counties, of a man on a
white horse, who rode faster than any mortal man could ride, to say that
the English had left Boston and the war had begun. The minutemen
were cautious, and seeing that they were far outnumbered, they formed
upon a bold hill about eighty rods behind the village of Lexington,
near the ' 'North Bridge. ' ' There Colonel Barrett joined them as soon
as he had done all that was possible in the way of concealing the
ammunition and supplies in the storehouse. Colonel Smith, the
English commander, began his duties by destroying three new cannons,
which Colonel Barret had been unable to remove. To this he added
the not very dignified action of breaking up some wooden spoons and
trenchers. He set fire to a number of buildings — among them the
court house. In the midst of all this, shots were heard at the North
Bridge, where the minutemen had taken their stand. Some English
soldiers had been stationed on the bridge and the officers of the
minutemen decided to drive them away. It was the Lincoln minute
men who volunteered to clear the bridge. ' 'There is not a man in my
company that is afraid," said Captain Davis. The column was ordered
to pass the bridge without firing, but if attacked, to return the fire.
They marched to the air of ' 'The White Cockade. ' ' When they were
within a short distance of the bridge the English fired three volleys.
Two captains were killed. One of them was Davis, who, had he lived,
might have done much good to the American cause. The English
were forced to retreat, and the minutemen crossed the bridge. The
militia, gathering in the town, joined as rapidly as they could the main
force upon the hill. In one way the Provincials had decidedly the
better of the Englishmen. They knew every inch of the ground. The
fords, the passes between the hills, the irregular roads through the

THE BLOOD OF PATRIOTS. 313
forest were as well known to them as if they had been the square of a
city. The way in which these determined, but raw companies of men
poured down into Lexington never ceased to amaze the Englishmen.
As Smith marched back from Concord, he found every cross-road held
by the Americans.
"They are trained," wrote General Gage, "to protect themselves
behind stone walls; they seem to drop from the skies." Smith was
badly wounded. His men returned to Lexington — a march of nearly
eight miles — in two hours. The retreat from Lexington to Boston
was a rout. There was not then, and there never could be, a question
about English discipline or bravery, but now the men had no choice
but to retreat in rapid disorder. The road seemed to be lined with
men, between which the panting English had to run. Lord Percy,
with the reinforcements, met them away below Lexington and guarded
them with field-pieces, that they might rest for a time. They laid on
the ground panting, in the midst of a hollow square he formed to shield
them. The sun was going down when they reached Charlestown
Neck, which leads into Boston. Beacon Hill was crowded with people
watching for their return. The English posted their sentries on their
side of Charlestown Neck and the Americans rested on the other side.
The militia were ordered to lie on their arms at Cambridge. In that
dreadful march the English lost sixty-five killed, one hundred and
seventy-eight wounded and twenty-six missing. The loss of the
Americans was forty-nine killed, thirty-six wounded and five missing.
The minutemen continued to pour down. They were stationed at
Cambridge. The news of the attack at Lexington was carried from
province to province. From New York it was sent to Virginia, from
Virginia to the Carolinas,. from the Carolinas to Georgia, while other
messengers carried it in haste to Maine, New Hampshire and the
"Grants,", as Vermont was then called. When General Gage's forces
were taken back to the barracks at Charlestown, the American army
was in a condition to besiege Boston. All through the winter the
patriots had been laying plans for the removing of the people from
Boston in the event of a siege. They now asked permission of General
Gage to take thirty families from the town daily. This he consented
to, but the Tories of Boston finally persuaded him that if the American
Whigs all left the city, they (the English) would probably burn the
town. General Gage withdrew his consent to the evacuation, and the
militia were obliged to besiege a town in which their own kinsmen
were still living. Minutemen were posted in Cambridge, just outside of

314 THF STORY OF AMERICA.
Charlestown Neck, and in Roxbury. Works were thrown up on the
Charles river and on the salt marshes. The only egress from Boston
was guarded by a strong fort. General Artemas Ward, of Shrewsbury,
was the chief officer of the American forces. Under him were Spencer,
of Connecticut, Green, of Rhode Island, and Folsom, of New Hampshire.
The works were all planned by Henry Knox, a young Boston book
seller, who had long been interested in military studies. He was helped
by Gridley, a veteran of the French war. On the 4th of May there was
a rumor that General Gage intended to march out, and all the minute
men near Boston were called into service, but nothing came of the
matter, except that General Gage was given a chance to see how large a
reserve force there was at the command of the enemy. On the 13th of
May, General Israel Putnam marched an army of thirteen hundred
men from Cambridge to Charlestown Neck, and from Charlestown to
the ferry there. On the 27th, Putnam led a skirmish at an island
northeast of Boston, in the harbor. The English, by this raid, lost a
large number of sheep and cattle, besides a sloop and several men.
There were several skirmishes of this character, in which the English
were generally worsted. The Americans desired to get all the cattle off
the islands and to provision themselves as well as possible for the
coming conflict. , In two of these skirmishes alone, Gage lost thirteen
hundred sheep. On the 25th of May, Generals Howe, Clinton and
Burgoyne came over from England with large reinforcements. When
they reached Newport harbor they met a vessel, of which they asked
the news. When they learned that Boston was being held by an army
of ten thousand, and that the English garrison of five thousand was
permitting the siege to continue, General Burgoyne cried, "Ten thou
sand peasants keep five thousand of the King's troops shut up? Let us
get in and we will soon find elbow-room. ' ' After this, Burgoyne was
oftener called ' 'elbow-room' ' than anythirig else.
Boston is commanded by Charlestown on the north and by Dorchester
heights on the south. Both parties were ambitious to occupy these
heights. The English general laid explicit plans for the occupation of
both of them. While the Englishmen were making their soldierly
plans, the Americans, with less system, were marching to take possession
of them. They desired to fortify Bunker Hill and command the har
bor. After much consultation they finally fortified a spur of Bunker
Hill, which was called Reed's Farm, and from which guns could sweep
the harbor more effectually than they would if placed on the main hill.
This hill was well fortified. Colonel Gridley marked out the lines of a

THE BLOOD OF PATRIOTS. i15
redoubt. An earthwork extended for a hundred rods to the north and
stopped at the marshy place at the north side of the hill, where the
marsh was thought a sufficient obstacle. This work was begun at mid-

>.; "3p;p
BUNKER HILL MONUlHENT.

night and progressed steadily and quietly by the bright moonlio-ht It
was some time after day-break before the commander of an English
frigate saw the new fortification, and awoke the town with the fire

316 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
which he opened upon them. General Gage was soon up and talking
with his officers about what had best be done. He was a brave man
even to rashness. He decided to attack the American redoubt in front.
He had been greatly reinforced since the day of Lexington, and had
with him a reliable corps of generals, in whom he placed great con
fidence. But they were not ready to attack until the afternoon, and the
American works were being strengthened every hour. Few of the
Englishmen had been under fire, and at the first attack they broke
ranks and ran. The second attack was as fatal, but in the third a weak
spot was discovered in the American lines. This was pressed upon
from the rear as well as the front. There would still have been no
need of yielding upon the part of the Americans, had not their supply
of powder given out. As it was, the Provincial forces were withdrawn
to Bunker Hill. The English did not follow. From first to last the
patriots had conducted the matter with great discretion. They had had
the courage to stand still until the English were within a few feet of them
and to be fired upon without replying until they could do so with effect.
The enthusiastic American officers, most of whom had hung over the
pages of Frederick the Great, knew almost as well what was the best
policy as if they had had practical experience. It is said that at the
battle of Prague the Prussian order was ' 'no firing until you see the
whites of their eyes. ' ' Prescott, who had studied the memoirs of the
wars of Frederick the Great, gave this order at Bunker Hill, with the
added instruction to "fire low" and to "fire at their waist-bands."
That their small supply of powder held out so long was owing entirely
to this economy, which required far more courage than vigorous action
would have done.
The victory had been won at a terrible cost. The English had a
force at the beginning of the battle of two thousand five hundred men,
of whom one thousand and fifty-four were killed and wounded. Howe
said, "They may talk of their Mindens and their Fontenoys, but there
was no such firing there. ' ' Among those killed was the brave Warren
— who became a general on the very day of his death. In the fifty-
second company, led by Howe, every man was killed or wounded.
From that time till the close of the war, seven years later, the English
were always careful of leading their troops against entrenched men.
The American loss was one hundred and fifty killed, two hundred and
seventy wounded and thirty prisoners. In a sense, the battle of Bunker
Hill decided the war. For the future there could be no drawing back.
The English were put upon their metal. ' They no longer deluded them-

THE BLOOD, OF PATRIOTS.

317

selves with the belief that they were trying to quell a party of dissat
isfied farmers. It was no longer possible for any man in the colonies
to remain neutral. Personal matters were lost sight of. The money,
time and brains of every one in the United Colonies were given up
now to a struggle for the overthrow of oppression.
FOR FURTHER READING :
Poetry— Longfellow's "Ride of Paul Revere."
S. R. Bartlett's "Concord Fight."
Emmons' "The Battle of Bunker Hill."
Sidney Lainer's "Battle of Lexington."
Geo. H. Calvert's "Bunker Hill."
W. C. Bryant's '"76."
Drama — Breckenridge's "Bunker Hill."
J. Burke's "Bunker Hill."

CHAPTER LI.

ETHAN ALLEN AND THE GREEN MOUNTAIN BOYS — SURRENDER OP
TICONDEROGA — WASHINGTON CHOSEN COMMANDER-IN-
CHIEF — THE LACK OF POWDER — RECALL
OF GENERAL GAGE — SMALL
NAVAL CONQUESTS.

HE Continental Congress met on May ioth. Its
members did not know that far in the north Ethan
Allen and a band of Vermonters, known as the
"Green Mountain Boys," were making efforts to
help in the establishment of American independ
ence. The country known as the New Hamp
shire Grants, otherwise our State of Vermont, was
then a wilderness. For years it had been the site of colo
nial strife between New Hampshire and New York, both
of which claimed the territory. The people of the grants
were without regular government and had no village.
There was not even a country store in the entire territory.
But the people had formed a league for mutual protection
against the claims of New York. This league was known
by the name of the "Green Mountain Boys." They
had a rude military organization which showed such systematic
resistance to the law that a price was set upon the heads of the leaders.
Ticonderoga and Crown Point, now held by the English, were consid
ered by the people of the grants as the gates to New York. The officers
of the Crown, who so frequently made their unjust demands on the
farms scattered about the sides of the Green Mountains, made their
headquarters at Ticonderoga, and the indignation of the Green Moun
tain Boys was especially leveled at that garrison. The first tidings of
war that reached the North made the men anxious to do their part in
freeing the country from the British tyranny which they had felt so

LIBERTY "OR DEATH. 31 9
keenly. John Brown, of Pittsfield, a lawyer, and one of the leading
patriots, made a journey through the grants to Canada, for the pur
pose of learning what the sentiments of the Canadians were in regard to
the approaching struggle. On returning to his home he felt justified
in applying to the Committee of Safety, in Boston, for help. The stores
at Ticonderoga were coveted, and Connecticut and Western Massachu
setts were as anxious as the people of the grants to conquer the fort,
which, it was understood, was thinly garrisoned and in a decayed con
dition. Colonel Parsons, of Connecticut, and Captain Benedict Arnold
got three hundred pounds from the treasury on their own responsibility
and set off with two men, one of whom had been an engineer in the
British service. They conveyed northward permission from the Con
gress of Connecticut to lead the Green Mountain Boys against Ticon
deroga. In the meantime, Ethan Allen, who had long been the chief
of the Green Mountain Boys, had made ready for an attack. All the
roads leading to the lake were guarded to prevent any one from carrying
news to the fort. He knew nothing of the scheme which Benedict
Arnold had laid, and on May 8, 1775, started with one hundred and
forty men to go to the lake opposite Ticonderoga.
His plans had been craftily laid. A man by the name of Phelps
had disguised himself as a countryman, and entered the fort on the pre
text of wanting his face shaved. In a manner of great stupidity and
curiosity he asked all the questions he wished, and left without being
suspected. Thirty men had been detailed by Allen to capture the
British camp and then to drop down the lake and join him. Allen had
reached the point he desired, when Benedict Arnold came hurrying to
the camp and announced that he was colonel and commander-in-chief
of all the party. The officers took him into their confidence, showed
him their plans, and tried to win his co-operation. Allen was in a
hurry for action, and feared unless they moved quickly they would not
be able to surprise" the fort. Arnold insisted on taking entire com
mand. Ethan Allen, brave, vain, and headstrong, was not likely to
yield at the head of men whom he had organized. At length it was
proposed that the two men should march together at the head of the
column. This compromise was accepted, and a force of eighty-three
men marched upon the fort. The garrison was asleep, and Allen
hastened to the quarters of Captain Delaplace. The Captain leaped out
of bed, crying: "By what authority?" "In the name of the Great
Jehovah and the Continental Congress," said Allen. It doubtless went
against the grain of the experienced soldier to yield to an uncouth,

320 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
awkward braggart, such as Allen must have seemed to him. But the
garrison was asleep, himself unarmed, undressed, and at disadvantage.
There was nothing for it but surrender. The stores and military
material, including one hundred and twenty pieces of cannon, were
captured. Crown Point was taken a little later.
The Continental Congress, during its session at Philadelphia, chose
as Commander-in-chief of the American forces, George Washington, of
Virginia., Artemas Ward, of Massachusetts, was to be his Major-Gen-
eral. Gates, of Virginia, his Adjutant-General. Charles Lee, an Eng
lish officer, and Schuyler and Putnam, were also Major-Generals.
Washington and Gates hastened to Cambridge, hearing on their way of
the battle of Bunker Hill. It was the 2d of July when Washington
and his friends arrived at Cambridge, and on the 4th of July he
assumed command. His hurried but thorough investigation of the
army, its plans and materials, showed him that their great danger lay
in a lack of powder. In the thirteen States there was hardly enough
for one general action. The apothecary shops in New York were
searched for saltpetre. Letters were written in all directions, asking
that it might be sent to headquarters, if only in the smallest quantities.
A man of less tact than Washington might have started many feuds in
the army for he had difficulty in getting his officers and Congress to
always work in harmony. Unlike many of the men about him, he was
a gentleman of high breeding, cultivated, politic, and experienced.
The reputation which he had of being the best statesman and the
richest man in Virginia won him the admiration of the people of the
southern colonies, while, on the other hand, his directness and sim
plicity of speech, his gravity and sensible caution, endeared him to the
northern men.
An attack from the English' lines was dreaded. The Americans
feared to be outnumbered. Of the sixteen thousand seven hundred
and seventy-one New Englanders, nearly two thousand were sick or
absent from duty. The American army was divided by the Charles
river, over which there was but one small and insecure bridge. Orders
were given to keep the minutemen in the towns in constant readiness
and to sustain a thorough drill. But the English Generals had no
intention of moving. The strain on them at Bunker Hill had been
greater than the Americans guessed. The heat of the summer was
hard on the wounded. In England it was thought that Gage was inex
cusably languid, and he was recalled and practically disgraced. These
matters hindered the attack of the English, which hindrance the

LIBERTY OR DEATH. 321
devoted New England men considered nothing less than providential.
The Americans were making every effort to procure powder, lead, cloth
ing and tents. Benjamin Franklin was on the Committee of Safety, in
Philadelphia, and he was among the most active in the attempts to pro
vide these necessary articles. Robert Livingstone, of New York, estab
lished a powder mill so secretly that none of the English spies round
about found it out until Livingstone made a raid on the government's
stock of saltpetre and carried it off. The Committee of 'Safety, in
Georgia, got hold of a supply of powder intended for the Florida
Indians. Several hundred barrels were captured from a trading vessel
in the Gulf of Mexico. An attack was made on Bermuda and a goodly
quantity secured there. In New Orleans, Oliver Pollock, an American,
was sending powder to Pittsburg by the river. As soon as the English
cruisers were taken away from the coast at the approach of autumn, the
government sent an eighty-ton vessel to Bordeaux to buy powder on the
account of ' 'The Continent. ' ' The lead mines of Connecticut had been
worked some, and the products were now used for ammunition. By the
press of necessity a little navy was being started. On May 5th the
people of New Bedford and Dartmouth, irritated at the Falcon, one of the
British sloops of war, which hung about the coast, recaptured a vessel
with fifteen prisoners which the Falcon had previously secured. On
June 12th the Margaretta, an armed sloop belonging to the Crown,
was taken off the main coast, as well as two other sloops of lesser size.
Jeremiah O' Brien was made marine captain by the Provincial Congress
of Massachusetts, and was stationed in Boston harbor to intercept sup
plies sent to the English troops. Washington supplied armaments and
money from the Continental treasury and six small vessels received
commissions. Both Connecticut and Rhode Island had a small vessel
in the service.
The destitution of the English troops was becoming extreme.
They were shut up in Boston by the activity of the Continental troops.
Their supplies were being carried into the camp of the enemy, and sick
ness was rapidly increasing among them. But the forces under
Washington were rapidly growing. In six weeks they had increased
two thousand three hundred and ninety. Among them were several
companies of riflemen from Virginia — men who could hit a target of
seven inches at a distance of two hundred and fifty yards, while in rapid
motion. But the Americans were unused to camp life, and sickness
began to tell among them also. As soon as Washington received a
sufficient supply of powder to justify action he advance his works to the

322 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
left by fortifying Plowed Hill. This brought the circle of his lines so
that the extreme left was north of Boston. His headquarters were on
the Charles river, just beyond Cambridge. The right wing, under Gen
eral Ward, reached Dorchester Neck, directly south of Boston.
In October, Cape Ann, or what we now know as Gloucester, and
Falmouth, now Portland, in Maine, were burned by the English. This
was done by a fleet of armed vessels. The act seemed like a misfortune,
but in reality it raised the Americans to a full understanding of what
war meant. Previously they had hardly realized that they had laid
themselves open to attack in any direction. They had believed that
the conflict would be confined to Boston Bay. It was necessary to take
active measures for meeting the enemy upon the sea as well as on the
land. During the past few months the coast towns had been at the
mercy of the English vessels. Newport had been threatened, and was
only spared when it consented to furnish the commander of the English
fleet with provisions. Bristol was bombarded, and many houses
destroyed. A force landed on the island of Canonicut, in December,
burned houses and barns, and carried off all the live stock. Washington
was obliged to send down a detachment of men, although he could ill
spare them. General Lee took a force of eight hundred to Newport,
and not only placed them so that they could protect a considerable
stretch of land, but so that they could keep a close watch upon the
Tories of the district as well, who were suspected of carrying informa
tion to the enemy. It was not easy for the New Englanders to equip a
fleet of war. But the work progressed steadily, if slowly. The first
notable victory at sea was the taking of the brigantine Nancy, loaded
with military stores. These were more than acceptable to the army.
Washington was with difficulty keeping the soldiers with him. The
term of enlistment of the Connecticut men had expired, and they were
anxious to return to their homes. It was found that Dr. Benjamin
Church, a member of the House in Massachusetts, was secretly writing
letters to his brother-in-law in Boston, which revealed the condition and
plans of the American army. He was expelled from the House and put in
close confinement. Washington reorganized his army and issued a general
order for the enlistment of new men. The corps of officers was pruned and
improvements were made in all respects. On January 2, 1776, the army
was practically a new one. At this time the army carried the national
flag which we now have, with the exception of the number of stars,
which were then but thirteen, in accordance with the number of the
colonies. General Howe, shut up in Boston, met with many discour-

LIBERTY OR DEATH. 323
agements. Numerous accidents befell his provision ships. Some of
them were taken by the enemy, and others met with severe storms and
were obliged to discharge their cargoes. He even found difficulty in
providing barracks for his troops during the winter season. He would
have been glad to evacuate, but thought he had not transports enough
to remove his force, and wrote to England for more help. He pulled
down the Old North Church Meeting-house for fuel, and was obliged to
mine for coal in Cape Breton. Faneuil Hall, to the great horror of the
Bostonians when they heard of it, was used to hold theatrical entertain
ments in. General Burgoyne, who had at that time more fame as a
literary man than as a soldier, wrote a little play which he called the
' 'Siege of Boston. ' ' This was being performed, when a sergeant rushed
upon the stage and cried that the Yankees were on Boston Hill. The
audience laughed heartily, thinking it a part of the performance, but in a
few moments the officers were ordered to hasten to their posts, and the
audience broke up in confusion. It was true that some of the Connec
ticut companies had crossed the Neck, and fired the bakery of the
English at Charlestown. In the midst of such alarm Burgoyne returned
to England. The ' 'elbow-room' ' which he had thought to make was
not yet his. The American Congress, from time to time, had consid
ered the advisability of setting fire to Boston, but this Washington was
reluctant to do. He believed that if such a disaster could be avoided,
it was best to do it. General Howe himself did not permit the destruc
tion of property more than he could help.
Washington wished to cross to Boston on the ice, but in the council
of war which he called he was outvoted. General Howe, on his part,
sent a party on the ice to Dorchester Neck, who destroyed every house
on the peninsula, and took some Americans prisoners. Washington
would never have remained so inactive had he been supplied with
powder and heavy artillery. He was almost in despair, when the
capture of the Nancy renewed his hopes, and gave him ammunition.
Benedict Arnold and Ethan Allen sent down the guns they had taken
from Ticonderoga. Under the direction of Henry Knox, the cannon
were put upon fifty-two sleds and drawn by long teams of men over the
snow-covered passes of the Green Mountains and the rude roads of New
England. As soon as these reached Washington he called out all the militia of
the neighborhood. Ten regiments reinforced him at once. Ward was
given the over-sight of the movement upon Dorchester heights and
entrusted the immediate command to John Thomas. The ground was

324 THF S'TORY OF AMERICA.
frozen and it was impossible to throw up works, but fascines were
collected and made a fair defence. On the night of Saturday, March
7, 1776, the American works opened a cannonading at the north of
Boston. This was kept up through the two following nights for the
purpose of occupying the attention of the English. Meanwhile John
Thomas' train, which consisted of twelve hundred men, took possession
of a high hill upon Dorchester heights. Four hundred yoke of oxen drew
the material for the works, passing within a mile of the English sentinels,
who had no thought for anything but the cannonading at the north.
In one night the men threw up a very good defence. The works had
been planned by Gridley, who had been so successful with the plans of
Bunker Hill. When Howe's astonished eyes saw these in the morning
he thought they must have been built by twelve thousand men. The
English fleet dared not remain under fire from these guns. Howe
himself feared to attack the works. . He notified Washington at once
that if he would not molest the town or the ships, he would leave
Boston peaceably. On the morning of Sunday, the 17th, of March, he
sailed with his whole army, after destroying" all of his property which
he could not take away. He found that in an emergency he had ship
ping enough to carry off his force. With Howe, sailed about eleven
hundred loyalists, to whom the cause of the King was still dear. Many
of these settled in Nova Scotia.
The few people left in Boston received the army as benefactors
when they marched in with music and flying banners. Washington
was treated with great courtesy, and the street up which he rode still
bears his name. Congress ordered a gold medal to be presented to him
— the first coin struck by independent America. Upon its face was a
picture of besieged Boston with a group of horsemen in the foreground
and the proud motto: "Hostibus primo fugatis."
Washington believed that the next point of attack would be New
York, and continued his preparations for an engagement there. For
three months the country was left with hardly a foreign soldier on its
soil. FOR FURTHER READING:
Fiction— H. Hagel's "Old Put."
Hawthorne's "Septimius Felton."
Cooper's "Lionel Lincoln."
D. P. Thompson's "Green Mountain Boys."
Poetry— "Song of the Vermouters." Anon.

DEATH OF MONTGOMERY.
Painting by Benjamin West,

CHAPTER LI I.

ip yimm nf Jlftrdpn

THE DESIGNS FOR THE AMERICAN CONQUEST OF CANADA — MONT
GOMERY'S MOVE AGAINST MONTREAL — ARNOLD'S FAILURE
AT QUEBEC — THE UNION OF THE FORCES — THE SECOND
DEFEAT AT MONTREAL — THE AMERICANS FALL
BACK UPON TICONDEROGA AND
CROWN POINT.

the north, Arnold and Allen carried on a sort of
freebooting together. They were ambitious to
get Lake Champlain in the hands of the patriots.
In all sea adventures Arnold was given the lead,
and under his command an English sloop was
captured. Encouraged by this, they laid a plan for
the conquest of Canada. Arnold took up his quarters
at Crown Point, and Allen remained at Ticonderoga.
Congress was timid about seconding the ambitious
designs of Arnold, and sent a committee of men to
confer with him. They found him sullen and obsti
nate, and learned that his followers were in a state of
mutiny against, the government, and willing to side
with him even at the cost of patriotism. A thousand
men had been assigned by Connecticut to garrison Ticonderoga. When
Arnold learned that these were to be commanded by Colonel Hinman,
he resigned, as he was not willing to be second in command.
The Governor of Canada was determined to retake Ticonderoga and
Crown Point. As for the Canadians themselves, they were in a state of
comparative indifference. The richer element was probably truer to the
king than were the common people. The Indians of the Mohawk val
ley had been estranged from the Americans, and were now the allies of
the Canadians. There was a call ( for volunteers on the part of the
American Congress, and, meanwhile, Ethan Allen and Major John

328 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
Brown were sent into the country between Lake Champlain and
Montreal, to discover the true condition of affairs there. Schuyler was
Commander-in-chief of all the northern forces, and about the middle of
August, 1775, was ready to move his troops. Altogether, these did not
number quite two thousand. Schuyler's chief subordinate officer was
General Richard Montgomery, a young Irishman of much soldierly
experience and strong personal attractions. He was with Wolfe at the
capture of Quebec, in 1759, and had further won the confidence of the
Americans by marrying one of the ladies of the patriotic Livingstone
family. No general among the Americans was more popular with the
soldiers. Schuyler fell ill shortly after leaving Ticonderoga, and the
command devolved upon Montgomery. In the light skirmish in which
the conflict opened, Montgomery was thoroughly disheartened by the
cowardice of his soldiers. The troops were raw and undisciplined.
They suffered not alone from bodily ailment, but from intense homesick
ness. Boston men, fighting for the protection of their homes, and in
the face of a brave and determined enemy, had plenty to keep up their
spirits. But to fight in the midst of a wilderness for the possession of a
fortification, with winter approaching, and a poor outlook for provisions,
could not but be dispiriting to men who were new to the profession of
arms, and cared little for conflict in the abstract — men who had not
even learned the value of subordination and discipline.
Allen himself, though a brave man, was a bad soldier in some ways.
He had never learned the necessity of waiting for orders, and was quick
to do whatever his impulse prompted. When he was on his way to
join Montgomery's camp, with a force of eighty Indians, he fell in with
Major Brown, who had two hundred men in his party. These two
leaders decided to attack Montreal. They had heard that there were no
more than thirty men in garrison at that point, and that the towns
people sympathized with the Americans. The plan was for them to
attack the city with two columns of men, above and below. The
river was crossed in a blustering storm, and Allen's band, at early dawn,
stood shivering upon the river bank waiting for Brown's men, who
never came. The garrison set upon Allen, killed a number of his men,
and carried others as prisoners to England. Among these unfortunates
was Allen himself.
The American expedition against the fort of Chambly was successful.
The inhabitants round about aided in its capture. The stores of ammu
nition and provisions were taken to the army encamped under the walls
of St. John. An attempt on the part of the English to relieve the

THE PLAINS OF ABRAHAM. 329
garrison there was repulsed and the fort was finally surrendered,
principally because the provisions had given out. By this surrender
five hundred regular troops, the greater part of the British army in
Canada, fell into the hands of the Americans. Montgomery believed
that the time had now come to take Montreal. He posted forces so
that all communication would be prevented between that city and
Quebec. Upon both sides of the river he planted batteries. On the
13th of November he marched into the town, without bloodshed, the
Governor and the garrison having left. In the meantime, Washington
had sent up a supporting party, numbering eleven hundred men.
These were well equipped, although, from the nature of the journey,
they could carry no field-pieces. Washington himself had outlined the
expedition. He desired them to ascend the Kennebec river, cross the
highlands that divided it from the Chaudiere, and descend that stream
to where it enters the St. Charles, nearly opposite Quebec. Washington
had a hand-bill printed, which was distributed among the Canadians
for the purpose of impressing upon them the friendly spirit of the
Americans and begging them to join in the cause of liberty and assist
in driving the British from America. With the men who had the
country's interests most at heart the conflict in Canada was not a side
issue, but an important part of the war. They set a high value upon
that extensive and fertile country, with its magnificent rivers and
superior natural advantages.
But Washington expected far too much of Arnold and his men.
He desired them to meet Schuyler's army, which was then in motion,
and to take but twenty days for a march of two hundred miles. It
took, instead, sixty days, and the little army of eleven hundred men
had been reduced to about one-half when it reached the St. Charles.
Their boats had been swamped in the treacherous Chaudiere; they had
marched through bogs and were forced to make exhausting portages,
carrying their heavy loads with them; they had a fatal lack of
acquaintance with the country, and were out of provisions long before
they reached their destination, and were obliged to eat shaving soap,
candles, salve and dogs, even boiling their moccasins in the hopes of
getting some nourishment from them. The horrors of the march are
sickening, and not the least shocking scene was when Arnold, who had
hurried on to procure provisions, sent back cattle and other supplies to
his starving men. They ate like wild beasts, and many of them died
from the effects of their indiscretion. It took them ten days to march
the last thirty miles after they had entered Canada, for, although the

33° THE STORY OF AMERICA.
road was now comparatively easy, the men were too exhausted to go far
in a day. During that last delay, one hundred men, mostly carpenters,
had come down from Newfoundland and were busy repairing the
defenses of Quebec. By the time Arnold was in a position for attack,
soldiers were brought down the river and had prepared for the defense
of the city. Washington had relied upon the surprise of Quebec, but
Arnold had himself given information of his movements by a letter
which he entrusted to a faithless guide.
On the 13th of November, the very day that Montgomery entered
Montreal, Arnold took his men over the same ground that Wolfe had
taken, and in the morning had an army on the plains of Abraham,
behind Quebec. But the English did not, as Montcalm had done,
respond to the challenge. There was no revolt in the city — a thing
which both Arnold and Washington had counted upon. Arnold had
not the power to make a breach in the walls near the city. The
garrison was shortly reinforced, and Arnold was obliged to break camp
and retreat to Point Aux Trembles. Here Montgomery joined him on
the ist of December and took the command. The army now consisted
of three thousand men, with six field-pieces and five light mortars.
They encamped before Quebec. Deep snow lay over all the country,
and as it was impossible to build earthworks, Montgomery had fascines
set up. These were filled with snow, over which water was poured,
making a barricade of ice. It looked cruel and forbidding, but the
first cannonading broke it in pieces. The men were encamped there
for three weeks. Montgomery found them hard to manage, and on
Christmas day decided that an attack should be made under cover of the
first stormy night. The plans were elaborately laid. Arnold was to
penetrate the lower town, Montgomery to advance to the rocky heights
of Cape Diamond and reach the upper town by an easy communication.
Aaron Burr had charge of a forlorn hope which was to scale the Cape
Diamond bastion. The night of the 30th, as had been hoped, was dark
and stormy. Montgomery's men made their way over blocks of ice
and through the drifting snow till they reached the barricades under
Cape Diamond. The Americans crowded past this and Montgomery
urged on the advance, but as they neared the block-house, which was
pierced for muskets, the brave young leader was killed, just as he cried,
"Push on, brave boys. Quebec is ours." Two captains and two
privates were killed at the same moment, and the Americans retreated
in disorder. Arnold's men, under cover of the storm, had reached the
palace gate, but here at the first barricade Arnold was wounded.

THE PLAINS OF ABRAHAM. 33 1
Morgan, a Virginian, at the head of his riflemen, took the lead, and
scaled the barricade with ladders. He was knocked down once; he
mounted again at the head of his men. He carried the barricade and
drove the enemy into the houses at the sides of the street. If he could
have had reinforcements, he would have carried the day; but the odds
were too heavy. He tried to cut his way out, but was surrounded on
all sides and obliged to surrender. He had four hundred and sixty-six
men with him at the time. The Englishmen buried Montgomery
within the city. Forty-two years later his body was given to the
Americans, who carried it, with great honors, to New York and raised
a monument to his memory in front of St. Paul's Church. His wife,
then a very old woman, sat alone upon the porch of her house on the
Hudson, watching the funeral boat as it sailed by.
The discouraged army was now placed under the command of
Arnold, who begged Schuyler for reinforcements. In the course of the
winter three thousand were sent to him. The English were afraid to
risk an engagement against so heavy a force of men. The Canadians
took neither one part or the other, with a few exceptions. A commis
sion, consisting of Benjamin Franklin and four other gentlemen, one of
whom was afterwards Archbishop of Baltimore, was sent to visit Canada
and see if a political union , could not be made, but they had scarcely
reached Montreal when news came of a British fleet at Quebec, and
Franklin hurried back to Philadelphia to urge the great need of
reinforcements. These came in March, under General Wooster, who
tried for two months to make an impression upon the fortifications of
Quebec. He failed, not from lack of courage, but from want of
military experience. Major-General Thomas took his place, and
decided that it was wisest to retreat. He was not permitted to do even
this unmolested. He lost one hundred men as prisoners, as well as
most of his stores and provisions. In a number of small engage
ments which followed between detachments of both armies, the English
troops were successful. Brigadier-General John Sullivan was sent to
take the place of John Thomas, who, it was believed, retreated with
unnecessary readiness. A last stand was made and an engagement
fought, but the English had three times more men than the Americans,
and one hundred and fifty of Sullivan's men were taken prisoners.
They were obliged to fall back upon Ticonderoga and Crown Point.
FOR FURTHER READING:
Fiction — Gleig's "A Day on the Neutral Ground." "In Chelsea Prison."
Drama — "The Death of General Montgomery in Storming Quebec." Anon.

CHAPTER LIII.

ip fnlmdk Jfog$+

THE PEELING IN ENGLAND — THE HIRING OF THE HESSIANS — ATTI
TUDE OF NEW YORK — THE CONFLICT WITH THE
SOUTHERN COLONIES — THE DEFENSE
^v~) OF FORT MOULTRIE.
Parliament in England was thoroughly aroused
by this time to the importance* of subduing and
punishing the rebels in America. The friends of
the colonies in Parliament, Edmund Burke, Barre,
and Wilbur, protested against the measure which
voted the King and ministry all the men and
^ material they should need in carrying on the war, but no
opposition could stem the tide of King George's impa
tience. He decided that the disorders in America must
be put down.
It was not so easy as he had supposed to obtain addi
tional troops. Men could not be found in England, and
the King was forced to draw upon his garrisons in the
West Indies, Ireland and Gibraltar. Even then the
number was not sufficient for the successful carrying on
of the war, and King George was forced to beg of friendly nations for
help. To his surprise, some of these nations which he had felt sure he
could count upon, refused him. The reply from Holland was that the
States-General considered the Americans worthy of every man's esteem,
and looked upon them as a brave people, defending in a becoming,
manly and religious manner those rights which, as men, they derived
from God, not from the legislature of Great Britain, and that if soldiers
were to be brought against them, the States-General of Holland pre^
ferred to see Janizaries hired rather than soldiers of a free State.
Russia, for different reasons, refused help. Frederick the Great had
little sympathy with the English movement, and practically did not
believe that a great State should have colonies which were severed from

THE PALMETTO LOGS. 333
it by natural obstacles. In short, the sympathy throughout Europe was
with the Americans. The foreign troops which George III finally
obtained were from the petty German princes. Among these men there
was little voluntary service, but almost all, with the exception of the
officers, were impressed, and a small price per head was paid by England
to the German potentates for their services. There were 29, 166 men in
the German troops sent to America.
The English and Americans agreed that the campaign for 1776
must center at New York City. As soon as news of Concord and Lex
ington had reached New York the people had taken immediate steps to
defend the city. The feeling there had, from the first, been as strong
as elsewhere. The year previous, when the British garrison there had
been ordered to join the army in Boston, the citizens consented to let
them embark unmolested, but as the troops marched down Broad street,
led by five carts loaded with arms, they were stopped by Marinos
Willett, a "Son of Liberty." He seized the first horse by the head and
brought the whole line to a stand-still. When the commanding officer
asked what he meant by the interruption, he replied that it had been
agreed that the troops should embark without molestation, but they had
not been given permission to take away arms to use against their friends
in Massachusetts. The mayor of the city and Governor Morris protested
against Willett' s high-handed proceeding, but the sympathy of the
crowd was with him, and the English were forced to leave without
their arms. He then addressed the soldiers, and said if any of them
were willing to join the ranks of liberty and desert their ranks they
should be protected. One soldier only responded to the invitation, and
was marched off with much cheering by the crowd.
The Americans helped themselves to the cannon at the Battery, and
placed them along the Hudson to protect the river, now that the conflict
of ' 76 seemed to threaten that point. Lee was ordered by Washington
to take command at New York. This was not a little alarming to the
Tories of the town, who feared that this decisive action would bring
about immediate hostilities, and that the place might be bombarded by
the English vessels lying off the coast. There were hot internal dissen
sions in the city. The conflict between the Whigs and Tories was very
bitter. The Tories were powerful and rich, but the Whigs outnum
bered them, and had on their side that fierce determination and sense
of religious right which gave them their strength from the beginning to
the end of the conflict. It must be owned that their treatment of the
Tories was not Christian. Some of the Tories were tarred and feathered,

334 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
some were waylaid, mobbed and insulted, while others were deprived
of office and driven from home. Laws were enacted which inflicted
penalties of great severity on them. It is estimated that during the
course of the Revolution more than twenty-five thousand loyalists
joined the military service and arrayed themselves against the patriots.
The defenses of the city which the Whigs prepared, were, as can
easily be imagined, accomplished under constant protest from a large
portion of the inhabitants. When Lee assumed command of affairs
at New York he turned all of the city into a camp of war, and
presented as bold a face toward the threatened harbor as was possible.
The works were strengthened, batteries were wisely placed, and the
streets well barricaded. On March 6, 1776, Congress divided the
southern and middle colonies into two military departments. Lee was
sent south and Lord Stirling given the command of affairs at New
York. He carried on Lee's work with the utmost vigor. Every male
inhabitant of the town was put to work on the fortifications — rather
rough work for some of the ostentatious gentlemen of New York.
Washington himself arrived in the city on April 13, and took up his
headquarters there. Families began leaving the town as rapidly as
possible and the soldiers took possession of the dwellings which they
abandoned. The British had other plans besides the capture of New York. They
" were anxious to move against the southern colonies, where they believed
submission could be easily enforced. The Governors of Virginia and
North Carolina labored under the delusion that most of the people in those
colonies were loyal to the King's cause. Each Governor was provided
with a small force to back his authority, and the King sent seven
regiments to strengthen them. These he himself selected with great
care. They were led by Earl Cornwallis, while the fleet was com
manded by Admiral Peter Parker. When they reached America,
General Clinton was given the general command. The colonists who
stood by Governor Martin, of North Carolina, were Scotch loyalists,'
chiefly Highlanders, who had emigrated to America after the defeat of
the Pretender, and who still held to their oath of allegiance. The son
and husband of Flora McDonald were among their leaders, and with
them were a large number of Stuarts. But the sturdy Scotch Presby
terians in the back counties took up arms for the patriots, and the
Governor soon realized that matters were not to run as smoothly as he
had expected. As soon as the Pfovincial militia heard of the mustering
of McDonald's clans, they arrayed themselves to prevent them from

THE PALMETTO LOGS. 335
reaching the Governor. They were led by Brigadier-General James
Moore, who had with him many gentlemen of wealth and influence.
These walked in the ranks with the common soldiery, to keep up the
spirits of, the men. Moore's force numbered two hundred less than
McDonald's. In the first engagement the loyalists were routed. Eight
hundred and fifty men were taken prisoners, disarmed and discharged
and fifteen hundred excellent rifles were secured, besides a quantity of
money, and, what was equally valuable, a chest of medicine. This
was practically the end of Toryism in North Carolina. Within two
weeks the patriots had ten thousand men in arms, these prompt meas
ures securing peace for North Carolina until 1780. The State was at
liberty to give its aid to the other colonies.
The next attempt was upon South Carolina. From the first, this
province had felt much sympathy with Massachusetts, and was now
prompt to arise for the defense of her own border. The militia was
ready to move at the earliest call. Those on the border of North
Carolina were held in readiness to join the southern men, should it be
necessary. Colonel Christopher Gadsden and William Moultrie were in
command of the regular troops. William Thompson led a regiment of
riflemen, all of whom were excellent marksmen — the Colonel the best
of them all. North Carolina sent down a regiment to join them, with
out even waiting to be requested. The first thing seen to was the
securing of Charleston harbor, for it was known that Clinton could do
nothing without the aid of the men-of-war, and that these men-of-war
could do nothing unless they held possession of the harbor. There
were already some defences there, and these were hurriedly strength
ened. Sullivan's Island, a long, marshy strip of ground, well wooded,
guarded the entrance to the harbor. Opposite was James Island, which
was practically a part of the main coast. Gadsden was put on James
Island and Moultrie and Thompson were put upon Sullivan's. Pennsyl
vania had sent down a force of men under the command of Armstrong,
and these were placed near the city of Charleston. Every preparation
possible was made in the town. Warehouses were torn down that the
cannon might have full sweep. The streets were barricaded. All the
horses, wagons and boats were impressed into service, and all the lead
in the city was made up into bullets, the very weights of the windows
being used. On the 4th of June, General Lee arrived and assumed
command. The brunt of affairs rested, however, upon Colonel Moul
trie, who was working to complete his fortifications on Sullivan's
Island. His men worked upon it night and day. But only the two

33^ THE STORY OP AMERICA.
sides fronting the channel were completed when the enemy attacked.
These walls, however, were sixteen feet thick and guarded with
palmetto logs. Into their tough and spongy fibres the balls could sink
without doing harm. In the centre of the fort was a marsh, which the
men left undisturbed, knowing that shells would be much less apt to
explode if they fell into it.
On the 31st of May the enemy appeared. Messengers were sent for
the militia in all directions. The women and children were hastened
out of the city. The slaves were set to completing the works. Every
freeman worked of his own accord. Lee, and other soldiers as well, had
little confidence that Moultrie's fort could stand out against the heavy
guns of the enemy. But Moultrie himself was confident. The land forces
of the enemy landed on Long Island, which lay north of Sullivan's.
These were to attack in the flank and rear while the fleet bombarded the
fort in front. Thompson's sharpshooters were to oppose the land
forces. The English had two 56-gun ships, five frigates of twenty-eight
guns each, a mortar ship and two smaller vessels, bearing in all two
hundred guns. The bombardment was continuous after it once began,
the shot streaming steadily against the side of the fort. But the spongy
palmetto logs could not be split and the banks of sand kept them from
being dislodged. The shells, as had been expected, fell into the marsh
and seldom exploded. Colonel Moultrie was inside nursing a gouty
foot and calmly smoking as he gave orders to his intrepid men. More
gallant defense could not have been made. When the flag of the fort —
a blue banner with a silver crescent, bearing the word liberty — was shot
away, Sergeant William Jasper leaped the parapet and, in the midst of
the hottest fire, replaced it on the bastion. The men aboard the ships
suffered terribly. Three vessels ran aground, and one of them was
deserted and burned. Early in the evening the ships withdrew two
miles from the island. Clinton had directed his forces at the north side
of Sullivan's Island, but was held in check there by Thompson. A
victory could not have been more absolute. Moultrie was accounted
one of the successful commanders of the army. The fort was named
after him. and his regiment was presented with a pair of beautiful
banners. FOR FURTHER READING:
History— Carrington's "Battles of the Revolution."
Coffin's "Boys of '76."
Moultrie's "Memoirs of the American Revolution."
Ramsay's "American Revolution in South Carolina."
Poetry— Robert M. Charlton's "Death of Jasper." (See Ford's
Historical Poems.)

SIGNING THE DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE.

CHAPTER LIV.
>fe jSmts ti Jfifarbj,

THE GROWTH OP A DESIRE FOR INDEPENDENCE — THE DECLARATION OP
v INDEPENDENCE — THE FORMING OF STATE
i CONSTITUTIONS.

OR a long time the people of America were
unwilling to admit, even to themselves, that the
Revolution was a war for independence. Frank
lin himself assured Pitt, in March, 1775, that,
though he had traveled in America, he had never
heard any expression in favor of independence.
Even the "Sons of Liberty" were unwilling to talk
about this matter, feeling that the people were not
ready to accept it. The newspapers openly denounced
the idea. Until Thomas Paine's book, "Common
Sense," was published, the subject was almost a tabooed
one. But that pamphlet presented a strong plea for
independence. Men, women and children read it. It
was for them an education — a liberator from old preju
dices. It gave them fresh ideas and fresh courage. The different
States began to urge Congress to take a more decided position. Samuel
Adams, ' 'the Father of American Independence, ' ' saw that at last the
country was reaching the point which he had so long been hoping for.
Resolutions were passed in each Colonial Assembly which heralded the
"Declaration of Independence." On the second day of July, 1776, the
Thirteen States, assembled in Congress, resolved unanimously "that the
thirteen colonies are, and of right ought to be, independent States."
Following this came deep deliberations. The matter was one in which
there could be no hurry. All knew that if the position was once taken,
it would be impossible to draw back from it. There were many dele
gates to the Congress who did not fully understand the situation, and
who asked that all the consequences of such a step might be fully

34° THE STORY OF AMERICA.
pointed out to them. This John Adams did, eloquently and clearly.
At last all of the members signed the Declaration, except the delega
tion from New York, which had not been empowered to do so. But it
is possible that there were many who signed with reluctance and regret.
John Adams was elated. He wrote to his wife that the day had been
the most memorable epoch in the history of America, and that it should
be celebrated by succeeding generations as a great anniversary festival.
"It ought to be solemnized," said he, "with pomp and parade, with
games, sports, guns, bells, bonfires arid illuminations, from one end of
the country to the other, from this time forward forever more;" and so
till now it has been, though on the fourth of July instead of the second.
Thomas Jefferson prepared the original draft of the Constitution,
although he was indebted to the resolutions passed by the several
colonies for some of his best ideas and expressions. The clause relating
to slavery, which Jefferson had written, was cut out. Had it remained,
it might have had its influence in a matter which plunged the nation
into a yet more dreadful war than the Revolution, nearly a hundred
years later. It was not until the eighth that the Declaration was read,
and printed copies distributed. A great concourse of people gathered
about the observatory of the State House, in Philadelphia, and here the
Declaration was read to them from the balcony by John Nixon, a mem
ber of the ' 'Committee of Safety. ' '
THE DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE.
In Congress, July 4, T77^-
The Unanimous Declaration of the Thirteen Unite!)
States of America:
When, in the course of human events, it becomes necessary for one
people to dissolve the political bonds which have connected them with
another, and to assume, among the powers of the earth, the separate
and equal station to which the laws of nature and nature's God entitle
them, a decent respect to the opinions of mankind requires that they
should declare the causes which impel them to the separation. We hold
these truths to be self-evident: That all men are created equal; that they
are endowed by their Creator with certain inalienable rights; that
among these are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness; that to
secure these rights governments are instituted among men, deriving
their just powers from the consent of the governed; that whenever any
form of government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the right of
the people to alter or abolish it, and to institute a new government,

THE SONS OF LIBERTY. 341
laying its foundations on such principles, and organizing its powers in
such form as to them shall seem most likely to effect their safety and
happiness. Prudence, indeed, will dictate that governments long
established should not be changed for light and transient causes ; and,
accordingly, all experience hath shown that mankind are more disposed
to suffer while evils are sufferable, than to right themselves by abolish
ing the forms to which they are accustomed. But when a long train of
abuses and usurpation, pursuing invariably the same object, evinces a
design to reduce them under absolute despotism, it is their right, it is
their duty, to throw off such a government, and to provide new guards
for their future security, Such has been the patient suffering of these
colonies, and such is now the necessity which constrains them to alter
their former system of government. The history of the present King
of Great Britain is a history of repeated injuries and usurpations, all
having in direct object the establishment of an absolute tyranny over
these States. To prove this, let facts be submitted to a candid world.
He has refused his assent to laws the most wholesome and necessary
for the public good.
He has forbidden his governors to pass laws of imiriediate and
pressing importance, unless suspended in their operations till his assent
should be obtained; and when so suspended, he has utterly neglected to
attend to them.
He has refused to pass other laws for the accomodation of large
districts of people, unless those people would relinquish the right of
representation in the legislature — a right inestimable to them, and
formidable to tyrants only.
He has called together legislative bodies at places unusual, uncom
fortable and distant from the repository of their public records, for the
sole purpose of fatiguing them into compliance with his measures.
He has dissolved representative houses repeatedly for opposing,
with manly firmness, his invasions on the rights of the people.
He has refused, for a long time after such dissolutions, to cause
others to be elected, whereby the legislative powers, incapable of
annihilation, have returned to the people at large for their exercise, the
State remaining, in the meantime, exposed to all the dangers of invasion
from without and convulsions within.
He has endeavored to prevent the population of these States — for
that purpose, obstructing the laws for the naturalization of foreigners,
refusing to pass others to encourage their migration hither, and raising
the conditions of new appropriations of lands.

342 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
He has obstructed the administration of justice, by refusing his
assent to laws for establishing judiciary powers.
He has made judges dependent on his will alone for- the tenure of
their offices, and the amount and payment of their salaries.
He has erected a multitude of new offices, and sent hither swarms of
officers to harass our people and eat out their substance.
He has kept among us, in time of peace, standing armies, without
the consent of our legislatures.
He has affected to render the military independent of, and superior
to, the civil power.
He has combined with others to subject us to a jurisdiction foreign
to our Constitution and unacknowledged by our laws, giving his assent
to their acts of pretended legislation; for quartering large bodies of
armed troops among us; for protecting them, by a mock trial, from
punishment for any murders which they should commit on the inhabi
tants of these States; for imposing taxes on us without our consent;
for depriving us, in many cases, of the benefits of trial by jury; for
transporting us beyond the seas to be tried for pretended offences; for
abolishing the free system of English laws in a neighboring province,
establishing therein an arbitrary government, and enlarging its bounda
ries so as to render it at once an example and fit instrument for introducing
the same absolute rule into these colonies ; for taking away our charters,
abolishing our most valuable laws, and altering, fundamentally, the
forms of governments; for suspending our own legislatures, and
declaring themselves invested with power to legislate for us in all cases
whatever. He has abdicated government here by declaring us out of his
protection, and waging' war against us.
He has plundered our seas, ravaged our coasts, burned our towns,
and destroyed the lives of our people.
He is at this time transporting large armies of foreign mercenaries
to complete the works of death, desolation and tyranny already begun,
with circumstances of cruelty and perfidy scarcely paralleled in the
most barbarous ages, and totally unworthy the head of a civilized
nation. He has constrained our fellow-citizens, taken captive on the high
seas, to bear arms against their country, to become the executioners of
their friends and brethren, or to fall themselves by their hands.
He has excited domestic insurrection among us, and has endeavored
to bring on the inhabitants of our frontiers the merciless Indian savages,

THE SONS OF LIBERTY. 343
whose known rule of warfare is an undistinguished destruction of all
ages, sexes and conditions.
In every stage of these oppressions we have petitioned for redress in
the most humble terms. Our repeated petitions have been answered only
by repeated injury. A prince whose character is thus marked by every
act which may define a tyrant, is unfit to be the ruler of a free people.
Nor have we- been wanting in attention to our British brethren.
We have warned them, from time to time, of attempts by their legisla
ture to extend an unwarrantable jurisdiction over us. We have
reminded them of the circumstances of our emigration and settlement
here. We have appealed to their native justice and magnanimity, and
we have conjured them by the ties of a' common kindred to disavow
these usurpations, which would inevitably interrupt our connections and
correspondence. They, too, have been deaf to the voice of justice and
consanguinity. We must, therefore, acquiesce in the necessity which
denounces our separation, and hold them, as we hold the rest of man
kind — enemies in war; in peace, friends.
We, therefore, representatives of the United States of America, in
general congress assembled, appealing to the Supreme Judge of the
World for the rectitude of our intentions, do, in the name and by the
authority of the good people of these colonies, solemnly publish and
declare, that these United Colonies are, and of right ought to be, free
and independent States; that they are absolved from all allegiance to
the British Crown, and that all political connection between them and
the State of Great Britain is, and ought to be, totally dissolved; and
that as free and independent States, they have full power to levy war,
conclude peace, contract alliances, establish commerce, and do all other
acts and things which independent States may of right do. And for
the support of this declaration, with a firm reliance on the protection of
Divine Providence, we mutually pledge to each other our lives, our
fortunes, and our sacred honor. John Hancock.
New Hampshire. — Josiah Bartlett, William Whipple, Matthew
Thornton. Massachusetts Bay. — Samuel Adams, John Adams, Robert Treat
Paine, Elbridge Gerry.
Rhode Island, etc. — Stephen Hopkins, William Ellery.
Connecticut. — Robert Sherman, Samuel Huntington, William
Williams, Oliver Wolcott.
New York. — William Floyd, Philip Livingstone, Francis Lewis,
Lewis Morris.

344 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
New Jersey. — Richard Stockton, John Witherspoon, Francis Hop-
kinson, John Hart, Abraham Clark.
Pennsylvania. — Robert Morris, Benjamin Rush, Benjamin Franklin,
John Morton, George Clymer, James Smith, George Taylor, James
Wilson, George Ross.
Delaware. — Caesar Rodney, George Read, Thomas M. Kean.
Maryland. — Samuel Chase, William Paca, Thomas Stone, Charles
Carroll, of Carrollton.
Virginia. — George Wythe, Richard Henry Lee, Thomas Jefferson,
Benjamin Harrison, Thomas Nelson, Jr. , Francis Lightfoot Lee, Carter
Braxton. North Carolina. — William Hooper, Joseph Hewes, John Penn.
South Carolina. — Edward Rutledge, Thomas Hay ward, Jr., Thomas
Lynch, Jr., Arthur Middleton.
Georgia. — Button Gwinnett, Lyman Hall, George Walton.

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Through the country, wherever the declaration was received, it
awoke great excitement. In New York, a mob pulled down the gilded
leaden equestrian statue of King George. The head was severed from
the body and wheeled in a barrel to the Governor's house. The rest
of the statue was moulded by a company of ladies into forty-two
THE SONS OF LIBERTY.

345

thousand bullets, which were to be shot at the King's soldiers. Penn
sylvania, New Jersey, Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, and North Carolina
adopted State constitutions in 1776; New York, South Carolina and
Georgia in 1777; Massachusetts in 1780 and New Hampshire in 1781.
Connecticut and Rhode Island continued to use their royal charters as
the law of the States. Not till 181 8 did Connecticut adopt a State
constitution, and" Rhode Island waited until 1840. Few of the consti
tutions admitted religious liberty. The constitution of South Carolina
said "that no person shall be capable of holding any place of honor,
trust or profit under the authority of this State, who is not a member
of some church of the established religion thereof. ' ' The constitution
of Pennsylvania required every member of the legislature to declare not
only his belief in the existence of a God who is a rewarder of good and
a punisher of evil, but also to believe that the Scriptures are given by
Divine inspiration. The constitution of New Hampshire stipulated
that the members of its legislature should be of the Protestant religion.
The constitution of Massachusetts provided against luxury, plays,
extravagant expense in dress, diet, and the like. Every minister or
public teacher of religion was obliged, in Massachusetts, to read the
Constitution to his congregation once a year.
FOR FURTHER READING:
History — Winsor's "Readers' Hand-book of the Revolution."
Biography — Goodrich's "Lives of Signers of the Declaration."
Fiction— John Neal's "Seventv-six."
H. C Watson's "Old Bell of Independence."
Poetry— Charles Sprague's "Fourth of July." (See Ford's Historical Poem.)

HOUSE in which the declaration of independence was signed.

CHAPTER LV.

ip §tmim$ttidk

WASHINGTON AT NEW YORK — ARRIVAL OF THIRTY-TWO THOUSAND
BRITISH TROOPS — OVERTURES FOR PEACE BY THE
BRITISH — BATTLE OF LONG ISLAND — THE
BATTLE OF HARLEM HEIGHTS — DE
STRUCTION OP NEW YORK —
BATTLE OP WHITE
PLAINS.

WASHINGTON was anxious to hold New York
permanently, and he believed that it could be
done. He continued the work which Lee had
begun. Governor's Island, Fort Stirling and
Long Island were well fortified and manned.
Strong works were built upon the Palisades and
three water batteries were also built along the
shore of the Hudson. By June eighty pieces of cannon
and mortars were mounted, bearing upon the bay and
the two river channels. It was not until the last of
June that the enemy arrived. The first to come was
Sir William Howe, commander-in-chief, with his Boston
army. Governor Tryon, of New York, and many
loyalists, went out to meet him. The troops followed
in one hundred and thirty ships, and by June 29th all
were in the bay. They debarked upon Staten Island, and here the
General took up his headquarters. Admiral Howe, Sir William's
brother, followed with some troops, and on August 12 th the Hesssian
arrived. These forces numbered altogether thirty-two thousand men.
Washington had upon his rolls about nineteen thousand. Under
Howe's command were many distinguished officers, men of high
breeding, intelligence and bravery. The English and Hessian soldiers
were well trained. De Heister, the general of the Hessians, had been

THE CONTINENTALS. 347
in many European campaigns. Among the Hessians was a famous
company of sharpshooters, under Donop. Even those Hessians who
had come against their will and who were not used to bearing arms had
still warlike traditions, and they were surrounded by such good material
that their inexperience did not greatly lessen the strength of the force.
As for Washington's men, they were made up of farmers, merchants, min
isters and mechanics. They were brave, but lacking in discipline and
an understanding of war. They were without uniforms, a thing which
is always depressing to the soldier, and were poorly equipped, the old
flint-lock piece being the common arm. Bayonets were few. These
men, in motley array, presented but a poor contrast to the elegantly
costumed Englishman, and the Hessian, with his brass-pointed cap, his
brass-hilted sword and glittering bayonet. General Washington's
headquarters overlooked the Hudson, near Varick. Admiral Howe
and his brother said that they had come bringing the olive branch of
peace, and on July 14th sent a flag of truce up the bay with a letter to the
commander-in-chief. The generals sent out to receive this letter found
that it was addressed to George Washington, Esq. , and returned it with
the remark that there was no such man in the American army. On
the 20th another flag of truce was sent up with a message to his Excel
lency, General Washington. This was received and read with atten
tion, but Washington could entertain no proposition for peace which
did not acknowledge American independence. An interview was held
between Lord Howe and a committee of Congress, which came to nothing,
because Howe had not been empowered by the King to admit the inde
pendence of the colonies. On August 20th all of the British troops were
moved over to Long Island. The sight was an exhilarating one.
Nearly ninety boats and flat-boats were filled with the best troops of the
army, the glittering arms, the artillery and handsome horses, making
a display which that harbor has never seen excelled. Fifteen thousand
men took possession of the roads of the island and occupied the Dutch
village, while General Cornwallis and Donop' s sharpshooters drove back
the Pennsylvania riflemen who had been patrolling the coast. Gen
eral Green was in command of the Americans at Long Island, and
had surrounded himself with strong earthworks thrown up in what is
now the heart of Brooklyn. On what is now Washington Park stood
Fort Putnam, at the crown of the hill. The ridge of hills which lay
between the Brooklyn lines and the coast of Gravesend Bay was made
the outer line of defense by Washington. Several regiments were
brought over from New York to reinforce the Brooklyn wing. General

348

THE STORY OF AMERICA.

Green was ill with a fever which was raging among the soldiers, and
his command fell upon General Sullivan. Early on the morning of
August 27 th the American guards were unexpectedly attacked by the

INDEPENDENCE hall.

English. The day had not yet broken, and in the confusion the
American pickets retreated, leaving their major a prisoner with the

THE CONTINENTALS. 349
enemy. Reinforcements soon arrived and the men held to a steady
resistance, although most of them were untried and raw. Against the
seventeen hundred inexperienced troops of Lord Stirling were placed
at least six thousand English veterans. The Americans took advantage
of an orchard near by and the heavy growth of hedges to protect them.
Stirling was making a fair defense, when Generals Clinton, Cornwallis,
Howe and Earl Percy came up with their men. These marched
well around the American lines before they were observed. Two
battalions fell into the hands of the English. The rest of the Ameri
cans retreated toward the Brooklyn camp, fighting as they went.
General Sullivan was captured. The Hessians marched on rapidly
after the retreat had begun, attacking the broken detachments. Ten
thousand British and four thousand Hessians chased less than three
thousand Americans through the woods and over the hills of Long
Island, but most of the Americans succeeded in getting behind the
works. Stirling still held the field with an organized force. They
were surrounded and obliged to surrender to the Hessian commander,
De Heister. Two other regiments were captured as well. The English
loss was three hundred and ¦ seventy-seven officers and soldiers. The
American loss in killed and wounded was less than three hundred, but
they had given between eight hundred and one thousand prisoners into
the hands of the enemy.
On the afternoon of the 29th a council of the general officers met
Washington, and it was decided to retreat from Long Island. For
twelve hours the troops were ferried across, in the midst of serious
interruptions. There was still doubt as to whether it would be wise to
continue the defense of New York, and at one time the Americans
thought seriously of burning it before they deserted it. For two weeks
there was comparative quiet. Had Howe chosen, he might have
destroyed New York himself, but he, as well as Washington, concluded
that it would be wiser to let it remain unharmed. Washington, after
considering how insubordinate- his soldiers were becoming, concluded
not to continue the defence of New York. The men were sadly
discouraged by the disaster at Long Island, and they were neither well
paid nor well fed. The disorders were many, and some of the men
were so homesick that, though they remained faithful to their posts,
they could not be relied upon for vigorous fighting. Fortunately,
Washington's call for fresh men was responded to and he was able to
allow some of his disabled men to return to their homes. On the 2d
of February Washington's army numbered less than twenty thousand.

350 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
New York was to be evacuated on the 15th, and the activity of the
city for a few days previous could easily be observed by the English.
Howe was prompt to move his ships up closer to the city, and about 10
o'clock on the morning of the day appointed for the removal, these
ships opened fire. Under cover of this, Donop' s Hessian sharpshooters
crossed to New York and chased the Americans over the fields to
Murray Hill. Washington and his men rode out in a vain attempt to
rally the militia. Even those of the men who were willing to fight,
could make no stand against the headlong and terrified rout of the
majority. Washington was worked up to one of those fierce spasms of
anger for which narrow-minded people have so often criticised him. It
is said that he drew his sword and threatened to run some fugitives
through, and that he laid his cane over many of the officers who showed
their men the example of running. He dashed his hat on the ground
and cried, "Are these the men with whom I am to defend America."
So disgusted was he and so regardless of his life, that had not one of
his attendants seized his horse's reins and turned him toward Harlem
Heights, the General would probably have fallen into the enemy's
hands. It is said that Putnam and Aaron Burr gathered up a portion
of the soldiers, and by the most extraordinary exertions marched up the
west side of the island through the woods and brought the men to Harlem
Heights in safety when night had fallen. Howe was close upon this
column in pursuit, and might have overtaken them, but for the
exertions of a charming Quaker lady, Mrs. Murray. The General and
his staff stopped at her door to ask how long since the Americans had
passed. Mrs. Murray replied that they were long since out of reach,
and begged that General Howe and his followers would come in and
rest from the heat. Mrs. Murray and her daughter treated them with
cake and wine, and held the men by their quaint Quaker coquetry for
two hours. As a matter of fact the Americans had not been gone ten
minutes when Howe inquired for their whereabouts.
A terrible rain fell that night. The patriot soldiers were without
shelter. They had lost their provisions, cannons and baggage. The
generals were not in a mood for giving them much sympathy for they
felt that a more ready courage and obedience would have saved the
day. There was a brisk engagement in the morning which was fairly
well fought, and put some fresh spirit into the army. Early on the
morning of the 16th occurred the battle of Harlem Heights, in which
Washington himself directed the movements. He succeeded here in
driving the English regulars in an open field — an experience new to

THE CONTINENTALS. 35 1
the American soldiers. In this engagement the Americans lost four
valuable leaders. But the troops were reanimated, and Washington set
great store by the influence of this victory upon their minds.
New York was now entirely in the possession of the English. On
the 2 1 st it was nearly destroyed by fire, though not intentionally.
Five hundred buildings were burned, and it is supposed that several
women and children perished in the flames. The Americans were
suspected of setting the fire and about two hundred of them were
arrested. Most of them were discharged as soon as examined. One
man was hanged. This was Captain Nathan Hale, of Connecticut, a
patriot of great courage and influence. He had volunteered to go
within the British lines at Long Island and obtain information concern
ing the forces of the enemy, which was absolutely necessary to
Washington. He was captured, and papers found upon him which
showed his purpose. He did not at any time deny that he was a spy.
He was hung without any trial, and was not even permitted to see a
clergyman or use a Bible in his last hours. The letters he had written
to his mother and sister were burnt. History has placed him among
the honored men of America.
There was quiet for a few weeks, and it was not until the 12th of
October that Howe was ready to renew hostile measures. The position
of the Americans at Harlem Heights had been strengthened, but the
Commander-in-chief feared that they could not be held, with the
exception of Fort Washington. This was filled with a good garrison.
The majority of the troops were scattered along the hills west of the
Brown river, which runs pearly parallel to the Hudson. The army
were disposed here in position to face the enemy. Washington held
White Plains and the roads leading up the Hudson and to New Eng
land. The English moved up in two columns — an impressive sight to
Washington and his officers, who looked down upon them from the
hills. At the time of Howe's approach the troops were disposed along
the brow of a steep declivity. The enemy came clambering straight
up the ascent, but recoiled under the hot fire with which they were
received. They made a second attempt and were again forced to
retreat, but in the third rush they were successful, and drove the
Americans before them. All through the retreat the patriots kept up
a steady fire from behind trees and fences, and at the close of the day
the loss of the English was much greater than that of the Americans.
Within the next two or three days Washington withdrew his army to a
position on the North Castle heights, which was so strong that Howe

352 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
did not attempt to capture it. He now turned his attention to Fort
Washington. On the 15th of November Howe demanded a surrender
of the fort, threatening that if he was obliged to take it by assault the
garrison would be put to the sword. Magaw, who was commanding
the Pennsylvanians holding the fort, replied that he preferred to defend
it. So insulting a demand for surrender would probably have deter
mined him to this course, even if he had not previously intended it.
The fight was a hot one. The American forces were scattered over the
hills, along the shore of the river, and about the fort. All of these
were finally crowded into the fort. Magaw was obliged to surrender,
but it was upon honorable terms. The loss of the English army was
three times as great as that of the Americans. Fort Lee was also forced
to surrender. The Americans withdrew to the other side of the
Hackensack river. Howe commanded the entrance to the Hudson.
Washington believed that the British would follow their successes
about New York by an immediate attack upon Philadelphia.
FOR FURTHER READING:
Fiction — J. R. Simms' "The American Spy."
Alden's "Old Store House."
Poetry— F. C. Finch's "Nathan Hale."
Drama— D. Frumbell's "Death of Captain Nathan Hale."

WASHINGTON CROSSING THE DELAWARE.
After the painting by Creuze.

CHAPTER LVI.

THE JERSEY CAMPAIGN — THE BATTLE OF TRENTON — THE BATTLE OP
PRINCETON — WINTER ENCAMPMENT OP WASHINGTON
AT MORRISTOWN.

WASHINGTON left a part of his force to hold the
the posts which they still retained at the north,
and took Putnam, Green, Stirling and Mercer
southward with him. The entire force which
accompanied him was less than four thousand.
He wrote to Governor Livingstone, of New Jer
sey, telling him to prepare for an invasion of
his territory, and asking the people to remove their
stock, grain and other possessions out of the reach of
the enemy. The treatment of the people in the villages
of New York, by the English, had been merciless, and
Washington wished to prevent, as far as he could,
another scene of such desolation. Washington was
anxious about the condition of his army. The enlist
ment terms of his men were short, and by the first of December Wash
ington would have but two thousand men with him. The two armies
moved through northern New Jersey, Washington always a little in
advance of Cornwallis. The two Howes, as peace commissioners,
offered pardon to all who had taken up arms against the king, if they
would return quietly to their homes. This offer held good for sixty
days, and many in New Jersey and Pennsylvania accepted it. As the
British moved on through the towns, they took possession of horses,
cattle, wagons and whatever else they desired. Washington kept a
close outlook, and steadily retreated. His intention was to make a
stand for the protection of Philadelphia. Fearing that at any time he
might be forced to retreat into Pennsylvania, he had boats in readiness
at Trenton, and, to keep the English from pursuing him, he ordered

356

THE STORY OF AMERICA.

that all sorts of craft should be removed from the Jersey side, for
seventy miles up and down the Delaware river. The American force
crossed the Delaware just as the English entered Trenton. The two
armies moved southward. Congress thought it unsafe to remain in
Philadelphia, and adjourned to meet in Baltimore. Washington was in
great need of reinforcements, and kept sending commands to Lee, who
was at the north, to join him with his forces. But Lee was envious of
Washington's position, and desired to be first in command himself. He
paid no attention to the commands, although they were imperative, and
it was a fortunate thing for the army when he was finally taken

WASHINGTON ON THE HUDSON.

prisoner by a company of British dragoons. His command fell to
General Sullivan, who lost no time in obeying Washington's orders,
and reached headquarters just sixteen days after the first command was
sent to Lee. Howe swept on through the country, the Americans
hurrying before him. The Pennsylvania and New Jersey men had gone
to their homes, their term of enlistment having expired. The patriot
troops were thoroughly dispirited. Washington felt that warm action
was necessary, even though it might be risky. He decided to fix
Christmas day as the date of an attempt upon Trenton. The British
were confident that rebellion was about put down in America. They

BATTLE FIELD AND BIVOUAC. 357
had scattered themselves widely over the country, partly to afford pro
tection to the loyal inhabitants and partly to keep recruits from joining
the American army. The men were quartered in companies of twelve
and fifteen to a house, all through the farm district, and were given
over to plunder of the most vicious sort. Barbarians could not have
been more merciless. The wanton destruction of property was the
least of their offences. The English had acquired a thorough contempt
for Washington's army. They no longer felt fear or any need of watch
fulness. Situated at Trenton was Rahl, with twelve hundred men. Against
these men Washington meant to move. Cornwallis was so confident
that the campaign was over that he had obtained leave of absence, and
had already reached New York, on his way to England. It was upon this
lack of suspicion that Washington relied for the success of his plan.
He determined to cross the Delaware at night above and below Trenton,
to fall upon Rahl and his Hessians, capture them, and recross before he
could be overtaken. That Donop and his sharpshooters, who were
below Trenton, might have their attention engaged, a body of militia
kept up a skirmish which drew off part of his force eighteen miles.
General John Cadwallader was directed by Washington to cross the
Delaware at Bristol, with a force of Pennsylvanians, and General
Ewing was told to cross directly opposite Trenton. The main column,
landing nine miles north of Trenton, at McConkey's ferry, was to be
led by Washington himself. When the night came it was found unfa
vorable. Both Cadwallader and Ewing were unsuccessful in their
efforts to cross, for the ice was piled up high on the Delaware shore.
But Washington made up his mind that he would act, even though he
was obliged to do so without support. The troops in his immediate
command he felt that he could trust. Twenty-four hundred men
composed the expedition. Most of them had seen service, and they
were led by valiant men, but the difficulties they had to contend with
now were not common ones. There was a driving storm, which half
blinded the troops and threatened to make the guns useless. The
current of the river was swift and filled with cakes of floating ice. The
gentlemen who composed Washington's staff were filled with a courage
which was almost gay. All the way across the treacherous river they
encouraged the troops in every manner possible. The boats were
manned by Massachusetts fishermen, who were natural sailors, and
among the best soldiers of the war. Washington had hoped to be on
the Jersey shore by midnight, but it was four in the morning before

358 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
troops and cannons were safely landed. It was too late to retreat, how
ever, and there was nothing to do but to push on, although there was
no longer hope of surprising the town. The road was slippery, and
many of the men were nearly barefoot, but among the troops were the
most experienced and tried men of the army, and no complaints were
made. At Birmingham village the troops were divided, so that they
might march around the town in two columns. It was found that the
priming of the muskets had become too wet to use in many cases. Wash
ington gave orders for the men to fight with bayonets. The Hessian
outposts were surprised. A detachment of Americans, led by Lieu
tenant James Monroe, dashed in among them and was soon within
Trenton. Sullivan had led the men up the lower road and had
succeeded in surprising the outposts there as well. The Hessians made
an attempt to form in the streets, but Washington himself directed the
guns which cleared them away. Rahl had been indulging in Christmas
festivities through the night, and neither he nor his men were clear
headed enough to do their best. They ran for their lives and were
checked at every quarter. In a short time they were compelled to lay
down their arms. Rahl, their lieutenant, was mortally wounded, but
lived long enough to give up his sword to Washington. The Ameri
cans took nine hundred and fifty prisoners and six guns, and killed
seventeen and wounded nearly eighty of the enemy. Their own loss
was only two killed and four wounded. By evening Washington had
recrossed the Delaware, and by the 30th he had mustered his whole
force in the neighborhood of Trenton.
Cornwallis was determined to have revenge for the Trenton affair.
He gathered all his available forces at Princeton, and on January 2, 1777,
marched with his seven thousand men upon Trenton. They succeeded
in cooping the Americans up there in a position wriich Washington
recognized at once as being very perilous. To cross the Delaware in the
presence of the enemy and retreat once more into Pennsylvania was
impossible. Between Trenton and McConkey's ferry lay a part of the
English army. In any position for battle his flanks could easily be
turned, for the enemy outnumbered him. In a council of war a for
tunate plan was hit upon. It was to follow an almost unused road and
to reach Princeton secretly, if possible, in the night, and so escape from
the trap in which they were at present caught. General St. Clair
attended to all the details of preparation. Along the front of the camp
the appearance of an army at rest was kept up. The guards were
relieved, the camp fires were kept burning, and every semblance of

BATTLE FIELD AND BIVOUAC. 359
peaceful encampment sustained. As a matter of fact, the troops were
quietly marching along what was called the Quaker Road towards
Princeton. The ground was frozen and the artillery moved without
trouble. Washington went with them in the midst of his guard, which
was composed of twenty-one gentlemen of fortune, from Philadelphia,
who were volunteets to the army and paid their own way. In the
morning Cornwallis awoke to the realization that his prey had escaped,
and that the Trenton affair was still unavenged. But before the success
of the manoeuvre was assured there occured a brisk engagement between
General Mercer's men and a detachment of the English. This was
known as the battle of Princeton. In it the English were routed, losing
sixty killed and many wounded, besides one hundred and fifty prisoners.
The American loss was small. General Mercer had been unhorsed, and
on refusing to surrender, was bayoneted on all sides while he fought
single-handed with his sword. He died a day or two later. Not a few
of the men died from the effects of that night march through the bitter
wind. They went without rest or provisions for two days and nights,
and all of them were insufficiently clothed. As soon as Cornwallis
learned that the enemy was at Princeton, he marched his soldiers in
hasty pursuit, and entered that town just an hour after the Americans
had left it. Washington took up winter quarters at Morristown. There
was a feeling of general satisfaction throughout the United Colonies, for
though the army had met with many disasters, it had succeeded in
holding the English well in check. It was now seated in the very
heart of New Jersey, which at one time everyone felt sure that the
enemy would overrun. True, Howe held New York, but he had been
obliged to abandon his plans against Philadelphia. Cornwallis and '
Howe had been outgeneraled and their veteran troops had suffered
severely at the hands of the raw militia. George Washington was
recognized as a great soldier, patient, discreet, ingenious and brave.
Europe, and even England, were obliged to admit the dignity of the
American Revolution, and to recognize the fact that the world had a
new nation. FOR FURTHER READING :
Biography— G. "W. Greene's "Life of General Green."
Fiction — C. J. Peterson's "Kate Aylesford."
Paulding's "Old Continental."
Poetry — "Battle of Trenton." (See Ford's Historical Poem.)
C F. Orne's "Washington at Princeton."

CHAPTER LVII.
HHp °|W ti tip Wpn Safiottts*
STATE OF THE AMERICAN ARMY — THE PENNSYLVANIA CAMPAIGN-
THE BATTLE OF BRAND YWINE — "THE PAOLI MASSA
CRE" — THE BRITISH AT PHILADELPHIA — THE
BATTLE AT GERMANTOWN — WASH
INGTON WINTERS AT
VALLEY FORGE.

N April, 1777, General Howe demanded of Wash
ington a return for a number of officers and
twenty-two hundred privates whom he had released
and sent within the American lines. Washington
refused to make an exchange which would be
equal in numbers, for he said that the enemy had
broken the spirit of the contract made concerning
prisoners. He accused Howe of great injustice and
cruelty, and said that many of the prisoners, when
released, were in so weak a state that they died before
reaching their homes, or immediately afterward. In
exchange for these suffering men, broken in body and
mind, Washington did not propose to make a return of
an equal number of able-bodied Englishmen. As a
matter of fact, the American prisoners met with terrible treatment. As
soon as they were taken they were robbed of their baggage, their
money and their clothes. Many of them were kept upon the prison
ships, which were terribly overcrowded, with only one-third the
allowance of food which they should have had. It is said that at least
eleven thousand five hundred men died upon the prison ships. Wash
ington continued to refuse an equal exchange of men for the melancholy
creatures who were sent him, almost none of whom were able to be
placed in the field again. This was a great disappointment to Washing
ton, for he was in serious need of men. The term of many of his

THE YEAR OF THE THREE GALLOWS. 361
regiments had expired, and in the spring of 1777 he did not have four
thousand .names on his muster-roll. The difficulty of procuring
munitions of war was as serious as that of procuring men. Arms were
scarce and gunpowder almost unattainable. But for France, it is
doubtful if the war could have been carried on. In spite of her treaty
with Great Britain, France was friendly to the American cause.
Though the French minister deeply deplored to the English government
the aid which the people of France were giving to the American
patriots, he took care to remain ignorant of what was actually being
done. Large supplies of powder, cannon and field equipage were
shipped from France and allowed to leave without hindrance from the
government. Benjamin Franklin, Silas Deane and Arthur Lee were
sent by Congress to France, and these asked the King to recognize the
independence of the United States. He would not do this, although
he expressed his good will and ordered two million livres to be paid
them by quarterly payments. Spain secretly joined France in helping
the colonies, and contributed one million livres, but she was not willing
to be known in the matter.
It is not necessay to relate in detail all the numerous and unimportant
skirmishes which took place at different points between the Americans
and the English. During the spring of 1777 the English burnt a
number of villages, and Governor Tyron, who was now Major-General
of the Provincials, did some disastrous work through Connecticut.
Each of those engagements between the opposing forces has left many
interesting traditions, but to cite them all, or even the best of them,
would be a task too great to undertake. In May, Long Island was the
scene of some determined fighting, the hostilities reaching as far as Sag
Harbor. General Prescott, of the English army, was captured, and
Washington hoped that he might be exchanged for Lee, whom it will
be remembered was in the hands of the English. Lee was still believed
in by many people, although he had offered to sell himself and his
plans to the English and had for months been disloyal to his country.
By the 28th of May, Washington broke camp, moving to the southeast
that he might be in a better position to watch Howe's movements.
The patriot army had now increased to seven thousand. Sullivan was
in command of the continentals at Princeton, and the first move of
the English army was to send Cornwallis to attack this town. Sullivan
fell back and was not overtaken. Cornwallis tried to bring Washington
into action, but failed. A little later he succeeded in taking three
cannons and two hundred prisoners from General Stirling, but on the

362

THE STORY OP AMERICA.

30th the English withdrew and crossed in a body to Staten Island.
For six weeks they made no move, and Washington was unable to guess
what their intentions might be. On the 23d of July, Howe set sail
from New York, with eighteen thousand men, leaving six thousand in
the city, under Clinton. A week later the English fleet appeared in
the Delaware, but Washington had put such good obstructions there
that it again put out to sea. Washington was as anxious as he was
curious. He feared that it might be Howe's intention to move upon
Charleston, and knew that defences could not reach the city in time to
be of help. When next the fleet was heard of it was off the Chesapeake,

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MARQUIS MARIE JOSEPH PAUL DE LAFAYETTE.
and Washington was reassured by the reflection that Howe's intention
must still be to move upon Philadelphia. At this time Washington's
army was joined by several foreign officers, who distinguished them
selves in their devotion to the American cause. Among them were
Lafayette and Baron John De Kalb. De Kalb and Lafayette were
commissioned by Congress. Lafayette was very young — indeed he had
not yet reached his majority — and it was only vPen he assured
Congress that he had come as a volunteer and would pay his own
expenses, that he was commissioned. The very ship in which he had

THE YEAR OF THE THREE GALLOWS. 363
brought his men had been purchased and fitted out at his own expense.
Washington marched his army through Philadelphia on the 22d of
August. Howe was pushing his army through Pennsylvania. On the
ioth of September Washington determined to hinder his further
progress. At this time Howe was on the bank of the Brandywine
river, commanding the principal forts. The engagement was a general
one all along the lines. The Americans were finally forced to retreat.
Their loss was three hundred killed and five hundred wounded. The
English loss was less than six hundred in killed and wounded.
Lafayette distinguished himself, and received a wound in the leg which
kept him confined to his quarters for two months. The American
army retreated the following day towards Pennsylvania and German-
town. On the 15th of September it crossed the Schuylkill. Here
Howe advanced upon them. Anthony Wayne was in the American
advance and was quite willing for a battle, but a drenching rain storm
put an end to it. On the 19th of September Wayne was at Paoli, and
within sight of Howe's encampment. He saw that the army was
quietly engaged in camp occupations and told Washington that if he
would come to his aid with the whole army he believed that a deadly
blow might be dealt them. The intention was to move upon them in
the night. Wayne had fixed midnight for the time of his movement.
The watchword in his camp was "Here we are and there they go," but
it proved to be a watchword without a signification, for, two hours
before midnight Howe did exactly the thing which Wayne was
intending to do. The British fell upon the American camp, firing no
shots, but using their bayonets. The Americans were in the light of
their camp-fires, and the British in the protection of the shadow.
Wayne's men ran in confusion through the dark woods. Nearly one
hundred and seventy were killed. This is known as the Paoli massacre.
At 1 o'clock that nighi an aid-de-camp dashed into Philadelphia
with a message from Washington that the enemy had crossed the
Schuylkill and would be in the town in a few hours. The news spread
through the town wildly and the people were roused out of their beds
to hurry from the place. A patrol was put in the streets to guard
against fire. It was over a week before Howe marched into the city.
His troops were received with loud cheers by the Tories.
Washington learned a few days later that Howe had sent a small
detachment to reduce the American forts on the Delaware. Washington
decided that this was a good opportunity to strike an effectual blow.
Howe's army was encamped in a long, straight line, to which there

364 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
were four approaches. Washington's plan was to advance on all four
roads and engage the enemy along the whole line at the same moment.
The attack was to be made at precisely 5 o'clock on the morning of the
4th of October. On the evening of the 3d the American army left its
encampment and marched all night. They reached the points aimed
at about daybreak on the 4th. The morning was misty and they were
upon the outposts of the enemy before their approach was known.
The Americans were in good fighting mood. Their cry was to revenge
the Paoli massacre. A part of the English lines broke, and the day
might have been won, but that in the fog and smoke the Americans
mistook their own lines for those of the enemy, and did serious injury
among themselves, delaying the general movement. The battle was
lost and Washington ordered a retreat. A thousand men had been left
behind, while the English lost not more than five hundred. But Howe
was alarmed, nevertheless, and withdrew his army into the city. He
was in doubt where to take up his winter quarters. The Delaware
river was commanded by the Americans and it was not easy, therefore,
to obtain provisions. The Schuylkill was seriously impeded by
obstructions and by floating batteries along the shore. Howe sent
Colonel Donop, with his Hessian sharpshooters, to reduce Fort Mercer.
Donop made a furious assault, but both he and his lieutenant-colonel
were killed, as well as four hundred Hessians. The two British ships,
which had moved up the river to aid in the assault, ran aground. One
was blown up by the fire from the fort and the other burnt to escape
capture. But Howe still felt that he could not afford to let the enemy
retain possession of the Delaware river. On the 19th of November the
British fleet was brought to bear upon Fort Mifflin. The garrison
there made a sturdy fight, but could not hold out against the heavy
guns of the vessels, and they were obliged to take refuge on the other
side of the river, in Fort Mercer, having had two hundred and fifty out
of four hundred either killed or wounded. Cornwallis now moved
into New Jersey, at the head of so large a force that even Fort Mercer
had to be deserted. The Delaware, below Philadelphia, was now under
the control of the British fleet. Washington took up his winter
quarters at Valley Forge, and it is said that the march of his army over
the frozen ground could be tracked bv the blood from their uncovered
feet. FOR FURTHER READING:
History — Cooper's "History of the American Navy."
Fiction— Cooper's "Pilot."
J. R. Jones' "Quaker Soldier."
E. H. Williamson's "The Quaker Partisans."
Poetry— Carleton's "Little Black-eyed Rebel."

CHAPTER LVIII.

mtitvth.

Itmytmr*.

WASHINGTON'S CAMP AT VALLEY FORGE — NEGLECT OP CONGRESS-
THE CONWAY CABAL — GENERAL STEUBEN — BURGOYNE
IN THE NORTH — THE SIEGE OF TICON
DEROGA — THE BATTLE OF
ORISKANY

HE winter at Valley Forge was a dreary one.
Congress neglected the soldiers woefully. For
months they were left to suffer with hunger, cold,
and disease. They slept without blankets, many
of them sitting all night by their camp-fires. At
one time there were more than a thousand of
' them without shoes. Even the sick had to lie on the
ground without even a bunch of straw under them.
There were but few horses, and the soldiers themselves
drew their wood and provisions to their huts in little
carts. It was very seldom that the troops received any
money, and when they did, it was in Continental cur
rency, the value of which was steadily decreasing. It
fell so low that at one time it took one hundred Conti
nental dollars to buy a pair of shoes. The foreign officers
who had joined the camp were still faithful. Besides Lafayette and
DeKalb, were Kosciusko, Pulaski and Von Steuben. These lived in little
log huts "no gayer," writes Lafayette, "than a dungeon. " These men
were used to courts, luxury and adulation, and their devotion to the
American cause was put to a severe test, although, of course, they did
not suffer the stinging privations of the common soldiery. The camp
at Valley Forge was laid out in parallel streets of log huts, built by the
soldiers. Fortunately there was plenty of building material close at
hand. This was their salvation. Had they not been well sheltered,
it is doubtful if they would have had courage to face the rigors of that
winter. Even as it was, the death-rate increased thirty-three per cent.

366 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
from week to week. Desertion was frequent, but not so frequent as one
might expect.'
Congress was at York, Pennsylvania. It seemed to the men who
had the interests of the national army at heart, that Congress was
strangely neglectful and indifferent. Upon Washington's shoulders
fell the responsibility and burden of providing supplies and putting
down mutiny. His distresses were added to by the fact that he had
many enemies who were planning for his overthrow. Chief among
these was General Gates, who had conducted the latter part of a suc
cessful campaign at the north — a campaign in which he won more

BARON VON STEUBEN.

credit and did less work than several other generals whose names history
has not so faithfully preserved. He was exceedingly jealous of Wash
ington, and conspired with a man by the name of Conway for the
overthrow of the Commander-in-chief. This was called the ' 'Conway
Cabal." A conspiracy of this kind could not be conducted without
correspondence, and this made discovery almost inevitable. Through
out the country the cabal aroused universal indignation. In the midst
of these troubles Washington had the satisfaction of knowing that the
best men of the country were his warm friends, and he also perceived

TATTERED CONQUERORS. 367
that in- spite of their privations the army was growing in effectiveness.
This was due largely to William Von Steuben, the Prussian general,
who has been mentioned before. He had been with Frederick the
Great, and understood the management of men thoroughly. He intro
duced the Prussian system of minor tactics, and beginning on a small
scale, he gradually brought the whole army into an admirable state of
drill. The fact that he had no personal ambition in the matter and
was moved solely by a sympathy for the soldiers and the cause they
represented, endeared him to the hearts of the men. He had a quick
temper and a brusque manner. He swore at the soldiers in German,
and compelled his aids to swear at them in English. But the men had
the sense to perceive that what they were learning would make them
formidable. They saw now, if they had never before, the necessity of
absolute obedience on the part of the soldier, and that he is valuable
qnly when he becomes an unthinking part of a great human machine.
In the battles which were to come Steuben was remembered with affec
tion and tenderness when the men saw the strength they had gained
under his instruction. Stories of his bluffness, his roughness and his
profanity were told for long years after with a humor which but illy
disguised the emotion which the mention of his name awakened. So
the long months of the winter passed with Washington's men, and mean
while, in the North, there were active hostilities.
Burgoyne, on his return to England after the end of the American
campaign in Canada, submitted to the ministry his ' 'Thoughts for con
ducting the war from the side of Canada. ' ' His plans were approved,
and in March of 1777 he was given command of a force. Lieutenant-
Colonel St. Leger was to assist him by making a diversion on the
Mohawk river. The Governor of Canada was ordered to give all the
assistance possible by adding Canadians and Indians to the expeditions.
But the Canadians were more than indifferent; they were disinclined to
the service. It was a matter which did not concern them, and in which
they would have preferred to take no part. With the Indians, as can
easily be imagined, it was quite different. But Burgoyne was seriously
criticised, even in England, for the use of these savages in honorable
warfare. The plan of the campaign was for Burgoyne to get possession
of Albany, control the Hudson river, co-operate with Howe, and allow
that general to act with his whole force southward; in short, to divide
New England from the other States, and thus make their reduction
easier. But through a very slight accident, which, however, was not
slight in its consequence, General Howe was not informed of these

368 THE STORY OP AMERICA.
plans at all. Burgoyne landed with his eight thousand men off St.
John's river, with the finest artillery train in America. Under him
was a corps of successful officers. An English fleet was put upon Lake
Champlain, consisting of nine vessels, carrying one hundred and forty-
three guns and manned by one hundred and forty seamen.
On the 17th of June Burgoyne prepared for an attack against Ticon
deroga. The river of St. John being the outlet of Lake Champlain, he
had easily moved down to the western shore of the lake, and arrayed
himself before the fort. Ticonderoga was still thought to be the key to
the northern colonies, and the English believed its reduction to be
necessary. The Americans were confident of holding the fort. General
Arthur St. Clair, of Pennsylvania, was in command of the post with a
force of three thousand men. Major-General Schuyler, who at this
time had charge of the northern department, hastened to strengthen the
chain of posts from Ticonderoga to the Hudson and Albany. St.
Clair's force was too small to cover every explored point, and to save
some of his out-post detachments, he withdrew them. One of the posts
which he was forced to abandon was Mount Hope. This the English
General, Frazer, took possession of with heavy guns, and cut off the
communication of the Americans with Lake George. But this was a
little matter compared with an unexpected move on the part of the
British, which amazed and dismayed the Americans. South of Ticon
deroga was a steep wooded height, which rose more than six hundred
feet above the level of the lake. This was Sugar Loaf Mountain. It
overlooked every fortified elevation in the vicinity, but had always been
neglected in former wars because it was thought to be inaccessible.
Burgoyne had with him engineers of ambition and skill, who secretly
made a path up which the artillery could be drawn to the top, and one
morning the American garrison, awoke to find the best guns of the
English army frowning down upon them. St. Clair had but one
chance of saving his garrison and that was by leaving the fort secretly
at night. On the 6th of July, at 3 o'clock in the morning, the
troops marched out of the Ticonderoga forts and moved towards
Castleton, thirty miles southeast. The guns had been spiked, the tents
struck, the women and the sick sent hours before up the lake with the
stores, and all would have gone well if some one had not been foolish
enough to set fire to one of the houses. By the light of the blaze the
English saw the Americans retreating, and started immediately in
pursuit. All the next day St. Clair retreated through the woods and on
the morning of the 7th was attacked. He met with a heavy loss and

TATTERED CONQUERORS. 369
was obliged to retreat. Forty of his men were killed and three hundred
and fifty wounded or taken prisoners. General St. Clair made a
circuitous march of more than one hundred miles and reached Fort
Edward with the remainder of his army.
Throughout the colonies there was a feeling of deep chagrin which,
to tell the truth, was out of proportion with the disaster. In England
there was rejoicing as ill-proportioned. There was no question, of
course, but that the condition of the northern army was serious. All
the troops that General Schuyler could muster at Fort Edward by the
middle of July were barely five thousand. He called for assistance, and
Washington sent him two brigades of Morgan's splendid riflemen,
besides tents, ammunition and guns, which he could but illy spare frorri
his own army. General Benedict Arnold and General Lincoln, of
Massachusetts, were ordered to report to Schuyler. Burgoyne, for
some reason, was slow in moving, and these reinforcements had time to
reach Fort Edward without interruption. In all, the American army
at the north numbered six thousand, two-thirds of whom were Conti
nentals, fairly armed. When Burgoyne' s soldiers began their march,
they found that the roads had been torn up, trees felled across them, all
the bridges destroyed, and the cattle driven off. Their provisions were
tardy, and the month of July had almost passed before they reached the
river at Fort Edward. On the 2 2d Schuyler abandoned this fort and
took a better position on Moses' creek, three miles below. Being
threatened here, he fell back from one point to another until he reached
Von Schaick's Island, where the Mohawk runs into the Hudson.
Burgoyne' s plan of the campaign, as has been said before, was to send
two forces southward. One of these was to march through the Mohawk
valley to Albany and join the main body. This was composed of
eighteen hundred men, under St. Leger. These reached the vicinity of
an old fortification on the Mohawk river, known as Fort Schuyler. St.
Leger demanded surrender but was promptly refused. The people of
the valley were patriotic, and at the first alarm the militia had turned
out eight hundred in number and hurried to the relief of the garrison,
which was composed of seven hundred and fifty New York and
Massachusetts Continental troops, under Colonel Gansevoort. At the
head of the militia was General Nicholas Herkimer, a sturdy German,
who had been so warm in his defence of the popular cause that his
leadership alone gave courage to the people of the valley. He sent
word to Gansevoort of his approach, and suggested that the garrison
should meet him at an appointed place. But St. Leger heard of

37° THE STORY OF AMERICA.
Herkimer's approach and intercepted him. Herkimer was marching
carelessly through the Mohawk valley where the river bends frequently
and the ground is broken with ravines, when he found himself
surrounded by Indians and Englishmen in ambush. The Americans
had entered well into the defile near Oriskany, where they were quite
at the mercy of the enemy. Herkimer was mortally wounded at the
beginning of the engagement, but he seated himself upon his saddle at
the foot of a tree, lit his pipe, and determining to die as slowly as
possible, gave his orders. No fight of the revolution was more
desperate. For a large part of the time it consisted of hand-to-hand
struggles, in which the men fought with knives, tomahawks, swords
and spears. The fight lasted for five hours, till the ground was covered
with the dead and wounded, nearly two hundred being killed on each
side. At length help came to the Americans. Gansevoort had been
reached by a messenger and sent out a sortie, composed of two hundred
and fifty New York and Massachusetts men, under Lieutenant-Colonel
Willett, of New York. This party rushed into the enemy's camp,
where only a few troops had been left in charge, capturing baggage,
stores, papers and flags and drawing the attention of the enemy away
from Herkimer's hard-pressed forces. The Indians were frightened
and soon retreated. This weakened the British so that they had no
choice but to follow. St. Leger did not, however, give up the siege of
the fort until news reached him of Arnold's approach, when the Indian
allies compelled him to abandon the siege.
This was the first check to Burgoyne' s plans. The hatred of him
among the Americans had increased a thousand fold. His cruelty in
employing the Indians was everywhere condemned. The fate of Jane
McCrae was quoted as an example of the horrors which Indian alliance
involved. She was a young woman, beautiful and gently reared,
affianced at the time of her death to a young loyalist officer. She was
killed while in the hands of two Indians, and her long hair was after
wards shown at Burgoyne' s headquarters. People chose to believe that
she was killed by the Indians, but in fact she was killed by her friends,
the American soldiers, who were firing upon a party of Indians who had
captured Miss McCrae and a friend with whom she was staying, Mrs.
McNeal. Miss McCrae was buried by the soldiers who had attempted
her rescue and heedlessly caused her death.
FOR FURTHER READING:
History — Burgoyne's "Expedition from Canada."
Biography — Spark's "I<ife of Allen."
Fiction— E. E. Ellis' "Haunted wood."
C F. Hoffman's "Greyslaer."

CHAPTER LIX.

"Warn loom."

THE RAID ON BENNINGTON — GENERAL GATES GIVEN COMMAND AT
r THE NORTH — THE BATTLE OF FREEMAN'S FARM —
BATTLE OF BEMUS HEIGHTS — SURREN
DER OF BURGOYNE.
'URGOYNE, moving his main column with slow,
military precision, was in great need of stores, and
was delighted when he learned that about twenty-
five miles east of his line of march, at Bennington,
in the New Hampshire grants, was a depot of
horses and stores, which the Americans had established.
To march against this store-house was, therefore, his
intention, and he appointed for the leader of the raid
Lieutenant-Colonel Baume, a trusted German officer.
Under him was a select corps, five hundred strong, and a
party of loyalist rangers. About one hundred Indians
joined the column also. Baume started out on the
eleventh of August, and on the afternoon of the
thirteenth, then sixteen miles distant from his starting
point, wrote to Burgoyne that the rebels were now aware of the expe
dition, but that the Tories all about the country were flocking in to him.
He complained that the Indians were uncontrollable, and added that he
had learned that the strength of the American militia at Bennington
was about eight hundred. Burgoyne concluded, on receiving this
information, that it would be best to reinforce Baume, and on the
fifteenth sent forward Colonel1 Breyman and his five hundred Brunswick
chasseurs. It was true that Burgoyne' s approach had been learned of
by the ' 'rebels. ' ' They had risen with their usual promptitude, and at
their head was General Stark, who, at the time of the Boston fight, had
gathered the farmers of the country around him and hastened to the
rescue. At Bunker Hill, and at Trenton, he had done brave work, and
now the whole region was ready to answer to his call. The State

373 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
ordered out the militia, and gave Stark the command. His brigade
consisted of fifteen hundred militia. To these were added companies of
"Green Mountain Boys," which swelled the entire force to about
twenty-two hundred. These hastened to Bennington, many of them
marching by night in a severe rain. By the sixteenth, Stark was
ready to attack Baume' s main body. There is a story that as the
general came in sight of the enemy he cried: "See there, my men;
there are the red coats ; before night they are ours, or Mollie Stark is a
widow." The fight lasted for two hours, and the British were finally
forced to give way. No road of escape was left open to them, and the
entire body surrendered. Baume was mortally wounded. The Ameri
can militia-men, in great exultation, scattered over the abandoned camp
for the purpose of plundering it. By this greed and disorder they came
near losing all the advantage they had gained, for they were surprised
by Colonel Breyman with his reinforcements, and it was only by the
promptest action of the American officers that the English were driven
back. When night fell, it was certain that the Americans had gained a
signal victory. They had taken four cannon and nearly seven hundred
prisoners, with but a small loss to themselves. This was known as the
Battle of Bennington. This success at the north reanimated the spirits
of the colonies. Volunteers hastened northward to swell the victorious
army there. General Gates was given command of the northern
department, in the place of Schuyler, and the former general reaped
the credit of all the work Schuyler had done. Gates moved the camp
from the mouth of the Mohawk, and took possession of Bemus Heights,
twenty-five miles north of Albany. This site was commanding, and
capable of easy defense, and, under the direction of Kosciusko, was
strengthened by a line of breastworks and redoubts. This post held the
road to Albany, and to reach that town Burgoyne must first overcome
this obstacle. The British were still annoyed by lack of supplies, but
it was necessary that they should push on, and they hastened to attack
the Americans on Bemus Heights as soon as possible.
Gates had about nine thousand men. His position was excellent.
Upon the right was the Hudson; on the left, ridges and thick woods; in
front, a ravine and abattis. Commanding with Gates was a large
number of efficient officers, among them Arnold, and Colonel Daniel
Morgan of Virginia, with his famous rifle corps. On the eighteenth there
was a skirmish, in which a number of Englishmen, who were gathering
potatoes, were killed or captured. On the nineteenth, work began in
good earnest. Burgoyne moved upon Gates in three large columns.

"ELBOW ROOM." 373
Gates hastened to send out Arnold and Morgan to meet him. The
battle ground was interspersed with thick woods, occasional clearings,
and ravines. With such protection the lines were able to approach
within close range. The fight was a long and serious one; now one
side and now the other fell back. A number of the American com
manders lost half of the men in their force. The English had four.
pieces of artillery on the ground, but the Americans had none. A party
of New Hampshire men charged upon and seized a twelve-pounder.
They were driven from it by a larger body of the enemy, but secured it
a second time, and were again forced back. Private Thomas Haynes,
of Concord, sat astride the muzzle of a piece when the enemy came up,
and killed two men with his bayonet before a bullet struck him. The
fierceness of the struggle can be imagined when it is known that thirty-
six out of the forty-eight British gunners were either killed or wounded.
The firing ceased at sunset. The Americans withdrew their fortified
lines and the enemy held the field. Neither side were victorious, but
Burgoyne had received his second check. The engagement was known
as the battle of Freeman's Farm.
The British fortified the ground which they held, and rested there
for eighteen days. In the meantime, reinforcements came to Gates.
General Stark threatened Burgoyne' s communication with the north,
and Colonel John Brown, with five hundred men, had made a dash at
Ticonderoga and taken prisoners and guns. Burgoyne' s constant hope
was to join the main body under Howe, and thus force Gates to fall
back. By the 21st of September he received word that Sir Henry
Clinton had been sent from Howe's army with an expedition which
would sail up the Hudson for the purpose of taking the forts near West
Point, thus creating a diversion in Burgoyne' s favor. Clinton succeeded
in doing as he desired, and carried both Forts Montgomery and Clinton
by assault. The American loss was about three hundred, of whom
sixty or seventy were killed or wounded. The British dismantled the
forts, burned two American frigates and laid a village in ashes. General
Putnam, who was in command of the Americans at that point, retreated
farther up the river and attacked the post at Fishkill. Clinton then
returned to New York.
This had not been of such marked relief to Burgoyne as he had
hoped. The American lines were closing about him. He was short of
provisions, and he found his Indian allies restless. It was necessary for
him to either advance or retreat, and it was more in keeping with his
character to do the first. With his best generals, he took position on

374 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
open ground within a mile of the American lines, sending an advance
around to reach the American rear. Gates was quick and cordial in his
response, sending out Morgan, with his riflemen, to begin the work.
Hardly an hour passed after the British gave battle before their whole
line was retiring in disorder. The success of the day had largely been
due to the efforts of Arnold. There were many jealousies and enmities
in the northern division, and Arnold's impassioned and overbearing
disposition had brought him into disgrace. Gates had taken his
command from him and told him to remain in his tent, but when he
heard the firing upon the field and saw how the American lines wavered
for a time, he rushed out and took command of first one corps and then
another, rousing the troops to enthusiasm. Gates sent a messenger
ordering him to leave the field, but Arnold succeeded in avoiding him,
and continued to cheer on the men who followed wherever he led.
Even when the English were driven to their intrenchments, and the
twilight had deepened almost to darkness, Arnold and Morgan broke
through the lines and works and forced the Hessians to abandon their
position. In this last charge Arnold was wounded. Congress promoted
him to the rank of Major-General. The American loss had been small,
but the English had lost many men as well as one of their best generals,
and altogether the defeat of the English was decisive. Burgoyne
retreated to Saratoga and encamped at the north side of the Fishkill.
Gates followed him and made such a disposition of his troops as to
surround him. His line of retreat was severed ; he was threatened in
the rear, and had but five days rations in the camp. Under the
circumstances there was little choice but for him to make proposals for
surrender. These he sent to the American commander, who agreed
that the British army should march out with all the honors of war and
have free passage to England, upon condition of not serving again
during the war. The surrender included five thousand seven hundred
and sixty-three officers and men. On the 17th of October the army
laid down their arms in the presence of two majors of General Gates'
staff. For several days after, Burgoyne and his officers were entertained
courteously by Gates and his staff. In England, Burgoyne was severely
blamed for a blunder in which the ministry should have taken the blame
to themselves. Congress presented Gates a medal for accomplishing
what, up to this time, was the most important event of the war.
FOR FURTHER READING:
History— Burgoyne's "Orderly Book."
Felton's "Journal of American Revolution."
Biography— Spark's "Life of Stark."
Fiction— Cooper's "Chain-Bearer."

CHAPTER LX.

\nh$ nnh H«$fai

EVACUATION OP PHILADELPHIA BY THE BRITISH — THE BATTLE OF
MONMOUTH COURT HOUSE — FIRING OF BEDFORD AND
PAIR HAVEN — THE WYOMING MAS
SACRE — WARFARE IN
THE WEST.

?HE British forces had occupied Philadelphia for
more than eight months with a force much larger
than Washington's, but they had failed to estab
lish themselves in the State at large. Early in the
summer of 1778 they received orders to return tc
New York, for the concentration of their forces had
become necessary. On June 18th they began to
move, and were soon ferried across the river and marching
northward through the Jerseys. Howe had been relieved
and Sir Henry Clinton had the command. The train
was composed of fourteen thousand effective men and the
provision train was eight or ten miles long. The heat
was intense, the roads bad, and during the long march to
New York between six and eight hundred Hessians
deserted. As soon as Washington heard of Clinton's
start he broke camp at Valley Forge and sent his men forward to
destroy bridges and delay the enemy. On the 21st the Americans
crossed the Delaware and on the 28th struck the rear of Clinton's
columns, bringing about the battle of Monmouth Court House. General
Steuben himself had reconnoitred the enemy the day before. Lafayette,
Green and Lee were given commands. The night before the 28th several
hundred men were moved up closer to the enemy, where they could be
in position to watch their movements in the morning. As soon as Clin
ton's troops were set in motion Washington sent word to Lee to hasten
operations and force an engagement. The main army moved forward
to support the advance corps. Lee was thrown into confusion by con-

376 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
flicting reports, and it was 9 o'clock in the morning before he was
assured that the British were really continuing their march. The
opportunity for attack, according to Washington's plan, was lost. A
second skirmish took place between detachments of both armies, the
Americans gaining the advantage.
At this stage of the conflict Lee sent orders to Wayne to move to
the right and capture the enemy's rear guard. This looked like a
retreat to the rest of the commanders, and they left their positions and
fell back some distance, when Lee sent his tardy orders to stand fast.
By this time the entire division was in retreat. This the British saw
and were not slow to take advantage of. Lee watched his detachments
retreat across the ravine and • then, seeing that they were safe, followed
them, to find that Washington had come up with the main army and
taken command himself. In a moment the atmosphere changed. The
vacillation of the troops was gone, and they responded to the command
of Washington's vigorous leadership. The Commander-in-chief ordered
the nearest officers to hold the ground, while he formed the main army.
The retreating troops were quick to join those in position. When Lee,
last of all, came across the ravine, Washington met him and reproached
him in terms as angry as they were justifiable. Lee's military career
was practically ended. He was soon after brought to trial before a
court-martial, found guilty of disobedience to orders, misbehavior before
the enemy, disrespect to the Commander-in-chief, and was sentenced to
suspension from command for a year. The British soon advanced, but
the Continentals stood firm, and Lafayette prevented Clinton from
deflanking the position. Not until 5 o'clock in the afternoon did the
British fall back. The loss was about three hundred and fifty on each
side. Clinton marched on to New York without further interruption,
Washington following him. The Americans encamped upon White
Plains, where they could watch the enemy. Late in July the Count
D'Estaing arrived from France with a squadron of twelve ships, carrying
four thousand troops. This fleet was intended for the relief of Phila
delphia, but did not reach the Delaware until that city had been evacu
ated. It finally put in at Newport, and at its approach twenty-one
English vessels were burned to avoid capture. The Continentals had
been in great hopes that D'Estaing would put in at the harbor of New
York, but he claimed that the water there was not sufficient. Not a
little dissatisfaction was felt, but this was soon forgotten in a determina
tion to be grateful for his aid. It was decided that the French and
American armies were to co-operate in an attack upon Newport, where

SABRE AND MUSKET. 377
General Pigot was stationed with six thousand British and Hessians.
There were ten thousand Continentals in Rhode Island, under the
command of Sullivan. Sullivan agreed with D'Estaing that an attack
should be made on August ioth, but he moved before that date and
neglected to inform the French commander of his change of purpose.
On the 9th, when the French were ready to co-operate, a fleet of
thirty-six vessels, under Lord Howe, appeared at sea, and D'Estaing
re-embarked his men and put out after them, but no battle followed, for
the fleets were overtaken by a terrible storm which scattered them.
Sullivan thought best to push on, even without the French troops. He
forced the enemy to withdraw within their lines of intrenchment,
covered his own men with earthworks, and waited for D'Estaing' s
return. The French commander, instead of returning, went to Boston
to have his fleet repaired. It was a bitter, disappointment to the Conti
nentals. Sullivan was doubtful about the safety of attacking under the
circumstances, for D'Estaing steadily refused to separate his men from
the ships. But on the 29th an engagement took place, which was
provoked by Sullivan. In the end the Americans were driven from
their positions, though with a loss of only one-fifth as large as that sus
tained by the British. On the following day Sullivan learned that
Pigot was to be reinforced by Clinton with five thousand men, and he
therefore began a hasty retreat across the country. Clinton finding
there were no soldiers to fight, set fire to New Bedford and Fair Haven
and all the vessels at their wharves. Howe sailed to Boston and chal
lenged D'Estaing to battle, but he was not yet ready for sea, and when
his fleet was at length refitted he sailed for the West India station
without any further effort to help the American cause.
While these hostilities were being conducted along the coast, in the
west the Tories and the Indians were still keeping up frequent though
irregular hostilities. In the battle of Oriskany, the year before, more
than one hundred Indians had been slain, and in the tribes of the Six
Nations there was a thirst for revenge. Joseph Brant was the most
influential of all their chiefs. He had been educated among the whites,
and having naturally an active mind and a savage nature, was now a
most formidable leader. He was attached to the Tory interest of cen
tral New York by a sort of relationship with Sir William Johnson.
The Tories did not disdain to use him as one of their chief allies, and
among the Whigs he was dreaded without measure. From July to
November of 1778, a merciless warfare was kept up by the Tories and
Indians on the defenseless Whigs. The warfare extended all along the

378 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
valley of the Susquehanna, northward through the west of Albany.
Villages were burned, and men, women and children murdered.
Toward the last of June two forts were taken at Wyoming, and many of
the inhabitants of the valley were obliged to fly for their lives to Fort
Forty. Colonel Zebulon Butler had command of the garrison here,
and foolishly moved out against the Tories and Indians, who had a
much larger force than he. All but sixty of his three hundred men
were killed. As the news of this terrible massacre spread through the
valley, the people fled from their homes to the woods and mountains,
or sought protection at Fort Wyoming. In a little while this fort was
also surrendered on a promise that the settlers should be permitted to
return to their farms. But, as might have been expected, this promise
was broken and many of the farmers, with their wives and children, were
slain. About this time Joseph Brant had entered the settlement of
Springfield, at Oswego Lake, and burnt every house in the village
except one, in which he had had the humanity to place the women and
children. Two months later Brant, with a large body of followers,
destroyed the settlement of German Flats, in the valley of the Mohawk.
For ten miles not a house or field was left unmolested. Early in
November a terrible fate overtook Cherry Valley, a village remarkable
for the refinement and virtue of its inhabitants. The people were
staunch patriots, and were, therefore, sure targets for Tory vengeance.
Nearly fifty persons were killed here in the course of one day, and all
but sixteen were women and children. The fort was not taken, but
most of the buildings in the village were burned.
Still farther west the warfare was wa'ged as mercilessly. The terri
tory which is now the States of Tennessee, Ohio and Kentucky was
then thinly settled with pioneers. It was three years since Daniel
Boone had blazed a trace in the wilderness west of Virginia. The men
who followed him were among the bravest and most enduring of
the nation. Hunting and fighting were necessary to their bare
existence. Their deeds of endurance and fortitude are among the
most romantic tales of history. They had settled, unfortunately, upon
what was considered the common hunting grounds of both the northern
and southern Indians, and the savages naturally resented the encroach
ment upon their lands. The terrible disasters which overtook the
pioneers of that region caused it to be called ' 'the Dark and Bloody
Ground." The English added fuel to their hatred, and many of the
expeditions against the unfortunate settlers were inspired at Detroit,
Vincennes and Kaskaskia by the commanders of the garrisons there.

SABRE AND MUSKET. 379
Colonel George Rogers Clark, one of the hardy pioneers of Kentucky,
determined to strike at the source of this mischief. Patrick Henry,
who was then Governor of Virginia, gave him aid, and Clark got
together a band of one hundred and fifty men, and in May, 1778, went
down the Ohio. At Corn Island, by the falls of the Ohio, he built a
block-house as a depot for provisions, and leaving five men in charge,
went on with his force, which had now increased a little. While he
was gone, these five men built cabins where Louisville now stands. He
left his boat at the mouth of the Tennessee and marched across to Kas
kaskia. Here he surrounded and took the town. He sent the
Governor to Virginia, and exacted an oath of allegiance to the United
States from the people. Cahokia was soon taken in the same manner, ,
and after that Vincennes, on the Wabash. It was in the autumn of
1778 that the county of Illinois was first recognized and a civil com
mandant appointed. Governor Hamilton, of Detroit, soon recovered
Vincennes, where Clark had left only two men in the fort. Hamilton
was not aware of this fact, and approached with eight hundred men,
demanding a surrender. The captain refused till he knew the terms.
Hamilton conceded the honors of war, and the captain and his one man
marched out with dignity between the surprised columns of the enemy.
Late the following winter Clark marched from Kaskaskia through the
swamps of that country and retook the fort. Hamilton was sent as a
prisoner of war to Virginia. The Indians, who were always anxious to
be on the strongest side, now became the friends of the Americans.
FOR FURTHER READING:
History— Moore's "Treason of Charles Lee."
Biography— Abbott's "Life of Boone."
Stone's "Life of Brant."
Fiction— H. Peterson's "Pemberton."
Poetry— Hopkinson's "Battle of the Kegs."
Campbell's "Gertrude of Wyoming."
William Collins' "Mollie Pitcher at Monmouth."

CHAPTER LXI.
Wip "Jtott ^nmmt l(idptrfc "
BRITISH REDUCTION OF GEORGIA — THE DESTRUCTION OF NEW
HAVEN — THE AMERICANS CAPTURE STONY POINT —
THE GREAT NAVAL ENGAGEMENT OF
JOHN PAUL JONES.

OWARD the close of the year the war drifted to
the South. The ministry of England still held
that the southern colonies ought to be, and could
be, subdued. Lieutenant-Colonel Campbell was
sent, with two thousand men, to reduce Savannah.
There were twelve or fifteen hundred Continent
als at that place, under the command of General
Robert Howe, of North Carolina. He was well situated,
with a lagoon in front, a morass on the right and the
swamps of the river on the left. The works of the town
were in his rear and he thought himself safe, but Campbell
discovered a path through the swamps, which had been
left unguarded. A detachment, led by a negro, went over
this path and turned Howe's right. At the same time an
attack was made in front, and the Americans beat a confused retreat
into the town, losing over five hundred in killed and as prisoners, as
well as baggage and artillery. In a short time Campbell was in
possession of Augusta, and the people of Georgia were obliged to
acknowledge royal rule. Throughout Georgia and the other southern
colonies there had been a fierce partisan warfare. Nowhere else in the
colonies had there been neighborhood feuds as bitter as in those States.
The loyal and patriot parties were about equally divided all through
the South, and first one and then the other would be in the ascendancy.
As soon as Campbell took Augusta a company of Tories assembled for
the purpose of joining him, but they were intercepted by a band of
Whigs. Seventy men were captured, tried for treason, and five of them

p

1

^WJ

.ipJlFF^
THE ASSAULT ON STONY POINT.

THE "BON HOMME RICHARD." 383
were hanged. In March, 1779, five hundred North Carolina militia
were ordered to move down the Savannah towards the enemy, who had
left Augusta. The Patriots were surprised by the Tories, two hundred
men killed or wounded and the rest frightened into dispersing with as
much speed as possible. Occurrences of this sort were not unfrequent.
A party feeling existed everywhere, and neighbors whose plantations
adjoined each other waged as bitter war against one another as if they
had been denizens of different countries. The militia could not be
relied on, for they were likely at any time to leave their duties and
hasten home to the protection of their households against private
enemies. By the nth of May the English commander was before Charleston
and summoned it to surrender. This Moultrie and the other military
leaders would not consent to, and in the engagement which followed
the English were obliged to move back upon Savannah. In the course
of the summer General Clinton sent down several expeditions for the
purpose of harassing the people. Along the Virginian coast many
merchant vessels were burned and large quantities of provisions
destroyed. General Tryon landed at New Haven on the 5th of July
with three thousand men. The move was an unexpected one, and
there were no soldiers to oppose him. But the people armed, and the
Yale students formed themselves into a military company, 'Dr.
Daggett, the president of the college, sending his daughter to a place of
safety and then shouldering his musket to fight with his pupils. He
was, unfortunately, taken prisoner. The inhabitants did all that they
could to check the progress of the enemy, but the Hessian and British
soldiers filled the town and indulged in every sort of outrage. The
houses were robbed, the men murdered and a scene of debauchery and
cruelty followed which was a disgrace to civilized soldiers. Norwalk
and Green's Farms were visited next and treated in the same manner.
Washington had placed his force so as to cover West Point. He
had recovered Stony Point, which Clinton had taken from him but a
short time previous. The attack for recovery was made at midnight on
July 15th. Every soldier had a badge of white paper fastened to his
hat, that he might be distinguished from the enemy. Each man was
to shout, "The fort is our own," as he entered the works. Between
the point and the mainland was a neck, which, at the hour of the
attack, was covered by the tide about two feet deep. While crossing
this, fire was opened upon the Americans from the guns. The
Americans had been ordered by Anthony Wayne, who led them, not to

384 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
fire, but to depend entirely on their bayonets. The English stood by
their guns crying, "Come on, ye damned rebels, come on," to which
Wayne's men cheerfully responded, "Don't be in such a hurry, my lads;
we will be with you presently" — and they were, although they had to
scramble up the steep ascent and over the abatis with the English fire
upon them. The attack was one of those impetuous ones which none
could lead so successfully as ' 'Mad Anthony Wayne. ' ' He was struck
in the forehead with a ball, but insisted on being carried into the fort
by his men. The entire capture had not taken more than half an hour,
and by it the Americans gained nearly fifteen hundred prisoners, fifteen
pieces of cannon, and large quantities of stores and ammunition.
This defeat delayed Clinton's advance and caused him to postpone
indefinitely the movement upon Connecticut.
A little later than this he met with another surprise in the loss of
the post at Paulus Hook, now Jersey City. On the 19th of August,
Major Henry Lee, with five companies of southern troopers, carried
the place by assault without firing a shot. They were hotly pursued,
but took one hundred and fifty prisoners with them in safety. Clinton
sent out a naval expedition in August, which had an engagement near
the mouth of the Penobscot, in which they were successful. In this
affair the American colonists showed a lack of courage and judgment.
Not more than a month after this, General Paul Jones fought his
great battle upon the sea. It was the most important event of the year,
and indeed one of the most remarkable battles which ever took place
upon the ocean. The contest upon the sea up to this time had been
barely respectable. It was mostly a warfare of privateers, with plunder
for its aim. Congress had been anxious for a navy, and had made all
the efforts possible for establishing one. But their means were limited,
and the work had been left mostly to the small frigates and privateering
vessels, who, in their way, did not a little work for the Revolution.
In the year 1777 two hundred and fifty British vessels were captured by
American cruisers before the ist of February. By the end of that year
the number taken was four hundred and sixty-seven. The most
successful of all the seamen was Paul Jones. All along the English
coast he was held in terror and dread. To him the King of France
gave an old Indiaman, fitted out as a man-of-war. This Paul Jones
named the Bon Homme Richard. This cruised along the west coast of
Ireland and the north of Scotland for more than a month, with two
consorts, the Alliance and the Paulus. On the 22d of February they
came in sight of a fleet of merchantmen under convoy of two frigates.

THE "BON HOMME RICHARD." 385
One of these, the Serapis, carried fifty guns, the other, the Countess of
Scarborough, carried twenty-two. Jones gave the signal for pursuit as
they were off Flamborough Head, on the coast of Yorkshire. He was
not altogether in good condition for fight, for his crew had been reduced
to man prizes, and his prisoners were two-thirds as numerous as his
remaining crew. Besides, the Serapis was a new frigate. She had
twenty guns on each of her decks, main and upper, and ten lighter ones
on her quarter deck and forecastle. The Richard had only six guns on
her lower deck, which were all on the same side. Above these, on the
main deck, were fourteen guns on each side. She had a high quarter
and forecastle, with eight guns on these, and was of old-fashioned
build, with a high poop, so that her lower deck was but little below
her antagonist's main deck. It was after sunset, and a full moon had
arisen, when the Richard came within hail of the Serapis. Captain
Pearson, of the latter frigate, spoke the' Richard twice. For answer
Jones opened fire. Unfortunately, at the very first, two heavy guns on
the lower deck burst. Many of the men were killed by the explosion.
The rest went up to the main deck. The Serapis responded to the fire
immediately. Jones pushed up closer, and as the heavy vessels swung
around, the jib-boom of the Serapis ran into the mizzen rigging of the
Richard. Jones himself fastened the vessels together, and one of the
anchors of the Serapis caught the quarter of the Richard, lashing them
fast. The Serapis was so close to her antagonist that she could not
open her ports on the starboard side, and her first shots were fired
through her own port lids to free her guns. The fire from the main
deck of the Serapis, while it badly injured the Richard, had but little
effect upon the men, who, as has been said, deserted the lower deck,
where the cannonading did most execution, at the beginning. The
upper guns of the Richard, of course, hung over the Serapis, as the
former vessel had greatly the advantage of height. Muskets were little
used, for it was night and clouds of smoke enveloped the vessels. At
length, after two hours of about equal fighting, the men in the
Richard 's tops began throwing hand-grenades upon the deck of the
Serapis, and one sailor, who had worked himself out to the end of the
main yard with a bucket filled with grenades, lighted them one by one
and threw them down the hatchway of the Serapis. They fell among
a row of eighteen-pounder cartridges. The row was lighted, and in the
explosion which followed, twenty men were blown to pieces. Many
others were frightfully burned. Some of them were stripped naked,
leaving nothing but the collars of their shirts and their wrist-bands

3^6 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
upon them. This roused them to desperation, and they made an
attempt to board the Richard. They were met by Jones with a spike
in his hand at the head of his men. The English were forced to fall
back. At half past ten, Pearson, of the Serapis, struck his colors, but
the fight was so equal that the men upon the Richard hardly knew,
when the cry "they have struck" came, whether it was Pearson or
Jones who had yielded. There is a story 'that when Pearson delivered
his sword to Jones he said: "I cannot, sir, but feel much mortification
at the idea of surrendering my sword to a man who has fought me with
a rope around his neck. ' ' Naturally this reproach did not in the least
discomfort Jones. He returned the sword courteously, saying, "You
have fought gallantly, sir, and I hope your King will give you a better
ship." When Jones heard afterward that Pearson had been knighted
for his intrepid action, he remarked: "He deserved it, and if I fall in
with him again I will make a lord of him. ' ' When morning dawned
the Richard was found to be sinking. The fires on her had not been
put out, and she had been sadly torn to pieces. The wounded were,
therefore, removed to the Serapis and were followed by the crew, who
watched the gallant Richard sink to the bottom. The King of France
presented Jones a sword, and Congress gave him a vote of thanks.
Jones' action was the last important one between the English and the
American ships in the war. The French fleet was relieving the
American government from the expense of maintaining a navy. For
the most part the naval actions during the remainder of the war were
between privateers, of which there were a large number.
FOR FURTHER READING:
History — Tarleton's "History of the Southern Campaign."
Lee's "War in the Southern Department."
Hawk's "Revolutionary History of North Carolina."
Drayton's "Revolution in the Carolinas."
Biography— McKenzie's "Paul Jones."
Fiction— Cooper's "The Pilot."
T. Mirgge's "Paul Tones."
A. Cunningham's "Paul Jones."
Dumas' "Captain Paul."

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RED JACKET.
From Weir's painting. Engraved by Danforth.

CHAPTER LXII.

ip jlir Ifafems*

EXPEDITION AGAINST THE SIX NATIONS — THE CIVILIZATION OF THE
INDIANS — HUMILIATION OF THE SIX NATIONS — EXPE
DITION UP THE MISSISSIPPI FROM LOUIS- '
IANA — TRIUMPH OF CLINTON
IN THE SOUTH.

WASHINGTON was opposed to the movement
against Canada. He thought it involved an
unnecessary waste of lives and money, and it
seemed to him that the great cause would not be
materially affected by victory in that direction,
and that the army of the nation, feeble enough at
best, had need to concentrate its attention upon
the defense of American homes. The plan of Cana
dian conquest had been a favorite one with Congress,
and they listened to Washington's objections with
unfeigned irritation. When at length they yielded,
it was only upon condition that an effort should be
made to take the British fort at Niagara. This Wash
ington did not altogether approve of, but he hoped, by
sending an expedition against that fort, to severely
punish the Six Nations, from whose atrocities the frontier settlements
still continued to suffer. Early in 1779, preparations were made for
carrying the war into Central New York and Western Pennsylvania.
The command was given to Sullivan. The directions from Wash
ington were that he was to seem to have Niagara as his destination, but
the punishment of the Indians was to be his sole object. These com
mands Sullivan followed closely, never approaching within seventy-
five miles of Fort Niagara. But the spring and the summer passed
before Sullivan was able to move. Congress showed its usual indif
ference, and the men were in no way provisioned for such an expe-
23

39° THE STORY OP AMERICA.
dition. At one time all the officers in the New Jersey brigade sent in
their resignations. In doing so, not even Washington could accuse
them of lack of patriotism. Their families were actually suffering for
the necessities of life, for the soldiers had received no pay for months.
The officers insisted that they must return to their homes and provide
for their families. Washington made a protest to the New Jersey legis
lature, which brought help for the time being, and the men resumed
their duties. Before Sullivan could obtain supplies for his men he had
to indulge in reproaches to Congress which were more candid than
courteous, and which made" him many enemies.
It was late in August when Sullivan was ready to move. He found
the enemy in force near Elmira. This force was placed in a position
protected on two sides by a bend in the river, and strengthened in
front by a breastwork which was artfully hidden by woods and under
brush. Into this ambush it was expected that the American forces
would march. Joseph Brant led the Indians, and the Butlers, father
and son, fiercest among the Tories, were the commanders of the loyal
militia. The Americans knew well that should they fall into the hands
of such enemies, no quarter would be shown, and in case of defeat,
victory would be turned into massacre. But this stratagem was not
successful. A rifleman who had climbed a tall tree discovered the
whole plan, and by his discovery defeated it. Sullivan had three thou
sand men, led by able and experienced officers. He sent a portion of
his army to face the Indians and force them into fight. Another por
tion was sent quietly through t woods and swamps for an attack on the
rear and flank. The enemy was caught in its own trap, and when the
artillery broke in upon them from the rear, crying, "Remember
Wyoming!" they took to headlong flight.
Sullivan's army resumed its march in two days, and for weeks kept
on its way leaving behind it the most utter desolation. Never before
had Indians attained such a degree of civilization. They had built
themselves towns and comfortable log huts, conveniently furnished and
surrounded by excellent orchards and fields. Sullivan spared none of
these. His relentless destruction set back the civilization of the Indian
permanently. Never since, except among the Cherokees, have they
shown the industry, frugality and self-respect which they did at that
time. Thousands of fruit-bearing trees were cut down. Two hundred
bushels of Indian corn and immense quantities of potatoes, beans and
other products of their farms and gardens were destroyed, as well as
forty villages. The Indians were left with neither shelter nor food to

THE SIX NATIONS. 391
carry them through the winter, which was close at hand, and which
proved to be one of terrible severity. It was little wonder that when
any of Sullivan's men fell into their hands they were tortured in that
manner of ingenious cruelty of which only the savage is capable. Sul
livan went as far as the most western settlement of the Six Nations,
called Seneca Castle. From here he retraced his footsteps, having lost,
in a long series of encounters, only forty men. Upon rejoining Wash
ington's army he resigned his commission. He had done the work
appointed him and had done it well, but the reproaches which he had
heaped upon Congress for their neglect of the national army caused
them to accept his resignation without demur.
At this time, or a little before, an expedition was undertaken from
Louisiana, which, in the final settlement between England and the
United States, probably did more than anything else towards securing
the territory west of the Mississippi to the United States. This expe-
¦ dition was led by Galvez, the young and ambitious Governor of Louis
iana. A declaration of war had been made by Spain against England.
The bonds of friendship between Spain and the United States were
therefore strengthened, and Galvez joined with Pollock, the agent of
Congress, in moving against the British forts, Manchac, Baton Rouge
and Natchez. They also succeeded in capturing eight English vessels on
L,ake Pontchartrain, and a few months later took Mobile. The following
year Pensacola, the last post in Florida in British possession, was also
reduced by Galvez. But for this, in the final adjustment, the United
States might have been bounded by the Mississippi river on the
west. The war had now lasted for five years. Clinton was still of the
opinion that the quickest way to bring it to an end was to overrun the
thinly settled southern country and compel the people to swear alle
giance to the King. By dividing the Union there, it was hoped that
the rebellion could be suppressed. The national army was in despair.
Washington mustered only about fifteen thousand men, and of these not
more than eleven or twelve thousand were in the ranks. The time was
approaching when many of the terms of enlistment would expire. For
months the pay of the soldiers had not been forthcoming. They were
often hungry, all were poorly clothed, and some were actually naked.
Had it not been for foreign loans, the nation could not have been sus
tained. It was this wretched army of half-starved men which Wash
ington had to bring against Clinton's well-cared-for troops. A common
commander would have done one of two things — he would either have

392 THE STORY OP AMERICA.
lost heart and surrendered, or brought on a rash attack to bring an end
to these desperate straits. But Washington's military genius was equal
to the occasion. His policy was to watch warily every movement of
the enemy, to harass, annoy, delay, and to seize those rare opportuni
ties where a blow could be struck in safety. Clinton was lacking in
that energy which sustained Washington, and while it seemed to lie in
his power to win victory, he preferred to remain passive. Clinton
believed that should he make both the South and North points of
attack that he could crush either one or the other, for Washington, it
was obvious, could not divide his forces. ' Charleston was still in
possession of the Americans, being held by General Lincoln. The
Americans were anxious to regain Savannah, and a plan was laid bv
which D'Estaing was to return from the West Indies, join with Lincoln,
and move upon Savannah for the purpose of recapturing it. They did
so, and demanded surrender. The answer of Prevost, the commander
of the fort, was one of defiance. A siege was sustained there for a
month, but as Prevost showed no signs of yielding, an assault was
made on October 9th. D'Estaing and Lincoln led the attack with
their combined force of four thousand men. The French fleet in the
harbor kept up a cannonading of shot and shell. The English had a
strong defense, and from behind the abatis and earthworks, kept up a
murderous fire. The American bravery displayed was superb. Ser
geant Jasper, who had restored the flag to its place when it was shot
down at Fort Moultrie, was killed here in defense of his colors.
Between eleven and twelve hundred on the American side were killed,
among them Count Pulaski. The British lost less than fifty. This
ended the siege of Savannah. The French fleet set sail for the West
Indies and Lincoln retreated to Charleston. Clinton now resolved upon
energetic measures for the reduction of the whole South.
FOR FURTHER READING:
History— Ramsay's "American Revolution in South Carolina."
Stone's "Border Wars of the American Revolution."
"Siege of Savannah." Anon.

u

CHAPTER LXIII.
om §mt Wfi lints) If ma?

ii

PLANS OF THE TWO ARMIES — SIEGE OF CHARLESTON BY THE ENGLISH
— CAPTURE OF THE AMERICAN ARMY AT THE SOUTH —
THE BURNING OF CONNECTICUT FARMS — ARRI
VAL OF ROCHAMBEAU — TREASON
/OF GENERAL ARNOLD.

HE winter of 1779-80 was one of great severity.
The sufferings of the American army at Morris-
town were almost unendurable, and even the
English, in their comfortable quarters at New
York, were not a little annoyed by the extreme
cold. The English constantly expected an attack,
for the ice was so solid that the town could be easily
approached. Lord Stirling led his Continentals across
the Kill on the ice, at Elizabethtown, to Staten Island,
marched two thousand men north to the Narrows, and
burned a fortified house and several vessels. Another
party crossed the North river in sleighs, and marching
to Newark, burned the Academy and sacked some of the
houses. Expeditions of this sort served to keep the Eng
lish in expectation of a general attack. Clinton's ambi
tious designs for subduing the southern colonies were not a little delayed,
and it was the middle of March before he was ready to take the final
steps for investing Charleston. Meanwhile, the American envoys
begged for more extensive help from France. Franklin and his asso
ciates, who represented America in France, were doing work of as
much importance to the independence of this country, as were Washing
ton and his devoted generals. Lafayette visited France to join his
solicitations to those of Franklin. Together they persuaded the court
to send nearly six thousand men, under Count De Rochambeau. The
expedition was a splendid one. It sailed in April, at the time that
Clinton appeared before Charleston and demanded surrender. General
Lincoln, who was in command of the American defense at that

394 TH:E STORY OP AMERICA.
point, sent word that he should hold it to the last extremity. This V.e
did. The English fleet crossed the harbor, and closed slowly arour.d
the city. The American troops, defending the city at the rear, were
met by the enemy and defeated, so that all of Lincoln's available roads
for retreat were cut off. On the eighth of May the town surrendered,
and the Continental troops and seamen were held as prisoners of war.
The entire southern army of America was thus in the hands of the
British. Savannah and Charleston, the foremost seaports, were
captured and held by the enemy. The British army in Georgia and
South Carolina numbered nearly fourteen thousand men. Clinton's
plan of subduing the southern colonies seemed to him, and to everyone
else, only a question of time. In spite of all lessons, however, the
English continued to under-estimate the inherent patriotism of the
American heart. Clinton issued a proclamation requiring all persons
to take an active part in settling and securing his majesty's govern
ment, and declaring that all who refused to do so should be considered
enemies and rebels. In all of the southern States there were many
who were willing to remain neutral, but comparatively few — aside, of
course, from the open Royalists — who were willing to take up arms
against their own countrymen. In the popular protest which was
made to this proclamation, a Major James was sent to ask the com
mander of a British post at Georgetown for an explanation of the proc
lamation. The commander replied: "His majesty offers you a free
pardon, of which you are undeserving, for you all ought to be hanged;
but it is only on condition that you take up arms in his cause. ' ' Major
James, the American, replied that those whom he represented would
not submit to such conditions. "Represent! You damned rebel, if you
dare speak in such language I will have you hung at the yard arm. ' '
James had no weapons, but for answer he knocked the British officer
down with a chair and left him senseless. James and his four brothers
were, after this, among the leaders of the partisans of the State.
When the news of the surrender of Charleston reached Morris-
town, it had a very dispiriting effect upon the troops. The English
counted upon this, and on the sixth of June, six thousand troops were
marched from Staten Island to the village of Connecticut Farms. The
militia of the country fought every step of the way with them, falling
back slowly and coolly before the superior numbers of the English, but
they were unable to protect the village, and Connecticut Farms was
burned. The wife of the Rev. James Caldwell was killed by a shot
through the window of the room where she was sitting with her

"whom can we trust now?" 395
children. A few days later, when the English had undertaken another
movement, the husband of this murdered woman was among the
leading spirits of the defense. The engagement took place at Spring
field, and in spite of the utmost efforts of the Americans the place was
taken and burnt. When the men were in want of wadding for their
guns, Caldwell distributed hymn books among them with the exhorta
tion, "Put Watts into' em, boys!" After the burning of Springfield, the
enemy returned to Staten Island.
By the nth of July, De Rochambeau arrived in Newport with his
troops, now swelled by the addition of a fleet to twelve thousand men.
Washington wished to move at once upon New York, but many of the
French were ill from the effects of a troublous voyage, aud their
commander would not consent to action. So, to the great disappoint
ment of the people and of the army, the autumn passed in inactivity.
As Washington was returning to his army from an interview with
Rochambeau, at Hartford, in Connecticut, his unexpected arrival at
West Point discovered the gigantic treason of General Arnold. Arnold
was a man of proud and haughty spirit. As a soldier, his bravery and
dash were never questioned. As a gentleman and a patriot, there was
always some doubt of him in the minds of those who knew him best.
His naturally arrogant nature had been irritated by the neglectful
conduct of Congress in not paying that tribute to his ability which he
felt that it deserved. This is urged as his only motive for his treason
able actions. For several months he corresponded with the British
Commander-in-chief, giving him all the military and civil news which
could be of any use to the enemy. While Arnold was in command at
Philadelphia, various charges had been brought against him by the
State, for which he was taken before a court-martial. After a public
rebuke from the Commander-in-chief, he was restored to the service and
under pretense of being disabled from duty in the field by an old
wound, was given the command of West Point. He took this for
the sole purpose of betraying his trust and selling himself at a high
price to the English. No post in the country was of greater import
ance to either side than that of West Point. It commanded the
navigation of the Hudson, and to a degree the communication with
Canada, as well as that between the Northern and Southern States. The
garrison by which it was held numbered more than three thousand men.
These were defended by one hundred guns. With the betrayal of the
place, large stores of provisions, ammunition, and the greater part of
the men would inevitably fall into the hands of the English, and a blow

396 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
would be struck at the American cause which would render success
more than doubtful.
In order to make the final arrangements, it was necessary that a
personal interview should be held between Arnold and some represent
atives of General Clinton. Major Andre was the officer chosen by
Clinton, as being a man of discretion and bravery. Arnold dared not
trust any one on his own side with a knowledge of his villainy, and
determined to converse with Clinton's emissary himself. He deter
mined, too, to take as little personal risk as possible, and after making
several ineffectual efforts to induce Andre to come within the American
lines, he at last succeeded. It became necessary that if the plan was to
be carried out, it should be done immediately, and under stress of this
pressure Andre consented to leave the British ship, on which he had
put himself that he might be nearer to Arnold, and to come on shore
within the American lines. Hiding his uniform under a long overcoat,
he took a boat and was rowed to the foot of Long Clove Mountain,
about six miles below Stony Point, where he met Arnold. There,
hidden in the bushes, the conspirators talked through the night At
dawn, Andre was taken to Arnold's headquarters and concealed there.
To escape with his news was a difficult matter. The vessel in which
he had been brought had moved farther down the river, and he was
obliged to risk a ride through the country To provide against
suspicion, Arnold gave his confederate a pass made out to John
Anderson, which allowed him to pass White Plains and beyond.
Mounted upon a good horse, Andre began his perilous ride through the
country. He was within half a mile of Tarrytown, when he was
stopped by three men who wished to know his business and destination.
How so brilliant a man could have blundered in the carrying out of a
scheme of such paramount importance, it is not easy to see, but in the
alarm of the moment he confided that he was a British officer. The
men took him to the nearest military post. Here the pass of John
Anderson seemed to be a sufficient explanation of his presence. But
his gait betrayed the fact that he was a soldier, and the matter was
investigated. No one was willing to believe that one of the most trusted generals
of the American army was a stupendous traitor, and it was some time
before that idea even occurred to any one. The commander of the post
to which Andre was taken wrote a letter to Arnold concerning the
mysterious person, John Anderson, and asking an explanation. When
Arnold received it he was at breakfast with two of Washington's aids.

ESCAPE OF BENEDICT ARNOLD.

"WHOM CAN WE TRUST NOW?" 399
He saw that his treason would soon be known in all its enormity. He
quietly went into another room, told his wife, in a few hurried words,
of his peril, mounted a horse at his door, and riding to the river side,
took a boat. Then, tying his handkerchief to his cane as a flag of
truce, he sailed to the British ship, the Vulture. It was afternoon
before his escape was noticed.
Andre was hung. He had risked his life to oblige his commander,
and under the promise of the reward of a large sum of money. He
failed in his scheme, and received the punishment due a spy. It has
been the fashion, both in England and America, to sympathize with
him greatly because he was young, high born, scholarly and brave, but
he did not act the part of a hero in the cause in which he died. No
one who has read history can help contrasting his dramatic self-con
sciousness — for he wrote and talked much about his sense of honor and
his bravery — with the modesty and devotion of Nathan Hale, the spy
who died regretting that he had not another life to give his country.
Washington offered to exchange Andre for Arnold, but Clinton was a
man of honor, ,and would not break his word to a traitor, even to save
a man who was the victim of his plans and his friend.
The British government showed its gratitude to Arnold by giving
him a commission as Brigadier-General in the army, and 6,315 pounds
sterling in money. His wife and all of his children were pensioned,
and throughout their lives received half pay as retired officers. But
Arnold received no more respect among the English than among his
own countrymen. Later, in the southern campaign, Cornwallis
positively refused to have him in his command. That spirit of brilliant
daring which had distinguished him in the American army never again
showed itself. In the victories which he won for the English he
showed more of the spirit of a murderer and a marauder than of a
general. FOR FURTHER READING:
History— "Trial of Benedict Arnold."
"Trial of Major John Andre."
"New York City in the American Revolution."
Tuckerman's "America and her Commentators." (French auxiliaries.)
Biography— J. N. Arnold's "Life of Arnold."
Fiction — E. P. Roe's "Near to Nature's Heart."
Poetry— Harte's "Caldwell, of Springfield."
Freneau's "Arnold's Departure."
Bradley's "Andre's Last Moments."
Drama— Calvert's "Arnold and Andre."
Lord's "Andre."
Dunlap's "Andre."

CHAPTER LXIV.
"J T^nnt jlitrf "frm n §mmVf
CORNWALLIS AND GATES AT THE SOUTH — THE COMMAND OP THE
SOUTHERN FORCE GIVEN TO GENERAL GREEN — THE
BATTLE OF KING'S MOUNTAIN — BATTLE
OP GUILFORD COURT HOUSE.

ORTUNATELY no serious harm came of
Arnold's treachery, but to the people, and to
the Commander-in-chief in particular, it was
very discouraging. "Whom can we trust
now?" asked Washington, sadly. It might
well be a moment of gloom, for in the South,
affairs for the time seemed hopeless. After Charleston
was taken and the army moved through the State,
Colonel Abraham Beaufort was sent, with about four
hundred Virginian troops, to harass the enemy. He
was met by thirty cavalry and mounted infantry under
the command of Lieutenant-Colonel Bamastre Tarleton.
Tarleton fell upon the Americans without giving them
time for defense, and when they threw down their arms
and begged for mercy, he cruelly killed them. It was not a battle, but
a massacre, and won for Tarleton that reputation for cruelty by which
he is remembered to this day. Had not the country been filled with
partisans likely to rise at any time, this might have seemed the end of
the war in the South, but since there was not a citizen who was not
likely at any time to become a soldier, it was impossible to tell when
the country was conquered. The loyal partisans of the Carolinas and
of Georgia were obliged to content themselves at this time by harassing
the enemy in every way possible. Sumpter, Davie, Marion and many
others were the leaders of desperate bands of men who hid themselves
in the swamps and thick woods of the southern country, and sallied

4oi
forth at unexpected moments to annoy and injure the enemy. The
camp of Marion was hid in the swamps of the Pedee, and so securely
concealed, that even his men had sometimes to search for hours before
they found it.
Cornwallis, a soldier on the old plan, used to military precision and
well-regulated warfare, was not a little chagrined and vexed by hostil
ities of this sort. He was never certain where he would find the enemy,
and when he did find them he could not rely upon their keeping in
battle array. They were very much more apt to disperse, baffle pursuit,
and only appear again when they could strike an unexpected blow.
When he learned that Baron De Kalb was marching southward
with Maryland and Delaware troops, Cornwallis was prompt in his
measures to intercept them. Gates had now been appointed by
Congress to conduct the campaign, and he hastened forward with
cavalry from Virginia and North Carolina, for the purpose of forming a
junction with De Kalb. The American army numbered three thousand
men, most of whom were raw recruits, without discipline, sufficient
arms, or comfortable clothing. The British troops were veterans, but
were fewer in number than the Americans. Gates wished to wage
active warfare, although he must have known that his men could not
be relied upon to stand steady fire. Gates sent Marion with his men
into South Carolina on a reconnoisance, ordering him to destroy all
the bridges and boats on his way, that the British might have no means
of escaping to Charleston should they be defeated. But Cornwallis
had no intention of being defeated. He was as anxious as Gates for
action, and with far better cause. On the 15th of August, 1780, both
armies moved, each with the intention of surprising the other. At the
first fire the Americans broke ranks and fled, but a portion of the militia
had the courage to check the advance, and the fight continued till night
forced them to desist. When morning dawned Cornwallis was able to
take in all the weakness of his opponents. He posted his best men
opposite the untried Virginia militia, who, as he expected, fired a single
shot, threw away their arms and fled. The panic spread along the
lines, and a great part of the army fled without a blow. The Conti
nentals, under De Kalb and Gist, fought with coolness and decision,
pushing the enemy before them. But they were finally so hard pressed
that one-third of them were killed or wounded and the rest were forced
to seek safety in the woods. De Kalb, the distinguished French
commander, fell under eleven wounds. His clothing was stripped from
him by the soldiers, and it was only when he was discovered by Corn-

402 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
wallis that any attention was paid to his needs. Gates' army was
practically annihilated, and the militia, who never felt under obligations
to remain in organized force, returned to their homes. Within a few
days Gates gathered together such of his men as could be found, with
the intention of forming a new army, making his headquarters one
hundred and eighty miles from his dreadful defeat.
Cornwallis determined to subdue South Carolina before Congress
could send another army. With Tarleton and Ferguson, two unrelenting
persecutors of patriots, to help him, he started out on a journey through
the State. In many of the smaller engagements all through the
southern country Cornwallis had had reason to believe that success
would soon crown the English arms. He therefore followed the
Americans with enthusiasm and on the 8th of October fought the battle
of King's Mountain, near the boundary line of North and South
Carolina. Here Cornwallis suffered, losing about one-fourth of his
fighting force. He sent to New York for reinforcements and spent the
time mainly in attempts to meet with Sumpter, or Marion, or some of
the other partisan leaders who waged constant hostilities. In the
autumn, Green arrived to take command of the remnant of the army
which Gates had so nearly destroyed. He came with Washington's
warm recommendation, but it was feared that he could do little, so
reduced was the southern army and so illy provided with necessities.
Green did not believe that the army could sustain an active campaign,
and began with a policy exactly opposite to that of Gates. His plan
was to avoid a general battle as long as possible, to delay the enemy at
every step of his progress — to tire him out, as it were. His army
moved into South Carolina in two bodies, the larger part of which was
commanded by the General himself and the other by Morgan. Green
moved steadily towards Cornwallis, and only halted when he was about
seventy miles east of him. Tarleton was sent in pursuit of Morgan,
who, it was feared, threatened the whole line of posts in the rear of the
British army. So great was his anxiety that Cornwallis himself, instead
of moving upon Green, tried to intercept Morgan. This American
general was therefore forced into an engagement. He chose a field of
open woods in which his cavalry could easily maneuvre, and behind
which there were two hills which he could use in case of need as a
protection. He posted four hundred men on the first eminence and in
front placed militia and skirmishers. On the second eminence was
Colonel Washington's famous cavalry and a corps of mounted infantry.
Behind them were the horses and militia, ready either for pursuit or

"I HAVE SENT YOU A GENERAL." 403
*
flight. Eight hundred men were on the field and all were so well
disposed, that when Tarleton looked at them he thought that the enemy
was at least two thousand strong. The English came on with a rush —
one of those charges which have made them famous in battle fields all
over the world. They were met with a deadly fire, and when the first
line was broken through, the second stood valiantly for a time and then
gave way. Colonel Washington, with his cavalry, charged upon the
wing, broke straight through a line and charged again from the rear.
He found himself then at the rear of the other wing of the forces, and
fell upon them there, while Morgan conducted the conflict in front.
The English prayed for quarter, and it was with much difficulty that
the American commanders kept their soldiers from slaughtering
Tarleton' s men as Tarleton' s men had slaughtered so many of their
comrades. Tarleton lost six hundred prisoners out of his thousand
men; one hundred were dead upon the field; his two guns, his colors,
eight hundred muskets, one hundred dragoon horses and a large part of
his baggage train were in the hands of the enemy. Upon the American
side only twelve were killed and sixty wounded. But still Green knew
that discretion compelled him to act upon the defensive rather than the
offensive. His orders to Morgan were, therefore, to retreat and join the
main army, which he did. Cornwallis pushed on through the State,
and Green slowly retreated before him in good order.
The American army grew, by reinforcements from the Virginia and
Carolina militia, to forty-three hundred men, but as nearly three-fourths
of this force were raw recruits, the strength of the army was not
materially added to. March 15, 1781 — the winter having been passed
by Green in eluding Cornwallis — Green made a stand near Guilford
Court House and awaited the enemy. The battle field was well chosen,
the men being under good commanders. They were well placed, and
there was no essential point of weakness except the inexperience of the
greater part of the men. The British, 'as usual, advanced steadily and
quickly, and as usual the American militia fired one shot and then fled.
But a few of them held their ground until the British charged with
their bayonets, then they also fled, and the conflict was left to Green's
regulars who fought desperately. Colonel Washington, with his
splendid cavalry, was there, in which one expert swordsman cut down
thirteen of the enemy, There were many hand-to-hand encounters.
The fight was a desperate one, but Cornwallis' force was so held that in
the end the Americans retreated, 'though they did so slowly and in good
order. Cornwallis lost nearly one-fourth of his army. The victory

404 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
was with the British, but they paid far too great a price for it. Green's
army was too exhausted to venture an attack the next day and Corn
wallis, who said that he was tired of going about the Carolinas in
search of adventure, wrote a letter to his Commander-in-chief, begging
that he might be allowed to quit the Carolinas and put his army in
march for Wilmington. Green started after him in hurried pursuit,
but he was not able to overtake him.
FOR FURTHER READING:
History — Draper's "King's Mountain and^its Heroes."
Fiction— W. G. Simms' "The Partisan."
C H. Wiley's "Alamance."
Poetry — "Battle of King's Mountain."
William C. Bryant's "Song of Marion's Men.**

CHAPTER LXV.
Wfp Umbit JBfatbft of jlmarmt,
ARNOLD'S EXPEDITION — BATTLE BETWEEN CORNWALLIS AND LAFAY
ETTE — THE SIEGE OF YORKTOWN AND SURRENDER OF
CORNWALLIS — THE SACKING OF NEW
LONDON BY ARNOLD.

£HAT," Arnold once asked of a prisoner, "would
be done with me if I should be captured by the
Americans?" The prisoner replied: "If my
countrymen should catch you, I believe they
would cut off that lame leg, which was
wounded in the cause of freedom and virtue,
and bury it with the honors of war, and after
ward hang the remainder of your body on gibbets."
The answer was, probably, a reflex of Arnold's own
fears. He could no longer be relied upon for daring
attack, and was sent by Clinton upon marauding expedi
tions. It was he who was selected to lead the expedition
to Virginia, the sole purpose of which was harassing
and ravaging any part of the country where he could
do so with safety to his men. Arnold had with him a force of nine
hundred. He landed at Westover, on the James river, and marched to
Richmond. Here he divided his troops, remaining, himself, in Rich
mond, to destroy much private property, military stores and public
archives. The detachment which he had sent on an excursion of
destruction was met by Baron Steuben, but not checked by him.
Arnold went as far as Portsmouth, wreaking his anger and bitterness
upon the country he passed through. Congress and the Commander-in-
chief were seriously distressed. Their impulse was to send immediate
help, but this they were in a bad condition to do. Thirteen hundred
Pennsylvania men had mutinied. There had been a misunderstanding
about the term of their enlistment, and the neglect which they had
sustained at the hands of Congress irritated them beyond endurance.

406 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
They were not lacking, as their many hard-fought fields testified, in
patriotism, but their physical suffering, added to a sense of having been
imposed upon, was more than they could patiently stand. That they
were patriotic, is shown by the fact that the emissaries sent by Sir
Henry Clinton, offering them aid and protection if they would join the
English standard, were delivered to the proper authorities to be
executed as spies. With a great effort the States raised a large sum of
money to quiet the complaints of the soldiers. In February, Washing
ton was able to make preparations for a campaign in Virginia, which
should oppose Arnold's progress. He sent a detachment of twelve
hundred New England troops, under Lafayette. These he ordered to
the head of Chesapeake bay, where they were to embark for the lower
part of Virginia. The British fleet had been recently disabled by a
storm, and Washington was anxious that his French allies should seize
this time to send the whole French squadron to the bay, in aid of the
movement under Lafayette. These started, but in an engagement with
the English were defeated, and sent back to Newport. When Clinton
heard this, he sent General Phelps, with an additional force of two
thousand men, to take command in Virginia. These followed the same
plan which Arnold's troops had done. They did not fight, but they
ravaged. Steuben was sent to pursue him, and the two generals chased
each other about the country, without either much profit or harm. The
great point with the English was to deprive Green of men and supplies.
Cornwallis was still at the south, and hoped to conquer the colonies
by moving northward from Georgia. When his force moved up to join
that of Arnold and Phelps, Lafayette was largely outnumbered, and he
fell back to make a junction with Antony Wayne, who was approaching
with eight hundred Pennsylvania men. Cornwallis had little respect
for Lafayette. So boyish was the young French general that the
Englishman could not believe that he understood or could apply
military tactics.- But the first engagement between the forces was a
drawn battle. Lafayette's men in the retreat were maneuvred with
cleverness. The vexation of Cornwallis was added to by the fact that
Clinton begged him to send three thousand of his men northward to
his relief. Cornwallis was ordered to put himself behind the defences
at Portsmouth, and, as soon as he started for this place, Lafayette
followed after in close pursuit. Lafayette received some severe checks
on this march.
Green, meantime, was marching southward. One of the English
forts was taken. This success was due to the erection of a wooden

THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA. 407
tower of logs, so tall that it could overlook the stockade. Here the
sharpshooters could pick off the garrison without danger to themselves.
In course of time other forts were taken by the same means. Thus the
hostilities at the South progressed. They were made up mostly of
skirmishes, to which the name of battles could not be appropriately
applied, but the fighting was fierce, and the consequences marked.
The personal partisanship of the colonies grew, rather than decreased,
and all the while a net was slowly closing about the English. Green
was frequently defeated and compelled to retreat, but as the enemy fol
lowed up his forces, they became only the more enmeshed in the web
which he was weaving about them. Washington himself crossed the
Delaware and reinforced Lafayette. Following him came Rochambeau
with his force. Clinton was mewed in New York, and, as his call for
reinforcements showed, was continually expecting an attack from Wash
ington. In fact, Washington had been threatening that city all summer,
and his rapid movements toward the South were unknown by Clinton
for some time. De Grasse, the admiral of the French fleet, had been
requested by Washington to come from the West Indies and join him in
the Chesapeake. As Washington neared the lower part of that bay and
learned that the summons had been promptly obeyed, he rode back to
tell Rochambeau himself, waving his hat and calling to the French
commander like a child. This, he felt sure, was the herald of victory
and peace. Fifteen hundred men were carried down the Chesapeake
Bay in boats to the mouth of the James river. The rest went to
Annapolis by aid of the French frigates and then marched overland.
Washington had time to stop for a day at his beautiful home, Mount
Vernon, and to entertain Rochambeau and all the other officers for a
few hurried hours. On the arrival of this large force Cornwallis with
drew behind the fortifications which he had built to defend Yorktown.
The American and French generals promptly laid works by which the
town might be approached — for the first time conducting a regular
siege by the system of scientific and technical warfare. On September
30th the town was surrounded. Cornwallis did all that he could to
annoy the men at work. This was the utmost that he could do. On
October 9th fire was opened by the besiegers, and one by one the
batteries and cannons of Cornwallis were rendered useless. He wrote a
letter begging Clinton to come to his help lest army and navy should
be lost. He made one attempt in the night to cross the York river and
escape, but a violent storm put an end to these plans, and on October
19th this brave general surrendered upon honorable terrhs. His most
24

408 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
important redoubts had been carried by assault. He had. been crowded
within the innermost part of his works. All avenues of escape were
shut off. There were many sick and wounded among his men, and it
would have been selfish and grossly inhuman to have required more
fighting from them. On the very day that he surrendered, Clinton
sailed from New York to the relief of Yorktown, but learning that
every British soldier in Virginia was a prisoner of war, put back again.
With it he sent the history of a dishonorable triumph which he
hoped would counterbalance it somewhat. This triumph was that of
an expedition against New London, commanded by Arnold. Arnold
landed his force at the mouth of the Thames river on September 6th.
He divided his force in two columns and marched one column up each
side of the river. His own home had been in New London, and he
made use of his local knowledge of the town to direct the troops which
had been sent to destroy it. Cornwallis, it is said, refused to have him
under his command in Virginia, and it was this that caused his diversion
northward. The expedition against New London had been proposed
by the Commander-in-chief to divert Washington's attention from the
South. It was hoped that he might return to the protection of New
England. New London was surrounded and burnt. The militia of
the neighborhood gathered in Fort Griswold, but they had not nearly
force enough to man the parapets. Arnold's men were crazy with
liquor. These poured over the earthworks and demanded surrender.
Ledyard, the American commander, ordered his men to throw down
their arms and surrender to Major Bronfield, who was at the head of
the Englishmen. That officer stabbed Ledyard with his own sword as
he surrendered it and a general massacre followed in which the whole
garrison were killed or wounded. Of these, only three had been killed
before Ledyard had given the order to surrender. The dead were
stripped of their clothing, and when preparations were made for blowing
up the magazine of the fort, the wounded were piled upon a wagon and
which, being sent rolling down the steep hill, against a tree, many of
the wounded were killed by the shock. Groton, on the other side
of the river, was also burnt, though Arnold, it is said, had the humanity
to direct that a few of the houses, belonging to old friends, should be
spared. FOR FURTHER READING :
Fiction— J. P. Kennedy's "Horseshoe Robinson."
J. P. Simms1 "The Scout."
" " "Catherine Walton."
" " "Woodcraft."
" " "Foragers."
" " "Eutaw."

CHAPTER LXVI.

Wp ykm\nvt Y$vm$ tip jSttmrir*
CONDITION OP THE COUNTRY AT THE CLOSE OF THE REVOLUTION-
JOHN ADAMS MADE MINISTER TO ENGLAND — THE DISBAND
ING OF THE ARMY — THE CALL FOR DELEGATES TO
CONSTRUCT A CONSTITUTION.

HE surrender of Cornwallis did not end the troubles
of this country. The people were neither at war
nor at peace. They were very poor, terribly in
debt, with a standing army which they dare not
dissolve still on their hands, and no government
except that of the Continental Congress. Com
merce could not be conducted upon the seas without
danger. The fisheries were not yet open to Americans,
and the English still held some of the military posts.
To remedy these troubles and bring about a condition
of greater order and prosperity, was the ambition of
every man in America; but from the outset, they were
divided as to the means. One party desired that the
country might have a general government. The other
preferred that each State should have a government of its
own, but that for safety, all should be united in a confederation. Thus,
for several years after the war, the country was in a state of half peace,
which was most unhappy in its effects. Meanwhile the political
disagreements of the people strengthened and multiplied. The weak
ness of the confederation was becoming apparent. Congress had only
an advisory power. It could compel no measures and had always to
wait for the sanction of the people in everything. It was remarked at
the time that it could not even command the money to buy the quills
with which the pens for writing the laws were made. It had been
necessary for years to run the government and the army upon loans.
Franklin, John Adams and the other commissoners in Europe had

410 THE STORY OP AMERICA.
talked constantly about the great value of American lands, and thus
money was easily secured from European financiers. But the money
borrowed was insufficient to meet the demands of the people, and paper
currency had been issued. In course of time two hundred million
dollars of Continental currency was sent afloat. Congress seemed to
think for a time that to make money it needed only to have a printing
press which could send out crisp sheets of paper. But this currency
fell steadily in value until, in 1779, one hundred paper dollars were
worth only two and a half dollars in silver. The last issue of the
Continental currency still exist in the large sheets in which they were
printed. The man who received the sheet from the public treasury did
not think it worth while to cut it into separate bills. The country now
needed specie, and this began to be furnished in small quantities by the
payment of gold, which the French commissaries paid for the supplies
they required for their men. Trade was slowly opening up with
Europe again, and every shipment brought a little valuable coin to the
impoverished commerce of America. The right to the fisheries of
eastern waters and the right to dry fish on the uninhabited lands of the
coast were secured to the Americans by John Adams, who obtained it
with great persistence.
Scarcely had the war terminated, when each country charged the
other with the violation of the treaty of peace. The disputes were so
hot that it was decided to hasten the appointment of a minister
plenipotentiary to the court of Great Britain. In February, 1785,
John Adams was made Ambassador to represent the United States at
that court. Meantime, civil war on the northern American frontier had
more than once seemed certain. Vermont was determined to preserve
her independence, in spite of the claims of New York on the one side,
and New Hampshire on the other. She had asked again and again for
admission to the Union, but this had been denied her, partly because of
the jealousy of her neighbors, and partly for the reason that the
Southern States were unwilling to have a Northern State entered with
out a Southern one to counterbalance it. Vermont had no political
existence as a distinct colony of the Crown, at the time that the thirteen
other States were created into a confederacy by the agreement of the
representatives, and it was now claimed that this was one reason why
her prayer should not be granted. The "Green Mountain Boys" felt
that if the Union owed nothing to them, they, in turn, owed nothing
to the Union. They therefore threatened to offer Great Britain terms
of peace and allegiance. Only then did Congress awaken to the danger

THE PLOWSHARE VERSUS THE SWORD. 411
which threatened. In the spring of 1781 a force of ten thousand men
from Canada threatened an invasion across the northern border.
Washington dared not spare a man from his army. The panic every
where was intense. Letters were written by certain English generals
to Ethan Allen, begging the people of Vermont to return to their
allegiance to the King, and promising, in the case of her revolt against
the United States, she would be made an independent British province.
Perhaps the people of Vermont never had any intention of accepting
this invitation, and that they only endeavored to mislead their country
men for the purpose of making them do as they wished, but it is certain
that for a time they were considered as very dangerous and treacherous
neighbors by the inhabitants of the States. Concessions were made by
New York and New Hampshire, and Vermont was given the boundary
lines which she herself had drawn, so that when peace was declared
Vermont was not a British province. She was not, however, admitted
as a State to the Union till 1791.
In these years of turmoil and perplexity one of the things which
distressed Washington, and the people in general, was that the English
continued to hold New York, Charleston and Savannah. While the
enemy was still in the country it was impossible for Washington to dis
band his army, and the men, without pay and with little to eat or wear,
became exceedingly discontented and mischievous. They now knew by
experience what they could do by force of arms, and it is little wonder
that they plotted among themselves to bring about a state of affairs
which would give them increased importance and comfort. Letters
were circulated in camp, setting forth the injustice with which the army
had been treated, and suggesting that it refuse to disband unless its
rightful dues were paid, and that Congress be told that this army
continue to exist and would keep its arms. A meeting was called on
the 1 ith of March. The writers and instigators of the letters had an idea
that the army would take the position for America which Cromwell's
army took for England. The leader of this army might, as Cromwell
had done, place himself at the head of the nation. When news of
these letters reached Washington, he asked the representatives of the
army to meet him for the purpose of talking the matter over. In the
meantime, a second letter was written which was even more outspoken
than the first. When Washington met the representatives the]' had
profited by reflection, and were prepared to receive in a humble spirit
the stern rebuke which Washington gave them. After setting forth
the true nature of these letters, exposing all the sophistry in them, and

412 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
calling their treasonable intentions by their right names, he begged the
army to have confidence in Congress, and promised to do all that he
could himself in their behalf. Resolutions were passed which declared
that the army viewed with abhorrence and rejected with disdain the
suggestions of the letters. Washington's common sense alone saved
the country, if not from overthrow, at least from terrible disaster. The
many weary months that followed before the soldiers were allowed to
return to their homes, were endured with comparative patience. At
one time a company of eighty recruits mutinied and took possession of
the State House in Philadelphia, but in a short time this insurrection
died from its own feebleness.
On November 25, 1782, New York was evacuated by the British,
and Washington marched in with his army to take possession. A little
less than a month afterwards the Commander-in-chief met his compan
ions in arms at Fraunces Tavern to take leave of them. It would be
difficult to imagine a scene of more dignified pathos. For years
Washington and many of his officers had been in the closest association.
They were more than comrades — they were friends — and the terrible
trials which they had undergone together, the great risks which they
had run, the difficulties which they had overcome, bound them as no
prosperous acquaintanceship could have done. Washington spoke a
few broken words of farewell, and the officers dispersed. On the 29th
of December he returned his commission to Congress, which was then
at Annapolis in public session.
On September 3, 1783, the final treaty of peace was signed at Paris,
by which Great Britain acknowledged the United States to be free,
sovereign, and independent. At this time Philadelphia was the chief
city in the country, having a population of forty thousand. This' was
three times greater than that of New York and twice as large as that of
Boston. New York was still suffering from the effects of the devasta
tion caused by the war. In New England the people were busy with
ship-building and coast trading. Throughout the Middle States
manufacturing was rapidly increasing. The Southern States were
made up of plantations worked by slaves.
Between England and America the balance of trade against this
country was greatly increasing. Within two years after peace was
declared the value of goods imported from England into the United
States was nearly thirty million dollars, while the exports for the same
time were only between eight and nine millions. What little good
money there was in the United States was thus drawn off to England, for

THE PLOWSHARE VERSUS THE SWORD. 413
the young manufactures of America could not, it goes without saying,
compete with those of England. In 1783 the debt of the United States
was forty-two millions, and that of the separate States, twenty millions.
There was no mint, and both Congress and States continued to issue
currency. It was in vain that Congress implored the States to provide
means for paying their debts. England, with difficulty, collected the
debts due her by the Americans, and it looked as if the States, for com
mercial reasons alone, might be forced to yield their independence and
return to a country which would at least provide them with a government
and an exchecquer. The Congress of Delegates, which had been formed
with such haste at the breaking out of the Revolution, and which was
composed of men from all parts of the country, was not equal to meeting
the present emergencies. Washington himself, who never made a
written statement without deep thought and reflection, admitted that
Congress was not able to execute the functions of government. John
Adams wrote from England that so contemptible was America in the eyes
of Great Britain that she was not considered at all in state matters.
Thomas Jefferson was Minister to France, and was obliged to exercise
all of his ingenuity to keep America and American commerce
rightly before the French court. Since the disregard of governmeiit
was so great in the old States, it is not surprising that on the frontier
this was carried to still greater lengths. In the Wyoming country of
Pennsylvania there had long been a dispute concerning boundaries and
rights which reached a crisis in 1786. The settlers took up arms and
declared their intention to form a new State, but they were suppressed
as rioters. In the western part of North Carolina a number of counties
set up an independent government, calling themselves the State of
Franklin, but this soon came to an end through internal troubles. In
several different places efforts were made by armed mobs to prevent the
sitting of courts and legislatures, but like most mobs, these were
dissolved with comparatively little trouble. About this time Alexander
Hamilton proposed that a national convention meet at Philadelphia in
May, 1787, for the purpose of providing a new constitution which
should give strength to the Federal Government. Addresses were sent
to the legislatures asking them to send delegates to this convention. In
Congress, the party which objected to the consolidation of power was the
stronger, and this only consented to the convention on the condition
that it confine itself to revising the articles of confederation.
FOR FURTHER READING:
Fiction— J. E. Cooke's "The Youth of Jefferson." "Rose Hill."
J. P. Kennedy's "Swallow Barn."

CHAPTER LXVI I.
"Iftrsi itt H[ar+ l|ir$l ttt Jmt"
THE FORMING OF THE CONSTITUTION — WASHINGTON ELECTED
PRESIDENT.

'HE convention met at the time appointed,
with George Washington in the chair. The
legislative chambei was the same in which the
Declaration of Independence had been signed,
and many of the signers were then present.
The most influential men of the States were
there, many of them differing bitterly in opinion, but
all agreeing in their desire to give to the United States
a constitution which should add to its dignity and'
power. The greatest cause of dispute was about the
preponderance of power. The question was: Should
power rest in the people, or in Congress? In other
words, should the general government coerce the States,
or should the States be sovereign to themselves? The
promise that the convention was only to revise the
articles of confederation as Congress desired was, of course, brought to
notice. Various plans were laid before the House by Alexander
Hamilton, and other leaders of public thought. All of these were
considered in turn. Randolph, of Virginia, and Patterson, of New
Jersey, had plans of government which were long debated upon. But
so angry and hopeless did the debates become, that even the calmest
and most judicious despaired of reaching any results. Benjamin
Franklin, an old man now, was present, and in the midst of these diffi
culties and misunderstandings he arose and made this speech: "It is to
be feared that the members of this convention are not in temper, at
this moment, to approach the subject on which we differ, in a candid
spirit. I would, therefore, propose, Mr. President, that, without pro
ceeding further in this business at this time, the convention shall

GEORGE WASHINGTON.
After painting by John Gilbert Charles Stuart and engraving by James Heath, Athenaeum, Boston.

"FIRST IN WAR, FIRST IN PEACE." 417
adjourn for three days, in order to let the present ferment pass off,
and to afford time for a more full, free and dispassionate investi
gation of the subject; and I would earnestly recommend to the members
of this convention that they spend the time of this recess, not in asso
ciating with their own party and devising new arguments to fortify
themselves in their old opinions, but that they mix with members of
opposite sentiments, lend a patient ear to their reasonings, and candidly
allow them all the weight to which they may be entitled; and when
we assemble again I hope it will be with a determination to form a
Constitution, if not such a one as we can individually and in all respects
approve, yet the best which, under existing circumstances, can be
obtained. Before I sit down, Mr. President, I will suggest another
matter, and I am really surprised that it has not been proposed by some
other member at an earlier period of our deliberations. I will suggest,
Mr. President, the propriety of nominating and appointing, before we
separate, a chaplain to this convention, whose duty it shall be
uniformly to assemble with us and introduce the business of each day
by imploring the assistance of Heaven, and asking Its blessing upon
our deliberations. ' ' The three days were spent in the manner which
Dr. Franklin advised, and, on reassembling, the chaplain who had been
appointed appeared and led the devotions of the assembly. Dr.
Franklin addressed the house first, as everyone expected and desired
that he should do. His wisdom, experience, common sense and deep-
seated calmness gave a placidity to the convention which it had not had
before. With more earnest intentions the convention renewed its work.
The Constitution was finally amended. It prescribed that the laws of
the United States were, thenceforth, to be administered, not by a
confederacy or mere league of friendship between the sovereign States,
but by a government distributed into three great departments — legisla
tive, judicial and executive; that the powers of government should be
limited to concerns pertaining to the whole people, leaving the internal
administration of each State in time of peace to its own constitutional
laws, provided, that they, should be republican, and interfering with
them as little as possible in case of war; that the legislative
power of this government should be divided between the two
assemblies, one representing directly the people of the separate States,
and the other their legislatures; that the executive power of this
government should be vested in one person, chosen for four years, with
certain qualifications of age and nativity, and invested with a qualified
negative upon the enactments of the laws; and that the judicial power

41 8 THE STORY OP AMERICA.
should consist of tribunals, inferior and supreme, to be instituted and
organized by Congress, the judges removable only by impeachment.
Washington signed the Constitution first, remarking solemnly as he did
so: "Should the States reject this excellent Constitution, the probability
is that an opportunity will never again be offered to cancel another in
peace; the next will be drawn in blood." With three exceptions the
Constitution was signed by all the delegates present. The convention,
however, which framed the Constitution, was not clothed with legisla
tive power, and the Constitution was, therefore, referred to the several
States. In the summer of 1788, nine of the States ratified it. Rhode
Island was the last of the thirteen original States to accept the Constitu
tion, which she did in May, 1790. The year of suspense was full of
internal troubles. In New York, the brilliant young Alexander
Hamilton led the Federal party with dramatic fervor, and when his
triumph was made apparent by the ratification of the Constitution, a
great festival was held in New York City. There was a procession of
traders, merchants, artisans and professional men, who bore aloft on
their banners the names of Washington and Hamilton, and a frigate
fully manned, called the Federal ship ' 'Hamilton, ' ' was borne on wheels
through the streets, her cannons replying to the salutes with which she
was greeted.
The first Congress met in New York on March 4, 1789. When the
votes of the Presidential electors were counted, the first choice was
unanimous for Washington. John Adams received the largest number
of votes for Vice-President. A special messenger was sent by the
president of the Senate to notify Washington of his election. This
great man was living quietly at his princely home of Mount Vernon.
His home life was very dear to him, and it was with the most painful
reluctance that he took upon himself once more the burdens of the
nation. As Washington traveled from his home in Virginia to New
York, which was now the seat of government, he received enthusiastic
greetings everywhere. At Trenton, where he had fought with such
brilliancy, a triumphal arch was thrown across the bridge which he was
to cross. The arch was supported on thirteen pillars, which were
wreathed with flowers and bore inscriptions which must have been
deeply gratifying to him. Beneath this arch stood a party of young
girls with baskets of flowers in their hands, and they greeted Washington
with a song which had been composed for the occasion, strewing flowers
before him as they sang. As he neared New York a delegation was
sent to meet him. A barge, with a crew of thirteen to represent the

"FIRST IN WAR, FIRST IN PEACE." 419
colonies, was for his special use, and following this, with flying flags,
came many other boats. The Governor of the State and many other
distinguished persons awaited Washington at the wharf and escorted
him to his quarters, Washington preferring to walk up the crowded
streets that he might seem to enter the city in humbleness and good
fellowship. A few days later the ceremony of inauguration took place
in the balcony of what was then the Senate chamber. This was called
Federal Hall, and it stood at the meeting of four streets, which were
crowded to suffocation with people. Washington came on the balcony,
and the Chancellor of New York read the inaugural oath to him. After
the oath was administered, the people cried, "Long live George
Washington, President of the United States!" But this was a reminder
of kingly customs which was never repeated for any other President.
Flags were raised, cannons were fired and bells were rung, launching
in with joyful burst of song the new Republic, with a magistrate at its
head who, for wisdom, disinterestedness and pure patriotism, has never
been equaled by any following President save one. This was April
30, 1789. FOR FURTHER READING:
History— Curtis' "History of the Constitution."
Frothingham's "Rise of the Republic."
Fiction— N. M. Curtis' "Doom of the Tory Guard."

CHAPTER LXVIII.

jSbrlittg tip Hflpfe ti JPragrm*
HAMILTON'S POLICY AS THE FIRST SECRETARY OF STATE — INCREASE
OF AMERICAN COMMERCE — THE QUESTION OF SLAVERY
— FRONTIER TROUBLES AT THE WEST.

¦^

LEXANDER HAMILTON was made Secretary
/ of the Treasury, an office hardly second in
importance to that, of the President itself at this
time. If the nation was to be restored to pros
perity, it rested upon him to devise efficient
measures. Hamilton's policy from the first was
to give notice to the Old World that the new Federal
government assumed all the obligations of the old
confederation, and provided, as that enfeebled body
had not been able to do, for their discharge. Ham
ilton succeeded in getting the government to assume
the State debts. One of the first acts of Congress was
to pass a tariff bill, for Hamilton and many others
believed that protection was the only system possible
in that stage of national life and in the condition of
the civilized world. A national bank wTas started which was under
private direction, and yet served the government by making it owner
of one-fifth of the capital stock of ten million dollars and the preferred
borrower to the same amount. A hundred minor matters were attended
to by the Secretary with equal care. The sale of public lands increased,
regulations were made for the coast trade, navigation laws enacted,
revenue cutters established, light-houses built, and numerous plans
were formed for the sustaining of law and good order. A bill was passed
imposing a duty on imported domestic spirits, for the purpose of swelling
the revenue. American enterprise soon felt the benefit of these
measures. In 1787 the French government issued a decree placing
American citizens on the same commercial footing as Frenchmen, and

STARTING THE WHEELS OF PROGRESS. 421
admitting American produce free of duty. As France had a free trade
treaty with England, this act had much to do with the ceasing of com
mercial hostilities between America and England. When war broke
out between France and England, the carrying trade of the world fell
into the hands of the United States. The trade with the West Indies
became almost wholly American, for French ships could not go there.
Spanish trade was carried on under a neutral flag and English merchants
found it safer to use American vessels. Great commercial houses came
into existence. The trade with China and East India became a source
of , wealth, and the seamen of America were counted remarkable for their
enterprise and courage. •
The question of slavery was one of the most important with which
the Federal Congress interested itself. It was held that Congress had no
power over slavery in the States, but that it had power in the terri
tories. By the ordinance of 1787, all the territory northwest of the
Ohio then belonging to the United States, and comprising what is now
the States of Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Michigan and Wisconsin, was to
be the home of free labor forever. Slaves ' had become especially valu
able in the South by the growth of the cotton industry. In 1793,
Eli Whitney invented the cotton gin. America has been the home of
many great inventions, but none of them have been of greater import
ance than this to the Republic. It was the first key which was applied
to the unlocking of the natural capabilities of this land. Whitney was
the son of a Massachusetts farmer. He chanced to visit Georgia and
saw there the great difficulty with which the seed was separated from
the cotton. After a few months of hard study he invented a successful
machine which in one day, by the labor of a single hand, could do
more than was usually performed in many months by the old method.
Whitney afterward made a fortune by the invention of fire-arms. The
slave was thought to be a necessary part of the cotton trade, and there
fore assumed an importance in American affairs which it had never
before held. It is very interesting to note how good and bad tendencies
seemed to conflict with each other at this period of national history.
At this very time an impetus was given to public educational matters
which they had never received before. Education for all was a part of
the free government. Noah Webster began the publication of his
school books and gave his life up to the establishment of a national
literature. In these matters the young States led, rather than followed,
the older ones. Civilization spread westward and marked its progress by
a series of triumphs over the savages and the soil. John C. Symmes

422

THE STORY OF AMERICA.

obtained a grant of one million acres, bounded on the south by the Ohio,
and on the west by the Miami, and here, in 1788-9, South Bend and
Cincinnati were settled.
The English still retained some of the frontier posts, and about
these the Indians continually flocked. They were persuaded by the
English that the Americans had no claim to any territory beyond the
Ohio, and in truth every State westward had been an encroachment
upon Indian territory. Indian warfare upon the settlers, therefore,
took on its worst form here. At no time were the settlers safe. The
man who left his home in the morning never knew whether he should

Washington's treasure chest. (From a photograph.)
return alive to it or not, and would have felt no surprise if on returning
he should find his wife and children dead in his cabin. Several villages
were plundered and burned, and every train of emigrants was sure to
encounter danger, if not death. On the Ohio and other rivers many
tragic scenes were enacted. The Indians would watch for a passing
boat, murder the passengers, and let the boat-load of corpses drift with
the flow of the stream to the settlements below. In seven years fifteen
hundred persons were killed or captured by the Indians on the Ohio,
and twenty thousand horses were stolen. It was in vain that the
Americans sued for a treaty of peace. War was forced upon them — a

STARTING THE WHEELS OF PROGRESS. 423
war which ended in disaster the most serious ever sustained by an
American army in its battles with the Indians.
In the month of September, 1790, General Harmar was intrusted
with the duty of subduing the fierce tribes on the Miami and Wabash.
The general had with him a body of three hundred and twenty regulars,
who, being reinforced by the, militia of Pennsylvania and Kentucky,
formed a corps of four hundred and fifty-three men. Upon his approach
the Indians set fire to their villages, but they could not be brought to
an engagement. At length the Americans were unexpectedly attacked
and severely disabled. After this humiliation to the United States,
Congress, in the following year, 1791, strengthened the national
military force and placed in the hands of President Washington larger
means for the protection of the frontier. General St. Clair, then
Governor of the territory west of the Ohio, was appointed commander
of a large force. When Washington parted from him he impressed
upon him again and again the danger of a surprise. ' 'You know how
Indians fight," said he; "I repeat it, beware of a surprise." , St. Clair
went out into the wilderness with these words ringing in his ears, but
on the 4th of November, while the regulars were encamped on one of
the tributaries of the Wabash and the militia were resting upon a high
flat on the other side of the stream, they met with that disaster which
Washington had especially warned them against. The Indians rushed
upon them at a most unexpected moment, taking advantage of a
division of the army. Nearly half of St. Clair's force were slaughtered
and he beat a headlong retreat. His militia had proved useless, and
even his regulars had been panic-stricken. The Indians, as usual, fought
from cover, and against them the fire of the Americans, aimed at random
into a dusky forest, could have little effect. The pursuit was kept up
about four miles, when, fortunately for the Americans who still
survived, their foes could no longer restrain their eagerness for plunder,
and returned to rifle the bodies of the dead soldiers. For thirty miles
the terrified Americans continued their panic-stricken flight, throwing
away their arms as they went. They left their wounded at Fort Jeffer
son and retreated to Fort Washington, at Cincinnati. Washington
learned of the disaster with rage and agony. Never since the interview
at the battle of Monmouth did he so give way to that terrible wrath of
which he was capable. Thirty-eight officers and six hundred privates
were killed or missing, and twenty-one officers and two hundred and forty-
two privates wounded. Among the camp-followers were two hundred
and fifty women, most of whom were killed or captured.

424 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
No time was lost in sending out another expedition. The indig
nation of the people had been roused to the highest pitch. It was
said that during the fight several British officers were seen upon the
field with the Indians, who had come down from Detroit to urge on
their savage allies. The man sent out to take St. Clair's place was
General Anthony Wayne. His courage was reckless, and gained for
him the name of ' 'Mad Anthony, ' ' which he was called by his soldiers
more in love than criticism. Washington himself carefully instructed
Wayne in his mode of warfare. Nearly two years passed before Wayne
had gathered his four thousand men and built the line of forts necessary
to success. He followed Washington's directions implicity during all
this time. He never permitted his army to be divided, and marched
with open files that a line might be quickly formed in the thick woods.
It was his habit to halt early in the afternoon, that the camp might be
surrounded by a rampart of logs before nightfall. His cavalry laid
waste the country for many miles on each side of the line of march.
When he had four good forts behind him to offer protection in case of
retreat, he decided to> attack. The Indians had consented to an
engagement, and on the morning of August 20th the two forces met on
the banks of the Maumee river. The action was short and decisive.
The cavalry attacked the flanks of the Indian line and the infantry-
charged with the bayonet upon the centre, and as soon as they caused
a retreat, poured a volley of musket balls into their foes. The Indians
were pursued until within reach of the guns of the British fort. Here
the Americans encamped for a few days, destroying all the property in
the neighborhood. Wayne's loss was comparatively small, and for a
time the Indians were effectually subdued. A treaty was made with
them in 1795, by which they ceded a large tract of land to the United
States, and from that time the more rapid settlement of the West
began. FOR FURTHER READING:
History— Flint's "Indian Wars of the West."
Fiction — Gait's "Lawrie Todd."
Bird's "Nick of the Woods."

CHAPTER LXIX.
p Stutrftj Wxttm uf ll(ij$Ipttgkt+
DEATH OF FRANKLIN — THE HUMOR OF WASHINGTON'S TIME — THE
POLICY OP HAMILTON— THE PENNSYLVANIA
~) .WHISKY RIOTS.

long after Washington became President, one
of the greatest of Americans died — the first
scientist, perhaps, which this country had ever
produced. This was Dr. Benjamin . Franklin,
whose early life has been told of in another part
of this history. In the courts of England and of
France he won a consideration which was not paid
to any other envoy from the young nation. Had he
been known for no other reason, he would have been
celebrated as the discoverer of the electric fluid in light
ning. He had long been a student of electricity, and
formed a theory that lightning and the electric fluid
were the same thing. He was very much laughed at
when he circulated this idea, in a little pamphlet, and
he made up his mind to prove it to the satisfaction of everyone. He
and his young son together made a great kite of a silk handkerchief,
and fastening a piece of sharpened wire to the stick, went out to fly the
kite in a thunder-storm. As a low thunder-cloud passed, the electric
fluid went down the string of the kite and when Franklin touched the
key that he had fastened to the string, his knuckles drew sparks from it,
showing that the electricity was there. In a short time he invented the
lightning rod.
In all public matters he had great influence, and he founded more
good institutions and benevolent enterprises than any American of his
time. The last public act which he performed was to sign a memorial
to Congress, in behalf of the Philadelphia Anti-Slavery Society, asking
the abolition of slavery. He lived to be eighty-four, and died on April
17, 1790. Throughout the States the mourning was universal, and
25

426 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
in France the Assembly went into mourning for him three days.
At this time the customs and habits of the people of this republic
were very different from those of the present day. It was a ceremonious
age — an age of display — and the traditions of royal splendor still
clung, in a degree, about the capital of the republic. President Wash
ington was a man of great wealth, and one who believed that there
should be distinctions in men, and that honor should be paid to those
who deserved it. He desired, for instance, that the official name of the
President should be "High Mightiness," which were the words
employed in describing the Stadtholder of Holland, which at that time
was a republic. But this title was objected to, and Excellency was
substituted. Washington's levees were very stately entertainments,
and differed exceedingly from the free and easy receptions which are
at present held at the White House. Once in two weeks at precisely
three in the afternoon, the doors of the great dining-room were thrown
open. By the fire-place stood President Washington, with members of
his Cabinet and other distinguished gentlemen about him. His usual
dress was a black velvet coat, with white or pearl-colored waistcoat,
yellow gloves, and silver knee buckles and shoe buckles. His hair was
powdered and gathered in a silk bag behind. In his hand he carried a
cocked hat, and wore a long sword, with a scabbard of polished white
leather. The habit of shaking hands would have been considered too
familiar at that time, and Washington greeted each of his guests with
a courteous bow. Mrs. Washington gave brilliant evening levees,
which it was considered a great privilege to attend. Dinners and
public meetings were held in all the large towns of the nation on the
birthday of the President, and the local poets were expected to address
odes to Washington. When Washington drove to the sessions of Con
gress, he went in a state coach, the body of which was in the shape of a
hemisphere, cream-colored, bordered with flowers around the panels,
which were ornamented with figures representing cupids, and support
ing festoons. On great occasions the coach was drawn by six horses,
on ordinary occasions by four, and on Sundays by two only. The'
driver and postillions wore liveries of white and scarlet. This display
and formality upon the part of the President influenced the whole
nation. It was, indeed, but the continuation of the state in which the
Governors had lived. The forms of politeness were very elaborate, and
the people devoted much attention and money to their dress. In
Connecticut and Massachusetts there were still sumptuary laws against
extravagance, but at this time they were not enforced. Even the

THE COURTLY TIMES OF WASHINGTON. 427
clergymen wore wigs,' with gowns and bands, in the pulpit, and cocked
hats on the streets. The Judges of the Supreme Court, in winter, wore
robes of scarlet faced with velvet, and in summer, very full black silk
robes. It is still their practice to wear the latter sort. The ladies
dressed their hair with powder and pomatum, and built it to such a
great height above the head that it became necessary to have carriages
of greater height made than those which had previously been used.
At this time Sedan chairs were used as well as carriages, and in these

FRANKLIN'S GRAVE, PHILADELPHIA.

the grand dames were carried from place to place by two servants in
dashing liveries. The fadies themselves were gorgeous in rustling
brocades, powder, patches and jewels. These patches, which were of
black silk, were pasted upon the face, and were cut in a great variety
of fantastic shapes. There were crescents, stars, anchors and even
elephants, and a belle would sometimes decorate herself with at least
twenty of these. Gentlemen dressed as brilliantly as the ladies, and in

428 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
the same sort of fabrics. If a gentleman went abroad, he appeared in
his wig, white stock, white satin embroidered vest, black satin small
clothes with white silk stockings and fine broadcloth or velvet coat.
If at home, a velvet cap, sometimes with a fine linen one under it, took
the place of a wig, while a gown, frequently a colored damask lined
with silk, was subsituted for the coat, and the feet were covered with
leather slippers of some fancy color. No gentleman's costume was
complete without a snuff-box, and on these little trifles the greatest art
was expended. A salutation between friends was immediately followed
by an offer of snuff, and a man who did not take it laid himself open to
the charge of being discourteous.
The nation still felt the influence of Puritan prejudices, and was
only beginning to tolerate the theatre, which at one time had been
considered by the stern citizens of Massachusetts as one of tbe worst
beguilements of Satan. Massachusetts is spoken of, because in religious
and philosophic matters she was the leader. Private theatricals, which
Washington and other fashionable people occasionally had at their
houses, gradually paved the way for public entertainments. Musical
concerts were allowed at this time, which, in itself, marked quite a
growth in public taste and liberality, for at one time they would have
been considered the height of frivolity. Balls were popular, and some
of them were given .on a very large scale. The French Ambassador
gave one in Philadelphia which was so large that a building was erected
on purpose for the entertainment. It is said that on fete days the hair
dressers were kept so busy that ladies had to employ their services at 4
or 5 o'clock in the morning, and to sit upright all day to keep from
disturbing the head-dress.
It was thought that when the army was disbanded the country
would be filled with beggars, for it could hardly be expected that men
who had been kept without other occupation than that of arms for
eight years, would easily adapt themselves to ways of industry again.
But they went back to their workshops and farms, and places were
found for them by a people who, although they were capricious, were
certainly not ungrateful. At that time the working people did not, as
now, depend upon great monopolies for support. Cloth was spun in
almost every house; tallow candles made in every kitchen. Wood
was to be had almost for the chopping, and neighbors exchanged the
produce of their farms and gardens.
Secretary Hamilton was doing all in his power to restore the
commercial confidence of the people and place the government on a

THE COURTLY TTMES OF WASHINGTON. 429
sure financial basis. In trying to do this, he took some measures
which were very distasteful to the people. A bill drawn up by him
was passed in Congress in March, 1791, which increased the duty on
imported spirits, making it from twenty to forty cents- a gallon, and
what was still more offensive to the people, laid a tax on distillation,
The people of various States, held meetings, appointed committees, and
adopted resolutions asking for an unconditional repeal. Those who
accepted the offices of collectors were treated with every sort of indig
nity. Some of them were tarred and feathered, their houses were
burned, and they were ostracized, although many of them were men of
high business and social standing. The insurrection gathered rapidly
and finally organized for resistance to the law. Under the leadership
of John Holcraft, known more widely as "Tom the Tinker," the mob
attacked several houses in Pennsylvania. The handful of militia was
forced to surrender to them, and the mob burned several houses
belonging to the law-and-order party. A few days later the mail to
Philadelphia was stopped and the insurgents took from it several letters
which gave accounts of the riot. The writers of these letters were
severely persecuted. The insurgents next summoned the militia to
meet on Braddock's Field, August 1, 1794. Seven thousand came
armed and provisioned for four days, but when they were told to capture
Fort Pitt, they dispersed.
President Washington was alarmed, and fearing that the rebellion
might spread through the country, called on New Jersey, Pennsylvania,
Maryland and Virginia for fifteen thousand men, and sent commissioners
to the scene of the disturbance, with power to arrange for peaceful
submission any time before September 14th.- As these commissioners
soon returned without having come to any satisfactory arrangement, the
troops were put in motion with the Governors of New Jersey, Pennsyl
vania, and Virginia at the heads of their men, under the leadership of
General Henry Lee. Most of the disturbances were in the counties
west of the Alleghanies, and the soldiers were obliged to cross these
mountains, suffering not a little from disease and exposure as they did
so. The insurrection died quickly upon the appearance of the troops.
Some of the leaders left the country and some were arrested and
brought to trial. Only two were convicted of treason, and these were
pardoned bv the President. FOR FURTHER READING:
Fiction— Charlotte Walsingham's "Annette."
H. H. Brackenridge's "Modern Chivalry."

CHAPTER LXX.

% JbtttGtraaj.

THE POLITICAL PARTIES OP THE YOUNG NATION — THE JAY TREATY-
ELECTION OF JOHN ADAMS TO THE PRESIDENCY —
ALIEN AND SEDITION LAWS —
TROUBLE WITH
FRANCE.

HE influence of the French rebellion was strongly
felt in America, and the discontented among the
people showed a willingness to imitate, upon the
slightest provocation, the example of the French
people. The old French monarchy had been over
thrown, and an attempt made to establish a republic
in its iplace — an attempt which had led to violence
and bloodshed which had never been equaled in the
history of civilized nations. This struggle Americans
watched with much interest. They were not free from a
disinterested desire to see their great ally firmly estab
lished in a republic such as they themselves were found
ing. Jefferson had long been in Paris, and was among
the company of brilliant fanatics whose heads were after
wards sacrificed to the relentless commune. Of all of
them, he was the only one whose dream of power was finally realized,
and who, in later years, stood at the head of a nation. The party in
America which sympathized with the French and had democratic sim
plicity for their watchword, were inclined to quarrel with what was
considered the ostentation of President Washington, as well as with the
vigorous legislative measures of Secretary Hamilton. The men of this
party first called themselves Republicans, and afterwards Democrats.
Samuel Adams, as well as Jefferson, belonged to this party. The party
on the other side were known as Federalists, and desired that the States
should all be governed by one central government, and that to an extent
the judicial and executive laws of England should be imitated. Wash-

A DEMOCRACY. 43 1
ington, Hamilton and John Adams were among the foremost Feder
alists. Questions of international commerce were of the greatest polit
ical interest at the time, and the Federalists associated themselves with
protection, while Jefferson and his friends headed the free trade move
ment. From time to time different influences were brought to bear
upon each of these parties, and cliques or bauds of partisans came up
which held individual views of some of the questions of the day. The
Democrats were especially fearful that the national government would
become too powerful and destroy the rights of the States. They feared
that it might grow aristocratic and exclusive, as in European nations.
As early as 1791 a minister had been sent from England. He made
laws concerning the capture of French merchant vessels, which created
the strongest indignation among the Democrats. No minister arrived
in America from France until 1793, and the man sent was Edmund
Charles Genet, who was received with great enthusiasm by the -French
party in the United States, because he was one of the ' 'Liberators' ' who
had beheaded Louis XVI. He was intoxicated with the wild notions
of the French revolution, and had not the common sense to perceive
how different was the government which he was now sent to confer
with. He quarreled with the laws, threatened to head an uprising of
the people, and at last became so intolerable that the Americans were
obliged to request that he should be recalled.
The British continued to wage war upon the French vessels, and
issued an order directing cruisers to make a prize of any vessel carrying
the produce of a French colony or transporting supplies to such colony.
This, of course, was a serious interference with America as well as
France, and Congress decided to stop all commercial intercourse with
Great Britain till the western posts still held by the British were sur
rendered. Washington was anxious to avert war and in 1794 sent an
envoy extraordinary to London to negotiate a treaty of amity and com
merce. Chief Justice John Jay was the man selected for this enterprise.
The minister for foreign affairs in England met Jay half way, and
in a short time a treaty was agreed upon, which went into operation in
February, 1796. The withdrawal of British troops and garrisons from
the western posts was agreed upon, as well as free inland navigation and
trade to both nations upon lakes and rivers, except that the United
States were excluded from the domain of the Hudson Bay Company.
There were many other particulars relating to trade by water which
need, not be mentioned. Great Britain was to pay for losses by her
irregular captures by British cruisers. Citizens of either country were

432 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
permitted to hold landed property in the territory of the other, and no
private property was to be confiscated in case of war. Ships of war
were to be received in each other's ports. Citizens of either in the
other's territory were not to be molested, and criminals escaping from
one country to the other were to be delivered up. When this treaty
and all of its particulars were known about in America, it aroused the
warmest controversy. The President and most of his Cabinet were
fairly well pleased with it, but the Democrats were so incensed against
it that they proposed to nullify the law by withholding the necessary
appropriations to carry out the terms of the treaty. Their particular
argument was that it benefited England at the expense of France, and
that it was for the benefit of northern trade, and failed to provide for
the loss of slaves who fled with the British armies at the close of the
Revolution. The needed appropriations were obtained only after fierce
debates, only four votes from States south of the Potomac being given
in its favor. The South was ambitious for ascendancy, and already the
breach between the two sections became noticeable.
Washington's second administration was coming to an end. During
the eight years of his government the nation had gained more confi
dence in herself and had increased greatly in size. In 1792, Kentucky
had come into the union. This region was at first, as has been said
before, considered a part of Virginia. The Spanish government had,
at one time, endeavored to induce the Kentuckians to declare themselves
independent of the Union, and to join Louisiana, which still belonged
,to Spain, but these efforts failed. In 1796, Tennessee became a State.
This part of the country had been explored much earlier than Ken
tucky, and, indeed, may have been visited by De Soto, long before the
settlement of the Eastern States. It was, however, settled much more
slowly than Kentucky, and the settlers came chiefly from North Caro
lina. It was here that the attempt to establish the State of Franklin
was tried. This failed, after two or three years of unhealthy existence.
Being so near North Carolina, Kentucky could hardly fail to be a slave
State. At the end of Washington's Administration there were sixteen States
in the Union. The first census of the nation, which was taken in 1790,
showed a population of about four millions. Washington refused a third
election to the presidency. John Adams, of Massachusetts, who had been
Vice-President, was chosen by a small majority over Thomas Jefferson,
who, as it will be remembered, belonged to the Democratic party. In
those days the candidate who received the second number of votes in

A DEMOCRACY. 433
the presidential election was made Vice-President, and thus Thomas
Jefferson was given that position, although he and the chief executive
differed so widely in politics. From the breaking out of the Revolu
tion, President Adams had been one of the most unselfish of the patriots.
He had assisted in framing the Declaration of Independence, and had
been one of the Ambassadors to make the treaty with France at the
close of the war. But notwithstanding these services he was elected
against the protest of a large part of the nation. Never since has any
election been conducted with such bitterness of spirit and such public
revilement. The volcanic government of France had thrown into this
country many burning brands. The young ' 'philosophers, ' ' as they
termed themselves, could not, and would not, understand the principles
of this government. They were accomplished in vituperative rhetoric,
and astonished the moderate-speaking Americans with all sorts of wild
speeches, which were mistaken for eloquence. So troublesome did they
become that on June 18, 1798, were passed what were known as the
alien and sedition laws. By these, naturalization was restricted and the
President was permitted to send out of the country such aliens as he
thought dangerous to the United States. He was permitted to give
license to aliens to remain during his pleasure, and, if he wished, to
exact bonds for their good behavior. Aliens who had no license might
be imprisoned, and masters of vessels who brought them might be fined
for not reporting their arrival. The sedition law made five offences
penal. These were: "Defaming Congress or the President;" "excit
ing the hatred of the people against them;"" "stirring up sedition in
the United States;" "raising unlawful combinations for resisting laws, "
and "aiding foreign nations against the United States." A wild storm
of dissent greeted these acts, which, indeed, were hardly in keeping
with the sentiments which America had always voiced, calling herself
the asylum for the oppressed of all nations. In the legislatures of
Virginia and Kentucky it was declared that Congress had acted beyond
its constitutional powers; that the States were not bound to obey, and
that each State had the right to determine the question of constitu
tionality. With these resolutions, which Vice-President Jefferson
sanctioned, the Democratic party strengthened its power. The
Democratic party urged that these laws were such an insult to France,
which had many distinguished citizens in America, that she could -well
be excused for the diplomatic measures which she took to annoy
America. At one time nearly one thousand American vessels were
detained or captured by the French government, and when the American

434 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
government sent an envoy to France, the Directory ordered him to
quit the county. The English cruisers were also exceedingly annoying,
and the commanders had no hesitancy in searching for English seamen
on board of American vessels, under which pretext they frequently
kidnaped American seamen.
Adams was constantly hampered by the peace policy of Jefferson,
who did not believe that war was right in the new brotherhood which
had grown out of the French commune. But Adams had determination
enough to insist that another commission should be sent to France.
When1 this commission reached that country they were told that they
would be received by the Directory if they chose to make a handsome
loan to the French Republic. When the envoys refused to accept such
humiliating terms, they were ordered out of the country. Congress
determined to take a hostile attitude, and ordered the standing army to
be enlarged by twelve regiments. A navy of twenty-four vessels was
ordered, and merchantmen were allowed to arm themselves against the
French vessels of war. In theory, the two nations were at war, but
there were no engagements between them except among the cruisers.
Two serious conflicts took place in the West Indies. A heavy French
privateer and a French frigate were captured and sent into port as prizes.
But at this time Napoleon came into power, and everything was changed.
He received a new embassy sent out by Adams with great cordiality.
The French cruisers were told to leave American vessels alone, and
America changed her aspect to one of friendship. The Federalists,
who were for war, were thoroughly dissatisfied with peaceable measures.
The President tried in vain to take a middle course which should please
both parties, and succeeded in pleasing neither of them. The unpopular
sedition law was one of j:he things most talked of in the election of
1800, by which the administration of the government fell into the hands
of the Democrats, to remain there for a quarter of a century. But in
the meantime, there had been several occurrences of national interest
outside of this. FOR FURTHER READING:
Biography — "Life of John Jay."
History— Carlyle's "French Revolution."

CHAPTER LXXI.
% floWtt Jmr-tfe.

THE FRIES INSURRECTION — SELECTION OP THE NATIONAL CAPITAL-
p i DEATH OF WASHINGTON — LQUISIANA —
I AARON BURR.

.^t

j/MONG the things which awakened national
anxiety was the Fries insurrection of 1799.
Discontent with the window tax began to show
itself in 1798, and, in the spring of the following
year, a rebellion against it broke out in North
ampton county, Pennsylvania. It spread rapidly,
especially among the Germans. The . militia was
called out, the insurgents soon subdued, and their
leaders arrested. John Fries was tried for high
treason and found guilty after two trials, but the
President pardoned him. Fries afterwards became a
rich and respectable citizen of Philadelphia.
In the same year, 1799, the site of the national
capital was decided upon. Some of the members of
Congress were very anxious that the place should be New York. This
the southern members fiercely opposed, and threatened, as they always
did when in any way annoyed, to secede from the Union. There was
some thought of placing the national government at Philadelphia for
ten years, but a desire among many of the members that a permanent
site should be selected, hindered the carrying out of this plan. At
last it was agreed, ' 'that a district of territory on the river Potomac, at
some place between the mouths of the eastern branch and Connogoche-
ague, be, and at the same time is, hereby accepted for the permanent
site of the government of the United States. ' ' To this city was given
the name of Washington. The plan of the city was laid out by
Washington himself, and the present stately city shows how excellent
these plans were. But it was desolate enough when John Adams took
his wife to the White House, and placed her in charge of that mansion,

436 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
which in those days was considered by many as far too elaborate an
edifice for a republican president to live in. The long, unimproved
avenues, up which few people went, the deep morasses and thick
groves, were dreary surroundings for the nation's capital and the
residence of its President. Mrs. Adams complained that so few people
lived round about that they could not even get fire-wood drawn for
their comfort. The malaria which arose from the swamps was
dangerous indeed, and the expense of keeping up such a huge building
was entirely out of proportion to the President's salary. But these
inconveniences were, of course, soon remedied. There is no question
but that the site is a beautiful one for a large city. A level plain,
three miles in length and two miles wide, extended from the banks of
the Potomac to a range of hills bounding the plain on the east. The
hill on which the Capitol stands has a noble view. This is the centre
of the city, and the avenues radiate from it, thus making the city the
shape of an amphitheatre. The institutions of government, art,
science and education stand at great distances from each other, and
have given to the city its name of ,' 'The City of Magnificent Distances. ' '
Before the year 1799 had closed, George Washington was dead.
The party bitterness which had called down so many criticisms upon
him vanished suddenly out of sight. The nation recognized how much
it owed to his wisdom, uprightness, unselfishness and honest pride.
Congress declared what has since passed into a proverb, that he was
"First in war, first in peace, and first in the hearts of his countrymen,"
and Europe recognized the fact that one of the three great men of the
age had died. These three were Napoleon, Wellington and Washington,
and of them, Washington can safely be said to be the most disinterested.
When Thomas Jefferson followed Adams as President of the United
States, in 1801, his way was made comparatively easy for him, by the
fact that Napoleon was now at the head of the French nation. The
confused and complicated foreign conditions were altered. Especially
did this affect the West, where there had been a continual distrust
between the Americans and the Spaniards in Louisiana. Upon three
different occasions the western men had been upon the point of war, by
the authority and with the sanction of the President. One of the chief
causes of the quarrels was, that the Spanish commanders at New
Orleans refused to let the men from the territories unload any of their
exports at the New Orleans wharves. To end these troubles, Jefferson
sent Robert Livingstone to Paris, with a proposal to purchase the
island on which New Orleans stands, and the right of passage to the

A MODERN LUCIFER.

437

sea. The original territory of Louisiana,, be it understood, as a French
province, comprised the valleys of the Mississippi, the Ohio, the
Missouri and the Illinois. At the close of the French war, in 1763,
France ceded to Great Britain all that portion of Louisiana lying east
of the Mississippi and north of the Iberville, about a hundred miles

WASHINGTON'S GRAVE AT MOUNT VERNON.

above Orleans; at the same time France transferred to Spain all the
rest of her territory on the western side of the Mississippi. In 1800, the
province was returned to France by Spain. This will account for .the
fact that the officers at Orleans, civil and military, were sometimes
French and sometimes Spanish. At the time referred to the Intendant

438 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
of Orleans was a Spaniard, although France was the possessor of the
province. Robert Livingstone agreed, for the United States, to pay
sixty million francs to the French nation for the province of Louisiana.
When Napoleon heard that the negotiation had been completed, he
said, with great satisfaction, "I have given England a rival." In
America there was comparative indifference in regard to the purchase.
The western men were glad to be protected from the petty authority of
the foreign officers at Orleans. But Robert Livingstone said — and no
one contradicted him — that the United States had no wish to extend
their boundaries across the Mississippi. The government took posses
sion of the new territory by a public act on the 20th of December, 1803.
The Vice-President at this time was Aaron Burr, one of the most
brilliant of American statesmen. When he had held the position of
Vice-President for three years, he committed the great crime which
began his downfall. He challenged Secretary Hamilton to a duel and
killed him, as both Burr and Hamilton and everyone else knew that he
would. In the election of 1804, when Jefferson was returned to office,
Burr was not re-elected, and George Clinton became Vice-President in
his stead. Burr was as restless and ambitious as ever. He had lost his
friends, but his thirst for power had only increased. It is hard to tell
just what motive actuated him when he drew about him a company of
adventurers, and sailed down the Mississippi river with all the theatrical
display and assurance of a conqueror. He and his followers were in
search of fortune, authority, and empire. No crusade of the middle
ages could have been more romantic or vaguely ambitious in its
purpose. Many people thought, and still think, that his intention was
to take Orleans and establish a western empire. Burr was a man of
very rare magnetism. The man who wished to disbelieve in him must
first avoid him. He was courtly, elegant, and accomplished, haughty
with men, and suave with women. He had offended Washington by
his profligacy, and on that account had been removed from Wash
ington's military family at the time of the Revolution. As he went
through the West, he took care to arouse in the pioneers of that country
the hatred which they had so long felt against the Spaniards of Orleans.
He begged them to remember Philip Nolan, a young agent of the
American government, who had gone to Texas to collect horses for the
Spanish post at Orleans, under a pass from the Governor of Texas.
Through the treachery of the Spanish government he had been killed
and all of his companions sent to the mines — mines in which so many
unfortunates met with a mysterious end.

A MODERN LUCIFER.

439

Burr visited Blennerhassett' s Island, in the Ohio, not far from
Marietta. Harmon Blennerhassett and his beautiful wife were emi
grants from Ireland. ' They had purchased this exquisite island, built a
fine house upon it, and lived there in state which was little less than
princely. Even at that time of open and prodigal hospitality, they
were celebrated for the splendor of their entertainments, and their large
circle of distinguished friends. Mrs. Blennerhassett was a woman of

DUEL BETWEEN BURR AND HAMILTON.

queenly manners and of keen intellect, and the cleverest men and women
in the nation were glad to know her and to have the entree of her
house. Through her influence Burr won the co-operation of her
husband, and Harmon Blennerhassett united himself to the adventurer
and placed a large part of his fortune at his disposal. In the summer
of 1806 Burr made the attempt which he had so long threatened. On
Blennerhassett' s Island he collected boats, provisions, arms and ammu-

44° THE STORY OF AMERICA.
nition. Here a goodly number of recruits joined him, and as the boats
sailed down the Ohio and the Mississippi, other confederates were
picked up by the way.
Jefferson, for many reasons, had shut his eyes to Burr's actions as
long as possible, but was now forced into publishing a proclamation
which denounced the whole scheme, and the United States Marshals of
Virginia, Ohio and Kentucky made attempts to arrest the expedition,
which, however, were not successful. As Burr neared Natchez, he had
thirteen boats and sixty men in arms. Here the adventurer's party
found the militia of the territory in arms to oppose them, and they were
all taken to Natchez as prisoners. Burr was tried, but pronounced
guilty of no crime, which showed how thoroughly the western people
sympathized with him. Disguised as a boatman, he disappeared into
the wilderness. In the middle of January he was discovered and
arrested, and conducted to Richmond, Virginia, to be tried by the
United States on a charge of high treason. Such, however, were his
personal attractions still, that when he was placed under guard, it was
thought necessary that every man in the squad should be taken apart
and compelled to swear that no interviews should be held with Burr
upon the road, and that he should not be permitted to escape. His
trial lasted three or four weeks, and ended in a verdict of not guilty.
Burr became an exile in Europe, where he lived in great poverty
and wasr shunned as a felon and an outlaw. He was ordered to quit
England and while in France was kept constantly under the eyes of the
police. Weary of such existence, he returned to America and resumed
his profession of the law, but he never won the confidence or the
friendship of any of his countrymen. His daughter Theodosia alone
remained loyal to him. She was the wife of Governor Allston, of South
Carolina. When she heard that Burr was returning from France, she
set out from Charleston to meet him at New York, but the boat in
which she sailed was never heard of again. This blow was the bitterest
which Burr had endured, and the rest of his miserable life was spent
sorrowfully alone. Blennerhassett died bankrupt and broken-hearted
on the Isle of Guernsey. A few years later the beautiful Mrs. Blenner
hassett died in New York, in the most abject poverty, and was buried
by some lowly Irish women.
A fall more profound than that of Burr's has seldom been known.
He came within one vote of being President of the United States; he
died almost, if not literally, a beggar, with whom other beggars might
have been ashamed to associate.

CHAPTER LXXII.
JDstalttn* Urifattts*

THE PIRACY OF THE BARBARY STATES — WAR WITH TRIPOLI —
"P EXPLOITS OF OUR NAVAL HEROES — THE
J!%~J. TRIUMPH OP AMERICA.

ONSIDERING the comparative weakness and the
insignificance of the Barbary States, it seems
strange that for twenty years they should have
forced the United States to submit to the depreda
tions of their corsairs. From its earliest years
the American government made a mistake in its
treatment of the semi-barbarous States of northern
Africa. As early as 1787 a treaty was ratified with
Morocco, for which Congress paid eighty thousand dol
lars. In 1796 another was made with Algiers, by
which it was agreed to pay forty thousand dollars
for the release of thirteen Americans held as slaves
that State, a large amount of cash besides, and
an annual tribute of twenty-five thousand dollars as
the price of exemption from further aggressions. When there chanced
to be a delay in the first remittance the Dey exacted still further tribute,
and a ship of war costing about one hundred "thousand dollars, was
sent to him as a present for his daughter.
The Barbary States subsisted almost entirely by piracy, and it
was not upon the United States alone that they levied such tribute,
but upon European nations also, though, of course, England or France
at any time could easily have humiliated them had they taken the
trouble to do so. Thousands of Americans were taken captive and
millions of dollars were spent for ransom. It was a common thing for
notices to be read in American churches of the captivity of members of the
church in Tripoli or Algiers, and a sum of money was usually raised for
the ransom of each. It required four thousand dollars to rescue a captain
or a passenger. The Dey said that if the people of the United States
26

442 THE STORY OP AMERICA.
paid him tribute, they were his slaves, and acting upon this principle,
he force the frigate George Washington to carry his own tribute to the
Sultan. This tribute consisted partly of slaves and wild animals, and
was carried to Constantinople under the flag of the Barbary States.
This insult was more than even Jefferson, with his dislike for war, could
endure without a protest.
In 1801 Tripoli herself took the initiative and declared war before
America did so. Jefferson sent four of the six American vessels to the
Mediterranean. It was his policy to economize in every direction, and
he believed that a navy was an unnecessary expense. He thought all
that was necessary to protect the country was a few gunboats, capable
of bearing but one gun each, which were to be kept under shelter
where they could be easily launched in case of necessity. Many small
engagements were fought in the Mediterranean which brought no notable
results. In August, Lieutenant Sterrett, in the Enterprise, of twelve
guns and ninety men, fought with a Tripolitan vessel of fourteen guns,
off Malta. The Tripolitan vessel struck after a two-hours' fight, and
then discharged another broadside when the Americans had left their
guns and were cheering for their victory. Sterrett ordered his men back
to the guns and raked the treacherous ship from end to end, not stop
ping till the mizzen mast was shot away, the hull riddled, fifty men
killed and wounded and the colors thrown into the sea by the frantic
commander. Sterrett then ordered that the enemy should throw all
their arms and ammunition overboard. The remaining masts were cut
away, the ship completely dismantled and then left to make its way
home with a single sail. The Americans did not lose a man. As a
matter of fact the Tripolitans were not good fighters, and they relied
upon surprising their victims for their piratical successes. Their
triumphs had usually been over peaceful merchantmen, whom they ter
rorized by their wild manner and show of blood-thirstiness. It became
frequent for the Americans to destroy their vessels and crews without
loss to themselves. In July, 1802, the frigate Constellation fought nine
gunboats off Tripoli, and drove five of them ashore while the others
escaped into the harbor. In June of the next year there was a battle
of still greater odds. A cruiser from Tripoli, carrying twenty-two
guns, was driven into a bay seven leagues east of Tripoli. Here, with
nine gunboats about her and a body of cavalry on the beach, the John
Adams and the Enterprise fought at close range for three-quarters of an
hour, till the enemy's guns were silenced and her crew leaped over
board. The Americans were about to take possession of the boat,

DECATUR'S TRIBUNE. 443
when a boat-load of Tripolitans returned to her and re-opened fire.
The John Adams replied, and the colors on the Tripolitan vessel were
taken down. A moment later all her guns were discharged at once and
she blew up with an explosion which tore her to pieces.
In 1803, the squadron on the Mediterranean had increased to nine
ships, which carried in all two hundred and fourteen guns. The
Philadelphia captured a Moorish cruiser which the Governor of Tangiers
had authorized to prey upon American commerce. Commodore Preble
entered the harbor of Tangiers with four of his fleet and asked an
explanation of the Emperor, who claimed that he was not responsible
for the act of the Governor, and renewed the treaty with the United
States. The Philadelphia struck upon a reef in the harbor of Tripoli, and
while she was in this helpless state, was attacked by gunboats, and her
commander, Captain Bainbridge, was compelled to surrender. The
Tripolitans took advantage of an unusually high tide to haul her off
and refit her. The American commodore was, of course, anxious
to repossess this valuable vessel, or, failing in that, to unfit her for
service by the Tripolitans, and Stephen Decatur successfully carried
out a strategy by which this end was reached. He ran into the harbor
one night in February, 1804, in a small prize vessel, the Intrepid. He
pretended that the ship was a merchantman which had lost its anchor,
and gained consent to make fast to the Philadelphia. At a signal his
men arose from the decks, and poured through the ports and over the
decks of the frigate. The barbarians ran shrieking to hide in the hold
or dash into the sea, and in less than half an hour Decatur had cleared
the decks, put combustibles in every part of the ship and set fire to
them. By the time the Philadelphia was in flames the little vessel of
Decatur was sailing away out of the harbor without the loss of a man.
On August 3d Preble entered the harbor of Tripoli with his fleet
and bombarded the town from his mortar boats. His frigates and
schooners were out where they could fire upon the batteries. Of the
gunboats, three, for different reasons, were thrown out of the combat
and the other three closed with the enemy. One of these, commanded
by Lieutenant James Decatur, a brother of Stephen, forced a Tripolitan
gunboat to yield, but as he was stepping upon deck, was treacherously
shot through the head by the Tripolitan commander. The boats drifted
apart and the enemy escaped. Stephen Decatur, in command of
another boat, was fighting with might and main. He boarded one of
the enemy's boats, and dividing his men into two parties, charged

444 THE STORY OP AMERICA.
around each side of the open hatchway, calling for surrender and bayo
neting all who resisted. When he had done his work here thoroughly,
he closed with the boat where he knew his brother had just been mur
dered. He boarded this recklessly, and after a fierce fight, singled out
the captain who had shot his brother. He was an immense barbarian,
armed with a sharp pike. He and Decatur closed in a hand-to-hand
fight. Decatur' s sword broke at the hilt, and he parried the thrust of the
pike with his naked arm. It entered his breast, but he wrenched it out, .
tore the staff away from his enemy, grappled him and rolled him upon
the deck. The savage Turk struggled to draw his poniard, but Decatur
grasped his pistol and shot his antagonist, who fell back dying upon the
deck. In the midst of this, a blow was aimed at Decatur from behind
by a Tripolitan officer. This would doubtless have killed the distin
guished commander had not a young sailor named Reuben James
stretched out his arm to receive the blow. The life of Decatur was
saved, but it was at the expense of the right arm of the young sailor.
There were eighty men in the two boats captured by Decatur, and of
these fifty-two were killed or wounded. The third boat engaged in the
struggle was commanded by Lieutenant Tripp, who boarded one of the
enemy's gunboats and by a rebound of his own boat, was left with only
ten men on the deck of the enemy. The two commanders fought each
other — the Tripolitan with a sword, Tripp with a pike. The Ameri
can, covered with wounds, was forced to the deck, but with a sudden
renewal of strength, succeeded in piercing the Turk with his pike.
The rest of the crew surrendered. At the close of the engagement it
was found that three of the enemy's boats were sunk and three others
captured. The Americans had but fourteen killed and wounded.
A little later than this, Commodore Preble engaged in a conflict
with some of the enemy's vessels, in which he lost eighteen men.
Most of these were injured by the explosion of the magazines of one of
his gunboats. A few days later the bomb ketch Intrepid was fitted up
as an ' 'infernal, ' ' and one hundred barrels of powder and missiles were
put in her hold in tightly planked rooms. In the deck, immediately
above, were piled one hundred and fifty shells and a great quantity of
shot and fragments of iron. The plan was for her to be taken by a
crew of men in among the Tripolitan fleet. The combustibles were to
be fired and the men make their escape in two boats. There was a thick
haze over the water and her movements could not be seen by the
enemy. She had neared the enemy's batteries before they saw her and
opened fire. Exactly what happened has never been known, but a

DECATUR'S TRIBUNE. 445
light was seen to move horizontally along her deck, then to drop out of
sight, and the next minute there was a frightful explosion, a great
shaft of fire darting up from the vessel and the blazing rigging and
canvas were lifted high into the air. The thirteen bodies of the crew
were found two days later mangled beyond recognition. Little or no
harm had been done to the enemy by the explosion of the boat.
In November, 1804, Samuel Barron was made Commodore of the
Mediterranean squadron, which then consisted of ten vessels, carrying
two hundred and sixty-four guns. The United States had never before
•assembled so large a squadron. At this time America took advantage
of a national dispute among the Tripolitans to strengthen herself there.
The reigning Bashaw of Tripoli had gained the throne by deposing his
elder brother, and the United States agreed to reinstate the exiled
prince. They got together a force of adventurers from various nations
and the American flag was raised upon Derne — the first time that it ever
floated over any fortification on that side of the Atlantic. The town
surrendered, and the reigning Bashaw was frightened into making
peace. The United States no longer paid tribute, the prisoners in the
hands of the Tripolitans were ransomed, and for some time Barbary
States ceased to trouble America. But they dealt most unfairly by the
exiled prince, whom they had promised to return to his throne. Again
he was exiled, and this time without his wife and children, who were
kept as hostages by his brother for his peaceful behavior in the future.
He complained to the United States that they had left him in poverty
and wretchedness, but they paid no attention to his appeal. They were
learning lessons in statesmanship !
FOR FURTHER READING:
Biography— McKenzie's '%ife of Stephen Decatur."
Poetry— C. H. Calvert's "Reuben James."

CHAPTER LXXIII.

uz.

mm

a

EXPLORATION OF THE NORTHWEST — INTRODUCTION OF THE STEAM
BOAT — PASSAGE OF A LAW FORBIDDING THE AFRICAN
SLAVE TRADE — THE JEFFERSONIAN POLICY —
MARITIME TROUBLES.
Vo great enterprises marked Jefferson's adminis
tration. One of these was the invention of the
steamboat; the other was the exploration of the
Northwest by Meriwether Lewis and William
Clarke, whom the President sent out for that
purpose. The first person to propose the steam
boat was Thomas Paine, in 1778., during the Revolu
tion; and in 1784, James Ramsey built a vessel, which
reached a . speed of three or four miles an hour against
the stream, on the Potomac. James Fitch built one,
which was used on the Delaware, and predicted, to the
great amusement of everyone who heard of it, that
steamboats would one day cross the Atlantic. But
these boats were constructed upon a principle which
made them impracticable, and the first one built upon the present plan
was launched on the Hudson, by Robert Fulton, in 1807. Three
years before, Fulton had urged upon Napoleon, in Paris, his plans for
the steamboat. Napoleon, always progressive, was willing to witness
the trial of a boat and adopt it for the use of his nation, should it prove
successful. But the experimental vessel was built too slightly, and the
boiler and engine proved a greater weight than it could bear. They
broke through it, and sank to the bottom of the Seine. Fulton was
dismissed in disgrace, and returned to his own country. The Cler
mont, which he launched upon the Hudson, made the trip from New
York to Albany in thirty-two hours, and back again in thirty. Fulton
said that the morning he left New York, there were not more than

'JEFFERSONIAN SIMPLICITY."

447

thirty persons in the city who believed that the boat would ever move
one mile an hour. Indeed, he was laughed at very heartily, and the
vessel was called "Fulton's Folly." But as it went up the river
against wind and tide, at the rate of five miles an hour, throwing showers
of sparks into the air and making a great roar of machinery and paddles,
the people gave a shout of applause, the first sign of encouragement
which the devoted inventor had ever received. After this, steamboats
increased rapidly, and, by the suggestion of many thoughtful men, were
greatly improved and soon in general use, although it was a long time
before an ocean steamer was ever built, and it was not until 1812 that
a steamboat navigated the waters of the Ohio.
It was in 1804 that Lewis and Clarke were given their commissions
by the President, and started out with a large party to explore the

THE WHITE HOUSE, "WASHINGTON.

waters of the Missouri river, cross the mountain range and descend to
the Pacific. For twenty-six hundred miles they pushed their flotilla
against the current of the Missouri; then, leaving a considerable por
tion of the party to guard the boats, they crossed the mountains,
mounted on horses which they had captured, and discovered the two
streams which are known as the Lewis and Clarke rivers. -They
followed up these rivers to where they joined with the Columbia, and
then went on to the sea. Robert Grey, of Salem, Massachusetts, had
discovered the river Columbia in May, 1792, he being the first man to
carry the American flag around Cape Horn and up the Pacific ocean.

448 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
He had named the river after his ship, the Columbia Rediviva. Lewis
and Clarke met upon their journey with numerous Indian tribes who
had never before seen white men — many, indeed, who had never heard
of them. This journey was the first ever made by any white man to
the Pacific, north of the line of Mexico.
One important event that happened during Jefferson's administra
tion was the passage of a law forbidding ,the African slave trade. It
will be remembered that this trade had existed ever since 1619, and it
was agreed when the constitution was formed that there should be no
interference with the slave trade until January 1, 1808. More than a
year before that time President Jefferson called the attention of Congress
to the subject, and congratulated the members upon the fact that they
would soon be able to forbid the barbarous traffic. The debate which
followed in Congress was very long and bitter. Although no one was
in favor of continuing the slave trade, there were wonderfully wide
differences of opinion as to the best way of putting it down. It was
argued, too, that if it was right to hold slaves at all, it could not be
wrong to import them. At length, under the lead of Joshua Quincy,
of Massachusetts, and others, a law was passed forbidding the importa
tion of slaves from any foreign country- into the United States after the
year 1807. But in spite of the law, slaves were secretly imported for
many years, until treaties were made with other 'maritime countries by
which the slave trade was declared to be piracy. But it must be
understood that the slave trade between the different States of the
American Union was not abolished. The only States free from it were
those which had incorporated in their charter an act forbidding slavery
forever within their borders.
The population of the country had nearly doubled in twenty years.
At the end of the first ten years of the century the census showed a
population of seven million two hundred and forty thousand. Wealth
was increasing in a much greater proportion. After the invention of
Whitney's cotton gin the exportation of cotton had increased from one
hundred and eighty-nine thousand pounds exported in 1791, to sixty-
two million pounds exported in 181 1. Not alone in this, but in every
direction, increase of prosperity was visible. Ship-building and fisheries
were sources of great wealth. The State of Ohio was organized and
admitted into the Union in 1802, making the seventeenth State of the
Union. When its people adopted a constitution, they incorporated in
it some principles which were new to the world, and which were much
considered in the formation of other States. To encourage settlement,

JEFFERSONIAN SIMPLICITY. 449
they provided that for four years after any settler purchased land of the
United States no local taxes should be laid upon it, and Congress met
this generosity of the people with another gift, which has been made a
precedent in all similar legislation since that time. This law granted
to the State one township in each section of their survey for the estab
lishment of its schools. This gave to the new States of America
opportunities for public education which are unequaled in the world.
Thus it came about that for that State and all which followed it, every
man who desired could lay claim to a generous portion of land, and
could have, without expense to himself, a liberal education for all of
his children.
Emigration to the Ohio valley became rapid. It no longer seemed
as far west as it had previously, though people still thought that any
man who had looked upon Lake Michigan was a very great traveler
indeed. There had been but comparatively little interest felt in that
vast stretch of western territory, but the purchase of Louisiana, which
more than doubled the area of the national territory, and the tales which
Lewis and Clarke brought back of the richness of the mysterious north
west country, aroused an interest which had never been felt before. In
the narrative, which the explorers published, they told of finding the
buffalo so numerous that in one case a herd occupied the whole breadth
of the river a mile wide, and the party had to stop for an hour to see
the animals pass by. Trade with the Indians was another spur to
western excursions, and a New York merchant, John Jacob Astor,
started a trading post called Astoria at the mouth of the Columbia river.
But this post was afterwards sold to one of the British fur companies.
Jefferson's administration was very different in all social respects
from that of Washington and Adams. From the severity of his life
and habits we have gained the expression, "Jeffersonian simplicity."
Washington, upon his inauguration, had driven in a coach and six to
the capital, dressed in velvet and wearing costly jewels. Jefferson, on a
like occasion, rode on horseback in a dress which, though careful, was
certainly not ceremonious, When he dismounted he tied his own horse
to a post, walked unattended into the Capitol building, and read his
address. Upon his second election he did not go to the capital at all,
but set the example of sending a ' 'message' ' to Congress by a secretary.
This has been the practice ever since. He did not believe in those
stately ceremonies which had graced Washington's time, and he
abolished the weekly levees, only opening his doors on New Year's day
and the 4th of July, at which time he welcomed any one who cared to see

45° THE STORY OF AMERICA.
him. He was a strong believer in universal suffrage, and thought that
all men had a right to vote for their own rulers. The Democratic
party sustained him in this, but the Federal doubted whether it would
be safe to place the ballot in the hands of the people and leave govern
ment to popular vote. At that time republican government, even to
the most patriotic, was a thing looked on with distrust. Jefferson was
very anxious to pay off the indebtedness of the government, and he
succeeded in paying thirty-three millions of debt. This was largely
done by reducing the expense of government, and to this day it is a
mooted question as to whether this economy was wise or not.
A great carrying trade had fallen to America because of the European
war, which placed an embargo upon European courts. Holland, Italy
and France were largely dependent upon America for sugar, as well as
coffee. Tobacco and cotton were also largely exported. The extensive
trade of the West Indies was transacted for the most part through the
United States. So profitable did the carrying trade become that
building and maritime commerce increased in a ratio larger than that
of the population. In commercial rivalry with Great Britain, the new
nation almost equaled the old in her shipping on the seas. It was not
strange that the older nation should look on this with jealousy, and out
of this jealousy there grew a rancour which caused the seizure of many
an American merchantman. When it was proved that the ship was
neutral in the court of inquiry, it would be released, but if by chance
the cargo had been perishable, the ship owner had suffered a severe
damage for which he could obtain no reprisal.
Thus it happened that American merchantmen were constantly
obliged to submit to indignities of one sort and another. Chiefest
among these was the impressment of her seamen into the English
service, for it was quite common for English officers, seeking deserters
from the King's service, to overhaul American vessels and look for the
deserters, very frequently taking off with them an American-born man.
This trouble culminated in the proclamations known as the Decrees of
Berlin and Milan and the Orders in Council. By the Berlin and Milan
decrees, Napoleon declared the English Islands to be in a state of
blockade, and claimed the right to seize all vessels trading with England
or her dependencies. The English Government replied to these decrees
by the ' 'Orders in Council' ' prohibiting all commerce with those parts
of the continent of Europe which were under the dominion of France
or her allies. Practically, this meant all of Europe except Russia, and
laid American vessels open to seizure wherever they jnight go. The

JEFFERSONIAN SIMPLICITY. 45 1
United States protested against these blockades, and maintained that the
blockade of a port must be maintained by a competent force upon the
spot. This, of course, was the right and dignified position to take, but
the country had no navy to sustain its policy, and this is where
Jefferson's economy showed itself to be poor and false. He did not
even believe in fortifications for harbors, but thought they should be
protected by cannons on wheels, which could be dragged from place to
place as they were needed. Thus it was that America was obliged to
submit to these insults when native pride prompted every man in the
country to resent them. At length, however, the United States frigate
Chesapeake was overhauled at sea by an English vessel, which fired
several broadsides into the American ship. As the Chesapeake had
gone to sea without any expectation of war, the men were not able to
fire a gun, and the English officers carried off four deserters which had
belonged to their crew, but had been previously impressed from an
American ship. Jefferson forbade American harbors and waters to all
vessels of the English navy, and sent a vessel of war with a special
minister to Loudon to demand satisfaction. The English offered
reparation, but at the same time issued a proclamation, directing
commanders to make a demand for all English seamen serving on all
foreign ships of war, and to report refusal should they meet with it.
There would doubtless have been war as a result of this, had the
Americans possessed a navy to fight with. When Congress met in
1807, it prohibited the departure from American ports of all American
vessels. No merchandise of any kind was to be exported. The people
of the United States, and particularly of the South, were foolish enough
to believe that Europe would suffer severely if it did not receive her
products, and that they were practically making war against England
without expense to themselves or danger to their fellow-citizens. But
at the North, where men were engaged in commerce, ship-masters and
seamen were naturally dissatisfied with a measure which kept them
shut in port. It was actually a fact that the grass grew in the streets
and on the piers of the sea-board cities, and as week after week passed,
the depression of trade grew deeper, until the fallacy of the measure
became apparent to all, and Jefferson awoke to the realization that the
States which had been his warmest friends, rebelled against his policy.
At this time a presidential election came on.
FOR FURTHER READING:
Travels— I.ewis' and Clarke's "Expedition to the Rocky Mountains."
Fiction — Mrs. Stowe's "Minister's Wooing."
J. C. Hart's "Mariam Coffin."

CHAPTER LXXIV.

nv

ADMINISTRATION OF JAMES MADISON — THE SOUTHERN WAR PARTY
— DECLARATION OF WAR AND POPULAR PROTEST —
THE TROUBLES ON THE WESTERN FRON
TIER — THE CHICAGO MASSACRE
— SURRENDER OF
HULL.

nAMES MADISON, of Virginia, was the next
President. He had been a member of the conven
tion that had framed the Constitution, and had
been Jefferson's friend upon all occasions. Indeed
Jefferson may be said to have been his political
master, and he was anxious that when he left the presiden
tial chair, the mantle should fall upon Madison. Madison
came into power at a troublous time. The foreign rela
tions were especially unfortunate, and in the West there
was danger on the frontier. The Indian chief Tecumseh
and his brother the "Prophet" had for a long time been
trying to persuade the western tribes to give up drinking
whisky and return to the customs of their fathers.
Tecumseh held also that the treaty made in 1809, by
William Henry Harrison, Governor of the Indiana territory, with several
of the tribes, ceded to the government lands which belonged to the
Indians. Harrison invited Tecumseh and his brother to a conference,
which barely escaped ending in a massacre. The attitude of the
Indians was so threatening after this that Harrison, with two thousand
men, ascended the Wabash and built a military post at Terre Haute.
This was in 181 1. Harrison tried in vain to open friendly relations
with the "Prophet," but when he found that he could not hope to
succeed in doing this, he marched against the Indian village and
encamped within ten miles of it, on the Tippecanoe. On the morning

WAR AGAIN. 453
of September 7th his camp was surprised by the savages. The soldiers
had the presence of mind to put out their camp-fires, that they might
not furnish so ready a target for the arrows of the enemy, and forming
in a square, fought the Indians with courage. When the sun arose the
men who were mounted made a charge which dispersed the enemy.
Harrison found the Prophet's town deserted the next day and burnt it.
At this time Henry Clay, of Kentucky, and John Calhoun, of South
Carolina, both young and ambitious men, stood at the head of the
southern party who desired to have war with England. New England
was anxious for a fleet, if such a war was to be undertaken, but the
southern faction consisted of the slave-holding element, and were not
willing to unite with New England in any measure, or even to accept
her advice. The plan was to invade Canada by the enlargement of the
regular army and the help of the militia. Madison desired peace, but
as another election day rapidly neared, he was informed that unless he
declared for war he would not be renominated as a candidate for the
presidency. He was a man who had long been overshadowed by others,
and his ambition now was supreme. He declared war against England
June 18, 181 2.
A protest against the war was drawn up by Joshua Quincy, of Mas
sachusetts, and signed by thirty-eight members of the House. They
denounced the war as a pretext to give aid to Napoleon against Eng
land, and showed how unprepared the nation was, without either army
or navy, to begin a contest with the strongest nation in the world, and
they pointed out to their constituents the fact that the declaration of
war was a party measure and that it was dangerous to the Union in the
extreme. The people also expressed extreme disapprobation; ministers
made it the subject of sermons; it occupied the pens of the pamphlet
eers and was the subject most discussed in newspapers. Against the
Federalists, who took this view of the matter, the Democrats, who
constituted the war party, were greatly incensed. On June 22, 1812,
a mob sacked the office of the Federal Republican, in Baltimore, and
followed it up by doing great damage' to several houses belonging to
Federalists and to vessels in the harbor. Within a month the editor
of the Federal Republican, Alexander Hanson, once more issued his
sheet. The office was again attacked, but Hanson had taken means
for defending his property and fired upon the mob, killing one and
wounding several. When the militia was called out, instead of arrest
ing the rioters, they arrested Hanson and his party and lodged them in
jail, where they were again attacked by the mob, who killed, in the

454 THF STORY OF AMERICA. \
most wanton manner, General Lingen, and lamed General Henry Lee
for life. The ringleaders of the mob were tried, but acquitted. The
regular army at this time numbered six thousand men. To these were
added fifty thousand volunteers and one hundred thousand militiamen,
and Henry Dearborn, of Massachusetts, was given the command.
General William Hull, the Governor of Michigan, was appointed com
mander in the West and was ordered to be in readiness to invade Canada
in the event of war. His intimate acquaintance with the country made
him well aware of the danger which was run by taking a warlike atti
tude in a territory where there were so many Indians. But he was not
able to impress upon the government all of the needs and conditions,
and marched from Ohio with about two thousand men, chiefly militia,
who were especially uncontrollable and insubordinate. When the
declaration of war reached him, he promptly crossed the Detroit river, a
few miles below Detroit, for the purpose of taking Fort Maiden. He
issued a proclamation promising protection to the inhabitants, but
stating that no quarter would be given to those who were fighting in
company with the Indians. The news of the declaration of war reached
the Canadian commanders before it did Hull, and the first movement
was upon the part of the English who took the fort at Michelimackinac
by surprise and compelled its surrender. The Indians, who were
always ambitious to be on the strongest side, immediately joined the
English. This filled Hull with great apprehensions, and he sent to
Captain Nathan Heald, who was in command of Fort Dearborn, where
Chicago now stands, to hasten and join him at Detroit. The Indians
about Chicago were supposed to be friendly, but their actions were per
plexing, and Heald was anxious about the outcome. He promised the
Indians the property in the fort which he could not take away, and in
the night he destroyed the firearms, gunpowder and liquor, which was
the articles for which they were most eager. On the morning of August
15th, he set out with fifty soldiers and the families of the village. The
party followed the road by the shore of the lake which was guarded by
a low range of sand hills, behind which the disappointed Indians were
crouched. At a point near the southern extremity of what is now the
Lake Front Park, the Indians rushed upon them with their war cry.
In the conflict which followed, the women fought with the men, but they
were no match for the savages, and such as survived after a short but
deadly struggle surrendered. Of these, all the wounded were scalped,
for it was known that the British Colonel Proctor, at Maiden, had
offered a high price for American scalps. The children, twelve of

WAR AGAIN. 455
them in all, had been put together in one wagon, in the futile hope that
the Indians might spare them, but the little ones were all tomahawked
by one Indian. The massacre was attended by peculiar horrors, which
are too terrible to bear description.
At about the same time Hull sent out Thomas B. Van Home to
guard a supply train. Home's detachment met a force of English and
Indians at Brownstown, and were defeated with dreadful slaughter.
Another expedition, under Lieutenant-Colonel James Miller, was sent to
open communication with the base of supplies at Racine river. These
were caught in an Indian ambuscade, but after a valiant fight for two
hours succeeded in routing the savages and returned to their boats.
They left fifty of their comrades dead behind them, but had the satis
faction of knowing that twice that number of Indians had been killed.
Hull retreated to Detroit, where, with the eight hundred and fifty men
still left him, he made arrangements for defense. The rest of his men
had been sent on distant expeditions. On the 16th of August General
Isaac Brock, the English commander, crossed the Detroit river with over
two thousand regulars and Indians, and demanded the surrender of the
city. When Brock demanded surrender he had said that he could not
restrain his allies, the Indians, from rapine and murder, in case the
place should be carried by assault. Hull dared not rely upon his
insubordinate militia for any desperate fighting, and as he had learned
that the officers had formed a conspiracy to take away his command
from him, he decided to surrender. He knew that if he defended the
place and his enemies succeeded in defeating him, the fate of the
women and children would be terrible. Among them was a part of his
own family, and he had not the courage to run the risk. He
surrendered without making an effort to fight, and for this was counted
a traitor, tried by court-martial and condemned to be shot. But
Madison, remembering that he had served through the Revolution with
devotion, and feeling that the neglect of the government had much to
do with the case, pardoned him.
FOR FURTHER READING:
History— Drake's '%ife of Tecumseh and the Prophet."
Fiction— Richardson's "Hardscrabble."
Richardson's "Waumaugee."
Mrs. Kenzie's "Wau-bun."
Poetry— C. H. Colton's "Tecumseh."

CHAPTER LXXV.

"Tf tntr §m$ Hft tip jSlpp "
WAR OF l8l2 — THE NIAGARA CAMPAIGN — THE BATTLE OF QUEENS-
TOWN — NAVAL OPERATIONS — THE SIX TRIUMPHS OF THE
AMERICANS — AFFAIRS IN THE WEST — THE
CONFLICT ON THE LAKES —
'PERRY'S VICTORY.
.ENERAL STEPHEN VAN RENSSELAER
had been given command on the Niagara
frontier, with orders to capture the heights of
Queenstown. On the morning of October 13,
1 81 2, he sent two small columns across the river.
r~> Some of the men succeeded in landing, but
several of the boats lost their way. The regulars
charged up a hill and took position on a plateau, wait
ing here for the attack of the enemy. The American
force was worsted and obliged to retreat to the beach.
They were here reinforced, and ordered to scale the
heights, which they did, capturing a battery at the top
of the slope. General Brock had heard of the conflict,
and had ridden at full speed from Fort Dodge. Upon
his appearance on the field the English regained courage, and made an
effort to recover their battery. They drove the Americans to the very
verge of the precipice. The American commander realized that a
desperate defence must be made, and he cheered on his men to such a
fierce assault that the English broke and fled down the slope. General
Brock made a brave effort to reorganize the English, but fell, mortally
wounded. Three other officers in turn took up his command, but all
fell, and a retreat was ordered. Lieutenant-colonel Winfield Scott now
reinforced the Americans, and assumed command on the heights. He
had expected that the militia would follow him, but the militia refused
to be taken out of their State, and cautiously remained where they were.
The British were quick to take advantage of Scott's unprotected

'NEVER GIVE UP THE SHIP.

457

position, and charged upon him with a heavy force. He repelled them
twice with the bayonet, and upon the third charge, in which the
English were reinforced, the Americans were driven to the precipice,
and let themselves down from ledge to ledge, hanging by bushes and
roots till they reached the water. The boats were not here to receive
them, and they were forced to surrender, making the entire American
 loss in this action about one
thousand. The war party were much
opposed to the use of the
navy — if the few gunboats
possessed by the Americans
could be distinguished by
that name — but, at length,
Madison was persuaded to
order out the vessels, such
as they were. The
\ British navy at this
time had more than
one thousand vessels,
manned by one hun
dred and forty-four
thousand sailors. The
United States had
twenty large war
vessels and a few
gunboats, together
carrying about three
hundred guns. The
navy itself was anx
ious to take part in the war,
and one hour after consent
was given Commodore John
Rogers put to sea in the
President, and gave chase
to the English frigate Belvi-
dere, which escaped with a
loss of seven men. The Presi
dent lost sixteen men by the
bursting of a gun, and six

27

458 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
from the fire of the enemy. Rogers went on across the Atlantic,
capturing an English privateer and seven merchantmen, and retaking an
American prize. At the same time an English squadron off New
York captured several merchantmen and the man-of-war Nautilus.
Thus began the wars upon the seas. After this there were
numerous engagements, one of the most notable of which was the
victory of the frigate Constitution, under Captain Isaac Hull. He fought
the British frigate Guerriere. The vessels opened broadsides upon
each other at close range, and finally grappled, both parties trying to
board. But the sea was rough and the musketry fire unceasing, and
they were obliged to give this up. The Guerriere lost her mainmast
and foremast, and the Constitution freed herself, and got into a position
where she could take her antagonist fore and aft. The Guerriere,
therefore, struck. The Americans lost but fourteen men and the
British seventy-nine, losing their ship into the bargain, for in the
morning it was found necessary to blow her up, as she was sinking. It
was said that the victory to the Americans came through superior gun
practice, which was not a little astonishing to the English, who
had especially prided themselves upon proficiency in that direction.
The Americans had placed sights upon their guns and could, therefore,
fire with great accuracy. The English, as yet, had not adopted this
plan. When Captain Hull landed in Boston he was met with a public
welcome. Triumphal arches had been raised, the streets decorated,
and he and his officers were entertained at a public dinner. In New
York and Philadelphia he met with a like recognition of his services,
and Congress voted him a gold medal, and his crew fifty thousand
dollars. At the beginning of autumn, in the conflict between the
Wasp, of America, and the Frolic, of England, the vessels grappled and
the Americans sprang on the deck of the Frolic and compelled surrender.
The Frolic carried a large crew, of which only twenty were unhurt. A
few weeks later, Commodore Stephen Decatur captured a packet with
a large amount of specie, and afterwards fell in with the frigate Mace
donia with which he fought two hours. The Macedonia struck, and
owned to a loss of one hundred and four men. Decatur lost but twelve.
Captain Bainbridge fell in with the British frigate Java, off the coast of
South America, and after a fight of two hours the Java struck, having
lost every spar and one hundred and twenty men. Bainbridge' s frigate,
the Constitution, lost but thirty-four men. It was this engagement
which gave to the Constitution the title of "Old Ironsides." England
was amazed, that in the six encounters at sea the enemy should have

"never give up the ship." 459
been successful in every one. The war party of America was almost
amazed at the success of the navy, since it had steadily objected to its
use. But the capture of three hundred British merchantmen which
were now kept in American ports, and the presence of the three
thousand prisoners belonging to them, was a matter which could not be
belittled. Early in the winter of 1812, a new army, numbering about ten
thousand, drawn from the Western States, was put under command of
William Henry Harrison, for the purpose of recovering the territory
lost by Hull's surrender of Detroit. An advance detachment at that
time occupying Monroe, Michigan, was attacked on January 22d by
fifteen hundred British and Indians, under Colonel Henry Proctor. The
Americans fought behind fences, but these were poor shields against the
British artillery. General Winchester was captured, and from what he
saw in the enemy's lines, feared that wholesale slaughter would ensue
unless the Americans surrendered. He found means to send word to
that effect, and the Americans surrendered, under Proctor's promise of
protection against the Indians. This promise was broken, and the Indians
not only killed all the prisoners, but tortured them cruelly. Harrison
now hastened to build Fort Meigs, at the rapids of the Maumee river,
and Proctor besieged this work in April, threatening, as usual, that if
the place was carried by assault the men would be massacred. The
Americans succeeded in spiking the enemy's batteries, and Proctor was
forced to raise the siege. A little later, Tecumseh, the Indian chief,
joined Proctor, and their force, five thousand strong, attacked Fort
Stevenson, on the Sandusky, where Fremont now stands. The garrison
numbered but one hundred and sixty men and possessed but one gun.
When Major George Croghan received the summons to surrender or be
massacred, he replied that when the fort was taken there would be no
men left to kill. After bombarding the fort without effect for a long
time from their gunboats and with the field artillery, the British
advanced to the attack on two sides at the same moment. Croghan placed
his single gun where it would sweep the ditch. He loaded it to the
muzzle, and waited till the attacking party leaped over the ditch. In
the discharge it swept down nearly every man. A second column met
with a like fate and the party retreated.
The attention of the nation was turned more particularly for a time
to the lakes, where both parties were struggling hard for ascendancy.
Isaac Chauncey was the American commodore, and Sir James Yeo the
British admiral. Both countries had expended much money and pains

460 THE STORY OP AMERICA. 1
upon the fitting out of fleets, and here it was felt the war would be
largely decided. In April, 1813, Commodore Chauncey's fleet carried
General Dearborn and fifteen hundred men from Sackett's Harbor, and
landed them two miles west of what is now Toronto. At that time it
was called York, and was the capital of Upper Canada. The expedi
tion had for its purpose the capture of a large ship then building
at the docks, the capture of which Chauncey thought necessary
to his success. But the ship was afloat before Chauncey and
and his fleet reached York, and nothing came of the movement. When
the Americans had landed, under protection of a well-armed schooner,
the body of English and Indians, who had withstood them, fell back
behind some fortifications. They were closely followed by the Amer
icans, who ordered that a halt should be made till the artillery had time
to come up. While they were waiting, a magazine near the works,
containing one hundred barrels of powder, exploded, killing or wound
ing two hundred Americans. But they rallied and pressed forward into
the town, and during the four days which they remained, fired the
government buildings. In the legislative chamber they found a human
scalp hanging as a trophy, or a reminder of their Indian allies, and this
was sent, with the speaker's mace and a British standard, to Washing
ton. Chauncey now returned to Sackett's Harbor, landing Dearborn
and his force near the mouth of the Niagara river. Here, a month
later, Chauncey rejoined them and Fort George was taken. At this time
Yeo, the English admiral, with General Prevost, was on his way to
Sackett's Harbor, which had been left almost without defense at the
time that Dearborn was in York. The English attacked the town in
front, while their Indian allies fought at the rear. The American
militia fled after the first fire, but the regulars and volunteers fought
until they were forced to take refuge in the log barracks. Their com
mander ordered them to pretend to march for the boats, and General
Prevost, fearing that his escape would be cut off, ordered a retreat
leaving two hundred and sixty dead and wounded behind him. The
loss among the Americans was as severe in proportion to their numbers,
and their stores, which were worth half a million dollars, were unfortu
nately burned. Several other mishaps overtook the Americans on the
Niagara frontier, and closed the campaign for the summer with as
melancholy a record of defeat as could well be imagined.
On Lake Erie, however, there was an exploit which was most
successful for the Americans. Here a squadron was commanded by
Captain Oliver Hazard Perry. By August he was afloat with ten vessels,

"NEVER GIVE UP THE SHIP." 461
carrying fifty-five guns, in vigorous search" of the British squadron
of six vessels, which bore sixty-five guns and was commanded
by Captain Barclay. These forces did not meet till the
middle of September. The English squadron drew up in line of
battle, but the American line was straggling, and one of the American
vessels was soon reduced to a wreck and obliged to drop out of action.
Perry left her, took a small boat, and in the midst of a fierce storm of
bullets reached the Niagara. He sailed this vessel straight through
the British lines, delivering broadsides on both sides as he went. Then
getting across the bows of the English vessels he ra*ked two or three 'of
them while his smaller craft poured in grape and canister. Perry told
the outcome of the day's work in his brief despatch to General
Harrison: "We have met the enemy and they are ours — two ships,
two brigs, one schooner and one sloop. ' '
Harrison was transported by Perry's fleet to the Canadian shore of
the Detroit river and besieged Fort Maiden. The English general set
fire to the place and retreated, and Harrison pursued him by land while
Perry carried his baggage and supplies by water. On the 5th of
October Proctor turned about and faced his pursuers, choosing a posi
tion where he could plant his guns in a highway, and be protected on
each side by marshes. Tecumseh was with Proctor, and the Indians
and British were arrayed for the defence of the highway. Harrison
placed his mounted infantry in the front of the ranks, and faced the
Indians who were in the marsh. The horsemen moved slowly when the
bugle gave them the signal, but increased their pace till they dashed
with terrible force through the enemy, killing, capturing or scattering
the English regulars. Proctor was pursued by a dozen well-mounted
men, but escaped. Tecumseh was killed and the Indians fled. The
Americans had regained the territory of Michigan, and Harrison and
his troops returned to Buffalo. This decisive conflict was known as the
battle of the Thames. Hull, and then Dearborn, had then been retired
with their military reputations shattered, and General Wilkinson was
now put in charge of the northern forces, which consisted of Harrison's
force at Buffalo, the force at Fort George, that at Sackett's Harbor, and
the right wing of the Vermont frontier, under Wade Hampton, these
numbering altogether about twelve thousand men. Wilkinson was in
poor health, and was much more interested in a whisky bottle than in a
campaign, and therefore left his command largely to inferior officers.
It was the plan for him to move down the St. Lawrence with a part of
the men, while Hampton was to advance overland, make a junction

462 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
with him and the whole army was to move upon Montreal. To make
the road easy, Chauncey drove Yeo into port and kept him there. But
notwithstanding this, the Americans met with many disasters. The
weather was bad, the boats poor, and some were driven ashore, while
others went to the bottom, causing the delay of the whole flotilla until
they could be replaced. At Williamsburg, they encountered troops to the
number of seventeen hundred. A sharp battle followed, from which
both parties retired in good order with a loss which was similar upon
both sides. The other general, Wade Hampton, was as inefficient as
Wilkinson, and he sent word that he could not make the junction
agreed upon. Upon receiving this news Wilkinson willingly went
into winter quarters. Hampton, with five thousand men, had been
successfully checked by the English Lieutenant-Colonel de Dalaberry,
who had a force of four or five hundred. In December General Drum
mond appeared between Lakes Ontario and Erie, and the Americans
holding Fort George, which had been so expensively gained the summer
before, fled at his approach, taking refuge in Fort Niagara and burning
Newark as they went The enemy followed them and captured Fort
Niagara without meeting with any respectable resistance. They killed
eighty of the garrison, including the men in the hospital. A number
of towns were destroyed, and all the farming region laid waste, many
of the inhabitants being put to death.
FOR FURTHER READING:
Fiction — Kirkland's "Zury."
W. C Iron's "The Double Hero."
Poetry — J. G. Percrval's "Perry's Victory on Lake Erie."
Oliver W. Holmes' "Old Ironsides."
Levi Bishop's "Battle of the River Raisin."

CHAPTER LXXVI.
"JItre jo$*r
THE WAR WITH THE CREEKS — JACKSON'S CAMPAIGN — AFFAIRS ON
THE SEA-BOARD — "YANKEE" STRATEGY —
THE TREATY OF PEACE.

EFORE Wilkinson had been removed from the
southern to the northern departments, he had taken
Mobile away from the Spaniards. This he did
without resistance. It was done in accordance with
the claim that the eastern boundary of Louisiana
was the Perdido river. Spain denied this, and
resented the seizure of Mobile. The powerful tribe
of Creek Indians were given supplies of arms and am
munition at Pensacola and incited against the Americans.
Tecumseh, who had since met with a warrior's death,
had been sent south to lash the Creeks by his resentful
eloquence into a still more warlike frame of mind.
Both the English and the Spaniards urged them on,
and early in 1813 they began their hostilities. In the
first encounter they were defeated, but in the second one, at Fort
Mimms, a thousand of them, under the command of a noted half-breed,
William Weathersford, besieged a stockade in which the inhabitants of
the neighborhood had taken refuge. The men and women fought
together here for many hours, and large numbers of the Indians, were
killed, but the buildings were finally set on fire, and the Indians
massacred the people as usual, not even sparing the children. Only
twelve of the garrison escaped. The rest were murdered with horrible
tortures. The Southwestern States were prompt to punish these atrocities.
The legislature of Tennessee appropriated three hundred thousand
dollars for the campaign, and placed Andrew Jackson at the head of
five thousand men. These men were composed largely of Western

464 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
pioneers, well mounted, used to forest fighting, and capable of great
endurance. Among them were Sam Houston and Davy Crockett, men
which every American schoolboy counts among his heroes. Jackson
built Fort Deposit, on the Tennessee, as a depot for supplies, and
foraged the country thoroughly, burning every Indian village in his
way. The Indians were first met at the little village which occupied
the site of the present Jacksonville. The American detachment con
sisted of one thousand mounted men, who gave the Indians no quarter,
killing every one of them, and taking the squaws and children
prisoners. In a later encounter they killed three hundred out of one
thousand of the enemy. At this time a force of about fifteen hundred
came from Georgia, while from the West came another force, so that
the Creeks had enemies upon three sides of them. The Western men,
under General F. S. Claiborne, discovered a town of refuge on the
Alabama. This was built on holy ground, and no path led to it. In it
were the women, children and the prophets. When Claiborne broke in
upon their religious rites, he found captives bound to stakes ready to be
burned. Claiborne sacked and burned the town. By this time winter
had closed in, and the short enlistments of the men were expiring, and
therefore the operations for the year were closed.
Along the sea-board, America had met with continued disasters
through the year of 1813. Early in the spring a blockade had been
declared from Montauk Point, on the eastern extremity of Long Island,
to the mouth of the Mississippi. It was true that the British squadron
was not sufficient to guard such a vast extent of coast, but it was well
able to seriously interfere with commerce, and harass the people of the
towns. Admiral Cockburn was especially dreaded for his cruelties.
Along the shores of Delaware, Maryland, Virginia and North Carolina,
he waged an unsoldierly warfare upon the quiet people of the villages
and farms. His brutal sailors, half intoxicated, were allowed to over
run the country, robbing, burning, and committing every outrage which
their ungoverned viciousness prompted. Cockburn's men enticed away
slaves and sold them in the West Indies. But their destruction and
appropriation of property were the least of their offences.
In the course of the year Congress authorized the building of four
ships of the line, six frigates, six sloops of war, and as many vessels as
might be necessary for operation on the lakes. Besides these, a large
number of privateers were commissioned, and did some excellent
service. One of the most notable of the engagements between privateers
was between the Shannon and the Chesapeake. This happened before

465
Perry's victory on Lake Erie, and, indeed, the vessel which Perry
fought in was the Lawrence, named after the gallant commander of the
Chesapeake, and on Perry's flag were the last words of Captain
Lawrence, "Don't give up the ship." The fight between the Shannon
and the Chesapeake took place in Boston Bay, and the American
vessel was so injured that she became unmanageable. The enemy
swarmed upon the decks and poured a terrible fire down the hatchways,
and after an engagement of fifteen minutes the ship was theirs, and
though the fight had been so brief, the Chesapeake had forty-eight
killed and nearly one hundred wounded, and the Shannon twenty-three
killed and over fifty wounded. Another naval engagement with a
pathetic ending was that of the brig Enterprise, and the English brig
Boxer. The Boxer surrendered after a fight of three-quarters of an
hour, off the coast of Maine. Both captains were killed and buried side
by side in Portland. There is an exciting little story told of the fishing
smack Yankee, which had forty well-armed men concealed below, but
showed on deck only three men, a calf, a sheep, and a goose. After
sailing out of New York she met with a British sloop of war, the Eagle,
which was in want of provisions, and as the Yankees drew along side,
her forty men sprang on board the sloop of war, killed a number of the
crew, drove the rest below, and took possession, sailing up the bay with
their prize. Thousands cheered them from the battery, where they
were celebrating the anniversary of American independence. Perhaps
it is better to leave untold histories like that of the American brig
Argus, which captured an English merchantman laden with wine, to
which the crew were allowed to help themselves till they were all
drunk. They then set the prize on fire, and by this brilliant light
they were seen by the English brig Palatine, which bore down upon
the Argus and captured her. One disaster which greatly disheartened
the people was the defeat of Decatur, whose squadron was driven into
New London and kept there by the larger force of the blockaders, so
that none of these ships got to sea again while the war lasted. The
Connecticut militia gathered upon the shores in such numbers that it
was impossible for the English to capture them. But Decatur and his
officers fretted under the idleness and made more than one attempt to
break through the line of the enemy's ships. When they failed in
"these attempts they complained that there were traitors on shore, who
warned the ships outside of their movements by burning blue lights.
This the people of Connecticut stoutly denied, but as they belonged to
the party which was opposed to the war, they were not believed,

466 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
although their inilitia stood staunchly by Decatur's fleet week in and
week out. It is possible, and even probable, that upon occasions these
blue lights were burned by some traitor on shore, but it was the grossest
injustice to accuse the loyal people of Connecticut of this. It was a
time, however, of great political hatred, and the Federalists were always
afterward called the "Blue Lights."
As the year 1814 opened, the outlook for American success was
dark. Napoleon's power had been broken, and an act was passed to
increase the regular army to sixty-six thousand men. It was evident
that if England chose, she could overrun the country with veteran
troops. But negotiations for peace now began. It was decided that
these should be conducted at Gottenburg. John Quincy Adams, James
A. Bayard, Henry Clay, Jonathan Russell and Albert Gallatin were
appointed commissioners and instructed to insist that in the future
there should be no search or impressment by English naval commanders
upon American vessels, but to offer to exclude British seamen from
American vessels and to surrender deserters. This was practically
yielding up the cause for which the war had been fought, for had this
arrangement been made at the outset there could have been little excuse
for war. While these matters were under slow consideration, prepara
tions for the campaign of the coming year, 1814, were continued.
FOR FURTHER READING:
Biography— Abbott's "Life and Adventures of Davy Crockett."
"Life of Sam Houston."

CHAPTER LXXVll.
% Smmlrij Uplpnl h SajtHaL
JACKSON'S CAMPAIGN AMONG THE CREEKS — DISCOURAGEMENTS ON
THE NORTHERN FRONTIER — THE BATTLE OF LUNDY'S
LANE — THE WAR ON THE SEA-COAST FOR 1814 —
THE CAPTURE AND DESTRUCTION OF THE
CITY OF WASHINGTON — VICISSITUDES
AT THE SOUTH — THE BAT
TLE OF NEW OR
LEANS.

j^NDREW JACKSON had been made Major-Gen-
eral, and commanded nine hundred raw recruits.
His late army had gone home at the end of their
time of service, in spite of his prayers. With
these inexperienced men he marched into the
country of the Creeks, fought two battles, and
lost a hundred soldiers. Shortly after this, his army
was increased to five thousand men, and he renewed
hostilities. At Horseshoe Bend, in the Tallapoosa,
there is a peninsula of one hundred acres, with a neck
not more than five hundred feet wide. Upon this
peninsula one thousand Creek warriors encamped, and
threw up a rude breastwork across the neck. Jackson
marched with nearly three thousand men against this
defence, sending a detachment of mounted men and
friendly Indians to the enemy's rear. After cannonading without
effect upon the breastwork for two hours, Jackson saw smoke arising in
the rear and knew that his detachment had reached the Indian village
and fired it. He then ordered his men to storm the works, and they
fought hand-to-hand with their enemies through the loop-holes for a
while, then leaped the defence, and charged with the bayonet. It was
seldom that an Indian asked for quarter. His idea of warfare was to

468 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
kill or be killed, and he did not complain when luck was against him.
The Americans shot down the Indians as they ran to hide themselves
in the thickets, or to swiin the stream, and thus for a time the Creeks
were checked.
Not so encouraging was the reopening of affairs in the North.
Wilkinson's military career was ended in the beginning of the year by
two military disasters. The Secretary of War still wished to invade
Canada by the river St. Lawrence, and to do this, proposed to take
Kingston. To conceal this movement and to make sure that no enemy
was left in the rear, Major-General Brown was ordered to commence
operations on the peninsula between Erie and Ontario. On July 2d
he compelled the surrender of Fort Erie. On the 5th he was unex
pectedly forced into a battle, in which the British retreated, and the
Indians, disgusted at their defeat, all deserted them. Brown felt it to
be safe, after this success, to move upon Kingston along the lake shore,
and asked for the co-operation of Chauncey 's fleet, assuring that admiral
that Canada could now be taken without difficulty. But this co-opera
tion Chauncey did not give him, and Brown was forced to turn back,
upon learning that the English general, Riall, with large reinforce
ments, was at Queenstown. Winfield Scott, now a brigadier-general,
was sent forward with a corps of observation, and as his troops came
into an open space looking upon Lundy's Lane, nearly opposite Niagara
Falls, they were met by the entire British force drawn up in line of
battle. Scott at once sent detachments to turn the wing of the enemy
and succeeded in capturing a large number of prisoners. General
Brown was soon on the ground with reinforcements, and he saw that
the great strength of the British lay in their centers, where they had
seven guns planted upon a low hill. Colonel James Miller was ordered
to take this battery, and modestly answering, "I will try, sir," he put
his men in motion and ordered them to move cautiously through the
dusk — for it was after sunset. The men crept along the ground up to
a fence, and when their commander whispered the order, they shot
every man at the guns, and rushed forward in the face of a sharp fire
and captured them. The British made two determined efforts to retake
the battery but failed, and as the darkness deepened they retired. The
battle of Lundy's Lane was not a decisive one, but it was one of the
hardest ever fought. Of the two thousand Americans engaged, seven
hundred and forty-three were killed or wounded, and of the four thou
sand British, eight hundred and seventy-eight. General Winfield Scott
was so severely wounded that he could not serve during the rest of the

A COUNTRY WITHOUT A CAPITAL.

469

war, and General Brown for some time was obliged to leave the com
mand in other hands. In the meantime General Edward Gaines was
given command of the American troops, and conducted a defense

47° THE STORY OP AMERICA.
against a midnight assault, on August ioth, with great success, the
English losing nearly a thousand men.
The Americans were besieged in Fort Erie and the English brought
their parallels so close that showers of hot shot were thrown into the
fort. One of these disabled General Gaines, and Brown, though still
far from well, assumed command. On December 17th, a sudden sortie^
with two thousand men was made by the Americans, overwhelming the
besiegers, dismounting the guns and destroying the works. In this the
Americans lost five hundred men and the British nine hundred. The
siege was then abandoned, and in October the Americans destroyed
Fort Erie and returned to their own shore.
In spite of these successes the Americans had gained but little. Two
thousand of their men had been buried on Canadian soil. It had been
proved that the Americans had not quite forgotten how to fight, but
nothing had been gained which was of permanent value to the country.
As the summer closed, both parties stood on the defensive on their own
side of the border. Sir George Prevost made an attempt to invade
New York as far as Crown Point, on the old path over which so many
warlike expeditions had moved, but this attempt was unsuccessful, and
Prevost abandoned his plan.
On the sea-coast the war had been one signal disaster. The block
ading squadron was increased and the American vessels kept well in
shore, while depredations upon the coast were frequent and vicious.
The valley of the Penobscot was seized as a conquered province, being
invaded by General Pilkington, who met with no defense except that
which a half-armed and thoroughly frightened militia could give.
In August, the English fleet appeared off Stonington, Connecticut,
and gave the inhabitants one hour to remove the women and children.
The little village was then bombarded steadily for three days, and into
it was thrown fifty tons of iron and solid shot, bombshells, etc. There
were only about a score of men to defend the town, and these mounted
three old guns and handled them so well that they kept the enemy from
landing, and inflicted a loss upon them of seventy men killed or
wounded. Seven of the defendants were wounded, but none killed.
Shortly after this, occurred that episode of which the Americans are
perhaps more ashamed than of anything else in their national history.
In August of 1814 General Ross, with thirty-five hundred men, the
finest regiments of Wellington's army, appeared in the Chesapeake and
was here reinforced by one thousand marines from Cockburn's block
ading squadron. The whole force was landed about forty miles -below

A COUNTRY WITHOUT A CAPITAL. 47 1
Washington. President Madison and the Senate had been warned again
and again of the purpose of Ross' expedition, but the war party refused
to believe or listen, and when the English appeared upon the coast, but
slight defense was possible. Brigadier-General William Winder had
been placed in command of five hundred regulars, a few weeks before,
with the assurance that two thousand militia would respond to his
orders. But no effort was made to put this little force in condition to
take the field. When Ross made his undisputed arrival, he could hardly
believe that the way had thus been left open to him. He moved on
cautiously, and at length met Winder, whose militia, at the firing of
the first English rockets, fled to Washington. The President and his
Cabinet had their personal safety more at heart than any other matter,
and set the example by getting away with as much haste as possible.
The only honest defense which the British met with was from a small
band of seamen and marines, commanded by Commodore Barney and
Captain Miller. When these men, six hundred in number, were
obliged to retreat, they left six hundred dead Englishmen behind them
to show that every man had done his duty. As the British entered
Washington the Americans set fire to their own navy yard, forgetting
that the English could do no worse should they take it. The invaders
burned every public office in Washington except the patent office,
which was spared because of the assurance that it contained nothing
but private property and models of the arts, which were bf general use to
the world. Admiral Cockburn, leaping into the speaker's chair as his
followers entered the halls of Congress, cried out: "Shall this harbor
of Yankee democracy be burned? All for it say, aye." The public
libraries were also burned, and the next night the invaders crept quietly
away, expecting to be severely punished for their depredations — a sus
picion which was a compliment to the Americans not deserved by them.
The British were almost as bewildered as gratified by a success so
extraordinary, and they hastened to send an expedition against Balti
more. The citizens of that city were warned in time, and put up
fortifications, calling out all of the available troops to repel the invasion.
When Ross landed at the head of his advance, he was picked off by a
sharpshooter and carried to his boat, where he died in a few minutes.
The three thousand volunteers, under General John Sticker, withstood
the enemy for three hours, and then fell back upon the intrenchments.
The following day they were reinforced, and the British quietly retreated
in the night. In the meanwhile, sixteen vessels moved up the bay and
opened fire upon the defences of Baltimore. For twenty-four hours

472

THE STORY OF AMERICA.

they poured a continuous stream of rockets and shells into the forts,
and at night sent a strong force to attack them in the rear. But this
was discovered and dispersed by a fire of red-hot shot, and the fleet
retired. There were four notable battles on the ocean during the
year, in three of which the Americans were successful. These only
showed, by contrast, how disgraceful was the fight upon shore. The
effort to make a conquest of Canada was as far from accomplishment as
at the beginning. The Federalists were not slow to point out the weak-

THE fort at pensacola.

ness of the Administration, and to dilate upon the great injury which
it was doing to the country, and to the commercial States in particular.
The cost of the war was but a small item compared with the loss which
the people of New England sustained from the crushing of their trade.
There were serious thoughts of forming a "Northern Confederacy, not
for the purpose of disbanding the Union, but that it might not be
tyrannized over by a faction whose policy was so disastrous. It was
questioned by great statesmen whether the Union had not been a failure

A COUNTRY WITHOUT A CAPITAL. 473
and a convention, having representatives from all the Northern States,
met at Hartford, for the purpose of considering the new Constitution,
or of making amendments to the old one which should prevent such
evils as they were then suffering from. Massachusetts was particularly
anxious that the legislative powers of the people should rest upon a
different basis, and that the number of representatives should depend
upon the population, but nothing definite was done at the convention.
In the meantime, the British force had taken possession of the Span
ish town of Pensacola, in Florida, and used it as a station to fit out
expeditions against Mobile and New Orleans. Here they equipped the
Indians for war, and attempted to drill them. Jackson received fresh
troops from Tennessee and Kentucky, and marched southward to meet
this new invasion. The British attacked Fort Bowyer, at Mobile, in
September, but were repulsed. They blew up the fort at Pensacola in
November, when they heard that Jackson was approaching, and left
him to take undisputed possession of the town.
Jackson now hastened to New Orleans and made preparations to
defend that port, the loss of which would give the English the com
mand of the Mississippi. Jackson was in his element, for he was never
better pleased than when encountering difficulties. He made up his
lack of men by enrolling convicts, appealing to the free negroes and
calling out the militia. He proclaimed martial law through the city,
built intrenchments, and considered every possibility and exigency.
which might arise. The British landed twenty-four hundred men nine
miles below the city, and Jackson went down to meet them with about
two thousand men. It was on the 23d of December, when the days
were short, and night was closing before he reached the enemy, so that
the attack had to be made after dark. The armies became intermingled
and the fights were largely hand-to-hand. When the Americans with
drew to their fortifications, after two hours of fighting, each side had
lost more than two hundred men. Almost immediately after the action
the British troops received large reinforcements, and among them was
General Sir Edward Pakenham, brother-in-law to the Duke of Well
ington, who was to take the chief command. The situation of his
armies seemed to him unfortunate. They were on a narrow strip of
low land, bounded on one side by a broad river and oh the other by a
niorass. The enemy in front, of unknown numbers, were behind forti
fications. Two American vessels in the river harassed the camp day
and night, and the weather was causing sickness among the men..
Pakenham brought some guns across the peninsula, destroyed one
s8

474 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
American vessel with hot-shot and drove the other upstream. He then
erected bastions of hogsheads of sugar, behind which he mounted thirty
guns, and opened the year 1815 with this warlike action. Jackson, on
his part, used cotton bales for his bastion, and before these were knocked
out of place and set on fire, had constructed good earthworks a mile and
a half in the rear. Both sides were reinforced during the week that
followed, and both generals laid excellent plans of procedure.
On the 8th of January the English opened an attack, advancing in
two columns, and preceded by regiments bearing ladders and fascines.
Between them marched a thousand Highlanders, to support an attack
on both wings. But Jackson's men were those of the West and South,
who, as riflemen, have never been excelled, and their aim was unerring.
The artillery was handled with precision, and in the first discharge from
the thirty-two-pounder, the entire van of one of the British columns
was swept away. In attempting to reform his men, Pakenham was
killed, two other generals were seriously wounded, and the commander
of the Highland regiment was shot dead. In twenty-five minutes the
action was over, and the British found that they had lost seven hundred
killed, fourteen hundred wounded and five hundred prisoners, while the
American loss was but seventeen. Such a brilliant success as this might
well have raised the confidence of the American people, but at this
time news was received that peace had been concluded at Ghent, on the
24th of December, two weeks before the battle of New Orleans.
FOR FURTHER READING:
Biography— Parton's "Life of Jackson."
Fiction — Glerg's "The Subaltern."
J. H. Ingraham's "Lafitte."
G. W. Cable's "Grandissimes."
G. W. Cable's "Old Creole Days."
G. C Eggleston's "Captain Dain."
Poetry— Francis Scott Key's "The Star-Spangled Banner."

CHAPTER LXXVIII.
jt l>nm$tmtl jtramHKl^
THE ERA OF GOOD FEELING — WAR WITH ALGIERS — FINANCIAL CON-
DITION OP THE COUNTRY — THE FIRST SEMI
NOLE WAR — THE MISSOURI
COMPROMISE.

the Treaty of Peace was at last ratified, there
came what is known as ' 'the era of good feeling. ' '
For a time the political parties were glad to forget
their quarrels and rejoice together over the restora
tion of peace. Everywhere there were celebra
tions, public dinners, congratulatory speeches and
wine-drinking. In the general rejoicing, the
people did not much concern themselves that the treaty
was not a good one, and that it left matters practically
where they were before the war. Those who thought
about the matter doubtless consoled themselves that,
however weak the treaty was, England would not soon
again impose upon American vessels as she had done
previously, and that she would stand in wholesome fear
of the resistance with which any presumptuous step on
her part would be met.
There was one other question of foreign difficulty to be settled, and
that was with Algiers. The Dey of Algiers was dissatisfied with the
measure of the usual tribute. He declared war against the United
States and renewed his depredations upon American commerce. Early
in the spring of 1815, Decatur, his old enemy, was sent with a squadron
of nine vessels to the Mediterranean. In June, he captured an Algerian
frigate and a brig of twenty-two guns. He then anchored his whole
squadron in the harbor of Algiers and demanded immediate negotiations
for a treaty. To conduct these negotiations the Dey came on board
Decatur's ship and begged that there might be a continuation of tribute,
if only of a little powder, for form's sake. The Dey knew that should

476 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
the United States refuse to pay tribute, all of the nations would follow
the example, and the Barbary States would no longer receive a large por
tion of their wealth from these sources. ' 'If you insist on receiving
powder as tribute, ' ' said Decatur, ' 'you must expect to receive balls
with it. ' ' The Dey yielded, and a treaty was concluded with Algiers,
followed by others with Tunis and Tripoli. Thus the United States,
the youngest of all the nations, was the first to put an end to that sur
prising submission to the piratical Barbary States.
As might be expected, the country was in the worst of financial
conditions, and the immediate measures of the Secretary of the Treasury
and of Congress were for the purpose of bettering commercial affairs.
A new national bank was chartered, with a capital of thirty-five million
dollars, and duties were raised on imports to such an extent that they
amounted almost to prohibition. The Democrats, or the Southern
element, were in favor of this policy which protected their great staple,
cotton, but the men of New England opposed it, since it ruined the
carrying trade, which was their great source of profit, and which the
war had deprived them of for the last four years. The free-trade party
was led by Daniel Webster, of Massachusetts, and the tariff party by
John C. Calhoun, of South Carolina. All the flourishing sea-ports of
New England, from Portsmouth to Long Island Sound, received at this
time a blow from which they never recovered.
As another presidential election neared, the power of the Federal
party continued to wane until it was quite annihilated. James Monroe,
of Virginia, was made President in 1817. He had fought in the Revo
lutionary War, and had been Secretary of State under Madison.
Though an amiable man, he had but little strength of character, and
was not well calculated to manage the affairs of State. He was not
well established, when he was called upon to consider some serious
matters on the southern frontier. For a short time it looked as if
America might once more be plunged in war, and this time with Spain,
as well as England. Florida, which was still a Spanish province, was
the home of the Seminole Indians, and these savages had for many
years offered protection to the slaves who sought it. It will be remem
bered that many years before there had been an insurrection among the
slaves of South Carolina and Georgia, and that they had fled into
Florida. There had been three generations of people since that time,
but the slave-holders of the States mentioned could never forget that
within a short distance of them were hundreds of people who were
their property. When, therefore, there was any war with the Indians

A TRANSIENT AMIABILITY. 477
of Florida, it was always practically a slave hunt, and both the Span
iards and Seminoles were quick to aid in repulsing such movement.
When the British army left Florida, in 1814, a colonel by the name
of Nichols remained in Florida, and having much sympathy for the
Indians, he built a fort for them on the Appalachicola, near its mouth.
This he supplied with large quantities of arms and ammunition, and
returned to England, leaving the fort in the hands of the Seminoles.
It soon passed from their hands into those of the negro refugees. Gen
eral Edmund P. Gaines, who had charge of the southern frontier, con
tinually complained of this "negro fort," and united with Georgia in
urging the Federal government to war. There was no question but
that the fort was an excellent place of refuge for any overburdened
slaves who found a chance to escape from the lash of the overseer, and
as the slave-holders believed that the Federal government was framed
for the purpose of protecting their interests, and that their chief duties
lay in that direction, it is not strange that the Southern States should
assume the government to be willing to take up arms for the purpose
of recovering these unfortunates.
In July, 1816, a detachment of Americans was sent to attack this
fort, and some red-hot shot entered the magazine, where nearly eight
hundred barrels of gunpowder were stored. The fort was laid in ruins
instantly, and two hundred and seventy of the three hundred and thirty-
four inmates killed outright, most of the others dying from their
wounds' soon after. The inmates were negroes and Indians, of both
sexes and all ages. An Indian chief and the negro commander were
among those who were not killed by the explosion, and these were
tortured to death after the Indian manner. It is not surprising that in
the year that followed, the settlers were murdered, and the settlements
robbed. The wonder is rather that the retaliations were not more
numerous. The Seminole chiefs warned the American soldiers not to
cross the Flint river, saying that the land beyond was theirs, and that
they should protect it by every means in their power. General Gaines^
did not regard this warning, and inarched upon the Seminole village,
burning it to the ground. The Seminoles took to the forest and
waited. A few days later a boat passed down the river carrying forty
soldiers, with some women and children. The Indians, concealed upon
the bank, killed every one of these except four men, who swam to the
shore, and one woman, who was kept in captivity by a chief.
The command in this border war was now given to Andrew Jack
son. Jackson paid no attention to the orders given him to call upon

478 THE STORY OP AMERICA.
the militia of the border States through their governments, but raised a
volunteer force among his old companions-in-arms in Tennessee — all of
them magnificent fighters, and men who worshiped Andrew Jackson as
the hero of his country. On the site of the negro fort he built and gar
risoned another, which he called Fort Gadsden. From here he advanced
toward the Bay of St. Marks, driving away without difficulty the few Sem
inoles who tried to intercept him. The Spanish Governor of the fort at
St. Marks could not make a defense, and Jackson marched in on the 7 th
of April, hauled down the Spanish flag and raised the American in its
place. A few days before, an American armed vessel had sailed up the
bay, ran up English colors, and thus enticed on board two well-known
Seminole chiefs who were supposed to have been the leaders in the
recent massacre. They were brought on shore and hung by Jackson's
orders. A strong garrison was left at St. Marks and the march was
resumed. Jackson wished to march upon and surprise the Indian
town Suwannee, which was said to be a place of resort for negro
refugees. Jackson was too late, however, for when he reached the vil
lage he found it deserted.
At about this time occurred one of those incidents which showed
Andrew Jackson's inflexible and iron nature. At St. Marks he had
taken prisoner a Scotchman named Alexander Arbuthnot, who was a
trader with the Indians. He had a depot of goods near Suwannee, and
from his writing to his son to remove the goods to a place of safety, the
Indians were warned of the advance of the Americans. On this account
Jackson chose to look upon him as a spy. At Suwannee, Robert C.
Ambrister, an officer of the English army, who had been suspended
from duty for a year on account of fighting a duel, got into the Ameri
can camp by mistake. It had been his intention to join the Indians.
He was therefore kept as a prisoner of war. Both these men were sen
tenced to death. Arbuthnot was hanged and Ambrister shot. These
excutions were against all law and entirely without justification. Upon
Jackson's previous campaign he had caused six militiamen to be shot,
because they claimed that their terms of enlistment had expired, and
that they should return to their homes. The men were honest in their
claim, and were entirely innocent of any intention to offend.
When Jackson reached Fort Gadsden upon his return, he was met
with a protest against this invasion of Spanish territory from the Gov
ernment of Pensacola. He promptly turned back, reoccupied Pensa
cola and took the fort to which the Governor had fled.- It, is said that
he afterwards regretted that he did not hang the Governor. Jackson

THE SECOND ADAMS. 479
tried afterwards to shift the responsibility of all these aggressions upon
the shoulders of Monroe, but it is not rightly known where the greater
part of the blame should be put. It was not Andrew Jackson's habit
to ask permission of any one to do what he considered his duty. Nego
tiations for a treaty with Spain were being conducted in Washington,
and in February, 1819, they were concluded. The Floridas were ceded
to the United States for the sum of five million dollars.
The breach between the Southern and the Northern States was
widening. The value of slave labor rose as the new lands on the lower
Mississippi opened fresh fields for cultivation. Slave-raising had
become a science, and, it was concluded by the economists that it was
better to use up a gang of negroes in seven years and supply their
places by new purchases, than to attempt to prolong the lives of the
gang in hand by moderate labor. The invention of the cotton gin had
also greatly increased the value of slaves, for two hundred pounds of
fibre could be freed of seeds in a single day by the gin. As it was dif
ficult to overstock the market with this produce, thus it became almost
impossible to overstock the plantations with slaves. There was nothing
the slave-holders so much dreaded as legislative interference, and it was
their constant ambition to keep a man in the presidential chair who
should look after the interests of this wicked traffic, and see to it that
the Northern States did not get in the ascendancy. To do this it was
necessary that they should insist that as many slave States were included
in the Union as free States. Thus, after Indiana, came Mississippi, in
1817, a free State and a slave State. After Illinois, 1818, came Ala
bama, 1819, a free State and a slave State. In March, 1818, the citizens
of Missouri asked permission of Congress to form a State constitution,
and to be admitted into the Union. Missouri lay beyond that district
where slavery had existed up to this time, and Congress, and indeed
the whole country, was divided upon the question as to whether Mis
souri should be a slave State or not. In admitting the other slave States
to the Union, Congress had not instituted slavery, but only allowed it to
exist. Should the government conclude to permit slavery in Missouri,
it would be giving official encouragement to it. When a formal bill
was entered in February, 1819, for the admission of Missouri, a New
York Congressman proposed, as a condition of admission, that from that
moment there should be no personal servitude within the State except
of those already held as slaves, and that these should be freed within a
short time. The South met this proposition with defiance and the
haughtiest indignation. The North was threatened with terrible pun-

480 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
ishment for her interference with the States of the South. Even as the
question was being discussed a slave-coffle passed the Capitol, the men
being bound together with chains and the women and children walking
behind under the lash of a slave-driver. But this degrading sight served
no other purpose*thau to point the paragraph of an eloquent Senator.
For many weeks the debate went on passionately, and finally, when
Maine asked for admission into the Union, the Southern men protested
that she could only be admitted on the condition ¦ that Missouri was
allowed to come in as a slave State. Had not some of the Northern
men gone over to the side of the South, slavery might have been kept
out of Missouri, but at last the Southern faction grew so strong that it
became necessary to accept a compromise, which is known as the Mis
souri Compromise, in which slavery was prohibited in all that portion
of the Louisiana purchase lying north of 350, 30', excepting Missouri.
This compromise was only carried by much trickery, and what little
good there was in the compromise was taken out of it by the President
and the Cabinet. When the bill was brought to the President he asked
two questions. First, whether Congress had a constitutional .right to
prohibit slavery in a territory. The Cabinet were all agreed that Con
gress had such a right. Second, he wished to know if the section
prohibiting slavery ' 'forever, ' ' referred only to the territorial condition
or whether it also applied when the Territory became a State. With
the exception of John Quincy Adams, the Cabinet claimed that this
referred oniy to the Territory, and that when any of these Territories
became States, they could admit slaves, should they choose to do so.
In the next session of Congress a bill was passed preventing free negroes
and mulattoes from settling in Missouri under any pretext whatever.
In short, negroes in Missouri were to have no rights — they were not
under any circumstances citizens. Thus did the Federal government
make itself responsible for slavery, and aided in its establishment where
it had not previously existed. From this time forward the fight between
slavery and freedom was an open one.
FOR FURTHER READING:
Fiction— Leba Smith's "Major Jack Downing."
Hall's "Legends of the West."
W. G. Simms' "Guy Rivers."
W. G. Simms' "Richard Hurdis."

4

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CHAPTER LXXIX.

ip jfearafc jtkras*

MONROE'S ADMINISTRATION — ELECTION TO THE PRESIDENCY OP JOHN
QUINCY ADAMS — THE ASSERTION OF STATE SUPREMACY IN
GEORGIA — TARIFF DISPUTES  ANDREW JACKSON
ELECTED PRESIDENT — THE FINANCIAL
CRISIS OF 1837.

HE history of a nation is not confined to its wars
and its disasters. These, though they may seri
ously disturb, cannot uproot the home life in
which the seed of the growth and evolution lies.
During Monroe's administration the civilization
of America was becoming more profound. Educa
tion, particularly in the Northern and Western States,
was spreading rapidly. The power of church doctrine
was decreasing and in its place was springing up a
Christianity in which there was more kindliness than
dogma. Already that private enterprise, which at a
later day made America the most convenient country in
the world, began to show itself. DeWitt Clinton dug
the Erie canal, three hundred and sixty-three miles long,
connecting Lake Erie and all the upper lakes with the
tide-waters of the Atlantic. Noah himself, when he built his ark, could
hardly have met with more ridicule than did Clinton when he began
this great task. The first spadeful of earth was turned on the 4th of
July, 1 81 7, and in October, 1825, the largest canal in the world was
opened for traffic. It ran through a rich and fertile wilderness — a
wilderness soon broken by the building up of many towns upon the
banks of the canal. Its original cost was seven million six hundred
thousand dollars.
Steamboats were gradually coming into favor. In 181 8 the steamer
Walk-in-the-water ran regularly to Detroit from the eastern extremity
of Lake Erie. In 181 9 the first passage on a steamboat was made across

484 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
the Atlantic. This was by the ship Savannah, owned and commanded
by Moses Rogers, of New London, Connecticut. He went from New
York to Savannah, from Savannah to Liverpool, and then up the
Baltic to St. Petersburg. He used both sails and wheels, depending
on his sails when the wind was favorable. When the ship appeared off
the coast of Ireland, she was supposed to be on fire, and a cruiser was
sent out from Cork to offer her relief. Congress was too busy atttending
to political affairs to give any recognition to enterprise so remarkable,
and the attempt was not repeated for twenty years.
At the close of Monroe's second term of office, many candidates
for the presidential chair were before the people. The Federal party
had been crushed out and the Democratic party was in. power. New
ideas were giving birth to new parties, but at this time it was hardly
apparent what form they would take. Throughout the North and the
West, however, there was a firm determination to put an end to
Virginia supremacy. For twenty-four years the office of President had
been held by men from Virginia, and the affairs of the entire nation had
been made subservient to those of the South. Monroe was almost lost
sight of in the midst of the controversies and agitations of the time.
His long and honorable service for his country had not won for him the
consideration and deference which it should. His yielding disposition
had made him seem contemptible, although he was a man of calm
judgment and undeniable patriotism. In his last message to Congress
he fortunately gave voice to what is known as the Monroe Doctrine,
and to this, more than anything else, is he indebted for the preservation
of his name from oblivion. This message expressed great interest in
the young South American States, some of which the King of Spain
was attempting to force into a colonial condition. President Monroe
declared that should any European power attempt to interfere in
American affairs or to deprive any country on the Western continent of
its liberty, it would be considered as a manifestation of an unfriendly
disposition towards the United States. Monroe also said that hence
forth the American continents were not to be considered as subjects for
colonization in the future by any European power, meaning that
hereafter no nation of the Eastern continent should have a risfht to
usurp any territory upon either of the Americas, and that hereafter the
unsettled country within the acknowledged boundaries of American
States was exclusively their own, and not subject to foreign occupation.
In the presidential election which followed, John Quincy Adams,
of Massachusetts, was elected. All the previous Presidents had taken

THE SECOND ADAMS. 485
part in the revolutionary war or in the founding of the government,
but John, Quincy Adams belonged to the generation of younger men,
and was but nine years old when his father had signed the Declaration
of Independence. The opposition to Adams drew together the party
composed mainly of Southern slave-holders with a considerable Northern
alliance. To the support of the Administration rallied all those who
were opposed to a slave-holding Democratic party, and which became
known as National Republicans, although they did not assume this
name definitely until near the close of Adams' administration. So
intensely did the Southerners fear that slavery might be interfered with,
that the Senators from the slave-holding States would not even allow
Congress to send representatives to a Congress of the South American
States, which was to meet at Panama with the purpose of defining their
relations to each other and to foreign States, political and commercial,
and the expediency of a league among themselves. They objected to
this. for the reason that the emancipation of slaves might be, and
probably would be, one of the subjects discussed, and they all agreed
that it was a subject which could not with safety be talked about.
They constantly preached the doctrine of State rights, and seized every
opportunity to uphold that theory in the Senate. Georgia was the first
of the States to give a practical illustration of what the South meant by
State rights. When she became a State, one condition of the cession of
her western territory to the Federal Government was, that the title to
the Indian lands should be acquired by the United States and transferred
to her. The Government had been unable to redeem this promise,
because the Creeks and the Cherokees would not part with their lands,
and had sworn to put to death any chief who should prove such a
renegade to his race as to make a treaty with the United States of
which they should be a part. However, in 1825, certain chiefs
concluded a treaty conveying these lands to the United States, and the
Creeks kept their word and put them to death. The State of Georgia
then ordered a survey of the territory occupied by the Indians, but it
was found that should they do this, it would involve the country in an
Indian war. Besides, the treaty which had been ratified by the Senate
and the President did not put the Creeks out of possession until Septem
ber 1, 1826, and it still lacked over a year of the time of its fulfillment.
The President, therefore, refused to consent to the survey, but the
Governor of Georgia insisted upon the right of the State to do as it saw
fit in such matters, and pretended to see in the decision of the President
a secret hostility to slavery. The Indians appealed to Adams and the

486 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
whole case was presented to Congress, but nothing was done. The
Administration consented to be quiet, and Georgia was allowed to do
as she pleased. Encouraged by her success at this time, Georgia soon
asserted her power in other matters and the States of the South rejoiced
in her success.
There had been a time when the protective policy was identified
with the Southern States, but as they saw the North constantly
increasing in riches and prosperity, they concluded that the North must
be reaping more than her share of the benefits which arose from the
protection of commercial industries, and they therefore decided to
advocate free trade measures. The North had been forced to take up
industries by the very protective policy which the South had advocated,
and now wished to abide by the principles of protection. Hereafter,
the question of tariff became a sectional one, the North advocating
protection and- the South free trade. As a matter of fact, the North,
with its free labor, would have succeeded under any international
arrangement, while the South, with its reluctant and groveling slave
labor, could hope for nothing but a succession of economical problems.
In 1828 a comprehensive tariff bill was passed, in which the
protection on wool, iron, lead, hemp, distilled spirits and various other
articles of general importance was increased. This was made the chief
opposition to the Northern Administration.
During the closing years of Adams' administration occurred the
Black Hawk War. In 1830 a treaty was made with the tribes of Sacs
and Foxes by which their lands in Illinois was ceded to the United
States. But they were unwilling to leave their land, and the Governor
of Illinois called out a militia force to compel them to cross the Missis
sippi. Black Hawk, a proud and patriotic chief of the Sacs, then about
sixty years old, gathered a small force of warriors and returned in
March, 1832. In a short time the pioneers were harassed by having
their farms laid waste and their houses burned. Not infrequently the
massacre of the farmers followed. The Governor of Illinois called for
volunteers, and a force of about twenty-four hundred men was soon
marching after Black Hawk's band of one thousand. The chief fled,
but was overtaken and defeated on the Wisconsin river. The survivors
retreated northward and were again overtaken near Bad-axe river, on the
left bank of the Mississippi. Here many of the Indians were shot in
the water while trying to swim the stream, and others were killed on a
little island where they sought refuge. Fifty prisoners were taken,
most of whom were squaws and children. Black Hawk, Keokuk and

THE SECOND ADAMS. 487
several other chiefs surrendered, and were taken to Washington to make
a sad acknowledgment of their subjection.
In the presidential election of 1828 Andrew Jackson was elected by
a very large majority, and when the inaugural ceremonies were
performed in the following March, a larger crowd gathered in Wash
ington from all parts of the country than had ever been seen there on a
like occasion. Calhoun, who had been Vice-President under Adams,
had been again chosen to act with Jackson. Jackson began his adminis
tration by removing from office all who had not been his partisans — an
example which has been followed by every President since, except
Cleveland. Washington made nine removals from office, John Adams
nine, Jefferson thirty-nine, Madison five, Monroe nine, John Quincy
Adams two, and Jackson not less than two thousand. In one week he
vetoed more bills sent him by Congress than all his predecessors in office
had vetoed in forty years. He was a man of such peculiar and inflexible
character that his administration was invested with great interest. No
one could be indifferent to him or to what he advised. No public man
in America had warmer friends or more bitter enemies, and if one class
exaggerated his virtues, the other doubtless exaggerated his faults. He
allowed his Cabinet to disperse and Washington to divide itself into
social cliques, because of his staunch defence of the wife of the Secretary
of War, about whom unfortunate reports were circulated. He insisted
that .this woman should be recognized in society, and forced the ladies
of Washington to open their doors to her. He defended her with that
zeal which distinguished him in everything that he took up; not alone
because her husband was a personal friend, nor entirely because it was
his natural instinct to defend a woman, however undeserving, but because
his own wife had been especially unfortunate, and had met with
criticisms which saddened her life. If he could keep another from
suffering in a similar manner what his wife had, he wished to do so.
He had been married to his own wife nearly forty years, when the
discovery was made that the divorce which she had obtained from a
former husband was not legal. As soon as this was discovered, proper
legal steps were taken and Jackson and his wife were married again.
This was tortured by Jackson's enemies into a scandal, by which
Jackson, one of the purest of men, suffered no less than his wife. After
that wife was dead, it was not strange that Jackson should try to vindicate
her case by defending that of another woman. He did this in his usual
imperious and overbearing way. Washington was filled with scandals;
the Cabinet was broken up; his niece, who presided over the White

488 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
House, was sent away because she would not receive the woman he was
defending, and he made himself absurd with wild fits of rage in public
when he saw some slight put upon her. These matters, small as they
were in themselves, came to have a strong political bearing, and for the
first time American politics were smirched with personal scandals.
One of the political measures which distinguished Jackson's
administration was his hostility to the United States Bank. He
suggested that a national bank, founded upon the credit and
revenues of the government, might be devised, which would be
constitutional and beneficial to the finances of the country. The
United States Bank made a stubborn resistance, and gave all the reasons
for its existence which its advocates could invent for it. The charter
had yet five years to run, but application was made for a new one. The
President's adherents in the House demanded an investigation, and a
committee was appointed in which the majority approved its manage
ment. After a long discussion, a bill to renew the charter passed both
Houses, but was vetoed by the President. As the two-thirds majority
necessary to pass it over his veto was lacking, the measure fell through.
Meanwhile, the time, arrived for a new election. Clay was Jackson's
competitor, and was supported by the high tariff party. The anti-
Masons came into existence at this period, and they also supported Clay.
This party originated in 1826. William Morgan, a Mason, had written
a book which pretended to expose the secrets of the order. He was
supposed to have been killed by the direction of his official superiors,
and a party was formed which opposed the Masonic and all other secret
orders. Jackson had a growing popularity. The revenue during his admin
istration had far exceeded the expenditure, and the national debt was
being rapidly paid off. One reason for this was that the Democrats at
that time were opposed to the expenditure of government money for
internal improvements, and that Jackson had vetoed many bills favor
ing such measures. The West India trade had long been a matter of
dispute between England and the United States. This was brought to
a rather unsatisfactory adjustment before the close of Jackson's first
administration and the trade was opened to Americans, but the condi
tions were not dignified. About this time the country was called upon
to consider a peculiar problem. Its revenue was much larger than it
could find any use for, and the question was, How should it be re
duced? The first answer which would occur to any one was that the
tariff should be reduced, but protection was a pet which could not be

THE SECOND ADAMS. 489
driven from the arms of the American people. Mr. Clay provided a
bill for the reduction of duties upon foreign products, except where
they came in conflict with articles of domestic manufacture. This
caused much discontent. In South Carolina, especially, it was thought
that the duties imposed were altogether too favorable to Northern
manufactures, and a convention was finally held in that State to plan
secession from the Union. It was decided that no duty should be paid
in South Carolina after a certain day, and that if the United States
attempted to force such payment, then South Carolina should organize
a separate government. Mr. Calhoun, the Vice-President of the United
States, was to be placed at the head, and medals were made with the
inscription, "John C. Calhoun, first President of the Southern Con
federacy, ' ' and circulated among the people. The men devoted them
selves everywhere to military drilling, and the women made palmetto
cockades and prepared ensigns of State sovereignty. The palmetto
was the symbol chosen for the new nation. This was called ' 'nullifica
tion," a word which had been invented many years before by some
ingenious Southern Senators.
But though President Jackson was the hero of the Southern States,
he was too good a patriot to encourage them in such measures as these.
He issued a proclamation announcing that "to say any State may at
pleasure secede from the Union, is to say that the United States are not
a nation." He denied the right of either nullification or secession,
pointed out the absurdity of State sovereignty, and told the people of
South Carolina that if they resisted the law, they would be put down
by force of arms. He hastened to send troops to the forts of South
Carolina, as well as vessels of war, placing all under the command of
General Winfield Scott. But as usual, compromises were proposed in
the Senate and accepted which arranged matters as South Carolina
desired, and the North meekly did as she was bidden.
Another matter which caused much debate in Congress was the
public lands. The sale of these was a great source of revenue, and as
the price upon them was higher than that which most emigrants were
willing to pay, emigration tended toward the extreme West, beyond the
surveyed frontier, to settle where no immediate payment was required.
The emigration from Europe straight to the Western States was very
large. In 1837, it was nearly eighty thousand, but the next year it
was lower. This was on account of the great financial crisis of 1837,
caused largely by the existence of State banks which put afloat a larger
amount of paper currency than they could carry. The only banks in

49° THE STORY OF AMERICA.
the country which did not suspend at this time were those few in which
the government deposited its specie, and, indeed, some of these were
involved in the ruin. Though the people were in this weakened finan
cial condition, the treasury of the government continued to have a sur
plus, and it was decided that all surplus over five million dollars should
be divided among the States as a loan only to be recalled at the discre
tion of Congress. Such a thing had never been heard of before, and it
was difficult to tell how to conduct it. The manner in which it was
distributed added to the irritation which already existed in the govern
ment, for the people of the North felt that far more than their rightful
share had been given to the people of the South. Twenty-eight million
dollars was thus given to the States, part of which spent it in public
improvements, the rest dividing it among private citizens. But all of
the financial affairs of the nation were conducted in a slipshod way,
and the close of the year 1837 found States, as well as people, burdened
with debt beyond their ability to pay. It was a period, however, when
recuperation was easy. Steam was coming into general use. The first
railway in America for passengers was chartered by the Maryland legisla
ture in March, 1827. This was the Baltimore and Ohio. Not until 1829,
however, did Peter Cooper, of New York, build a locomotive. By 1840,
there were nearly three thousand miles of railway in the United States.
Manufactories were rapidly increasing, and the woolen and cotton goods
made were improving in quality. It was in 1840 that Sidney Morse,
of New York, obtained a patent for his electric telegraph. The census
taken in 1830, under Jackson's administration, showed a population of
nearly thirteen millions. Two new States were added to the Union,
Arkansas, in 1836, and Michigan, in 1837. Michigan came in as a
free State, but Arkansas was dedicated to slavery.
FOR FURTHER READING:
History— "Black Hawk's Life of Himself."
MoncriefFs "Men of the Backwoods.*
Fiction — G. C Eggleston's "The Big Brother."
Poetry — H. R. Schoolcraft's "Talladega."

CHAPTER LXXX.
Hitlimt nnh l>rttl|+

THE LITERARY HISTORY OF THE LAST FIFTY YEARS — THE
ABOLITIONISTS.

T may be wise at this period to renew the literary
history of the country. Philip Freneau, a Hugue
not by descent and a New Yorker by birth, was
the first American poet to attain eminence,
although the Revolution started into life a multi-
of ballad-writers. Philip Freneau graduated at
the college of New Jersey in 1771, where he was a class
mate of James Madison. He published four volumes,
which were read in England as well as America.
His political burlesques were popular, but are not so well
remembered as his more serious poems. Joel Barlow
was the first American to make an attempt at a national
epic. This he termed ' 'Columbiad. " It is stately, but
without grace. Dr. James McClurg, of Virginia, wrote
many romantic verses of the sort usually penned in ladies' albums at
that time.
Charles Brockden Brown was the first American novelist. The
history of this country had been too severe to encourage fiction. In the
South, there was a comparative indifference to letters, and in the
North, literature took, for the most part, the form of a religious
controversy. Brown's novels were gloomy, and it is for this reason
that they are not better known. David Ramsay prepared some valuable
books, and Jeremy Belknap wrote a history of New Hampshire, and a
series of biographies. The first standard book written by a New
England woman is the ' 'History of New England, ' ' by Hannah Adams.
Dr. Abel Holmes' "Annals of America" is a very valuable book.
Chief Justice Marshall wrote a "Life of Washington, " and William
Wirt a biography of Patrick Henry. John Ledyard was the first

49 2 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
American traveler to write a history of his exploits. Dr. Benjamin
Rush wrote voluminously about medicine. Alexander Wilson was the
author of some works on ornithology; Samuel Mitchell was the first
man in this country to write on chemistry; Benjamin Barton was the
earliest American authority on botany, and Benjamin Thompson wrote
on physics. The theological writers of the last part of the eighteenth century
and the first part of the nineteenth were very numerous. Among them
were William Ellery Channing, Henry Ware, Andrew Norton, Noah
Worcester, Moses Stuart and Leonard Woods. In later years came
Lyman Beecher, the Alexanders, President Hopkins, Professor Edward
A. Park, and many others too numerous to mention. Dr. Charles
Dodge, a Philadelphian and a graduate of Princeton College, is one of
the most dignified of our Calvanistic philosophers, but William Ellery
Channing is undoubtedly at the head of the earlier schools of theological
and metaphysical writers. Later, came a more brilliant school of
theological writers. Among these were Orville Dewey, William H.
Furness, John Freeman Clark, Henry W. Bellows, Andrew Peabody
and William R. Alger. These were Unitarian writers. Theodore
Parker, Cyrus A. Bartol, Moncure D. Conway and Octavius P.
Frothingham were among the writers who started in religious work and
gradually employed their pens in secular writings. Mark Hopkins, of
Williams College, and Noah Porter, of Yale, are among the most
distinguished of our mental scientists. Thomas C. Upham, a professor
in Bowdoin, wrote a work in 1831 on the elements of mental philos
ophy. James Marsh, president of the University of Vermont, was an
influential Transcendentalist. Lawrence P. Hiscock was a profound
writer on Uietaphysics as a science. Francis Wayland, president of
Brown University, was an excellent writer on political economy,
philosophy and ethics. Taylor Lewis, a professor in Union College,
was a linguist, philosopher and scientist. Each church had its staunch
denominational writers, some of whom have exerted a strong influence,
notably John McClintock, of the Methodists.
The "Knickerbocker writers" is a term applied to Washington
Irving, James Kirk Paulding, Joseph Rodman Drake and Fitz-Green
Halleck. Washington Irving was born in New York City in 1783, and
absorbed there the curious life which he has so delicately and faithfully
portrayed. At nineteen he wrote for a newspaper edited by his
brother Peter, taking up theological and social topics, and using the
name of "Jonathan Old-Style." In 1 814 he visited Europe, where he

HENRY WADSWORTH LONGFELLOW.

FICTION AND TRUTH. 495
met Washington Allston, the first distinguished American painter. On
his return to New York he started the Salmagundi, a name still
preserved in New York to signify what is best in literature and in art.
In this paper the social foibles and fads were served up in a way which
was thoroughly original. A few years later, Irving gained the friend
ship of some distinguished Englishmen, and from this time his good
fortune dated. His books sold for excellent sums, and he was the first
American to make a really excellent living by his pen. Charles Brockden
Brown was the only man before him to rely entirely upon the proceeds
brought him by his pen. Irving's last work was his five-volumed life
of Washington. James Kirke Paulding, who was five years older than
Irving, worked upon the Salmagundi under Irving's supervision,
beginning his career -as a poet. In the course of his life he wrote
novels, humorous sketches and pamphlets as well, his "Dutchman's
Fireside' ' being the best known. Joseph Rodman Drake was a writer
of delicate touch. He was born in 1795, and lived to be only twenty-
five years old. Fitz-Green Halleck was born in Connecticut, in 1790,
and lived till 1867. He wrote, among many excellent poems, that of
' 'Marco Bozarris, ' ' known to every schoolboy. Richard Henry Dana
was a scholarly poet, and Charles Sprague, a Bostonian, wrote verses
of high quality. Francis Scott Key is especially known for the ¦' 'Star-
Spangled Banner," written during the siege of Fort McHenry, in
Baltimore, during the war of 181 2. There are several other writers
who are famous for one poem. Samuel Wordsworth wrote ' 'The Old
Oaken Bucket;" John Howard Payne, "Home Sweet Home," and
Albert G. Green "Old Grimes is Dead. " William Augustus Muhlen
berg is the author of that tender hymn, "I would not live always."
William Cullen Bryant, the oldest of our great American poets, was
born in 1794. At ten, he was writing verses for the country papers,
and by the time he was in college was already famous as a writer. He
was but twenty- two years old when he |wrote his celebrated poem,
' 'Thanatopsis. ' ' This was published in the North American Review,
in 1 816. Bryant is, as everyone knows, a poet of nature, whose verses
are as polished, though far less spontaneous, than those of Wordsworth.
He was over seventy when he added to his extensive writings a
translation of the "Illiad." This is very generally accepted as the best
English Homer. „ Later, he published a translation of the ' 'Odyssey. ' '
Henry Wadsworth Longfellow and John Greenleaf Whittier were
both born in 1807. Early in his manhood Longfellow took the
professorship of modern languages at Bowdoin College, spending three

496 THE STORY OP AMERICA.
years in Europe to qualify himself for the position. Those three years
in Europe have given us many of Longfellow's most excellent poems,
although those which are most valued by Americans are the ones which
preserve so accurately and tenderly the life of New England and the
legends of early America. In the list of his works is a most excellent
translation of the divine comedy of Dante. John Greenleaf Whittier was
a writer conscientious, true and fearless, but lacked the high art of Long
fellow, and the sympathetic quality, although at heart he was most
sympathetic and humane. That he was a natural philanthropist and a
writer fearless of consequences, there is no need to say.
Oliver Wendell Holmes was born in Cambridge, Connecticut, in
1809. Like Bryant, Longfellow and Lowell, he started out as a lawyer,
but soon took up medicine, studying in Europe. • He is a lyrical writer
of great facility, but his prose works are more popular than his poetical
ones. His "Breakfast-table Sketches" are among the American
classics. Like Holmes, James Russell Lowell has written both in poetry
and prose. His poems have been published in numerous volumes;
some of them were elaborate and allegorical, others caustic and
humorous. At one time he was the leading American critic.
Edgar Allen Poe is one of the most picturesque figures in our
national literature. He was a melancholy man, who hated restraint of
every sort, and who was the slave of morbid fancies and of opium. He
was not the first man to rise by stress of these misfortunes to a position
which more wholesome and temperate men could hardly hope to attain.
Among the painstaking, though not famous, American poets are
James Gates Percival, Nathaniel P. Willis, George Morris, Edward
Pinkney, Charles Fenno Hoffman and George H. Calvert. Dr. Thomas
Dunn English was made famous by a single song, ' 'Ben Bolt. ' ' George
H. Boker, of Philadelphia, was one of the earliest dramatic writers of
this country. C. B. Cranch was one of the most scholarly writers of his
day, and Alfred B. Street is known by his poems of nature. He was
also a painter. W. W. Story has joined poetry and sculpture. John G.
Saxe was the earliest of our excellent American humorists. Alice and
Phoebe Cary were among the first women poets. Among the best
known of the early historians are Richard Hildreth, born in Massachu
setts, in 1807; George Bancroft, author of the chief history of the
United States, also born in Massachusetts; George Gorham Palfrey,
author of a history of New England, and William Hickling Prescott,
the most famous and brilliant of American historians. His ' 'History
of Ferdinand and Isabella" was translated immediately upon its

FICTION AND TRUTH. 497
publication into five European languages. The "Conquest of Mexico,"
"The Conquest of Peru" and "Philip II" were not less successful. No
historian has a higher reputation or a more dignified and eloquent style.
John Lothrop Motley is best known for his "Rise of the Dutch
Republic," and "The History of the United Netherlands." George
W. Green's "Historical Review of the American Revolution" is the
best record of the time.
A considerable number of travelers have won distinction as writers.
Among these are Elisha Kane and Isaac Hays. James Feunimore
Cooper was the first American to write novels which could be considered
extensively popular. His works are thoroughly national, full of
romantic interest, and embody, as no other books do, the wild, free life
of the American frontier. He also wrote an able history of the United
States, a series of biographies of naval officers, and an attack on the
system of trial by jury.
Nathaniel Hawthorne was born in Salem, Massachusetts, in 1804.
He was a morbid boy with a most studious tendency, and his surround
ings were melancholy in the extreme. His mystical, elegant and
romantic novels are the natural outcome of his refined and morbid
disposition. He lived upon historic ground, saw the value of his
associations, and embodied his ideas in tales of unequaled fantasy and
power. To mention the good American writers in fiction would be a
task too extensive to contemplate. Those who exercised a wide
influence will be mentioned later.
The early part of the century saw some orators unequaled for their
powers. The speeches of Daniel Webster, John C. Calhoun, Henry
Clay, Edward Everett, Rufus Choate, William H. Seward, Charles
Sumner, Robert C. Winthrop, Wendell Philips and William Lloyd
Garrison are famous. William Lloyd Garrison, in 1831, established a
weekly paper in Boston called the Liberator. Its purpose was the
immediate emancipation of the slaves, and it preached, as no other
paper had ever dared to, the iniquity of slavery and the need for its
speedy termination. It was not, however, the first paper of the sort
ever published in the country. During General Jackson's administra
tion a Quaker named Benjamin Lundy had begun a newspaper called
the Genius of Universal Emancipation. This urged that slaves should
be gradually freed. Garrison had been the assistant editor of the paper,
but the religion which he preached accepted of no compromises. He
said in the first edition: "I will not equivocate; I will not excuse; I
will not retreat a single inch, and I will be heard. ' ' In all the perse-

498 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
cutions, revilement and legislative rebuke which followed, he was true
to his word. People who sympathized with him and upheld his views
were called Abolitionists — a word which to speak even now arouses
feelings of enthusiasm and deep hatred. "Fanatic" was the kindest
and most considerate of all the names which these determined people
were called by their enemies — and their friends were few. It was
nothing new to say that slavery was wrong, and that the Republic was
inconsistent in keeping a constitution which set forth the liberty and
equality of all persons, and yet permitted three million persons within
its borders to be deprived of their~ liberty.
So vigorous had Southern rule been, and so craftily had its
supremacy been sustained in Congress, that it was little less than treason
to speak of the possibility of manumission. The Church, both in the
North and the South, was prompt to hold up the Divine authority for
slavery, and to quote the Bible in its defence. As the newer Southern
States were admitted to the Union and their territory opened up, slaves
were brought in great numbers from the slave-breeding States of the
Atlantic and placed here upon great sugar and cotton plantations.
These plantations had been cultivated and stocked with negroes, on
borrowed money. This money was borrowed largely from Northern
capitalists, and this was one of the many reasons why the institution of
slavery met with such staunch support in the North.
The Abolitionist were men and women of great independence and
vigor of thought. Almost without exception they were the leaders in
the communities in which they lived. Their private lives were
irreproachable, their standing in all ways honorable — the fact that they
had the moral courage to stand against the world is guarantee enough
that they were disinterested and morally brave — but they were ostracized
by the States, the Church and society as if they had been criminals or
offenders against decency. They were accused of the most injudicious
acts, which have never been proven against them. It was said that
they tried to lash the slaves, by their eloquence, into insurrection, but
the truth is that their methods were directly opposed to this, and that
their appeal was made to the conscience of the slave-holder and to the
legislators of the nation.
They were held responsible largely for the Southampton massacre,
although probably not one of the desperate men engaged in that had ever
heard of abolition, of William Lloyd Garrison or of the Liberator. In
August, 1 83 1, a negro slave named Nat. Turner led a little band of six
men in a passionate revolt which has been dignified by the name of

FICTION AND TRUTH. 499
insurrection. He was a man of much force of character and a natural
mystic. He heard voices in the air and saw signs in the sky. Roaming
at night in the forests, he saw visions and portends which pointed out
his divine mission. The Bible was full of promises which he thought
pointed especially to him. He believed that he was to lead his suffering
people to freedom. But he was impractical and lacked executive fore
sight. He took but six men in his confidence, and with them started
out to go from house to house and kill every white person within.
Beginning at Turner's own house, they killed his master, and going on
from plantation to plantation were joined by the slaves, and in forty-
eight hours killed fifty-five white persons without loss to themselves.
But the band finally became separated, and was attacked by two bodies
of white men, who succeeded in dispersing them. Thus the insurrec
tion was quelled at the outset. The country was searched for the
offenders. Turner had escaped to the woods and lived under a pile of
fence rails for six weeks, marking the passage of the dreary days on a
notched stick. He was discovered and took to the wheat-fields, where
he lived among the wheat stacks for ten days. Again he was
discovered, but escaped and kept the whole country searching for him for
some time. One day he crept from a hole beneath a felled pine tree and
stood face to face with a man who had a leveled rifle in his hand. He
surrendered, and one week later was hanged. Of the fifty-three other
negroes formally tried, seventeen were convicted and hanged, twelve
were transported and the rest acquitted.
But the fiercest retribution did not come from the law. Slave
holders held that they had a right to do as they chose with their own
property, and to torture, punish, or execute at their will any negro in
their possession whom they suspected of offense. The terror which
spread through the South counterbalanced to a certain extent the suf
ferings of these poor blacks. Not a slave-holder slept securely in his
bed. The consciousness of the iniquity upon which that part of the
country was built and nourished made the proprietors constantly fearful.
Every negro was watched with suspicion, and the most innocent actions
threw the white community into terror. It was hardly believed in the
South that the negro was a human being, yet it was perceived now that
he was enough of a man to long for liberty, and take revenge for out
rage. The people of the South virtually admitted all that the aboli
tionists ever claimed, and that was that the negro was a man.
In 1832, Garrison founded the New England Anti-Slavery Society.
This was the parent of many like societies in different parts of the

500 THE STORY OP AMERICA,
country. To resist such agitation and to act as a sop to the morbid
apprehensions of the slave-holders, President Jackson urged Congress to
pass a law excluding anti-slavery publications from the mails. This
bill was finally defeated, but not until the mails of the South had been
examined over and over again in the search for Abolitionist pamphlets
or anti-slavery expressions. Large rewards were offered in some of the
slave- holding States for the apprehension of several of the leading Abo
litionists. Mobs became frequent wherever the anti-slavery societies
worked. A madness seemed to possess the people, and the slightest
sympathy with the blacks was severely punished. One man was
obliged to fly for his life in New Orleans because he offered a Bible to a
slave. A doctor in Washington was thrown into prison because a
package he received was accidentally wrapped in an anti-slavery paper.
It was frequent diversion to burn the houses of Abolitionists, and destroy
the printing office of any organ of the party. In 1836, a mob attacked
a warehouse in Alton, Illinois, where a printing press was stored
belonging to the Rev. E. P. Lovejoy. This was the fourth time that
his printing materials had been destro}red and his paper suppressed.
This time the matter . was made certain by the murder of the editor.
But they also succeeded in making him immortal, aud he is known as one
of the first martyrs of the cause of liberty. As a result of this outrage
the Abolitionists won a new convert, Wendell Phillips, who, for thirty
years, exercised a unique influence in the moral history of America.
Late in the year 1836, Pennsylvania Hall, in Philadelphia, was burned
because it had been dedicated by an anti-slavery meeting, and the young
poet Whittier had read one of his unqualified poems on freedom in it.
In a few cases attempts were made to open schools for colored children
in the North, but the teachers were always driven from the town, the
schools destroyed and the books burned. Such acts were not the work
of ruffians, but of the most dignified and influential citizens.
But nothing could stay the storm of discussion that swept over the
country. Petitions by the thousand were sent to Congress, begging
that it would exercise its undoubted right of abolishing slavery in the
national domain which was under its exclusive control and of stopping
the domestic slave trade. A handful of men, led by John Quincy
Adams, fought for these petitions, but against them were all of the
Southern and most of the Northern representatives. Adams stood to
his principles in the midst of turmoil and disapprobation which would
have silenced a weaker man. When, in 1835, William Slade asked
that a petition for the abolition of slavery and the slave trade in the

• FICTION AND TRUTH. 501
District of Columbia be referred to a committee, the proposal met with
an uproar in the House. The representatives from the Southern States
left the House, and this was termed the secession of the Southern mem
bers. The word "secession" was cherished afterward. But the North
was silenced by a compromise the next day and the Southern members
consented to be appeased. Such compromises were constant, but there
was a growing determination among the citizens of the North to be
heard. Neither State nor Federal legislation could altogether quiet
them. With the exception of a few Philadelphia Quakers, there had
been, up to this period, but few men or women in the North who did
not consider it his or her duty to return fugitive slaves to their masters.
But the growing sympathy with the oppressed race changed this, and
that curious system known as the "Underground Railway" was formed,
by which fugitive slaves were helped from house to house, clothed, fed
and harbored, and sent safely to Canada.
In 1 841 occurred one of the many incidents relating to this period
which are of such interest to the student of this question. An Ameri
can slave ship, the Creole, sailed from Richmond with a cargo of one
hundred and thirty-five slaves, gathered on the Virginia plantations.
Among them was a man named Madison Washington. This man had
once tasted liberty, for he had escaped to Canada, but had come back
to release his wife, who was still a slave. He had been retaken and
sold, and was now to be sent to a far southwest plantation where escape
would be more difficult. As the Creole neared the Bahama Islands,
Washington put himself at the head of nineteen of his fellows, whose
only arms were four knives. These attacked the crew and succeeded
in confining the captain and the white passengers, among whom were
their owners. One slave trader was killed and several wounded. They
forced the captain to take the boat into Nassau, New Providence, where
all not engaged actively in the revolt were declared to be free. Wash
ington and his eighteen companions were detained to be tried in the
English courts — though practically their freedom was secured as soon
as they came under the protection of England. There were some
people in the North who were strong-minded enough to rejoice in the
restoration to their natural freedom of one hundred and thirty-five
human beings, but Calhoun, Clay and other Southern Senators
denounced the English government for protecting acts which they pro
nounced piracy and murder.
A scene of violence took place in the House of Representatives when
Joshua R. Giddings, of Ohio, offered a series of resolutions in which he

502 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
claimed that every man had a natural right in himself, and that once
beyond the boundaries of the United States every slave was free. A
vote of censure was passed on these resolutions by an overwhelming
majority. Giddings resigned his seat, returned to Ohio, and appealed
to his constituents. It was a marked sign of increasing sympathy with
the anti-slavery cause that he was returned as quickly as possible by an
increased majority of thousands, and from a State which a short time
before had driven the teachers of negro schools beyond their borders in
contumely. At this very time the Supreme Court of the United States
was deciding upon the right of the recapture of fugitive slaves. What
it finally decided, after much discussion, was that the law of slavery was
supreme in the free, as in the slave States, and that it was the duty of
every State to aid the slave-holder everywhere in recapturing the slave.
Nowhere was the agitation upon the question of slavery more profound
than in the churches. It was certainly a difficult nut for them to
crack. The question of the marriage relation alone among the slaves
was one which was quite enough to divide a church. But after all, the
question was, and remained for many years, whether Africans were men
and women with instincts of loyalty, purity and affection, or whether
they were simply brutes, born to servitude, with no rights which the
white men were bound to respect.
FOR FURTHER READING:
History — Johnson's "Garrison and the Times."
Tanner's "Martyrdom of Lovejoy "
Fiction — L. Neville's "Edith Allen."
Mrs. Stowe's "Dred."
W. D. O'Connor's "Harrington."
Beverly Tucker's "Partisan Leader."
W. Adams' "The Sable Cloud."
Holt's "Abraham Page."
Poetry — Whittier's "Voices of Freedom."
Marion Harland's "Judith."

CHAPTER LXXXI.
jt If tmu Jfcnhsh jtgmttsl %inii
SECOND SEMINOLE WAR — ELECTION OF VAN BUREN — FINANCIAL
DEPRESSION — ELECTION OF WILLIAM HENRY HARRISON —
THE DORR REBELLION — THE MORMONS —
ANNEXATION OF TEXAS.

N the midst of Jackson's administration came the
Seminole war. The Sacs arid Foxes, Chickasaws
and Choctaws had all been removed west of the
Mississippi, but the Seminoles, in Florida, steadily
refused to move. President Jackson was equally
determined that they should leave their eastern
reservation, and he sent seven chiefs westward to inves
tigate the lands designed for them. With them went a
commission, whose persuasions induced the chiefs to
sign a treaty, without consulting the rest of the tribe.
A large part of the Seminoles were determined to stay
where they were, and a young chief named Osceola,
the son of a half-breed woman and an Englishman,
headed the opposition. His wife was a maroon, i. e. , a
a negro born among the Indians of Florida, and she had been captured
by the former mistress of her mother and held as a slave. Osceola had
the natural pride and steadfastness of an Englishman, added to the
fiercer Indian characteristics. He wished to avenge his wife's captivity
as well as to maintain the independence of his people. Under his
leadership the Seminoles declared hostilities in 1835. Major Francis
L Dade was sent out with about one hundred and forty men against
Osceola, but he and his men were fired upon by an unseen foe before
they reached their destination, and only two of them escaped with their
lives. The United States sent out General Gaines with seven hundred
men, in February, from New Orleans. They attempted to march
across the Florida country. The expedition was entirely unsuccessful, .

504 THE STORY OF AMERICA. ,
and General Scott assumed command. The Indians and negroes,
meanwhile, were preying upon wagon trains and farms, and the
country all about was kept in a state of terror. The summer of 1836
was very sickly, and the military posts were almost deserted. Not till
autumn was any fighting done, and then the Americans failed to drive
their enemies from their dark swamps. A change of commanders was
tried, and Thomas S. Jessup entered upon the winter campaign with
eight thousand men. The Indians retreated toward the everglades,
and in February, 1837, they sued for peace. In March, the agreement
to cease from war was signed at Fort Dade, the Indians stipulating
that they were to remain in Florida. This the Government refused to
permit, but seized seven hundred Indians and negroes, before the
decision was announced to them, and sent them off to Tampa for ship
ment. Osceola was sent to Charleston and locked in the prison there,
where he soon died of grief. But there were still many Indians and
maroons hiding in the swamps and woods of Florida, and in May, 1837,
General Zachary Taylor was sent out to hunt them from their places of
refuge. Thirty-three blood-hounds had been imported from Cuba to
track the fugitives. This plan was approved by both President Jack
son and General Taylor; but, fortunately for the reputation of the
United States, the blood-hounds would not track Indians, as they had
only been taught to hunt negroes.
Several other commanders made ineffectual attempts to complete
the subjection of these hunted creatures, and finally General William
J. Worth, a man of considerable ability, was sent out in the
spring of 1841 to conduct a summer campaign. Worth's troops, in
small parties, went up the river and penetrated the swamps to the
islands, where they destroyed the crops and the huts of the enemy. In
a short time peace was secured. General Worth received the surrender
of all the bands, and sent them to the west. The war had lasted seven
years. Over five hundred persons had been taken from their wild, free
life, and reduced to bondage. The fugitive slaves of the South no
longer found an asylum in the everglades of Florida. This victory had
cost the Americans forty million dollars, which was twice as much as
was paid for the territories of Louisiana and Florida together. For
each person reduced to slavery, the lives of three white men had been
expended. But the slaveholders were satisfied. The great-grandsons
of the slaves of their great-grandfathers had been returned to them,
and they no longer made moan over their human property lying waste-
in the southern territory.

A HOUSE DIVIDED AGAINST ITSELF. 505
Martin Van Buren, of New York, was elected President in 1837.
Like General Jackson, he was the candidate of the Democratic party.
The opposition was now called the Whig party, and the chief quarrel
between them was concerning State sovereignty. In this same year a
rebellion broke out in Canada, and many of the people of the States
bordering on Canada joined the rebellion — for there was a general
sympathy in America with the insurgents. The United States made
great efforts to maintain neutrality, and though it did not entirely suc
ceed, the country had the discretion to avoid war.
The dissatisfaction with the Democratic administration was increas
ing. The financial troubles of 1837 spread over the country, and were
laid generally to the mismanagement of the public funds and the ill-
advised method of conducting the State banks. In 1840 came a
political revolution. The Whig members of Congress proposed a
national convention, at which a candidate for the presidency should be
nominated. The canvass which followed this nomination began a new
era in elections. The ratification meetings which have since become
so popular were started at that time, and as the mode of travel was
more convenient than it had ever been previously, they were attended
by vast numbers of people. General William Henry Harrison, of Ohio,
known for his soldierly qualities, was nominated as the candidate for the
Whigs. He had been one of the earliest pioneers of the Far West, and
some one gave him the name of the ' Log-cabin Candidate. ' ' All over
the country log cabins were built for political meetings. They were
erected even in the midst of large cities, and the popular ' 'mass meet
ings' ' were held in them. At the political celebrations the only drink
was cider, the favorite beverage of the farmers. Ringing campaign
songs were composed about the "Hero of Tippecanoe," and "Tippe
canoe and Tyler, too" — John Tyler being the candidate for the vice-
presidency. Never before had there been such a boisterous campaign,
and an overwhelming vote was given for General Harrison, who was
inaugurated President in 1841. He lived but a month after his inaugu
ration, and Vice-President John Tyler, of Virginia, became President
for the remainder of the four years.
In Rhode Island, in 1842, there was a revolt against the old colonial
charter under which the State had always been governed. In this, the
right of suffrage was restricted to the free-holders and their eldest sons,
so that the popular representation had become very unequal. In the
legislature of 1840, for instance, twenty-nine thousand of the inhabitants
were represented by seventy members, and eighty thousand by thirty-

506

THE STORY OF AMERICA.

four members. It was in vain that the people appealed to the legisla
ture to take measures for the reform of the constitution. A new
constitution was formed by a popular convention in October, 1841, and
accepted by the majority of voters. An election was held under it the
following April, and Thomas Wilson Dorr chosen Governor. When he
and the other State officers elected with him tried to assume their
offices, they were resisted by those who held office under the charter, at
the head of whom was Samuel W. King. Both sides took up arms
and appealed to the Federal Government. The Dorr party were twice

BORDER OF GREAT SALT LAKE, UTAH.

dispersed without bloodshed. Dorr was convicted of high treason and
sentenced to imprisonment for life, but after three years was released
and restored to full citizenship. Meanwhile the Rhode Island legisla
ture had called a convention to draw up a constitution, and in May,
1843, a satisfactory constitution was ratified.
In New York, at about this time, there was trouble along the
Hudson river, where the estates of the old Dutch patroons lay. The
tenants who lived upon these estates were unwilling to pay rent to

A HOUSE DIVIDED AGAINST ITSELF. 507
the descendants of the early proprietors, and for a time there was armed
resistance. In Illinois, there was also much disturbance. The Mormons, or
"Latter-Day Saints," had built a city named Nauvoo. At this time
they had been founded fourteen years, and followed in all particulars
the law which Joseph Smith, their founder, claimed to have discovered
written on gold plates buried iu the earth. The Mormons had first
established themselves in Missouri, but were driven thence into Illinois.
Here they were again assailed by mobs and forced out into the wilder
ness. In the midst of that wilderness they found the exquisite spot in
the interior of Utah where they made their final settlement and still
remain. President Tyler soon lost his popularity. He had been accused of
trying to break faith with the party which elected him. Whether this
is true or not, it is certain that he broke his word with his Cabinet, and
they all resigned, excepting Daniel Webster. As Webster was engaged
in some important negotiations with England concerning the boundary
line between Maine and New Brunswick, he felt that he owed it to the
people to remain. In 1842, Mr. Webster, on the part of the United
States, and Lord Ashburton, on the part of England, concluded a treaty
which defined the boundary lines between New Brunswick and Maine.
The line was also traced on to the Pacific Ocean, as it stands on all
later maps.
When Tyler had taken his position of sympathy with the Southern
States he formed a close alliance with Calhoun, the leader of the
Southern party, and devoted himself for the rest of his administration
to the cause of the South. As a result of this came the annexation of
Texas. The Spaniards and the French had contested for Texas and
established rival missions or religious settlements through it. Finally,
the province of Texas revolted from Mexico and declared itself an inde
pendent State. Large American colonies had been established there
and the Americans took part in its struggle for independence. The
slave-holding element fixed envious eyes upon this great tract of land,
which was more than twice as large as the States of New York, Penn
sylvania and Ohio put together. Mr. Calhoun admitted that the object
of securing Texas was to uphold the interests of slavery, extend its
influence, and secure its permanent duration. The Whigs saw very
clearly that if this immense tract of land was peopled with slaves and
representation was determined by population, that freedom would be
entirely outvoted in the Government forever. Mr. Webster's unwill-

508 THE STORY OP AMERICA.
ingness, as Secretary of State, to abet the admission of Texas caused
him to be removed from office. Mr. Upshur was put in his place, but
was killed soon after his appointment, and in March, 1844, Mr. Cal
houn, the leader of the Southern faction, was made Secretary of State.
A resolution for admission passed the United States House of Repre
sentatives February 25, 1845, an& the United States Senate on March
ist. It was approved immediately by the President three days before
he went out of office, and the United States assumed the Texas debt of
seven and a half million dollars.
Florida was admitted as a State to the Union in 1845 — the same
year that James K. Polk, of Tennessee, was elected President of the
United States. FOR FURTHER READING:
History — Jones' "Republic of Texas."
Urquhart's "Annexation of Texas."
Fiction — Lowell's "Bigelow Papers."
Mayne Reid's "Osceola."
General Donaldson's "Sergeant Atkins."
E. C. Z. Judson's "The Volunteer."
H. Hazel's "The Light Dragoon."

CHAPTER LXXXII.

ip jSait flmn ti ftanferaj*

THE ADMINISTRATION OF POLK, AND THE WAR WITH MEXICO-
VARIOUS SEVERE BATTLES — CONQUEST OF CALIFORNIA AND
NEW MEXICO — OCCUPATION OF THE CITY OF
MEXICO  TREATY OF PEACE — BIRTH OF
THE FREE SOIL PARTY AND
ELECTION OF TAYLOR.

cHE news of Polk's election was the first report
ever transmitted by telegraph in America, being
sent on a line which Professor Morse had just
completed between Washington and Baltimore.
The combined opposition of the Whig party and
a new party called the Liberty party, which was
formed to resist the influence of slavery, were
unable to cope with Democratic supremacy, and Mr.
Polk was elected by a considerable majority. He came
into power with the certainty of a war with Mexico on
his hands. A strong naval force had previously been sent
into the Gulf of Mexico, and all the military which could
be spared ordered to the southwestern frontier. At the
time of Polk's inauguration, three thousand six hundred
soldiers were at Corpus Christi, Texas, under General Zachary Taylor.
Texas was annexed by joint resolution to the United States in
March, 1845^ and a year later Taylor moved southward to a point on
the Rio Grande, opposite Matamoras. At the same time he called upon
the Governors of Louisiana and Texas for five thousand volunteers, and,
wishing to open communication with Point Isabel, moved eastward.
The Mexican general, Arista, wished to hinder his return, and planted
six thousand men across his road at Palo Alto, nine miles from Mata
moras. When Taylor returned and found his way blockaded, he gave
battle. He had with him some heavy guns which worked terrible
30

512 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
havoc in the Mexican infantry, and in the midst of the conflict the
prairie grass between the two lines took fire, furnishing a thick curtain
of smoke, behind which Arista drew off his men. The next morning
the Mexicans took position in a deep ravine at Resaca de la Palma.
This ravine was shaped like a horseshoe, and the open side was towards
the advancing Americans. But notwithstanding this superior position,
the Americans succeeded in capturing the enemy's artillery, and putting
the infantry to flight.
On the 13th of May, before news of these events reached Wash
ington, Congress formally declared war, and authorized the President
to call for fifty thousand volunteers for one year. The mass of the
people of the United States were not willing to go to war about a mere
question of boundary. They were somewhat dismayed by the call for
volunteers, and thought that it was hardly worth risking so much
merely to insure to the United States another hundred miles of territory.
Texas claimed that its western boundary was the Rio Grande. Mexico
claimed that it was the river Neuces. Congress pretended to believe
that Mexico had first declared war, and President Polk labored in his
message of 1846 to show that the territory of the United States had
been invaded by the Mexicans. The fallacy of this statement was
exposed by Abraham Lincoln, who was then a member of the House of
Representatives. However, many volunteers were sent by the south
western States, and when General Taylor's army was swelled to seven
thousand men, he approached the fortified towu of Monterey. This was
garrisoned by ten thousand Mexicans, under the command of General
Santa Anna, who had formerly been President of Mexico, and was
considered the best soldier of that republic. When Taylor sat down
before the city with his force, he sent General Worth's division to plant
itself on the enemy's line of retreat. The Americans took first one and
then another of the fortified eminences upon the river, and on the 23d
of September they fought their way into the streets of the city. These
were held by stout barricades and nobly defended, but as Taylor pressed
from the east and Worth from the west, the Mexicans were finally
obliged to yield.
The winter passed without any brilliant engagement, but in May,
1847, Colonel Philip Kearney was ordered to organize an expedition for
the occupation of New Mexico and Upper California. He marched
into Santa Fe on the 1 8th of August with eighteen hundred men, and
issued a proclamation declaring the inhabitants absolved from their
allegiance to Mexico, and organizing the State as a Territory of the

THE SAD PLAIN OF MONTEREY.

513

United States. He appointed a civil governor and hastened on to
California with a small cavalry force. John C. Fremont, with an
exploring expedition, was in California at the time, and was ordered by
the Government to see that no foreigners should trespass upon the
country; in other words, that the Spaniards and Mexicans should be
irritated as much as possible. He learned that the Mexican commandant
of California was on the point of expelling some American settlers, and
this gave him the excuse for at once assuming the offensive. He
captured the city of Sonoma and succeeded in securing independence to

OLDEST HOUSE IN THE UNITED STATES, SANTA FE, NEW MEXICO.

the settlers. Not that they were eager for independence, but the gallant
young captain was determined to make American patriots of them, even
against their will. Commodore Stockton, who commanded the American
fleet, had joined Fremont, taken possession of Los Angeles, and then
of Monterey, the capital of California, and set up a provisional govern
ment, with himself at the head.
Meanwhile, the Government, considering that Taylor's manner of
conducting the war was far too conciliatory, sent General Winfield

514 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
Scott to take the chief command and conduct the war in Old Mexico as
should seem to him best. He reached Taylor in January of 1847, took
ten thousand of Taylor's troops, and left that general not quite seven
thousand. News of this reached Santa Anna, and he prepared to strike
while his enemy was thus divided. Taylor heard that the Mexicans
were approaching in force, and he fell back to a strong position south
of Saltillo. Here, among the thin, sharp mountain walls, and the
innumerable passes and ravines, is a broad plateau, known now as the
Battle Ground of Buena Vista. Taylor had with him in fighting
condition but fifty- two hundred men. Santa Anna's force at the very
least was twelve thousand. Cavalry, of course, could not be used on
ground of this nature, and, indeed, the attacking party could not even
get their artillery in position. Taylor placed his men in groups upon
the tops of the bluffs near the edge of the plateau. Here they fought
through February 22d, and on the 23d renewed the contest. The
plateau was mid- way up the mountain, and Santa Anna sent part of his
men to descend from the higher bluffs and others to scale the incline
from below. Throughout the day the ground was hotly contested.
Now a Mexican and now an American column was forced to draw back.
As night closed in the result of the day was still undecided, but when
morning broke the Americans found that the Mexicans had retreated.
They learned later that the Mexican loss was much heavier than their
Own. Scott had taken his army to within a few miles of Vera Cruz. Vera
Cruz was a strongly fortified city of seven thousand inhabitants. The
castle of San Juan de Ulloa stood about a thousand yards off shore on a
reef commanding all the channels of the harbor. The Mexicans had
supposed that it would be impossible for any boats to reach the city
without coming under the guns of this strong castle, but Scott landed
his men by means of surf boats, and bombarded the castle for four days.
The city and castle surrendered on the 27th.
The capital of Mexico was still two hundred miles distant, but
toward this Scott marched as soon as he received the necessary supplies.
At Cerro Gordo he was intercepted by the Mexicans, who had taken
position on the heights at a strong mountain pass, with a battery
commanding every turn of the road. But the Americans climbed up
paths which the Mexicans had thought inaccessible and fell upon the
enemy's rear, while others bravely contested the pass. The intrench
ments were finally carried by storm, and the guns turned upon the
rapidly-retreating Mexicans. Santa Anna fled with his men toward

THE SAD PLAIN OF MONTEREY. 515
Jalapa. Scott followed him and took the place and waited here for
reinforcements, which soon arrived. Santa Anna opened negotiations
for peace, and promised to stop fighting if one million dollars was paid
to him personally. He wished an installment of ten thousand imme
diately, and this Scott paid to him. But the Mexican Congress
decided that the cause was not yet desperate, and Santa Anna's
arrangement was disregarded. Scott, therefore, marched on with his
men to the city of Mexico. He found that this was approached by
causeways, crossing low and marshy ground, and these causeways were
commanded by rocky hills which were strongly fortified. Santa Anna
intercepted him aud brought about the battle of Contreras. This was
fought at the west of the city upon a rugged field of broken lava. The
ground was terrible, the artillery and the cavalry almost useless, and
even the infantry were injured not a little by falls upon the treacherous
and broken crust. The Mexicans were finally surrounded, and many
of them were cut down upon the spot, while others escaped through the
American lines and took to the mountain paths. Two thousand
Mexicans were killed or wounded, and nearly a thousand captured,
including four generals. All the stores and ammunition fell into the
hands of the Americans, who had lost but sixty in killed and wounded.
Following close upon the battle of Contreras came that of Cheru-
busco. Here Santa Anna had concentrated his entire force. A large
stone convent guarded the bridge, across which the Americans were
obliged to pass, and the river at this point was very wide. The
Mexicans were prepared to defend the bridge stoutly, having pierced
the building for the use of muskets, and surrounded it by a strong
field-work. But the Americans approached by ditches and dykes
closer and closer, till at last they crossed the moat, scaled the parapet,
and won the convent — and the battle of Cherubusco. Their loss,
however, had been very heavy.
Scott's next movement was, on September 7th, upon the Molino del
Rey (the King's Mill), a group of strong stone buildings, where it was
said that the church bells of the city were being cast into cannons.
Not far from this stood the castle of Chapultepec, upon the great rock
of that name. The buildings were five hundred yards long. They
had been barricaded, loop-holed, and provided with sand-bag parapets.
Not far from these buildings was the Casa Mata, another strong
building prepared for defence. Between these two buildings was a
battery, and about them the Mexicans had gathered in force. Scott
was located upon the southern side of the city, and, therefore, left

5^6 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
Worth to conduct the siege of these buildings, which were upon the
western side of the city. Scott did not himself think the castle of
Chapultepec of much importance, and when Worth begged that he
might be allowed to take it if possible, Scott refused his request. He
therefore prepared his men to take the Molino del Rey, and surrounded
that building before daylight in the morning. His orders were to
capture the battery, but when the men crept up to the spot where they
last saw it, they found it had been moved. A moment later it opened upon
their flanks, killing more than half the attacking column. While the
Americans were reforming, the Mexicans rushed upon the ground and
killed the wounded. But the Americans recovered and charged again.
Companies of sharpshooters picked off the gunners and the Mexicans
upon the roofs of the buildings. At last the gate of the great yard gave
way, and the assailants rushed in, continuing the fight hand-to-hand
within the court. A large part of the very best of the American force
were slain and the Mexicans were killed in great numbers, the survivors
finally retreating to the castle of Chapultepec. The fire was still kept
up from Casa Mata, and the Americans approached in the very teeth of
the fire, bringing the whole of their artillery to bear upon the walls,
forcing the Mexicans to abandon the building. Worth had secured
these buildings at a terrible cost, as seven hundred and eighty, out of
three thousand five hundred of his troops, had fallen, but in obedience to
Scott's positive orders, they were abandoned to the Mexicans.
Later, however, in a council of war, it was determined that the castle
of Chapultepec must be reduced before the city could be taken. This
castle stands upon a great rock a hundred and fifty feet high. The
northern and southern sides of this rock are absolutely inaccessible, and
the eastern and a portion of the western nearly so. It is possible to
scale the southwestern and western sides. A battery stood in the angle
of the long 'zig-zag road which formed the regular approach, to the
castle. Strong fortifications were placed upon the rock, and around
were ditches, aqueducts and walls. The Molino del Rey was upon the
western side, and upon the east two great causeways led into the city
of Mexico. Two thousand men, with thirteen heavy guns, defended
the place. The Americans tried to reduce it by artillery fire alone, but
finding this impossible, a party seized the Molino and occupied it. From
here, on the 13th of September, fire was opened upon the castle, and a
little later infantry were sent out to advance along the grounds of the
great enclosure which extends west of the castle. This western slope
was perforated with mines, but the Mexican officer who came out to

THE SAD PLAIN OF MONTEREY. 517
explode them was shot down, and the assailants went on to the crest of
the hill. This crest, however, they could not climb, and as they had no
scaling ladders at hand, they took refuge in the crevices of the rocks,
and picked off the Mexicans at the guns. A large number of the
Mexicans were letting themselves down the perpendicular rock on the
eastern side, and a force was sent around to intercept them, and cut off
their retreat. When the scaling ladders arrived, the force upon the
west scaled the walls in the midst of a terrible fire and gained the para
pet. They then walked across the ditch upon the ladders. Meanwhile,
another party had climbed up the southern slope and entered at the great
gate. The enemy gave way everywhere and the Americans took
possession of the castle. Then they pushed on after the flying enemy
into the city, but when they reached the citadel where Santa Anna
commanded, they were met with a fire so dreadful that further advance
was simply impossible. However, the Americans gained possession of
numerous buildings and dragged their howitzers to the roofs where they
did destructive work upon the Mexicans below. Night fell with
Americans in the city, but the citadel was still unconquered. The
Mexicans held a council of war and decided to withdraw their army
from the city, liberate the convicts in the prison, arm them, and
urge the inhabitants of the city to fight with them from the house
tops. The army was therefore drawn out of the city in the night,
and when morning dawned gangs of convicts, deserters, robbers and
thieves took the place of the soldiers, fighting with paving stones which
had been carried by the thousands to the house-tops in the night.
The American artillery was turned upon these houses and the desperate
people soon submitted. By the 15th of September, 1848, the city
was quiet and in possession of the Americans. Then came the treaty
which ended the war, and gave to the United States not only Texas,
but New Mexico, California and Arizona.
This year General Taylor, candidate of the Democratic party, was
elected President by a large majority over Charles Francis Adams, the
nominee of the Free-Soil party.
FOR FURTHER READING:
History— Major Ripley's "History of the Mexican War."
Fremont's "Memoirs."
Scott's "Autobiography."
Fiction— J. R. Lowell's "Bigelow Papers."
J. Clement's "Bernard Lisle."
"Talbot and Vernon." Anon.
C L. Hentz's "The Planter's Northern Bride."
C L- Hentz's "Eoline."
C. L. Hentz's "Marcus Warland."
Poetry— Charles F. Hoffman's "Monterey."
J. G. Lyon's "Hero of Monterey."
Albert Pike's "Buena Vista."
Whittier's "Angels of Buena Vista."

CHAPTER LXXXIII.
ifllb attit %vtm §}pm+

DEATH OF TAYLOR, AND ADMINISTRATION OF MILLARD FILLMORE—
DISCOVERY OF GOLD IN CALIFORNIA — SLAVERY
AGITATION — THE TROUBLE
IN KANSAS.

R. TAYLOR lived but one year after he was
elected President, and Vice-President Millard
Fillmore, of New York, became President for
the remainder of that term — 1850 to 1853. Dur
ing Taylor's administration gold was discovered
in California. It is most surprising that it had
never been discovered before, and that it should be
discovered now quite by accident. It was found in a
little mill-stream running from the Sierra Nevada, and
caused such excitement that all efforts to keep it
secret necessarily failed. A great tide of emigration
set in upon California, not from the Eastern States
alone, but from all parts of the world. Great wagon
trains crossed the desolate plains and the snowy passes
of the Rocky Mountains to the land of gold. Many
gold-seekers went away around Cape Horn, and yet others ventured
across the Isthmus of Panama. So rapidly did the population increase
that it was not long before the Territory applied to the Union for admis
sion as a State. In the State constitution which was formed, slavery
was prohibited forever. President Taylor was a Southern man with
slave-holding principles, but he was one who earnestly desired to pre
serve the union of the States, and in readily granting this constitution
to California he hoped that the anti-slavery agitation might be quieted,
and the country saved from the conflict to which even the dullest could
see it was inevitably drifting.
The Free-Soil party was rapidly gaining strength. Northern Sena-

HENRY CLAY.

GOLD AND IRON CHAINS. 521
tors presented resolutions, whenever there was an opportunity, for the
prohibition of slavery in the new Territories, but none of these bills
were carried. Mr. Clay, who twice before in the clash of sectional
opinions had offered compromises which temporarily allayed the storm,
tried once more to act as conciliator. Kentucky was making a new
constitution, and Clay suggested that there should be a gradual eman
cipation of the slaves in that State, and that as they were made free
they should be colonized in Africa. But though Clay had been the
cherished idol of the Kentucky people, they could not endure this reso
lution, and he was deserted by the "Fire-eaters," as the slave-holding
extremists were now called. Daniel Webster, whom the North had
always considered one of its warmest and most eloquent supporters, was
guilty at this time of a change of opinion. He supported the compro
mises of Mr. Clay, perhaps with the hope that he might gain Southern
favor — for it must be clearly understood that Mr. Clay's compromises
had for their end the quieting of the Northern conscience. It was
hoped that these concessions to Northern prejudice would secure the
Southern States from further interference. Daniel Webster's attitude
was that the Union would be disbanded if the slave-holders were not
allowed to have their way. He believed in the preservation of the
Union, even at the price of the continuance of slavery. Mr. Calhoun,
the third great statesman of that period, was dying, and his influence
could no longer be used to uphold the policy of the South.
When Mr. Fillmore took the presidential chair left vacant by the
death of Taylor, Mr. Webster was taken into the Cabinet as Secretary
of State, and the North knew that it could hope for but little from the
Administration. He accepted and signed the compromise without
hesitation, and the beginning of his administration is noted for the
passage of the fugitive slave law. This gave the owners of slaves per
mission to recapture their escaped slaves in any part of the free States,
and to carry them back without trial by jury. That the slave-holders
might meet with no hindrance or annoyance, commissioners were
appointed throughout the country who were to decide upon all questions
of capture. If they decided that the slave was the property of the man
who claimed him, their fees were twice what they were if they decided
otherwise. This law was received in the North with horrified indigna
tion. Since every citizen was obliged to prescribe to it, many men
refused to take the oath of citizenship or to vote. Others already bound
protested that right was greater than law, and that they should simply
disregard the enactment. It was a matter in which few could be

522 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
passive. Every citizen in the free States was considered as under obliga
tions to capture and return to their masters any negroes found within
their territory. The alarm among the colored people was intense.
The free negroes knew that there was no legal protection, left them,
and that any of them at any time might be seized and returned to
slavery. They had not dared to count on the strong wave of sympathy
which swept the North. _ A few years before, to be an Abolitionist was
to be despised, persecuted, almost outlawed. But now the question was
shown to the public in a different light. The Southern States had
disregarded Northern wishes, and it occurred to the North that the
gospel of State Rights might not apply alone to the States of the
South. It had always been urged in the support of slavery; why was
it not possible to urge it for the protection of liberty? It was therefore
determined by private opinion that the Northern States would do as
they pleased about rendering up fugitive slaves. But it was the masses
who decided this. The prominent men, with the ministers at their
head, protested that the law must be obeyed, and begged the people
not to disturb commercial prosperity by any ill-advised sentiment-
alism. When attempts were made to capture fugitive slaves, the slave-
hunters found that they met with unexpected obstacles. The people of
the villages aroused to defend the slaves with arms, not alone from
impulses of humanity, but to protect what they deemed their constitu
tional right. The tables were turned upon the South. State sov
ereignty put on a new aspect. Not unfrequently slaves were snatched
from the court-room and carried away by their friends of the Free-Soil
party. But government, whether State or municipal, had no sympathy
with these demonstrations.
Boston showed that she intended to have the obnoxious law obeyed.
An attempt was made to rescue Antony Burns, a fugitive slave,
from the court house. The attack was repelled and one man was
killed. The city called out the militia and the marshal joined to these
all the United States troops in the vicinity. Antony Burns, a dejected
frightened negro, was given back to his master with as much military
pomp as might have celebrated the victory of a conqueror. More than
one hundred civil officers of Boston, with the poor fugitive in their
midst, marched out of the court house in a solid square formed by
United States marines and a company of artillery. But this repre
sented only the authority of the law. In the hearts of the people who
watched the poor slave as he was taken in the midst of this display to

GOLD AND IRON CHAINS. 523
Long Wharf, there smouldered the protest which makes righteous revo
lution so much higher than law. No doubt this pitiable rendition of
Antony Burns was a good thing for Massachusetts, for now throughout
the State there was a righteous anger, as intense as that which ani
mated her when she fought for her own liberty three-quarters of a
century before. There, and indeed throughout the North, when law
failed, force was resorted to, and the slaves were rescued. When it
became necessary for the slaves to fight in their own defense, arms were
put into their hands. In some States the use of prisons, and the ser
vices of State officers in the arrest of fugitives, were forbidden by State
legislation. The South saw that it had gone too far.
Otherwise the administration was not without benefit. Postage was
reduced, the agricultural bureau established, the Pacific Railroad begun,
and the enlargement of the Capitol started. Those negotiations which
opened up Japan to the world were begun. As the time for the election
of a new President drew near, the Congressional members for thirty-
three States pledged themselves not to support any man for the presi
dency not opposed to the renewal of the agitation of slavery. John
Franklin Pierce, of New Hampshire, was the Democratic candidate.
The Whigs held three conventions and nominated for President John
Parker Hale, of New Hampshire. The Democrats were successful, and
Pierce entered the presidency, pledging himself to do all in his power
to preserve silence upon the question of slavery. But he had not been
in office six weeks when the agitation was renewed as bitterly as ever
by the efforts of the friends of slavery to overthrow the Missouri Com
promise. This, it will be remembered, passed in 1820, and prohibited
slavery north of a certain line of that great domain which had been
bought under the name of Louisiana. It was now proposed to organize,
out of that region from which slavery had been thus excluded, two new
Territories, to be named Kansas and Nebraska. The inhabitants of
these were to have the right to determine for themselves whether they
should establish slavery or freedom — "squatter sovereignty," an epi
grammatic Senator termed it. This bill passed May 30, 1854, and
through the North it awakened an indignation as intense as if a part of
the Constitution had been repealed. An invisible line seemed to divide
the section between free labor and slavery, and to break over this line
seemed treason and sacrilege. The "Northern conscience," of which
the South had been so afraid, was aroused at last. The "religious
liberty" at which the South sneered was the foundation of their resent
ment.

524 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
The Northwest crowded the new Territories with settlers. The
Massachusetts Emigrant Aid Company was formed, holding a capital of
five million dollars, and this company took five hundred New England
emigrants into Kansas. The slave-holding element of Missouri was
alarmed. They could easily see that Kansas was likely to become a
free-labor State beyond the power of legislature to hinder. It was not
easy for a slave-holder to prepare a plantation and move his army of
negroes into the doubtful Territory. But the men of the North and
the West, adaptable, industrious and enterprising, seized the oppor
tunity to settle upon fertile lands, which could be had for nothing, or
next to it, with avidity. But whenever a party reached the line which
divides Missouri from Kansas, they were met with strong opposition by
the reckless and brutal men of that region, known as "Border Ruffians. "
These tried in vain to check the stream of emigration. Meetings of men
in the slave interest were held in Missouri, in which they pledged them
selves to remove any and all emigrants who should go to Kansas under
the auspices of the emigrant aid societies, and the frequent outrages
on the Missouri line testified how ambitious they were to keep their
word. W. H. Reeder, of Pennsylvania, was appointed Governor of the
Territory, and arrived in Kansas in October, 1854. Most of the emi
grants settled at Lawrence, or near there, for the reason that the title of
the land there was clear, whereas at that time much of the Kansas
territory had a doubtful title, as the Indians had not yet given up their
claims to the land. FOR FURTHER READING:
Fiction— R. Hildreth's "White Slave."
Holt's "Abraham Page."
J. Hungerford's 'The Old Plantation."
J. H. Ingraham's "Sunny South."
Mrs. Jeffrey's "Woodburn."
M. Lennox's "Ante-Bellum."
Logan's "The Master's House."
M. J. Mcintosh's "The Lofty and the Lowly."
Miss Palfrey's "Herman."
Mrs. Stowe's "Uncle Tom's Cabin."
G. W. Peck's "Aurifodina."
W. W. Brown's "Clatella."
Mrs. Cross' "Azile."
W. Adams' "The Sable Cloud."
W. F. Adams' "Hatchie."

CHAPTER LXXXIV.
t ®rul^ 9tm ftardpg

m.

SACKING OF LAWRENCE— JOHN BROWN AND THE DESTRUCTION OE
OSSAWOTTOMIE — ELECTION OF BUCHANAN — ASSAULT ON
SUMNER — THE MORMONS — ELECTION OF LINCOLN.

mormon temple.

SALT LAKE CITY, UTAH.
PTT S soon as Kansas ventured
AV to PrePare f°r an electi°n;
an army of Missourians
invaded her territory and cast
votes for the candidate of the
slave-holding interest. More bal
lots, indeed, were cast for the
Democratic ticket than there
were voters in the State. As
the governor would not counte
nance these outrages, he was
removed, and a man who could
be depended upon to wink at

526 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
coercion was put in his place. The inhabitants of Kansas called
a convention and prepared a constitution for themselves. To keep
this from going into operation the militia were called out, and a
military company from South Carolina invaded the State, pledged to
war. Lawrence was sacked, and some of its principal buildings
burned. A civil war between the two parties followed. Many lives
were lost on both sides, and Kansas acquired the melancholy nickname
of ' 'Bleeding Kansas. ' ' The influence of the administration at Wash
ington was against the Free State party, and the United States troops
were used for such purposes as dispersing the legislature and arresting
the leaders of the Free State party. Yet another Governor was
appointed, and under his administration an army from Missouri entered
the Territory, and destroyed the village of Ossawottomie. This was
the home of a peculiar man named John Brown. He was absent at
this time, in pursuit of a party of border ruffians who had recently
killed one of his sons, and who at that time had two others in chains.
Brown returned to find his home destroyed, and to lay out, in his
simple, passionate way, a plan which, in its failure, cost him his life.
In the beginning of 1857 the Kansas legislature met once more, but
the prominent members were arrested b\ the United States marshal, leav
ing both houses without a quorum. But the bitter straggle came to an
end after a time. The Free State men conquered, and the attempt to
force slavery into the Territory was given up. A constitution prohibiting
slavery in Kansas was made in 1852, and Charles Robinson was the
first Governor chosen. Two years before this, Franklin Pierce, ' 'who
had come in with little opposition, and gone out with none," had given
place to James Buchanan, of Pennsylvania.
At the time of Buchanan's election the country was in a political
ferment. A party called the "Know Nothing Party" had been
organized in New York, and its ranks were rapidly swelled. Its avowed
purpose was to check foreign influence, especially the influence of the
Pope, purify the ballot, and maintain the use of the Bible in public
schools. The organization was a secret one, and, no doubt, had purposes
which it did not confide to the world. It was called the Know Nothing
party, because it was the habit of the members to say that they knew
nothing of the proceedings or intentions of the society. In the midst
of the greatest confusion of opinion and of the bitterest discussion in
Congress, Buchanan came to the presidency as the candidate of the
Democratic party. A little later, the Senate was disgraced by one of
the most shocking occurrences of those troublous times. Charles

THE TRUTH GOES MARCHING ON. 529
Sumner, Senator from Massachusetts, delivered on two days a speech
which he called, when published, the ' 'Crime Against Kansas. ' ' It was
replied to by four different Senators, who, prompted by the bitterness
and insolence which the time seemed to provoke in all, used expressions
and indulged in abuse of which the Senate chamber had previously been
guiltless. Mr. Sumner retaliated with indignation and even fierceness.
Two days later, after the Senate adjourned, and he was sitting at his
desk writing, Preston S. Brooks, a representative from South Carolina,
approached him and said: "I have read your speech twice over care
fully; it is a libel on South Carolina." He hit Mr. Sumner over the
head with a heavy stick till he fell to the floor bleeding. For four years
the State' of Massachusetts was represented by his empty chair, while he
was in Europe trying to recover his health. The act itself might have
passed simply as the attack of a brutal man, and been thought no more of,
but for the reason that the House and Senate sympathized largely with
the assailant. Brooks, with an insolent speech, resigned from the House,
but was returned at once by his constituents and received the congratu
lations of many. He died soon after, and an eulogy was pronounced
upon him in the House. This showed plainly to the Liberty party of
the North the trend which affairs were taking, and helped to swell the
tide of resistance to Southern rule. Mr. Buchanan was another of
those men who, though born in the North, were willing to sustain the
Southern policy. His first message assured the country that the discus
sion of slavery had come to an end.
Following close upon this address came the decision of Judge Taney
in the Dred Scott case. Scott claimed that he had been removed from
Missouri to Illinois in 1834, and taken into territory north of the
compromise line; that in 1838 he had been taken back into Missouri and
sold again to his present master. He protested that he and his children
were free, but his master maintained that Scott, being a negro, was not
a citizen of Missouri and could not bring an action. The lower courts
differed, and the case was brought before the United States Court. Here
it was twice argued, and Chief Justice Taney gave it as the decision of
the court, that the black men could not be citizens; that they could only
be treated as property, and that they had no right which the white man
was bound to respect. The most conservative in the North were
startled by this decision into a radicalism which they had not before
thought themselves capable of.
In the midst of these troubles a wave of great financial depression
swept over the country. Commerce and enterprise had been developing

53° THE STORY OF AMERICA.
at an abnormal rate, and the system of credit had been perilously wide.
The prosperity proved to be an apple of Sodom, which, when crushed,
gave out only a puff of dust.
In this same year the Government took exception to the views held
by the Mormons, and the President removed their Governor, Brigham
Young, who was also the Prophet of their Church, and appointed a
Gentile. This plan has always been followed since. The Mormons
have converted the once arid desert of Utah into a very paradise, and
every traveler is astonished to find such a beautiful and thriving coun
try ; and here, again, is to be found one of the wonders of the world —
the Great Salt Lake. The summer of this year was marked by the first
telegraphic message which ever passed from America to Europe. This
cable was laid by private enterprise, and neither the Governments of
England or the United States can take any credit to themselves.
In the summer pf 1858 John Brown came into prominence. Every
few years there arises somewhere in the world a man whom criticism
calls a fanatic and whom posterity recognizes as a martyr. In truth,
Brown was both. The contending theories of politicians, the tedious
delays of the law and of Government and the shameless procrastination
which was shown by the Administration, lashed him into resistance. He
was of Puritan blood, and had in him the Puritan devotion to duty and
principle. He had seen the suffering of the people of Kansas, who
were laboring for freedom, and had himself suffered from the outrages
of the border ruffians. One son had been killed and another driven
insane by these men, and he meant to devote his life to aid, so far as he
could, the extermination of slavery and the punishment of the slave
holder. Like many another reformer a strain of madness mingled with
his devotion. He believed that he was God's messenger. Early in the
year he had called together in Canada a quiet convention of the ' 'True
Friends of Freedom," and had prepared a provisional constitution for the
people of the United States. He had been well acquainted in his youth
with the mountains of Virginia, and it seemed to him that they were
made to be the stronghold of an army — an idea which Washington had
held before him. His plan was now to get the slaves to join him; to
retreat to these mountains and hold them until the slaves from all over
the land flocked to his standard and let him lead them to liberty. George
L Stearns secured him arms and gave him four hundred dollars. Brown
went to Maryland and established himself at Harper's Ferry. On the 16th
of October, 1859, he took possession of the United States Armory and
buildings at Harper's Ferry, stopped railroad trains, and held the town

THE TRUTH GOES GOES MARCHING ON. 533
with a force of fourteen white men and four negroes. He would doubt
less have escaped had he not been too considerate of the feelings of the
families of the men whorti he kept as hostages. On their account he
delayed, and United States troops, under the command of Colonel
Robert E. Lee, soon surrounded his little force and compelled it to
retire to the engine house. Here Brown's hjand fought desperately.
Thirteen of them were killed or mortally wounded, and among them
two of Brown's sons. He defied danger with perfect coolness, and one
of his prisoners describes him as feeling the pulse of his dying son with
one hand, and holding his rifle with the other, all the while encourag
ing his men. After his capture he was put on trial before a Virginian
court, and behaved with such fortitude, self-forgetfulness and dignity
that even his enemies admired him. He was condemned and hanged
December 2, 1859, at Charleston, Virginia, stopping on the way to the
scaffold to kiss a little slave child. Six of his comrades were hung the
next day. A few others, who had been on duty outside of the town at
the time of Brown's capture, escaped to the mountains and thence to
the free States.
The South was in a ferment. It was generally understood that
should the Republicans succeed in electing their candidate in the next
campaign, that it would be the signal for secession. At this campaign
there were in the field the Democratic party, the advocates of secession,
the Constitutional Union National party — made up of the remnants of
the old Whig and American parties, who hoped both to avoid war and
preserve the Union — and the Republican party. Abraham Lincoln was
the candidate of the last named party, and he was elected by the largest
popular vote ever given for any President. Very glad was Mr. Buchanan
to resign his place to some one who would take the responsibility of
meeting the great questions of the hour. Mr. Lincoln was a man of
very moderate opinions in regard to slavery, and he said often in public
speeches, that he did not approve ,of abolishing slavery in the States
where it was already established by law. But notwithstanding this, his
election was looked on as very dangerous for the slave States, and his
inauguration was the signal for disunion.
FOR FURTHER READING:
Biography— Nickolay and Hay's "Life of Lincoln.'
Drew's "John Brown's Invasion."
Fiction— J. W. De Forest's "Kate Beaumont."
Mrs. Dupuy's "The Planter's Daughter."
J. R. Gilmore's "Among the Pines."
J. R. Hatermann's "Dead Men's Shoes."
S. J. Hale's "Northwood."
Poetry — Phoebe Cary's "John Brown."
E- C Stedman's "Ossawattomie Brown."
Edna D. Proctor's "The Virginia Scaffold."

CHAPTER LXXXV.

W,

[t Jxt Soratttg, %ntipt JBmdjpmt "

SECESSION — THE SOUTHERN CONFEDERACY — ATTACK ON FORT SUMP
TER — THE FIRST CALL FOR TROOPS — THE THREE YEARS*
ENLISTMENT — THE BATTLE
OF BULL RUN.
9
i ECESSION was begun before President Buchanan's
term had expired. It is putting it mildly to say
that the Secessionists were confident. To begin
with, they believed that since they were ready to
adopt a free-trade policy, they could rely upon
help from England. They also believed that a
Southern man would be much more than a match for
a Northern one in war, and it was quite true that the
Southern men were used to arms and to horses and
that Northern men, as a class, were used to neither.
They also counted upon the fact that they would be
acting upon the defensive, and would have all the
advantages which such a mode of warfare entails.
Many of them united to form a large secret society and
called themselves the Knights of the Golden Circle. The members
were numerous and had much influence in all that followed.
South Carolina took the lead in withdrawing from the Union, and
a convention was called in that State, which, on December 20, i860,
adopted an ordinance of secession. Within six weeks like conventions
were held and like votes passed in the States of Mississippi, Florida,
Alabama, Georgia, Louisiana and Texas. These States then formed
themselves into what was called the Southern Confederacy, and on
February 8, 1861, elected Jefferson Davis, of Mississippi, as President,
and Alexander H. Stephens, of Georgia, as Vice-President. Virginia
was reluctant for some time to vote for secession, but her wealth
depended almost entirely upon the raising of slaves for the cotton States.
Should the cotton States organize themselves into a successful confed-

"WE ARE COMING, FATHER ABRAHAM.'

535

eracy, and Virginia be left out, it was evident that her prosperity would
suffer, for one of the articles of the constitution of the Confederacy was
that the seceding States should hold no commercial intercourse with
other States.

JEFFERSON DAVIS IN l86l.

President Buchanan seemed to have his judgment paralyzed. He
did, indeed, say that the States had no right to secede, but he also
declared that the Constitution gave him no power to coerce them.
Even when the authorities in South Carolina claimed possession of all

53^ THE STORY OF AMERICA.
the national property in the State, Buchanan remained inactive.
Major Robert Anderson, who commanded the garrison of Fort Moultrie,
in Charleston harbor, seeing that he could expect no help from the
Government, removed his force, on Christmas night, i860, to Fort
Sumpter. The men of the South were gathered in large numbers in Charleston,
and General G. T. Beauregard was put in command of the Confederate
forces. His first act was to erect batteries for the destruction of Fort
Sumpter. Anderson was not a strong Unionist, and though he did
his duty — or partly did it — his heart was not in the matter. He
permitted the Confederates to visit his fort, and to examine all of his
preparations. When Beauregard was ready for attack he refused all
privileges of communication between Charleston and the fort, and
demanded a surrender. To provision the fort, the steamer Star of the
West was sent in January, 1861, but before she could reach her desti
nation she was driven off by the fire from the Confederate batteries.'
Mr. Lincoln had been in office one month when he sent a fleet to the
relief of Fort Sumpter. Again General Beauregard demanded surrender.
This was refused, and the batteries opened fire upon the fort early the
next morning. The fire lasted for two days, and at midnight of the
second day Major Anderson surrendered the fort. It was full of stifling
smoke, his men were worn out, the barracks were on fire and his
gunpowder almost gone. He was allowed to march out with the honors
of war, and on April 14th he did so, firing his last powder away in
saluting the United States flag with fifty guns.
The men of both parties watched with deep interest the action of the
various States. The Union had been swelled by three States during
Buchanan's administration — Minnesota, Oregon and Kansas. "These
were added to the power of the North. Eight slave States, at the time
of the fall of Sumpter, still remained in the Union; seven had gone
out. Virginia soon joined these. Arkansas and North Carolina
followed. Kentucky refused to secede, although she sent many men to
the Confederate army. Maryland remained in the Union, although for
some time it was thought that she would stand by the South. In the
mountainous regions of Western North Carolina and Eastern Tennessee,
there was a strong Union element, and the people of these counties
asked to be separated peaceably from the rest of their respective States
and allowed to remain in the Union. The persecution which this
request was met with at the hands of the Secessionists drove many of
the people from their homes. The people west of the Alleghany

"WE ARE COMING, FATHER ABRAHAM." 537
Mountains, in Virginia, did, however, form a State of their own and
remained in the Union, calling their State West Virginia, and selecting
Wheeling as their capital. In a short time it was admitted into the
Union. On the day when Sumpter fell, President Lincoln called for militia
from the several States of the Union to the number of seventy-five
thousand. It was met with a response quicker and more cordial than
even he had dared to hope for. A fever of patriotism took possession
of the North. Every village seemed draped with the national flag.
Every man who could possibly leave his home offered his services.
Every loyal newspaper flung a flag above its headline. The very
stationery was patriotic in the tri-colors of the Republic. Many of the
most influential Democrats now came out on the side of the Union.
These were called War Democrats. Those who lived in the North,
and yet reviled the Government and the policy which dictated the war,
were named "Copperheads," after the snake of that name. In every
village there were barracks, where the recruits were stationed until they
could be marched off to Washington, after a hasty drilling by some
officer who knew almost as little as they about the tactics of war.
Ephraim E. Ellsworth, a young man of Chicago, excited the ardent
admiration of the recruits by displaying his excellently trained company
of zouaves, and many were quick to follow his example. Among the
first men to respond to the President's call were the 6th Massachusetts,
which started within two days after the summons. When they reached
Baltimore a great mob of Secessionists collected about them and began
stoning them. The mob carried a Secession flag, and hurled epithets
at the soldiers as freely as they did paving stones. Several pistol shots
were fired from the windows, and a number of soldiers hit. The Mayor
of the city walked at the head of the soldiers, in the hope that his
presence would afford some protection. But as the mob grew more
uncontrollable the Mayor seized a musket and shot one of the leaders.
With the aid of a large number of policemen, the soldiers succeeded in
getting through the city, and the three young militiamen that had been
killed were sent home to their native State. After this the troops
avoided Baltimore when possible in passing on their way to Washington.
Excitement grew in the North. An immense meeting was held in
New York City, and a Union Defence Committee appointed to hasten
the equipment of troops and, the furnishing of ships and money. Under
their engagement troops were soon pouring into Washington, which
was defended by General Winfield Scott. On the 24th of May four

538

THE STORY OF AMERICA.

THE CONFEDERATE FLAG.

regiments crossed the Potomac and took possession of Arlington
Heights, which command Washington. One regiment, recruited from
the New York Fire Department and commanded by the gallant young
Ellsworth, went by way of Alexandria. While passing through the
city Ellsworth discovered
a secession flag flying over
the principal hotel. With
two soldiers, he went to
the top of the house, tore
down the flag, and was
returning to the street,
when the proprietor of the
house killed him with a
shotgun. One of Ells
worth's companions retal
iated instantly by killing
the proprietor. It was a
dramatic incident, which appealed, well to the sentiments of the young
men of the country. Ellsworth had looked every inch a hero, and
upon his death he certainly was made one. His picture was displayed
everywhere and special regiments were formed and dedicated to the
work of avenging his death. Another of the distinguished young men
of the North who was killed at the very opening of the war was
Theodore Winthrop, the young scholar and writer. He was sent on an
unfortunate expedition against a Secession force at Big Bethel, and was
killed there by a North Carolina drummer boy.
The seventy-five thousand troops which President Lincoln had
called forth were three months' men, and it soon became apparent that
secession in the South was not to be stopped in three months, nor in
six. On May 3, 1861, the President issued another proclamation, calling
for forty-two thousand volunteers for three years, and authorizing the
raising of ten new regiments for the regular army. He also called for
eighteen thousand volunteer seamen for the navy. But as the clouds
gathered, Lincoln made a third call for men on the 4th of July, and
Congress gave him authority to call for five hundred thousand men, and
five hundred million dollars. The people were more than prompt in
their response, but they over- valued the raw troops which then swarmed
to Washington. They believed that because the men felt like fighting,
that they knew how to do it. Every paper in the North cried, ' 'On to
Richmond!" The impatience for war had its effect.

"WE ARE COMING, FATHER ABRAHAM." 539
General Beauregard commanded the Confederate army nearest
Washington, and defended the river of Bull Run, occupying a line eight
miles long, facing towards Washington. General Scott's plan was to
launch an arnty against Beauregard,- turn his right flank, seize the rail
roads in the rear of his position and defeat him. General Joseph
Johnston had a large number of Confederates in the Shenandoah valley.
It was most important that this army should not be allowed to come to
the help of Beauregard, and General Robert Patterson was given strict
orders to prevent such a movement. Scott intrusted the immediate
command of this exploit to General McDowell, a graduate of West
Point, who had seen service in the Mexican War. There was a thorough
confidence in Washington that McDowell would win, but the optimists
did not take into consideration the lack of discipline in the army, nor
the spies that filled the Washington departments, and sent word of
every plan and movement to the Confederates. A large number of
members of Congress followed in the rear of the army to witness the
battle. One of them, John A. Logan, of Illinois, left his seat in the
capital, shouldered a musket and joined in the ranks. The troops were
soon upon the banks of Bull Run, although there had been some dif
ficulty in getting them there, as they had a boyish way of stopping to
pick berries or search for a drink of water as their impulses prompted.
As they advanced, the enemy's out-posts fell back, and at Blackburn's
Ford the Union troops met with their first opposition. The artillery
was kept briskly going from both sides, and at last the infantry became
engaged at this point, when both columns retreated with a loss of about
sixty men on each side. McDowell gave up the plan of turning
Beauregard's right flank, finding that he was very strongly intrenched
at that point, and the two days which followed the engagement at Black
burn's Ford were spent in searching for a ford where a column could
cross and protect the passage of the army. General Patterson did not
succeed in keeping Johnston penned in the Shenandoah valley, and that
general had joined Beauregard with a portion of his forces. McDowell
did not know this, and crossed the stream with his force as soon as
possible. The battle ground was a plateau thinly wooded and crossed
by a small stream that flowed into Bull Run. The enemy were slowly
driven back through this grove under a most destructive fire, but
General Thomas J. Jackson and his men stood immovable upon the
spot where they were posted, and won for General Jackson the name of
"Stonewall." But as the Confederate line fell back, it gained higher
ground, which placed the Union troops at a disadvantage. Jackson and

54° THE STORY OF AMERICA.
his men fell upon the Union right, and broke the troops. A terrible
panic followed, and the troops swarmed back toward Washington in
mad haste. • The Congressmen in their carriages, the soldiers without
their guns, the drivers of army wagons without their wagons and

"STONEWALI." JACKSON.

clinging to the backs of their horses, rushed back together in a con
tusion so headlong that it would have been comical if it had not been
tragic. The loss of the Confederates was about one thousand nine
hundred; that of the Nationals about one thousand five hundred in

"WE ARE COMING, FATHER ABRAHAM." 541
killed and wounded, and as many more in prisoners. But this victory
was not so helpful to the Confederates as the. people of the North
imagined it wrould be. It disorganized the Confederate army more than
defeat would have done, for the Southern volunteers thought that their
cause was gained, and many of them went to their homes.
Later in the year there was a smaller battle at Ball's Bluff, in which
the National troops were also unsuccessful.
FOR FURTHER READING:
History — Fry's "McDowell and Tyler at Bull Run."
Doubleday's "Forts Sumpter and Moultrie."
Abbot's "Blue Jackets of '61."
Fiction— J. H. Au^hey's "The Iron Furnace."
Mr. Remicks "Millicent Halford."
Poetry — G. H. Boker's "Poems of the War."
Mrs. Warfield's "Battle of Bull Run."
Julia Ward Howe's "Battle Hymn of the Republic."
A. G. H. Dugarme's "Bethel."
Richard Realf 's "Apocalypse."

CHAPTER LXXXVI.

ip 1(niutt Xnm*r*

ATTITUDE OP FOREIGN POWERS — BOMBARDMENT OF THE FORTS AT
HATTERAS INLET — CONQUEST OF CHARLESTON HARBOR —
THE CAMPAIGN WEST OF THE ALLEGHANIES — GRANT
AT FORTS HENRY AND DONELSON — THE
(p. WAR IN MISSOURI.

N the Old World the American conflict was looked
upon with satisfaction. Many were glad to see
that the Republic, which they had always
prophesied would end in failure and confusion, was
about to fulfill the prophesy. France, upon a
flimsy excuse, sent an army into Mexico. Eng
land threatened war because two gentlemen, James M.
Mason, of Virginia, and John Slidell, of Louisiana,
who were sent out by the Confederate Government as
ministers to London and Paris, were taken from an
English ship and returned to their own country. The
British steamer was allowed to go on, because the
captors were not willing to cause inconvenience to inno
cent persons. England demanded an apology and the
return of the two men taken from her steamer. The Secretary
of State, William H. Seward, sent a masterly letter to Eng
land, which, while it offered no apology, and, indeed, defended the
capture of the ministers, nevertheless satisfied the English nation and
averted war. The commissioners were released and allowed to sail for
England, but their purpose had been practically thwarted. England
continued, however, to sympathize with the insurgents. Her leading
journals congratulated the Southerners upon their courage in upholding
their rights. The Russian Government alone was friendly to the United
States.

THE UK ION FOREVER. 543
The Presidents who preceded Lincoln and the Cabinets which
sustained them had systematically closed their ears and eyes to all that
promised war, and now that the United States found itself confronted
with the probabilities of a long conflict, she was poorly prepared. Her
vessels were for the most part in foreign waters, and it was many months
before news could reach them and bring them home. Only twelve
vessels were in port — four in Northern and eight in Southern ports.
Three hundred of the navy who had been educated for services in the
United States went over to the Confederacy, as did a large number of
those educated at West Point for the army — among them some of the
best generals of the war. To establish itself on the seas, the Govern
ment bought all sorts of merchant crafts, and had gunboats built as
hastily as possible. It was necessary to get vessels in sufficient quantity
to secure the blockade of the Southern ports, but this was never made
so secure that blockade runners did not frequently defy it. The Con
federate Government enacted a law providing that a portion of every
cargo brought into its ports must consist of arms and ammunition.
Thus the Southern soldier was always well supplied with the best
weapons which English arsenals could produce. The Confederates sent
out cotton, tobacco and rice in payment for these. To shut off this
trade was the ambition of the Federal Government. To do this, it was
necessary to sustain a complete blockade of Southern ports. An expedi
tion was fitted out at Hampton Roads, commanded by Flag-officer Silas
H. Stringham. It numbered ten vessels and carried one hundred and
fifty-eight guns. Two of these vessels were transport steamers having
on board nine hundred troops, commanded by General Benjamin F.
Butler. It sailed on the 26th of August, 1861, with sealed orders, and
arrived at its destinatiou, Hatteras Inlet, before sunset, anchoring off
the bar. Early in the morning an attempt was made to land the troops,
but the surf was so heavy that the powder was damaged and the lives
of the men endangered, and only about one-third of the troops were
landed. Two forts had been erected to protect Hatteras Inlet, and the
project was to capture them. They were garrisoned by about six hun
dred men, but were not very strongly built. The troops that landed
took possession of the smaller work, and the fleet bombarded the larger
one. At the end of three hours the larger fort surrendered, and in the
meantime the smaller one had been taken possession of without difficulty.
Seven hundred prisoners were taken and sent to New York. Not a
man was lost among the Federal forces. Garrisons were left to protect
the place, and a coaling station was established for the blockading fleet.

544 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
By the last of October a much larger expedition sailed from Hamp
ton Roads. It consisted of more than fifty vessels, and was commanded
by Flag-officer Samuel F. Dupont. It had not long been out when it
was scattered by a terrible gale. One transport vessel was completely
wrecked; one threw over her battery and another her cargo, and one
store ship was lost. It was some time before the fleet got together
again. Then it was joined by some frigates which were blockading
Charleston harbor, and all sailed for Port. Royal, arriving on the 5th and
6th of November. The entrance to the harbor was protected by two
earthworks, Fort Walker and Fort Beauregard. On the 7th of Novem
ber the order of battle was formed. The fleet steamed steadily by Fort
Walker, pouring shells and rifle shot into it. The fort made a gallant
defence, but could not prevent the ships from turning and steaming out
again, delivering a yet hotter fire. Three times the boats passed and
repassed the fort; then the Bienbelle sailed yet closer and delivered afire
that dismounted several guns, and worked dreadful destruction in the
fort. The gunboats were sweeping it with their fire, and at last the
troops were seen pouring out of the fort in a panic. The Federalists
sent a flag of truce on shore, but no one remained in the fort to receive
it and the national colors were raised. The troops were then debarked
and put in possession of both forts, repairing and strengthening the
works. Thus 'the Government obtained a permanent foothold on the
soil of South Carolina.
West of the mountains, the year 1862 opened with some lively work.
A large Confederate force .of Kentuckians had gathered at Paintville.
These were attacked by Colonel James A. Garfield, in command of one
thousand eight hundred infantry and three hundred cavalry. They
were driven out of Paintville and finally forced into another engage
ment. At last they retreated in the night, leaving their dead on the
field. A few months before this there had been an engagement west
of the mountains in which the loss was greater. This was called the
battle of Mill Springs, and was fought at the head of steamboat naviga
tion on the Cumberland. General George H. Thomas was in command
of the Federalists, and General George B. Crittenden was in command
of the Confederates. The battle began early on the morning of January
19, 1862. It was fiercely fought through the day, and by night the
Confederates took refuge in their intrenchments. In the morning they
managed to cross the Cumberland, leaving their wounded, horses,
mules, wagons and some of their guns behind them. Two Confederate
regiments disbanded and scattered to their homes, for the men, being

THE UNION FOREVER. 545
new to war, were easily discouraged. Thomas received the thanks of

the President for his victory. The Confederates lost nearly twice as

54^ THE STORY OF AMERICA.
many in killed and wounded as the Federals. The progress of the
conflict at the West had so far been quite encouraging to the Union
sympathizers. When General Henry W. Halleck was placed in command of the
Department of the Missouri, in November, 1861, he divided it into
districts, giving to General Ulysses S. Grant the district of Cairo, which
included Southern Illinois, the counties of Missouri south of Cape
Girardeau, and all of Kentucky that lie west of the Cumberland river.
The Cumberland and the Tennessee rivers are about ten miles apart
where they enter Tennessee, and here, to command them, the Confed
erates placed two forts — Fort Henry, on the east bank of the Tennessee,
and Fort Jefferson, on the west bank of the Cumberland. They had
also fortified the high bluffs at Columbus, on the Mississippi, twenty
miles below the mouth of the Ohio, and Bowling Green, on the Big
Barren. General Grant asked permission to capture Fort Henry, and
after considerable delay Halleck gave his consent. This fort was gar
risoned by .three thousand men, under General Lloyd Tilghman. It was
not a strong work, bags of sand being largely used instead of solid
earth embankment, but its position was fortunate. About it were
ravines, through which little streamlets reached the river, and these
were filled with timber and rifle pits. On the land side lay low,
swampy ground. A fleet of iron-clad gunboats had been prepared by
the United States Government for service on the western rivers, and on
the morning of February 2, 1862, a fleet of four iron-clad and two
wooden gunboats, commanded by Flag-officer Andrew H Foote,
steamed up the Tennessee until it was within sight of the fort. When
it was within six hundred yards, a bombardment was opened, to which
the guns of the fort promptly replied. The fire was kept up for an hour,
and one of the boats, the Essex, received a shot in her boiler, by which
many men were scalded or wounded. The heavy fire from the gun
boats had telling effect upon the fort. The flag-staff was brought down,
seven guns dismounted, and the sand-bags knocked out of place. At
last a rifle gun in the fort burst. All but about one hundred of the
garrison fled, and General Tilghman was left with a single company of
artillerists. He served a gun with his own hands as long as possible
and then surrendered.
The Confederates, fearing that Fort Donelson would be the next
point of attack, withdrew their force from Bowling Green, and joined it
to that in Fort Donelson. National troops immediately took pos
session of Bowling Green and General Grant laid siege to Fort Douel-

THE UNION FOREVER.

547

son. This fort was on high ground, and enclosed one hundred acres.
The land side was protected by slashed timber and rifle-pits, and there
was a strong water battery on the lower river front. Within the fort

were twenty thousand men, commanded by General John B. Floyd.
On February 1 2th Grant chose his positions around Fort Donelson and
the next morning opened fire. After both sides had used their artillery

548 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
for some time, an attempt was made to storm the works, which was
unsuccessful. A dismal storm of sleet and snow set in. The gunboats
and the troops with them had not yet arrived to Grant's assistance, and
his men were obliged to sleep that night in the storm with the scantiest
rations. Next morning the gunboats appeared, landed the troops and
supplies, and then moved up to attack the water batteries. The fight
that followed was a desperate one. 'The defense of the fort was man
aged with skill and bravery and the gunboats suffered terribly. At last
the boats were so torn and weakened that they were obliged to drop
down the stream out of the fight. At a council of war held within the
fort that night it was decided to attack the besiegers in the morning
with the entire force, and daylight had barely broken when the fighting
was begun. It soon extended all along the line. The right wing of
the National army was borne back, and the Confederate cavalry tried
to gain their rear. Grant waited, with his usual calmness, until
the attack was at its height. He then ordered a sudden counter-attack,
and Generals Lew Wallace and C. F. Smith dashed forward, swept the
works with their field guns, drove out the defenders; and took possession
of the ground which they had previously lost. The night which fol
lowed was a bitter one, and the wounded could be but poorly cared for.
A large number of the men within the fort took advantage of the dark
ness to hasten up the river to Nashville. In the morning a white flag
was hung out, and a letter sent to Grant asking that commissioners be
appointed to arrange terms of capitulation. Grant's reply was: "No
terms other than an unconditional and immediate surrender can be
accepted. I propose to move immediately upon your works. ' ' The
commander of the fort surrendered, and Grant's decisive and imperturb
able words gave a feeling of security to the whole North. The people
felt that there was at least one general in the field who accepted no
compromises; who knew what he wanted and -how to get it. The
long artificial line of defence from the mountains to the Mississippi was
now swept away.
In Missouri, there had been, since the very first opening of the war,
a continual warfare. It was kept up between half-organized bodies of
men who met by chance, and frequently dispersed after the encounter.
Colonel James A. Mulligan held Lexington gallantly against the Con
federates there in the autumn of 1861, and Halleck's men did some
good work later in capturing newly-recruited Confederate regiments.
A large number of these, under General Van Dorn, were in the north
western part of Arkansas. Some of the Union troops crossed the line

THE UNION FOREVER. 549
into Arkansas, chose a strong place on Pea Ridge, in the Ozark Moun-'
tains, and awaited attack. On March 8, 1862, Van Dorn moved to
attack the Union troops, which were formed in a line on the bluffs
along the creek facing southward. The battle lasted all day with heavy
loss, but without much change of position, and on the following day it
was renewed, and the Confederates finally put to rout. The Union loss
was over thirteen hundred, the Confederate loss unknown. The nature.
of the ground was such that pursuit of Van Dorn's forces was impos
sible. A large number of Cherokee Indians had been engaged upon
the side of the Confederates, but they could not stand the artillery, and,
contenting themselves with a few scalps, hurried from the field.
FOR FURTHER READING:
History — Nickolay's "Outbreak of the Rebellion."
Glazier's "Battles for the Union."
Headley's "Grant and Sherman."
Fiction— W. Bradshaw's "Angel of the Battle Field."'
E. Z. C Judson's "Rattlesnake."
E. Z. C Judson's "Sardis."
Poetry — H. H. Brownell's "War Lyrics."
"Capture of Fort Donelson."

CHAPTER LXXXVII.

Ill; jUpi m& fiipti.

THE CAPTURE OF NEW ORLEANS — FIGHT BETWEEN THE "MONITOR"
AND THE "MERRIMAC."

HE largest city in the territory of the Confederates
was New Orleans. In i860, it had a population
of nearly one hundred and seventy thousand. In
that same year it shipped twenty-five million
dollars' worth of sugar, and ninety-two million
dollars' worth of cotton. Moreover, it commanded
the Mississippi, and it was easy to see that the possession
of it would strike a great blow at the Confederacy, and
shut off, or at least make it difficult to bring, supplies
from Texas and Arkansas to feed the armies in Tennessee
and Virginia. Between the sea and New Orleans were
two forts. The smaller — Fort St. Philip — was on the
left bank of the river, and was built of earth and brick,
with its guns in plain sight on the top. The other —
Fort Jackson — on the right bank, mounted seventy-five
guns, fourteen of which were in bomb-proof casemates. The forts were
garrisoned by about fifteen hundred men, commanded by General
Johnson K. Duncan. A fleet of fifteen vessels, including an iron-clad
ram, and. a large floating battery, covered with railroad iron, protected
them. Just below the forts a heavy chain was stretched across the
river, supported by hulks anchored at intervals across the stream. Two
hundred sharpshooters were placed upon the banks to give warning to
the forts of the approach of any foe, or pick off any seen upon the decks.
It was thought by Admiral David D. Porter that these forts might be
reduced by throwing enormous shells into them, which should explode
on striking. At his suggestion, twenty-one great mortars were cast and
mounted on as many schooners. They threw shells thirteen inches in
diameter, weighing two hundred and eighty-five pounds. The noise

WITH SHOT AND SHELL. 55 1
when they were fired was so great that the gunners were absolutely
deafened, and platforms had to be prepared at some distance, to which
the gunners could leap just before firing. In addition to the schooners
which carried the mortars, were six sloops of war, sixteen gunboats and
five other vessels, besides transports carrying fifteen thousand troops,
commanded by General B. F. Butler. The flag-ship of the fleet was
the Hartford, a wooden steam sloop of war, two hundred and twenty-
five feet long. It was the most powerful expedition that ever sailed
under the American flag, and the man who commanded it was Captain
David G. Farragut, who was quite unknown to the American public,
although he was one of the oldest men in the navy. It was said that
he could fill the place of any man in the fleet, and that there was no
possible accident or contingency on shipboard which he could not cope
with as well as any man living.
It was late in March when the fleet went in by Pass a 1' Outre. The
masts of the mortar schooners were trimmed off with bushes, so that
they could not be told from the trees on shore, and were moored in the
woods. A careful computation was made by which an effective fire
could be sent from the mortars without the gunners seeing what
they fired at, and, beginning on April 18, a steady bombard
ment was kept up for six days and nights. Six thousand shells — eight
hundred tons of iron — were thrown in and around the forts, where they
worked the most terrible destruction. But they did not silence the
guns, and the forts held out bravely. In the midst of the bombard
ment, the Confederates sent several flatboats, loaded with dry wood,
smeared with tar and turpentine and blazing furiously, down the stream
among the fleet. But Farragut had anticipated this very thing, and
had hooks prepared to tow them ashore, or take them past the fleet,
where they could float out to sea. An attack was to be made on the
forts in the night, and all the decks were painted white, that needed
articles might be found with greater ease. Every spare chain was hung
up and down the sides of the vessels, where they would protect the
machinery from the enemy's shot. Farragut' s plan was to run by the
forts, injuring them as much as possible as he passed; capture the
Confederate fleet, and hasten up the river to the city. At 3:30 o'clock
in the morning of April 24, the fleet started. Four nights before, two
gunboats had gone up the river and succeeded in cutting the chain
across the river, making an opening wide enough for the fleet to pass
through. Some of the gunboats engaged the water battery of Fort
Jackson while the fleet went by. The first division consisted of eight

552

THE STORY OF AMERICA.

vessels, and was commanded by Captain Bailey, a sailor ol as much
experience as Farragut. He had soon passed Fort St. Philip, and found
himself fighting with eleven Confederate vessels. The work which he
did in the next few minutes is almost unequaled. He rammed some of
the vessels, put shot into others, turned his huge swivel gun at others,
exploded a shell in the boiler of one and finally passed the fort with his
division. The second division, with the flag-ship Hartford leading, had
yet more serious trouble. The Hartford was set on fire by a fire-raft,
but her guns were loaded and fired as coolly as if nothing was the
matter, and at last such a rain of shot was poured into Fort St. Philip

ADMIRAL DAVID FARRAGtTT.

that the bastions were cleared, and the gunners could be seen running
to shelter. A part of the third division became entangled among the
hulks, and did not get by the chain, but three of the six gunboats came
on bravely, burning two steamboats and driving another ashore on their
way. On the morning of the 25th New Orleans was at the mercy of the
National guns, and the unconditional surrender of the city was
demanded. The stars and stripes were raised over the city, and in the
midst of the greatest tumult General Farragut took possession of the
city with two hundred and fifty marines. General Butler arrived there

WITH SHOT AND SHELL.

553

with his forces on the ist of May, and he kept possession of the city
throughout the remainder of the war. When he came into it, it was
turbulent, disorderly and mutinous. His rule of it was so stern that
it has often been criticised severely, but he left it cleaner than it had
ever been before, and in order and comfort.
While the naval expedition which conquered New Orleans was on

GENERAL BENJAMIN BUTLER.

its way, the waters of Hampton Roads, from which it sailed, were the
scene of that famous battle between the Monitor and the Merrimac,
which revolutionized naval warfare. The Merrimac was a great steam
frigate, with a high hull and a steep roof covered with wrought iron
five inches thick, with a lining of oak seven inches thick. The sides

554 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
of the ram were also plated with iron, and the bow was armed with an
iron ram something like a huge plowshare. Ten guns looked out from
the dormer windows in her roof. She was under the command of
Franklin Buchanan, and on the 8th of March, accompanied by two gun
boats, she went out to raise the blockade of the James and Elizabeth
rivers, by destroying the wooden war vessels in Hampton Roads. She
first met the frigate Cumberland, which gave her a dreadful broadside, but
though some of the shot entered her open ports and broke two of her
guns, all that struck her armor rattled off her like hail off a roof. She
ran her iron prow into the Cumberland, and that vessel at once began
to settle. Her commander would not surrender, however, and the crew
stood by their guns, firing broadside after broadside, until the vessel
went down with her colors still flying. When the frigate had reached
the bottom, her top-mast still projected above the surface, with the
American flag upon it. Such of the men as were not wounded leaped
overboard at the last minute, and got ashore with the help of the boats.
When the Merrimac had completed the destruction of this vessel she
attacked the Congress and finally set her on fire.
The next morning the Merrimac undertook to finish up the fleet,
but at the opening of her operations was met by a new antagonist. It
was a small iron vessel, looking, as the men said, ' 'like a cheese-box on
a raft." Nothing appeared above the water except the flat iron surface
over which the waves washed, and a revolving iron-clad turret in which
there was one gun. This was the Monitor, built by John Ericsson,
and commanded by Captain John L Worden. This little vessel had
just been hurried into Hampton Roads, after a stormy and dangerous
passage, when she met the Merrimac. She placed herself between the
wooden ships and the great Merrimac, and a fight of four hours fol
lowed. The broadsides from the monstrous iron ship had little effect
upon the saucy Monitor. At times the vessels almost touched each
other. The Monitor drew less water than the Merrimac, and could
steam quite around her. By afternoon the Merrimac withdrew to
Norfolk, and did not come down to fight again. A little later she was
abandoned and blown up. Eight months later the plucky little Moni
tor foundered in a gale off Cape Hatteras.
FOR FURTHER READING:
History — Soley's "The Blockade and the Cruisers."
Ammen's "The Atlantic Coast."
Parton's "General Butler in New Orleans."
Peckham's "General Lyon and Missouri in 1861."
Ficton— L. M. Childs' "A Romance of the Republic."
C. C. Coffin's "Winning His Way."
T. E. Cooke's "Hilt to Hilt."
Poetry— E. J. Butler's "War Poems."

THE "MERRIMAC" SINKING THE "CUMBERLAND

CHAPTER LXXXVIII.

Setoff m& ib JBaptdL

THE CAMPAIGN AT ISLAND NO. IO— THE BATTLE OF SHILOH — SIEGE
OF CORINTH — THE CONFLICT AT THE EAST UNDER M'CLEL-
LAN — SIEGE OF YORKTOWN — THE BATTLE OF
WILLIAMSBURG — THE BATTLE OP SEVEN
PINES — BATTLE OF CHICKA-
HOMINY — BATTLE OP
MALVERN HILL.

the first line that the Confederates had tried
to establish from the mountains to the Mississippi
was broken through, their forces at Columbus
were drawn down the river to 360 30'. Here, in
a great curve of the Mississippi, is Island No. 10,
and near it, in a second bend on the Missouri side,
is New Madrid. Both of these places were forti
fied and under the direction of General Leonidas Polk.
A floating dock had been brought up from New Orleans
and anchored near the island. Eight gunboats furnished
an additional guard. The works on the island were
also protected by batteries on the Tennessee shore, back
of which were impassable swamps. The desire of the
Union army was to break through this new line of
defence, and early in March a large force, commanded by
General John Pope, moved down the west bank of the Mississippi
against New Madrid. Trenches for field guns were sunken under cover
of darkness at a point below New Madrid, and sharpshooters placed at
the edge of the bank to harass the passing gunboats and transports.
Four large siege guns were taken across the city and over a long stretch
of swampy ground, and placed in position to bombard the works. On
the 13th of March, 1862, New Madrid was evacuated, and the Union
forces hastened to take possession and arrange their guns so as to

558 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
command the river. On the 16th, five Confederate gunboats attacked
these batteries, but were damaged so that they soon drew off. On the
1 6th and 17th the Union fleet of gunboats under Commodore Andrew
H. Foote, engaged the batteries at Island No. 10, and a hundred heavy
guns were in action at one time. The great and treacherous stream
washing about the ramparts had weakened some of them so that the
balls went straight through them, but the artillery men stood to their
guns ankle-deep in water, undaunted in the midst of exploding shells.
The attack was kept up from day to day; many men were killed upon
both sides, but no decisive effect was produced. A canal was finally
cut across the peninsula formed by the bend of the river above New
Madrid. This canal was twelve miles long, and half of the distance
lay through a deep forest, standing in water, and the trunks of the trees
had to be sawed off four or five feet below the surface. Notwithstanding
these difficulties, a channel fifty feet wide and four feet deep was finally
completed, and on the night of April 14th a gunboat ran past the
batteries of Island No. 10, escaping serious damage. On the 7th, Pope
crossed in force, protected by the gunboat which had gone through the
canal, and intercepted the greater part of the Confederate troops, which
were now trying to escape southward. Pope captured three generals,
two hundred and seventy-three officers and six thousand seven hundred
men, besides one hundred and fifty-eight guns, seven thousand muskets,
and a quantity of naval stores and equipments.
On this very day, in Southwestern Tennessee, was being fought one
of the bloodiest battles of the war, that of Shiloh. At Corinth, in
Northern Mississippi, the Memphis and Charleston railroad crosses
the Mobile and Ohio. This made the point of the greatest importance,
and it was strongly fortified by a Confederate force under General
Albert Sidney Johnson. Under him were Generals Beauregard, Bragg
and Hardee.
General Grant determined to move against the place and capture it.
On Sunday, April 6th, Grant's main force was at Pittsburg Landing,
and divisions, under General Lew Wallace and General Buell, were
within reach. Early on the morning of the 6th, Johnson made two
sudden attacks upon Grant. Grant's line was two miles long, with
General Prentiss' division on the left, McClernand's in the centre, and
Sherman's on the right. They had no intrenchments, but the ground
was undulating, with patches of woods among the fields, and about the
little church of Shiloh was a ridge. Such protection as the ground
afforded they took advantage of. The attack began at day-break. The

SHILOH AND ITS SEQUEL. 559
Confederates were sure of success, and fought with the enthusiasm
which such a mood will produce. Grant sent for Wallace and Buell,
but they did not bring up their forces until night. The Union troops
fought every inch of ground, but were forced back, little by little.
Sherman's men were crowded back more than a mile, but still clung
around the bridge over which they were expecting Lew Wallace to
come to their aid. The same ground was charged over again and again
until it was simply incumbered with the dead. General Albert Sidney
Johnson, upon the side of the Confederates, was ' killed,- and the
command fell upon General Beauregard. General Sherman had several
horses killed under him, and was three times hit with bullets, but he
stayed on the battle field till the end. General Prentiss and twenty-two
hundred of his men were captured by the Confederates, but Grant
hastened to get twenty guns into position, and finally forced the
Confederate column at that point to retire. Many of the Union men in
this engagement were under fire for the first time, and the terrors of the
battle completely unnerved them, and as there was no way of escaping
beyond the river, they huddled upon the bank, frightened beyond the
power to move. At night, Beauregard discontinued the attack, intending
to renew it in the morning and complete his victory. Lew Wallace was
now in position, and Buell' s army was being brought across the
Tennessee. In the midst of the night a fire sprang up in the woods, and
threatened for a time to add to the miseries of Shiloh by roasting many
of the wounded alive, but a providential rain fell and extinguished it.
In the morning, both armies prepared for fight — both of them desperate,
wet and fatigued. Beauregard made a stubborn fight for the purpose
of holding the road which ran by Shiloh Church, and by which alone
he could conduct an orderly retreat. The death of Johnson had
plunged the Confederates in hopeless confusion, and the men were
melancholy and dispirited. Sherman advanced his command and
recaptured his camps. Grant and Beauregard each led a charge with
two regiments which had lost their commanders. Beauregard's failed,
but Grant launched his men with a ringing cheer against the Confed
erate line and broke it. Beauregard had no choice but to make as
soldierly a retreat as possible, while Grant captured nearly as many
guns on the second day as he had lost on the first. The roads were too
heavy and the men too exhausted to pursue Beauregard's force. The
loss on both sides had been terrible. General Grant says that four
thousand was the estimate of the burial parties for the whole field.

560 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
After the battle, General Halleck took command in person and laid
siege to Corinth to capture it by regular approaches. Both he and
Beauregard were reinforced till each had about one hundred thousand
men. Halleck closed about the place, till in the night of May 29th
Beauregard evacuated it and Sherman's soldiers were ordered into the
town. It was believed by many that the battle of Shiloh decided the
fate of the Confederacy.
But it is necessary now to return to the campaign at the East.
General George B. McClellan had been put in command of the Army
of the Potomac. He had acquitted himself with distinction in the
Mexican war, was a graduate of West Point, a thorough student of
engineering, and had been given every advantage which the Govern
ment could afford. Under his direction Washington was well fortified,
and the fifty thousand men at the capital soon swelled to one hundred
thousand, organized thoroughly and working in perfect correspondence.
Having got his men in this excellent state of drill, McClellan rested.
The summer passed and then the autumn, but no movement was made.
He had done his work so well up to this time that the people had
confidence in him, and believed that he was only waiting for the fortunate
moment to fall upon the Confederate capital and subdue it. But day
after day went by, and no news came from his army except that ' 'all
was quiet on the Potomac. ' '
The Confederacy was growing stronger every day, and the Potomac
was being closed to navigation by the building of batteries on the
southern bank. The enemy's flag could be seen from the Capital, and
the question of interference by the treacherous Louis Napoleon was
agitating the statesmen. At this time General Winfield Scott, who was
seventy -five years of age, begged leave to retire from the responsibilities
of the army, and McClellan succeeded him as Commander-in-chief of
all the armies. In vain did President Lincoln urge McClellan to move.
That general constantly called for more men, and under-estimated the
number which he had. He also over-estimated the men upon the
opposite side. The President finally called him to a council, and asked
him to disclose his plan for the campaign, but this McClellan refused to
do. A few days later, however, he wrote the President that his
intention was to move his army down the Potomac on transports, land
it at Fort Monroe, and march up to attack the defences of Richmond
on the north and east sides. The President did not approve of this
plan, but on consulting with various generals, concluded to permit it.
The Confederate general, Joseph Johnston, who had commanded at

SHILOH AND ITS SEQUEL. 561
Bull Run, and had kept his army within easy marching distance of
Washington ever since, now hastened to place his troops before
Richmond. On the 27th of February, 1862, McClellan's army was
moved down the Potomac on four hundred vessels. It numbered one
hundred and twenty-one thousand men and these were divided into
four corps, the commands of which were given to Generals McDowell,
Sumner, Heintzelman and Keyes. On the 2d of April McClellan
moved upon Yorktown, where the Confederates had a strong defence of
earthworks. The plan of the Confederates was simply to delay
McClellan at Yorktown till the defences at the Confederate capital could
be strengthened. McClellan supposed that Johnston's entire army was
in the defences at Yorktown, and he approached the place by regular
parallels, according to the laborious methods of a well-sustained siege.
He spent nearly a month here, and when he was ready to open fire with
the siege guns, he found that the enemy had quietly departed, leaving
' 'Quaker guns' ' (wooden logs on wheels) in the embrasures. McClellan
hastened in pursuit, and overtook the Confederate rear about twelve
miles from Yorktown, bringing about the battle of Williamsburg.
The place had been well fortified months before, and the Confederates
took advantage of this. The Union soldiers attacked the earthworks
and silenced the batteries. General Hancock's sixteen hundred men
suddenly burst over the crest of the works, and charged upon the
enemy with fixed bayonets, forcing them back. The Confederates
moved off in the night to join their main army, leaving four hundred
of their wounded behind them, and taking away about as many
prisoners. McClellan now pushed on to White House, at the head of
York river, and established a base of supplies. From this point he
moved westward toward Richmond, expecting to be joined by a column
of forty thousand men under McDowell, but Stonewall Jackson made
one of his brillant raids from the heart of the Shenandoah valley, and
McDowell was obliged to go in pursuit of him.
McClellan reached the Chickahominy river and fought two small
battles at Mechanicsville and Hanover Junction. A .portion of his
army had been swung across the Chickahominy and Johnston determined
to strike this detached wing. In the midst of a heavy rain on the
night of May 30th, he fell upon this division. This was within half a
dozen miles of Richmond. The Union troops were behind some half-
finished works and resisted the charge bravely, but the Confederates
succeeded in gaining a position in the rear of the redoubts, and it
looked for a time as if their opponents could not hold their line. Keyes

562 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
was in command of the Union forces, and after a time Sumner's men
succeeded in crossing the river and joining him. Sumner was the old
est officer in the command, but his sixty-six years did not keep him
from being energetic. When he heard the fire on the other side he
drew up his men in line, anticipating the order which came. There
was but one bridge over the river, and the water was swollen so that
many of the supports were washed away and it swung backward and
forward with the rushing waters, but over this the men walked, their
heavy weight steadying it somewhat, and all reached the other side in
safety. Sumner was just in time to save Keyes, and succeeded in
repelling the numerous charges of the Confederates and driving them
off at last in confusion. The battle is known as that of Fair Oaks, or
Seven Pines. It cost the Union army over five thousand men and the
Confederates nearly seven thousand. General Johnston was so wounded
that he was unable to take active command for a long time. It was
the wet season, and several weeks followed without either army being
able to move. The ground was made up of alternate layers of clay
and quicksand, which turned into a swamp under the rain, and the
guns sank into the earth by their own weight. McClellan kept calling
for reinforcements, which he did not need, but these could not be given
him. His position was very unfortunate, for his men were dying of
malaria by the hundred, and his supplies were constantly imperiled by
the swelling of the Chickahominy, which made every bridge insecure.
The command of the Confederate forces in Virginia was now under
General Robert E. Lee. His plan was to bring large bodies of troops
from North Carolina, Georgia and the Shenandoah valley to fall upon
McClellan. The total number of his army is said to have been eighty
thousand seven hundred and sixty-two. McClellan had ninety-two
thousand five hundred. Lee was curious to know the extent of
McClellan's earthworks, and sent a body of one thousand two hundred
cavalry with two light guns to reconnoitre. This was commanded by
General E. B. Stuart, one of the most dashing of the Confederate
officers, who distinguished himself by wearing a gay costume, with
yellow sash and black plume, and pricking his white horse with golden
spurs. He made the entire circuit of McClellan's army, rebuilding a
bridge to cross the lower Chickahominy, and reached Richmond in
safety. McClellan was aroused to the danger of his position, and
decided to make the James river his base. Stonewall Jackson filled in
the weary days by a series of swift and brilliant movements, which
charmed his friends and bewildered his enemies. He was selected by

SHILOH AND ITS SEQUEL.

5^3

Lee to keep up these mysterious movements for the purpose of mislead
ing McClellan. Secretary Stanton, one of the most careful and
efficient war secretaries that ever lived, surmised that there was little
significance in these movements, and advised the general of his impres
sion. The various misconceptions arising from these movements led
to McClellan's defeat at the battle of Chickahominy, which was fought
¦on the 27th of June. But though the Union forces were driven from
their position in this engagement, the loss among the Confederates was
much the larger. McClellan now retreated through the swamp roads
^th his long trains, destroying hundreds of tons of ammunition and

GENERAL ROBERT E. LEE.

millions of rations before his departure. The Confederates hastened
after the Union army and attacked the rear guard. Three times they
assaulted and were three times repelled. After a rest they made another
attack at sunset on the 28th, and advanced with a rush, but were
obliged to retreat. The Union army moved slowly on, and after this
defence were obliged to burn another immense quantity of food and
clothing, and to leave twenty-five hundred sick and wounded men
behind. Then a detachment of the Confederate army, under Hill and
Longstreet, crossed the Chickahominy, marched around the Great White
Oak swamp, through which the Union forces were passing, and struck

564 THE STORY OP AMERICA.
the retreating army near Charles City Cross-road on the 30th. A
terrible engagement followed. Never were there bloodier repulses or
more daring attacks. The losses in men are not exactly known, but they
were very large. McClellan's army, however, continued to retreat to
Malvern Hill, where a last stand was made. This is, a plateau on the
James river, having an elevation of about six hundred feet, and an
extent of about one mile and a half in one direction, and a mile in the
other. It is surrounded by streams and swamps in such a manner as to
leave no practical approach except by the narrow northwest face. Here
McClellan placed his entire army in the form of a semi-circle, and
waited for the enemy. His whole front bristled with artillery, and the
men found considerable shelter behind the natural inequalities of the
ground. Lee's men came on, excited by their successes of the week
past, and confident that they would win. They advanced their artillery
and began a bold attack, but their batteries were knocked to pieces in a
few minutes. The cavalry were thrown into confusion by the shells
from the gunboats, and rushed headlong among the infantry, breaking
up the whole attack. On the afternoon of July ist, Lee renewed the
assault with his whole army, but was repulsed with such a bloody fire,
that the men began to protest against renewing the attack. The fight
ing was kept up till 9 o'clock in the evening, and cost Lee five
thousand men. The Union loss was but one-third of this number.
McClellan withdrew his army in the night to Harrison's Landing, on
the James, where the gunboats could protect his position. This retreat
is known as the Seven Days. McClellan's campaign was admitted to
be a failure. Why it was so has been a subject discussed by the people
of the North from that time to this. As a disciplinarian he was the most
efficient general in the army. He was a master of engineering and a
man of personal bravery, but he lacked decision. He was over-careful.
It should be remembered, however, that it is not the men of his com
mand who make this criticism. FOR FURTHER READING:
History— Allen's "Gen. Jackson in the Shenandoah Valley."
Welb's "The Peninsula."
Coppee's "Grant and His Campaign."
Edge's "McClellan and Yorktown Campaign."
Joinville's "Army of the Potomac."
Ree's "Hospital Life in Potomac Army."
Swinton's "McClellan's Military Career."
Fiction— "Surrey of Eagle's Nest."
W. A. Cruse's ^'Cameron Hall."
Poetry — Stedman's "Kearney at Seven Pines."

CHAPTER LXXXIX.

§fo$B cf tip ysmnsttla iamjmttyt.
THE ARMY OF VIRGINIA UNDER THE COMMAND OP POPE — GENERAL
HALLECK MADE GENERAL-IN-CHIEF — BATTLE OP CEDAR
MOUNTAIN — M'CLELLAN LEAVES THE PENIN
SULA — BATTLE OF GROVETON — LOSS '
OF GENERALS STEVENS
,AND KEARNEY.

*N THE 26th of June, the first of the Seven Days'
Retreat, General John Pope, who had been called
from the West, was put in command of the Army
of Virginia, composed of the corps of McDowell,
Fremont and Banks. Fremont was removed, at his
own request, because he objected to being placed
under an officer whom he outranked. When Pope
took command of the army it was widely scattered,
but he soon brought the forces nearer together and
posted them in a line forty miles long, running north
westerly from Fredericksburg. His plan was to
threaten Richmond, thereby compelling Lee to detail
a portion of his army from McClellan's front, but
when McClellan retreated to James River this movement was necessarily
postponed. The Administration soon saw that it would be impossible
for McClellan and Pope to work together, so widely did their ideas
differ upon the conduct of the campaign, and General Halleck was
called from the West and made General-in-chief of all the armies of the
Union. On July 23, 1862, he assumed command. He was a man of
wide military knowledge, but from the fbrst his ideas seemed to be
obscure and impracticable, and his wide military learning hampered
rather than benefited the armies under him. Pope cheered his army
with a ringing address, in which there were some allusions to McClel
lan's conduct of the campaign which won him many enemies. He

566 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
said: "I have come from the West, where we have always seen the
backs of our enemies, from an army whose policy has been attack, not
defense, ' ' and his immediate plans were to advance upon Gordonsville,
a place commanding the railroad communications with the far South
and Southwest. It was hoped by these means to draw a considerable
part of Lee's army away from Richmond, and thus aid any movement
by the Army of the Potomac against the rebel capital. Lee at once
saw the danger of this threatened movement, and sent Jackson, with
two divisions, to Gordonsville, with the promise of reinforcements.
Jackson found Pope too strong to warrant him in acting on the offen
sive, and contented himself with merely occupying Gordonsville, A
fortnight passed quietly, and it was then learned that General Burn-
side's corps had sailed from North Carolina, and arrived at Fortress
Monroe; thence, instead of going to McClellan, on the James, it had
gone to the Rappahannock. On July 27 th, Lee reinforced Jackson, at
Gordonsville. Jackson then moved northward. Pope had already
began to move southward, and, quite by accident, the advance of the
two armies came into collision on August 9th, at Cedar Mountain,
twenty miles north of Gordonsville. Banks had eight thousand men,
and the column of Confederates attacking him had about the same
number. For a while the fight was in favor of the Union troops, but
when rebel reinforcements came up, Banks was driven back, hotly pur
sued by the enemy. Pope was a few miles away with the bulk of his
force. He hurried up as soon as possible, and checked the attack by
nightfall. Two days passed with the armies facing each other, and
neither caring to attack. Jackson then learned that the Union troops
had reinforcements and fell back across the Rapidan. The Rebel loss
at Cedar Mountain is given at thirteen hundred and fourteen, the Union
loss at nineteen hundred.
Meanwhile McClellan held a strong position at Harrison's Landing,
where, if he did nothing else, he was a menace to Richmond, so that
Lee dared not draw his army from its defense. Lee was very anxious
to get McClellan off the Peninsula so that he could strike out toward
Washington. He therefore sent a detachment to bombard McClellan's
camp from the opposite side of the river. But this McClellan easily
swept away. Then Lee appointed Jackson to make a series of erratic
movements through the country for the express purpose of alarming the
Administration at Washington so that they would order McClellan's
army to leave the Peninsula. The commander-in-chief, Halleck, fell
into the trap laid, and McClellan's army was ordered to evacuate the

CLOSE OF THE PENINSULA CAMPAIGN. 567
Peninsula, and, as has been said, Burnside's troops — which were
intended for McClellan in the first place — were sent on to Pope.
McClellan marched his army to Fortress Monroe, and there embarked
it by divisions for the same destination. Within a week after the battle
of Cedar Mountain, Lee, seeing that McClellan was leaving the Penin
sula, forwarded Longstreet's division and a part of Hood's to Gordons
ville, and prepared to follow with his entire army. As Jackson and
Longstreet advanced across the Rapidan river, Pope fell back beyond
the Rappahannock. Here Burnside's troops reached him. When Lee
came up with the remainder of his army and found it impossible to cross
the Rappahannock in front of Pope, he sent Jackson to make a flank
march westward along that stream, cross it at Silver Springs, and come
down upon Pope's right., But Jackson found that a heavy force was
already at Silver Springs ready to meet him. Meanwhile, the dashing
General Stuart, with fifteen hundred cavalry, crossed the river on the
stormy night of the 22d, and guided by a negro, dashed through the dark
ness and the rain upon the tents occupied by Pope's staff. Some of these
were made prisoners, and Stuart secured Pope's dispatch book contain
ing exact information of the number and position of the forces then with
him, and the reinforcements promised him and also the direction from
which they were to come. The Confederate generals saw that if
their army could be flung upon Pope's rear, his communications might
be cut off, and his army routed before it could be reinforced by McClel
lan, with the Army of the Potomac. This movement, to be successful,
must be a surprise, and it was necessary to make it with men unincum
bered with trains. To do this, Lee had to divide his force for at least
four days, in the face of the enemy. The initial movement was given
to Jackson, who began his march on the morning of August 25th.
With nothing but his artillery to hamper him, he moved quickly
through the narrow valley on the east side of the Bull Run Mountains,
by every short cut which the fields permitted. At midnight he reached
the head of Thoroughfare Gap, through which the mountains must be
passed. It was a gap that might have been held by a handful of men
against thousands, but Jackson found it wholly unguarded, and on the
morning of the 27th, passed through and headed for Bristoe Station, an
important point on the railroad, which formed Pope's main source of
supply. Jackson left General Ewell here, and himself went northward
to Manassas Junction, where there was a great depot of stores almost
unguarded. These were taken, and what could not be consumed on
the spot were destroyed. Pope learned, meanwhile, of what was going
33

568

THE STORY OF AMERICA.

on and sent a detachment toward Bristoe. In the encounter which
followed Ewell was worsted. Pope was now thoroughly aroused and
Jackson's position was a critical one. Jackson saw that he might be
attacked by vastly superior numbers, and he fell back toward Thorough
fare Gap. Not wishing to show what his ultimate destination was to
be, he took up a defensive position upon the spot where the battle of
Bull Run had been fought more thau a year before. The position was
a strong one and had the advantage of a deep cut which formed the bed

A RAILROAD BATTERY.

of an abandoned railroad. _ This could be used as an intrenchment
Here the battle was opened, on the morning of the 29th, and from day
light till after dark the Union troops led the attack and the Confeder
ates stoutly stood to the defense. As night closed in Pope believed
that Jackson was retreating, although Jackson was only withdrawing a
part of his line to join with Longstreet's reinforcements. Pope was
also reinforced on the morning of the 30th, and ordered McDowell to
press on in pursuit. Then the Union troops learned that Jackson had

CLOSE OF THE PENINSULA CAMPAIGN. 569
not been retreating, when the Confederates presented a solid front, and
the entire force on both sides was engaged in a hot conflict. All
through the day, first one and then the other of the divisions on both
sides were repulsed, only to reform and renew the attack. In the end
the Union army was defeated, though not routed, and it retreated in good
order across the Bull Run, and fell back to Centreville. This engage
ment is sometimes known as the second battle of Bull Run, but oftener
as the battle of Groveton. The entire Confederate loss for the three
days was eight thousand four hundred and ten in killed and wounded.
The Union loss was not less than eleven thousand. Lee says that he
took seven thousand unwounded prisoners. Pope confessed that there
was terrible straggling among the Union troops, and that thousands of
men left their commands and were never in any action. The result of
the acfion, though not discouraging to the supporters of the Union
cause, showed rather conclusively that Pope had been outgeneraled by
Jackson. In spite of the fierce storm that raged through the 31st, Jackson
pursued the Union troops across Bull Run. McDowell and Heintzel-
man were sent to oppose him, and the forces met at Chantilly on Sep
tember ist. There was a slight encounter in the twilight, and in it
were lost two of the most efficient Union generals, Stevens and Phil
Kearney. Kearney had ridden forward to reconnoitre, and coming
suddenly upon a squad of Confederates, was shot. He had lost an
arm in the Mexican War, was with Napoleon III at Solferino and
Magenta, and had just passed through the Peninsula campaign with
McClellan. The battle of Groveton brought about one of the most distressing
incidents of the war. General Fitz-John Porter was removed from com
mand because he did not obey orders, and move to support Pope when
he was commanded to do so. It will be remembered that Jackson was
opposed to Pope in a parallel line, and that Longstreet had come up to
reinforce Jackson. Pope did not know this, but Porter did, and he
feared to leave his position, when by doing so Longstreet could turn
Pope's left flank. Thousands of pages have been written concerning
the matter, and most writers on the subject have agreed that Porter
deserved the severe punishment which he received. He was court-
martialed, degraded from his position, and forbidden to hold any office
of trust or remuneration under the United States Government. Some
reparation has been made in later years, however, and General Grant, in
reviewing the subject, finally declared that he did not believe Porter to

570 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
be at fault. After the affair at Chantilly, Lee made no further attempt
on Pope's army, and on September 2d, by Halleck's orders, it was
withdrawn to the fortifications at Washington, where it was merged
in the Army of the Potomac. The losses in the campaign are un
known. FOR FURTHER READING:
History— Gilmore's "Four Years in the Saddle."
Hepworth's "Whip, Hoe and Sword."
Kirkland's "Anecdotes of the Rebellion."
Oats' "Prison Life in Dixie."
Fiction— Cobb's "Veteran of the Grand Army."
A. C Denson's "Westmoreland."
Fuller's "Browning's."
J. R. Gilmore's "Among the Guerrillas."

CHAPTER XC.

1g\p JMty 1fb& ti jtttlbiam*
LEE'S ARMY MOVES NORTHWARD — THE BATTLE OF SOUTH MOUNTAIN
x "P — THE BATTLE OF ANTIETAM.

-ENERAL LEE now pushed northward into
Maryland, with his whole, army. The movement
was commenced on the third of September, and
on the fifth the army crossed the Potomac at a
point thirty miles above Washington. The
entire force was not more than sixty thousand,
for, aside from losses by sickness and death,
many of the Confederates were debarred from active
service by fatigue. In six weeks Lee had lost fully
thirty thousand men. When he reached Frederick City
he addressed the people of Maryland in a paternal and
conciliatory manner, telling them that the people of the
Confederate States had long watched the wrongs
inflicted upon the citizens of a commonwealth to which
they were bound by so many ties, and wished to aid them in throwing
off this foreign yoke. A call for recruits to the Confederate army was
made, but less than five hundred Marylanders responded to this appeal,
and the towns through which Lee passed showed closed blinds and
deserted streets. It was evident that the Confederate armies were not
welcome in Maryland. Most of those who had sympathized with the
cause of the South had already joined the Confederate armies, but the
greater part of the fighting men of Maryland were enlisted with the
national forces. The Confederate army was in the most miserable state.
It was ragged, dirty, footsore, and, no doubt, heartily homesick. But
there was no lack of bravery; indeed, it was a standing joke that
bravery was the cheapest thing among them. Had their cause been
righteous, the spectacle of this suffering army would have been

572 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
sublime. As it was, it was simply pitiable. Rags and misery dignify
a noble cause, but they can only accent the mistakes of an unright
eous one.
McClellan rapidly re-organized his army, and in less than a week
had one hundred and seventy-two thousand men, of whom one hundred
thousand were to form the movable force, and the rest to be kept for the
defense of Washington. Banks was placed in command of the fortifi
cations at the capital. On the seventh of September McClellan moved
toward Lee, whose force he estimated at just twice its actual number.
On the tenth Lee move northwestward, his immediate destination being
Hagerstown. To reach this, he had to cross the South mountains, a
steep range, one thousand feet high, cut through to a depth of four
hundred feet by Turner's and Crampton's Gaps. These gaps were six
miles apart. The national forces reached Frederick on the twelfth, and
McClellan accidentally came into possession of a copy of General Lee's
order book, which contained the movements and operations of the next
few days. In this book McClellan learned that Lee intended to take
possession of the heights around Harper's Ferry, where fourteen hundred
raw national troops guarded the United States arsenal. The ferry is in
a narrow valley, at the junction of the Potomac and Shenandoah.
Upon three sides are the heights. If these were occupied, it would be
subjected to a fire to which there could be no effective reply. Jackson's
corps, now fifteen thousand strong, was to pass through Turner's Gap,
make a wide detour, cross the Potomac above the ferry, and, going
down the river, seize Bolivar Heights on the west. A part of Long-
street's corps was to go by way of Crampton's Gap, and seize Maryland
Heights on the east; while yet another detachment was to move up the
Potomac and seize Loudon Heights on the south. When Harper's
Ferry was captured, the whole army was to be re-united at Hagerstown.
McClellan had reason to be gratified at the reception which he met
at Frederick. But the serious work before him left him no time to
enjoy the festivities prepared for him. Walker had already gained
Loudon Heights. Maryland Heights were also occupied. Miles, wdio
commanded the force at Harper's Ferry, remained stupidly in the trap,
and was obliged to consent to Jackson's terms of unconditional surren
der. More than fifteen thousand men laid down their arms, and were at
once paroled. The Confederates also gained a large number of guns
and muskets. Jackson's own division was allowed no time for rest, but
was ordered to join Lee, who was hard pressed fifteen miles away.
They began their march at midnight, and in the grey of the seventeenth,

THE BLOODY FIELD OF ANTIETAM. 573
such of the men as had held out joined Lee, and were given their places
in line of battle. What had happened with Lee was this : He had learned
that McClellan knew of his plans, and realized, of course, that he
would try to thwart them. McClellan arrived at Turner's and Cramp
ton's Gaps on the morning of the 14th. Lee had learned of his
movements, and had a defence at each gap. Turner's Gap was flanked
by two old roads that crossed the mountain a mile north and south of it.
Using these and clambering up from rock to rock, the Union troops
reached the crests, opposed at every step by the Confederate riflemen
between the trees and ledges. There was a bloody and persistent fight
all day, with the Union forces constantly gaining ground, and at dark
the field was won. The Confederates withdrew in the night, and in the
morning the victorious columns passed through to the western side of the
mountain. In this battle McClellan lost fifteen hundred men killed or
wounded. The Confederates lost about the same number, and in
addition fifteen hundred were made prisoners. The fight at Crampton's
Gap was quite similar. These two actions, fought September 14, 1862,
are known as the Battle of South Mountain.
Lee then withdrew across Antietam creek, and took up a strong
position beyond that stream. Lee's army numbered now only a little
over forty thousand. The stragglers were numerous and with little
wonder. Lee might console himself, however, with the reflection, that
the men who had stood by him were his best men, and that he could
bring the very flower of his forces into the coming battle. The
Antietam was crossed by four stone bridges and a ford, and all except
the most northern bridge were strongly guarded. The ground consisted
of rich meadows, dotted with cornfields and groves. On the 16th
McClellan threw his right wing across the Antietam by the northern
unguarded bridge, intending to engage the enemy's attention there, and
thus to force the other bridges and cross with his forces. An artillery
duel was kept up through the day across the creek, in which the Con
federate generals acknowledged that their batteries were no match for
their opponents. The skirmish brought on by Hooker's crossing the
upper bridge was soon ended by the gathering darkness, and the men
rested where they were. In the night McClellan sent reinforcements to
Hooker. Sumner was put in readiness to follow at an early hour, and
preparations for a battle were made. Meanwhile Lee had also made his
preparations. All but two thousand of his forces had come up, and
when the morning of September 17th dawned, Hooker assaulted Johns
ton at sunrise. A more beautiful spot could hardly have been imagined,

574 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
or a more peaceful one. But now it was desecrated by two determined
armies, both bent upon a battle, in which there could be no surprises,
no shirking or evading — nothing but misery and death. Early in the
day Hooker was seriously wounded and taken from the field, while
Sumner crossed the stream and came up with his corps. His men drove
back the enemy, and were apparently advancing to victory, when two
fresh divisions were brought over from the Confederate ranks and thrust
in a gap in Sumner's line. The Confederates were driven back to their
former position after a bloody struggle, and fighting of this sort went on
all forenoon. Lee was forced to bring into action every available man,
while on the other side Porter and Burnside, with their strong divisions,
lay idly by and were not called into action. It was 4 o'clock in the
afternoon before Burnside led his men across the Antietam to aid in the
attack. He succeeded in gaining a strong position where he could
enfilade the Confederate lines. But at this moment General A. P. Hill
came up from Harper's Ferry with four thousand men. These flung
themselves fiercely into the attack, and Burnside's corps fled in disorder
to the creek, which they crossed the next morning. The entire Union
loss in the bloody battle of Antietam was two thousand and ten killed,
nine thousand four hundred and sixteen wounded and one thousand
and forty-three missing. The entire Confederate loss was not less than
twenty thousand.
This terrible destruction of life had been almost useless. The battle
of Antietam was not a decisive one, but it was very encouraging to the
North, and President Lincoln, emboldened by it, put forth a hint of the
proclamation of the abolition of slavery, saying that if on the first of
the ensuing January the Rebellion should still continue, he should, in
virtue of his power as Commander-in-chief of the Army and Navy of the
United States, order and declare that all persons held as slaves in the
rebellious sections were to be free from that time forever, and that the
Executive Government of the United States should recognize and
maintain their freedom; and, also, that such persons of suitable condi
tion should be received into the armed service of the United States.
FOR FURTHER READING:
History— Banvard's "Tragic Scenes in the History of Maryland."
Logan's "Great Conspiracy."
Williams' "Negro Troops in the Rebellion."
Fiction — Mrs. R. Hare's "Standish."
J. H. Hosmer's "Thinking Bayonet."
S. Lanier's "Tiger Lilies."
J. H. Mathew's "Guy Hamilton."
Poetry— G. W. Herve's "Ballads of the War."
E- V. Mason's "Southern Poetry of the War."
H. Melville's "Battle Pieces."

CHAPTER XCI.

"jtH \* 1 iggatp k %ml"
BURNSIDE MADE COMMANDER OF THE ARMY OF THE POTOMAC — THE
BATTLE OP FREDERICKSBURG  THE EMANCIPATION PROCLAMA
TION — BATTLES OF PERRYVILLE, IUKA, CORINTH,
MURFREESBORO AND CHAN-
ViLcv/Jci^ . CELLORVILLE.

N November, 1862, General Burnside succeeded
McClellan in command of the Army of the
Potomac. President Lincoln had shown the
utmost patience with McClellan. Twice he had
visited his headquarters to see for himself the
condition of the army, and to find, if he possibly
could, why a general with an army outnumbering the
enemy two to one, should have permitted that enemy to be
so aggressive. In short, Mr. Lincoln was determined to
put an end to the Rebellion and bring the South to terms.
General McClellan did not believe in punishing the
South, but only in repelling an invasion of those States
that still remained in the Union. He had followed Lee
as far as the Potomac, and then sat quietly down and
called for unlimited reinforcements. He complained that his men
wanted shoes, and that his horses were fatigued. Weeks of beautiful
fall weather passed without tempting him to any exploits. On the
twenty-sixth of October, he began to cross the Potomac, but it was ten
days before his army was all on the south side of the river, and then he
renewed his delays. It was, therefore, a great relief to all the loyal
people of America when McClellan was removed.
Ambrose E. Burnside was a graduate of West Point. He had
commanded cavalry in the Mexican war, served faithfully, thus far, in
the Rebellion, and was the inventor of a breech-loading rifle. The
command of the Army of the Potomac had been offered to him twice
before, but he had refused it on the ground that he was not competent

576 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
to command such a large army. When he accepted it, he did so with
reluctance. At this time the right wing of Lee's army, under Long-
street, was near Culpepper, and the left, under Jackson, was in the
Shenandoah valley. They were so far apart that it would take two
days for one force to march to the other, and McClellan said that it had
been his intention to get between them. Burnside did not continue this
plan, but set out for Richmond, by way of the north branch of the Rap
pahannock and the city of Fredericksburg. He spent ten days in
reorganizing his army into three grand divisions, under Sumner, Hooker
and Franklin. On the 15th of November he began marching, and on
the 20th the whole army was at Falmouth, waiting for the pontoon
train, which was to meet the army at this point, to take them across
the river. They did not arrive for a week, and, in the meantime, Lee,
to protect Richmond, placed his army on the heights south and west of
Fredericksburg, and began to fortify them. His line was about five
miles and a half long; his position well selected and fortified. Burn
side had taken possession of the heights on the river, that he might
defend the passage of his troops, with a large number of guns. But he
did not attempt to cross the stream until the ioth of December. His
plan was to lay down, five bridges — three opposite the city, and the
others two miles below. The work was begun in a thick fog, but
before the bridges had covered half the stream the fog was dispersed,
and the movements of the national army revealed to the Confederates.
A detachment of Mississippi riflemen had been concealed behind stone
walls, in cellars, and every other protected place, and now picked off,
with fatal accuracy, the men who were laying the bridges. The
unfortunate soldiers fell, one after another, and were carried down the
river with the current. Even the bravest finally shrank from the task
of completing the bridge, and the work had to be discontinued. At
the lower bridges the sharpshooters were dislodged after a time, and the
bridges completed, but along the front of the town they were well
sheltered, and the national guns could not be made to reach them.
Burnside tried bombarding the town, throwing seventy tons of iron
into it, and setting it on fire, but the sharpshooters were not dislodged.
At last, three regiments, the Seventeenth Michigan, and the Nineteenth
and Twentieth Massachusetts, volunteered to cross the river in pontoon
boats, and drive the sharpshooters from their retreats. They did it,
under a murderous fire, and captured a hundred of the sharpshooters
before they could escape to the hills. The bridges were then completed,
and on the 12th of September the entire army was on the Fredericksburg

"ALL US NIGGAHS IS FREE!" 577
side of the river. Lee had concentrated his whole army on the fortified
heights; Longstreet was on his left and Jackson on his right. His
army was in good spirits and determined to succeed. Burnside's orders
at the beginning of the day were somewhat inconsistent, and his
commanders were confused and irritated by them.
General Meade's division was the first to advance. It did so under
a heavy Confederate fire, broke between two divisions of the first
Confederate line, captured many prisoners and some battle-flags, and
scaling the heights, came upon the second line. This drove them back,
but they were protected from pursuit by Birney's division. Generals
French and Hancock attacked with Sumner's division. They moved
through the town and deployed in columns under the fire of the
Confederate batteries. The hottest fighting took place at the foot of
Mary's Hill, just below the city. This hill falls off suddenly to a
sunken road, faced on the city side by a low stone wall. The hill was
crowned with batteries, and this sunken road was used as a defence of
the hill. French and Hancock, as they went on bravely with their
divisions, were quite unconscious of the sunken road that lay by the
wall. Their division had the distinction of never having turned their
backs to the enemy, and they were as determined now as men could be.
The front to be carried was so narrow that scarcely more than a brigade
could be brought up at once, and as these rushed on, brigade after
brigade was swept back till fully four thousand men were killed and
wounded. Burnside was watching the fight from across the river and
said to Hooker, ' 'That crest must be crossed to-night. ' ' All who heard
him protested, but Burnside insisted that it must be done, and as night
was approaching Hooker made ready to attack. He began by a fierce
artillery fire, but this made no more impression, so he said, ' 'than if it
had been made against a mountain of rock." The Confederate fire
from the crest had ceased, for their ammunition had given out. At
sunset Hooker ordered Humphreys, with four thousand men, to make
an assault with empty muskets, as there was no time to load and fire.
They rushed on toward the low stone walL The sunken road could
not be seen by them, but withiu it were troops standing four deep and
perfectly protected from the fire. So numerous, indeed, were they
that only a part of them fired and the rest loaded muskets. When
within a few rods of this road, a solid sheet of lead and fire was poured
upon the advancing column. In fifteen minutes seventeen hundred of
the four thousand assailants were killed or wounded. Then the
depleted columns were withdrawn and the battle was ended. The

57& THE STORY OF AMERICA.
Confederate loss had been, in all, but five thousand four hundred and
nine; the Union was thirteen thousand four hundred and eighty-seven.
In the night the Union troops brought in their wounded and buried
some of their dead. Burnside would have liked to make a fresh attack
the next day, but the other generals dissuaded him, and the army was
withdrawn to the north bank of the Rappahannock. The Confederates
began to regard themselves as almost invincible, but had they stopped
to consider they would have seen that troops who could stand such
disaster without panic or protest, were men whose staying qualities
were more than a match for them, and who were bound to succeed in
the end by force of their intrepidity and immovable courage. But it
was the misfortune of the Union army to be poorly commanded.
The warning of President Lincoln concerning the emancipation of
slaves was unheeded, and on the ist of January, 1863, he issued a
proclamation for the emancipation of about three million slaves, and
announced that black men would be received into the military and
naval service of the United States. Twice before emancipation of this
nature had been made concerning limited territory — the first one by
General Fremont, the second by General David Hunter. On both
occasions Lincoln had annulled the order. It may seem strange to
many at this day that Lincoln should have delayed so long before
declaring emancipation. He was himself opposed to slavery, but his
chief desire was to preserve the government. He wished to force the
seceding States to return to their allegiance, and he meant to do this
before everything else. Two years of the war had passed, therefore,
before the main cause of that war was acknowledged by either side.
The Confederates, with their strong confidence in their prowess, smiled
at the emancipation of the slaves. They did not believe that it could
ever be effected. But they were angered and annoyed beyond endur
ance at the anouncement of the President that hereafter persons of color
should be used in the army and navy. Previously, the Union forces
Uad shown a consideration which was almost superstitious in this matter.
The people of the North had so long respected all Southern claims
that even in the hour of conflict they still had regard for them, and were
not willing to offend popular prejudice by using the black man on the
battle field. When General Hunter had organized a regiment of black
troops, designated as the First South Carolina Volunteers, and the first
body of negro soldiers mustered in the Union service during the war,
there was the greatest alarm in Congress. A representative from
Kentucky introduced a resolution asking for information concerning

"all us niggahs is free!" 579
regiments of fugitive slaves. The Secretary of War referred him to
Hunter himself. Hunter said: "No regiment of fugitive slaves has
been or is being organized in this department. There is, however, a
fine regiment of persons whose late masters are fugitive rebels; men who
everywhere fly before the appearance of the Union flag, leaving their
servants behind them to shift as best they can for themselves. In the
absence of any fugitive master law, the deserted slaves would be wholly
without remedy, had not their crime of treason given the slaves right
to pursue, capture and bring back these persons of whose protection they
had been so suddenly bereft. ' '
But though Lincoln was cautious and slow in stating his position,
there was not a man in America who doubted that he would stand by it
when once it was made public. The wisdom shown in his great caution
was proved by the criticisms which he received, even at the North, for
the proclamation. The Democratic ranks were immediately swelled.
It was only the men of strong opinions and moral courage who stood
by the much-tried President at this time. But fortunately he was not
a man who needed the approval or encouragement of others. When
once he was sure that he was right, nothing could affect him, and
though the criticisms of his friends may have grieved him, they did not
alter his course. Thus began the year 1863.
On December 31st and January 2d there was a great battle in the
West. The Confederate Congress, in 1862, had passed a conscription
act, forcing every man of military age into the ranks. Military age at
that time was an expansive period, and boys were taken from school
and sent to camps of instruction. General Beauregard had been
succeeded by General Bragg, who, with forty thousand men, marched
northward into Eastern Kentucky and defeated a Union force near
Richmond and another at Munfordsville. He then took the liberty of
appointing a Governor for Kentucky, assuming it to be a State of the
Confederacy, and forced Kentuckians into his army. As he went
•through the country he plundered farmers and villages, but, with
singular inconsistency, tried to arouse enthusiasm among the Kentuck
ians. It is said, however, that he did not even secure enough recruits
to fill the place of his dead and wounded. He was marching back into
Tennessee when General Buell, with about fifty-eight thousand men,
hurried after him. At Perry ville, October 8, 1862, Bragg turned and
gave battle. At first the Union forces suffered severely, and their raw
troops were put to a test which they could not stand, but* General
Philip H. Sheridan, with his experienced men, repelled the assault,

580 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
and when night came the Confederates had been driven back. In the
night, Bragg moved off with his whole army, leaving one thousand of
his wounded behind. General Halleck, at Washington, then planned ,
a campaign for Buell' s army in East Tennessee, to which Bragg had
retreated. For certain reasons Buell refused to carry out these plans,
and he was removed from command, his place being given to General
William S. Rosecrans.
Farther south there had been troubles at about the same time. A
Confederate army of forty thousand men, under Generals Price and
Van Dorn, crossed from Arkansas into Mississippi, in September, with
the intention of capturing Grant's position at Corinth, and, breaking
through the Union line of defense, to co-operate with Bragg. Iuka was
seized by Price, and Grant sent out a force against him under Rose
crans. On the 19th of September the battle of Iuka was fought, after
which Price retreated and joined Van Dorn. These tried to capture
Corinth, on October 3d, and in the first day's fighting they succeeded
in forcing Rosecrans to his intrenchments. But the following morning
Rosecrans received reinforcements, and the Confederates were repelled
all along the line and driven into a disordered retreat. As Rosecrans
neglected at Corinth, as well as at Iuka, to pursue the enemy, Grant
dismissed him from service. The Confederates were also displeased
with their general. They had been very anxious for the capture of
Corinth, since it contained immense quantities of supplies. General
Van Dorn was removed and the command of the Confederate troops
given to General John C. Pemberton.
Bragg, meanwhile, had taken up an excellent position at Murfrees-
boro, forty miles from Nashville. Here he fortified a strong position on
the shallow, fordable stream known as Stone river. Murfreesboro
counted itself quite safe from attack, and indulged in the gayeties
which usually follow the arrival of unemployed troops in a town.
General H. Morgan, the leader of the famous guerrilla band, was married
in Murfreesboro by that ministerial warrrior, Leonidas Polk, who had .
the distinction of being bishop and general at the same time. Jefferson
Davis was present at the wedding, and danced with the rest upon the
United States flag, with which the floor was carpeted, to signify that
the Confederacy had it literally under their feet. This gayety was broken
in upon suddenly by the appearance of Rosecrans, with forty-three
thousand men, within sight of Bragg' s intrenchments. The following
day — thrie days after Christmas — -Bragg crossed the river before sunrise,
and broke upon the right of the national column. Throughout the

"ALL US NIGGAHS IS FREE!" 581
morning success was with the Confederates, but in the afternoon the
greater calmness and endurance of the Northern forces began to tell,
and when the day closed Rosecrans had not moved from his position,
though he had lost many men, twenty-eight guns, and had the uncom
fortable consciousness that the enemy's cavalry was between him and
his communications. The armies rested by common consent the next
day, but, on the second day of the New Year, Rosecrans sent a division
across the strearn to strike at Bragg' s communications. The command
of Breckenridge was sent to attack this division and succeeded in
driving it back to the river, when Breckenridge was surprised with a
terrible artillery fire, and in twenty minutes lost two thousand men. A
charge of the Union infantry followed up this advantage and ended the
battle of Murfreesboro. Rosecrans hastened to take possession of some
high ground with his batteries, with the intention of shelling the town,
but the Confederate army retreated. The Union loss in killed and
wounded was eight thousand seven hundred and seventy-eight and in
prisoners about twenty-eight hundred. Bragg lost ten thousand men.
After Burnside's failure at Fredericksburg he was removed from the
command, given a subordinate position, and General Joseph Hooker
superseded him. Hooker was a graduate of West Point, had been
through the Florida and Mexican Wars, and also the Peninsula cam
paign with McClellan. He was a man of almost reckless bravery, and
had gained the nickname of ' 'Fighting Joe' ' among the boys. Lincoln
eloquently prayed him to ' 'beware of rashness, but with energy and
sleepless vigilance, go forward and give us victories. ' ' The discipline of
the Army of the Potomac was soon restored under Hooker, and as the
spring of 1863 opened, the outlook for the Union cause was good.
Hooker proposed to cross the Rappahannock and strike Lee's left. He
crossed quickly, and, with forty-six thousand men, reached Chancellors-
ville before Lee was aware of his movements. This place was not 'a
village, but a single house, named after its owner. From it to Fred
ericksburg was a stretch of open country, and west of it a dense thicket,
'known as the "Wilderness" — a name which later grew to have a tragic
signification. On May ist Lee brought up nearly his whole army, trying
to find out Hooker's exact position. His daring approach seemed to awe
Hooker, and so far from acting with rashness, he used too much caution,
and drew back some of his more advanced positions. ' He formed his
army in a circle and awaited an attack. His left and centre were strongly
posted, but his right was unprotected, and this Lee saw immediately
when he opened battle on the morning of the 2d. He sent Jackson

582

THE STORY OF AMERICA.

on one of those sudden dashes which were so fatal to his oppo
nents, and they rushed over the crest of a hill upon Hooker's
right. Before them came a drove of wild animals scared from
their thickets. The Union column broke at that point, and it
it looked as if the day was likely to turn against them. General Alfred *
Pleasanton, with two regiments of cavalry and a battery, was ordered
to hasten to a high position at Hazel Grove. At the same time a
strong force of Confederates made for it. To gain time, Major Peter

S^l ^^?p^p//«
UNITED STATES MILITARY TELEGRAPH WAGON.
Keenan, with the Eighth Pennsylvania cavalry, about four hundred
strong, was ordered to charge upon the Confederate infantry and delay
them a moment till Pleasanton could gain the desired point. Keenan
and his men knew that they were ordered to certain death, but they did
not hesitate. The enemy stopped, astonished at the audacity of their
assailants, and Pleasanton, with his twenty-two guns, gained Hazel Grove,
loaded them with double charges of cannister and turned a storm of

"all us niggahs is free!" 583
iron upon the columns of the Confederates. As the day was near its
close Stonewall Jackson was killed accidentally by some of his own men.
The next morning, May 3d, the battle was renewed under Stuart,
the brilliant young cavalry leader, and Lee attacked in front with all his
force. General Hooker was rendered insensible by a shot from a can
non ball that struck the pillar of the Chancellor House, against which
he was leaning. After this the Union side fought in broken detachments
and without order. In the midst of this Lee learned that the Union
division, under Sedgwick, had defeated the opposing force, captured
Fredericksburg Heights and was marching upon the Confederate rear.
Lee therefore drew off a large detachment of his army and turned upon
Sedgwick, who was checked with considerable loss, and crossed the
river after nightfall. In the midst of a great storm which followed, the
Union army crossed the Rappahannock, leaving their dead and wounded
on the battle field. In the battle of Chancellorsville, the Union loss
was about seventeen thousand, and the Confederates about thirteen
thousand. FOR FURTHER READING :
History — Palfrey's "Antietam and Fredericksburg."
Doubleday's "Chancellorsville and Gettysburg."
Cook's "Life of Robert E- Lee."
Hosmer's "The Color Guard."
Fiction — F. A. Loring's "Two College Friends."
H. Morford's "The Days of Shoddy."
H. Morford's "Shoulder Straps."
H. Morford's "The Coward."
M. J. Magill's "Women."

CHAPTER XCII.
ip JbaMij fnvnlhh.

THE BATTLE OF GETTYSBURG AND THE SIEGE OF VTCKSBURG.

HE 3d and 4th of July, 1863, are memorable days
in the War of Secession. One marked Lee's
defeat at Gettysburg, the other Pemberton's sur
render at Vicksburg to the invincible Grant.
Grant and Sherman had planted their determined
armies before the city of Vicksburg in the middle
of May, and the country divided its attention between
this interesting game at the West, and Lee's aggressions
at the East. The triumphs at Fredericksburg and
Chancellorsville had given the men of the South great
confidence in their powers. Public opinion was forcing
Lee to invade the North, and Hooker, who watched him
closely, perceived by the 28th of May — and sent word to
the President to that effect— that a northern movement
might be expected from the Confederates. On the 3d of
June the prophecy was fufilled.
Hooker learned that the dashing Stuart, with the entire Confederate
cavalry, was at Culpepper, and the Northern general therefore hastened
to send all of his cavalry, under Pleasanton, with two brigades of
infantry, to attack it there. The Union troops advanced in two columns,
but failed to unite, and partly through this failure were obliged to with
draw. This engagement is known as the battle of Fleetwood. It
taught the Union troops the need for improving their cavalry, and this
improvement became rapid and marked until in time the Northern
cavalry was vastly superior to that of the South. Hooker was anxious
to meet Lee's northern movement with some brilliant action, which
should discourage the Confederate army, and inspire the Northern
one with confidence. But General Halleck, the military advisor at
Washington, was nothing if not cautious, and Hooker's suggestions

THE DEADLY PARALLELS. 587
were disapproved of and criticised, till that important general threw up
his command. General George Gordon Meade was appointed in his
place. Meade was in his prime, was a good engineer, a determined
general and a man of experience. He viewed the disposition of the
Confederate force with some alarm. Longstreet was skirting the Blue
Ridge. A large part of the Confederate troops were in the Shenandoah
valley. The Confederate cavalry had already crossed the Potomac, and
the people of that region were in terror. Harper's Ferry was threat
ened, and Meade feared that the eleven thousand men who defended it
would be caught in the same trap that Mills' men had been ensnared
in previously. The first thing which he did upon his appointment was,
therefore, to order the evacuation of Harper's Ferry, and to hasten the
garrison to Frederick, as a reserve. As soon as General Lee realized
that Meade was inclined to act with decision, he hastened to call his
forces together at Gettysburg. This town was approached by many
different roads, and was, therefore, a good point for concentration.
Meade followed after Lee cautiously, intending to bring on an engage
ment somewhere near Gettysburg. At this time — the last of June-^
Lee had seventy-three thousand five hundred men, and Meade about
eighty-two thousand, while both generals counted eleven thousand cav
alry, and were possessed of more cannon than they had any need for.
The country around Gettysburg is broken into many ridges which run
north and south. On one of these ridges, just west of the village, there
stood a theological seminary, and between this ridge and the next is
Willoughby Run, a quiet little stream. Here a detachment of the
Union army, under General Reynolds, encountered the Confederates
on the 29th of June. At the very opening of the engagement Gen
eral Reynolds was killed by a sharpshooter, , and the command fell
upon Abner Doubleday. Both forces were anxious to reach a high
piece of ground which was covered with woods, and commanded the
field. The "Iron Brigade," a most dreaded body of Union troops,
succeeded in capturing it, and the battle began in earnest. The
struggle was largely for the road which led from that point to
Gettysburg, and. around this the fight was especially obstinate. The
Union line was indiscreetly stretched out and weakened. Lee was
being continually reinforced and succeeded in breaking through the
centre of the line, throwing a part of the Union forces into disorder.
But the retreat was made slowly, and the ambulances and artillery
protected. In the midst of this confusion General Hancock came
with orders from Meade to assume command. His presence restored

588 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
confidence, and he hastened to form a line along the crest of a ridge,
placing all the available troops in position. This closed the first day's
battle. During the night the Union troops were reinforced. Lee spent
the hours of rest urging his generals to get the army together as rapidly
as possible, saying that he did not wish to attack the Union troops in
their strong position on the heights till all his forces were up. The
second day's battle began with a mistaken arrangement of troops on the
part of the Union forces. Between the two great ridges ran another
ridge, which is often described as being like the diagonal portion of a
capital N. General Sickles advanced his men to this diagonal ridge.
The position was an unfortunate one. This was perceived immediately
by the Confederates, and made the first point of attack. General Sickles
lost a leg, and the situation of the Union troops was made still more
difficult by this catastrophe. The Union line was driven back, but
only to force it into a stronger and better position from which it could
not be dislodged.
That day is full of stirring events. One of them was the fight
between two brigades to reach Little Round Top, a height on the ridge
which formed the Union line. General Weed's brigade, of New York,
fought against Hood's Texans for the position — the men engaging in
one of the most frightful hand-to-hand contests of the war. The men
of both armies lay scattered dead and dying among the rocks. All
attempt to fire was abandoned, and the fight was kept up with clubbed
muskets, bayonets and stones. Four distinguished Union officers were
killed, among them General Weed. Finally, a large part of the Texans
were captured and the rest forced to retreat.
After the sun had set and the twilight was deepening, occurred the
last thrilling incident of the day. It was a charge of Sumpter Hill, by
two Confederate brigades, led by what was known as the Louisiana
Tigers. They had never failed at a charge, and were determined not
to do so now, although they were facing a perfect storm of artillery and
musketry. They actually marched up in the face of that fire till they
reached the guns, and made a hand-to-hand fight for them. The Union
troops were reinforced at this moment, and the Confederates fled down
the hill. Of the over- valorous Tigers, twelve hundred out of the seven
teen hundred had fallen, and they were known no more among the
organizations of the Confederacy.
On the morning of the third day Lee decided to try piercing the
centre of Meade's line, since he had tried both flanks and failed.
Meade anticipated him, however, and attacked early in the morning.

THE DEADLY PARALLELS. 589
Once more the lines were drawn up on the two parallel ridges, and the
day began with a terrible artillery duel. For hours there was nothing
but a deafening roar, a blinding storm of iron under a cloud of smoke.
At length Meade's chief of artillery ordered the fire to stop, that the guns
might cool. Lee naturally supposed that the enemy had exhausted his
artillery, and fourteen thousand of his best men moved forward steadily
for a desperate charge. The Union guns reopened fire, and plowed
through the Confederate columns. But these columns did not halt.
They closed up and marched on over that mile of ground which lay
between the ridges. All along the main line of the Union troops lay an
infantry force, and as the Confederates neared, these sprang to their
feet and launched a terrific volley of musketry into the right flank.
The noble columns of the Confederates began to melt, but among them
were those who would not yield. They came to the very breastworks
and some of them leaped over them. But they saw at last that their
enthusiasm had carried them too far, and some of them threw them
selves upon the ground and held up their hands for quarter. The fight
ing stopped. The Union troops took many prisoners and battle-flags,
and rested to care for their wounded and bury their dead. There had
also been a movement between the cavalry, in which neither side had
gained much. This closed the 3d of July. On the 4th, Lee began his
retreat, in the midst of a terrible storm and over roads which were
almost impassable. With them went the terrible train of wounded,
suffering past all expression in the storm. To the soldierly mind it
seems reprehensible that Meade did not pursue them; to the merely
humane mind it seems as if it would have been little less than fiendish
to have done so.
Gettysburg was the turning point of the war. It is said that the
Confederates lost nearly thirty thousand. The Union loss was twenty-
three thousand one hundred and ninety killed, wounded and missing.
The discrepancy in numbers was not so great as to make the cause of
the South seem hopeless, but there were peculiar characteristics in the
struggle and the time which made the men of the South fear, and the
men of the North hope, that the Rebellion would soon be the "lost
cause." It is necessary now to look toward the West, and follow up the
course of events which led to the surrender of Vicksburg. This city
stands on a high bluff which overlooks the Mississippi. That mighty
river makes a sharp bend at this point, and sweeps about a long, nar
row peninsula. This place commanded two railroads, which were of

590 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
great importance to the Confederates, and as they had lost New Orleans,
Baton Rouge and Memphis, it was of the greatest importance that they
should hold Vicksburg. Farragut had gone up the river and demanded
its surrender, after the taking of New Orleans. The demand was
refused, and as the admiral had no land force to work with him, he
could not enforce it. After this it was made strong with fortifications.
Extensive batteries were planted on the bluffs, and it became almost
impossible for any sort of craft to run down the river. General Grant
received a dispatch from General Halleck on the 12 th of November,
1862, placing him in command of all troops sent to his department,
and telling him to fight the enemy wherever he pleased. After a con
sultation with Sherman, Grant decided to move south with his thirty
thousand men and fight an equal force commanded by General Joseph
C. Pemberton, on the Tallahachie. Sherman, with his thirty thousand,
was to move from Memphis down the eastern bank of the Mississippi,
and with the assistance of Porter and his gunboats, try to capture
Vicksburg from the rear. Grant then began moving slowly, wishing to
keep his enemy as far north as possible, and Sherman and Porter hast
ened to carry out their orders. But the plan was entirely ruined by the
effective opposition of two Confederate cavalry detachments, under
Generals Van Dorn and Forrest. Grant had over two million dollars'
worth of supplies at Holly Springs, and on the 20th of December Van
Dorn made a dash at this place, capturing it and its garrison. He also
burned the stores and the railroad buildings. Forrest tore up a portion
of the railroad which lay north of Grant's army, thus cutting off all
communication with the North. Grant was therefore obliged to give
up his part of the plan, and move back toward Memphis. Sherman
and Porter did not learn of this disaster, and went on with their prepa
rations. On Christmas day the Union troops were well placed" and
began preparing for attack. A large part of them were opposite the
bluffs north of Vicksburg. These bluffs they crowned with artillery,
and as Sherman felt sure that Grant was holding Pemberton, and that
the force on Vicksburg Heights could not be large, he had no hesitation
in opening attack. On the 29th of December the battle was opened
with a heavy artillery fire, followed by musketry and a rush of the men.
The guns at the foot of the bluff swept them, and a cross fire from the
heights poured down upon them. But quite a large detachment of
Union troops succeeded in reaching the bluff. Once there they could
not return, and they scooped niches in the bank with their hands and
hid themselves, while the enemy came to the very edge of the hill and

THE DEADLY PARALLELS. 591
fired down upon them. They were obliged to remain in this very
uncertain position until nightfall. Sherman lost one thousand eight
hundred and forty-two men in this assault, while the Confederates suf
fered but slightly. The other plans which he laid for assault were
defeated by accidents of weather, and as he was in a country which was
inundated with water every year to the depth often feet, he re-embarked
his men and steamed down the river, anxious to know what had hap
pened to Grant.
At the beginning of 1863 General McClernand was given command of
the two corps commanded by Generals Sherman and Morgan. The first
movement made by this united force was against Arkansas Post. This
was a Confederate hold on the Arkansas, which made it dangerous for
boats on the Mississippi, near the mouth of the former river. Sherman
saw there could be little safety till the post was captured. He therefore
persuaded McClernand to attack it with the whole army, including
Porter's command. On the ioth of January they were below the fort,
and had driven back the pickets. The Confederates aroused themselves
for defense, and spent the night throwing up a long line of works.
The next day the Union troops swept forward to the attack and were
aided by the gunboats on the river. This fire continued but a few
moments, when white flags and rags fluttered all along the Confederate
lines. Immediately the firing ceased, and the garrison, numbering
about forty-eight hundred, were taken prisoners. The fort was
destroyed. McClernand was not able to pursue his plans further, for
Grant commanded him to hasten back to the Mississippi. Grant had
now been given personal command over the operations on the Missis
sippi. His first act was to divide his force into four corps, commanded
by Generals McPherson, Hurlburt, Sherman and McClernand. Hurl-
burt's force was left to hold the lines east of Memphis, and all the other
troops were joined in the river expedition. The plan was now to besiege
Vicksburg. To follow up the forty-seven days of siege would be tedious
and painful. Now the men dug canals, now they mined. At times an
expedition picked its way through the deadly swamps by the light of
tallow candles. Again they were hemmed in the barricaded rivers,
with the enemy in front and behind them. Grant tried half a dozen
plans, and failed in all. The Confederates showed not only courage,
but the greatest ingenuity, and they kept themselves apprised of Grant's
every movement. On the night of April 16th, the Union fleet ran by
the batteries of Vicksburg, and returned the heavy fire directed against
them. Grant searched for some time before he found a suitable place to

592

THE STORY OF AMERICA.

cross the Mississippi, and finally decided upon Bruinsburg. McCler
nand' s corps went first, and marched on Fort Gibson on the 30th of
April. The enemy was found in a strong position three miles west of
that fort, and after a hard day's fight, the Confederates retreated, burning
their bridges behind them. Grant established his base at Grand Gulf,

VIEW OF A COTTON CHUTE,

where there were fortifications which the Confederates had deserted.
He sent a division after the retreating Confederates, and pressed on
with all the rest of his army. These numbered about forty-one thou
sand men, and were increased a few days later to forty-five thousand.
Pemberton had about fifty-one thousand.
Simultaneous with these preparations was Grierson's brilliant raid

THE DEADLY PARALLELS. 593
through the Southwestern States. Colonel Benjamin H. Grierson com
manded a cavalry of seventeen hundred men. These rode through the
State of Mississippi doing what damage they could to bridges, railroads
and supplies, and dismaying the people by their rapid and unexpected
movements. For sixteen days they plunged through rivers, swamps,
forests and fields, and at the end of that time rode into Baton Rouge,
with the men half dead from fatigue aud lack of sleep.
Grant engaged in a number of heavy skirmishes as he moved toward
Vicksburg, and took possession of two towns, in one of which were the
factories which turned out goods for the Confederacy. These Sherman
absolutely destroyed. On the 15th of May occurred the battle of
Champion's Hill, which was the bloodiest of the campaign. At the
end of the battle Pemberton retreated across the Big Black river, leav
ing his dead and wounded behind him — over three thousand. Another
heavy skirmish occurred on the bank of the Big Black river, and the
Union troops added eighteen guns to the thirty which they had captured
at Champion's Hill. Bridges were now constructed that the men might
cross the stream. These were made of rafts, of trees and cotton bales,
and Sherman and Grant sat side by side on a log, watching their men as
they passed by night over the swaying structures. Vicksburg was well
protected on the land, as well as on the water side, and Pemberton
hastened to strengthen himself in the village, while Grant followed
close behind. Sherman went to Haine's Bluff, where he had been
defeated before. The other commands stretched out from Sherman's
left. Grant feared an attack from the rear, for General Johnston's
force was behind him, and he therefore hastened to make an assault,
with the intention of carrying the works by storm. This was on the
2 2d of May. His men rushed up the breastworks and succeeded in
planting some flags, but, not in holding them, and Grant was finally
forced to admit the assault a failure, and withdraw his men. Then he
began the siege by regular approaches. Day and night the guns poured
shells into the city, till the citizens dug caves in the soft clay banks
and took refuge in them. Very hungry were the people of Vicksburg,
and still hungrier the exhausted soldiers, but it was not till the 4th of
July, 1863, that Pemberton yielded to the demand for unconditional
surrender. The Confederate army was fed from the knapsacks of the
Union troops, and immediately paroled and furnished with means for
reaching their homes.
The news of this important victory was received everywhere in
the North with the greatest satisfaction and demonstrations of rejoicing

594 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
by the supporters of the Union cause. It was, indeed, an important
event in the history of the war, as it gave the Union army undisputed
possession of the Mississippi river to the Gulf.
FOR FURTHER READING:
History — Bates' "Battle of Gettysburg."
Coppee's "Grant and. His Campaigns."
Glazier's "Three Years in the Federal Cavalry."
Headley's "Grant's Sherman."
Longborough's "Cave I^ife in Vicksburg."
Bullock's "Secret Service of the Confederacy.*'
Burnham's "United States Secret Service."
Fiction— W. H. Peck's "Confederate Flag on the Ocean."
M. Remick's "Great Battle Year."
M. Remick's "Forward with the Flag."
Poetry— Bret Harte's "John Burns of Gettysburg."

CHAPTER XCIII.
10 ftartars*

fc

WHY THE WAR DID NOT END AFTER GETTYSBURG — THE NEW YORK
RIOTS — ATROCITIES IN THE SOUTH — SOUTH
ERN PRISON PENS.

;OW that two great Confederate armies had sur
rendered it would seem to the observer as if there
was little excuse for continuing the war. But
from its beginning the American nation has been
ruled by popular opinion. Most of its wars have
been for principle, and it has delighted in nothing
more than in great controversies. The popular conscience
is a thing which has constantly to be taken into consid
eration. The "Southern idea" was not yet conquered.
It flourished in the North as well as in the South, and
every thinking soldier and politician knew that, should
the war be discontinued at this point, it would only mean
a renewal of the old troublous legislation, and in the
end another resort to arms. Practically, the Confederacy
was becoming weak. Maryland, Kentucky, Tennessee, Missouri and
West Virginia, all slaves States, sympathized with the Government.
The largest city of the Confederacy had long been held by Union troops.
But it was not territory and men alone which were to be conquered, but
ideas as well. In the North, a large number of men made themselves
conspicuous by leading a party opposed to the Government, and by
delivering speeches which, were as treasonable as they were heartless.
Among these was ex- President Franklin Pierce, of New Hampshire.
These men misrepresented the Union cause, the patient, and much-tried
President, and the spirit which prompted a continuation of the war.
These speeches inflamed the common people, and brought about, among
other catastrophes, the New York riots.
Drafts had been ordered in several of the States, for the volunteer

596

THE STORY OF AMERICA.

system had not latterly furnished enough men. A law provided that
any man whose name was drawn, and who did not wish to go into the
service, could get a substitute, or pay three hundred dollars to the
Government and be released. In the South, every man could easily

go into the service, for there were slaves at home to keep the farms
tilled and the stores open, but in the North it was necessary that a large
portion of the men should always remain at home, and the substitute
system was arranged to accommodate this need. The opposition party

THE MARTYRS. 597
misinterpreted this arrangement and said that the Government demanded
three hundred dollars, or the life of the man whom it drafted. On the
other hand, the arrangement had been made simply as a protection for
these men, and when the clause was repealed to satisfy the opposition
party, the price of substitutes went from three hundred to a thousand
dollars — a sum which few. workingmen were able to pay. In April,
1863, a levy of three hundred thousand men was called for, with the
alternative of a draft, in case the quotas were not filled by volunteers.
That of New York fell short, and a draft was begun. New York was
largely Democratic, and several of the most influential papers were in
favor of the opposition. From the very beginning of the draft, excite
ment was noticeable in the city, and the marshals who tried to take the
names and addresses of those subject to call were threatened with
violence. On the 13th of July the draft-wheel was set in motion, at the
corner of Third avenue and Forty-sixth street, and in a short time the
building was surrounded by a surging, loud-voiced crowd. In a short
time they had stopped the street cars and made a blockade in the streets.
They finally entered the marshal's office, driving the policemen and
officers out at the back windows. They then burned the building and
prevented the firemen from throwing any water upon it. The superin
tendent of police was stoned and clubbed till he was a shapeless mass of
bruises, and the defence of the city for the remainder of the riot was
conducted by Commissioner Thomas C. Acton and Inspector Daniel
Carpenter. Another marshal's office was entered in the same way, and
the whole block of stores about it was burned. The police and the mob
encountered each other through the day in a street fight, and the police
were defeated. Some of them were stabbed by people in the crowd,
others stoned, and many shot. The mob succeeded, before the close of
the afternoon, in getting possession of the gun factory. As evening
approached a great procession marched down Broadway, with ' 'no draft"
inscribed upon its banners, and armed in a most motley manner.
Inspector Carpenter, with two hundred policemen, who had orders to
take no prisoners, but to strike quick and hard, met them on Broadway.
A few minutes of fierce fighting followed, and the mob fled. For two
days longer the riot continued. The mob murdered eleven negroes, who
had committed no offence except that of being black. They sacked and
burned the Colored Orphan Asylum, and the two hundred little children
barely escaped by the rear doors, as the mob broke in at the front.
They surged around the office of the Tribune, which was edited by
Horace Greely, and tried to set fire to it, but the printers ran board

598 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
troughs out of the windows with the intention of dropping bombs from
them upon the crowd below. The mob guessed at their ominous
significance and hastened away. On the second day a small military
force assisted the police. When it was seen that no quarter could be
expected from the mob, the police and military fought without com
punction, and killed wherever they could. In one disreputable
neighborhood, the police were fired upon from the windows and roofs,

THE TOMBS PRISON, NEW YORK CITY.

and they entered the tenement houses in squads, searched them from
top to bottom, killed the people with the bayonet or club, and flung
them out of the windows or over the bannisters. Those three days were
indescribably horrible. Many of the incidents will not bear relating.
Colonel Henry J. O'Brien, of the Eleventh New York Volunteers,
was captured by the mob, and tortured in the most terrible way for
hours, and finally killed by some maddened women. It was thought

THE MARTYRS. 599
that men of wealth and standing were disguised among those who led
the mob. By the end of the three days, between two and three million
dollars' worth of property had been destroyed, fifty policemen had been
injured, and eighteen people killed by the rioters. On the other hand
more than twelve hundred of the mob had been slain.
Throughout the South the cruelest outrages were perpetrated upon
Union men who chanced to live in a Southern district. It is said that
in Texas alone, between two and three thousand citizens were hanged,
who were known to sympathize with the Union cause, and to refuse to
uphold secession. The Governor of Texas permitted these barbarities,
and encouraged the people of the State to commit them. One woman
was hanged to a tree in sight of her little children for wishing that the
Union army would hurry to Texas and end the war, that her husband
might come home. In the border States, these cruelties were very
frequent, especially in East Tennessee. Not only were the lives of
quiet citizens taken by men in the Confederate uniform, but houses
were burned, children tortured, and women subjected to every sort of
suffering. The papers of the South advised "bushwhacking," and
every sort of partisan fight. The black flag was not unfrequently
raised, and the people who fought under it gave no quarter to any one,
regardless of sex, age or condition. ' The Confederate Congress went so
far as to organize bands of partisan rangers, who were entitled to the
same pay, rations and quarters as other soldiers. These were known as
Guerrillas, and their purpose was to terrorize the country and murder
and steal, but to claim the protection of the Confederate government,
as honorable prisoners qf war, whenever they were captured. The very
least of the crimes committed by these bands was to destroy everything
in and about the houses by which they passed, and to steal the horses
and cattle. That there were instances of intolerance at the North, no
one pretends to deny, but it principally took the form of social ostracism. ,
It seems hardly necessary to go over the dark chapter which records
the doings in Southern prisons. The sufferings of the men there were
notorious. The civilized world has never seen such premeditated and
deliberate cruelty. Most of the commissioned officers captured by the
Confederate army were placed in Uibby warehouse, at Richmond, and
at Columbia, South Carolina. The non-commissioned officers and pri
vates were kept in camps, at Andersonville and Milan, Georgia; at
Tyler, Texas, at Salisbury, North Carolina, at Florence, South Caro
lina, and at Belle Isle, in the James River, at Richmond. With the
exception of Iyibby, these were open stockades, with but little shelter.

600 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
That at Andersonville, which is particularly famous for its horrors,
consisted of twenty acres of ground, afterwards enlarged to thirty,
enclosed in a palisade of pine logs fifteen feet high. One hundred and
twenty feet outside was another palisade, and between the two walked
the guards. A slight railing, known as the ' 'dead line, ' ' ran inside of
the inner stockade, about twenty feet from it. Any prisoner who came
too near this line was immediately shot. A tiny stream of slow-running
water was the only supply the men had for drinking, cooking or wash
ing. There was no need for selecting the stockades in a place without
trees, as there were plenty of trees within sight. The whole was built
under the direction of General William S. Winder, who had stated it as
his intention to build the pen so as to destroy more Yankees than could
be destroyed at the front. Mr. Davis and the Confederate Congress
knew of the sufferings of the prisoners at Andersonville, and resisted
the appeals of more humane men among the Confederates to have them
lessened. At one time there were thirty-three thousand prisoners in
the stockade, which gave a space of about four feet square to each man.
Here the men wasted to skeletons, and died of the most terrible dis
eases. Many of them went mad, others became imbecile; many were
shot wantonly; not unfrequently they walked to the dead line for the
express purpose of inviting death. They called it "being exchanged."
Many escaped from the various prisons, but though they were aided by
the negroes, they were usually tracked and brought back. Bloodhounds
were kept for this especial purpose. By 1864, the prisons were crowded
to overflowing, owing to the fact that exchanges of prisoners had been
stopped. This was because the Confederate authorities would not
exchange any black soldiers or their white officers captured in battle,
and the United States Government, being bound to protect equally all
who entered its service, refused to exchange at all. The people of the
South never felt it necessary to show any honor in fighting the blacks.
This was shown in a most cowardly and inhuman way, at Fort Pillow,
April 12, 1864. This fort was forty miles above Memphis, on the
Mississippi. It stood upon a high bluff with a ravine on each side. A
little village and some Government buildings nestled in the lower
ravine. The place had a garrison of five hundred and fifty men, nearly
half of whom were colored, commanded by Major I* F. Booth. At
sunrise the fort was attacked by the Confederate General Forrest, with
five thousand men. A brave advance was made, which was assisted by
the gunboat New Era, which swept the ravine. Major Booth was
killed, but the fort stood firm, and the besiegers finally sent in a flag of

THE' MARTYRS.

601

truce demanding a surrender. Under cover of this flag they moved up
into positions nearer the fort, and then sent in a second flag. Surrender
was refused, and they took advantage of their close position to the fort
to rush over the works with a cry of ' 'no quarter. ' ' The garrison threw

FLIGHT OF NEGROES FROM FORT PILLOW.

down their arms and surrendered, but no mercy was shown them.
The sick and wounded were murdered in their tents; the women and
children were shot or put to the sword. At least three hundred persons
were butchered after the surrender. It goes without saying that the
35

602 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
more honorable officers of the Confederate army were as shocked as the
rest of the civilized world at Forrest's treacherous action.
Another reason that the exchange of prisoners had been discontinued
was that the Confederates did not observe their paroles. The thirty
thousand men taken by Grant at Vicksburg, and the six thousand taken
by Banks at Port Hudson, in July, 1863, were released on parole, with
the understanding that they were not to fight again during the war unless
properly exchanged. Three months later the Confederate commissioner
of exchange declared them all released from their parole, and they were
restored to the ranks.
President Lincoln's kind heart was greatly distressed over the compli
cations of this prison question. On one hand he grieved to think of the
thousands of men actually rotting in the pestiferous Southern prisons, and
on the other hand, he objected to exchanging the well-fed Confederate
prisoners for the skeletons sent up from the Southern stockades. In
vain did the people of the North try to send supplies to their suffering
friends in Libby and Andersonville, and the rest of the prisons. The sup
plies seldom or never reached the men, and at Libby, where the boxes for
the prisoners arrived at the rate of three hundred a week, they were packed
up in warehouses within sight of the famished and shivering wretches who
could not reach the things prepared for them. The total number of
soldiers and citizens captured by the Confederate armies during the war
was 188,145. About half of these were actually confined in prisons,
where the number of death was 36,401. The number of Confederates
captured by the Northern forces was 476, 169, of whom 227, 570 were actu
ally confined. The percentage of death in the Confederate prisons was
over thirty-eight; in the Northern prisons it was thirteen and five one-
hundredths. That the Confederate soldier was often without necessary
provisions is sometimes urged as an excuse for the treatment of the pris
oners in his hands. But if prisoners could not be provided for, then
they should not have been taken, and it should be remembered, too,
that the prisoners would not have Suffered nearly so much as they did,
had the supplies sent them from the North been delivered.
FOR FURTHER READING:
History — Foote's "Fort Pillow Massacre."
Burbiere's "Scraps from the Prison Table."
Harding's "Belle Boyd in Camp and Prison."
Glazier's "Capture, Prison-Pen and Escape."
Stuart's "Sufferings of Prisoners of War."
Cavada's "Libby Life."
Harris' "Prison Life in Richmond."
Fiction— Anna Dickinson's "What Answer."
Mrs. Terhune's "Sunny Bank."
J. T. Trowbridge's "Cudjo's Cave."

CHAPTER XCIV.

ip jStuamp jtttjsl

THE SIEGE OF CHARLESTON — DUPONT'S DEFEAT — GILMORE'S SIEGE-
THE "SWAMP ANGEI," — MORGAN'S RAIDS.

^HE siege of Charleston touched the Confederacy at
its tenderest point. The idea of secession had been
born and nursed in Charleston, and the people of
the South felt an exceeding tenderness for it on
that account. For the same reasons the people of
the North were especially desirous to have it suffer
the utmost penalty of war. At one time the Gov
ernment had sunk several old whale ships, loaded with
stone, into the channel, for the purpose of closing the
harbor — a harbor most useful to the Confederacy. But
in a short time these old hulks sank harmlessly into the
sand, or were swept away, and it was necessary to keep a
dozen war vessels to sustain the blockade. As the main
channel was protected by Confederate batteries, this was
no easy matter. After a time this channel was closed by
the occupation by Union troops of Morris' Island, but even this did not
keep the blockade runners from slipping ' in by the other passes. The
blockading vessels were openly attacked in January, 1863.
The attack was made by two Confederate iron-clads, which soon
disabled two Union vessels and were only driven away when the rest of
the fleet came to their aid. The Government was now more determined
than ever to capture the port, and use the harbor as a refuge for Union
vessels. A strong fleet was fitted out for this purpose, and placed under
command of Rear- Admiral S. F. DuPont. This fleet consisted of seven
monitors, an iron-clad frigate, an iron-clad ram, and several wooden
gunboats. Choosing a fortunate day, DuPont steamed in to attack the
forts on April 7, 1863.

604 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
Nothing had been left undone for the defense of the city. Numer
ous batteries had been erected. Fort Sumpter was occupied, and many
powerful guns of English manufacture placed where they would be of
the most use. Piles and chains obstructed the channels, which were
otherwise endangered to the Union troops by innumerable torpedoes,
some of which were arranged to explode whenever a vessel should run
against them, while others were to be fired by electric wires from the
forts. The main channel between Fort Moultrie and Fort Sumpter was
crossed by a heavy cable supported by empty barrels. In the south
channel a wide opening had been left in the row of piles, and offered a
temptation to the Union vessels, which it was hoped they could not
resist, for beneath the water were several tons of powder connected with
an electric wire. These dangers were not unsuspected by DuPont, but
he had no hesitation in sending his monitor Weehawken out on the
morning of April 17 th, to prove what the situation might be. As soon
as the Weehawken had become slightly entangled among the network
of chains — she was incumbered with a great raft pushed before her to
explode the torpedoes — the batteries opened all around her, and she and
the other monitors which hurried to her aid were the center of a terrific
shower^of iron and bursting shells. One monitor, the Keokuk, which
had approached quite near to the enemy, was struck nearly one hundred
times. That evening she sank in an inlet. Most of the other vessels
were badly injured, and the fleet had to confess itself defeated.
Two months later the Union forces had a victory on the sea which
somewhat counterbalanced this defeat. The Atlanta, a Confederate
ironclad, was sent out to sink the monitors and raise the blockade of
Charleston. She dropped down the channel on June 17th, and following
her came two steamers loaded with citizens, among whom were many
ladies. These felt a very natural interest in her, as the ladies of
Charleston had contributed their jewels to pay for her completion.
The Weehawken was the first monitor to approach her. Five shots
were fired from her enormous eleven-inch and fifteen-inch guns. Those
five shots, each directed at a vital point of the Atlanta, disabled her, and
she hung out a white flag and surrendered. DuPont' s fleet took her to
Philadelphia, where she was exhibited as a curiosity. She was provis
ioned for a long cruise, and carried a huge torpedo from the- end of a
beam thirty feet long, projecting from her bow under water.
Shortly after this, General Quincy A. Gilmore was sent from the
North, with a large force, to take the city of Charleston. This city,
bordered by miles of swampy ground, had many natural protections

THE SWAMP ANGEL. 605
against an assaulting enemy. Gilmore decided to approach the city by
way of Folly and Morris Islands, where he could be protected by the
monitors. His first work was to erect powerful batteries on Folly
Island. On the most northern point of Folly Island was the Confed
erate battery Gregg. South of this was Fort Wagner, and still farther
south were other works. Gilmore's battery on Folly Island had been
erected behind a grove of trees, and on the morning of July 10th, these
were suddenly cut down, and Gilmore opened fire upon the most south-
ernly work on Morris Island, while the fleet — now commanded by
Admiral Dalhgren — bombarded Fort Wagner. Troops were landed
under protection of this fire, but as the day was unbearably hot, no
advance was made on Fort Wagner until the following morning. The
assault was repulsed and the Union troops retired to their earthworks.
A week later another assault was made, being led by the first regi
ment of colored troops (the Fifty-fourth Massachusetts) that had ever
been raised on the authorization that accompanied the proclamation of
emancipation. They led the advance by their own request, with an
evident desire to settle, once for all, the question of negro bravery.
Though fire from all the Confederate batteries was opened upon them
and their ranks thinned every second, they marched steadily on, crossed
the ditch before Fort Wagner waist-deep in water, while musketry
poured down upon them and hand-grenades were exploded in their
midst, and even climbed up to the rampart. Here they were hurled
back. Their young commander, Colonel Robert G. Shaw, and fifteen
hundred \ff their men were killed. The experiment was too costly to
repeat. General Gilmore now approached Fort Wagner by regular
parallels. By August 17th, a dozen breeching batteries of enormous
rifle guns were established and directed against Fort Sumpter, which at
the end of a week was a shapeless mass of ruins. The parallels were
pushed forward still further toward Fort Wagner, partly through ground
so low that the higher tides washed over it. The ironclad frigate New
Ironsides assisted in the bombardment, and strong calcium lights were
thrown upon the fort, and kept an eternal day there. The Confederates
suddenly abandoned Fort Wagner, and Battery Gregg, at the north of
Morris Island, was also deserted. Fort Sumpter still furnished a deso
late shelter for some of the Confederate infantry, and these defended it
against a few hundred sailors from the Union fleet, who tried to capture
it. To bombard the city itself was the next move. General Gilmore
selected a site on the western side of Morris Island, and placed the work
in the hands of a captain who was told that he must not fail. The

606 THE STORY OF AMERICA
ground was soft mud sixteen feet deep, and the task of establishing a
battery there seemed impossible. But piles were driven and a platform
laid upon them, a parapet built of sixteen thousand bags of sand, and
an eight-inch rifle gun was dragged across the swamp and placed upon
the platform. All of this work was done in the night, and when
accomplished was still at the disadvantage of being five miles from
Charleston. But the "swamp angel," as the soldiers called the gun,
would be able to reach the lower part of the city. Late in August it
opened fire. As a protection to the city, the Confederate authorities
selected from their prisoners fifty officers, and placed them in a district
reached by the shells. With what mingled feelings these imprisoned
Union officers awaited the first rumble of the "swamp angel" can be
imagined. By placing an equal number of Confederate officers under
fire, the Government forced the removal of its own. At the thirty-sixth
discharge the "swamp angel" burst, and was never replaced.
So wide was the theatre of action in the Rebellion that it is impos
sible to make a consecutive story of it, since it is constantly necessary
to return and take up the broken threads of the narrative at neglected
points. In the West, during the spring and summer of 1863, there were other
events of interest besides Grant's siege of Vicksburg. In a war of less
magnitude they would have been of great interest As it was, they
were thought little of, and soon forgotten. For weeks Generals Rose
crans and Bragg sat warily ^watching each- other. Detachments from
both armies made destructive raids and opposed each other in numerous
minor engagements. Morgan, the Confederate guerrilla, won a reputa
tion for his raid across Ohio, with a force of three thousand cavalry.
After committing many atrocities, he was at last met and defeated by
the home guards of Ohio. The incidents of his raids are romantic,
and have been the subjects of many poems and tales.
FOR FURTHER READING :
History— Batten's "Two Years in the United States Army."
Early's "Last Year of the War."
Pollard's "Last Year of the War."
Fiction— J. T. Trowbridge's "The Three Scouts."
J. T. Trowbridge's "The Drummer Boy."
W. H. Thomas' "Running the Blockade."
Poetry— George H. Boker's "Black Regiment."
Phoeoe Cary's "Hero of Fort Wagner."

CHAPTER XCV.
"i^tutr nHJpJtauV
CAMPAIGN AT THE WEST BETWEEN GENERALS ROSECRANS AND
BRAGG  BATTLE OF CHICKAMAUGA — BATTLE OF CHAT
TANOOGA — THE SANITARY AND CHRISTIAN
COMMISSIONERS.

ATE in the summer of 1863, Rosecrans, who had
been quietly keeping Bragg on the defensive,
began to move. He forced Bragg to fall back
from one point to another, all the way from Tul-
lahoma to Chattanooga. Rosecrans wished to
get possession of Chattanooga, and when Bragg
crossed the Tennessee, and once more turned to
face the Union army at that point, Rosecrans set down
to force him out of it. This he did by a strategy, and
the Union troops hastened to take possession of the
town. Rosecrans supposed that Bragg was in full
retreat, but the Confederate general received reinforce
ments, and turning at Lafayette, waited for Rosecrans,
and on September 19th and 20th was fought the battle
of Chickamauga, on the river of that name. Long-
street had joined Bragg on the 18th, and the latter general now had
about seventy thousand men under his command. Rosecrans had about
fifty-five thousand. Bragg was the attacking party. His plan was to
make a feint on the Union right, and at the same time to fall heavily
upon the left, crush it, seize the roads that led to Chattanooga, and thus
shut off Rosecrans' supplies. But the Union left was commanded by
General George H. Thomas, who is said to have been one of the best
corps commanders produced by either side in the whole war, and espe
cially formidable in a fight where stubbornness and endurance were the
qualities most needed. Throughout the day there was a series of bloody
charges. General Leonidas Polk was directly opposed to Thomas, and

608 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
he led on his men fiercely hour after hour. Upon both sides there was
terrible mortality, and large numbers of prisoners were taken. When
night closed the situation was altered but little. The next day the
battle continued to 'sway back and forth between Polk and Thomas. In
the afternoon, however, the tide of battle took another direction. A
fatal gap was made in the right wing of the Union lines, brought about
by a carelessly written and misinterpreted order. Longstreet hastened
to pour six divisions of his men through this gap. Rosecrans became
bewildered, and drove fiercely to Chattanooga to make arrangements
for getting his broken forces there. Thomas still stood firm, although
the rest of the army was in disorder, and the Confederates, now sure of
victory, poured up with a reckless disregard of life. As dusk fell, the
ammunition was exhausted, and the last furious charge of the Confed
erates was repelled with the bayonet. From this time on Thomas was
called the "Rock of Chickamauga. " In the night he fell back to
Rossville, where Sheridan joined him in the morning, and together
they marched to Chattanooga to strengthen the defenses of that city.
Here they found the rest of the army under Rosecrans. The Union
loss in the two days' battle of Chickamauga was sixteen thousand two
hundred and thirty-six. The Confederate loss was between nineteen
and twenty thousand. With the exception of Gettysburg, it was the
most destructive battle of the war. Bragg advanced to positions on
Lookout Mountain and Missionary Ridge, putting the town in a state of
siege. He stopped the navigation of the river below, and cut off all of
Rosecrans' routes of supply, except one long and rude wagon road.
For over a month these opposing armies rested and reorganized. The
departments of the Ohio, the Cumberland and Tennessee were united
under the title of the Military Division of the Mississippi, of which
General Grant was made commander, and Thomas was put in the place
of Rosecrans in command of the Army of the Cumberland. On the
23d of October Grant arrived at Chattanooga. He found the men on
¦short rations, discouraged and restless. Great numbers of horses and
mules were dead, and Chattanooga was seriously threatened by Bragg's
army. The first thing which Grant did was to open a better line of
supply. He had a road built to Bridgeport, where steamers could reach
it. In five days this line was completed, and the "Cracker Line" as
the soldiers called it, was opened, and supplies of all sorts were abundant.
The Confederate line was stretched out twelve miles long. It ran
across Chattanooga valley, and rested its flank on the northern end of
Lookout Mountain and Missionary Ridge. The Confederates were also

"THE RIVER OF THE DEAD." 609
intrenched upon the crests of these mountains. Longstreet, with
twenty thousand men, had been detached from Bragg's army and sent
against Burnside, at Knoxville. Sherman had joined Grant and swelled
the force to about eighty thousand men. Sherman was placed on the
left wing on the north side of the Tennessee, opposite the head of Mis
sionary Ridge; Thomas in the centre across the Chattanooga valley,
and Hooker's men swept around the right at the base of Lookout
Mountain. It was one of the most beautiful spots which the war
desecrated. Sherman, who was famous for laying bridges, constructed
two across the Tennessee on the night of November 20th, and the next
day he crossed the river and advanced rapidly upon the enemy's works
at Missionary Ridge. The ground made fighting very difficult, and
Sherman only succeeded partly in his undertaking. Hooker swept
around the base of Lookout Mountain, and ordered his men up the
steeps. They pushed on toward the heights in the face of the Confed
erate troops, made their way through the clouds that hung below the
crest of the mountain, and disappeared above them to the very summit.
Such of the enemy at that point as were not taken prisoners escaped
down the mountains. This is known as Hooker's battle above the
clouds. On the following day (the 25th), Grant ordered Thomas to
press forward. He did so, walking right into the line of the Confed
erate works at the base of Missionary Ridge, and following the retreating
Confederates closely up the slope. He swept on till he reached the
summit and turned Bragg's own guns upon his defeated men. The
Union lost about six thousand men, and the Confederates about ten
thousand men in this battle. Bragg took the remainder of his army to
Dalton, Georgia, where the command was assumed by General Joseph
E. Johnston. After the close of this romantic campaign, a large detach
ment of men was sent to the relief of Burnside, at Knoxville, and
Longstreet, who was opposed to this force, then withdrew to Virginia.
Long before this time the war had been robbed of some of its horrors
by the efforts of the Sanitary and Christian Commissions. • It was here
that the women played their not unimportant part in the war. From
the very first they had been anxious to assist the cause. Their personal
sacrifices were great. Not only did they cheerfully give up the men
dear to them, but thousands of them supported themselves in order that
their husbands might leave them. They sacrificed many comforts, and
organized many money-making schemes to swell the army fund. With
the first call for troops in April, 1861, the women held meetings in
many places for the purpose of organizing their efforts and resources.

6lO THE STORY OF AMERICA.
Out of such meetings finally grew the Women's Central Association of
Relief, which had its birth in New York, under a constitution written
by Dr. Bellows, who was chosen its president. A committee was sent
to Washington to offer the services of the organization to the Govern
ment, and to learn in what way it could be most useful. The
Government did not receive the offer kindly. Even Mr. Lincoln
thought that such an organization might embarrass, rather than aid the
cause. But permission was at length obtained for the formation of a
commission of inquiry and advice in respect to the sanitary interests of
the United States forces. This commission met with every sort of
discouragement. The officers united in looking upon the matter with
distrust. The first work of this organization was to have the volunteer
forces reinspected, and many of the men, physically unfit for service,
discharged. Its chief purpose was to form depots for receiving supplies
of clothing, medicines and delicacies for the camps and hospitals, and
forwarding them hastily. Local societies were formed by women all
through the North, and managed entirely by them. Of the fifteen
million dollars' worth of articles received and distributed, more than
four-fifths came from these seven thousand local societies. The
commission soon won the admiration of everyone in the military
service. It helped select sites for camps, regulated drainage, inspected
cooking, constructed model pavilion hospitals to prevent the spread of
contagion, and established a system of soldiers' homes, where the sick
and convalescent could be cared for on their way to and from their
homes. The hospitals, from being dirty and ill-cared for, became
models of order and cleanliness. Hospital steamers were fitted up and
put on the Mississippi and its tributaries, to ply between the seat of war
and the points from which northern hospitals could be reached. A
hospital car was invented in which the stretchers that the wounded were
brought upon from the field could be hung, and thus become a sort of
hammock. The car was built with extra springs, that the jolting might
be reduced, and trains of them were run regularly with physicians and
stores on board. The commission had several large depots at con
venient points, where articles were assorted and labeled, and the army
officers were kept informed of the articles which could be supplied.
Gardens were planted by the commission and vegetables raised for the
use of the soldiers in the field. Supplies of all sorts were kept in
constant readiness, in case the Government supplies should be delayed.
Sometimes the agents of the commission were actually on the battle
field with their supplies, and at the front rescuing the wounded. From

"THE RIVER OF THE DEAD." * 6ll
almost every home in the North came something to aid the commission;
if not money, then , food, clothing, lint, and all sorts of valuables
which could be sold, such as diamonds, watches, live stock, carriages,
etc. Fairs were held, at which large amounts of money were raised.
From the State of California alone came one million three hundred
thousand dollars. This was sent largely by men who, being too far
from the seat of the war to engage in the conflict, wished to aid the
Government so far as lay in their power. This generous contribution
from the loyal people of California proved of timely need to the com
mission in their work of ameliorating the condition of the soldiers in
the field.
In course of time the Christian Commission was organized. This
met with the approval of the military officers, but did not awaken much
enthusiasm among the people at first. In May, 1862, it was able to
send out but fourteen delegates, ten of whom were clergymen, but these
were received with such favor by the men, that four hundred delegates
were sent to the army before the end of the year, and more than a
thousand were engaged in the home work. Bibles and hymn books
were distributed by the tens of thousands, and newspapers and maga
zines placed in every camp. Twenty-three libraries were formed, over
one hundred and forty thousand dollars expended in money, and an
equal value of stores distributed. Chapel tents and chapel roofs were
soon furnished to the armies, diet kitchens established in the hospitals,
and schools opened for the children of colored soldiers. The writing
of letters for the wounded men in the hospitals was not the least
of the work. A coffee wagon was invented and given to the commis
sion. Coffee could be made in large quantities in this as it was driven
along. The commission supported its own delegates absolutely, and in
the course of its existence sent out six thousand delegates. One
hundred and twenty of these were women employed mainly in the diet
kitchens. Dr. Bellows was president of the Sanitary Commission,
Frederick Olmsted secretary, and George T. Strong treasurer. The
executive committee of the Christian Commission had George H. Stuart
as its chairman, Joseph Patterson as treasurer, and Samuel Moss for
secretary. Numerous books have been written on the women who
volunteered as nurses in the service of the Government. Miss Clara
Barton, now at the head of the Red Cross organization, entered upon
hospital work at the very beginning of the war, and at the close of the
conflict spent several years searching for the missing men of the Union
armies. The first woman who volunteered her services was Miss

6l2 - THE STORY OF AMERICA.
Dorothy L. Dicks, to whom all women wishing to act as nurses
reported from the beginning of the war. Miss Amy Bradley had charge
of a large camp for convalescents near Alexandria, and helped twenty- two
hundred men collect back-pay due them, amounting to over two
hundred thousand dollars. The wife of General Francis Barlow spent
three years in hospitals and died in the service.
FOR FURTHER READING:
History — McKay's "Stories of Hospital and Camp."
Worthington's "Women in Battle."
Brockett's "Woman's Work in Camp, Field and Hospital."
Harding's "Belle Boyd in Camp and Prison."
Champlin's "Christian Work on the Battle Field."
Poetry — F. Moore's "Lyrics of Loyalty."

CHAPTER XCVI.
GRANT GIVEN ABSOLUTE COMMAND — THE BATTLE OF THE WILDER
NESS — "FORWARD BY THE LEFT FLANK" — SECOND BATTLE
OF COLD HARBOR.

?N THE 19th of March, 1864, President Lincoln
and General Grant met for the first time, and
Grant was given his commission as Lieutenant-
General and entrusted with all the armies in the
field. Thoughtful people had seen for a long
time the sore need of a single military head for the
armies. From the first, the Union armies had sel
dom been as well led as the Confederate, and had been
placed at a disadvantage by working disjointedly and
in parts. As soon as the need for a supreme head
was really felt, all eyes were turned toward Ulysses
S. Grant as the man best fitted by his independence
and decision to fill the place. Sherman was now
put in special charge of operations in the West. Halleck was made
chief of staff, and his duties henceforth were few. Meade was con
tinued in command of the Army of the Potomac. General B. F.
Butler, with the Army of the James, was held for active service in the
field. Grant planned a campaign in which he considered the Army of
the Potomac his center; the Army of the James, under General Butler,
his left wing; the Western armies, under Sherman, his right wing, and
the army under Banks, in Louisiana, a force operating in the rear of the
enemy. The plan was for all to move simultaneously, and each com
mander was given au objective point.
The bulk of Lee's army was upon the western edge of the Wilder
ness, a wild, desolate region twelve or fifteen miles square, lying south of
the Rapidan. Here it will be remembered, the battle of Chancellorsville

6 14 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
had been fought in May, 1863. The ground had once been mined for
iron ore, and the woods cut for the furnaces of the smelters. A thick
second growth of underbrush had sprung up which was indescribably
dense, and the whole region presented a melancholy and deserted aspect.
The Army of the Potomac lay north of the Rapidan, opposite the
Wilderness. It was organized in three infantry corps, the second, fifth
and sixth, respectively commanded by Generals Winfield S. Hancock,
G. K. Warren and John Sedgwick, and a cavalry corps commanded by
General Philip H. Sheridan. General Meade was still in command of
the whole. The ninth corps, under Burnside, nearly twenty thousand
strong, was at Annapolis, with its destination unknown. Grant told his
secrets to no one, for the whole war had been injured by treachery at
Washington, from sources which could only be guessed at, but which
kept the Confederates acquainted with every movement of the Union
armies. The Army of Northern Virginia, as that portion of the Con
federate army opposed to Meade was known, consisted of two infantry
corps, commanded by Generals Ewell and Ambrose Hill, with a cavalry
commanded by General Stuart, the whole under Robert E. Lee.
Longstreet was within reach and furnished an offset to Burnside's corps.
Before daylight on the morning of May 4th, the Army of the Potomac
marched in two columns for the lower fords of the Rapidan. Lee was
unable to dispute the passage of the river, and may have been quite
willing to permit the Union army to entangle itself in the Wilderness.
Lee was acquainted with every road and by-path of that perplexing
region, and believed that he could make up for his deficiency in num
bers by bewildering his opponents. Grant wished to hurry the Army of
the Potomac past the Wilderness in one day, but Lee proposed to strike
upon the flanks of Grant's long columns and cut them in two, as they
marched by two winding roads. On the morning of the 5th a body of
cavalry came into collision with Ewell. Meade had no idea that it was
the opening of a serious battle, and thought that a detachment had
been left by Lee merely to mislead. But reinforcements kept coming
up on both sides, and the fight never ceased until 4 o'clock in the after
noon, when both sides drew back to intrench themselves. On the
morning of the 6th, both Lee and Meade were eager to attack, and they
moved almost simultaneously. Throughout the day the fortune of the
fight fluctuated. Hasty intrenchments were made, lost and retaken on
both sides. About 4 o' clock a fire sprung up in the dry forest, and the
wind blew the smoke and flames right in the faces of Hancock's men,
who were intrenched behind a breastwork of pine logs. The Confed-

"FORWARD BY THE LEFT FLANK." 615
erates swarmed over, but in spite of their determination and of the cruel
flames, they were driven back to their own lines. Darkness fell and
closed the battle, although Ewell made an attack after dark upon a
portion of Sedgwick's corps, capturing two brigades which numbered
three thousand men, with hardly any loss to himself. The Union loss
in killed and wounded was fifteen thousand, besides five thousand
prisoners. The Confederate loss was about ten thousand killed and
wounded and a few prisoners. But the advantage was practically on the
side of Grant. The Confederates had withdrawn to their intrenchments,
and from that time to the end of the campaign they seldom showed any
desire to leave them. Lee had conducted the battle in that desolate
jungle with the greatest skill, but he now had a general opposed to him
who could endure misfortune without being panic-stricken ; who knew
how to turn everything to his own advantage, and whose obstinate
determination was invincible. Lee himself exclaimed after the bloody
battle of the Wilderness: ' 'Gentlemen, at last the Army of the Potomac
has a head." On the 7th, Sheridan cleared the road for the southern
movement of the army, and Grant gave orders to move forward by the
left flank to Spottsylvania. To withdraw an army in the presence of a
powerful enemy and send it forward to a new position is one of the
most difficult feats of war. Grant did this several times before the end
of the campaign, and always by withdrawing the corps that held ' his
right flank, and passing it .behind the others while they maintained their
position. Lee became aware of Grant's movement, and also moved
toward Spottsylvania Court House, until there was a race for the posses
sion of that place. A part of the Union troops had held back to guard
an attack upon the rear of the moving column, so that finally all of
Lee's troops stood intrenched at Spottsylvania. Here, on the 8th of
May, the two armies faced each other and waited — the Army of Northern
Virginia desperate, the Army of the Potomac determined. On this same
day Grant sent Sheridan, with his cavalry, to ride around Lee's army,
tear up railroads, destroy bridges and depots and capture trains.
Sheridan had been considered a dull man at West Point, and in a class
of fifty-two had ranked thirty-four. He was very young at the time,
and lacked the confidence of the officials at Washington, but Grant
believed in him thoroughly, and Grant's instinct in selecting his lieuten
ants was always to be trusted. On receiving Grant's orders, he dashed
off with his well mounted men, and succeeded in destroying ten miles
of railroad, several trains of cars, cutting all the telegraph wire and
recapturing four hundred prisoners who had been taken in the battle of

6l6 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
the Wilderness, and were on their way to Richmond. The Confederate
cavalry, under General Stuart, set out to intercept him, and succeeded
in getting between him and Richmond. Sheridan's troops met them
seven miles north of the city, at Yellow Tavern, and after a hard fight
defeated them. General Stuart was mortally wounded in this engage
ment, and by his death the Confederacy lost its best cavalry leader.
Sheridan dashed through the outer defenses of Richmond and took some
prisoners, then finding the remainder of the defenses too strong for him,
he cross the Chickahominy and rejoined the army on the 25th.
As the Union army came into position before the intrenchment of
Spottsylvania, Hancock's corps held the western end of the line,
Warren's stood next, then Sedgwick's, and then Burnside's. On the
8th of the month General Sedgwick had been killed by an unerring
sharpshooter who appeared to be posted in a tree, and in the course of
the day killed at least twenty men who attempted to place the batteries.
General Horatio G .Wright succeeded Sedgwick in command of the sixth
corps. On the evening of the 9th a division of Hancock's had a short
engagement and suffered considerable loss without accomplishing any
thing. The next two days were spent in maneuvering and fighting
without decisive results. On the nth of January, Grant sent a dispatch
to the War Department, saying: "We have now ended the sixth day of
very hard fighting. The result of this day is much in our favor. Our
losses have been heavy, as well as those of the enemy. I propose to
fight it out on this line if it takes all summer." The Confederate loss
had been, in fact, far less than the Union, for the Confederates were
fighting behind intrenchments. These intrenchments were very strong,
and search as he might, Grant could find no weak point.
In the grey, foggy morning of May 12th, Hancock's corps dashed
upon Lee's center, which was a salient angle thrust forward from the
main line. Hancock succeeded in sweeping back the- Confederate
pickets by mere force of the charge. He passed the abatis and carried
the breastworks, making prisoners of three thousand of Ewell's men.
Little was gained, however, by the carrying of this salient, which was
an outwork of no great importance. Ewell, strongly supported, stood
beyond a second fortification, and Hancock was unable to move him.
The battle of this day is not easy to describe. The men charged over
and over again ; the losses were heavy on both sides ; little was gained,
and no action of great peculiarity marked the day. During the next
week Grant received reinforcements and resumed his flanking move
ments. Lee tried an attack, but was repelled. On the morning of the

"FORWARD BY THE LEFT FLANK !" 617
2 2d, that general looked in vain for the army of the Potomac. It had
disappeared. Lee could easily guess its destination. He broke up
his camps and threw himself across its line of advance toward
Richmond. When Grant reached the North Anna, he found Lee
awaiting him upon the other side, and disposed to seriously oppose
his crossing the river. The corps of Hancock and Warren were
sent across the river at points four miles apart, and Lee wedged his
force between two columns. Grant saw that one of these might be
shattered, and drew them both back, resuming his old flanking move
ments on the 26th. Lee was quite heavily reinforced while on the
North Anna, and at the close of May was back at the Chickahominy,
where a battle had been fought two years before. Lee was there before
Grant and behind strong fortifipations. On the 3d of June, in the
drizzling rain of the early morning, the second battle of Cold Harbor
began. General Barlow's division stormed and carried the first line of
Confederate intrenchments. From a second line a shower of lead was
poured upon them, and when they fell back they left half their number
behind them. Two more attempts were made, both equally unavailing,
except that a considerable number of prisoners were taken. The entire
loss of the Union army at Cold Harbor, in the first twelve days of June,
was ten thousand and fifty-eight, and among these were many valuable
officers. There had been an almost constant skirmishing. From the
dusk of the morning till the dusk of the evening the continual crack of
the rifle was heard. The Confederate position was very strong. The
line was from three to six miles from the outer defences of Richmond,
the right resting on the Chickahominy, and the left protected by the
woods and swamps about the headwaters of several small streams.
The only chance for attack was in front. On the 3d of June, at half
past 4 o'clock in the morning, the second, sixth and eighteenth corps
moved forward rapidly together, to try what could be done by an attack
on the front. Barlow's division of Hancock's corps struck a salient,
and fought hand-to-hand till they captured it, taking nearly three
hundred prisoners, and three guns, which they promptly turned upon
the enemy. But beyond the first line no division, however determined,
could go, and trenches were rapidly dug, behind which the men could
protect themselves. Thus closed the twelve days' fighting.
It was evident that nothing could by done by an attack on Lee's
front, and Grant decided to put his army into a new position. He sent
part of his cavalry to the James, above Richmond, for the purpose of
destroying portions of Lee's line of supplies from the Shenandoah valley,
36

6l8 ' THE STORY OF AMERICA.
and then prepared intrenchments from his position at Cold Harbor to
the point where he expected to cross the Chickahominy. Grant was
then in readiness to march his army from before the face of the enemy
for fifty miles, to cross two rivers and bring it into a new position.
The bridges oh the Chickahominy had been destroyed, but each column
carried a pontoon train. The long lines of infantry, artillery and trains
crossed over the river at many different points, and an army of more
than one million was placed in a position threatening the Confederate
capital, and the Confederates saw that the end was near and certain.
Through the rest of the war they fought with a passion which showed
their desperation. FOR FURTHER READING:
History— Down's "Four Years a Scout and Spy."
Edwards' "Noted Guerrillas."
Eggleston's "A Rebel's Recollections.'*
Grant's "History of the Rebellion."
Lemour's "Morgan and His Captors."
Fiction— "The American Mail-bag."
E. Eggleston's "Roxy."
Poetry— J. G. Whittier's "In War Time."

CHAPTER XCVII.

ip StmfeWab §vnhm.

THE CONFEDERATE PRIVATEERS — FIGHT BETWEEN THE " KEAR-
SARGE" AND "ALABAMA" — THE INTERNATIONAL
COURT OF ARBITRATION — SHERMAN AND THE
(P\ WESTERN CAMPAIGN.

N 1856, a treaty was signed at Paris by the great
powers of Europe, by which they .agreed to give
up the right of privateering. The United States
offered to sign this on condition that a clause be
inserted declaring that private property on the
high seas, if not contraband of war, should be
exempt from seizure by the public armed vessels of an
enemy, as well as the private ones. This amendment was
declined by the European powers, and the United States
therefore did not become a party to the treaty. When
the War of Secession began, the Confederate authorities
stated their intention of arming private vessels to prey
upon American commerce, and the United States Gov
ernment then offered to accept the treaty without
amendment. England and France, however, refused to permit our
Government to join in the treaty then, if its provisions against priva
teering were to be understood as applying to vessels sent out under
Confederate authority. The Confederacy was therefore unhindered in
its privateering enterprises, and not only kept a score of cruisers roam
ing about the seas to prey upon United States commerce, but had the
satisfaction of knowing that more would be built for her at any time
she wished, in the best ship-yards of England. Among her cruisers
were the Shenandoah, which made thirty-eight captures, the Florida,
which made twenty-six, the Tallahassee, which made twenty-seven, the
Tacony, which made fifteen, and the Georgia, which made ten. Still
more famous than these were the Sumpter and Alabama. The Alabama

620 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
had been built for the Confederate Government in 1862, at Birkenhead,
opposite Liverpool. She was an excellent sailor, carried both canvas and
steam, was two hundred and twenty feet long, and, though of -wood, a
very formidable vessel. The British Government was notified by the
American Minister at London that such a ship was being built in an
English yard, in violation of the neutrality laws, and demanded that
she be prevented from leaving the yard. But the English Government
was not over-anxious to prevent her escape, and moved so slowly that
the cruiser escaped to sea. Her crew were mostly Englishmen, but she
was commanded by Raphael Semmes, who had served in the United States
Navy. She roamed about the Atlantic and Indian Oceans and the
Gulf of Mexico for nearly two years, and captured sixty-nine American
merchantmen, most of which were burned at sea, while their crews
were put on shore at some convenient port or sent away on passing
vessels. The Alabama was always kindly received in foreign ports, for
she was helping to ruin American commerce. None of the war vessels
which had been sent after her had been able to capture her, because of
the rule that when two hostile vessels are in a neutral port, the first
that leaves must have been gone twenty-four hours before the other is
permitted to follow.. But in June, 1864, the United States man-of-war
Kearsarge, commanded by John A. Winslow, found the Alabama in
the harbor of Cherbourg, France. Winslow did not go into port at all,
and thus escaped the twenty-four-hour rule. The Alabama had no
desire to escape the Kearsarge, and her commander sent out a note
asking Winslow not to go away. The request was quite unnecessary.
The Kearsarge waited patiently, till on Sunday morning, June 19th,
the Alabama, watched and applauded by thousands of Englishmen and
Frenchmen, sailed out to crush the Kearsarge. The vessels were a very
fair match in point of size and armament. When they were seven or
eight miles from the coast, the Alabama opened fire, and the two vessels
steamed around on opposite sides of a circle half a mile in diameter,
firing their starboard guns. The gun practice on the Alabama was
very bad; that on the Kearsarge -was excellent. She threw balls in at the
port-holes of her enemy, and swept away whole crews of gunners, She
felled the mizzen mast with a shot, and pierced the hull below the water
line, letting floods of water into the hold. Before an hour had passed
the Alabama struck her colors, and her officers threw their swords into
the sea in token of surrender. While the Kearsarge was lowering
boats to take off the crew, the Alabama, with a shudder and a plunge,
went to the bottom of the English Channel. The Kearsarge succeeded

THE CONFEDERATE CRUISERS. 621
in rescuing some of the men, and an English yacht saved Semmes and
about forty of his crew, but a considerable number were drowned.
Captain Semmes had been defeated once before by the Kearsarge, when
he commanded the Sumpter. That vessel, after a career in which she
succeeded in capturing many American vessels, was blockaded by the
United States steamers Kearsarge and Tuscarora, in the harbor of
Gibraltar, in February of 1862, and was there abandoned by her captain
and crew.
In 1872, the International Court of Arbitration, sitting in Geneva,
Switzerland, decided that the British Government, for neglecting to
prevent the escape of Confederate cruisers from its ports, must pay the
United States Government fifteen million five hundred thousand dollars.
This sum fell far short of the damage which had been done, but the
United States cared less for the money than for the establishment of the
principle. While the army of the Potomac was putting itself in position for a
death-grapple with the army of North Virginia, important movements
were going on at the West. The purpose of these was to secure the
Mississippi river absolutely, and to set free the large garrisons required
to hold the important places on its banks. General Sherman set out
from Vicksburg on the 3d of February, 1864, with a force of over
twenty thousand men. His destination was Meridian, over one hundred
miles east of Vicksburg, where two important railroads cross each other.
The Union troops entered the town on the 14th, and destroyed the
Confederate arsenal and store-houses, as well as the machine shops, the
stations and railways. The rails were heated and then bent and, twisted,
and were popularly known as "Jeff Davis' neckties," and "Sherman's
hair-pins." The roads were thoroughly destroyed, every mill and
factory ruined, and only the dwelling-houses left untouched. A
detachment of cavalry, which Sheridan had sent out to destroy Forrest's
Confederate cavalry, having failed in its purpose, Sherman thought best
to return to Vicksburg. He was followed to that city by thousands of
negroes, who could be turned back neither by persuasion nor threats,
and who saw in Sherman a deliverer whom it was their duty and pleasure
to follow. On the west side of the Mississippi, General Banks attempted
to perform a service somewhat similar to that of Sherman's, for the
purpose of widening the gap in the Confederacy. He set out with
about fifteen thousand men, in March, for Shreveport, at the head of
steam navigation on the Red river. Here he was to be joined by ten
thousand men, under General A. J. Smith, who had been detached

622

THE STORY OF AMERICA.

from Sherman's army for the occasion, and Commodore David Porter,
with a fleet of gunboats and transports. Smith and Porter arrived
promptly at the rendezvous, captured Fort De Russey, below Alexan
dria, and after Banks' arrival, the army moved along the river roads
within sight of the gunboats. This march was continued for many
days, the monotony being broken by an occasional skirmish with small
bodies of Confederate troops, and slight demonstrations from the gun-

PICKING COTTON.

boats. The army was strung out for twenty miles on a single road, and
walked along easily, not unpleased with the comparative quiet. They
were punished for this carelessness by coming suddenly upon a strong
Confederate force, commanded by General Richard Taylor, near the
Sabine Cross-roads. Neither commander intended that there should be a
battle, but the men of both sides became much excited, and it was
necessary on both sides to keep bringing forward men, until at last Banks'
line suddenly gave way. The cavalry and teamsters rushed in confusion

THE CONFEDERATE CRUISERS. 623
and fear before the victorious Confederates. Three miles in the rear,
the nineteenth corps stood the tide of the rout, and successfully repelled
the Confederates. Banks fell back to Pleasant Hill, where, on the
following day, he had nearly his whole force in line. The Confederates
made an assault late in the afternoon, and were repelled. Banks
followed this up by an attack on his own part, and recaptured several
of the guns he had lost the day before. Banks had been ordered to
return Smith's borrowed troops, and, therefore, could not follow up his
victory, but fell back to the river Ecore. Here it was found that the
river had so fallen as to make it impossible for the fleet to pass down
the rapids, and it was feared that the boats would be taken and
destroyed. They were saved by the ingenuity of Lieutenant-Colonel
Joseph Bailey, who, though scoffed at by the army engineers, built a
dam across the river in eight days, in which he left a narrow passage,
though which the water rushed like a mill-race. Within a few days the
entire fleet passed through this swirling stream of water and steamed
down the Mississippi.
Fifteen thousand troops, under General Steele, had marched from
Little Rock toward Shreveport, to reinforce Banks, but were defeated
by the same force of Confederates who had engaged in the battles of
Sabine Cross-roads and Pleasant Hill.
FOR FURTHER READING:
History— Cannon's "Casual Papers upon the Alabama."
Semme's "Cruise of the Alabama."
Ammen's "The Atlantic Coast."
Mahan's "The Gulf and Inland Waters."
Soley's "The Blockade and the Cruisers."
Fiction— W. H. Thome's "Running the Blockade."
Poetry— T. B. Read's "Kearsarge and the Alabama."

CHAPTER XCVIII.

u

tv

tatf

ii

SHERMAN'S MARCH TO ATLANTA — THE BOMBARDMENT OF MOBILE —
DESTRUCTION OF THE "ALBEMARLE."

HESE two expeditions only heralded the great
campaign which Sherman was to undertake with
his army, and which was to be simultaneous with
that carried on by Grant in Virginia. Its import
ance was almost as great, its difficulties as numer-
The object was to move forward to Chattanooga,
reach and capture Atlanta, which was important as a
railroad center and for its manufacture of military sup
plies, and thus sweep a great swath through the Confed
eracy. General Joseph E. Johnston, one of the best
generals in the Confederate service, had been left to
guard this section of country, and Sherman realized that
his skillful opposition could only be overcome with
great difficulty. Chattanooga is a hundred miles from
Atlanta, through a country of many hills and streams,
well adapted for an army acting on the defensive. Johnston was the
man to make the most of this. He had an army numbering fifty-five
thousand, while Sherman had one hundred thousand. But the practical
difference was not great, for Sherman was not only to act on the offen
sive, but to leave heavy detachments behind him from day to day to
guard his communications, for all of his supplies were drawn from
Nashville, over one single-track railroad, which was liable to be broken
at any time. Thus Sherman was obliged to stretch out his army like a
great elastic string, while Johnston could keep his well massed, and
would also have the advantage of fighting on the defensive. Sherrnan's
men were well supplied, but were permitted to take nothing which
should hamper them in their daring march. General Thomas was the
only man in the army who was allowed a tent. Sherman himself had

"after you, pilot!" 625
neither tent nor wagon train. Every man, from Sherman down, car
ried five days' provisions on his back.
On May 5th, the army left Chattanooga and followed the line of
the railroad south toward Atlanta. Sherman sent McPherson south
ward to march through a gap in the mountains, strike Resaca and cut
the railroad over which Johnston drew all his supplies. McPherson
reached Resaca, but found such a force there that instead of attacking
boldly, he fell back to the gap and waited for the rest of the army to
join him. By this time Johnston had learned what was going on, and
had concentrated his forces in a strong position at Resaca, where Sher
man faced him on May 14th. The day was given up to skirmishing,
for neither general was willing to fight at a disadvantage. Sherman
threw two pontoon bridges across the river that he might send a detach
ment to break the railroad, and McPherson gained a position where his
guns could destroy the railroad bridge in the Confederate rear. Johns
ton thought it best to hasten away from a place in which he was
becoming so cramped, and on the 15th crossed the river and moved
southward, burning the bridges behind him. By pontoons and fords,
Sherman's forces hurried after. When Sherman was a young lieuten
ant he had ridden through the country from Charleston, South Carolina,
to Northwestern Georgia, and he still remembered how the land lay
and the rivers ran. He knew that Allatoona Pass, through which the
railroad south of Kingston runs, was very strong, and could be easily
held by Johnston. He therefore directed his columns in such a way as
to threaten Marietta and Atlanta, so as to cause Johnston to withdraw
from Allatoona and leave the railroad, which, as Sherman's army
advanced into the country, became more and more necessary to it.
Johnston moved westward to meet this movement, and the forces met at
the cross-roads by New Hope Church. For six days there was constant
skirmishing around this place, and in the end, though little had been
gained, the advantage was with Sherman. He succeeded in securing
all the wagon roads from Allatoona, and in sending out a strong force
to occupy the pass and repair the railroad. Johnston took up a new
position on the slopes of the Kennesaw, Pine and Lost mountains.
From here, he could see everything that was done by Sherman's army.
That army did not try to get out of sight, but moved closer and closer,
by intrenchments. For several days heavy rains kept Sherman from
acting, but as soon as fair weather came, steady skirmishing was kept
up between the two lines, and the loss of men on both sides was
heavy.

626 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
On June 14th, the Confederate army suffered the loss of General
Leonidas Polk, who stood by a battery on the crest of Pine Mountain,
with a group of officers examining, the field with their glasses.
General Polk had been for twenty years the Protestant Episcopal Bishop
of Louisiana, and in his death the Confederacy lost one of its most influ
ential men. On June 15th, Sherman found that Johnston had with
drawn from Pine Mountain, and promptly occupied the ground himself,
taking a large number of prisoners. On the following day the enemy
had abandoned Lost Mountain and retreated to works prepared for them
by gangs of slaves, on the Kennesaw, where they were able to cover
Marietta and the roads to Atlanta. On the 27th, Sherman decided to
attack the enemy in his intrenchments, and launched heavy columns
against them, while a steady fire was kept up all along the line. This
experiment cost Sherman over twenty-five hundred men, and gained
nothing, for though his men charged valiantly, only a few reached the
enemy's works, and these were killed or captured. Sherman therefore
decided on an action which required the utmost boldness, and which
was against the rules of warfare, to- wit: He left his communications,
took ten days' provisions in wagons, and moved his whole army south
ward to seize the road below Marietta. He did this by moving by the
right flank, in the same cautious manner that Grant had done in his
difficult march from the Wilderness to the James river. Johnston fell
back to the Chattahoochee, but instead of crossing the stream, put him
self behind a magnificent piece of field fortification which a thousand
slaves had been working on for a month. But Sherman held the river
above and below and was able to cross when he chose, and Johnston,
realizing Sherman's advantages, crossed in the night with his entire
army, and burned the railroad and other bridges behind him. On the
17th of July, Sherman cautiously followed, moving his army by a grand
right wheel, toward the city of Atlanta. At this point, Johnston, who
had so cautiously and skillfully evaded his opponent, was removed, and
the command given to General John B. Hood, a man capable of reckless
fighting, but lacking Johnston's skill and wisdom. Sherman knew
that sudden sallies were to be expected now, and on July 20th, as the
Union troops were entering Atlanta, Hood's men left the intrenchments
prepared for them along the line of Peach Tree creek, and attacked.
At the end of two hours the enemy was driven back to his intrench
ments, leaving hundreds of dead on the field. A day or two later the
Confederates fell back to the immediate defenses of the city.
On the 2 2d, Hood moved out with a part of his army, and attacked

"after you, pilot!" 627
a detachment of Sherman's men, who had been left without proper
protection upon a hill. The forest hid him till his men burst upon the
camp, and the troops were taken entirely by surprise. But under the
direction of General Logan and others, the surprised forces rallied and
repulsed seven fierce charges. A counter-charge finally drove back the
Confederates. The Union loss in the battle of Atlanta was three
thousand five hundred and twenty-one men killed, wounded and
missing, and ten guns. The Confederate loss was larger. General
McPherson was killed in the woods, where he had ridden alone at the
first sound of battle. He was a young man, and a brilliant one, popular
with the soldiers, and of no little assistance to Sherman. General
Howard was promoted to McPherson' s place, in command of the Army
of the Tennessee, and General Hooker resigned, because he thought
that the position should have been given him. General Henry W.
Slocum was given Hooker's command of the twentieth corps. On the
28th, when Sherman moved again by the right, Hood made a heavy
attack, which Logan repelled with a loss to himself of five hundred and
seventy-two men. Sherman constantly sent out cavalry expeditions to
break the railroads south of Atlanta, but as fast as he broke, the Con
federates repaired them. Kilpatrick's cavalry rode entirely around
Atlanta, defeated a combined cavalry and infantry force, and thought
he had done damage enough to the railroad to keep supplies from
entering the city for ten days, but before twenty-four hours the enter
prising Confederates had trains running into the city again. Finding
that these raids accomplished but little, Sherman again moved by the
right, and swung his army into position south of Atlanta, and then
advanced toward the city. The greater part of Hood's force escaped
eastward on the night of September 1st, and, a few days later, Sherman
made his headquarters in the city and took permanent possession.
Grant and Sherman had planned to have the city of Mobile taken
by forces moving east from New Orleans and Port Hudson. The
principal defences of Mobile Bay were Fort Morgan, on Mobile Point,
and Fort Gaines, three miles northwest of it. The passage between
these two forts was obstructed by many piles and a line of torpedoes.
The eastern end of this line was marked by a red buoy, and from that
point to Fort Morgan the channel was open to allow blockade runners
to pass. The plan was to have Farragut' s fleet pass these forts, subdue
the Confederate fleet inside, and take possession of the bay. A land
force to co-operate with him was furnished, under General Gordon
Granger. Farragut' s fleet consisted of four iron-clad monitors and

628

THE STORY OF AMERICA.

seven wooden sloops of war. Each sloop had a gunboat lashed to her
side, to help her out in case she was disabled. On the 4th of August
all the ships were under way, the Brooklyn going first and carrying an
apparatus for picking up torpedoes. The forts and the Confederate
fleet opened fire upon them half an hour before they could bring their
guns to answer. Farragut' s flag-ship, the Hartford, suffered especially.
She received a one-hundred-and-twenty-pound ball in her mainmast, and

LIEUTENANT CUSHING'S ATTACK ON THE "ALBEMARLE.'
had great splinters sent flying across her deck, which killed and wounded
many of her crew. But the Hartford and the other vessels weathered
the storm, and as they came abreast of the fort, poured in terrific broad
sides of shot and shells, and soon quieted the Confederate batteries. It
was known that the red buoy marked the line of torpedoes, and the
captains had been particularly warned not to pass east of it. But
Captain Craven, of the monitor Tecumseh, disregarded this order in his

"after you, pilot!" 629
impatience to attack the Confederate ram Tennessee, and his vessel
struck a torpedo which exploded. As the vessel was rapidly sinking,
Captain Craven and his pilot met at the foot of a ladder which afforded
the only escape. The pilot moved aside for his superior officer to pass.
Craven knew that it was his fault that the accident had occurred, and
said, "After you, pilot;" "but," said the pilot, "there was nothing aftei
me, for the moment that I reached the deck, the vessel seemed to drop
from under me and went to the bottom. ' '
Farragut was lashed in the rigging of the Hartford, and ordering
steam on his vessel, led the whole line past the dangerous torpedoes.
He succeeded in sending the Tennessee, the Confederate iron-clad, off
for a time, and sent his gunboats in pursuit of the enemy's gunboats.
These succeeded in destroying or capturing all of the Confederate
vessels except one. The iron ram Tennessee then steamed boldly into
the midst of Farragut' s vessels, trying to ruin them with her powerful
ram' and firing in every direction. She was so heavy and cumbersome
that the Union vessels were able to avoid her by skillful management,
and the monitors poured solid shot against her armor. When at length
they shot away her smoke-stack, life on her became unendurable, and
she surrendered. It was a glorious victory, but Farragut, coming down
from the shrouds, thought less of the triumph than of the twenty-four
dead sailors — long his companions — who were laid out on the deck
of the Hartford, and over whom the brave old sailor wept some bitter
tears. In October the Confederate iron-clad Albemarle was destroyed on
the Roanoke river. Lieutenant William B. Cushing, of the navy,
ventured with a volunteer crew, in a small steam launch, to put a
torpedo under her overhang. This exploded and sent her to the
bottom, destroying the launch also. The crew of the launch, with the
exception of Cushing and one sailor, were lost.
FOR FURTHER READING:
History — Andrew's "Campaign of Mobile."
Logan's "The Great Conspiracy."
Poetry— L. C Redden's "Idyls of Battle."
H. H. Brownell's "Farragut's Bay Fight.
Fiction— G. W- Nichol's "The Sanctuary."

CHAPTER XCIX.

Ifrflm jtWa k tip jB*&
THE MARCH FROM ATLANTA TO THE SEA — THE ENTRANCE TO
SAVANNAH — THE SIEGE OF RICHMOND— ^BURNSIDE'S
BLUNDER — THE BURNING OF
CHAMBERSBURG.
9
HERMAN converted Atlanta into a purely
military post, and ordered all the inhabitants
to leave the town. Hood lingered about the
neighborhood till the first of September, and
then set out to Tennessee with the purpose of
destroying the railroads, by which the national
army was supplied. Sherman guessed his designs,
hurried a detachment to check him, and some fierce
fighting took place about Allatoona. Hood continued
his retreat, and early in December reached Nashville.
Thomas was awaiting him at this place, and, after two
days of sharp conflict, the Confederates were utterly
routed. Sherman now set out on his march from Atlanta to
the sea, a distance of two hundred and twenty-five miles, in a straight
line. His object was to destroy the railroads in Georgia, which would
deal a more fatal blow to the Confederacy than even the seizure of the
Mississippi had done. He made the most thorough preparations. His
army was weeded out; all the sick and disabled sent north; every
luxury dispensed with, and every necessity provided for. The presi
dential election was at hand, and before the army departed, commis
sioners came and took the votes of the soldiers. Every detachment
of the army was given the most minute instructions, and on the twelfth
of November, as the army whirled out of Atlanta, the road was
destroyed behind them, the depot, machine-shops and locomotive house
torn down, and fire set to the ruins. Every man in the army was a

FROM ATLANTA TO THE SEA. 63 1
veteran. There was the most perfect confidence in Sherman. Each
man was, to an extent, in his confidence; knew what he was to do,
why he was to do it, and was determined to perform his part. The
army was to live, for the most part, upon the country. The soldiers
were forbidden to enter dwelling-houses, but foraging parties were to
daily gather sufficient vegetables and drive in any stock which was in
sight of the encampment. At least ten days' provisions were to be kept
in the wagons. Whenever the army was unmolested no houses or
mills were to be destroyed, but if guerillas were to appear, or if the
line was especially annoyed, the army commanders were permitted to
order a retaliation.
Frantic appeals were put forth to the people of Georgia, by the
Governor of the State, to stay the march of this army. The Secretary
of War sent word that the enemy could now be destroyed, if the people
would only arise and protect their native soil. But there were no
people, or at least no men, to arise. Almost every able-bodied man in
the State was in the war. Thus Sherman's great army swept on
through the heart of the Confederacy, meeting with no opposition worth
speaking of until the heads of the columns were within sixteen miles of
Savannah. Here the roads leading to the city were found to bet
obstructed by felled timber, with earthworks and artillery; but
Sherman's forces, who had torn up more railroads, cleared more roadsp
and built more bridges than any other portion of the national army,
were not easily stayed by a few felled trees and some earthworks. When
torpedoes and shells were found buried in the ground, the Confederate
prisoners were made to remove them. Fort McAllister, fifteen miles
below Savannah, was the only real obstacle in the way. This hindered
communication with the fleet, and it was therefore necessary to carry it.
This Sherman did on the thirteenth. He then demanded the surrender
of the city. This was refused by General Hardee, who was in com
mand at that point. Sherman prepared for a regular siege, but on the
twenty-first of December, 1864, Hardee left the city, marching his
force toward Charleston, and Sherman entered it the following day.
Sherman wrote to the President: "I beg to present you, as a Christmas
gift, the city of Savannah, with one hundred and fifty heavy guns,
plenty of ammunition, and about twenty-five thousand bales of cotton. "
The President received this message on Christmas eve, and it was the
first word which he had heard from that vast army for over a month.
Sherman's entire loss in the march had been seven hundred and sixty-
four men. He had struck directly at the source of the Confederate

632 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
supplies, and had accomplished a great purpose with but little destruc
tion of life.
Meanwhile, Mr. Lincoln was rechosen President, in spite of the
personal abuse that was heaped upon him, and the declaration of a
large portion of the North that the war was a failure. That it was not
so, was owing largely to the combined action of Sherman and Grant.
In Virginia, events had so shaped themselves that the campaign took
the form of a siege of Richmond. Lee was confident in his belief that
his seventy thousand men could hold this well-fortified city against
any force that could be brought against it, so long as his army was fed.
To reach Richmond, it was necessary for Grant to carry Petersburg,
which was the focus to which several roads converged. Five railroads
entered this point, besides several plank roads and turnpikes. These
railroads formed the main means of supply for the Confederate force, aftei
those of the valley of the Shenandoah had been thoroughly interrupted
— and Grant saw to it that they were interrupted. Petersburg was not
strongly fortified, and on the 14th of June a feeble movement was made
by General Smith against the place, which was not successful. On the
1 6th Grant himself superintended a forcible attack. The Confederates
made a stout defense, but late in the day rushed back in full flight. They
were stayed, however, by a single fresh brigade, and night put an end to
the fighting. In the darkness, Beauregard drew off his disordered
troops to an unfortified position, and worked them all night throwing
up intrenchments. Lee, now realizing the importance of Petersburg,
hurried large reinforcements down from Richmond. On the 17th the
contest for the Confederate lines was renewed, and Hancock and Burn
side carried it at a cost of four thousand men. On the following day
the Confederates moved back to their inner lines, which were too strong
to be attacked, and Grant contented himself with enveloping Peters
burg with his army. The siege was regularly opened on the 19th of
June. Grant's first attempt against the railroad was on the 21st of
June, against the Weldon road, which was the most important one.
The two detachments which were sent out for this purpose were nearly
at right angles with each other, but were not in connection, and did not
sufficiently guard their flanks. A heavy Confederate force, under Gen
eral A. P. Hill, coming out to meet the movement, drove straight into
the gap between the forces, and succeeded in capturing seventeen
hundred men and four guns. The fighting was not severe, but the
movement against the railroads was checked. Hill withdrew to his
intrenchments. The Union lines were re-established on this flank,

FROM ATLANTA TO THE SEA. 633
and nothing of importance occurred here till the middle of August.
But near the center of the line in front of Burnside's corps there was
great interest felt in a tunnel which was being dug by a regiment of
Pennsylvania miners. These were directed under the nearest point of
the Confederate works, and the digging was begun in a ravine, to be out
of sight of the enemy, the earth being carried in cracker-boxes and
hidden under the brushwood. This mine, planned by Burnside, was five
hundred and twenty feet long, with lateral branches at the head forty
feet in each direction, and charged with eight thousand pounds of gun
powder. It was exploded on the afternoon of July 30th. A great mass
of earth, two hundred feet long, sixty feet wide and thirty feet deep,
shot up into the air and fell, leaving a crater into which fully fifty thou
sand Union troops poured. These were unable to climb its sides, and
the Confederates, after the first shock of horror had passed, poured a
plunging fire over the brink. Not till eight terrible hours had passed
were the troops ordered to leave the crater, which they did by one nar
row passage. The Union lost four thousand men in this engagement.
The Confederates not more than one thousand. Burnside, distressed past
expression at the failure of the movement, begged to be relieved from
his command, and his corps was given to Parke.
Lee had become so confident of his position at Richmond that he
sent a considerable force to the aid of Early, who, for some time had
been operating in the valley of the Shenandoah. The defenses of
Washington had been nearly stripped of troops to reinforce the Army
of the Potomac, and Early hoped to take the National Capital by a
sudden dash. On the ioth of July he came writhin six miles of Wash
ington without meeting much show of resistance. There was great
alarm in the capital. The citizens, Government clerks and Govern
ment officials armed themselves to defend the city. Fortunately, Early
halted for two days, and in the meantime Grant sent the sixth corps
from before Petersburg, and the ninteenth, by water, from Hampton
Roads. These reached Washington just in time to save it, and on the 1 2th
Early- retreated across the Potomac with a great quantity of booty.
Little attempt was made to follow him, and within two weeks he made
a raid into Pennsylvania. His cavalry, three hundred strong, entered
Chambersburg on the 30th, and stated that unless two hundred thou
sand dollars in gold was immediately paid, the town should surely
be burned. As this amount of money could not be produced by the
citizens, the village was given to the flames. All these disasters Grant
clearly saw were owing to the want of an efficient commander for that
37

634 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
department, and he hastened to Harper's Ferry, accepted Hunter's
resignation, and appointed Sheridan to the command of all the troops
in West Virginia and about Washington.
FOR FURTHER READING.
History — Boynton's "Sherman's Historical Raid."
Cox's "Marching to the Sea."
Cannon's "Grant's Richmond Campaign."
Taylor's "Four Years with General Lee."
Poetry — C. G. Halpin's "Song of Sherman's Army."
J. G. Whittier's "Howard at Atlanta."

CHAPTER C.

SHERIDAN AND THE SHENANDOAH CAMPAIGN — SHERMAN'S MARCH
NORTHWARD FROM SAVANNAH — THE BURN
ING OF COLUMBIA.

Sheridan was placed in command of the
army of the Shenandoah he was but thirty-three
years old, and Secretary Stanton objected to him
on the grounds that he was too young for so im
portant a command. He had not been a brilliant
scholar at West Point, but in the army his record
was good. He had, in short, a genius for fight
ing. Under his direction the cavalry of the Union ser
vice became unconquerable. Grant, whose instinct was
sure in the selection of his assistants, persisted in giving
the command to him. His instructions were to push up
the Shenandoah valley, and leave nothing to invite the
enemy to return. Such stock and provisions as could
not be used were to be destroyed. The Shenandoah
valley ran like a fertile road between the mountain walls,
and down this the Confederate force could be launched at almost any
time upon Washington. So fruitful was this valley that it furnished
the chief source of supplies- for the Confederate army, and was a strong
hold almost impossible to carry from the sides. To enter it from the
end and follow a Confederate army through it was a hazardous matter,
but Sheridan undertook it with enthusiasm. Early's main force was on
the south bank of the Potomac, above Harper's Ferry, and upon
Sheridan's approach he hastened to recall his cavalry, who were gather
ing wheat upon the battle field of Antietam. Sheridan hastened to
move his army toward Winchester to threaten Early's communications
and draw him into battle. Early altered his position to cover Win
chester, and waited for reinforcements from Lee's army. Grant warned .¦ :1V

636 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
Sheridan that the force would be too strong for him to attack, and he
therefore waited till the Confederates should take the offensive, which
they did on August 21, 1864.
The engagement was not of much importance. For three or four
weeks following, Early kept his whole force at the lower end of the
valley, and amused himself by making raids into Pennsylvania, West
Virginia and Maryland. The cavalry indulged in many small engage
ments, with varying results. Grant and Sheridan agreed thoroughly
as to the method of conducting the campaign, and they paid no atten
tion to the criticisms which they received from every quarter. They
felt sure that the time would come when Lee would recall part of the
forces he had sent into the valley, and that Sheridan could then deal a
severe blow to Early. /
All happened as they expected. On September 19th, Lee re
called the command which had reinforced Early in August, and at the
same time a large part of Early's remaining troops were sent to Martins-
burg, twenty miles away. Sheridan, who had been watching Early as
a-cat does a mouse, knew that the moment had come to spring. Early
was east of Winchester; Sheridan along the line of Opequan creek,
about five miles east of the city. Early in the morning Sheridan set
his troops in motion. The men crossed the stream, passed through a
ravine, and by mid-day were in line of battle. In the meantime Early
had sent to recall his men from Martinsburg, and his whole force was
uniting in front of Winchester.
The battle began along the whole line at once, and never ceased till
nightfall. As the afternoon drew near its close Sheridan had the
advantage, and he kept his men to their work with a tenacity which
discouraged and bewildered the Confederates till they fled through the
streets of Winchester in hopeless dismay and escaped up the valley.
The Union loss was five thousand; the Confederate loss one thousand
less, with two generals and nine battle flags.
Sheridan wrote to Grant that he had ' 'sent Early whirling through
Winchester." Early retreated southward and took up a position on
Fisher's Hill, where the valley narrows till it is only four miles in
width. Here his men began the construction of intrenchments. Sher
idan followed promptly and some of his troops gained an eminence
overlooking the Confederate intrenchments, and hastened to cut trees
and prepared batteries at. this point. Sheridan carefully reconnoitred
the position himself, and planned to send the greater part of his cavalry
through the Luray valley to the rear of the Confederates, thus cutting

WHIRLING THROUGH WINCHESTER. 637
off their retreat, and at the same time to attack in front with a portion
of the men, while General Crook, with the eighth corps, should make a
detour and come in on the enemy's flank. Just at dusk Crook and his
men crept silently out of the woods and burst upon Early's left. The
Confederates were astounded. Their own intrenchments were used by
the enemy against them, and at the front Sheridan pressed promptly on
and the enemy fled in dismay. Sheridan's cavalry, however, failed to
get through to the rear, and retreat was therefore left open. In the
battle of Fisher's Hill the Union loss was about four hundred, and the
Confederate about fourteen hundred. Early retreated on through the
valley, and Sheridan relentlessly followed until he could safely go no
farther. .
On October 5th, Sheridan turned about and swept his army like, a
cloud of locusts through the fertileregion, destroying everything except
the dwellings. In his report, Sheridan said: "I have destroyed over
two thousand barns filled with wheat, hay and farming implements;
over seventy mills filled with flour and wheat; have driven in front of
the army over four thousand head of stock, and have killed and issued
to the troops not less than three thousand sheep."
Early was now reinforced, and he, in turn, pursued Sheridan. On
October 7th, the cavalry of both sides indulged in a spirited engage
ment, in which the Union forces were victors, and captured over three
hundred prisoners, eleven guns, and all the wagons of the opposing
force. Sheridan halted north of Strasburg, at Cedar creek, and put his
army in camp there under General Wright, while he obeyed a summons
calling him to Washington to confer about the continuation of the cam
paign. As the valley had been laid desolate, Early could find nothing
for his men and horses to live upon, and he was forced either to leave
the valley or attack immediately. He decided to attack, and on the
night of the 18th, his soldiers crept silently upon the flank held by
Crook's corps, burst upon it with such unexpected fierceness that the
men had not time to leave their tents, and many of them were stabbed
while they were still sleeping. The nineteenth corps was also routed
in confusion, but the sixth stood firm and covered the retreat of the
rest. Sheridan was returning from Washington, and when he reached
Winchester, heard of the battle. He dashed on for twenty miles and
met a stream of fugitives pouring in a headlong rout toward Winchester,
but when he shouted, "Face the other way, boys; we are going back to
our camps!" the men turned and followed the little general on his foam-
covered horse back to the defense. In the afternoon Sheridan himself

638 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
attacked, sending his gallant cavalry around both flanks, and breaking
the whole Confederate line. All the guns lost in the morning were
retaken and twenty-four besides. In the battle of Cedar creek, the
Union loss was five thousand seven hundred and sixty-four, of whom
seventeen hundred were prisoners taken in the morning and hurried
away toward Richmond. The Confederate loss was about thirty-one
hundred. This practically ended the campaign in the valley.
The army of the Potomac, before Petersburg, went into winter
quarters behind its intrenchments, contenting itself with a constant
picket and artillery fire. During the winter the Confederate army
suffered greatly. . They were sometimes without meat, often without
other necessities, and always without luxuries. On the 15th of January,
1865, Fort Fisher, which commands the port at Wilmington, was
captured by a combined naval and military expedition under General
Alfred H. Terry. This had been an important avenue of supply to the
Confederates, and its loss was severely felt. On the 9th of February,
1865, Lee was made Commander-in-chief of all the military forces of
the Confederacy. He first appointed General J. E. Johnston as com
mander of all the troops in Georgia, South Carolina and Florida, and
gave him orders to drive back Sherman. Sherman's great army had
left Savannah on the ist of February, sixty thousand strong. The march
which Sherman now undertook was much more difficult and dangerous
than that from Atlanta to the sea had been. In the former march the
army had moved parallel to the courses of the rivers, but in the march
through the Carolinas all the streams had to be crossed. Further
more, Sherman now had for his opponent General Johnston, whose
ability even Sherman might well stand in fear of. General Hood,
who had been displaced for the reinstatement of Johnston, had met with
a severe blow from Thomas, at Nashville, on the 15th of the previous
December, and popular opinion had demanded his removal. There was
danger, too, that Lee might slip away from his intrenchments, escape
the watchful Grant, and launch his whole force against Sherman. The
fleet, therefore, co-operated with Sherman; watched his progress from
the coast, and finding points where supplies could be reached, and
refuge taken, should it be necessary. Sherman met with some opposi
tion, but reached Columbia in a short time. As this was the capital of
South Carolina, it was expected that the army would meet with serious
opposition, but it was found that the city was only protected by Wade
Hampton's cavalry. True, the bridges had been burned, but these
were soon rebuilt, and on the 17th of February, Sherman's men inarched

WHIRLING THROUGH WINCHESTER. 639
into Columbia as Hampton's left it. When they entered, they found
the air full of burning flakes of cotton, for innumerable bales had been
piled in the streets and set on fire. The city was in flames in many
places, and General Sherman ordered his men to aid in extinguishing
the fire. Sherman has often been accused of burning the place, but he
positively denies all responsibility for it, though he confesses that some
of the Union prisoners, who were released upon his arrival in the city,
may have assisted in spreading the fire after it had begun. The general
gave the citizens five hundred head of cattle, and did what he could to
shelter them. However, he destroyed the arsenal and the foundries in
which the Confederate paper money was printed. Sherman advanced
into North Carolina, hindered slightly by several conflicts which
Johnston forced upon him. The march was continued toward Raleigh.
Thirty-five miles south of that city, on the 16th of March, the left wing
of the army suddenly came upon Hardee's forces, intrenched upon its
path. After some hard fighting the Confederates retreated, each side'
having lost five hundred men. On the 19th of March another sharp
engagement took place at Bentonville, in which the Union loss was one
thousand six hundred and four men, and the Confederates two thousand
three hundred and forty- two. This closed Sherman's operations, and
he rested where he was until terms of peace were made.
FOR FURTHER READING:
History— Whitney's "Who Burnt Columbia?"
Trezevant's "Burning of Columbia."
Newhall's "With Sheridan in Lee's Last Campaign."
Pond's "Shenandoah Valley in 1864."
Humphrey's "Virginia Campaign of '64 and '65."
Fiction— J. E. Cooke's "Hilt to Hilt.'f
Poetry— T. B. Read's "Sheridan's Ride."

CHAPTER CI.

"%\ iajdmn! H^ dtaplmtt!

ttt*

CLOSING OF THE VIRGINIA CAMPAIGN — THE EVACUATION OF RICH
MOND — SURRENDER OF LEE AT APPOMATTOX COURT
HOUSE — ASSASSINATION OF PRESI
DENT LINCOLN.

HE closing campaign in Virginia, and that which
practically ended the war, was begun on the 24th
of March, 1865, when Grant ordered that a grand
movement be made on the 29th against the Con
federate right. Lee hoped to prevent the carry
ing out of this plan, and on the 25th made a
sudden attack at Steedman, near the center of the
Union lines before Petersburg. The attempt was a com
plete failure, and the Confederates lost three thousand
men, at a time when they could poorly afford them. On
the appointed day and hour Grant's movement was begun,
a very important part of it being assigned to Sheridan,
who had rejoined the Army of the Potomac. Lee's army
had been extended to Five Forks, and on the ist of April
Sheridan attacked this point with such vigor that Lee
greatly weakened himself to defend the place. Grant promptly assailed
the works at Petersburg, and carried the exterior lines. The end was
near. Lee and all of his generals realized this fact. Lee telegraphed to
Davis at Richmond, that Petersburg must be immediately abandoned.
The news reached Jefferson Davis as he sat in church. He rose quietly,
and leaving, made hasty preparations for going south. The night that
followed was a terrible one in Richmond. The mob broke loose,
plundered warehouses and dwellings, and committed all sorts of out
rages. General Ewell, who commanded there, set fire to the bridges
and storehouses. There was a high wind, and in a short time a third
of Richmond was in flames. Early Monday morning a small body of

"oh, captain! my captain!" 641
Union troops took possession of Richmond, the Confederate capital.
They were met by the civil authorities, who announced that the city
had been evacuated by the army, and surrendered fully. At 4:30 in
the afternoon, the Union flag floated in the murky air above the court
house at Petersburg. The Confederates had blown up all their works
and were in full retreat. Lee thought that there was still hope for
the Confederacy. He desired to gather his widely scattered forces
together and to make one more effort. In all he still had forty thousand
men. If he could reach Johnston, he thought it might be possible to
escape pursuit, and undertake a different sort of warfare. But he had
marched out with rations for only one day, expecting to be met with
large supplies at Amelia Court House. The directions concerning the
supplies were not explicit, and they went straight on, so that Lee found
no supplies waiting for him when he reached that place, and had to
break up his forces into foraging squads. The Union columns were in
close pursuit, and pn the 6th of April, Sheridan struck Ewell' s corps of
the retreating army at Sailor's creek, and took seven thousand prisoners.
Weary, disheartened and hungry, the rest of the Confederate army
pressed on, fighting passionately whenever they had an opportunity.
On the 7th, Grant wrote to Lee proposing to receive the surrender of his
army. Lee replied that he did not think the case hopeless, but wished
to know what terms could be offered. Grant's nickname in the army
was "Unconditional Surrender," and Lee expected that the terms
would be severe. But Grant only required that the men surrendering
should not take arms against the Government of the United States
until properly exchanged. On the 9th, the two commanders met at
Appomattox Court House, and terms of surrender were formally agreed
upon. The substance was, that all officers and men should be paroled,
all public property be turned over, and each officer and man be allowed to
return to his home, not to be disturbed by the United States authorities
so long as the paroles were observed and the laws obeyed. The number
paroled was twenty-eight thousand eight hundred and five. Of these,
not more than eight thousand had muskets in their hands, for the
others had flung away their arms in their weary flight. The men were
permitted to take their horses with them — Grant said they might need
them for plowing. No cheering, firing of salutes, or any other sign of
exultation was permitted, and the famished Confederates were fed by
their victors.
On the 26th of April, Sheridan, in North Carolina, received the
surrender of General Johnston upon the same terms, and the surrender

642 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
of all the Confederate armies soon followed. The number of, Johns
ton's immediate command surrendered and paroled was thirty-six thou
sand eight hundred and seventeen, to whom were added fifty-two
thousand four hundred and fifty-three in Georgia and Florida.
In the meantime, the country was shocked by the murder of Presi
dent Lincoln. On April 14th, it had been his intention to attend the
theatre at Washington, with Grant. Grant was unable to attend, and
Lincoln, rather than disappoint the people, went, accompanied by his
wife and Major Rathbone. An actor whose moving passion had always
been an ambition for notoriety, entered his box, shot him, leaped upon
the stage with a theatrical cry of ' '¦Sic Semper Tyrannis! The South
is avenged," and escaped.
At the same time that Lincoln was shot, an unsuccessful attempt
was made upon the life of Mr. Seward, Secretary of State, in his own
house. Mr. Seward was in bed, suffering from injuries received by a
fall from his carriage, and the steel casing in which his head was sup
ported saved his life.
It was found that a conspiracy had long been in progress among a
few half-crazy Secessionists in and about the capital, and that the mur
der of Lincoln was the culmination of this. No man has ever been
mourned as Mr. Lincoln was. His firmness of character, his kind-
heartedness, his foresight and justice, seemed at times almost super
human. Yet he was a man so eminently of the people, and of such
democratic sympathy, that no one felt awed by him. He was one of
the best representatives of pure republicanism, a statesman of the
noble type which should belong to republics, and a man of such spon
taneous and abundant humor that he appealed immediately to the
common heart. A portion of his second inaugural address is worth
quoting, as it gives an excellent insight into his calm and judicial
character: ' 'Neither party expected for the war the magnitude or the duration
which it has already attained. Neither anticipated that the cause of
the conflict might cease when, or even before, the conflict itself should
cease. Each looked for an easier triumph, and a result less fundamental
and astonishing. Both read the same Bible and pray to the same God,
and each invokes His aid against the other. It may seem strange that
any man should dare to ask a just God's assistance in wringing their
bread from the sweat of other men's faces. But let us judge not, that
we be not judged. The prayers of both could not be answered; that
of neither has been answered fully. If we shall suppose that Ameri-

"oh, captain! my captain!" 643
can slavery is one of those offences which in the providence of God
must come, but which, having continued through His appointed time,
He now wills to remove, and that He gives to both North and South
this terrible war as the woe due to those by whom the offence came,
shall we discern therein any departure from those divine attributes
which the believers in a loving God always ascribes to Him? Fondly
do we hope, fervently do we pray, that this mighty scourge of war may
speedily pass away. Yet if God wills that it continue until all the
wealth piled by the bondsman's two hundred and fifty years of unre
quited toil shall be sunk, and until every drop of blood drawn with the
lash shall be paid by another drawn with the sword, as was said three
thousand years ago, so still it must be said: 'The judgments of the
Lord are true and righteous altogether.' With malice toward none,
with charity for all, with firmness in the right, as God gives us to see
the right, let us strive to finish the work we are in, to bind up the
national wounds, to care for him who shall have borne the battle, and
for his widow and his orphan, to do all which may achieve and cherish
a just and a lasting peace among ourselves and with all nations. ' '
Mr. Lincoln was buried at his old home in Springfield, Illinois,
which he had left four years before. No day passes that his grave is
not visited, and the very clovers which grow about it are treasured in
thousands of homes. FOR FURTHER READING:
History — Davis' "Rise and Fall of the Confederate Government."
Mahoney"s "Prisoner of State."
Raymond's "History of Lincoln's Administration."
Boykin's "Evacuation of Richmond."
Grayson's "Great Conspiracy. Secret of the Assassination Plot."
Poetry— Florence Anderson's "Surrender of the Army of Northern Virginia."

CHAPTER CII.
"Yt fmmrrl lam Hum flasbrs/'

ADMINISTRATION OF ANDREW JOHNSON — CAPTURE OF JEFFERSON
DAVIS — RECONSTRUCTION — IMPEACHMENT OF PRESI
DENT JOHNSON — PURCHASE OF ALASKA —
RETURNING PROSPERITY TO
THE UNION.

^NDREW JOHNSON, of Tennessee, Vice-President
with Lincoln, now became the President of the
Republic. He took the oath of office on the 15th
of April, 1865, thus becoming the seventeenth
Chief Magistrate of the United States. His first
act was to offer large rewards for the arrest of
Jefferson Davis, President of the recent Confederacy,
and his official associates. Davis, with a small escort,
had fled southward, hoping to reach the Gulf coast and
make his way out of the country. But on the ioth
of May he was overtaken by a detachment of Federal
troops, under Colonel Pritchard. He was then at
Irwinsville, in the heart of Southern Georgia. Colonel
Pritchard and his men came suddenly upon Davis'
encampment in the woods, and captured him while he was faying to
make his escape partly disguised in a woman's waterproof cloak. It is
said that had not his heavy cavalry boojs showed from below the cloak,
his identity would not have been suspected. He was taken to Fortress
Monroe, and kept there for several months under a charge of high
treason. It developed in time that he had nothing to do with the plot
for the murder of the President, and as many others were as guilty as he
of treason, he was set at liberty upon bail. Cornelius Vanderbilt,
Horace Greeley and Gerrit Smith, a life-long Abolitionist, went upon
his bond. He has never been tried. As for the murderer of Abraham
Lincoln, he died a wretched death. He was shot while defending his

Copyright l88g, by R. S. King Pub. Co.
JEFFERSON DAVIS.
From a photograph by Washburn, New Orleans, 1888, Engraved expressly for
The Story of America.

"YE CANNOT SERVE TWO MASTERS." 647
life in a burning barn, to which his pursuers had followed him, and
from which they were trying to drag him. Four of his associates were
hanged for complicity in the conspiracy, on the 7th of July, 1865.
Three others were sent to the Dry Tortugas for hard labor during life,
and another was condemned to six years of hard labor at the same
place. The people of the United States now hoped that these last black
pages had closed the book of conspiracy, suffering and death which had
marked the War of Secession. The boys — such as were left of them —
were sent to their homes. On May 23d, the Army of the Potomac, and
Sherman's army on the 24th, were reviewed before the Capitol and
disbanded. In every town there were festivities and rejoicings, and in
every town, too, there was much sorrow. It had cost the country nearly
six hundred thousand lives, and more than six billion dollars to destroy
the doctrine of State Sovereignty. But the United States was now
established as a nation. Every man within its territory was free, and
the people of the North were as magnanimous as possible toward the
men they had defeated. The country was scarred with battle fields
and graves, but among the judicious there was a desire to forget and to
heal. The task before the National Government was a great one. The
people had troubled at the thought of it, even with the calm and just
Lincoln to guide them. Without him, it seemed still more serious.
To begin with, the financial condition of the country was as bad as it
well could be. Gold was far below par. The National debt was ;two
billion seven hundred and fifty-six million four hundred and thirty-one
thousand five hundred and seventy-one dollars. The taxes laid upon
the people were as high as they could well endure — not that they
complained about them. In the States where the insurrection had
existed, there was the greatest confusion. The people were divided on
the question of what should be done with them. There were those
who thought that treason was a crime which could never be regarded
as a mere difference of political opinion, and that a crime so serious
deserved serious punishment. Others believed that since the seceding
States had been forced to remain in the Union, they should be
represented upon the same basis, and with the same privileges, as the
other States. No provisions had been made in the Constitution for the
readmission of a State that had claimed the right to secede, and had
withdrawn from the Union. On one hand, there was a fear that the
negroes of the South, who outnumbered the whites, might take the

648 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
government of the South into their own hands — a most groundless feat
to any acquainted with the negro disposition — and on the other hand
there was a well-based fear that the negroes might be governed and
controlled by their old masters in a spirit utterly at variance with
justice and humanity. President Johnson did not understand how a
State could be punished for treason. He therefore issued proclamations
of qualified amnesty, removed the blockade from the ports as well as
the restriction upon commercial intercourse with the border States. He
appointed resident civilians as provisional governors over North Caro
lina, South Carolina, Georgia, Florida, Alabama, Mississippi and Texas.
He asked these States to hold conventions, with a view of organizing
State governments, and for the purpose of securing the election of
representatives to Congress. The States were required to repeal the
ordinances of secession, accept the abolition of slavery, repudiate the
Southern war debts, and ratify, by a vote of the people, the several
constitutional amendments. Before Congress met, in December, five
States had formed with constitutions, and elected State officers and
representatives to Congress. The Republicans were not satisfied with
what the President had done, and looked to Congress for some modifi
cation of his action.
While Mr. Johnson's reorganization policy was causing those who
engaged in the rebellion to congratulate themselves upon the ease with
which they had escaped punishment, eleven different States prepared
laws which were in direct defiance to liberty. These laws were called
the "Black Codes" in the North. Mississippi enacted a law denying
the ex-slave the right to acquire and dispose of public property. In
several States, it was made a criminal offence, punishable with fine and
imprisonment, for a freedman to leave his employer before the expira
tion of the term of service prescribed in a written contract. In one
State, it was made a criminal offence for a negro to intrude himself into
any religious or other assembly of white persons, into any railroad car or
other public vehicle set apart for the exclusive accommodation of white
people, upon conviction of which he should be sentenced to stand in a
pillory for one hour, or be whipped not exceeding thirty-nine stripes,
or both at the discretion of the jury.
When Congress met in December, 1865, with a Republican majority
in both Houses, it hastened to appoint a committee to inquire into the
condition of the States which formed the so-called Confederacy of
America, and report whether they were entitled to be represented in
either House of Congress. This committee was known as the Recon-

"ye cannot serve two masters." 649
struction Committee, and their report was looked for by Congress and
the entire nation with the utmost anxiety. They did not report till
the following summer of 1866, and in the meantime the States which had
seceded were not allowed representation in Congress. The attitude of
Congress offended the President, and in a speech to the populace in
front of the presidential mansion, he denounced the Republican party
which had elected him to office. Thenceforth he made constant war
upon the legislative branch of the Government, and caused such Cabinet
membejrs to resign as could not agree with him. He refused to pass a
bill which provided for the reservation of three million acres of public
land in the South for occupation by former slaves, and also vetoed a bill
designed to confer the right of citizenship upon the freedmen, and to
provide means for protecting them in the right. But Congress passed
this bijl over the veto of the President. It also passed the Fourteenth
Amendment over the President's veto. The Fourteenth Amendment
declared that all persons born or naturalized in the United States are
citizens, and forbid any State to make or enforce any law which
abridged the privileges of these citizens. In February, 1867, a bill was
entered for the admission of Nebraska, which stipulated that Nebraska
should never deny the right of voting to any person on account of his
race or color. The President vetoed the bill, but Congress passed it
over his veto.
On the 6th of February, 1867, a bill to provide efficient govern
ments for the States in insurrection was read in the House. The States
of Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, Mississippi,
Alabama, Louisiana, Florida, Texas and Arkansas were divided into
five military districts, each under the government of a military officer,
who should govern them by civil tribunals whenever he should decide
them to be more appropriate than military commissions. The bill pro
vided that these States should establish constitutions satisfactory to
Congrejss, and not conflicting with the Constitution of the United States.
The President vetoed this bill, but it was passed by Congress.
At this time Secretary Stanton was removed by the President from
his position as Secretary of War. Stanton refused to resign, and Con
gress supported him in his refusal. For this and other reasons President
Johnsoh was impeached for high crimes and misdemeanors. After a long
trial, which closed on May 16, 1868, the vote for conviction was thirty-
five and for acquittal nineteen. As it needed the vote of two-thirds of
the Senators for conviction, . the President was acquitted.
During Lincoln's administratiofl West Virginia was formally ad-

650

THE STORY OF AMERICA.

mitted to the Union as a separate State. This was in 1863. In 1867
Nebraska was admitted as a State of the Union. The immense region
called Alaska had also been purchased from the Russian Government,

»

in 1867, for more than seven million dollars. Its area is about half a
million square miles, and this brought the whole area to about three

"ye cannot serve two masters." 651
million five hundred thousand square miles, instead of the original eight
hundred thousand. There were now thirty-seven States and twelve
Territories, with a population of more than thirty-eight million.
The year 1866 was marked by the laying of a successful and per
manent Atlantic cable. A strong, flexible cable was shipped on board
the Great Eastern, which, after a prosperous voyage, arrived at Heart's
Content, Newfoundland. It then returned to the mid-Atlantic, where
the end of the cable which had been laid in 1865 was grappled, and a
splice was made. This line has never failed, and marine cables have
increased rapidly since.
In 1867 the National Grange, for the promotion of the farming
interests of the country, was organized at Washington. This order has
now spread all over the United States, and though the enthusiasm which
attended its birth has died out, it has done not a little toward elevating
the condition of the farmer, increasing the value of his products, and
putting him on a firmer business footing with the consumer.
The Union Pacific Railroad, which crosses nine mountain ranges
and links the Atlantic with the Pacific, was completed on May 10, 1869,
at Promontory Point, Utah. The last tie of laurel wood, with a plate of
silver upon it, was laid, and the last spike, composed of iron, silver and
gold, was driven in the presence of many onlookers. The telegraph
wires were attached to the last rail, and the blows telegraphed to many
parts of the continent the completion of the road. The total length of
the road is two thousand miles. Its cost was one hundred and twelve
million two hundred and fifty-nine thousand three hundred and sixty
dollars. FOR FURTHER READING:
History— Partridge's "Making of the American Nation."
Loring's "History of Reconstruction."
W. H. Bancroft's "Alaska."
Field's "History of American Telegraph."
Fiction— A. W. Tourgee's "Hot Plowshares."
A. W. Tourgee's "Bricks Without Straw."
A. W. Tourgee's "A Fool's Errand."
C Reid's "Valerie Aylmer."
Pobtry— Lowell's "Washers of the Shroud."
Walt Whitman's "My Captain."

»8

CHAPTER CIII.

jt If tmhrrit °|W$ ti JBbrl^

ADMINISTRATION OF GRANT — THE KU-KLUX KLAN — THE CHICAGO
FIRE — THE CUSTER MASSACRE — THE PANIC OF 1 873 — THE
CENTENNIAL EXPOSITION — ADMINISTRATION OF
PRESIDENT HAYES — RAILROAD
RIOTS OF 1877.

~k

GENERAL ULYSSES S. GRANT, whose- services
during the war had so endeared him to the hearts
of the American people, was elected by the
Republican party, and inaugurated as President
of the United States in 1869. During his admin
istration all the seceded States became finally
restored to the Union. The enormous debt incurred
during the war was very greatly decreased. More than
one-fifth of it ($600,000,000) was paid. Meanwhile,
Congress had passed the Fifteenth Amendment to the
Constitution. This amendment reads:
1. The right of citizens of the United States to vote
shall not be abridged by the United States, or by any
State, on account of race, color or previous condition of
servitude.
2. The Congress shall have power to enforce this article by appro
priate, legislation.
The South was in a fever of anxiety about what it termed ' 'negro
supremacy. ' ' It claimed that the freedom of speech and press had been
overthrown; that the American capital was converted into a bastile,
and that a system of spies and official espionage had been established,
to which no constitutional monarchy of Europe would dare to resort.
Matters in the South had been complicated by the fact that at the close
of the war thousands of Northern men had settled there. These
Northern settlers met with a hostile reception, and their interference in

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THE MAID OF THE MIST GOING THROUGH THE WHIRLPOOL RAPIDS.

A HUNDRED YEARS OF LIBERTY. 655
the government of the South aroused the wildest indignation. They
were termed ' 'Carpet-Baggers, ' ' for the reason that they usually stayed
but a short time in the South, and, metaphorically speaking, carried
their possessions in a carpet-bag. The more liberal men of all parties
are willing to admit now that these "Carpet-Baggers" were often
guilty of ill-timed and officious acts. It was largely their presence in
the South which called into existence the terrible secret society known
as the Ku-Klux Klan. In some places this society was known as the
"Pale Faces," and in others, as the "Knights of White Camelia."
These wished to frighten the ex-slaves, in order to keep them from
taking part in the elections; to rid the country of "Carpet-Baggers,"
and to sustain, as far as might be, the former slave-holding power in
the ' 'irreconcilable South. ' ' This order prevailed in all parts of the
Confederacy, and was so secret that no member knew who any of the
others might be. When the men met they were always masked. This
organization sent out armed men, who patrolled communities, intimi
dating men, and committing murder and other crimes. As the identity
of the members could not be proved, they were neither caught nor tried.
So great was the alarm caused by the Ku-Klux that the Governor
of Tennessee, in 1868, called an extra session of the legislature,
to provide measures of protection against the order. A committee
reported that for six months, saying nothing of other outrages, the
murders had averaged not less than one in each twenty-four hours. It
reported that in fourteen counties of North Carolina, there had been
eighteen murders and three hundred and fifteen whippings. In twenty-
nine counties of Georgia, there were seventy-two murders and one hun
dred and twenty-six whippings. In twenty-six counties of Alabama,
two hundred and fifteen murders and one hundred and sixteen other
outrages, and in Louisiana, in 1868, there were more than one thousand
murders. The particulars of this persecution by the Ku-Klux are as
wild, romantic and terrible as any tale of feudal and uncivilized times;
to re-admit the seceded States into the Union under such circum
stances, was a delicate and a dangerous task. .The chief requirement
for re-admission was, that each of the States should ratify the Fifteenth
Amendment. Congress now determined that the amendment should be
enforced, and authorized the President to use the army to prevent
violations of law, and make penal any interference, by fraud or force,
with the right of full and free manhood suffrage. Federal supervisors .
were appointed to oversee elections in cities of over twenty thousand
inhabitants. This continued for several years. ' ¦ - '

656 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
In 1 87 1, the people of the Northwest suffered a great blow from the
partial destruction by fire of Chicago, the commercial center and the
chief port of that district. The fire broke out on the 8th of October,
and originated from the explosion of a lamp kicked over by an angry
cow. For two days it raged almost unchecked, and was sustained by a
fierce wind. It spread over two thousand one hundred and twenty-four
acres, and destroyed seventeen thousand four hundred and fifty build
ings. The loss was almost one hundred and seventy-five million
dollars, and ninety-eight thousand people were made homeless. At the
same time a terrible fire devastated Northeastern Wisconsin. Here the
fire was accompanied by a hurricane, and swept through forests, fields
and villages, leaving nothing but charred earth in its track. Over one
thousand lives were lost. The town of Peshtigo was entirely swept out
of existence. Here the fire rushed upon them with a loud roar,
apparently almost out of the sky, and without any warning. Six
hundred lives were lost in this town alone. Throughout the northern
part of Michigan there were similar experiences, and indeed the entire
Northwest suffered from fires', any one of which would have been famous
at another time, but which, in a year of general catastrophe, were thought
little of. The season was one of unprecedented dryness, the air was hot
and the wind high, and this accounted, no doubt, for the frequency of
these disasters.
Meanwhile, in spite of all difficulties and drawbacks, the American
nation had been rapidly progressing. Its triumphs of mechanical
ingenuity were unequaled. Its literature, its science, its art, were
beginning to win recognition. Its system of popular education was
remarkable. It had been proved to the world that a republican govern
ment on a large scale was practicable, and that the people were as well
able to defend their principles as a king to defend his. Even the
constant arrival of thousands of emigrants unacquainted with repub
lican ideas, and full of an inherited dislike for government, was not able
to seriously hinder the onward sweep of improvement. It was several
years later before these people became so numerous or their mistaken
ideas so prominent as to cause concern.
In the autumn of 1872, President Grant was re-elected. Henry
Wilson was chosen Vice-President, in the place of Schuyler Colfax.
Shortly after Grant's second inauguration, in 1873, the Government
became involved in troubles with the Modoc Indians. At a friendly
conference, the Indians murdered General Canby and a clergyman, in
April of 1873. Four of the leaders were hanged in the following

A HUNDRED YEARS OF LIBERTY. 657
October for their treachery. But the insincerity was not all upon the
side of the Indians, and the policy of the Government toward this
unhappy race of people has always been vacillating and selfish. Late
in June, 1876, General Custer and his command of three hundred men
were attacked at Little Big Horn river, in Montana Territory, and
destroyed. Only one man escaped to tell the particulars of the direful
defeat. The terrible manner in which these men met their death, and
the indignities which were committed upon their dead bodies, aroused
the keenest horror, and the management of the Indians from that time
on has been more severe.
Mention should be made of two great political parties which had
been formed, and which, though neither of them have been in power or
even near to power, have had much influence in political as well as
moral matters. The Temperance party was organized in 1872, and
consisted of a, national combination of local temperance organizations,
which had been in existence for many years. This received the name
of the Prohibition Reform party, in 1876. It awakened much enthu
siasm in the cause of temperance, and in the course of time Maine, New
Hampshire, Vermont, Rhode Island, Kansas and Iowa adopted prohi
bition principles, making it a punishable crime to sell liquor within the
limits of the States. A number of other States are known as Local
Option States, and have prohibitory districts. The second party
mentioned is known as the Labor Reform National party. It grew out
of the combinations of workingmen called Trades' Unions. How this
party was weakened in later years by the movements of a body of men
known as Anarchists, and too often confounded by unthinking persons
with the men of the labor party, must be told in another chapter.
In 1873 occurred a great financial panic, which spread in the course
of the year over the whole country. Firms in every part of the Union
failed, and business for the time was almost paralyzed.. The effect upon
the laboring classes was most unfortunate. Everyone was afraid of
losing money and locked it up, when it was most needed by the people.
Mills were closed, great railroad enterprises suddenly abandoned, and
speculation ceased. The great credit system was largely at fault for
ithis commercial crash, and the business of the country was perilously
' speculative in its nature. It turned thousands of tramps upon the
country; it ruined thousands of rich men, and, perhaps, among other
things, it brought a few rich men to their senses, and showed them that
honest industry is worth much more than a genius for speculation. It
was four years before the country recovered from the results of this panic.

658 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
In this year Elisha Gray, of Chicago, invented the instrument which
became the basis of the modern telephone. The adaptation of it to the
human voice, in 1873, by Professor Bell, of Boston, completed the
invention. Grant's second administration was marked by some grave political
scandals, among which was that of the Credit Mobilier. This was a
corporation which placed a large amount of money in the Union Pacific
Company, and induced many men of capital to embark in the enter
prise, and to take stock both in the Union Pacific Company and in the
Credit Mobilier Company. Mr. Oakes Ames was a leader in this
enterprise, and he presented shares of stock to a considerable number of
members of Congress. It was claimed that he did this for the purpose
of keeping Congress friendly and favorable to the Pacific Railroad, and
it occasioned much concern and indignation throughout the United
States, for it was feared that bribery might become open and frequent
in Congress, and the liberty of the people seriously endangered. The
only punishment which Mr. Oakes Ames and his most culpable
sympathizer, James Brooks, received, was the absolute condemnation of
the House. Both gentlemen died within three months after these
resolutions of condemnation were passed, broken in reputation and
self-respect. Without doubt, however, bribery of one sort or another is
frequent at Washington.
The Democratic party at about this time demanded investigations of
the New York Custom House, the United States Treasury, the Navy
Department and various other institutions, but comparatively little was
proved against the Administration. In the South, matters became so
grave that General Sheridan was sent to New Orleans to see that law
and order was enforced there, and to oppose the movements of the
White League. This league had constantly assaulted and disfran
chised the blacks, so that it became necessary to protect the freedmen.
Shortly after this was done the country became disturbed by anothel
scandal. This was an extensive whisky ring, organized to control
legislation so as to avoid revenue taxes. It consisted of an association
of distillers, in collusion with Federal officers, and succeeded for a time
in defrauding the Government of the tax on spirituous liquors. Follow
ing this came the impeachment of William W. Belknap, the Secretary
of War. He was charged with selling an Indian trading post. Up to
this time he had been much respected, and it was a great grief to the
people that he should have been found guilty of treachery.
It is pleasant to turn from these dark political pages to the centennial

A HUNDRED YEARS OF LIBERTY.

659

celebration of the independence of the United States. There were
festivals and meetings all over the United States, and a great inter7

national exhibition was held at Philadelphia in honor of the event.

660 THE STORY OF AMERICA;
Thirty-three nations were represented by their industries, and almost ten
million people visited the exhibition, so that nearly four million dollars
were received for admission alone. A great impulse was given to
American industry, and the United States had much cause to be proud
of its inventive skill, and some cause, to tell the truth, to be ashamed
of its art work, which was poor, compared with that of the older nations.
During the year 1876 Colorado was admitted into the Union as a State,
making thirty-eight States and eleven territories.
The next presidential election was attended with much excitement.
Rutherford B. Hayes, of Ohio, and William A. Wheeler, of New York,
were the presidential and vice-presidential candidates of the Republican
party. Those of the Democratic party were Samuel J. Tilden, of New
York, and Thomas A. Hendricks, of Indiana. The votes of the States
were very closely divided between these two candidates, and the decision
depended upon the votes of two doubtful States. It was generally
admitted that the Democrats had legally chosen one hundred and eighty-
four electors and the Republicans one hundred and seventy-three, but
the four votes of Florida and the eight votes of Louisiana were in doubt.
If all of these were to be counted for Mr. Hayes he would have a
majority of one. The Returning Boards of these two States declared that
Republican electors had been chosen. These Boards were bodies of
men appointed after the war by the laws of these States, and were
authorized not only to count the votes actually cast, but to throw out
the votes of neighborhoods where there had been violence or intimida
tion. The Republicans maintained that these Boards had exercised
their power rightfully, but the Democrats claimed that they had unjustly
thrown out a great many Democratic votes which should rightfully have
been counted. The Republicans thought that the fraud and violence
of the Democrats in some parts of these States had been so great as to
justify the action of the Returning Boards. The question was a difficult
one, and there was nothing in the Constitution to aid in its settlement.
Throughout the country the excitement was great, and many feared
that a civil war was at hand. Week after week passed by and at length
the wiser men of both parties in Congress decided that the best plan was
to appoint an Electoral Commission, to which all doubtful votes should
be referred. Five Senators, five Representatives and five Justices of the
Supreme Court composed this body, and it decided by a vote of eight to
seven that the votes of Florida and Louisiana must be counted as the
Returning Boards had reported them, because these Boards had been
legally appointed by those particular States, and the other States could

A HUNDRED YEARS OF LIBERTY. 66 1
not revise or reject their returns. This decision gave Hayes and
Wheeler one hundred and eighty-five votes, and Tilden and Hendricks
one hundred and eighty-four. Hayes and Wheeler were therefore
declared to be elected, and were inaugurated on March 5, 1877, but
during the whole of their administration there was a bitter spirit between
the two parties, and the Democrats could not forget that the Electoral
Commission had been composed of eight Republicans and seven Demo
crats, and that all of these men had voted precisely as their party prin
ciples had prompted them to do. Fortunately, Mr. Hayes was a man
of peaceable and conciliatory disposition. Though not a brilliant man,
he was ambitious to be a just one. Mr. Hayes began by making up
his Cabinet from both parties, which was a very uncommon thing. It
had long been the motto of the parties "to the victor belongs the spoils, "
and following up this motto the Presidents conferred the offices within
their appointment upon those who had supported them, regardless of
• their ability or honesty of purpose. Mr. Hayes, therefore, gave offence.
He withdrew all United States soldiers from the State Houses of any of
the States which had belonged to the Confederacy, and prohibited the
interference of United States troops with the elections in those States.
Many of the people objected seriously to this, and especially to the with
drawal of troops from South Carolina, which of all the States of the
South was the most difficult to control. But the President insisted that
his principle was right, and that since South Carolina had been read
mitted as a State, she could not be treated as conquered territory. The
effect was indeed beneficial, and the States continued to grow more
peaceful from that time on. Injustice, intimidation and contempt cer
tainly exist still in the treatment of the colored people, but it is hoped
that by another generation this will die out, and many negroes have
taken the remedy into their own hands. During the summer of 1879
there was a great exodus of the negroes from the States of the South to
those of the Northwest. The negroes were received kindly in Kansas
and Indiana, and have therefore settled extensively in those States.
During the summer of 1877, our Government engaged in a war with
the hitherto friendly Nez Perces Indians. These were subdued by our
arms as usual, and made our enemies.
The Government and banks of the United States resumed specie pay
ments on January 1, 1879. It was feared among business men that this
might cause much embarrassment," but the change from paper money
to silver and gold was accomplished with ease. During Hayes' admin
istration there was a great agitation concerning the emigration of natives

662 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
of China into the United States. The workingmen claimed that they
lowered the price of American labor, and protested that they could not
compete with them. The President vetoed the bill restricting their
emigration, but the newspapers did not permit the subject to die out,
and in 1888 the bill restricting emigration was passed.
It was during Hayes' administration that the agitation of the work
ingmen began to have its serious effect. In July, 1877, there was a
great convulsion among the railroad hands on the central roads of the
United States. The beginning was on July 17th, when the brakemen
and firemen on the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad refused to work, and
prevented others from working, because their wages had been reduced
ten per cent. By the next day the entire road was in possession of the
strikers. A call for aid was made upon the Government, to which
President Hayes responded with a body of Federal troops and a procla
mation to the rioters to disperse. At Pittsburg, there was a special
intensity of feeling, and the excitement was great in Chicago. The
Tradesmen's Union held a meeting and resolutions were passed demand
ing concessions from the companies. By the 20th, Pittsburg was com
pletely in the power of the rioters, and fifteen hundred trains were
stopped. At Baltimore, the Maryland regiments were ordered out, and
as they were leaving their armory were met by a crowd of several thou
sand. These stoned the regiments until they were obliged to fire in self-
defense. Several men were killed. On the 21st, the State militia of
Pennsylvania arrived at Pittsburg and a terrible scene of riot and vio
lence followed. The militia found their enemies so formidable that
they took refuge in the railroad round-house. From here they fired
upon the crowd. The mob had sacked the gun stores, and returned the
fire with enthusiasm. By setting fire to some cars of pretroleum they
forced the militia to leave the round-house. The fire spread rapidly
and the railroad property was soon in ruins. Throughout the 22d and
23d the disturbance continued.
Serious riots broke out in Philadelphia, and the excitement spread
to Chicago, St. Louis and San Francisco. But before a fortnight was
over order was restored. Some of the companies compromised with the
strikers, and others ran their trains with new employes.
The following year was marked by a terrible plague in the South.
Seven thousand deaths were caused in the months of August, September
and October of 1878, by yellow fever. Whole villages were deserted
by the panic which accompanied it, and the industries of the South,
still young and uncertain, were almost crushed by the disaster.

JAMES A. GARFIELD.

A HUNDRED YEARS OF LIBERTY. 665
During this year Thomas A. Edison brought the phonograph to the
attention of the world. This remarkable instrument, which is now
becoming of practical use, will repeat, after any interval of time, the
words which have been spoken into it. The mechanical inventions in
the United States within the last twenty-five years have been unprece
dented for their number and their utility. The utilization of natural
gas for heat and light, the heating of houses by steam, the common use
of hydraulic power, the progress in mining, and the experiments in
explosives, not to mention the improvements in looms and all sorts of
practical machinery, are remarkable. FOR FURTHER READING:
History — Andreas' "History of Chicago."
Phelps' "Life and Public Services of U. S. Grant."
Howard's "Life of Hayes."
Fiction— Mrs. Whitney's "A Summer in Leslie Goldthait's Life."
J. G. Holland's "Arthur Bomucastle."
O. W. Holmes' "Elsie Venner."
H. W. Beecher's "Norwood."
Mrs. Stowe's "Oldtown Folks."
F. B. Aldrich's "Queen of Sheba."
F. B. Aldrich's "Margery Daw."
Mrs. St. Tohn's "Bella."
POETRY — Whittier's "Centennial Hymn."
E. Renaud's "Chicago."
Longfellow's "Revenge of Rain-on-Face."

CHAPTER CIV.

ip §Ifr ]f atjnmrfoL

ELECTION AND DEATH OF PRESIDENT JAMES A. GARFIELD — ADMIN
ISTRATION OF ARTHUR — THE ANARCHISTS
<£"'' OF CHICAGO.

N the National Convention of 1880, the Repub
licans nominated James A. Garfield, of Ohio, for
President, and Chester A. Arthur, of New York,
for Vice-President. The Democrats nominated
Winfield S. Hancock, of New York, and William
H. English, of Indiana. At this election the
Republicans won by a decided majority, and President
Garfield was inaugurated March 4, 1881. Garfield's
administration opened with what was known as a dead
lock in the Senate, which was a mere matter of party,
but which, at the time, caused no little discussion.
President Garfield announced it as his intention to make a
great effort to rid the United States of the shame of polyg
amy, which exists in Utah, and his best efforts would
doubtless have been devoted to this end but for his untimely death.
On July 2, 1881, while waiting for a train in the railway station
at Washington, President Garfield was shot and mortally wounded by
a half-insane creature, whose name deserves no place in history. The
President was taken to the White House, where he lay between life and
death for many weeks. He confessed to a great desire for being near
the sea, and on September 6th, was taken to Elberon, New Jersey.
Here, on the nineteenth of September, he died, mourned by the whole
nation. His industrious, wholesome life, and the fact that he had risen
from a poor boyhood, worked his way through college till he stood at
the head of it, served faithfully in camp till he became a general, and
maintained his position in Congress with so much dignity that he was
chosen President, made him seem to the youth of America the typical

^^^^liij|JME

THE OLD HAYMARKET. 669
man of the Republic. He was mourned in Europe as well as in
America, and when he died, the British court, as well as the friends of
the President at Washington, went into mourning. His death was not
the result of any conspiracy, nor of political hostility, but the act of
one egotistical and half-insane man, who was angry at being refused an
office. The murderer was tried, and hung on June 30, 1882. Mean
while, Vice-President Arthur had succeeded to the presidency, taking
the oath of office at New York, September 20, 1881, and again more
formally, two days after, at Washington. No new States were added to
the Union during Arthur's administration. The nation was prosperous
and peaceful, and Arthur's inaugural address was notable by reason of
its being the first one in twenty years that contained no reference
to the Southern States as a distinct part of the nation. It was evident
that the great sectional contest was drawing to an end, and all the
bitterness of feeling which had attended it was disappearing.
The history of a nation should not be made up of its wars and its
disasters. By rights, the greater part of its pages should be devoted to
those intervals of peace when education flourishes, industry increases,
and the influence of home life is most felt. At such times one may, if he
chooses, estimate rightly the comparative position of his nation, its
advantages and disadvantages, and judge rightly its value to the world.
In 1879, as has been said, specie payment was resumed in the United
States, and ever since that time the national currency has been at par
value. Any one who possesses a paper dollar can receive a gold or silver
dollar for it without difficulty. This placed commerce upon a more
certain foundation. Industry has gradually increased, and we have
begun to manufacture many articles which we formerly imported
almost entirely from Europe. Watches, cotton, woolen, silk, the finest
musical instruments, carriages, furniture, cutlery, railroad iron, carpets
and decorative fabrics are among those industries which have been
taken up at a comparatively recent time, and the products of which are
sold, not only in America, but on the other side of the water. In other
ways we are not doing as well as we once did. We no longer possess a
navy of any sort whatever, and no foreign sea is ever decorated with
the American flag. This has come largely from the fact that iron vessels
have taken the place of wooden ones, and that England has greater
advantages for building iron vessels than America possesses. As it is a
law that a vessel must carry the flag of the country it is built in, the
purchase of vessels will not remedy this deficiency.
Another great drawback in this country is the rapid growth of

670 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
monopoly. The telegraph, the railroads, oil, coal and many other
necessities are governed by rich corporations, who are able to ask any
price that they choose, and have the power to keep down all competition.
A large class of men who follow the teachings of a modern economist
and philosopher named Henry George, believe that all necessities of
this sort should be owned and managed by the Government. They
also believe that land should be public property as much as air or
water. The great question of the country is at present, and must
remain for many years, the adjustment of capital and labor. There has
long been a cry from all parts of the country for co-operative work. A
foolish and impassioned set of men, most of whom are emigrants from
the monarchies of Europe, and known as Anarchists, are among those
who have formed themselves into a party to combat monopoly and
undue wealth.
On May 4, 1886, this discontent culminated in a terrible tragedy
at the city of Chicago. An open-air meeting was held by the discon
tented party at the old Haymarket, on the West Side of the city. As the
attitude of these men had been threatening for several weeks, a company
of policemen were sent to preserve order. Their presence and their
demeanor inflamed the wrath of some madman in the crowd, and a
dynamite bomb was thrown into their midst, killing one policeman
immediately and wounded sixty-seven others. The bomb was probably
thrown by a German named Schnaubelt. This man fled, and was never
captured. Seven policemen in all died, from the results of the riot
The city was seriously alarmed. There were rumors of a great con
spiracy. It was whispered that a plot existed to burn the city to the
ground. A raid was made on the office of the Arbeiter Zeitung, the
organ of the Anarchists. Here dynamite bombs and infernal machines
were found, as well as a large number of circulars on which there was
an appeal to the workmen to arm themselves. It is said by the friends
of the Anarchists that these circulars were not intended for distribution.
They maintained that some ill-advised person had put that appeal upon
the circulars without the knowledge of the men who were to speak at
the Haymarket meeting which the circulars announced. It is said that
Albert Parsons, one of the best known of the Anarchist leaders, refused
to speak at the meeting unless other circulars were printed which did
not contain that seditious injunction. These milder circulars had been
printed and circulated, and those left in the office, it is said, were to be
destroyed. But even when this point is conceded, it does not explain
the presence of dynamite.

THE HAYMARKET MONUMENT.

THE OLD HAYMARKET. 673
Eight leaders of the Anarchists were arrested on charge of conspiracy
and murder. They were August Spies, Albert R. Parsons, Samuel
Fielden, Oscar Neebe, George Engel, Louis Ling, Michael Schwab and
Adolph Fischer. It is maintained by the Anarchists that some of these
men were not acquainted with each other; that they had never met
until they were brought together in the court-room, and that obviously
no conspiracy could have existed between, them. On the other hand, it
was maintained by many witnesses that each of these men had been
heard making incendiary speeches, and evidence was brought before
the grand jury which convinced that body that a conspiracy had
actually existed for the destruction of the city. It is, however,
admitted by all that the excitement of the time caused injustice to at
least a part of these men. They were far from being equally guilty;
they had not all acted in complicity, and they should have had separate
trials. But the terrible sufferings of the policemen who were the
victims of these misguided men worked upon the sympathies of the
people, and interfered to some extent with the cause of justice. On
August 3d, after a long trial, a verdict of guilty was rendered. Oscar
Neebe was given fifteen years in the penitentiary. The rest of the men
were sentenced to be hung. Before the ominous day of execution
was reached, a petition, signed by the leading citizens of the city, begged
a commutation of sentence for Fielden and Schwab, who were more
temperate and judicious than their compatriots. As a consequence,
these two men were condemned to life imprisonment. Before the day
of execution, Louis Ling, the most impassioned and the youngest of the
condemned Anarchists, committed suicide by setting fire to a dynamite
cartridge in his mouth. It is held by some of the Anarchists that he
did not commit suicide, but was murdered by the jail officials, who gave
him a loaded cigar to smoke. He died within a few hours. A short
time before his death a dynamite bomb was found in his cell. As
all persons who visited the Anarchists were thoroughly searched before
they were admitted to the jail, and as officers were present at every
interview, the way in which that bomb came to be in his cell has
always been an unsolved mystery. The manner in which it was found
was suspicious. Ling was awakened from his sleep in the early
morning, dragged hastily from his room, and confined in another cell.
The jail officials then produced a bomb, which they claimed was found
beneath his bed. Their word may be taken for what it was worth.
On the nth of November, 1887, Parsons, Spies, Fischer and Engel
were hung in the jail on the North Side of the city. They refused to

674 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
ask for pardon, and died heroically, sincerely believing themselves to be
the martyrs of a righteous cause. That their efforts were misguided,
futile and harmful, the judicious cannot doubt, but that they deserved
death, may well be questioned. Socialism was incalculably injured by
the agitation of the Anarchists, and the great question of the ameliora
tion of the laboring man's lot was in no way solved, either by their lives
or their deaths. They are remembered with execration by many, with
unchecked devotion by a few, and with sincere regret by the majority.
With the exception of Parsons, they were not Americans, and they
brought to this country the hatred of government which they had
acquired in Europe. Furthermore, the ruling political party of Chicago
was Irish, the police force was composed almost entirely of Irishmen,
and a bitterness of feeling existed between this race and the Germans
in the cosmopolitan city of the tragedy. The Anarchists were Germans.
Both the policemen and the Anarchists went to lengths, which were
prompted by race hatred. The affair was but in a very small degree
American, but the movement was not an unadulterated injury to
America, for it inspired her broader-minded people with a judicious pity
as well as a greater caution. Such men realized that the State should
not alone cure diseases, but should try to prevent them, and they
admitted to themselves that had these enthusiastic and impassioned men
been checked at the proper point, or guided into the right channels, they
might have been saved from themselves. That they were not altogether
bad is proven by the fact that a man of clear judgment like William
Dean Howells, one of the greatest of American writers, chooses to
publicly and respectfully observe the anniversary of their deaths.
FOR FURTHER READING.-
Fiction — R. Edwards' "Twice Defeated."
G. W. Curtis' "Trumps."
"The Bread Winners." Anon.
Mrs. Burnet's "Through One Administ^ation.,,
R. H. Newell's "Avery Glibun."
Bayard Taylor's "John Godfrey's Fortune."
R. B. Kimball's "Henry Powers, Banker."
R. B. Kimball's "Undercurrent of Wall Street"
Pobthy— D. Bethune Duffield's "A Dirge."
N. P. Willis' Poems.
George Arnold's Poems.
O. W. Holmes' Poems.
T. B. Aldrich's Poems.

¦".(»/.

GROVER CLEVELAND.

CHAPTER CV.
JmH-Saims Itfurro*

PRESIDENT CLEVELAND'S ADMINISTRATION — CIVIL SERVICE REFORM
AND PENSION BILLS — MANY NOTED UNION GENERALS PASS
AWAY — DEATH OF GENERAL GRANT — PROMI
NENT EVENTS OF FOUR YEARS
OF DEMOCRATIC POWER.

'^FTER twenty-four years of power, the Republican
y party was defeated in the election of 1884. James
^ G. Blaine, of Maine, was their candidate for
President, and John A. Logan, of Illinois, the
famous general, for Vice-President. The Demo
cratic nominees were Grover Cleveland, of New
York, and Thomas A. Hendricks, of Indiana. This
election was marked by a growing spirit of liberality.
Party lines disappeared to au extent, and there was a
desire among the more honest men of the nation to
get rid of what was known as machine politics, and
to vote for the man who seemed most worthy to ex
ercise power. President Cleveland was inaugurated
March 5, 1885, with Mr. Hendricks as Vice-President,
who, however, died November 28, 1885. After the
death of Vice-President Hendricks, a law was passed by Congress, pro
viding that in case of the death of both President and Vice-President,
the Secretary of State should be the successor to the presidency. A
law had been previously passed, known as the Civil Service Act, under
which the appointments to certain offices should thenceforth be made
by competitive examination. The object of this law was to do away
with the spoils system, to assure greater permanency, and to prevent
the selection of politicians in the place of reliable and educated
persons.

678 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
President Cleveland was born at Caldwell, New Jersey, March 18,
1837. Three years later he was taken to Fayetteville, near Syracuse,
New York, where his father, who was a Presbyterian minister, received
a salary of one thousand dollars. The boy, Grover Cleveland, was
given a common school education, and as soon as he was old enough,
became a clerk in a village store. In 1853, the father died at Holland
Patent, New York, and his son was thrown upon his own resources.
He went to New York City, and became a teacher of the blind in an
institution where his brother held a position. A year later he started
West, and meeting an uncle at Buffalo, settled there. He studied law,
and was admitted to the bar in 1859. *n I869 he was elected sheriff
of Erie County, and in 1881 he became mayor of Buffalo. In 1882 he
was elected Governor of New York by a sweeping majority, unparal
leled in the history of American elections. While he still held office,
in July, 1884, he was called by the Democratic National Convention to
be the standard-bearer in the presidential contest.
After the inauguration, President Cleveland's first duty was to
announce his Cabinet, and the day he took his oath of office he sent
the following nominations to the Senate: Secretary of State, Thomas
F. Bayard, of Delaware; Secretary of the Treasury, Daniel Manning,
of New York; Secretary of the Interior^ Lucius Q. C. Lamar, of
Mississippi; Secretary of War, William -C. Endicott, of Massachusetts;
Secretary of the Navy, William C. Whitney, of New York; Postmaster-
General, William F. Vilas, of Wisconsin; Attorney-General, Augustus
H. Garland, of Arkansas. Before the close of the Administration
there were several changes in the Cabinet, as it was first framed.
Charles F. Fairchild succeeded Daniel Manning as Secretary of the
Treasury, Mr. Manning having resigned on account of ill health.
Lucius Q. C. Lamar was appointed to the Supreme Bench, and William
F. Vilas became Secretary of the Interior, Don M. Dickinson taking
his place as Postmaster-General.
The most difficult question that confronted President Cleveland
was the distribution of official patronage. It had long been the custom
of the Government to give all appointive offices to its own partisans.
This usage, well established since the time of President Jackson, was
the origin and cause of much abuse of office in the various departments
of the Government. Extreme party men maintained the principle,
' 'To the victors belong the spoils. ' ' The best politicians advocated
civil-service reform, and w,orked against the old practice of appointing
men for party service, and not for personal ability. In the evenly con-

CIVIL-SERVICE REFORM. 679
tested elections of 1880 and 1884, it became necessary for both parties to
conciliate civil-service reformers. It was they who threw their influence
for Cleveland in the hotly contested election, and he went into office
pledged to carry out the views of those who, trusting the sincerity of
his belief in civil-service reform, had raised him to power. No Chief
Magistrate ever had more confusing questions to decide, or a more
difficult work to take up. In his perplexing position, President
Cleveland showed rare judgment. His sturdy strength of character
and natural independence of spirit carried him through many a trying
ordeal, and his most bitter political opponents could not impugn his
honesty, integrity and common sense.
During President Cleveland's administration it was rather strange
that there should be a revival of interest in regard to the civil war,
which did not tend to allay sectional feeling between the North and
the South. Many of the leading participants in the war contributed
personal reminiscences of the battles in which they fought, and
although such authentic accounts of the great civil struggle are invalu
able from an historical standpoint, they naturally recalled painful
memories and delayed a perfect amalgamation between former opponents.
In 1875, General William T. Sherman had published a book contain
ing his memories of the war, and Alexander H. Stevens, late Vice-
President of the Confederacy, had told the story from the other side in
a volume called "War Between the States." In 1884 General Grant
published a series of articles in the Century Magazine, and the
wide interest they awakened induced him to prepare his now famous
"Memoirs." During President Cleveland's administration many pension bills
were brought before Congress. These bills occasioned bitter contro
versies and helped to foster sectional prejudices. The President had the
courage to veto the bills that he considered unworthy or tending
toward an extravagant or unnecessary expenditure of the public funds.
But while he vetoed many pension claims, he also signed a great number.
In 1884, when he entered office, there were thirty-four thousand one
hundred and ninety- two pension claims allowed, and in 1888 the num
ber had been nearly doubled, over sixty thousand names appearing on the
pension list. Notwithstanding these figures, the fact that President
Cleveland vetoed various pension bills that had passed Congress, caused
the Grand Army men to look with disfavor upon his re-election, and
their influence was one of the causes of his defeat in the campaign of
1888.

68o

THE STORY OF AMERICA.

While volumes were being written about the war, many of its heroes
passed away. In a single year, several Union generals died. At the
beginning of the summer of 1885, the public announcement that
General Grant was stricken with a fatal malady saddened the entire
nation. For many months the hero of Vicksburg and Appomattox
battled bravely with disease until, on the 23d of July, he sank peacefully
to rest at the summer cottage on Mt. McGregor. The brave old man,
after traveling around the world and being entertained by half the kings
of earth, died in comparative poverty, and, what was worse, with a cloud
hanging over his name. This, however, was cleared away, and the
American people honored and loved him at the end as a man true and
faithful, whose only crime was that he believed others to be as honest
as himself and trusted too honestly and completely. That he might not
leave his wife in poverty, he worked constantly upon his memoirs
through the long, dreadful months when he was suffering intense agony
from the cancer in his throat which eventually caused his death. His
last days were cheered by the restored confidence of his countrymen.
He died, in the consciousness that his book would insure a life-long
competence to his family and that his name would be preserved with
those of Washington and Lincoln. His funeral ceremonies were the
most solemn and impressive ever witnessed in the United States, and,
on April 8th, the body of the greatest American soldier was interred, with
great military pomp, at Riverside Park, near New York City.
Less than three months later, General George B. McClellan died.
General McClellan was the first commander of the Army of the Potomac
and at one time general-in-chief of the army. He was subsequently
Democratic candidate for President, and later Governor of New York.
General Winfield S. Hancock, senior Major-General of the United
States Army, was the next to be called away. In 1880, he was the
Democratic candidate for President, and was defeated by President
Garfield. Before the close of 1886, another Union commander died. Late in
December, Major-General John A. Logan, United States Senator from
Illinois, became ill at his home, Calumet Place, in Washington City.
He had long been a sufferer from rheumatism, brought 011 by exposure
in the early campaigns of the war. Few men did more than General
Logan to strengthen the Union sentiment in the wavering border States.
Without military training, he rose rapidly in the army and became the
great volunteer general of the war. When the rebellion broke out, he
resigned his seat in Congress and joined the Union army. In 1884,

CIVIL-SERVICE REFORM. 68l
after being defeated in his candidacy for Vice-President upon the
Republican ticket, he resumed his duties in the United States Senate.
Mrs. Logan, a woman of rare intellectual power, was always a wise
counselor and a noble companion to her illustrious husband, and she will
always occupy a high place in the regard of the American people.
On November 25, 1885, Thomas A. Hendricks, the Vice-President,
was stricken with paralysis and died suddenly at Indianapolis. He was
buried at the beautiful Crown Hill Cemetery, near that city.
A little later, two other distinguished Democratic leaders joined
"the great majority." On February 12, 1886, Horatio Seymour died
at his home in Utica, New York. He had reached the ripe age of
seventy-six, and his long life had been one of great activity. In 1868,
he was the Democratic candidate for President against General Grant.
Samuel J. Tilden, the most distinguished man in Democratic politics,
died at his home, called Greystone, near Yonkers, New York, August 4,
1886. He was born February 14, 1814, and, although in his seventy-
third year at the time of his death, his intellectual force was unabated
and his faculties unimpaired. He faithfully served his party for more
than forty years and held many places of public trust. In 1876, he
was nominated for President and polled a majority of the popular votes,
although he failed to receive a majority from the Electoral College.
After his candidacy for President, Mr. Tilden retired from public life,
but he continued to be a guiding spirit in his party until his death.
In April, 1884, Cincinnati was the scene of terrible riots, which
grew out of distrust of the courts. A murderer was not, according to
the judgment of the people, dealt with severely enough, and the "laws'
delays" had become so frequent that the people protested. Their
protest took the form of a riot, the only results of which were disaster.
Many were killed by the militia, the court house was burned, many
thousand dollars' worth of public property was destroyed, the city
kept under first mob and then martial rule for several days — and all to
no end. August and September of 1886 saw the destruction of the beautiful
city of Charleston by earthquake. A series of shocks, extending over
/ three days, devastated the city. Hundreds of people were killed, and
those who escaped death were rendered homeless. Like Chicago,
however, the city rapidly rose out of its ruins.
The summer of 1888 saw a return of the epidemic of yellow fever in
the South. Thousands of people died, but the percentage of death was
not so great among those attacked by the disease as it had formerly

682 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
been. The relief of the sufferers, both in the Charleston catastrophe
and in the plague-stricken portions of the South, was prompt and cordial,
and came from all parts of the United States. The generosity of the
North upon these occasions did much to dissipate the bitterness between
the sections.
In March, 1887, the country sustained a great loss in the death of
Henry Ward Beecher, the orator, writer and philanthropist. He was
taken away from a life that was still busy, notwithstanding increasing
years and constantly widening fields of labor. No man did more than
he to broaden popular ideas and teach liberality of thought. His work
as a moral reformer and political instructor was even more prominent
than as a. preacher and theological thinker. Living in a critical period
of American history, he threw himself into the anti-slavery conflict and
took first rank on a platform that abounded with orators. No subject
ever evoked more brilliant and forcible oratory than the slavery question,
and no single voice did more than Mr. Beecher's to arouse the North
against the encroachments of slave power. Against every compromise
measure, he protested in language that was most eloquent and indig
nant, yet in his indignation he never lost his moral composure and self-
restraint. By far the most remarkable of his political addresses were
those delivered by him in Great Britain in 1863. He spoke in
Manchester, Glasgow, Liverpool and London, and each address was
prepared with special reference to the audience that would hear it The
greatest danger to the national cause in our civil war was from the
intervention of European powers. England was especially feared. To
these four addresses, more than any other one cause, America is indebted
for the subsequent sympathy of the common people of England. Mr.
Beecher took an active part in several presidential campaigns. At the
time of President Lincoln's second candidacy, he made a series of
brilliant political speeches, and he exerted a powerful influence in secur
ing the election of President Cleveland. Born in Litchfield, Connecticut,
June 24, 1813, Henry Ward Beecher's early education was of the
severe New England type. He graduated from Amherst, in 1834.
In 1837, ne began his ministry in the small town of Lawrenceburg,
Indiana. In 1839, he took charge of the Presbyterian Church at
Indianapolis, and in 1847 accepted a call to the Plymouth Congrega
tional Church, of Brooklyn, New York. It was with Plymouth Church
that his name was henceforth inseparably connected, and during his
ministry of forty years in its pulpit was a powerful molder of public
opinion. While laboring with exceptional vigor in completing his

CIVIL-SERVICE REFORM. 683
long-delayed "Life of Christ," which he purposed to follow with an
autobiography, Mr. Beecher was suddenly stricken with apoplexy, and
after lingering for a few days in an unconscious condition, passed away
on the morning of March 8th. His death produced wide-spread sorrow
throughout the American nation. In pulpits representing every school
of thought, sermons on his career and character were preached, and in
all sorts of organizations, religious and secular, resolutions to his
memory were passed.
One of the most noted pieces of legislation during President Cleve
land's administration was the Inter-State Commerce Law. The bill was
introduced before the Forty-ninth Congress and attracted much atten
tion, as it was intended to benefit the public by reducing railway fares
and freight charges. After a long fight in Congress, during which time
the bill was several times altered, it finally became a law. The bill
provided for uniform freight and passenger rates upon all railroads
throughout the United States.
President Cleveland had the satisfaction of knowing that four great
States were admitted to the Union immediately preceding the close of
his administration. This was an unusual number to be added under
one President. These States were North and South Dakota, Montana
and Washington. Dakota was entitled to admission some time before,
but unworthy political ( motives prevented it from claiming its right
place as a State.
President Cleveland's administration was notable from a social point
of view. The inauguration of a Democratic President for the first time
in a quarter of a century naturally created great enthusiasm. The
ceremonies were impressive, and the event was celebrated with much
pomp, although the man who assumed the Chief Magistrate's chair was
one of the most unostentatious of men.
President Cleveland being unmarried, his youngest sister, Miss
Rose Elizabeth Cleveland, became the hostess of the White House. A
woman of progressive ideas, /intellectual and thoughtful, she immedi
ately made a pleasant impression upon the public. When her father
died, she was a child eleven years old, and the care of her education
devolved upon her mother. She was naturally studious, and early gave
evidence of a strong and original mind. After graduating from a
prominent seminary she returned to it as a teacher. Later, she became
principal of the Collegiate Institute, at Lafayette, Indiana. Her health
becoming impaired, she withdrew from active school work and became

684 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
a lecturer upon historical subjects in several large seminaries. She
made her home at Holland Patent, New York, and at the death of her
mother she continued to live at the old home until she was summoned
away from her books to do the honors of the White House, where she
presided with tact and dignity until the marriage of her brother. Miss
Cleveland had become known as a writer of essays and literary criti
cisms, and while residing at the White House she found time to publish
a book which met with great success.
In May, 1886, the approaching marriage of the President was
announced, and the prospect of a wedding at the White House piqued
the public interest. The bride-elect, Miss Frances Folsom, had been
in Europe for some time and she was almost unknown in Washington,
where she was soon to be the center of official social life. She was
born in Buffalo, New York, and was the only daughter of Oscar Fol
som, a prominent lawyer of that city. In 1870, Mr. Folsom became a
partner of Mr. Cleveland in the practice of law, and a strong friendship
sprang up between the two lawyers. Death soon severed this friend
ship, however, for in July, 1875, Mr. Folsom was thrown from a car
riage and killed. Mrs. Folsom immediately gave up her home in Buf
falo and removed to Medina, where she devoted herself to the education
of her daughter, who was later sent to Wells College, Aurora. At
school and college, the future wife of the highest official in the land
was distinguished for her studious habits and bright mind, and she
graduated from Wells College with high honors. Mr. Cleveland never
lost sight of his partner's wife and daughter, and, during her school
days, the young girl received many tokens of his friendly regard.
On the «evening of June 2, 1886, President Cleveland and Miss
Frances Folsom were married. The ceremony was performed in the
Blue Room of the White House, the Reverend Byron Sunderland, D.D.,
officiating, assisted by the Reverend William Cleveland. As the mar
riage ceremony was performed, a salute of cannon was fired from the navy
yard, and all the bells of the city churches rang greetings. On June
15th, the President and Mrs. Cleveland held an official reception, and
the winsome manners of the new lady of the White House won every
heart. Three days later another reception was held at which not less
than ten thousand people crowded to meet Mrs. Cleveland, who wore
her bridal gown and had the Blue Room decorated with flowers, just as
it had been on the evening of the wedding.
Although only twenty-two years old and but a short time out of
school when she became the first lady of the land, Mrs. Cleveland main-

CIVIL-SERVICE REFORM. 685
tained the dignity of her exalted position with such tact and discretion
that no word of criticism was ever passed upon her. Beautiful, gentle
and kind, she endeared herself to the people. Highly accomplished,
unaffected in manner and fascinating in address, she was everywhere
loved and honored. In 1887, the President and Mrs. Cleveland made a
tour through the country, going as far north as St. Paul, Minnesota,
and as far south as Montgomery, Alabama. They were welcomed
everywhere with great enthusiasm, the cities vieing with one another in
the preparations for their entertainment.
In the National Democratic Convention of 1888, President Cleve
land was unanimously renominated, but he was defeated in the election
by the Republican candidate, General Benjamin F. Harrison, of Indiana.
The reasons for Republican success have been studied with much curi
osity, and statesmen have had cause to remember the prophecy of
General John A. Logan. He said that the election of 1888 would
result in Republican triumph, for the reason that the children born
after the close of the War of Secession would become of age and that
they would be Republicans by heredity.
After the inauguration of President Harrison, Mr. Cleveland resumed
the practice of law, associating himself with a prominent firm in New
York City. As President of the United States, he left an honorable
record. He was an indefatigable worker, spending many hours every
day at his desk. His administration was noted for the business-like
methods that he employed. An ardent advocate of tariff reform, he
devoted much space in his annual messages to the subject
FOR FURTHER READING:
Fiction — E- Eggleston's "The Hoosier Schoolmaster."
E. Eggleston's "The Circuit Rider."
E. Eggleston's "Roxy."
F. Wmthrop's "John Brent."
J. W. ^eForrest's "Overland."
Rattlenead's "Arkansas Doctor."
Bret Harte's "Luck of Roaring Camp."
Bayard Taylor's "Hannah Thurston."
Mrs. H. W. Bucher's "From Dawn to Daylight."
Huntington's "Alban."
F. W. Shelton's "The Rector of St. Bardolph's."
L. M. Childs' "A Romance of the Republic."
Mark Twain's "The Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County."
C. E. Whitehead's "Wild Sports in the South.*
Poetry— Lowell's Poems.
Bayard Taylor's Poems.
Bret Harte's Poems.

CHAPTER CVI.

]Fmtfetd If arramt $ ^nrntguntfimt
THE MEMBERS OF THE CABINET AND THE FOREIGN MINISTERS' — THE
CELEBRATION OF THE CENTENNIAL ANNIVERSARY OF
WASHINGTON'S INAUGURATION — THE OPEN
ING OF OKLAHOMA TERRITORY—
y^ THE SAMOAN DISASTER.

National Republican Convention, which nomi
nated President Harrison, met in the great
Auditorium building at Chicago, Juue 19, 1888.
Its proceedings were watched with wide-spread in
terest, as there were many candidates for nomina
tion, and the delegates representing them were the
most illustrious men of the nation. After several days of
deliberation, Benjamin Harrison was unanimously nomi
nated on the eighth ballot. During the campaign which
followed, there was less party bitterness than formerly,
and the contest was not so personal as in previous times
of political excitement. The tariff question was the
principal issue. Protection and free trade were to de
cide the vote of the people. During his administration,
President Cleveland had been tmtspoken in his free-trade
principles, and the Democratic platform advocated a reduction of the
tariff, while the Republicans clung to their belief in the efficiency of
protection. Among the Republicans there were many veterans who
had voted for Benjamin Harrison's grandfather. "Tippecanoe" clubs
were formed and the log cabin appeared upon campaign banners. In
the political processions many aged men marched and shouted for the
descendant of their former candidate.
On March 4, 1889, President Harrison and Vice-President Morton
were given the oath of office. The city of Washington was gayly
decorated, and thousands of people assembled to witness the inaugura
tion ceremonies. President Harrison delivered his inaugural address from

BENJAMIN HARRISON.

PRESIDENT HARRISON'S INAUGURATION. 689
the portico of the Capitol, where Chief Justice Fuller had administered
the oath of office. The day was unfortunately rainy and unpleasant;
but the crowd, which was one of the largest ever gathered in Washing
ton, listened with respectful attention. The inaugural address of
President Harrison was a modest, thoughtful, well-written and dignified
document. It was characterized by a patriotic sentiment of Unionism.
It was of moderate length, and afforded ample opportunity to touch upon
the questions of conspicuous national importance. The introduction of
the message was suggested naturally by the political sentiments asso
ciated with the centennial of the nation's existence, for it was just one
hundred years after the framing of the Constitution of the United
States. The protective system was touched upon. President Harrison
indorsed protection, and looked hopefully to its continuance. In the
course of the address, the subject of monopolies was mentioned.
President Harrison uttered a warning against corporations violating the
rights of the people. He suggested an amendment to the naturaliza
tion laws — an amendment that would insure a closer scrutiny of the
characters of those who come here, and which would exclude those who
are likely to become a burden upon public charity. He outlined a
firm and dignified policy.
A great ball, at which twelve thousand people were present, was given
in the immense Pension building on the evening of the inauguration day.
The preparations for the ball were elaborate, and the presidential party
met with an enthusiastic welcome
Benjamin Harrison, the twenty-third President of the United States,
was born at North Bend, Hamilton county, Ohio, August 20, 1833.
He studied at home until 1841, when he was sent to Farmer's College,
near Cincinnati. His boyhood was not unlike that of other boys reared
upon a farm, and was quite uneventful. At fifteen, he entered Miami
University, at Oxford, Ohio, and was graduated from that institution,
three years later. While at college, he became engaged to Miss Caroline
W. Scott, a daughter of Dr. John Scott, who was principal of an
academy for young ladies. After leaving college, he immediately
studied law, and before he had quite finished his legal course he was
married, on the 25th of October, 1853. In March, 1854, he settled in
Indianapolis, and there began a brave struggle with the world. Mr.
Harrison was not burdened with riches, and he and his young wife
began life in the simplest manner. At first, business was slow in coming,
and when appointed crier of the Federal Court, the young lawyer gladly
accepted the humble office with its slight renumeration of two dollars

690 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
and a half a day. In i860, he was a candidate before the Republican
convention for Reporter of the Supreme Court of the State, and
obtained the office to which he was afterward repeatedly re-elected.
When the rumors of civil war reached him, Mr. Harrison was
anxious to be one of the first volunteers. Remembering his wife and
young children, he hesitated. President Lincoln having issued a procla
mation calling for troops, the Governor of Indiana found difficulty in
filling the quota due from his State. The grandson of General William
Henry Harrison could hesitate no longer. He immediately raised a
regiment. While it was drilling, he was commissioned second lieuten
ant. When the regiment joined the army, its second lieutenant became
the colonel of the Seventieth Regiment of Indiana Volunteers. Colonel
Harrison proved to be a brave-soldier, and when he was discharged from
the army in June, 1865, he had risen to the rank of brigadier-general.
He was the hero of Peach Tree Creek, and was brevetted for his gallant
acts upon the field.
In 1876 many influential Republicans in the State insisted that Gen
eral Harrison should allow his name to be placed on the ticket for
Governor. He declined the honor, but was nevertheless nominated.
The result of the election was unfavorable to him, although he ran
ahead of his ticket and was defeated by a small majority. Two years
later he was called upon to preside over the State Convention, and in
1880 he was chairman of the Indiana delegation at the National Con
vention. In 1884, he again represented his State at the National
Convention which met in Chicago.
He was elected to the United States Senate in 1880, and served
until 1886, when he resumed the practice of law in Indianapolis. As
a lawyer, General Harrison had many natural gifts. He was quick of
apprehension and broad of judgment. He was naturally analytical and
logical, a patient student and a deep thinker. In private life, he was
much esteemed by all who knew him. Modest and unassuming in
manner, he still showed marked individuality and strong character. As
a genial friend, a good citizen and a brilliant lawyer, he was highly
honored in his native State, and his record in the United States Senate
gave him a national reputation for unswerving loyalty to the interests
of the people whom he represented.
Levi P. Morton, the Vice-President, was born at Sherman, Ver
mont, May 10, 1824. When very young he entered mercantile life,
and soon became a partner in the Boston firm with which he was
engaged. He removed to New York, four years later, continuing as

PRESIDENT HARRISON'S INAUGURATION. 691
a merchant until 1863, when he founded the banking house of Morton,
Bliss & Co. At the same time he established a branch in London
under the firm name of Morton, Rose & Co. , and this firm acted as the
financial agents of the United States Government from 1873 to 1884.
In 1878, Mr. Morton was appointed Honorary Commissioner to the
Paris Exposition, and the same year was elected to Congress, where he
served for two terms. President Garfield tendered him the office of
Secretary of the Navy, which he declined, preferring to acccept the
appointment of Minister to France. After the expiration of his term
as foreign minister, Mr. Morton held no public office until elected Vice-
President of the United States.
On March 5th, the day after the inauguration, President Harrison
sent the names of his Cabinet to the Senate for confirmation. They
were: For Secretary of State, James G. Blaine, of Maine; Secretary
of the Treasury, William Windom, of Minnesota; Secretary of War,
Redfield Proctor, of Vermont; Secretary of the Navy, Benjamin F. Tracy,
of New York; Secretary of the Interior, John W. Noble, of Missouri;
Secretary of Agriculture, Jeremiah Rusk, of Wisconsin; Postmaster-
General, John Wanamaker, of Pennsylvania; Attorney-General, William
Henry Harrison Miller, of Indiana.
The nominees were promptly confirmed by the Senate, as there could
be no objection to any of them on the ground of incompetency or per
sonal unfitness. The new Cabinet was regarded by the country
most favorably. While it contained several men who had no record in
public life, it had no member who had not had large experience of
either a political or business nature.
James Gillespie Blaine, Secretary of State, was born January 31,
1830, in Washington County, Pennsylvania. In 1847 ne graduated at
Washington College. He taught school for two years at Georgetown,
Kentucky, in the meantime studying law. He was admitted to the bar
in Pennsylvania, but never practiced. In 1853 he located in Maine,
and assumed the editorship and control of the Kennebec Journal. Upon
the organization of the Republican party, he took an active part in
politics, and soon became the acknowledged leader of the Republican
party in his State. In 1858, he was elected to the legislature, where he
served four years, the last two as Speaker of the House. In 1862, he was
elected to Congress, and at once assumed the lead in national politics.
In 1869,' he was chosen Speaker of the House, which office he held until
the Democrats assumed control of Congress in 1876. In the same year, he
was one of the principal candidates for the presidential nomination, but

692 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
was beaten, his opponents uniting on Governor Hayes, of Ohio. In
July, 1876, he was appointed Senator from Maine by the Governor of
the State. In 1880, he was again a prominent candidate for the presi
dential nomination, but General Garfield was finally selected as a com
promise candidate. In 1884, he was nominated for the presidency, but
was defeated by President Cleveland. No man in the country ever had
more loyal political adherents than James G. Blaine, and in the conven
tion of 1888 his name was again mentioned for nomination. Several
delegations at first refused to consider any other name but his. Mr.
Blaine was traveling in Europe at the time, and when he became aware
of the indecision of the convention he had his name withdrawn, and
President Harrison was nominated.
William Windom, Secretary of the Treasury, was born in Ohio, in
1827. He practiced law for several years in his native State, and in
1855 he removed to Minnesota. During the ten years from 1858 to
1868, he was a member of the House of Representatives at Washing
ton. He was appointed United States Senator to fill a vacancy iii
1870, and the following year was elected for a full term. In 1876, he
was re-elected; and was Senator when President Garfield appointed him
Secretary of the Treasury in 1881. He served but a short time, when
President Garfield was killed. In 1883, he was a candidate for re-elec
tion to the Senate, but was defeated.
Redfield Proctor, of Vermont, Secretary of War, was born in 1831.
In early life he began the study of law, but closed his books to go to
the war. His first service was as quartermaster of the Third Regiment
of Vermont. He subsequently was made major of the Fifth Vermont,
and finally colonel of the Fifteenth. His health became impaired, and
after serving at Gettysburg, where his regiment acted as train guard,
he returned home and engaged in farming. He turned his attention to
politics in a small way, serving several times in the State Legislature.
In 1878, he was nominated for Governor and elected. From the time
of his retirement from that office, he maintained an active interest in
political affairs, and has been regarded as one of the party leaders of
the State.
John W. Noble, Secretary of the Interior, was born at Lancaster,
Ohio, in 1830. His father, John Noble, was a colonel of the United
States army in the War of 181 2. Secretary Noble was sent to college
at Oxford, Ohio, and there formed the acquaintance of President Har
rison, who was a student at the same time. From Oxford he was sent
to Yale, where he graduated with high honors; he afterwards studied

PRESIDENT HARRISON'S INAUGURATION. 693
law and practiced for two years.* In 1856, he removed to St. Louis.
He opened a law office there, but the following year remoyed to Keokuk,
Iowa, where he practiced law until the war broke out. He enlisted in
the Third Iowa Cavalry, and was advanced step by step to the rank of
major. He then went on staff duty, but in a short time returned to
his regiment in the field. He remained in active duty until the close
of the war. After the war, Major Noble opened a law office in St.
Louis. Soon after beginning the practice of law, he was appointed
United States District Attorney for the Eastern District of Missouri.
In 1870 he resigned that office and practiced law in St. Louis until his
appointment as Secretary of the Interior.
Benjamin Franklin Tracy, Secretary of the Navy, was born in
Tioga county, New York. His early life was passed on a farm. He
studied law, and in 1851 was admitted to the bar. Three years later
he became District Attorney of Tioga county. He was afterwards
elected to the New York Assembly. In 1862, Governor Morgan re
quested Mr. Tracy to raise a regiment for the counties of Broome,
Tompkins and Tioga. He raised two regiments and was given com
mand of one. When he resigned at the close of the war, he had
attained the rank of brigadier-general. In 1866, he received the
appointment of United States District Attorney for the Eastern District
of New York, and held the position until 1873, when he resigned.
John Wanamaker, the Postmaster-General, was born in Philadel
phia, July 11, 1837. His father was of German parentage and his
mother a descendant of the Huguenots. His parents were poor, and at
the age of fourteen he went to work in a clothing store, where he earned
a dollar and a half a week. In five years he was head salesman of the
house. In 1 861, he went into partnership with his brother-in-law,
Nathan Brown, and soon built up an enormous business. He has
always been prominent in religious affairs. His history is commercial,
not political. He took no active part in politics previous to the recent
campaign. He was a member of the Centennial Commission, and was
chiefly instrumental in raising the first million dollars for the project.
•He was repeatedly solicited to run for Congress and Mayor of Phila
delphia, but always refused.
William Henry Harrison Miller, the Attorney-General, was a former
law partner of President Harrison. He was born in Oneida county,
New York. His father was a Whig, and an ardent admirer of Presi
dent Harrison's grandfather. After being graduated from Hamilton
College, New York, Mr. Miller studied law under the instruction of

694 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
Judge Waite, of Toledo, Ohio, afterwards Chief Justice of the Supreme
Court. He began the practice of law in Fort Wayne, Indiana, where
he remained eight years. In 1874 he received an offer of partnership
with General Harrison, and accepted it.
Jeremiah M. Rusk, Secretary of Agriculture, was born in Morgan
county, Ohio, in 1830. He spent the early years of his youth in the
country, and in 1852 settled on a farm in Wisconsin. In 1861, he was
elected to the State Legislature. In 1862 he entered the army. He
had been prominent in securing the enlistment of troops, and as a con
sequence was elected major of the Twenty-fifth Wisconsin Regiment.
He served during the Indian outbreak in Minnesota, and also during the
siege and capture of Vicksburg. He was with General Sherman on
the famous march to the sea, being brevetted brigadier-general for
gallantry at the battle of Talkehatchie. In 1865 he was elected to the
office of Bank Comptroller, and held that position until the office was
abolished by an amendment to the constitution. He was elected to
Congress in 1870, 1872 and 1874. At the close of his last term, he
retired to his farm until 1888, when he was elected Governor of the
State of Wisconsin. The Department of Agriculture was formerly
under the supervision of the Secretary of the Interior, and Jeremiah
Rusk was the first Secretary appointed to the new portfolio.
The members of the Cabinet who had been most conspicuous in
the public offices they had held were Secretaries Blaine, Windom and
Rusk. In his appointment of United States representatives to foreign
countries, President Harrison showed great sagacity. The sons of two
former presidents were honored.
On March 27th, President Harrison sent to the Senate the name of
Robert T. Lincoln, of Illinois, son of President Abraham Lincoln, to
be Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary of the United
States to Great Britain, and the appointment was immediately con
firmed. Robert Lincoln was born in Springfield, August 1, 1843. He
was the eldest son of President Lincoln. About a year after his birth,
his parents moved to Springfield, which continued to be their home
until Abraham Lincoln went to Washington as President. Robert
Lincoln received his elementary education at the public schools and
State University. He was prepared for an' extended college course in
Phillips Exeter Academy, and was graduated at Harvard in 1864. He
then entered the Harvard Law School, and after a short time applied for
admission to the army, and was regularly commissioned as a captain.

INAUGURATION OF PRESIDENT HARRISON. 695
He served with honor through several engagements, and witnessed Lee's
surrender at Appomattox. At the close of the war he took up the study
of law, was admitted to the Chicago bar, and soon became very
successful in the practice of his profession. In 188 1, President Garfield
chose him to be his Secretary of War. Sixteen years before Robert
Lincoln had reached Washington from the battle field in time to stand
by the death-bed of his father, assassinated while President, and he had
the sad experience of being in Washington at the time of the shooting
of President Garfield, a few months after his inauguration. Upon
the accession of Vice-President Arthur to the presidential chair, Mr.
Lincoln was the only member of the former Cabinet requested to
retain his portfolio. He remained Secretary of War until the close of the
administration. Frederick D. Grant was sent as Minister to Austria-Hungary. He
was the oldest son of General Grant, and was born in 1850. He
accompanied his father during the war, and was in five battles before he
was thirteen years old. He entered the National Military Academy at
West Point in 1867, and was graduated from that institution in 1871.
He served as lieutenant-colonel upon General Sheridan's staff. In
1876, Colonel Grant resigned from the army. He accompanied his
father upon his trip around the world and assisted in the preparation of
the "Memoirs."
Whitelaw Reid, of New York, was appointed Minister to France.
He was born in Xenia, Ohio, in 1837. When nineteen years old he
was graduated from Miami University. He taught school a year, and
in 1857, when only twenty years old, bought the Xenia News. Two
years later he was a correspondent at Columbus for ceveral papers, and
became famous as a war correspondent for the Cincinnati Gazette in
1861 and 1862, for which paper he wrote over the signature of "Agate. "
Afterward he became associate editor of the Gazette, then Librarian of
the House of Representatives, and in 1865 took charge of the New York
Tribune Bureau in Washington. In 1870, Mr. Reid became attached
to the New York Tribune, and when Horace Greeley was nominated
for the presidency he became managing editor. He remained in that
position until the time of his appointment. He has edited several
works, "After the War," "The Southern Tour" and "Ohio in the
War." Allen Thorndike Rice, of New York, was sent as Minister to St
Petersburg. Though only thirty-six years old at the time, he had a
wide reputation as a writer and editor. He was born in Boston. At

696 ' THE STORY OF AMERICA.
the age of nine, he was taken abroad, and for five years lived in
Europe. In 1867 he returned to the United States and remained until
1 87 1, when he went to England and was graduated at Oxford in 1875.
On his return to this country he entered the Columbia Law School. In
1876 he bought the North American Review and became its editor. He
is noted as having organized, in 1879, and subsequently directed, an
expedition which was despatched under the joint, auspices of the United
States and France to systematically investigate the remains of ancient
civilization in Central America and New Mexico. In 1884 he bought
a controlling interest in the Le Matin, one of the, leading papers of
Paris, which he successfully managed. He always took an active
interest in politics, and in 1886 received the Republican nomination for
Congress, but was defeated. He edited reminiscences of Abraham
Lincoln and contributed valuable material to literature concerning the
ancient cities of the New World.
John A. Enander, of Illinois, was appointed Minister and Council
lor-General of the United States to Denmark. He was born in Sweden,
and was the son of a farmer. In 1869, he came to America, entering
the College of Augustana. He soon became editor of a Swedish news
paper printed in Chicago, and afterwards assumed the charge of several
Scandinavian periodicals. He became an American in all the word
implies, a broad and liberal-minded citizen, exercising a good influence
upon all his countrymen in the United States.
Albert G. Porter was made Minister to Italy. He was born in
Lawrenceville, Indiana. During the war he served in Congress for
three terms. He declined re-election, and devoted himself to the prac
tice of law in Indianapolis. In 1880 he was nominated for Governor
of Indiana, and carried the State by a large majority. Both President
Garfield and Arthur offered him places in their Cabinets, but he pre
ferred to remain in the State office to which he had been elected.
Thomas W. Palmer, of Michigan, was sent as Minister to Spain.
He was born in Detroit, and was educated at the University of Michi
gan. He was elected to the United States Senate and served with
great credit.
John D. Washburn, of Massachusetts, was appointed to represent
the United States in Switzerland. He was prominent in Massachusetts
politics, and served in both houses of the State Legislature.
John F. Swift, of California, was made Minister to Japan. As a
learned man and successful author, he was favorably known. Having
been a great traveler, he was well versed in diplomatic matters. In

PRESIDENT HARRISON'S INAUGURATION. 697
1886 he was the Republican candidate for Governor of California. He
framed the famous Anti-Chinese Bill, which, when presented to the
Senate, produced a protracted discussion.
One of the first events of President Harrison's Administration was
the opening of the Oklahoma Territory to settlers. The Oklahoma
Territory was part of the great Indian reservation in the Indian Ter
ritory. The lands could only be opened by the acceptance and consent
of the Indians, and this acceptance and consent had to be accompanied
by satisfactory proof that it had been obtained freely and in the man
ner and form required by the twelfth article of the treaty of 1876.
President Harrison having approved the deed by which the Indians
ceded to the United States all their right and title to the land held by
them in the Oklahoma tract, there was immediately a great stampede
of settlers toward the new Territory. The cession of land made by the
Creek and Seminole Indians embraced several million acres, between
the Indian river on the south and the Cherokee outlet on the north.
One hundred thousand dollars was appropriated by the Government
towards surveying this land to be opened for settlement. On March
23d, the President issued a proclamation declaring the land open to
settlers at noon on the 2 2d of April. During the month following
this proclamation there was a great rush westward, and the excitement
was intense.
For ten years there had been an effort on the part of a certain num
ber of settlers to have the territory opened. In 1879, one Captain
Payne attempted to take possession of some land on the reservation.
He met with strong opposition from the Government. Had Payne's
party been allowed to peaceably settle on the lands which he believed
to be public property, it is doubtful whether there would have been any
concerted movement toward Oklahoma. The opposition awakened wide
spread interest in the country, and the history of the "Oklahoma boomers"
lent a sort of fascinating glamour to the country. Captain Payne, the
head of the original party, had been an army scout and guide. He made
frequent excursions in the Indian country through the years imme
diately following the close of the war, and so became thoroughly
acquainted with it. Recognizing this as public land under the treaty
of 1 866, he, in 1879, organized a small colony for the purpose of effect
ing a settlement. In December, 1880, the colonists were followed by
United States troops. Payne was arrested and the colonies were dis
banded. Payne was tried and put under bonds not to enter the
territory; but he was not discouraged. He and his colonists, the "Okla-

698 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
homa boomers," subsequently made four well-organized expeditions
into the territory, laid out towns, located farms, built houses and plowed
fields. Each time Payne was turned out by the military and all his
improvements destroyed. His last expedition was made in 1884, in
which year he died. In the fall of 1884, the United States Court at
Topeka had decided that the lands were public property, and at the time
of his death Payne had another party organized. A determined pioneer
became the leader, and started with four hundred and fifty men, but they
were expelled. After this, more conservative settlers petitioned Con
gress, and through their intercessions the matter was formally considered.
The Goverment was just in the position that it took in protecting the
rights of the Indians, for neither the boomers nor the horde of specula
tors, who defied military rule, had any authority for pressing their
claims. The Oklahoma tract opened for settlement was but a very small part
of what is known as the Oklahoma region. It contains about as much
territory as Rhode Island and Delaware combined, and comprises about
thirteen thousand quarter sections of homestead claims.
On the evening before the day set for the entrance into the Okla
homa Territory, it is estimated that at least fifty thousand people were
anxiously waiting on the borders of the long-coveted region. Accord
ing to law, the land could be pre-empted by the first to stake claims,
and there was no precedence given to the original settlers who had
fought for permission to occupy the country. On the long looked for
22d of April the scenes in the Oklahoma country rivaled anything in
the previous history of the United States. The settlers entered in a
frenzy of excitement. Wagons and all other incumbrances were
abandoned, and the pioneers made all possible haste to procure claims.
In a single day every available piece of farming land was pre-empted,
and thousands of the settlers were unable to obtain any property.
Within twenty-four hours several towns sprang up, city officers were
elected, and the territory that had been a wilderness on the evening of
April 2 1 st was a well-populated country before another nightfall. Much
suffering was experienced by the settlers, many of whom had spent all
their money in reaching the much talked of country. Food and water
failed, and hundreds of disappointed pioneers were glad to return to
their former homes.
On March 15 and 16, 1889, the United States lost three men-of-war
in a hurricane. The vessels were lying in the harbor of Apia, in
Samoan waters. The Vandalia and Trenton were totally destroyed and

PRESIDENT HARRISON'S INAUGURATION. , 699
the Nipsic was driven ashore in a badly-damaged condition. A number
of lives were lost."
The celebration of the centennial anniversary of George Washing
ton's inauguration is one of the most important events in the recent
history of the United States. The day (April 30, 1889) was made a
legal holiday and was enthusiastically, observed throughout the land.
In every city commemorative exercises were held. Patriotic addresses
were delivered in the churches and schools, and men, womeu and chil
dren took equal interest in the great demonstration. The event which
was thus recalled by a united and rejoicing people was of double
importance. While the memory of the man, George Washington, was
thus honored, the installation of the first President as the head of a
new Government was but the outward sign of that more "perfect
Union' ' which the Constitution had been framed to establish. The day
was really the one hundredth birthday of a great and prosperous nation.
The annals of the past were full of wonderful occurrences, and the
people who stood on the dividing line between the first and second
centuries of constitutional government had cause for deepest thankful
ness. Behind them lay many wars and dangers out of which the
nation had issued in peace and safety. Before them stretched what
seemed an age of rapid development and undisturbed prosperity.
Although the centennial anniversary of Washington's inauguration
was a day universally celebrated East, West, North and South, the
principal demonstrations took place in New York City, which was the
seat of the Government in 1789. In arranging the ceremonies, in
which the Government officials took part, it was the desire to recall as
many incidents and imitate as many festivities of the past as was pos
sible under the altered condition of the times. On the night of April
28, 1889, President Harrison and a large party left Washington for
New York City, traveling the same route as that traversed by Washing
ton a century before. When Washington made his memorable journey
he started on April 16, driving in his coach, which was an imposing if
not a rapid vehicle. His progress was delayed by repeated ovations at
every point along the line.
At Philadelphia, twenty thousand people — an immense crowd for
the time — greeted him, and a gorgeous banquet was given in his honor
at the City Tavern. When he reached the bridge at Trenton, he passed
under a triumphal arch, and young girls, dressed in white and crowned
with garlands, strewed his way with flowers. President Harrison and
party did not stop until Elizabeth, New Jersey, was reached. It was at

7°° THE STORY OF AMERICA.
this little city that Washington was entertained by Elias Boudinot, a
member of the Continental Congress. The Governor of the State
received President Harrison, and, after a formal "breakfast," a pictur
esque procession was reviewed. One of the unique features of the pro
cession was a company of men, the descendants of the farmers who had
met Washington at Wheatsheaf. They were dressed in Continental
costume and carried old-time farming implements. On the road
between Elizabeth and Elizabethport there was a large arch, upon which
were stationed young girls dressed to represent the States of the Union.
After the fashion of the Trenton women in the time of Washington,
they showered flowers upon the passing President. At Elizabethport,
President Harrison was taken aboard a fine ship called the Dispatch.
From Elizabethport, Washington had embarked in a splendid red-cano
pied barge, specially built for the purpose; and, surrounded by small
boats full of men and women singing choruses of welcome, he had
slowly finished his journey to New York City. The spectacle that met
the eye of President Harrison as the Dispatch steamed toward New
York Bay was one that surpassed anything that was ever imagined by
men of a past generation. Four hundred vessels were drawn up in line.
Each was bright with bunting, the decorations being elaborate and
effective. The naval division formed a single column. The Chicago
carried the flag of the Secretary of the Navy, and the admiral's flag was
borne by the Boston. The other ships belonging to the navy were the
Atlanta, Yorktown, Juniata, Essex, Brooklyn, Jamestown and the old
Kearsarge. The revenue and yacht divisions formed a part of the
naval parade that was exceedingly brilliant. When the Dispatch
reached the Chicago, the entire fleet of steamers blew whistles and the
sound was deafening. The booming of cannon and music from a hun
dred bands added to the noise, while on land and shore thousands of
people cheered the approaching President.
As the Dispatch anchored opposite Wall street ferry, a barge,
manned by a crew belonging to the same society as the one which had
rowed Washington ashore, met President Harrison. The old banner of
the Marine Society, which had been carried before Washington, floated
from the boat, and its faded and yellow silk was a silent witness to the
flight of time. As the President landed on the wharf, the chimes of
old Trinity Church played the "Doxology."
New York City was magnificently decorated for the gala days of the
celebration. The streets were lined and festooned with the national
colors, and arches were erected across the principal streets. After the

PRESIDENT HARRISON'S INAUGURATION. 701
great naval parade, the President held a public reception, at the begin
ning of which he received the greetings of several hundred school
children, who carried baskets of flowers and scattered them in the path
way of the presidential party. In the evening, a grand centennial ball
was given at the Metropolitan Opera House. Its splendor was unparal
leled by any similar entertainment that had ever taken place in the
United States. The great opera house was transformed into a blooming
garden. Roses and orchids were used by the thousands, and rare flowers
were woven into many odd designs. More than six thousand people
were present at this ball.
On the morning of the 30th of April, the great day of the cele
bration, President Harrison attended services at St. Paul's Church, in
Broadway. He sat in the same pew that Washington had occupied on
the morning of his inauguration. In the congregation, on this occasion,
there was a notable" gathering of the most distinguished men of the
nation, and the day added historic interest to the church already
hallowed by many sacred memories of the past. From St. Paul's
Church, the President was escorted to the Sub-Treasury building, where
the literary exercises of the day were held. From a platform prepared
for the speakers, the addresses were made. The exercises of the day
opened with the appropriate words:
"Fellow-citizens: One hundred years ago, on this spot, George
Washington, as first President of the United States, took his oath of
office upon the Holy Bible. That sacred volume is here to-day, silently
attesting the basis upon which our nation was constructed and the
dependence of our people upon Almighty God. In the words, then,
of one of the founders of the Government, with hearts overflowing with
gratitude to our Sovereign Benefactor for granting to us existence, for
continuing it to the present period, and for accumulating on us bless
ings spiritual and temporal through life, may we with fervor beseech
Him so to continue them as best to promote His glory and our welfare. ' '
A poem, written for the occasion by John G. Whittier, the venerable
poet, was one of the important features of the literary programme. The
oration of the day was delivered by Mr. Chauncey M. Depew, and was
an eloquent effort.
After the literary exercises, there was a military parade that was one
of the most memorable pageants of recent times. It was many miles
in length, and was more than six hours in passing the reviewing stand.
The centennial celebration in New York City closed with a banquet
at the Metropolitan Opera House. The scene was scarcely less brilliant

702 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
than on the preceding night of the ball. Eight hundred guests were
present. The speakers of the evening were President Harrison,
ex-President Cleveland, ex-President Hayes, Chief Justice Fuller,
General Sherman, James Russell Lowell, Charles W. Eliot, president of
Harvard College, and Fitzhugh Lee, Governor of Virginia.

CHAPTER CVII.
ip §mi fntemlif*

BURSTING OF A RESERVOIR IN THE CONEMAUGH VALLEY, PENNSYL
VANIA — APPALLING RUSH OF WATER DOWN THE VALLEY —
DESTRUCTION OF JOHNSTOWN — THOUSANDS OF
LIVES LOST AND MILLIONS OF DOL
LARS' WORTH OF PROPERTY
DESTROYED.

(HE most awful calamity of the Nineteenth Century
occurred on the afternoon of May 31, 1889. On
that date, the city of Johnstown, in Western Penn
sylvania, was wiped out of existence by an irresisti
ble flood, and thousands of people, not only in
Johnstown, but in other towns in the Conemaugh
valley, in which the ill-fated city was located,
1 were drowned. Johnstown was a post borough of about
» 25, 000 inhabitants, and was the largest town in Cambria
¦ County, Pennsylvania. It was situated on the Conemaugh
v river, thirty-nine miles southwest of Altoona, and thirty
miles from the famous horseshoe curve of the Pennsylvania
Railroad, near Cresson. It was the eastern terminus of the
western division of the Pennsylvania Canal, and a large"
station on the Pennsylvania Railroad. It was picturesquely
situated among a ridge of mountains rich in bituminous coal, limestone
and fire clay, and was the seat of the Cambria iron works, which em
ployed 7,000 men in the manufacture of iron and steel rails. It had a
national and several savings banks, and a number of flour, planing and
rolling mills and tanneries. It supported two daily and four weekly
newspapers, sixteen churches, a convent and an academy.
The Conemaugh river, on which Johnstown was located, rises in
Cambria County, and runs through a mountainous country, forming
the boundary between Indiana and Westmoreland Counties. It unites
with the Loyal Harra Creek, at Saltsburg, Indiana County, and forms

704 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
the Kiskiminitas river, which runs northwestward, forming the
boundary between-Armstrong and Westmoreland Counties. The Kis
kiminitas enters the Alleghany river at Freeport The towns along
the Conemaugh, from Johnstown down, were Cambria, Sheridan,
Cooperstown, Sang Hollow, Conemaugh, Mineral Point, Nineveh, New
Florence, Lacotte, Lockport, Bolivar, Coke Valley, Snyder, Tunnelton,
Kelly's, White, and Saltsburg. Most of these were destroyed in the
great catastrophe.
The body of water that did the immense damage at Johnstown cov
ered 700 acres. It was two and a half miles long and about three-
fourths of a mile wide. It was an artificial lake, and lay between two
high hills, ten miles back of Johnstown. It was the old canal reservoir,
long since abandoned, and was purchased from the Pennsylvania Rail
road, in 1879, by the South Fork Hunting and Fishing Club. The
reservoir had been constructed by building a high retaining wall at the
lower end of the basin, and allowing the water from a number of small
streams to flow into the depression. The space between the hills soon
filled up, and the retaining wall, which was on the Johnstown side,
served as a dam. This South Fork Dam, as it was called, had stood for
so many years that people were confident that it was all right, and no
fears were entertained as to its safety. This sense of security was to be
rudely dispelled, and in a most tragic manner.
At about 4 o'clock on the afternoon of Friday, May 31, 1889, the
operator at South Fork telegraphed to Johnstown that the great South
Fork dam was about to burst. Then all telegraphic communication
ceased, as the wires went down immediately afterward. An hour later
there came a rush of water into Johnstown that was appalling. It
poured down Conemaugh creek in a great wall twenty-five feet high,
sweeping everything before it. The immense works of the Cambria
Iron Company, employing 7,000 men, the second largest works in the
country, was buried out of sight, with the exception of the roofs and
chimney tops, and the roofs and chimneys soon began to crumble and
disappear under the battering of the flood. Half the town seemed to
be lifted from its foundations and swept away at once. The wreckage
covered the water thicker than the houses had stood before. It was no
longer a flood of water; it was a town afloat.
Many had taken warning and fled to the higher grounds, but thou
sands of men, women and children were swept away, their heartrending
cries rising above the crash of the smashing houses. The mass of wreck,
water, dead bodies and drowning people rushed down into the mouth of

BURSTING OP THE RESERVOIR.

2. SAVED BY HER FAITHFUL HORSE.

HUNDREDS ROAS
THE JOE
JOHNSTOW

RAILROAD BRIDGE.
DISASTER.
1AY 31, 1889.

4. RECOVERING THE VICTIMS.

5, IDENTIFYING THE DEAD.

THE GREAT CALAMITY. 709
the gorge at the foot of the valley in which Johnstown stood, where the
hills came together like a pair of giant arms and choked the stream.
The stone railroad bridge which spanned the stream at that point stood
firm as the hills themselves. The result was an awful jam. The
wreck caught on the masonry. It thickened into a dam. It clung to
the bridge in the hollow of the hill. It gathered strength with every
piece of wreck, and everything that crushed into it was bound together
into a tangled wall, closing up half the outlet, around which the moun
tain waters hurled their flood. The water burst even the flood limits
which it had taken for its new banks, and poured a new river into a new
channel through the heart of the lower part of the city. The drift
piled up against the stone bridge and added its wreck to the heap, until
it formed a tangled mass from thirty to sixty feet thick, rising high above
the water and stretching back three-fourths of a mile along the curve
of the hill. This, later in the night, took fire, but it probably added
no pang to the hundreds of unfortunate people who were caught in it.
The water had left nothing for the fire to do. It could only destroy the
bodies; the victims' sufferings were over.
The first news of the terrible calamity to reach the outside world
came from Sang Hollow, a little town in the Conemaugh valley, down
the stream from Johnstown. The river rushing past Sang Hollow was
soon black with drift, and gave the first tidings of what had happened.
Houses, fragments of bridges, logs, dead bodies and many wrecks of all
kinds were heaving and darting together on the troubled water. Men,
women and children, sweeping by on pieces of wreck, filled the air with
unavailing cries for help. One hundred and nineteen living people
were counted going by before 8 o'clock, and the agonizing cries that
came up from the water gave evidence of the awful scenes the darkness
hid from sight. Very little help could be rendered. No boats could
live in such an awful torrent of rushing wreck.
Johnstown was utterly destroyed, only one or two buildings remain
ing standing. A dozen little towns in the valley were also completely
annihilated. Watchers with lanterns remained along the banks until
day-break, when the first view of the awful devastation of the flood was
witnessed. Along the banks lay the remnants of what had once been
dwelling-houses and stores. Here and there was an uprooted tree.
Piles of drift lay about, in some of which bodies of victims of the flood
were found. Rescuing parties were formed in all of the towns along the
railroad. Houses were thrown open to refugees, and every possible
means was used to protect the homeless. For two days there was

7IO THE STORY OF AMERICA.
absolutely no news from Johnstown, no more than if it had never
existed on the face of the earth.
The whole country at once took steps to relieve the necessities of
the distressed. The generosity of the world was never more sponta
neously or nobly displayed than it was in this calamity. Over $1,300,-
000 was raised for the benefit of the sufferers and to relieve the demands
of the needy. Pittsburgh alone raised $150,000 the day after the disaster
occurred. The loss of life was between 5,000 and 8,000, and because
only 2,500 bodies were recovered, the exact figures as to the number
lost will never be known. Over 20,000 people were rendered home
less, and $38,000,000 worth of property was destroyed.
Strange to say, the waters had hardly subsided before ghouls in
human form appeared upon the scene to rob the dead, and steal what
property they could. Some of these demons were hanged by mobs,
while others were shot. Such was the influx of the lawless into the
devastated territory that it was found necessary to call out the militia,
and several regiments, under General Hastings, preserved order in the
vicinity for many weeks.
The first shock over, the feeling of sorrow among the people at
large gave way to a demand for justice and for a thorough investigation
into the cause of the disaster, that the blame for it might be placed
where it belonged. A coroner's jury was impaneled, and after viewing
700 dead bodies at Johnstown, it proceeded to take testimony, and was
over a month at the work. It had been definitely decided that all of
the trouble had been caused by the breaking of the South Fork dam.
To establish the responsibility for this was the object, therefore, of the
inquiry. The South Fork Hunting and Fishing Club members testified
that when they bought the site of the old reservoir, a section of 150
feet had been washed out of the middle. This was rebuilt at an expense
of $17,000, and the work was thought to be very strong. At the base
the dam was 380 feet thick, and gradually tapered, until at the top it
was about 35 feet thick. It was considered amply secure, and such
faith had the company in its stability, that the top of the dam was used
as a driveway. It took two years to complete the work, men being
engaged on it from 1879 to 1881. While it was in process of con
struction the residents of Johnstown expressed some fears as to the
solidity of the work, and requested that it be examined by experts. It
was so examined, the experts reporting it to be all right, although
pointing out the necessity of stopping all leaks promptly. The mem
bers of the club themselves discovered that the sluiceway that carried

THE GREAT CALAMITY. 71I
off the surplus or overflow from the lake was not large enough in times
of storm, so five feet of solid rock were cut away in order to increase the
mouth of the lake. The inquiry developed the fact, that in 188 1, when
work was going on, the water, which was usually fifteen feet below the
top of the dam, rose to the top, and threatened to do what it did on the
dreadful occasion to which this chapter is devoted. The workmen '
hastened to the scene and piled debris of all sorts on the top to prevent
a washout. It was found by the jury that the five streams from the
mountain sides, South Fork, Muddy Run, Dunmeyer's Inlet, Rode-
baugh's Inlet and an unnamed brook, had been suddenly surcharged
with water, and that this volume, dashing into Conemaugh lake, raised'
the water above the surface of the dam, washed away the top coping,
followed up this advantage by making a gap, and soon caused a yawning
crevice that shot the water as from the mouth of a cannon. When
once uncontrolled, it was probably a question of only a few moments
to tear down the whole dam. The channel of the Conemaugh river is
narrow, and the adjacent valley nothing but a gorge. Hence the fearful
destructiveness of the flood.
The coroner's jury found that the dam had not been properly con
structed; that it had been leaking for some time prior to the catastrophe,
and that the members of the fishing club were aware of the fact, but
had taken no steps to remedy the evil. They were, therefore, respon
sible for the disaster. The jury, accordingly, in its verdict, rendered
over a month after the calamity, severely censured the members of the
South Fork Fishing and Hunting Club, on whom it placed all of the
blame. Thus, what was at first deemed an act of Providence, was
proven to have resulted from the carelessness of man.

CHAPTER CVIII.
ip flaking ti ianh JSodta, Jtk
THE LITERATURE OF THE LAST THIRTY YEARS.

T may be well at this point to take up the thread
of history which concerns national literature.
Among the novelists who preceded the present
school, and who are now almost forgotten, are
Robert Montgomery Bird, John Neal, William
Mare (an historical novelist), Sylvester Judd,
William Gilmore Simms (a leading Southern writer),
and John Esten Cooke, also a delineator of Southern
life. Charles F. Briggs wrote several novels of New
England life, partly humorous in their character;
Richard B. Kimball chose New York City for his field of
fiction ; John P. Kennedy preferred to portray old-times
society, and Hermon Nelaille chose the sea as the
^ surrounding for his characters.
The novel which has had the greatest popular success of any
American book is Harriet Beecher Stowe's "Uncle Tom's Cabin." As
a literary success, it was remarkable, and as a moral factor, it has
doubtless had more direct and practical influence upon the people than
any book ever written. It was published in 1852, and won more con
verts to the anti-slavery cause than all the sermons preached or laws en
acted. Strongly dramatic and deeply fascinating in plot, "Uncle Tom's
Cabin" still retains its popularity, although the great abolition cause
that it championed has long since triumphed. Every new edition finds
ready sale, and no book published in America has been so universally
read. "The Wide, Wide World," of the sisters Susan and Anna Warner,
published in 1850, has been one of the very successful American books.
Catherine Sedgwick, the author of "Hope Leslie;" Marion Cole Harris,
who wrote "Rutledge," and Maria S. Cummins, the author of "The

OF THE MAKING OF GOOD BOOKS, ETC. 713
Lamplighter,". are among the first women who did graceful and credit
able work in America. ' 'Grace Greenwood' ' (Sarah J. Li ppencott) and
Fanny Fern" (Mrs. James Parton) were the first to introduce the style
of light and pleasant magazine sketching, which has since become so
popular. Of the American essayists, Ralph Waldo Emerson is the most
distinguished. He was born in Boston in 1802, the descendant of
eight generations of clergymen. Born with a religious habit of thought,
he still imbibed the healthy radicalism of the age, and became a
philosopher whose purity and breadth of thought made him the rival
of any thinker, ancient or modern. He was one of the founders of the
Transcendental movement, in which Margaret Fuller, Bronson Alcott,
Thoreau and the younger Channing were also associated. Henry D.
Thoreau was a recluse, who lived in Concord, on the shores of Walden
Pond. He kept apart from men, and devoted his life 'to the study of
nature. Amos Bronson Alcott was a representative Transcendentalist,
and the only man in this country who cultivated the art of imparting
knowledge by, "Conversations." These he held for many years in
various parts of the United States. George William Curtis is the
writer of a number of graceful essays. George Ticknor is the author
of an elaborate history of Spanish literature. Edwin P. Whipple is
considered the most faithful of American critics. George S. Hillard
and Charles E. Norton are known for their artistic books of Italian
travel. One of the American classics of travel, ' 'Two Years Before the
Mast, ' ' is from the pen of Richard H. Dana, Jr. Thomas Starr King has
devoted himself largely to descriptions of the White Mountains. Mrs.
Lydia Maria Child has written two books devoted to the science of
religion, and she was the first woman to contribute to the anti-slavery
literature of the country. Donald G. Mitchell wrote "Dream-Life"
and the "Reveries of a Bachelor," two very delightful books. F. S.
Cozzens devoted his pen to descriptions of Nova Scotia. Henry W.
Herbert made field sports the subject of his interesting books. Henry
and William Reed wrote literary and historical criticisms. Joseph C.
Neal and George H. Derby wrote humorous books. Dr. Edward
Robinson produced a work on Biblical research, which is considered a
standard in all countries. Richard Grant White is known for his
excellent critical works and his essays on language. He, as well as
Horace Howard Furness, have edited editions of Shakspere in this
country. Dr. J. G. Holland has been popular as an essayist, a novelist and a

714 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
poet. His name is connected with the founding of Scribner's Maga
zine, of which he was the editor-in-chief until his death, in 1881. To
him the mass of American readers are deeply indebted for the great
impetus that he gave to periodical literature. "Bitter Sweet" and
".Kathrina," two beautiful poems, by Dr. Holland, achieved great suc
cess. With the exception of Longfellow's "Hiawatha," "Kathrina"
has had a larger sale than any other American poem. Henry T.
Tuckerman wrote many pleasant things, in somewhat the same style as
Dr. Holland.
The writers on law and medicine in this country have been very
numerous. The ' 'Commentaries on American Law, ' ' by James Kent,
and the ' 'International Law, ' ' of Henry Wheaton, deserve special men
tion. The dictionaries of Noah Webster and Joseph E. Worcester; the
philological works of William D. Whitney, George P. Marsh, Francis
J. Child, S. S. Halderman, E. A. Sophocles, F. A. March and James
Hadley; the ethnological works of H. R. Schoolcraft, C. C.Jones Jr.,
and H. H. Bancroft, are valuable contributions to our literature. H.
H. Bancroft is also known as the most careful and painstaking historian
of the great Western coast, Alaska and the Northwestern States.
Asa Gray and John Torrey have written books on botany. Nathaniel
Bowditch, Elias , Loomis, Benjamin Pierce, Simon Newcomb and
Richard Proctor are known for their mathematical and astronomical
publications. Books on birds have been written by J. J. Audubon, Elliot Coues
and T. M. Brewer. John Burrows has written lovingly of birds and
many other subjects of nature, in a manner so charming as to acquaint
the least scientific with the secrets of American woods and fields.
Louis Agassiz, Edward Hitchcock, and James D. Dana are among
those who have written geological treatises. Henry C. Carey, and Dr.
Theodore D. Wookey have written well on political economy and inter
national law, but the recent discussions concerning the tariff have
brought into existence a large number of writers on kindred subjects.
Arnold Guyot is noted for his physical geographies. W. J. Hardee,
Winfield Scott, W. H. Halleck and George B. McClellan have pub
lished books on military science.
Since the War of Secession, Grant and Logan have published large
histories concerning that period. The last history of the Rebellion is by
Rossiter Johnson. Horace Greeley and Alexander H. Stephens are the
fullest in their account of the anti-slavery contest, which preceded and

OF THE MAKING OF GOOD BOOKS, ETC. 715
attended the war. Dr. John W. Draper has attempted to give an
unpartisan record of the politics of the time. Vice-President Wilson's
"Rise and Fall of the Slave Power in America" is a valuable history.
General Sherman has written his reminiscences of the war.
Our later poets have shown, in some cases, eccentricities which have
won a somewhat undeserved praise for them in England, and not a little
furious criticism in America. Whitman and Miller are two of our most
erratic poets. Joaquin Miller is known for his ' 'Songs of the Sierras, ' '
and other poems of Western life. Walt Whitman deals neither in
rhyme nor metre, but writes democratic rhapsodies for the people.
Bayard Taylor is not known alone as a poet, though he wrote
impassioned and glowing verses. His numerous books of travel are
charming and valuable, and his novels present accurate pictures of
American life. He also made a valuable translation of both parts of
"Faust." Richard Henry Stoddard is the author of nine volumes of short
poems, highly finished in style and full of true feeling. He is, perhaps,
the most scholarly of our living poets. In the face of sorrow and bitter
ness, he has cherished his faith in the highest ideal of poetic art, giving
to the world many beautiful lyrics, some of which have been scattered
far and wide over the country. His poem on the death of Thackeray is
to be highly praised. "The King's Bell," and "Wratislaw" prove
him to be a narrative poet of high rank. One of his most popular
poems is ' 'A Wedding Under the Directory. ' '
John Godfrey Saxe has occupied a position in American literature
somewhat similar to that of Hoqd in English literature. The English
language is a thing with him to be used as a plaything, and his poems
are deliciously witty and airy.
John Townsend Trowbridge is an excellent writer of juvenile stories.
Though his novels have interest, he is remembered most frequently for
his stories for boys. Another popular writer of juvenile stories is
"Oliver Optic" (W. T. Adams).
Francis Bret Harte is a unique writer, who has portrayed with une
qualled wit and pathos, life in California. Mr. Harte's society poems
are graceful, and his prose burlesques are really excellent. John Hay
is a popular writer of dialect verse. Charles Godfrey Leland (Hans
Breitman) is also known largely by his dialect verses. Charles Halpin
was a poet capable of being both amusing and tender, and Will Carleton
has long been popular for his homely verses on Western farm life.
Edgar Fawcett is an accomplished writer of the Swinburnian school.

716 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
Ele has devoted himself to literature for the last fifteen years, and has
been most prolific, both of prose and verse. His ' 'Fantasy and Passion, ' '
' 'Song and Story' ' and ' 'Romance and Revery' ' represent part of his
poetry. In addition to his poetry and sketches, Mr. Fawcett has pub
lished a number of novels.
Thomas Bailey Aldrich, journalist, poet and novelist, has done many
exquisite pieces of work and is remarkable for his versatility. His bal
lad of ' 'Baby Bell' ' is an especially, dainty poem. Holding first rank
among the poets of America, Mr. Aldrich has also entered many other
fields of literature, in all of which he has excelled.
Edmund Clarence Stedman first attracted attention by a brilliant
social satire, called "The Diamond Wedding." Since then, he has
built up, by patient and careful work, an honorable and enviable place
as a poet. His style is highly polished, yet forcible. His warlike
ballad, "How Old Brown took Harper's Ferry," will live long after
similar poems touching the Civil War are forgotten.
The Piatts, John James and his wife, Sarah M. Bryan, are poets of
a delicate and refined order. Paul H. Hayne, of Georgia, has written
many beautiful sonnets, and holds a foremost place among poets of gen
uine feeling and earnest aim. In the South, where he was long the
leading poet, his memory is greatly loved.
Thomas Buchanan Read, who wrote "Sheridan's Ride," published
several volumes of poems. ' 'Drifting, ' ' a delicate bit of verse, is widely
known. Mr. Read was an artist of great talent, and spent many years
of his life in Florence, Italy. Forsythe Willson, the author of ' 'The
Old Sergeant, ' ' and Elbridge J. Cutler, are among the writers who
embalm recollections of the war. George Arnold, who died at an early
age, was a pleasant writer of Bohemian verse.
Richard Watson Gilder, editor of the Century Magazine, is a leader
of a small band of genuine poets. He writes sounets of rare delicacy.
His "New Day," "The Poet and His Master" and collected "Poems
and Lyrics' ' will rank among the American classics. His poems have
the true musical rhythm and breathe a spirit of lofty aspiration.
George Parsons Lathrop is a writer of musical verse, and his wife,
who is a daughter of Nathaniel Hawthorne, is well known in the liter
ary world. Mrs. Lathrop's brother, Julian Hawthorne, is one of the
best known of living writers. His books have many excellent charac
teristics, but suffer in contrast with his father's wonderful works.
Sidney Lanier was a Southern poet of remarkable promise. His
untimely death cut short a brilliant career.

OF THE MAKING OF GOOD BOOKS, ETC. 717
William Dean Howells occupies a prominent place as the leader
of realistic fiction in America. He began his literary career as
editor of a small newspaper. He first won a wide reputation by his
"Italian Journeys" and "Venetian Life," two books of exquisite lit
erary style. He was one of the editors of The Nation, and after
wards chief editor of the Atlantic Monthly. He has published a
number of novels which have attained wide popularity. They are
considered the best type of American fiction. Mr. Howells portrays
life with a photographic minuteness which is tedious to those who
admire the dramatic novel, but his style is admirable.
Henry James, is painstaking and artistic, but he lacks the fine humor
which distinguishes Mr. Howells. Though he writes on American
life, it is not representative American life, and while his art may appeal
to the intellect, he does not succeed in touching the heart.
Edward Eggleston, an Indiana author, has written invaluable novels
of backwoods life.
Elizabeth Stuart Phelps is a writer of remarkable short stories and
of novels of a religious type.
E. P. Roe is a novelist who has a wide circle of readers, but whose
books lack artistic value. He made his reputation upon "Barriers
Burned Away," a story of the Chicago fire.
H. C. Bunner, the editor of the comic weekly, Puck, has won recog
nition as a graceful writer of vers de societe. His "Airs from Arcady"
are bright and clever. Maurice F. Egan and George Edgar Mont
gomery are among the rising versifiers. Charles Nordhoff, the author
of "Cape Cod Stories" and a volume on California, deserves mention
as an entertaining writer. Thomas Dunn English wrote the lines of
' 'Ben Bolt, ' ' which are popular in song. Dr. William A. Hammond
is the author of a number of very creditable novels. Theodore Win
throp is known through "Cecil Dreeme" and "John Brent," two fresh
and racy stories. Hjalmar Hjorth Boyesen (who, though not born an
American, is practically one) is the writer of charming Norwegian
stories, and W. H. Bishop has won a reputation by his sketches of
travels. James Whitcomb Reilly is an Indiana poet, who has dealt with
homely subjects in a peculiarly felicitous manner. His dialect poems rank
with the best that have ever been produced. His last volume of poems
has met with great success.
Among the women who have written good short poems are Margaret
J. Preston, Elizabeth Akers Allen, Rose Terry Cooke, Nora Perry,

718 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
Lucy Larcom, Celia Thaxter and Helen Hunt Jackson. Mrs. Jackson
wrote a remarkable novel, "Ramona," which was warmly received, and
she made a lasting reputation by her "Century of Dishonor," which
dealt with the Indian question. Ella Wheeler Wilcox has written two
volumes of poetry, which, though they lack literary precision, are very
popular. Louise May Alcott, a daughter of A. B. Alcott, the Transcendent-
alist, is the best writer of juvenile stories. Her ' 'Little Women' ' is
the most widely read of any American book for the young. Harriet
Prescott Spofford has written several novels in a rich and sumptuous style.
Her many short stories have never been collected. Mary L Booth and
Martha J. Lamb have contributed to historical literature.
Literature as a profession was, until recently, little followed in the
South. William Gilmore Simms was one of the first to produce any
novels with a local coloring. The institutions and traditions of South
ern life did not foster literature as a profession. The men who had
leisure and genius preferred the career of the statesman to the rather pre
carious profession of the man of letters. J. P. Kennedy wrote "Horse
shoe Robinson" and "Swallow Barn, " two books containing faithful
pictures of the South, but their author was, primarily, a lawyer and a
politician. Beverley Tucker wrote a novel which Poe pronounced
"the best American novel." There were a few verse writers like
Philip Pendleton Cooke and Henry Timrod, but Simms' prophecy that
there would never be a Southern literature under slave-holding aristoc-
rary proved true. After the war, the profession of letters began to be
popular. John Esten Cooke was among the first to write ' 'for bread,
not fame, ' ' and he procured both. Three poets upheld the literary
claims of the South, but they have all passed away now. They were
Father Ryan, the poet-priest, and Paul Hamilton Hayne and Sidney
Lanier, both of whom have been previously mentioned in this chapter.
To-day there is a most important school of Southern writers, several
of whom have achieved brilliant success. They are nearly all young
men and women, who belong to the new era since the war. George
W. Cable, who stands at the head of the Southern authors, was born
in 1844. At an early age he was compelled to support himself, and
served in a number of clerical positions. At nineteen, he entered the
Confederate army. While in the army he devoted every available
moment to the study of Latin and the higher mathematics. When the
war was over he returned to his former home in New Orleans. He was
absolutely penniless, and began life anew as an errand boy. In 1869,

OF THE MAKING OF GOOD BOOKS, ETC. 719
he was engaged on the staff of the Picayune, but being requested to
take charge of the theatrical columns, he resigned his position because
he cherished scruples against dramatic entertainments. Strangely
enough, this prejudice once extended to novel reading. Having entered
a mercantile house as accountant and correspondence clerk, he re
mained with the firm until 1879. During this time he wrote stories
which have since been collected under the head of ' 'Old Creole Days. ' '
Encouraged by the success of these stories, he determined to devote
himself to literature. His first novel, "The Grandissimes," met with
a cordial reception. It was followed by the pathetic and tragic story of
"Madame Delphine," and "Dr. Sevier" was the last of his long stories.
Mr. Cable confines himself to Southern subjects, and he portrays Creole
life with a tender sympathy and painstaking realism. In the pages of
his novels, pathos is blended with a quaint humor, and his style is
original, polished and fascinating.
Richard Malcolm Johnston is well known among the writers of the
South, and belongs to the old regime, although closely identified with
the new and progressive era. Although a successful lawyer, he gave
up his practice to accept the chair of belles-lettres in the University of
Georgia, where he remained until the outbreak of the civil war. His
first literary venture was the "Dukesborough Tales," and his short
stories, strong, humorous and original, are now familiar to every maga
zine reader. Mr. Johnston deals with Georgia life, and Joel Chandler
Harris is another writer who depicts characters from the same State.
Mr. Harris first introduced his readers to the mountaineers and moon
shiners of middle Georgia, but "Uncle Remus, His Songs and Sayings,"
a volume of negro folk lore, met with such success that his reputation
rests chiefly upon the sayings and doings of "Brer Rabbit" and his
companions. Thomas Nelson Page, a young lawyer of Virginia, made his reputa
tion upon a story called "Marse Chan," a dramatic, pathetic and
deliciously humorous little tale. He has contributed a number of
stories to the magazines, and is a talented writer. Among the younger
verse writers of the South, Robert Burns Wilson is prominent. Lafca-
dio Hearn, of Louisiana, writes both prose and verse very acceptably.
Among the women of the South there has recently been a wonder
ful activity, and some of them have won phenomenal success. Miss
Grace King, of New Orleans, wrote a short story, "Monsieur Motte,"
which brought her wide fame. Miss Mary Noailles Murfree made one of
the literary sensations of the day. Under the nom de plume of Charles

720 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
Egbert Craddock, she published several strong stories that won the
applause of the critics, and met with an enthusiastic reception. ' 'The
Prophet of the Great Smoky Mountains," which has been much admired
by every reader, abounds with beautiful and graphic descriptions and is
written in a vivid and polished style. Miss M. G. McClelland is the
author of a novel called "Oblivion," which is delicate and charming
in conception. Miss Frances Courtenay Baylor is another Southern
woman who has gained prominence. "On Both Sides" is a sketch
that is a witty and clever production. Miss Julia Magruder has given
1 'Across the Chasm' ' to the public. It is a study of social condition
since the war, and is a conscientious effort.
Amelie Rives (now Mrs. Chanler) has risen to literary fame with great
rapidity. She became known through a short story called ' 'A Brother
to Dragons. ' ' Her success was instantaneous, and a drama, a number
of short stories, and two novels have appeared in quick succession.
Within the past few years there has been a wonderful and . increas
ing activity in literary work all over the United States, and it is
impossible to enumerate half the writers who have done creditable work.
William M. Baker, Frank Lee Benedict and J. W. De Forrest are writers
of good novels. Mrs. A% D. T. Whitney writes excellent stories for
young girls. Mrs. Louise Chandler Moulton has published many clever
novelettes. Mrs. Rebecca Harding Davis portrays the sad pictures of
life among the lower classes. -
Blanche Willis Howard is a writer whose best books are doubtless
still to come. Mrs. Francis Hodgson Burnett is the writer of many
delightful books, the best of which are "That Lass o' Lowrie's," a
novel of life in the Lancashire mines of England, and "Little Lord
Fauntleroy," an exquisite book for children. "Little Lord Faunt-
leroy" achieved an unusual popularity. Thousands of copies of the
books were sold and the story was dramatized.
Mrs. Anna C. Muller has written three morbid novels of remark
able strength. Marion Harland (Mary Virginia Terhune) is a popu
lar writer of a mild and homely sort. John Habberton first made
his reputation by the publication of "Helen's Babies." Constance
Fenimore Woolson is a writer of skillful analytical novels. Mary
Hallock Foote, artist and novelist, has devoted both pen and pencil to
the more picturesque and refined side of life in the Western mountains.
Mrs. Van Rensselaer holds a~ leading place among the critics of art and
architecture. Edith Thomas is one of the best of the younger poets.
Maurice Thompson is a talented poet and essayist.

OF THE MAKING OF GOOD BOOKS, ETC. 72I
General Lew Wallace will be remembered for~two novels of striking
originality and power. "Ben Hur," which was first published, is a
beautiful story, told in a lofty style and with exquisite taste. "The
Fair God" is totally unlike "Ben Hur," yet scarcely less fascinating.
Among the writers who have most recently attracted the attention
of the public are W. W. Astor, whose historical novel, "Valentino,"
takes a permanent place among romantic stories, Henry Harland
(Sidney Luska), the author of "As It Was Written," and George H.
Picard, whose "A Matter of Taste" and "A Mission Flower" have
attracted attention. J. A. Janvier has been successful in a series of
short stories called "Color Studies. " Laurance Hutton has written a
"History of the American Stage" and "Literary Landmarks of Lon
don." One of the most gifted of dramatic critics, as well as a graceful
poet, is William Winter, who has made valuable additions to dramatic
biography. "Gail Hamilton" (Abigail Dodge) is one of the most forcible of
American writers, and devotes her pen to social, political and semi-
scientific subjects.
Ruth Ellis (Saxe Holm) will long be remembered as the writer
of some exquisite magazine sketches. Mary J. Holmes, Mrs. South-
worth and Mrs. Evans may be mentioned because of their popularity;
their literary merits are few. No young writer of recent times gave
greater promise than Emma Lazarus, who, in criticism, fiction and
poetry, was equally strong. She died at an early age.
There has always been an abundance of humor in American litera
ture. Of this, Richard Alsop may be said to be the father. No
newspaper is considered complete in America without its humorous
paragrapher, and in this direction alone many have won renown. Seba
Smith ("Major Jack Downing"), P. B. Shillaber ("Mrs. Partington"),
George D. Prentice, George H. Derby ("John Phoenix"), Charles
Farrar Browne ("Artemus Ward"), Henry W. Shaw ("Josh Billings"),
David Ross Locke ("Petroleum V Nasby"), Robert H. Newell
("Orpheus C. Ken") and Samuel L Clemens ("Mark Twain") are
among the most noted of our many amusing writers. At present ' 'Bob
Burdette," "Bill Nye," Opie P. Read ("The Arkansas Traveler") and
Eugene Field are well known. Charles Dudley Warner and Frank
Stockton are humorists of a more delicate type.
James Parton is known for his many biographies of prominent men.
Edward Everett Hale has written a large number of interesting stories,
and is an authority on the early French and Spanish periods of this

722 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
country. Thomas Wentworth Higginson is a writer of much versa
tility. One of his last works is a young folk's history of the United
States, which is condensed and readable. John Fiske is known as one
of our most brilliant students of modern philosophy. Joseph Cook is
one of our most radical thinkers. David Swing is known for his
scholarly writings and lectures on religious topics. These last two men
furnish a connecting link between writers and lecturers.
For many years Henry Ward Beecher stood at the head of the
American platform. Robert Colyer and T. De Witt Talmage are
among the most popular divines. In this connection it may be men
tioned that in 1875 Cardinal McCloskey, the first Roman Catholic
Cardinal in the United States, was consecrated in New York. John
B. Gough has won more fame than any temperance lecturer in the
country. Dwight L. Moody has been the most successful evangelist.
Kate Field, Anna Dickinson, Elizabeth Cady Stanton, Mary L. Liver-
more and Susan B. Anthony are the foremost women on the lecture
platform. Chief among the tragedians that have made great names in America
are Edwin Forrest, Lucius Junius Booth, Edwin Booth, Lawrence
Barrett, Charlotte Cushman and Mary Anderson. John McCullough
has distinguished himself in heroic plays. James O'Neil has won a
reputation in romantic dramas. The Davenports have been a family
of excellent actors. Matilda Heron and Clara Morris are the leaders
in what is known as the emotional drama. "Lotta" (Miss Crabtree)
has the widest reputation of American soubrettes. W. J. Florence and
his wife and Miss Ada Rehan have excelled in legitimate comedy.
Joseph Jefferson is the greatest of American comedians and comes of a
long line of actors.
It has not been the habit of Americans to cultivate the arts to any
great extent, and they have usually relied upon other countries for their
musicians. Among the Americans who have won fame as singers are
Clara Louise Kellogg, Anna Louis Cary, Myron W. Whitney, Emma
Nevada, Zelda Seguin, Thomas Karl and Jessie Bartlett Davis.
Nor should the influence of the Americans in journalism be ignored.
With all its faults, flippancy and blemishes, the American newspa
per represents, in enterprise, in fearlessness and in fairness, the highest
type of journalism, and for the many delightful writers it has brought
forward, if for no other reason, it should be fostered as an institution
conferring a distinct and lasting good on the morals of the nation. Not
to repeat the names of many of the writers already mentioned in this

OP THE MAKING OF GOOD BOOKS, ETC. 723
chapter who have made their first reputation through the press, there is
a brilliant list of men and women who have won success upon the news
papers alone. Among these may be mentioned James Gordon Bennett,
Sr. , founder of the New York Herald; Charles A. Dana, of the Sun;
George D. Prentice, Henry Watterson, John Swinton, Samuel Bowles,
Carl Schurz, Horace White, George Alfred Townsend ("Gath") White-
law Reid, Joseph Howard, Jr. , Olive Logan, Mrs. Margaret F. Sullivan,
and many others. FOR FURTHER READING:
Some successful American books.
Emerson's Essays.
O. W. Holmes' "Breakfast-Table Series."
Longfellow's Poems.
Bryant's Poems.
Stoddart's Poems.
S. Lanier's Poems.
Mrs. Burnett's "That Lass o' Lowrie's."
Mrs. Burnett's "Little Lord Fauntleroy."
Amelie Rives' "Famer Lass o' Piping Pebworth."
Lew Wallace's "Ben Hur."
Miss Murfree's "Tales of the Tennessee Mountains."
Cable's "Tales of Creole Life."
Miss Woolson's "East Angels."
Bret Harte's "California Tales."
The poems of Edith Thomas.

CHAPTER CIX.
Wp Jtapratts Smtri ti tip 1(tiM jliab$*
ITS ORGANIZATION AND DUTIES — THE LIVES OF THE CHIEF JUSTICES.

HE Supreme Court of the United States has been
called the balance wheel of the Government It
represents permanence in the constantly moving
and changing of the Federal machinery. The
wisest and most conservative men of the nation
are chosen for its bench, and the members are. ap
pointed for life, so thattheir positions are not affected
by political changes. In recent years the proceedings of the
Supreme Court have rarely attracted attention, but in the
early periods of the Government, its decisions did much to
guide and shape the public policy of the United States.
The first section of the third article of the Constitution
declares that the judicial power of the United States shall
be vested in one Superior Court and such inferior courts
as Congress may, from time to time, authorize. The
creation of such courts was consequently one of the first and most
important duties of Congress. In September, 1789, the Judiciary Bill
was approved. It provided that the Supreme Court should consist of a
Chief Justice and five Associate Justices, four of whom should constitute
a quorum ; but Associate Justices should have precedence according to
the date of their commission, or if the commission of two or three
should bear the same date, then according to the respective ages of
those so commissioned. It divided the United>States into thirteen dis
tricts, and created a court called the District Court, consisting of
one judge for each district. Three circuits were also established, called
the Eastern, Middle and Southern Circuits, each one including several of
the districts. The office of marshal was created for each district, and
«ach court was empowered to appoint its own clerk.

THE SUPREME COURT OF THE UNITED STATES. 725
Immediately after the approval of the Judiciary Bill, President
Washington nominated the first Justices of the United States Supreme
Court. John Jay, of New York, was named Chief Justice, and William
Cushing, of Massachusetts; James Wilson, of Pennsylvania; John
Blair, of Virginia; Robert A. Harrison, of Maryland, and James Iredell,
of North Carolina, were nominated as Associate Justices. John Rut
ledge, of South Carolina, was also appointed an Associate Justice, but
he did not attend any session of the court until he took his seat as Chief
Justice. The name of Edmund Randolph was at the same time sent to
the Senate as Attorney-General. These nominations were all imme
diately confirmed. The salaries of the Justices were fixed by law — -that
of the Chief Justice at four thousand dollars, and each of his associates
at thirty-five hundred dollars.
The first term of court was held in the city of New York in the
month of February, 1790, when three Justices assembled in New York,
only to find that there was no work for them to do. On the ioth of
February court adjourned until the 2d of August, and the Justices
went off to attend the circuit courts. The judiciary power, when first
created, extended over thirteen States, each State constituting a district.
In place of the original thirteen districts, there is now a district for
each State, and more than one in several of the larger States. It is the
duty of the Justices of the Supreme Court to hold court in its various
districts, and this is called circuit duty. In the early days of the Gov
ernment, several Justices objected to this added labor imposed by
judiciary act, and Chief Justice Marshall was of the opinion that it was
an unconstitutional requirement. It is said that he suggested to his
associates the propriety of declining to sit in the circuit courts. The
other Justices agreed with him, but as they had long acquiesced, it was
considered wise to continue to perform the duty. So, from the organ
ization of the court until the present day, with the exception of one
year, at the close of the Administration of the elder Adams— when the
law requiring such duty was repealed, only to be re-enacted — the
Justices have continued to perform circuit duty. In consequence of the
^arge number of cases growing out of the late Rebellion, Congress was
tompelled to pass a measure of relief, and in the year 1869, a number
of circuit judgeships were created. The Justices of the Supreme Court
were not, however, excused from circuit service, but their duties were so
relaxed that each one is now compelled to attend only one term of circuit
court in each district every two years. The judiciary power conferred by
the Constitution has remained substantially the same to the present day.

726 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
In 1793, the court convened in Philadelphia, and there all terms
were held until 1801, when the court followed the general Government
to the city of Washington, where, in the year 1802, it was permanently
located. For several years the Supreme Court found very little business
to transact. In 1801, when John Marshall was appointed Chief Justice,
the number of cases awaiting adjudication was only .ten. For the next
five years the average was about twenty-five a year. With the last
thirty years, however, the cases have rapidly multiplied, and there have
been so many cases on the docket that it has been almost impossible for
the Justices to keep pace with the work.
It is just one hundred years (1889) since the first bench of the Su
preme Court was appointed, and there have been but eight Chief Justices.
The Attorney-General, though more properly belonging to the executive
branch of the Government, being a member of the President's council,
is, nevertheless, considered one of the Supreme Court. Until 1870,
when the office of Solicitor-General was created, his duties were very
heavy. The work is now divided, and the Solicitor-General gives his
special attention to the court proceedings, while the Attorney-General
is occupied in attending to State duties and giving legal advice to the
President and heads of departments.
The name of John Jay, the first Chief Justice, should be specially
venerated. He was also first Chief Justice of the State of New York.
John Jay was born in the city of New York, December 12, 1745. His
father was of French ancestry and his mother belonged to one of the
oldest families of the Dutch colonies. At the age of seven years, he is
said to have been of a very grave disposition and inclined to study.
At eight, he was sent to a grammar school, and at fourteen, entered
King's College, in the city of New York, where he was graduated in
1764. His father and grandfather had been merchants, but he selected
the profession of the law. After being admitted to the bar, he associated
himself with Robert R. Livingston, the future Chancellor. But they
soon dissolved their business connection. His quiet professional life
was broken by the contest between the colonies and the mother country.
He was one of the first to speak for freedom. In 1774 he was a mem
ber of the convention which met at New York. Though only twenty-
nine years old, he was one of the committee to draft an address to the
people of Great Britain. This celebrated address is said to have come
from his pen, and was composed and written in a room in an obscure
tavern. While a delegate to Congress, Jay was elected, in 1776, to a
seat in the Colonial Congress. This Congress comprised the best men

THE SUPREME COURT OF THE UNITED STATES. 727
of the colonies. After the framing of the new Constitution, he was
chosen to the place of Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of New
York, which he at once accepted, and Robert Livingston was appointed
Chancellor. The Judiciary Bill, organized in the courts, was approved
September 24, 1789. On the very day of its approval President Wash
ington sent in the name of John Jay for the office of the Chief Justice
of the Supreme Court of the United States. In 1794 Chief Justice Jay
was sent as special envoy to England to negotiate a treaty, which is
known in history by his name. He resigned his position on the bench
on his return from England, in 1795, having been elected Governor of
New York. He retired from public life when only fifty-six years old,
after holding many prominent positions, the best in the gift of the
people. He was a pronounced revolutionist, and was one of the
leading advocates of independence. He was a man of strong intellect,
courageous and yet conservative in his actions. He lived for a quarter
of a century in retirement, and died in the eighty-fourth year of his age.
Upon the resignation of Chief Justice Jay, President Washington
immediately sent the name of John Rutledge to the Senate as the next
Chief Justice. John Rutledge was a man of strong character, -chief
among the South Carolina revolutionary leaders, and first in station and
influence among the many competitors, whose names are treasured in
the history of his State. His education was the best that the colony
could afford. Having made all the progress that he could in Charleston,
he was sent to England, where he finished his education and studied
law. He returned to Charleston and commenced the practice of his
profession in 1781, being not quite twenty-two years old. He immedi
ately rose to prominence. He commenced life under the most favorable
auspices, and in the first part of his career, success met him at every
step. He was elected Judge of the South Carolina Court of Chancery
in 1784, and held many other responsible offices. The President
appointed him during recess of the courts, and he took his seat in the
August term of 1795, without having passed the ordeal of the approval
of the Senate. On the 15th of December, the Senate refused to confirm
his nomination, because he had opposed the Jay Treaty. The refusal to
confirm him was due to the opposition of the Federal party, and not to
any personal disqualification. Even had he been confirmed, he would
not have been able to serve, for while his confirmation was pending, his
strong and vigorous mind became unsettled, and his brilliant intellect
was henceforth clouded. The Senate had scarcely set its seal of
disapprobation upon his name when rumors reached Philadelphia that

728 THE STORY OF" AMERICA.
he was insane. His malady was partly due to exposure in the service
of his country. He died in the summer of 1800. He had many
admirable traits. He was a typical Southern statesman, haughty,
generous, frank and ardent in nature, yet not always discreet in action.
When the Senate refused to confirm Rutledge as Chief Justice,
President Washington sent in the name of William Cushing, of Massa
chusetts, an Associate Justice of the Court. The Senate immediately
confirmed him, but he held his commission only a week, when he
resigned, preferring to remain in the less prominent position of Associate
Justice. His name is, therefore, not counted among those of the Chief
Justices. Oliver Ellsworth was a Senator in Congress at the time that the
Senate refused to confirm Rutledge, and as a member of the Federal
party, he naturally voted against the President's nomination. Called
to the bar a few years before the Revolution, he had early attained a
high position in his profession. At the close of the Revolution, in
which he had taken au active part, he returned to his native State to
take his seat on the bench of the Connecticut Superior Court. He was
born at Windsor, a small village in the interior of the State, April 29,
1745, and was brought up in the simple, frugal manner that prevailed
in New England. He concentrated the whole power of his mind upon
his chosen profession. He was a man of great application and excellent
foresight. When he went to Congress, in 1778, he left the most lucra
tive law practice in Connecticut.
President Washington belonged to no party; he was, therefore, not
estranged from his Federalist friends when they voted against the nomi
nation of Rutledge. Justice Cushing having declined to serve as Chief
Justice, Ellsworth was finally selected and promptly confirmed. He
served honorably, making many wise decisions. He died November
26, 1807, in the sixty-third year of his age. The inscription on his
tomb is a good summary of his character. It reads: "Amiable and
exemplary in all relations of a domestic, social and Christian character,
pre-eminently useful in all offices he sustained, whose great talent,
under the guidance of inflexible integrity, consummate wisdom and
enlightened zeal, placed him among the first and most illustrious states
men who achieved the independence and established the Constitution
of the American Republic. ' '
John Marshall, whose judicial career extended over a period of
thirty-five years, was the next Chief Justice. He was born in German-
town, Virginia, September 24, 1755. He early showed a remarkable

THE SUPREME COURT OF THE UNITED STATES. 729
aptitude for study, and was deeply engaged in his law books when
Patrick Henry's thrilling words caused him to leave his studies to
become a member of the militia. He fought bravely in the Continental
Army, and became captain in a company, under the command of
General Washington. He was elected to the Virginia Legislature in
1792, but soon retired to practice the profession bf the law. He was
afterward called to the service of his country in a number of public
offices. President Washington tendered him the office of Attorney-
General, but he declined it on account of his large law practice. He
was one of the most prominent figures of his time, and, upon the
resignation of .Ellsworth, Adams sent the name of Marshall to the
Senate, where it was immediately confirmed. Many noted cases were
tried before the Supreme Court while John Marshall was Chief Justice.
The most celebrated was that of Aaron Burr, who was arraigned May
22, 1807. Burr was his own chief counsel, and great legal talent was
exhibited at the trial. The greatest interest was awakened in the
decision. Chief Justice Marshall delivered it in the most impressive
manner, but a great many people were disappointed, and many adverse
opinions were expressed. According to the letter of the law, the Chief
Justice felt that he could not pronounce Aaron Burr guilty of treason,
and he declared that the case against Burr was not proven. He was,
therefore, the means of saving Aaron Burr's life. On July 6, 1835,
Chief Justice Marshall died. He was a man of well-balanced mind,
keen and inflexible in character. It is said that he had no frays in
boyhood, no quarrels in manhood.
Roger Brooke Taney, who succeeded Marshall, was born March 17,
1777, in Calvert County, Maryland. His ancestors belonged to the
early settlers. He was educated at Dickinson College, Carlisle, and
was graduated in 1795. He studied law and was admitted to the bar
in 1799. The same year he was a delegate to the General Assembly of
Maryland, when less than twenty-three, years old. He settled in Fred
erick and began the practice of law. After serving in the Maryland
Senate, he removed to Baltimore, in 1823. While practicing law in
Baltimore, he had charge of many celebrated cases in the Federal
courts. In June, 1831, he was appointed Attorney-General at the
reconstruction of President Jackson's Cabinet. This was a period of
stormy debates, heated party discussions and bitter political controver
sies. The celebrated panic controversy is perhaps the most celebrated.
There was a great discussion about removing the deposits from the
United States Bank, and Taney was strongly in favor of the measure.

73O THE STORY OF AMERICA.
In September, 1833, President Jackson appointed him Secretary of the
Treasury, and the 22d of the same month he issued his famous order
for the removal of the deposits from the bank, or more correctly speak
ing, he directed that the collectors of revenue should cease to make their
deposits in the bank. The accounts actually in the bank were to be
left and drawn out at intervals in different sums, according to Govern
ment disbursements. The measure caused much criticism, and the dis
cussion was transferred to the Legislature at* the opening of the cele
brated "panic session" of Congress, in 1833, the Senate refusing to
confirm him as Secretary of the Treasury.
In January, 1835, President Jackson appointed Taney to fill a
vacancy on the Supreme Bench, caused by the death of one of the Asso
ciate Justices. The Senate declined to act upon the appointment, as
Taney had made many political enemies. When Chief Justice Marshall
died, in the summer, the President again sent Taney's name to the
Senate, this time as the nominee for the vacant place of the Chief Jus
tice. This nomination was not confirmed until March, 1836. Chief
Justice Taney took his seat upon the bench in January, 1837. On Octo
ber 12, 1864, he died, iu his eighty- fourth year, after a public life that
was full of great events. One of the most celebrated opinions delivered
by Justice Taney was the one regarding the celebrated Dred Scott case.
This case had awakened universal interest at a time when abolition was
one of the great questions of the day. This case decided that a "free
negro of the African race, whose ancestors were brought to this country,
is not a citizen within the meaning of the Constitution of the United
States. ' ' This decision created wide-spread discussion and much indig
nation among Abolitionists. It was, however, technically correct under
the Constitution. There was no sadder figure in Washington during
the years of the war than that of the aged Chief Justice. He was
shunned by the men who were willing to sacrifice their lives for the
freedom of the slaves, and he was distrusted by the North. The harsh
judgment formed of him then has been softened by time, and he is
remembered as an upright and able judge.
Salmon P. Chase succeeded Justice Taney, as Chief Justice of the
Supreme Court. He was born in Cornish, New Hampshire, in 1808.
He was poor, and he gained his education by hard work and self-denial.
He was admitted to the bar of the District of Columbia in 1829. Ele
soon became prominent in politics. He served in the United States
Senate from 1849 to 1855, and was Governor of Ohio from 1855 to 1857.
Belonging first to the Democratic party, he was the leader of the anti-

THE SUPREME COURT OF THE UNITED STATES. 73 1
slavery element until the rise of the Republican party, of which he was
one of the original organizers and most conspicuous members. A lead
ing candidate for the presidential nomination in i860, he was offered by
his successful competitor, President Lincoln, a place in the first Repub
lican Cabinet, in 1861, and left the Senate, to which he had just been
chosen for a term of six years. As Secretary of the Treasury, he is
noted as having performed the wonderful task of supplying the Govern
ment with money to carry- on the war. The Bond and Legal Tender
acts and the national bank system were, in great measure, originated by
him. On the death of Justice Taney, President Lincoln appointed
Chase to fill the vacant position of Chief Justice. He had never sat on
the bench in any court, and he had not distinguished himself at the bar.
He had, however, a thorough knowledge of the Government, and was
of a strong, well-balanced .mind and a calm, self-reliant disposition.
His service on the Supreme Bench was cut short by his death, in 1873,
at the age of sixty-five. The Dred Scott decision was set aside by him
in a peculiar way. On February 1, 1865, Senator Sumner appeared in
the Supreme Court, accompanied by a colored man, and said: "May it
please the court, I present John S. Rock, a member of the bar of the
State of Massachusetts, and move that he be admitted as a counsellor of
this Court." The Chief Justice bowed and said: "Let him come forward
and take the oath." The Supreme Court thus acknowledged the
equality of the colored man.
Chief Justice Chase was virtually the founder of the great Republican
party. He presided over the Senate during the impeachment of
President Johnson. His public life was closely interwoven with the
early slavery agitation, and his name occupies a high place in the
history of the war epoch. Chief Justice Chase was succeeded by
Morrison R. Waite, of Ohio, who was appointed by President Grant, in
1874. Justice Waite was born in Lyme, Connecticut, in 1816, and was
graduated at Yale College, in 1837. He rapidly rose to an eminent
position at the bar of the State of Ohio. In 1849, ne was elected to the
legislature, and, in 1873, was chosen as a delegate to the convention
called to frame a new State constitution for Ohio. Chief Justice Waite
has but a short political history. He was a man of sound judgment
and conservative views, and discharged the duties of his high office in a
creditable manner. On March 23, 1888, he died at his home in Wash
ington City.
On May 1, 1888, President Cleveland nominated Melville W. Fuller
tb fill the vacancy caused by the death of Justice Waite. Melville

732 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
Weston Fuller was born in Augusta, Maine, on February ii, 1833. At
the age of sixteen, he entered Bowdoin College, being graduated in
1853. He began the study of law in the office of his uncle, George
Melville Weston, at Bangor. He also attended a course of lectures at
the Harvard Law School. He began to practice law in 1855, entering
into partnership with his uncle, the Hon. Benjamin A. J. Fuller, at
Augusta. He was also associated with his uncle in the Age, then one
of the leading democratic papers of the State. In 1856, he was elected
to the common council of Augusta, and became its president He
was also the city solicitor. Although but twenty-three years of age,
he showed remarkable talent as a lawyer, and achieved an enviable
position at the bar. In 1856, he decided to go west, and he settled in
Chicago. There his abilities were speedily recognized, and he at once
established a large practice. In his law practice, he was noted for his
thorough methods. Although naturally quick in his perceptions, he
studied his cases exhaustively. As a fluent, earnest advocate, he has
few equals. He was highly esteemed and respected by his associates
at the Chicago bar.
He had quite an extensive practice in the Federal courts, and it is
a curious coincidence that in the first case heard before the late Chief
Justice Waite, Justice Fuller was the counsel. That was in 1874, and
after that time he had many cases before the Supreme Court. In
1 86 1, he was a member of the convention called to revise the Constitu
tion of the State of Illinois. A year later he was elected to the Illinois
Legislature, in which he served one term. A man of scholarly habits,
familiar with several continental languages, and fond of philosophical
research, Chief Justice Fuller is a man of broad culture and worthy of
the high position to which he was called. His appointment was
favorably received by all the legal profession throughout the country.
The organization of the Supreme Court has more than once been
changed. Originally consisting of a Chief Justice and five Associate "
Justices, it was enlarged, in 1807, by the addition of a sixth Associate.
The States of Ohio, Kentucky and Tennessee had come into the Union
and were made into a new circuit, represented on the bench by Thomas
Todd, of Tennessee. In 1837, two more Justices were added, and in
1863, a ninth Associate Justice was appointed to give the Pacific Coast
a representative. This was thought to be a good policy at a time when
the United States was engaged in the war of the Rebellion. Stephen
J. Field, of California, was the appointee. When Justice Catron died,
in 1865, Congress was in the midst of its long, serious trouble with

THE SUPREME COURT OF THE UNITED STATES. 733
President Johnson. To prevent the appointment of a Democrat in
sympathy with President Johnson's Southern policy, a law was passed,
forbidding the filling of the existing vacancy, or of any future vacancy,
until the number of Associate Judges should be reduced to six. The
death of Justice Wayne, in 1867, reduced the number to seven. In
1869, a new law increased the number to eight, and President Grant
appointed Justices Strong and Bradley.
The Supreme Court now consists of Chief Justice Fuller and
Associate Justices Samuel F. Miller, of Iowa; Stephen J. Field, of
California; Joseph P. Bradley, of New Jersey; JohnM. Harlan, of Ken
tucky; Horace Gray, of Massachusetts; Samuel Blatchford, of New
York, and Lucius Q. C. Lamar, of Mississippi. President Cleveland
appointed Justice Lamar November 4, 1888, to succeed the late Justice
William B. Woods, who died May 14, 1887. The death of Justice
Stanley Matthews, on March 22, 1889, leaves a vacancy at present on
the bench.
The sessions of the Supreme Court are now held in the room
immediately over the library, a place full of interesting associations, for
it was 'the old Senate chamber. It is in the form of a semi-circle. Its
entrance is on the convex side, and the eye of the visitor is first attracted
to the judicial bench. Above the bench is a gallery, not now used, but
from which thousands have listened to exciting debates in the past.
Previous to the erection of the grand wings — which, next to the dome,
are the chief attractions of the Capitol — the court-room was located on
the ground floor and reached by a dark passageway leading from the
center of the building. This room is now the Law Library of Con
gress, and sometimes called "The Library of the Supreme Court." Its
long rows of solid volumes, arranged for the convenience of the Judges,
extend around the walls and presents no particular attraction to the
public. The librarian's desk is an object of interest. Mahogany,
dark with age, it is not handsome, yet it is the desk behind which Van
Buren and several other Presidents sat out their terms. To the lawyer of
the olden time, the room is full of reminiscences. It was here that the
deep, sonorous tones of Webster were heard. It vibrated with the
eloquence of Clay, the -keen wit of Martin and the brilliant utter
ances of Wirt, Berrian, Butler ana Crittenden.
Most of the seats in front of the Judges' bench are reserved for mem
bers of the bar, but on both sides of the room are seats for the public.
The sessions of the court commence the first Monday in December.
Between 11 and 12 o'clock each day the court enters the chamber, pre
ceded by the marshal, who proclaims in a clear voice: "The Honorable

734 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
Chief Justice and Associate Justices of the Supreme Court of the United
States. ' ' Arrayed in robes of black silk, not unlike the clerical gowns,
the Judges follow the Chief Justice and ascend the bench upon his right
and left. The bench, however, has long been only a tradition in all
our courts. Each Justice of the Supreme Court has a chair to suit his
own ideas of what constitutes a comfortable seat. Some of the chairs
have high backs and rest the head, some have low backs, some have
cushions and some are not upholstered. The Chief Justice sits in the
middle of the row "and the other Justices are arranged according to the
order of their commission. Before seating themselves, the Justices
stand a moment in front of their chairs and all bow to the bar. The
lawyers return the salute. Then the Judges sit down, the Associates
being careful, however, not to occupy their chairs before the Chief
Justice. The court is opened by the crier, who exclaims: "Oyez!
Oyez ! Oyez ! all persons having business with the honorable Supreme
Court of the United States are admonished to draw near and give atten
tion, for the court is now sitting. God save the United States and
this honorable court."
The proceedings of the Supreme Court are impressive and simple.
The arguments are delivered in low, conversational tones. There is a
tradition that the first Justices wore red gowns, but there is no author
ity for this. The first Judges of the Supreme Court did not adopt any
peculiar fashion of wig as a mark of their office, but the short queue
seems to have been worn by all. It is said that when Cushing, who
was a member of the original court, arrived in New York and put on
the big wig that he had worn on the Massachusetts bench, he was fol
lowed up Broadway by a mob of boys. He immediately hastened to a
shop and bought a peruke of the style then in vogue.
Every Saturday during the terms of court, the Justices meet in the
consultation room and discuss cases. All the cases must be examined
by all the Justices, and when a decision is reached, the Chief Justice
designates the Justice who is to write the opinion. Opinions are read
and approved in the consultation room before they are delivered in open
court. If there is a disagreement, the dissenting Justices prepare their
opinions. The business of the Supreme Court is divided into two
general classes: Cases in which it has original jurisdiction, and cases
which come to it from the lower courts. If a citizen of the United
States wishes to sue a foreign minister or council, he could not have
recourse to any State tribunal, but must go directly to the Supreme
Court. The Supreme Court has original jurisdiction in habeas corpus

THE SUPREME COURT OF THE UNITED STATES. 735
acts affecting persons in jail by the operation of the United States law.
A large majority of the cases before the Supreme Court come under the
appellate powers ; that is, cases decided by the lower courts, and which
involve what are called Federal questions, can be appealed to the United
States Supreme Court. The largest number of cases decided by the
Supreme Court come up from the lower tribunals.
In 1877, the court was called upon to furnish five of its members to
the commission appointed to settle the disputed title of the presidency.
The Electoral Commission, as it was called, was composed of five
Justices, five Senators and five Representatives. The members of the
Supreme Court who served were Justices Clifford, Field, Bradley, Miller
and Strong.

CHAPTER CX.
ip Unibfc jSiab* l^mt^

ITS OLD ASCENDANCY — THE INVENTION OF THE MONITOR — THE DETE
RIORATION OF THE NAVY, AFTER THE CIVIL WAR — APPOINT
MENT OF THE ADVISORY BOARD  THE NEW
NAVY — IMPROVEMENTS IN NAVAL ARTILLERY —
ORGANIZATION OF THE NAVY DEPART
MENT — SKETCH OF JOHN ERICS
SON — USES OF THE NAVY.
'HE STORY OF AMERICA would not be com
plete without a few words concerning the United
States Navy. Pride in its navy was one of the
earliest sentiments cherished in the hearts of the
American people, and the gallant deeds performed
upon the high seas in the first years of the nation's
existence will not fade from the pages of its
history. In referring to the navy of the past, it is im
possible to avoid recalling the individual interest and
personal satisfaction that all its members felt in it and such
feelings were fostered by the superiority of its ships.
The colonies could not afford to build vessels of ade
quate size to contend with men-of-war that they had to
meet in battle, but the few that they owned were well
adapted to meet the small British cruisers, and to capture
merchantmen. The frigates of this early day were small vessels, vary
ing from six hundred to a thousand tons. The ships that were built in
1794 were constructed according to the most advanced ideas of the
time, and the wooden vessels belonging to the United States and sailing
the ocean between 1840 and i860 were the finest in the world. The old
frigate Congress, and the sloop Portsmouth were noble ships for their
time, and models which other'maritime nations imitated. During this
greatest era of sailing vessels, from 1840 to i860, steam began to be
used, and was introduced as an auxiliary power. The naturally invent-

THE UNITED STATES NAVY. 737
ive genius of American ship-builders enabled them to adopt the new
force so successfully that the United States vessels continued to be
prominent for many years as models from which other naval powers
might copy. Before sailing vessels were finally abandoned, a number
of large ships were built. These ships were a sort of a compromise
between steamers and sailing vessels, and they did good service. The
Mississippi, the Missouri, the Susquehanna, the Saranac and the Pow
hatan belonged to this class. They were launched between 1840 and
1850, and were a credit to the country. The Powhatan is now an
interesting relic of this transition period of naval architecture. She
was built of seasoned live oak, and retained so much of her original
seaworthiness that, in 1886, she was still upon the list of the navy. In
the last years of her usefulness, the Powhatan was employed in trans
porting relief crews from Aspinwall to Panama.
When those who realized the great future power of steam began to
agitate the subject of supplanting sailing vessels by steamers, there was
at first a great deal of hesitancy about making such a radical change.
It was advocated that the new ships should be provided with full steam
power, using sails as an auxiliary, but the old pride in the sailing
vessels could not be made to yield at once to the new inventions. It
was considered a great concession to admit steam at all, but the United
States Government was not the only nation conservative in improving
its navy. The other maritime powers pursued the same course, and for
many years the United States retained the lead in producing the most
creditable types of war ships.
In 1854, Congress passed a law ordering the construction of a new
class of frigates. The Merrimac was the first of these new vessels to be
launched, and she showed a great advance in ship-building. When she
was sent to European waters she attracted great attention from foreign
naval architects, who immediately copied her. The vessels built after
the Merrimac model were the best ships of the time in the English
navy. In 1858, what was known as the Hartford class of large
corvettes began to be built. This class comprised the Hartford, the
Brooklyn, the Pensacola, the Richmond and the Lancaster. These
ships were imitated by England and France. They were of good speed
and were used for cruising in foreign ports. Being built of wood, they
required frequent repairs, and they are gradually being struck from the
list of commissioned vessels.
The Kearsarge belonged to another type of war ship. The Kear
sarge was built in 1859, and several vessels of the same pattern were

738 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
launched just before the war. During the war, vessels were built with
a special regard, for the purposes for which they were to be used. It
was necessary to construct ships as rapidly as possible, in order to pro
tect the coast, and what were known as "ninety-day gunboats" and
"double-enders" were hastily built. Merchant steamers were also
armed with such batteries as they could carry. This extraordinary
increase of vessels, under the pressure of necessity, was not productive of
permanent benefit to the navy, and the emergency ships soon dis
appeared when they were no longer needed. The Juniata and Ossipee,
which were launched in 1852, belonged to the Kearsarge type and
proved capable of good service.
The Monitor marked a new era in naval architecture and created a
great sensation when it appeared. It was the invention of Captain
John Ericsson, and saved the Union fleet at Hampton Roads. Captain
Ericsson's inventive mind had early conceived the idea of the revolving
turret in connection with the floating battery. In 1854, he had offered
the device to Napoleon III, only to have it rejected; but he believed in
it, if Napoleon did not, and, in 1861, proposed the novel idea to the
United States Naval Department. His proposition met with encourage
ment, and he was given a contract to build his first vessel, after his long-
cherished plan. By an extraordinary display of energy, the vessel was
completed in one hundred days, and arrived at Hampton Roads March
9, 1862, just after the iron-clad Merrimac had sunk the Cumberland
and the Congress, and was about to destroy the whole wooden fleet.
The "cheesebox on a raft," as the Confederates called the Monitor,
defeated the Merrimac, and the complete success of Captain Erics
son's invention revolutionized the navies of the whole civilized world.
The original Monitor was lost at sea; but other ships were built
after Ericsson's peculiar model. There is no doubt that the Monitor
was the first of the turreted vessels of the world. Although it made so
great an innovation in naval construction, its essential principles were
never universally approved by naval architects. The Monitor was like
a raft carrying a revolving turret. It was constantly submerged by the
waves, but its depth of draft insured stability. The circular form of
the revolving turret was well suited to deflect the enemy's projectiles.
Machinery was employed to move the turret and so point the guns, and
there were many other advantages in the new war ship. Since the
war, many improvements have been made in the monitors, and they
form a conspicuous feature of modern fleets.
The double-turreted monitors, of which the Terror is an example,

THE UNITED STATES NAVY. 739
were subsequently built. They were, unfortunately, constructed of
wood, which had already been condemned abroad as an unsuitable
material for building war ships. The duration of these wooden turreted
vessels was not long, and new vessels of this order, three of which bear
old names, were rebuilt of iron.
In 1874, some vessels known as the Adams class were built and
launched. These vessels were of wood, convenient and handy, and
were intended as cruisers in time of peace. The Marion class of sloops,
launched about this time, were also built of wood. The Alert is one of
three vessels that were built of iron in 1874. She was constructed as a
laudable experiment to improve and change the material for construc
tion. This effort was partly induced by pressure from the iron interest
of the country. The change was, however, limited to the small class
of diminutive vessels. This improvement in material was not, however,
relied on, for in 1876 the Trenton was launched. She was built of wood,
and represented the latest type of ships in the navy.
For fifteen years after the civil war, the navy steadily deteriorated
and its decrepit condition was a reproach to the country. Its old
reputation for proficiency and advancement was lost. The Government
pursued a temporizing policy and maintained an economical attitude
toward it. It was, however, not the intention that the navy should be
neglected or abolished. Yearly appropriations were passed for its sup
port, and its needs were frequently presented to Congress. The
amounts appropriated were, however, not large enough to permit many
new constructions of ships or artillery. Wooden ships were repaired
where steel ships should have been built, and cast-iron guns were used
where steel guns should have been placed.
The rapidity with which a large fleet of cruising vessels was built
and brought together during the civil war, left the impression upon the
public mind that, in case of any great emergency, the deficiency in the
navy could be hastily supplied. Being favored by peace at home and
abroad, it seemed wiser to allow other countries to improve upon naval
equipments, believing that when the necessary time came, the United
States could profit by the experiments of other maritime powers.
After a long interval of indifference in regard to the navy, attention
was at last centered on the subject. It was seen how rapidly naval
improvements had been made in foreign countries, and how utterly the
United States was distanced by the other maritime powers. A grow
ing desire arose to repair the effects of past neglect, and Congress
began to move in the matter. The origin of the first effort to improve

740 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
the navy dates from June, 1881, when the Advisory Board was appointed
to consider and to report on the needs of the navy. This board, on
November 7, 1881, decided that the United States Navy should consist
of seventy unarmored cruisers of steel. It reported that there were
thirty-two vessels in the navy fit for cruisers, and it indicated the char
acter of the vessels that should be built. This board considered
unarmored vessels, and did not discuss the subject of armored ships,
although it expressed the opinion that such vessels were indispensable in
time of war. It was some time before any practical results followed
from the action of this board; but in 1883, Congress authorized the
building of three steam cruisers and a dispatch boat. These vessels
were the Chicago, the Boston, the Atalanta and the Dolphin. In the
act of Congress, approved in March, 1885, four additional vessels were
authorized. These were the first steps toward our new navy.
Up to the time of this new movement, no steel for ships had been
rolled in the United States. Construction in American iron plates had
been extensively carried on, but steel-plating was imported at great cost
to the ship-builder. The question of naval material has always been a
most important one. Before 1840, the science of naval construction
had not advanced for two hundred years, all ships being built of wood.
In the next two decades there was rapid progress, and since the war
innumerable inventions have revolutionized ship-building.
The Dolphin caused much discussion when first launched, but she
has proved a staunch vessel and capable of good service. Though not
regarded as a vessel for fighting purposes, she is a ship of the class that is
needed in all navies as a dispatch boat. Her advent in the navy marked
a new period — the inauguration of the successful manufacture in the
United States of American rolled steel ship-plating. The Dolphin is the
first vessel, whether for naval or for commercial purposes, to be built
entirely of steel of home manufacture. The Dolphin has proved herself
eminently successful, and, with the exception of the steam yacht
Atalanta, is the fastest sea steamer of her displacement built in the
United States.
All the ships of the new navy are built of steel and modeled after
well-tested designs. Fifteen of the vessels that were last authorized by
Congress are (in 1889) in course of construction or but recently com
pleted. On October 8, 1888, the United States cruiser Baltimore was
launched at Philadelphia. The Baltimore was the first cruiser built
for the new navy.
Before the Samoan disaster, the United States numbered ninety-two

THE UNITED STATES NAVY. 741
serviceable vessels, fifteen of the first class, thirteen of the second class,
forty-three of the third class and seven of the fourth class. These
carried in all four hundred and eleven guns. Besides, there were twelve
tugs and a number of wooden sailing vessels.
The new navy, when completed, will comprise of the armored
vessels, the Puritan, the Miantonomah, the Amphitrite, the Monadnock
and the Terror. All of these are iron-clad and each carry four 10-inch
breech-loading guns, besides powerful secondary batteries. Of this
class the Maine and the Texas were the last to be launched. In addi
tion to these armored vessels, there are to be six iron-clad monitors,
each carrying fifteen-inch smooth-bore guns. Of the unarmored vessels
recently built, the Chicago, the Boston, the Atalanta and the Dolphin
are all of steel. Last to be built are the Charleston, the Baltimore, the
Newark, the Yorktown, the Philadelphia, the San Francisco, the Con
cord and the Bennington. They carry altogether ninety-four rifle guns.
There has recently been built a steel cruiser, Vesuvius, with three 12-
inch guns and two second-class torpedo boats. Twenty-eight vessels
in all have been added to the navy, and Congress appropriated an addi
tional sum of two million dollars for floating batteries and other naval
equipments. With the rehabilitation of the navy an effort was made to
dispense with all the old vessels that had lost prestige with the improve
ment in ship-building. The few wooden ships which carry the flag to
other countries were gradually condemned, and it has been estimated
that in 1898 the entire wooden navy will have disappeared.
A few words about naval artillery cannot but be interesting. From
the time of the invention of cast-iron cannon, in the year 1558, the
improvement in artillery was very slow. It was thought that the
cannon was such a wonderful invention that it was an impertinence to
think of improving it. The first guns were muzzle-loaders. There had
been rude attempts at breech-loading, but they were soon abandoned.
The guns were of a number of calibres to suit the weight of the batteries
on the ships. At the end of the eighteenth century what was known as
an eighteen-pounder was the preferred gun for the main-deck batteries
of frigates. The eighteen-pounder was the largest calibre used on the
ships of the United Colonies of North America in the war of the
Rebellion. In the war of 181 2, the carronade was adopted as a spar-
deck armament of frigates. The advantage of large calibre guns was
firmly impressed upon those who occupied themselves with naval
matters. As the fleet was developed, the twenty-four-pounders gave
way to the thirty-two-pounders, and then the forty-two-pounders were

742 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
introduced. In time, the forty-two-pounder was, however, abandoned
and the thirty-two-pounder was retained as the largest calibre. In the
interval between 1840 and 1845, the thirty-two-pounder was replaced by
a gun of the same calibre, of greater weight, called the long thirty-two-
pounder. Up to this time, no explosive projectiles had been used with
cannon, properly so-called. Mortars were originally used for project
ing huge balls of stone at high angles. They were first used in 1624,
but the unwieldly weight of the instruments prevented their use in the
field. To provide for field use, light mortars were cast, which, when
mounted on wheels, were denominated "howitzers." A mortar was
never used in naval armament, although it has been employed upon
ships engaged in bombarding cities. The success of explosive pro
jectiles did not immediately lead to their application to horizontal firing
from cannon.
The shell gun marks an important event in naval artillery. It
required many years to bring it into general use, so as to displace the
solid-shot gun. The first United States vessel, the battery of which
was composed exclusively of shell guns, was the sloop-of-war Ports
mouth, in 1856. With shell guns, much depended upon the successful
working of the fuse of the shell, without which it was but a hollow
substitute for a solid shot. The fuses which were used to explode the
first bombs were long wooden plugs, bored and filled with powder.
This fuse was improved upon, and the United States naval fuse became
justly famous, one feature of it being a simple and an effective device
called a water-cap, which guarded against injury from water when the
shell was fired.
Previous to the introduction of shells, incendiary projectiles had
been in use. They were simply intended to set fire to the ships of the
enemy, and were not explosive. Hot shot was employed for this
purpose, but it was used chiefly in batteries on shore. Within the
twenty-five years following the civil war, marvelous advances have been
made in artillery. Dynamite has entered into the composition of
explosives, and the carrying power of all sort of firearms has been greatly
increased. Steel guns have succeeded those of iron, and will be used
in the artillery of the new navy. The necessity of a change in the
naval artillery of the United States was recognized for a number of
years, but it was impossible to obtain steel of domestic manufacture for
the new guns. So the men-of-war were compelled to make their cruises
abroad with antiquated batteries that were inferior to those carried by
ships belonging to other nations.

THE UNITED STATES NAVY. 743
The torpedo has had a great influence upon naval warfare. Millions
of dollars have been spent by European powers in experimenting with
this deadly implement of destruction. Its introduction into the artillery
of the navy necessitates an additional fleet of torpedo boats. In former
times, a fleet consisted simply of battle ships. Dispatch boats were
added later. The torpedo had made it necessary to adopt a new class
of vessels, called the ' 'torpedo boat captures. ' ' The duty of these boats
is to destroy the torpedo boats of the enemy. They have great speed
and are provided with powerful batteries. The English and French
governments were the first to adopt them.
In the early period of its history there was no such branch of the
Government as the Department of War. In the first of our great wars
(that of 1812) there were only twenty ships in the navy, the organization
of which was of the simplest character; but these few ships were the
best of their class afloat. There being no organization of policy, each
commander of a vessel was compelled to act for himself; thus Hull,
Decatur and Porter — all of them young men — made great reputations
for themselves by their sagacity and courage. In 181 5 a board of three
officers was appointed, styled the Naval Commissioners, who had charge
of all the work of the department. The board was to perform, under a
secretary, all the ministerial duties of his office. In 1845, this board of
commissioners was replaced by the bureau system, which, with some
changes, has continued until the present time. The bureaus, when first
organized, were not qualified to direct the navy. As a working force,
the navy was without any direction. There was no responsible officer
to superintend the training of officers or the enrollment, assignment and
disciplining of seamen. No one was competent to attend to the dis
position of vessels or other important work. The effect of this half-
reform became evident in 1861, when the department was suddenly
plunged into war. No one had the faintest idea what to do or whose
business it was to do anything. The chiefs of the bureaus had various
duties. One managed the navy yards, another had charge of the con
struction of ships and a third superintended the building of guns. A
fourth supplied provisions. The department had no office organized
for staff work; it contained no information upon which to act; it had no
machinery by which information could be procured, and at this critical
time the department, which had been maintained for sixty years for
the service of the country, was found to be ' entirely wanting in the
means of conducting war. At this time, Captain Fox was appointed
chief clerk of the Navy Department, and he did a lasting service in

744 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
organizing an efficient administration of naval affairs, and in appointing
able men to carry out his plans. The number of the war bureaus was
increased during the war to eight. In 1882, an important office was
added to these bureaus. It was called the Office of Naval Intelligence,
and was created for the purpose of collecting and systematizing informa
tion concerning the resources and movements of foreign navies. This
office was a most important improvement in the management of the
naval department.
Any account of naval progress would be incomplete without a
¦ sketch of John Ericsson, who gave such an impetus to naval construc
tion by his wonderful inventions. His life was eventful, and the most
useful part of it was linked with the history of his adopted country,
America. John Ericsson was born in Sweden, in 1803. At eleven
years of age, he was appointed cadet of engineers, and two years later
was chosen as a leveler on the grand ship canal between the Baltic and
the North Sea, planning the work for over six hundred men. In 1820
he became an ensign in the Swedish army, rising rapidly to the rank
to lieutenant and captain. In 1825 he invented a condensing flame
engine, and the next year went to England to introduce it. Coal,
however, did not effect the same results as pine wood, and the invention
was not a success. In 1827 Ericsson resigned from the Swedish army
and went to England, where he devoted himself to the invention of
various devices to be used at sea. In 1829 he invented the steam car
riage "Novelty," and beat Stevenson's "Rocket" in atrial contest. In
1833 he invented the caloric engine, which excited the wonder of the
scientific world, and resulted, two years later, in the completion of the
caloric ship Ericsson. In 1839, at the urgent request of Commodore
Stockton, of the United States Navy, Ericsson came to the United
States and applied his screw propeller principle to the war ship Prince
ton. At the World's Fair in London, in 1851, Ericsson obtained the
prize for his numerous inventions. On March 9, 1862, he had the satis
faction of seeing his long-cherished turret plans carried out in the
Monitor. In 1869 Ericsson built a fleet of thirty vessels for the Spanish Gov
ernment for the protection of Cuba. In 1883 he constructed his sun
motor as a last gift to science. He contributed many scientific' articles
to various magazines. Many honors were conferred on John Ericsson
by Sweden, and in July, 1888, on the attainment of his eighty-fifth
year, he was especially honored by a visit from the representatives of
the King of Sweden, who sent him a token of appreciation of his

THE UNITED STATES NAVY. 745
genius. He was made a Knight of the Royal Orders of Denmark, and
was awarded the grand cross of naval merit by King Alphonso, of
Spain. In character, Captain Ericsson was singularly quiet and retir
ing. He was very little known in the neighborhood where he lived,
and he was an active man up to the time of his death. One of the
excuses he gave for not receiving visitors on his last birthday was that
he was ' 'too busy, as he had not yet completed his life-work. ' ' One of
the curious traits of his character was the total absence of anxiety to
personally see the workings of any of his machinery. He was never
on board the Destroyer but once after she was completed. In fashion
ing an invention, he worked almost entirely from drawings, and knew
just as well how every part of the finished machinery looked, or should
look, as though he had handled it a thousand times. Captain Ericsson
died March 9, 1889, in the eighty-sixth year of his age.
The United States Navy will henceforth rank with the navies of the
other maritime powers. The real use of the navy is to provide the
country with means of carrying on war, and it may seem that there is
little necessity of a navy in time of peace. It has been said that, inas
much as the national policy has been peaceful, and inasmuch as the
United States has never been allied with any foreign power, there will
be no danger of future naval combats. If, however, the Government
should neglect the means of national defense, the country is liable to
suffer most unexpectedly. No country is secure from an invasion of its
rights. Within the last hundred years, the United States has been at
war six times, including the French hostilities in 1798. The causes
thafbrought about these wars have been adjusted, but new causes may
arise at any time. In the event of an European war (and there are
always rumors of some foreign complication) the position of the United
States as an unarmed neutral would be extremely uncertain. The navy
protects American interests by its moral force as well as its maritime
strength. If it were abolished, it would be impossible for the United
States to maintain its standing as a great nation.
The duties of the navy, apart from the necessities of war, are numer
ous. It was stated by the first Advisory Board that vessels of the navy
were required for "surveying deep-sea soundings, the advancement and
protection of American commerce, exploration, protection of American
life and property endangered by war between foreign countries, and
service in support of American policy where foreign government is
concerned." The navy has been called the police of the ocean, and it is of

746 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
inestimable service in protecting commerce. In exploration, it has sent
out expeditions of such a daring character as to astonish the world.
When reorganized and fully equipped, it will be once more a credit to
the country, and a means by which great things may be accomplished.
It is maintained at an annual expenditure of from twelve to twenty
millions, and is a costly adjunct to the Government.

CHAPTER CXI.

?LL history is but a superficial record. Beneath the
simple outline of great events, there is a complex
network of human experiences. "The Story of
America" is fraught with vivid interest. It is a
narrative that is most dramatic in incident — its
pages are illumined with glorious deeds and great
achievements. Yet the written history is but the
smallest part of the whole wonderful story of the
mighty nation that was born one hundred years ago.
Many a hero who suffered hardships, endured priva
tion and worked patiently is unchronicled in books.
Many a hard-fought battle is unknown to those who
profit by past struggles. The heroes did not all enlist
in armies and the battles were not all fought with
sword and musket. Those who cultivated fruitful fields and estab
lished new homes in the wilderness were all heroes, and the cour
age that they displayed was not less noble than that which led others
to the cannon's mouth. War ships and naval artillery, marching regi
ments and Gatling guns constitute a more impressive vocabulary than
log houses and plowshares, struggling colonies and farming implements,
yet all were of equal importance in founding a new nation. It is nat
ural to dwell upon the great days in history— days when victorious
battles were fought and wonderful discoveries were made — yet such
days are composed of hours and moments that are important in individ
ual histories of which the world never hears. As individual histories
are the elements of national histories, those who read "The Story of
America" aright will remember the struggles and disappointments that
underlie many of its pages, and helpful lessons may be drawn. The his
tory of the past is one of self-reliance and triumphant effort, but it has no
more significance than the daily record which belongs to the present.

43

748 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
One by one, the great men who were illlustrious upon the battle
fields of the the Rebellion are passing away. Many of the brave hearts
that beat with patriotic ardor are stilled forever. There are no new
heroes, and at first thought it seems as if a common-place epoch had been
reached. Columbus voyaging to an unknown land, Ponce de Leon
searching for the fountain of youth, and Pocahontas saving the life of Cap
tain John Smith, are figures conspicuous in the romantic period, when dar
ing explorers sailed from foreign shores to claim the new country. The
landing of the Puritans on Plymouth Rock and their subsequent priva
tions have furnished material for many a tale and poem. The early
days of New York, Boston and New Orleans are tinged with strangely
romantic incidents. The frequent wars are each memorable for won
derful deeds of valor. A peculiar glamour is thrown about the lives of
Washington and Lafayette. The early statesmen are remembered as
extraordinary men and the speeches of the orators of the past stir the
hearts of rising generations. Looking backward, the present appears
devoid of all that made the past glorious. But peace reigns quietly,
prosperity sheds a tranquil influence over the nation and there is no
longer need of fervid oratory and martial music. The old chronicles of
battles and bloodshed are finished. Science has so improved the imple
ments of war that any future combats would be mere massacres, and all
nations are rising above the practice of what is only "splendid murder."
The new history will be a chronology of intellectual achievements.
The Americans surpass all other people in their inventive genius. The
names that will ornament the future history of the United States will
be those that have become famous because associated with men who
have helped the progress of the world by some brilliant thought or
ingenious experiment. Few characters will stand out in bold relief
among the many people of the nation. There will be no more hero
worship. It is no longer the fashion to exalt men above their true
worth. The age is critical and recognizes the human infirmities of its
great men, although it still pays tribute to the superior qualities by
which they excel. The number of those who will be honored will be
diminished, because every year the standards of excellence are higher.
Education is no longer for the few, but for the many. Although the
present may be unmarked by any external crisis, it is a time of great
intellectual activity, and future years will bring a rich harvest of
wisdom and justice.
In the twenty-five years since the Civil War, the nation has
attained a prosperity that is marvelous. Time has worked out many

WHAT'S TO-MORROW? 749
ct the problems that puzzled the statesmen of a quarter of a century ago.
From the ruins of the war, a new South has risen — a South rich in the
traditions of a brilliant past and heroic in its efforts to make a splendid
future. And to-day, who shall judge the South harshly? In all sin
cerity, it defended an institution which had been introduced by those
who, in the early days of the colonies, represented the best interests of
the struggling people. Its errors of judgment were due to wrong edu
cation — to inherited theories that were not in harmony with the spirit
of humanity or independence. It staked all in protecting what it
considered its rights — it lost everything. Many gallant soldiers laid
down their lives in defending their native States, and among the
Confederate generals, there were men of whom the whole nation might
have been proud. In the years that are coming, broader education
and greater liberality of opinion will heal all differences. In senti
ment, there will no longer be any North or South, only one great
nation that remembers those who sleep in soldiers' graves as brothers,
noj as friends or foes.
' 'The Story of America' ' is but just begun. The chapters that are
being added every day will tell of buying and selling, sowing and
reaping. Commerce will widen, new lands will be cultivated. The
external history may contain little that is new or fascinating, yet the
age will be rich with grand opportunities for better living. Already
great things are being accomplished. New paths of science and lit
erature are opened. The future annals of the nation will be written
with a wider knowledge, a deeper insight. Yet what of the morrow?

NATURALIZATION LAWS

OF THE
UNITED STATES.

The conditions under and the manner in which an alien may be
admitted to become a citizen of the United States are prescribed by
sections 2,165-74 of the Revised Statutes of the United States.
DECLARATION OF INTENTION.
The alien must declare upon oath before a Circuit or District Court'
of the United States, or a District or Supreme Court of the Territories,
or a court of record of any of the States having common law jurisdic
tion and a seal and clerk, two years at least prior to his admission, that
it is, bona fide, his intention to become a citizen of the United States,
and to renounce forever all allegiance and fidelity to any foreign prince
or State, and particularly to the one of which he may be at the time a
citizen or subject. OATH ON APPLICATION FOR ADMISSION.
He must, at the time of his application to be admitted, declare on
oath, before one of the courts specified, ' 'that he will support the Con
stitution of the United States, and that he absolutely and entirely
renounces and abjures all allegiance and fidelity to every foreign prince,
potentate, State, or sovereignty, and particularly, by name, to the prince,
potentate, State or sovereignty of which he was before a citizen or sub
ject," which proceedings must be recorded by the clerk of the court.
' CONDITIONS FOR CITIZENSHIP.
If it shall appear to the satisfaction of the court to which the alien
has applied that he has resided continuously within the United States
for at least five years, and within the State or Territory where such
court is at the time held one year at least; and that during that time
' 'he has behaved as a man of good moral character, attached to the
principles of the Constitution of the United States, and well disposed
to the good order and happiness of the same," he will be. admitted to
citizenship.

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NATURALIZATION LAWS OF THE UNITED STATES. 753
TITLES OF NOBILITY.
If the applicant has borne any hereditary title or order of nobility,
he must make an express renunciation of the same at the time of his
application. SOLDIERS.
An alien of the age of twenty-one years and upward who has been in the
the armies of the United States, and has been honorably discharged there
from, may become a citizen on his petition, without any previous decla
ration of intention, provided that he has resided in the United States at
least one year previous to his application and is of good moral char
acter. MINORS.
An alien under the age of twenty-one who has resided in the United
States three years next preceding his arriving at that age, and who has
continued to reside therein to the time he may make application to be
admitted a citizen thereof, may, after he arrives at the age of twenty-
one years, and after he has resided five years within the United States,
including the three years of his minority, be admitted a citizen; but he
must make a declaration on oath and prove to the satisfaction of the
court that for two years next preceding it has been his bona fide inten
tion to become a citizen.
CHILDREN OF NATURALIZED CITIZENS.
The children of persons who have been duly naturalized, being
under the age of twenty-one years at the time of the naturalization of
their parents, shall, if dwelling in the United States, be considered
as citizens thereof.
citizens' children who are born abroad.
The children of persons who now are or have been citizens of the
United States are, though born out of the limits and jurisdiction of
the United States, considered as citizens thereof.
PROTECTION ABROAD TO NATURALIZED CITIZENS.
Section 2,000 of the Revised Statutes of the United States declares
that "all naturalized citizens of the United States, while in foreign
countries, are entitled to and shall receive from this Government the
same protection of persons and property which is accorded to native-
born citizens."

754 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
RIGHT OF SUFFRAGE.
The right to vote comes from the State and is a State gift. Natural
ization is a Federal right and is a gift of the Union, not of any one
State. In nearly one-half the Union aliens (who have declared inten
tions) vote and have the right to vote equally with naturalized or native-
born citizens. In the other half only actual citizens may vote. The
Federal naturalization laws apply to the whole Union alike, and provide
that no alien male may be naturalized until after five years' residence.
Even after five years' residence and due naturalization he is not entitled
to vote unless the laws of the State confer the privilege upon him, and
he may vote in one State (Michigan) six months after landing, if he
has immediately declared his intention, under United States laws, to
become a citizen.

LIST OF
PRESIDENTS AND VICE-PRESIDENTS.

President.

No- Term of Office.

State.

Vice-President.

i George Washington, -

Virginia. -

John Adams.

Two terms, 1789-97.

2 John Adams, ...
Massachusetts.
Thomas Jefferson.
One term, 1797-1801.
3 Thomas Jefferson,
Virginia. -
Aaron Burr.
Two terms, 1801-09.
George Clinton.
4 James Madison, -
Virginia. -
George Clinton.
Two terms, 1809-17.
Elbridge Gerry.
5 James Monroe, - - -
Virginia. -
Daniel D. Tompkins.
Two terms, 1817-25.
6 John Q. Adams, -
Massachusetts.
John C. Calhoun.
One term, 1825-29.
7 Andrew Jackson, - - -
Tennessee.
John C. Calhoun.
Two terms, 1829-37.
Martin Van Buren.
8 Martin Van Buren, -
New York. -
Richard M. Johnson.
One term, 1837-41.
9 William H. Harrison, -
Ohio. - - -
John Tyler.
One month, 1841.
10 John Tyler, - - -
Virginia.
Three years and 11 months, 1841-45.
11 James K. Polk,
Tennessee.
George M. Dallas.
One term, 1845-49.
12 Zachary Taylor, -
Louisiana. -
Millard Fillmore.
One year and 4 months,
1849-50.
13 Millard Fillmore,
New York.
Two years and 8 months,
¦ ! 850-53-
14 Franklin Pierce, - - -
New Hampshire
;. William R. King.
One term, 1853-57.
15 James Buchanan,
Pennsylvania.
J. C. Breckinridge.
One term, 1857-61.
756

THE STORY OF AMERICA.

No.

President.
Term of Office.

State.

Illinois.

1 6 Abraham Lincoln,
One term and i month.
17 Andrew Johnson, - - Tennessee.
Three years and 1 1 months.
18 Ulysses S. Grant, - - Illinois. -
Two terms, 1869-77.
19 Rutherford B. Hayes,
One term, 1877-81.
20 James A. Garfield,
Six and a half ihonths, 1881.
21 Chester A. Arthur, - - New York,
Three years, 5 and a half months, 1881
22 Grover Cleveland, - - New York.
One term, 1885-89.
23 Benjamin Harrison, - - Indiana. -
1 889-.

Ohio.

Ohio.

VlCE-PaESIDENT.
Hannibal Hamlin,
Andrew Johnson.

Schuyler Colfax.
Henry Wilson.
William A. Wheeler.
Chester A. Arthur.

-85-

Thos. A. Hendricks.

- Levi P. Morton.

CONSTITUTION OF THE UNITED STATES.

We, the people of the United States, in order to form a more perfect
union, establish justice, insure domestic tranquility, provide for the
common defense, promote the general welfare, and secure the blessings
of liberty to ourselves and our posterity, do ordain and establish this
Constitution for the United States of America.
ARTICLE I.
Section i. All legislative powers herein granted shall be vested
in a Congress of the United States, which shall consist of a Senate and
House of Representatives.
Sec. 2. The House of Representatives shall be composed of mem
bers chosen every second year by the people of the several States, and
the electors in each State shall have the qualifications requisite for
electors of the most numerous branches of the State legislature.
No person shall be a Representative who shall not have attained to
the age of twenty-five years, and been seven years a citizen of the United
States, and who shall not, when elected, be an inhabitant of that State
in which he shall be chosen.
Representatives and direct taxes shall be apportioned among the
several States which may be included within this Union, according to
their respective numbers, which shall be determined by adding to the
whole number of free persons, including those bound to service for a
term of years, and, excluding Indians not taxed, three-fifths of all other
persons. The actual enumeration shall be made within three years
after the first meeting of the Congress of the United States and within
every subsequent term of ten years, in such a manner as they shall by
law direct. The number of Representatives shall not exceed one for
every thirty thousand, but each shall have at least one Representative;
and, until such enumeration shall be made, the State of New Hamp
shire shall be entitled to choose three, Massachusetts eight, Rhode
Island and Providence Plantations one, Connecticut five, New York
six, New Jersey four, Pennsylvania eight, Delaware one, Maryland six,
Virginia ten, North Carolina five, South Carolina five and Georgia
three. When vacancies happen in the representation from any State, the

758 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
executive authority thereof shall issue writs of election to fill such
vacancies. The House of Representatives shall choose their Speaker and other
officers and shall have the sole power of impeachment.
Sec. 3. The Senate of the United States shall be composed of two
Senators from each State, chosen by the legislature thereof for six years,
and each Senator shall have one vote.
Immediately after they shall be assembled in consequence of the first
election, they shall be divided, as equally as may be, into three classes.
The seats of the Senators of the first class shall be vacated at the expi
ration of the second year, of the second class at the expiration of the
fourth year, and of the third class at the expiration of the sixth year,
so that one-third may be chosen every second year, and if vacancies
happen, by resignation or otherwise, during the recess of the legislature
of any State, the executive thereof may make temporary appointments
until the next meeting of the legislature, which shall then fill such
vacancies. No person shall be a Senator who shall not have attained the age
of thirty years, and been nine years a citizen of the United States, and
who shall not, when elected, be an inhabitant of that State for which he
shall be chosen.
The Vice-President of the United States shall be President of the
Senate, but shall have no vote unless they be equally divided.
The Senate shall choose their other officers, and also a president
pro tempore, in the absence of the Vice-President, or when he shall
exercise the office as President of the United States.
The Senate shall have the sole power to try all impeachments.
When sitting for that purpose they shall be on oath or affirmation.
When the President of the United States is tried, the Chief Justice shall
preside, and no person shall be convicted without the concurrence of
two- thirds of the members present.
Judgment in cases of impeachment shall not extend further than to
removal from office, and disqualification to hold any office of honor,
trust or profit under the United States; but the party convicted shall,
nevertheless, be liable and subject to indictment, trial, judgment and
punishment according to law.
SEC. 4. The times, places and manner of holding elections for
Senators and Representatives shall be prescribed in each State by the
legislature thereof; but the Congress may, at any time, by law, make
or alter such regulations, except as to the places of choosing Senators.

CONSTITUTION OF THE UNITED STATES. 759
The Congress shall assemble at least once every year; and such meet
ing shall be on the first Monday in December, unless they shall by law
appoint a different day.
SEC. 5. Each house shall be the judge of elections, returns and
qualifications of its own members; and a majority of each shall constitute
a quorum to do business; but a smaller number may adjourn from day
to day, and may be authorized to compel the attendance of absent
members, in such manner, and under such penalties as each house may
provide. Each house may determine the rules of its proceedings,
punish its members for disorderly behavior, and, with the concurrence
of two-thirds, expel a member.
Each house shall keep a journal of its proceedings, and from time
to time publish the same, excepting such parts as may, in their judg
ment, require secrecy; and the yeas and nays of the members of either
house, on any question, shall, at the desire of one-fifth of those present,
be entered on the journal.
Neither house, during the session of Congress, shall, without the
consent of the other, adjourn for more than three days, nor to any other
place than that in which the two houses shall be sitting.
Sec. 6. The Senators and Representatives shall receive a compen
sation for their services, to be ascertained by law, and paid out of the
Treasury of the United States. They shall, in all cases except treason,
felony, and breach of the peace, be privileged from arrest during their
attendance at the session of their respective houses, and in going to and
returning from the same ; and for any speech or debate in either house,
they shall not be questioned in any other place.
No Senator or Representative shall, during the time for which he
was elected, be appointed to any civil office under the authority of
the United States which shall have been created, or the emoluments
whereof shall have been increased, during such time; and no person
holding any office under the United States shall be a member of either
house during his continuance in office.
SEC. 7. All bills for raising revenue shall originate in the House of
Representatives; but the Senate may propose or concur with amend
ments, as on other bills.
Every bill which shall have passed the House of Representatives and
the Senate, shall, before it become a law, be presented to the President
of the United States; if he approve, he shall sign it, but if not, he shall
return it, with his objections, to that house in which it shall have
originated, who shall enter the objections at large on their journal, and

760 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
proceed to reconsider it. If, after such reconsideration, two-thirds of
that house shall agree to pass the bill, it shall be sent, together with
the objections, to the other house, by which it shall likewise be recon
sidered, and if approved by two-thirds of that house, it shall become a
law. But, in all such cases, the votes of both houses shall be determined
by yeas and nays, and the names of the persons voting for and against
the bill shall be entered on the journal of each house respectively. If
any bill shall not be returned by the President within ten days (Sundays
excepted) after it shall have been presented to him, the same shall be a
law in like manner as if he had signed it, unless the Congress by their
adjdurnment prevent its return, in which case it shall not be a law.
Every order, resolution, or vote, to which the concurrence of the
Senate and House of Representatives may be necessary (except on a
question of adjournment) shall be presented to the President of the
United States; and before the same shall take effect, shall be approved
by him, or, being disapproved by him, shall be repassed by two-thirds
of the Senate and House of Representatives, according to the rules and
limitations prescribed in case of a bill.
Sec. 8. The Congress shall have power to lay and collect taxes,
duties, imposts and excises, to pay the debts, and to provide for the
common defence and general welfare of the United States; but all duties,
imposts and excises shall be uniform throughout the United States.
To borrow money on the credit of the United States.
To regulate commerce with foreign nations, and among the several
States, and with the Indian tribes.
To establish an uniform rule of naturalization, and uniform laws on
the subjects of bankruptcies throughout the United States.
To coin money, regulate the value thereof, and of foreign coin, and
fix the standard of weights and measures.
To provide for the punishment of counterfeiting the securities and
current coin of the United States.
To establish post-offices and post roads.
To promote the progress of science and useful arts, by securing for
limited times, to authors and inventors, the exclusive right to their
respective writings and discoveries.
To constitute tribunals inferior to the Supreme Court.
To define and punish piracies and felonies committed on the high
seas, and offences against the law of nations.
To declare war, grant letters of marque and reprisal, and make rules
concerning captures on land and water.

CONSTITUTION OF THE UNITED STATES. 761
To raise and support armies ; but no appropriation of money to that
use shall be for a longer term than two years.
To provide and maintain a navy.
To make rules for the government and regulation of the land and
naval forces.
To provide for calling forth the militia to execute the laws of the
Union, suppress insurrections, and repel invasions.
To provide for organizing, arming, and disciplining the militia, and
for governing such part of them as may be employed in the service of
the United States, reserving to the States, respectively, the appointment
of the officers, and the authority of training the militia according to the
discipline prescribed by Congress.
To exercise exclusive legislation, in all cases whatsoever, over such
districts (not exceeding ten miles square) as may, by cession of particular
States, and the acceptance of Congress, become the seat of government
of the United States, and to exercise like authority oyer all places
purchased by the consent of the legislature of the States in which the
same shall be, for the erection of forts, magazines, arsenals, dockyards,
and other needful buildings.
To make all laws which shall be necessary and proper for carrying
into execution the foregoing powers, and all other powers vested by this
Constitution in the Government of the United States, or in any depart
ment or officer thereof.
Sec. 9. The migration or importation of such persons, as any of
the States now existing shall think proper to admit, shall not be
prohibited by the Congress prior to the year One Thousand Eight
Hundred and Eight; but a tax, or duty, may be imposed on such impor
tation, not exceeding ten dollars for each person.
The privilege of the writ of habeas corpus shall not be suspended,
unless when in cases of rebellion or invasion the public safety may
require it
No bill of attainder or ex post facto law shall be passed.
No capitation or other direct tax shall be laid, unless in -proportion
to the census, or enumeration, hereinbefore directed to be taken.
No taxes or duty shall be laid on articles exported from any State.
No preference shall be given by any regulation of commerce or
revenue to the ports of one State over those of another; nor shall vessels
bound to or from one State be obliged to enter, clear, or pay duties in
another. No money shall be drawn from the treasury but in consequence of

762 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
appropriations made by law; and a regular statement and account of
the receipts and expenditures of all public money shall be published
from time to time.
No title of nobility shall be granted by the United States, and no
person holding any office of profit or trust under them shall, without
the consent of the Congress, accept of any present, emolument, office,
or title of any kind whatever, from any king, prince, or foreign State.
Sec 10. No State shall enter into any treaty, alliance, or confed
eration; grant letters of marque and reprisal; coin money; emit bills of
credit; make anything but gold and silver coin a tender in payment of
debts; pass any bill of attainder, ex post facto law, or law impairing the
obligation of contracts; or grant a title of nobility.
No State shall, without the consent of the Congress, lay any imposts
or duties on imports or exports, except what may be absolutely necessary
fox executing its inspection laws; and the net produce of all duties and
imposts laid by any State on imports or exports shall be for the use of the
treasury of the United States; and all such laws shall be subject to the
revision and control of the Congress.
No State shall, without the consent of Congress, lay any duty of
tonnage, keep troops or ships of war in time of peace, enter into any
agreement or compact with another State or with a foreign power, or
engage in war, unless actually invaded, or in such imminent danger as
will not admit of delay.
Sec ii. The executive power shall be vested in a President of the
United States of America. He shall hold his office during the term of
four years, and together with the Vice-President, chosen for the same
term, be elected as follows:
Each State shall appoint, in such manner as the legislature thereof
may direct, a number of electors equal to the whole number of Senators
and Representatives to which the State may be entitled in the Congress;
but no Senator or Representative, or person holding an office of trust or
profit under the United States, shall be appointed an elector.
The electors shall meet in their respective States, and vote by ballot
for two persons, of whom one, at least, shall not be an inhabitant of
the State with themselves. And they shall make a list of all the persons
voted for, and of the number of votes for each, which list they shall
sign and certify, and transmit sealed to the seat of Government of the
United States, directed to the President of the Senate. The President
of the Senate shall, in the presence of the Senate and House of Repre
sentatives, open all the certificates, and the votes shall then be counted.

CONSTITUTION OF THE UNITED STATES. 763
The person having the greatest number of votes shall be the President,
if such number be a majority of the whole number of electors appointed,
and if there be more than one who have such majority, and have an
equal number of votes, then the House of Representatives shall im
mediately choose, by ballot, one of them for President, and if no person
have a majority, then, from the five highest on the list, the said House
shall, in like manner, choose the President. But, in choosing the
President, the votes shall be taken by States, the representation from
each State having one vote; a quorum for this purpose shall consist of
a member or members from two-thirds of the States, and a majority of
all the States shall be necessary to a choice. In every case, after the
choice of the President, the person having the greatest number of votes
of the electors shall be Vice-President. But, if there should remain
two or more who have equal votes, the Senate shall choose from them,
by ballot, the Vice-President.
The Congress may determine the time of choosing the electors, and
the day on which they shall give their votes, which day shall be the
same throughout the United States.
No person except a natural-born citizen, or a citizen of the United
States at the time of the adoption of this Constitution, shall be eligible
to the office of President; neither shall any person be eligible to the
office who shall not have attained to the age of thirty-five years, and
been fourteen years a resident within the United States.
In case of the removal of the President from office, or of his death,
resignation, or inability to discharge the powers and duties of the said
office, the same shall devolve on the Vice-President, and the Congress
may, by law, provide for the case of removal, death, resignation, or
inability, both of the President and Vice-President, declaring what
officer shall act accordingly, until the disability be removed or a Presi
dent shall be elected.
The President shall, at stated times, receive for his services a com
pensation, which -shall neither be increased nor diminished during the
period for which he shall be elected, and he shall not receive within
that period any other emolument from the United States or any of
them. Before he enter on the execution of his office he shall take the fol
lowing oath or affirmation:
' 'I do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will faithfully execute the office
of the President of the United States, and will, to the best of my ability,
preserve, protect and defend the Constitution of the United States."

764 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
SEC 12. The President shall be commander-in-chief of tht army
and navy of the United States, and of the militia of the several States;
he may require the opinion, in writing, of the principal officer in each
of the executive departments, upon any subject relating to the duties of
the respective offices, and he shall have power to grant reprieves and
pardons for offences against the United States, except in cases of im
peachment. He shall have power, by and with the advice and consent of the
Senate, to make treaties, provided two- thirds of the Senators present
concur, and he shall nominate, and, by and with the advice and consent
of the Senate, shall appoint ambassadors, other public ministers and
consuls, Judges of the Supreme Court, and all other officers of the
United States, whose appointments are not herein otherwise provided
for, and which shall be established by law, but the Congress may, by
law, vest the appointment of such inferior officer as they think proper
in the President alone, in the courts of law, or in the heads of depart
ments. The President shall have the power to fill up all vacancies that may
happen during the recess of the Senate, by granting commissions, which
shall expire at the end of their next session.
SEC. 13. He shall, from time to time, give to the Congress informa
tion of the state of the Union, and recommend to their consideration
such measures as he shall judge necessary and expedient; he may, on
extraordinary occasions, convene both houses, or either of them, and in
case of disagreement between them with respect to the time of adjourn
ment, he may adjourn them to such time as he shall think proper; he
shall receive ambassadors and other public ministers; he shall take care
that the laws be faithfully executed, and shall commission all the officers
of the United States.
Sec. 14. The President, Vice-President, and all civil officers of the
United States, shall be removed from office on impeachment for and
conviction of treason, bribery, or other high crimes and misdemeanors.
ARTICLE III.
Section i. The judicial power of the United States shall be vested
in one Supreme Court, and in such inferior courts as the Congress may
from time to time ordain and establish. The judges, both of the
supreme and inferior courts, shall hold their offices during good behavior,
and shall, at stated times, receive for their services a compensation,
which shall not be diminished during their continuance in office.

CONSTITUTION OF THE UNITED STATES. 765
SEC. 2. The judicial power shall extend to all cases, in law and
equity, arising under this Constitution, the laws of the United States,
and treaties made, or which shall be made, under their authority; to all
cases affecting ambassadors, other public ministers and consuls; to all
cases of admiralty and maritime jurisdiction; to controversies between
two or more States, between a State and citizens of another State,
between citizens -of different States, between citizens of the same State
claiming lands under grants of different States, and between a State, or
the citizens thereof, and foreign States, citizens or subjects.
In all cases affecting ambassadors other public ministers and
consuls, and those in which a State shall be a party, the Supreme Court
shall have original jurisdiction. In all the other cases before mentioned,
the Supreme Court shall have appellate jurisdiction both as to law and
fact, with such exceptions and under such regulations as the Congress
shall make.
The trial of all crimes, except in cases of impeachment, shall be by
jury, and such trial shall be held in the State where the said crime shall
have been committed; but when not committed within any State, the
trial shall be at such place or places as the Congress may, by law, have
directed. SEC. 3. Treason against the United States shall consist only in
levying war against them, or in adhering to their enemies, giving them
aid and comfort. No person shall be convicted of treason unless on the
testimony of two witnesses to the same overt act, or on confession in
open court.
The Congress shall have power to declare the punishment of treason,
but no attainder of treason shall work corruption of blood or forfeiture,
except during the life of the person attainted.
ARTICLE IV.
SEC. 1. Full faith and credit shall be given in each State to the
public acts, records and judicial proceedings of every other State.
And the Congress may, by the general laws, prescribe the manner in
which such acts, records and proceedings shall be proved, and the effect
thereof. SEC. 2. The citizens of each State shall be entitled to all privi
leges and immunities of citizens in the several States.
A person charged in any State with treason, felony or other crime,
who shall flee from justice, and be found in another State, shall, on
demand of the executive authority of the State from which he fled, be
44

766 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
delivered up, to be removed to the State having jurisdiction of the
crime. No person held to service or labor in one State, under the laws
thereof, escaping into another, shall, in consequence of any law or reg
ulation therein, be discharged from such service or labor, but shall
be delivered up on claim of the party to whom such service or labor
may be due.
Sec 3. New States may be admitted by the Congress into this
Union, but no new State shall be formed or erected within the jurisdiction
of any other State, nor any States be formed by the junction of two or
more States or parts of States, without the consent of the legislatures of
the States concerned as well as of the Congress.
The Congress shall have power to dispose of and make all need
ful rules and regulations respecting the territory or other property
belonging to the United States; and nothing in this Constitution shall
be so construed as to prejudice any claims of the United States, or of
any particular State.
Sec. 4. The United States shall guarantee to every State in this
Union a republican form of government, and shall protect each of
them against invasion, and on application of the legislature, or of the
executive (when the legislature can not be convened), against domestic
violence. ARTICLE V.
The Congress, whenever two-thirds of both houses shall deem it
necessary, shall propose amendments to this Constitution, or, on the
application of the legislatures of two-thirds of the several States, shall
call a convention for proposing amendments, which, in either case,
shall be valid to all intents and purposes, as part of this Constitution,
when ratified by the legislatures of three-fourths of the several States,
•or by conventions in three-fourths thereof, as the one or the other mode
of ratification may be proposed by the Congress, provided that nc
.amendment which may be made prior to the year One Thousand Eight
Hundred and Eight shall in any manner affect the first and fourth clauses
in the ninth section of this article; and that no State, without its con
sent, shall be deprived of its equal suffrage in the Senate.
ARTICLE VI.
All debts contracted and engagements entered into before the adoption
of this Constitution, shall be as valid against the United States under
this Constitution as under the confederation.

CONSTITUTION OF THE UNITED STATES. 767,
This Constitution, and the laws of the United States which shall be
made in pursuance thereof, and all treaties made, or which shall be
made under the authority of the United States, shall be the supreme
law of the land, and the judges in every State shall be bound thereby,
anything in the constitution or laws of any State to the contrary not
withstanding. The Senators and Representatives before mentioned, and the mem
bers of the several States, legislatures, and all executive and judicial
officers, both of the United States and of the several States, shall be
bound by oath or affirmation to support this Constitution, but no relig
ious test shall ever be required as a qualification to any office or public
trust under the United States. ARTICLE VII.
The ratification of the conventions of nine States shall be sufficient
for the establishment of this Constitution between the States so ratify
ing the same.
Done in convention by the unanimous consent of the States present,
the seventeenth day of September, in the year of Our Lord, One Thou
sand Seven Hundred and Eighty-seven, and of the Independence of the
United States of America the twelfth. In witness whereof we have
hereunto subscribed our names. (Signed by the members of the Con
vention). AMENDMENTS.
At the first session of the First Congress, held in the city of
New York, and begun on Wednesday, the 4th of March, 1789,
many amendments to the National Constitution were offered for con
sideration. The Congress proposed ten of them to the legislatures
of the several States. These were ratified by the constitutional num
ber of State legislatures by the middle of December, 1791. Five
other amendments have since been proposed and duly ratified, and have
become, with the other ten, a part of the National Constitution.
The following are the amendments: ARTICLE I.
Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of relig
ion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof ; or abridging the freedom
of speech, or of the press; or to the right of the people peaceably to
assemble, and to petition the Government for redress of grievances.
ARTICLE 11.
A well regulated militia being necessary to the security of a

768 THE STORY OF AMERICA.
free State, the right of the people to keep and bear arms shall not
be infringed. ARTICLE III.
No soldier shall, in time of peace, be quartered in any house
without the consent of the owner, nor in time of war, but in a
manner to be prescribed by law. ARTICLE IV.
The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses,
papers and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall
not be violated, and no warrants shall issue but upon probable cause,
supported by oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the
place to be searched and the person or things to be seized.
ARTICLE v.
No person shall be held to answer for a capital or otherwise
infamous crime, unless on a presentment or indictment of a grand
jury, except in cases arising in the land or naval forces, or in the
militia, when in actual service in time of war and public danger;
nor shall any person be subject for the same offense to be twice put
in jeopardy of life or limb; nor shall be compelled in any criminal
case to be a witness against himself, nor to be deprived of life, lib
erty or property, without due process of law; nor shall private prop
erty be taken for public use without just compensation.
ARTICLE VI.
In all criminal prosecutions the accused shall enjoy the right to
a speedy and public trial, by an impartial jury of the State and dis
trict wherein the crime shall have been committed, which district
shall have been previously ascertained by law, and to be informed
of the nature and cause of the accusation; to be confronted with the
witnesses against him; to have compulsory process for obtaining wit
nesses in his favor, and to have the assistance of counsel for his defense.
ARTICLE VII.
In suits at common law, where the value in controversy shall exceed
twenty dollars, the right of trial by jury shall be preserved, and no fact
tried by a jury shall be otherwise re-examined in any court of the United
States than according to the rules of common law.
ARTICLE VIII.
Excessive bail shall not be required, nor excessive fines imposed, nor
cruel and unusual punishment inflicted.

CONSTITUTION OF THE UNITED STATES. 769
ARTICLE IX.
The enumeration in the Constitution of certain rights shall not be
construed to deny or disparage others retained by the people.
ARTICLE x.
The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution
not prohibited by it to the States are reserved to the States respectively,
or to the people. ARTICLE XI.
The judicial power of the United States shall not be construed to
extend to any suit in law or equity, commenced or prosecuted against
the United States, by citizens of another State, or by citizens or sub
jects of any foreign State. ARTICLE XII.
The electors shall meet in their respective States, and vote for Presi
dent and Vice-President, one of whom, at least, shall not be an inhabi
tant of the same State with themselves; they shall name in their ballots
the person voted for as President, and in distinct ballots the person voted
for Vice-President, and they shall make distinct lists of all persons
voted for as President and of all persons voted for as Vice-President,
and of the number of votes for each, which lists they shall sign and
certify, and transmit sealed to the seat of Government of the United
States, directed to the President of the Senate; the President of the
Senate shall, in the presence of the Senate and House of Representa
tives, open all the certificates, and the votes shall then be counted; the
person having the greatest number of votes for President, shall be
President, if such number be a majority of the whole number of
electors appointed, and if no person have such majority, then from the
persons having the highest numbers, not exceeding three, on the list of
those voted for President, the House of Representatives shall choose
immediately, by ballot, the President. But in choosing the President,
the votes shall be taken by States, the representation from each State
having one vote; a quorum for this purpose shall consist of a member
or members from two-thirds of the States, and a majority of all the
States shall be necessary to a choice. And if the House of Represen
tatives shall not choose a President whenever the right of choice shall
devolve upon them, before the fourth day of March next following, then
the Vice-President shall act as President, as in the case of death or
other constitutional disability of the President. The person having the
greatest number of votes as Vice-President shall be Vice-President, if

77° THE STORY OF AMERICA.
such number be a majority of the whole number of electors appointed,
and if no person have a majority, then from the two highest numbers
on the list the Senate shall choose the Vice-President; a quorum for the
purpose shall consist of two-thirds of the whole number of Senators,
and a majority of the whole number shall be necessary to a choice.
But no person constitutionally ineligible to the office of President shall
be eligible to that of Vice-President of the United States.
ARTICLE XIII.
Section i. Neither slavery nor involuntary servitude, except as a
punishment for crime, whereof the party shall have been duly con
victed, shall exist within the United States, or any place subject to
their jurisdiction.
Sec 2. Congress shall have power to enforce this article by
appropriate legislation. article xiv.
Section i. All persons born or naturalized in the United States,
and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States
and of the State wherein they reside. No State shall make or enforce
any law which shall abridge the privileges or immunities of citizens
of the United States ; nor shall any State deprive any person of life,
liberty or property, without due process of law, nor deny to any person
within its jurisdiction the equal protection of laws.
SEC 2. Representatives shall be appointed among the several
States according to their respective numbers, counting the whole
number of persons in each State, excluding Indians not taxed. But
when the right to vote, at any election for the choice of electors for
President and Vice-President of the United States, Representative in
Congress, the executive or judicial officers of a State, or the members
of the legislature thereof, is denied to any of the male inhabitants of
such State, being twenty-one years of age and citizens of the United
States, or in any way abridged, except for participation in rebellion or
other crime, the basis of representation therein shall be reduced in
the proportion which the number of such male citizens shall bear to
the whole number of male citizens twenty-one years of age in such
State. SEC 3. No person shall be Senator or Representative in Congress,
or elector of President and Vice-President, or hold any office, civil or
military, under the United States, or under any State, who, haying
previously taken oath as a member of Congress, or as an officer of the

constitution of the united states. 771
United States, or as a member of any State legislature or as an execu
tive or judicial officer of any State, to support the Constitution of the
United States, shall have engaged in insurrection or rebellion against
the same, or given aid or comfort to the enemies thereof. But Congress
may, by a vote of two-thirds of each house, remove such disability.
SEC 4. The validity of the public debt of the United States,
authorized by law, including debts incurred by payment of pensions and
bounties for services in suppressing insurrection or rebellion, shall not
be questioned. But neither the United States or any State shall assume
to pay any debt or obligation incurred in aid of insurrection or rebellion
against the United States, or any claim for the loss or emancipation of
any slave; but all such debts, obligations and claims shall be held
illegal and void.
Sec 5. Congress shall have power to enforce, by appropriate
legislation, the provisions of this article.
ARTICLE xv.
Section i. The right of the citizens of the United States shall
not be denied or abridged by the United States, or in any State, on
account of race, color, or previous condition of servitude.
Sec 2. The Congress shall have power to enforce this article by
appropriate legislation.

REFERENCE READINGS.

Chapter. Page.
I. History — Squire and Davis' "Ancient Monuments;"
Baldwin's "Ancient America;" Foster's "Prehistoric
Races of America;" Drake's "Aboriginal Races of North
America;" Jones' "Mound Builders of Tennessee;"
Shaler's "Time of the Mammoths;" "American Nat
uralist," iv: 148. Fiction — Matthew's "Behemoth: A
Legend of the Mound Builders." - - - - 32
IL History — Leland's "Fusang: Discovery of America by
Chinese;" "America Not Discovered by Columbus;"
Bowen's "America Discovered by the Welsh;" Ander
son's "Discovery of America by Norsemen;" Beal's
4 'Buddhist Records of the Western World. ' ' Fiction —
Ballantyne' s ' 'Norsemen of the West. ' ' Poetry — Whit
tier's "Norsemen;" Longfellow's "Skeleton in Armor;"
Montgomery's "Vinland." - - - - -37
III. History — Prescott' s ' 'Conquest of Mexico. ' ' Biography
— W. Irving's "Columbus;" W. Irving's "Companions
of Columbus;" Dexter' s "Letters of Columbus and Ves
pucci." Travels — Hakluyt's "Voyages;" Kohl's
' 'Discoverers of the East Coast of America. ' ' Fiction —
Bird's "Calavar" and "Infidel;" Wallace's "Fair God."
Poetry — Barlow's "Colombiad;" Lowell's "Colum
bus;" Rogers' "Columbus;" Sir Aubrey De Vere's
"Sonnets on Columbus. "  45
IV. History — Parkman's "Pioneers of France;" Parkman's
"France and England in North America;" Reynold's
"Old St. Augustine;" Baird's "Huguenot Emigration
to America;" Jones' "De Soto and His March Through
Georgia." Fiction — Simm's "Damsel of Darien,"
"Vasconselas" and "The Lily and the Totem."
Drama — Mrs. L S. McCord's "De Soto." Poetry —
Butterworth' s "Dream of Ponce de Leon." - - - 52

Reference Readings. 773
Chapter. Page
V. History— Jeffery's "French Dominions in America;"
Jones' "Antiquities of Southern Indians;" Las Casas'
"Narrative and Critical History of America," in 3 vols.;
Parkman's "Jesuits in America;" Schoolcraft's "History
and Condition of the Indian Tribes." Fiction — Cha
teaubriand's "Atala." Poetry — Levi Bishop's "Jesuit
Missionary." - - - - 55
VI. History — Buchanan's "History, Manners and Customs of
North American Indians. " Biography — Oldys' "Life
of Raleigh;" Sou they 's "Life of Raleigh." Fiction —
"First Settlers of Virginia." Poetry — Longfellow's
"Sir Humphrey Gilbert." - - 61
VII. History — Smith's "True Relation of Virginia;" Camp
bell's "Virginia;" Doyle's "English Colonies in
America. ' ' Fiction — Hopkins' ' 'The Youth of the Old
Dominion;" Moseby's "Pocahontas." Poetry — Hil-
lar's "Pocahontas;" Seba Smith's "Powhatan;" Mrs.
Heman's "Pocahontas;" Mrs. Sigourney's "Pocahontas."
Drama — Owen's "Pocahontas;" Seagull's "Eastward
Ho!" Shakespere's "Tempest"— ist act. - - 68
VIII. History — Jefferson's "Notes on Virginia;" Jefferson's
"Old Churches of Virginia." Biography — Spark's
' 'American Biographies. ' ' Fiction — Thackeray's ' 'Vir
ginians;" Cooke's "Virginia Comedians;" James' "Old
Dominion;" Defoe's "Jacques." - 73
IX. History — Williamson's "Maine;" Lodge's "English
Colonies in America;" "Voyages of Samuel de Cham
plain;" Thompson's "Vermont." Fiction— D. P.
Thompson's "Grant Gurley." Poetry— "Whittier's
"Norumbega;" Whittier's "Bride of Pennacock;"
Whittier's "Mogg Megone. " - - - 77
X History— Parkman's "The Old Regime in Canada;"
Beamish's "History of Nova Scotia;" Belknap's "New
Hampshire." - 83
45

774 Reference Readings.
Chapter . Page.
XI. History — Dunlap's "History of New Netherlands;"
Barnes' ' 'Early History of Albany ;' ' Clute's ' 'Annals of
• Staten Island." Fiction — Irving's "Knickerbocker
History;" Irving's "Legend of Sleepy Hollow;" Mrs.
H. F. Parker's "Constance Aylmer. " - - 91
XII. History — Palfrey's and Elliott's "New England;"
Barry's "Massachusetts;" Young's "Chronicles of Mas
sachusetts." Fiction — L. M. Child's "Hobomoc;" H.
V. Cheney's "A Peep at the Pilgrims;" J. L. Motley's
"Merry Mount." Poetry — Longfellow's "Courtship
of Miles Standish;" Mrs. Heman's "Landing of the
Pilgrims;" Rev. John Pierpont's "The Pilgrim
Fathers." - - - - - 95
XIII. History — Cheever's "Journal of the Pilgrims at Ply
mouth." Biography — Anderson's "Women of the
Puritan Times." Fiction — H. M. Whiting's "Faith
White's Letter-Book;" E. N. Sear's "Pictures of the
Olden Times;" Mrs. J. B. Webb's "The Pilgrims of
New England." Poetry — Whittier's "The Garrison
of Cape Ann." - - ... 101
XIV. History— McSherry's "Maryland;" Griffith's "Annals
of Baltimore." Fiction — Paulding's "Konigsmark;"
Kennedy's "Rob of the Bowl." - 106
XV. Biography— Spark's "Calvert;" Mill's "Founders of
Maryland." Fiction — Mathilda Douglas' "Black
Beard." ------ - no
XVI. History — Carpenter's "History of New Jersey;" Smith's
"History of the Colony of New Jersey." - - 116
XVII. History — Davis' "History of New Amsterdam." Fic
tion — P. H. Myres' "The First of the Knickerbock
ers;" P. H. Myres' "The Young Patroon." - - 121
XVIII. Fiction— Cooper's "Water- Witch;" J. H. Paulding's
"The Dutchman's Fireside;" "Woolfert's Roost" and
"Rip Van Winkle," from Washington Irving's
"Sketch Book." ....... 128

Reference Readings.

Chapter. XIX.

XX. XXI. XXII.XXIII. XXIV.xxv.XXVI.XXVII.XXVIII.XXIX.

775
Page.

History — "Arnold's "Rhode Island." Fiction —
Miss Sedgwick's "Hope Leslie;" Holland's "Bay
Path;" Longfellow's "Rhyme of Sir Christopher." 134
History — Penshallow's "Indian Wars in New Eng
land." Biography — Winthrop' s "Life and Let
ters." Fiction — L. M. Child's "First Settlers of
New England." - - - - - 140
Biography — Spark's "Gorton." Fiction — J. Ban-
vard's "Priscilla;" Hawthorne's "Scarlet Letter." - 145
History — Mather' s ' 'Magnalia. ' ' Poetry — Whit-
tier' s "Cassandra Southwick;" Longfellow's "John
Endicott." ----- - 152
Fiction — W. A. Carruthers' "The Cavaliers of Vir

ginia.

*59

Fiction — Carruthers' "The Cavaliers of Virginia;"
Carruthers' "The Knights of the Horseshoe." - 165
History — Ramsay's "South Carolina;" Williamson's
"North Carolina." Fiction — Skitt, "Fisher's
River;" Simm's "Cassique of Kiawah." - 171
History — Whitehead's "New Jersey." Fiction —
Paulding's "Dutchman's Fireside" and "Book of St.
Nicholas." - - - - - 177
History — Trumbull's "Connecticut." Fiction — W.
Seaton's "Romance of the Charter Oak;" R. Dawes'
"Nix's Mate;" E. Charles' "On Both Sides of the
Sea."  - - 183
History — Abbott's "History of King Philip. " Fic
tion — R. C. Sands' "Yamoyden;" Cooper's "The
Wept of Wish- ton-wish;" G. H. Hollister's "Mount
Hope;" Pierce's "Narragansett Chief." - - - 190
History — Upham's "History of Witch-craft" Fic
tion— J. Neal's "Rachel Dyer." Poetry — Long
fellow's "Giles Corey;" Whittier's "Witch of Wen-
ham;" Whittier's "Mabel Martin;" Whittier's
"Changeling;" Whittier's "Wreck of Rivermouth." 194

776

Reference Readings.

ChapterXXX.

Page.

XXXI. XXXII. XXXIII.
XXXIV. XXXV.
XXXVI.

XXXVII.

History— Sypher's "Philadelphia." Biography —
Ellis' "Penn." Fiction— W. H. G. Kingston's
"A True Hero." Poetry— J. G. Whittier's
"Pennsylvania Pilgrim." Drama — Schmidt-
Eber's "William Penn." - - - - 204
Fiction — Noah Brooks' "In Leisler' s Time." - 208

History — Broadhead and O'Callaghan's "New

York.

211

XXXVIII.XXXIX.
XL. XLI.

History — Parkman' s ' 'Frontenac. ' ' Fiction — J.
H. Ingraham's "Captain Kyd." - - 216
History — Parkman's "France and England in
North America;" "La Salle's Discovery of the
Great West." - - ... 223
Parkman's "France and England in North America." 231
History — Bancroft's "History of California;" Hit-
tell's "History of San Francisco;" Help's "Span- "
ish Conquest of America;" Kip's "Early Jesuit
Missions in North America;" Curtis' "Children
of the Sun." - - - - 238
History — Ramsey's "South Carolina;" William
son' s ' 'North Carolina. ' ' Fiction — W. G. Simms'
"The Yemassee;" A.J. Requier's "The Old Sanc
tuary;" Mathilda Douglas' "Black Beard." - - 245
History — Jones' "Georgia;" Fairbanks' "Florida;"
Carpenter's "Georgia;" Jones' "Zomo-Chi-Chi. " 250
Fiction — Carruther's "Knights of the Horseshoe." 256
History — Broadhead and O'Callaghan's "New
York." Fiction — F. Spielhagen's "Deutsche
Pioniere;" J. F. Cooper's "Satanstoe." - 260
History — Drake's "Indian Wars;" Cotton Mather's
"Magnalia ;" Thornton's "Historical Relations of
New England to the English Commonwealth." 265

Chapter. XLII.

XLIII.

XLIV.

XLV. XLVI.XLVII.XLVIII.
XLIX.

Reference Readings. 777
Page.
History — Leaky 's "England in the Eighteenth Cen
tury' ' (Chapter on Whitefield). Poetry — Whittier's
"Mogg Megone;" Whittier's "Mary Garvin." - 270
History — Spark's "Life of Washington;" Columbus'
"Life of Washington;" Parkman's "Pontiac."
Fiction — C. McKnight's "Old Fort Du Quesne;"
Wright's "Marcus Blair;" Thackeray's "Virgin
ians."  275
History — Haliburton's "History of Nova Scotia."
Fiction — Mrs. Williams' "The Neutral French;"
Haliburton's "The Old Judge;" De Mille's "The
Lily and the Cross. ' ' Poetry — Longfellow' s ' 'Evan
geline."  278
Fiction — James' "Ticonderoga;" Cooper's "Last of
the Mohicans. ' ' Poetry — Whittier' s ' 'Pen tucket ;' '
Whittier's "St. John." - - - - - -284
History — Warburton's "Conquest of Canada." Fic
tion— Hall's "Twice Taken;" Tiffany's "Bran
don."  287
History — Parkman's "Conspiracy of Pontiac."
Drama — A. Macomb's "Pontiac." ... 293
Biography — Loring's "The Hundred Boston Orators;"
Tudor' s "Life of Otis;" Wells' "Life of Samuel
Adams;" Spark's "Franklin;" Adams' "Life of
John Adams;" Wirt's "Patrick Henry." - - 303
History — Bord's "Boston Massacre;" Scudder's "Bos
ton Town." Poetry. — "The Boston Tea Party"
(see Ford's Poems of History); Charles T. Brooks'
"The Old Thirteen;" Philip Frenlaw's "An An
cient Prophecy."  3°8
Poetry— Longfellow's "Ride of Paul Revere;" S. R.
Bartlett's "Concord Fight;" Emmons' "The Bat
tle of Bunker Hill;" Sidney Lainer's "Battle of
Lexington;" Geo. H. Calvert's "Bunker Hill;" W.
C. Bryant's '"76." Drama — Breckenridge' s
"Bunker Hill;" J. Burke's "Bunker Hill. " - - 317

778

Reference Readings.

Chapter.
LI.

LII.

LIII.

LIV.

LV.

LVI.

LVII.

LVIII.

Page.
Fiction— H. Hagel's "Old Put;" Hawthorne's "Sep-
timius Felton;" Cooper's "Lionel Lincoln;" D. P.
Thompson's "Green Mountain Boys." Poetry —
"Song of the Vermonters" (Anon.) - - - - 324
Fiction — Gleig's "A Day on the Neutral Ground," "In
Chelsea Prison." Drama — "The Death of General
Montgomery in Storming Quebec" (Anon.) - 331
History — Carrington's Battles of the Revolution;"
Coffin's "Boys of '76;" Moultrie's "Memoirs of the
American Revolution;" Ramsay's "American Revolu
tion in South Carolina." Poetry — Robert M. Charl
ton's "Death of Jasper;" (see Ford's Historical Poems.) 336
History — Winsor's "Readers' Hand-book of the Revo
lution." Biography — Goodrich's "Lives of Signers
of the Declaration. ' ' Fiction — John Neal' s ' 'Seventy-
six;" H. C. Watson's "Old Bell of Independence."
Poetry — Charles Sprague's "Fourth of July;" (see
Ford's Historical Poems) - - 345
Fiction — J. R. Siinms' "The American Spy;" Alden's
"Old Store House." Poetry— F. C. Finch's "Na
than Hale." Drama— D. Frumbell's "Death of Cap
tain Nathan Hale." - - - - 352
Biography — G. W. Greene's "Life of General Greene."
Fiction — C. J. Peterson's "Kate Aylesford;" Pauld
ing's "Old Continental." Poetry— "Battle of Tren
ton" (see Ford's Historical Poems); C. F. Orne's
Washington at Princeton." - - - 359
History — Cooper's "History of the American Navy."
Fiction — Cooper's "Pilot;" J. R. Jones' "Quaker
Soldier;" E. H. Williamson's "The Quaker Partisans."
Poetry — Carleton's "Little Black-eyed Rebel."

364

History — Burgoyne' s "Expedition from Canada."
Biography — Sparks' "Life of Allen." Fiction — E.
E. Ellis' "Haunted Wood;" C. F. Hoffman's "Greys-
laer." 

370

Reference Readings.

Chapter. LIX.

LX.

LXI.

LXII.

LXIII.

LXIV.

779
Page.

History — Burgoyne' s "Orderly Book;" Felton's
"Journal of American Revolution." Biography —
Sparks' "Life of Stark." Fiction— Cooper's
"Chain-Bearer." - - - - 364
History— Moore's "Treason of Charles Lee." Biog
raphy— Abbott's "Life of Boone;" Stone's "Life
of Brant. ' ' Fiction — H. Peterson' s ' 'Pemberton. ' '
Poetry — Hopkinson's "Battle of the Kegs;"
Campbell's "Gertrude of Wyoming;" William Col
lins' "Mollie Pitcher at Monmouth. " - - -379
History — Tarleton' s "History of the Southern Cam
paign;" Lee's "War in the Southern Department;"
Hawk's "Revolutionary History of North Carolina;"
Drayton's "Revolution in the Carolinas." Biog
raphy — McKenzie's "Paul Jones." Fiction —
Cooper's "The Pilot;" T. Mirgge's "Paul Jones;"
A. Cunningham's "Paul Jones;" Dumas' "Captain
Paul." . . . . . .386
History — Ramsay's "American Revolution in South
Carolina;" Stone's "Border Wars of the American
Revolution;" "Siege of Savannah" (Anon.) - 392
History— "Trial of Benedict Arnold;" "Trial of
Major John Andre;" "New York City in the Ameri
can Revolution;" Tuckermau's "America and Her
Commentators" (French Auxiliaries). Biography —
J. N. Arnold's "Life of Arnold." Fiction— E. P.
Roe's "Near to Nature's Heart." Poetry — Harte's
"Caldwell, of Springfield;" Freneau's "Arnold's
Departure;" Bradley's "Andre's Last Moments."
Drama — Calvert's "Arnold and Andre;" Lord's
"Andre;" Dunlap's "Andre." - - 399
History — Draper's "King's Mountain and its Heroes."
Fiction— W. G. Simms' "The Partisan;" C. H.
Wiley's "Alamance." Poetry — "Battle of King's
Mountain;" William C. Bryant's "Song of Marion's
Men." - - -  404

780 Reference Readings.
Chapter. Page.
LXV. Fiction— J. P. Kennedy's "Horseshoe Robinson;" J.
P. Simms' "The Scout;" J. P. Simms' "Catherine
Walton;" J. P. Simms' "Woodcraft;" J. P. Simms'
"Forager;" J. P. Simms' "Eutaw." - - 408
LXVI. Fiction— J. E. Cooke's "The Youth of Jefferson,"
"Rose Hill;" J. P. Kennedy's "Swallow Barn." - 413

LXVII. History — Curtis' "History of the Constitution;"
Frothingham's "Rise of the Republic." Fiction —
N. M. Curtis' "Doom of the Tory Guard." - - 419
LXVIII. History— Flint's "Indian Wars of the West" Fic
tion— Gait's "Lawrie Todd;" Bird's "Nick of the
Woods." . . . . . 424
LXIX. Fiction— Charlotte Walsingham's "Annette;" H. H.
Brackenridge's "Modern Chivalry." - 429
LXX. Biography — "Life of John Jay." History — Car-
lyle's "French Revolution."  434
LXXII. Biography — McKenzie's "Life of Stephen Decatur."
Poetry — C. H. Calvert's "Reuben James. " 445
LXXIII. Travels — Lewis' and Clarke's "Expedition to the
Rocky Mountains." Fiction — Mrs. Stowe's "Min
ister's Wooing;" J. C. Hart's "Mariam Coffin." - 451
LXXIV. History — Drake's "Life of Tecumseh and the
Prophet. ' ' Fiction — Richardson's ' 'Hardscrabble ;' '
Richardson's "Waumaugee;" Mrs. Kenzie's "Wau-
bun." Poetry — C. H. Colton's "Tecumseh." - 455

Reference Readings. 781
Chapter. Page.
LXXV. Fiction— Kirkland's "Zury;" W. C. Iron's "The
Double Hero." Poetry— J. G. Percival's "Perry's
Victory on Lake Erie;" Oliver W. Holmes' "Old
Ironsides;" Levi Bishop's "Battle of the River
Raisin."  462
LXXVI. Biography — Abbott's "Life and Adventures of Davy
Crockett;" "Life of Sam Houston." - - 466
LXXVII. Biography — Parton's "Life of Jackson." Fic
tion — Glerg's "The Subaltern;" J. H. Ingraham's
"Lafitte;" G. W. Cable's "Grandissimes;" G. W.
Cable's "Old Creole Days;" G. C. Eggleston's
"Captain Dain." Poetry — Francis Scott Key's
"The Star-Spangled Banner." - - - -474
LXXVIII. Fiction — Seba Smith's "Major Jack Downing;"
Hall's "Legends of the West;" W. G. Simms'
"Guy Rivers;" W. G. Simms' "Richard Hurdis." 480
LXXIX. History— "Black Hawk's Life of Himself;" Mon-
crieff's "Men of the Backwoods." Fiction — G.
C. Eggleston's "The Big Brother." Poetry — H.
R. Schoolcraft's "Talladega." - - - - 490
LXXX. History— Johnson's "Garrison and the Times;"
Tanner's "Martyrdom of Lovejoy." Fiction — L.
Neville's "Edith Allen;" Mrs. Stowe's "Dred;"
W. D. O'Connor's "Harrington;" Beverly Tucker's
"Partisan Leader;" W. Adams' "The Sable
Cloud;" Holt's "Abraham Page." PoETRY—
Whittier's "Voices of Freedom;" Marion Har-
land's "Judith." -  502

782
Chapter.
LXXXI.

Reference Readings. Page.
History— Jones' "Republic of Texas;" Urquhart's
"Annexation of Texas." Fiction — Lowell's
"Bigelow Papers;" Mayne Reid's "Osceola;"
General Donaldson's "Sergeant Atkins;" E. C.
Z. Judson's "The Volunteer;" H. Hazel's "The
Light Dragoon. " - ... . 508

LXXXII. History — Major Ripley's "History of the Mexican
War;" Fremont's "Memoirs;" Scott's "Autobiog
raphy." Fiction — J. R. Lowell's "Bigelow Pa
pers;" J. Clement's "Bernard Lisle;" "Talbot
and Vernon" (Anon.); C. L. Hentz's "The
Planter's Northern Bride;" C. L. Hentz's "Eo-
line;" C. L. Hentz's "Marcus Warland."
Poetry — Charles F. Hoffman's "Monterey;" J.
G. Lyon's "Hero of Monterey;" Albert Pike's
"Buena Vista;" Whittier's "Angels of Buena

Vista.'

- 517

LXXXIII. Fiction— R. Hildreth's "White Slave;" Holt's
"Abraham Page;" J. Hungerford's "The Old
Plantation;" J. H. Ingraham's "Sunny South;"
Mrs. Jeffrey's "Woodburn;" M. Lennox's "Ante-
Bellum;" Logan's "The Master's House;" M. J.
Mcintosh's "The Lofty and the Lowly;" Miss
Palfrey's "Herman;" Mrs. Stowe's "Uncle Tom's
Cabin;" G. W. Peck's "Aurifodina;" W. W.
Brown's "Clatella;" Mrs. Cross' "Azile;" W.
Adams' "The Sable Cloud;" W. P. Adams'
"Hatchie." ... . 524

Chapter.LXXXIV.

Reference Readings.

783

Biography — Nickolay and Hay's "Life of Lin
coln;" Drew's "John Brown's Invasion." Fic
tion — J. W. De Forest's "Kate Beaumont;" Mrs.
Dupuy's "The Planter's Daughter;" J. R. Gil
more's "Among the Pines;" J. R. Hatermann's
"Dead Men's Shoes;" S. J. Hale's "Northwood."
Poetry — Phoebe Cary's "John Brown;" E. C.
Stedman's "Ossawattomie Brown;" Edna D.
Proctor's "The Virginia Scaffold." - - 533

LXXXV. History— Fry's "McDowell and Tyler at Bull
Run;" Doubleday's "Forts Sumpter and Moul
trie;" Abbot's "Blue Jackets of '61." Fic
tion — J. H. Aughey's "The Iron Furnace;" Mr.
Remick's "Millicent Halford." Poetry— G. H.
Boker's "Poems of the War;" Mrs. Warfield's
"Battle of Bull Run;" Julia Ward Howe's
"Battle Hymn of the Republic;" A. G. H.
Dugarme's "Bethel;" Richard Realf's "Apoca
lypse." - - 

54i

LXXXVI. History— Nickolay 's "Outbreak of the Rebellion;"
Glazier's "Battles for the Union;" Headley's
"Grant and Sherman." Fiction — W. Brad-
shaw's "Angel of the Battle Field;" E. Z. C.
Judson's "Rattlesnake;" E. Z. C. Judson's
"Sardis." Poetry— H. H. Brownell's "War
Lyrics;" "Capture of Fort Donelson. " -549

LXXXVII. History — Soley ' s ' 'The Blockade and the Cruisers ;' '
Ammen's "The Atlantic Coast;" Parton's "Gen
eral Butler in New Orleans;" Peckham's "General
Lyon and Missouri in 1861." Fiction — L. M.

784

Reference Readings.

Page.

Child's "A Romance of the Republic;" C. C.
Coffin's "Winning His Way;" J. E. Cooke's
"Hilt to Hilt." Poetry— E. J. Butler's "War
Poems."  554

LXXXVIII. History— Allen's "General Jackson in the Shen
andoah Valley;" Welb's "The Peninsula;"
Coppee's "Grant and His Campaign;" Edge's
"McClellan and Yorktown Campaign;" Join-
ville's "Army of the Potomac;" Ree's "Hos
pital Life in Potomac Army;" Swinton's "Mc
Clellan's Military Career." Fiction — "Surrey,
of Eagle's Nest;" W. A. Cruse's "Cameron
Hall." Poetry — Stedman's "Kearney at Seven
Pines."  564

LXXXIX. History— Gilmore's "Four Years in the Saddle;"
Hepworth's "Whip, Hoe and Sword;" Kirk
land's "Anecdotes of the Rebellion;" Oats'
"Prison Life in Dixie." Fiction — Cobb's
"Veteran of the Grand Army;" A. C. Denson's
"Westmoreland;" Fuller's "Browning's;" J. R.
Gilmore's "Among the Guerrillas." - - - 570

XC.

History — Banvard's "Tragic Scenes in the His
tory of Maryland;" Logan's "Great Conspir
acy;" Williams' "Negro Troops in the Rebel
lion." Fiction— Mrs. R. Hare's "Standish;"
J. H. Hosmer's "Thinking Bayonet;" S. Lanier's
"Tiger Lilies;" J. H. Mathew's "Guy Hamil-

Reference Readings. 785
Chapter. Page.
ton." Poetry— G. W. Herve's "Ballads of the
War;" E. V. Mason's "Southern Poetry of the
War;" H. Melville's "Battle Pieces." - - - 574

XCI. History — Palfrey's "Antietam and Fredericksburg;"
Doubleday's "Chancellorsville and Gettysburg;"
Cook's "Life of Robert E. Lee;" Hosmer's "The
Color Guard." Fiction — F. A. Loring's "Two
College Friends;" H. Morford's "The Days of
Shoddy;'* H. Morford's "Shoulder Straps;" H. Mor
ford's "The Coward;" M. J. Magill's "Women." - 583

XCII. History— Bates' "Battle of Gettysburg;" Coppee's
"Grant and His Campaigns;" Glazier's "Three Years
in the Federal Cavalry;" Headley's "Grant's Sher
man;" Longborough's "Cave Life in Vicksburg;"
Bullock's "Secret Service of the Confederacy;"
Burnham's "United States Secret Service." Fic
tion — W. H. Peck's "Confederate Flag on the
Ocean." M. Remick's "Great Battle Year;" M.
Remick's "Forward with the Flag." Poetry — Bret
Harte's "John Burns, of Gettysburg." - - - 594

XCIII. History — Foote' s "Fort Pillow Massacre;" Burbiere's
"Scraps from the Prison Table;" Harding's "Belle
Boyd in Camp and Prison;" Glazier's "Capture,
Prison-Pen and Escape;" Stuart's "Sufferings of Pris
oners of War;" Cavada's "Libby Life;" Harris'
' 'Prison Life in Richmond. ' ' Fiction — Anna Dickin
son' s "What Answer;" Mrs. Terhune's "Sunny
Bank;" J. T. Trowbridge's "Cudjo's Cave." - - 602

786
Chapter. xcrv.

Reference Readings.
History — Batten's "Two Years in the United States
Army;" Early's "Last Year of the War;" Pollard's
"Last Year of the War." Fiction— J. T. Trow
bridge's "The Three Scouts;" J. T. Trowbridge's
"The Drummer Boy;" W. H. Thomes' "Running
the Blockade." Poetry — George H. Boker's
"Black Regiment;" Phoebe Cary's "Hero of Fort
Wagner."" 

606

XCV. History — McKay's "Stories of Hospital and Camp;"
Worthington's "Women in Battle;" Brockett's
"Woman's Work in Camp, Field and Hospital;"
Harding's "Belle Boyd in Camp and Prison;"
Champlin's "Christian Work on the Battle Field."
Poetry — F. Moore's "Lyrics of Loyalty. " - - 612

XCVI. History — Down's "Four Years a Scout and Spy;"
Edwards' "Noted Guerrillas;" Eggleston's "A
Rebel's Recollections;" Grant's "History of the Re
bellion ;" Lemour's "Morgan and His Captors."
Fiction — "The American Mail-bag;" E. Eggles
ton's "Roxy." Poetry— J. G. Whittier's "In War
Time." - - - - .... 618

XCVII. History — Cannon's "Casual Papers upon the Ala
bama;" Semme's "Cruise of the Alabama;" Am-
men's "The Atlantic Coast;" Mahan's "The Gulf
and Inland Waters;" Soley's "The Blockade and the
Cruisers." Fiction — W. H. Thome's "Running the
Blockade." Poetry — T. B. Read's "Kearsarge and
the Alabama."  623

Reference Readings. 787
Chapter. Page.
XCVIII. History— Andrew's "Campaign of Mobile;" Logan's
"The Great Conspiracy." Poetry— L. C. Red-
den's "Idyls of Battle;" H. H. Brownell's "Farra
gut' s Bay Fight." Fiction— G. W. Nichol's "The
Sanctuary."  - 629

XCIX. History — Boyuton's "Sherman's Historical Raid;"
Cox's "Marching to the Sea;" Cannon's "Grant's
Richmond Campaign;" Taylor's "Four Years with
General Lee." Poetry — C. G. Halpin's "Song of
Sherman's Army;" J. G. Whittier's "Howard at
Atlanta."  634

History — Whitney's "Who Burnt Columbia?" Treze-
vant's "Burning of Columbia;" Newhall's "With
Sheridan in Lee's Last Campaign;" Pond's "Shen
andoah Valley in 1864;" Humphrey's "Virginia
Campaign of '64 and '65." Fiction — J. E. Cooke's
"Hilt to Hilt." Poetry— T. B. Read's "Sheridan's
Ride."  639

CI. History — Davis' "Rise and Fall of the Confederate
Government;" Mahoney's "Prisoner of State;"
Raymond's "History of Lincoln's Administration;"
Boykin's "Evacuation of Richmond;" Grayson's
"Great Conspiracy: Secret of the Assassination
Plot." Poetry — Florence Anderson's "Surrender
of the Army of Northern Virginia." - - - 643

788 Reference Readings.
Chapter. Page.
CII. History — Partridge's "Making of the American Nation;"
Loring's "History of Reconstruction;" W. H. Bancroft's
"Alaska;" Field's "History of American Telegraph."
Fiction — A. W. Tourgee's "Hot Plowshares;" A. W.
Tourgee's "Bricks Without Straw;" A. W. Tourgee's
"A Fool's Errand;" ,C. Reid's "Valerie Aylmer."
Poetry — Lowell's "Washers of the Shroud;" Walt
Whitman's "My Captain."  651
CIII. History — Andreas' "History of Chicago;" Phelps' "Life
and Public Services of U. S. Grant;" Howard's "Life
of Hayes." Fiction — Mrs. Whitney's "A Summer in
Leslie Goldthait's Life;" J. G. Holland's "Arthur
Bomucastle;" O. W. Holmes' "Elsie Venner;" H. W.
Beecher's "Norwood;" Mrs. Stowe's "Oldtown Folks;"
F. B. Aldrich's "Queen of Sheba;" F. B. Aldrich's
"Margery Daw;" Mrs. St. John's "Bella." Poetry —
Whittier's "Centennial Hymn;" E. Renaud's "Chi
cago;" Longfellow's "Revenge of Rain-on- Face." - 665
CIV. Fiction— R. Edwards' "Twice Defeated;" G. W. Curtis'
"Trumps;" "The Bread- Winners" (Anon.); Mrs. Bur
net's "Through One Administration;" R. H. Newell's
"Avery Glibun;" Bayard Taylor's "John Godfrey's
Fortune;" R. B. Kimball's "Henry Powers, Banker;"
R. B. Kimball's "Undercurrent of Wall Street"
Poetry— D. Bethune Duffield' s "A Dirge;" N. P.
Willis' Poems; George Arnold's Poems; O. W. Holmes'
Poems; T. B. Aldrich's Poems.  674
CV. Fiction — E. Eggleston's "The Hoosier Schoolmaster;"
E. Eggleston's "The Circuit Rider;" E. Eggleston's
"Roxy;" F. Winthrop's "John Brent;" J. W. DeFor-

Reference Readings.

789

rest's "Overland;" Rattleheads "Arkansas Doctor;"
Bret Harte's "Luck of Roaring Camp;" Bayard Taylor's
"Hannah Thurston;" Mrs. H. W. Bucher's "From
Dawn to Daylight;" Huntington's "Alban;" F. W.
Shelton's "The Rector of St. Bardolph's;" L. M.
Child's "A Romance of the Republic;" Mark Twain's
"The Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County;"
C. E. Whitehead's "Wild Sports in the South."
Poetry — Lowell's Poems; Bayard Taylor's Poems;
Bret Harte's Poems. - - - -

685

CVIII. Some successful American books; Emerson's Essays;
O. W. Holmes' "Breakfast-Table Series;" Long
fellow's Poems; Bryant's Poems; Stoddart's Poems;
S. Lanier's Poems; Mrs. Burnett's "That Lass o'
Lowrie's;" Mrs. Burnett's "Little Lord Fauntleroy;"
Amelie Rives' "Famer Lass o' Piping Pebworth;"
Lew Wallace's "Ben Hur;" Miss Murfree's "Tales of
the Tennessee Mountains;" Cable's "Tales of Creole
Life;" Miss Woolson's "East Angels;" Bret Harte's
"California Tales;" the poems of Edith Thomas. 723

46

RECORD OF IMPORTANT EVENTS.

A

Abolitionists, The, pp. 492-502.
Abraham, The night attack and the fight on the Plains of, p. 286.
Adams, John, made Minister to England, p. 410.
Adams, John, elected to the Presidency, p. 432.
African slavery trade, 5. 548.
"Alabama," The fight of the, p. 621.
Alaska, Purchase of, p. 649.
Albemarle settlement, The, p. 167.
Albemarle, Destruction of the, p. 628.
Algiers, War with, p. 475.
Allen, Ethan, p. 318.
America, First discoveries of, p. 33.
Anarchists, The Chicago, p. 673.
Andros, Sir Edmund, p. 139.
Andros, Arrest of, p. 182.
Arbitration, The International Court of, p. 621.
Army, The disbanding of, pp. 411-412.
Arnold, His rule at Quebec, p. 330.
Arnold, John, Treason of, p. 419.
Austin, Ann, p. 149.

B

Bacon, The uprising of, pp. 161-162.
Bacon's party, Breaking up of, p. 165.
Bacon, Death of, p. 165.

Record of Important Events. 7913
Balboa, p. 49.
Baltimore, Lord, p. 104.
Baltimore Settlement, The liberal laws of, p. 105.
Baptists, Persecution of the, p. 143.
Bedford, The fire of, p. 377.
Bellamont, Lord, his rule over New York, p. 261.
Bellamont, The Earl of, p. 212.
Bemus Heights, The Battle of, p. 372.
Bennington, The raid on, p. 371.
Berkeley, Return of, p. 163.
Bienville, his ill-fated expedition against the Chickasaws, p. 230.
Billerica, The men of, p. 310.
Bloody Pond, The Battle at, p. 280.
Bloody Ridge, The Battle at, p. 292.
Boston, The Siege of, p. 313.
Boston, The Massacre, p. 304.
Boston, The religious law of, p. 141.
Braddock, his ill-fated expedition, p. 274.
Brandywine, The Battle of, p. 363.
Bragg, General, p. 601.
Brown, John, p. 530.
Brookfield, Fight at, p. 185.
Buccaneers, The Spanish, p. 170.
Buchanan, Election of, p. 529.
Bull Run, The Battle of, p. 541.
Bunker Hill, The Battle of, p. 314.
Burgoyne in the North, p. 367.
Burgoyne, The surrender of, p. 373.
Bermudas, From the to Virginia, p. 69.
Burnside made Commander of the Army of the Potomac, p. 575.
Burnside, his blunder, p. 633.
Burr, Aaron, p. 435-

792 Record of Important Events.
c
Cabots, The, pp. 42-45.
California, Spanish explorations in, p. 232.
California, The conquest of, p. 512.
California, Discovery of Gold in, p. 518.
Canada, Designs for the American conquest of, p. 327.
Carolinas, The, p. 166.
Carillon, The Battle of, p. 283.
Cedar Mountain, The Battle of, p. 567.
Centennial Exposition, The, p. 658.
Champlain and Vermont, p. 76.
Chambersburg, The burning of, p. 477.
Chancellorsville, The Battle of, p. 581.
Charleston, Removal of, p. 169.
Charleston, The siege of by the English, p. 378.
Charleston Harbor, Conquest of, p. 544.
Charter, Episode of the Connecticut, p. 285.
Chattanooga, The Battle of, p. 609.
Chicago Fire, The, p. 656.
Chickahominy, The Battle of, p. 561.
Chickamauga, The Battle of, p. 608.
Chickasaws, Bienville's ill-fated expedition against the, p 230.
Chopart, The Massacre of, p. 229.
Civil Service Reform, pp. 677-689.
Clark, Lieutenant-Governor, The government of, p. 259.
Cleveland, Grover, President, Administration of, p. 677.
Clinton triumphant in the South, p. 389.
Cold Harbor, Second Battle of, p. 617.
Columbia, The burning of, p. 637.
Columbus, his voyages, pp. 42-45.
Colonies, The fight between the French and Spanish, pp. 54-55.
Colonies, The Federation of the English, p. 140.
Companies, The London Plymouth, p. 62.
Commerce, American, Increase of, pp. 423-424.

Record of Important Events. 793
Commissions, Sanitary and Christian, p. 610.
Concord, Fight at, p. 311.
Constitution, The calling of Delegates to construct a, p. 413.
Constitution, The forming of the State, pp. 340-344.
Conway Cabal, The, p. 366.
Corey, Giles, The trial and death of, pp. 192-193.
Cornwallis, p. 401.
Cornwallis, The surrender of, p. 407.
Corinth, The Siege of, p. 561.
Corinth, The Battle of, p. 580.
Creeks, The war with the, p. 463.
Crisis, Financial of 1837, p. 489.
Crown Point, The Americans fall back upon, p. 331.
Culpepper in Virginia, p. 251.
Custer Massacre, p. 549. D
Davis, Jefferson, Capture of, p. 540.
De la Warre, Lord, Arrival of, p. 70.
Democratic power, Four years of, pp. 681-685.
Despoliation, Nova Scotia and the English, p. 78.
De Soto, his death, pp. 50-51.
Detroit, The Siege of, p. 290.
D' Iberville, The expedition of, p. 226.
Disaster, The Samoan, p. 698.
Disaster, The Johnstown, p. 703.
Dorr Rebellion, The, p. 506.
Drake, Sir Francis, p. 233.
Drummer, ^'-iSSxam, in Massachusetts, p. 267.
DuQuesne, Fort, First expedition against, p. 271.
Dutch, The, p. 84.
Dutch, their dealings with the Indians, p. 86.
Dutch, their success, p. 91.

794 Record of Important Events.
Dutch, Slavery among the, p. 175.
Dutch, Proposition of the, p. 112.
Dutch, Manners and customs of the, p. 121.

Effingham, Governor, p. 252.
Eliot, John, p. 132.
Emancipation Proclamation, p. 578.
England, Help from, p. 71.
English, The voyage of the, p. 75.
English, their search after the Northwest Passage, p. 56.
Ericsson, John, p. 744.
Espejo, The expedition of, p. 235.
Explorations, Martin Frobisher's, p. 58.
Explorations and settlements of the Dutch, p. 85.

Fair Haven, The fire of, p. 377.
Farms, Connecticut, Burning of, p. 394.
Filmore, Millard, Administration of, p. 521.
Fisher, Mary, p. 149.
Fletcher, Governor, The rule of, pp. 210-21 1.
Fort Donelson, Grant at, p. 547.
Fort Henry, Grant at, p. 546.
Fort Johnson, Strategy at, p. 240.
Forts, Bombardment of, p. 542.
Fort Sumpter, Attack on, p. 536.
Fox, George, and his friends, p. 149.
Fountain of Youth, The, p. 49.
Free Soil, Birth of Party, p. 515.
Franklin, The death of, p. 425.

Record of Important Events. 705
France, her explorers and settlements, p. 53.
France, The lilies of, p. 53.
Fredericksburg, The Battle of, p. 576.
French, the discoveries of the Northwest, p. 219.
Frontenac, his attack upon New York, p. 209.
Frontenac, The English retake, p. 284.

G

Gage, General, recalled, p. 321.
Garfield, James A. , Election of, p. 666.
Garfield, James A. , Death of, p. 669.
Georgia, how it came to be settled, p. 246.
Georgia, its emigrants, p. 247.
Georgia as a royal province, pp. 249-250.
Georgia, British reduction of, p. 380.
Georgia, The assertion of State supremacy in, p. 485.
Germantown, The Battle of, p. 363.
Gettysburg, The Battle of, p. 584.
Gilbert, Sir Humphrey, Settlement by, p. 58.
Gilmore, his siege, p. 604. /
Gorton, his beliefs, p. 142.
Gortonites, Persecution of, p. 143.
Gosnold' s failure, p. 61.
Grant, General, Command of forces at the South given to, p. 613.
Grant, General, Absolute command given to, p. 613.
Grant, Administration of, p. 652.
Grant, Death of, p. 680.
Green, General, The command of the Southern forces given to, p. 402.
Green Mountain Boys, The, p. 318.
Groveton, Battle of, p. 569.
Guilford Court House, Battle of, p. 403.

796 Record of Important Events.
H
Hadley, Fight at, p. 187.
Halleck, General, made General-in-Chief, p. 566.
Hamilton, his policy as first Secretary of the Treasury, p. 420.
Harlem Heights, The Battle of, p. 340.
Harrison, William Henry, Election of, p. 505.
Harrison, Benjamin, Election of, p. 685.
Hatter'as Inlet, p. 543.
Hayes, President, Administration of, p. 660.
Haymarket, The Old, p. 670.
Hessians, The hiring of, p. 333.
Hull, Surrender of, p. 455.
Humor of Washington's time, pp. 426-427.
Hutchinson, Governor, Duty of, p. 306.

I

Indians, The American, p. 32.
Indians, attack on New Netherland, p. 172.
Indians, The Western Coast, (p. 234.
Indians, Trouble with the, p. 123.
Indians, Destruction of the Block Island, pp. 136-137.
Inhabitants, The earliest,, p. 31.
Insurrection, Fries', p. 321.
Intemperance, The first blow at, p. 72.
Island No. 10, The campaign at, p. 557.
Iuka, Battle of, p. 580.

J

Jackson, Andrew, elected President, p. 487.
Jamestown, Desertion of, p. 164.
Jeffersonian policy, The, p. 339.

Record of Important Events. 797
Jersey campaign, The, p. 355.
Jesuits, The return of the, and Calvert's success, p. no.
Jesuits, Overthrow of the, p. 234.
Johnson, Sir Nathaniel, p. 239.
Johnson, President, Impeachment of, p. 648.
Jones, John Paul, The great naval engagement of, p. 384.
K
Kansas, The trouble with, p. 524.
"Kearsarge," The fight of the, p. 621.
Kearney, John, Loss of, p. 569.
Kidd, The commission 6f, p. 213.
Kieft, Dismissal of, pp. 124-127.
¦King's Mountain, Battle of, p. 402.

Lafayette, Battle between him and Cornwallis, pp. 405-406.
Land laws, Popular establishment of, p. 12Q.
La Salle, The expedition of, p. 222.
La Salle, Murder of, p. 225.
Lawrence, Sacking of, p. 526.
Laws, Alien and Sedition, p. 433.
Lee, his army moves northward, p. 571.
Lee, The surrender of,- p. 641.
Lexington, Fight at, p. 311.
Libel, The first trial for 'in America, p. 257.
Lincoln, Abraham, Election of, p. 537.
Lincoln, President, Assassination of, p. 642.
Literature of the last thirty years, p. 712.
Long Island, Battle of, p. 346.
Louisburg, Battle at, p. 270.
Louisburg, The English retake, p. 283.

798 Record of Important Events.
Louisiana, Discovery of, p. 223.
Louisiana, The naming of, p. 223.
Lovell, John, Command of, p. 267.
Lovelace, The rule at New York of, p. 205.
Lumberers, Their difficulties in Maine and New Hampshire, p. 264.
Lundy's Lane, Battle of, p. 468.
Lutherans, Persecution of the, p. 174.

M

Madison, James, Administration of, p. 452.
Maine, The settlement of, p. 74.
Malvern Hill, Battle of, p. 564.
Manhattan, The settlement at, p. 120.
Marquette, The Death of, p. 221.
Maryland, pp. 255-256.
Maryland, Settlement of, p. 105.
Maryland, The prosperity, of, p. 105.
Maryland Settlement, The conspiracies against, p. 107.
Maryland Settlement, Triumph of Virginia over, p. 108.
Massachusetts Bay Company, The, p. 129.
Massacre, The Jamestown, pp. 102-103.
Massacre, The Chicago, p. 454.
McClellan, The conflict at the East under, p. 562.
"Merrimac," The, p. 553.
Mexico, p. 514.
Mexico, The war with, p. 512.
Missions at the South, p. 236.
Mississippi, the source discovered by Fathers Joliet and Marquette, p. 220.
Mississippi, The Valley of the given to Spain, p. 287.
Missouri Compromise, The, p. 477.
Missouri, The war in, p. 548.
Mobile, The bombardment of, p. 627.
"Monitor," The, p. 553.

Record of Important Events. 799
"Monitor," Invention of the, p. 737.
Monmouth Court House, Battle of, p. 375.
Monroe, his Administration, p. 483.
Montcalm, Death of, p. 287.
Montgomery, his move against Montreal, p. 328.
Morgan, his raids, p. 606.
Mormons, The, p. 507.
Morristown, Winter encampment of Washington at, p. 359.
Mound Builders, The, p. 31.
Mt. Desert, The settlement of, p. yy.
Murfreesboro, Battle of, p. 581.
Myths, legends and traditions, p. 34.

N

National Capital, The selection of the, p. 435.
Naturalization Laws of the United States, p. 752.
Navy Department, Organization of the, p. 743.
Navy, Uses of the, p. 745.
Navy, Deterioration after the' civil war of the, p. 740.
Negro plot in 1741, p. 258.
New Orleans, The settlement of, p. 227.
New Orleans, Battle of, p. 473.
New Orleans, The capture of, p. 550.
New Orleans given to Spain, p. 287.
New Haven, Destruction of, p. 419.
New London, The sacking of by Arnold, p. 406.
New Netherland, Surrender of, p. 176.
New Jersey, Settlement of, p. 177.
New York reverts to the English by patent, p. 206.
New York, The destruction of, p. 350.
New France, Trouble with, p. 207.
New Mexico, Conquest of, p. 513.
New Hampshire, The settlement of, pp. 80-81.

800 Record of Important Events.
Niagara Campaign, The, p. 460.
Nicholson, p. 253.
Norsemen, The journey of, p. 37.
Norridgewocks, Expedition of the, p. 266.
Nova Scotia, English settlements in, p. 276.
Nova Scotia and the English despoliation, p. 78.

o

Oklahoma, The opening of, p. 697.
Onate, his explorations, p. 235.
Oriskany, Battle of, p. 370.
Oswego, The French take, p. 281.
Ossawattomie, The destruction of, p. 536.
Ottawas, The Chief of the, p. 404. P
Palmetto Logs, p. 332.
Panic of 1873, p. 657.
Paoli Massacre, The, p. 363.
Parris, Samuel, his witchcraft and library, p. 192.
"Patroons," New Netherland, pp. 11 7-1 18.
Pavonia, The night attack on, p. 123.
Pavonia, Destruction of, p. 173.
Penn, William, p. 197.
Penn, William, Restoration of, pp. 201-202.
Penn, Death of, p. 203.
Pennsylvania, The change of government of, p. 200.
Pennsylvania, Settlement of, pp. 198-199.
Pension Bills, The, p. 679.
Pequot Tribe, The extinction of the, p. 139.
Perry, his victory, p. 460.
Perryville, Battle of, p. 579.
Philip's, King, war, p. 184.

Record of Important Events. 80 1
Phips, The election of, p. 182.
Phips, The death of, p. 183.
Piracy of the Barbary States, p. 441.
Plymouth Rock, The landing at, p. 93.
Plymouth Rock, The first winter at, p. 94.
Pocahontas, p. 65.
Ponce de Leon, p. 46.
Pontiac, p. 288.
Pontiac, The conspiracy of, p. 289.
Polk, The Administration of, p. 511.
Pope, The Army of Virginia under the command of, p. 565.
Port Bill, The Boston, p. 308.
Port Royal, The taking of, p. 263.
Port Royal, The expeditions against, p. 215.
Potomac, The Army of the, p. 575.
Princeton, Battle of, p. 359.
Privateers, The Confederate, p. 619.
Puritans, The, p. 92.
Puritans, the manner of their daily life, etc., p. 101.
Puritans, their martial and religious order, p. 97.
Puritans, the order which they maintained, p. 95.
Puritans, their civil order, p. 96.
Puritans, their victories, p. 158. Q
Quack, The Burning of, p. 259.
Quakers, The, p. 146.
Quakers at New Amsterdam, p. 175.
Quakers, Persecution of the, p. 149.
Quaker children, The, p. 151.
Quebec, Expeditions against, p. 216.
Queenstown, Battle of, p. 456. R
Railroad Riots in 1877, p. 661.
Raleigh, Sir Walter, The Colony of, p. 61.
Randolph, Edward, p. 180.
Reconstruction, p. 644.
Revolution, First blood of, p. 309.
Revolution, Condition of the country at the close of the, p. 409.
Richmond, The Siege of, p. 632.

802 Record of Important Events.
Richmond, The evacuation of, p. 640.
Riot, Whisky, of Pennsylvania, p. 429.
Riots, The New York, p. 595.
Roger Williams, Arrival of, p. 131.
Rosecrans, General, p. 607.
Royal Charter, Obtaining of, for Rhode Island, p. 144.

Savannah, The entrance to, p. 631.
Schenectady, The Massacre at, p. 209.
"Sea Adventure," p. 68.
Secession, Conspiracy of, p. 538.
Seminole War, The first, p. 476.
Settlement of Virginia, p. 63.
Seven Pines, Battle of, p. 562.
Shenandoah, p. 635.
Sheridan, p. 635.
Sherman, his march to Atlanta, p. 630.
Shewanet, The settlement at, p. 143.
Shiloh, Battle of, p. 558.
Shirley, his administration, p. 269.
Slavery, The beginning of, p. 71.
Smith, Captain John, his wonderful discoveries, p. 63.
Sothell, Seth, pp. 1 70-1 71.
South Mountain, Battle of, p. 572.
South Sea,. Discovery of, p. 49.
Stamp Act, The, p. 294.
Stamp Act, The repeal of the, p. 298.
Steamboat, Introduction of the, p. 446.
Steuben, General, p. 367.
Stevens, General, The loss of, p. 569.
Stony Point, The Americans' capture of, p. 383.
Stuarts, The return to power of the, p. 159.
Stuyvesant, Peter, The removal of the Dutch under, p. 114.
Sumner, Assault on, p. 529.
Supreme Court of the United States, p. 725.
Supreme Court, The organization and duties of the, p. 730
"Swamp Angel," The, p. 606.
Swedish independence in America, End of, pp. 115-116.

Record of Important Events. ' 803
T
Tariff dispute, p. 486.
Tax, The Tea, p. 305.
Taxation, The opposition to, p. 297.
Taylor, The election and death of, p. 517.
Tea Party, Boston, p. 308.
Texas, Annexation of, pp. 507-508.
Ticonderoga, The surrender of, p. 319.
Treaty, The Jay, p. 440.
Trenton, Battle of, p. 357.
Tripoli, War with, pp. 442-445. u
Ury, The hanging of, p. 259. V
Valley Forge, Washington winters at, p. 364.
Van Buren, Election of, p. 505.
Vespucci, Amerigo, p. 40.
Vicksburg, Siege of, p. 593.
Virginia, Colony of, p. 160. w
War, The French and English, of 1702, p. 262.
War of 1812, p. 556.
War on Sea Coast, 18 14, p. 470.
War, Seminole, The second, p. 281.
Washington, George, elected President, p. 418.
Washington, George, chosen Commander-in-Chief, p. 320.
Washington, George, Death of, p. 436.
Washington, Centennial Celebration of the Inauguration of, p. 699.
Wesleys, The, p. 248.
White Plains, Battle of, p. 351.
Whitefield, p. 248.
William The Testy, The Government of, p. 122.
Williams, his settlement at Providence, p. 133.
Williams, Persecution of, p. 133.
Williamsburg, Battle of, 559.
Winslow, Colonel, drives out the Acadians, p. 277.
Witchcraft hallucination started, p. 191.
Wolf, The death of, p. 286.
Wyoming Massacre, The, p. 378. Y
Yankee Strategy, p. 464.
Yemassees, The, p. 242.
Yorktown, Siege of, p. 405.

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