YALE UNIVERSITY LIBRARY BY THE SAME AUTHOR The Troubadours at Home. Their Lives and Personalities, their Songs and their World. Two volumes, Svo, with nearly 200 illustrations, f6.oo, postpaid. This is an attempt, based upon a careful study of substantially all the scholarly literature of the subject, to re-create the fascinating mediseval civilization of Provence, and place the troubadours in it as living persons, — fighting, loving, singing, and suffering. Academy, London -. " Truly a fascinating book." Tribune, New York: "Not only convincing, but delightful. We cannot praise him too warmly. . . . There is not a single space of dulness between these covers." Quarterly Review, London : " If one wishes to understand Provence . . . his best preparation — by a strange contrast — will be through the wide and erudite labours of an American enthusiast. In his two beautiful volumes, Mr. Justin H. Smith has elucidated his vast subject-matter with a fulness, a thoroughness, and a vivifying sympathy which render his labour of love a truly valuable production." Arnold's March from Cambridge to Quebec. A Critical Study. Svo, xx -t-498 pp., with 18 maps and plans, and Arnold's Journal, never before printed. $2.00, postpaid. Times, New York : ' ' Certainly the best account of Arnold's March yet produced." Spectator, London: " It is a monograph of sin gular interest, and is original work of an invaluable type." Annals of the American Academy of Political and Social Science : ' ' The author may rest assured that his work will never have to be performed again." G. P. PUTNAM'S SONS New York London SIR GUY CARLETON, 1783 OUR STRUGGLE FOR THE FOURTEENTH COLONY CANADA AND THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION BY JUSTIN H. SMITH Professor of Modern History in Dartmouth College ; author of " The Troubadours at Home,'* ''Arnold's March from Cambridge to Quebec," " The Historie Booke," etc. 315 Illustrations and 23 Maps VOLUME II G.P. PUTNAM'S SONS NEW YORK & LONDON ^be IRnicFierbochet iptees 1907 COPYKIGHT, 1907 BY JUSTIN H. SMITH TCbe ftnicftcrbocfeci: press, '^cvo H^ocft CONTENTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS The Illustrations are included in the Index also Sources of the Illustrations: i, attached to the title of an illustration, signifies that the original is in the Continental Congress Papers, Library of Congress; 2, Washington Papers, Library of Congress; 3, Emmet Coll., N. Y. Pub. Lib. (Lenox Branch); 4, S. Adams Papers, N. Y. Pub. Lib, (Lenox Branch); 5, Wheelock MSS., DartTiouth College; 6, Dreer Coll., Hist. Soe. of Penna.; 7, American Antiquarian Soe, Worcester, Mass.; 8, Winsor, Narr, and Crit. Hist, of America; 9, photo graphed by the author; in other cases the source is stated below. Full-page illustrations are starred. Frontispiece. Sir Guy Carleton (water-color by W. Welling, r783, owned by the Baroness Dorchester). Chapter XXI. The Crisis of Arnold's Expedition The aspect of Quebec, November, 1775. Cramah^, the Lieutenant-Governor. Measures to prepare Quebec for defence. These of little value, particularly because many of the people are not loyal. Sentiraent when Arnold approaches. Why British reinforcements have not been sent. Some do arrive at this juncture, but they count for little. Meanwhile the Americans prepare to cross and attack. A review. Information. Difficulties about cross ing the river. Maclean arrives at Quebec. Effects of his coming. The Americans cross. It is possible to take Que bec by a coup de -main, but it does not seem prudent to attempt that. Arnold endeavors to draw Maclean out or excite an uprising in the town ; but he is unsuccessful and blockades the city. Dixon's death. News comes that a formidable sally is to be made, and, as the American powder and muskets are found to be in a bad condition, Arnold retires to Pointe aux Trembles. The sojourn there vi Contents and Illustrations is bitter-sweet. Measures to embarrass Quebec. Frater nization of the Americans and the Canadians i Illustrations. P. 3, Th. Jefferson, signature*; 7, *View of Quebec from the South Shore (print of drawing by Richard Short, 1759: Boston Athenaeum); 15, Admiral Graves, signature*: 19, Caldwell's Mill (rebuilt), 1902'; 23, *From Arnold's letter to Washington, Nov. 13 i77S ': 26, Looking Upstream from Wolfe's Cove, 1902'; 30, St. Louis Gate (Outside), 1775 (from a model by Mr. Th. O'Leary); 33, At Aspen Point, 1902. » Chapter XXII. Behind the Scenes Interest in Arnold's expedition and a desire to secure (what Congress has repeatedly urged) the adhesion of Canada prompt Montgomery to go to Quebec. His efforts to per suade the troops to re-enlist. Difficulties: dread of a Canadian winter; the small pay; arrears of wages; colonial jealousy; dislike of Schuyler; the already protracted stay; the independent spirit of the New Englanders; apparent lack of anything to fight for. About 800 remain. Why is not another army ready ? There is no general plan to wage war against England, for it has been thought that peaceful opposition can secure redress, especially if she sees the Colonies dare to fight. Opposition of Dickinson's party to the Canada operations. Minor difficulties, — particu larly the attitude of New York, due to Tory sentiment and the machinations of Greg.t Britain. New York has to be handled carefully. Action of Congress. What might have been done in Canada. Montgomery's work at Mon treal, his preparations and his hopes 36 Illustrations. P. 40, *From Montgomery's letter to Be del, Oct. 27, 17753; 44, John Jays (Du Simitiere, Thirteen Portraits, 1783); 47, John Jay, signature*; sr. Indepen dence Hall in r778s (Columbian Mag., July, i787);s6, John Dickinson* (Du Simitiere, Thirteen Portraits, 1783); 60, John Dickinson, signature*; 63, *From R. H. Lee's letter to S. Adams, Feb. 4, 177s*; 70, *From W. Lee's letter to S. Adams, April 10, r775<; 70, *From S. Adams's letter to A. Lee, March 4, r775.'' Chapter XXIII. The Great Duel Begins Again Montgomery is governed by a sense of duty, not ambition, Contents and Illustrations vii in moving upon Quebec. Military grounds for confidence. The people in that district favorable to the Americans. Communications between Montgomery and Arnold. Montgomery joins the troops at Aspen Point. Mutual im pressions. The Americans return to Quebec in high spirits. Carleton arrives there. The situation that he finds. He banishes the disaffected. Many who remain do not wish to fight, but are helpless. Montgomery seals up the town and calls upon Carleton to surrender. He tries to win over the citizens. Mortars and the riflemen annoy the city. A battery is planted on the Heights. Carleton is again called upon to surrender, but does not receive Montgomery's letter. A cannonade. The American battery is destroyed. Reasons why a blockade cannot answer. Montgomery's trying situation 76 Illustrations. P. 83, *The Intendant's Palace (print from drawing by Richard Short, published in 1761 : Boston Athenaeum) ; 88, *From Schuyler's letter to Wynkoop, Jan. 7, 1776 ' ;92,*FromMaclean'sletterto Barrington just before Carleton reached Quebec (British government); g6. The General Hospital'; 100, Samuel Ward (miniature, 1830, owned by Mr. Ch. H. Ward); 103, John Lamb (steel engra ving, from a miniature, owned by Mrs. Kate Lamb Pren tiss); 107,* From Lynch's letter to Schuyler, Nov. 11, 1775.' Chapter XXIV. The Assault Montgomery is disappointed but not surprised by his failure to make Quebec surrender. He has already been planning for some time to assault the town. Preparations. His troops and officers, particularly Campbell. Affairs in the city. Montgomery is hampered by the small-pox, friction in Arnold's detachment, the weather, and treachery. He is forced to change his plan. Early in the morning of Dec. 31, Arnold assaults at one end of the Lower Town. His forces carry the outer defences and might be com pletely successful, were the situation understood ; but they fail and are nearly all taken prisoners. Montgomery is killed, and Campbell, who takes command, orders a retreat in Illustrations. P. 112, John Macpherson'; 115, John Macpherson, signature; 118, Timothy Bigelow, signature; viii Contents and Illustrations 1 20, Brebceuf (Winsor, Cartier and Frontenac); 122, E. Oswald, signature^ ; 126, Fafade of Castle St. Louis (Suite, Hist, des Canad. Franf., vii., plate); 132, Sault au Matelot Precipice, 1902'; 134, Daniel Morgan'; 137, *BlufI of the St. Lawrence (photograph by Livernois) ; 143, Where Montgomery Fell'; 146, Daniel Morgan, signature. Chapter XXV. To the Rescue Great depression reigns among the Americans, yet a sortie of the enemy is repulsed. Some soldiers take leave. Scanty supplies. It is determined, in view of the impor tance of winning Quebec, to put on a bold face. Attempts to get aid from the Canadians. Reinforcements from the Colonies needed. Antill is sent thither with despatches. The situation at Montreal. Wooster's action. The situa tion at Albany and Schuyler's course. He appeals to . Washington. Washington's plan. Efiect of the news in the Colonies. Its effect in Congress. The measures voted by that body. Carleton's despatches to England. The policy adopted there. Possibilities at Quebec 14S Illustrations. P. 150, *Extract from Dr. Senter's Journal describing Arnold's wound (from MS. belonging to Mr. Charles Allen Munn) ; 1 52, The house to which Mont gomery's body was carried (Picturesque Canada); 156, *From Schuyler's letter to Montgomery, Nov. 30, 1775 (Am. Antiquarian Soe); 159, Charles Lee, signature*; 161, Schuyler's Albany house; 163, *From Schuyler's letter to Washington, Jan. 13, 17762; r66, Johnson Hall (from an engraving); r68, Thomas Allen's Parsonage (New Eng. Mag., ix., p. 396); 171, * Robert Morris * (Delaplaine, Repository, 1815, after a portrait by R. E. Pine); 177, Robert Morris, signature.* Chapter XXVI. The Plans Work Out The winter weather at Quebec. The severe duty of the Americans. They stick to their work, however, and have some touches of comfort. Reinforcements and en couragements. The difficulties of Congress. Delays in sending the new regiments north. The embarrassments of Schuyler. Complications growing out of the route. Cost of feeding the army in Canada. Shortages in the new regi ments. Failure to re-enlist men in Canada. Hazen and Contents and Illustrations ix PAGE his poor success. The numbers of the Americans at Que bec. Effect of the small-pox among them. Their general want of resources in Canada. Charles Lee is ordered to command there, but finally is sent south. The' situation is unavoidable, but that fact makes it no less serious. ... i8o Illustrations. P. i8i, Thos. Ainslie, signature; 183, *View of Quebec from the River, 1759 (print from drawing by Capt. Hervey Smythe, 1759: Boston Public Library); 187, * Ruins of the St. Maurice Iron-works (photograph); 191, Wm. Tryon, signature*; 194, *From Washington's letter to Col. Porter, Feb. 10, r776 (photograph); 199, Charles Lee* (Murray, Present War, i., p. 478); 204-205, *Ch. Lee's letter to Wooster, Feb. 28, 1776.' Chapter XXVII. Grave Omens The pleasure-loving, easy-going character of the Canadians. They do not value liberty or understand the controversy between the Colonies and England, and are not a heroic race. They lack leaders favorable to the Americans. The nobles retain a little of their influence. The clergy, • aided by the women and the ignorance of the men, hav.e a a great power, Carleton is still at work upon the people. The Americans discredit themselves through the weakness and poor appearance of their army, its disorderliness, and the quarrels of its chiefs (particularly that between Schuyler and Wooster), by oppressing the people, by exer cising military rule, by banishing men on suspicion, by Wooster's general unfitness for ¦ his place, and by Arnold's decree forcing paper money upon the Canadians. By the end of March, it is evident that the Americans have made a great mistake. There are signs that the Canadians desire to recover a good standing with Great Britain, and a revolt led by Beaujeu seems especially ominous 208 Illustrations. P. 211, *House in Montreal occupied by the American Officers (photograph); 216, Seminary St. Sulpice (New Eng. Mag., xix., p. 236); 220, *From Ripley's letter to Wheelock, March 7, 1776'; 224, David Wooster as a Young Man s; 231, David Wooster, signature'; 236, *From Arnold's Decree, March 4, 1776'; 242, *From Arnold's letter to McNeill, March 29, ^776 (Ford Coll., N. Y. Pub. Lib., Lenox Branch). Contents and Illustrations PAGB Chapter XXVIII. New Plans, New Hopes, New Attacks Anxiety, lack of fuel and short rations in Quebec. Rea sons why Carleton does not sally : his essential duty is to save the town ; he cannot be certain as to the American strength; his own forces are not all sure; and there are advantages in waiting. A close watch is maintained. Wooster arrives at the beginning of April, and Arnold goes to Montreal. New American batteries. The difficulties in the way of erecting them. They injure the city and shipping but have no vital effect. A fire-ship is tried; but it fails. Yet the Americans are still hopeful 245 Illustrations. P. 251, *Quebec as seen from the mouth of the St. Charles River (print from drawing by Richard Short, 1759: Boston Athenasum); 256, Castle St. Louis viewed from the St. Lawrence (Hawkins, Picture of Que bec, p. 178); 260, Palace Gate, Outside, 1776 (from amodel by Mr. Th. O'Leary) ; 262, Palace Gate, Inside, 1776 (from the same source) ; 268, *From Wooster's letter to McNeill, April 23, 1776.' Chapter XXIX. Daring Schemes Carleton's treatment of the American prisoners. Some go to the hospital. Some old-country men enlist under the British colors, but do not serve long. The confinement is slightly relieved from gloom by such amusements as the prisoners can invent. The privates are transferred to the Dauphin jail. An elaborate plan, not only to escape, but to capture the city is contrived. A mischance defeats it. The officers also try to escape, but are unsuccessful .... 270 Illustrations. P. 2 7 1 , Glimpse of the Seminary, Quebec ' ; 274, Return J. Meigs (from a portrait by Rembrandt Peale owned by Mrs. E. L. Whaples); 276, *Order of Daniel Mor gan for Money* ; 279, St. John's Gate, Inside, 1776 (from a model by Mr. Th. O'Leary); 283, J. J. Henry (Jordan Coll., Penna. Hist. Soe); 285, *Quebec viewed from the Ram parts (print from drawing by Richard Short, 1759: Boston Athenaeum) ; 289, Henry Dearborn (portrait by Gilbert Stuart, Calumet Club, Chicago) ; 29 1 , Wing of the Seminary, Quebec (from a sketch by the author). Chapter XXX. The Catastrophe at Quebec A British relief expedition sails from England but its Contents and Illustrations xi PAGE fortunes are uncertain. A large armament is preparing. The American leaders have for months expected British troops to arrive in the spring, but Congress believes the chief seat of the war is to be farther south. General Thomas. He is sent to command in Canada. He is greatly delayed but reaches Quebec the first of May. Strategic points on the middle St. Lawrence. No prepara tions yet made to hold them. The army before Quebec very small and in a sad plight. Fresh American troops begin to arrive with or soon after Thomas. It is decided on May fifth to retreat; but, early on the sixth, the British arrive, and the Americans flee precipitately 294 Illustrations. P. 296, Lord George Germain* (Murray, Impartial History, i., p. 190); 299, John Thomas (portrait owned by Miss Sarah Wilhams); 302, *Woedtke to Schuy ler, Apr. 18, 1776*; 305, * Chateau de Ramezay, Montreal (photograph by H. T. Perrault); 315, Deschambault » ; 320, St. Louis Gate, Inside, 1776 (from a model by Mr. Th. O'Leary); 322, John Thomas, signature. Chapter XXXI. The Apostles of Liberty The American leaders at the north have long desired to have a committee of Congress on the ground, but that body has preferred that a Canadian delegation should go to Philadelphia. Finally a committee are chosen, and, after many delays, they reach Montreal. Their instructions. The members. Their reception. They establish a press. The Carrolls fail to win over the clergy. Obstacle in the way of the political mission of the Commissioners. They send for specie, which Congress cannot supply. The Canadians look upon Congress as bankrupt. Unfortunate consequences of the regime of liberty now inaugurated. The military policy of the Commissioners. The move ments of Thomas. Arnold's efforts to aid him. Fresh troops arrive. Deschambault and Three Rivers have to be abandoned. Stateof the army. The Commissioners upset military discipline. They recognize their failure and ask leaveto return home 325 Illustrations. P. 327, Charles Carroll of CarroUton (after a portrait by Gilbert Stuart, Med. Hist. Soe); 330, Charles Carroll, signature*; 333, John Carroll (portrait by Gilbert xii Contents and Illustrations PAGE Stuart, Georgetown College); 336, From Franklin's letter of May 27, 1776^; 336, From Chase and Carroll's letter of May 12, 1776^; 341, *Froni the Commissioners' letter to Congress, May i, 17761; 344, * Walker to S. Adams, May 30, 1776''; 347, * Looking across the Richelieu toward Sorel Point'; 353, From John Carroll's letter of May 28, 1776.* Chapter XXXII. The Cedars The flight from Quebec, on second thought, seems less disgraceful than at first, and it is believed that a successful stroke may re-establish American credit. A chance soon offers itself. The British posts west of Montreal are centres of hostile activity, and signs multiply that Montreal is threatened from that quarter. Bedel is posted at the Cedars to guard the approach, but goes to Montreal, leaving Butterfield in charge. Butterfield is attacked by Forster with Canadians, Indians, and a few regulars, and shame fully surrenders. Sherburne, sent to relieve him, does the same. Young, near St. Anne, imitates their example. This leaves the road to Montreal open. But Arnold posts himself at Lachine with some troops and Forster retreats. Forster's prisoners, threatened with massacre, sign an agreement for an exchange. Arnold confirms this in sub stance, and during the truce Forster slips away. Wretched condition of the American army. The Commissioners leave and Thomas dies 357 Illustrations. P. 364, Lachine Rapids; 366, Timothy Bedel, signature; 368, Extract from Frye Bayley's Narra tive'; 368, Extract from a Memorandum by S. Adams, Aug. T, 1776*; 372, Ruins of the fort at St. Anne (from a photograph) ; 375, *Postscript, Arnold to Clinton, May 12, 17763; 379, At Lachine'; 381, *From Carleton's letter to Germain, May, 25 1776 (British Government); ?385, Chase and Carroll to Wooster, May 25, 1776.' Chapter XXXIII. Three Rivers Congress orders six more regiments, commanded by Sulli van, to Canada. After many embarrassments they arrive. Sullivan, though he realizes the confusion, is hopeful. It is decided to attack the British advance post at Three Rivers. Thompson is detached for that purpose, but the Contents and Illustrations xiii PAGE plan to make a night attack is frustrated by the treachery of the guide. The main British expedition has now ar rived, and a large force has just come up to Three Rivers. The Americans are repulsed and have to retreat into a great swamp. Most of them finally regain Sorel. Great dis couragement results from this misfortune. The question of feeding the army. Demoralization 388 Illustrations. P. 390, John Stark, signature* ; 392, Ant. Wayne, signature ^ ;395, John SuUi van « ; 40 r , * Instructions for Thompson^: 405. A. St. Clair* (photograph from a miniature in the possession of M. F. D. Stone) ; 407, A. St, Clair, signature* ; 409, Anthony Wayne (drawing belonging to the Penna. Hist. Soe.) ; 412, Water-front, Three Rivers' ; 415, John Burgoyne, signature; 418, John Greaton, signa ture; 421, The Swamp, Pointe du Lac' Chapter XXXIV. Hope Withers but Shoots Again Congress, unable to comprehend the situation in Canada, gives orders to hold the ground. The post at Sorel, after Sullivan has fortified it, looks strong but is really weak, and its strategic situation is extremely dangerous, for Carleton may reach St. Johns by another way. Sullivan is determined to remain there; but, just as the British are at hand, he discovers his mistake and effects a masterly re treat. Arnold evacuates Montreal. All retire to lie aux Noix and Crown Point. The three stages of the struggle for Canada up to this point. The chances of success in each. Gloom in the Colonies. The causes of the failure. Valuable fruits of the struggle 425 Illustrations. P. 425, John Sullivan, signature; 431, James Wilkinson (print belonging to Gen. James Grant Wilson) ; 437, *Burgoyne's pledge on embarking for Amer ica (British government); 443, *From a Memorandum by S. Adams, Aug. i, 1776*: 447, *From S. Adams's letter to Hawley, July 9, 1776^; 450, John Adams, signature*; 452, *From Hawley's letter to S. Adams, May 22, i776»: 455, * Richard, Lord Howe (painted by Henry Singleton) Chapter XXXV. From the Sublime to General Gates Assistance given in the struggle for Canada by the Declara tion of Independence. The campaign of 1776 after June. xiv Contents and Illustrations PAGE Burgoyne's expedition and surrender. Further benefits derived from the war in Canada. Gates plans a movement against St. Johns under Bedel, and Congress a similar one under Stark. Opposition in Congress and among a few officers to Washington. General Gates. The 'Conway Cabal. ' Gates becomes head of the Board of War. The two St. Johns schemes are now combined and the plan is enlarged. Lafayette. Reasons for appointing him to leadthenew Canada expedition 459 Illustrations. P. 461, *From a memorandum by S. Adams, Aug. i, 1776'; 465, Mount Defiance and Lake Champlain (photograph); 472, *From S. Adams's letter to Trumbull, Aug. 3, 1776* ; 477, *Silas Deane's Credentials as Envoy, March, 1776; 481, Horatio Gates* (Du Simitiere, Thirteen Portraits, 1783); 484, Lafayette's agreement to come to America. Chapter XXXVI. A Brief Campaign Lafayette, after taking the advice of a Committee of Con gress at the camp, goes to York and neutralizes the anti- Washington spirit of the Canada scheme, insisting upon acting under Washington's orders. He is given full assurances that he will have enough men and means, and, relying on Gates, proceeds to Albany. There, however, he finds that nothing is ready and that the lack cannot be supplied in time. Arnold, Schuyler, Lincoln, and others advise strongly against moving north. Lafayette, after reporting to Congress, awaits orders, stUl endeavor ing to find some way to carry out the plan. Congress, alarmed by him and others, becomes cautious and soon gives up the plan 486 Illustrations. P. 488, Gouverneur Morris (Marchant, after Sully: Independence Hall); 49 r, *The Marquis de Lafayette (C. W. Peale, said to have been painted at Valley Forge: Independence Hall); 494, Lafayette, signa ture; 496, At Anthony's Nose, Hudson River; 499, The Highlands of the Hudson from West Point (photograph) ; 501, *John Stark (Caleb Stark's biography of Gen. Stark, frontispiece); 504, R. R. Livingston (Sharpless, from a pastel); 507, *Stark to Lafayette, Feb. 3, 17781; 509, The Dutch Meeting-house, Albany (Munsell, Collections, Vol. II.); *5i2. From Lafayette's letter to the Board of War, Feb. 20, r778. • Contents and Illustrations xv Chapter XXXVII. Reasons of State The alliance with France changes the character of the Canada schemes, and the failure to gain control of Lake Champlain requires a new route. A road from Coos toward St. Johns. In 1778, Gates plans an expedition by this route, but it has to be given up. Washington takes steps in the same direction. Then, at the instance of Lafayette, Congress adopts a broad scheme of French- American co-operation for driving Great Britain from all her Continental possessions. The state of Canada invites attack, and the Americans, through spies and friends, are well posted about it. Proclamations of Estaing and Lafayette. Washington, however, opposes the plan on both military and political grounds, and it is laid aside 515 Illustrations. P. 516, * Resolution moved in Congress, June 7, 1776 (Independence Hall); 520, From Traversie's Message^; 525, *Bayley's Meadow (photograph); 531, ?Admiral d'Estaing*; 536, Estaing, signature*; 539, ?First page of Estaing's Declaration 1 ; 544, *From Wash ington's letter to Congress, Nov. n, 17781 ; 547, Henry Laurens * (painting by C. W. Peale) . Chapter XXXVIII. The Line is Drawn The influence of Samuel Adams and New England wanes. Their wishes no longer shape the policy of the war. The campaign of 1779 is made essentially defensive. In 1780 there is a strong sentiment in favor of attacking Can ada, but the French leaders prefer New York. Late in 1781, Washington proposes a joint expedition; but the French minister declines to aid in it. The policy of France. In 1782 Washington has Canada in mind, but peace is in sight and aggressiveness seems unadvisable. At tempts to win Canada in the negotiations fail. Conclu sion 552 Illustrations. P. 555, *From Washington's letter to Lafayette, May 19, 17802; 558, Rochambeau (painting by C. W. Peale; Independence Hall); 560, Luzerne (the same source) ; 563, H. S. Conway* (Europ. Mag., March, 1782): 567, * George Washington (portrait by Gilbert Stuart, courtesy of the Boston Museum of Fine Arts). Remarks 573 Index 605 MAPS IN VOLUME II. Quebec, Point Levi, and Wolfe's Cove (from a drawing by a British Captain, 1759) . 11 City and Environs of Quebec (Faden, 1776) . 78 A Sketch-Plan of the Lower Barricades (Drawn by the Author) . 129 Edward Antill's Map of Quebec and its Environs (from the MS. belonging to Cornell University, reproduced in Winsor's Narrative and Critical History of America) 247 The St. Lawrence from Montreal to Quebec 311 The St. Lawrence from the Cedars to Montreal (Faden's American Atlas, 1777) 359 The St. Lawrence from Montreal to Three Rivers (Faden's American Atlas, 1777) 397 The Vicinity of Valcour Island, Lake Champlain 463 The Vicinity of Ticonderoga . 468 The Vermont-Canada Frontier and Hazen's Road 5 1 8 Map to Illustrate the Northern Campaign Proposed in Oc tober, 1778. • 523 OUR STRUGGLE FOR THE FOURTEENTH COLONY XXI THK CRISIS OF ARNOLD'S EXPEDITION ^ Q UPERB, tremendous ! ' Large words are these, O and rather suspicious ; but, when one faces the mighty front of Quebec, they have to be spoken. Rising grandly from a majestic river, the vast rock towers high and broad, with a splendor of sunshine on its brow and an abyss of shadow at its feet. Gibraltar is no doubt more lofty, but hardly seems more solid. Belgrade, while resembling it, looks far less bold and threatening. George Sand was reminded of Angoul^me ; but Angoul^me has no such river to double its height. Montjuich might suggest it ; yet merely as a strong hand suggests a mailed fist. Chapul tepee is justly famous ; but that is only a piece of shapely bric-^-brac beside Quebec. Ehrenbreit- stein may be compared with it ; but so may the Rhine be compared — if one please — with the St. Lawrence. The Morro of Havana sits haughtily enough on the waves ; but the Walled City of the North would make light of its pride. In beauty and in power it stands eternal ; and it recalls not only the saying of old Froissart, VOL. II. — 1 1 2 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony that once 'every fayre town had high, strong walls,' but those far grander and far more ancient words: ' In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.' Looking across from Point Levi, the Americans could make out the principal features ofthe city. At the water's edge, on a fringe of earth filched from the river, extended the Lower Town, where the tall Hurons, gorgeous with sunflower-oil, paint, and beaver mantles, had beached their canoes by the hundred ; and where Father Lejeune, the Jesuit Superior, in his close cassock and wide black hat, had called the Indian children to his door with a bell, taught them a Pater and an Ave, and clinched the good effect with a porringer of pease. Now, a solid cluster of warehouses and residences crowded the scanty sands, and an upper and a lower battery at the river-front defended them.' Behind, rose the gray precipice, inclining downward toward the right, but still high where it tumed a sharp angle and followed back along a little river, the St. Charles. In the midst of the cliff, a winding road and a zigzag footpath could be seen struggling upward, leading past the roomy palace of the bishop at the brow of the rock, and— on the left, a little higher— past a long, yel lowish building of two stories overhanging the abyss on props, which was Castle St. Louis, built by Frontenac as a residence for the governors. Farther back stood the fine tower of the cathedral, attended by the spires of the Jesuits, the Recollets, the Ursulines and the Hotel Dieu, so striking a group on so massive a foundation that artists 1 § For the meaning of ' Point I,evi ¦ iFrench Pointe de Livy) in 1775 see Smith, Arnold's March, pp. 450-452. Old Quebec: Parkman, Jesuits, pp. 2, 20, 46, 47 ; Royal Mag-., Nov., 1759 ; [ JefferysIT Nat. and Civil Hist., p. 8 ; Kalm, irayels, III., pp. 97-109; Anburey, Travels, I., p. 51- silliman, Tour, p. 252; Parkman, Old Regime, pp, 288, 477; Id., Montcalm, II., p. 208: Gaspd, Canad ians, pp. 6, 7 ; Murray, Report, 1762 (Can. Arch,, B, 7, pp. 34-40); Hawkins, Picture, pp. 155-169: Marr, Remarks (Can. .^rch., M, 584); Mackellar, in Doughty, Siege, II. , p. 272. Blockhouse : Caldwell, Letter ; Doughty and Dionne, yuebec, p. 131. The I,ower Town has grown at the expense of the river since 1775. A View of Quebec 3 thought a forest of steeples on a mountain of rock almost sufiicient for a likeness of Quebec ; while among the spires, leafless but still suggestive of beauty, stood the grove of the Seminary, the orchard of the Recollets, and the tall shade- trees of the hospital garden, watered by a now freezing brook. A ' Holy Hill of Zion' the early theo cracy of Quebec had tried to make it, and its architecture still suggested that name. Zion had walls ; and here a line of old batteries and fresh-looking palisades crested the precipice. To the left of the Castle, the rising cliff mounted to its climax in a rounded pinnacle of dark slate, studded with sparkling quartz crystals, known as Cape Diamond, from which the rigging of the ships looked like spider's web ; and here stood a small square fort, called the citadel, joined by a sloping curtain to a very high cavalier. A fortified wind mill surmounted the cavalier ; while on the summit of the cape hung a sort of iron cage, in which the bodies of strangled felons had formerly been left for the winds, the rains, and the birds. Below, on a shelf some fifty or sixty feet from the top, stood a blockhouse ; and beyond — almost wholly ought of sight — were hints of walls, towers, and bastions on the farther side of the town. Over against this eagle's nest on its cliff stood a hand ful of ragged, half-starved Americans, shivering in the November gale. Thus far they had certainly accom plished wonders. 'Arnold has made a march that may be compared to Hannibal's or Xenophon' s,' boasted Joseph Warren to Samuel Adams. 'This march of Arnold's 4 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony is equal to Xenophon's retreat,' thought Jefferson. 'Some future historian will make it the subject of admiration,' predicted Schuyler. 'The march of Col. Arnold and his troops,' thus a British author was already preparing to fulfill the prophecy, ' is one of the greatest exploits recorded in the annals of nations. ' ' It is not in the power of any man to command success,' wrote Wash ington to his officer, ' but you have done more — you have deserved it. ' ' Yet this was not enough. Running his eye over the towers, walls, and forts of Quebec, each of them edged with old gold by the pale sun of November ninth, Arnold himself realized that. Could he obtain possession of this town, and so draw the thorn from the foot of America ? The Commander-in-chief believed that he could, and many others held the same opinion. ' We expect, every hour, to be informed that Quebec has opened its arms to Colonel Arnold,' wrote Jefferson to Randolph; 'In a short time, we have reason to hope, the delegates of Canada will join us in Congress, and complete the American union, as far as we wish to have it completed.' Carleton had little hope. ' The prospect at Quebec is not much better, ' he said, when writing (November 5) of the foregone conclu sion at Montreal ; and even stiff Maclean, in spite of his narrow zeal, feared they were to be ' Undone.' Arnold, for his part, was ready to try ; his brave men, fresh from their victory over the wilderness, might shiver but did not flinch ; and even for Quebec it was not well to be over confident.^ Indeed, the Provincials appeared to have a good fighting 2 § Warren, Dec. 5, 1775 : S. Adams Papers. Jefferson to Page, about Dec. 10, 1775: Am. Antiq. Soe. Sch. to Hancock, Nov. 22, 1775; 4 Force, III., 1633. Murray, Present War, I., p. 569. Wash, to Arnold, Dec. 5: 4 Force, IV., 192. 3 § Jefferson, Nov. 29, 1775: Writings (Ford), I., p, 491. Carleton to [Dart mouthl, Nov. 5, 1775 : Pub. Rec. Off., Colon. Corres., Quebec, 11, p. 445. Maclean to Barrington, Nov. 20, 1775: War Off., Orig. Corres., Vol. 12. Preparations to Defend Quebec 5 chance and more too ; for a fortress, however impressive, must have a garrison, and Quebec had Cramahe, the trembling Lieutenant-Governor. Carleton regarded this functionary as useful, and that appears a very strong point in his favor ; but, after all, the lion would no doubt say a good word for the jackal. The Lieutenant-Governor should have worn— probably he did — a dry semi-smile forever on his face ; a smile that could warm into eager cordiality or fade into ironical patronage ; a smile that scraped an incessant apology for the thinness of soil behind it ; a smile like a prickly pear in the desert, — a touch of dusty green, a hint of gummy moisture, even the miracle ofa small yellow blossom once in a while, but all well guarded from general consumption by fifty thorns for every flower. He never treated any body roughly, at least nobody who could strike back, but some of those he dealt with must have wished that he would ; and he was happy to perform a kind act when invited thereto by some who could do him a favor, but his resources of kindliness were exhausted — or nearly so — by this prudent expenditure. Carleton's long absence at the front left the responsibil ity for Quebec with Cramahe, and there was need enough of providing for defence. Until September, 1774, the tenth and fifty-second regiments had been stationed there ; but Gage drew them away, and, when affairs began to look threatening in the lake region, Carleton sent all but a scrap of the remaining garrison to the frontier. Alarmed at their defenceless condition, some ofthe British citizens twice requested to be organized as militia, but evidently the Govemor did not care to place weapons in suspected hands ; and when, on the nineteenth of July, an attempt was actually made to form a British corps, the number that came together did not exceed seventy. Can ada, and especially Quebec, had seemed so detached from 6 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony the rest of the continent, that many did not believe it would become involved in the dispute with England ; and others, friendly to the Colonials, did not wish to take up arms. Carleton viewed the Canadians of the city with some confidence, however, and acknowledged the need of defence by taking steps to organize them." Schuyler's entry into Canada changed the situation. ' The confusion this has thrown everything into is inex pressible, ' wrote a gentleman from Quebec. ' At one time,' reported another, ' St. John's was said to be invested by five thousand Provincials ; then it was said they were retired ; then the River Chambly (that is, Richelieu or Sorel) was said to be full of them, and that they were sending circular letters about the country ; [and] then Mon treal was said to be surrounded by them.' 'Soon after, unexpectedly and all on a sudden,' Mrs. Carleton's pas sage for England was taken ; and, only five days after Montgomery planted his foot before St. Johns, the ship Lvdia, Captain Deane, set sail with her and her family.' Saturday evening, September the ninth, precisely while Arnold was straining every nerve to march from Cam bridge, the active organization of a militia began at Que bec, and twenty-five gentlemen volunteered to do sentry duty. On the seventeenth, ' at the request of the Lieu tenant-Governor, the British and Canadian inhabitants assembled on the parade ; the latter were formed into eleven companies, the former into six ' ; and seventy-two men were ordered to mount guard at six o'clock ever}' evening. Two days later, Mr. Thompson was directed to ¦1 § Two regts. : Gage to Carleton, Sept. 4, 1774 (Pub. Rec. Off., Colon. Corres., Quebec, 10, p. 159. Quebec letter, Oct. i, 1775: 4 Force, III., 925. 0rsul.de T. Riv., I., p. 362. Requests: 4 Force, II., 1125 ; III,, 1723 (Account); Almon, Re membrancer, 1776, Part I., p. 131. July IQ- Quebec letter, July 20, 1775 (Can. Arch., B, 20, p. 8) Detached: 'Quebec" letter, Sept. ,30, 1775 (4 Force, III., 845). Canadians: Carleton's letter, July 3, 1775 (Ceuteuaire, p. 42, note); Quebec Gazette, July 6, 7, 1775. s 5 Quebec letter, Sept. 17, 1775; 4 Force, III., 726. Id., Oct. ., 1775: ib., 924. Id., Sept. 18, 1775: ib.,72S. A VIEW OF QUEBEC FROM THE SOUTH SHORE, 1759 Preparations to Defend Quebec 9 'get the greatest number of Canadian Carpenters' he could : some to be employed in ' cutting & preparing Picketts, ' some in ' setting the Picketts with all the Expe dition possible, ' and some in laying platforms for cannon ; while ' Fraser the Carpenter with his Men ' attended to repairing the blockhouses and sallyports. Ten days more, and the gates were ordered to be ' lock'd at 9 O'clock, and the Keys to be carried to the Main guard.' Daily lessons in can non- practice began to be given by a bombardier, and infantry target-shooting followed. Five transports from Boston, sent up to bring forage, were held, and several private vessels were taken for government service. Then an embargo was laid upon the shipping in order to man them ; and, on October third, one of the ves sels, the snow Fell, 'compleatly equipped with sixteen 9-pounders besides swivels, etc., and 100 true tars, on board of which Commodore Napier hoisted his flag, haul'd out into the stream.' " ' On Saturday, the 28th of October, Mr. John Dyer Mercier, [ex-Coroner of Quebec], as he was going into the Upper- Town, was laid hold of by the Town Sergeant, and conducted to the main guard, and there confined ' : thus wrote a British merchant from Quebec. Arnold's Indian messenger had placed his letters from the Great Carrying-Place to Mercier and Schuyler in the hands of the British authorities, and they knew that a force was on the move against them. Probably Cramahfe did not be lieve the Provincials could pass the mountains, but the guards were reinforced. On the third of November, it be came certain that the impossible had been accomplished, and a flood of steel was pouring down the Chaudi&re. « § Quebec Gazette, Sept. 14, 21 ; Oct. 5, 1775. Quebec letter, Sept. 18, 1775: 4 Force, III.. 728, Vialar, Ord. Book. Lindsay: Can. Rev., No. 5, Sept., 1826, p Be. Cramahe to Dartmouth, Sept. 30, 1775: Pub. Rec. Off., Colon. Corres., Quebec, u, p. 413. Id. to Gage, Sept. 20, 1775: Pub. Rec. Off., Am. and W. I., Vol. 130, p. 677. Transports; Howe to Secy. State, Dec. 3, 1775 (ib.. Vol. 305, p. 198). TO Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony Upon that, some one in authority announced signals for ' turning out the whole Militia of the Town,' ordered the gates firmly 'Shut at 6 O'Clock every Evening from this day,' had all the boats on the south shore ofthe St. Law rence destroyed or confiscated, and sent spies across to meet the Americans. On the eighth Cramahe leamed that Arnold's advance guard had been ' within two Leagues & a half of the St. Lawrence ' the evening before ; and the next day the guards were doubled, the ofiBcer at each gate was directed to ' Examin carefully the Environs ' every morning before opening the doors, and warnings against ' a Surprise ' went forth. All this looked vigilant and effective.' But it meant little. For all Cramahe' s complacency over the ' better posture of defence ' and the reassuring tales of ordnance made ready, the British government found that ' about the 6th of November there were only nine Pieces of Cannon, provided with Carriages, mounted on the Ramparts.' No canoe could enter or leave the harbor without a pass, wrote a citizen ; and ' the means made use of to get Canadians from the neighboring coun try to do dut)' in town had so intimidated the inhabitants,' that few ventured into Quebec, and there was ' hardly a supply of provisions from hand to mouth, much less to stand out a siege.' ' A very poor stock of provisions and a far less stock of firewood,' said another epitome of the situation." The citizens, even though under arms, could not be de pended on. Baby, a staunch loyalist, reckoned only about ' § Quebec letter, Nov. 9, 1775: Maseres, Add. Papers, p. 107; Verreau, In vasion, p. 374. Cramah6 to [Dartmouth], Nov. g, 1775: Pub. Rec. Off., Colon. Corres., Quebec, 11, p. 459. Ogden, Journal, Nov. 5, 7, 8. Vialar, Ord. Book. Ainslie, Journal, Nov. 3. Cramahe to Howe, Oct. [Nov.] 8, 1775: Pub. Rec. Off., Am. and W. I., Vol, 130, p. 729. Mercier, Memorial: Cont. Cong. Papers, No. 41, II., p. 134. Remark XI,II. 8 § Cramahe to [Dartmouth], Sept. 30, 1775: Note 6. Cannon: cf Quebec Gazette, Oct. 5, 1775, with Pr&is of Oper., and see Pell's Diary (Mag. Am. Hist., 1878, p. 43). Quebec letters: Maseres, Add. Papers, pp. 94, no. FROM A MAP DRAWN BY A BRITISH CAPTAIN, 1759 12 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony one-half of them as rehable. Many neglected the service, others thought it hard, and the greater part had felt dissatisfied fi'om the very first. They received no am munition except — when doing sentry duty — four rounds in the evening, and this caution was understood as a mark of distrust. The captain of a brig from Quebec, taken prisoner off Cape Ann at the end of September, believed that city would yield without firing a shot, if attacked be fore Carleton could throw himself into it. Even Cramahe admitted (November 9) that the militia were ' with Difii- culty brought to mount Guard, and consequently [were] not much to be depended on.' 'The lower sort,' wrote the Govemor fi-om Montreal, ' are not more loyal than here. ' Soon after the companies formed, what Mr. .A^inshe, Collector of Customs, termed ' the anarchical method of calling town meetings ' had begun to flourish. ' In these noisy assemblies the masks of many dropt . . . Reports of Mr. Montgomery's successes were most industriously spread — the enemies of Government . . . address'd the fears of the timid, & spoke to this effect : ' ' Our force is small indeed, theirs is now great & it increases dailj- — let us be psudent — let us remain neuter — let us secure with our effects good treatment from the friends of Liberty, for they will sooner or later take the town. . . . Why suffer our property to be destroyed ? " ' = As Arnold approached, the house grew more and more divided. Fear increased his pitiful six hundred and seventy -five to twelve or fifteen hundred, and superstition magnified their power. ' Assuredly a miracle must have been wrought in their favor,' whispered the Canadians; ' it is more than a human undertaking in this degenerate ' § Baby: Verreau, Invasion, p. 314. Quebec letter, Sept 18, 1775 • . Force. IIT., 728 (cf Vialar. Ord. Book, Nov. 3). Lindsay : Can. Rev., No =' Sept 1826, ?-^^2l ^"Is^t"^'^' '° ^'^^-' °'^'- t- '775 (Writings, III., p. 156). bramah^ to [Dartmouth!, Nov. 9, 1775 : Note 7. Carleton to Dartmouth, Nov. 5. 1775 • Note 3 Amslie, Journal (Introd.). 01 //j 3. Sentiment in Quebec 13 age.' The linen frocks of the riflemen had astonished the warmly clad peasants, and the rumor spread that cold had no power over these warriors. Then a curious accident, changing toile — the French word for this linen — into tole, sheet iron, completed the picture : a superhuman phalanx, . marching on to battle in gleaming suits of plate-armor. Carleton had vanished. Perhaps the Americans had got him, thought many. While some talked of making a good defence, others talked of making a good capi tulation. If report said truly, noted Ainslie in his Jour nal, ' some of y° over prudent had drawn out articles of surrender to be laid before the people.' In fact, a con siderable number of British and Canadian citizens met secretly, and undertook to contrive means of compelling a surrender. '" ' Just now,' wrote a citizen while Arnold stood surveying the town from Point Levi ; ' Just now an order is come down for eight men from each of the six companies of the British Militia to appear on the parade witliout Arms, to receive One Shilling and a pint of Porter for the business they were to do. Orders are also given for a party of Marines, to be on the parade armed. So we are inclined to judge the intentions of our Government to be to force us to a defence of the town, and sacrifice our lives and properties. The Shilling and a pint of Porter are supposed to be considered as King's money to enlist us, and subject us to military discipline. The Lord protect us from our enemies within and without! ' " What such people would prefer to do, when offered their choice between the open > 0 § 675 : Am. to Wash., Dec. s, 1775 (Me. Hist. Soc. Coll., I., p. 386). 1500: I.egge to Dartmouth, Dec. 29, 177.; (Pub. Rec. Off., Colon. Corres., N. Seo , Vol. X Tp 84, inclos.; Carleton to Dartmouth, Nov. s, 1775 (Note 3); Quebec letter, Nov 9, 1775 (Maseres, Add. Papers, p. no). Miracle: Quebec letter, Nov. 9. 1775 (Verreau, Invasion, p. 376). T6Ie, etc. : Ainslie, Journal, Dec. 2. Cramahe to [Germain!, Nov. 19, 1775: Bancroft Coll., Eng. and Am., Aug., 1775-Dec., 1776 p 169 Ainslie, Journal, Meeting (possibly the same as that mentioned belo'w, at which Williams spoke) : Lindsay in Can . Rev., No. 5, Sept., 1826, p. 89. 1 1 Quebec letter, Nov. 9, 1775 (P.S.) . Maseres, Add. Papers, p. ni. 14 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony hand and the clenched fist of the Provincials, could easily be imagined. But how did Quebec, that pivot of empire, happen to be left so long without a garrison ? Carleton was com pelled, of course, to use every available man against Schuyler, but why did not Great Britain send him rein forcements ? In September, four regiments were assigned to Quebec, and on the twenty-seventh a letter for the commanding ofiBlcer, giving careful instructions about navigating the St. Lawrence, left Whitehall by a special messenger. This was added : ' It being of very great importance that the Regiments ordered to Quebec should get to that Place be fore the Winter, every possible effort must be made to secure that Object.' Yet for some reason — a storm, per haps — these troops landed at Staten Island. Nor was this England's only effort. On December sixth. Lord Ger main wrote General Clinton that, in consequence of a gale, two regiments destined for Quebec had ' put into Mil ford Haven,' and would now be added to the southern expedition. " But why did not the army and navy already in America do something for this vital point ? On October the tenth, ' a Vessel arrived [at Boston] ex press from Quebec,' reported General Howe, with letters to Gage from Carleton and Cramahe. Howe ordered a bat talion of marines into the transports at once ; but, when he applied to Admiral Graves for a convoy, the Admiral con sulted his captains ' and others well acquainted with the River Saint Lawrence, ' as he stated, ' upon the probability of their getting up. ' Cramahe found by the records of the > 2 § Four Regts. (17th, 28th, 46th, 55th) : Can. Arch., B, 37, p. m ; Pownall to Com'g > ff., Sept. 27, 1775 (Pub. Rec. Off., Am. and W. I.. Vol. 431, p 82) • Mem. kindly furnished by Brit. War Off., June 23, 1902, (They actually em barked in Sept.) Germain: Pub. Rec. Off., Am. and W I Vol 130 p 750 See also PownaU to Carleton, Sept. 25, 1775: Can. Arch., Q, n, p 244. No Hope of Effective Assistance 15 Custom House that two ships had arrived as late as the twenty-fourth of November ; but all the gentlemen con sulted by Graves were of the opinion, ' that hard Gales of Wind and Snow Storms, would not only prevent their get ting up, but perhaps endanger the loss of the whole Convoy. ' Howe then decided to procure ' smaller vessels better adapted to working their way up the River St. Law rence, but not being able to have them fitted for sea in reasonable time to undertake the voyage with the least prospect of succeeding, ' he 'judged it most prudent to de cline sending the Reinforcement. ' One day before the cer tainty of Arnold's coming was known in Quebec, news ar rived that no relief could be expected from Boston. ' It is impossible, ' wrote Lord Germain bitterly to Howe; ' It is impossible to tum one's thoughts to Canada, without . . . lamenting the obstacles which prevented the execution of the Measure you had with so proper a Zeal proposed for the safety of it, and which, I will venture to say, could not have failed. ' The color of the tears poured by the loyalists at Quebec itself could be imagined. And so, as it seemed, Andromeda stood chained to the rock once more. Was there to be a Perseus? " On the twelfth of October, the Hunter sloop-of-war, Captain McKenzie, slid into the Basin and cast anchor ; >3 § Howe to Secy. State, Nov. 27, 1775: Pub. Rec. Off., Am. and W. I., Vol. 305, p. 193. Id. to Carleton, Oct. 13, 1775: Can. Arch., Q, 11, p. 288. Graves to Stephens, Nov. 2, 1775 : Pub. Rec. Off., Admirals' Disp., N. Am., Vol. 6, Bundle 485. Cramahe to [Dartmouth], Nov. 9, 1775: Note 7. Germain to Howe, Jan. 5. 1776: Pub. Rec. Ofif., Am. and W. I., Vol. 431, p. no. 1 6 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony but her men were needed aboard. When the little Ameri can army crossed the threshold of civilization (Novem ber 3), only the wavering militia stood behind the walls of Quebec. This was a Friday. Saturday evening brought a schooner from famishing but loyal Newfound land and a sloop fi-om St. John's (now Prince Edward's) Lsland with two of Maclean's captains and some men ; and, on Sunday, a London ship delivered a few more from Newfoundland, — about one hundred and twenty in all ; but Cramah6 described the greater number as 'Irish Fishermen unacquainted with the Use of Arms,' and others were traders or artisans not intending to enlist. '* Sunday evening, the white sails of His Majest5^'s frig ate Lizard, Captain Hamilton, lighted up the harbor. Even below hatches there was brightness, for she carried thousands of muskets andtwenty thousand pounds in gold; and after her followed two or three brigs, fiiU of arms, am munition, uniforms, and bribes for the Indians, which the Continental Congress had vainly tried to catch. But the Lizard could send ashore only some thirt}'-five marines. It was not considered safe to land her shining cargo. The merchant ships went on bolting their freight da)- and night. Briand talked of leaving the countr}^ Cramahe reached his boiling point, profanity; ' It is your damn'd Committees that have thrown the province into its present State,' he told MacAulay ; and then, sitting down, he moaned to Howe : ' There is too much Reason to appre hend, the Affairwill be soon over.' " > i § Hunter; Cramahfi to Dartmouth, Oct. 25, 1775 (Can. Arch. Q, n, p. 264); Graves to Stephens, Sept. 26, 1775 (Pub. Rec. Off, Admirals' Disp , N. Am., Vol. 6, Bundle 485). Nov 3: Quebec letter, Nov. 7, 1775 (4 Force, ni., 1396); Caldwell, Letter; Carleton to Dartmouth, Nov. 5, 1775 (Note 3). Recruits: Quebec Gazette, Nov. g, 1775 ; Callbeck to Shuldham, Jan. 10, 1776 (Pub. Rec. Off., Admirals' Disp., N. Am., Vol. s); Finlay, Journal, Nov. 14 ; Caldwell, Letter ; Cramah6 to [Dartmouth], Nov. 9, 1775 (Note 7); Account (4 Force, III., 1723)- Newf : J. Parsons, Jr., to N. Y. Com., May 30, 1775 (4 Force, II., 851); Newf. letter in N. Eng. Chron., June 22, 1775 ; Prowse, Newfoundland, p. 338. ' 5 § Lizard, etc. : Hamilton to Graves, Nov. 9, 1775 (Pub. Rec. Off.. Admirals Disp., N. Am., Vol. 6, Bundle 485); Montg. to Sch., Nov. 13, 1775 (4 Force, III., Arnold Makes Ready to Cross 17 Was Arnold, then, to be Wolfe's compeer? The goal stood in full view; the prize could almost be touched ; not a minute was lost. With all possible speed the troops hurried on to Point Levi. Canoes were gathered in every quarter,— the worn-out men carrying twenty of them some eight leagues on their shoulders. Dugouts brought the number of boats up to thirty-five or forty ; and all were kept out of harm's way at the mouth ofthe Chaudiere, several miles up the St. Lawrence. Pro visions, also, had to be collected, and the bare feet, weary of plodding about in snow and ice, covered with ' savage shoes ' of fresh hide. Details worked at scaling ladders. One party marched fourteen miles to a forge, hammered out spear points all night, and marched back the next day. And, when enough men had come up, the lofty red pines witnessed a grand review.'" What a review that was ! Hollow eyes and pinched faces recorded the battle with the wilderness. Morgan's figure, an athlete's at Cambridge, seemed now a monk's. Bigelow's good six feet of patriotism stood for seven, so thin was he. Less flame burned in Greene's cheeks, though still more, perhaps, in his look. Dearborn did not appear at all, for he was down with fever in a peas ant's cottage not far from St. Mary, and his keen blue eyes were near closing forever. Habiliments had fared no better. Some of the men had boasted uniforms, when 1602); Precis of Oper. ; Dartmouth to Carleton, Aug. 2, 177s (Can. Arch., Q, n, p. 198) ; Cramah6to Howe, Oct. [Nov.] 8, 1775 (Note 7). To catch brigs: Han cock to Wash., Oct. 5, 1775 (4 Force, III., 950); Wash, to Broughton, Oct. 16, 1775 (ib., 1975); Reed to Broughton, Oct. 19, 1775 (ib., 1109) ; Wash, to Hancock, Dec. 7, 1775 (4 Force, IV., 214). Gold left aboard: Hamilton to Graves, Nov. g, 177s (supra-). Loading: Arnold to Montg., Nov. 13, 1775(4 Force, III., 1635). Nov. 16, the Adamant, with Guy Johnson, Brook Watson, and Ethan Allen aboard, sailed from Quebec (Quebec Gazette, Nov. 16; Cramahe to [Dartmouth], Nov. 9, 1775: Note 7 ; Allen, Narrative, p. 38). Briand: Maseres, Add. Papers, p. 118. Cramah€: ib., p. loi. CramahS to Howe, Oct. [Nov.] 8, 1775 : Note 7. 1 6 On the authorities for Arnold's operations covered by this Chapter see Remakk xxxi. Up to his reaching the Plains of Abraham, they have been studied iu Smith, Arnold's March, Chap. II. See also Capt. Ward's letter in Gammell, S. Ward, p. 339: 'marched through snow and ice barefoot' to Quebec. VOL. ir. —2. 1 8 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony they, left Cambridge, and some had not ; but now all dressed alike, — in rags dyed by the forest and the soil. Heads were as bare as feet ; while the gaunt faces hid be neath ragged beards that young cave-dwellers might have envied. The sight was pathetic, laughable, glorious ; but perhaps the ludicrousness of it came uppermost, and one at least of the soldiers thought that they all resembled ' the animals which inhabit New Spain, called the Ourang Outang.'" On the left of the American line at Point Levi, and about four miles above the present ferr\' to Quebec, stood a big stone mill, worked for Major Caldwell's benefit by the co-operation of a tinj^ stream and a water-wheel huge enough to make amends. One day a boat rowed over toward it from the Hunter, and a man stepped ashore in the bushes. His object was to obtain something from the mill, but the object of the Americans was to obtain him. When the boat drew off, perhaps to find a better landing, some of Arnold's riflemen and Indians made a dash for the fellow that had landed. Discovering the danger, he swam for it and swam well. Bullets made the water boil round his head in vain; but finally one of the savages overhauled him and took him prisoner. He was a mid shipman, brother of the Hunter' s captain ; but the only items of information sifted from his ingenious loquacity were things his captors knew or did not wish to know : among the latter that five regiments were on their way firom Boston and twenty thousand Hanoverians fi-om Europe." Very different another visitor. John Halsted of Xew Jersey, superintendent at the mill, had labored actively on the liberal side, and some days since had been exiled or had exiled himself to the Island of Orleans, just .below •' I stocking. Journal. Bigelow: Essex Inst. Hist. Coll., XXXIU., p. 249. ' s 5 See particularly the Joumals of Henry and Ogden. Arnold Cannot Cross 19 the town. He took the first opportunity to join Arnold ; and, besides turning over to the Americans a quantity of wheat and flour stored in the mill, reported, among other things, that all the militia except a hundred ' Tories ' were ready to lay down their arms. The Americans felt rather pleased than otherwise to hear that some ultras would fight. All they wanted now was to get at them.'" That, however, did not prove absolutely easy. The Strait of the river at Quebec was under the Lizard s guns ; the Hunter moved up to the next narrow place, a little ^J-S*"."* ^^^.v^" CALDWELL'S MILL (REBUILT), 1902 above the mill ; several smaller armed vessels hovered about ; and guard-boats did patrol duty from sloop to frigate all night. Still, the Americans had no thought of despairing. ' Our situation now seem'd somewhat tick- '» § Halsted: Can. Arch., Q, 10, p. 28 (he signed petition for Assembly); the Amer Tournals, particularly Ogden's ; Caldwell, Letter ; Halsted, Memorials (Cont. Cong. Papers, No. 41, IL, p. 142 ; HL. PP- 46i>463); LeMome, Album du Touriste, p. 165. 20 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony lish, ' remarked Ogden ; ' We determined however [to] make a bold push for Quebec at all events.' But here their old enemy, Nature, stepped in. The same gale that held Carleton spellbound at Montreal, blew here. Friday night, the tenth, found the vSt. Lawrence foaming like a whipped courser. Very well ; to-morrow, then, said the Americans. Saturday night, however, did no better : a canoe could not live in the waves. It was a nightmare for the army, — straining every muscle, yet rooted to the spot. But, happily, the city could not get away. Sun da}' morning found her still on the cliff. She seemed only waiting for something to happen.'" And that daj' something did happen. One of the ' town-meetings ' was in session at the chapel of the bish op's palace, and a Mr. Williams held the pulpit, preach ing the doctrine of a good capitulation. Suddenly a noise was heard at the door. A grim old man entered with other grim men behind him, listened an instant, and then strode fiercely forward. Even in his skin he would have been taken anywhere for a soldier and a royalist. ' Out of that pulpit ! ' he shouted. The command alone would have been sufl&cient, for this intruder was Allan Maclean, arrived that moment from the west ; but in an instant the furious Highlander pulled Williams down bj^ the arm, and began exhorting the people to loyalty with a slogan-and-broadsword eloquence." Driven from Sorel by Major Brown's cannon, Maclean had sent a part of his force to Carleton, and with the rest 2 0 § Ogden, Journal, Nov. 7. Wind: AmoH to Montef. and to Wash, Nov. 13, 1775 (4 Force, III., 1635, 1636); Cramahe to Germain,- Nov. 19, 1775 (Ban croft Coll., Eng. and Am., Aug., 1775-Dec., 1776, p. 169. " § Verreau (Berthelot), Invasion, p. 235 ; MS. in Can. Arch., M, 99. (Jen- km Williams of Quebec signed a petition for an Assembly. ) The description of Maclean and minor details of the scene are inferential Maclean Enters Quebec 21 moved down the St. Lawrence. At Three Rivers he stripped the barracks and magazines, took all the gun powder from the merchants, and then decided to set out for the capital. Half-way there, he met a couple of In dians in a canoe ; and, by a stupid mistake, one of them handed over a letter from Arnold that he was carrying to Montgomery. It announced the arrival of the Kennebec detachment near Point Levi, and so revealed to Maclean the danger of Quebec. The hostile winds checked his ships, but he strode on by land ; and now here he stood, the King's senior officer on the ground, with some two hundred stout and true men at his back, ready for anything — except surrender." This was not a large force, but it counted for more than it numbered. Five hundred men of Marseilles, chanting the song which took a new name from them, electrified France and tipped the scale toward red Revolution at Paris in 1792, because they were united and resolute. Maclean's corps had a similar influence. Many of his followers had belonged to Fraser's Highlanders, a corps of picked men who marched under Wolfe's banner in kilt, bonnet, and black feather, and swung their broadswords high at the victory of the Plains. Every officer was a veteran, and none of the captains had served fewer than twenty years. ' No danger or difficulty could startle, or make'them deviate fi'om their duty,' boasted their leader ; and Carleton himself described them officially as ' officers of merit.' Gorgeous in scarlet jackets with blue facings and white lace, dark tartan kilts, tartan hose, and blue bon nets edged with a checker- work of white, red, and green, the brawny Highlanders marched about the town as if 2 2 § See Vol I , p 469. Verreau (Badeaux), Invasion, p. 174. Cramahe to [Germain], Nov.' 19, 1775: Bancroft Coll., Eng. and Am., Aug., 1773-Dec., 1776, p. 169. Ogden, Journal, Nov. 13. Arnold to Wash., Nov. 14, 1775: Me. Hist. Soc. Coll., I., p. 373. Remark XLIII- 2 2 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony already victors, and their presence was not only a shield, but a sword and a banner also." With red-hot energy and zeal, Maclean set about organ izing and inspiring the defence of Quebec. He was no behever in the French of Canada, and could honestly satisfy the British merchants that he would show no prefer ence to the noblesse. This no doubt aided him to ' Recon cile ' them, as he said he did ; but apparently he appHed a still more potent argument. From the first, every effort had been made by the loyalists of Canada to repre sent their visitors from the south as highwaymen. The Colonials had ' attempted to invade, and conse quently to plunder ' the province, wrote a gentleman in Quebec to his father. ' Those vagabonds, who come with no other view but that of plunder and pillage,' said a writer in the Quebec Gazette. Allen's raiders, especially his Canadians, were reported as merely in quest of loot. ' Rebel banditti,' snarled a letter from Quebec, pointing at Schuyler's troops, just as Arnold drew near." The Americans realized the power of such an idea, and cried out against Carleton for misrepresenting them. ' This Villain, ' wrote Lieutenant Copp, 'has worked up the People against Us, by representing us as the worst of Banditti;. . . This has caused the People to resist. ' But no doubt all on the British side took so convenient a ground more or less honestly, and such an argument fitted Maclean's intense and narrow zeal peculiarly well. Besides, in the rough-and-tumble about St. Johns, cases 23 § Mars.: Rose, Century, p. 35. Fraser's: Hawkins, Picture, p. 390. Mac lean to , May 25, 1776: Can. Arch., Q, 12, p. 69. Carleton to Germain, July 13, 1776; *>., P- 104. Uniform: Gage to Maclean, June 12, 1775 (Can. Arch., B, 173, p. i); Maclean to Barrington, May 11, 1776 (ib., p. 334) • Groves, 42d, pp. 2, 9. 2 •> § Maclean to Barrington, Nov. 20, 1775 : Can. Arch., M, 317, p 259 Id. to --.May 25 1776: lb., Q, 12, p. 69. ' Banditti,' etc.: Quebec letter, Sept. 30. i775(4Porce, III.. 845); Quebec Gazette. Oct. 5, 1,75; Ainslie, Journal (Introd.); Quebec letter, Nov. 7, 1775 (4 Force. IIL, 1396): Verreau (Badeaux). Invasion, p. 107. un.9 z^^^n^ r 0 . The Americans Cross the River 25 reached the spot where Wolfe had landed, — a happy augury." Time and again the flotilla crossed in safety, except that one canoe broke apart midstream, and her passengers had to be towed the rest of the way ; but, about four o'clock, the moon broke through the clouds; the wind freshened ; the tide ebbed swiftly, exposing many rocks off the mill; and the journeys had to cease. About five hundred men, brought together from their scattered points of disembarkation, now stood shivering under the huge wall of the river on the north shore. Something must be done. But what ? " On and attack ! was the impulse of Arnold, Morgan, and all the bolder spirits ; and in fact the hour for a su preme audacity had struck. No sentries had been encoun tered. Parties despatched promptly both up-stream and down to guard against discovery had found no enemy stirring. A reconnoissance observed only signs of repose. Just beyond the bluff, less than two miles away, lay Que bec, still waiting to be taken. Confident that Arnold's men could not pass the warships, the citizens were asleep ; and as yet they dreamed only of securing their property in the suburbs and laying up supplies. St. John's Gate stood open. The fastenings were out of order. Nobody appeared to know where the keys hung. There were no matches to fire the cannon with, it was said. One quick rush, and the news would soon have been flying far and wide through town and country and overseas, ' Quebec taken ! ' " 2 s § Besides the Journals, Arnold's letters to Montg. and Wash., Nov. 13, 14, 20: 4 Force, IIL, 1635, 1636, 1684, 1695. 2 ' § See Note 26. There is a difBculty about the moon : Smith, Arnold's March, p. 460. 28 § Besides the Journals, see Account (4 Force, III., 1723); Marshall, "Wash., II., pp. 319-321 (based largely on the now lost Journal of Lieut. Heath, or Heth ofMorgan's' Company); and Morgan's autobiog. (interesting but inaccurate)- in Hist. Mag., June, 1871, p. 379. 26 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony But every finger of good sense pointed the other way. One could not easily imagine that a gate had been left open ; sentries were heard singing out their calls on the ramparts ; report had exaggerated Maclean's force ; the Americans had been able to transport only three-quarters of their feeble number ; and the scaling ladders were still on the other shore. Even more alarming seemed another fact. A fire had been lighted in a vacant house to warm the men, especially those chilled in the river ; and a patrol-barge, catching sight of the blaze or else wishing merely to avoid the current, had drawn into fhe Cove while the flotilla was paddling north for the third time. When discovery seemed inevitable, the barge was hailed and ordered ashore. ' Yes, ' came the answer ; but it headed away. ' Fire ! ' cried Arnold ; but even the argument of lead failed to persuade the crew, and, with many doleful cries and lamentations, the patrol hurried off. Who could suppose that for hours no echo of this event would reach the ex ecutive ear ? Even Arnold would not urge an assault ; and after a little, clambering up the bluff, his troops , ^^,„.,., ..„.., crossed the Plains of Abra- LOOKING UPSTREAM FROM WOLFE'S COVE, 1902 ham and threw themselves down in their blankets on the floors of Major Caldwell's roomy mansion, about a mile and a half from Quebec.''" All the heroism of the wildemess, then, had been merely a libation spilled on the sands of the St. Lawrence ? 29 §in particular, Ogden's Journal and Arnold to , Nov 27 1775- Sparks MSS., No. 66, I., p. 23. Conn. Gazette, Dec. 22, 1775 (Providence letter). CaldweU, Letter. Remark XLIV. Clever Expedients 27 The stubborn leader would not admit it, and his fertile brain was busy. Montcalm had left the fortifications to meet Wolfe, and in that way lost Quebec : perhaps a taunting challenge would bring Maclean out. The Americans, roused ere long by a timid sally from the town, paraded near the walls in such a manner as to conceal their fewness, gave three bold huzzas, and waited. Within the city rose a tremendous commotion. Citizens and soldiers armed and hurried to the ramparts. Cries of alarm burst out : ' The gate is open ! ' 'St. John's Gate is open ! ' ' There are no matches for the cannon ! ' The keys of the gate could not be found : ' Quick, hand spikes here, and ropes ! ' At last the gate was fastened, and matches came from the Lizard. But the Americans waited in vain for a battle. Though in tatters they were deeply respected. Arnold, whose trading in horses at Quebec was remembered, might be called a horse-jockey; but only from the wall. Cheer answered cheer, and a few charges of cannon-balls, grape, and canister followed; but no Montcalm was in town, and the people stayed on the ramparts." Arnold then undertook to frighten Quebec with a haughty and threatening summons, hoping to make the authorities yield or the people revolt. ' On surrendering the Town, ' he wrote to Cramahe, ' the property of every Individual shall be secured to him ; but if. I am obliged to carry the Town by storm, you may expect every severity practised on such occasions ' ; and toward evening Ogden, with a white flag and a drum, marched boldly ' within 4 Rod of St. Johns Gate ' to deliver the letter. 3 " § Besides the American Journals (particularly Humphrey's) see Ainslie's; also Thompson in LeMoine, Quebec Past and Present, p. 197. The description ofthe doings in town is based upon the Account (4 Force, III., 1723) which, though inaccurate in some details, appears substantially reliable. Arnold's horse business : Sparks MSS., No. 57, XL, p. 336 (his voyages); Carleton to fDartmouthl, June 7, 1775 (Pub. Rec. Off., Colon. Corres., Quebec, 11, p. 283). Remark XLV. 28 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony The parley was still beating and the flag still waving, when an answer came in the shape of an 1 8-pound shot, spattering the American envoy with dirt and stunning his drummer with fright. Thinking this might have been a mistake, Ogden was despatched again with the same missive the next morning, but only to hear a cannon- ball pass just over his head ' in a verry streight direction '; and a third attempt produced no better fruit. Yet one arrow still remained in Arnold's quiver. Quebec, in want of provisions and fuel, ' if blocked up by a superior force, must, as soon as the frost sets in, surrender,' he thought ; and he stopped every road effectually. In a few days Cramahe was complaining : ' they actually pre vent fuel or refreshments of any kind being brought in.' ' We can get nothing into the Town,' admitted Maclean." Facing life instead of death now, the Americans them selves needed provisions ; and their poverty, backed by their respect for the law, stood somewhat in the waj-. Just inside of a mile from the cit}- was the General Hospital, in reality a convent. The next day after Arnold's final rebuff, his troops appeared at the door. ' The tattered clothes that covered them, and their pitiful, haggard faces excited compassion,' recorded the nuns ; ' They asked a little something to eat of our servants, who notified us. All we could give these troops, famished and exhausted with fatigue, was a few loaves ' ; yet the Americans made no trouble, and soon withdrew. Indeed, though sundry provisions intended for the city were captured and a few ' tories ' lost some livestock, the rations had to be limited " § Ainslie, Journal. Arnold to Cramahe, Nov. 14, 15, 1775; 4 Force, III., 1685. Arnold's letter, Dec. 16, 1775 : Conn. Gazette, Jan. 26, 1776. Ogden's and Haskell's Joumals. Cramahe, Nov. 19, denied the firing on a flag of truce (Bancroft Coll., Eng. and Am., Aug., 1775-Dec., 1776, p. 169) ; but Arnold's letter of Nov. 15 to him and the American Joumals seem decisive. Arnold to .Montg . Nov. 14, 1775: Me. Hist Soc. Coll., I., p. 374. The quotation from Cramah^is from his letter of Nov. 19. Maclean to Barrington, Nov. 20, 1775: Cau Arch., M, 317, p. 259- The Americans Lack Provisions 29 still so closely that Morgan, Hendricks, and Smith com plained hotl}-, and one day Arnold ordered Lieutenant Simpson and his men to seize a herd of cattle feeding beyond the St. Charles River." ' Come on, lads ! ' cried the ready lieutenant ; and the party, running down to the ferry, near the mouth of the river and almost under the city walls, threw themselves boldly into the crowded boat, thinking the gunners would not fire upon their own people. The boat — already aground, as it proved — was fixed solidly on the bottom by this added weight ; and most of tlie Americans, jumping into the water, pushed, pulled at the rope, and plied the handspikes with might and main. Above them rose the lofty battlements, — the heavy guns darkly silhouetted against a clear, sunset sky. Men could be seen preparing to fire the cannon, while the motionless boat, like a rock in a pond, made a perfect mark. ' A shot ! ' cried Henry suddenly, noticing a flash ; and at the word a 36-pound ball took off brave Sergeant Dix on's leg below the knee. ' Oh, Simpson,' he cried, ' I am gone ! ' and fell. Amid a shout of triumph and a roar of artillery from the ramparts, he was tenderly borne away. The limb was amputated, but the patient sank. 'The doctor advised him to drink a bowl of tea,' noted Thayer in his Journal. 'Said the noble spirited sergeant, "I would not if it would save my life." ' So died the first American martyr before Quebec, and the Plains of Abra ham gave him a fitting grave. Meanwhile anxiety reigned in the city. No one could feel secure with .such enterprising foes in the vicinity. ' The Enemy without,' however, were ' not so much to be dreaded, as their numerous friends within the Town,' ob- ' 2 5 Hospital- Mgr de St. Vallier, Part IL, Chap. IV., p. 400. Complaints, Dixon, etc.: Henry, Journal, pp. 86, 87, 98, 185. Dixon: Thayer, Journal, Nov 30 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony served Cramahe. Captain Hamilton, after giving orders for sending ashore the equipment ofthe Lizard and Hun ter, was adding to himself, ' If the Place is not betray' d into the hands of the Rebels before we can ac complish it.' Maclean felt equally troubled : ' our provisions are by no means adequate to ST. LOUIS GATE (OUTSIDE), 1775 maintain the Number of inhabitants,' he re flected, ' and now if we turn out some thousands. We run very great risk of having the Canadian Militia Mutiny. ' The Americans appeared to have Quebec fairly in a corner, for Montgomery to bag." But suddenly, in a moment and between two days, the scene shifted. On the eighteenth of November, a friend or pretended friend of the invaders left the city, and in formed Arnold that Maclean's troops were to make a sally the next day ' with seven field pieces and all their force,' as Captain Topham heard ; for the weakness of the Americans had been discovered. Previous alarms had been received with joy. Though in want of everything but stout hearts, the Provincials were always ' prepared and anxious to see him,' as their leader declared. But now the threat seemed unusually serious. A servant of Ar nold's, who had been captured, escaped at this time and said that eight hundred were under arms in Quebec ; Cap tain Napier in the Fell, ' with two hundred men,' was re ported close at hand ; and the Lizard stole up the river as if to cut off the Americans' retreat. A strict examination of arms and ammunition was ordered ; and so many of the 3 3 § Cramahe, Nov. 19: Note 31. Hamilton to Dartmouth, Nov. 20, 1775: Can. Arch., Q, n, p. 339.. Maclean to Barrington, Nov. 20, 1775: Can. Arch., M, 317, p. 259. The Scene Shifts 31 cartridges, ' which to appearance were very good,' proved worthless, that not over five rounds per man could be depended upon. Nearly one hundred muskets also were unserviceable. ' Right about face,' was the only rule of war that fitted the situation. A council was held; the men were ordered to lie on their arms, ready to march at a mo ment's notice ; what guards and invalids had remained on the other shore were looked out for ; and, about three o'clock the next morning, the Americans buried them selves in the forest. The heroic expedition — planned with care but not with knowledge, sadly belated, and cruelly unlucky — had entirely failed." All one could hope for now was safety ; and even that seemed precarious enough. Over frozen ground the troops limped almost barefoot some twenty miles up the St. Law rence. 'We might have been tracked all the way,' de clared Stocking, a serious man, 'by the blood from our shattered 'h.oois,'^^eet they could hardly be called after going so long shoeless ; and the men could not possibly march farther in that condition. Fortunately, they found themselves in a safe and pleasant spot, to which the silvery shimmer and silken rustle of many poplars gave the name Aspen Point [Pointe aux Trembles').^'' Here the great bluff ofthe river politely stepped back a little, giving place to a church of St. Frangois de Sales, a nunnery and a straggling village of farmhouses, mostly stone, which sunned themselves comfortably at the foot of cultivated slopes. Pimply Bigot with his beautiful Madame Pean, the Canadian Pompadour, and a choice following of transiently paired couples, had found this an agree- ' * § Topham, Journal, Nov. 19. Humphrey's, Stocking's, and other Journals. Arnold to Wash., Nov. 20, 1775 : Me. Hist Soc. Coll., I., p. 379. Id. to Montg., Nov. 14: ib., p. 374. Id. to Id., Nov. 20, 1775: Sparks MSS., No. 52, II., p 31 Id. to , Nov. 27, 1775: ib.. No. 66, I., p. 23. Id. to , Nov. 25, i77"5: Me. Hist. Soc. Coll., I., p. 382. Remark XLVI. 3 5 § Stocking, Journal. Letter in Henry's Journal, p. 185. 32 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony able place to make a halt on their lively way to Montreal. When Wolfe attacked Quebec, it became a place of refuge for women and children. What counted for more, the Chevalier de Levis had considered it a strategic point of value, and the French had taken post there against Mur ray. So the troops broke ranks with confidence, and took up their quarters gladl}- in the houses. "^ Gloomy days followed. Happily, nobod}- knew the truth about Maclean's reported plan of a sally : that his field-pieces were not in order, and, since the moming the Americans crossed the river, he had not thought of at tacking them ; and so the chagrin of a needless retreat liad not to be borne. But none the less there were bitter ' heart burnings ' over the failure to capture Quebec ; and the assurance that keen disappointment would be felt at home, added pitch to the flame. Provisions and fuel were known to be hurrying into the citj-, and everj- wagon- load meant a cargo of toil and suffering for the Americans. The preparations for defence were going on undisturbed. Every one could foresee— what proved to be the case — that man}' enemies of liberty in the Colonies would term the withdrawal a defeat and pluck up new courage. Some began to realize that after ' having their constitutions Racked ' b}' such fearful hardships, they would never be themselves again. ' Indeed, ' said Lieutenant Humphrey to his Journal, ' was one of the officers from Cambrig here Now to review our men he would Really think one half of them was fiter for the Genii hospital than the field.' Every one found himself, like Ward, ' as poor as a church mouse.' Clothing for such a number could not be ob tained, and the more than usually cold weather bit hard. 'Some severe Peripneumonias, Anginas, etc.,' noted the 3 « § Bouchette, Descr. Topog., p. 409. Bigx>t: Parkman, Montcalm, II., pp. 18, 19. Refuge- :b., II. , 224. Strategic: ib., II., 361 ; L4vis, Journal, p. 284. Henry, Journal, p. 91. Morison, Journal. Gloomy Days 33 surgeon. ' Poor Arnold, I wonder where he is,' groaned Washington in the midst of his own troubles. He was here." AT ASPEN POINT, 1902 Yet, in many ways, the sharp contrast with what had gone before made even the present situation look bright. At last, food enough could be had, and a chance to recruit ' worn out natures, ' as Captain Ward phrased it. Some 3^ § Sallying : Caldwell, Letter. Heartburnings: Henry, Journal, p. 83. Disappointment: Sch. to Hancock, Nov. 22, 1775 ( 4 Force, IIL, 1633). Q. reported taken: Eddis, Letters, Nov. 17. At Quebec: Arnold to Montg., Nov. 20, 1775 (Sparks MSS., No. 52, II. , p. 31); Nov. 25, 1775 (Me. Hist. Soc. Coll., I., p. 381) Letter (Henry, Journal, p. 185). Defeat: Mayor of Albany, Dec. 25, 1775 (Pub, Rec. Off., Am. and W. I., VoL 186, p. 231); Cuyler, Dec. 24, 177.; (ib., p. 233I Hutcheson to Haldimand, Jan. 16, 1776 (Can. Arch., B, 20, p. 79). Racked Thayer, Journal, Nov. 22. Humphrey, Journal, Nov. [22]. Ward to [sisters], Nov. 26, 1775 : Sparks MSS., No. 25, p. 52. Senter, Journal, Nov. 21. Wash, to J. Reed, Nov. 28, 1775: W. B. Reed, Letters, p. 18. VOL. II. — 3, 34 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony poor leather was obtained, and all the shoemakers among the troops worked at moccasins. Ogden was sent off to Montreal for clothing. Good news, which had always managed somehow to arrive at the gloomiest points ever since they left Cambridge, cheered the spirits of the men : Montreal had fallen. Several comrades, mourned as lost in the wilderness, crawled into camp with pinched faces but joyful hearts. Signs could be discovered that Quebec, though well aware how the Americans were straitened, was perhaps wavering, after all ; and Arnold still hoped to 'knock up a dust with the garrison.' On November twenty -eighth, Morgan went back to watch the city ; and the ' Worthy Inhabitants of Point Levi ' were requested the same day to furnish the British forces no supplies, as they were ' endeavouring to subvert the Rights and Liber ties of Mankind and this Colony in particular.' There after the work of getting provisions into Quebec went on rather less merrily.^' In a different way also the time counted : Canadians and Americans had another chance to get acquainted. The little one-story cottages of flint cobbles^and those of wood no less — were certainly plain enough. The sitting-room kitchen (where the huge fireplace had now been stoned up for the winter) with a big, square, cast- iron stove in the middle of the floor, a pine bureau, a pine cupboard, a few red-bottomed pine chairs, and at least one canopied bed covered with homespun sheets and coarse blankets, — eked out perhaps with a room off, to 3 8 § Ward to [sisters]: Gammell, S. Ward, p. 339. Moccasins, etc.: Thayer Journal, Nov. 21 ; Haskell, Journal, Nov. 21 ; Arnold to Montg., Nov 20 1775 (Sparks MSS., No. 52, IL, p. 31). Ogden; Arnold to Merchants, Nov. 20, 1775 (Me. Hist. Soc. Coll., I., p. 380). Ne-ws: letter in Henry, Journal, p 1S5 Com rades: Humphrey, Journal, Nov. [22]. Quebec: Hamilton to Dartmoutii Nov 20, 1775 (Can. Arch., Q, ir, p. 339); Arnold to Montg., Nov. 25, 1775 (Me. Hist. Soc. CoU., L, p. 381). Dust: Arnold to , Nov. 2.;, 1775 (ib , p 382) Mor gan; Topham, Journal, Nov. 28 ; Morgan, Autobiog. (Hist. Mag., June 1871 p 379). . .According to Morgan, the riflemen's powder was found to be in a better condition than the rest. Am. to Pt. Levi, Nov. 28: at Chateau de Ramezay Montreal. Ainslie's and Finlay's Joumals, Dec. 2. The T-wo Races Fraternize 35 supplement the sleeping accommodations, — this could not be termed luxurious ; but it seemed so to exiles just from the woods. The ever-simmering pot appeared the very emblem of hospitality ; and the lively group chat tering gossip and pulling at long pipes round the hot stove whole evenings through, looked kindly, as indeed they were, and artless, as perhaps they were not. On the other side, to dealwith the Americans, whose gold and silver — though running very low — could be had at a good rate for whatever they bought ; to hobnob with bold, stalwart soldiers talking nothing but liberty, fraternity, and away- with-taxes ; to see one of them eat beef enough at a single meal to last a whole family of the peasants a week, gave prosy life a new quality. Both parties were in truth highly pleased. The behavior of the Provincials created a fund of pleasing traditions and even fraternal songs. The visitors found many a thing — indeed, the ' zeal and fervency ' of Catholic worship — to ' give a severe and additional stroke at early prejudices,' as Henry phrased it ; and the fraternization of the two elements, begun in the Chaudiere valley and continued before Quebec, seemed to be progressing here at a wonderful speed.'* Yet after all, in spite of sympathy and good-will, it still remained a hard question of power. Arnold' s brave volun teers were admirable, but they had not captured Quebec. Reinforcements were talked of; but day followed on after day, the paling November sun dropped lower and lower, there began to be ice on the St. Lawrence every morning," and Montgomery did not come. 3»§ stone (ed.). Letters, pp. 16-20. Kalm, Travels, III., p. 159. An burey, Travels, #ain'»j. Henry, Journal, pp. 91-93- Morison, Journal. Gold: Arnold to Montg., Nov. 20, 1775, P.S. (Sparks MSS., No. 52, II. , p. 31). Monson (Journal, Nov. 20) speaks very emphatically ofthe good relations between the Americans and the Canadians. Remark XLVIL «" Topham, Journal, Nov. 21. XXII ' BEHIND THE SCENES WEEK after week Montgomery had listened for news of Arnold's reaching Canada, but listened in vain. Unfounded rumors floated about the camp, to be sure. As early as October the second, a report of his arrival 'seemed to gain ground'; and, on the day St. Johns fell, an officer at Laprairie wrote home that word to that effect had arrived from Cambridge ; but the General summed up the case at this very time in the tone of hope deferred : ' Not a word of Arnold yet. ' ' Before he closed his eyes for his first night's rest- in Montreal, however, intercepted letters informed him that his distant ally had ' certainly arrived in the neighborhood of Quebeck ' ; and four days later, ' with great pleasure, ' he was able to forward Schuyler a letter from the seem ingly buried expedition. It had been his intention to winter at Montreal, unless he returned home ; but the appearance of this little band of daring comrades before the capital appealed mightily to his heart. Bedel, sent forward in pursuit of Carleton, had orders to follow on — in case the British got past Sorel — until he 'joined Colonel Arnold, if that could be done ' ; but Montgomery had still more in mind. ' If the season remain favorable and the troops will follow me, I shall lend a hand to Arnold,' he assured his brother-in-law." ' § Montg. to Bedel, Oct. 2, 1775 : Emmet Coll. Letter, Nov 3, 1775 : 4 Force, IIL, 1342. Montg. to Sch., Nov. 3, 1775: ib., 1392. 2 § Montg. to Sch., Nov. 13, 1775: 4 Force, III., 1602. Id. to Id., Nov.i7:ib., 1633. To Winter at M. : Mrs. Montg. (L- L. H[unt], Biog. Notes, p. 8). Montg. 36 Quebec Must be Taken 37 And the General had even a stronger motive than sym pathy for making a campaign in the dead of a northern winter. The plan of Samuel Adams to merge Canada in the Union of Colonies, though obscured by the smoke of war, had not been abandoned. Apparently Adams had been following his classic method of spreading ideas through personal influence and good- will ; for, according to his biographer, ' a mutual friendship had sprung up within a year' between the political and the military leaders of the campaign. Only a week after planting himself before St. Johns, the soldier showed himself also a statesman ofthe Bay Colony sort. ' I shall endeavour, if successful, to have Deputies sent from Canada to the Congress,' he wrote, ' giving them assurances that, before an accommodation takes place, Canada must have a free Government ; that the Congress will as soon give up the Massachusetts Government to the resentment of the Ministry, as relinquish this point.' It was his political ambition to help the northern province ' make a part of that union now so formidable to tyrants' ; and in Brown's instructions, at the time of La Corne' s overtures, Mont gomery stated this proposition in detail, describing him self as ' at the head of an auxiliary Army to effect these purposes ' : union and free government.' The Adams party in Congress followed this line with unflagging energy, and succeeded in drawing the majority after them. ' What they expect from your Endeavours,' wrote their spokesman to Schuyler in October, ' is, that the Canadians be induced to accede to a Union with these Colonies— and that they form, from their several Parishes, a Provincial Convention & send Delegates to to [Bedel], Nov. j6, 1775: Saffell, Records, p. 27. Id. to R. R. Liv., Nov. 13, 1775: Liv. Papers, 1775-1777, P- 63- ' § Wells, S. Adams, IL, p. 339. Montg. to Sch., Sept. 24, 1775 : 4 Force, III. 840. Id. to R. R. Liv., Oct. 5 [1775I: tiv- Papers, 1775-1777, P- 51- Id- to J. Brown, Oct. 6, 1775 : 4 Force, IIL, 1098. 38 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony this Congress.' Their rights would be held as dear as any, in religious no less than in civil matters ; and they would be ensured the blessings of a free government, the security of life and the security of possessions. When the Congress, early in November, appointed a committee of its members to visit Schuyler and confer with him about the northern interests of the United Colonies, these gen tlemen received formal instructions to exert their ' utmost endeavours ' in the same direction ; and they iu tum, addressing Montgomery, expressed the ' ardent wishes ' of the Congress that he should ' cherish the first dawnings of liberty' among the Canadians, and pursue the policy embodied in their instructions.'' On finding himself in Montreal, the American general ' made the inhabitants acquainted with the views of Con gress' relative to the province, and symptoms of a cheer ing response were not entirely wanting. The people of the suburbs, in their address to him, said : ' We now OPENLY ENTER into the union and association, as we did in our hearts the moment the address of the 26th of Octo ber, 1774, was handed to us ' ; and, when Montreal drew up the plan of capitulation, its ' haughty terms ' cast a shadow in the form of an anonymous argument in French against them, favoring a union with the Colonies. ° These things, however, while they showed how the wind of logic was beginning to set, could be reckoned only as encouraging straws. Confidence is a plant of slow growth, said Burke ; and only a few days had passed since Montgomery had found himself compelled to admit, that perhaps the Americans would -have to give up the Canadian enterprise. Chambly, with its light screen of masonry ; St. Johns, ill provisioned for a siege ; and Mon- ¦• § Hancock to Sch., Oct. 12, 1775 : Am. Antiq. Soc, Worcester, Mass. Journ. Cong., Nov. 2, 8. Com. to Montg., Nov. 30, 1775: 4 Force, IV., 445. 5 § Montg. to Sch., Nov. 19, 1775: 4 Force, III., 1682. Suburbs: Can. Rev., Vol.IL, No. 4, Feb., 1826. For union: Cau. Arch., B, 185, i, p. 129. Attempts to Re-enlist the Troops 39 treal, fortified only against a raid, had fallen ; but the stronghold of British power, the rock of Quebec, lifted its brow of stone as proudly as ever, and its wharves were a spacious threshold, over which British legions, arriving safely by sea, could still march to victory. To that pros pect every royaUst now pointed. The fringe of British power has been torn, they said, but warp and woof are intact. Beware ! The Capital stands ; and the fleets of the King will soon find it. ' Till Quebec is taken, Canada is unconquered,' — in these words the American chief sum marized the crisis." Montgomery, quick to understand the tactful line of policy, conversed with leading people frankly. In particu lar, he discassed this most vital question with Pelissier, the proprietor of certain famous iron-works near Three Rivers called the Forges St. Maurice, who — being French but not Canadian — could understand the people without sharing their prejudices. It was his judgment that so long as the British flag shone above the western Gibraltar, an Assembly or Convention could not prudently be sum moned ; and Montgomery concurred in that opinion. To Quebec, then, he must go ; and he would go in earnest. ' The King's friends [there] are exceedingly alarmed, and expect to be besieged,' he wrote to Schuyler, ' which, with the blessing of God, they shall be.' ' As their term of service would shortly expire, Mont gomery began to urge re-enlistment upon the troops the day he entered Montreal ; but he soon found himself in a very strait place. The upper end of Lake Champlain had a way of freezing in December, while the deeper water to ward the north did not close effectually until nearly two s § Pelissier to Hancock, Jan. 8, 1776: 4 Force, IV., 596. ^ Montg. to R. R. Liv., Dec. 16, 1775: Liv. Papers, 1775-1777, P- 81. Id. to R. R. Liv., Nov. — , 1775: 4 Force, IIL, 1638. ' § Pelissier: Note 6. Forges: Burton to Commrs. of Trade, May 31, 1763 (Can. Arch., B, 7, p. 61). Montg. to Sch., Nov. 13, 1775: 4 Force, IIL, 1602. Attempts to Re-enlist the Troops 41 months later ; consequently, should the men remain in Canada until New Year's, they could not get away for something like six weeks more, and the pass might per haps be sealed even before the middle of December. This prospect had made them very nervous about continuing the campaign after St. Johns fell ; and, in order to lull their fears, the General had promised an immediate release, on the surrender of Montreal, to all who would follow him acro.ss the St. Lawrence.' Addressing the men now in a proclamation, he thanked and praised them for their services, which " merited, ' as he said, the ' applause of their grateful countrymen,' and gave notice that passes, rations, and a passage across the river would be furnished all who desired to return home ; but, at the same time, he begged them ' not to lay him under the necessity of abandoning Canada, of undoing in one day what had beeu the work of months,' and promised all who would stay until the fifteenth of April a complete outfit of winter clothing at Continental expense, besides a dollar of bounty. How many will remain ? he then anx iously asked himself. Anticipating some trouble, he had written his chief a fortnight before, ' Send everybody you possibly can immediately down.' 'Should they refuse to re-enlist, how dreadful the consequences ! ' General Schuyler had already exclaimed, thinking remotely of this very crisis." ' I have had great difficulty about the troops, ' reported Montgomery when his proclamation was two days old ; ' I am afraid many of them will go home.' Unfortunately, his warm exhortation had fallen on very cold ground. It made its appearance in a squall of snow, and the soldiers » § TrumbuU, Journal, Nov. 14. Montg. to Sch., Nov. 13, 1775: 4 Force, III., 1602, Sch. to Hancock, Nov. 27, 1775: ih., 1681. Remark XLVIIL » § Proclamation, Nov. 15, 1775: 4 Force, III., 1683. Montg. to Sch., Nov. 3, 1775: ib., 1392. Sch. to Hancock, Oct. 20, 1775: ib., 1124. 42 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony discussed it with their feet soaked and chilled in the miry slush of the streets, breakfastless and fireless. The north east wind had come back, and with it a raw, heavy, unremitting storm. The sixteenth continued very bad ; the following day found the earth well covered with snow ; and, though the sky was clear the next morning, it wore the settled frown of winter. '" In those days the cold season of Canada possessed the terrors of Arctic night for people to the south ; and the dread of it had almost produced a mutiny in Wooster's regiment, when ordered to St. Johns. What the men had actually suffered, hardened their fears into convictions. Easton's were not the only half-naked troops. Even about the middle of September, the men had seemed ' thinly and poorly ' clad. Near the end of October, Congress recom mended sending them blankets and shirts from the King's stores at New York ; but that meant a far and slow jour ney. ' I feel so much for them in their unhappy situation,' wrote Schuyler in November, ' destitute of every neces sary to guard against the inclemency of the season.' The committee sent north used the same word as Montgomery to describe their condition, — ' half-naked ' ; and Chaplain Trumbull now found the men, huddled together in the northeaster at Montreal, 'very impatient.' " The offer of a suit of clothes was a tangible though slight inducement ; but little else encouraged the men to stay. A captain received twenty dollars per month in paper money, and a private six and two-thirds. ' Amaz ingly low,' said Schuyler of the officers' pay, and no doubt the men said quite as much of their own. ' Scanty ¦0 § Montg. to Sch., Nov. 17, 1775: 4 Force, IIL, 1633. TmmbuU, Journal, Nov. 15-18. 1' § Wooster's: Sch. to Hancock, Oct. 21, 1775: 4 Force, III, 1130 Half-naked: Montg. to Sch., Dec. 5, 1775 (4 Force, IV., 188). Sch. to Hancock, Sept. 19, 1775: 4 Force, III., 738. Secret Journ. Cong., Oct. 26, 1775 Sch to Hancock, Nov. 11, 1775: 4 Force, IIL, 1520. Report: 4 Force, IV., 442. Trum bull, Journal. Feeling Against Schuyler 43 pittance,' echoed Montgomery, pointing out that articles which travelled all the way from New York to the army in Canada brought a price accordingly. Captain Lamb, ardent patriot though he was, came near resigning, for his pay amounted to only ' such a trifle ' that he found him self drawing on his personal funds, and saw that ' by and by his family must starve at home.' And yet here was not the hardest feature of the case. In this improvised army, accounts were not regularly kept ; and often men had to do without their wages, because General Schuyler could not be sure what was due. Many, he informed Congress, went 'naked and penniless,' who might have money owing them ; and some, when discharged, offered their claim for two-thirds of it. As late as August, Schuyler had not been able to settle the accounts of the Green Mountain Boys for capturing Ticonderoga, though he recognized that many of them were ' most truly necessitous. ' If men ' are not paid off when asked to re- enlist,' he very sensibly remarked, 'they will seldom re-enlist in the service. ' '" Among the New England men, the Colonial jealousy which cursed all sections alike and had shown itself in the northern army from the beginning, tended to deaden interest in an enterprise led by two New Yorkers ; and Schuyler's nerves, harrowed by pain, disappointment, and anxiety, shed abroad no soothing influences. ' If Job had been a General in my situation, his memory had not been so famous for patience,' he fumed ; and, how ever that might have been, the General in Job's place would certainly not have shone in Holy Writ. ' Scan dalous want of subordination ' ; ' vast variety of disagreeable 1 2 § Journ. Cong., July 29, 1775. Nov. 4, Congress made the pay ofa captain in a ' marching ' regiment J26 2/3 ; see Journ. Cong., Nov. 4 ; Sch.'s Ord. Book, Nov. 19, 1775. Sch. to Hancock, Sept. 29, 1775: 4 Force, III., 839. Montg. to Sch., Oct. 9, 1775: ib., 1096. Lamb; Id. to Id., Nov. 20, 1775 (ib., 1684). Sch, to Hancock, Aug. 6 ; Oct. 21, 1775: ib., 48, 1130. 44 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony and vexatious incidents,' arising 'almost every hour'; ' tormented ... by a parcel of scoundrel artificers ' • ' most scandalous inattention to the publick stores, ' — this was his language, in official reports to the President of Congress, with reference to occurrences that might have been expected ; and no doubt in the fireedom of off hand speech— especially when he addressed subordinates — JOHN JAY greater reserve could hardly be expected. How differ ent the ring of Washington's letters to Hancock ! and, writing Schuyler, he quietly observed, ' I have met with difficulties of the same sort, and such as I never expected ; but they must be borne with. The cause we are engaged in is so just and righteous, that we must try to rise Feeling Against Schuyler 45 superior to every obstacle in its support.' Schuyler did try ; but he tried too often in vain.'' Two phases in particular of his irritability bore unhappy fruit at this time in Montreal. David Wooster, a Connecticut major-general and com mander-in-chief of the Colony's troops, did not relish finding himself placed by Congress below his junior, Montgomery, lately a mere captain in the British service ; and he did not hesitate about saying so. ' My appointment in the Continental army, you are sensible, could not be very agreeable to me, ' he informed Schuyler. Yet Mont gomery got on with him at St. Johns as Damon with Pythias. ' I think it exceedingly necessary, that Gen eral Wooster should be accommodated with a house. You will therefore be so good as to have one got ready for him. I am told that which Majr Elmore occupies is the most suitable,' he wrote to Bedel, when his offended colleague approached. A few days later, he invited Wooster to live with him ; and he honored him with all the atten tions in his power. As a matter of fact, his orbit showed no sign of being affected in the least by contact with his Connecticut compeer ; yet he managed so well that Rev. Mr. Trumbull believed nothing of importance was done without Wooster's advice, and he found himself able to report : ' Mr. Wooster has hitherto behaved much to my satisfaction.'" Not so Schuyler. Hearing that Wooster had stumbled against the prerogatives of the commander-in-chief of the department, he notified Congress that he felt ' these insults from a General Officer with all that keen sensibility that 13 §Sch. to Hancock, Sept. 25, 29 ; Nov. 20: 4 Force, IIL, 796, 839, 1617. Wash, to Sch., Dec. 5, 1775: Writings (Ford), III., p. 267. 14 § Wooster; Johnston, Record, p. 37. Wooster to Sch., Oct. 19,1775:4 Force rll 1107 Montg. to Bedel, Oct. 27, 1775: Fmmet Coll. B. TrumbuU to Nov. 3, 1775 : Conn. Hist. Soc. Coll., VIL, p. 169. Montg. to Sch., Oct. 31, i77'5: sparks MSS., No. 60, p. 17. See p. 40. 46 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony a man of honour ought, ' and would have sent Wooster's regiment on without its commander, had he not been told bluntly that it would not go. No shrewder scheme to embitter colonial jealousy than such a quarrel could well have been invented." At the same time, Schuyler angered large numbers of the privates. In every army men have tried to escape duty by shamming illness, and very likely he did not slan der some of the troops in asserting that they swallowed tobacco juice or burnt their tongues with chocolate in or der to seem feverish and get a discharge. But the un healthy conditions at Nut Island and St. Johns must have produced a great deal of sickness that was very real, even if not often fatal ; and the General's treatment of the inva lids did not lean toward over-indulgence. ' They pretend sickness and skulk about,' he assured President Hancock ; ' nor can I get the better of them, although I do not suffer a ration of provision to be issued unless I countersign the order, and the sick, or pretended sick, do not get half allowance.'" On the other side of this matter, a sergeant and nineteen soldiers directed a joint letter to the Honorable Governor and Council of Connecticut, and said: ' When our Doctors of the Connecticut Troops thought us unfit for duty [at St. Johns] and not like to be any more this campaign we was sent of to Ticonderoga. And when we came their we was veuid [viewed] by the Head Docter of the Continent, we was veuid by the General Schuyler also and such men as the docter retumed sick, the General damd all in heaps and swore, dam them for their sickness and said he would pay them for it, and said they should have but 4 ounces of fresh meat a day, and a gill of rice which is now fuUfild 1 s § Sch. to Hancock, Oct. 14, 1775 : 4 Force, III., 1065. i« § Sch. to Trumbull, Oct. 12, 1775: 4 Force, UL, 1033. Id. to Hancock, Oct. i8, 1775: ib., 1093. Not a Duty to Re-enlist 47 on us your poor suffering subjects and soldiers.' At Fort George, so Lieutenant Gibbs informed Governor Trum bull, no provisions, fresh or salt, were allowed his con voy of invalids, and only the ' good fortune ' of borrow ing a little money saved them from distress. At Albany, Phelps, the Connecticut commissary, advanced some funds to keep the poor fellows from actual suffering, but Gibbs heard afterwards that Schuyler ' would not allow him a farthing ofif ; and when Phelps, in default ofa hospital, put some of them into taverns and private houses, he was blamed for doing so. ' Many oblige[d] to sell their blan kets and shirts to git home and others begging on the road,' observed the Lieutenant, adding, ' I beg there may be some provition ... if not we must expect never to raise any more men.' Certainly Schuyler had many ex cuses ; he was often blamed unjustly ; no doubt his mis takes were exaggerated ; and he stayed in office only at the urgent request of Congress ; but the fact remained that he made / himself intensely f hated. Echoes of it all reached the front, of course ; and good Chaplain Trumbull declared, 'Our men have had such a Taste of the Officers in the New York department, that . . . I believe it will be impossible ever to enlist them to Serve this Way again under any Officers but their own.'" But there were deeper reasons for not re-engaging. In the first place, ordinary men could see little sense in it. They had been told that redcoats, papists, and savages proposed to come and ravage their homes; and now the red- Jcfmn^ Ja • ' § Letters from sergeant et al , Gibbs. and Young (Oct. 13, 10, 16, 1775) TrumbuU Papers, IV. Injustice to Sch.: Sch. to Albany Com., Nov. 2, 1775 (4 Force, III., 1524). Resignation : Hancock to Sch., Nov. 30, 1775 (ib., 1717). Trumbull: Note 14. 48 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony coats were prisoners, the savages friends, the papists breth ren, St. Johns overpowered, Montreal captured, and not a stick of British timber floating on the lakes. Their pledge had been kept, though it meant far more time and hard ship than any one had expected. What more needed to be done ? There was no war. They had no country but Great Britain, no flag but the crosses of St. George and St. Andrew, no cause but self-defence. On the other hand, their time of service had come to an end ; they were now free ; the homes they had sallied forth to defend, their wives, children, friends, and interests, entreated them loudly and often pitifully to go back. If work did remain to be done, it was the tum of others. Would not the others come ? Then why should brave men be sacrificed for cowards ? The New York troops earliest in the field had not left the streets from which they were gathered until August, and perhaps had little to invite them south. Many of the rest from that Colony had not yet worn off the novelty of campaigning. At the worst, their homes did not seem far away : two lakes and a river almost measured the distance. But the Connecticut men, with mountains behind them, had been in the field much longer. Hinman's regiment set out for the north before the first of June ; Waterbury's Orderly Book was opened on the third of that month, and Wooster had instructions on the nineteenth to march for New York. In fact, the recruiting for these regiments had begun about the first of May, and now the men longed for their firesides. ' An unhappy homesickness prevails,' complained Schuyler. ' Indeed they are homesick, ' re marked Montgomery ofthe New Englanders." And what could have been more proper ? Home was 1 8 § Hinman : N. Y. Cong, to Albany Com., June i, 1775 (4 Force, II. , 1269). Waterbury, Ord. Book. Johnston, Record, pp. 35, 37, 39. Sch. to Hancock. Nov. 20, 1775: 4 Force, III., 1617. Montg. to R. R. Liv., Oct. 5, [1775]: Liv. I'apers, 1775-1777, p. 51. The Service Purely Voluntary 49 the right place for every man who possessed such a bless ing, when victory had crowned the hills with sunset. ' I must go home, if I walk by the side ofthe lake, this winter, ' exclaimed Montgomery himself. The commander, in deed, standing in full view of the world, might well have personal inducements to smother his longings for the hearth ; but humble Jonathan and Eleazer had not. A certain small cottage, with rusty hollyhocks in the front yard, and a plain, tired-faced woman in the kitchen hush ing a little boy with stories about .' father, ' was their world ; and no sooner did they get a discharge at Ticon deroga than, without waiting for boats to Fort George, they slung their heavy packs across their shoulders, even though still invalids, got across the lake as they could, and struck off through the woods. Schuyler looked up on this as proof positive they had been shamming, and they would have retorted, perhaps, that anything was bet ter than a longer stay with him ; but in reality it mainly showed how powerful was the lodestone that could draw them — little in the pocket, little in the mouth, little on the back, but much in the heart — some two hundred miles by wintry roads over hills and rivers, through frost and through snow, to their modest haven.'" Still another thing rendered the New Englanders par ticularly eager to be off. The very qualities that prompted the eastern provinces to lead in the movement against Great Britain, made their people peculiarly independent in temper. Anxious, more than anxious, though he was to keep an army in the field. Governor Trumbull felt pride instead of impatience when he saw his troops home ward bound at the end of their term. ' The pulse of a New England man,' said he grandly, 'beats high for liberty; his engagement in the service he thinks purely 1' § Montg. to Sch., Nov. 13, 1775 : 4 Force, III., 1602. Sch. to Hancock: Note 18. vol.. II.— 4. 50 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony voluntary ; therefore when the time of enlistment is out he thinks himself not holden without further engage ment.' The New Yorkers had less of this temper ; be sides. Colonial feeling offered them a strong reason for sticking by their leader ; and the consequence was that most of them, resolving ' to see an End to the Campaign' provided they could return in season to plant their corn, agreed to serve until the middle of April ; but the New Englanders at Montreal, with the exception of perhaps two hundred from Connecticut who remained with General Wooster, crossed the St. Lawrence and hurried south. In all, only some eight hundred effectives were left on the island ; and out of these Montgomery had first of all to provide a garrison."" But had not the Continental Congress, foreseeing the possibility of all this, made ready a new army, to step into the places of the old ? Garnier, the French repre sentative at London, informed his chief that most people in England considered such a course the axiomatic policy for the Americans " ; and, on purely military principles, very likely they reasoned well. The case was by no means so simple, however. The Colonials in general had not agreed upon rebellion, were not conspiring for independence, did not look for serious war. More than four years before the passage of the Stamp Act (1765), a gifted young law-student named John Adams took notes of Otis's fiery argument before the Superior Court of Massachusetts against the Writs of Assistance, and fifty-six years later he said, 'Then and there the child Independence was bom ' ; but no angels and no Wise Men from the East came to inform plain shep herds of the great event . Govemor Ward of Rhode Island 20 § TrumbuU: Wash., Writings (Sparks), I., p. 164.. Ritzema, Journal, Nov. 14, 28. Montg. to Sch., Dec. 5, 1775: 4 Force, IV., 188. Sch. to Hancock, Nov. 27, 1775: 4 Force, IIL, 1681. Montg. to Sch., Nov. 24, 1775: ib., 1694. 2 1 Stevens, Facsimiles, No. 872. There is no War as Yet 51 prophesied as early as '1766 : ' These colonies are destined to an eariy independence' ; but such a man, though he ate no wild honey, was a veritable John the Baptist, a voice crying in the wilderness." In August, 1774, Benjamin Franklin assured the Eari of Chatham that, ' having more than once travelled from one End of the con tinent to the other, and kept a great variety of company, eating, drinking, and con versing with them freely,' he had ' never heard, in any Conversation, from any INDEPENDENCE HALL ' IN 1778 Person, drunk or sober, the least Expression of a wish for a Separation.' Franklin, to be sure, had then been out of the country for some years ; but, had a wide spread conspiracy to rebel against England existed, signs 2 2 § Adams: Winsor, Narr. and Crit. Hist., VI. , p. ii. Ward: Knapp, Burr, p. 33. 52 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony of it would almost certainly have appeared before he went abroad. If not, they must surely have made themselves visible in his correspondence during the interval ; and in that case a statement like his would have been highly disingenuous, if not absolutely false." Dr. Warren, even after standing forth as the champion of liberty, proclaimed, ' Our wish is that Britain and the colonies may, like the oak and ivy, grow and increase in strength together ' ; and he wrote Joseph Reed, ' I verily believe, that the night preceding the barbarous outrages committed by the soldiery at Lexington, Concord, etc., there were not fifty people in the whole colony that ever expected any blood would be shed in the contest between us and Great Britain.' ' I wish,' explained the Father of the Revolution to Arthur Lee only a fortnight before Pitcairn rode out of Boston, ' I wish for a permanent union with the mother countr}', but only on the principles of libertj^ and truth ' : which amounted to saying that he desired though he did not expect it. Flanders has stated that Jay allowed the thought of independence ' no tolera tion, until all hope of conciliation and harmony was cut off.' Washington wrote Captain Mackenzie in October, 1774 : ' I am well satisfied that no such thing is desired by any thinking man in all North America ' ; and, even when he took command of the arm}- at Cambridge, he ¦ abhorr'd ' the idea. John Adams recorded that, after he became suspected of leanings in this direction, in July, 1775, he was 'avoided, like a man infected with the leprosy.' The same month, Timothy Dwight argued with some of his Whig intimates in favor of independ ence, but he admitted that his views met with ' a hostile, and contemptuous' reception. In October, Govemor Tryon sent the British government word, as the con fidential opinion of an eastern member of Congress, in- 2^ J Franklin: Works (Bigelow), V., pp. 445, 446. No Conspiracy to Rebel 53 directly obtained, 'They don't wish for independency.' John Jay declared that, ' until after the second Petition of Congress,' the fate of which became known in Phila delphia on the ninth of November, 1775, he 'never did hear any American, of any class, or of any Description, express a wish for the Independence of the colonies.' After Montgomery had been in Montreal two weeks, the author of the Declaration of Independence assured John Randolph, ' There is not in the British empire a man who more cordially loves a union with Great Britain than I do. . . . We want neither inducement nor power, to de clare and assert a separation. It is will, alone, which is wanting.' As late as the first great Fourth of July, it has been estimated that no less than two-fifths of the people were Tories." Official action told the same story. A week after the clearing smoke revealed fellow citizens gasping in their blood on Lexington Green, the Massachusetts Congress declared : ' We profess to be his loyal and dutiful subjects, and so hardly dealt with as we have been, are still ready, with our lives and fortunes, to defend his person, family, crown and dignity.' When Benedict Arnold and his company set out for Cambridge, they formally dis avowed 'every thought of rebellion.' On the second of June, 1775, the Continental Congress listened to an ardent wish from the New Hampshire Convention for the preser vation of a connection with England ; ' to our view, ' said the Convention, ' the thought [of war] is shaded deep in horrours. ' A month after the capture of Ticonderoga, the 2^ § Frothinghain, Warren, pp. ^35, 486. S. Adams to A. Lee, Apr. 4, 1775: 4 Force, I., 238. Flanders, C. Justices, I., p. 82. Wash.: Writings i Sparks), IL, p. 399 ; [Palfreyl to S. Adams, May 24, 1776 (S. Adams Papers). J. Adams, Works, IL, p. 513, note (the feeling was doubtless personal in part). Dwight, Travels, I., p. 159. Tryon to Dartmouth, Oct. 10, 1775: Pub. Rec. Oflf., Am. and W. L, Vol. 185, p. 569. Jay: Colburn, Am. Indep., p. 3. Journ. Cong., Nov. 9, 1775- Jefferson to Randolph, Nov. 29. 1775: Jeflf., Writings (Ford), L, p. 491- Narr. and Crit. Hist.. VL, p. 2, note. For further testimony, including Madi son's and Gov. Penn's, see Wash., Writings (Sparks), II. , pp. 496-501 ; Froth- ingham. Rise, p. 453, note; Colburn, Am. Indep. Remark XLIX. 54 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony Congress of New York assured the Canadians that it reckoned allegiance to the King and attachment to the illustrious house of Hanover among the ' most singular blessings ' of the Colony. When Virginia gave Daniel Morgan the commission under which he marched his rifiemen to Cambridge, the authority to which it pointed was ' the spirit of the British constitution.' " To sit in the Pennsylvania Assembly during the session of 1 775-1 776, one had to swear ' true allegiance to King George,' and promise under oath to be faithful ' against all traitorous conspiracies and attempts whatsoever. ' The instructions of the Pennsylvania Delegates to the second Congress had in view only the redress of grievances and a restoration of harmony between England and the Colo nies ; and, while Montgomery was preparing to cross the St. Lawrence, they were ordered to ' dissent firom, and utterly reject, any propositions, should such be made,' that might lead to a separation from Great Britain. On the twenty-eighth day of November, the Assembly of New Jersey directed its Delegates in Congress 'utterly to reject any propositions, if such should be made, that might separate this Colony from the Mother Country.' Porter's Commission, given by Massachusetts in January, 1776, was dated, 'in the Sixteenth Year of the Reign of his Majesty King George the Third.' To sum it up, the Congress affirmed solemnly in July, 1775, that it did not mean ' to dissolve that Union ' which had ' so long and so happily subsisted ' between the two shores ofthe Atlantic ; and, in the following October, instructed Schuyler to offer the Canadians merely ' that Security to their Persons and Property,' which was 'derived from the British Constitution.'" 2 5 § Journ. Mass. Cong., Apr. 26, 1775. Amold: 4 Force, IL, 383. N. H., May 23 : Journ. Cong., June 2, 1775. N.Y. Cong., June 12, 1775 : 4 Force IL, 1294. Morgan: Graham, Morgan, p. 53. 2' S Pa. Assembly: 4 Force, IV., 1536. Pa. Deleg. 4 Force, II., 456 ; III., The Country Still Loyal 55 An easy reply to all this became fashionable in England. Rising in the Parliament, while Montgomery was draw ing near Montreal, Lord Lyttleton denounced the ' insidi ous, traitorous, false expressions of loyalty ' uttered by the Colonists." In short, the dutiful language of Amer icans was commonly said and often believed to come from elaborate and concerted hypocrisy. But who would have undertaken to indict the whole Continent on such a charge ? And, if the leaders went about to deceive one another as well as their followers, how could so great and hollow a conspiracy have lasted ? The President of Congress made an ample and conclusive answer to Lyttleton 's accusation, when, pointing to ' the unprepared state of the Colonies ' at the beginning of the war and the nearly total want of "everything necessary to carry it on, ' he pronounced these facts ' a most striking proof of the weakness or wickedness of those who charge them with an original intentioii of withdrawing from the Government of Great Britain.' In a word, either these men were substantially honest, or they were substantially mad ; and the Continental Congress had little resemblance to Bedlam. Not rebellion, but constitutional resistance, was the purpose of America : — a resistance authorized by Blackstone, when he wrote that, ' In cases of national oppression, the nation hath very justifiably risen as one man, to vindicate the original contract, subsisting between the king and [the] people.' '" The strong political opposition in England, the shock to her commerce and revenue, her merchants alarmed, her manufacturers starving, taxes augmented, France and Spain preparing to strike, — these were elements from 1408. N. J.: 4 Force, III., 1857. Porter, Colon. Mag., I., p. 3. Journ. Cong., July 6, 1775. Hancock to Sch., Oct. 12, 1775: Am. Antiq. Soc. 2 ' Lyttleton : 4 Force, VL, 135. 2 8 5 Hancock to Mass. Council, Apr. 30, 1776: 4 Force, V., 1139. Blackstone; W. Smith, Works, I., p. 26. 56 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony which the Colonists were taught, by friends across the water as well as by their own reasonings, to expect suc cess. 'There is nothing upon earth more sure,' wrote a gentleman from London, ' than that one year's determined resistance must reduce this country to any terms. ' "" A single issue of the Boston Evening Post contained Statements enough, hailing firom the same quarter, to jus- JOHN DICKINSON tify that expectation. ' The resolution of the Americans relative to their exporting nothing from thence to Eng land,' said one letter, 'will affect government more than may be generally imagined. Even in the article of tobacco they will sustain vast loss ; for the duty on that commodity only for the present year, it seems, amounts 2' London letter, Feb. 10, 1775; 4 Force, L, 1223. Peaceful Weapons Relied Upon 57 to upwards of 220,oool.' 'It has been calculated,' added another, ' that Great Britain sustains a loss of upwards of 1000 1. per day, exclusive of government duties, while this nation continues at variance with her American Colonies.' ' The matter grows serious — People begin io feel and fear,' observed a third. ' People in gen eral here are in favour of America,' noted another ; ' the manufacturing towns will, in general, petition.' In view of such statements, it was not surprising to learn from the same paper of its having been ' intimated to some con- sid''^^ Merchants, that the Ministry would be ready to meet any conciliatory measures that might be proposed with reference to America.' " On the hither side of the Atlantic, to choose a single illustration, Joseph Warren argued that merely stopping the exportation ot flaxseed to Ireland would set a million hungry mouths clamoring against the policy of the Minis ters, and he reckoned that cutting off the trade of Great Britain with her American colonies and her West Indies would not only rouse the merchants against their govern ment, but reduce the revenue of the country an eighth part. From the effects of non-importation ' on two former occa sions, ' to use the words of a prominent Colonial, " and an apprehension that the trade of America was necessary to the inhabitants of Great Britain, it was generally hoped the obnoxious acts would soon be repealed. An appeal to arms, independence, and an alliance with France, were events at that time neither intended nor expected.' In fact, the Congress itself admitted that it had counted upon the severance of commercial intercourse as ' the ultimate step of the controversy, ' the finishing stroke against op-' pression." ^1 Boston Evening Post, Mar. 20, 1775. 3 1 § Warren to S. Adams. Aug. 21, 1774: Frothingham, Warren, p. 343. Ramsay, So. Car., I., p. 232. journ. Cong., July 6, 1775. 58 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony Why, then, an army? Why, then, battles? Dickin son, addressing the Assembly of New Jersey in the most formal manner, as a special representative of the Conti nental Congress, answered the question : ' It was necessary to convince Britain that we would fight, and were not a rope of sand.' ' We must drub him [Howe] soundly, be fore the sceptred tyrant will know we are not mere brutes, to crouch under his hand, and kiss the rod with which he designs to scourge us ' : in these words Jefferson explained the presence of an army at Cambridge. A week after Arnold set out for Quebec, John Day, a Tory from Nova Scotia, wrote Mifflin, with whom he said he ' could once boast of being on a footing of the strictest friendship,' 'I hear you are in Arms to convince the World that Amer icans dare fight.' ' Britain at the expense of three millions has killed a hundred and fifty Yankees, ' remarked Franklin to Dr. Priestley ; and many believed that thrifty John Bull would tire of oppressing the Colonies, if he found they had the pluck to make it costly.''' The Canada expedition, aside from its purely protective merit, seemed to most of its friends a part of this general plan, and so Dickinson characterized it before the New Jersey Assembly. ' We have as yet resolved only on de fensive measures,' asserted Franklin more than three months after Schuyler received instructions to cross the boundary. ' If we once had that Province secured, we should convince the people of England of the weakness of the ministers' plan,' said Leffingwell to Silas Deane ; and the latter assiired his wife that ' the reduction of Montreal and Quebec would . . . give the ministry a blow indeed.' It was the opinion of the ' Friends in England,' reported Thomas Lynch, that the complete reduction of 3 2 § Dickinson, Dec, 1775: 4 Force, III., 1874. Jefferson to Randolph, Nov. 29. 1775; Jeff., Writings (Ford), I., p. 491. Day to MiflBin, Aug. 22, 1775; Hand Papers. Franklin to Priestley, Oct. 3, 1775 : 4 Force, III., 940. Why, Then, an Army? 59 Canada during the winter ' must certainly produce Peace in the Spring.' Montgomery himself looked forward to the capture of Quebec, not as a telling move in a war, but, as the ' final blow to Ministerial politicks in this Prov ince ' ; instead of counting himself a rebel, he bewailed to Carleton ' the melancholy & fatal necessity which obliged the firmest friends of the Constitution to oppose an officer ofthe Crown' ; and, in urging the accession of Canada to the Continental Union, he merely represented the league as destined, with the blessing of God, to ' establish the rights of all the Colonies on a firm basis.' ' May Heaven still prove propitious,' exclaimed Schuyler in announcing the triumph at Montreal to Trumbull, ' and Britons and Amer icans once more regard each other with the fond tenderness ofa parent and child ! ' Washington himself. Commander- in-chief of the embattled forces, hoped for the capture of Quebec as a measure that would ' much embarrass ' the Administration ; and the President of Congress, writing to Montgomery on the last day of November, urged him to continue gathering laurels till he should find ' our oppres sors reduced to reason, and America restored to her con stitutional liberties.' " Unfortunately the whole Colonial plan of campaign was wrecked. George the Third, not merely the Father but the Surgeon of his people, seemed to feel that all the opposition ofhis transatlantic subjects, if brought quickly to a head, could be lanced off with but a few drops of blood, and the patient restored to tranquil health. Con fident of his chirurgical talents, he courted rather than dreaded resistance, treating with contempt not only the 53 § Dickinson: Note 32. Franklin to Hartley, Oct. 3, 1775: 4 Force, III., 940. LefSngwell, June 4, 1775 : Coijn. Hist. Soc. Coll., IL, p. 258. Deane, Oct. 2, 1775: ib., 3o§. Lynch, Nov. 14, 1775: Pub. Rec. Off., Am. and W. L, Vol. 186, p. 39. Montg. to Sch., Nov. 17, 1775: 4 Force, IIL, 1653. Id. to Carleton, Oct. 22, i775;Sparks MSS., No. 52, II. , p. 58. Id. to Brown, Oct. 6, 1775: 4 Force, III., 1098. Sch. to Trumbull, Nov. iS, 1775; 4 Force, III., 1603. (See also Id. to Alb. Com.;ib., 1595). Wash, to Sch., Dec. 18, 1775: Wash., Writings (Ford), III., p. 288. Hancock to Montg., Nov. 30, 1775 ; 4 Fcrte, IIL, 1718. 6o Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony opinions of America but those of his own capital. ' The Colonies must either triumph or submit, ' he announced in the fall of 1774 ; and, a few months later, his majority in the House of Commons, on the motion ofhis chief min ister, declared almost eagerly that rebellion existed. As time passed, the prospect only darkened. The opposition in England proved impotent, the King resolute aud supreme. America then found an unwelcome issue forced A'<-^'^-~^/)ji upon her. Congress had to choose -either the right hand or the left, decide either to be firm or to bend ; and all could see that measureless consequences hung upon the choice." John Dickinson of Pennsylvania, possessor of a fine seat at Fair Hill overlooking Philadelphia, the Schuylkill, and the country round, owner and also user of what John Adams called a ' very grand library,' was peculiarly fitted to enjo}' the social pinnacle, yet ready enough to descend into the forum ; was a modest, refined, agreeable person, yet capable of no little activity and zeal ; was a gentle man and a scholar, yet not unwilling to lead the masses ; and such a man could not fail to wield a great influence. On the question of American rights he stood with the patriots, and the news of Lexington struck a Boanerges note from his sensitive heart. ' The rescript to our peti tion is written in blood,' he cried ; ' The impious war of tyranny against innocence has begun.' But a contest in 3* § George HI. to North, Sept. n, 1774: Wash., Writings (Sparks), VL, p. 532. Commons (Feb., 1775); 4 Force, I., 1542, 1547. Dickinson and his Party 61 arms had no attraction for one so delicate, studious, con servative by temperament, cautious because wealthy, and — as some thought — physically timid ; the Quakers b)rought their non-resistant influence to bear ; and his mother dinned into his ears, ' Johnny, you will be hanged; your estate will be forfeited and confiscated ; you will leave your excellent wife a widow, and your charming children orphans, beggars, and infamous.' " Dickinson, besides all his other claims to consideration, ' was so honest a man,' said Jefferson, ' and so able a one, that he was greatly indulged even by those who could not feel his scruples ' ; and when he rose to speak, — tall, slen der as a reed, pale as ashes, hardly more than a shadow, yet powerfully in earnest ; and when, with eyes aflame and a voice quivering with emotion, he poured forth weighty arguments and solemn appeals, wakening all the fears and knitting together all the doubts of the many Delegates who feared and doubted, his words fell not in vain. Around him gathered a large body of the members, especially of those from the middle Colonies. ' Accommodation ' was his battle-cry ; and once, follow ing John Adams from the hall of Congress, he exclaimed, ' Look ye ! If you don't concur with us in our pacific system, I and a number of us will break off from you in New England, and we will carry on the opposition by ourselves in our own way.' With such a leader and so strong a party drawing in one direction, and the Adamses with their associates tugging as hard in the other. Con gress found it difficult enough to settle the essential issue, which — meaning life or death not only for the country but for the Delegates — came near doing the miracle of Aaron's rod, and swallowing bodily all other questions.'" 3 s § J. Adams, Works, I., p. 228 ; IL, pp. 379. 401, 408. Dickinson to A. Lee, Apr. 29, 1775: 4 Force II., 443. 3« § Jefferson, Works (Wash.). I., p. n. J- Adams, Works, I., p. 178 ; II., pp. 360, 410, 419. (Adams's remarks about Dickinson were likely to be colored somewhat by personal feeling.) Flanders, C. Justices, I., p. 139. 62 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony For the same reason, what was attempted could not be done efficiently. ' It is amazing to me, ' exclaimed Samuel Mott, ' that the Colonies should have so little sense ofthe importance of this expedition [to Canada], as not to give us a good large arm}-, well furnished, in due season ' ; and so felt many another. But hints from within Congress have explained this m}-stery. ' Our councils have been hitherto too fluctuating,' remarked Governor Ward at the beginning of November ; ' one day measures for carr5dng on the war were adopted ; the next, nothing must be done that would widen the unhappy breach.' ' Many gentlemen in high stations and of great influence, ' John Adams told his wife, ' have been duped by the ministerial bubble of commissioners to treat. And in real, sincere expectation of this event, which they so fondly wished, they have been slow and languid in promoting measures for the reduction of that province. Others there are in the colonies who really wished that our enterprise in Canada would be defeated, that the colonies might be brought into danger and dis tress between two fires, and be thus induced to submit. Others really wished to defeat the expedition to Canada, lest the conquest of it should elevate the minds of the people too much to hearken to those terms of reconcili ation, which, they believed, would be offered us. These jarring views, wishes, and designs occasioned an opposi tion to many salutary measures which were proposed for the support of that expedition, and caused obstructions, embarrassments and studied delays.' " In fact, many of the reasons for hindering the Canada campaign draw their sap from the very heart of the situa tion. As every thoughtful man could perceive, it was a bridge into a thick cloud, and no one could see the farther t j'SS.Mott to Trumbull, Oct. 6, 1775: 4 Force, IIL, 972. Ward to his brother, Nov. 2, 1775: J. Ward, S. Ward, p. 10. J. Adams, Works, IX., p. 419. a '06— <«.-^x. r^'^'. 'A^^rt •^«^ J^l^^^ 'T FROM RICHARD HENRY LEE'S LETTER TO SAMUEL ADAMS, FEBRUARY 4, 1775. 63 64 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony end of it. Washington's position before Boston could easily be explained : he stood evideutl}' for self-defence, for resistance to aggression; but the northern operations had shown from the first an uncontrollable trend of their own, and this pointed — no matter what some men alleged or intended — toward separation and independence. There had always been the same dilemma about it : perilous to follow its logic but absurd to stop. The argument that invading Canada and shooting the King's redcoats did not attack the Crown, might perhaps be theoretically sound, but in the eyes of common-sense plans like that amounted to ' doing the work of the Lord deceitfully ' ; there fore could not prosper; therefore ought to be dropped. ' Make the tree good and the fruit will be good,' taught John Adams : in other words, lay aside pretences if you ¦wish to succeed. Moreover, the notion of softening the King b}' fighting his troops, however shrewd it might be, was much too subtle to fire the popular heart, and for this reason also a more strenuous and explicit programme seemed necessary. As the soldiers trooping home fi'om Montreal showed, the Canada enterprise required a flag and a foe : a flag meant a nation, and a foe meant a war. This Dickinson was fully able to see or to sense. He felt that an advance northward led toward independence ; and for this deep reason, as John Adams plainly intimated, ' every measure for the service in Canada, from the first projection of it,' was 'opposed and obstinately disputed ' by his party, so that no proposal could be carried except ' by a bare majority ' and after the delays of slow, hard fighting. '° Minor obstacles, also, 5-et very substantial ones, ham pered the friends ofthe expedition. The Congress, a po Utical debating society, had no executive. There was not even a Board of War as yet. Every proposition came be- 38 § J. Adams, Works. IX., p. 412 (to Chase, June 24,17761; IL, pp. 503, 419. Minor Obstacles 65 fore the whole body . The army at Cambridge alone would have been enough to occupy all the time it had for military affairs. Virginia made claims for defence against ' ne groes and ragamuffins ' that could not be ignored. Other sections required attention. A thousand petty details gorged the Journal. Personal jarrings, the inveterate dif ferences between the Colonies, and— as Ward put it con fidentially — the 'jealousies' entertained by the south toward the north, helped throw sand on the axle. No less harmful was the lack of information. ' They have never yet known the difficulties you have had to contend with, ' wrote Livingston to Schuyler, ' or the state of the army of Canada.' Communications were very slow, and it always seemed natural to wait a bit and learn what had occurred meanwhile. Were St. Johns to fall as early as many expected, it looked as if the campaign might be concluded before the existing army would expire by limi tation. Most likely nobody in Congress understood why a general re-enlistment could not be counted upon. Prob ably too much was expected of the Canadians. And ap parently, whenever forcible action was proposed, the state of sentiment in New York must have been found strongly and peculiarly embarrassing.'" Loyalism, at least in the early stages ofthe conflict with Great Britain, had areal air of virtue, 'Dear Sons,' ex horted Colonel Thomas Gilbert, 'If those wickedsinners, the Rebels, entice you believe them not, but die by the sword rather than be hanged as Rebels.' The worship of anointed royalty, the worship of legality, the worship of church establishment, the worship of office, the worship of the old-home idea, the worship of tradition, the wor ship ofa text : ' Fear God, honor the King,'— all these were added to numberless influences of habit, friendship. " § Ward: Note 37. R. R. Liv. to Sch., Jan. 12, 1776; Emmet CoU. Can. regt.: Hancock to Sch., Oct. 12, 1775: Am. Antiq. Soc. vol.. II.- 66 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony association, timidity, and interest ; and several of the ties and motives had more strength on the Hudson than within the restless towns of New En£;land." Certain special arguments reinforced them. In May, 1775, a gentleman in London expressed the opinion that ' the mercantile connections ' of the middle province were ' as little firiendly to American liberty ' as any he knew. ' I fear there is a chain of tor3dsni extending firom Canada through New York,' said John Adams. ' There is a Com bination in that Colon}', ' wrote Samuel Adams, ' of high Church Clergymen & great Land holders,' the former favoring the absolute authoritj' of Parliament as the only hope for an ' American Episcopate, ' and the latter' dread ing to find a spirit of liberty among their ' bondsmen.' Cadwallader Colden knew of ' peculiar Indulgences and Favours intended by Parliament ' for that section ; and Lord North bestowed one of them bj' omitting New York from the bills restraining Colonial trade." Indeed, it was firmly believed that His Majesty's gov ernment intended to corrupt that Colon j-. Saj-re wrote over to Samuel Adams that four members of the New York Assembly had ' touched ;^iooo each from y'= Treas ury ' ; and William Lee, besides naming three men said to have received a thousand guineas, declared that Minis ters openly boasted of sending large sums for such pur poses. ' We have the strongest persuasion, ' declared the Congress of Massachusetts to the Continental Congress, ' that the settled plan of the British Administration is to break the chain of union of the Colonies at New York ; and we are sure that the evidence of such design, and ¦"> § Gilbert : 4 Force, II. , 508. See Flick, Loyalism, pp. 32-36, etc. ; Van Tyne, Loyalists, p. 25, etc.; Tyler, Am. Hist. Rev., L, p. 25 ; Id., Lit. Hist., L, pp. 298-300, etc.; Quarterly Rev., Vol. 188, pp. 430, 436, 438, etc. « 1 § London, May 5, 1775 ; 4 Force, IL, 508. J. Adams to J. SuUi-van, June 23, 1776: Works, IX., p. 407- S. Adams to A. Lee, Mar. 4, 1775: s. Adams Papers. Colden to Dartmouth, June 7, 1775: Pub. Rec. Ofl., Am. and W I Vol. 185, p- 360. Bills: London letters (4 Force, IL, 508, 122); Pownall, (ib., 276). Special Embarrassments in New York 67 their machinations for that purpose, cannot escape your attention.' Besides, fear joined hands with hope to keep the province from declaring for Liberty. In April, 1775, Dartmouth informed Gage that certain regiments, in tended for Boston, would go to New York and take post on the Hudson ; and, as this purpose had been known in a general way to Samuel Adams months before, no doubt the leading citizens of New York felt the lion's paw, by anticipation, long before London letters of July thirty -first explained the plan." Naturally enough, then, John and Samuel Adams were not the only ones who felt suspicious. Samuel Mott believed the Colony of New York 'unsound at heart.' Joseph Warren confided strong doubts to Samuel Adams. Colden testified that his fellow-citizens were looked upon by their neighbors on the east ' as highly inimical to their Designs,' and he believed that Ticonderoga had been captured in order to 'produce an explicit union with them' or expose the Colony to 'Destruction.' Ethan Allen alluded very frankly to the number of Tories in the province. John Brown hinted that Schuyler's delay was due to influences of that color, and probably they did suggest some of his doubts about the ' propriety ' of ad vancing. General Wooster said to Governor Trumbull : 'Your Honour well knows the suspicious light in which the New York Congress are viewed by the rest of the Continent, ' and protested against being placed under their orders. Even Washington seems to have shared the feeling : ' In this instance the Congress at New York have judged properly,' he observed in September, adding. ¦¦2 § Bribes: R. H. Lee to S. Adams, Feb. 4, 1775 (S. Adams Papers); Sayre toS. Adams, Apr. 4, 1775 (ib.); W. Lee to S. Adams, Apr. 10, 1775 (ib.). Mass. Cong, to Cont. Cong., May 27, 1775: 4 Force, II. , 721. Dartmouth to Gage, Apr. ' IS, 1775 : Bancroft Coll., Eng. and Am., 1775, p. 109. S. Adams to Bowdoin, Nov. 16, 1775: Mass. Hist. Soc. Proc, Ser. i, XIL, p. 227. London letters: 4 Force, IL, 1753. 68 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony ' I wish I could extend my approbation equally to the whole line of their conduct.' " In February, the Assembly had voted to send no dele gates to the second Continental Congress. Onty three out of thirteen members appointed in April on the Com mittee of Correspondence and Inquiry favored doing so. As late as the twenty-eighth of June, the Provincial Con gress declared itself ' deeply impressed ¦with the impor tance, the utility, and [the] necessity of an accommodation with our Parent State.' Poughkeepsie officials cut down a liberty-pole. Allan Maclean found no less than four hundred men on the Mohawk ready to shoulder British muskets. After the capture of Montreal, Richmond County refused to send Delegates to the Provincial Con gress, on the ground that all prospects of reconciUation with England had vanished. Westchester Count}' got up an insurrection ' against Hberty ' ; and four men were be lieved to be at work in that section recmiting for the British army. As time passed, some of the loyalists — to borrow Allen's phrase — were 'savingly converted'; but, near the close of 1775, Robert R. Livingston remarked: ' As for the politicks of our province it still moves in the same rascall}' channel in which it has hitherto run,' and Governor Tryon believed on the last daj- of January, 1776 : 'The Majority of this Province are Lo3'al.' " If, then, Dickinson — though determined in his own fashion to resist Great Britain — dreaded a ¦vigorous cam paign at the north, all this force of loyalist sentiment in ^5 § s. Mott to TrumbuU, Aug. 3, 1775: 4 Force, IIL, iS. Warren to S. Adams, June 15, 1774: S. Adams Papers. Colden: Note 41. AUen to N. Y. Cong., June 2, 1775: 4 Force, IL, 891. J. Brown: Vol. L, p. 315. Wooster to Trumbull, Aug. 24, 1775 : 4 Force, IIL, 262. Wash, to Wooster, "Sept. 2 : ib., 632. ¦<< § N. Y. Ass., Feb. 23, 1775: 4 Force, I., 1290. Com. C. and L: ib., 1324 (cf ib., 1290). N. Y. Cong., June 28, 1775: 4 Force, II. , 1329. Pough. : 4 Force, IL, 176. Maclean : Ga.ge to Secy. State, Sept. 20, 1775 (Pub. Rec. Off., A. and W. L, Vol. 420, p. 257). Richmond Co., Dec. 15, 1775; 4 Force, IV., 428. Westchester Co., etc.: N. Y. Cong, (ib., 402, 403). Allen: Note 43. R. R. Liv. to Montg., Nov. 29, 177s ¦ Liv. Papers, 1775-1777, p. 73. Trvon to Carleton : Pub. Rec. Ofl., Am. and W. L, Vol. 186, p. 329. See also 4 Force, IIL, 457. New York Cannot be Coerced 69 New York must have been fiercely hostile to it. More over, it was able to present itself in the Continental Con gress, not only with no brand of treason upon it as yet, but supported by a body-guard of weighty considerations. The social and commercial intercourse of New York with Canada, easier and therefore closer than any other Colony enjoyed, gave her a special voice in what concerned that province. Ticonderoga was the natural and almost inevi table base of military operations at the north, and New York did not wish alien troops to press her soil without full authorization. Even when she desired men from an other Colony to garrison the lake forts, her invitation wore the coyest air : ' There is no doubt but that our brethren of Connecticut will feel great reluctance at the idea of ordering any of their troops to march within the bounds of this Colony,' she said ; ' But we pray you to cast away all fears of offending us upon this occasion.' Even under the stress of British invasion and in dire need of cannon to repel the foe, Massachusetts had shown the utmost caution about encroaching on the reserve of another Colony ; the General Congress felt, as Jefferson said, a ' great desire not to go too fast for any respectable part ' of the body ; and the reasons for not estranging New York had extra ordinary force. Every Colony and the assembled repre sentatives understood as well as Lord North, how serious its defection from the Union of Colonies would be, and could estimate as fairly the strategic value of the Hudson. No matter how exasperating or suspicious to ardent patriots, the sentiment of that quarter had to be very tenderly studied.'" Samuel Adams, however, was not the man to sleep 4 5 § The election of delegates to the second Cont. Cong, can be seen now to have drawn the line between ' patriots ' and loyalists (Becker, Am. Hist. Rev., IX., p. 85); but such lines are always more or less obscure and fluctuating at the time. It was only the Declaration of Independence that changed an ob scure line into a yawning chasm (see Flick, Loyalism, p. 54). N. Y. Cong, to Conn., May 25, 1775; 4 Force, IL, 705. Jefferson, Works (Wash.), I., p. 11. 'J^ f.^^ /^r^^r». ^^ A..C ^c^^r ^,„.VU-^^i-~ ^^<^ J^-*^-?- 5^-^ FROM SAMUEL ADAMS'S LETTER TO A. LEE, MARCH 4, 1775 70 The Measures of Congress 71 'upon his great plan for adding a northern empire to the league of Colonies. Hancock, the President, and John Adams, the orator, aided him. Lynch, ' a solid, firm, judicious man,' ' as constantly attended Congress ' with motions for supplies ' as ever nurse did her patient with a bolus.' ' It appears to me,' wrote Richard Henry Lee to Washington, ' It appears to me that we must have that country [Canada] with us this winter, cost what it will.' Other determined members took the same view ; and the Congress, embarrassed and almost paralyzed as it was, did all that could reasonably have been expected. During the summer, four regiments from New York, three from Connecticut, and one from Massachusetts were assigned to Schuyler, besides the battalion of Green Mountain Boys and some other troops, — a nominal strength of nearly eight thousand ; and this, about ten times the British force in Canada, seemed ample. Much sickness was re ported from the army, but not of a fatal sort ; and the Congress, after allowing so wide a margin of safety, might easily suppose nothing further necessary, beyond urging — as it did — the completion of the New York regi ments. As yet, the march of events was so slow that even a dilatory body had no great difficulty in keeping abreast of them." By the first week of October, however, the situation had changed. Montgomery had committed himself to a forward movement, and Arnold had taken aim at the heart of Canada. Both advances were likely to require support ; both might be delayed ; the troops had enlisted only for the year ; the losses from sickness were proving serious ; and the process of raising new forces would cer- <- Lynch to Montg., Nov. 14, 1775: Pub. Rec. Off., Am. and W. I., Vol. 186, p. 39; to Sch., Jan. 20, 1776 : Sparks MSS., No. 60, p. 6r. Lee to Wash., Oct., 22, 1775-4 Force, IIL, 1137. Sch.'s circ. letter, July 21, 1775: Lossing, Sch., L, p. 366. Sickness : Sch. to Han cock, Sept. 25, 1775 (4 Force, IIL, 796). 72 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony tainly be slow. Congress knew all this. Not a day could safely be wasted, and no doubt the fiiends of the Canada enterprise pointed that out. But all they could accomplish, after debate, was to authorize the enrollment of a Canadian regiment, and bid Schuyler (October 12) consult with his principal officers about the number of troops required from the north and ' the best Method of procuring Men.' " On the last day of October, Congress listened to a series of letters from Schuyler. Troops would be needed, — were needed already, he said ; and there was ' too, too much reason ' to believe that very few of the present army would re-engage. This meant a crisis ; and Schuy ler made it look the worse by adding, that already the lateness of the season would prevent raising troops in the Colonies. That depended, perhaps ; but the icy breath of winter could be felt at the door, and certainly the swiftest and most positive action was called for. Again, however, the Opposition stepped in. Two days later. Congress merely voted to despatch a committee northward. Then another struggle followed, no doubt, over their instruc tions ; but, after about a week of delay, they received orders ' to make use of every argument ' that could induce the troops to re-enlist or at least remain until they could be relieved ; and they were empowered, in concert with General Schuyler, ' to raise any number ' of men that could be procured in Canada, New York, or New England. Two months' pay and the settlement of all arrears were to be offered as a bounty for re-enlistment ; arrangements were made for certain increases of salary; clothing was promised ; and authority was given to buy six months' provisions for three thousand men. Three days later, after receiving further instructions, the com mittee set out for the north ; and, on the twenty-second. ' S Hancock to Sch., Oct. 12: Am. Antiq. Soc. Journ. Cong., Oct. 3, 5, 11. What Might Have Been 73 Schuyler expected it ' momently ' at headquarters, Ticonderoga. Once more the party of Samuel Adams had won the battle, but at how pathetic a loss of dead and buried time ! " Fairly on the ground and well posted about the cam paign, the committee made, perhaps, a few sad reflections. Had Schuyler planted two thousand men at St. Johns in earnest about the middle of August, he would have found the works quite incomplete and the supplies quite inade quate. The British could not have stood a siege ; and to sallj' into that wooded country would have given the Provincials just the sort of fighting they liked. Two weeks might have finished the business ; and then a strong column, hastening to Quebec and from Quebec to Montreal, should have ended the campaign within the next month. Or, had Montgomery been given three thousand men on the first of October, he could easily, with such a backing, have enrolled a thousand Canadians, and then have sent at least that number of his best troops to secure the two cities. Or, at the very worst, a sufficient force to dominate the rural districts below and reinforce Arnold could certainly, in either case, have been spared ; and, by the first of December, while snugly housed garri sons were smoking their pipes in all the chief points of the province, Canadian Delegates, fully satisfied the Colonies could hold their own, might have been toasting their good brethren of the Congress in old Madeira at the City Tavem, Philadelphia. As it was, the committee arrived in season to witness the exodus of disbanded soldiers, realize the hopelessness of urging political union— which the Congress had earnestly enjoined upon them to do — while the miHtary issue remained in doubt, and leam that now it would be practically impossible for <8 5 Journ Cong Oct. i6, 31 ; Nov. 2, 8, 11. Instructions: Sparks Mbb, i. 52, IL, p. 123. Sch. to Wash., Nov. 22, 1775: 4 Force, IIL, 1635. Remark L. 74 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony troops to pass Lake Champlain, even could they be raised, before 'about the beginning of February.' The grand opportunity had evidentl}- been lost." A less brilliant opportunity remained, however, and Montgomery proposed to make the best of it. As rapidly as possible, the business at Montreal was disposed of Some of the prisoners begged permission to remain there ; and when the General, pursuing his conciliatory policy, granted their petition, a number of officers protested so vigorously that he declared he would hold the command no longer. But their action had grown out of honest zeal for the cause, and, seeing their mistake, they apologized in a way that perhaps drew leader and followers more closel}^ than ever together. Conferences were held with laymen and the clergy. James Livingston was commis sioned to enlist a regiment of Canadians, and received the well-earned sword of a colonel. Three Rivers, the only town of importance in Canada besides Quebec and Montreal, decided to submit, and sent a deputation to crave kind treatment. ' Gentlemen, ' replied Mont gomery, ' I feel greatly mortified that you should enter tain any fears about your property. I am sure that the Continental troops will never be stained with any imputa tion of injustice. We are here to conserve, not to destroy. If Providence continues to favor our efforts, this Province will soon possess a free government.' But the General's greatest care was to procure clothing. Some time before, Schuyler had proposed to buy woollens at Montreal, and now that plan was perforce adopted. James Price loaned five thousand pounds (York currency), and out of this and the stores captured with the fleet Montgomery was able to provide for Arnold's detachment and to equip ¦" § Works not completed in August : Claus, No. Am. Notes and Queries, I., No. I, p. 24. Tavern: Scharf and Westcott, Phila., I., p. 289, etc. Hopeless ness: Com. to Montg., Nov. 30, 1775 (4 Force, IV., 445). Impossible: Report of Com. (Sparks MSS., No. 52, IL, p. 63). Montgomery Sets Out for Quebec 75 about three hundred men of his own for a campaign at Quebec." Many dangers threatened the voyage toward the capital. Contrary winds might stop him. The cold weather might throw a boom of ice across the river. The British vessels of war might sink his fleet. But without hesitation Montgomery determined to spread his canvas and accept the chances. On his return — his victorious return — he announced, a Convention should be called, and Canada take her place among the self-governing United Colonies ; so on to Quebec and away with the last barrier! 'I have courted fortune and found her kind,' he wrote ; ' I have one more favor to Solicit.' Little doubt about her answer could be felt. Mrs. Montgomery, waiting by the Hudson, received one day a thrice -wel come message. ' I live in hopes to see you in six weeks,' it said."' 5 0 § Montg. to Sch., Nov. 24, 1775: Dunlap, New Netherlands, II. , p. 23. Clinton;et al. to Montg., Nov. 23, 1775: 4 Force, IIL, 1695. D. Campbell to , Mar. 28, 1776: Liv. Papers, 1775-1777, p. 145. Conf.: Montg. to Sch., Nov. 19, 177s (4 Force, IIL, 16B2). T. Riv.: Verreau (Badeaux), Invasion, p. 179; Ursul, de T. Riv., I., p. 365. Sch. to Hancock, Sept. 25, 1775: 4 Force, IIL, 796. Montg. to R. R. Liv., Dec. 17, 1775 : Liv. Papers, 1775-1777, P- 89. Montg. to Sch., Dec. s, 1775: 4 Force, lV.,iB8. Price: Id. to Id., Nov. 24 (4 Force, III., 1694). " § Montg. to Sch., Nov. 19, 1775: 4 Force, IIL, 1682. Id. to R. R. Liv., Nov. 13, 1775 : Liv. Papers, 1775-1777, p. 63. Id. to Mrs. M., Nov. 24, 1775 :L.L. H., Biog Notes, p. 15. XXIII THE GREAT DUEL BEGINS AGAIN IF ever a soldier deserved well of fortune, it was Mont gomery when setting out in winter to conquer the citadel of the north. No greedy ambition clamored within him ; no professional enthusiasm spurred him on. The career of arms, once a gallant vocation, had lost its glam our in his view. No glint of self-interest sharpened his eye. ' Disinterested and generous motives will forever, I hope, prevent me from serving myself or my family at the expense of the public,' he wrote his -wife with reference to promoting a near relative. As the leader of freemen should, he longed only for peace with honor. ' My family and farm,' were the glories that illumined his dreams. ' O fortunate husbandmen ! Would I were at my plough again ! ' was his inmost feeling. ' I . . . sigh for home like a New Englander,' he confessed.' And he more than sighed. No hint of shirking could be found in his conduct, 'f shall always be ready to contri bute my mite to the public safety ' was his voluntary pledge. But, when it began to seem as if his task had nearly been accomplished, he wrote to his official superior, ' I most ear nestly request to be suffered to retire, should matters stand on such a footing this winter as to permit me to go off with honour ' ; and he went so far as to propose Charles I § Montg. to Mrs. M., Oct. 9 ; Dec. 5, 1775: L. L. H [unt], Biog. Notes, pp. 13, 16 (see pp. 6, 17). Id. to R. R. Liv., Sr. and Jr., Oct. 5 ; Nov. 13 ; Dec. 16, 17, 1775 : Liv. Papers, 1775-1777, pp. 51, 63, 81, 89. 76 Montgomery's Chances of Success 'j'j l^e for the Canada command. But dut}' ruled him as effectually as pride or ambition has ruled others. He saw ' a prize of such value at stake ' before the United Colo nies that he would not halt for his own ease. It was ' of the utmost importance, ' he understood, ' to finish this business at once,' that the Ministry might ' have no hopes left of carrying on their infernal plan in this important quarter.' " And his cheerful anticipations appeared to have reason able grounds. Quebec stood at the tip of a high ridge of Tock extending for some three leagues down the St. Law rence, and sloped inevitably toward the St. Charles. One consequence was that, firom the opposite side of this little stream, an eye could survey the interior of the fortifica tions, and, if it happened to be the eye ofa cannon, could reconnoitre it in force. Later a splendid citadel, a crown of beauty and of strength, was placed upon the brow of Cape Diamond ; but in 1775 the works at that point, while important, had neither extent nor massiveness, and the principal defence on the land side consisted of a wall reaching from the Cape, nearly three hundred and fifty feet higher than the St. Lawrence, to the bluff above St. Charles River, there fifty or sixty feet in height. A small polygon at each end, six bastions between them, a shallow ditch, a low and imperfect counterscarp, and an unfinished glacis strengthened the wall somewhat; and a valley beyond, sixty-nine feet deep from the summit ofthe Cape, served to a certain extent as another and far larger moat.^ But, unfortunately for Quebec, the Heights of Abraham, running along the farther side of this valley at a distance of about eight hundred yards from the town, rose ten feet 2 § Montg. to Sch., Oct. 31 ; Nov. 13, 1775'- Sparks MSS., No. 60, p. 17 ; 4 Force, IIL, 1602. Id. to R. R. Liv., Sr. and Jr., Dec. 16, 17: Note i. 3 § For the fortifs., see Murray's report^ June 5, 1762 : Can. Arch., B, 7, p. i ; Marr, Remarks : ib., M, 384, p. ux ; Pr&is relative to Fortifs. in Am. : Pub. Rec. Off'., Am. and W. I., Vol. 289, p. 35 ; Doughty, Fortress, passim ,- Hawkins, Picture, pp. 155-169. =-=--='--5:.= Plan of the City ana Environs 7 QUEBEC y with its Siege and Blockade by the Americana References A. Scution of Cap Diamant B. '< of la Ola»§God; Letter, Dec. 6, 1775 (4 Force, LV., 204). Nuns: Mgr. de St. Vallier, Part II. , Chap. IV. Lee to R. Morris, Dec. 9, 1775: Bancroft MSS., I., 21. Montg. to Sch., Dec. 18, 1775: 4 Force, IV., 309. Arnold to Wash., Nov. 20 ; Dec. 5, 1775 : 4 Force, IIL, 1695 ; IV., 190. Montg. to Sch., Dec. 5, 1775 : 4 Force, IV., 188. Wash, to Hancock, Dec. 4, 1775 :ib., 180. >i § Wash.'s instr. to Amold, Sept. 14, 1775: Writings (Ford), IIL, p. 121. Despatches : Arnold to Sch., Oct. 13 ; Nov. 7 {4 Force, IIL, 1062, 1633) ; Id. to Montg., Nov. 8, 13, 14, 16 (ib., 1634, 1635, 1684, 1685). Id. to Id., Nov. 20 (Sparks MSS., No. so, II., p. 31); Id. to Id., Nov. 25, 30(2) (Me. HisL Soc. Coll., I., pp. 381, 386); Id. to Wash., Nov. 8, 13, 20 (4 Force, IIL, 163s, 1636, 1695); Id. to Easton (at Sorel), Nov. 14 (Me. Hist. Soc. Coll., I., p. 373,) (Most if not all of these letters appearin more than one collection, and Arnold wrote others. ) See also Montg. 86 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony Montgomery, though eager to join Amold had to strug gle ' day after day ' with his difficulties at Montreal ; but at last, on the twenty-eighth of November, he was able to hoist anchor and set sail. Several of the vessels that 'Mr. Prescott made us a present of,' as he pleasantly phrased it, carried his men, stores, and light artillery. Heavier cannon in bateaux joined the expedition at Sorel. There James Livingston also embarked, with what Cana dians — less than two hundred — he had been able to enhst for his regiment in eight days ; and Major Brown, with about a hundred and sixty men recrtiited from Easton's and Bedel's disbanded corps, made ready to follow from the same point." By this time, as an officer said, the troops began to doubt whether they would be able to get down the river. A crust of ice would have sawn the vessels through, and the frost had been darting long crystals over the water for nearly three weeks, the winter set in 'very cold & stormj' ' at Montreal while they were preparing to sail, and the course was to take them each day nearer Labrador ; but happily the weather moderated in season. Adverse winds or no winds at all would have ruined the expedition; but a fresh southwest breeze sprang up. The Hunter, the Fell, and an armed schooner or two — no contemptible squadron — had sailed up the St. Lawrence and might have demoUshed the American fleet ; but the breaking ice cut their cables, the rising wind forced them back to Que bec, and the same auspicious gale ' wafted ' the Provincials to Sch., Nov. 13, 17, 19: 4 Force, IIL, 1602, 1633, 1682 ; Odgen, Journal ; Hum phrey, Journal; Ritzema, Journal; etc. Montg. to Arnold: see Arnold's replies ; Humphrey, Joumal, Nov. 17, 22 ; Dec. i. Remark LL y, 'L^^°y'?'^"'¦^¦ Montg. to Sch., Nov. 24 ; Dec. 5, 1775 (4 Force, III., 1694; IV., 188) ; Ritzema, Joumal, Nov. 28. Lt. Artill, etc. : Haskell, Diary, Nov. 27. Bateaux: Thayer, Journal, Dec. 2. J. Liv. to , [Feb., 1776] : Am. Hist. ?^S'J"i^?%)g^l^ II 8 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony thousand smokes of the thousand hearths in Quebec rose each morning into the keen air, sometimes — ^like a forest of stalagmites — appearing to prop the dense blue sky, and sometimes dropping and melting into a flood of grey that rolled torpidly over the housetops, and — like an aerial glacier — dripped slowly and heavily down the precipice. Little by little each morning, a disk of brass pushed up from somewhere toward the east, slid imperceptibly along the leaden horizon, and sank amid pale glories in the upper St. Law- yy ^ rence. On clear nights ^ the quiet stars appeared to come close, blinking their lovely eyes as if to watch the better over the sleeping camp ; and now and then a broad illumination, splendid yet restful, played across the northern heavens. Linked together by a close com radeship which supplied the place of ever}- luxury and almost every comfort, the men passed many contented and even jovial hours. For variety, they visited in the homes of the sociable Canadians ; and on Sunday they listened to Chaplain Spring at the Hospital church, staring in amazement the while at its rich decorations of 'Carved & guilt work,' as Dea.rborn's Joumal — with no thought of punning — described it. Strife, rage, and battle often began to seem remote, impossible, absurd ; but soon the boom of a cannon or the spitefiil crack of a rifle announced that blood was dyeing the white drifts, and gave notice that before long a great flood of crimson was to flow. Affairs in town had settled down, meanwhile, into a routine of subdued excitement. The garrison felt annoyed by the occasional rifle-balls and 'bombettes,' and an swered by knocking off the chimneys of the American guard-house under the bluff in St. Roch, and pelting every In Quebec 119 spot where an enemy appeared to lurk. The ditch was kept clear of snow. Lanterns were swung out from the wall on poles, when the moon did not shine. Everything like a signal was watched and studied. The bells hung in silence yet expectantly, ready to sound an alarm. An attack seemed likely, but no certainty could be felt ; for, if anybody made his way into town, he ran the chance of being taken for a spy and of finding the news he brought discredited. One night, however, the sentry at Palace Gate saw the enemy actually coming — thousands of them, he swore it — seven deep. The drums beat to arms. The cathedral bell clanged a tocsin. ' Every man ran arm'd to his post, & there the Garrison remain'd waiting the at tack but no enemy appear'd.' '" At length Caldwell's clerk, whom the Americans had captured, got away and brought the definite information that an assault was to be made. Five hundred scaling ladders were ready; and every ' rebel,' thus it went about the city, had been promised ;^2oo in plunder. It had lately been reported in town that Montgomery's troops were beginning to scatter, and the clerk's news gave the citizens a shock." For many good reasons it was hard to believe him. The piles of snow and ice had made even the weakest of the defences ' exceedingly strong, ' said a Quebecker. ' Can these men pretend,' exclaimed Ainslie; ' Can these men pretend that there is a possibility of approaching our walls loaden with ladders, sinking to the middle every step in snow ! ' ' No man after having been exposed to the air but ten minutes,' he wrote one day, 'cou'd handle his arms to do execution.' ' This is no wall-scaling weather,' said his diary at another time ; ' the night was clear & '0 § The British Joumals ; Thompson in LeMoine, Quebec P. and P., pp. 197-199 ; Verreau (Sanguinet), Invasion, p. ii6 : Senter's, Topham's, Dearborn's and other American Journals ; Ursul. de Quebec, IIL, p. 132. ' I § Ainslie, Journal, Dec. 20, 22, 23. ' Chalmers ' Journal, Dec. 21. 1 20 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony inconceivably cold— it is employment enough to preserve ones nose. The wind is at N W peircingly keen.' Yet the people hardly felt satisfied. The conquest of the wildemess and the passing ofthe St. Lawrence could not be forgotten. A man who called himself a deserter came in, and re ported that Mont gomery's troops numbered some two thousand. Three more 9- pounders from the Lizard-nere: plant ed on the flank of each bastion, and opened their mouths for grape and canister. Carleton began to BREBOEUF passhisuightsusu-allyattheRfecollet monastery, the general rendezvous of the garrison; while a part of the troops lay there in their clothes with their arms beside them, and the rest stood on guard. If thoughts of Wolfe inspired the besiegers, Frontenac, buried in the RecoUet church, Montcalm, sleeping under the chapel of the Ursuline Convent in a grave dug by an exploding shell, and Brebceuf, a silver bust of whom, enshrining his skull, stood in the H&tel Dieu : — these exhorted the garrison. What was more tangible, all steadied their courage by the calm lines A New Foe 121 ofthe Governor's face, and when he declared that he would never grace a rebel triumph, braced themselves for solid blows. Evidently Greek was to meet Greek, whenever the struggle should come." But would it come ? A new foe, more terrible than Fusiliers or Highlanders now attacked the besiegers, pierced their lines, penetrated the camps, and struck them down in their very beds. It was the small-pox, always lurking about Quebec. On the morning of December twentieth, Haskell awoke to find himself and his bed-fellow ' broke out ' ; and, by the next day, the dreadful epidemic was rapidly spreading in the army. But the Americans met even this enemy with a bold front. The sick, as fast as discovered, were taken several miles away ; everything possible was done to prevent contagion, and the ravages of the pestilence — as well as the pleurisy, pneumonia, and other 'very prevalent' diseases — were partially checked.'^ Soon, however, another enemy threatened ruin. There had been serious friction in Arnold's detachment. Captain Hanchet, apparently much offended somewhere on the wildemess march, had twice refused to obey orders after reaching the St. Lawrence, ' and thereby,' said Montgom ery, ' given room for harsh language ' from Arnold, which aggravated the trouble. Two of the other captains ap peared to side with him. Major Brown, full of the old Ticonderoga hostility, co-operated. All of these proposed that a separate corps should be formed of the three com panies, with Brown for its commander ; and on that basis the captains promised to remain after the expiration of their time. Montgomery, however, could not countenance any such insubordination, and the malcontents then showed '25 The British Journals, passim. Carleton: Ainslie, Journal, May i, 1776. Frontenac, etc. : LeMome, Maple Leaves, 1894 ; Parkman, Montcalm, IL, p. 309 ; Id., Jesuits, p. 391. ' ' § Small-pox, etc. : Ainslie, Journal, Dec. 9 ; Haskell, Diary, Dec. 20-22 -„ Senter, Journal, Dec. 23 ; Henry, Joumal, p. 107. 122 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony themselves ' very averse ' to the assault. ' I shall not com pel you, ' said the General ; ' I want no persons with me who go reluctantly ' ; and for a time this new difficulty seemed to bar his way. Dr. Senter offered to lead one of the companies ; but he would be needed, unfortunately, at the Hospital. Finally, however, Montgomery's address rode the wave, and harmony retumed." The Americans were now ' under orders at a moment's warning for an attack , ' and Wednesday evening, the twenty- seventh, which was stormy, seemed the fitting time. About midnight, the expected signal passed through the camps. The men turned out. A sprig of hemlock was placed in the fi-ont of every cap, to distinguish friend fi-om foe. Smith, Hendricks, Topham, and Thayer moved off toward the Plains to help Montgomery assault at Cape Diamond, while the rest of Arnold's force began their march against the Lower Town. But suddenly the sky cleared, and the attempt had to be given up. With the 'most sensible pleasure ' Montgomery saw the good disposition of the troops, he told them ; and ' it was with the greatest reluc- tance he found himself called upon 'C^-i^yxf fvLy e>y^ ^^ ^^^ duty to repress their ardor ' ; but he felt that he would be ' answer able for the loss of those brave men whose lives might be saved by waiting for a more favorable opportunity.' No doubt he felt also that his chance of succeeding would be better in a storm, though by a delay he risked even the chance of trying.'' Then another stroke fell. Sergeant Singleton, and per haps other deserters, carried into Quebec the plan of attack, and soon the movements of the garrison showed that steps ¦¦•§ Smith, Arnold's March, p. 416. Thayer, Joumal, Dec. 2, 7. Montg. to Sch., Dec. 26, 1775: 4 Force, IV., 464. Id. to , Dec. 26, 1775- Dunlap, New Neth., IL, p. 24. Senter, Joumal, Dec. 27. CampbeU to , Mar. 28, 1776: Liv. Papers, 1775-1777, p. 145. 1 5 § Campbell : Note 14. ' Arnold's ' Ord. Book, Dec. 21, 28. Joumals of Thayer, Humphrey, Dearbom, et al., Dec. 27, a8. Awaiting the Command 123 to frustrate it had been taken. ' Masters of our secret,' Montgomery had said. That was the condition of success ; and the Americans were masters of their secret no longer. Well had the General prophesied, ' Fortune often baffles the sanguine expectations of poor mortals. ' His task now was not to make bricks without straw, but bricks without clay. The hand of the New Year was on his latch, and it came to break up his army and scatter the hopes of the Colonies. Anticipating their near release, men had already begun to steal away. ' His situation,' wrote a gentleman of the army afterward, ' not only justified [an attack], but made it a matter of indispensable duty ' ; yet here he stood with not even a plan left him. What barest possibility of success remained ?" Well, the enemy had learned that while a feint would be made upon the Lower Town, the real attack would strike the bastion at Cape Diamond ; and the weight ofthe assault might be shifted from the second to the first. Montgom ery well understood that the Lower Town, instead of being Carleton's weak point, had been specially guarded. Houses bad been torn down, windows planked up, barri cades erected, cannon planted. The road to the Upper Town had been blocked and armed with cannon at every turn ; and, with the paving-stones alone, the garrison could slaughter an army there. At least one life had been lost in brave attempts to reconnoitre these defences, and some thing could certainly be made out from the opposite shore. Thayer, in particular, studied them. Doubtless Mont gomery saw, then, as Wolfe had seen, that the Upper Town could not be conquered from the Lower. But it seemed very likely that, as most of the wealth of Quebec lay be is § Henry, Journal, p. 105. Arnold to Wooster, Dec. 31, 1775: Sparks MSS., No. 52, IL, p. 33. Letter, Feb. 9, 1776 : 4 Force, IV., p. 706. Movements: Toum. Cong., Jan. 24, 1776. Fortune: Montg. to Sch., Dec. 5, 1775 (4 Force, IV., 188). To break up army : see Chap. XXIIL, Note 36 ; also Wash, to Hancock, Feb. 9, 1776: Writings (Ford), IIL, p. 406. Desertion; Macpherson, Order to Langlois, Dec. 30, 1775 (Can. Arch., B, 184, i, p. 19). 124 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony low the bluff, if the Americans could get possession there, Carleton would be forced by the people to surrender in order to prevent the destruction of their property. At all events, a stroke like that would reassure the Canadians, and probably hold the American army together. So Brown's handful of men were ordered to make a lively feint at Cape Diamond bastion, and Colonel Livingston, with his Canadians, to do the same near St. John's Gate. Possibly one or two of the gates could be set on fire. Meanwhile Arnold, with most of his own men and a part of Lamb's artillery, would pass down the St. Charles, round the turn, and assault one end of the Lower Town ; and Montgomerj^ with his Yorkers, would march into the lion's mouth below Cape Diamond, and attack the other end. It was a hard chance, but the onlj- one; and even that hung upon the favor ofthe weathercock." Thursda}', the twenty-eighth, was ' clear & mild '; Fri day, 'Clear, fine weather' ; Saturdaj', the last day of the year but one, ' Fine Weather & clear. ' But the wind blew up the river now. Bj- afternoon it brought clouds, and soon a cold, blustering snow-storm began. At a quarter past four o'clock, when the sun was supposed to be setting, one could hardly see. Favored at last, thought Montgomery. It was the night of all nights to assault Quebec,^ — a night when Fortune could keep a trj'st without fear of detection. Dark ? No ; black, — black as the bore of a loaded rifle. The tempest actuallj^ raged. The ' thick small Snow ' whirled furiously and drifted high. The hail seemed to hiss, as it cut the air. With 1 ' § Guarded : Montg. to Wooster, Dec. i6, 1775 (Sparks :MSS., No. 52, n., p. 60). Defences (more will be shown later): Caldwell, Letter; Thompson in LeMoine, Quebec P. and P., p. 196 ; Alsopp, Petition and T^moignage (Can. Arch., separate) ; Maclean, Certificate (Can. Arch., il, 116, p. 23); Marr, Report, July i, 1778 (Can. Arch., B, 154, p. 6) ; Lindsay, Can. Rev., No. 5, Sept., 1826, p. S9 ; Henry, Joumal, pp. 171, 172. Life :¦' Chalmers ' Joumal, Dec. 24. Thayer, Joumal, Dec. 31. Wolfe to Pitt, Sept. 2, 1759: Can. Arch., Report, 1898, p. 4. Reasons: Henry, Joumal, p. 174 ; Stocking, Journal. Eec. 5; .A.ntiU (Davis, Burr, p. 70) ; Price to Sch., Jan. 5, 1776 (4 Force, TV., 668). For the plan see Note 22. Remark LVIL Men but also Heroes 125 a strange tug at the heart, the Americans realized that their hour had come '" Though heroes, they were men. The beaver blanket on Montgomery's couch told him of the wife whose loving thoughtfulness had sent it ; and, while he waited, his mind paid a little visit at the home for which he sighed. Major Meigs no doubt wrote a short letter to Mrs. Meigs, for that had been rather a constant employment of his lately. Rough Morgan agonized inwardly with his awful fear of death, — an inheritance, perhaps, from a renounced but unescapable ancestry. Macpherson, now only in his twenty-first year, thought of his father's home — ' the most elegant seat in Pennsylvania,' John Adams called it — his grey-haired mother, and his pretty sisters. Ward could not forget the ' dear Girls, ' to whom he had written not long before, and doubtless read once again the letter from ' Debby ' that had made the wildemess campaign with him. And Arnold, however tumultuous, must have had a thought or two of motherless little Benedict at New Haven, teasing Aunt Hannah for something more about papa.'" But, though men, they were heroes also. The General perhaps recalled his father-in-law's parting words, ' Take care of your life ! ' and his own reply, ' Of my honor, you would say. Sir.' Morgan gathered his tremendous powers for the first of his many famous battles. Arnold lived over again the bold and triumphant rush at old Ti conderoga. Thayer meditated on ' Liberty, that Dearest cf names, and property, the best of Charters, [which] gave an additional desire to extirpate the malignant root of Ar bitrary power. ' ' A man that enlists into this service 18 Weather: the Journals, particularly Ainslie's and ' Chalmer's.' i» § Montg. to Mrs. M.. Dec. 5, 1775: L- L. H., Biog. Notes, p. 16. Meigs, Journal, passim. Morgan': So. Lit. Messenger, Sept., 1854, p. 563. Macpher son : LeMoine, Quebec P. and P., p. 208. J. Adams, Works, IL, p. 428. Ward to [sisters] : Sparks MSS., No. 25, p. 52. I. N. Arnold, B. Arnold, p. 47. 126 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony should not be afraid of dying,' reflected Topham. Ward thought of the letter from his noble father : ' You will give me the highest satisfaction by devoting your life, while Heaven graciously continues it, to the pubUc ser vice ' ; and of what he himself had written the dear girls : ' The wise men say that life is a joumey, and seeing we must go through with it, and seeing 'tistheif«(/we ought to look at, why should we be troubled at any perverse acci dents on the wa}-.' Macpherson, who had wished ' the roughs as well as the smooths of a soldiers life, * calmly sealed a letter to his father — ' the last this hand will ever write you' — saying, ' I experience no reluctance in this cause, to venture a life which I consider is only lent to be used when my country demands it. ' And Cheeseman, dressing with more than his usual care, quietly put five pieces of gold into his pocket : ' That,' he said, ' vrill be enough to bury me with decency.'" Soon after midnight, however, it looked like another disappointment ; for the storm showed signs of breaking, FACADE OF CASTLE ST. LOUIS, ERECTED IN 1698 as it had broken on Wednesday night. To and fro across his room at Holland House paced the anxious leader, halting now and then to look from the window ; and finally, despairing of the sword, he caught at the only straw he could see : to make a last demand for surrender, while he still had an ami}- before the walls. ' Let me once more entreat you,' so he worded a letter to the Gover- 20 § Montg. : L. L. H., Biog. Notes, p. 5. Thayer, Joumal, Dec. 30. Top ham, Joumal, Dec. 28. Gammell, Ward, p. 338; Ward to [sistersl: Note 19. Macpherson to Read, Dec. 16, 1775: W. T. Read, G. Read. p. 115- Id. to his ather, Dec. 30, 1775 : Hist. Mag., Jan., 1861, p. 19, and LeMoine, Quebec, P. and P., p. 208. Cheeseman : Letter, Feb. 9, 1776 (4 Force, IV , 706) Quebec is Awakened 127 nor; 'Let me once more entreat you to have compassion on the unfortunate Inhabitants of Quebec. . . . Embrace the opportunity I offer ycu of retiring in a manner suitable to ycur rank — you shall not be a Prisoner— You shall have a safe Conduct to New .York or wheresoever else you may chuse — the Lieutenant Governor shall have the same Indul gence. I engage in the most solemn manner for the security ofthe Lives and Properties of the Citizens, our dispute is not vrith them — we bear them no mahce. . . .' But the storm grew furious again, and the letter was never sent." About half-past four or five o'clock in the morning, Mal colm Fraser, Captain ofthe Main Guard in Quebec, rushed down St. Louis Street, crying like atocsin: 'Turnout! tum out ! tum out ! ' and the city awoke with a start and a cry. Two rockets had gone up from the foot of Cape Diamond bastion ; firing had begun there ; men were seen creeping toward the walls. Out rang the great bell ofthe cathedral. One by one, but all quickly, the other bells took up the tale. The bells ofthe Jesuit college and the Recollet monastery pealed and clamored. The gen tle prayer-bell of the Ursulines joined in the turmoil, while the sisters fell on their knees in the dark chambers. The nuns of the H6tei Dieu, praying in the vaults, felt the jar and heard the dull clang of their own bell swing ing furiously ; and far awaj% in the Lower Town, Our Lady of Victory re-echoed the cry for help.''^ 2 1 § Senter, Joumal, Dec. 31. Montg. to Carleton : see Remark LVIIL 2 2 § Principal sources ofthe account ofthe assault (when the place where the source may be found is not indicated below, see the name in the List of Sources at the end of Vol. I.) : The Ainerican Journals of Dearborn, Haskell, Henry, Humphrey, Meigs, Melvin, Morison (Penna. Mag., 1890, p. 435), Nichols, Porterfield, ' Provincials,' Senter, Stocking, Thayer, Tolman, and "ropham (see Remark XXXI.); the recollections of Fobes and Nichols ; Heath's Journal, re flected in Marshall's Life of Washington ; Morgan's autobiog. (Hist. Mag., June, 1871, p. 379); Arnold's letters of Dec. 31, 1775 (Sparks MSS., No. 52, IL, p. 33), Jan. 2 (4 Force, IV. ,670), Jan. 6 (ib., 589). and Jan. 14, 1776 (ib., 674); Camp bell's letters of Dec. 31, 1775 (lb., 480), and Mar. 28, 1776 (Liv. Papers, 1775-1777, p. 145), and statement (Lib. Cong., U. S. Rev. MSS., VIL); J. Liv. to cousin, Jan. 25, 1819 (Bancroft Coll., separate); Ritzema's Joumal and letter of Jan. 3, 1776 (4 Force, IV., 1113); anonymous letters, 4 Force, IV., 582, 705, 706, 707 ; letter from Montreal, Jan. 8, 1776, in Tryon'sof Feb. 8, 1776 (Pub. Rec. Off., Am. and W. I., Vol. 186, p. 309); Wooster to Warner, Jan. 6, 1776 (ib., p. 313); Account 1 28 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony The dogs barked madly. Cannon began to thunder. A storm of shells came in from the American mortars in St. Roch, and the city walls quivered with the retort. Fire balls flared and sputtered at the angles of the bastions. Drums beat wildly up and down the streets in the dim glow of lanterns and the smoky flare of torches. Officers roared their orders. Citizens rushed hither and thither to their posts. Boys and old men of seventy shouldered guns. Squads of sailors, artisans, and Emigrants, in green coats faced with scarlet; squads ofthe Fusiliers, in red with facings of blue ; squads of miiitia, in green coats, buff breeches, and buff waistcoats, met, stared threateningly atone another in the dim light, and then hurried on." Children woke up and held their breath, too firightened to cry. Even at the General Hospital, the nuns were sure that a ' fatal' hour had come, for the town blazed. pub. by Cont. Cong. (Joumal, Jan. 24, 1776; 4 Force, IV., 1651); the British. Canadian Joumals (see Remark XLV.); Carleton to Howe, Jan. 12. 1776 (Pub- Rec. Oflf, Colon. Corres., Quebec, 12, p. 23); CaldweU, Letter ; Maclean's letters. May 21 (Can. Arch., M, 317, p. 330), and 25 ^Can, Arch., Q, 12, p. 69), 1776; Sanguinet and Badeaux in Verreau, Invasion pp. 118, 182 ; Lindsay's account (Can. Rev., No. 5, Sept., 1826, p. 89); Bamfair'sletter (Middlesex Joumal, June 22, 1776, reprinted in Hist. Mag., Oct., 1869); British retum of prisoners (Can. Arch., Q, 12. p. 37); American lists of prisoners in Joumals of 'Ware' (i.e. Tolman) and Nichols ; Mgr. de St. Vallier, Part n., Chap. IV.; Ursul. de- Qu6bec, IIL, pp. 131, 132, 733 ; MS. Records of H6tel Dieu ; Anburey, Travels, I., pp. 58-62 ; Silliman, Tour, pp. 308-317 ; Mass. Hist. Soc. CoU., I. (1792), p. Ill ; Thompson in Anderson, Siege and Blockade, p. 63. "The narratives to be found in the newspapers ofthe day seem to have been based upon one or more of the sources mentioned above (e. g., N. Y. Packet, Feb. i, 1776 ; Conn. Gazette, Feb. 2 and Mar. 15, 1776 ; Essex Joumal, Feb. 9, 1776 ^ N, H. Packet, Feb. 9, 1776). Graham had special information to use in -writing his Life 01 Morgan. A few other items might be mentioned, but they add nothing signif icant. Several more or less careful accounts have been compiled (e. g., Cullum, Sketch ; Dawson, Battles; Amold, Amold ; LeiNIoine, Quebec P. and P.; Gameau, Canada ; Anderson, Siege and Blockade) ; but none of them has been based upon a complete study ofthe sources. The author has careflilly and re peatedly inspected the ground, gleaned information firom local antiquarians, and made use of all the available maps and vie-ws of that period (e. g., Marr, MS. Plan of Quebec ; Bartlett and Welford, Atlas of BatUes ; Faden, Quebec, 1776; Habermann, Lower Quebec; Holland, Plan; Leizelt, Upper Quebec, 1765 ; Sayer and Bennett's maps ; Smyth, Quebec [1759]; Duberger, Model, about 1800). All the accessible works relating to Quebec archaeology have been studied, particularly Doughty's and LeMoine's ; and both these gentle men have kindly given additional information. For the author's method oi using the sources, see Remark LIX. 2 3 Lindsay, Can. Rev., No. 5, Sept., 1826, p. 89; London letter in Conn. Gazette, Oct. 27, 1775 ; Ainslie. Ord. Book, Nov. 24. 1775. Apparently Carleton changed the uniform of Maclean's corps to secure ' Consistence ' (p. 97). The evidence about the uniforms at this time is not entirely satisfactory. A Wild Night 129 and the thunder of its cannon shook their stone walls ; and in fear and trembling they knelt for the Communion. So fiercely blew the gale, that only three miles to one side nothing could be heard, though much was seen ; but a frightful din, whirling and writhing in the tempest, swept far up the St. Lawrence. The city was one ring of fire, one crater of tumult ; yet intelligence controlled the uproar, and, in the midst of it all, Governor Carleton, calm. A SKETCH PLAN (APPROXIMATELY CORRECT) OF THE LOWER BARRICADES alert, fearless, passed down the steps of the Castle, and walked across to the Recollet monastery, the place of assembling. For a time the firing raged all along the bastions and beyond the polygon above Charles River ; but in a little while the attack seemed to be dying out. An attempt to burn Palace Gate came to nothing, and the similar attempt at St. John' s Gate flashed in the pan . Livingston' s Cana dians were soon scampering for shelter. Brown's men kept up a rattling fire below Cape Diamond bastion, but made no serious move toward assault. "What did it mean ? The answer came from some frightened school-boys, rush ing up from the Lower Town, and shouting at the top of 130 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony their voices that Americans had got in there. What ? Yes, had got in, they insisted. Carleton sent Maclean to investigate. He was soon back. ' By God, sir, it 's true ! They 're there,' he burst out." Two-o'clock-in-the-morning courage is rare, says a high authority ; but at two o'clock the Americans had paraded. Arnold's men gathered in St. Roch, and, when the signal- rockets went up, they set out on a run along the fringe of shore below the bluff to reach their point of attack. In all, there were probably about six hundred, including a few Canadians and Indians.''" No ' cannon fever' raged among them. Every man had freely volunteered for the assault, and every heart beat full and high. First came Arnold with Captain Oswald and the forlorn hope of twenty-five or thirty. Lamb, with a brass 6-pounder on a sled, went next ; and Morgan, leading the van of the main body, followed. For a space, the bluff sheltered them. Holding their heads low against the storm, and covering the locks of their guns with handkerchiefs or the edges of their coats, the men dashed forward in Indian file ; and the forlorn hope, a hundred j-ards or so in advance, pushed swiftly on — silent and unperceived, like a rapier- thrust in the dark — to their striking-point. Not so fared the main body. Palace Gate once passed, they found that the sailors posted along the top of the bluff knew what was going on. Down spurted a thousand red messages of flame, ' a dreadful fire, ' as a Quebecker testified. Many of the shots flew wild ; but the marksmen knew the ground, the waj' was narrow, and the life-or- death race was a good third of a mile long. ' Met the wounded men very thick,' said Dearborn. Brave Hubbard was one of these. Leading his com- " Remark LX. 2s Remark LXL A Bold Rush 131 pany on, he stopped suddenly, death-struck, and leaned against a building. 'Are you wounded. Captain? ' asked one of his men. ' Yes ; march on, march on ! ' he gasped. An orderly sergeant was shot down at Fobes' s side. ' I 'm a dead man,' he groaned ; ' I wish you would turn me over,' for he lay face-up. Fobes did so much for him, and then hurried on. Let the dead bury the dead, had been the strict order: other work for the living ; and not a few gallant fellows, dropping under the shock of a severe but not mortal wound, struggled in the snow till exhausted, then grew numb, and at last froze. Before long the cannon had to be abandoned : it could not be dragged fast enough through the drifts; but Lamb and Morgan pressed their men on after Arnold without delay. At last these advanced parties entered a very narrow street, and quite soon — just before reaching the point of the bluff — came to something squarely across the way: it was the close barricade, with two 12-pounders full of grape-shot behind it, that had been observed — and, so far as possible, studied— from a distance. The plan had been to open here right and left,let the can non on the sled fire once or twice, then charge, and shoot through the portholes; and Morgan was to make a circuiton the ice, meanwhile, and attack in the rear. But nothing could be done as proposed, and hard fighting was the only choice. As well as possible the few troops were formed. ' Now, lads, all together ! Rush ! ' cried Arnold, or some thing like it : nobody could remember afterward just what it was ; and in a moment the men were up to the barricade, and shooting into the portholes. One cannon had been fired, but the charge did little harm ; the priming of the other flashed. So far Arnold had marched in the front ; but his time 132 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony had come, and a stray bullet, splintered on a rock, a gun or a stone house, cut its way through his left leg. For a while he stood leaning on his musket, heartening thetroops; but pain and the loss of blood finalh- drove him back. For some distance, aided by two men, he hobbled along, crying : ' Rush on, brave boys, rush on ! ' But, before SAULT AU MATELOT PRECIPICE IN 1902 The Americans passed through this street (La Canoterie or Dog Lane) Palace Gate was reached, he' could only drag the wounded limb after him, and the rest of the distance to the Hos pital he was carried. The voice of the soldiers then called on Morgan to lead The First Barrier is Carried 133 them, and Greene — since Morgan knew something of war — cordially assented. The cannon were silent now, yet the barrier had still to be taken. High and forbidding it stood, with muskets and bayonets behind; but a ladder was set up, and Morgan mounted it. ' Now, boys, follow me ! ' he cried ; ' Follow me ! ' His head rose above the barrier. That was the signal, and at once a great blaze poured over from beyond. Bluff, barricade, houses, — all were visible at last. For a mo ment, the American leader was wrapped in flame. The next instant he dropped sheer to the snow, and there, like a scorched rag, — there he lay. But soon the rag stirred. Another second, and Morgan was on the ladder again, going up. One bullet had cut his whiskers ; one had gone through his cap ; the burning grains of powder had shot deep into his face ; the shock had stunned him ; but he was alive and unwounded. Stooping low as he climbed up, he straightened quickly at the top of the ladder, and gave a bound. How his men cheered ! Over he went, fell on the muzzle of a cannon — bruising his knee — and rolled beneath it. For an instant the bayonets could not reach him ; and now the rest were over, Porterfield ahead, and the guard were flying. Into a house they rushed ; and while the rifle men, after sending plenty of bullets to keep them com pany, charged with pikes, Morgan himself dashed round the corner, and found them escaping the back ^yay. ' Down with your arms, if you want quarter ! ' he shouted ; and they all surrendered. The outer door of the Lower Town was now open. Farther up the street, a guard of citizens and school boys met the invasion, and astonished enough they were. These men, dressed like British soldiers, offering hands instead of bayonets, joyously shouting ' Liberty forever ! ' or ' Vive la liberti!' instead of battle-field curses, — these 134 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony men acted like brothers, not enemies : yet no doubt they were Americans, for every cap had on the front of it a piece of white paper inscribed, ' Libert}- or Death ! ' the Yankee war-crj-. Some ofthe Quebeckers got away, and some tried to resist ; but the captain at least, while he pretended to be drunk, seemed far from hostile. Had the fraternization, firom which Montgomerj- hoped so much, begun ? It looked that waj- ; and people came from beyond in squads to give themselves up. Just ahead, rose the precipice of Sailor's Leap {Sault au Matelot), the very point of the Upper Town ; and, on the farther side of it, some two or three hundred j-ards from the first barrier, stood a second. Beyond that were can non — the flashes of the mus kets dimly revealed them — cannon on a high platform, that could fire over the bar rier, and fire down. What should be done ? Long after it was all over, one could saj-. The barrier gate was open. Morgan pass ed through it with an inter preter, and scrambled up to the defences on the edge of the bluff, near where Carleton had posted himself The garrison were doing nothing : they seemed paralyzed. Indeed, that they were. A panic had strack the people, when they heard that the enemy had taken the barrier ; and the dipping balance of destiny paused. So Major Caldwell wrote General Murray ; and he added that, had the Americans pushed on, they might have won the whole of the Lower Town and let Montgomery in at the other side. The prize for which they had suffered every- DANIEL MORGAN A Splendid Opportunity 135 thing and risked everything lay once more at their feet! To push on was precisely what Morgan urged ; but the ' hard reasoning ' of his ofBcers, as he said afterward, beat him out of it. Only a small part of the troops had yet come up, and the prisoners outnumbered them ; would it be safe to go on, leaving these a chance to recapture the battery and cut the line of retreat? It was pitch-dark and storming furiously still ; the guides had been killed or disabled ; nobody understood the alleys or the de fences ; the troops might easily get lost. Besides, this was the place, they said, where they had been ordered to wait for Montgomery ; and in a few minutes he would no doubt arrive. The best plan — was it not? — was to obey orders, wait for more men, and not hazard everything by rashness. More men, however, did not come at once. Indeed, the rest of the division seemed very slow ; and very slow they were, in fact. Snow five or six feet deep much of the way ; drifts piled higher still ; a path filled as soon as made ; a gale that swept their breath away ; cold that stiffened them ; no light but musket flashes ; no street at all until they neared the barricade ; storehouses, docks, and boats blocking the way ; hawsers, that moored vessels to the shore, catching men under the chin, and snapping them down fifteen feet into some hole ; all the loose odds and ends of such a place — lumber, broken anchors, rotting spars, discarded chains — tripping them up ; cakes of ice wedged into the open spaces ; the abandoned sled and cannon plugging the narrow way ; a maze without a clue ; no guides ; a plunging' fire that could not be an- sv/ered, — these were not things to render marching easy. A few had been lucky enough to slip through them, but the greater number had not. 136 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony StiU, reinforcements arrived. Hendricks, placed in the rear, found an opening by chance, and hurried to the firont. Greene, Meigs, and Bigelow came up with troops, cheering, and got a cheer back. Here and there a single oflScer or man worked his way forward. Little by little a considerable force gathered; and finally, as day began to appear, the men called loudly on Morgan to head an attack. They were hastily and roughly formed, and then, seizing the ladders, they dashed round the point. But things were very different there now. The panic had yielded to authority. Maclean's concise report had been made. Troops had gathered. Caldwell had come down with reinforcements, and able oflScers had come with him. Lieutenant Anderson was already sallying from the barrier to attack the Americans. ' Surrender ! ' he cried to Morgan. Morgan snatched a rifle and re plied. Anderson fell with a bullet in his brain, but his party managed to drag him within and shut the gate. For a moment firatemizing was tried again, and the men behind the barrier heard the Americans call a number of citizens by name. ' Are you there, my fiiend ? ' a pleasant voice would ask. They quaked in fear of treachery, and the Canadians in particular shrank firom the barricade ; but their only reply was bullets and grape-shot. Then the fighting began in earnest, and soon every American, however firatemal before, was battle-mad. Weariness disappeared. The passion of slaughter set in. Throats got sandy, and eyes blood-red. Some prayed, some cursed, some laughed, some cheered ; all fought. No ; not all. Most of the guns proved useless, for snow had got into the priming, and the heat of hand or body melted it there. Hardly one in ten would fire. Some of the troops took the captured muskets, but there were not enough of them. Yet something could be done. A mound was built jf^ - THE BLUFF OF THE ST LAWRENCE JUST ABOVE QUEBEC (1903) Wolfe's Co^t just hidden b\ the neir bhiff. is where the shore turns toward the lett. At the e-\tremity of the shore in that direction may be seen Pointe P-zeau. On the ri^ht, above the bluff, are the Plains and (nearer the city) the Heights of Abraham. In the foreground is the slope of Cape Diamond. Thc Americans under lIontgomer>' approached Quebec by marching along the foot of the bluff where the road now passes. Desperate Efforts 139 against the barricade. Ladders were set up, and one of them was fixed on the inside to go down by. A rush was made. Spear in hand, Morgan climbed one ladder and Porterfield another. Humphreys, Lamb, Greene, Meigs, Nichols, Heath, and many more faced the bullets and grape-shot as they did the snow-flakes. But it was all too late. The houses beyond the barrier had been filled with soldiers and sailors, and their muskets blazed incessantly from the upper windows. Across the street waited a double line of the Fusiliers with fixed bayonets. To try going down the ladder inside or making the drop of twelve feet, in the face of so many bullets and bayo nets, was mere suicide. Here died most of the Americans killed that morning. The space was narrow ; the enemy's fire converged ; even the random shot found a target. Intrepid Humphreys fell, with one bullet in the body and another in the head ; Cooper and Thomas fell ; Tisdale got a ball in the shoulder ; Topham was wounded ; Steele had two fingers shot off while taking aim ; Taylor was hit ; the left side of Lamb's face was torn away. Not long after, the be loved Hendricks, whose courage and animation made him seem to his men ' all Soul,' received a ball near the heart, staggered back a few paces, fell, and was dead. Every ofl&cer's clothing was cut more than once. Ofthe sheltered enemy, few could be reached. Yet the Americans would not give up. They dared their foes to sally and fight in the open. 'Our rifles are for sale cheap, come out and try them! ' they cried. They emptied their guns — those who could — at the win dows. They tried to outflank the barricade, though only to find that it reached from bluff to river. Time and again the ladders were mounted. This thing and that were attempted, but always in vain. They listened, then, for the merry music ofthe Yorkers' muskets. All at once 140 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony a brisk firing broke out in a new quarter. Cheers greeted it. ' Montgomery ! ' they shouted ; ' Quebec is ours ! ' Thicker and thicker grew the enemy, however ; and fighting in the open against men protected seemed a losing game. Better take shelter from tempest and bullets in the houses, it was thought, and let the rifiemen try con clusions firom the windows. Friends might come ; and anyhow, lives would be saved. Morgan was not of that opinion. His grand figure towered, his wonderful eyes blazed, he gnawed his lip, his terrible voice cut through the uproar." But the weary men panted for a breathing space ; so the houses were occupied, and many went back as far as the other barrier. Then Morgan ordered those around him to take shelter, and the battle was continued by firing from the windows. But in every heart rose a question like the cry of a drowning man : The General, where is he ? Montgomery had decided to stimulate his men by lead ing them in person ; and, with a corps of nearly three hun dred, he set out betimes for his long circuit. From his quarters, it was about a mile to Wolfe's Cove, and then some two miles to the defences of the Lower Town at Pres de 'Ville or the Potash. The first part of the joumey was hard, the second fright ful. Here the men had to march into the very teeth of the storm, and it was impossible to face the horizontal sweep of snow and hail with an open eye. Stumbling along in single file, with a precipice above and a steep bank below, they fought a battle every furlong of the way. The deeper the path grew, as the line moved along, the worse it became, for the slumping of the men filled it with holes, and nobody could tell where his foot was going when he set it down. Blocks of ice piled up by the tide 2' So, I,it. Messenger, Sept., 1854, p. 563 ; Henry, Joumal, p. iii. Montgomery Leads On 141 often barred the way. Not once, but repeatedly, the men could pass round some obstacle only by scaling the slope on their left for fifteen or twenty feet; and then, to get back safely to the route, they had to sit down, with the skirts of their coats under them, and slide, — thankful enough if they did not slide too far. One oflficer got a fall that it was feared he would never recover from "; and no doubt others fared the same. Those who carried the ladders had to move so slowly that all behind them were checked, and there came to be long gaps here and there. Fvery one felt chilled and tired. Just about the time when night has been said to be darkest, the head of the line reached a strong, close pali sade fifteen or twenty feet high. This the carpenters at tacked with saws ; but, before their work was completed, Montgomery impatiently crowded the posts away from the rock and entered. There was a blockhouse on the Cape above, but not a shot came down." Fortune again. About a hundred yards farther, but not yet quite at the point of the Cape, stood another palisade. This also was cut through, and still there was no alarm. Montgomery stepped within. Macpherson, his aide, and Cheeseman, captain ofthe first company, with a group of others — Burr among them — attended him. The rest were slow to come up, and Montgomery sent back to hurry them on. Soon, but not soon enough, a party of fifty or sixty^ — possibly more— were at hand ; and the leaders, quietly advancing round the point of Cape Diamond, entered a sort of road some twenty-four feet wide." Just ahead, in the middle of the narrow pass, the form of a building seemed to shape itself dimlj^ in the dark ness and whirling snow. A blockhouse ? No ; only a 2' Wooster to Cong., Mar. 6, 1776 , 4 Force, v., 511. 2» Remark LXII. 29 Anburey, Travels, I., p. 58. 142 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony dwelling, Simon Fra.ser's house'"; but four small cannon had been mounted in it ; the walls had been loopholed for muskets ; a small detachment of Canadians was on guard there ; and a squad of sailors under Adam Barn- fair — a small Jack Falstaff afloat, the master of the Fell before she was taken by the govemment — had charge of the guns. Or rather, should have had. Entombed un der the Cape and buried by the storm, what could there be for them to dread ? Only melancholy ; and so all had been drinking. Before they dreamed of an enemy, he was upon them ; and, overwhelmed with panic, they fled. But the Americans were a little slow, and Barnfair had not wits enough to be wholly a coward. At the bottom of his muddy intelligence lurked a grain of the mastiff. With a curse, he vowed he would not go without firing a gun first, and tumed back. Possibl}'' others turned back with him. Montgomerj' was peering keenly through the storm at that instant. Tnere seemed to be portholes in the house, and a faint glimmer of light. Was it the slow match ofa gun ? He could not be sure. Indeed, it made no difference. What worried him was the tardiness of his men. Many or few, however, he could wait no longer. Drawing his sword and tossing the scabbard away, he cried to those at his back : ' Come on, my good soldiers ! Your general calls. Come on ! ' And, with a spring, the head of the column rushed forward at the double quick. Only a few paces ahead lay victory, Quebec, Canada. But at that moment came a blaze, a roar, a fierce rush of air ; and, the next instant, dark forms were toppling over into the snow. One lay motionless : it was knightly Macpherson. Another rose, staggered on, plunged, and fell : that was Cheeseman, with the gold for burial ready 3 ° § T^moignage in support of Alsopp's petition of Sept. 3, 1790 : Can. Arch. (separate). Fraser rentetl the house from Alsopp. The Grand Crisis 143 in his purse. Another lay quietly on his back, then painfully drew up his knees, raised a forearm and hand, as if calling Heaven to witness, and then, like the others, lay quite still : that was Montgomery. A few more could be seen near them. Some limped back or crawled back with cries and groans. The column halted. Oh, for another Montgomery or another Morgan now ! No doubt the loss of the three leaders is disheartening ; but soldiers expect to die. No doubt the muskets are too damp to shoot ; but spears and bayonets can still prick, and perhaps the way is clear. If the attack was worth making, it is worth following up ; and there is vengeance to take, besides. But Campbell, who assumes command, is fonder of swearing at the enemy than fighting him . An unsafe place, this : better get out of it. He confabulates in stead of charging, and pre sently he orders a retreat. The column hurries away. The British cannon speak again, at their leisure, aud then hold their peace. There is no pur suit, and soon there are none to be pursued; and the dead rest alone in their failure and their glory. This was why Morgan's men did not hear Montgomery coming. Gradually it dawned upon them that something was not right, else how could so many of Carleton's troops be spared to fight their division ? Every moment their case grew harder. A barricade, cannon, windows full of muskets, a street full of bayonets, a bluff edged with fire, and the whole force of the garrison were now focused WHERE MONTGOMERY FELL 144 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony upon them. Fatigue, the loss of their leader, the heaps of dead and wounded, the peril, darkness, cold, and un certainty had exhausted the strength of many and chilled the ardor of some ; but those who could fight still fought stubbornly on firom the windows. And now Fortune made another of her dark proffers. A stone house formed a part of the barrier. But it was more than a house ; it was a castle, and the castle a key stone. The door, which stood under the eaves, opened into the narrow street held by the Americans ; but the end had a gable window looking down on the British side of the barrier, and two or three of the unerring rifle men, posted there, while others loaded for them, could do blithe execution among the enemy. Perhaps, after all, the barrier might be won. The Americans could not see the chance, but at least they could feel their way to it ; and already they occupied the first floor." But Caldwell's men had a full view ofthe window, and perceived the danger. A sailor tore away the ladder fixed by the Americans on the inside of the barrier, and it was planted against the gable. Brave Dambourges and valiant Naime rushed up and threw themselves into the dark ness ; a party followed ; their bayonets were quickly ply ing the astonished Provincials ; and, after a dreadful conflict, they cleared the place. Then Caldwell got an other cannon — a g-pounder — tumed upon the Americans, and the houses could no longer protect them. Victory was out of the question now; yet some, believing still that Montgomery might come and need them, favored holding on at any cost until night. Retreat, however, seemed the wisest course, and to this a council of the officers finally brought themselves. But Carleton's eye had been watching ; and, when the 3 1 Remark I,XIII. Carleton's Fatal Strategy 145 time arrived, he sent Laws out of Palace Gate, with a choice party and some cannon, to attack in the rear. Laws was supported by Macdougal, Macdougal by Fraser, and Fraser by Hamilton, — five hundred men in all. This was something Arnold's men had not counted upon, for they believed that a sortie during an assault was almost unheard of. Montgomery must have seen the danger ; but he planned to keep the enemy busy in the Lower Town, and the Potash, had it been won, could not have been outflanked ; besides, no reserves, to prevent a sortie from Palace Gate, could possibly be spared. Rushing on, all zeal and courage, Laws burst into the midst of the American rear. ' You are all my prisoners ! ' he cried, with drawn sword. ' How your prisoners ? You are ours,' they answered. ' No, no, my dear creatures ; I vow to God you are all mine ; don't mistake yourselves.' ' But where are your men ? ' And then Laws noticed that he was alone : nobody had been able to keep pace with him. But he knew they were coming. ' Oh ho, ' he replied, ' make yourselves easy about that matter ; they 're all about here ; they '11 be with you in a twinkling. ' A good many twinklings passed, however ; and, as they did not appear, some of the Americans were for sacrificing this enemy who refused to surrender. But Meigs" prevented that, and before long the British troops, aided by the prisoners they released, were masters of the post. Morgan proposed to cut a way out, and many would have joined him ; but some preferred to wait for Mont- 3 2 That this was done by Meigs is apparently proved : see Meigs, Joumal, Dec. 31 ; Haskell, Diary, Jan. 25 ; Wash, to French, Aug. 8, 1776 (5 Foree, I., 853). VOL. H.— 10. 146 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony gomery, and others realized there was positively no hope. Nearly one in five of the Americans — perhaps more than one in five — had been killed or wounded, " and almost all the rest were utterly exhausted. With cannon before and behind them, and musketry fire from the rear, the front, and the flank, they found themselves, as Carleton said, 'compleat- J^^fi^.^^^y'^^^-^^^''^^f^ ' c^a^g^ht'aVit ^y were in a Trap' ; and at last, about nine or ten o'clock, on the promise of 'good quarters & Tender usage,' they began to give up their arms." Morgan, however, choked at the thought of surrender, and burst into tears of .rage. His back to a wall, he defied the host of enemies. Upon that, they furiously demanded his sword. ' Come and take it, if you dare ! ' he thundered. Then they threatened to shoot him. ' Shoot, if you will ! ' But his men begged him not to throw his life away ; and at length, catching sight of a person in clerical dress, he asked : ' Are you a priest ? ' 'Iam.' ' Then I give my sword to you. No scoundrel of those cowards shall take it out of my hands. ' " And so the battle ended. ' A complete failure,' says Trevelyan.'" No doubt ; but that is not the wonder. 33 Remark LXIV. 3 -i For a discussion of the chief hard questions, see Rbmark LXV. The author has considered many others with equal care, but does not regard them as entitled to a place here. into a som 3 5 From Graham, Morgan, p. 103 (derived from Dr. Hill), thrown i: lewhat more direct form by the present author. 3 'American Revolution, Part I., p. 381. The Fight Ends 147 The wonder is that creatures of flesh and blood dared venture into such death-traps ; and but for the narrowest of chances — not once but repeatedly — the ' failure ' would have been a splendid and famous victory. But the facts were facts ; and the last sun of fateful 1775, the avant-courier of glorious '76, bade good-night at Quebec to a doleful scene : Montgomery dead ; Arnold a cripple nailed to his bed ; Morgan and Lamb, with almost the whole artillery company and Kennebec division, fast in prison. The army, already small, was now a shred ; and there it lay, buried in the drifting snows of a Cana dian winter, beaten and broken-backed, its friends far away and the enemy close at hand, mutely asking in a half-conscious way what the fate of it was to be. xxv TO THE RESCUE! SOME thought the war in Canada neared its end like the year, that last day of December ; but in real ity it was only beginning. The close of 1775 was the opening of 1 776. The breadth of the struggle was soon to be extended, its energy deepened. Philadelphia on the one side and London on the other were to throw their full power into the contest, and Canada was to feel the weight of armies instead of battalions. A look at the American lines before Quebec just then was almost enough, however, to break the heart of a patriot. All day the gloomy storm continued, and it answered well to the feelings of the troops. The defeat and death of Montgomery were soon reported. Almost equally depressing was the uncertainty about Arnold's division, for the line of communication with it had been broken. ' They will either carry the lower town, be made prisoners, or [be] cut to pieces,' was all their leader himself could say. At the General Hospital, stretched on piles of straw reddened with their blood, the wounded men were raising their hands to heaven and moaning piteously, ' Montgomery is dead ! Montgomery is dead ! ' Touched with compassion the Mother Superior sent them coverlets and linen for bandages ; and the nuns, though relieved that an enemy had failed, went about repeating sympathetically, ' Poor Montgomery is dead ! ' but the hurt of the soldiers lay too deep for bandages or even for 148 A Gloomy Prospect 149 sympathy. The split bullet that disabled Arnold had struck his leg midway between ankle and knee, passed down between the bones and lodged above the heel. It was a most painful wound ; and he lay on his bed pallid from v/eakness and acute suffering, with the gout coming on, and an amputation — if nothing worse — threatening. 'Oh Liberty!' 'Oh Virtue!' 'Oh my country!' the dejected troops were groaning ; and it was cursing Camp bell, whose theory of war was to avoid risks, that had command. Should the enemy come, unconditional sur render, of course.' And he came. Round a comer in St. Roch appeared a column shouting, ' D the dogs, we '11 take them all.' But Captain Wool had gathered some stragglers, invalids, and seven or eight of Lamb's artillery company, and awaited them with a brass 6-pounder. ' You lie ; take that ! ' he cried, returning their epithet with a charge of grape. By good fortune. Major Duboys with Clinton's regiment and Livingston with his Canadians were just marching down to take the place of Arnold's detachment at the General Hospital, and the British imagined they were coming to charge ; so the column retreated round the cor ner and went back to Quebec, merely capturing the advanced post in St. Roch, the five little mortars, and a pair of 3-pounders.' The Americans, knowing that — as Livingston admitted — the garrison had it in their power to ' cut off' their annoying visitors altogether, expected a return in greater ' § Haskell, Diary, Dec. 31 ; Ainslie, Joumal, Jan. i : Senter, Journal, Dec. 31 ; etc. Arnold to Wooster, Dec. 31, 1775 : Sparks MSS., No. 52, II., p. 33. Mgr. de St Vallier, Part II. , Chap. IV., p. 413. Gasp6, M«m., p. 38. Arnold's letters, Jan. 2, 4,6, 1776 : 4 Force, IV., 670, 854, sSg. Amold to Cong., Jan. 11, 1776: Sparks MSS., No. 52, II., p. 34. ' Arnold's ' Ord. Book. Jan. i. ^ § Senter, Joumal, Dec. 31. Campbell to , Mar., 1776 : Liv. Papers, 1775-1777, p. 145. Carleton to Howe, Jan. 12, 1776: Pub. Rec. Off,, Colon. Corres., Quebec, 12, p. 23. Caldwell, Letter. Ainslie, Journal, Dec. 31. ' Chalmers ' Joumal, Dec. 31. 150 ARNOLD'S WOUND (EXTRACT FROM DR. SENTER'S JOURNAL) The Americans Stand Firm 151 force, and the surgeons ' entreated ' Amold to be carried out of reach. To no purpose, however, recorded Doctor Senter ; for ' he would neither be removed, nor suffer a man from the Hospital to retreat. ' ' Bring my sword ! ' he cried ; ' Load my pistols, and lay them on my bed ! I will kill as many as I can of them, if they come into the room.' Everybody turned soldier ; beside each pallet of straw was laid a musket ; the Hospital was to be stubbornly defended. But the red column did not come back. Peo ple were singing in Quebec about the ' blacksmiths, tan ners, shoemakers, skillful tailors and clever wig-makers ' outside, and boasting that Arnold knew how to play the horse-jockey better than to frighten them, — quite as the Russians might have shouted at Ziirich that Massena's father sold wine, and before Friedland that Ney's made barrels ; but apparently they preferred to do their singing and boasting out of reach. Eighteen hundred men in arms, led by a British major-general and officered by veterans trained in British victories, seemed willing to be imprisoned by a mere handful of Colonial volunteers. Perhaps they would change their minds, but at all events there was time to breathe.^ New Year's Day poor Montgomery entered Quebec at last; but it was on a sled. A bloody fur cap with his initials in the top had suggested that the American leader was no more, and one of the prisoners identified his body. Pierced in the head, groin, and thigh, the harassed chief tain now gained the victory of repose ; but he found it only in frozen ground, attended by the smoky glare of a few torches and lanterns. Those about his coffin rejoiced, however soberly, instead of weeping; and of all who ' § J. Liv. to [Feb . 1776]: Am. Hist. Rec, III., p. i8j. Senter, Journal, Dec. 31. Arnold^to , Jan. e, 1776: 4 Force, IV., 58c). Song (in French): Canadiana, I. , p. 189. 152 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony loved him only one poor creature — a beautiful spaniel — discovered his grave and mourned there.* Less fortunate than he, as it almost seemed, those of his followers who Hved and were free, now thought anx iously of the future. The uncertainty regarding Arnold's men grew less and less hopeful. Duncan, one of the ' volunteers ' that had marched through the wildemess, offered to go and find ont what had become of them ; he went but did not retum. Overwhelmed by the disaster, more than a hundred soldiers insisted that their time was out and hurried off up the river, to enlist for the easier service at Montreal or perhaps to make their way home ; while others followed their diminishing figures with longing and irresolute eyes, and were soon to follow them with legs as well. The whole American force, including invalids and men detached 'on command,' amounted to about six hundred, besides the timorous Canadians. The magazine contained no lead and but few bullets or buck- shot, the storehouse not pork enough to last a week, and the treasury hardly four or five hundred pounds. Medicine as well as food was lacking. Arnold and his troops felt a deep grievance against the Yorkers, for they beUeved that, if Montgomery's men had pressed on, there wouldhave been a triumph, instead of an overthrow. THE HOUSE TO WHICH MONT GOMERY'S BOQY WAS ' For Montg. 's Burial, etc., see Remark LXVI. Weakness of the Americans 153 Naturally this imputation was resented, with bitter gibes at the airs of superiority put on by the ' Yankeys ' ; and the fact that Campbell, who had ordered the retreat, was the one person to profit by the disaster, threatened to drive this wedge very hard and fast through the woe begone army.' But the partial eclipse of courage and resolution soon ended. Meigs, who came out on parole the next day to get the prisoners' effects, cleared up all uncertainty about Arnold's division, but at the same time — so it went about the camp — declared that Carleton himself did not believe he could hold out much longer. Indeed, on hearing that he treated the ' rebel ' prisoners well, their comrades promptly argued that so bold an attack must have ' struck terror ' into him. Campbell found himself com pelled to summon a council; and fighting Arnold was chosen leader in his room 'by the Unanimous Voyce of the field officers and Captains.' The main body drew back about a mile from Holland House ; but the troops were planted on the roads in such a way as to bar them still yet give mutual support in case of a sortie, while the advance posts remained close to the city. Instead of withdrawing the magazine to a safer place and so excit ing the distrust of the Canadians, it was decided to bring cannon from the old battery on the Heights and plant them round it. Ramparts of ' frozen snow, ' valuable against musket-fire, rose about the camp ; and most of the men fit for duty stood guard or lay on their arms both day and night. In short, what seemed the wise policy was bravely followed : to ' put the best face on matters 5§Duncan: Senter, Joumal, Jan. i. Nos., etc.: Arnold to Wooster, Jan '. 5i 177S (4 Force, IV., 670, 854) ; Id. to Wash., Jan. 14, 1776 (ib., 674); Campbell to Wooster, Jan. 2, 1776 (Sparks MSS., No. 60, p. 51). Against the Yorkers : Amold to , Jan. 6, 1776 (4 Force, IV., 589); Topham, Joumal, Dec. 31* Nichols, Diary, Dec. 31. J. Liv. (to , Jan. 25, 1819: Bancroft Coll.) said that Campbell might ' unquestionably ' have taken the post. For gibes of Yorkers: Ainslie, Joumal, April 9, lo (Spies). 154 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony and betray no marks of fear.' A new flag had just been thrown to the free winds at Cambridge (January 2), and the shivering, unpaid soldiers before Quebec acted as if they knew it.' ' The burden Hes very heavy on me, considering my present circumstances,' wrote Arnold ; ' I find myself unequal to the task ' ; but — he added — ' I have no thoughts of leaving this proud town, until I first enter it in triumph.' Indeed, though able only to lie on his back and 'scrawl,' he still believed that, were 'proper meth ods' adopted, the capital 'must inevitably fall.' The enemy he reckoned at fifteen hundred, but he was ' well assured more than one half of the Inhabitants of Quebec would gladly open the gates,' if not prevented by the ¦ strict discipline and watch kept over them, the com mand of the Guards being constantly g^ven to Officers of the Crown, known to be firm.' It was ' generally agreed,' he reported, that the provisions could hardly last through March, though Carleton would permit no one to investi gate the stores. Fuel was lacking, without a doubt. To capture the town seemed ' an object of vast importance.' Its overflowing magazines ; its great stocks of cannon, arms, and uniforms ; the vessels laid up in its docks ; the captives in its prisons, and its dominating influence on Canadian politics, — all forbade retreat. Some force needed to be rallied, then, and quickly rallied, to strengthen the American grip.' First the Canadians, for they were nearest. Nothing was left untried that could possibly feed their courage. When Montgomery did not reappear, somebody explained « § Haskell, Diary, Jan. 2, 4. Senter, Joumal, Jan. 2. Letter, Jan. 5, 1776: 4 Force, IV., 582. Council : CampbeU to Wooster, Jan. 2, 1776 (Sparks MSS., No. 60, p. 51) ; ' Arnold's ' Ord. Book, Jan. 3. Fobes, Narrative, [Dec. 31]. 'Chalmers' Journal, Jan. 13. Amold to Wash., Jan. 14, 1776: 4 Force, IV., 674. Id. to Cong., Jan. 11, 1776: Sparks MSS., No. 52, IL, p. 34. Flag (Union Jack with 13 stripes) : Preble, Flag, p. 217. Remark LXVII. ' § Amold, letters of Jan. 4, 5, 6, 1776 : 4 Force, IV., 854, 589. Arnold to Cong., Jan. 11, 12, 24, 1776; Sparks MSS., No. 52, IL. pp. 34, 37. Attitude of the Canadians 155 that he had gone to Boston through the woods to lead new forces northward. So long as the fate of Arnold's division could be doubted, people were given to believe that it had taken the Lower Town , besides disposing of six hundred enemies ; and, when they saw Major Meigs coming out, they crowded round him to hear the good news confirmed. To offset the defeat, after it could not be denied, another assault — this time with four thousand men — was announced ; while a story shivered through the parishes that Carleton had strung up sixty Canadian prisoners over the ramparts without giving them time to say, ' Lord, have mercy on me ! ' and then had thrown their bodies to the dogs in the ditch ;— at least, so a spy reported in Quebec. Some of the people had compro mised themselves deeply, while others were ardent and honest believers in the cause ; and many of both sorts — their nervous backs almost writhing in the thick blanket- overcoats bound round them with worsted sashes, and their frightened eyes blinking hard under the fur caps that nearly buried them — rallied in alarm to the American headquarters. Arnold believed that a new Canadian regiment could be raised, and commissioned officers to re cruit it ; while, to equip these men, an order was issued to search houses and take, in exchange for a receipt, what arms could be found. ' In this way he reckoned on getting three or four hun dred men ; but in a few days his hopes fell to ' two or three hundred,' and very soon they dropped still lower. 'The peasants,' noted Dr. Senter, ' however friendly dis posed, thought it too precarious a juncture to show » § Ainslie, Journal, Jan. i ; Feb. 28. ' Remark. Occurr.' Journal, Jan. 7, 17, Senter, Journal, Jan. 3. Roy, Lauzon, IIL, p. 65. Dress; Anburey, Travels' L, p. 71. Canads. joined : Amold to Wooster, Jan. 4, 1776 (4 Force, IV., S54) Regt.: Id. to Cong., Jan. 12, 1776 (Sparks MSS., No. 52, II., p. 34); Id. to Wooster, Jan. 5, 1776 (4 Force, IV., 854); Id. to Wash., Jan. 14, 1776 (ib., 674). Vouchers, Jan. i, 1776: Cont. Cong. Papers, No. 35, p. 219. Arms: Order to Langlois, Jan. 3, 1776 (Can. Arch., B, 184, i, p. 20). 1 \i ^S I \ 1 Q^^ i ^ ^ 'J Ti ' - SS- V ^« - > i 4.^^ 4^^ Reinforcements Needed 157 themselves in that capacity, and those nigh rather retreat ed back into the country, than gave any assistance.' Doubtless, too, there was another reason for their diffidence. ' Of Canadians, ' Montgomery had reported, ' I might be able to get a considerable number, provided I had hard money, with which to clothe, feed, and pay their wages ; but this is wanting.' Colonel Livingston himself had never received ' a shilling of pay.' Canadian volunteer ing, therefore, had not met with encouragement ; and now, when cash was more lacking than ever, the people alleged, so Livingston said, that, ' as they had been re fused before the storming, they did not think proper to come after the Retreat,' — certainly a very delicate morsel of their traditional politeness." But, after all, their backwardness did not matter very much. Something more than Canadian volunteers was required. ' What cannot Soldiers do, who are fighting for Liberty and their Country ? ' exclaimed Arnold ; but his inmost thoughts were on cannon, howitzers, powder, lead, shells, and specie. 'An experienced general,' with at least three thousand men, better five thousand, better still ' eight or ten thousand,' was the need, he felt ; and from the bottom of his heart, like every other man behind the snow ramparts, he prayed for ' reinforcements.' '" Reinforcements ! Pacing to and fro among the drifts on the top of the great ridge, an American sentry — shrivelled up with cold, and buffeted by a gale firom the northeast that drew a deep veil of grey over the splendid sky — beheld, when the drifting snow permitted, a vast, enshrouded body of dead white, stabbed here and ' §Cf. Arnold's letters of Jan. 12, 14: Note 8. Senter. Journal, Dec. 31, Montg. to R. R. Liv., Nov. — , 1775: 4 Force, III., 1638. J. Liv. to , [Feb., 1776]: Ara. Hist. Rec, IIL, p. 181. Not eacour. : Hazen to Sch., Apr. i, 1776 (4 Force, V., 751). '0 {Arnold to , Jan. 14, 1776: Conn. Gazette, Feb. 23, 1776. Id. to Cong., Jan. 11, 1776: Sparks MSS., No. 52, IL, p. 34. Id. to Wooster, Jan. 2, 1776; 4 Force, IV., 670. 158 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony there with a cluster of brown cottages, and bleeding ragged streaks of dark stone walls ; while — single or in groups, outposts of the gloomy forest — leafless trees whistled in the blast, or funereal evergreens bowed low before it. To escape this prospect, he could survey the grey cliffs and the bluffs of rusty sand that scarred the white, or watch the hoary tide of the St. Lawrence, where the heaving blocks of thick ice froze and broke, rose and fell, ebbed and flowed, crushed, ground, and groaned in the aimless melanchol}' of an Arctic winter ; while, if he tumed his eyes to the south for cheer, his vision had to travel across the drifts — if it could — one hundred and eighty miles to Montreal, one hundred and fifty more to Ticonderoga, then one hundred to Alban3', one hundred and fifty more to New York, and finally one hundred to Philadelphia, where sate the Conscript Fathers under the waiting bell of Independence Hall in a maze of perplexi ties. All these miles of snow must be tedioush- paced off before the needs of the struggling soldiers could even be told, apd again paced off to bring back word they were not forgotten. Yet an atom had been set in motion across that sea of firost. Even while the battle continued, Edward Antill, who had been near Montgomery when he fell, wrapped himself in a heavy furred mantle such as every man of position wore, sprang into one of the light, hooded sleighs used by people of means, and set out for Montreal." Changing horses at the posting stations, he sped on across the narrow plains and through the long, straggling villages. Aspen Point soon lay behind. Down one steep >i §This paragraph and the next two: Campbell to , Mar. 28, 1776 (Liv. Papers, 1775-1777, p. 145); Stone (ed.). Letters, pp. 13, 34, 35, etc.; Anburey, Travels, I., pp. 100-103^ etc.; Marr, Remarks (Can. Arch., M, 384, p. 85); Henry, Journal, p. 93. T. Riv. : Bouchette, Descr. Topog., p. 309 ; Letter, Dec. 17, 1775 (4 Force, IV., 296). For Chateau see Chap. XXX., Note 11. (These facts are given for the purpose of acquainting the reader further witli the Canada of 1776. The conduct of Antill's man is mferred from the rapidity of the joumey.) Ritzema, Joumal, Jan. 2, 1776. The Tidings go South 159 bank of the Jacques Cartier River slid the tough but creak ing vehicle — all of pine — and up the other bank it crawled. Although the corvies would not begin breaking roads until the storm ended, the way could not be missed, for young evergreens had been set all along, forty or fifty yards apart, to mark it ; but the piety or superstition ofthe driver was a real danger. Between every two villages, more than one great wooden cross reared themselves beside the high way, adorned with a wax figure of the Virgin and Child or of Christ on the Tree set into the upright behind a square of glass, and hung about with hammer, tongs, nails, and flask of vinegar ; and at every such emblem the travelling peasants felt bound to alight, kneel in the snow, and say a long prayer. Antill's man, however, satisfied his con science by repeatedly crossing himself ; and with few pauses the pair of big, round bells at the horses' necks jingled on past Cape Sante, and their hoofs — no longer shoeless, as in summer — crunched firmly up the slope at the Falls of Richelieu, now muffled by the frost ; while the driver, instead of plying a whip, encouraged them with unflagging talk. Now and then, in default of a tavern, Antill ate some bread and eggs at a private house and drank some milk, for no time could be spared to buy provisions of his own and have them cooked, as was customary ; and so, after many hours that seemed many days, he caught sight of the stone monastery of the Recollets at Three Rivers, and presently was telling his dismal story to Captains Lyon and Goforth, who commanded the guard at that post. Then forward he crunched again, leaving the great Lake St. Peter — here and there quite wind-swept— on the left, catching a glimpse of Sorel, far in the distance across the St. Lawrence, and passing below the tall, slender spire 6 ^^^^^fi^^ ;z2e— i6o Our Struggle forthe Fourteenth Colony of Lavaltrie, where Carleton had found himself becalmed in November ; until, before the close of January the second, he sadly shook hands with General Wooster at the Chateau de Ramezay, Montreal. Wooster had become now the ranking officer in Canada. On him lay the direct responsibility for the province, with all that implied. Montgomery's death, Arnold's wound, and the critical situation stood clearly forth in Antill's despatches, and he found himself called upon to set out for Quebec ' as instantly ' as he could. Already Amold confessed himself ' exceedingly apprehensive ' about the fate of his men, and two days later came another express with tidings of their loss. ' For God's sake,' said Amold, ' order as many men down as you can possibly spare, consistent with the safety of Montreal."^ But Wooster himself was in straits. There was ' but little ¦confidence to be placed in the Canadians ' round him, he felt sure ; and the Americans had many ' enemies in the country.' They were also ' in the greatest need of cash.' Price had enabled them to ' subsist as an armj-,' ha\ring already advanced about ;^20,ooo ; but now he was ' al most out of that article ' himself, and could find no one in the city willing to lend. There were ' but five or six hundred men for the garrisons' of Montreal, Chambly, and St. Johns, ' and many of those few not to be depended on.' 'The soldiers mutinous, and with little discipline,' ex plained an officer : ' not a sous to pa)- them with, which makes them so.' In fact, I 've not 'rec'd a Farthing since I left you, ' a man was just writing home. To all of which Lieutenant- Colonel Ritzema, whom Montgomery had con sidered an able officer, added a little more : ' no one capable to command them.'" '2 § Amold to Wooster, Dec. 31, 1775: Sparks MSS., No. ,s2, 11., p. 33. Campbell to Wooster, Dec. 31, 177s : 4 Force, IV., 480. Amold to Wooster, Jan. 2, 1776: lb., 670. '3 § Wooster to Sch., Jan. 5, 1776: 4 Force, IV., 668. Price to Sch., Jan. 5: ib., Wooster's Course i6i The logic of this 'very critical and dangerous situa tion,' as Wooster called it,— and especially ofthe last item, — was inexorable. Some generals in his place would have figured to themselves that a retreat from Quebec was impossible. The Americans had no means of trans porting food— to say nothing of the sick, the ammunition, and the cannon — save by the favor of the Canadians, and that would turn to bitter and active hostility at the first sign of flight. To attempt a march of one hun dred and eighty miles through deep snows in the piercing cold of Jan uary, poorly fed, unprepared for battle, bushwhacked by the natives, and pursued by a well equipped, well provided enemy three times as numerous, would mean de struction. Some generals might also have felt that a total over throw of the remnant still before Quebec would not improve the situation above, and might possibly have fancied that, should a part of the Montreal garrison be despatched to Amold, the hostile but quite unorganized Tories — with his strengthened army on one side, the Colonies on the other, and the guns of the citadel aiming point- blank at their chimney-pots —would not be likely to rise. Wooster, however, did not permit imagination to riot in this manner. What impressed his guarded intelligence was that he and the rest might, 'perhaps, be all sacri ficed/ and equally plain lay the path of his duty : Montreal ' must be secured for a retreat.' '* SCHUYLER'S ALBANY HOUSE €68. Ritzema to , (N. Y. Com. Safety), Jan. 3, 1776: ib., 1114. Letter, Montreal, Jan. 8, 1776, in Tryon's of Feb. 8, 1776: Pub. Rec. Off., Am. and W. L, Vol. 186, p. 309. Montg. to R. R. Liv., Oct. 5, 1775: Liv. Papers, 177S-1777. P- 5i. '* § That the Canadians would probably have acted as is here suggested VOL. II.— II. 1 62 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony ' I little expect,' he said, ' with the troops who remain, to be able to continue the siege. ... I shall not be able to spare any men to reinforce Colonel Arnold.' 'What they will do at Quebeck, ' he added, ' for want of money, God only knows,' but none could be spared from Mon treal. Above all, he decided that he could not go down, himself, though Arnold assured him that his presence was ' absolutely necessary ' ; and a council of officers, Ritzema included, 'agreed to a man' in this decision, — not so much probably, because they believed he would do great things at Montreal, as because they knew he would not at Quebec. The burden was conveyed by despatch to Schuyler. Warner, of the Green Mountain Boys, was urgently entreated to recruit and forward men ; Colonel Clinton was sent down the river to take com mand, and Price to raise funds outside of Quebec that he could not find inside of Montreal ; but nothing more was done. ' God only knows what the event mil be,' remarked Wooster ; but this was just his modest5^ He really felt no doubt." After Arnold's letter of January the second arrived, outlining the fiill dimensions of the misfortune, Antill bundled himself again in his furs, crossed the ice-bound river through the avenue of small pines that marked the road, startled the drowsy garrison at St. Johns, and stmck for the south. Eight days of Arctic adventure, hardship, and peril, this link of the journey represented. Itwas John Brown's wild feat of ten months before done back ward, only with ice forming instead of breaking, and the mercury shrinking a little closer into the bulb each day ; but the envoy had, to keep him warm, these words ¦will appear later from the narrative. Wooster to Sch., Jan. 5, 1776: 4 Force, rv., 668. 5, // 4 > s § Wooster to Sch., Jan. 5, 19, 1776: 4 Force, IV., 668, 1004. Id. to Warner, Jan. 6, 1776 : ib., 588 (for what is evidently a more correct copy, see Pub. Rec. Off., Am. and W. I., Vol. 186, p. 313). Amold to Wooster, Jan. 2, 1776: 4 Force, IV., 670. Id. to Wash., Jan. 14, 1776: ib., 674. ;C^ ^wi^^^^^^ -..y^^^^z^i^^x^^^^^^ ^^3 FROM SCHUYLER'S LETTER TO WASHINGTON, JAN. 13, 1776. 164 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony just penned by Ritzema to a member of the New York Committee of Safety : ' For God's sake, sir, exert your self .... Let us have men and money ; otherwise, by Heavens, Canada is lost. "° At length, in the dusk of January thirteenth, the wearied traveller caught sight of a throng of wooden houses one story or — here and there — a story and a half in height, with Dutch gable-ends of brick toward the street and iron horses in the place of weathercocks, crowded into a narrow intervale between the Hudson and a sharp hill crested with the edge of a boundless pine forest. It was Albany, and very attractively twinkled the lights through the clean, bright window-panes ; but the sleigh kept right on through the town, and, about a mile beyond it, drew up at a stately brick mansion in a grove, — the city residence of Philip Schuyler. The hour-hand of the tall clock on the stairs was then reaching to ward the figure six, and the dining-room shone with candles and silver." A terrible gloom fell upon the General's 'vivacious countenance as he read the despatches. ' You send me such agreeable Accounts, and so very frequently ; That I am under the Necessity of .scribling an Hour before Day, to announce the Glad Tidings to mj' Superiors,' he had written Montgomery no long while before. ' The gallant Montgomery is no more ; the brave Amold is wounded ; and we have met with a severe check,' was his agitated epitome of the tidings he now read ; and to that he added, already picturing Carleton at the gates of Montreal, ' May heaven avert any further evils ! ' ' Nothing but the ' <• § stone (ed.). Letters, pp. 34, 73 (pines set in the ice). Wooster to Sch.. Jan. s, 1776: 4 Force, IV., 668. Brown: Vol. I., Chap. III. Ritzema to (N. Y. Cora. Safety), Jan. 3, 1776: 4 Force, IV., 1114. ' > § Sch. to Hancock, Jan. 13, 1776 (6 p.m.): 4 Force, IV., 666. Sch., Colon. N. Y,, IL, p. 277. Munsell, Collections, II., pp. 33O, 419; 111 , p. 404. Carroll, Journal, p. 53. The clock, candles, and silver are inferential. Schuyler's Hard Straits 165 immediate march of a body of troops into Canada can secure that Province,' he felt instantly." But what could he do ? The few soldiers at Ticon deroga would be free in three days, and — thoroughly dis gusted at having to lug pork-barrels instead of shaking King George's throne — were determined to quit the ser vice. All the recruiting parties together had so far sent in only twenty men. Interest in Canada had waned. A nearer peril now filled the public eye. The Highlanders along the Mohawk, roused by the zealous loyalty of Sir John and Colonel Guy Johnson and by the missionary fervor of Allan Maclean, seemed in earnest — since they found themselves debarred from joining the regiment of Emigrants — to do something on their own account. About seven hundred Tories were in arms in Tryon County, and they had cannon. Albany was in confusion and alarm, and the melancholy news from the north only added to its danger and its panic. ' Ever}' countenance is changed,' said an excited letter ; ' Whigs depressed and melancholy, and immediately animated and revengeful, or rather spirited for a noble and vigorous effort in the cause of liberty ; whilst the Tories prick up their ears. ' Minute-men from the country round and from Berkshire were flocking in, to defend the settlements against John son's fierce partisans ; but they had no artillery and very little powder. At so critical a moment few could spare even a thought for distant perils." The General himself was in poor health and a thorough ly disgusted fi-ame of mind. ' Let me ask you. Sir, when is the time for brave men to exert themselves in the cause of liberty and their country, if this is not ? ' had been ' ' § Sch. to Montg., Nov. 30, 1775 : Am. Antiq. Soc. Id. t6 Hancock, Jan. 13, 1776: 4 Force, IV., 666. Id. to Wash., Jan. 13, 1776: ib., 666. At Montreal: Id. to Wooster, Jan. 14, 1776 (in Id. to Hancock, Jan. 29: 4 Force, IV., 880). " §Sch. to Hancock, Jan. 13, 1776: 4 Force, IV., 666. Recruiting: Report of Com. (Sparks MSS., No. 52, IL, p. 63). Tryon Co. Com. to Sch., Jan. 11, 1776: 4 Force, IV., 667. Letter, Albany, Jan. 15, 1776 : ib., 682. 1 66 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony Washington's response to his proposed resignation ; but, though Schuyler then decided to remain at his post, he did not fail to ' frankly avow ' that he stiU felt ' a resentment ' against the Connecticut men. The danger in Tryon County was close at hand and its dimensions lay easily within the compass of his abilities. He was preparing to march there in person, and within a few days he actually did set out for a sharp and successful campaign. What, then, could he do for Canada ? He could send no men ; and, in spite of a very pointed hint firom the Commander- in-chief, he could not go himself. " What he felt came within his duty and powers he did — as usual — ^with ac- ti'vity and zeal. Like Wooster, he begged the immediate assis tance of the Green Mountain Boys, offer ing ' forty shillings, la-wful, as a bounty to the men, and a month's pay to the officers, ' besides an allowance for rations from the hour of leaving home ; and he furnished Colonel Warner with funds for recruiting. On the same terms, Colonel Fellows was authorized to raise a regiment in Berkshire. The enlisting already set on foot in the Colony of New York for four companies to garrison the lake posts received, no doubt, a fresh impetus. But the crisis called for ' an immediate reinforcement, that is nowhere to be had, but from you,' he wrote the Com- JOHNSON HAUL 20 § Sch. to Hancock, Jan. 13, 22 ; Feb. 10, 1776: 4 Force, IV., 666, 802, 990. Id. to Wash., Jan. 5, 13, 1776 : ib., 580, 666. Wash, to Sch., Dec 24, 1775 : Wash.,. Writings (Ford), III., p. 292. Id. to Id., Jan. 27, 1776: ib., 375. Id. to Hancock. Jan. JO, T776: ib. 383. Tryon Co. Exped.: Sch., 4 Force, IV., 818. Schuyler's Measures 167 mander-in-chief ; and, in reply, Washington had to report that recmiting for the army at Cambridge had proved so slow, that five thousand militia had been called in to man the lines. A great part of these had gone home, and ' the rest [were] induced to stay with the utmost difficulty and persuasion,' although their withdrawal would have exposed the patriot cause to complete min in case of an attack. ' In short I have not a man to spare, ' he confessed." But no one called upon Washington in the name of his country vainly. A council of general officers — which John Adams also attended — met promptly ; and, at the suggestion of the commander, it was decided to ask Massachusetts, New Hampshire, and Connecticut for one regiment each. These would form a part of the quota already called for, except that the term of ser vice would be extended to January i, 1777, 'if that should be necessary ' ; and Washington favored grant ing two months advance pay, as a special induce ment." Antill, however, did not pause at Albany for results. Springing into his sleigh again, he set out for Philadelphia so hurriedly that a despatch from Schuyler to the Congress was overlooked. Sleepy Kingston, in the shadow ofthe Catskills, had the tale soon ; and, by the way of Pough keepsie and Samuel Smith, it travelled down the other side of the river to New York and to Governor Tryon's delighted ear. Turning eastward, it spread across the mountains, beating hard on the parsonage door at Pitts- field as it hurried past ; and at length, on the seventeenth 21 § Sch. to Hancock, Dec. 8, 1775; Jan. 14, 22,29, 1776: 4 Force, IV., 219, 671, 802, 880. Id. to Wash., Jan. 13, 1776: ib., 666. Wash, to Sch., Jan. 18, 1776; Writings (Ford), IIL, p. 355. 2 2 § Council, Jan. 18, 1776 : Sparks MSS., No. 52, IL, p. 232. Wash, to Sch., Jan. 18, 1776: Wash., Writings (Ford), III., p. 3SS- Id- to N. Eng. Govts., Jan. 19, 1776: lb., 362. Weai-r; to Wash., Jan. 21, 1776: 4 Force, IV., Bio. Wash, to Trumbull, Jan. 21, 1776: Writings (Ford), IIL, p. 363. 1 68 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony deserter announced at Boston. of January, the envoy from Quebec himself, sad and wom, laid it wearily on the table of Congress." Everywhere the tragic news fell upon the patriots like the shadow ofa thunder-cloud on a garden. ' It has . . . Stunned the Advocates for RebelHon, ' said Tryon. The 'bad Heads . . . begin to totter,' exulted Major Skene. 'Great confusion ' in the American army at Cambridge, a ' The Country are greatly alarmed,' wrote Barnabas Deane to his brother, Silas. Govemor TrumbuU himself, though his were the eyes of St. John and the chin of Herod the Great, felt both vision and courage troubled. ' Let our e3'es be upon the Lord !' he prayed ; 'May we humbly and patiently bear his chastisement ! ' Even the Commander-in-chief, who had been counting upon the ' vast pleasure ' of a letter from within the walls of Quebec, and fully believed that ' To whomsoever Canada belonged, in their favour, probably, would the balance turn,' felt with awful keenness the ' sad reverse of our affairs. ' " This, however, did not last. With the spring of steel, Washington recovered himself. ' But for the loss of the gallant chief, and his brave followers, ' he declared, ' I should think the rebuke rather favorable than otherwise ; THOMAS ALLEN'S PARSONAGE 23 § Sch. to Hancock, Jan. 14, 1776: 4 Force IV., 671. Troon's No. 30, Feb. 8, 1776: Pub. Rec. Off., Am. and W. I., Vol. 186. p. 339. Antill: Journ. Cong., Jan. 17, 1776. Hancock to Wash., Jan. 20, 1776: 4 Force, IV., 781. 2'> § Tryon to Carleton, Jan. 31, 1776: Pub. Rec. Off.. Am. and W. I., Vol. 186, p. 329. Skene, Jan, 28, 1776: ib., p. 333. Hutcheson to Haldimand, Feb. 2, 1776: Can. Arch.. B, 20, p. 91. B. Deane, Jan. 22, 1776: Conn. Hist. Soc. Coll., II., p. 35T. Trumbull: Stuart, Life, frontispiece ; letter, Jan. 21, 1776 (ib., p. 24=, note). Wash, to Arnold, Jan. 12,1776: Wash., Writings (Ford), IIL, p. 334. M. told., Jan. 27, 1776: ib., 379. Id. to Sch., Jan. 27, 1776: ib., 375. The News in the Colonies 169 for, had the country been subdued by such a handful of men, it is more than probable, that it would have been left to the defence of a few, and rescued from us in the spring. Our eyes will now be open not only to the importance of holding it, but to the numbers which are requisite to that end. ' In the same spirit Richard Henry Lee expressed a hope, that the iU fortune in Canada might yet tum out well by teaching moral discipline, and urged pouring in troops enough to reduce Quebec before the enemy could relieve it. Trambull, without waiting to hear from either Cambridge or Philadelphia, set on foot a regiment for the northern service, exhorting his people ' freely and cheerfully to engage in, and undertake the same for the sake ofthe love of their country, and all the dear-bought rights and privileges thereof, the happi ness of themselves and all posterity ! ' Some, among them Jedediah Huntington, tried to believe that after such good news the Ministry would be less eager to hurry troops into America in the spring ; but others, like Josiah Bartlett, caring more for action than for consolation, preached that ' no cost or pains must be spared ' to gain Canada, and that it would be ' of almost infinite advan tage' to secure it before British reinforcements could arrive." As for Montgomery, John Adams — not fully under standing the circumstances that had forced him to attack — mingled the word ' inexperience ' in his praise ; but it was soon clear that the laurels nipped b}' the frosts of Canada had merely been pruned for a still higher and still more generous growth. Not only were the encomiums of Burke, Fox, and Barre in the House of Commons 2s § Wash, to Reed, Jan. 31, 1776: Writings (Ford), IIL, p. 398. Lee, Feb. 7, 1776: S. Adams Papers. Tmmlrall: 4 Force, IV., 931, 934. TrumbuU to Gris wold, Jan. 18, J776: Trumbull Papers, Conn. Hist. Soc. Huntington to Trum bull, Feb. IS, 1776: Mass. Hist. Soc. Coll., 5th Ser., IX., p. 510. Bartlett to N. H Com. Safety, Jan. 20, 1776: 4 Force, IV., 784. I 70 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony anticipated, but it could already be seen that his glorious death was to broadcast seeds of heroism, the noble harvest of his blood. From every lady's eye at Philadelphia spake the eloquence of tears. ' Revenge ! ' cried even the blase Charles Lee.'° In the hall of Congress, where Antill ended his mission by answering questions for two hours, all these feeUngs wrought with special intensit}-, for there was the focus of the countrj'. Some men shared more or less fidly, perhaps, the sentiments of Tryon and Skene, but even these were saddened by the loss of brave citizens. The hall became so still that between question and answer, the crackling of the two great fireplaces at the right and the left of President Hancock's low platform seemed noisy."' Samuel Huntington's keen legal face looked a Uttle more grey than usual, a sure sign of a struggle behind it. General Floyd's miUtary figure stiffened as he followed Antill's account of the battle. On Govemor Ward's fine countenance could be read what he wrote his son, the Captain, at Quebec : ' The poet justly said, " Dulce et de corum est pro patria mori." ' Sturdy Sherman, closing tight his vice-like jaws, gazed with unwinking steadiness at the envoy, four-square to every -wind that blew. Wil son, the canny Scotch barrister, forgot briefs and longed to grasp a sword. Yonder, a face that was knuckles aU over, with a nose Uke the beak of a galley, told every one who glanced that way that McKean stood for war to the knife. George Wythe, who looked the bald-headed eagle that he was, once the teacher but now the colleague of Jeffer son, glared this way and that as if searching for some British enemy to tear in pieces. Samuel Adams, stmck to 20 I J. Adams to Knox, June 2, 1776: Works, IX., p. 384. Burke, etc.: 4 Force, VI., 314. Phila.: Lvnch to Sch., Jan 2c, 1776 (Sparks MSS., No. 60, p. 61). Lee to Wash , Jan. 24, 1776 : Sparks, Corres., L, p. 135. 2 7 § AntiU before Cong. : Smith, Private Joumal, Jan. 18 ; Hancock to Wash., Jan. 20, 1776: 4 Force, IV., 781. The scene is constructive. ROBERT MORRIS 171 Remissness of Congress 173 the marrow, took the blow with a shaking head but an un shaken heart, as he had taken many a rebuff in the earlier Stages of the controversy. The kingly brow of Robert Morris neither rose or bowed ; and he sat grandly still and musing, with eyes that carried far beyond the present like the eyes of Pope Julius the Second. Franklin, remov ing his big spectacles and slowly laying down his thick handful of papers, put on the look of one able to tear the thunderbolt from Jove and the sceptre firom a tyrant. ' Poor gaUant fellow,' murmured Lynch to himself ; ' if a martyr's sufferings merit a martyr's reward, his claim is indisputable.' And then he pondered, — deeply, in tensely, lyord Drummond had assured him that America could have accommodation with Great Britain on the terms Lynch himself would have dictated had England lain at his feet, and it had been his intention just now to ' move for a mode of application for peace.' Should he offer the motion? ' No,' he finally decided; 'it must wait a little till we cool and set ourselves on a footing in Canada. "" ' A footing in Canada ! ' With a start, some of the con sciences in that room awoke. The energy of a few had saved the record from a total blush, but it looked red enough now. Priceless time had been lost. Divided counsels had paralyzed good pui-poses all the way along. Difficulties ought tohave been foreseen, shortages provided for in advance, developments anticipated instead of awaited. Wages and supplies might have been looked after more carefully. Action should have followed closer upon knowledge. 28 § Mainly from portraits hanging in Independence Hall, and the text and portraits of Sanderson's Signers and the Nat. Portrait Gallery. Ward : John Ward's Biog., passim,- letter to his son, Gammell, Ward, p. 338. S. Adams: Wells's Life, IL, pp. 340, 34-. Lynch to Sch., Jan. 20, 1776: Sparks MSS., No. 60, p. 61. Franklin: Turgot's famous mol. Those named appear from the Journal to have been in attendance. Drummond: Lynch to Sch., Jan. 20, 1776 {supra). 174 Oui" Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony The report of the committee sent north had been read two days before Christmas, and again three days later ; yet, although it recommended, since men were not re- enlisting freely, ' the immediate raising three Regiments,' nothing had been done except refer it by resolution to a special committee — apparently a compromise committee — with Dickinson at its head. Some of the Delegates must have been eager to act, for Harry Livingston, sent down from the army with letters, was detained day after day for three weeks to carry despatches back. But Dickinson made no report, and Livingston had to retum empty- handed. On January the sixth, a letter from Schuyler, re peating his wish that a large force be sent immediately into Canada, was read. ' I do most sincerely believe,' he added, ' that, unless such a measure be adopted, we shall severely repent of it.' Still nothing was done; but, re corded a member, ' Monday Morning [January 8] was assigned to consider this Business & Nothing else to in terfere, the Delegates to be upon Honor to meet punctually at ID O'Cloc' Evidently some of them felt very much in earnest." Monday brought this party reinforcements. A letter from Montgomery announced that his feeble army stood before the walls of Quebec, and declared it ' absolutely necessary to make the most formidable preparations ' for holding Canada in the spring. Enclosing this, came a note from Schuyler, urging that no time be lost in setting about the preparations. Possibly the rumor that Mont- goymer had been killed, Arnold taken prisoner, and the army totally defeated had reached Philadelphia, as Schuy ler presumed, and opened some eyes ; but at all events the old fear that England might be able ' to turn the force 2' § Journ. Cong., Dec. 23, 26. Report: Sparks MSS.. No. 52, II. , p. 63. R. R. Liv. to Sch., Jan. 12, 1776 : Emmet Coll. (see Montg. lb I?. R. Liv., Dec. 10, 1775: Liv. Papers, 1775-1777, P- 81 >. Sch. to Hancock, Deci&ii'ijtrs: 4 Force, IV., 480. Smith, Private Joumal, Jan. 6. -^«iB^f^ j,^^ Congress Acts 175 of that Province, as well as the Savages, against our de fenceless frontiers ' awoke again, and, without waiting longer for Dickinson, Congress broke its leash. " It was assumed that two battalions or regiments could be made up from the men in Canada. James Livingston's corps would be a third. The First Pennsylvania and Second New Jersey battalions — already organized under Bull and Maxwell — were ordered to march north ' imme diately.' Another, lately authorized in Pennsylvania, was assigned to the same field ; and New Hampshire, Con necticut, and New York were to raise one each. These would make nine in all, nominally over six thousand men. Their pay was to equal that given at Cambridge ; and various measures were voted to facilitate their march as well as prepare for the new campaign. '' It was this Congress, already in motion at last and haunted by remorse for its delays, that received the five fold shock from Amold, Campbell, Wooster, Schuyler, and Antill, a multiplied tale of disaster, helplessness and peril. Not so startling but no less alarming, a letter of Montgomery's written five days before his death declared — in what sounded now like a voice firom the other world — that, in the judgment ' of several sensible men acquainted with this Province ' as well as in his own, the Colonies could not expect a union with Canada until they had ' a force in the country sufficient to ensure it against any at tempts ' that might be made for its recovery. '' Yet the session passed without a proposal. ' Provi dence has, hitherto, been pleased to crown our attempts 3" § Montg. to Sch., Dec. 5, 1775: 4 Force, IV., 188. Sch. to Hancock, Dec. 26, 1775: ib., 463 [Sch.'s letterof Dec. 31 appeared before Congress two days earlier than that of Dec. 26]. Journ. Cong., Jan. 8, 1776. Hancock to N. Y. Conv., Jan. 12, 1776: 4 Force, IV., 1073. 3 1 § Journ. Cong, , Jan. 8-10. Hancock to N. H. Com. Safety, Jan. 12, 1776: 4Force, IV., 654. New Pa. battals. : 4 Force, IV., 507. Remark LXVIII. 3 2 Montg. to Sch., Dec. 26, 1775; 4 Force, IV., 464. Antill was exarained Jan. 18 ; but it seems fair to assume that he raade a statement on the seven teenth, when he delivered his despatches. 1 76 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony with success,' has been the President's complacent lan guage until now, and men required a little time to adjust themselves to the change. Their task was to grapple with destiny, and first of all they wished to look their foe in the eye. The next day (January 18), it was pro posed to put on mourning ; but, with Roman spirit, Govemor Ward and others combatted the idea. ' Such Proceedings may cause too much Alarm at such a critical Juncture,' they protested, and the motion failed. Self- control like that vetoed hurry; and nothing was done now save to consider the tidings again and refer the letters to five members. But Dickinson had no place on this com mittee. It was a fighting corps : Lynch, Wythe, Sherman, and Ward, with Samuel Adams in the position of helm ; and, beginning on the nineteenth, resolutions in a flood came before Congress and passed it." First, it was voted ' that the American army in Canada be reinforced with all possible despatch, as well for the security and relief of our friends there as for better secur ing the rights and liberties not only of that colony, but the other United Colonies.' Washington should send one battalion to Canada ' with the greatest expedition possible,' if it could be spared, and, on the same condi tion, a general officer to command there. Steps were taken to set Bull's and Maxwell's regiments in motion, or at least what companies were ready. It was decided to address the authorities of New Hampshire, Connecticut, New York, and Pennsylvania, and urge on the raising of troops for the north. Bounties were voted ; money to stimulate recruiting provided ; inducements offered for arms and blankets ; advances of paj' recommended ; artillerymen called for ; blank commissions issued, ' from the necessit}^ of the case, ' to save time ; a second Canadian 35 § Hancock to N. Y. Conv., Jan. 12, 1776: 4 Force, IV., 1073. Journ. Cong., Jan. 17-19. Sraith, Private Journal, Jan. 18. Action of the British Government 177 regiment of one thousand — under Moses Hazen, Colonel, and Edward Antill, Lieutenant-Colonel— authorized ; De Haas put in place of Bull ; the collection of all the obtainable specie in the Colonies requested ; flints, powder, lead, given out ; a reassuring address to the Cana dians prepared ; measures adopted to place needed sup plies within reach of the Indians, in order to preserve their ' confidence and fiiendship ' ; and expresses hurried off in all directions on these and other matters. Learning Soon of Washington's plan to obtain troops. Congress promptly endorsed it. ' The very first companies ' that could be organized for the new Canada regiments were to be sent on without waiting for more. 'Immediate,' 'forthwith,' 'all possible expedition,' ' the utmost des patch,' were the labels on all this business ; and warm approval or hearty praise was dealt out liberally to reward activity or excite emulation. One question, however, re mained unanswered. Had Congress the rod of Moses ? Could muskets, powder and ball, equipments, blankets, gold and silver, discipline be made by vote ? " As Arnold's express crossed an ocean of drifts with tid ings, an express from Carleton traversed an ocean of waves. Laden with despatches and verbal messages, Lieutenant Pringle of the Lizard embarked November the twenty- second aboard the Nancy, and, on the third day after Christmas at two o'clock in the afternoon, stepped into the office of Lord George Germain, that small Nemesis of despotism, bred by despotism itself^' 3* § Journ. Cong., Jan. 19-29. Hancock to Wash., Jan. 20, 1776: 4 Force, IV., 781. 3 5 § Hamilton to Dartmouth, Nov. 20, 1776: Can. Arch., Q, 11, p. 339. Precis VOL. II. — 12. 1 78 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony As His Lordship read the despatches, his cold and haughty face grew black ; and all the more — now that he could no longer despise the Provincials — he longed, like his Master, to crush them. ' It will require a very large and powerful Land and Naval Armament to reconquer the Country, and seize a proper hold of it,' Cramahe had written ; and a powerful expedition was resolved upon. ' I fear the Delays commonly attending a large Armament,' the experienced Governor had added on reaching Quebec ; and a small but efficientadvance force was ordered equipped. No need here of a miraculous rod. ' Whereas Lord George Germain, one ofhis Majesty's Principal Secretaries of State, has acquainted Us, that it is the King's intention that every effort be made to send relief to Quebec ' : in that wise the Admiralty issued its commands. Here it was a magazine, not a rock, to be smitten." All this created a situation boiling with chances. Per haps the victory at Quebec had led to a feeHng of security in the town, and therefore weakened the influence of the fighters. Perhaps the friends of America and those in favor of neutrality would now declare that they had done enough to prove their lo3'alty. Perhaps the citizens who loved comfort would refuse to endure the hardships of the blockade longer. Everj'thing showed that firewood was beginning to fail " ; and perhaps the women and children might not care to fi-eeze, even if the men did not mind it. Perhaps Carleton might find it necessary to make a sortie ; and, leaving behind all whom he could not thoroughly rely upon, might give Amold the advantage of numbers as well of Oper. Germain to Carleton, Feb. 17, 1776: Can. Arch.. Q, 12, p i. Intelli gence from Quebec: Cau. Arch., Q, 11, p. 338. London letter: Conn. Gazette, Mar. 22, 1776. * 3 « § Diet. Nat. Biog., XXI., p. 235. Cram, to Dart.. Nov. 19, 177s : Can. Arch., Q, 111 P- 324. Carl, to Dart. , Nov. 20, 177s : Pub. Rec. Off., Colon. Corres., Quebec, II, p. 519. Germain to Carleton, Feb. 17, 1776: Can Arch , Q, 12, p i. Admiralty Sec. (to Lutridge): OutLetters, Vol. 100, p. 429 (Pub. Rec. Off.). Pr&is of Oper. 3' Haskell, Diary, Jan. 19, 26, 1776 ; Amold to Cong., Jan. 24, 1776: Sparks MSS., No. 52, II., p. 37. Action of the British Government 179 as position. On the other hand, the people might resolve to make an end of it, gather heartily round their chief, come out in serried ranks, and sweep every American from the roads. In short, the issue at Quebec might be settled there any morning in an hour ; but, if the two sides could master their internal difficulties and then hold each other in check, it would become a question of reinforcements. England had far to send, but an English pound sterling could travel post, while a mere promise to pay was halted at every pike ; America stood near, but she journeyed afoot, her shoulders were burdened with every sort of encumbrance, and her path at best was only a buckboard road. XXVI THE PLANS WORK OUT EVEN Washington felt that there was ' little hope of Arnold's continuing the blockade, ' and the case was hard he knew. 'Inconceivably more severe, than the rest ofthe Continental Army have experienced, ' —so the committee of Congress regarded the service in Canada ; jet even they could not realize what it meant. ' A season the severest that has been known here this ten years, ' was CampbeU' s description of the winter. The Canadians themselves could find no adjective sufficiently cold to sat isfy them. ' It is freezing hard enough to spUt stones,' they would say. ' There has been Uttle cannonading of late,' v?rote James Livingston, 'owing to the severity of the weather, ' — a veritable Truce of God. The British pa trols could mount guard for only half an hour at a time. Some of the American sentries were 'froze dead,' said Melvin. A soldier at one of the blockhouses had a foot frost-bitten with a warm stove in the room, noted Finlay in his Joumal. ' God bless Your Honour, I am glad you are come for I am blind,' murmured a Quebec sentrj- to an officer of the guard : his eyelids had fi-ozen together while he paced his beat.' Sometimes it snowed until the low sky seemed falling • § (This paragraph and the next.) Wash, to Sch., Jan. 27, 1776: Wash., Writings (Ford), IIL, p. 375. Com., [Dec. 23, 1775]: Sparks MSS., No. 52,11., p. 63. Campbell to , Mar. 28, 1776: Liv. Papers, 1775-1777, p. 145. J. Liv. to , [Feb., 1776] : Am. Hist. Rec., IIL, p. 181. Melvin, Joumal, Feb. 10. Ainslie, Joumal, Jan. 10, 28 ; Feb. 9, 10, 12 ; Mar. 6 ; etc. Finlay, Joumal. Feb. 9, 17, 18. ' Chalmers ' Tournal, Jan. 29 ; Feb. j ; etc. HaskeU, Dian-, Feb. 10. Tolman (Ware), Joumal, Feb. 9-12. iSo The Terrible Winter i8i bodily, and sometimes a tempest came straight across the fields Uke a charge of the Light Brigade. 'Such a storm, I believe, never was known in New England,' re marked a Massachusetts man in his diary. ' A perfect hurricane, ' said a Quebecker ; ' impossible to face the weather but for a minute.' Once the British patrols could not reach their posts, — it blew so hard ; and some got lost in the at tempt. At least three men were stifled to death on duty. Sometimes the citizens had to dig their way out of their houses, or use a window of the second story for a door. ' Many ofthe guns are deeply bur ied in this drift, ' recorded Ainslie, ' altho their muzzles are at least 30 foot from the bottom of the ditch.' While, if a thaw came, one had to choose between ridges 'cover' d with clear ice ' and the ' Ponds knee deep, ' that lay between them. Yet, so far as concerned the Americans, all these hard ships were merely incidental. The people of Quebec, who complained so bitterly of the frcst, had ramparts ; but the besiegers were constantly exposed to an attack from more than double their number. ' We are in expectation every night that the enemy will come out upon us,' wrote one of them. More than once a large party sallied forth as if intending to give battle ; and, though always retiring when boldly faced, it appeared like a threat of something formidable. A predicament like theirs, confessed Major Caldwell, would have prevented him ' from sleeping very sound.' When the enemy did not come in person, they sent messages, — unless the cold stopped everything : ' A plenty of 36-pound balls come to our door without hands,' wrote Major Brown to his father. The small-pox, in spite of all that orders could do, ravaged the cantonment ; and, from one cause and another, the number of soldiers fit for 1 82 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony duty — including some two hundred Canadians — frequent ly shrank to five hundred. ' The men,' reported Amold, ' are obliged to lay on their arms constantly, and to mount Guard every other night.' 'No officer, no Soldier is to go from his Quarters, upon Pain of Being Punished instantly,' said the orders. Many necessaries — to say noth ing of comforts — were lacking. ' Quarters awful ! ' ex claimed an officer, ' such as no page in History can equal. '' Schuyler had expected that cold alone would force Montgomery to raise the siege, even while the soldiers were comparatively fresh ; after the disastrous assault it was ' generaUy believed, ' so Govemor Tryon reported, that Canada had been ' entirely evacuated ' by the Provincials ; but now, in spite of cold, peril, and exhaustion, the wee specks were still crawling in and out of the drifts, and the circling shadows of their muskets marked off the slow hours. Communication with Quebec, admitted Cald well, was ' effectually' blocked, — save for an occasional spy or deserter. Should quicker means fail, Amold had said at Aspen Point, ' time and perseverance ' could not ; and he evidently held the same opinion still. Wooster, need less to observe, found it ' most surprising. ' ' This is true bravery,' commented fearless Trumbull; 'It must con vince Lord North that Americans are not all poltroons.' ' Some gleams of cheer visited the camp, however. The keen northwesters, when not over-keen, braced the nerves andkeyed the spirits to concert pitch. After the storm came skies of the purest and most radiant blue, bending flaw less overhead ; and below them lay an ocean of diamond 2 § Haskell, Diary, Jan. 5, 25. Amold to Hancock, Feb. i, 1776: Sparks MSS., No. 52, II. , p. 38. Caldwell, Letter. Brown : Smith, Pittsfield:, L, p. 259. 500, etc.: Amold to Deane, Mar. 30, 1776 (4 Force, V., 549) ; Campbell to- Mar. 28, 1776 (Liv. Papers, 1775-1777, p. 145). Amold to Cong., Jan. 11, 1776: Sparks MSS., No. 52, IL, p. 34. ' Arnold's"* Ord. Book, Jan. 25 ; Feb. 3, 11, 21. 3 § Sch. to Hancock, Jan. 10, 1776: 4 Force, IV., 622. Tryon to Dartmouth, Feb. 8. 1776 : Pub. Rec. Off.. Ara. and W. I.. Vol. 186, p. 305. Caldwell, Letter. Arnold to Montg., Nov. 20, 1775: Sparks MSS., No. 52, IL, p. 31. Wooster to Cong., Feb. 11, 1776: 4 Force, IV., looi. Trumbull to Sch., Feb. 14, 1776: ib., 1147. aLi-OLU>< Hostile Operations 185 light, garnished with the sapphires of deep shadows lus trous even at their darkest. At night — most of all on Washington's birthday — splendid auroras filled the heavens with castles and crowns, flaunting banners, fires of victory, and such chariots as perhaps the servant of Elisha beheld, when the prophet had opened his eyes.' Nor was the illumination confined to the sky. Aware that the Quebeckers needed heat, the Americans did all they could to kindle fires. A little party would crawl past the walls in the dark, clamber into a vessel, set a slow m,atch, and then make off: so much good lumber would never help warm the garrison. By the same logic, the houses in St. Roch and the suburb near St. John's Gate were touched off, and all the cannon on the ram parts could not prevent it. ' Nobody was seen altho the distance from our sentries was not fifty paces,' confessed a citizen once. Another time, fourteen houses were burned at a single haul. ' The night was still & gloomy,' wrote Ainslie ; ' the snow loaded clouds hung low, from them an orange tinge was reflected, & the snow as far as the flames gave light, was ofa reddish yellow — The adja cent country seem'd cover' d with a pitchy fire, & the villages were just perceptible in a dismal gloom . . no thing was heard but the crackling of burning beams, & a hollow roaring of feirce flames. ' ' The constant fear of attack helped season the ennui, and the military operations, though few, had their inter est. Now and then the crack of an American rifle aroused the camp for a moment ; and occasionally one of the cannon, distant though it now was from the town, would aim high and drop a ball among the houses by way of reminder. As for the 36-pound shot that came 4 § Marr, Remarks; Can. Arch., M, 384, p 85. Ainslie, Joumal, Feb. 22. ^ § (This paragraph and the next.) Ainslie, Journal, Jan. 21, 23 ; Feb. 16, 20, 21 ; etc. Haskell, Diary, /fl.j.s/OT. Melvin, Joumal, Jan. 22. Brown: Smith,. Pittsfield, I, p. 259. 1 86 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony out. Brown found that a pair of them did very well for andirons. Day by day, moreover, the shadows of the muskets grew shorter, and this meant that reinforcements were nearer. The pressure became too strong for Wooster; and, three weeks and a half after the disaster — quite delay enough to ruin everything — about a hundred aud twenty comrades from Montreal entered the cheering camp. Sixty or seventy more followed soon ; and, on the fourth of February, twent}'-five men firom Berkshire, welcomed with huzza upon huzza, headed the line of reinforcements from home. " All the way down, these last had cheered the Sons of Liberty and confounded the Tories by proviug that the lakes were now passable, and announcing that Yankees were pressing on behind ' as thick as the trees in the woods.' And they had some foundation for the boast. A traveller going south from Montreal assured Tryon that he ' met many Parties upon the Lakes hanging upon the Sleighs like Bees about a Hive.' When the wind blew strong from behind, they laid boards across the sleds and stood upon them, to act as Uving sails. Here and there grim piles broke the smooth white, — comrades frozen to death, six or seven together sometimes ; but on they hurried, crossed the ice-waves of the St. Lawrence from Laprairie, tarried for a breath at Montreal, and then on again down the river. ' Can Europe any longer doubt of the virtue, perseverance, and spirit of Ameri cans, ' cried Schuyler, ' when they see citizens become soldiers, regardless of the comforts they might enjoy in their own habitations, and quitting them with alacrity, to undertake a march of many hundred miles, through j Woosterto Sch., Jan. 19, 1776: 4 Force, IV., 1004. Amold to Cong., Jan 6 . Sparks MSS., No. 52, IL.p. 37. Haskell, r ' " ^' " " Sch. to Wooster, Jan. 26, 1776 (4 Force, IV., i T. Rivers: Letter, March 24, 1776 (4 Force, V., 481) 24, 1776 . Sparks MSS., No. 52, II. , p. 37. Haskell,'Diary, Jan. 24 ; Feb. 4." Berk shire: Sch. to Wooster, Jan. 26, 1776 (4 Force, IV., 1003). Account of arrivals at i87 RUINS OF THE ST. MAURICE IRON-WORKS (PELISSIER'S) Reinforcements Arrive 189 snow and over frozen seas, without tents, without any shelter from the inclemency of the weather, but the azure canopy of Heaven ? ' ' Other aids arrived. Deserters from Quebec entered the lines, reporting that a short aUowance of provisions had been ordered, and that Carleton's mainstay, the sea men, were getting uneasy. Pelissier furnished two pe tards and promised a supply of shells by the first of April. On the last day but one of December, five horsemen trotted out of Philadelphia, escorting northward all the specie that had adorned the Continental treasury that morning. At Albany, this pale sunbeam crossed Antill; and, ten days afterwards, it threw a spot of brightness on Wooster's table at Montreal. Six weeks later about $5,300 — raised by Schuyler on his personal credit — were dropped with a clink in the same place ¦ a total of some 28,000 hard dol lars for the months of January and February. Arnold had been made a brigadier-general, which seemed to show that Congress had a grateful eye upon the doings in Canada ; and, more than everything else, the splendid thought of a triumph, all the dearer for the blood and suf fering it required, touched every sacrifice with the magical iridescence of glory. ' I already view the approaching day,' wrote Washington, with reference to the reinforce ments ordered to Canada ; ' I already view the approach ing day, when you and your brave followers will enter this important fortress, with every honor and triumph attendant on victory and conquest. Then will you have added the only link wanting in the great chain of Conti nental union, and rendered the freedom of your country secure.' " ' § Letter, Montreal, Tan 27, 1776: 4 Force, IV., 868. Tryon to Dartmouth, Apr. 15,1776; Pub. Rec Off., Am. andW.L, Vol. 428, p. 340. Boards: Bloodgood, Sexagenary, p. 47, Letter from Skene: Pub. Rec. Off, Am. and W. I., Vol. 186, p. 333. Sch. to Trumbull, Feb 5, 1776: 4 Force, IV , 944. « § Arnold to Hancock, Feb. 12, 1776: 4 Force, IV., 1017. Haskell, Diary, Feb. 13 J. Liv. to , [Feb., 1776]: Am. Hist. Rec, IIL, p. 181. Amold to igo Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony But, while the shadows of the muskets grew shorter, other shadows lengthened. For one thing, it became clear that Congress had not the rod of Moses. A com mittee, appointed to inquire what articles the army needed, reported at the end of December, that goods to the value of ;!fii6,467 were ' absolutely necessary, and ought to be imported as soon as possible ' ; while, considering also ' the best ways and means for supplying the Continental Treasury with silver and gold,' it could light upon nothing more talismanic than to send American produce ' to proper ports in Europe and the West Indies ' for sale, — a process rather too slow for the crisis in Canada. A great part of the needed goods were nothing more extraordinary than woollens. ' All the wool in America cou'd not furnish its inhabitants with stockings,' it was said at Quebec, and apparently with some truth. Wash ington had suggested at Christmas that a house-to-house canvass be made in the towns of New Hampshire for blankets to keep his army from suffering ; and the next month precisely that had to be done in Philadelphia.' Another item called for 20,000 stand of arms. Tryon and other emissaries had urged all the gunsmiths in America to leave the country. Holt told Samuel Adams. ' Of a thousand stand the New York Convention con tracted for, ' said Schuyler in March, ' six only have been delivered.' Apparently Robert Boyd, Jr., was the contractor ; and, while he boasted that no equally well appointed shop could be found in that or the neighboring governments, he confessed that his works had been firozen Hancock, Jan n, 1776: Sparks MSS., No. $2, IL, p. 34. Pelissier to Cong., July 20, 1776: Cont. Cong. Papers, Letters, 78, P, XVIIL, p. 73. Specie: loum. Cong., Dec. 30, 177s ; Sch. to Hancock, Jan. 13. 31, 1776 (4 Force, IV., 666, 898); Id. to Id., Mar. 6, 1776 (4 Force, V., 91), Wooster to Sch., Mar. 5, 1776 (ib., 516); Sch., Ledger. Arnold: Journ. Cong., Jan. 10,1776 Wash, to Amold, Jan. 27,1776: Writings (Ford), HI., p. 379. Remark LXIX. ' § Report : 4 Force, IV., 446. Wool : Ainslie, Joumal, Mar. 8. Wash, to N. H., Dec 23, 1775 : N. H Hist. Soc. CoU., IL, p. 150. Journ. Cong., Jan. 19. 1776. Congress Embarrassed 191 up all winter, and that, for lack of competent hands, the superintendent had to ' employ his own fingers at every piece of business.' Benjamin Rittenhouse was entreated by express to come to Philadelphia and manufacture gun- locks on his own terms. Many people had begun to make saltpetre, and powder-mills were grinding in a feeble way ; but, at the middle of February, 1776, John Adams wrote anxiously to James Warren : ' Don't fail, my dear friend, to inform me of every step in the progress of the manufacture of saltpetre and gunpowder.' Even barracks were lacking, and some Pennsylvania troops had to be quartered in a pest-house and an old gaol.'" The Second New . Jersey regiment, it was announced by Hancock on January the twentieth, would ' set forward [at] the beginning of next week.' That was. a Saturday. The following Tuesday, Colonel Maxwell wrote from Trenton that he hoped he should always obey Congress cheerfully, but his regiment lacked ' a great part of everything' except men. Some two hundred and eighty stand of arms were totally wanting, and so many of those on hand were scattered about in repair-shops that he could make no exact return. Much warmer clothing wouldbe necessary; and so would various other articles, a part of which, he supposed, were making. On Thursday, Congress ap propriated money to arm the men. Six days later, notified that nearly half the muskets and a large variety of other articles were still wanting, it ordered the company that "> § Holt, Jan. 29, 1776: S. Adams Papers. Sch. to Wash., Mar. 9, 1776 : 4 Force, V., 147. Boyd to N. Y. Cong., Feb. 23, 1776: 4 Force, IV., 1480. Pa. Com. Safety to Rittenhouse, Feb. 26, 1776 : 4 Force, IV., 1576. J. Adams, Feb. 14, 1776: 4 Force, IV., 1140. Journ. Cong., Nov. 7, 1775; Jan. 25, 31 ; Feb. 13, 1776. 192 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony was ' nearest furnished ' to be equipped out of whatever the regiment possessed, and sent on. Fifty blankets, fortunately, had been picked up among the farmers. February the second, the New Jersey Congress, besides directing the county committees to supply Maxwell with all the weapons they possessed, recommended, 'in the most strong and explicit manner,' that every private citizen who owned arms fit for immediate use let them go in the same direction. Two days more, and one company moved at last ; but three weeks later the hindmost of the regiment Had not set out. None of the First Pennsylvania battalion, which Hancock bracketed with this of New Jersey as expected to move about the twenty-second of January, arrived at Three Rivers before March, and its rear had not reached Albany on the twelfth of April." ' We will not conceal that the circulating cash in this Province is very small,' the New Hampshire Convention had said to Congress ; but there was no lack of good-will. On receiving Washington's call for a battalion to serve in Canada, the Assembly deferred over Sunday the adjourn ment which it was just ready to vote, held a special session, ' very readily and cheerfully ' ordered the regiment, ap pointed Timothy Bedel its colonel, allowed two months' ^ay in advance, directed the Committee of Safety to equip and send off the men, and put two more members upon it in order to expedite the work. ' You may depend, sir, we shall not fail to do our utmost to forward this reinforcement,' the Committee of Safety assured the Commander-in-chief; and apparently the business was to move briskly, for Bedel had informed Schuyler a mouth before that a number of minute-men, already under his command, would be ready •1 § Hancock to Wash., 4 Force, IV., 781. Maxwell to Hancock, Jan. 23, J776: ib., 813. Maxwell, Mera. and letter, Jan. 31: ib., 897. N. J. Cong., Feb. 2, 1776: ib., 1580. Maxwell to Hancock, Feb. 3, 1776: ib., 923. Shreve to Sen., Feb. 24, 1776 : Emmet Coll. Letter, T. Riv., Mar. 24, 1776 : 4 Force, V., 481. Sch. to Wash., Apr. 12, 1776: ib.,871. Jones, Conquest, p. 21. Delays in Senciing Troops 193 to march as soon as he received orders. Indeed, the regi ment was expected at Montreal before the end of January ; and Wooster's secretary, with a piquant phraseology hap pily suggestive ofthe Colonel's rustic vigor, believed that when it came they could "give those fellows a sweat in Quebec. ' Actually, a few of the men reached Three Rivers on the tenth of March, but on the twentieth, in spite of promising announcements, it had to be reported : ' The regiment is not near full nor gone.' No doubt there were good reasons, — chiefly a dearth of funds that Israel Morey lacked ' words sufficient to describe ' ; but this fact helped little beyond the border.'" ' Colonel Porter, said to be an exceedingly active man, is appointed to the command ' of the Massachusetts regi ment, stated Washington with satisfaction, and the Colonel could be seen writing letters on this business at two and three o'clock in the morning ; 3'et it was already the third of March, when the first company, after parading in front of the meeting-house and listening to a prayer from Mr. Hooker, set out fi'om Northampton. Some people had been active in urging men not to enlist : and they no Tories, either, very likely. The failure to pay soldiers theirdue was now bearing fruit. ' Numbers that have gone home, ' said Schuyler, ' have swore most bitterly that they will never re-engage in the service ' ; and it followed, of course, that all their friends were advised never to enter it. The special bounty offered in Berkshire just after Montgomery feU, discouraged men from enlisting without such an induce ment. Further, the volunteers were required to bring ' a good effective fire-arm ' as well as a blanket, ' also, a " § N. H. Conv to Cont. Cong., May 23, 1775: 4 Force, IL, 696. N. H. Com. Safety to Wash., Jan. 21, 1776 : 4 Force, IV., 810. N. H. Hse. Repres., Jan. 25, 1776: 4 Force, V., 18. Bedel to Sch., Dec. 19, 1775: Sparks MSS., No. 60, p. 39. Cole to , Jan. 24, 1776: Emmet Coll. Cole: Wooster to Sch., Feb. 21, 1776 (4 Force, IV., 1499). N. H. Com. Safety to Hancock, Feb. S, 1776: 4 Force, IV., 964. Morev to Weare, Mar. 7, 1776 : 4 Force, V., 117. N. H. Hse. Repres. to Gerrish, Mar. 12, 1776: ib., 26. Letter, T. Riv., Mar. 24, 1776: ib., 481 (cf. Morey, supra). Johnson to Folsom, Mar. 20, 1776: ib., 440. l\1 ^ '^ '{^ H N'^T H4v^ Delays in Sending Troops 195 good bayonet, a cartridge-pouch, and a hatchet, or toma hawk, or cutting-sword, if possible ' ; and Porter found it hard to obtain such an equipment. Most of the men will ing to enlist had served in the previous campaign and been obliged to leave their guns behind, for which, said the Colonel, they had not yet received pay. Nearly all the muskets of any value had already been bought up by the authorities of the Colony ; prices had risen ; and the men discovered that all the pay they were to have would scarcely arm them." ' I hear men inlist cheerfully, ' said Governor Trumbull a fortnight after issuing his call. Everything in his power was done ; and Colonel Burrell, a man of spirit and influ ence, took hold vigorously to raise the regiment, no doubt. But — 'Our treasury is entirely exhausted of money,' Trumbull confessed at the same time ; ' without which it will be impossible to persuade the men to set forward to Canada, nor can it be reasonable to expect it. ' No blank ets and very few arms could be found in the Colony, and Connecticut men as well as others had arrears owing them. Nor was this all. The resentment against Schuyler's methods counted even more, perhaps. ' I shall be carefuU another year and that is the universal say of al the officers,' lYieutenant Gibbs had written in October. Only one com pany of Burrell's passed Albany by the sixth of March.'* 13 § Mass. action: 4 Force, IV., 1272, 1403. Wash, to Sch., Jan. 27, 1776: Writings (Ford), IIL, p. 375. For Porter: Mag. Ara. Hist., Sept., 1893, p. 186. Colon. Mag., I., p. 3. Porter to Warren, Mar. 15, 1776: 4 Force, v., 240. Porter, Diary : Mag. Am. Hist., Sept., 1893, p. 187. N. Cook, Diary, p. 381. Sch. to Hancock, Dec. 8, 1775 : 4 Force, IV., 219. Equipment: Mass. Council, Feb. 9, 1776. The company that set out on Mar. 3 reached Quebec in exactly a month (Cook, Diary). '«§ Trumbull to Hancock, Feb. 3, 1776: 4 Force, IV., 930. Id. to Wash., Jan. 24, 1776: ib., 839. Id. to Griswold, Jan. 18, 1776: Trumbull Papers, Conn. Hist. Soc. Burrell: Wash, to Sch., Jan. 27, 1776 (Writings (Ford), IIL, p. 375). Trumbull to Wash., Feb. 2, 1776 : 4 Force, IV., 917. Blankets, etc. : Sch. to Hancock, Feb. 10, 1776 (ib., 990). Arrears: Id. to Id., Feb. 20, 1776 (ib., 1274). J. Trumbull, Jr., stated on Feb. 17 that .^30,000.14.4 were uue Conn, men for pay (Cont. Cong. Papers, 153, I., p. 562). Gibbs to Trumbull, Oct. lO, 1775: Trurabull Papers, Mass. Hist. Soc, IV. One Co.: Sch. to Hancock, Mar. 6, 1776 C4 Force, V., 91). 196 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony Congress itself undertook to find arms for the Second Pennsylvania regiment (St. Clair's) ; but Schuyler reported only one company of it at Albany on the twenty-first of March. Van Schaick' sN.ew York battalion had a good start, for it inherited three companies already in process when Antill brought the sad news from Quebec ; but the Con gress of New York confessed its inability to furnish it with any arms, blankets, or clothing, and Schuyler found him self ' distressed in the highest degree ' for these and every other necessary. As for Warner, from whom General Wooster had expected the most effective aid, he proved the greatest disappointment of all, perhaps ; for, instead of 736 men reported to Schuyler as enrolled, only 417 had arrived at Montreal on the fifth of March, and few more seemed likely to appear. Schuyler had actually advanced pay for the larger number ; but, as the Ticonderoga accounts had not yet been adjusted, the ' truly necessitous ' men of the Grants could hardly be blamed for accepting their due as they could get it.'* Most of the troops went by way of Albany ; and there all the final touches had to be given their equipment, provisions be furnished, and transportation be provided for. Possibly Schuyler's ' nerves ' felt the difficulties of the case a little more keenly than others might have, and cried a little more loudly ; possibly, here and there, another minute of prevision might have saved an hour of bustle ; but his troubles were many and grievous, — occasionally even ludicrous. Troops came up to him unarmed, half armed, or with arms ' hardly worth carrying.' As the soldiers returning from Canada had been expected to leave their muskets for their successors, Albany was looked ' s § St. Clair : Joum. Cong , Jan. 3 : Feb. 16, 1776. Sch. to Hancock. Mar. 21, T77S: 4 Force, V., 452. 3 Cos.: Id. to Id., Feb. 15, 1776 (4 Force. IV., 1156). N. Y. Cong, to Sch., Feb. 22, 1776: 4 Force, V., 301. Sch. to N. Y. Cong., Feb. 21, 1776: ib., 318. Warner: Id. to Hancock, Mar, 19, 1776 (ib., 415); Woosterto Sch., Mar. 5, 1776 (ib., 416). (See Sch. to Wooster, Jan. 26,. 1776: 4 Force, IV., 1003.) Ti. : Sch. to Hancock, Mar. 7, 1776 (4 Force, V., 103). Schuyler's Troubles 197 upon as a sort of arsenal ; but men whose wages had not been paid seldom cared to surrender valuable firelocks on trust. The bad ones were taken and repaired ; but, in the midst of it all, the supply of steel gave out. The Tories of Tryon County reluctantly helped ; but the list of their confiscated pieces had no elasticity. Men went about, picking up what they could ; but this resource was poor, dear, and inadequate.'" Now the General found himself ' hard put to it ' for nails or felling-axes, and now for the mittens, woollen caps, and Indian stockings required in Canada. East week no hay could be had for the horses, and yesterday no horses for the hay. At one time, seventy-six sleds came when a hundred and twenty had been expected, and at another it was cargo that fell short. ' This moment,' the captains of two Pennsylvania companies announced that no moccasins — absolutely required for winter marching in Canada — had been furnished their men ; the next. Major Ogden gave notice that shoes — equally necessary after the snow departed — could not be had at the north. Even men who had left home well clothed and well armed often found their equipment in a bad condition after the long march to Albany. Now the recruits turned up sick and there was no medicine, and Schuyler could only suggest that Congress ' despatch a small vessel or two to Portugal or the Islands for a supply ' ; now they turned up grum bling and mutinous for want of their pay, and Schuyler had nothing at all to propose. The scarcity of salt was ' incredible ' ; the Commissary-General could not ' pos sibly ' furnish the troops with all the articles allowed them by law ; to ease the military chest, people were ' recommended ' to transport the troops gratis, with all ' ' § For Sch.'s troubles, see his letters : 4 Force, IV., 219, 622, 802, 829, 880, 938, 955, 990, 1146, 1156, 1214. 1481 ; v., 91, 147. 318, etc. Journ. Cong , Feb. 5, 1776. Jones, Conquest, p. 22. Men who, contrary to orders, brought their muskets home probably did not wish to reveal that fact. 198 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony the expense of time and patience that implied ; the lack of proper equipment caused longer or shorter detentions ; and every difficulty was the greater because the small frontier settlement at Albany could supply ' hardly any thing.' The diabolical embarrassments of the route, also, tripped up every calculation. The ice on the lower Hudson be gan to break up quite early. The upper course graduaUy followed suit ; and, wherever the river burst its bonds, the waters overflowed the roads. ' By the time it will be navigable, ' remarked Schuyler, ' and the waters which are out subsided, the ice in the lakes wiU be too weak to venture troops on.' About the middle of March, the St. Eawrence had its tum of spring fever, overflowing in the same way and cutting the roads for three or four weeks. The General had believed that he could lead troops around Lake Champlain before the deepest portion of it froze, but there were no troops to go then ; and, after the deep snows began to melt, even if such a route — ' hitherto not at tempted' — actually did exist, it could not be used. While, then, Hancock was not exactly correct in pro nouncing February, as he did, ' the only time before Summer, of crossing the Eakes, ' he made no mistake in calling it the best ; and in that month the movement of troops only got under way." Nor was it enough merely to land the men in Canada : they must be kept alive still, and that meant a tremendous expense. No pork and very little beef could be obtained there before autumn ; and Schuyler found it necessary to send down about four hundred barrels of the former, at the appalling freight of seven dollars and a half per barrel, and a hundred and fifty head of the latter on the hoof ' ' § Sch. to Wash., Mar. 9, 1776: 4 Force, V., 147. St. L.: Woosterto Wash , Jan. 21, 1776 (4 Force, IV., 796); Id. to Sch., Feb. 19, 1776 (ib., 1483). Route: Sch. to Hancock, Dec. 8, 1775: ib., 219. Hancock to N. Y., Jan. 12, 1776: ib., 1073. Difficulties of the Route 199 Staggered by such bills, the military chest groaned over so small and so proud an item as the expense of a few British prisoners, who remained in Albany. ' It is even a great burden,' mourned Schuyler, ' that we are to furnish these with provisions. ' Before January came to an end, all but $66,000 of the $240,000 in Continental paper GENERAL CHARLES LEE actually received by the northern department, had been expended ; debts had mounted up ; and now the Congress was ordering new expenses with a speed that no hand- press of 1776 could hope to equal." ¦ ' § Sch. to Hancock, Feb. 15, 23, 1776: 4 Force, IV., 1156, 1481. Id. to Wash,. Mar. 9, 1776: 4 Force, V., 147. Id. to Lee, Feb. 2^, 1776: ib., 356. Prisoners; Id. to Hancock, Jan. 29, 1776(4 Force, IV., 880). Mil. Chest, Jan. 28, 1776: ib., 907. 200 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony As the plans were figured out, some nine thousand men — including Warner's regiment as promised— were designed for the Canada service ; but the crisis at the north forbade anything like deUberation and thorough ness, and incomplete rosters, much sickness, and a per centage of desertion brought the eight new battalions from the Colonies far below their nominal strength. Weaker yet proved the regiments to be formed in Canada. Two were to consist of Colonials already in the field. ' I shall be agreeably disappointed,' remarked Schuyler, ' if one can be raised there. ' Everything stood in the way. The men were coming home as fast as they could get off. At the end of February, Lieutenant-Colonel Ritzema es timated that about nine hundred, ' the remnants of all [the] corps which had been there, ' remained in Canada. Schuyler drew up a scheme for arranging the officers under the new plan, intended to reconcile claims and prejudices ; but, though it looked as ingenious and com plicated as a game of solitaire, Wooster declared it would not satisfy Colonial jealousies and personal pretensions. Watching the privates disappear, the officers concluded they would have none to command ; deemed themselves unprovided for ; felt neglected, and therefore were sour. Wooster undertook to carry out the plan and failed ; and Ritzema advised Congress bluntly that the men from different sections had 'too opposite Characters ever to form a useful Corps.'" Hazen, the appointed colonel of the Second Canadian regiment, seemed able to carry his banner far and high. After a boyhood passed at Haverhill in Massachusetts, ' « § One regt. each from N. H., Mass.. Conn., N. Y., N. T., N. H. Grants ; two each from Penn., the army in Canada, and the Canadians ; also the Berkshire raen and Nelson's Co. of riflemen (Joum Cong., Jan. 30). Shortages: Sch. to Hancock, Feb. 10, 1776 (4 Force, IV., 990); Id. to Wash., Feb. 14, 1776 (ib., 1146); Id. to Lee, Feb. 29, 1776 (4 Force, V., 356); Id. to Hancock, Mar. 19, 1776 (ib., 415). Id. to Id., Feb. 4, 1776: 4 Force, IV., 938. Ritzema, Feb. 27,1776: 4 Force, V. , 313 ; Joumal, Feb. 16. Plan for offe.:'4 Force, IV., 1216; Wooster to Sch., Feb. 13, 1776 (ib., 1218); Sch. to Hancock, Feb. 20, 1776 (ib., 1214). The Reinforcements but Scanty 201 he served in the Louisburg expedition, rose to be a cap tain of Rangers at the taking of Quebec in 1759, and, as even Canadian Tories admitted, won the reputation of ' a fam'd partizan, remark'd by Gen : Wolfe for a good soldier. ' Later, he obtained a lieutenant's commission in the 44th Foot, and, soon after the Conquest, retired on half-pay. Settling then near St. Johns, he not only carried on large farming operations but owned saw-mills, a potash-house, and a forge. When the Americans appeared there in arms, he doubtless foresaw the losses that were sure to befall him in case of war, and wished them elsewhere. For a while, his trimming policy inspired confidence in both camps. Then it inspired suspicion in both, and each held him in turn as a prisoner. But Schuyler believed him a ' friend ' ; and certainly principles, interests, necessity or all combined brought him and his sword eventually to the American army. On the tenth of February he unfurled his flag in due form, directing his agents to enroll fit men ' at beat of drum or otherwise, ' and give them one month's pay as a bounty. But the Canadians, ' tho' prompt at a short, desultory war,' said the committee of Congress, had 'some reluctance to more permanent engagements.' Be sides, money for the promised bounties failed. ' For God's sake send some Cash for that purpose ! ' cried Antill, the Ueutenant-colonel. But cash there was none ; and by April the first, with some two hundred and fifty on his roll, Hazen found himself compelled to stop. Livingston's corps remained at about two hundred : a total of four hun dred and fifty Canadians instead of two thousand.^" 20 § Hazen : Bull. Rech. Hist., 1901, p. 159 ; Hazen to Hancock, Feb. 18, 1776 (4 Force, IV., 1186) ; Quebec Gazette, Sept. 28, 1776 ; Foucher, Joumal, Sept. 23, 177^ (Can. Arch.); Ainslie, journal. Mar. 8 ; Verreau, Invasion, p. 71 (San guinet), p. 251 (Lorimier); toum. Cong., Jan. 22, 24; Sept. 24; Oct. 23, 1776; Penna. Arch., Sec. Ser., XL, p. og ; Memor. (Cont. Cong. Papers, No. 42, 111., p.. 451). (Hazen was captain of a Co. of Rangers, and so coraraonly bore that title,) Sch. to Hancock, Jan. 13, 1776 : 4 Force, IV., 666. Recruiting papers: Can. Arch., B, 27, pp. 385, 397. Com.: Sparks MSS., No. 52, II., p. 63. Hazen to Antill, Mar. 10, 1776: Can. Arch., B, 27, p. 387. [Antill] to [Hazen], Mar. 28, '776: ib., p. 380. Hazen to Sch., Apr. i, 1776: 4 Force, V., 751. 202 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony ' Daily aids are going,' observed a member of Congress cheerfully ; but the real question was : What arrives ? " A month and a day after Congress heard of Mont gomery's death, Arnold had six hundred and seventeen of the rank and file, besides Livingston's Canadians, fit for duty. March eighth, a squad of men in uniform coats, knapsack on back, tomahawk at side, broad white belts crossing ' diamond-fashion' on breast and back — a car- touch -box hanging from one, and a canteen swinging from the other — ^trudged bravely but wearily, with drum, fife, and fiag at their head, into Arnold's camp : they were the advance guard of the First Pennsylvania. Seventeen days more went by before the earliest from New Jersey ap peared. By the twenty-second of March, less than four teen hundred new soldiers from the Colonies had reached Three Rivers on their way to Quebec ; by the eighth of April only seventeen hundred and seventy-two ; and not another new face appeared until the twenty -seventh of that month. °' The small-pox was more prompt. At the close of Feb ruary, ' near one hundred men in the Hospital ' were re ported by Amold ; and in three weeks they numbered about four hundred. Hazen believed that ' our strength in camp before Quebeck did not, on the i8th of March much exceed that of the day after General Montgomery's fall'; within two weeks more, 'Arnold admitted to his friend Silas Deane that ' the greatest part ' of the New England men were down with the plague ; and, a little after the first of April, a captain serving there reported 'six hundred and odd present and fit for duty.' At the 2 1 Chase to , Feb. lo, 1776: Arch.of Md., XL, p. 150. 22 § Retum, Feb. 18, 1776: 4 Force, V., 104. Arrivals: Cf letter. Mar. 24, 1776 (4 Force, V., 481), with Haskell, Diary, Mar. 8, 25 ; Amold to , Mar. 26, 1776 (4 Force, v., 512) ; Goforth to Jay, Apr. 8, 1776 (Bancroft Coll., Rev. Papers, I., p. 37). Uniform: Joum. Cong., Dec. 21,1775 (see also Deane to Mrs. D., June 3, 1775: Conn. Hist. Soc. Coll., II. , p. 252). Wooster to Cong., Apr. 27, 1776: Cont. Cong. Papers, No. 161, II. , p. 309. The Pestilence 203 very time when the force was supposed to be swelling like the Solway at full of the tide it was noted, ' seventy odd men less this day fit for duty than there was two days ago. ' Warner's recruits engaged only to the fifteenth of April, and by that time they would not, ' on an average, have done ten days' service. ' To make it worse, ' Our surgeons are without medicine ; our Hospitals crowded, and in want of almost every necessary, ' added Arnold. With a circuit of twenty-six miles, including three ferries, to guard, the troops needed for aggressive operations could be found only — in the Northern Lights."' The cannon of Ticonderoga had been captured to salute the British in Boston with, and, as Knox had taken the best of them across the mountains, they could not be had for Quebec. Pelissier gave notice that a lack of coal would prevent him from supplying shot and shells before May, and by about that time a British fleet might be round ing Point Levi. The quantity of powder ordered up for Canada Schuyler pronounced ' vastly short ' ; and, even after another appropriation, the amount fell much below his demand. All kinds of military stores were lacking. ' We shall want everything, ' wailed Montreal ; ' I have it not in my power to send anything, for I have nothing, ' moaned Albany in response. 'Our flour is nearly expended,' reported Wooster ; ' we have not more than enough for the army one week. We can purchase no provisions or wood, or pay for transporting of anything without hard cash. We are now not able to pay half the debts we owe the countr)' people. Our credit sinks daily ; all the pro visions and wood that we want for the army, for two or three months to come, must be purchased and transported to camp by the middle of March ; after that time there " § Arnold to Wash., Feb. 27, 1776: 4 Force, IV., 1513. Hazen to Sch., Apr. I, 1776: 4 Force, V., 751. Arnold to Deane, Mar. 30, 1776: ib., 549. Goforth to Jay, Apr. 8, 1776: Bancroft Coll., Rev. Papers, I., p. 37. ^ ^ ^5 1 ^^ X 4 «\ K ^ ^ •J ^ 2o6 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony will probably be no passing for a month or six weeks ; these things, therefore, must be provided immediately, or the consequences will be dreadful.' For answer, this drowning-cry had the $5,300 that Schuyler borrowed ; and to suppose that much of so trifling a sum would reach Quebec, would be to expect a rill from the Oasis of Bahrieh to cross the Great Desert." When that mournful February handed the distaff on to March, Arnold could barely ' hobble ' about his room ; Clinton was proving only a makeshift ; Campbell sulked in total eclipse ; Wooster was still securing the retreat. " A few days before, Charles Lee had been ordered to go north immediately and take command in Canada. What sort of a rod he was likely to wield there, probably Gen eral Wooster at least could have guessed, for about the hour his drowning-cry for money shuddered past New York on its way to Philadelphia, Lee airily tossed him off his first orders : ' I am to inform you that I am appointed by the Continental Congress to the Command of the Troops in Canada — I hope and dare say We shall agree well together. I must request you immediately to contract [for] and grind into flour twenty thousand Bushels of Wheat.' But Montgomery had believed that Lee could win success in the north ; ' General Lee, in my opinion, is the man,' cried Ritzema ; Lee is the man, echoed Mc Dougall. Washington felt that there would be an ad vantage in sending a general who knew France and the French, and could address the Canadians in their own ^¦i § Tl. : Knox to Wash., Dec. s, 1775 (4 Force, IV., 188) ; Sch. to Hancock, Dec. 8, 1775 (lb., 219); Wash, to Sch., Jan. 27, 1776 (Writings (Ford), IH., p. 375); Sch. to Wash., Feb. 14, 1776 (4 Force, IV., 1146). Shells: Amold to Cong., Jan. 24. 1776 CSparks MSS., No. 52, IL, p. 37). Powder : Sch. to Hancock, Feb. 4, 1776 (4 Force, IV., 938); Id. to Wash., Feb. 14, 1776 (ib., 1146); Id. to Lee. Feb. 29, 1776 (4 Force, V., 336); Wooster to Sch., Mar. 16, 1776 (Sparks MSS., Vol. 60, p. 77). Woosterto Hancock, Jan. 27, 1776 : 4 Foice, IV., 869. Sch. to Hancock, Feb. 7, 1776: lb., 955. Woosterto Sch., Feb. 21, 1776; 4 Force, IV., 1499. 25 § Amold to Wash., Feb. 27, 1776: 4 Force, IV., 1513. Only glimpses of Clinton appear in the docs. CampbeU to , Mar. 28, 1776: Liv. Papers, '775-1777, p. HS- A Commander Wanteci 207 cherished idiom. Lee himself argued in that way ; and when, on the morrow of his first order, this gentleman was ' given up to the Southern Colonies, as the most ex posed, ' keen disappointment reigned. No single element of strength seemed to be left the army in Canada.'" ' It is commonly said,' reported the French representa tive in England, ' that the Americans have made a capi tal and inexcusable mistake in neglecting to send, as soon as winter began, sufficient forces to ensure, with the capture of Quebec, the complete acquisition of Canada. ' " Capital ? Yes, in the narrower and possibly in the broader view. Inexcusable ? Yes again, in the eyes of the Revolution, were the charge made against a certain group in Congress. But whoever examined the hours that made up the winter, from its beginning to its end, would probably have added one other epithet : ' Unavoid able.' The scraps of an army before Quebec, however, could not philosophize on the case. They were at the circum ference, not the centre. All they could do was to drag along in their fever-and-ague of hopes and fears. All they could see was that some fine morning, in one way or another, the strange situation was likely to end. 2' § Joum. Cong., Feb. 17, 28; Mar. i, 1776. To Phila.: Sch. to Hancock,. Feb. 26, 1776 (4 Force, IV., 1499). Lee to Wooster, Feb. 28, 1776; Am. Antiq. Soc. Montg. to R. R. Liv., Dec. 16, 1775: Liv. Papers, 1775-1777, p. 81. Ritzema to [N. Y. Com. Safety], Jan. 3, 1776: 4 Force, IV., 1114. McDougall to Jay, Mar. 17, 1776: Johnston, Jay Papers, I., p. 46. Wash, to Lee, Mar. 14, 1776 : Sparks,. Wash., IIL, p. 315. Lee to Sch., Feb. 8, 1776: Sparks MSS., No. 60, p. 66. Duane to Stirling, Mar. i, 1776: 4 Force, V., 37. 2 ' Garnier to Vergennes (in French), June 4, 1776 ; Stevens Facsim., No. 872.. XXVII GRAVE OMENS DAY by day, a change was now creeping over the face of Canada — so a number of careful observers felt— like that which makes one say. Autumn is coming. The great-great-grandfathers of the habitants in old France had felt no strenuous cravings for 'Liberty.' Their ambition was to be happy in this world and feel easy about the next, — the second item really a part of the first. They could fight and they loved victory ; but, whether conquering or conquered, they desired most of all to get back to their farms. Home, wife, and children ; the cheery village, as the necessary non-ego, the comple mentary delight, ofthe home ; the Church, to fend off the prowling wolves of conscience and imagination ; and the priest, as the embodiment of the Church : these were the realities of life. If tyranny pinched them, it was hated and if possible overthrown, — not because it was tyranny, but because it made itself disagreeable. Certain lofty ideas and certain beautiful sentiments gave them pleas ure, like the ribbons on a jacket ; but, if it came to a choice between the jacket and the ribbons, they knew verj^ well which to surrender. Moreover, since the rib bons were unessential, they could be treated airily, capri ciously. Constancy in trifles was no duty. Indeed, it argued heaviness of wit.' 1 The author has had many opportunities for observing the country people in several quarters of France, and has, of course, leamed from other 208 Character of the Canadians 209 The peasant of Canada inherited this disposition and certain habits besides. For example. Captain Marr, who studied him rather closely, thought his vivacity due in part to an inborn preference for bread instead of meat. And, too, his natural traits were somewhat deepened by his environment. Each generation, after the race came to New France, had smaller learning than its predecessor, and for that reason a narrower horizon. ' The Discour agements they formerly met with in their Husbandry,' said Marr, ' made them careless and indolent ; and the Length of their Winter when they have little or nothing to do enures them to Laziness. ' To be sure, some went into the woods, but they were the few ; and almost all had to get up the fuel for their ravening stoves, but that did not take long. The keenness and the changeability of the climate heightened their liveliness ; and, in the total absence of any other attractions, their cosy homes and congenial spouses, their pipes and chat, their skating parties and social sleigh-rides became more and more their vital interests. More and more, they seemed ' in capable of long application to Labour' or anything else, ' unless where a certain Prospect of Gain ' encouraged them to persevere." As all the Americans agreed, few, if any, understood the issue between Great Britain and the Colonies. ' Down with taxes ! ' they could feel, for they felt the taxes ; ' Down with the nobles ! ' they could enjoy, for they hated the nobles ; but all the broad phases of politics lay quite beyond their sky-line. The universal impulse to be free, the hints of boundless forests and unfettered observers. This and the following paragraphs raay be compared with those at the beginning of Chap . xrv. The latter have primary reference to the military quality ofthe people and the effect ofa particular situation upon them ; the former to their essential character. The two views of them are intended to be complementary. 2 § Marr, Remarks : Can. Arch., M, 384, p. 85. See Casgrain, Perrault, passim. VOL. II. — 14. 2IO Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony winds, and the vaguely sensed principles of English lib erty, had an influence, but as yet only one faint one, upon the general mass. ' Too ignorant to put a just estimate on the value of freedom,' observed Stocking on the Chaudiere. ' Many of the ignorant Canadians don't know what they are themselves,' testified the Rev. Syl vanus Ripley ; ' their ideas of Liberty are very ill-cHgested.' ' Some few may be attached to us from principle ; sure I am the majority are not,' concluded Ritzema after months of experience in the field. Even at Quebec, where intel ligence was naturally keener than among the farmers, Pelton did not feel at all sure that people understood the controversy. ' Having been so long habituated to slav ery,' thought Arnold, 'and having (as yet) but a faint sense of the value of Liberty, ' they needed ' every possi ble encouragement ' ; and this encouragement, as well as the needful education in liberal politics, the Colonial campaign among them had done little enough to supply.' ' Generous souls, ' wrote Congress to the people of Canada after the repulse at Quebec, ' Generous souls, enlightened and warmed with the sacred fire of Hberty, become more resolute, as difficulties increase ' ; but Marr used a juster measure of their character when he said : 'If one stops & lodges at one of their Houses, they will furnish him with a tolerable Bed, coarse but clean Sheets, they will offer him what Provisions the Home affords, with a very good grace ; but when a Bill is demanded, the answer is, ' ' What you please, we never tax Gentlemen " ; by this means they often get three times the value of what they furnish.' ' Very kind, neat and accommo dating, but a little deceitful withall,' was the judgment ' § stocking, Joumal, Nov. 3. Ripley to T. Wheelock, Mar. 7, 1776 : J. Wheelock Papers. Ritzema to N. Y. Com. Safety, Jan. 3, 1776 : 4 Force, IV., II 14. Pelton: N. Y. Calendar, I., p. 285. Amold to Cong., Jan. 11, 1776: Sparks MSS., No. 52, n., p. 34. See also Rep. Cora. Secret Corres., Cont. Cong. Papers, No. 22, p. 211 ; Liv. Joumal, Oct. 19. HOUSE AT THE CORNER OF NOTRE DAME AND ST. PETER STREETS, MONTREAL Occupied by the American Officers during the Winter of 1775-76 Unfavorable Influences 213 of Frye Bayley after an intimate acquaintance. The Httle graces and little arts of life engrossed their minds. Peo ple less fitted to play a heroic r61e, except in stark self- defence, could not easily have been contrived. Their virtues and their faults joined hands on that ; and Carle ton, after seeing clearly what they were, gave this ver dict : ' There is nothing to fear from them, while we are in a state of prosperity, & nothing to hope for when in distress. ' * To emphasize this unreliability, those in sympathy with the Americans had no leaders of their own blood. Not only the noblesse, lawyers, and priests, but the few solid Canadians outside those classes adhered still to the British, for the poverty and inefficiency of the Colonials had tended little to change, as a different policy might have done, their natural conservatism and their loyalty. In May, 1777, Carleton prepared a ' List of the principal persons settled in the Province who very zealously served the rebels in the winter 1775 and 1776,' and the only French name worth putting into it, Pelissier, belonged to a man from the old country. ' With respect to the better sort of people, both French and English,' admitted Hazen in April, 1776, ' seven-eighths are Tories.' The bracing influence of clear minds, powerful wills, and high social position was therefore lacking among the Canadian Sons of Liberty. They v/ere grain cargoed in bulk ; and now it began to look as if the ship might roll." What steady pressure there was upon them counted as before against the Americans. The nobles had lost their ascendancy forever, though in some cases they retained more or less influence ; but the clergy still kept a power- ' § Secret Joum. Cong., Jan. 24, 1776. Marr, Remarks: Can. Arch., M, 384, p. 85. Bayley, Narrative. Carleton to [Germain], Sept.- 28, 1776 : Pub. Rec. Oif., Colon. Corres., Quebec, 12, p. 345. ' § List : Can. Arch., Report for 1888, p. XIV. Hazen to Sch., Apr. i, 1776: 4 Force, V., 751. 2 14 Out" Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony ful grip on affairs. Good old Prince might kick up his heels when a bridle entered the pasture, but Jacques understood quite well that after a little play the bit would certainly be grinding in his teeth ; and the Church knew the same about Jacques. The pale shoot of free-thinking found absolutely no trellis of knowledge to support it and no beam of philosophy to harden it. To the Canadians Voltaire was not only unknown, as Parkman has said, but inconceivable ; and Briand, the son of a poor vinedresser, who had managed, though without extraordinary inteUect or education, to reach a bishop's throne, was not the man to give up easily or exhaust his resources early. He knew, still better than General Murray, that his people were after all ' extremely tenacious of their religion.' Though now shut up in Quebec, he had found time enough in the previous months to lay down the line for his priests, and no doubt had occasional opportunities to assure them during the winter that it did not swerve. ' The clergy' [are] our bitter Enemies,' remarked Arnold. They are ' unanimous . . . against our cause,' admitted Hazen, forgetting Lotbiniere and Hoquette for the moment. ° * Such a factor was bound to tell. Owing to their superior education, the women of Canada — particularly since the}' put on no airs of superiority — had a special influence over their husbands,' and through them the priests could work powerfully. Moreover, there were arguments for the men themselves. The letter addressed by Congress to the Canadians in the autumn of 1774 had pleased and flattered them. When ' § Report, Com. Secret Corres., Feb. 14, 1776: Cont. Cong. Papers, No. 22, p. 211. Parkman : Montcalm, I., p. 22. Bnand: Lotbinifire, M4m, (Can. Arch., M. 384, P- i). Murray, Report, 1762: Can. Arch., B, 7, p. 55. Amold to Cong., Jan. 24, 1776: Sparks MSS., No. 52, IL, p. 37. Hazen to Sch., Apr. 1, 1776: 4 Force, V., 751. Lotbinijre: Ainslie, Joumal, Apr. 6, 1776; CaldweU', Letter; Lotb. to Cong. (Cont. Cong. Papers, Letters, 78, L, Vol. XIV., p. 267). Hoquette: Hazen to Antill, Apr. 20. 1776 (Can. Arch., B, 27, p. 39I8). ' LaterriSre, M&n., p. 52. Harmful Papers 215 the appeal to the people of Great Britain appeared, a gentleman was invited to translate it, and in due time he read his version to a large audience. All went finely for a while, and Jacques nodded approval to Pierre often enough ; but by and by this thunderbolt fell : ' Nor can we suppress our astonishment, that a British parliament should ever consent to establish in that country a religion that has deluged your island in blood, and dispersed im piety, bigotry, persecution, murder and rebellion through every part of the world.' ' Oh, the perfidious, double- faced Congress ! ' cried the auditory. The impression passed after a little, for, like other impressions in that quarter, it did not strike deep. But fire still hid in the ashes, only waiting to be fanned ; and the priests did not forget the paper." Most unfortunate it proved now for the American side that so few of the Canadians could read. Whenever a document fell at their feet, they had to ask some notary, priest, or noble to let them know what it said, and these British partisans did not neglect their opportunity to color and interpret its words. Papers printed by the Tories of New York, stating that Congress intended to deprive the habitants of their property and their Church, were read aloud by the clergy. Congress thought seriously of send ing persons ' to explain vivi voce to the People ' the meaning of the dispute with England and the aims of the United Colonies ; but evidently, for the present case, this excellent idea had arrived too late." In the letter that Antill carried south from Wooster, the situation of the Americans was painted in doleful colors and full details. This, in so far as he gave the facts, was not to be censured ; but certainly, if the letter fell into British hands, it could not fail to prove unfortunate, and 8 § Joum. Cong., Oct. 21, 1774. The incident 4 Force, IL, 231. ' Report; Note 6. 2i6 Our Struggle forthe Fourteenth Colony that very thing occurred . Duane's valet picked his master's pockets at night and copied for Governor Tryon what in teresting papers they contained. In some such way, Tryon obtained Wooster's despatch, and then he thoughtfiiUy forwarded it north to Montgolfier, Director of the Seminary of St. Sulpice at Montreal, one of the most active and in fluential churchmen in Canada. Now the General had not only revealed the weakness of the Americans, but had added to his other plaints this profound remark : ' There is but little confidence to be placed in the Canadians ; they are but a small remove from the savages.' Nothing more apropos than such a letter to fan their old suspicion of the Americans to life, as well as to kindle fresh fire, could possibly have been devised ; the priests were exactly fitted to make the most of it ; and Montgolfier had it.'° Besides the prestige of intelligence and some education, besides the reputation for sagacit}- and fairness which had made them unofficial judges after the Conquest, besides their control of the women and their possession of useful documents, the clergy held a downright power, and that not merely redoubtable but awful. A 3'oung Canadian at the point of death was brought into the General Hospital near Quebec, and implored the ghostly offices of Father Rigaudville; but Rigaudville refused to minister, unless the man would publicly confess his great guilt in siding with the Americans, and even then, although he absolved the penitent, he would not allow his body an ecclesiastical in- SEMINARY ST. SULPICE 10 § Wooster to Sch., Jan. 5, 1776 : 4 Force, IV., 668 (Tryon speaks of it, in a general way, as addressed to Congress ; but his description fits this letter unmistakably. Perhaps a duplicate was sent to Philadelphia). Duane : London letter, 4 Force, V., 44. Tryon to Montgolfier, Jan. 31, 1776: Pub. Rec. Oflf., Am. andW. I., Vol. 186, p. 325. The Power of the Priests 217 terment. ' The Clergy refuse absolution to all who have shown themselves our Friends,' testified Wooster at Montreal, ' and Preach Damnation to all those that will not take up Arms against us. ' Caldwell heard of but one priest, Lotbiniere, who would absolve a ' rebel.' Substan tially every pious Canadian^and they were all ' pious ' — had to ask the question. What are taxes, even at the worst, beside an eternity of hell-fire ? To be sure, Jacques might argue that Rigaudville had no business to meddle in politics ; but which was to give the priests their orders, Bonhomme Jacques or the Bishop ? Some persisted tim idly ; some persisted defiantly. At St. Michel de Belle- chasse — and no doubt elsewhere — graves were dug for such by the roadside. But not many cared to face the Beyond without squaring accounts with the Church, and the priests made the most of it. Their total pressure, aided by what the gentry could do, amounted to something terrific." Carleton also was at work. Mysterious individuals, male and female, entered and left Quebec now and then. At least one of them received a pension afterwards for some unknown reason. TryOn's letter to Montgolfier passed on to the Governor by this method, and 'large pacquets' for the priests below Quebec were seen going out. Scarcely had the smoke of the assault cleared, when one of the prisoners, an Acadian, was taken in hand by the authori ties, led to the scaffold in imagination, then promised his fortune for dutiful obedience, and finally sent up the river to labor in the King's interest. Quite a number of Cana dian captives lay in Quebec under the shadow of the gibbet, and there was reason to believe — as Arnold antici pated — that some of them agreed to carry word for the ' 1 § Rigaudville : Mgr. de St. Vallier, Part II., Chap. IV., p 400. Wooster to Warner, Jan. 6, 1776: Pub. Rec. Ofif., Am. and W. I., Vol. 186, p. 313. Cald well, Letter. Roadside: Roy, Lauzon, IIL, p. 65. Verreau (Sanguinet), In vasion, p. 95. Report: Note 6. 2i8 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony Governor. ' There were . . . five or six taken pris oners with two or three savages, all of whom the General set at liberty,' recorded Finlay, on the outside of this business. In short, Hazen probably did not miss it greatly in believing that many priests, ' with other people of some consequence,' had carried on a correspondence with General Carleton ' the whole winter.' Something was likely to come of this. '" But nobody labored for the King so hard or so persist ently as the Americans. Strength was the gospel they needed to preach ; but their apostles were a meagre force, badly dressed, badly armed, badly drilled, badly paid, and badly fed. They called themselves the Liberators and Protectors of the Canadians ; but, as Bondfield, one of their principal friends, told Robert Morris, they never could have reached Que bec ' had not the Canadians opened the Road and led them by the hand to the verj' gates of the Capitol, ' and Mac lean bore witness, that ' 2000 of those fellows never could have done . . . any mischief had they not been joined by the Canadians.' The soldiers at Three Rivers lived in great part on alms, begging at every house in town. Whig or Tory ; and when Badeaux, the agent of the hospital, told the American commander that the nuns could not care for his sick indefinitely without pay-' ment, the officer was only able to reply, ' Tell them to have patience. ' ' Very well, I will tell them to feed your soldiers on patience ; we shall see how fat they will get,' retorted Ba deaux ; and the slap could only be answered by a blush. ' The best of causes are subject to vicissitudes, and dis appointments have ever been inevitable,' proclaimed Con- 1 2 § • Chalmers ' Journal, Mar. 8. ' Shortt ' Joumal, Jan. 17 ; Mar. 18. Ainslie, Joumal, Jan. 17 ; Feb. 28 ; Mar. 8, etc. Carleton to Barrington, May 14, 1776; War Ofif., Orig. (Jorres., N. Araer., Vol. 12. Acadian : Amold to Wooster, Jan. 5, 1776 (4 Force, IV., 854). Finlay, Journal, Jan. 2. Hazen: Note 6. The Weakness of the Army 219 gress very grandly to the Canadians after the disaster of December thirty-first; but even the Iiabitants could see that, instead of some inscrutable decree of Providence, a sim ple lack of men and means had brought down the ava lanche, and they beheld an army of the enthusiasts for Liberty melt away homeward, even when it had no enemy to fear. ' I am sure our Army are at the greatest remove from any kind of merit to found our hopes upon,' confessed Ripley. '^ Besides failing to accomplish the good they should have done, the troops caused mischief that should have been avoided. Not only had the American principle of Freedom made the soldiers unruly, not only did Provincial jealousies and bickerings prevent harmony among them, but the treatment they met with rendered them actually mutinous, however brave and loyal at heart. ' Money is the sinews of War, ' said James Livingston ; ' and without it it is impossible to keep up an Army already too ripe for Re volt. ' ' I must beg leave, ' wrote Wooster a week before Christmas, ' to enforce Gen. Montgomery's request, for the Paymaster or money to be sent forward, or we shall be overv/helmed with mutiny and disorder.' At the beginning of February, Schuyler hoped this could be brought about in ' a very few days. ' By and by it actually was accomplished; yet on the twenty-first Wooster's hands went up again in despair : ' The Paymaster has arrived, but has brought nothing but paper money.' At Quebec, the same good fairy had been looked for since the latter part of January, and Livingston believed the consequences of delay were ' greatly to be feared.' But whether men would feel mightily pleased, after this long waiting, to 13 8 Bondfield to Morris, Feb. 4, 1776 : N. Y. Hist. Soc. Coll., 1878, p. 399. Maclean to Barrington, Nov. 20, 1775: War Oflf., Orig. Corres., N. Am. Vol. 12. Three Rivers: Verreau (Badeaux), Invasion, pp. 191, 196 ; Ursul. de T R., I., pp. 367, 368. Secret Journ. Cong., Jan. 24, 1776. Ripley to J. Wheelock, Mar. 7, 1776: J. Wheelock Papers. J2jC^ fC^cA/ t/^!^ J-otyiy ^f^&L,*^ j^*"^ ^'^•'^i^^^^Y^ 220 TWO EXTRACTS FROM RIPLEY'S LETTER TO WHEELOCK, MARCH 7, 1776. The Troops Disorcderly 221 get a fraction of their six and two-thirds dollars a month and then have to offer it— perhaps in vain— at a discount of one-third, could easily be foretold." A worse thing, however, was possible, and it came to pass. Both at Quebec and at Montreal men were forced to serve after they were legally free. ' I hope you will think it necessary to send back every soldier who has deserted from us under pretence of his time being out, ' hinted Arnold to his superior officer. But Wooster did not require the suggestion. Before this letter arrived, orders had been given ' to suffer no man to go out of the country, whether they would inlist or not ' ; and Schuyler approved of this action. Probably, as the generals be lieved, necessity justified their policy ; but it certainly made a queer footnote in the new Primer of Liberty for Canadian Beginners, and did little indeed to improve the morale of the troops. " Quarrels among the chiefs undermined what vestiges of discipline remained. Hazen, though he had given Carleton his first notice ofthe invasion of Canada and per haps offered suggestions about repelling it, had commit ted himself irrevocably to the opposite side ; but many of the Americans were unable to view his doings as a whole. At Montreal, he was ' Esteemed . . ., universally, an enemy in Grain,' as Gershom Mott — no doubt with some exaggeration — informed Samuel Adams ; and Antill was always mentioned there as ' a Very suspected Character. ' Dugan, though a barber, had great influence among the Canadians: 'more than Livingston, Antill or Hazen,' Ritzema believed ; and both Arnold and Wooster com- •¦'§See Vol. L, Chap. XIV. Goforth to Jay, Apr. 8, 1776: Bancroft Coll., Rev. Papers, I., p. .37. J. Liv., [Feb.], 1776: Am. Hist. Rec, IIL, p. 181. Comrars. to Cong., May 6, 1776 : (!:ont. Cong. Papers, No. 166, p. 29. Van Rensselaer to Sch., Feb. 22, 1776: Sch. Papers. Wooster to Sch., Dec. 18, 1775: 4 Force, IV., 310. Sch. to TTOmbull, Feb. 5, 1776: ib., 944. Woosterto Sch., Feb. 21, 1776: tb., 1499. Sch. to Hancock, Feb. 23, 1776: ib., 1481. •s § Arnold to Wooster, Jan. 4, 1776 : 4 Force, IV., 854. Woosterto Sch., Jan. 5, 1776: ib., 668. Sch. to Hancock, Jan. 29, 1776; ib., 880. 222 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony missioned him to raise troops as a colonel. Hazen and Antill, however, working together at Philadelphia, secured control of the new Canadian regiment, and made a sort of bargain to prevent the employment of Dugan. Dugan then hurried south, obtained some money from Congress, and got a commission to raise three companies of Rangers, with power to select their officers. So far as concerned himself, this proved of no great value, but the affair involved plenty of annoyance for Wooster, Hazen, and Antill, and plenty of damage for the cause. '° Brown, besides antagonizing Amold at the lakes, had intrigued against him before Quebec, and now — looking for an assault of the city under his enemy's direction — informed his wife that he ' must be a Uriah.' That was merely suspicion ; but without a doubt Arnold refused him a promotion that Montgomery had given him reason to expect, charged him publicly at the camp with plunder ing the baggage of British officers at Sorel, and wrote Con gress vigorously to the same effect. In fact, he stated that Montgomery himself, to the knowledge of several officers, took the ground that ' he could not in conscience or honour promote him (Maj"'. Brown) until those matters were cleared up.' Such a charge might have some basis or at least color without really signifying much. Brown de nied it stoutly ; and the hatred between the two officers became as hot as the climate would permit." But another quarrel far outshone this one. As Wooster did not conceal the irritation caused by his Continental ' « § G. Mott to Adams, Feb. 21, 1776 : S. Adams Papers. Amold to Dudevan,. Jan. 13, 1776 : Can. Arch., B, 184, i, p. 23. Ritzema, Joumal, Feb. 16, 1776. Sraith, Pnvate Joumal, Jan. i3, 25. Hazen to Antill. Mar. 10, 1776: Can. Arch., B, 27, p. 387. Sch. to Hancock, Mar. 21, 1776: 4 Force, V., 103. Joum. Cong., Mar. 28, 1776. 1 ' § Brown to his wife. Mar. 15, 1776 : Smith, Pittsfield, I., p. 259. (Here will be found a full account, from the Brown point of view, ofthe long running fight with Amold that ensued; See Joum. Cong., June 27 ; July 30 ; Aug. i, 1776.) Dugan, DeposiUon, Aug. i, 1776: Emmet CoU. Amold to Hancock, Feb. i^ 1776: Sparks MSS., No. 52, n., p. 38. Schtiyler and Wooster 223 rank, Schuyler probably began to look for something unpleasant when the Connecticut general' entered his de partment. At all events, he found it. On his march to Ti conderoga in the summer, Wooster ordered a court-martial at Fort George, and he was reported as giving men dis charges. Probably this did not mean a deliberate inten tion to override his superior officer. Ignorance or, at the worst, a stubborn tenacity in asserting old-time preroga tives might explain it. But Schuyler sharply denounced this ' extraordinary conduct, ' and felt it an ' indispensable duty ' to. write the offender a letter. The letter struck its recipient as ' founded in falsehood ' and written with no mo tive except to ' insult ' him. Wooster made adignifiedand patriotic reply, however, disclaiming any intention to con tradict authority or cause trouble ; and, as he soon passed into the direct jurisdiction of Montgomery, the difficulty appeared to end." Montgomery's death, unfortunately, removed the buffer. About the middle of January, Wooster wrote his superior at Albany: ' Some of the persons [i. e. prisoners] you have sent back [i. e. set at liberty] have really behaved very illy.' ' Resolved Sir,' came the reply from Albany, ' Re solved Sir to be treated with the respect due to me as a Gentleman and as an Officer Intrusted with a Command by the Honourable the Representatives of Thirteen Colonies, it is my Positive Order that you cause all such Persons as have had my Permit to return into Canada, to be called before you, and there Confronted with their Accusers. ' At the same time Schuyler informed Wooster that he had com plained at Philadelphia of the ' unbecoming subacity ' of his subordinate, and had explained to Congress this order about the ex-prisoners by saying : ' If they have abused 18 § Joum, Cong., June 22, 1775. Wooster to Sch., Oct. 19, 1775: 4 Force, ni., 1107. Sch. to Hancock, Oct. 14, 1775: ib., 1065. Woosterto Sch., Feb. 11, ¦776: 4 Force, IV., 1217. See Sch. to Wooster, Oct. 23, 1775 (Cont. Cong. Papers, 161, IL, p. 293) for another cause of trouble. 224 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony my Confidence, they are Scoundrels, and I will treat them Accordingly, without repenting that I gave them the In dulgence, for that was an Act of Humanity. If they are not Culpable, they are Injured and I too. I shall sift the Matter to the bottom and m3' Resentment without any kind of exception, shall be experienced by those that deserve it.' '° On this, Wooster also discharged both barrels. To Schuyler he retorted, ' I, also, claim a right to be treated ' et cetera, asserting with equal force his intention to work for the good of the Colonies and his purpose to decide for himself, as the commanding officer in Canada, what the ' internal regulation of the Army' and ' the immediate safety of the country' de manded. To Congress — with whom, unlike Montgomery, he felt perfectly free to cor respond over the head of his superior officer — he forwarded the file of correspondence, and added : ' I know of no reason under Heaven why he should treat me thus cavalierly, but merely to indulge his capri cious humour, which, in the course of the last year, he has dealt out very liberally ' ; with more in the same tone. ' Either he or I must immediately quit this department, ' was Schuy ler's prompt ultimatum to Hancock . Neither left his post ; but naturally the bitter quarrel could not be concealed, and, as most of Wooster's men were from New York, the DAVID WOOSTER AS A YOUNG MAN ,6 r" ^^°°^^^^l°J"'^-i.'^^'^- '+' '776: 4Force, IV., 852. Sch, to Wooster, Jan. to H^L^nof ^^'^°' ^^ ^""J- J? Congress) : Cont.' Cong. Pap., 161, IL, p. 273 Id. to Hancock, Jan. 25, 1776: Cont. Cong. Pap., 153, I., p. 45^' ' '*''•' Outrages against the Canadians 225 situation of the Connecticut officer probably did not im prove. Discipline must have been staggered by such dis sensions ; and all this went on before quick-witted and fickle spectators, accustomed to the strict regularity of the British and French armies.''" More unfortunate still, the Canadians not only saw but felt the disorder. At the beginning, extreme care had been taken to make the American troops regard their Canadian hosts as long- lost brothers, and circumstances had reinforced the lesson. Arnold's men entered Canada as actual suppliants ; and Montgomery's, finding themselves at the threshold face to face with British soldiers, realized the value of friendly aid. To a great degree, this remained the spirit of the military authorities. According to the records of the General Hospital, an officer who threatened Father Rigaudville for not furnishing beds enough to accommo date the American wounded, was cashiered. A nun at Three Rivers heard that a soldier stole some baby-clothes, and that, when the mother complained, the Provincial commander said, ' You shall have them back, and if you care to see the thief punished you need only go to the pine grove at 9 o'clock.' 'Please to advertise a silver spoon left with me by Captain Stout of Jersey, supposed to have been stolen at Montreal,' wrote Goforth. Tradi tions at Aspen Point attested the considerateness of American rule. At Quebec officers were directed ' Strictly to observe the Conduct of their Men,' that all disorder might be suppressed ' in the Verry Bud.' '" But soldiers have always had certain faults, especially in an enemy's country ; and it became increasingly 2" § Wooster to Sch., Feb. ii, 1776 : 4 Force, IV., 1217. Id. to Cong., Feb II, 1776 : ib., looi. Sch. to Hancock, Feb. 20. 1776: ib., 1214. For an opinion on the quarrel see J. Adams to J. Thomas: Coflfin, Thomas, p. 22. 2 ' § Mgr. de St. Vallier, Part II., Chap. IV., p. 400. Ur.sul. de T. Riv., I., p. 370. Goforth (undated) : 4 Force, V., 753. Aspen Point: see Remark XLVII. 'Arnold's' Ord. Book, Jan. 23. VOL II.— 15. 226 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony evident that some at least of the Canadians were not friends. Moreover, the distinction between a loyalist and a man who was merely disobliging could not in all cases be easily discerned. Expecting rough-and-ready fellows to pay more deference to a stranger than they did to their own officers ; to go hungry that sleek Tories might pile on superfluous flesh ; to trudge bare-footed that cantering enemies might splash them with mud ; to bear a harder discipline, while battling for Liberty, than despots ven tured to impose ; to bear it at the order of a govemment that neither paid, fed, nor clothed them ; and to bear it that conspirators against them might be free and prosper ous: — this, as the A?inual Register itself admitted," was expecting much ; and it seemed still more when the American troops began to enter the land as masters instead of suppliants, to succor Provincials rather than to liberate Canadians. Goforth himself testified that privates on their way to Quebec were guilty of ' flagrant abuses. ' A priest's house was broken into, and a watch taken from him. A man had a bayonet run through his neck in his own dwelling for insisting upon being paid. Women and children found themselves constrained by a similar logic to supply private soldiers with horses. ' The peasantry in general,' confessed Hazen, ' have been ill-used ; they have in some instances been dragooned, with the point of the bayonet, to furnish wood for the garrison, at a lower rate than the current price ; carriages, and many other articles furnished, for which certificates were given, not legible and without signature — the one half of consequence rejected by the Quartermaster-General. It is true, they have been prom ised payment, from time to time ; yet they look upon such promises as vague, their labour and property lost, and the 22 Annual Register, 1776, p. 11. An Offensive System 227 Congress and the United Colonies as bankrupt.' Yet, after all, probably only a small fraction of the people really suffered abuse, and such acts could be charged against individuals, not the system." Another trouble, however, was broad and official. A State of war reigned in Canada and all the higher officers were Americans. This meant that foreigners, who had entered the province almost on their knees, now ruled it by the steel. ' The whole country left without any other kind of law than that of the arbitrary and despotick power of the sword,' was Hazen's description of the regime. ' Too frequently abused in all cases of this nature, ' he justly added ; but, even when not abused, when enforced only as necessity appeared to require, the military law of strangers and aliens could not be agreeable. No way presented itself to get arms for Dugan' s proposed regiment save to take what could be found and give certificates ' payable at the end of the campaign ' ; but that seemed extremely harsh. Wooster ordered many captains of the militia to resign, — very likel)' in consequence of hearing from Arnold that Carleton was endeavoring to rouse them ; but, however necessary the precaution, it provoked opposition. Lee's one order bade Wooster ' suffer the Merch[an]ts of Montreal to send none of their woolen Cloths out of the Town,' and no doubt this resulted in more or less vexation of trade. " One instance of arbitrary rule overtopped all the rest. Montgomery had thought of disarming the Tories at Mon treal, — 'not so much from any apprehensions I have of them,' he explained, ' as to quiet the jealous apprehen- 2 3 § Goforth: Note 21. Hazen to Sch., Apr. i, 1776; 4 Force, V., 751. Commrs.; Note 14, 2-* § Gameau, Canada, IIL, p. 4. Hazen; to Sch., Apr. i, 1776: 4 Force, V., 751. Verreau (Sanguinet), Invasion, p. 96. Arras : Arnold to Dudevan, Jan. 13. 1776 (Can. Arch., B, 184, i., p. 23). (Cf Chap. XXV., Note 8.) MiUtia: Letter, 4 Force, V., 481 ; Wooster to Wash.. Jan. 21. 1776 (4 Force, IV., 796) ; Souv. de Maisonneuve, p. 40; Verreau (Sanguinet), Invasion, p. 96; Ainslie, Journal, Peb. 24. Lee to Wooster, Feb. 28, 1776: Am. Antiq. Soc. 228 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony sions of the troops ' ; but, with victory perching on his banner, he felt it safe as well as politic to disturb them little. At Christmas, an anonymous letter informed him that the ' placemen ' captured on the fieet were ' holding conversations big with the most inhuman sentiments, and the most disadvantageous to the cause of Uberty, ' and urged that he send them into the Colonies as soon as con veniently he could. After his fall they grew ' more bold ,' as Wooster soon disco\-ered. Just before the frost threw its crystal chains across the St. Lawrence, the schooner Magdalen had brought word from the govemment that ' as early as possible in the spring a very considerable Body ' of Russians would be sent over ; and, as Quebec seemed to be holding out, the royalists felt quite cheer ful. ' In the Spring, the Wheel will turn,' observed Major Skene, with a look that could almost awaken yellow violets in January. ' Boldly my friend,' Govemor Trj-on exhorted Montgolfier, with fresh assurances of early and formidable reinforcements. The advice was followed ; and stories of many hues, but all dark towards the Pro vincials, went flying among the people. The men sent back by Schuyler had seen the state of things above, and represented that St. Johns and the lake posts could easily be seized. ' Tories I find verj^ plent}', ' wrote Silvanus Rip ley from Montreal. 'Very saucy,' was Mr. Secretarj^ Cole's description of the Ministerial party. ' Already they cry. Victory,' added Pelissier." ' It is my opinion,' said Arnold, ' that every soul who were in office at the reduction of the country, and others who are looked upon as inimical, should be immediately 2S § Montg. to Sch., Nov. 24, 1775: 4 Force, III., 1694. Anon, letter, Dec. 22, 1775: 4 Force,IV., 381. Woosterto Sch., Jan. 14, 1776: 4 Force, IV., 852. Mag dalen : Lindsay (Canad. Rev., II., No. 4, p. 352). Pownall to Carleton, SepL C, 14, 1775: Can. Arch., B, 37, pp. 104, 106 ; seeib., O, 11, p. 338. Skene, Jan. 28, 1776: Pub. Rec. 06F., Am. and W. I., Vol. iS6, p. 333. Tryon to Montgolfier (in French), Jan. 31, 1776: ib., p. 325. Wooster to Sch., Jan. 14, 1776: 4 Force, IV., 852. Ripley to J. Wheelock, Mar. 7, 1776 : Wheelock Papers. Cole to , Jan. 24, 1776: firamet Coll. Pelissier to Hancock, Jan. 8, 1776: 4 Force, IV., 596. General Wooster 229 sent over the lake, without respect of persons,' and Pelissier agreed that the royalists ought, to be weeded out. With such support, Wooster felt satisfied of ' the great necessity of sending many of their leaders out of the Province,' and no less than forty sled-loads of wrathful Tories made the hard journey to Albany, leaving ten times as many indig nant friends behind. One could easily prove the punish ment high-handed, for the General himself charged some of the exiles with nothing more than ' base, ungenerous conduct. ' Who then is safe ? it was natural to ask. Like most benefactors, the Canadians probably had an adequate idea of the aid they had given their liberators, and felt the sting of ingratitude as well as the heel of tyranny. These Americans were usurpers in addition to being despots ; and had not Jerry Dugan, the most popular Canadian officer, been almost crowded out ? Liberators, indeed ! " Beyond a doubt, the task of ruling at Montreal called for the wisdom of the serpent ; but it fell — to David Wooster. 'Iam informed,' confided Silas Deane to his wife, ' that Wooster talks high ofhis Thirty years' Services. . . . [I] am determined to do my duty, and will on no Occasion sacrifice the good of my Country to the whim of any old man, or old woman rather, or their sticklers — when Wooster was appointed, I washed my hands of the consequences, by declaring him, in my Opinion, totally unequal to the Service. This I did openly in the face of the Assembly, and if I tho't him unfit for a Major General of Connecticut Forces only ' — the conclusion was unmis takable. ' General Wooster, I am informed,' said the re served Washington, ' is not of such activity as to press through difficulties ' ; and, indeed, that could hardly be expected of a man whose eye was already turned back- 2' I Arnold to Wooster, Jan. 4, 1776: 4 Force, IV., 854. Pelissier : Note 25. Wooster to Sch., Jan. 14, 1776 ; 4 Force, IV., 852. Ech. to Hancock, Jan. 31, 1776: ib., 898. Wooster to Sen., Jan. 19, 1776: '*>., 1004. 230 Our Striiggle for the Fourteenth Colony ward over a generation of work. As for sagacity and judgement, his defence against the complaint of discharging soldiers without authority to do so, told the story. ' I did not Discharge any men, ' he protested, ' but only gave them a Furlough, ... as the Term of their Inlist- ments were not expired. ' In other words— and so the Com mander-in-chief pointed out — he not only let needed men quit the service, but continued their pay ; and he looked upon an avowal of this as a triumphant vindication." Not that Wooster could fairly be called a cipher, how- . ever; nor a knave; nor a coward. In some ways he com pelled respect. No doubt he was a bluff, hearty man of the people. He must have been a very effective general in the opinion of a hay -field. All the farmers within reach of his voice would have nodded approval — possibly as they did at church — of his honest zeal, his patriotism, and his plan of campaign ; andprobablj' almost any hay-field prob lem could have been routed by his agricultural strategy. But his view ofa really difficult situation took shape in the handy formula: 'God orily knows,' — less an ascription to the wisdom of God than to the ignorance of Wooster; and his notions of meeting it did themselves up in the parallel phrase: ' What we wish, we easily believe.' Con gress, doubtless to make him grumble less about his rank, had thanked him ' for the very important assistance' contributed to the reduction of St. Johns ; and, as he had contributed nothing but bodily presence, any kind of cere bration at Montreal was clearly superfluous.'' From turret to foundation stone, from his dusty old cocked hat down to his coarse boots, every feature of his person — his uninspiring figure, his lethargic face, his dila- 2'§S. Deane, [about July 15, 1775]: Conn. Hist. Soc. Wash, to Sch., Oct. 5, 1775 : Writings (Ford), IIL, p. 168. Wooster to Sch., Dec. 18, 1775: Sch. Papers. Wash, to Sch., Jan. 16, 1776: Writings (Ford), IIL, p. 348. 2' § See Wooster's letters to Sch., Jan. 5, 19, 27, 1776: 4 Force, IV., 668, 1004; Sparks MSS., No. 60, p. 65. Cong, to Wooster, Nov. 30, 1775: 4 Force, III., 1718. General Wooster 231 tory eyes glowing covertly now and then with a streak of plebeian shrewdness — everything spoke the sad word 'provincial': provincial courage, provincial knowledge, provincial pride, provincial obsti nacy, provincial dulness. His pro per place was in a historical mus eum ofthe French and Indian War; and, with due care to prevent the sawdust from leaking, he might long have made an impressive fig ure there in the eyes of his honest country-folk. But, of all conceiv able posts, Montreal just then was about the least suitable for him. 'Cast about for a General to com mand us,' begged Ritzema grimly; ' He must be a military man, of sound intellects, and an affable deportment'; and this measure of the need measured also the vac ancy. As a soldier, Wooster was vieux feu, or, to translate French slang into English slang just as good, a ' back number. ' For statesmanship, the triple-crowned prejudices that helped give him a provincial popularity disqualified him. In a way, too, his sturdy virtues were worse than vices, for vices would have tried to hide or even grace themselves among people of opposite ideas, but con vinced virtues, never ; while his 232 Our Struggle forthe Fourteenth Colony want of activity, at first sight a blemish, probably counted at Montreal as the very chiefest ofhis merits." Intellectually, at least, the disaster at Quebec had strack him with panic. He proved unable to hold his men in hand under immensely easier conditions than Amold had at Quebec. He confessed that during his administration there had been ' man}' abuses' and, he feared, ' not a few embezzlements ' in the commissary department. A report crept into Quebec that one of his orders provoked the peo ple of Montreal to flat disobedience ; and certainly Hazen protested that he ' could not Possibly be an Instrument ' of carrying out some scheme that Wooster undertook. His basal idea of governing the city could be inferred from his own remark that he had 'permitted' certain of the merchants to choose a committee with a view of petition ing Congress. His general treatment ofthe Canadians doubtless followed logically from considering them as next door to the savages ; and, as regarded the British Tories, probably Schuyler did not err in thinking him too much influenced by the implacable Walker, just freed from the dirty hold of an armed schooner.^" Among a people that loved politeness and deftness, he showed himself duU and blunt, if not -brutal. When things began to look dubious, he ordered the public, under pain of exile, not to talk ofthe affairs ofthe Americans,— a masterpiece of stupidity. His proclamation after the dis aster at Quebec declared in the same breath and with no sense of the incongruity, first, that Congress had sent an 2'§Ritzema to N.Y. Com. Safety, Jan. 3, 1776: 4 Force, IV., 1114. The author's judgment is based upon the whole range of incidents and correspond ence touching Wooster frora his entry into the field of operations to the time of his summary dismissal from it. (See R. Morris to S. Deane, June s, 1776; ^.- V. Hist. Soc. Coll., 1886, p. 136.) His personal appearance is inferred from his mental and moral qualities, the well-known portrait of him at an earlier age, and other facts patent to the thoughtful reader. ¦"> § Wooster to Sch., Mar. 5, 1776: 4 Force, V., 416. (See Sch. to Hancock, Feb. 23, 1776: 4 Force, IV., 1481.) Ainslie, Joumal, Jan. 15. Hazen to Wooster, Feb. IS, 1776 : Emmet. Coll. Wooster to Cong., Feb. 11, 1776: 4 Force, IV., looi. Sch. to Hancock, Feb. 10, 1776; ib., 990. Wooster's Mistakes 233 army to deHver Canada from general servitude, and sec ondly, that men even suspected of co-operating or corre sponding with Quebec should suffer close imprisonment or exile. When a number of citizens called to expostulate against the banishment of people, he cut this difficult knot at once in grand style : ' I regard the whole of you as enemies and rascals,' — at least, so Monsieur Sanguinet noted in his Journal. He denied that Major Campbell had any ground for calling him ' a damned old scoundrel ' and a breaker of his word ; but he certainly replied to a courteous note from Judge Fraser in this manner : ' Your breach of promise & insolent letter to me yesterday, justly merritt a sett of Iron orniments, which you & your asso ciates have very lately been so fond of bestrowing on the friends of constitutional liberty, but as I disdain to follow your inhuman & Infamous example, I shall only order, & I do hereby order and direct you on receipt hereof to re- pare to the Fort at chambly, under such an escort as I shall direct, & there to remain in close abode till further orders. ' This meant five weeks of confinement ; guards were set upon Mrs. Fraser, although Wooster knew that she was in a delicate state ; and finally the Judge was de ported, — only to find, on reaching Albany, that ' no par ticular charge ' had been laid against him." Montgomery, though he knew the clergy worked against his cause, had ' winked at this behaviour,' and said highly agreeable things to them ; but Wooster, praise to God, was no such a trimmer. Chaplain Robbins, of the same staunch Puritan province, on seeing a Catholic boy enter a church and kneel for some time 'With the greatest devotion, ' exclaimed, ' Oh when shall Satan be bound and Antichrist meet a final overthrow ? ' Under an admin- 2' § Order, etc. ; Verreau (Sanguinet), Invasion, p. 95. Proc, Jan. 6, 1776: Can. Arch., B, 184, i, p. 21. Woosterto >ch., Jan. 19, 1776 : 4 Force, IV., 1004. Fraser, Memorial : Cont. Cong. Paper 5, No. 41, IIL, p. 151. 234 Ou'' Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony istration of that shade — as was natural, and as Hazen asserted — the clergy were ' neglected, perhaps in some instances iU-used ' ; and, according to Major Skene, who apparently kept in touch with Montreal, a military order shut up all the Mass houses on Christmas Eve. Many other such things were probablj- done, though not re corded. Antill, going north, met a friend of the cause at Iron Point, and ' could not help being greatly alarmed and much shocked, to hear of the great confusion and irregularity ' prevailing at Montreal ; and Schuyler, appar ently after listening to the same informant, concluded that all was ' in confusion ' in Canada. ' " At Quebec, meanwhile, a tremendously hazardous move was made. As early as the middle of December, Montgomery announced that he must ' soon be exceed ingly distressed,' if specie did not arrive. Even before leaving Montreal, he had found that but few would accept Continental currency, and at Quebec he confessed that it "would not be received by the inhabitants.' Several schemes to give the bills a standing were suggested ; but the popular distrust could not be overcome. To make the situation peculiarly delicate, royalists had warned the Canadians in advance that the Provincials were going to rob them by the trick of paper money. 'You see men,' cried ' Civis Canadiensis ' in the Quebec Gazette, ' You see men, against whom you have done nothing, come into the province with arms in their hands, and seize your property under the pretext of being your bene factors. Think you that these destitute people will let you quietly enjoy the fruit of your labors ? They will take all they wish and pay with biUs of credit. What will you do with such money ? Alas, nothing. ' Wash- 52 § Montg. to Sch., Nov. 19, 1775 ; 4 Force, III., 1682. Robbins, Joumal, Apr. 30. Hazen to Sch., Apr. :, 1776: 4 Force, V., 751. Skene: Pub. Rec. Off., Am. and W. I., Vol. 186, p. 333. AntiU to Sch., Feb. 7, 1776 ; 4 Force, IV., 1132. Sch. to Wash., Feb. 14, 1776: ib., 1146. Remark LXX. A Dangerous Decree 235 ington's orders to Arnold had been most emphatic : ' You will be particularly careful to pay the full value for all provisions, or other accommodations, which the Cana dians may provide for you on your march ' ; and the wis dom of this rule had only grown since it was issued." As the legatee of Montgomery's necessities, Arnold hoped to ' rub along,' and he endeavored to comfort himself with the thought that, should the capital fall, 'paper money would soon have a currency ' ; yet, in spite of every device to ' beg, borrow and squeeze, ' he often found nothing in his military chest but a few Portuguese coins. Price could aid him little, for Wooster admitted, about the middle of January, that every friend had been ' drained already ' ; and, after no very long stay at Quebec, lie set out for Philadelphia with Thomas Walker. It finally became a question of stark necessity, if the blockade of Quebec was to continue. Possibly, indeed, no ' if ' could be added. Not only was it evident that any attempt to retire would be hazardous, but a man from Chambly, vouched for by Maclean, reported positively in Quebec, that Arnold's troops dared not go off, since their Canadian allies had sworn to 'cut them to pieces in their retreat,' unless another attempt were made to capture Quebec. " Something, in short, really had to be done ; and, on the fourth of March — ' drove to the last extremity [and] in want of almost every necessary, ' as Antill said — Arnold issued this decree : ' To the Inhabitants of the District of 33 § Montg. to Wooster, Dec. i6, 1775: Sparks MSS., No. 52, IL, p. 60. Id. to Sch., Dec. 26, 1775: 4 Force, IV., 464. Schemes : Montg. to Sch., Dec. 26, 1775 (4 Force. IV., 464); Ritzema, Journal, Feb. 16 ; Wooster to Sch., Jan. 14, 1776 (4 Force, IV., 852) ; Sch. to Hancock, Jan. 29, 1776 (ib., 880) ; Id. to Id., Feb. 7, 1776 (ib., 9ss); Wooster to Sch., Mar. 5, 1776 (4 Force, V., 416) ; Joum. Cong., Feb 6, 17, 1776. Distrust ; Gameau, Canada, IIL, p. 3 ; Quebec Gazette, Oct. 5, 177s ; see also Chap. XIV. Wash, to Amold, Sept. 14, 1775: Writings (Ford), IIL, p. 121. Remark LXXI. '¦^ § Amold to Wash., Jan. 14, 1776 : 4 Force, IV., 674. Id. to Hancock, Feb. I, 1776: Sparks MSS., No. 52, IL, p. 38. Id. to Cong., Jan. 24, 1776 : ib., p. 37. Id. to Id., Jan. 11, 1776: ib., p. 34. Wooster to Sch., Jan. 19, 1776; 4 Force, IV., 1CXJ4. Id to Cong., Feb. 11, 1776:1b., 1001. Ainslie, Joumal, Feb. 28. 'Chalmers' Joumal, Feb. 28. ^ FROM ARNOLD'S DECREE OF MARCH 4, 1776 236 A Dangerous Decree 237 Quebec, . . . We have seen fit to give Circulation among the Public to a necessary Amount of the Paper money issued by Order of the honorable Congress, upon the general Credit of the united Colonies of the Conti nent. . . . Whoever shall accept the said Money of the Congress, shall receive the Amount of it in Gold and Sil ver within the space of three or four Months from the date of this Present ; while on the contrary Every Person who shall refuse to accept it at Par and without Discount, shall be considered an Enemy of the united Colonies and treated As Such.' ' This Step could not be avoided, [but] I tremble for the consequences,' wrote Antill. ' If the rebels should come into the country, ' a gentleman at Quebec had prophesied in August, ' they will want every thing from the Canadians for their paper money, . . . and the Rebels will be obliged to have recourse to force to give it a circulation, or in other words to take what they want, which will make the Canadians fly to arms in defence of their property.' But this gentleman was evi dently a Tory ; and so far nearly all the soothsaying of that party had gone wrong. It was a most perilous move ; one had reason to tremble ; and yet nobody could cer tainly foretell off-hand the consequences of the decree." By the last days of March, however, some things had grown clear. The right method to win the Canadians had certainly not been followed. When Montgomery first entered the country, testified Hazen, ' the ready assistance which they gave on all occasions by men, carriages, or provisions, was most remarkable.' In No vember, Schuyler could perceive that they were beginning to believe in 'the strength of the Colonies,' — the main thing needful. But the proper steps to confirm this feel- '5 § [AntiU] to [Hazenl, Mar. 28, 1776; Can. Arch., B, 27, p. 380. Decree (in French) : Am. Antiq. Soc. Amold to Deane, Mar. 30, 1776: 4 Force, V., 549 Letter, Aug. 20, 1775: 4 Force, III., 211. 238 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony ing had not been taken. Wrote au American ofScer : ' I must say I think this department has been neglected,' and many others felt the same. Troops enough to ensure the security of Canada or even to drive out the feeble British force at Quebec had not been sent. ' Eiberty had meant chaos. ' The civil state of this Province is very bad,' testified Ripley. As Arnold admitted, the people in most of the parishes had found it necessary to mount guard for their own security. The Indian trade had been closed. All the large business was paralyzed; and, as Joseph Hawley pointed out, Canada did not enjoy even the business opportunities which open rebellion and a declaration of independence could have given. In fact, she had no commercial status at all, internal or external. ' Will they ever join with us heartily,' demanded Hawley, ' who, in order to do it, must sacrifice their trade ? ' " ' Should things not go well, ' confessed Montgomery, ' I tremble for the fate of the poor Canadians.' Evidently they were not going well ; and soon, it was reported, they would not be going at all. Sears, one of the Montreal prisoners permitted to retum home, reported that 'the Colonies had given over the thoughts of keeping this Province.' Others affirmed the same thing. Still others held that the Colonies would leave Canada to her punish ment, after using her as a club against the Ministry and thus carrying their own point. ' We will never abandon you,' promised the Congress in January; but by March various facts had appeared to prove either its impotence or its hypocrisy. Some recalled now how the Americans had been pictured to them in September : ' a set of mis creants, who while they were promoting their own J' § Hazen to Sch., Apr. i, 1776: 4 Force, V., 751. Sch. to Hancock, Nov. II, 1775: 4 Force, IIL, 1520. Letter, Mar. 24, 1776 : 4 Force, V., 481. Ripley to J. Wheelock, Mar. 7, 1776; Wheelock Papers. Amold to Hancock, Feb. 12, 1776: 4 Force, IV., 1017. Wooster to Cong., Feb. n, 1776: ib., looi. Goforth to Jay, Apr. 8, 1776: Bancroft Coll., Rev. Papers, L, p. 37. Hawley to Gerry. Feb. 20, 1776; Austin, Gerry, I., p. 164. Double Mischief Done 239 Malignant ends, knew they were setting the Reputation, Safety and Welfare of a generous (but deluded) People at Stake, and involving them in certain Ruin.' Many realized that they had done much to excite the wrath of England ; and now, if America did not take care of them, where were they? Where were they, in fact ? ' Between Hawk and Buzzard,' Antill informed Congress. They did not hear the remark, but some of them could think it." However much the Canadians loved the Eord, they feared the Devil still more. Tales of prisoners hung on the ramparts of Quebec and then thrown to the dogs, declared Ainslie, served the King most effectively. ' The peasants are, in general, at present, for us, but I believe from no other motive than that we are the strongest side,' said Ritzema. Terror was the final argument still ; and therefore in exact proportion as respect for the Americans diminished, dread of the British and the wish to ' make their peace with their former masters'— as Wooster phrased it — increased ; so that the mischief grew with double speed. On the one hand, more was demanded of the United Colonies. The mere capture of Quebec would no longer ensure their joining the Union. On setting out for the capital, Montgomery had expected, after reducing that place, to call a convention and see Canada welded to the other Colonies ; but, after his batteries failed, he sent word to Schuyler that a full and palpable insurance against every possible attack from Great Britain would be necessary. The simple prolongation of this line of ascent carried it, by the middle of March, rather high. On the other hand, the Tories urged that it was not too late even 5' § Montg. to Sch., Sept. 28: Force IIL, 954. Woosterto Sch., Jan. 14, 1776: 4 Force, IV., 852 Id to Warner, Jan. 6, 1776: Pub. Record Off., Ara. and W. I.,. Vol. 186, p. 313. Letter. Mar. 24, 1776 : 4 Force, V., 481. Secret Journ. Cong., Jan. 24, 1776. Quebec Gazette, Sept. 21, 1775. Antill: Smith, Private Journal,. Jan. 18. 240 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony now to give a redeeming proof of loyalty. ' They are but a handful of Men,' hinted the priests.'* Others did more than hint. A plot was laid in January to overpower the garrison of Montreal. Beaubassin ad vised the massacre of the American troops loucUy enough to be overheard. Woolsey headed an attempt to capture some of Arnold's men. An anonymous paper, ' very art fully written,' was found one morning at the church door in Three Rivers, ' calculated to stimulate the inhabitants to rise ' and cut the Americans off. Under Wooster's very ear, Sanguinet cried to the Canadians of Montreal : ' Will you be more senseless than the beasts, which, look ing at their hurts, rouse themselves against the men that have wounded them ? ' And it was found that soldiers were being quietly enlisted for the King even between Chambly and Sorel. Were such affairs accidents or were they symptoms? It mattered vitally which. Should Carleton succeed in winning over the Canadians and Indians, Washington assured the Massachusetts legisla ture, ' words are unnecessary to describe the melancholy effects that will, inevitably, follow.' Happily, nobody had really dared make head against the Provincials as yet. Sporadic malcontents were, perhaps, of no particular significance.'" But, as the days and nights were growing equal, the Americans at Quebec began to catch glimpses of something more serious. A number of priests from below had been arrested a few weeks before ' on account of their diabolical conduct ' ; and, though Arnold dismissed them on parole, such treatment could hardly be expected to charm away 3 8 § Ainslie, Journal, Feb. 28. Ritzema to N. Y. Com. Safety, Jan. 3, 1776 : Force, IV., 1114. Woosterto Hancock, Feb. 13, 1776: 4F'orce, IV., 1132. Montg. to Sch., Dec. 26, 1775: ib., 464. Wooster to Warner, Jan. 6, 1776: Note 37. " § Cf. ' Chalraers ' Joumal, Feb. 28, with letter from Montreal, Jan- 8, 1776, m Pub. Rec. Off., Am. and W. I., Vol. 186, p. 309. Wooster to Sch., Mar. 13, 1776: 4 Force, V.. 417. Letter, Jan. 27, 1776: 4 Force, IV., 868. Verreau (Sangumet), Invasion, p. 103. Goforth to Jay, Apr. 8, 1776 : Bancroft Coll., Rev. Papers, I., p. 37. Wash, to Mass., Jan. 19, 1776: 4 Force, IV., 775. An Uprising 241 their spirit of contradiction. Eater, something was heard of the mysterious packets that had left Quebec for the same quarter. On the sixteenth of March, Captain Ayot of Point Eevi wrote to Arnold, in bad French but a good spirit, that certain persons were telling all through the parishes on that side how few the Americans before Quebec really were, and actually prompting the people to 'Revolt.' Carleton had in fact sent word to Beaujeu, the seig neur of Crane Island {lie aux Grues) to cut off Arnold's guard at Point Eevi and thus break the blockade. About thirty miles down the St. Eawrence the standard of the King was set up. A convoy of provisions intended for the Americans was seized. The movement grew 'more formidable every day.' Peasants gathered fast. The ball got started. Beaujeu, on the march with three hundred and fifty men, boasted that as many more were coming behind. The little force at Point Levi counted nothing like that. As news of all this arrived, about the twenty- second of March, many of the Americans before Quebec fairly trembled. And well they might : it was an hour of real, of mortal danger. ' God (and he only) can deter mine our fate,' exclaimed Brogden. *° But Arnold acted quickly. The posts at Point Eevi and Orleans Island were strengthened. Some boats that had been armed with cannon got into motion. Brave Major Duboys marched down the river with eighty men ; Colonel Nicholson followed with seventy more ; and a large num ber of friendly Canadians joined these forces. An habitant betrayed the advance party of the enemy ; and Du- *" § For the Beaujeu affair: Amold to , Mar. 28, 1776 (4 Force, V., 512). Id. to McNeill, Mar. 29, 1776 (Ford Coll.); Id. to Deane, Mar. 30, 1776 (^ Force, '^•1 S49); Ayot to Amold (Can. Arch., B, 27, P- 389); Carleton to Germain, May 14. 1776 (4 Force, VI. , 456) ; Caldwell, Letter ; Bull, de Rech. Hist., 1900, pp. 130, 132, etc. ; Centenaire, p. ^4 ; Haskell, Diary, Mar. 23 ; Senter, Joumal ; 'Shortt' Joumal, Mar. 18 ; Tgtu, Evfiques, p. 334 ; Pelton (N. Y. Calendar, I., p. 285) ; Mott to Goforth, Mar. 26, 1776 (4 Force, V., 753); Anon., Apr. 6, 1776 (ib., 804); Fmlay's and other British Joumals, Apr. 6 ; Berthelot, (Can. Arch., sepa rate); Brogden to Goforth, Mar. 26, 1776 (4 Force, V., 7:;3); Arnold to Clinton, Mar. 22, 1776 (Dreer Coll.); Verreau (Sanguinet), Invasion, p. 105. VOL. 11. — 16. ^SJdi*' <5^»-^ FROM ARNOLD'S LETTER TO MO NEILL, MARCH 29, 1776 242 The Omens are Doubtful Still 243 boys — taking it by surprise at a priest's house — killed six or eight, wounded an abbe from the Seminary besides one or two laymen, and sent nearly forty prisoners to head quarters. Upon that, Beaujeu's main body scattered. ' Thanks be to God ! ' cried Brogden. Yet t'ne real question remained. Noblesse, clergy, and peasantry had now combined under the royal flag, and had actually fought the Americans. Two months before, Pe lissier had said that troops ought to be placed in the country districts, and Ritzema thought it necessary to 'awe' the people. It really began to look that way. I ' con sider,' Washington had concluded at the end of January, 'that the important period is now arrived, when the Cana dians and consequently their Indians must take their side' : were they doing it ? ' The Canadians taking up arms so early against us is ofthe most impprtant consequence,' thought Hazen; 'Much depends on it,' Gershom Mott could see ; and, like an earthquake, this tragic incident jarred harshly southward all the long way to Philadelphia. ' Alarming,' commented Schuyler as it shook Fort George; 'really alarming,' thoughtthe Commander-in-chief at New York ; ' of the utmost importance,' felt Congress." Yet Arnold, in reporting the affair, added : ' The inhabi tants are generally in our favour.' All but the leaders of the rising were set free, and he believed 'they would not Soon take up Arms again.' Certainly, complete quiet re turned in that quarter. The commander at Three Rivers found many Canadians eager to get American appoint ments as captains of militia. More Provincial forces moved toward the seat of war. New plans to reduce Quebec ripened. England was far away. The St. Lawrence re- * 1 §SeeNote4o. Pelissier to Hancock, Jan. 8, 1776 ; 4 Force IV., 596. Ritzema to N. Y. Cong., Jan. 5, 1776: ib., 1115. Wash, to Sch., fan. 27, 1776 : Writings (Ford), IIL, p. 375. Hazen to Sch., Apr. i, 1776 : 4 Force, V , 751. Sch. to Wash., Apr. 12, 1776: 4 Force, V.. 871. Wash, to Sch., Apr. 19, 1776 : Writings (Ford), IV., p. 28. Hancock to Sch., Apr. 26, 1776: 4 Force, V., 1086. 244 Ou"" Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony mained fast locked. And nobody, on earth could sum up the words that passed in the dark confessionals under the tin roofs of the churches, the sharp remarks covered with banter that circled round the simmering stew-pots between puffs of the long pipes, and still less the half- conscious feelings that crept voiceless from heart to heart through this agitated sea of unlettered, inscrutable peasants. The clergy believed they knew, perhaps ; but, six months before, their shrewdest calculations had been wofnlly, even ludicrously, disappointed." ¦• 2 § Arnold to , Mar. 28, 1776: 4 Force, V., 512. Id. to McNeill, Mar. 29, 1775: Ford Coll. Anon, letter (in French), Mar. 28, 1776: Can. Arch., B, 27, p. 394. Letter, Three Rivers, Mar, 24, 1776: 4 Force, V., 481. XXVIII NEW PEANS, NEW HOPES, NEW ATTACKS AEE these weeks, the people going their narrowed ways in Quebec knew nothing of the fresh thunderbolts forging against them. Ignorance brought little bliss, how ever. The city appeared to be marching in a cul-de-sac, and nobody pretended to make out what was lurking at the farther end. Another assault was constantly looked for. ' Thus we remained the remainder of the winter, al ways on the qui vive, ' said Caldwell. ' If they make a second attack,' muttered Ainslie, ' they will repent their rashness ' ; but every one understood that repentance was easy enough to be little dreaded by the Americans. De serters and spies, who crept into the city shrouded in new white blankets or were hoisted bodily over a gate, declared that an assault was coming and gave the date. From a look-out box thirty feet in air above Cape Diamond, the snow beyond the Heights could be seen strewed with lad ders. When a night proved ' dark and sleety,' timid folks could almost hear the ' rebel ' battle-cry. People studied the Governor's face whenever he appeared, and drew courage from his calm looks ; but they read there no contempt for the danger.' Consequently, while the amount of fighting may not have been great, the amount of getting ready to fight was * This and several following paragraphs are based on the British Journals ; Vialar's, Lester's, and Ainslie's Ord. Books ; Caldwell, Letter ; Carleton to Germain, May 14, 1776 (4 Force, VI. , 456) : Id. to Tryon, May 17, 1776 (Pub. Rec. Off., Am. and W. I., Vol. 186, p. 739) ; Precis of Oper.; Dearbom, Joumal. 245 246 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony immense. ' More guns mounted ' ; ' More guns mounted ' ; ' More guns mounted '; wrote a citizen day after day in his Joumal. By the ninth of March, a hundred and four teen cannon — ' none under 12-pounders,' noted Finlay — squatted on the ramparts, besides a numberless brood of mortars, howitzers, cohorns, and other minor sorts ; nor did the work stop there. Soon after the assault, Carleton visited the Eower Town and had new fortifications erected in that quarter. Another blockhouse went up toward the Heights. Will the ice in the river get solid enough now to bear the Americans ? asked every one when the cold grew intense at sunset and the gale died down ; and, after the river did freeze hard, a trench was cut through the ice, while barriers of heavy cakes closed the ends ofthe streets in the Eower Town. Now and then all the cannon were freshly scaled, or the ditch and ramparts cleared of snow. On moonless nights, fireballs hung at the angles of the bastions ; and a composition was invented, which, after giving a bright, steady light until nearly consumed, ex ploded and scattered hand-grenades, bullets, and scraps of metal in all directions. As a rule, nobody took his clothes off, day or night ; and, a great part of the time, every man not on duty slept at a place of rendezvous with a musket by his arm, under orders ' to be ready on a min ute's warning.' The invalids and pseudo-invalids were tried out on the parade, and over one hundred men fit for battle or for guarding the prisoners were discovered. No body could escape Maclean. Every one had to do his part of the sentry duty ; and, with few long intermissions, the roar of heavy guns kept the windows jarring. The stories of scanty firewood that comforted Amold had a very solid foundation. Fuel "was much wanted,' said Carleton, and some of the people found themselves ' in great Distress. ' Even in January, one fire had to an swer for six or seven families ; and March twentieth saw «!»«*?*'"' 247 EDWARD ANTILL'S MAP (NORTH AND SOUTH REVERSED) 248 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony the last armful of ' the King's wood ' served out. Party after party ventured under escort into St. Roch, to get fuel from what houses the Americans did not burn ; and the picket fences there were trimmed to the snow. ' When that melts two or three feet,' they said, ' we '11 find a second crop ' ; and they could hardly wait for the time to come. Provisions also grew short. Seven pence and a half for a pound of beef seemed 'very dear ' the middle of Januar}' ; but the price rose to nine pence in three weeks, and kept on climbing. Only about half of the wheat in town had been made into flour when the blockade began ; and the one mill, driven by horses, ground but three bushels an hour. Much of the grain had to be boiled, and eaten whole. Cold weather, scant rations, fatiguing duty, and continual alarms made the time heavy if not exactly dull. 'A hard winter,' grumbled Barnfair. 'A close Blockade,' admitted the Governor,' Many wondered why Carleton did not end it all by a sor tie, and some blamed him. Maclean was doubtless one of the latter, and Caldwell certainly another.' But they did not balance all the chances, as the responsibility of com mand required him to do. The misfortune of losing Que bec would have been ten, perhaps a hundred, possibly a thousand fold greater than any advantage to be gained by driving the Americans from the suburbs and highways. The Governor's one duty at present was to save the capi tal, that is to say the flag, Canada, perhaps North Amer ica ; and this he intended to do, regardless of glory or minor strategic advantages. ' Montcalm,' said Montgomery, ' permitting his courage to get the better of his discretion, gave up the advantages of his fortress, and came out to try 2 § Council, Quebec, Nov. i6, 177? ; War Off., Orig. Corres., N. Amer., Vol. 12. Barnfair, May 5, 1776: Middlesex Joumal, June 22, 1776. Carleton to Tryon, etc.: Note i. Report, Com. of Secret Corres., Feb. 14, 1776 : Cont. Cong. Papers, No. 22. p. 211. ' Maclean to Germain, May 10, 1776: Can. Arch., Q, 12, p 39. Caldwell, Letter. j < u ,;.-,, i- j:< Carleton's Problem 249 his strength on the plain. Carleton, who was Wolfe's Quartermaster-General, understands this well, and, it is to be feared, will not follow the Frenchman's example.'* Had it been possible to know the situation of the enemy, ^ — but that he could not. There were telescopes enough in town, even after Maclean lost the spy-glass covered with green baize, that had become so familiar a sight on the ramparts ; but none of them, even from the sentry-box on stilts, could explore the secrets of the American lines. The numbers in the besieging camp were naturally exaggerated by report. Even when only five hundred Provincials could pace the rounds, Caldwell barely ventured to believe that they did not exceed four teen hundred. Tryon assured the Governor that he ' would not probably have one-fourth part of the ten thousand [proposed for Canada] to cope with ' ; but even that would be twenty-five hundred, and many more could lurk in the folds of the 'probably.' Spies could not easily ransack Arnold's camp, especially as it included several posts ; and, if they announced the reinforcements that Sanguinet heard of at Montreal, the tale was twenty thousand. Deserters were the principal sources of infor mation, as Caldwell stated ; and nobody could be sure whether they were converts or emissaries. Early in April, Eee was said to be on the way with four thousand troops. One man reported that quarters for seven thou sand had actually been ordered by the American com mander. ' A Yankyade,' sniffed Ainslie ; but who could be positive ? Another fellow, who seemed very simple and open, called the enemy eleven thousand : it seemed unreasonable, but perhaps a trap had been set, and baited with the self-styled ' deserters ' who gave smaller figures. Had there been enough such visitors, the algebraic pro- * Montg. to R. R. Liv., Nov. — , 1775: 4 Force, IIL, 1638. 250 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony cess of elimination might have netted a mathematical certainty ; but the line of guards only six hundred feet apart on the Plains, the patrols crossing every fifteen minutes between the Island of Orleans and the north shore, and the clo.se watch maintained everywhere, re duced them to a minimum. We were ' very destitute ' of intelligence all winter, confessed Finlay.' Moreover, the interrogation mark above the American encampment was answered by a still blacker interroga tion mark over the town. Confidential letters from loyal ists outside assured Carleton that some of his Canadian ofiicers corresponded with the enemy. General discon tent was not only reported to Arnold, but recognized by at least one important ofiicer of the garrison. Even in December, the sergeants proved remiss in duty, and had to be menaced publicly with a court-martial. A month after, it was given out in orders that, ' for the future, ' if any man of the British militia should be found ' declar ing he would lay down his Arms & refusing to do his duty,' he should be confined immediately in the Black- Hole. Eater, Maclean announced that the oflScers of both French and British militia had ' relaxed very much in their Duty, ' and threatened to shut up those who left their posts, as had become the practice, to go to supper." Evidently this military frankness raised an outcry, for Carleton himself appeared presently in orders, compli mented the garrison, and assured the troops that the pur pose had only been ' to stimulate and awaken some few.' 5 § Amslie, Ord. Book, Feb. 6. Caldwell, Letter. Tryon to Carleton, Jan. 31, 1776: Pub. Rec. Off., Am. and W. I., Vol. 186, p. 329. Verreau (Sangumet), Invasion, p. 98. CaldweU, Letter. 'Chalmers' Joumal, Apr. 19. Finlay, Joumal, Feb. 26, 28 ; Apr. 6. Ainslie, Joumal, Feb. 28 ; Mar. 19 ; May i. Shortt ' Joumal, Feb. 23. ' Remark. Occurr.' Joumal, Mar. 8. « § Lindsay : Can. Rev., No. 5, Sept., 1826, p. 89. Amold to Wash., Feb. 27,1776: 4 Force, IV., 1513. 'Chalmers' Joumal, Feb. 14. Ainslie's and Lester's Ord. Books, Dec. 25 ; Jan. 26 ; Feb. 7, 12 ; Mar. i, 2, 3, 9, 14, 26. Finlay, Joumal, Feb. 13. Ainslie, Joumal, Feb. 6 ; Apr. 13. Prisoners : next Chapter. 'Shortt ' Journal, Mar. 2. 251 QUEBEC AS SEEN FROM NEAR THE MOUTH OF ST. CHARLES RIVER (1759) Reasons for a Fabian PoHcy 253 Yet in March a captain was reprimanded, men had to be fined for not doing duty, a sergeant was reduced to the ranks, and, on the twenty- sixth, Maclean confessed pub licly that he found himself ' obliged to make use of hard methods ' to enforce discipUne. Some ofthe troops would not wear their uniform. The number of deserters that got safely out of town produced alarm : three escaped at one time, with a sentry not over thirty yards away. The prisoners appeared to have good friends in the city. A 9-pounder near Palace Gate was found stuffed with rub bish. Maclean came near being shot from the waUs one day while placnng .sentries outside. A mistake, this was said to be, and probably so it was ; but all such incidents, taken together, proved that a tight rein and a convenient propinquity to the Black Hole were needed to ensure the defence.' Carleton's Fabian policy had various other arguments in its favor. Frosts and storms waged a sort of warfare against the Americans that cost no British blood ; danger, hardships, poverty, weakness, hope deferred, and internal friction .seemed likely to wear out the besiegers ; whUe the mere effort of keeping an army afoot at so great a dis tance and in spite of such difiSculties was sure to weaken and might possibly discourage the Colonies. Let them alone, then, said common-sense. But perhaps another point weighed even more in the statesmanlike mind at the Castle. To attack the Ameri cans while allied with the Canadians might weld the two parties together ; whereas to attack them after the Cana dians had become tmfriendly and wished them out of the country, should that day arrive, would force a wedge of steel between them. The woollen caps, both red and grey, would then hail the British bayonet as a savior. ' See Note 6. 2 54 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony friend, and brother ; and Canada, healed of its dog-star madness, would rejoice to be loyal forever. Enough intelligence filtered into the city to show that the American and the CanacUan did not love each other better day by day; and enough orders went forth to help on the mischief Be still, and let the inexorable logic of the situation crystallize, bade statecraft. Quebec, then, could only watch and wait ; and above all it watched. As an old Greek sailor off Malea stucUed the sky, Maclean and his ofl&cers observed and analyzed the signs of the blockade. Flashes of fire, distant musketry, signals, a procession of sleighs, a group of soldiers, a rocket at Point Eevi answered by a cannon at Sainte Foy, a roll of (brums, a deserter in green ou the Heights pointing at a bastion, a line of men carrying boards, — all these were noted and interrogated. A company was seen marching on snow-shoes in Indian file, and it had to be counted : 'ninety-six.' Huzzas were heard: 'we conjecture that they have had a reinforcement.' The dogs on the Plains barked more than usual : ' there is certainly some move ment.' Voices were heard singing out, as sailors (hd when they heaved at a great weight ; two men stole up to the walls on Cape Diamond and called out, ' Good morrow, gentlemen ! ' a party crept down from St. Roch, ' shouldering the wall ' near Palace Gate ; two hundred Americans marched up a ' hollow pass ' in the bluff above the town : what new scheme did these operations betoken? On the fifth of March, a pole set in a fence near the Gen eral Hospital bore a strange flag, — red bordered with black. Some pronounced it a squaw's blanket edged with mourn ing, raised in memory of the Boston Massacre ; but many wrung their hands and went about shivering to one an other : ' Mon Dieu, it 's the bloody flag ! we shall all be slaughtered ! ' Now and then an alarm, sounded ; the bells rang ; the drums beat ; the garrison hurried to their posts. Wooster Comes to Quebec 255 But there it ended. No enemy came. Quebec sank back to waiting and watching ; and fear deferred made the heart weary, if not sick.' On the second day in April, something new appeared on the Heights, and the glasses were soon levelled that way. It was an enormous grey periwig. On one side of it stood Edward Antill ; a figure in scarlet on the other was pro nounced Arnold ; and the periwig — was General David Wooster. The retreat at Montreal had at last been secured, or at least enough troops had come down the river so that he felt safe against a sortie at Quebec. Indeed, not know ing the exact facts, he had feared there were now too many besiegers, thinking the city might surrender before he could win the glory of reducing it. ' I '11 scale those walls if there 's enough space between them and the heavens ! ' he had exclaimed with all the conviction of Tartarin ; and April the First smiled a little more broadly than usual on seeing him arrive at Quebec to do it. In deed, the fence-posts began working their heads through the snow just then, as if to look on." The first consequence of his arrival seemed rather nega tive. Wooster and Arnold had been well acquainted in Connecticut. In fact, it was on Wooster's advice that Arnold had been refused ammunition by the Selectmen of New Haven, when he proposed to march for Cambridge. At that stage, the first had been a major-general and the second a captain in the service of the Colony ; but now both were brigadier-generals in the Continental army. Within a year, Wooster had lost one grade and Arnold had gained four grades. Wooster, however, held the ad vantage of seniority ; and his age, his general quality, and 8 § From the British Joumals, mainly Ainslie's and Finlay's. ' § Ainslie, Journal, Apr. 2. Letter, Apr. 6, 1776: 4 Force, V., 804. Wooster to Wash., Feb. 25, 1776: 4 Force, IV., 1493. Goforth to Jay, Apr. 8, 1776: Ban croft Coll., Rev. Papers, I., p. 37. Boast: Conn. Gazette, May 3, 1776. Letter, Apr. 6, 1776: 4 Force, V., 805. 256 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony his bitterness about losing rank promised abundantly that in effect all the former distance between them would be enforced. Arnold, for his part, had been able to mount his horse during the week before ; and now, chafing from three months of inaction and burning to carry out the plans already begun upou, he hoped to make himself master at last ofthe ' proud city ' that he had so bravely and patient ly beset. The day before Wooster appeared, his mind was boiling over with schemes ; and then — another Hinman de scended upon him like a candle-snuffer. In short, said Arnold, the senior officer ' did not think proper ' to consult with him.'" To remain as a mere spectator of events or the mere lieutenant of a jealous periwig would have driven him wild ; and the only course was to get decently away. Fortunately, his horse had faUen upon him the day after Wooster did, and ' violently bruised' his wounded leg ; and, after reflecting for about a week, he asked for a leave of ab sence. It was ' readily granted,' as he observed; and, under the color of going up to hurry the re inforcements along, he set off to take command at Mon treal. This left Wooster, unembarrassed, at the apex of the pyramid to display his talents. ' I rather imagine we shall be obliged to try once more by assault, ' he had airily observed to Washington. Arnold also had felt it might CASTLE ST. LOUIS VIEWED FROM THE ST. LAWRENCE "> § Sparks, Amold, p. 56. I. N. Amold, Amold, p. 36. Amold to , Mar. 26, 1776: 4 Force, V., 512. Id. to Deane, Mar. 30 (midriight), 1776: ib., 549. Id. to Sch., Apr. 20, 1776: ib., 1098. A New American Battery 257 come to that, and had made preparations accordingly. But Wooster concluded to be satisfied with something more — humane ; and, in substance, Arnold's other plans went on as best they could without his leadership." In fact, the day after Wooster appeared on the Heights, a battery of three 12-pounders and an 8-inch howitzer opened fire on the town from Point Eevi. ' I perceive it is open overhead,' said an officer in speaking of 'that almost impregnable fortress ' ; and the army saw with delight that, even if they could not scale the ramparts, their iron messengers could. It was brave enough to keep on ' fagging it out ' before the walls, as a soldier phrased it ; but that eternal ' All 's well ! ' of the British sentries grew tiresome. To make the prospect now the more keenly agreeable, a certain yellowish building on the brink of the precipice — the staring bull's-eye of the town — was where the stubborn Governor lived. ' When we .shall be able to plump the balls into Carleton's jaws,' cried a soldier, 'I guess they won't cry all's well.' In short, it was hoped once more to ' catch the fox in his den.' Very 'sweetly' indeed, then, played the music of those cannon in the Americans' ears. Something would be accomplished now. Grants of houses in the city were made, it was reported. '^ But Carleton had a reply ready on his lips. Signs of what was going on across the river had been observed : forty-nine men marching on snow-shoes in Indian file ; canoes and boats passing and repassing the St. Eawrence ' ' § Arnold to Sch., Apr. 20, 1776 : 4 Force, V., 1098. Verreau (Sanguinet), Invasion, p. 106. Wooster to Hancock, Apr. 10, 1776: 4 Force, V., 845. Hazen to Sch., Apr. I, 1776: ib., 751. Amold to Sch., Apr. 3-, 1776: ib., 1155. Id, to Wash., Feb. 27, 1776 : 4_Force, IV., 1513. Ainslie, Journal, Apr. 9. Woosterto Wash., Feb. 25, 1776: 4 Force, IV., 1493. Hazen, whom Wooster had left in com mand at Montreal, was sent to look after Chambly and St. Johns. '2 5 Letters, Apr. 6, 1776: 4 Force, V., 80^, 805. Amold to Deane, Mar. 30, 1776 : ib., 549. Id. to Sch., Apr. 20, 1776 : ib., 1098. Finlay, Journal, Apr. 3. Haskell, Diary, Apr. 3. Letter, Jan. 27, 1776 : 4 Force, IV., 868. Letter, Mar. 10,1776: Conn. Gazette, Apr. 19, 1776. Hodgkinson to Parents, Apr. 27, 1776: Penna. Mag., X., p. 158. Ainslie, Journal, Apr. 6. Remark LXXIL VOL, II.— 17. 258 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony above ; twelve horses dragging something heavy down the south shore ; and men busily at work there in the snow. For ten days or more, 32- and 42-pounders and 13-inch mortars had been getting ready to answer the choir at Point Eevi, and for some time, indeed, had been tuning their pipes quite vigorously. It was a splendid chance for cannon practice : bluff against bluff, not quite a mile apart ; and, when the concert began, the garrison felt as well pleased as the besiegers felt hopeful. 'In finitely superiour,' the fire of their weighty metal was pro nounced ; and, after about three weeks of it, they cried exultingly, 'Why do they keep on? So far they have kill'd a boy, wounded a Sailor, & broke the leg of a turkey ! " = This, however, was largely by way of whistling, for in reality no little damage was done. Even above the cliffs the fashion of cellar drawing-rooms became extremely popular. The first two shots hit the Convent of the Ursulines, a long distance behind the bluff; and ten or eleven balls fell in the Seminary yard or struck the build ing the first da}^. Ainslie admitted the reality of the cannonade by crying ' Diabolical ! ' if the Americans fired at the hour of mass. The pavement had to be tom up, to prevent shells from bursting and balls from ricocheting. The Castle was supposed to be proof, and a facetious as well as thirsty gentleman, establishing himself in the basement with good company and good wine, tossed off a bumper at every burst of a cannon ; but one evening, while a party sat at cards, an iron visitor complimented them gruffly from the next room. Balls popped into the stern of the Lizard and splintered the foremast, opened a window in the Hunter, and perambulated the cabin of the Fell. Indeed, Barnfair the Boaster admitted that 1 3 § The British Journals, passim ,• e. g., Ainslie, Joumal, Dec. 13 ; Feb. 25 Mar. 15, 20, 21, 22 ; Apr. 21. ' Chalmers ' Joumal, Mar. 22, 25, 29 ; Apr. 1-3. The Town Suffers 259 ' great damage ' was done the vessels. Red-hot shot, hissing their way through the shingled roofs of the Eower Town, set house after house on fire and nearly destroyed that quarter ; and the same kind of missiles branded the shipping. ' Eet the shot be well heated,' bade Arnold on his last day of command ; and so they were.'^ Three other batteries were planned : a gun and a mor tar battery on the Heights and a gun battery on the farther side of the St. Charles River ; but every kind of difficulty stood in the way. Arnold had cal.ed for more artillery as Soon as he knew the fate of his detachment, but it came slowly. The cannon at Montreal had been rammed full of balls, when the British retired ; and, though Holt luckily found a man in New York who could undo the mischief, nearly half of March had passed before the ordnance could set out for Quebec (March 11). St. Johns had two pieces of 24 pounds, besides a number of smaller calibres, and several of these were tediously worried across to Montreal, and then on to Quebec, at about the same time. Schuyler could supply no mortars and nothing more suitable for battering than one 18- pounder and some 12's. At the request of Congress, the authorities at New York ordered twelve or fourteen pieces northward ; but, when the battle of the bluffs opened, the most active of them had only reached Eake George. As the British had now evacuated Boston, Washington despatched two companies of Knox's artillery and a pair of 13-inch mortars to Canada about the first of April ; but a long journey lay before them. Shot and shell were n § Hodgkinson to Parents, Apr. 27, 1776: Penna. Mag,, X., p. 158. An burey, 'Travels, L, pp. 50-53. Ursul. de Quebec, IIL, p. 132. Dearbom, Joumal, Apr. 4. Ainslie, Journal, Apr. 8, 13, 14, 21, etc. Finlay, Journal, Apr. 15, etc. Damage to Ship Gen. Thomas : Can. Arch., B, 42, p. 74. Barnfair to owners. May 15, 1776 ; Middlesex Journal, June 22, 1776. Rogers, Hadden's Journal, p. 10. Finlay, ]ou-tD.a.\, passim. Carleton to Germain, Mav 14, 1776 : 4 Force, VI. , 456. Pell, Diary: Mag. Am. Hist., 1878, p. 43. Caldwell, Letter. Maclean to Barrington, May 21, 1776: Can. Arch., M, 317, p. 330. Arnold to Clinton, Apr. 1, 1776: Bloodgood, Sexagenary, p. 44. 26o Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony scraped together from all sources, yet the total was absurd. About the middle of March, Wooster estimated the whole quantity of gun- powder in the province as sixty rounds apiece for six thousand men, aUowing none for the artillery. Arnold had been eager for carcasses to fire the town with; but there was no person qualified to make any such articles, no trained engineer to lay out the batteries, and only one artillery officer to direct the operations. No worse time of year could have been selected. The roads overflowed with water and mud, and the streams with water and ice. In various places, nothing could possibly be moved for days and perhaps for weeks. At the end of March, nearly five feet of snow still covered the ground about Quebec, and all this had to melt and find a place for itself during the next few weeks, — in fact more, for three inches fell on the twenty-third of April, and as much more on May Day. In addition to the snow. PALACE GATE (OUTSIDE) 1 s § Amold to Deane, Mar. 30, 1776:, 4 Force V., 549. Id. to Wooster, Jan. 2, 1776: 4 Force, IV., 670. Holt to S. Adams, Jan. 29, 1776: S. Adams Papers. Cannon to Quebec: Verreau (Sanguinet), Invasion, p loi. Wooster to Sch , Jan. 14, 1776: 4 Force, IV., 852. Id. to Id., Feb. 19, 1776: ib., 1483. Id. to Id., Mar. 5 1776: 4 Force, V., 416. Sch. to Wash., Feb. 14, 1776 : 4 Force, IV., 1146. Id to Lee, Feb. 29, 1776: 4 Force, v., 356. Hancock to Lee, Feb. 19, 1776: 4 Force, ly., 1197. N. Y. Cong., Feb. 22, 1776: 4 Force, V., 299. At Ft. George : Sch. to Hancock, Apr. 2, 1776 (ib., 767). Wash, to Sch., Apr., 3, 1776; ib., 779. Id. to Amold, Apr. 3, 1776: Writings (Ford), IV., p. 7. Wooster to Hancock, Apr. 10, 1776: 4 Force, V., 845. [Antill] to [Hazenl, Mar. 28, 1776: Can. Arch., B, 27, p. 380. Wooster to Sch., Mar. i6, 1776 : Sparks MSS., No. 60, p 77. Arnold to Cong., Jan. 11, 1776: ib.. No. 52, II. , p. 34. Id. to Deane, Mar. ,0, 1776: 4 Force, v., 549. REMARK LXXIII. > . // 4 -< Difficulties of the Season 261 there was 'Excessive heavy rain, ' as even the natives called it; and, after that, more 'very cold weather.' 'Rain Hail sleet; ' ' soft drizzling weather, ' 'heavy rain,' 'snow,' 'hard freezing,' — thus it went. 'If one steps out of the beaten path , he sinks to the knee, ' wrote Ainslie ; and that was in town. April thirteenth, bare spots could be seen on some of the hilltops, which meant that all their snows were now in a liquid form down below. ' It is bad travelling,' noted Haskell that day, 'by reason ofthe water being in many places in the road three feet deep.' Yet water froze nearly half an inch on the second of May." However, the work went on. Pelissier advised cannon ading the Palace Gate side of Quebec, because in that quarter the city had only two guns ; and fortunately a very heavy French breastwork of 1759 stood on the far ther bank of the St. Charles near the ferry house. Ob jects were seen moving behind the alders that lined the shore there ; and at length, between nine and ten o'clock on April the twenty -second, one day after the swallows brought a promise of summer over the hills, the guns began their work. Five days later the finest piece of all — the one brass 24-pounder — was put in play ; and, though its ' axletree ' broke at the first shot, the men suc ceeded in making it serve. Here, too, the balls were well heated ; and, as they had but a short distance to travel, they landed the redder. ' Chimneys & roofs ' felt the cannonade, was Ainslie's cheerful way of putting it ; but a chimney struck by a cannon ball became a shower of missiles, and a red-hot shot landing on shingles did not simply roll down like a haiLstone. Shells began dropping into town from the Heights on the evening of '« § Sch. to Hancock, Mar. 19, 1776 : 4 Force, V., 415. Wash, to Amold, Apr. 3, 1776 : Writings (Ford), IV., p. 7. Woosterto Sch., Mar. 5, 1776: 4 Force, v., 416. Arnold to , Mar. 26, 1776: ib., 512. Ainslie, Journal, Apr. 3, 4, 5, 7, 9, 10, 23 ; May I, 2 ; etc. Haskell, Diary, Apr. 13. 262 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony the twenty-third, and more guns in the same quarter made ready." Yet, even if this bombardment rendered Quebec ' a miserable city inside, ' as Eieutenant Hadden thought it, nothing vital was accomplished. It amounted essentially to the tale of Montgomery's cannon over again : few against many, small against great. ' Ten balls for one, & some shells,' recorded Ainslie one day, and that represented no doubt the usual ratio. New metal — in cluding four 32-pounders — was brought to bear on the ferry battery ; and the guard-house near it, though built of stone and almost three feet thick, flew to pieces ver}- soon. At Point Eevi, all the American gunners could do was to wait for a lull in the terrible fire from Quebec, steal into the works, load, shoot, and run. ' We made some fine shots to-day ' , exulted the men in the cit}- repeatedly ; and why not, indeed ? for Captain Mackenzie of the Hunter aimed their cannon. The second day after the PointEevi bat tery opened, a Quebecker said it looked like a honeycomb. The mortars on the Heights were only seven inches in diameter, and the guns at the ferry to be elevated too PALACE GATE C INSIDE) shells measured lost effectiveness still less. The because they had 1 ' § Pelissier to Hancock, Jan. 8, 1776: 4 Force, IV., 596. Ainslie, Journal, Apr. 5, 21, 22, 23. Marr, Remarks : Can. Arch., M, 384, p. m. Haskell. Diary, Apr. ¦;, 22, 23, 24, 27, 29. Carleton to Germain, May 14, 1776: 4 Force, VI. , 456. Amold to , Mar. 26, 1776: 4 Force, v., 512. Id. to Sch., Apr. 20, 1776: ib., 1098. (Antill] to [Hazen], Mar. 28, 1776: Can. Arch., B, 27, p. 380. Remark LXXIV. . . /. t- J • A Fresh Plan 263 much. In spite of all the scraping, there was ' little ball, and less powder' still, as Amold had said to his friend and patron, Silas Deane, so that — in Dr. Senter's phraseology — the batteries had to be ' allow anced.' By the twenty-seventh of April, substantially all of the cannon-powder had been expended. Americans picked up what British .shells failed to explode, it was reported, and .sold the contents for a dollar a pound ; and the British balls had to be counted upon for missiles. Still, the cannonade proved that the Americans had not given up. It might remind the garrison that Mont gomery's bombardment had been followed by an assault. It was far from agreeable ; and, after so many other annoy ances, it might help induce the town to yield." Even more could be expected from another style of attack, suggested by Pelissier and adopted by Amold. With many a boom and shiver, the St. Eawrence had now broken up, and while it would take some time yet for the floating ice to leave the river below, the frigate began to bend her sails. Evidently the vessels laid up in the Cul- de-sac would soon return to their element ; and not only would they be lost, .should Quebec surrender, but they might cause a great deal of trouble. To prevent that, a pair of floating batteries mounting a 12-pounder each had been fitted up, besides a number of smaller armed boats ; and Hector McNeill, formerly in the British navy, took charge of them. But Pelissier said. Burn the ships before they get afloat. Could they be set on fire, the flames might catch the palisade and open a breach; and cer tainly, thought Arnold, should that be done, ' it would ' 8 § Hadden, Journal, p. lo. Carleton to Tryon, May 17, 1776: Pub. Rec. Off., Am. and W. I., Vol, 186, p. 739. Ainslie, Journal, Apr. i, 5, 8, 10, 20, 27 ; May 7 ; etc. ' Chalraers ' Journal, Apr. 22, 24. ' Shortt ' Journal, Apr. 4. ' Re mark. Occurr.' Journal, May i. Haskell, Diary, Apr. 21. Arnold to Deane, Mar. 30, 1776: 4 Force, v., 549. Id. to Sch., Apr. 20, 1776: ib., 1098. Senter, Joumal (undated). Wooster to Cong., Apr. 27, 1776: Cont. Cong. Papers, No. 161, II., p. 309. Howell to , May 4, 1776: W. T. Read, G. Read, p. 154. 264 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony be impossible for the town to hold out until they could be relieved. ' It was not easy to fit out a fire-ship, for the proper materials either did not exist in the province or could not be found in sufficient quantities ; there were few seamen among the troops, and no one — except Arnold himself — was exactly qualified to take the command ; but as hope fully as possible the scheme was put in execution." Wooster, smoking his pipe upon the matter — as Jay heard — made up his mind to carry out the plan, and gave his orders. Above all things, he sagely observed, the enemy must get no inkling of it. But, a little while after, as the time of the New York men had nearly ex pired, he made them parade and then addressed them. ' My lads,' he said with grandfatherly unction, 'I find your time is almost out, and maybe some of you think on going. But surely you won't leave me now; you must try and stay a little longer. Don't think that I am lying here doing nothing. No, no ; you shall see a fine sight soon. I am busy building a fire-ship ; and, as soon as she is ready, will burn all their vessels up.' The precious secret was now out in earnest, and in a very little time everybody in Quebec talked of the new menace. It was feared that a conflagration would mean an assault and the Day of Judgment in general. Necks were twisted and eyes were strained, to see the dreaded monster float down past Cape Diamond." April the twenty-seventh. Sergeant Hodgkinson of Pennsylvania sat down to write his ' Honoured Parents ' " § Pelissier to Hancock, Jan. 8, 1776: 4 Force, IV., 596. Gasp6, Canadians, p. 52. Ainslie, Journal, Apr. 9. Amold to , Mar. 26, 1776; 4 Force, V.i 512. Id. to Deane, Mar. 30, 1776 : ib., 549. Memor. of McNeill, Feb. 15, 1779 : Cont. Cong. Papers, No. 41, VI. , p. 113. Wooster to McNeill, Apr. 23, 1776; Am. Antiq. Soc. [Antill] to [Hazen], Mar. 28, 1776: Can. Arcli., B, 27, p. 380. Amold to Sch., Apr. 20, 1776 : 4 Force, V., 1098. 20 § Jay to Rutledge, July 6, 1776 : Corres. (Johnston), I., p. 68. (Jay's ac count contains inaccuracies, but its substantial correctness is supported by Haskell, Diary, Apr. 18.) British Joumals: e. g., Ainslie's, Apr. 9, 10, 20. Carle ton to Germain, May 14, 1776: 4 Force, IV., 456. An Unknown Visitor 265 in a very cheerful frame. Necessaries in the camp were extremely dear : ' Eum four shillings a quart, and that the worst of Yankee. . . . Brown sugar two and sixpence, and everything else in proportion.' But the main in terest appeared to be in good shape : ' there is no fear of any troops to assist them till we have the honour to gain the town, and then it will be too late. ' About ten o'clock that evening, the sentry at the farther angle of Cape Diamond called out, 'A fire-ship! Afire-ship!' In a moment, the alarm ran through the town. The call to arms was sounded. The garrison hurried to their posts. But the terrible fire-ship proved to be only a burning house or pile of rubbish, with all the waters of the St. Eawrence between it and Quebec. ' On this discovery every man was order'd back from whence he came '; and no doubt the Day of Judgment seemed considerably more remote. Once laughed at, the danger cea.sed to be so terrible, and people were even able to forget it. Still, the prospect of a bonfire could hardly have inspired all Hodgkinson' s confidence."' More and more, now, the citizens ' cast longing eyes ' in the other direction. ' Ships from England ' began to be the dream by day as well as night. All understood that it was very early for them to get up the river ; but still there was a possibility, and it grew with every sun. Twelve or fourteen cannon-shots had been heard from below on the twenty-fifth of April, it was believed." Hour by hour the hope grew, and by the third of May it had waxed rather confident. That evening a brigantine rounded the Island of Or leans, — so like the coast of old Devonshire that a British vessel seemed to belong there, — and sailed steadily on toward the city. It was now about nine or ten o'clock ; 21 I Hodgkinson: Penna. Mag. X., p. 158. Ainslie, Journal, Apr. 27. 22 Ainslie, Joumal, Apr. 25. 266 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony but the welcome visitor could be made out very fairly in the brilliant moonlight. A glad cry swept through the town : ' A vessel from Europe ! A vessel from Europe ! ' All hurried to the bluff and feasted their eyes. Anxiety ended, for this must be, of course, the van of a British fleet. Congratulations, cheers, caps in the air, — the town was jubilant. Some one ran to Carleton with the happy news. ' The gunners to their places ! ' he sternly replied." Still on she came. The flagstaff on Cape Diamond ran up a blue pennant with a union below it, and five guns were touched off at the battery. That was the appointed signal communicated through Eieutenant Pringle to the govemment, and all awaited the response. But no re sponse came. The stranger was hailed, and made no reply. Again they hailed, and still she was mute. The deck seemed empty. One more challenge was trumpeted: ' Who are you ? Answer or we '11 sink you ! ' But she only moved on in silence, and then the battery spoke. ImmecUately a cloud of black smoke puffed from the brigantine ; huge piles of flame burst out ; flashes of murky light ran swiftly up her rigging. Every rope changed instantly into a line of fire, her sails became sheets of blaze, and a boat could be seen putting away from her with desperate speed. At once the people took alarm : this was the fire-ship in reality. One hundred yards more," and the streaming bonfire would reach the shipping ; the tarred cordage would catch like tinder ; the vessels would all bum ; the buildings would blaze ; 2 3 § Ainslie, Joumal, Apr. 27 ; May 3. ' Chalmers ' Joumal, May 3. Fin lay, Joumal, May 3. Amold to Sch., Apr. 20, 1776: 4 Force, V., 1098. Haskell. Dianr, May3. Senter, Joumal. Howell to , May 4, 1776: W. T. Read, G. Read, p. 154. Dearbom Joumal. Caldwell, Letter. Carleton to Germain, May 14, 1776: 4 Force, VI., 456. Id. to Tryon, May 17, 1776 : Pub. Rec. Off., Am. and W. I., Vol. 186, p. 739. Verreau (Sanguinet), Invasion, p. 126. Signal: Cramah4 (Hamilton) to Dartmouth, Nov. 19, 1775 (Can. Arch., Q, 11, pp. 324, 337). Remark LXXV. 2 4 Caldwell, Letter. The Americans Persist 267 the palisade would probably take fire ; and, in the midst of it, the enemy — three thousand strong " — would cer tainly fall upon them. The great bell of the cathedral pealed furiously once more ; all the other bells hammered and clanged ; the drums beat ; and hither and thither men hurried to their posts. But the ship was no longer under control ; she veered ; her burning sails lost the wind ; tide and current bore her back ; and, in all the pomp of gorgeous ruin, she drifted slowly down past the city, roaring and crackling, waving her towering flames to and fro athwart the sky, and spurting many a fresh burst of fire, with as many loud reports, from exploding shells, grenades, and pots h feu, till the flames quenched them selves at the water's edge. Once more a fatality — the premature outbreak of the fire — had upset well-laid plans. Once more Quebec rejoiced and trembled." Yet in spite of disappointment after disappointment, the Americans would not give up. Famine might do what the fire-ship and the red-hot shot had failed to do. They did not know how Cramahe and Hamilton had written to the government : ' To get here early in May is absolutely necessary ' ; ' Provisions in the Garrison with the greatest frugality will not last longer than the Middle of May ' ; but they believed as much and even more. Indeed, one of Eamb's men, who had escaped from Quebec some weeks before, reported that only three ounces of pork a day were allowed the garrison. They did not hear the Duke of Manchester inform the House of Eords that, according to the testimony of seamen, the ice in the St. Eawrence did not often give way before the end of that month ; but they knew that vessels never came up until some time after the first, and felt sure that the winter had been severer than usual."" 2S See Note 23. 2 ' § Cramahfi to [Germain], Nov. 19, 1775 ; Bancroft Coll., Eng. and Amer., t't/f-e,.-^-7 y^ ¦frA .o-r-^^jf^-^i^ W t^^^Jt^^ A.a..u~^ <..-^, ^ ^.-e ^ Z-*'^ ^,^y FROM WOOSTER'S LETTER TO MoNEIL, APRIL 23, 1776 868 Grounds for Hope 269 The heavy cannon from New York were not far dis tant now, and the gun battery on the Heights, within five hundred yards of the wall, would open soon. Artil lerymen, infantry, and no doubt ammunition must arrive shortly. In fact, more than a week before, Wooster had written : ' We certainly shall have in a very few days a large reinforcement of Men Artillery Stores & I hope every thing necessary for our future opperations. ' The enemy, on the other hand, seemed to be approaching despair. A Canadian arrested for carrying the Gov ernor's letters, offered to take oath that both garrison and people had risen in a body and forced him to promise that, should no aid arrive within fourteen days, he would surrender ; and this had been some time ago. To be sure, he had not surrendered ; but the incident appeared very suggestive. A report went about Boston that Carle ton actually offered to give up the town, though not on acceptable terms ; and, if the same story circulated in camp, as apparently it did, the soldiers must have felt the end was very nigh. Some even declared they would rather not capture the city until the British reinforce ments had come. At all events the time to despair did not seem to have arrived." Aug., 1775-Dec., 1776, p. 169. Hamilton to Dartmouth, Nov. 20, 1775: Can. Arch., Q, II, p. 339. Montreal letter Apr. 6, 1776 : 4 Force, V., 804. Manchester : 4 Force, VL, 363. Arrival of Ships: N. Y. Calendar, I., p. 285. " § Amold to Deane, Mar. 30, 1776: 4 Force, V„ 549. Wooster to McNeill, Apr. 23, 1776 : Am. Antiq. Soc. Montreal letter, Apr. 6, 1776: 4 Force, V., 804. Essex Joumal, May 3, 1776. Spy :' Shortt ' Joumal, Feb. 28. RemarkLXXVI. XXIX DARING SCHEMES OUR analysis of the situation at Quebec, however, omitted one factor entirely. The mistake was natural. Dead men tell no tales ; and prisoners of war, immured in stone walls three feet thick, have never been expected to bear a hand in the campaign. But the Ken nebec detachment were no ordinary prisoners. After laying down their arms that iU-fated moming, the Americans made their way, under very attentive es corts, to the main guard of the garrison ; and, as group after group arrived, they were able to reckon up the ex tent of their misfortune, and find that over-praised conso lation which misery has been said to love. Major Meigs broke bread ver}' comfortably with Captain Eaws, who owed him so much ; the other officers had a mouthful at the guard-house ; and then all of them filed off to an upper floor in a wing of the Seminary, where the Bishop resided — though not in precisely the same style — aU his life. Here they passed a ' Solentary ' New Year' s. Few could help reflecting with Humphrey : ' Fortune was kind enough to save me from Either Starving or Drowning to bring me to this place to be maid A prisner which I think to be no great favour.' But, as Governor Ward said, they had ' acquired immortal honor, ' and that counted for much ; they had life, and with life hope ; and the straw- beds, mattresses, aud blankets made the lodging seem ' Very Cumfortable. ' Meantime the privates, after sooth ing their fatigue and chagrin with a biscuit and a swallow 270 The American Prisoners 271 of mm, found their prison close at hand in the Recollet monastery, and were glad enough to rest awhile with ' a straw bed between two, and a blanket each man.' ' Though promised ' good quarters & Tender usage, ' these unlucky patriots were hardly ' looked upon by their Captors as prisoners of war.' Caldwell, whose property on both sides the river had suffered not a little, felt de cidedly unamiable toward them, and let the fact glimmer somewhat plainly through his bluff integument. Mac lean, a ramrod of loyalty, with some whose old royalism had become a second — if not a first — conscience, and some whose new royalism felt the zeal of conver sion, could not miss an oppor tunity so excellent for exalting orthodoxy. A few ' examples ' would no doubt have pleased them greatly. But Carleton viewed the situation otherwise. He looked upon the ' rebellion ' ofthe Colonies as kindled by a fewleaders, who were ' re solved to seek their own Safety and gratify their Ambi tion, in the Continuance ofthe Public Confusion and pub lic Calamities, ' and who drove on the mass of the people by representing that, after what had occurred, no hope of par don could be entertained by any one. His desire was to isolate the chiefs by convincing their deluded followers ' that the way to mercy was not yet shut against them ' ; and he laid down as the true policy : ' Valor and good Conduct in time of Action, with Humanity and friendly Treatment to those, who are subdued. ' " A GLIMPSE OF THE SEMINARY ' § See the Joumals of Meigs, Dearbom, Huraphrey, Melvin. T6tu, Kvfiques, Chap. I., p. 259. Morison, Account: Penna, Mag., i8go, p. 435. Ward. to S.Ward, Jr., Jan. 21, 1776: J. Ward, S, Ward, p. 11. 2 § Dearborn, Joumal. Not pris. of war : Meigs, Petition (Cont. Cong. 272 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony Certainly Arnold's redoubtable foUowers needed to be safely kept, and the state of Quebec forbade any pamper ing of their appetites ; but, so far as possible, the Gov ernor wished them kindly treated. Some of his officers called at the prison without delay, and he made several ¦^dsits there himself We are ' used very well, ' Meigs in formed his comrades outside. We were ' treated with the Greatest Humanity,' recorded Nichols. In spite of Carle ton's iron resolve to have no communications with men in arms against their sovereign, they had pennission to send for their belongings. Merchants of Quebec were allowed to make the rank and file a New Year's present of a large butt of porter with bread and cheese proportionate. After fiiel became very scarce, parties from the garrison sallied into St. Roch more than once, their lives in their hands, ' to bring in firewood for the prisoners. ' As for diet, cer tainly two or three bran biscuits, three ounces of pork and half a pint of thin soup each day could hardly be called luxurious; but the Americans understood that the garrison lived no better. Unfortunately a man named Dewey, ap pointed to look after such matters within the prison, sold a part of their supplies for his own profit ; ' but,' rejoiced Morison, ' the Eord of Hosts soon delivered us out of his hands ; for he was taken with the small-pox, which swept him from off the face ofthe earth. ' " Many of the prisoners — particularly the eastem men — had never suffered from this disease ; and, as the danger from taking it in the natural way was regarded as im mensely more than that from artificial infection, they petitioned to be inoculated, and the Govemor granted Papers, No. 42, V., p. 15). CaldweU: Porterfield, Diary (Va. Mag., Oct., 1901, p. 145). Carleton to Germain, Aug. 10, 1776: Pub. Rec. Off., Colon. Corres., Quebec, 12, p. 247. Id. to Howe, Aug. 8, 1776: Can. Arch., B, 39, p. 93. 3 § Humphrey, Joumal, Jan. 2. Henry, Joumal, pp. 128, 139. Haskell, Diary, Jan. 2. Nichols, Assault. ' Chalmers ' Joumal, Jan. 31 ; Feb. a, 3. Stock ing, Joumal, Dec. 31. Melvin, Joumal, Jan. 9. Fobes, Narrative Morison, Account : Penna. Mag., 1890, p. 435. The Prisoners are Well Used 273 their request. Above a hundred had to be carried to the hospital ; and, while their hopes of an easy sickness were not fully realized, the attentions they received proved no slight compensation. In fact, some men pretended to be ill in order to be taken there, or concealed recovery as long as they could in order to remain. Eieutenant Nich ols was one of these. Suffering from scarlet fever and re moved to the H6tel Dieu. he found the care of the Mother Abbess, as he called her, and of the nuns, who sat up with him several nights ' four at a time in turn two hours each turn,' rather different from the rough companionship of the prison. So he feigned to be sick for nearly a month after he knew that he had never been sounder, — in fact, until he chose to acknowledge his cure. It was then inti mated to him that, as houses were being pulled down for fuel, the General would like to have him go back to his comrades. ' Never was a person treated with more Hos pitality,' wrote the Eieutenant in reference to the nuns, ' than I was treated by them.' ' Other prisoners found a different path from confine ment. When their names, ages, and places of birth were taken, it appeared that more than a hundred of the rank and file hailed from Great Britain. These were called out by themselves, and addressed by the Provost-Mar shal. 'My men,' said he, 'you deserve nothing but death, for you have taken up arms against your own country ; but, if you will take the oath of allegiance and serve the King until the first of June next, you shall find mercy.' Indeed, remarkable inducements were offered : full pay, even for the time they had campaigned with the Americans, and a free voyage 'to Britain or where they please [d] by the first vessel in the spring.' No * 5 Henry, Joumal, p. 144, note. Nichols, Diary, particularly Mar. 10. Ainslie, Joumal, Jan. 3 ; Feb. 13. Councilman : Univ. Cyclop., VI., p. 261. Henry, Joumal, p. 152. Remark LXXVII. vol.. n.— 18. 2 74 Ou^ Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony ordinary writhings of conscience and heart followed ; but in the end all accepted the offer.' Many Quebeckers doubted whether a pledge given with a noose round the neck would prove binding, and not a few wagers were laid on that point ; but at first the plan worked well. For a fortnight, the old-country men shouldered arms and paced the ramparts fully to Maclean's taste ; but then three of the ' penitent rebels, again repenting,' disappeared. Two weeks more passed, and another trio piped the song of liberty. Ten days more went by, and a sextet vanished over the wall. Some dropped quietly off behind the artillery barracks and shot down the steep incline of thirty or forty feet, covered with snow, into a street at St. Roch ; but others chose a bolder fashion. While Cavanaugh, a ' converted rebel,' was doing sentry duty near Palace Gate in company with a British soldier, his friend Connor sauntered along in that direction, produced a bottle, and, after taking a puU as an evidence of good faith, passed the ' craythur ' to the Briton. The soporific influence of the treat was deep ened by a stunning blow from the butt of Cavanaugh' s musket, and then the two comrades jumped for dear life into twenty-five feet of drifted snow. A baU or two fol lowed them, but they got safely away. Finally, Carleton disarmed and disuniformed the others, and shut them up in the artillery barracks out ofthe reach of temptation.^ 5 § Brit. Return: Can. Arch., Q, 12, p. 159 (Recapit.). Melvin, Joumal, Jan. 3. Fobes, Narrative. Ainslie, Joumal, Jan. 7, 8. '(ihalmers' Joumal, Jan. 7 ; Feb. 16. Caldwell, Letter. ' Shortt ' Joumal, Jan. 8. '§ Ainslie, Joumal, Jan. 21 ; Feb. 6, 16. CaldweU, Letter. Finlay, Joumal, Feb. 5, 16. Henry, Joumal, p. 137. RETURN J. MEIGS Life of the Prisoners 275 The rest of the rank and file — more than two hundred and fifty — formed a cozy if not gorgeous club, and whiled away the time as best they could. Numberless tales were furbished up, length counting as a greater merit than accuracy. Cards occupied many an hour, and swearing at luck and the King disposed of occasional minutes. Some, too fastidious for these consolations, employed themselves in making wooden spoons and little boxes ; and the more artistic decorated such articles with clever figures : a beaver, an Indian sitting on a rock, or even a deer at full stretch, pursued by a hound. Far less agree able but not less absorbing an occupation was the inevi table speculating about the future. Some of the sentries expressed the cheerful opinion that all would be shipped off to England, and ' sold as slaves to some island ' ; oth ers said they would be sent to Boston and exchanged ; and still others maintained that a halter would certainly be the end of every mother's son in the prison. As for their own opinion, they hoped their comrades would cap ture the city and release them.' Some ebullitions of spirit could not be avoided. Parrot found himself in irons for calling one of the Emigrants a Tory : which made it appear that even royalists consid ered that name opprobrious ; and Brown fared the same for answering back an uncivil keeper. When the alarm bells announced that an assault was expected, the men longed to have a share in it ; but a large guard was thrown round their prison, and a field-piece rolled up be fore the door. Fifteen agreed to fight their way out ; but Dewey reported them, and two were ironed. In spite of pluck, discouragement and listlessness gained a little ground each day. ' The time seems very long,' groaned ' § Brit. Retum. : Can. Arch., Q, 12, p. 159. Melvin, Journal, Jan. 31 ; Feb. Henry, Journal, p. 140. 14 %$ «^ .^1 In the Dauphin Jail 277 Melvin ; and so did every one else even before January ended. They felt out of the world, — mere flotsam tossed about by the winds and waves of the contest. And then, in a moment, the sky opened.' It opened precisely when it seemed to be closing hard upon them. About the middle of March they were trans ferred to the Dauphin Jail ; and, as they filed into that dingy, gloomy sepulchre, they almost felt condemned to a living death. Fully three feet of solid stone surrounded them ; heavy iron bars darkened the small windows ; and a wall twenty feet high, bristling with spikes along the top, shut in the small yard behind. There were two floors, with four non-communicating rooms on each, and at night every room was carefully locked ; while the door into the street — a very solid affair — had fastenings on the outside. But, just as the men were bewailing their fate, the window-bars were given a closer look, and it appeared that many of them, deeply gnawed by rust, could easily be removed from their sockets." A sort of council, mainly composed of sergeants, grew together very soon, and an attempt at escape was eagerly discussed. Evidently it would be a desperate affair. Getting through the windows would not help the men very much, after all. Two sentries, relieved every fifteen minutes, waited constantly at each corner of the enclo sure. A guard-house, always well manned, stood nearly opposite. St. John's Gate, occupied by thirty or forty of the best soldiers, stood about a hundred and fifty yards away, and no building intervened to conceal operations. Only a few minutes would be needed to turn plenty of cannon on the jail. Sentries patrolled the ramparts inces- s§ Melvin, Joumal, Jan. 20; Feb. 15; Mar. i. Tolman (Ware), Journal, Mar. 10-13. ^ § Melvin, Journal, Mar. 10, 13. Tolraan, Journal, Mar. 10-13. LeMoine, Pict. Quebec, p. 120. Henry, Joumal, p. 145. Fobes, Narrative. Finlay, Joumal, Mar. 13. 278 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony santly with muskets ready ; and reserves lay on their arms within easy call. It was decided, then, first of all, to ask the men whether they had stomachs for such a venture. All answered. Yes ; and the council then took the matter up in earnest, meeting often but always in private, lest some treachery or indiscretion should betray the plot.'" One thing helped the prisoners ; indeed, two things. The belief that only a few leaders really caused the op position to England found many supporters in Quebec besides the Governor" ; and these fine, genial unfortun ates in confinement, admired as much as feared, had now come to be looked upon ' as deluded by the fascinating sound of liberty and freedom, and induced to take up arms when . . . not at heart inimical to his Britannic Majesty.' " This begot a feeling that no great stringency need be used upon them ; while Maclean's eagerness to employ in active service every able-bodied man led him to place no guards within the jail and only greybeards and boys on the outside. But arms were needed. A battle against fearful odds, Yes ; mere slaughter. No. A number of tomahawks, or small hatchets, had been secreted when the men surrendered, and brought into the prison. These were ready for action. A good many long hunting-knives, which had the same history, were now fixed at the ends of 'splits ' of fir, cut from the bottoms of the lower tier of berths; and here were good spears, ten feet in length. Peeping through the keyhole of a smaU, locked room, an inquisitive eye discovered a pile of iron hoops two or three inches broad. The lock was carefully • 0 § For the plot ofthe privates see particularly Henry's Journal, pp. 145-159 (Henry belonged to the ' council '), and Fobes, Narrative ; also the Journals of Melvin, Stocking, and Morison; and the British Journals, particularly Ainslie's. Carleton to Germain, May 14,1776: 4 Force, VI., 456. Caldwell, Letter. ' ' E. g., Ainslie, Journal, Mar. 5. 1 2 Stocking, Joumal, Jan. 10. A Plan to Escape 279 plied; it yielded; and the hoops, doubled and furnished with wooden handles, made tolerable cutlasses, or, rather, terrific bludgeons. Various odds and ends of iron proved available for more spear-points; and a few old scythes were metamorphosed into swords. An axe had to be given the prisoners to split their fire-wood with. Somehow it was lost; after a while a second axe also disappeared; and so, in the course of no long time, working their way cautiously and plausibly, the men obtained quite a number of axes. The bottoms of some ofthe lower tier of berths, about a foot higher than the floor, were taken up, and the weapons laid away. Then the bottoms returned to their places, and the nails, broken in the middle so they would not hold, apparently did the same. Blankets and bundles, piled above in seeming confusion, hid the work still more. One of the men stood guard in cessantly at each end of the corri dor. Whenever a British officer ap proached, he gave a signal ; and com rades appointed to that duty feU instantly into a heavy doze in the berths. The prison had become an arsenal ; yet every sign of danger lay as covert as the claws of a purxing kitten. Even the lock of the small room was made to close again. Next in order stood a plan of campaign, and reconnoit ring the field threatened to be difficult. But all obstacles vanished before such men. Ferrets as well as lions, they contrived ways to open every door inside the prison at ST. JOHN'S GATE (INSIDE) 28o Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony will; and their day really began when the officers had locked them up for the night. Climbing into the attic and raising a trap-door in the roof they studied the walls and the posts of St. John's Gate minutely and at leisure under the brilliant light of the moon. The cannon, the ammuni tion, the guard-house, the placing of sentries, the move ments of the patrols were all patiently conned, until, in spite of the distance, everything of importance became perfectly clear. With equal keenness, putting out their own lights in order to see the better, they perused the guard-house across the street, only some forty yards dis tant. It had no shutters, and the lamps burned all night. The front door, never closed, led to a flight of stairs. In the passage there was always a light. At the top of the stairs on the right hand, going up, the muskets, with bayonets fixed, could always be found in a certain corner. About thirty men belonged there ; but by morning they counted as none, for all of them lay dead-asleep on the floor. The treads in the flight of stairs were numbered, and it was reckoned that a quick man could clear them in three bounds. The prisoners were then organized. Sergeant Aston of Eamb's company was appointed the general. McCoy and others became colonels. Majors, captains, and lieutenants also were chosen. Boyd, Cunningham, and Henry had orders to carry the guard-house opposite the jail, and were permitted to pick twenty-two men from the whole number. Aston with a hundred and fifty followers, undertook to attack the guard at St. John's Gate. A reserve under McCoy was to support him, and a smaller body had orders to fire the jail and near-by houses and then assist Boyd. So far as concerned arms, Malaysia was to fight Europe. A stiff 'bustle,' as the soldiers termed it, had to be ex pected ; but desperation and numbers — to make no claim on the score of quality — were counted upon to win. A Scheme of Conquest 281 These men, however, had not come so far from home simply to escape from a prison : they had come to conquer; and, after risking life to get into Quebec, there they were. Why not make the most of this ? If the cannon could be tumed upon them, they could turn the cannon upon the British ; and, if they could take St. John's Gate, they could certainly open it. In short, the plan of escape turned out a plan of conquest. As this was pondered, a great difficulty presented itself. The cannon were loaded and primed, and boxes of ammu nition stood near ; but it would take the British artiUerymen only a second to throw the fuses into the ditch. Without fuses the cannon were dead ; and without gunpowder the prisoners could manufacture no fuses of their own. Some thing had to be done about it; and this produced an elaborate plot within a plot. The boys guarding the jail were forward and inclined to be insolent; but this lightness of head made them easy victims to flattery. The prisoners humored them ; joked with them; pretended to learn French of them; showed them all manner of deference. At the same time they devised toy cannon, made of tough paper many folds thick and very tightly rolled, and mounted them on wooden carriages. Embrasures were cut in the opposing fronts of the berths, and the cannon placed behind them. With an air of infinite good-humor, the sentries were induced to look at these forts, and their curiosity to see a battle was cleverly worked up. Finally, they supplied some powder for that purpose. The prisoners took sides; and, amid roars of what sounded like simple-minded laughter, the cannon popped and popped again, as loud as pistols. A little ofthe powder, however, was reserved and secreted. Finally the Americans, growing very fond of the mimic warfare and requiring a good deal of this article, cajoled the boys into purchasing small quantities of it for them ;, 282 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony and then, as little money could be found in their pockets, ways to obtain it had to be devised. Some were droll enough. So many ofthe prisoners fell sick, or feigned to fall sick in order to reach the hospital, that people outside began to think the jail unhealthy, and took pity more than ever on the unfortunate Americans. Many 'pious matrons' visited them, and never empty-handed. Elderly nuns came often; and, these — not being housewives — usually brought little gifts of money. Generosity so spon taneous would evidently bear a little stimulation ; and vpith fine art that stimulation was applied. Sergeant Gibson of Hendricks's company, naturall}' of a 'beautiful countenance,' had studied physic, knew how to care for himself, and now, amid the sallow faces of his comrades, bloomed like a rose. McCoy arranged a Uttle room for him near the front door, so that charitable visitors might drop in there before wasting their sympathy on less public-spirited or less knowing prisoners ; and then Gibson and Henry watched prudently at a window near. 'Zounds, Gibson, there 's a nun! ' cried Henry. Instantly Gibson rushed into the little room ; and, without stopping to disrobe, got into bed and covered himself to the chin. The nun was admitted. Henry and others in the secret received her at the door with all politeness, and begged her to visit a sick friend. Full of pious good- will she entered, and — aided by the remarks of her escort — beheld a poor fellow in a raging fever, almost unconscious and at times even delirious. Crossing herself and murmuring a paternoster, she drew forth her little purse and emptied its contents into Gibson's hand, pushed cautiously from under the blanket. Twenty -four 'coppers,' worth two shillings, were the fruit of that haul, and they all went for powder. In devising and playing such games, the prisoners could forget their misery for a time ; and, behind A Daring Venture 283 the veil of hoar-frost brocaded deep on the windows, a merry and even a happy company might often have been discovered. So young lions play. Yet, unless the American army were close to the gate, the prisoners would be overpowered before it could enter. It must know of the plan, and there must be a signal to announce the outbreak. Very good. With those fellows, to state a problem was to solve it. Two small dark cells— dungeons, perhaps— ran back from the lower floor into the yard ; and, being covered with dirt, they had an elevation of some ten feet. This in effect reduced the height of the wall just there about one-half; and, as the mortar had fallen from the cracks in places, a nimble fellow might possibly, after an argument with the spikes, get over. What would happen then could only be guessed ; but any how Martin, a small, quick man belonging to Eamb's company, volunteered to take his chances. A cap, an overcoat, and loose trousers, all of something white, were made for him ; and, when a dark, blowy evening came, the whole body of prisoners remained, under orders from their chiefs, at play in the yard, as if trying to keep warm. Consequently, when the clanging of the front door announced that the Provost-Mar.shal and his file of soldiers had come to lock them up, all began to crowd through the door at once ; and, as the chiefs in the rear managed things well, they got ahead but slowl This gave Martin time to slip on his disguise and mount one of the cells, where — since the doorway projected a J. J. HENRY 284 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony little — he could be discovered only by going several paces into the yard. As the conspirators hoped, the impatient officer, already delayed by the tardy entrance of the men, barely looked round the inclosure from the door ; and, as he received the usual number of answers at roll-caU, promptly went his way. Martin remained in the yard, though half-frozen, until night had fully descended and the cold had forced the guards round the jail into their sentry-boxes ; then over the waU he went. Presently a shot rang out, and those in the plot could hardly sleep for anxiety ; but the next day, peeping from the trap door, they saw a knot had been tied in the American flag. Martin, almost invisible against the snow, had got safely over the ramparts, though dimly seen and vaguely fired at ; and the scheme to capture the city had the approval of headquarters." Oue trivial thing, however, threatened to block it after all. The men could not leave by the windows fast enough, and nothing could be done with the great door, since it was fastened on the outside. Happily, as the ground sloped rather sharply toward the street, the basement also had a front door. This was five feet wide, made of nothing worse than new pine plank, and both hinges and padlock were in plain sight. As the British officer examined the door every da}', no one touched it ; but the leaders understood very well that, when the moment for action arrived, the hinges could be disposed of with little difficulty, and the padlock was not strong enough to resist for 'amoment of time.' Unfortunately, however, the basement contained a spring ; and the overflow, run ning down to the door, had frozen a foot deep against it. How could that fastening be undone ? Pour boiling water on it, repUed some. But the steam ' ' Haskell, Diary, Mar. 24 ; N. Y. Calendar, L, p. 285 ; letter, Apr. 6, 1776: 4 Force, v., 804. . . i- s . , i- . / 28s QUEBEC VIEWED FROM THE RAMPARTS, 1759. THE LARGE BUILDING WAS THE URSULINE CONVENT The Plan Ripens 287 would have escaped through cracks and warned the sentry outside ; and, even should that not happen, the water would cool and then freeze, adding to the mass of ice instead of reducing it. Chop it away with hatchets, proposed others ; but the noise — especially were the door accidentally struck — would almost certainly be heard. Cut the door across above the ice, advised still others ; but the ice had risen over the edge of the cross-piece. The work of cutting through two thicknesses of the plank would have taken time and most likely have been discovered before it could be completed. Finally, the chiefs picked out sixteen or eighteen of the most active and prudent, and gave them orders to go down, two by two, on the appointed night, immediately after the curtain-raiser entitled ' Eocking-up,' and softly pare the ice away from the door with knives. It was cal culated that by three o'clock in the morning this could be accomplished. The hinges and lock would then receive attention ; the door would suddenly be dragged down ; Boyd's company would rush over it like the winds of .iEolus ; his first rank would dispose of the nearest sentry with the spear, while others, chosen for that office, would silence the rest ofthe soldiers round the jail with spears and tomahawks ; and his main body would bound up the stairs of the guard-house, seize the muskets, and pin the sleeping soldiers to the floor with the bayonets, — all without a word. Aston's men, a part of them following Boyd's through the door, and a part swarming from the windows, would race to St. John's Gate and overpower the guard ; and Eamb's artillerymen — a sort of third division — would instantly tum the cannon upon the town. At the same time, the prison and the adjacent houses would be fired. In fifteen minutes, it was reckoned, all this could be 288 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony accomplished, and the smaller parties would then rejoin the main body under Aston. The fiames, the uproar, and the firing would bring Amold and the army to the gate: For the little time it would take them to arrive, the stupefied garrison could easily be held at bay. And then — ' Quebec is ours ! ' At the very worst, should the scheme of conquest fail, the men were to scatter, and leap from the ramparts. Here and there a red spot in the snow, no doubt ; but most of them would get off. To fail, however, seemed impossible. Every point had been studied and provided for. To be sure, a certain proverb about the cup and the lip crept into a brain or two ; but it seemed only the creaking of the wheel. How often did a clock, wound up so carefully, fail to strike twelve at noon ? Quebec was as good as captured, — captured by its prisoners ; and, in spite of all their caution, the leaders went about with a gleam of exultation in their eyes that almost burned the lids. But a couple of enterprising New Englanders, not in the counsels of the chiefs yet intensely interested, fancied that something of great importance had been overlooked, went down to the basement one night, chopped the ice away with their hatchets, wrenched off the lock, and removed two of the three hinges. The sentry heard them. ' Stop that or I 'U fire,' he shouted. An alarm was given. In a moment the guards were doubled ; and, about sunrise, a number of officers came with a dozen soldiers to investigate. With aching hearts, the leaders in the plot saw a wave hurrying to demolish their costly pile of sand ; but they put on a bold face and declared with perfect sincerity that they knew nothing of the affair. Satisfied at last that it was only a random venture of one or two, the visitors withdrew, — Major Murray, the highest officer, bringing up the rear. Essen tially the scheme had not been touched, after all. The Enterprise Fails 289 Fearing treachery, the chiefs had made the desperate resolve, after the alarm had been given, to kill any one attempting to betray their plans, and now, with con cealed but ready knives, they gathered round the half- opened door in which Murray stood speaking to them. One of the prisoners, named John Hall, managed, how ever, to edge himself up to the very jamb of the door without being noticed. He had deserted from the British army at Boston the year before ; and, while he had saved his neck for the moment by giving his birthplace as New England, he understood right well that any one of a dozen possible or even probable mis chances might throw a hempen cord around it in a twink ling. This was his opportunity to earn a pardon. Springing through the door so suddenly that he knocked against Mur ray, he touched that officer on the shoulder in passing, with the words, ' I have something to disclose ' ; and was instantly in the midst of the sol diers, hurrying to the Castle. Heart-broken, the leaders realized now that the clock had stopped. What arms could be thoroughly hidden were put out ofthe way, and the rest, so far as possible, were destroyed. In an hour or two, a squad of soldiers arrived and carried away several of the prisoners. They were forced to take an oath ; and, aided by Hall, the officers put questions too precise to be evaded. The plot was avowed and justified. Nothing better could have been done, perhaps ; but the logical result — in the shape of bilboes and shackles — quickly followed. These did HENRY DEARBORN 290 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony not matter very much, to be sure. With incredible skiU, false rivets or false heads were speedily contrived ; and the unfortunates grew almost merry again, despite their scurvy and rags, in fincUng ways to escape from punish ment, since they could not escape from prison. The offi cers always found them safely ironed, but the shackles dropped when the front door clanged. Something else, however, could not be got rid of: the bitter anguish of disappointment over the miscarriage of their plans. Happily, the worst side of the affair lay beyond their ken. Had they been able to look forward a Uttle when the stroke fell, they would have suffered a double anguish, for they had unwittingly imperilled the whole American army. It was a poor plot, if it would not work both ways. The next night at the proper hour, — for Carleton cUd not think it safe to wait, — the whole garrison was carefully placed. Three bonfires blazed near the Dauphin Jail. Musketry rattled hotly ; a great uproar burst out ; men shouted, ' Eiberty forever ! Eiberty forever ! ' and a couple of brass field-pieces, brought up to St. John's Gate, fired blank cartridges vigorously at the town. In short, the whole programme of the prisoners was imitated by the British. The American army turned out, paraded, and marched. But it also stopped. Such an enterprise was fit for darkness only, and the moon shone that night Uke a sun. Perhaps, too, Amold observed something that confirmed his natural suspicions. Both sides awaited developments, but in vain ; and when, at daylight, both broke ranks not a little bewildered, many in each army recalled that it was April the First." Evidently the officers, imprisoned in the Seminary, had no hand in the doings of their troops, but they cherished • ' Remark LXXVUI. The Scheme of the Ofificers 291 designs of their own. Eacking the force of numbers, they could attempt nothing so heroic ; but they proposed, in the case of another assault, to break out, release their men in the confusion, seize arms and ammunition from the magazine, and join in the bat tle. Getting wind of some such scheme, the authorities redoubled their care. A lamp burned all night in their room. A square of glass was set into the door, and eyes blinked through it almost constantly. No visitors could obtain per mission to enter; and the sen tries on the ground below had orders to shoot, if one should even open a window. Nobody regarded these men as mere deluded simpletons, or at any rate nobody held this opinion long ; for, when Morgan was offered a commission in the British army, he answered sternly: ' I hope you will never again insult me in my distressed and unfortunate situation by making me offers which plainly imply that you think me a rascal.' '" Still, the officers could not give up the idea of striking a blow ; and after a long time, Thayer and Eockwood, deputed to act for all, induced a sentry, whom they called Joe, to help them. By cutting off the planking spiked to A WING OF THE SEMINARY The American officers were con fined in the fourth story from the ground (Dearborn) ' 5 § Ainslie, Journal, Mar. 31 ; Apr. 20. Nichols, Diary. ' Chalmers ' Joumal, Feb. 21. Dearbom, Journal, Mar. 10. South. Lit. Messenger, Sept., 1854. 292 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony a door, they could scramble into the garret, and thence by a ladder and a drop of fourteen feet gain the yard. At that point, their ally was to meet them with his musket and a full supply of clubs. The four guards, it was hoped, could be satisfied with Joe's countersign ; if not, then with his cudgels. Next, if nothing could be done to release the privates, they would rush to the sally-port not far away, and leap some thirty feet into the deep snow. Even should they accomplish nothing but their own escape, they would bring the army a priceless reinforcement. " But, ' when thinking ourselves at liberty we were the farther from it, ' Thayer presently had occasion to reflect. On April the twenty -sixth, ' all things being ready for the Event,' he went up to the garret for 'some necessary ob servations,' and stopped on the way to trim the door a little, while Eockwood acted as sentry. But alas ! one ot the priests happened to espy him at work there, and in stantly sent word to the Governor. An officer, hurr}dng down to investigate, found him just completing the job, actually knife in hand ; and, although the culprit an swered very ' candidly that he wished to see where the red flag of the Americans had been moved to, ' the officer evidently went away with something on his mind. Mac lean himself, well attended, was presently seen approach ing ; and Thayer's friends, crowding round him, begged ' to undergo the same fate ' as he. But the Captain, urg ing that it was ' better for one to suffer than such a num ber, ' bade them good-bye, and soon found himself in the hold of an armed schooner, the only place that seemed secure enough. A lonesome abode it proved : yet not for long. Joe and a friend of his appeared too rich for their * s § For this affair : Thayer, Joumal ; Dearbom, Joumal ; Topham, Joumal ; Huraphrey, Journal ; Porterfield, Diary (Va. Mag., Oct., 1901-, p 145), Nichols, Diary ; Ainslie and Finlay, Joumals, Apr. 30 ; ' Chalmers ' Joumal, Apr. 27, 30; Carleton to Gerraain, May 14, 1776 (4 Force, VI., 456); Caldwell, Letter. Another Mischance 293 station in life, and, when questioned, gave inconsistent explanations of their new wealth. A threat of prison, however, simpUfled their thinking. Eockwood and Han chet went down to join Thayer, and the whole scheme collapsed : one more fatality. Thus both privates and officers made their throw for liberty and for the cause. Certainly their schemes were boldly and well contrived. They deserved a better fate ; but for the time every chance was turning against the Americans. Patient endurance now seemed to be the prisoners' only resource ; yet in a very short while some thing unlooked-for was to occur, and their bonds were suddenly to be eased. xxx THE CATASTROPHE AT QUEBEC ' TjyHEREAS Lord George Germaine, one of His ' ' Majesty's principal Secretaries of State, has ac quainted Us, by his Letter qf the § Letter from Ft. George, Apr. i8, 1776 : 4 Force, V., 981. Those at Skenesborough were able to advance a little earlier. Porter reached Ti. on the loth (Diary: Mag. Am. Hist., Sept., 1893, p. 187). Robbins, Joumal, Apr. 19. Sch. to Wash., Apr. 27, 1776: 4 Force, V., 1097. Pelton: N. Y. Calendar, I., p. 285. Thomas to Wash., Apr. 27, 1776 : 4 Force, V., 1104. Ice : Ainslie, Journal, Apr. 18. Roads : Hazen to Antill, April 3, 1776 (Can. Arch., B, 27, p. 395). Hazen, whose place Arnold took at Montreal, made the Chateau his head quarters (H. to Antill, Mar. 26, 1776: Can. Arch., B, 27, p. 392); and it is inferred that (as tradition affirms) Arnold did the same. '2§Based on the author's observations and Bouchette, Descr. Topog., pp. 556, etc. 304 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony extremely steep, because continually gnawed away at the bottom, this wall extended back on a level half a mile or so, affording room for the village of Deschambault, and then sank down to the northward. In addition to its nat ural strength, it could easily be fortified, for the soil made little resistance to pick and spade. Where bluff ended, river began, and the billows, ledges, boulders, narrow channel, and swift current forbade vessels to ascend except by the favor of a stiff northeast wind. When Franquet went up, it required the whole attention of one sailor to look out for rocks, and he noted that the tide was fiill enough to permit a passage for only four hours. Even at the best, vessels could mo\'e in single file only, passing in full view — and slowly at that — before whatever cannon stood on guard at the bluff. Eittle in the nature of the bottom encouraged them to anchor there in the play of current and tide to return the fire; and nothing deeper than a frigate could hope to pass in any way. Eevis had seen the value of the spot, and a French battery had occupied it during the late war with England. ' A very convenient situation for a Post or a Fortification, ' Engi neer Marr had reported to the British govemment. With a proper equipment and support, it 'may be defended against all the navy and all the military force of Great Britain,' Montgomery declared as soon as he reached HoUand House. '= Before the middle of October, President Hancock had assured Schuyler that — should Montreal be captured — the Congress would 'exert their utmost Endeavours to secure the River St. Eawrence,' and, ' by Vessels, Batteries and every Other Obstruction,' make it impossible for the 1 2 § LaterriJre, Mfm., p. 61. Bouchette, Descr. Topog., pp. 394,556. Marr, Reraarks: Can. Arch., M, 384, p. 136. Amold to Sch., Apr. 20, 1776: 4 Force, v., 1098. Franquet, Voyages, p. 11. Goforth to Jay, Apr. 8, 1776: Bancroft Coll., Rev. Papers, I., p. 37. Lfivis, Joumal, pp. 284, etc. Montg., Dec. 5, 177s : 4 Force, IV., 188. 305 THE CHATEAU DE RAMEZAY, MONTREAL More Good Intentions 307 British to ascend the stream in force. Early in January, Schuyler had been instructed to have the St. Eawrence explored and proper plans determined upon ' for opposing by armed boats or otherwise any attempts of the enemy to penetrate that country by the river ' ; and in due course this order passed on to Montreal. Armed gondolas rec ommended themselves to Wooster, very likely because the army had no engineer qualified to lay out fortifications. Timber, nails, and spikes could be found in Canada ; and he asked that ' the articles of pitch, tar, turpentine, and oakum,' besides some master-carpenters, be forwarded. Congress laid upon Schuyler the duty of procuring skil ful persons to construct the armed boats, as well as to assist Wooster in reconnoitring the St. Eawrence. But Schuyler explained that his Albany ship-carpenters, though ' very good,' knew nothing about the sort of craft required, and that no pitch, tar, or oakum could be sent on before the Hudson opened.'* Eee, in his one Canadian mandate, informed Wooster that cannon were to go north from Crown Point, and sug gested forwarding them, before it was 'too late in the season,' to Deschambault, where, he added, 'it appears to me you ought to establish a Post.' But the cannon, if Eee had time to order them sent, were no doubt stopped, like everything else, by the crumbling of the ice. Winter passed on into spring. Wooster, though he must have noticed the grand bluff, crowned with a noble grove of pines and a slender church steeple, on his wall-scaUng splurge to Quebec, paid little attention to it, if he paid any ; and on the first of April Hazen exclaimed in despair, 'No preparation has, is, or can be made to guard the river, for a ' ' § Hancock to Sch., Oct. 12, 1775 : Am. Antiq. Soc. Journ. Cong., Jan. 8 ; Feb. 5, 1776. Sch. to Hancock, Jan. 22, 1776 : 4 Force, IV., 802. Id. to Wooster, Jan. 26, 1776: ib., 1003. Wooster to Sch., Feb. 13, 1776 : ib., 1218. Hazen to Sch., Apr. 1, 1776: 4 Force, V., 751. Sch. to Hancock, Feb. 20: 4 Force, IV., 1214. 3o8 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony very good reason — no money or men of skill to do it, ' though certainly something might have been accomplished."* Arnold, on his way to Montreal, halted and examined the spot carefully. With the eye ofa seaman, he perceived that ' few ships could go up without anchoring near the shore, at the foot ofthe Rapids,' where a batter}- often or twelve cannon, supported by three or four gondolas above, would, in his judgment, ' effectually secure the pass.' Ac cordingly, he despatched an artillery officer at once to Crown Point for guns and shot, and also for a gondola said to be lying there. The row-galley at St. Johns had gone over the Chambly Rapids to perdition, ahd a floating- battery had been 'cut to pieces ' ; so that only one shattered gondola, mounting a single 12-pounder, was then available. Plank and timber lay ready at Chambly ; but other ma terials were still lacking, hard money for workmen could not be had, the entrenching tools were 'very few'; and therefore Thomas found the Rapids and the bluff, after all these months of good intentions, little, if anything, save a splendid opportunity. Heaven grant, he must have prayed, that it may not be needed ! '° Just above Aspen Point another feature ofthe north shore doubtless arrested his eye. This was the River Jacques Cartier, a small affluent of the St. Eawrence. Bouchette called it the ' bulwark of Quebec ' ; but it could serve equally well, if one pleased, as a bulwark against Quebec. No bridge spanned it ; and the swift, eddying current was dangerous to ford. High banks, impracticable save at intervals, permitted but few to cross at a time, and those ' 5 § Lee to Wooster, Feb 28, 1776 : Ara. Antiq. Soc. Bouchette, Descr. Topog., p. 556. Hazen to Sch., Apr. i, 1776: 4 Force, V., 751. Apr. 8. Goforth wrote Jay (Bancroft Coll., Revol. Papers, I., p. 37) that not a single battery had been planted on the St. Lawrence. ¦ ' § Amold to Sch., Apr. 20, 1776: 4 Force, V., 1098. Commrs. to Hancock, May I, 1776 : ib., 1166. Thomas to Wash., Apr. 27, 1776: ib., 1104. See Chap. XXXV., Note 6. REMARK LXXIX. State of the American Army 309 not without embarrassment ; and many promising points for a stubborn flght could be seen at a glance. Descham bault was a castle, and here lay its moat. But at the Jac ques Cartier, as at Deschambault, there was only nature, unadorned with trenches or redoubts ; and Thomas, full of anxious reflections, hurried on past the Red Cape {Cap Rouge), gazed intently at the massive cliff of Cape Dia mond, crowned with cannon and the high sentry-box, and at last, as the first day of May came to its close, entered the American lines in the hope of better things. Very shortly 'there fell from his eyes as it had been scales.'" ' To bring men [to be] well acquainted with the duties of a soldier, requires time, ' Washington advised Congress. 'To bring them under proper discipline and subordination, not only requires time, but is a work of great difficulty, and, in this army, where there is so little distinction be tween the officers and soldiers, requires an uncommon degree of attention. To expect, then, the same service from raw and undisciplined recruits, as from veteran sol diers, is to expect what never did and perhaps what never will happen. . . . Again, men of a day's standing will not look forward, and from experience we find, that as the time approaches for their discharge, they grow careless of their arms, ammunition, camp utensils, &c. ... To this may be added the seasoning, which new recruits must have to a camp. . . . Men engaged for a short, limited time only, have the officers too much in their power; for, to obtain a degree of popularity in order to induce a second enlistment, a kind of familiarity takes place, which brings on a relaxation of discipline. ' ' Before the soldiers can be in any wise disciplined, ' Ritzema informed the authorities of New York, ' their time of service is expired, and as that 1 ' § Bouchette, Descr. Topog., pp. i88, 219, 403. Shallus, Journal, May 7. Thomas to Wash., Apr. 27, 1776: 4 Force, V., 1104. Id. to Corarars., May 7, 1776: Sparks MSS., No. 60, p. 83. Remark LXXX. 3IO Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony approaches, they become mutinous and disobedient. . . . Without discipline, no obedience ; without obedience, no duty.' But these palpable truths had not yet been recog nized, and the service at Quebec, like that at Cambridge, paid the penalty. ' Neither order nor subordination pre vails, and of course shortly no soldiers,' wrote Hazen the first of April." On the thirtieth of March, the besieging army had numbered twenty -five hundred, nearly a third of whom were unfit for duty, while fifteen hundred were to be free the middle of April. Arnold reckoned at six huudred, or at most seven hundred and fifty, the sol(Hers who would insist upon going home, and Walker believed that 'it would have been an easy matter for their Gen' to have reingaged most ofthe Men, if they had begun in time; but, deferring it until their time of service was expired, it became impracticable, for the men, perceiving that the reenforcements Artillery provisions & stores came in so slowly, peremptorily insisted upon their Discharge.' The term of Eivingston's men was to expire the same day : 'very few, if any of them, wiU re-engage,' predicted Hazen." The consequence was an upheaval when the midcUe of April arrived. The Quebeckers noticed several squads of Clinton's men at Point Eevi marching up the river with knapsacks on their backs, and a few days later two deserters reported in town that 'the New York troops [who had re-enlisted at Montreal] had laid down their Arms, & that those from Pensylvania & the Jerseys with some Canadians had surrounded them & made pris- 18 §Wash. to Hancock, Feb. 9, 1776: Writings(Ford), HL, p.406. Ritzema, Jan. 3, 1776: 4 Force, IV., 1113. Caldwell, Letter. Hazen to Sch., Apr. i, 1776: 4 Force, v., 751. " § Retum : 4 Force, V., 550 (present, 2505 ; sick, 786). Amold to Deane, Mar. 30, 1776 : ib., 549. Id. to Sch., Mav 6, 1776; Sparks MSS., No. 60, p. 83. Walker to S. Adaras, May 30, 1776 (punctuated by J. H. S.): S. .A.dams Papers. Hazen to Sch., Apr. i, 1776: 4 Force, V., 751. Remark LXXXL State of the American Army 3 1 1 oners of them ; on which some lifted their Arms again, called out God save King George & fired upon the magazine,'— a performance which 'put the whole into great confusion ' and ended with the imprisonment of the 'i-v DescBambault /^^^^^^§\ Pointe du 'i^^W^ * ^ ^^^^aRNicolefc L wp^ ^v N.' \ ?Q| j U e"\ B 3: 0 /*», *; V f 1 ^$ jivarelnes B^Long^euil ; /' ^ fell the regiment at Point Levi. Receiving a hint rather than a notice that withdrawal had been de cided upon, they moved up the river a few miles and waited eight hours for bateaux to ferry them across ; but none came, and in desperation they set off by themselves, as best they could. They soon ate up their scanty stock of food, and spent their scanty stock of hard money for bread. Next, a force firom one of the British vessels landed with artillery, blocking the road, such as it was ; and finally the wretched fugitives had to bury themselves in the woods. As that side of the St. Lawrence, beyond a short distance, was almost a wilderness nearly to Sorel, their prospects were not brilliant." The main body, however, was little more to be envied. The scarcity of food compelled it to divide. Indeed, Thomas did not think it safe to keep more than five hundred men with him. Some stopped for the night only a dozen miles 3 3 Robbins, Joumal, May 6. The Wreckage at Deschambault 323 from Quebec, but more fled on with the speed of panic, and cursing Campbell made straight for Montreal. Thomas himself halted at Jacques Cartier ; but the position could easily be taken in the rear, should he make a stand there, and, posting a guard, he pressed on. The road, still deep with spring mire, was frequently almost impassable, and in some places was overflowed so badly that a circuit of several miles over the soft ground had to be made. At others, the route lay near the St. Lawrence, and shells from the British vessels, particularly where streams had to be crossed, augmented the terrors, if not the losses, of the flight. As provisions could be obtained from the peo ple only by stark force, when they could be obtained at all, companies found it necessary to break up more and more in quest of food ; and thus on they hurried in wild con fusion, spreading fear and the small-pox wherever they went ; while the poor Canadians who had sided with them, overwhelmed with evenagreater misfortune than the army, tortured the fleeing host with tears, entreaties, and lamentations, and sometimes with curses or threats." At two o'clock in the morning of May seventh, news of the flight arrived at Deschambault ; and then, hour after hour, fugitives came streaming along in every conceiv able shape of exhaustion, hunger, sickness, and despair : limping and reeling ; plastered with mud ; panting with fright ; hollow-eyed from lack of sleep ; equipped with little save tales of disaster. On all sides lay men dying ofthe small-pox ; and faster than ever sank new victims ' * § For the retreat (in addition to Note 28) : Thoraas to Commrs., May 15, 1776 (Cont. Cong. Papers, No. 58, p. 253 ); Robbins, Journal ; Joum. Cong., July 31, 1776 (the misfortunes ofthe Pt. Levi party were not chargeable to Thomas) ; Chase and Carroll to Sch., May 17, 1776 (4 Force, VL, 586); Offlcer (4 Force, VL, 398); Memor. of D. Campbell (Cont. Cong. Papers, No. 41, IL, p. 388) ; Memoirs of J. Halsted (ib.. No. 42, IIL, pp. 461, 463); St. Clair, Narrative, p. 231 ; Roberts, Ane. and Hon. Art. Co., II. , p. 216 ; Sch. to Hancock, Apr. 2, 17 76 U Force, v., 767); Jefferson to Page, May 19, 1776 (Emmet Coll.); Elmer, Joumal (N. J. Hist. Soc. Proc, IL, p. 97). Roads: Hazen to Antill, Mar. 26, 1776 (Can. Arch., B, 27, p. 392); Sch. to Hancock, Apr. 2, 1776 (4 Force, V., 767). Cleghorn to , May 12, 1776: 4 Force, VI. , 430. Germain to Howe, June 11, 1776: Pub. Rec. Ofl!., Am. and W. I., Vol. 431, p. 145. 324 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony under the scourge. The British vessels came up, ' firing as they came. ' At any moment their shells might drop and burst in the mob of fugitives. Marines actually landed. Every known terror seemed to have had notice ; and, like the vultures of the desert — swooping and swooping again in ever narrower circles upon the fever-smitten Arab that has fallen but is not quite dead — firight, famine, shame, helplessness, the foe, the plague, the gloom of isolation and.friendlessness, the dire prospect of total ruin, the grim visage of bloody death, — a ghastly brood, — all shook their black, foul, creaking wings over this wretched debris of huddling, fainting humanity, — each moment nearer and more near. On every face was written panic, and on many despair cut deep its lines of agony. ' God of Armies, help us, help us ! ' prayed Chaplain Robbins. An hour before noon, Thomas arrived. Some order came with him. A little hope glimmered ; or rather despair seemed a shade less dark. Carleton did not ap pear. The marines were beaten off. It looked as if the worst might be over, — at least for a breathing-space. But the best possible was bad enough. The Americans had been routed ignominiously, had fled when no man thought of pursuing, and had sacrificed stores they could hardly exist without ; two regiments of regulars had now been thrown into the balance against them ; and — worst of all — Carleton had at length been able to measure, and let the Canadians measure, the actual strength of the Liberators. It was a grave, perhaps decisive, blow ; and so felt both sides, as the news of it spread. ' A glorious Prospect!' rejoiced Maclean; a 'melancholy reverse,' groaned Thomas Jefferson. It gives promise 'of putting an end to the Rebellion in one Campaign,' exulted Lord George Germain. ' Nothing but the power of an Omnipotent God, stretched forth for our relief,' cried Lieutenant Elmer, 'can preserve us firom utter destruction.' XXXI THE APOSTLES OF LIBERTY 'IF the mountain will not come to Mahomet, Mahomet 1 will go to the mountain,' that astute person is said to have remarked, when a certain eminence declined to obey his voice ; and it has been thought very generally that he could have done no better. Over and over again, it had been proposed to Congress that a committee of its members visit Canada and exert their influence, authority, and wisdom on the scene of action. Only a week after finding himself planted before St. Johns, Montgomery informed Schuyler that he ' could wish to have three members of the Congress as a council immediately,' lest he should make some blunder. Two months later, he still coveted ' exceedingly ' such a rein forcement. On learning of the delegation sent north in November to confer with Schuyler, he felt ' exceedingly happy,' for he expected this body to visit Canada; and he informed Robert R. Livingston that he was ' no less mortified ' on hearing of its return from the lakes to Phil adelphia. About the middle of October, Schuyler ' hum bly ' recommended to Congress that a committee with full powers be sent north ; and, on leaming of Montgomery's tragic end, he rather impatiently repeated the suggestion. Arnold had the same desire and made the same request. Hazen wrote Samuel Adams in a similar strain ; and, in specifying to Schuyler the needs of Canada, along with ' able generals, a respectable Army, a suitable supply of 325 326 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony hard cash, a printer, etc.,' he mentioned ' a Committee of Congress.' At Philadelphia itself the measure was urged persistently. ' I will be at them 'till 't is done,' promised Lynch.' Congress, however, proposed with equal perseverance that Canada should send a delegation south. One could see that such a course would not only square better with the dignity of the United Colonies, but would be a long stride toward the incorporation of Canada in the Union ; and it was, perhaps, to avoid giving the mountain a good excuse for passivity, that no attention was paid to these urgent and reiterated petitions. But events at the north — particularly Montgomery's failure at the end of the year — made a closer contact with the Canadians appear more necessary, and a delegation from them less prob able, than before. The wisdom of Mahomet, if not the urgency of Schuyler and Lynch, seemed to carry the day ; and, on the fifteenth of February, not only was it resolved : ' That a committee of three . . . (two of whom to be members of Congress) be appointed to proceed to Canada, there to pursue such instructions as shall be given them by Congress,' but the men were actually chosen. ° Then, unhappily, the Opposition seems to have made itself heard once more, and Congress could not determine what powers to give its Commissioners. At length, how ever, after a delay of more than three weeks, a draft of in structions was laid on the President's table. On the eleventh and twelfth of March these were ' considered' ; on the nineteenth further sections came in ; and finally, the • § Montg. to Sch., Sept. 24, 1775: 4 Force, IIL, 840. Id. told., Nov. 24, 1775: ib., 1694. Id. to R. R. Liv., Dec. 17, 1775 : Liv. Papers, 1775-1777, p. 89. Sch. to Hancock, Oct. 18, 1775 : 4 Force, III. 1093. M. to Id., Jan. 13, 1776 : 4 Force, IV., 666. Arnold: Sch. to Hancock, FelD. 23, 1776 (ib., 1481). Hazen to S. Adams, Feb. 18, 1776: S. Adams Papers. Id. to Sch., Apr. i, 1776: 4 Force, V., 751. Lynch to Sch., Jan. 20, 1776: Sparks MSS., No. 60, p. 61. 2 § Wish of Cong.: 'Vol.I., passim. Joum. Cong., Feb. 15. The Mission of the Delegates 327 next day, an agreement was achieved. Represent to the people of Canada, said Congress, ' that the arms of the United Colonies, having been carried into that province for the purpose of frustrating the designs of the British court against our common liberties, we expect not only to defeat the hostile machinations of Governor Carlton against us, but that we shall put it into the power of our Canadian brethren, to pursue such measures for securing their own freedom and happiness, as a generous love of Hberty and sound policy shall dictate to them. ' ' This meant, as the next par agraph explained, that their interests and those of their neighbors on the south were 'inseparably united'; and — as the Commissioners were to re present ' in the strongest terms ' —that it was the 'earnest desire' ^ of Congress to adopt them as a sister Colony. The necessity of taking some decisive step to place themselves under the pro tection of the Union was to be urged, and they were to be stimulated ' by motives of glory, as well as interest, to assume a part in a con test, by which they must be deeply affected.' On the other side, the rights of conscience would be held sacred, and the whole people were to be guaranteed solemnly, in the name of Congress, ''the free and undisturbed exercise of their religion.' The clergy should have ' the fuU, perfect, and peaceable possession and enjoyment of aU their estates,' and the entire ecclesiastical administra tion, beyond an assurance of full reUgious liberty and civil CHARLES CARROLL 3 § Joum. Cong., Mar. 9, 11, 12, 19. 328 Our Struggle forthe Fourteenth Colony privileges to every sect of Christians, should be left ' in the hands of the good people of that province, and such legislature' as they should constitute." 'With all possible expedition,' a complete Convention should be called, ' to deliberate concerning the establish ment of a form of government, and a uuion with the United Colonies.' Jay and others objected that advising the Canadians to create a government for themselves ' without limitation ' meant ' an Independency. ' Richard Smith noted in his Journal that ' there was much Ar- g[umen]t on this Ground ' ; and John Adams, describing this part of the Instructions as ' one step more towards our great object — a general recommendation to the States to institute governments,' recorded that ' great zeal' was shown by the other party in opposing them; but the strug gle ended with one more victory for complete self-rule.' ' I expect the Deputies will, in a short time, be ready to proceed to Canada,' said John Hancock four days after they were appointed ; and that would have been none too soon. But it was not until the second day of April that a Hudson River sloop took them aboard at New York, and, in its leisurely fashion, set out for Albany. The fifth morning found them shaking hands with General Schuyler; and then, as the lakes could not be crossed, they settled down at what Colonel Vose called his ' very Grand farm ' near Saratoga, where no doubt ' good Mrs. Schuyler, ' as Franklin once described her, made them very comfortable with housewifely attentions, and her consort, steering them nervously up and down the wide, two-story veranda, made tbem very unhappy with Canadian facts.' ¦* Joum. Cong., IVIar 20. 5 § Joum. Cong., Mar. 20. Smith, Private Joumal. J. Adams, Works, IIL, p. 36. 6 § Hancock to Lee, Feb. 19, 1776 : 4 Force, IV., 1197. Rowland, Carroll, p. 147. Carroll, Joumal. Sch. to Wash., Apr. 7, 1776 : 4 Force, V,, 812. Id. to Hancock, Apr. 12, 1776 : ib., 868. Vose, Joumal, p. 7. Franklin to Sch., May 27, 1776: sparks MSS., No. 60, p. 88. Ostrander, Old Saratoga, p. 8. The Journey North 329 Leaving this haven when the lakes opened, about the middle of April, they passed ten hard days in reaching Ticonderoga, and there took ship for the north. It was the custom for such travellers to go ashore at evening, and sleep under the trees with huge fires blazing at their feet ; and some of the party spent one night under a bush hut in hunter fashion. At another time, a farmer's cabin offered its rude hospitality. Once and again, they landed to have breakfast or dine in more comfort, even if only on ' cold provisions.' But, as a ruie, they got on as best they could in the crowded quarters on board. An awning was spread for them, and the beds brought from New York were made up under it each night ; and in this arduous rnanner they tacked and tossed for three days to St. Johns. The jolting of a calash {caleche) to Laprairie gave them at any rate a change of sensations ; and fi nally, threshing down the rapids, the Apostles of Liberty set foot on the sandy beach of Montreal at the close of their tvrenty-seventh day from New York (April 29).' At the landing. General Arnold met them ' in the most polite and friendly manner ' ; and, entering Vaudreuil Gate amid a crash of cannons from the citadel, they passed on, escorted by all the Friends of Liberty in Mon treal, through many strange sights— keen fur-traders, reckless coureurs de bois, strolling Indians decked out in savage finery, shy nuns, and half-scowling priests — to the dark and massive Chateau. ' The Committee, if any is sent, shonld be enabled to live in that splendour which, with Frenchmen, creates respect,' Schuyler had advised ; and Arnold held the same opinion. First, the distin guished visitors were offered a glass of wine, while people of quality and importance crowded round them to pay ' § Carroll, Journal. J. Carroll, letter : Rowland, Carroll, p. 152. Franklin to Hancock, Apr. 13, 1776 : 4 Force, V., 927. Sch. to Wash., Apr. 27, 1776 : ib., 1097. Id. to IdT, May 3, 1776: ib., 1182. Corarars. to Hancock, May i : ib., 1166. 330 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony compliments. Next, they were ushered into another apart ment and found themselves among ladies, most of them French. There tea was served; and finallj^ after they had chatted a becoming time, 'an elegant supper' followed.' At the head of the board sat Amold, now famous the world over for the wilderness march, the plucky assault, and the wonderful perseverance of the blockade, and quite capable of winning by his manners and conversa tion the ' highest esteem ' of the foremost among his guests. The chairman of the commission, placed at his right, listening, pondering, sometimes propping his chin with the thumb of his right hand, and occasionally sum ming up many words in a remark so witty and so just as to brighten the eyes as well as the minds of all present, bore a name honored in two hemispheres. Already past three-score years and ten, he had felt at Saratoga that perhaps this rough trip would ' prove too much ' for him, ( and had written last farewells to some of his friends ; but He had pushed on, and now here he sat, with all the statecraft of Benjamin Franklin and all the winning com mon-sense of Bonhomme Richard hard at work behind Ilis fatherly spectacles. Canada was no new topic with him. Wolfe's expedition had sprung, perhaps, firom his infiuence. When it was proposed to give up the fmits of the victory on the Plains, he had gone about London ' every day and hour ' combatting the idea ; and he was * § Carroll, Joumal. Montreal letter in Conn. Gazette, May 24, 1776. Sch. to Hancock, Feb. 10, 1776 : 4 Force, IV., 990. Letter frora J. Carroll: Rowland, Carroll, p. 153. Chateau de Raraezay : Chap. XXX., Note 11. The Delegates 331 the author of at least one pamphlet on the future of that region." Across fhe table, Samuel Chase of Maryland, with a solid, well-filled body, a genial, calm, determined face, clear, steady brown eyes, and massive locks waving down toward his strong shoulders, personified good nature, judg ment, and resolution. Next him sat a man with gentle but fearless eyes and handsome, sculpturesque features toned with an air of the highest honor and courtesy. Lord Brougham extolled his learning, eloquence, character, and grace ; yet his arms — two lions rampant holding a naked sword, point up, between them — were equally true to bis nature. ' And do you think that writing will settle the question between us ? ' he had asked Chase a number of years before, when the controversy with England began to warm. ' Surely, ' answered Chase ; ' What else can we resort to ? > ' The bayonet, ' he replied. John Adams outlined his qualifications well : ' a gentle man of independent fortune, perhaps the largest in Amer ica, a hundred and fifty or two hundred thousand pounds sterling ; educated in some university in France, though a native of America; of great abilities and learning, complete master of the French language, and a professor of the Roman Catholic religion, yet a warm, a firm, a zealous supporter of the rights of America, in whose cause he has hazarded his all.' It was of him that an awestruck by stander whispered, as he unfiinchingly set his hand to the Declaration of Independence, ' There goes half a million ' § J. Carroll to Chase and C. Carroll, May 28, 1776 : Eramet Coll. Familiar portrait of Franklin. Franklin to Quincy, Apr. 15, 1776: Works (Bigelow), VI. , p. 10. Wolfe's exped. : Carroll, Joumal, p. 23. Franklin to Hughes, Jan. 7, 1760, and Pamphlet: Works (Bigelow), IIL, pp. 43, 69. The seating is in ferential. 332 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony at the dash of a pen! ' for the name it wrote was Charles CarroU of CarroUton."' Nor was he to challenge the Canadian clergy unaided. John Carroll, destined to become the first archbishop of Baltimore, had been invited by Congress to accompany the Delegates. As Abigail Adams wrote John, her spouse, the idea of taking him along was regarded by everybody, even in Puritan Quincy, as ' a master stroke, ' and his leam ing and ability, his patriotism and zeal, his noble presence, his Catholic orthodoxy, his Jesuit diplomacy, and his per suasive eloquence, acquired and practised on the continent of Europe, seemed enough to bring even the priesthood around, were that possible." Perhaps the Carrolls had already been at work on the northern problem from a distance. ' ' T is said the Cana dians were notalittleinfluenced in the part they have taken by the Catholics from Maryland,' Admiral Graves had written while Montgomery was marching to Quebec. '^ At all events, they could now address both Church and people eye to eye and heart to heart ; while the board of Commis sioners, clothed with supreme authority over the troops and facing every difficulty with the delegated power of Con- _ gress, would surely be able to accomplish wonders. In a word, that heavy-browed old dining-room in the Chateau was now a rich arsenal of prestige, wisdom, tact, and au thority. No doubt things had been going badly ofiate ; but mistakes could be corrected and misfortunes repaired. New military forces also were at hand. Baron de Woedtke, recently a high officer of the great Frederick but now an American brigadier-general, a man looked 1" § Chase:Port. by C.W. Peale (Independence Hall, Phila.); Carroll: Port. by Lati after Stuart (Md. Hist. Soc); Arms, etc.: Rowland, Carroll, passim. Chase and Carroll: Hilliard, Speeches, pp. 388, 390, 393 ; Brougham, Hist. Sketches, Sec. Ser., p. 196 ; J. Adams, Farail. Letters, p. 134. 1 ' § Joum. Cong., Feb. 15. Boyle, Sketches, passim. Carroll, Joumal, Introd. 12 Graves to Stevens, Dec. 4, 1775: Pub. Rec. Off., Admirals' Disp., N.Am., Vol. 6. Fresh Troops 333 upon as a hero till he proved himself a sot, had come north with the Commissioners. March twenty-fifth. Congress had requested Washington to ' detach four batallions into Canada ' as soon as the secu rity of New York and New Eng land would permit ; and the regiments of Poor, Paterson, Greaton, and Bond, 'four of the strongest,' were selected as promptly as possible after the army reached the mouth of Hudson River. Brigadier- Gen eral Thompson, an honored graduate of the French and Indian War and recently Col onel of the First Rifies, was appointed to command this corps. ' This minute I have received orders to march to Canada,' he wrote George Read on the fifteenth of April; and in four days about two thousand hearty young fellows and their officers began clambering into sloops at New York, with a company of riflemen, a company of artisans, and two engineers besides. Two days later their sails filled plumply ; and at this very moment, while Arnold was feasting the Commissioners at the Chateau, they were camping cheerily in the rain at Fort Edward, only troubled lest Quebec should be taken before they could get there. Once more the omens looked auspicious ; and when the weary but gratified Congressmen retired to their beds in Thomas Walker's house, fifteen or twenty rods distant — ¦ ' the best built and perhaps the best furnished in the town ' — they felt they could afford to rub their hands a little. '° JOHN CARROLL " § Joum. Cong., Mar. i, i6, 25. Conn. Gazette. Apr. 5, 1776. Sot: p. 440. Wash, to Sch., Apr. 15, 1776: 4 Force, V., 945. Vose, Journal, p. 4, note. Read, Read, pp. 119, 152. Wash, to Sch., Apr. 19, 1776: Writings (Ford), IV., p. 28. Id. to Hancock, Apr. 15, 22, 19: ib., pp. 17, 34 ; 4 Force, V., 985. Thompson to 334 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony One of the objects entrusted to the Commissioners was the e.stabli.shment of a 'free press' in Canada. Only a single printing-office existed in the province, and that did its feeble work in the city of Quebec. Those able to read — few comparatively, but many in the sum and widely scat tered — could be taught the principles of liberty only by the slow and expensive aid of the pen. To secure the ap proved means for awakening the intelligence of Canada, Congress had induced Fleury Mesplet, a' French printer of Philadelphia, to remove with his family and appliances to Montreal ; and his rude but darling press, his type, and the other accoutrements ofthe art preservative and destructive, bumping from sloop to wharf and wagon to bateau, break ing their master's heart at ever}' tumble and occasionaUy breaking something of their own, had finally reached the island city, and now resumed their former state, under the supervision of the Commissioners, in the basement of the Chateau.'* John Carroll, with a promptness worthy of his aim, put himself in touch with the clergy at once ; but here the omens proved false, for he met a waU of adamant. When he explained that no mere factiousness had caused the uprising of the Colonies, but invasions of charters and violations of well known and long recognized principles of the British Constitution, it was replied that in Canada the people had no aggressions to complain of, and that, in fact, the Quebec Bill had favored their national usages more than could have been expected. If he dwelt upon the liberal views of Congress, and pointed out that British toleration might be exchanged for American guarantees. Wash., Apr. 27, 1776: 4 Force, V., 1096. Vose, Joumal, Apr. 29 ; May 4, etc. Walker, Memorial : Cont. Cong. Papers, 41, X., p. 665. Carroll, Joumal, p. 93. I ' § Joum. Cong., Feb. 23 ; Mar. 20. Press: Christie, Lower Can., I., p. 25. Secret Journ. Cong., Feb. 26. Memorials of Mesplet: Cont. Cong. Papers, No. 41, VI. , pp. 305, 309, 337, 341, 409. Mr. Thomas O'Leary, custodian of the museum at the Chateau, informed the author as to the locati.on ofthe press. An Effort To Win the Clergy 335 the priests answered, in substance, that good treatment actually experienced counted far more than simple promises from an enemy in straits, pointing out that in Canada their property had been safeguarded, their churches honored, and their missions respected, while in some of the Colonies their priests were not even allowed to live, and their mis sionaries among the Indians — Rale, for example — had been cruelly treated." These harsh measures, explained Carroll, resulted in a great part from the laws of the royal government. But, they rejoined, the Colonials, though prompt and valiant in the defence of their own rights of conscience, have never shown themselves interested in behalf of ours. The treatment of the Acadians, the address in which Congress denounced the Roman Catholic faith,'" the in tolerance of Wooster and other Americans in Canada were all brought in. The injunctions of the Bishop could not be forgotten ; and, by the well-established maxim that allegiance was a due return for protection, the Brit ish government could claim not only neutrality but sup port from the Roman Church in Canada. Even John Carroll found himself helpless against this array of objec tions, and he soon discovered that his appearing for the Americans actually seemed offensive to his northern} -^ brethren." Equally prompt and equally unfortunate, the Commis sioners attacked their political problem. A month before, Hazen had described the Canadians as ' no longer . . . friends, but, on the contrary, waiting an opportunity to join our enemies ' ; and their hearts had not warmed in the interval. No more men would 1 s § Remark LXXXV. "See thisvol.,p. 215. The dialogue form ofthe discussion just above is due to the present author. 1 ^ Carroll, Journal, p. 30, note. P^V^ (O-^., >^^ ^ACJ^y^^^'^-' ^A.^^ oC^ FROM FRANKLIN'S LETTER TO CHASE AND CARROLL, MAY 27, 1776 -fi^c^^ ^^a^^ t^i^^ »/z^^^>^ 'i::^^yyui^ FROM CHASE AND CARROLL'S LETTER TO THOMAS, MAY 12, 1776 The Present Situation 337 engage in his regiment, and he expected those already enlisted would ' go to the right about,' should the people in general turn against the Americans. Arnold endorsed Hazen's gloomy picture as in the main ' too true,' and could add several strokes of black from his own palette. His order, however unavoidable, that Continental paper must be accepted, had covered the faces of the habitants with ' Chagrin and discontent.' ' About fifteen thousand Dollars have been paid awaj',' reported Antill at the close of March, ' and with it is gone the affections of the people in general.' Beating Beaujeu at the cost of shed ding Canadian blood, though it put out the flame of insurrection, had perhaps only scattered the embers of discontent. At Three Rivers, in the very ears of an American garrison, the Grand Vicar had the Do-mine sal- vum fac regem chanted publicly on three successive days in April. Disgusted officers and men were swarming up from Quebec ; the Montreal troops could not be induced to re-enlist ; and the friendly Canadians, when told that men left the army because their term had ended and that others would take their places, pronounced the American campaign a mere promenade, a mere ' go-and-come ' ; while the Tories had now arrived at a high pitch in Montreal, and Hazen, after exerting himself to obtain trustworthy information, declared that by and by a ' stroke ' would have to be dealt there. Indeed, what else could be expected ? It had already come to be generally understood among the people that whenever a royal army should arrive, it would brush the invaders from Canadian soil at once." Not many hours passed before the Commissioners real- 18 § Hazen to Sch., Apr. i, 1776: 4 Force, V., 751. Arnold to Sch., Apr. 20, 1776: ib., 1098. [AntiU] to [Hazen], iMar. 28, 1776 : Can. Arch., B, 27, p. 380. Ursul. de T Riv , I., p. 369. Walker to S. Adams, May 30, 1776: S. Adams Papers. Hazen to Antill, April 3, 1776 : Can. Arch., B, 27, p. 395. Id. to Id., Apr. 20, 1776: ib., p. ,398. Commrs. to Cong., May i, 1776: 4 Force, V., 1166. VOL. II. — 22. 338 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony ized that the lack_^3oney was the first limb of the octo pus to attack. Without a military chest in camp, the American troops could not be expected to behave well nor to remain longer than they must. Even faithful Ayot sent word, that pay for the Canadians must be sup plied. Unsupported by a metal base and shocked by many 'breaches of promise,' confidence had in fact col lapsed. ' Our credit extends no farther than our arms,' Amold had written a month before ; and the Commis sioners themselves discovered that now it fell far short of that. Within forty-eight hours after reaching Montreal, they informed Congress that it was ' impossible ' to give a just idea of the lowness of Continental credit in Canada or of the harm that resulted." ' Not the most trifling service can be procured without an assurance of instant pay in silver or gold,' they admit ted. The express whom they sent from St. Johns to inform Arnold of their arrival and ask for conveyances to I^ '~U-yAAy ;£.s^.-t^:^-c^ <;5*^ m,h a^i~~t^ fi'TT^, 'tw- t^ A^y^n^ Ay>yp-L,rzai cy/z-jy-ri.^^^ a- ^^rcc^t.^ /err^ FROM THE COMMISSIONERS' LETTER TO CONGRESS, MAY 1, 1776 341 342 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony ' The Bostonians, ' cried these men, ' make war only on their fi-iends. Us they abandon to gibbets and confisca tions ; but toward our enemies — enemies only because we have aided the Americans — they are merciful, humane, generous, and complaisant, giving them firee license to come back to their homes again. Our foes may now roam about— well supplied with money — Hke gentlemen on their travels, but we are not paid for the hard cash we have loaned and the supplies we have furnished. They may plan to bum our houses and cut our throats ; but we maj^ not lift a finger against them to disarm their malice.' To such protests and expostulations the Delegates re plied : ' A cause that cannot support itself upon the prin ciples of Uberty is not worth pursuing. We will not do evil that good may ensue. It is a most substantial wrong to exile a man five hundred miles from his own home only because he is disaffected. Ifthe Canadians will join heartily to vindicate their liberties and rights, the few whom we have permitted to return will signify nothing ; if they will not, it will only be just to withdraw the Con tinental forces, for the war in Canada would be a millstone around the necks of the Colonies. ' ' The means must be suited to the end,' rejoined Walker and his friends. ' \\^hy did you seize the forts and vessels and enter our province in hostile array, except for the very purpose of overthrowing the usurpation and despot ism of these few whom you now pronounce harmless ? ' But neither protests nor arguments had effect. Some of the officers " at Montreal then pulled out their commissions and trampled them under their feet. ' Never again,' they vowed, " will we take office under men who destroy by a stroke of the pen what we risked our lives to obtain'; and one even 'damn'd Mr. Chace and to his 2 4 w^aiter does not state that they were Canadians, but the French words in their reraarks aud sorae ofthe phraseology iraply as much. Bitter Protests 343 face, ' reported Walker, ' swearing when he prayed him to accept an important Command that he would not fire another Gun for the Congress till their Officers and Soldiers were put upon an equal footing with their Enemies.' But the Apostles of Eiberty could not yield to threats. Another task, also, fell to the Commissioners, — the superintendence of the army. Their first move was to hold a council of war the morning after they reached Montreal ; and the council, besides resolving to fortify Jacques Cartier and Deschambault, voted to build four ' row-galleys or gondolas ' at Chambly without delay. Some carpenters from New York had at last appeared ; and the Commissioners, in order to stimulate the work, tumed over for the pay of Canadian artisans a part of the specie given them for their own expenses, while Arnold sent up to Schuyler for hawsers, anchors, and seamen. But at this juncture, in the morning grey of May tenth, cursing CampbeU, all mud outside as well as inside now, brought news of the flight from Quebec. Every military plan and hope staggered under the shock. Montreal be came a stormy sea. Dreading that one of the British firigates would run up and cut them off, the Commissioners added to the panic by hastily quitting the city, and Frank lin, attended by John Carroll, set out at once for home, both to save the ruins ofhis health and to make a personal report ofthe situation.'" Everything hinged now on the troops. Could they stop the enemy ? Could they even escape ? And on these questions, the Commissioners, like every one else, focused their attention. 25 §Commrs. to Cong., May i, 1776: 4 Force, V., 1166. Amold to Sch., Apr. 30, 1776: ib., 1155. Hazen to Sch., May i, 1776: Sch. Papers. Commrs. to Sch., May 10, 1776: Sparks Corres., I., p. 512. J. Carroll to C. Carroll, Sr. : Carroll, Journal, p. 109. Winsor, Narr. and Crit. Hist., VI. , p. 166. Chase and Carroll to Cong. May 17, 1776 : 4 Force, VI., 587. Spy's report: Cau. Arch., Q, 12, p. 22. Franklin's retnm trip : Sparks MSS., No. 60, p. 88. S. ^Jt^ X^ .^ z^jj^'.a,!.,^.^ ::?^ Garnier to Vergennes, June 11, 1776: Stevens Facsim., No. 873. Indian Embarrassments 359 ages desired. Schuyler described himself as ' daily tor mented by parties of Indians from aU quarters ' in search of goods, and it was very easy to suspect, as he did, that some of the neighborly Tories, realizing the embarrass ment of the patriots, egged on the wilHng savages to FROM FADEN'S AMERICAN ATLAS, 1777 demand what could not be supplied. The natural result came in high prices ; and of that, as well as an actual scarcity, very loud complaints rolled in from the forest. Schuyler did what he could ; Congress promised to exert ' strenuous endeavors ' ; but the problem remained un solved ; and Colonel John Butler of Niagara— acting as the Indian Superintendent in the absence of Guy Johnson— found it easy enough, when the Iroquois chiefs gathered at the grand council-house of Onon- 360 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony daga, the first of April, to have a demand publicly voiced for obtaining supplies by the way of Quebec once more.' Nor was Butler's the only British hand masked with Indian bronze. Colonel Caldwell of the Sth Regiment, planted at Detroit, worked upon the wUd tribes of that still savage region ; the post at Michilimackinack aided him ; and a rotten old fort — recently strengthened — overlooking the rich meadows at the mouth of the Oswegatchie, ' marked another ganglion in the cord of British influence.' The American leaders were not so short-sighted that posts like these could escape their notice. In 1775, Com missioners of Congress had visited Fort Pitt in order to secure the neutrality of the savages in that quarter, and they heartily endorsed a scheme of their secretary, Arthur St. Clair, to surprise Detroit. Four or five hundred young men enlisted for the expedition ; but, after many weeks of delay, the Congress disapproved of it on the ground that Amold would capture Quebec and make the trouble unnecessary, but really, as St. Clair believed, because enough gunpowder could not be spared. A littie later came other hints. ' The Forts of Niagara and De troit, are an object which I make no doubt the Hon''^^ Congress have in View,' wrote Amold to Philadelphia soon after the ball was taken firom his leg ; and Schuyler longed to cut the British nerve at Niagara, provided the Indians thereabouts would give their consent. But the ' § Sch. to Wash., Feb. 14, 1776: 4 Force, IV., 1146. Id. to Hancock, Feb. 10, 1776 : ib., 990. Dean, Joumal; 4 Force, V., uoo. R. Butler to Wilson, Apr. 8, 1776: ib., 815. Joum. Cong., Nov. 23, 1775. Sch. to Hancock, Jan. 31, 1776: 4 Force, IV., 898. 8 Now Ogdensburg, N. Y. ' § Caldwell : Pr&:is of Oper. Twiss, Report on Osweg., Aug. 8, 1778 : Can. Arch., B, 154, p. 29. Narrative: 4 Force, II. , 1594. Carleton to Dartmouth, June 7, 1775: Pub. Rec. Off., Colon. Corres., Quebec, 11, p. 283. Unfavorable Signs 361 Congress had enough on its hands already, and the British agents were permitted to keep at work.'" Cutting deeper than a mere temporary question of sup pUes, they now warned the Indians over and over against the ' insincerity ' of the Colonials. No doubt they pointed often at the continual encroachments of the white waves ; and certainly they prophesied that, if successful against the King, the practiced arms of a greedy people would soon be turned against their too confiding neighbors. It was an old song, this, a favorite air of Colonel Johnson's, and rather hackneyed ; but some one, reported Kirkland, ' had lately trumped it up so high, that it sounded very briskly in a savage ear. ' Unluckily, too, an island in the Ohio River a little below Fort Pitt was surveyed about this time by a party of whites in violation of the Fort Stanwix treaty, and that fact gave a strong color to the prediction. While the Oneidas remained firm for neutral ity, the ' face of things' toward the setting sun began to change, as Kirkland saw ; British presents, reaching the north and east by way of the Mississippi, stimulated the hostile sentiment ; the Mohawks went and came inces santly between Johnson Hall and Niagara ; the tribes nearer Detroit declared they were ready to move ; James Dean, journeying to attend the council at Onondaga, learned that a plot had been laid to kill him there ; and Colonel Butler, announcing a grand meeting of the In dians to be held at Niagara the first of May, summoned McKee to attend it in language that suggested something important : ' It is Colonel Caldwell's orders, and mine.' " Schuyler, though well aware that many of the Indians '" § St. Clair, Narrative, pp. 232, 233. Amold to Cong., Jan. 12, 1776: Sparks MSS., No. 52, IL, p. 34. Sch. to Hancock, Feb. 15, 1776 : 4 Force, IV., 1156. 1 1 § Dean, Journal: 4 Force, V., uoo. Id. to Sch., Mar. 10, 1776 : ib., 768. Kirkland to Sch., Mar. 12, 1776: ib,, 772. R. Butler to Wilson, Apr. 8, 1776: ib., 815. Presents: Extract in Tryon's of^Apr. 28, 1776 (Pub. Rec. Off., Am. and W. L, Vol. 186, p. 646). Tryon to Dartmouth, Feb. 8, 1776: Pub. Rec. Off., Am. and W. I., Vol. 186, p. 305. J. Butler to McKee, Feb. 29, 1776: 4 Force, V., 818. 362 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony were unfi-iendly, did not think there was reason to fear them ' in general ' ; and he believed that the fact of Howe's evacuating Boston, which he carefully published among them, would cool their spirits not a little. In Canada, however, as winter melted away, less optimism ruled. Wooster, who could banish the Canadians from his esteem by rating them only a little higher than the Indians, could excuse himself still more effectually from prizing the Indians by placing them a little lower than the Canadians. ' The Savages hereabouts are cool,' re ported Colonel Hazen from Montreal, the first of April; ' they keep aloof from us ; we are to expect little or no friendship from them, and, indeed, Uttle or no precaution has been taken for that purpose.' Au unlucky embar rassment arose' about the Caughnawagas, for thej- wished to enter the American service, but it was thought un advisable, on account ofthe expense, to accept them. On their way to Canada, the Commissioners of Congress fell in with the northern deputies returning from Onondaga, and were given a promise to surrender the war-hatchet presented to their tribes by Guy Johnson the year before ; but, on a suspicious pretext, the ceremony of handing it over was put off."" Early in March, Eorimier, who had been the most active white leader of the Indians about St. Johns during the summer of 1775, ' stole away into the upper country ' with two comrades, and about the same time warnings began to come down. Walker, who doubtless had busi ness connections above, notified two members of Congress on the seventh ofthe month that a hostile expedition might be expected firom that quarter. About the same time, Wooster had ' great reason to believe,' he said, that > 2 § Sch. to Hancock, Apr. 2, 1776 : 4 Force,V., 767. Hazen to Sch., Apr. i, 1776: ib., 751. Caughnawagas : Wash, to Sch., Jan. 27, 1776 (4 Force, IV., 872); Sch. to Wash., Feb. 14, 1776 (ib., 1146). Comrars. to Hancock, May 6, 1776:4 Force, V., 1214. The Action of Congress 363 people at Montreal were keeping up a correspondence with Oswegatchie and Niagara, and, from a ' number of cir cumstances ' discovered among the Caughnawagas, he feared that a plan had been laid to bring down the British troops, with what Canadians could be gathered near those points, a number of Indian traders and their work men, and a body of savages, for a dash against Montreal. Some said the purpose was to open a way for Guy John son to return. The Quebeckers understood that it was intended to relieve their city. At Three Rivers, wrote Captain Goforth, reports were 'various': according to some, Montreal was to be cut off, while others believed the Indians would avoid that place, hurry down to rescue their father, Carleton, and so recover their trade." Wooster despatched a polyglot Indian, contributed by President Wheelock of Dartmouth CoUege, to ' find out the truth,' but the essential point was evident enough al ready. Such widespread rumors betokened a serious at tack ; and when Eorimier, coming down within some thirty miles of Montreal, about the middle of April, with a fleet of bateaux and a party of soldiers from Oswegatchie, enlisted what men he could, preached massacre to the In dians, boasted that eight hundred savages with the British garrisons above and all the French inhabitants of that region would be down in twenty days, and carried back a fleet- load of supplies, the ' great convulsions ' produced in that part of the country were a tocsin sufficiently wild." Congress, however, was not idle. Besides again prom ising the Indians, early in April, to obtain goods for them 13 § Hazen to Antill, Mar. lo, 1776: Can. Arch., B, 27, p. 387. Walker to S. Adams, May 30, 1776: S. Adams Papers. Wooster to Sch., Mar. 5, 1776 : 4 Force, v., 416. Kirkland to Sch., Mar. 12, 1776: ib., 772. Ainslie, Journal, Mar. 13. Goforth (evidently some time before Apr. i) : 4 Force, V., 871. (See Badeaux in Verreau, Invasion, p. 193.) n §Woosterto Sch., Mar. 5, 1776: 4 Force, V., 416. Wheelock to Wooster, Feb. 6, 1776: Wheelock Papers. Hazen to Antill, Apr. 20, 1776: Can. Arch., B, 27, p. 398. Spy: Can. Arch., Q, 12, p. 22. 364 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony and appropriating ten thousand dollars, a month later, for presents and the expenses of treaty-making, it settled in their favor the question of reopening the Indian traffic in Canada. That was a very grave and very difficult prob lem. In February, a committee of Montreal merchants went all the way to Philadelphia with a petition for the restoration of their trade, while Walker and Price at tended Congress to show what risks it involved. Walker THE LACHINE RAPIDS believed that such a measure would supply the hostile posts above with ' Men, provisions & Goods for presents to the Savages ' ; and vSchuyler, probably enlightened by Walker and Price on their way south, pointed out the weakness of the petitioners ' case as well as the danger of obliging them.'° But Congress doubtless thought it no more than honor- 1 5 § Joum. Cong., Mar. 20 ; Apr. 6 ; May 6, 1776. Wooster to Cong., Feb. II, 1776: 4 Force, IV., looi. Walkerto S. Adaras, May 30, 1776: S. Adams Papers. Sch. to Hancock, Feb. 20, 1776: 4 Force, IV., 1214. The Cedars 365 able to "keep its promises to the Indians in the only fashion that could be discovered ; and the Commissioners, im mediately on arriving in Canada, offered passports to all traders who would ' enter into certain engagements to do nothing in the upper country prejudicial to the Continen tal interests.' A busy squadron of flat-boats, thirty or forty feet long and pointed at both ends, were soon jostling and scraping at Eachine. Bales and boxes tumbled into them fast. A towing line was coiled in each of the bows. As quickly as possible, the loose, flapping sail was un furled. The oars dipped ; a long pole wriggled in the place of a rudder; and the traders were off, — some of them, like Bindon, friendly to the Americans, but others distinctly not. Had Congress and the Commissioners acted wiselj'^ in granting this favor ? A whale has been supposed to content himself — temporarily, at least — with a tub: was it a whale that had floundered up the Missis sippi and round into Eake Ontario, or had a shark stolen in there to roil its blue waters ? '" About thirty miles above Montreal, the St. Eawrence makes a sharp twist both horizontal and vertical. The consequences are a bend as tense as a yew long-bow and rapids that sweep round it, through rocks and verdure-clad islets, with the rushing whirr ofa cloth-yard shaft ; while the highlands come down close just there, and even dip their feet in the clear, rushing current. This place is the Cedars ; and Colonel Hazen, temporarily in command at Montreal, besides trying to establish a line of friendly Indians against the danger from above, directed that stal wart scytheman and bold fighter, Timothy Bedel, to oc cupy this point, entrench, and be ready to defend the pass. Shortly after, Arnold arrived from Quebec and confirmed " § Commrs. to Hancock, May i, 1776: 4 Force, V., 1166. Spy: Can. Arch., *Q. 12, p. 22. Bouchette, Descr. Topog., p. 138. Bindon, Memorial : Cont. Cong. Papers, No. 41, IL, p. 134. 366 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony the order. Bedel himself, however, did not move that way for some time ; but Major Butterfield, with something like half a regiment and two pieces of cannon, reached the spot about the twenty-sixth of April, and proceeded to build a stockade and a breastwork at the water's edge, placing his artillery so as to command both river and shore. The one gateway from the upper country seemed now quite solidly barred." Bedel took the small-pox not later than April the twenty- second, and, as he knew the precise day, he apparently took it by inoculation, — contrary to orders. It was the sixth of May when he arrived at the Cedars, and, as he CTLJ^JU^^-i entered the stockade, his brow hung dark with clouds. He had set out for Canada supposing that Quebec had fallen, but found that Montgomery, who got on well with him and everybody else, had met that fate instead-i and that Amold now ruled at Montreal. To command an al most independent post ofthe highest importance was what every brave and enterprising officer coveted, and the re sources given Bedel, considering what the Americans pos sessed in Canada, seemed fairly ample ; yet he appeared to feel that Arnold had shovra a hostile spirit in ordering him to the Cedars. Beckoning Frj'e Bayley to the breast work, he demanded: ' How do you Hke it ? ' 1 ^ § Inoculation was the introduction of unmodified small-pox virus. Lovell, Gazet., p. 279. Hazen to Antill, Apr. 20, 1776: Can. Arch., B, 27, p. 398. Arnold to Sch., Apr. 20, 1776: 4 Force, V., 1098. Id. to Wash., May 8, 1776: 4 Force, VL, 389. Verreau (Sanguinet), Invasion, p. 106. Bayley, Narrative, Aldrich: N. H. Hist. Soc. Proc, IIL, p. 208. Remark XC. A British Raid 367 ' I 'm no judge,' replied Bayley, ' but it seems to me very nice and strong. ' ' It is,' assetited the Colonel, 'but too large.' In his judgment, the men there were not more than a quarter enough, and no reinforcements could be expected. ' I 'm unfortunate,' he added, gloomily ; ' I know not what my fate is to be.' Very different every way seemed this man from the ra diant and self-sacrificing Bedel who had written to the New Hampshire Committee of Safety a few months before : ' I have done all in my power for the good of the cause, and have brought cannon down the river, by the Fort of St. John's, and sent them to Chambly, and taken that post without the loss of a man ' ; and also, in a postscript : ' This moment I have got possession of St. John's .... and to-morrow shall march for Montreal,' — exploits that somehow got entangled with the names of Brown, Eiving- ston, Dugan, and Montgomery. But it was a fact that, when he reached the Cedars, he had begun to suffer from the small-pox, and the next day he could not keep an appointment with Bayley." Nine days later, early in the morning, he stepped from a boat at the landing-place, Montreal, walked up to head quarters, and announced that some Indians and British troops from the upper countr}'^ had come down to attack the Cedars. It was true. May twelfth. Captain Forster, un der orders from Colonel Caldwell to deliver Montreal, had set out from Oswegatchie with thirty or forty regulars, a few British volunteers, some Canadians, and about a hundred and sixty Indians. Two days later, he arrived at St. Regis and called a council. The chiefs decHned to stir, but gave the young men permission to go, if they would ; and forty or fifty of these joined the expedition.. ' § Bayley, Narrative. Bedel, Oct. 27, 1775: 4 Force, III., 1207. .^!^fc./'-»0^^«s.«s<«: .^e,c»t. . ^ y ^ ^ /£^.£^ AN EXTRACT FROM FRYE BAYLEY'S NARRATIVE jfjg FROM A MEMORANDUM BY SAMUEL ADAMS, AUGUST 1, 1776 The Means of Defense 369 On the sixteenth he advanced again. A report of Bedel's fortifications and strength discouraged the Indians greatlj^, but news of the American retreat from Quebec arrived in the nick of time. The night of the seventeenth found the party camping at Devil's Point, about seven miles above the Cedars ; and the next morning, while the canoes and boats dropped stealthil}^ down in the shadows of the forested shore, a large band ofthe redskins, gotten up like so many individual nightmares, moved on by land, and crept, crawled, glided, slid and wriggled through the dense woods, in every horrid style of imp and ser pent locomotion, into the neighborhood of the fort.'" The soil at the Cedars was peculiarly rich, and the shel tered situation especially favorable for agriculture. Before ' 1 9 The chief British authority for Forster's expedition is a detailed narra tive signed by Andrew Parke, Captain in the. 8th regiment of Foot, J. Maurer, of the L. R- Yorkers, and Hugh Mackay, A. D. V., and also endorsed by Forster himself, entitled ' The Authentic Narrative of Facts relating to the Exchange of Prisoners taken at the Cedars.' (The author has not found a copyof this in Araerica.) This was avowedly prepared as a defence against the American charges, but, in addition to the presumption in favor of four officers, bears nuraerous marks of care and good faith. A French version has been published by Marcel Ethier. Other British sources: Forster to Butterfield, May 19, 1776 (Lib. Cong., U. S. Revol., 1., p. 1320); Carleton to Germain, May 25, 1776 (4 Force, VL, 575) ; Id. to Id., June 2, 1776 (Can. Arch., Q, 12, p. 57) ; Maclean to , May 25, 1776 (ib. , p. 69) • Cramahe to Germain, May 25, 1776 (ib., p. 50); Pr&is of Oper.; Cannon, 8th Foot, p. 67 ; Verreau, Invasion (San guinet), p. 131 ; (Berthelot), p. 23C. Anierican sources (the writers and dates ofietters — 1776 if not dated — indicate in a way to what part ofthe operations they chiefly relate): Commrs. to Sch., May 16 (4 Force, VL, 578); Id. to Han cock, May 17 (ib., 587) ; Id. to Id., May 27 (ib., 589); Id. to Thomas, May 26 (Sparks, Corres., I., p. 518); Sullivan to Sch., May 27 (4 Force, VI., 609); Sherbume to Paterson, May 18 (Coll. of F. A. Arnold); Id. to , June iS (4 Force, VI., .^98); Petition (N. H. State Papers, XIV., p. 476); Chase to Sch., May 31 (Sparks MSS., No. 60, p. 90); Amold to Commrs., May 25 (ib.. No. 52, IL, p. 41); Id. to Id. (with Cartel), May 27 (ib., p. 42); Id. to Id., June 2 (5 Force, I., 165); Id. to , May 28 (Conn. Gazette, June 21, 1776); Letter, May 17 (4 Force, VI. , 493); Letter (Sherburne's expedition), undated (ib., 59S, note); Walkerto S. Adams, May 30 (S. Adams Papers); Affidavits of Butterfield, Estabrook, and Wilkins (s Force, I., 165, 166); Hazen, Statement (Lib. Cong., U. S. Revol., IV., Sept. 3, 1778); Bayley, Narrative; Journals of Vose, Shallus, Wells, Senter, Porterfield (va. Mag., 1901, p. 146); Account (4 Force, VI. , 599, note) ; Bliss to Emerson, Aug. 14 (Cont. Cong. Papers, Letters, B, 78, II. , p. 79) ; E. to J. Sullivan, Aug. 14 (Can. Arch., B, 181, p. 32); E. Sullivan, Petition (Cont. Cong. Papers, No. 42, VIL, p. 51); Wilkinson, Memoirs, I., p. 41 (W.'s letter of May 24 is also in 4 Force, VI. , 566) ; Journ. Cong., June 15, 20, 24 ; July 10, 23 ; S. Adams, Mem., Aug., I, 1776 (S. Adams Papers): Trumbull to Williams, July 26, 1776 (Hinman, Conn., p. 560). The newspapers contained accounts, but these add very little except errors. The cartel may be found also in 4 Force, VI., 597 ; Can. Arch., Q, 12, p. 59; Carleton Papers, I., p. 30. Some points of 'local color' from Bouchette, Descr. Topog. See also Dawson. Canad. Monthly, V., p, 305, who prints two letters. vol.. II.— 24. 370 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony May-day, the spring wheat had stood three inches high. The finest horses in Canada were raised there. Cows must have been kept, and stocks of grain must have been on hand. Butterfield, left in charge by Bedel, had the small-pox, to say the least of it ; but he was well enough to do business, and, with his three days' notice of the com ing attack, might probably have filled the stockade to the eyes with provisions. Only a feeble effort, if any at aU, was made ; and yet, on May eighteenth, when the attack began, there were supplies enough — counting five or six horses — to last the garrison at a pinch for, say, a week."" As for ammunition, while this, like every other post, lacked a full store, the bullets in the soldiers' pouches, if only one in twelve or fifteen should bite, could put every man of Forster's out of action ; one of the can non could fire thirty rounds, and the other, if it would accept a pound of musket-balls as a charge of grape, twenty ; and there was powder enough besides, were every shot in vain, to blow the breastwork and the enemy with it into a cloud of dust. Forster, on the other side, had now rolled up his force of Indians to three or four hundred and his Canadians to at least one hundred ; but he had no cannon, and — as any one could have predicted and the sequel showed — a stout resistance would soon have discouraged and scattered his motley force. It was a splendid opportunity to prove American valor, send these painted imps yelping home up the pass, and per haps turn the tide of fortune below. Forster began by summoning the fort, intimating that in case of a refusal to surrender, the savages would allow no quarter ; and Butterfield consented to give up the posi tion, if he might retire with his men and their arms. These terms were not accepted, however, and the guns 2° REMARK XCI. Relief Advances 371 opened. After a time. Captain Wilkins got permission to go out and drive the enemy from a barn that stood too near. On calling for volunteers, nearly all the men stepped forward ; and, sallying sharply, they taught the Canadians and Indians a lesson. But Butterfield, when he realized that scarcely a guard for his own valuable per son had been left in the works, ordered the troops in, and back Wilkins had to come, literally weeping with disgust and wrath. Sunday morning, the nineteenth, found a breastwork or intrenchment raised against the fort not very far away, and the grand onslaught seemed likely to come that night. Forster, however, had already been shown a tipof the white feather, and preferred to summon the Americans again. ' By entreaty, ' he informed Butterfield, he had 'overcome the resolution formed by the savages, of allow ing no quarter ' ; and, in order ' to take the advantage of their present favourable turn,' he proposed that the gar rison should ' surrender at discretion in half an hour ' In this way, and in this way only, they could save their ' lives and the cloathes ' they had on. Such a proposi tion was an insult ; but, in spite of the entreaties and in dignation of his men, Butterfield agreed to it. Nearly four hundred plucky fellows — hardly scratcned as yet, if scratched at all — were thrown neck and crop to the savages merely to save their commander's skin firom the risk of a needed ventilation. It was a clear case of poltroonery, tempered only by the small-pox. On hearing that a hostile party threatened the Cedars, Colonel Paterson, then at Montreal, detached a hundred and forty men of his regiment with orders to carry up supplies for the garrison as well as to reinforce it, and Major Sherburne — -'a. bold stout courageous-looking man ' — took command of them. Bedel accompanied the party ; but at I^achine his illness, which had obligingly 372 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony permitted him to leave the fort, declined positively to al low his return, and the relief-party moved on without him." Pursuing the main road to upper Canada, they came to St. Anne, on the edge of Montreal Island. A delay occurred there about boats, and they could not pro ceed to the mainland on the seventeenth ; but, early the next morning, the provisions and a guard crossed, with orders to obtain carts and hurry the supplies forward. RUINS OF THE FORT AT ' ^apt BUss wcut upon that ST- ANNE Business but before he had got 2 Miles from the Landing Place, he was met by a Scouting Party of Savages and made prisoner,' reported Sherburne. Consequently no carts appeared ; but in their stead came swarms of Canadians ' with The most horrid Accts. Imaginable of their being Vast numbers of Indians in and about The Woods,' and with news of an attack upon the fort, ' Confirmed ... by the Repeated Discharge of Cannon.' Sherbume, after remaining in a posture of defence at the landing all day, received a note from Bliss containing messages from the priest who acted as his jailer, and I^orimier, who served as head terrorizer. The upshot of it all was that four or five hundred Canadians and Indians were near at hand, and, unless the relief-party would surrender, it could expect no quarter. Bliss vouched for nothing of this himself; but the Major, thinking it ' most proper to Retreat as Soon as possible, . . . Imme diately Ordered as many men into the Boats as Could pos sibly Stow [themselves] in them which was not more than One half ' of the detachment, but among whom he thought- 21 Remark XCII. Sherburne's Defeat 373 fully included himself Happily, however, as no enemies or very few were near, the rest also were eventually ferried ¦ over." Sherburne expected an immediate attack and sent back to Montreal for aid, but the enemy failed to appear ; and the next morning things wore another face. Daylight itself was cheering. The woods, gently swaying in the wind, suggested only peace. Very possibly he weighed the note from Bliss more carefully now. The cannon tire had ceased. Perhaps the story came to his ear which Walker heard ¦; that Forster's party had been routed. At all events he tried to embark ; but a ' very violent ' wind prevented him from doing more that day than rescue his imprisoned captain. Bliss very likely scoffed at the fear ful tales of Canadians and Indians ; and finally, on the twentieth, Sherburne crossed, set out for the Cedars, and went bravely on about half the distance, as he thought. Forster, on hearing the evening before that a reinforce ment was coming, hardly knew what to do, for so many stout prisoners required a large guard ; but he ordered lyorimier to look after it with a party of Indians, aided by some Canadians. Accordingly, some eighty of the red skins and eighteen of their allies, posting themselves at a good place in the woods, opened fire on Sherburne about noon, with yells enough, undoubtedly, to people the whole forest with devils. Sherburne — even after they sallied into the open — saw five hundred of them besides ' a large party ' more. According to his feelings, the skirmish be came a gory affair, and lasted an hour and forty minutes ; though by the testimony of three British ofiicers his sur render was ' so sudden ' that another party of Canadians, despatched on the same business, could not get up in time, and only five or six of the Americans were killed. ^ The quotations are from Sherburne's report to Paterson (Note 19). ARK XCITT Remark XCIII 374 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony About forty of the relief expedition had been left on the way from Montreal for one reason or another ; but almost a hundred men laid down their arms unconditionally, and, like so many eels from a mud-hole, had the clothes ripped from their backs by the grinning and prancing savages. St. Anne boasted a fort. It was a small affair, built only for defense against Indian muskets ; but Bedel's ar tillery could not be brought down from the Cedars in a moment, and, though garrisoned by ouly twenty-five men with no more than ten rounds of ammunition, the post had strength enough to halt the enemy for a time by put ting on a bold front. Captain Young, however, the com mander there, was a man who ' fought great battles at a distance,' according to Frye Bayley's description. Be sides, he possessed altogether too much generosity to out shine his superiors, and, on a report that some Indians had landed near, he took himself out of their way with out even delaying to carry off the provisions and stores. The road to Montreal was now clear ; and Forster — send ing the American ofiicers to prison, with two priests for turnkeys, at the Indian village of Conosadaga, which had taken his side, and consigning the privates to the charge of some Canadians — pushed on for his goal. Re inforcements from the neighborhood came in, though not nearly what he expected ; and, after posting the necessary guards, he still had some five hundred men. Montreal was listening eagerly for his drums. Hazen a month before had declared, ' There is nothing but plot ting & preparations making against us throughout the whole District.' When it was proposed to abandon the town after the news of the flight from Quebec arrived, Arnold feared that the people would attack his departing troops. On all sides the Tories, whom Ripley had found ' very plenty ' in March but mostly living ' like Wood- 375 POSTSCRIPT OF ARNOLD'S LETTER TO CLINTON, MAY 12, 1776 370 Our Struggle forthe Fourteenth Colony chucks underground ,' were now showing noses and even teeth. The Commissioners, getting ' daily intimations of plots hatching and insurrections intended , ' had aban doned perforce the r&le of dispensing pure libertj', filled the jails with malcontents, and sent others into the exile they had lately protested against ; but these measures did not reach the seat of the trouble. Night after night, as a sequel to Butterfield's collapse, a rising was talked of and expected ; and lyieutenant- Colonel Vose would go round the barracks, waken the men coming down with small pox, and make them dress themselves and load their guns. ' If they do take us it shall not be for nothing , ' he quietly said ; but he could promise nothing more." At length, however, though none too soon, Forster met something hard. Arnold, hurrying up fi-om Sorel, threw himself with a hundred men across the road at Lachine, and began to dig intrenchments like mad round a heavy stone barn or storehouse that he found there, — built per haps by the famous La Salle, to whom the seigneury had belonged." Some other troops — partly of Greaton's regi ment — marched up, and Arnold at once began studying how to reach the enemy. But it soon looked as if there would be no difiSculty about that. Friday evening. May the twenty-fourth, British drums could be heard in his lines. Forster's exultant horde was only a league dis tant. An American soldier was shot in the thigh within half a mile of the camp, and another man was taken pris oner. ' We shall be attacked within six hours,' wrote James Wilkinson at midnight in a gloomy valedictory to General Greene ; ' The morning dawns — that morning big with the fate of a few, a handful of brave fellows.' 23 § Hazen to Antill, Apr. 20, 1776: Can. Arch., B, 27, p. 398. Amold to Clinton, May 12, 1776 : Emmet Coll. Ripley to J. Wheelock, Mar. 7, 1776: Wheelock Papers. Commrs. to Hancock, May 8, 1776 : 4 Force, v., 1237. Walker to S. Adams, May 30, 1776: S. Adams Papers. Vose, Joumal, May 25, 28. 2 1 Parkman, Old Rggirae, p. 240. Arnold Pursues the Enemy 377 But Forster's allies in Montreal had notified him of Ar nold's operations and the gathering of reinforcements. Indeed, they drew so effectually on rumor or fancy that he supposed there were fifteen hundred men and eight cannon in the camp at Lachine that evening, and be lieved that a thousand more troops would arrive the next day. During the night, therefore, he beat a very quick retreat, and soon brought up at the Cedars with only eighty out of some six hundred standing by him, ' caused by most of the Canadians having returned home through fear, and the fickle disposition of the savages, who wandered as their fancy led them , ' and, seeing no further hopes of plunder, preferred to make off with their booty." Nearly two hundred came back, when the truth about Arnold's force became known ; but evidently Montreal could not be taken. Retreat was in order, and what to do with almost five hundred prisoners became a serious problem. No doubt the Indian rule in similar cases was to kill them, but Forster knew that such a deed would be an eternal shame to his uniform and his flag. He could re peat once more, however, the ruse of threatening massacre; and, under that stimulus, the captives eagerly agreed to his proposition for an exchange of prisoners, offered, he said, merely 'at the dictates of humanity,' after 'the maturest deliberation on the customs and manners of the savages in war ... so opposite and contrary to the humane disposition of the British government.' The terms were in general fair enough ; but the second article forbade the Americans ever to bear arms against the Brit ish govemment again, while the men exchanged for them would be free to re-enter their companies the next day. By this time Arnold, reinforced with Colonel De Haas's 2 5 Authentic Narrative (Note 19). 378 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony First Pennsylvanians, hardy fellows in business-like brown and buff," and with about four hundred more fi-om Sorel, had begun the pursuit, first sending a number of Caughna wagas to the hostile savages with a demand for their prisoners. ' If any are murdered,' added the General, ' I will sacrifice every Indian that falls into my hands, & I will follow you to your Towns, & destroy them by Fire and Sword.' The force now at his back made the threat look substantial ; but, on arriving at St. Anne late in the afternoon, instead of surrendered comrades, he received this reply : That all the captives had been col lected together, and, should he offer to attack, every one of them would be sacrificed and no quarter given to any American made prisoner in the future. In fact, boats could be seen carrying the last of the unfortunates from an island to the British post. Amold was furious,' torn by the confiicting passions of revenge & humanity ' ; • but he could not endure to see the painted miscreants escape un harmed, and, sending express after express to hurry onhis bateaux, he embarked as soon as they arrived, rescued five naked and half- starved wretches left on the island, and pushed for Quinze Chiens, four miles distant on the opposite shore, where Forster had now pitched his camp. The day was just ending as he approached the British post. The dark waters of the Ottawa River, smooth as glass, wore the rich blue ofthe sky, melting, toward the west, into the gorgeous tints of sunset. Little by little, as the boats advanced, shadows fell across the mirror. The steeple of Quinze Chiens marked it with a slender, ta pering line of black, and the fine elms and ashes along the flat shore threw masses of shade upon its gold and crimson. Under the trees, the whitewashed cottages ofthe peasants. 2<> Hist. Mag., Dec, i860, p. 353. A Harrowing Dilemma 379 touched corner-wise by the slowly fading light, added a glow of homely cheer to the tranquil view. The scene in vited to repose ; but, near the shore and well entrenched, waited Forster's redcoats with what aUies he could retain; and presently two flashes and two puffs of smoke an nounced the cannon-balls that flew, an instant later, past the American flotilla. The Indians broke loose, yelled and fired, and the few regulars stood fast. Arnold had fifteen bateaux, loaded to the gunwale, and three birch canoes, — men enough to do the business ; but, in the face of a resolute foe with two pieces, he could not get ashore. In vain he darted about, pad dled by four Indians : he could see no chance what ever to land. The men at the oars were finally ordered to stop rowing ; the boats drifted out of range uninjured ; and, as it was now too dark to attempt anything on strange ground, the baffled expedition returned to St. Anne. What should be done ? A council of war was soon dis cussing that question. Amold proposed to go up the St. Lawrence, dash for the rear ofthe enemy, and cut him off ; but Hazen maintained that the Indians could not be taken by surprise, and held that an attack would mean the butchery of their captives. As the opinion of an old ranger, this view had great weight in the meeting, and De AT LACHINE 380 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony Haas backed it up. Amold and Hazen grew heated ; sharp words passed ; but in the end it was decided — by Amold, at least — to fight early in the moming." Soon after midnight, however. Lieutenant Parke of Forster's company arrived under a fiag, and brought news of the cartel alread}^ signed by the prisoners. This put a new look on afifairs. Obviously, an agree ment made under such pressure could not bind the Ameri can leader, but it was both an appeal and a way of escape. It cried. Save us ! and then added. We have found the means. To refuse ; to condemn five hundred comrades to be shot, stabbed, hacked, and scalped in cold blood by shrieking demons was impossible. Yet Amold could bluster and threaten, when there was an end to gain, as well as any man alive. ' I will have nothing to do with it, ' he exclaimed on reading the second article ; ' go back and acquaint Captain Forster that I will enter into articles for the exchange of prisoners on equal terms. If he refuses that, I am deter mined to attack him immediately ; and, if our prisoners are murdered, I will sacrifice every soul that falls into our hands.' The smallness of the British force gave Forster a better reason than Amold imagined for not refusing. After some negotiations a truce for the delivery of the prisoners was agreed upon ; they were landed on the south shore of the St. Lawrence ; and Forster, slipping away before the truce expired, vanished into the forest while the Americans were preparing to strike. In the direct object of his mission he had failed ; but it had been demonstrated to the satisfac tion of many in Canada that the British lion, opening his mouth even a very little, could eat up five hundred Ameri can soldiers and retire unsinged." " Remark XCIV. 2 ' Remark XCV. 3Si ^ ^^.y.,.^ ^^C^ ^^_ C^^^^ .^^^^^ ^2i-^ § Thomas to Commrs., May 20, 1776: 4 Force, VI., 592. Id. to Hancock, May 27, 1776; ib. 589. Thompson to Commrs., May 25, 1776: ib., 593. Coramrs. to Thomas, May 26, 1776: Sparks, Corres., I., p. 518. Walker to S. Adams, May 30, 1776: S. Adams Papers. ^•§ Comrars. to Hancock, May 27, 1776: 4 Force, VI., 589. Arnold to Chase, May 15, 1776: ib., 580. Robbins, Journal, May 18. Stringer to Wash., May 10, 1776 : 4 Force, VI., 417. Thompson to Commrs., May 25, 1776: ib., 593. Chase to Sch., May 28, 31, 1776: Sch. Papers. 384 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony reduced to the dreadful alternative of starving or of plun- I dering the inhabitants ' ; and pillage would at last drive the people to rise and cut their throats. To massacre it Tvould soon come, then, were nothing done. A famishing man is a wolf; and a wolf — especially one with teeth of steel — will bite before he will starve. By this hard road the Delegates now found themselves goaded on to the final act of arbitrary power, and recommended — that is to say, ordered — the seizure, in exchange for promises to pay, of the goods and supplies absolutely required for the im mediate wants of the men.^° This ensured existence for a while, but nothing more. "You will be pleased to figure to yourselves,' Thomas had written, ' a retreating Army, disheartened by unavoid able misfortunes, destitute of almost every necessary to render their lives comfortable or even tolerable, sick, and (as they think) wholly neglected, and [with] no probable prospect of a speedy relief ; and upon this army had now fallen the shock of the whole Cedars disaster. Josiah Bartlett simply could not believe the report of that shameful affair ; and, if it seemed at Philadelphia too dreadful to be true, what colors did it wear at Sorel ? ' We must expect to meet some hard rubs,' philosophized William Whipple ; but philosophy was easier at his dis tance. Heart-breaking, faith-crushing examples of pol troonery had been given ; and the truce, curiously misunderstood, was taken to mean something very much like throwing up the sponge. Certain of the ofBcers, breaking down under the strain, began to look out for themselves alone, quarrelled selfishly, and set the men a pattern of neglected duty that some of them scandalously improved upon. Unpaid, unfed, unclothed, undisciplined, 3 2 § Commrs. to Thomas, May 26, 1776: Sparks, Corres., I., 518. Id. to Han cock, May 27, 1776: 4 Force, VI., 589. Id. to Wooster, May 25, 1776: Am. Antiq. Soc. Spy: Can. Arch., Q, 12, p. 22. Letter, May 17, 1776: 4 Force, VI., 493- Remark XCVI. » . r , 1 1, 11 1 vl^.l^^'i^ J1^ s VOL. ir._25. 386 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony the discharged soldiers felt entitled in too many cases to whatever they could lay hands on, and robbed both the govemment and their comrades without compunction.''^ Early in April, Hazen had described the people as con vinced that a heavy British force would soon arrive, and as anxious to secure the favor of those who were to be their masters. Now, the Canadians below Descham bault were reported as actually taking up arms against the Americans ; and most of those in the vicinity, even though many still professed a vague and barren good-will, could be reckoned upon to do the same whenever the British flag should approach. Nobody could tell which of them was already planning to earn a pardon by some striking betrayal. ' Here we are in a great country, ' said Chaplain Robbins, ' and know not who are friends and who are enemies.' Briand, encouraged by the American disaster at Quebec, was now preaching ' rage and fury ' against this ' handful of unwarUke fellows, ignorant of the military art.' Even the Caughnawaga Indians threatened to go over. In spite of every prohibition, soldiers insisted so constantly upon inoculating them selves, that finally it was decided to authorize the process ; and the troops, three-fourths of whom had never had the small-pox at home, plunged by wholesale into the business of going through that horrible disease. It was doubted at headquarters whether the men could even be held in company. ' \^^ant of discipline and everything else necessary to constitute an army or to keep troops together,' was President Hancock's epitome ofthe Com missioners' reports. Yet he did not know the worst. " § Thomas to Coramrs., May 20, 1776: 4 Force. VI., 592. Bartlett to Fol- sora, June 6, 1776: Emmet Coll. Whipple to Langdon, Tune 2, 1776 ; 4 Force, VI., 1024. Thompson to Wash. June 2, 1776 : ib., 684. Id. to Commrs., May 25, 1776 : ib., 593. McCarthy to Sch., May 23, 1776: Sch. Papers. Commrs. to Thomas, May 26, 1776: Sparks, Corres.. I., p. 518. Bartlett to Langdon, June 17. 1776: Sparks MSS., No. 52, II., p. 139. Robbins, Joumal. Desperate Situation of the Americans 387 ' We canuot find words strong enough to describe our miserable situation,' wrote Chase and Carroll." In the midst of it all, Thomas fell sick of the pestilence, and Wooster drifted once more into the first place. That roused the Commissioners. At last they could see a plain, unmistakable duty, and they did it. ' General Wooster is, in our opinion,' they notified Congress, 'unfit, totally unfit, to command your Army and conduct the war. . . . His stay in this Colony is unnecessary and even prejudicial to our affairs ; we would therefore humbly advise his recall.' In a little while, Thomas was desperately sick, and the malady, striking at his eyes, put them out. ' Our affairs here grow every hour more gloomy,' said Chase, and both he and his colleague felt utterly helpless. At noon, the last day of May, they turned their faces homeward ; and, on the second of June, with a month of agony frozen in his heart. General Thomas lay dead. Out of the meagre army, thirty-three hundred men were that day unfit for duty. The effectives at Sorel numbered exactly one-third as many, and Carleton's forces were advancing.'' ^* § Hazen to Sch., Apr. 8, 1776: Sch. Papers. Thompson to Commrs., May 25, 1776: 4 Force, VI., 593. Letter, May 17, 1776: ib.,4g3. Robbins, Joumal, May 16. Comrars. to Hancock, May 17, 1776: 4 Force, VI., 587. Sullivan to Sch., May 27, 1776: ib., 600. Tgtu et Gagnon, Mandements, II. , p. 269. T6tu, Bv6ques, II., p. 334. Inoc. : Amold to Commrs., Mav 15, 17, 1776 (4 Force, VI., 579, 592) ; Senter, Journal. (One of Brown's unfounded charges against Amold was that he ordered inoculation witliout authority.) Thoraas to Commrs., May 20, 1776: 4 Force, VI., 592. Hancock,to Wash., June 7, 1776: ib., 740. Commrs. to Hancock, May 27, 1776: ib., 589. 25 § Commrs. to Cong., May 27, 1776 : 4 Force, VI., 589. Coffin, Thomas, p. 29. Chase to Sch., May 31, 1776 : Sparks MSS., No. 60, p. 90. Senter, Journal. Morgan to S. Adams, June 25, 1776: 4 Force, VI., 1069. Remark XCVII. XXXIII THREE RIVERS ( ' / "HE same yeare, by earthquake or some other forcible ¦*¦ violence, the common-place called the Forum, clave and opened wide, welneere hi the mids, and sunke downe to an ex ceeding depth : neither could that chiticke or pit be filled up . . . before they began to enquire, according as they were admonished by the divi^ie Oracles, what it might be, wlierein the -most puissance and greatnes of the people of Rome con sisted. {For the wisards prophesied. That if they would have the state of Rome to remain sure for ever, they should dedicat and offer it, wJiatsoever it was, unto that place.) And wheil they were in doubt what tliis should be, it is re ported, that M. Curtius, a right hardie knight and ma-rtiall young gefitleman, rebuked them therefore, because they doubted whether the Romans had any earthly thing better than armour and valor? Herewith, after silence made, lie lift up his eies, and beheld tlie temples of the immortal gods, scituate neere to the Forum, and the Capitoll likewise ; and stretching forth his ha?ids, oue while toward heaven, another ivhile to the gaping chinckes and gidfe in the earth, toward the infernall spii'its beneath, hee offered and devoted himself to assured death. And mounting upon a brave courser, as richly trapped and set out as possiblie he could devise, armed as he -was at all peeces, he leapt horse aiid man and all into the hole.' ' 1 Holland's Livy (Book VII.), p. 252. 38S Fresh American Troops 389 The Canada enterprise, looked upon at first as promising an easy and almost sure success, now yawned wide and deep, and threatened to engulf the young state. Into this chasm, not one but many of America's worthiest sons — less famous but not less noble than Marcus Curtius, and de voted to a grander ideal^had thrown themselves with all his ardor, yet the abyss refused to close. Would a still greater sacrifice be enough ? No soothsayer stood near to tell, but at all events the sacrifice was now to be made. ' The Congress, being of opinion that the reduction of Quebec, and the general security of the province of Canada,' were ' objects of great concern,' did not permit itself to forget that quarter. Not only the Adamses, Han cock, Lynch, Wythe, and Livingston , but men like Thomas Jefferson, Robert Morris, and Richard Henry Lee put their shoulders to the wheel. ' We have been very much engaged for some days in attending to the affairs of Canada,' said Thomas Stone ; adding, ' I presume the Canada Department . . . will ingross our Attention for a few days [more].' Provisions, clothing, pay, trans portation, cannon, ammunition, specie, — these were a few of the matters handled with great energy if but scanty power. ' That we have been a little tardy in providing for Canada, is true — owing to innumerable difficulties. However, we have been roused at last, aud I hope have done pretty well,' was John Adams's complacent remark. ' The Congress . . . have left nothing undone,' attested Hancock." In due course of time, it was discovered how far short of their nominal value the reinforcements ordered north in January had proved to be ; and, only two days after a cheering crowd had said good-bye to General Thompson 2 § Journ. Cong., Mar. i6, 25 ; Apr. 23 ; May 18, etc. Stone to Jenifer, Apr. 24, 1776: Md. Hist. Soc, Red Book, I., No. 27. J. Adams to Gates, Apr. 27, 1776: Sparks MSS., XXII., p. 92. Hancock to Wash., Apr. 23, 1776: 4 Force, V., 1036. 390 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony at Manhattan, Congress voted to despatch six more regi ments. ' Weak indeed' the Commander-in-chief realized that such a draft would leave him, but he felt the im- portance of the northern campaign too deeply to hesi tate. It was far from easy to complete the equipment of these men. Nearly two thousand muskets were lacking at New York, ' and none to be purchased at any Rate,' as an ener getic officer discovered. In fact, a part of one regi ment, detained for that reason , never saw Canada ; but, in one way or another, arms were obtained for the rest. In all, nearly thirty-three hundred stout volunteers, be sides the officers, were present fit for duty, and the General could describe them as ' somewhat instructed in discipline. ' Three hundred thousand dollars in Continental paper, snugly packed in three strong boxes, came over from Phila delphia marked 'Schuyler.' Four thousand barrels of pork and ten thousand pairs of shoes and stockings had been ordered by Congress for the northern army; and eight hundred barrels of the meat, sixty barrels of powder, about five hundred tents, a parcel of entrenching tools, and a weighty chain to bar the St. Lawrence were in readiness.' The John Stark of Bennington led one of the regiments, the Anthony Wayne of Stony Point another; and the 3 § Thomas to Wash., Apr. 7, 1776: 4 Force, V., 813. Journ. Cong., Apr. 23. Wash, to Trumbull, Apr. 26, 1776: 4 Force, V., 1087. Wayne to Johnston, May 6, 1776: Wayne Papers. Johnston to Wayne, June 14, 1776: ib. Return (3091, besides 133 present but sick, 182 sergeants, and 90 drummers and fifers), Apr. 28: 4 Force, V., 1154. (As only three cos. of Wayne's reached Canada, the actual number going was 485 less ; see Retum, 4 Force, VI., 411.) Wash, to Sch., May 16, 1776: Writings (Ford), IV., p. 82, note. Hancock to Wash., Apr. 25, 1776 : 4 Force, V., 1067. Id. to Sch., Apr. 26, 1776: ib., 1086. Wash, to Sch., May 3, 1776: 4 Force, V., 1179. Encouraging Influences 391 John Sullivan of Princeton, Trenton, and Germantown commanded the brigade. An early arrival ofthese troops ' may be of infinite advantage to us,' urged Washington, and all felt eager to be off. ' The tide and wind are fair — and the Vessel waiting — farewel my Dear Girl — kiss my little Girl and Boy for me — tell them their daddy sent each of them two — farewel once more — God bless and protect you adieu my Dear Polly,' scribbled Wayne to his wife. On the twenty-ninth of April, the troops began to embark ; and, by the third of May, all but a few companies were afioat.* At Albany new difficulties arose. As Congress had ordered too few bateaux constructed, and forwarding Thompson' s brigade had exhausted Schuyler's transporta tion facilities, Sullivan's troops could only sit down and watch the carpenters build them boats, at the rate of six or eight a day. Dayton's regiment was needed in Tryon County to hold the Tories in check, so that the brigade lost more than one-sixth of its finest men. But all tried to make the best of the situation. Sullivan rode up and down the line of communication, and braced the workmen with Yankee snap and Irish tact. A brilliant review was held in Schuyler's meadow; and Wayne's men in their deep-blue coats faced with white, white vests, and white trousers edged with blue, Irvine's in blue turned up with red, and the other battalions in their own fresh regimentals, all equipped with martial accoutre ments and bearing themselves like soldiers, ha.d a moral effect of no slight value. The troops felt emboldened and the patriots encouraged. About two hundred and sixty Indians opened their eyes wide ; and the Tories, who had ¦•§ Wash, to Sch., May 3, 1776: 4 Force, v., 1179. Retum: ib., 1154. Wayne to his wife : Wayne Papers. (He was detained at New York a few days ; see Wayne to Wash., May 14, 1776: Lib. of Cong., Letters to Wash., IX., p. 155.) Wash, to Sch., Apr. 29, 1776: 4 Force, V., 1124. For Sullivan: Penna. Mag., II., p. 196. ^imer. Journal, p. 97. 392 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony been reporting all about that only three companies had arrived and that Schuyler kept them walking the streets to give an impression of numbers, hung their heads.' Still another influence had time to make itself felt. Speeches and pamphlets, votes and orders, bullets and bayonets were not the only forces in the great Revolu tionary contest. Ladies might not care to discuss taxation very deeply, but they had their arguments. In the midst of alarms, eyes were still gay and bright, and even the fashions continued to bloom. ' The Dress is more ridic ulous and pretty than anything I ever saw — great quan tity of different coloured feathers on the head at a time besides a thousand other things,' gushed a Philadelphia belle from New York a little later, though times had then grown worse. Silk wraps, dainty gloves, trim shoes, hair puffed in front, gathered into a chignon behind, and always newly frizzed : these were among the points a Hessian officer noted in the region of Albany ; and he added, ' They also put on some well made and stylish little sunbonnet, from beneath which their roguish eyes have a most fascinating way of meeting yours.' ° Whatever power Whig beauty possessed, it now cast its mightiest spells to aid the commander of the Northern Department. Peggy Schuyler and her sister Betsy — who was destined, alas ! to weep for an illustrious husband s § Sch. to Alb. Com., May 4, 1776: 4 Force, V., 1192. Id. to Hancock, May 3, 1776: ib., n8i. Id. to Wash., May 10, 28, 1776: 4 Fon:e, VI., 411, 608. Elmer, joumal. May 29. Sch. to Wash., May 21: 4 Force, VI., 537. Caldwell to Boudinot, June II, 1776: Emmet Coll. Sullivan to Wash., May 16, 1776 ; 4 Force, VI., ^79. Sch. to Wash., May 10, 1776: ib., 4x6. Uniforms: Lacey, Memoirs, p. 192 ; Hist. Mag., Dec, i860, p. 353. ' § Earl, Costurae, p. 31. The Troops Hasten to Canada 393 slain by Aaron Burr — got into the serious Joumal of Charles Carroll of CarroUton as a pair of ' lively, agree able, black eyed girls.' ' Accomplished fine Sweet Girls and very handsome ' , noted Wayne. How they fired Sul livan's bold, warm heart and stirred the man who talked of Molly Stark on the battlefield could be guessed. ' Had I been single — ,' sighed even the devoted Wayne, on taking leave. No doubt there were other patriot belles in the retinue of Peggy and Betsy ; and all the gallant officers of the waiting brigade had their courage replenished by these priestesses of heroism. Not one could bear to think of seeing their lovely eyes beam less warmly on his retum.' At last the brigade got under way, but a peremptory ' Halt ! ' soon froze every man where he stood. Sur rounded by an army on the brink of starvation, Chase and Carroll sent word that food was needed in Canada more than mouths ; and the reinforcements had to stop and look on, helping as they could, while provisions to keep their comrades alive passed on ahead. It was an awkward and painful check ; but, early on the twenty- fourth of May, Sullivan bade adieu to Albany. The last morning of the month found his brigade camping on the shore of Lake Champlain over eighty miles from St. Johns. ' But a fine & fair wind ' had sprung up in the night. At the roll of a drum, early in the morning, the village of canvas fell. The troops hurried into their bateaux. The tents rose again as sails. One after an other, some two hundred boats took flight ; and, with Wayne's blue and white in the van and the glint of steel everywhere, the whole making ' a most formidable and beautiful appearance — I presume, something like the Gretion Fleet going to the Seage of Troy , ' as Captain ' § Carroll, Joumal, p. 54. Wayne to Robinson, May 26, 1776: Wayne Papers. The ' Molly Stark ' story rests of course on tradition. 394 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony Lacey imagined, they swept on very briskly and reached St. Johns that evening." The next day was not a happy one for Sullivan. It rained heavily ; ' the Musketoes continually buzing ' and the ' flies & knats constantly stinging ' made it almost impossible to think ; the wind blew raw and cold. But these were not the troubles that he minded. ' The con fused state of this country is past description,' Gen eral Thompson had found on arriving two weeks before ; and now Sullivan, after listening and looking about him that long, woeful day, summed it all up in a word : ' No one thing is right.' ' But he had come to set things right, and he believed it could be done. There were now troops, provisions, am munition, muskets, and cannon. In spite of everything therewas courage, therewashope. 'I am persuaded Sullivan dies or conquers. Thompson will not be behindhim, ' James CaldweU felt; and it was a prophecy of success to inspire such a belief. 'I hope in three weeks from this time to date my next in Quebeck,' Wayne had written from New York ; ' my brave fellows are Anxious to have a share in the Glory ofits Reduction.' 'Matters will be soon set tled,' predicted Thompson in the midst of the chaos. ' I hope we shall be able to drive them faster than they drove us,' cried a soldier at Sorel when the reinforce ments approached. Arnold, though misfortune had fol lowed misfortune before his eyes for half a year, cheerily wrote Gates : ' as Miss, like most other Misses, is fickle, and often changes, I still hope for her favours again.' '" « § Chase and Carroll to Franklin, May lo, 1776: Sparks Corres., I., p. 513- Sch. to Sullivan, May 13, 1776: 4 Force, VI., ^49. Sullivan to Wash., May 14, 1776: ib., 449. Sch. to Wash., May 24, 1776: ib., 564. Lacey, Memoirs, p. 194. (A part of Wayne's regiraent had not been able to leave New York; Sull. to Hancock, June i ; Lacey Meraoirs.) ' § Lacey, Memoirs, p. 194. Scammell to Bishop, Tune 2, 1776: Hist. Mag., Sept., 1870, p. 136. Thompson to Wash., May 14, 1776: 4'Force, Vl., 448. SulUvan to Hancock, June i, 1776: ib., 679. '<> § Caldwellto Boudinot, June 11, 1776: Emmet Coll. Wayne to Johnston, Sullivan Inspires New Hope 395 The despondent Canadians along the Richelieu, deeply compromised by their friendship for the Americans, took heart afresh. ' I find the lower, and some of the higher class of French people in our favour,' reported the hopeful Sullivan at once. A militia captain waited upon hira at St. Johns and brought an offer from three parishes, as he said, to contribute six hundred men, all furnished with arms and provisions. When the troops journeyed on down the river, it almost brought the tears to their eyes to see' the banks ' lined with men, women, and children, leaping and clapping their hands for joy.' In a few days, the General re ported the habitants as ' fiocking by hundreds ' to his aid, offering wheat and flour in exchange for mere certificates, bringing their teams, when these were called for, ' with the greatest cheerfulness,' and beg ging to have their priests arrested. Dugan, driven from the service by some accusation of Hazen' s, took hold again, and brought in over two hundred armed men. ' The face of our affairs seems to be changed,' the new leader joyfully exclaimed.'' Thomas, after he fell ill, had suggested retreat. Indeed, most of the artillery and heavy stores were moved back from Sorel, and the troops began to retire. But now came an end of all that. ' Retreat before an enemy which no JOHN SULLIVAN May 6, 1776: Wayne Papers. Thompson to Wash., May 14, 1776: 4 Force, VI., 448. Letter, May 14, 1776: ib., 455. Arnold to Gates, May 31, 1776: io., 649. '• § Sullivan to Hancock, June i, 1776: 4 Force, VI.. 679. Id. to Wash., June 5, 6, 1776: ib., 921. Dugan to Sullivan, June 5, 1776: ib., 924. 396 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony person has seen ? ' Never ! Right about face ! com manded SuUivan. ' All the well men, follow me ! ' he cried. ' Push for Sorell as Quick as Possible ,' was the order Vose received, and every one else in that quarter likewise, no doubt. Only three cannon had been set up at the mouth of the Richelieu in all the time that post had been occupied ; but now the troops took hold with a will, and the next evening not only saw the encamp ment nearly enclosed, but found a new three-gun battery completed on the opposite shore of the St. Lawrence.'' Better still, a brilliant and perhaps -vital stroke at the enemy seemed to offer itself within easy reach. Whence came the force that relieved Quebec and how strong was it? This had been almost a Sphinx's ques tion ; but gradually the answer appeared to be found. Samuel Adams, Washington, and no doubt many others, believed that British troops driven firom Boston to Hali fax would find their way up the St. Lawrence. About the middle of April, the Tories in Canada began to be jubilant, and Hazen reported that General Howe was expected. This natural explanation of Carleton's rein forcements appeared to be fully confirmed by an American officer, for he recognized his own brother on one of the vessels, and knew that he did not come firom abroad. In short, it was commonly, if not universally, accepted that General Thomas had been driven off by troops hailing from Nova Scotia. '° This meant that no grand expedition from England, and therefore that probably no very large force, had arrived. 1 2 § Thomas (by Sedgwick) to Wooster, May 27, 1776 : 4 Force, VI., 589. Porter, Diary, May, 22, 23 ; June 3. Chase and Carroll to Hancock, May 27r 4 Force, VI., 589. Sullivan to Wash., June 5, 1776: ib., 921. Id.to Hancock, June I, 1776: ib., 679. Vose, Joumal, May 30 (misdated). The battery on the op posite shore (1. e. across the main channel) stood on an island. ' ^ § S. Adams to Hawley, Apr. 15, 1776 : S. Adams Papers. Wash, to Sch.,. Apr. 24, 1776 : 4 Force, V., 1053. Hazen to Sch., Apr. 15, 1776 : Sch. Papers. Walkerto S. Adams, Mav 30, 1776: S. Adams Papers. Elmer, Joumal, May 15. Caldwell to Boudinot, May 15, 1776: Emmet Coll. Remark XCVIII. FROM FADEN'S AMERICAN ATLAS, 1777 397 398 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony for the weight of Howe's army was expected in the middle or southern Colonies. To be sure, Thomas heard that fif teen sail had entered the river, and the Commissioners that fourteen had reached the capital ; but these reports, even if correct, said nothing as to the size or character of the vessels. Some of them were very likely merchantmen, and others must almost certainly have been victualers. ' We are told an East India Ship arrived a day or two after [the sixth of May] with three or four hundred Sol diers but this wants Confirmation,' said Walker at the very end of the month. Thomas had employed ' trusty men, disguised as Canadians, to find out the num ber and the situation ofthe enemy ' ; and, on the fifteenth, he did not con.sider them 'very formidable.' John Mc- Cord was told by French people who came out of Quebec six days after the Americans had retreated, that only two companies of the 29th Regiment, one frigate and one transport from Halifax had caused the unhappy flight, and that no more were reported below. People said that the frigate came to ascertain whether the town had been captured, and that, as it had not been, Howe would come there ; but, even should this prove true, weeks must pass before he could arrive. Another account had it that two regiments landed ; but, as Carleton was reported to be still fortifying Quebec, it did not look as if he would soon take the offensive.''' With so little to fear, the Americans longed more and more to regain Deschambault. Thompson was actually ordered to go there with sixteen hundred men, and ex pected to set out from Sorel on the twentieth of May. So confident of securing that point felt the officers, that Baron ' * § Hancock to Sch., Mar. 7, 1776: 4 Force, V., 99. Thomas to Wash., May 8, 1776 : 4 Force, VI., 453. Coramrs. to Sch., May 31, 1776 ; Sparks MSS., No. 60, p. 90. Walker to S. Adams, May 30, 1776: S. Adams Papers. Thomas to Coramrs,, May 15, 1776 : 4 Force, VI., 588. Commrs. to Sch., May 17, 1776: ib., 586. Thompson to Commrs., May 25, 1776: ib., 593. A Brilliant Opportunity 399 De Woedtke made a formal application to command the advanced post there. Probably the necessit}' of sending men to check Forster put a veto on this plan ; and, although Thompson proposed to re-occupy Three Rivers with a thousand men on the return of Colonel De Haas from Montreal, that idea also had to be laid aside. 'The havock made amongst the New England troops by the small-pox, and our want of ammunition, especially lead, have prevented anything being done below Sorel,' he explained to Washington later. '^ Presently, however, the situation at Three Rivers became too attractive as well as threatening to neglect, even should Sorel itself have to be stripped. News came that Mac lean, with some eight hundred regulars and Canadians, had ventured to occupy that point. Since very likeh- half of these troops were natives, they could not be con sidered very formidable ; and Thompson refiected that a successful blow against them might prevent the habi tants and Indians from taking up arms and increasing the British strength to something irresistible. Besides, as Bondfield pointed out, a league or something more below Three Rivers the deep water of the St. Lawrence ran close to the northern shore, so that a battery planted on the high bank might be able to stop, or at least delay, the enemy's fieet. Since the death ofThomas and Wooster's retirement, Amold had stood first in rank ; but, as he was above Montreal trying to catch Forster, he could not give orders at Sorel. Thompson, however, was an officer, wrote Samuel Chase, 'with sense to conceive and spirit to execute ' ; and he directed Colonel St. Clair, who had served at Three Rivers in the French and Indian War, to surprise Maclean's camp, if that could be done. At the " § Thompson to Sch., May 19, 1776: Sch. Papers. Sch. to Wash., May 31, 1776 : 4 Force, VI., 639. Woedtke to Thomas, May 18, 1776: Thomas Papers. Thompson to Commrs., May 25, 1776 : 4 Force, VI., 593 Id. to Wash., May 30,. 1776: ib., 628. 400 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony same time, steps were taken to support the move should it be fortunate, or to retreat nimbly should it fail. Just then, Sullivan arrived ; and, on leaming from two scouts wfho had been despatched to reconnoitre the enemy that the British troops numbered only three hundred, he de termined, after taking the sense of a council of war, to make a victory certain, and ordered Thompson himself to lead the movement, giving him enough of his best men to make up, with St. Clair's, nearl}- two thousand, besides a large number of Canadians." ' I would by no means advise to an attack, ifthe pros pect of success is not much in your favor , ' ran his pru dent instructions ; but he considered a triumph almost as good as won. Next, he would take post at Descham bault, and fortify that spot so as to ' make it inaccessible. ' What ships had passed it, he would ' soon remove ' below the falls ; and then — On to Quebec ' as fast as possible.' Strong, resolute, and confident, he felt it safe to be liberal with promises and good news. ' I may venture to assure you and the Congress , ' he wrote to Washington, ' that I can, in a few days, reduce the Army to order ; and, with the assistance of a kind Providence, put a new face to our affairs here.' A sense of cheer soon diffused itself in all directions. ' Since Gen? Sullivan's arrival our affairs wear another faice,' Caldwell informed Boudinot. Schuyler rejoiced profoundly to find that the chaos and confusion were now ' on the point ' of ending ; and the Commander- in-chief was made ' exceedingly happv ' b)^ the brilliant ' ^ § Thompson to Wash., June 2, 1776: 4 Force, VI., 684. Id. to Commrs.. May 25, 1776: ib., 593. Goforth to Jay, Apr. 8, 1776: Bancroft CoU., Rev. Papers, 1-, p. 37. June I, Wooster was at St. Johns on his way home (Sullivan to Han cock, June I : 4 Force, VI., 679). Amold: Chase to Sch., May 31, 1776 CSparks MSS., No. 60, p. 90). Chase to Gates, June 13, 1776: ib., p. 95. Thompson to Wash., June 2, 1776: 4 Force, VI., 684. Orders to St. Clair, June 2: Smith, St. Clair, I., p. 367. St. Clair, Narrative, p. 235. Letter, June 12, 1776: 4 Force, VI., p. 826. Sullivan to Wash., June 6, 1776: 4 Force, VI., p. 921. Wayne to Delaney, Jfune 13, 1776: Wayne Papers. Orders to Thompson ; Lib. Cong., Letters to V/ash., IX., p. 293. VOL. II.— 26. 402 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony prospect. Of late, he had ' almost dreaded to hear firom Canada.'" Thursday afternoon, June the sixth, Thompson's eager troops hurried into the bateaux, dropped down the river about thirty miles, reached Nicolet, some ten miles above Three Rivers on the opposite side of the St. Lawrence, an hour after midnight, and there united with St. Clair's de tachment. A daybreak attack was intended ; and, as it could not be made that night — for the hour was already late, the men were tired, and their arms were damp — the next day was passed at this place. The people of the vicinity had shown themselves very firiendly to the cause ; yet, in order to conceal the plans, a pretence was made of throwing up works. Various reports about the force at Three Rivers came in. Apparently, it might be any where firom five hundred to fifteen hundred ; but, even at the highest, it could hardly be enough to defeat a heavy and unexpected attack in the dark, for the town had no fortifications except what Haldimand called a ' Stone House' and such intrenchments as had recently been thrown up. There seemed, then, tobe no reason for abandon ing the enterprise ; and the troops, fiUng out of camp in the paling afterglow of sunset (June 7), marched down in a long column, elbow to elbow and as quietly as possible, to the strand. The boats, rocking a little on the swell of Lake St. Peter and scraping softly one against another as if the flotilla were rubbing its hands with satisfaction, swung quickly to the landing, and the Americans — under the watchful eyes of Thompson, Maxwell, Wayne, St. Clair, and Irvine, all notable men — embarked in rapid but mathematical order. Besides officers, bateaumen , and Cana dians, the force in the boats counted about fifteen hundred. " 1' § Sullivan to Thompson, June 6, 1776 (orders); Note 16. Id. to Wash., June 6: Note 16. Caldwell, June 11, 1776: Emmet CoU. Sch. to Sullivan, June 13, 1776: Sparks MSS., No. 20, p. 260. Wash, to Sullivan, June 16, 1776: ib., p. 264. ' 8 § Sullivan to Wash., June 6, 1776: Note 16. A small part of Thompson's The Americans Advance 403 It was known that a number of British vessels lay several miles west of Three Rivers, and Thompson intended to land about a league above them ; but the pilot, guiding his flotilla of fifty bateaux directly across where the last pulse of the Atlantic tides dissolved into the wide sweep of Lake St. Peter, placed him — about two o'clock in the morning — on the red soil and wild strawberry blossoms of Pointe du Lac. Possibly the man had too strong a fear ofthe great guns, possibly too strong a fear ofthe lion's paw ; but it was true that good landings could not be found everywhere on that low, soft shore. Anyhow, a little way more to tramp mattered but little. There was plenty of time, and there was a good road. Three Rivers lay deep in untroubled slumber ; and the hearts, if not the eyes, of the brave lads on the shore could make out, as if just be yond it, the spire of Deschambault and the steeples of Quebec, shining like silver in the starlight." Leaving two hundred and fifty men to guard the boats, Thompson pushed on with the rest. It was planned that St. Clair, Maxwell, Irvine, and Wayne should attack at four distinct points, all aiming at the centre and so tend- men perhaps went down later in the night. Thompson to SuUivan, June 7, 1776: 4 Force VI., 1038. Ursul. de T. Riv., I., p. 363. St. Clair, Narrative, p. 235. Irvine, Joumal: Hist. Mag., Apr. 1862, p. 115. Letter, June 12, 1776: 4 Force, VI., 826 Vose, Journal. For an opinion of the officers, see Chase to Gates, June 13, 1776 : Sparks MSS., No. 60, p. 95. Lacey, Memoirs. Three Rivers : Marr, Remarks (Can. Arch., M, 384); Haldimand to Jones, Feb. 25, 1774 (Can. Arch., B, 33, p. 224); Bouchette, Descr. Topog., pp. 226, 309, 556 ; Burton, Report, May 31. 1763 (Can. Arch., B, 1, p. 61); Riedesel, Letters, p. 33 ; Stone (ed.). Letters, p. 45 ; Jefferys, Nat. and Civil Hist., p. 10 ; Hadden, Joum., p. 10 ; Dawson, N. Ara., p. 307. It is assumed, as seems probable, that the Americans caraped near the Lalce. i'§ American accounts of the expedition : Sullivan to Wash., June 6.1776 (4Force, VI , 921) ; Id. to Id., June, 8, 9, 12, 1776 (SuUivan Papers, N. H. Hist. Soc.);Id.toSch ,June, 19, 1776 (Sparks Corres., I.,p. 53i);ThorapsontoSullivan, June 7, 1776 (4 Force, -VI., 1038); Wayne to Delaney, June 13, 1776 (Wayne Papers); St. Clair, Narrative, p. 235 ; Irvine, foumal (Note 18); Letter, June 12, 1776 (4 Force, VI., 826); Arnold to Sch., June 13, 1776 (Sparks, Corres., I., p. 531) ; Lacey, Meraoirs, p. 200 ; Vose, Journal ; Senter, Journal ; Porterfield Diary, p ico • Nichols, Diary ; Porter, Diary ; Alexander, Diary (Temple and Sheldon, Northfield, p. 326). British accounts: Carleton to Germain, June 20, 1776 (Can. Arch., Q, 12, p. 64). Id. to Riedesel, June 9, 1776 : Can. Arch , B. 39, p. 3 : Id. to , June 9, 1776 (ib., p. 2); Alraon, Remembrancer, 1776 Part II., ppf 182, 193 ; Digby, Joumal, p. 106 ; Pr&is of Oper.; Pell, Diary (Mag. Am. Hist., 1878, p. 43 ; Verreau (Sanguinet, Badeaux, Berthelot), Invasion, pp. 133, 219, 238 •, Ursul. de T. Riv., I., p. 371. 404 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony ing to unite, while Lieutenant-Colonel Hartley, in com mand ofthe reserves, should give support whereverneeded, and Thompson should oversee everything. For some rea son, perhaps to avoid passing near the British vessels, it seemed best to follow a branch road, which diverged a lit tle from the highway toward the left about a mile below the landing; and, as the two guides. Frenchmen but not Canadians and residents of parishes a little way above, did not feel perfectly sure of the ground, Antoine Gautier, a Pointe du Lac farmer, was pressed into the service. Somebody — Gautier, perhaps — adroitly spread the story that a British post la}' at a certain white house on the highway about a couple of miles beyond the fork. It seemed advisable to capture it, and for that purpose Thompson kept straight on instead of taking the branch road ; but no British were found. Should he go back then to the fork, or continue to advance by the highway ? Each plan had its disadvantages ; and, when Gautier pro posed cutting across country to the road first chosen, the troops were ordered to follow him. That soon brought them into a horrible swamp, and for hours they ploughed and wallowed in miry ground and muddy bogs, amid rushes, thickets, greasy roots, decaying logs, and all the other slimy obstacles of a deep morass. This way and that way they groped in the darkness. Many lost their shoes, and even boots were sucked off by the gluey mud. Feet were bruised or actually pierced through by sharp snags ; and both strength and spirits felt the drain. St. Clair and others trusted the guide still, and believed in pushing on for the branch road ; but Thomp son, a veteran surveyor and used to the wilds, knew bet ter. In a fearful rage, he demanded to be taken back to the highway, for, once more there, he felt that he could be sure of his bearings ; and finally, after wasting as much time as he could, the treacherous guide obeyed. Then The Plan Miscarries 405 the advance began again ; but day showed signs of break ing before the vessels could be passed, and the sloop-of- war Martin, aided more or less by the lighter craft, opened a brisk fire. As the highway ran within fifty yards or so of the river this was extremely annoying. The retort of muskets and rifles had no effect ; and, after suffering for three-quarters ofa mile, the column took a slant into the woods, intend ing to make a circuit and regain the high way. But that was never done. Before long, the men found themselves engulfed once more in the far-reaching morass, and, with the ves sels threatening them from behind, could see nothing wiser to do than to force their way across it, for evidently the town could not be very far distant. Too late, however, they sadly repented of their choice. Far better the chances of grape and shells than a struggle with ' the most Horrid swamp that ever man set foot in,' as Wayne described it: a trackless jungle planted in a mammoth slough ' about mid deep in general,' as another officer said. To surprise Three Rivers was out ofthe question now. The best pos sible outcome would be a stand-up fight : on the one side, ARTHUR ST. CLAIR 4o6 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony twelve hundred and fifty hungry, tired men, who had lost their sleep for two nights, besides working on fortifications the intervening day ; and on the other an uncertain, per haps larger, number of the enemy, fresh from their beds and more or less protected. The strong probability of success that Sullivan had insisted upon could not easily be figured out. But, as an officer phrased it, ' Canada was lost, without some notable exertion.' A resolution of Congress, pro nouncing it ' of the highest importance that post be taken • at Dechambeau,' had arrived at Sorel just before Thomp son set out, and this appeared to be the last chance of obeying that behest. Washington had said to Thomas, ' Thelower down you canmaintainastand, the more advan tageous will it be ' ; and the wisdom of the principle stood out in bold relief ' This misfortune must be repaired, if pos sible,' had been his comment on the flight from Quebec ; and it could not be repaired by a flight from Three Rivers. A victory there — to quote him once more — would be ' ofthe most essential service. ' Even those who did not know what Washington thought on these points, could hardly fail to think as he did. Sullivan himself, in his orders for the expedition, had sounded a high note of ' bravery ' as well as advised prudence ; and, after ridiculing other troops for retreating before an enemy whom no person had seen, he could hardlj' be expected to commend his own for so doing. Moreover, these officers and these men had spirit of their own. 'It might have been, perhaps, pru dent to have retreated — but no one would propose it,' said one of them afterward. Should withdrawal prove neces sary, it could be ordered later, they felt. The boats were waiting and guarded. Forward, then, in Heaven's name, and at least have a sniff of gunpowder!" May 25. 2° § Letter from Sorel, June 12, 1776: 4 Force, VI., 826. Secret Joum. Cong., J 25. Sullivan to Wash., June 6, 1776 : 4 Force, VL, 921. Wash, to Thomas, A Bold Stroke 407 For two or three hours the Americans fought the morass, the slimy brooks, the forest, and the bushes. Every mo ment they expected to find solid ground and space to form, and every moment brought a fresh disappointment. To ward eight o'clock, however, word passed along of a clearing and horses discovered about a quarter of a mile ahead, and this gave fresh hope. All pressed on, badly divided by this time — indeed, badly scattered — but all bound for the goal ; and finally Wayne, with his small division of two hundred, reached ' a more Open piece of bad Ground.' At the same instant, he found a body of regulars bearing straight down upon him. Here and now Mad Anthony had the baptism of fire. His fine person seemed to expand ; his high and hand some forehead shone, as he swung his hat ; his dark hazel eyes darted and flashed ; his voice rang in bugle tones ; and at the same time, as little disarranged by enthusiasm as by danger, his mind worked like a clock." Throwing forward a company of light infantry and a company of riflemen to check the enemy, he formed the rest of his men as well as he could. The two advanced corps then wheeled to right and to left, threatening the British flanks; and his main body, pushing up between them opened a smart fire. Plastered with mud and here and there streaked with crim son, the lines of blue and white moved on ward steadily, and, though regulars and more than twice as many, the enemy blenched. At first they retreated in good order. May 24, 1776: Writings (Ford), IV., p. 102. Id. to Sullivan, June 16, 1776: Sparks MSS., No. 20, p. 264. Orders: Note 16. Letter, June 12, 1776: 4 Force, VI., 826. 2' Contemp. Description of Wayne: Hazard, Penna. Register, June 13, 1829. 4o8 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony but soon they broke and ran ; and the Indians on their flanks, forgetting to shoot and yell, took to their villainous heels. While this was going on, Thompson and the other divisions gained the edge of the woods, and pressed for ward without a sign, of fear. Bursting impetuously through a fringe of thickets, they could at last see where they were. Far yonder ran the blue St. Lawrence, bitten short off by a bluff that rose sharply from the meadows which bounded the river for many miles. Back from it straggled two or three hundred low wooden houses, cul minating in the spire ofa church. The wooden convent of the Ursulines and the stone monastery of the RfecoUets stood up rather grandly above the black roofs ; and the old Governor's House of solid masonry, dominating the town and the environs, dignified a scene full of quiet and simple charm. They had not missed their aim: Three Rivers lay before them. But between them and their goal ran a line of new intrenchments, the fresh earth crumbling to sand in the June heat ; and behind these, pausing and gazing with astonishment, they discovered — what they had not dreamed of seeing. With the exception of a few men detained by contrary winds a short distance below, the entire 29th Regiment had reached Quebec by May fifteenth, and with it the 47th Regiment sent from Halifax. ' I hope we shall follow the Rebels closs at their heels,' cried Maclean ; and it was rumored that he himself — ' Beloved, Dreaded & in defatigable,' as Pringle described him — was to lead the advance immediately. Carleton, however, now that his tedious office of Shield had been resolutely fulfilled, sprang eagerly to that of Sword, placed himself at the head of the two regiments, and, amid the booming of cannon from ships and town, set off up the St. Lawrence. But, as the usual northeasters would not blow, he found himself com- The Main British Reinforcements 409 pelled to halt a little below Three Rivers. There he posted a Canadian guard, to report whatever the Ameri cans undertook to do, and returned to direct operations at Quebec. The ' rebels ' in the province were believed to number not less than five thousand, and both a spy and a New York newspaper had given notice of Sullivan's march ; so that he understood the need of caution." Before he reached the capital, ten more vessels had entered the harbor (May 27). Others were con tinually arriving; and. the first of June, as the sun was going down, a fleet of sixteen dropped anchor there amid the crash of salutes. In these transports aud ships of war, came the main ex pedition organized for the recovery of Canada, and this represented the best that His Britannic Majesty and the English pound sterling could ac complish. General Bur goyne, seven regiments from Ireland, one from England, and some two thousand Germans hired out by the Most Serene Prince of Brunswick were aboard. Over ;^i85,ooo of real money on the funo and Blonde, ships of war, supplemented the ;^20,ooo just received by the ANTHONY WAYNE '2 § Gordon to Barrington, May 15, 1776: War Off., Orig. Corres., N. Am., Vol. 12. Carleton to Germain, May 14, 1775: Can. Arcii., Q, 12, p. 14. Maclean to Germain, May 10, 1776 : ib., p. 39. Pringle to Howe, May 14, 1776; ib., p ^i. Humphrey, Journal, May 22. Verreau (Sanguinet), Invasion, j. 130. Maclean to , May 25, 1776: Can. Arch., Q. 12, p. 69. Carleton to Germain, June 2, 1776: ib., p. 57. Cramah^ to Germain, May 25, 1773: ib., p. 50. Spy: ib., p. 53.. 4IO Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony Triton. Absolute completeness had been aimed at. Not only had one hundred and twenty-five thousand gallons of rum beeu provided, but new instruments also, to see whether it was ' of due Proof withal." In spite of every effort, some delays had occurred in Great Britain, and the winds had not been favorable ; but now the utmost pains were taken to save every minute. Pilots were sent down the St. Lawrence to guide the transports to Quebec, and other pilots were engaged for the river above. Frigates and armed vessels took post at proper points to assist and escort the fleet. ' The Trans ports Victuallers and Store Ships, to proceed with the utmost expedition,' ran Carleton's orders, ' as high as the wind & other circumstances will permit, [and] on being stoped the Troops are to land and proceed by the North [Side] with the same diligence.' Provisions for the shore parties were carried to suitable points. To render can toning easy, the men had orders to march in squads of three hundred; and, for the sake of speed, they were to carry only thirty rounds of ammunition." Maclean, the indefatigable, remained at Quebec to hurry them along. Many of the transports were not allowed even to cast anchor there. Red tape was dis pensed with. Carleton did not stop to make reports. To reach Three Rivers, the appointed rendezvous, was the one duty. By the second of June, General Fraser, with a part of the troops from Ireland and some transports, appeared there. By the seventh, enough more had arrived 23 § LeMoine, Port, p. 41. Germans: Can. Arch., B, 153, p. 6. Sailing: Germain to Howe, May 3, 1776 (Pub. Rec. Off., Am. and W. I., Vol. 431, p. 141I; Precis of Oper. Germain to Burgoyne, Mar. 28, 1776: Pub. Rec. Off., Am. and W. I., Vol. 131, p. 743. Id. to Fraser, Mar. 19, 1776: Pub. Rec. Ofi., Am. and W. I., Vol. 431, p. 121. Robinson to Burgoyne, Mar. 29, 1776: Can. Arch., B, 38, p. 41. Substantially, if not literally, the whole of the expedition had reached Quebec by June 2 (Carleton to Germain, June 2, 1776: Can. Areh., Q, 12, p. 57). 24 § Germain to Carleton, June 21, 1776: Can. Arch., Q, 12, p. 44. Pr&is of Oper. Advices: 4 Force, VL, 1089. Carleton's orders. May 28, 30, 1776: Can. Arch.. B, 83, p. I. The British at Three Rivers 41 1 by land to make upwards of a thousand, including some artillery with their field-pieces; and, on the evening of that day, while Thompson was leaving Nicolet, twenty- five vessels came up, some dropping anchor off the town, others advancing three or four miles beyond it." About four o'clock the next morning, an officer on a transport at Three Rivers opened his eyes laboriously and fought his way back to consciousness with a vague sense of noise. Could somebody be calling ? Aye, somebody was calling. It was Fraser; and he was crying: ' For God's sake, wake up, and send ashore every gun you possibly can. The rebels are coming, two or three thousand of them. They're within a mile of the town.' While Gautier was teaching the Americans to chase the Will-o' -the- Wisp, Landron, Captain of the militia at Pointe du Lac, had slipped round and given the news to a British out-picket. Like a fiash in tinder the alarm spread. The troops, braced by their long voyage and weary of confinement, sprang eagerly to their work. The batteries already ashore were reinforced. The armed vessels prepared their broadsides. And so, when the Americans advanced far enough to survey Three Rivers and examine the new intrenchments, they found them selves face to face with some thousands of redcoats, many of them well posted behind breastworks. Yet the sight did not unnerve them. Maxwell's divi sion leading, they pressed boldly on and opened a sharp fire of musketry, while the riflemen farther back hurried up to support it. Small-arms and field-pieces replied from the. intrenchments, and shot and shell from the fleet 25 § Maclean to , May 25, 1776: Can. Arch., Q, 12, p. 69. Carleton to Germain, June 2 (and P. S., June 6), 1776 : ib., p. 57. Germain to Caileton, June 21, 1776: ib., p. 44. Alraon, Remembrancer, 1776, Partll., p. 192. Porter field, Diary (May 27), p. 146. Carleton to Barrington, June 21, 1776: War Off., Orig. Corres., N. Am., Vol. 12. Digby, Joumal. SuUivan to Wash., June 12, 1776: Sull. Papers, N. H. Hist. Soc. Carleton to Germain, June 20, 1776 : Can. Arch., Q, 12, p. 64. Remark XCIX. 412 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony volleyed across the meadows. Thompson ran to the front. Irvine, his fine head thrown high and his genial counte nance afiame, led on his men. St. Clair drew his long lips tight, pointed his mighty chin at the enemy, and pressed forward. Hartley brought up the re serves. The Ameri cans heard British soldiers encouraging one another with the cry, ' We are three to one!' yet they quailed not ; and in massive columns they charged the breastworks. But a tremendous fire converged upon them, while they now found themselves out flanked on one side by the ships and on the other by the over whelming numbers of the British infantr\-. ' Indeed it was Im possible for them to support it longer,' said Mad Anthony himself; and they gave way. Thompson ordered them to retire fifty paces into the woods, and there he and his officers did every thing possible to organize another attack ; but the ranks crumbled as fast as they were formed. Then partial rallies were made. One company planted itself within eighty yards of the enem^^ under the full fire of the ships. Rifle- THE WATER-FRONT, THREE RIVERS In the Morass 413 men posted behind trees taught the victors caution. A sharp musket fire from thickets reinforced the lesson. But, under that storm and on that ground, to form again and advance in full force was out of the question . ' Our men would fight,' said an officer a few days later, 'but we had no ground for it. We had no covering, no artillery, and no prospect of succeeding, as the number ofthe eneniy was so much superior to ours.' Retreat was the only choice. But there came the rub. General Nesbitt, a cool vet eran who had seen service in almost every clime where British legions campaigned," had landed a strong force from the vessels above the town, and hurried to cut the Americans off from their boats. Fraser, with a heavy column, struck for their rear. Grant set out for the bridge over the River Du Loup, some distance above. To regain the road and concentrate was impossible, for the in stant a squad emerged from the woods, a gust of cannon- fire swept it back. The fleeing army, already divided, became badly scattered. In the midst of ' small timber, ' where nothing could be seen twelve yards away, officers lost their men and men their officers. At one time, Wayne collected about seven hundred and tried to reach the British flank, but in vain ; yet, with only twenty-five who stood fast, he checked the enemy for an hour, making them believe the whole body was in the thicket still. Then he retreated in tolerable or der, finding a good path and rolling up another ball of seven hundred as he retired, though all were exhausted, famished, peri.shing of thirst, and completely lost. St. Clair, who knew the region somewhat, made his way with a strong party to the landing ; but there, in stead ofthe bateaux, he found Nesbitt' s troops. Forming 2 ' Nesbitt to Barrington, June 6, 1776: War Off., Orig. Corres., N. Am., Vol. 12. 414 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony as if to charge, he forestalled and delayed their attack, and then, moving suddenly to the right, threw a point of woods between himself and the enemy. By this bold stratagem he escaped, but it was only to plunge again into the woods and mire. ' Nature , ' said Irvine, ' perhaps never formed a place better calculated for the destruction of an army.' Indians tirelessly stalked the fugitives, and Canadians ambushed them at every turn. As night fell, they could only drop where they were ; and the next morning their heart-breaking flight began again. Thompson and Irvine, like the rest, wandered all day. The swamp — which, according to a British account, was thirteen miles long — seemed endless ; and, whenever signs of open ground cheered them on either hand, the usual fire of musketry or field-pieces drove them back. All night they plodded on at random and in vain. When light broke, they found themselves not only wom out but completely surrounded ; and, rather than be shot down from the bushes by the lurking Canadians, delivered themselves up as ' prisoners at discretion ' to a British guard. Such promised to be the hard fate of all, Wayne and his party not excepted, for Major Grant now held the one door of escape. But fortunately Carleton himself arrived at Three Rivers that evening. Believing in the possi bility of winning the honest masses away from their re bellious leaders, he longed to prove that the door of mercy stood ajar. After the Americans retreated from Quebec, he issued a proclamation inviting the sick, who had fled to the woods in fear of the rebel's halter, to surrender, promising them ' free Liberty ' to retum home as soon as restored to health, and commanding the militia officers to ' make diligent search for all such distressed Persons and afford them all necessary Relief at the King's charge. As soon as the flight of their comrades from 416 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony Quebec permitted, he visited the daring prisoners and ¦ordered their irons removed ; and ere long they had a supply of fresh provisions. Great pains were taken to make them understand the kindness of his intentions ; unpleasant speeches to them were rebuked ; and later they were dismissed on parole with substantial presents. So now, in this temper of mingled policy and humanity, he said to Captain England of the 47th : ' What would 3'ou do with them ? Have you spare pro visions for them ? Or would you send them to Quebec to starve ? No, let the poor creatures go home and cany with them a tale which will serve his Majesty more ef fectually than their capture'; and, recalling Major Grant, he threw open the door of escape." By hard rowing, all of the bateaux save one, though •closely pursued by the troops and armed vessels, got away. A scouting-party of riflemen went across the St. Lawrence from Sorel to meet and direct the fugitives. And, by evening of the third day (June 11) — their veins almost sucked dry b3' the ' Musketoes of a Monsterous seize and innumerable numbers ' — the wretched troops found themselves again at the mouth of the Richelieu. Of Wayne's own regiment, a quarter part was left behind ; and the total losses amounted to some two hundred and thirty-six captured, besides an unknown number dead. The hurt inflicted on the British signified little." ' A very bold enterprise indeed,' was Carleton's de scription of this affair. ' The most audacious rascals ex isting,' exclaimed Joshua Pell, Jr., of the British army. ' The King of Prussia when on the brink of ruin never 2' § Verreau (Badeaux), Invasion, p. 219. Carleton, Proc, May 10: Can. Arch., Q, 12, p. 27. Melvin, Joumal, .May 7; June 5 ; Aug. 5. Henry, Journal, -p. 165. Nichols, Diary (July 26), p. 509. Porterfield, Diary, May, 7, 9. Hum phrey, Joumal, May 7. Carleton to Howe, Aug. 8, 1776 : Can. Arch., B, 39, p. 93. Id. to Douglas, June 13, 1776: ib., p. 7. Id. to PownaU, June 28, 1776: ib., p. 37. Wilkinson, Memoirs, I., p. 55, note (W. had Carleton's words from England). Remark C. ^8 Remark CI. A Narrow Miss 417 planned better,' admitted another officer. But, in spite of enterprise, deep strategy, and brave fighting, the British had won another decided triumph. To be sure, the real victor was neither Fraser nor Nesbitt, neither redcoat noi cannon. ' Had they not lost their road, they would have been an hour sooner and must have carried their point,' said a candid enemy. ' If Gen. Thompson had been one hour sooner,' it was understood in Quebec, ' he would have carried the post. ' The real victor was the stubby, wriggling, dirt-brown clodhopper, An toine Gautier. It was his grimy, horny fist that had held the distaff of fate. ' To the left,' from his tobacco- stained lips, at the fork of the road, would have given a great nation the first of its many victories in the field ; ' to the right,' meant an exultant Ministry and a jubilant King. ' So much for chance, ' commented Lieutenant Nichols grimly." No matter who won, however, America lost. After listening for hours to the fire of cannon and musketry, which could not only be heard but distinguished at Sorel, Sullivan wrote to the Commander-in-chief, ' I am almost Certain that victory has Declared in our favor ' ; and the disappointment of their confident hope struck him and his army to the heart. But this terrible failure signified a great deal more. The six fresh and spirited regiments were already buried like the others in the bottomless gulf of disaster, want, plague, and chaos, and it was very plain that powerful British forces were near at hand. If the Americans had not been able even to hold their own before, what was to become of them now ? More than ever the pestilence walked abroad. ' Out of eight thousand men, that we have in this country, not five thousand effectives can be mustered,' said Amold; and very likely he did not 2' See Note 19. The description of Gautier is inferential. VOL. II. — 27. 41 8 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony know the worst. ' Colo Graton is with me without a Single man all under innoculation ' wrote Sullivan ; 'Colo Bond with all his Reg' in the same Situation Colo Pat terson has Six only Colo Stark about forty Colo Reed, & Colo Poor Nearly in the Same Situation. . . . This Colony it seems has been of Late Considered as the General Hospital of America. ' But, if a hospital, it was a very poor one. Dr. Lind, who had seen it, described the medical department in Canada as ' one scene of confu- ^h^^n^^v^''''^^ a-^TL^ sion and anarchy.' ' It is a very dying time,' noted Frye Baylej^ with all seriousness in his diary. The fact was. Congress had given no person authority to establish a general hospital beyond the frontier, — still less provided the means to do so.^" So much was owing, and the expenses of the army — suddenly increased by ten regiments — mounted so fast, that Schuyler's $300,000 in paper money seemed little more than a heavy dew. ' Extremelj- deficient still,' said his Deputy Paymaster-General ; adding very truly, ' A pay master without money, is but a ridiculous animal. ' Once more Congress poured all its cash into Schuyler's hands. It amounted to £\,(>b2 sh.i d.3. ' Every method to col lect hard money for the army in Canada ' had been tried, admitted the President ; and here was the result." 30 § SuUivan to Wash., June 8, 1776: SuU. Papers, N. H. Hist. Soc. Porter, Diary, Junes. Arnold to Sch., June 6, 1776 : Sparks MSS., No. 60, p. 93. Mor gan to S. Adams, June 25, 1776: 4 Force, VI., 1069. Bayley, Narrative, June 13. 3 1 § J. Tmmble, Jr., to Hancock, May 21, 1776: 4 Force, VL, 537. Hancock to Sch., May 24, 1776 (two letters) : ib., 558. The Prospect of Starving 419 The prospect of starving seemed excellent, however. While Sullivan's brigade was approaching Sorel, Walter Livingston, the Commissarj'-General at Albany, wrote : ' This minute an Express arrives from Genl Schuyler who informs me that our Army will again be in danger of wanting provisions unless Pork is speedily sent up. I have not a barrel more to spare. If possible send more up. I have sent all round the Country, and cannot procure any more.' Were the meat obtained and landed at Albany, it would then have to go ten miles by boat, twelve by wagon, twelve by boat, two by wagon, three and a half by boat, half a mile by wagon, eight miles by boat, fifteen by wagon, thirty-six by boat, a mile and a half by wagon, and an equal distance by boat. At the end of this journey it would be off Ticonderoga. For the hundred and twenty miles to St. Johns, the reliance would have to be on sailing craft, liable tobe ' detained by contrary winds, orby getting aground,' and on bateaux, liable also to founder by the wholesale in a sudden storm. Finally, it would have to go down the Richelieu about fifty miles, taking its chances in two series of rapids." Upon these difficulties, all sorts of minor embarrassments were piled. Even in the principal street of Albany wagons got mired. Lazy and tricky teamsters betrayed the best of schedules, and those the most upright did not care to work for nothing. Vexed by the demands of the soldiers, they all threatened to quit work and many did so. Prov ender for the draught animals was hard to get. An Indian scare could be relied upon to send the laborers flying home, and Schuyler discovered that the savages were moving. A single British vessel in the Hudson might cut the line of 32 § Liv. to Josh. TrumbuU, June 2, 1776: Trumbull Papers, Conn. Hist. Soc Transportation : 4 Force, VI., 565. Sch. to Wash., May 21, 1776: ib., .537. The author infers there were rapids at St. Ours frora the fact that at present a fall of five feet exists there, and vessels pass through a lock: Dawson, N. Am,, p. 302 ; E. Townships Map. 420 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony supplies from New York, and many British vessels were looked for at the mouth of that river. In short, the Canada army was in the position of a Japanese juggler's umbrella balanced on a column of clay pipes ; only it had no parachute quality, and all kinds of circumstances were being thrown aU the time at the pipes." Making the necessary allowance for losses, General Schuyler estimated the daily requirement of the army at the north, after Sullivan's arrival, as twelve thousand pounds of pork and as much of flour. During 'NLa.y, by the utmost exertions, he kept the average shipment of pork from Lake George nearly up to that figure, but the fiour was less than two thousand pounds a day. A certain amount of Canadian wheat helped out somewhat ; but, on the other hand, all the laborers, guards, and crews beyond Fort George had to be fed, and the supply of Canadian wheat was precarious. The loss of Deschambault had cut off ' in a great measure ' what might have been obtained, and Schuyler heard, at the end of May, that the army was ' in great straits ' for it. In a word, only about one-half of the required weight of provisions was really forwarded. How, then, was the army to be fed in June ? And what would follow should a serious accident occur? Schuyler could not escape ' the most poignant anxietj'. ' " Looking for the enemy in force at NewYork, Washing ton could spare no more troops, and Schuyler felt that no help could be expected from the militia in case of an emer gency. Powder, bullets, cannon-balls, and intrenching tools were still needed. The New York Congress could suggest no place to get lead save ' in and on the dweUing- 3 3 § MunseU, Coll., HI., p. 404. SuUivan to Wash., May x6, 18, 1776 : 4 Force, VI.,479, 5C2. Sch. to Wash., May 10, 1776: ib., 411. Id. to Putnam, June 3, 1776: ib., 692. 3 1 § Sch. to Price, Mav 7, 1776 : 4 Force, -VI., 414. Report, Ft. George, May 31: ib.. 639. Arnold to Sch., May 10, 1776: ib., 452. Sch. to Hancock, May 31, 1^76: ib., 639. Id. to Wash., May 16, 1776: ib., 479. Walter Liv.'s letters to Sch. (Sch. Papers) tell much about the difficulty of supplying the army, etc. No Help to be Expected. 421 houses.' Pennsylvania had found it necessary a month before to take up the lead clock-weights in Philadelphia in exchange for iron ones. Connecticut was just about toauth- orize the purchase of all the lead in the Colony, except that in sheets on the buildings, or— if the owner would not sell — the confiscation of it. No tents had yet been furnished for the reinforcements that preceded Thompson. ' Notwithstanding the most diligent pains, ' Washington himself could gather 'but a small part of the Nails' re quired by Schuyler, and Congress was ] ~^ not able to obtain the shoes and stock ings ordered for the Canada army. A competent engineer was at length found and appointed, but the man declined to serve. Schuyler, liable every day to an attack of illness, harassed bythe 'infamous manoeuvres' of officers who tampered with his transportation arrange ments, and 'infamou.sly scandalized and ill-treated' bythe ' assassins and incendiaries ' who circulated ' diabolical tales ' about him, had little chance to grow in patience and tact. Even his buoyancy failed, and almost his duty. ' I enclose you two Resolutions of Congress, ' he wrote dis- hearteningly to the over-taxed Sullivan ; 'I have not much hopes that either of them will have the happy effects which Congress expects.' " THE SWAMP, POINTE DU LAC 3S § Wash, to Putnam, June 3, 1776: Writings (Ford), IV., p. 108. Sch. to Hancock, Apr. 2, 1776: 4 Force, V., 767. Id. to SuUivan, June 13, 1776: Sparks MSS., No. 20, p. 260. Id. to Wash.. June 11, 1776: Lib. Cong., Letters to Wash., IX., p. 323. Wash, to Putnam, May 22, 1776 : 4 Force, VI., 543. Lead: Invoice, note (4 Force, VI., 563); Penna. Com. Safety, May 9, 1776 (ib., 652) ; Conn. As sembly (ib., 878). Sch. to Hancock, June i, 8, 1776: ib., 677, 762. Wash, to Sch , 42 2 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony Gloom and confusion among the troops, despite the new blood, were inevitable. ' A starving army is actually worse than none, ' wrote the Iron Duke soon after glorious Talavera ; ' The soldiers lose their discipline and spirit. . . . The officers are discontented and are almost as bad as the men ' ; but at Sorel the danger of starving was only one of a dozen afflictions. ' Almost lifeless ' the troops had appeared when Sullivan came ; and now, when his new regiments — the sheet-anchor of what little hope re mained — went down vainly into the gulf of disaster, dis ease, and despair, what chance of salvation was there ? No fewer than forty officers begged leave to resign, and the privates were ' filled with horror at the thought of seeing their enemj'. ' The atmosphere seemed a-tremble with panic. And, while Carleton's army gathered like a phalanx, the country itself closed in upon the doomed Americans like the walls of a contracting dungeon. ' Our enemies are daily increasing, and our friends deserting us,' testified Arnold. "= May 17, 1776: Writings (Ford), IV., p. 84. Joum. Cong., May 7. Wrixon to Han cock, Apr. 28, 1776: 4 Force, V., mo. Sch. to Wash.., May 26, 28, 31, 1776: 4 Force, VI., 578, 608, 639. Id. to Sullivan, June 13, 1776: Sparks MSS., No. 20, p. 260. 36 § Hamley, Operations, p. 18. Sullivan to Sch., June ig, 1776: Sparks, Corres., I,, p. 531. Amold to Sch., June 6, 1776, Sparks MSS.j No. 60, p. 93. XXXIV HOPE WITHERS BUT SHOOTS AGAIN ^ A FATALITY seems to attend every one of our /v enterprises,' reflected Arnold gloomily.' But the mischances of the wildemess march, the assault of Quebec, the fire-ship, the attempt of Ihe American prisoners to escape and conquer, the sudden arrival of the British fleet, Forster's legerdemain at the Cedars and Gautier' s handling of the distaff at Three Rivers were trivial indeed compared with the fatality that seemed to be preparing now. ' If we are not immediately supported with eight or ten thousand men, a good train of artillery, well served, and a military chest well furnished, the Ministerial troops, if they attempt it, will regain this country ' : such words, written to Schuyler by Arnold about the middle of April, hadno lack of precision. 'In short,' advised the Com missioners of Congress eighteen days later, ' if [hard] money cannot be had to support your army here with honour, . . . we report it as our firm and unanimous opinion, that it is better immediately to withdraw it '; and this warning also rang as clear and sharp as Roland's horn.'' Yet such letters, however precise, did not paint the situation. What it required was to be drawn like Michel- 1 Arnold to Commrs., June 2, 1776 ; 5 Force, I., 165. (Amold omitted 'one.') 2 § Amold to Sch., Apr. 20, 1776: 4 Force, V., iog8. Commrs. to Cong., May 8, 1776: ib., 1237. 423 424 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony angelo's Last f udgment and colored like an impressionist Gehenna. The fagged and preoccupied brains at Phila delphia needed to be blistered with details. Washington, although he had read many despatches, assured Hancock after talking with Chase and Carroll, ' Their account . . . cannot possibly surprise you more than it has done me.' Even a verbal statement needed much amplifica tion to be understood. ' I^et us know the truth, which has too long been hidden from us ! ' John Adams ex claimed after the Commissioners had reported in person. The broad facts looked incredible. ' Matter of wonder and astonishment,' some of them appeared to Jonathan Trumbull. Consequently, distant from the field and lacking complete knowledge. Congress acted largely iu the dark still. = On the other hand, the importance of holding Canada seemed to grow more and more plain. Two great objects were pointed out by Congress itself : ' the protection and assistance of our Canadian friends, and the securing so much of that Country as might prevent au}^ communica tion between our enemies and the Indians.' In this way the frontiers could be safeguarded, an armed invasion would be averted, and the driving of a wedge from the north into the midst of the Union would be made impos sible. ' Resolved, That the commanding officer in Canada, be informed, that the Congress are fully convinced of the absolute necessity of keeping possession of that country, ' recorded the Joumal near the end of May ; and the Presi dent solemnly declared at the same time that, should the province be abandoned, it was not ' in human wisdom to foretell the consequences.' * i § Wash, to Hancock, June ic, 1776: Writings (Ford), TV., p. 129. Adams to Sullivan, June 23, 1776 : Works, IX., p. 407. Adams appears from the con text to include facts as well as causes. Trumbull to Williams, July 26, 1776: Hinman, Conn., p. 560. 4 § Joum. Cong., May 22, 24. Secret Joum., May 25. Hancock to Thomas May 24, 1776: 4 Force, VI., 558, 559. The Views of Congress 425 Of course it was known that a hard task had been set for the northern army, but at Philadelphia it did not look impossible. Charles Carroll of CarroUton, for one, doubted whether the force ofthe enemy exceeded 4,000. ' It is a woody country,' he suggested, 'and by intrenching, making abbaties, breaking up the roads, harassing the enemy on their march, and reducing the campaign to a war of posts, in forcing of which they will lose many men, we may probably keep a footing in Canada this summer.' On the approach of winter he believed that Carleton would have to withdraw his fleet from the upper St. Eawrence to save it from the ice. The American troops, heavily reinforced, could then drive the hostile army to Quebec ; the passes of the river could be fortified ; and it would thus be made impossible for the British to go up again the following spring. As Washington, Gates, and Mifflin J"- had by this time been called upon to advise Congress, and Carroll would not have presumed to offer military ideas of his own at variance with theirs, this opinion probably repre sented what the legislators had learned from the generals. At any rate. Congress decided to ' expect ' the forces in Canada to 'contest every foot of the ground,' and pro nounced it ' highly necessary ' to make a stand below the mouth of the Richelieu. This language did not favor a retreat from Sorel ; and thus, in eff'ect, a rotten pest-house of a sloop was bidden to challenge a royal fifty-gun man- of-war fresh from the painters. Paul Jones in the Bon Homme Richard dared far less. ' 5 § Carroll to Gates. June 14, 1776: Sparks MSS., No. 60, p. loi. Journ. Cong., May 23, 24. 426 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony Sullivan made a fit primer for this rashness. His inteUi gence and military knowledge were no doubt ample to point out the weakness of his position. Sorel was a flat, unhealthful beach, rising little and ver3' gradually above the water. Eying at the junction of the St. Eawrence and the Richelieu, the spot looked extremely important, and the French had there erected forts and minor works, though Uttle or nothing valuable of them now remained. A few days after the Americans had retreated firom Quebec, a breastwork of sand facing the St. Eawrence was begun, and the troops worked at it for ten days or more. They accomplished little, however ; but Sullivan promptly ordered five hundred men to the spades, and implored them in general orders to ' Exert themselves, ' ' the preser vation of the Country as well as their own honour and Safety ' appearing to depend upon their efforts. A bat tery for ten guns on the right bank of the Richelieu, a battery for eight guns on the left bank, a three-gun bat tery on St. Ignatius Island over against Sorel, many smaller fortifications, proper lines of intrenchments, an abatis, and a stockade were rapidly completed. ' Pretty good works,' an officer observed cheerfully as he looked about; and, behind the defences, at least the fourteen pieces of cannon — several of them 32-pounders — that a British spy had touched and counted in May, were now in position. But, at a little distance in the rear, could the enemy reach it, there was high ground commanding all these fortifications. The abatis had been made of tall sapling pines, the only wood at hand, planted upright in the sand; « I Senter, Joumal, near end (undated). Bouchette, Descr. Topog., p. 226, Canad. Antiq., Jan., 1875. Lfvis, Joumal, p. 203. Shallus, Journal, May 12, 13. Vose, Joumal, June, 8-io. Woedtke's and SuUivan's Ord. Book, June 10: Lib. Cong. Sullivan to Wash., June, 5, 1776 : 4 Force, VI., 921. Almon, Remem brancer^ 1776, Part II., p. 194. Lacey, Memoirs, p. 201. Letter, June 12 (13), 1776; 4 Force, VI., 826. Spy, May 12, 1776: Can. Arch., Q, 12, p. 54. Thompson to Sullivan, June 7, 1776; 4 Force, VI., 1038. Sullivan's Peril 427 and these, drying quickly under the hot sun, made an admirable combination of tinder and match-wood, while they would actually have aided the enemy by masking his approach. What St. Clair considered ' a good boat- able stream ' ran behind Sorel and emptied into Lake St. Peter. The high water had prevented Arnold from sink ing a chevaux-de-frise, as he caUed it, at a narrow place in the St. Eawrence five miles below; and evidently, as the flood still continued, the chain brought from New York proved useless. A correct return of the army could not possibly be made, but Sullivan found only twenty -five hundred men round him, the best of them little more than spectres ; and these had to do a three-fold duty, — as troops, as laborers, and as nurses. Canadians were com ing in ; but, warned Hazen, ' they will leave us in the hour of difficulty. ' Sufficient pork had been arriving of late ; but, during the first eight days of June, only flour enough for three days had left Fort George. The chance of holding the enemy in check at Sorel under these con ditions appeared rather dark.' That, however, was only the first syllable of the dan ger. To fight with a river at one's back has always been considered perilous ; and a river lay at Sullivan's back lengthwise, with a big lake, also lengthwise, behind that. Chambly boasted a large garrison — of small-pox invalids. St. Johns, the very pivot of the campaign, had only a sergeant and twelve men for a guard, swamped by another host of the sick. ' Not one stroke done to fortify the Camp, the engineer a perfect Sot , ' Arnold found when there on a tour of inspection. Crown Point, Ticonderoga, and Fort George lay defenceless. Butler at Niagara had ' § Senter, Joumal : Note 6. St. Clair, Narrative, p. 240. Amold to Commrs., May 17, 1776 : 4 Force, VI., 592. Thompson to SuUivan, June 7, 1776: ib., 1038, Retura : ib., 915, note. Sullivan to Sch., June 19, 1776 : Sparks, Corres., I., p. 531. Hazen to Sullivan, June 13, 1776: Sparks MSS., No. 60, p. 108. Sch. to Hancock, June 8, 1776: 4 Force, VI., 762. Lamb, Retum: ib., 763. 428 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony induced the greater part of the Senecas, Cayugas, and Onondagas to enlist for the King. Hostile bands were known to be gathering at Oswego. Sir John Johnson had stolen away northward some time before with a body of his angry Highlanders and all the savages he could mus ter ; and nobody knew what point he would strike. Some regulars, with five hundred Scotch, Canadians, and Indians were hovering round Montreal, watching for a chance to deal a blow ; and numberless Canadians, like Antoine Gautier, felt eager to make their peace with England by betraying America. Some of these many hostiles might almost be expected to cut Sullivan's Hne of support, and Schuyler, frequently shaking with the ague so that his signature could hardly be recognized, had little strength or spirit for new and fearful emergencies." And yet even this was by no means the worst of it. The St. Eawrence ran almost parallel to the Richelieu ; the road along the north shore was open to the British ; and Arnold with only two guns, no matrosses to serve them, and but four hundred and fifty infantry, outnumbered already by his prowling foes and well aware that many of his men had been inoculated, could not undertake to prevent the enemy firom crossing to the south side. Let the British but reach Longueuil with a strong column by this route, ignoring or amusing the forts at Sorel, and they could march to Chambly, only four leagues distant, for a morning promenade. Sullivan, almost fifty miles below, would then be absolutely ruined. A dozen miles * § St. Johns : St. Clair, Narrative, p. 241. Amold to Sullivan, June 13, 1776: Sparks MSS., No. 20, p. 258. Retums: 4 Force, VI., 915,917. Lansing to Sch., June 14, 1776 : ib., 942. Sch. to Wash., June 17, 1776: ib., 939. Wyn koop to Sch., June 20, 1776: ib., 1058. Kirkland to Sch., June 8, 1776 : ib., 764. Sch. to SuUivan, June 13, 1776; Sparks MSS., No. 20, p. 260. Johnson: Carle ton to Germain, July 8, 1776 (Pub. Record Off., Colon. Corres., Quebec, 12, p. 191) ; (see Id. to Barrington, War Off., Orig. Corres., N. Am., Vol. 12, wrongly dated June 8) ; Blackburn to Claus, July 30, 1776 (Can. Arch., M, 104, p. 224). Verreau (Sanguinet), Invasion, p. 133. Amold to Sullivan, June 5, 1776 : Sparks, Corres., I., p. 524. Id. to Sch., June 10, 1776: ib., p. 527. Sch. to Sullivan,. June 20, 1776: Sullivan Papers, N. H. Hist. Soc. The Country in Danger 429 more to St. Johns, and Arnold also would be cut off". Every American in the province would surrender. Then, leaving the Canadians to guard his prisoners, Carleton would embark his troops in the bateaux, sail to Ticonder oga, march to Albany, rush down the Hudson, co-operate with Howe' s powerful army, stamp out Washington, and scatter the Conscript Fathers. No Declaration of Inde pendence could then appear ; and the only real question would be, How many insurgents to hang ? Tryon was looking for such a descent from thenorth ; General Howe was planning for it ; and the British Government ex pected it. Precisely this was the " one campaign ' which Lord George counted upon for ' putting an end to the Rebellion.'" Yet Sullivan, though he must have seen this danger, refused to be impressed by it. In the first place, he would not credit the Governor's reported numbers ; and, in the next, he assumed that his enemy would attack him at Sorel. Perhaps he argued that ships were so very convenient for the transportation of men and provisions that Carleton would not abandon his fleet ; and possibly, being a fighter himself, he could not believe that a good soldier would ignore a saucy ' rebel ' waiting for him with so big a chip on his shoulder. Should the vessels dare attack him, — Preseott's fleet had yielded to one sham battery, and Carleton's might well surrender to three real ones ; and this looked the more probable because, according to Price, nothing so deep as a frigate could pass Lake St. Peter with her burthen. Be sides, the gallant Sullivan had ' his little tincture of vanity ' and ' an over desire of being popular , ' as Washington ' § Arnold to Sullivan, June 5, 1776 : Sparks, Corres., I., p. 524. Id. to Id., June II, T776: Sullivan Papers. Carleton to Germain, June 20, 1776: Can, Arch., Q, 12, p. 64. Tryon to Germain, July 8, 1776: Pub. Rec. Off., Am. and W. I., Vol. 186, p. 735. Howe to Germain, June 7, 1776: ib.. Vol. 131, p. 423. Precis of Oper. Germain: p. 324. 430 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony had observed ; and, after his glowing reports and san guine predictions, he little cared to retreat. Ambition also had a place in his thoughts. Like Samuel Chase, he doubtless believed that ' laurels were still to be reaped in Canada ' ; and, under the veil of asking that Washington or Lee take the command there — neither of whom, as he well knew, could do so — he announced his intention to resign should any one else be set over him. This was a bid for the supremacy in that quarter, and he could not easily relinquish the prospect.'" A variety of other influences aided in stiffening him. The orders of Congress and the prayers of his countrymen awoke a loyal response in his heart. The idea of letting Carleton off" without a fight he could not bear. The danger itself nerved him; and his courage rose as the incoming tide of the Kenmore swelled past the home of his fathers. ' At all hazards,' he would stay at Sorel till a reinforceinent could arrive. ' I am determined to hold it as long as a person will stick by me, ' he promised the Commander-in-chief. Even when satisfied of Carleton's preponderance, he did not flinch. ' I now think only of a glorious death or a victory obtained against superior numbers,' he assured Schuyler." Meanwhile, the British army gathered rapidly at Three Rivers and was organized in six brigades. Almost exactly ten thousand effectives answered at roll-call, and around them buzzed a cloud of Canadians and Indians. Some holds of the* transports were opened with all speed, and a good number of field-pieces got ready for their work. Fraser set off with a strong column by land along the 1 0 § Sullivan to Sch., June 25, 1776: Bancroft Coll., Sch. MSS. Commrs. to Thomas, May 12, 1776: Emmet Coll. Wash, to Hancock, June 17, 1776: Wash., Writings (Ford), IV., p. 156. Chase to Gates, June 13, 1776 : Sparks MSS., No. 60, p. 95. Sullivan to Wash., June 7, 1776: Bancroft Coll., Rev. Papers., I., p. 93- ' ' § Sullivan to Sch., June ig, 1776: Sparks, Corres., I., p. 531 . Id. to Id., June 25, 1776: Bancroft CoU., Sch. MSS. Id. to Wash., June 12, 1776: 4 Force, VI., 1037. Sch. (quoting Sull.) to Wash., June 20, 1776: ib., 976. The British Movements 431 north shore. The rest ofthe grenadiers and light infantry embarked in the leading ships, the light artillery in the next, and then the remaining troops in their order. Ar rangements were made to have forces march by the south shore, in case that should be necessary. But a favorable wind sprang up ; from vessel to vessel the heave-ho of the capstan sang out; the anchors came slowly up loaded with the clean sand of the St. Lawrence; the sails filled; and, Thurs day afternoon, June thir teenth, the fleet passed up into Lake St. Peter, coming to off Nicolet as the breeze died away. ' We hear the enemy now firing; this will be a hot week,' wrote an American officer at Sorel, as he listened to the sig nal guns; ' we are deter mined to fight inch by inch.' But the British general had a shrewder idea than that."' At one o'clock in the morning, the wind rose again; the Rousseau transport came up, with Carleton aboard; and the fleet got under way immediately. Not long afterward, shots were heard on the shore; an express arrived; and the Governor ordered the anchors dropped, But the alarm proved nothing serious, and, in less than JAMES WILKINSON < 2 § Orders, June 12: Can. Arch., B, 83, p. 7- Numbers; Pub. Rec. Off., Am. and W. I., Vol, 290, p. 127 ; Precis of Oper. (Very likely there were m fact over 10,000, for an estimated deduction of 30 non-efiectives per regiment was made, and at this stage the estimate was probably too large.) Almon, Remembrancer, 1776, Part IL, pp. 182, 193. Carleton to Germain, June 20, 1776: Can. Arch., Q, 12, p. 64. Orders, June 14 : Can. Arch., B, 83, p. 9. Digby, Journal. Letter, June 12, 13, 1776: 4 Force, VI., 826. 432 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony an hour, the ships moved on again. Little by little, the sky flushed with grey and then with gold and crimson ; and at length full daylight revealed a splendid scene. Sixty vessels filled the eye with a cloud of white, warmed iuto loveliness by the tinge of sunrise. Their decks, clean-scoured and orderly, were populous with trained soldiers rosy with eagerness for combat. The black band of the 29th with red feathers in their hats, who looked so ^ extrornery neat,' merely fitted their surroundings. The German officers, in blue regimentals with red facings, broad lace and silver frogs, actually seemed to ' shine ' ; the English scarlet, gold-laced and gold-epauletted, posi tively did shine; and the polished muskets and cannon, sword hilts and bayonets more than shone, for they flashed. The British government, after centuries of splen did fleets and armies, called it a ' great Armament ' ; and King George himself would have been proud to look upon it.'' The soft murmur and light sparkling foam of ripples at the prow of every vessel seemed like a welcome to the expedition. The grave stillness of the dark forests that rimmed the lake; the white cottages, here dotted and there clustered at the shore; the orchards and gardens decked in their holiday June attire of pink and white ; the puffs of invisible incense breathing eddies of perfume into the soft wind ; and the faint song and chirp of countless birds, blending in a sylvan allegro, kindled the feelings and roused the spirit. Winding in and out among the wooded islands at the upper end of the lake, the vessels appeared to multiply. Nothing seemed wanting to illus trate the grandeur and power of the armament save a total contrast, — a glimpse of the low, grovelling, earth ' ' § Orders : Can. Arch., B, 83, p. 9. Digby, Joumal. Almon, Remem brancer, 1776, Part II., pp. 182, 194. Humphrey, Journal, Mav 19. Porterfield. Diary, p. 148. Pr^is of Oper. Sullivan Changes His Mind 433 ramparts at Sorel ; and finally these could be seen. The issue now stood clearly forth. It was health against sick ness, confidence against defeat, plenty against want, gold against paper, four against one ; and Sullivan's bravery, even should the enemy condescend to fight him, could only dash itself and the army to pieces. ' The destruction of a large part, if not the whole ' of the American army in Canada was the prospect that Washington saw on learning the facts.'* But SuUivan's bravery had suddenly acquired wisdom. Thompson had early pronounced Sorel untenable. St. Clair had expressed the same opinion from ' the first Moment ' he saw it. Arnold, satisfied ' by the best ac counts,' that Carleton had ten thousand men, pointed out that he would strike for the American rear, and urged an instant retreat from Sorel. The plan to incorporate Canada in the Union of Colonies, he told Sullivan, had failed. To hold a mere scrap of the country would be of ' little or no service ' ; and a battle against such a superiority would risk everything. ' I am content to be the last man who quits this Country, and fall so that my Country rise — but let us not fall all together,' he implored. Hazen and Antill gave equivalent advice. The general opinion at Sorel ran the same way ; and desertion began to show the feeling of the troops. Yet Sullivan would not stir. But at length Fraser's column was actually seen, on that Thursday, stealing along the north shore toward the rear. At night a council of war met, aud nearly all the field-officers in camp begged the General to retire. ' If you persist in occupying your present ground and any ill consequences follow, ' they said firmly, ' you alone must answer for it.' 'I § Digby, Joumal. See Knox: Parkman, Montcalm, II., p. 364. Wash. to Sch. .June 24, 1776: 4 Force, VI., 1053. 434 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony Sullivan made no reply. But he reflected; and, after meditating for some time, he answered, ' I believe you are right ; and I will iramediately order the boats to be got above the rapids.' " So, when the grand British fleet drew near the sandy beach of Sorel, all was bustle and activity behind the rusty foliage of the pine abatis. With feverish haste, wan, ragged, hungry-lookingfigures were loading cannon, stores, invalids, and arms into the bateaux. Spades were levelling the intrenchments, and, that done, they also went into the boats. Tents, camp-kettles, and every last object followed. The troops embarked and pulled away with all their might. And, one hour later — when a blue ensign, floating to the peak of a British frigate, gave the signal — a force of grenadiers and light infantry, supported by a part of Nesbitt' s brigade, rowed through the gloam ing, landed, and crunched across the shingly beach to the dismantled works." Very early the next morning more troops went ashore, and that day Burgoyne, eager to exert ' every faculty ' he possessed for the King's pleasure, began the pursuit with about four thousand men and six field-pieces. The Ameri cans, wom in heart and in body, fatigued by a desperate day's work, little refreshed by a night's repose wherever they happened to drop, and burdened with every impedi ment, well knew how little chance they had in a race with > 5 § Thompson to Wash., May 30, 1776: 4 Force, VL, 628. St. Clair to Sch., June 19, 1776; Coll. of Mr. F. A. Arnold. Amold to Sch., June 13, 1776: Sparks, Corres., I., p. 531. Id. to SuUivan, June 13, 1776 : Sparks MSS., No. 20, p. 258. Siazen to Sullivan, June 13, 1776: ib.. No. 60, p. 108. Antill to Sullivan, June 13, 1776: Cont. Cong. Papers, Letters to the Pres., A, 78, i, p. 5. Sullivan to Sch., June 19, 1776: Sparks, Corres, I., p. 531. Desertion : Hazen to Sullivan, June 13, 1776 (Sparks MSS., No. 60, p. 108). St. Clair, Narrative, p. 240. "§ References for Sullivan's retreat: Sullivan to Sch., June 19, 1776 (Sparks, Corres., I., p. 531); St. Clair, Narrative, p. 240 ; Shallus, Joumal ; Vose, Journal ; Lacey, Meraoirs, p. 222 ; Arnold to Wash., June 25, 1776 (4 Force, VI., 1107); Maxwell to Sch., June 25, 1776 (Sch. Papers) ; Wilkinson, Memoirs, I., p. 51 ; Alexander, Diary (Temple and Sheldon, Northfield, p. 326) ; Digby, Joumal; Almon, Remembrancer, 1776, Part IL, pp. 182, 193 ; Pell, Diary, p. 43 ; Carleton to Germain, June 20, 1776 (Can. Arch., Q, 12, p. 64). Orders: Can. Arch., B, 83, pp. 9, 10. The Americans Retreat 435 fresh, Hghtly weighted troops ; but they resolved to do their best. While the bateaux vexed the Richelieu with all possible speed, the shore contingent marched at an equal rate about three miles in the rear. Many tributa ries of the river crossed the highway ; and as the troops, after plunging down the little pitch leading to each of the rough bridges, hurried up the other side, they looked inquiringly back for a line of scarlet and steel." But Burgoyne did not appear. It was no part of his duty to hurry the Americans back to St. Johns. To alarm, annoy, and delay them, if he could, would be use ful ; but his orders were to hazard nothing until the rest of the army had secured its position, and the Governor sailed on as quickly as possible for Longueuil. With the breeze holding as it now blew,' he would reach that point by Saturday evening (June 15)" ; and the next morning, striking the American van at Chambly, he could also reach out for the boats waiting at St. Johns. Only one question remained : Would the breeze hold ? The weathercock was the distaff now. A puff of air more or less might decide the whole future of America. For a time the fleet sailed gaily on. The narrow St. Lawrence above Sorel was gorged with vessels. Brown's imitation battery had no effect. The crews and the troops were jubilant. But after a time the ripples at the prows died out; the pennants drooped; the sails fluttered and then flapped. The wind — truly a wind of destiny — had failed. Helms were abandoned and anchors dropped. This gave Sullivan a respite. But he needed more than a respite. Ahead of him stood Chambly Rapids, a tumbling wall of strong water, seventy-five feet in vertical " Burgoyne: see facsimile on page 437. Stone (ed.). Letters, p. 49. ' 8 Cf Carleton to Germain, June 20 (Nste 16) with Amold to Wash., June 2sCNote 16). 436 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony height. Even to go down that reeling staircase of grey- white billows was difficult and perilous. ' 'T is truly astonishing that a bateau can live in such places,' Chaplain Robbins had exclaimed. What chance, then, of ascending the falls? 'I much question,' Charles Carroll had remarked ; ' I much question whether the batteaux could be brought up.' " Fortunately, however, Sullivan understood this kind of navigation, and he was in earnest. His well-rounded, handsome, beaming face hot and dripping, his lips tightly set when they were not speeding commands, his great brown eyes lightening incessantly amid the storm of his countenance, his athletic figure hurrying from point to point, straining at a rope or bending to the wheel of a cannon, he toiled like a demigod and taught the rest how to labor Hke heroes. Some of the boats went round in Canadian carts ; and the others, hugging the shore, were drawn through the rapids with long ropes by men often ' up to their armpits in Water , ' while soldiers on board kept them off the rocks and banks with poles. In the midst of terrible heat, without a moment's rest day or night, this Herculean labor went on. At last, by the General's personal attention and exertions, as St. Clair testified, the miracle was wrought; and on Monday (June 17), about an hour after noon , murky fiames, darting into the sky from the fort and storehouses of Chambly, announced that Sullivan had completed his work. Then, with his artillery and baggage at the front and a guard to prevent any person, whether officer or man, from passing them and in that way suggesting flight, he moved on in some kind of order, and reached St. Johns that evening. The troops in pur suit, softened by their long confinement on shipboard and almost melted by the sun, had not as yet been able to "§ Dawson, N. Am., p. 302. Robbins, Joumal, Apr. 28. Carroll, Joumal, P- 94- 438 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony annoy their enemy ; but, at 9 o'clock the next moming, Burgoyne was inspecting the smoking ruins at the foot of the rapids."" Arnold, for his part, had made a tour of observation some days before, ordered Antill to fortify St. Johns, di rected Hazen to remove the valuable stores and the sick from Chambly, and then retumed to Montreal. ' I shall remain , ' he grimly notified Schuyler, ' until I have or ders to quit it, or am attacked, when it wiU be too late.'" Saturday forenoon (June 15), he sent off Captain James Wilkinson in a 12-oared bateau with despatches for Sul livan at Sorel; and the Captain, about three o'clock, as he approached Varennes, fourteen mUes below, heard a cannon boom not far away, and then another. Wondering what this could mean and landing to investigate, he found a tide of redcoats inundating the village streets and a skyful of poles growing out of the river beyond the point. Carle ton was there and the breeze had just failed him. Leaping a fence and- stealing away under cover of a thicket, Wilkinson came to the big stone windmill and found a horse at the door. Wjthout asking the owner for a saddle, he sprang instantly upon the animal's back, left his men to care for themselves, and gaUoped the dozen miles to Longueuil at fiill speed. There, he forced a Ca nadian at the point of his sword to help launch a canoe, got a paddle by the same argument, and about five o'clock burst upon Arnold at the Ch&teau with the news that his retreat was being cut off. Word having just arrived that Sullivan had left Sorel, Arnold felt firee to evacuate Mon- 20 § Amory, Sullivan, p. 9. Portraits of Sullivan, particularly one in oils in the state Library, Concord, N. H. Note particularly St. Clair, Narrative, p. 241, and Lacey, Memoirs, p. 202. Remaiik ClI. 2 1 § For evacuation and occupation of Montreal : Amold to Sch., June 13, 1776 (Sparks, Corres., I., p. 531); Id. to Sullivan, June 13, 1776 (Sparks MbS., No. 20, p. 258); Id. to Id., June 16, 1776 (Sullivan papers, N. H. Hist. Soc); Id. to Wash., June 25, 1776(4 Force, VI., 1107); Wilkinson, Memoirs, I., pp. 38, 49; Lacey, Memoirs, p. 199 ; Bayley, Narrative ; Orders, June 16 (Can. Arch., B, 83, p. 10) ; Verreau (Sanguinet), Invasion, pp. 132-134. Remailk CIII. Arnold's Precarious Situation 439 treal. In two hours, the sick, the baggage, and the garri son — reduced by this time to three hundred men — embarked in eleven bateaux ; and, in two hours more, a procession of carts, escorted by the troops, set out from Longueuil for Laprairie and St. Johns. While this was going on, Amold reflected : his retreat would be slow, the enemy must soon learn of it, the next day they would be upon him ; and, calling Wilkinson, he ordered him to find Sullivan and obtain a reinforcement. It was a dark and stormy night ; but Wilkinson discov ered a horse at the priest's door in Longueuil, mounted without asking troublesome questions, and at nine o'clock entered Chambly. Here 'the firont of our retreating army , ' he wrote in his Memoirs, 'overwhelmed with fatigue, lay scattered in disorder over the plain and buried in sleep, without a sin gle sentinel to watch for its safety.' Not halted, not even hailed, he rode through the encampment, crossed the drawbridge of the fort, and presented himself at head quarters. No slumber there, however. Depressed but determined, Sullivan, St. Clair, Maxwell, and Hazen sat planning for the morrow. The news from Varennes burst upon them Hke a shell. ' Be the Lord , ' cried Maxwell with his brave Scottish burr, ' it cannot be possible ! ' But very possible indeed it was ; and, after some discus sion, Wilkinson was directed to find Woedtke, who com manded the rear, and give him the order to detach five hundred men for Arnold. It was then raining torrents, but the Captain set out. Every house, every cabin, every bam and hut along the road were filled with soldiers, 'men without officers and officers without men,' all plunged in deep gloom ; but nobody could direct him to the Baron. Demoralization seemed complete ; the army was no more. At length, discovering a vacant spot on a 440 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony filthy fioor, Wilkinson threw himself down and fell asleep. At daybreak, he began his quest again ; and, meeting Lieutenant-Colonel Allen of the Second Pennsylvanians, a brave, active officer," he inquired for Woedtke. ' No doubt the beast is drunk and in front ofthe army,' was the reply ; ' but Col. Wayne is in the rear, and if any one can do it, he is the man.' In half an hour the hero of Three Rivers appeared, ' as much at his ease as if he were marching to a parade of exer cise,' thought Wilkinson ; and — quite of Allen's opinion about the Baron — he promptly accepted the commission. A guard was posted at the next bridge. It halted men without reference to their regiments ; and, in less than an hour, the needed corps was cheerfuUy marching off, ready to fight old Carleton and all his bloody -backs, or for that matter the devil himself, should he be in company. There might no longer be an army, but there were stiU men. Fortunately, two miles on they met an express, and learned that Amold now felt himself out of danger. Breaking down the bridges and felling trees across the road, he passed safely to St. Johns on Simday (June i6), and none of these gallant fellows that marched out with Mad Anthon}^ had to spiU a drop of their heroic blood. Just before leaving Canada, Chase, foreseeing the evac uation ofthe countrj-, had urged Schuyler to send aU the vessels and boats he possibly could to St. Johns ; but Ar nold, ou reaching that point, received notice this had not been done. Congress, determined to hold on, had ordered six thousand militia sent north, and the boats were de tained above for their transportation. The instructions to fortify St. Johns had not been carried out, — doubtless because they could not be. By Monday evening, SulU van 's army was there; exhausted, defenceless, and, in spite 2 2 chase to Gates, June 13, 1776: Sparks MSS., No. 60, p. 95. The Denouement 441 of all that its leaders could do, confused ' beyond descrip tion .' ; and the next day found Carleton, Fraser, and Bur goyne focusing upon it and not far away. Burgoyne had the lead, with men enough at his back to ruin the Ameri cans. All the bridges above Chambly had been destroyed, but he rebuilt them rapidly. For a while, Sullivan's rear guard was supposed to be an attacking column, and prepa rations to receive it caused a delay ; but, something like two miles from St. Johns, the mistake was discovered, and three companies of light infantry were ordered on at the double quick." A little distance ahead, two men sat calmly on their horses and reconnoitred the British advance. These were Arnold aud Wilkinson. Presently they turned and gal loped back to St. Johns. Warned by Colonel Poor of the real situation, Schuyler had concluded to send the boats. A council of war had resolved unanimously to give up the place. The sick and the well had embarked. Artillery, stores, baggage, and every individual scrap of American property there — even to the last dull axe — had been loaded in. Colonel Hazen had crossed the river and set fire to his own mansion. The fort also was in flames. Arnold looked about him : not a thing remained to do. He and Wilkinson then shot their horses and tossed the saddles and bridles into the waiting boat. Bidding an af fectionate farewell to Chief Louis of Caughnawaga, the one inhabitant of Canada waiting to say good-bye, Arnold ordered all hands on board, and, pushing the boat off him self, sprang into the stem. Before it was fairly out of musket range, the British van charged swiftly into St. Johns." 23 § Chase to Sch., May 31, 1776: Sparks MSS., No. 60, p. 90 ; Arnold to Sulli van, June 16, 1776 : Sullivan Papers, N. H. Hist. Soc. Militia: Journ. Cong., June I ; SulUvan to Sch., June 19, 1776 (Sparks, Corres., I., p. 531). Cushing, Joumal. Carleton to Germain, June 20, 1776; Can. Arch., Q, 12, p. 64. Id. to Fraser, June 17, 1776: ib., B, 39, pp. 11, 12. (Letters, ib., pp. 13-18, throw further light on the British movements.) Digby, Journal. 2'' § Sch. to Wash., June 20, 1776: 4 Force, VI., 975. Sullivan to Sch., June 442 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony At that moment, Eorimier with a gang of the redskins was hurrjdng toward a narrow place in the river ab.ove. But he arrived too late ; and, as the night fell (June i8), the last of the Americans in Canada rowed silently and sadly for Nut Island. The wall of pines and firs on the right threw upon the river a pavement of shadows, wider and deeper every moment, broken into where the Ameri cans had camped the j-ear before, and touched at intervals by a glance from the sunset sky darted almost straight across it. Here and there a bat, hunting the swarms of hovering insects, winged his restless, distracted flight like the soul of a lost hope, and now and then an owl, deep in the forest, cried a sepulchral ' "Who ? Who ? ' like the challenge of a Stygian sentry; but of the British nothing was seen and nothing heard . As Napoleon meanly said of Moreau's escape through the "Vallej' of Hell, it was only a retreat ; but a retreat like Moreau's or SuUivan's is a triumph. °' 'The Troops halt tomorrow,' read Carleton's general order the next day, for without boats he could not pursue; but the Americans had foes that would not stop. The plight of the sick, thrown hastily on the island so that the boats could go back for more, made Dr. Mej'rick weep till he could weep no longer ; and the well seemed hardly less to be pitied. After the frightful exertions of the past few days, they were ' almost weried to Death.' Mey- rick thought the men who rowed him firom St. Johns ' would fall from their seats. ' The malarial air of the island found them just ready for its germs. The camp- 19, 1776: Note 23. Id. to Wash., July 2, 1776: 4 Force, VI., 1219. Bayley, Narrative. Wilkinson, Memoirs, I., p. 54. Vose, Joumal. St. Clair, Narrative, p. 242. Lacey, Memoirs, p. 202. Amold to Wash., June 25, 1776: 4 Force, VI., rio7. Cushing, Joumal. Meyrick to Trumbull, June i, 1836: Trumbull, Auto biog., p. 299. Alexander, Diarj- ; Temple and Sheldon, Northfield, p. 326. Letter, July 3, 1776: 4 Force, VI., 1252. Carleton to Germain, June 20, 1776: Can. Arch., Q, 12, p. 64. 25 § Verreau (Lorimier), Invasion, p. 284. Cushing, Joumal. .Scammell to Bishop, June 2, 1776: Hist. Mag., Sept., 1870. The bat and owl are inferential. Remark CIV. ^"^yl^yC^^!^^ y^^ ^'^^**-^ -fe^l^^=^ ii" ^ -^ yr^ FROM A MEMORANDUM BY SAMUEL ADAMS, AUQ. 1, 1776 443 444 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony disorder struck down one quarter of the army within forty-eight hours ; and the small-pox, ' in its most viru lent and deadly form,' laid low 'whole regiments in the course of a few days,' as SuUivan himself reported. There were not enough tents for the sick, and no boards to make shelters. Salt pork and flour — a part of the time salt pork alone, and some of that rancid — made up the list of delicacies. Medicines gave out, and doctors also. ' Oh the Groans of the Sick ! ' cried Bayze Wells ; and in many and many a case the groans had one and the same end. All day long the dead-pits were open ; and this poor body after that, lying mute and stiU in its rags on a dirty blanket, passed down to an unknown grave ' without a sie from a Friend or relative, or a single morner to follow it.' Unable to bear such ' scenes of horror ' longer with out a respite, several excellent officers deHberately sat down together 'in good Earnest,' and calmly drank themselves insensible. ' This wretched Army, now per haps the most pitiful one that ever was formed,' its commander described it.''" The council of war had advised a complete withdrawal to Crown Point, and that was the only sensible course. Not only had Nut Island little to recommend it as a place of residence, but the British could plant small field-pieces on the shores above it in a little while, and cut off the army's communications. Yet Sullivan, stiU haunted by the point of honor, declared that he ' could not ' retreat farther on his own responsibility with men able to do dutj^; and, sending Amold to Schuyler for orders, he busied himself in reconnoitring Iron Point, transporting the .sick to the upper end of the lake, and assisting the people near him to move beyond reach of the enemy. As 2' § Order: Can. Arch, B, 83, p. IO. Lacey, Memoirs, pp. 202-206. Meyrick. etc.: Trumbull, Autobio.g., pp. 27, 28, 299. SulUvan to Wash., June 24, 1776: 4 Force, VI., 1220. Arnold to Sch., June 13, 1776: Sparks, Corres., I., p. 529. Wells, Joumal, etc., p. 267. Sullivan to Wash., June 24, 1776: 4 Force, VL, 1220. Three Phases 445 promptly as possible, the orders to withdraw came ; and, during the first days of July, the wreck ofthe army gath ered itself painfully and pitifully at Crown Point, humili ated, woe-begone, and utterly demoralized. ' A truly melancholy scene,' lamented Governor Trumbull. Three thousand able to crawl and as many sick were all that re mained. For the rest of the brave fellows who had sailed into the north so hopefully, no living man would under take to account." Up to this point, then, our endeavor to win Canada has run through several distinct phases, each with its own chance of success. What Samuel Adams despatched Brown to inaugurate, was a campaign of political agitation and enlightenment. That could not possibly have brought Canada into the Union. The British element there counted too small a number, was too divided in sentiment, and had interests too much threatened by the commercial policy of the Colonies ; while the Canadians, besides lacking political tastes, experience, and knowledge, had too little education to profit much from pamphlets or even speeches. After the capture of Ticonderoga, the campaign became both political and military ; and in this form it ought not to have failed. ' More decision and force on the part of either Congress or General Schuyler might clearly have ensured the capture of Quebec during the summer or the autumn. The elimination of any one of a series of mis chances would probably have enabled Arnold to accom plish his mission. Only a succession of accidents prevented 2' § SuUivan to Wash., June 19, 1776 : Sparks, Corres., I., p. 531. Sch. to ¦Sullivan, June 20, 25, 1776: Sullivan Papers, N. H. Hist. Soc. Arnold to Wash., June 25, 1776: 4 Force, VI., 1107. SuUivan to Sch., June 24, 1776: ib., 1201. Cushing, Joumal. Porter, Diary. Lacey: Note 26. Shallus, Joumal. Mey rick, etc.: Trumbull, Autobiog., pp. 28,299. S. Adams, Mem., Aug. i, 1776: S. Adams Papers. Trumbull to Williams, July 26, 1776 : Hinman, Conn., p. 560. Sullivan to Cont. Cong., July 2, 1776: Cont. Cong. Pap., 160, p. 15. J. Adams, July 7, ,776: Smith, Pittsfield, I., p. 261. Spy: July 11, 1776: Can. Arch., B. 181, p. 10. Robbins, Journal. Bayley, Narrative. Wilkinson, Memoirs, I., p. 61. Remabk cv. 446 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony the assault from carrying the Lower Town, and very possibly — not to assert more — that would have won the whole. Had Quebec fallen during 1775, in all likelihood Canada would have sent delegates to the Continental Congress ; and, had it fallen before the end of November, she would almost infallibly have done so. It has been said that the Canadians and Americans could not have fraternized ; but the scenes at Chambly and St. Johns, in the Chaudiere valley, before Quebec, and at Aspen Point disproved this theory by substantial facts. There were peculiar and powerful influences just then and there to weld the two peoples. The Canadians had leamed to be guided in political affairs by Saxon Protestants rather than by French priests. The mass of Colonials feared ' papists ' not fi'om hatred to any mys tical theory of transubstantiation or devotion to any particular exegesis of a text about keys, but from a vivid recollection of thumb-screws and iron boots, confisca tions and auto-da-fes. It was, in short, the political aspects of the Roman Church they abhorred ; and the Canadians, abjuring clerical guidance in temporal affairs to espouse the principles of English liberty, not only ceased to excite alarm, but became peculiarly interesting and appealing. Sooner or later, the priests were doubt less to recover their ascendancy ; but, if the Americans- had prospered, this would not have come to pass until after the political attitude of Canada had been determined. Had the capture of Quebec and the complete expulsion of the British troops occurred in time to swell the rising tide of Canadian confidence, giving it no chance to ebb,. the people would almost certainly have reached the stage anticipated by Mr. Bondfield, and become ' so deeply engaged in the present contest as to render their vigorous exertion acts of necessity and self defence.' " And Great 2 8 Bondfield to R. Morris, Feb. 4, 1776: N.Y. Hist. Soc. CoU., 1878, p. 399. 'fi II T 4 m a i .\ l\' ^'|1 f J ^ Tit 448 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony Britain, seeing this, might have chosen tp abandon an alien, costly," and undervalued province, which she had probably thought of letting France reoccupy. Had she chosen the opposite course, the adhesion of the Canadians might not have enabled the Americans to hold that province during the war. Even if, as has been represented on the other side of this proposition, Canada possessed fifteen thousand fighting men, it is certain that no levee en masse would actuaUy have taken place. In 1779, the United States had 435,000 men ofthe military age; yet in 1781, when the country needed every ounce ofits power, only 29,340 soldiers — militia in cluded — took the field.'" Besides, the great majority of the Canadian volunteers would have been young and in experienced; and they wouldhave evinced no greater con stancy than the men of 1759. There would not have been time to organize an army capable of meeting the British strength which arrived in May. Once driven from the province, the Americans would not have been likely to force its doors against the guards Britain would have established; and — even had they done so — they could not have made it impossible for her naval power to go up the St. Lawrence. Yet, had the Canadians once taken the American side emphatically, a considerable number of men would have enlisted, and these would have been forced, like Hazen's regiment," to find a refuge in the States. The British government would have been compelled to treat the people as traitors instead of truants, with steel instead of birch ; and the fear of this or its consequences would have sent manv more across the border. All these refu- 2 9 CoflBn, Quebec Act, pp. 362, 363. ^0 Fiske, Critical Period, p. 102. 3' Hazen, Memorial, Apr. 8, 1783; Cont. Cong. Papers, 42, III., p. 45' ; N. H. State Papers, XVIII., p. 911. In the later Chapters will be found much to confirm this paragraph. The Third Stage 449 gees would have proved cords of union, and they would have kept open and rankling every wound inflicted in Canada by British severity. The expense and annoy ance of holding the country — great even as matters turned — would have been, under such conditions, im mense. They would have taxed and wearied the gov ernment; the chance of making the province loyal and peaceable would have seemed remote ; and, when the war ended, even if British troops held Quebec, England might perhaps have surrendered Canada quite as cheerfully as New York. After Montgomery fell, the Canadians in general were regarded as doubtful, indifferent, even hostile. The cam paign became then almost purely military; and this, how ever it should turn, was doomed to failure. In other words, to capture Quebec in April would have been profit less, for the confidence and friendship of the people had then been chilled, and they could not possibly have been warmed again in time to co-operate. Here one does not have to theorize about what might have been. Carle ton's despatches at the end of November fixed the policy of Great Britain for the ensuing year, so far as Canada was concerned. A powerful expedition for its recovery was ordered and was sent; and its arrival, while the Canadians were still outside the American Union, was sure to determine their attitude. In fact, the capture of Quebec in April would have proved a misfortune, for it must have tended to commit the Colonies to a struggle where their money would not circulate and the people were not in their interest. The battering train" in Burgoyne's transports would almost certainly have driven the Americans from any works they were then able to raise at Deschambault ; or. 3 2 A. Lee to Franklin, Feb. 13, 1776: 4 Force, IV., 1 125 ; Germain to Carleton, Feb. 17, 1776: Can. Arch., Q, 12, p. i. VOL. II.— 29. 450 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony had it not, the mere cost of carrying on a war at arm's length would have exhausted the poor, feebly organized, and inexperienced military administration of the young States. Their only chance of success lay in a tedious de fensive contest, with distances, difficulties of the ground, popular feeHng, the in- ^ stinct and necessity of r/trAt* (^fjt&yytJ self-defence, the gran- ^^ anes and the looms all working in their favor. In a sense, then, one phase of the campaigns for Canada — the third — succeeded ; for the only possible success at that stage was to fail. The collapse of so glorious an expectation and the fail ure of so costly an effort stirred the Colonial leaders pro foundly. Many, to be sure, found comfort in Sullivan's brilliant retreat. Under the circumstances, this was " a most fortunate event,' maintained Washington with his invincible constancy. 'We have got out of Canada pretty well considering the situation we was in, ' reflected Colonel Greaton cheerfuUy. Some braced themselves without looking for compensations. 'We ought to be pre pared in our minds for greater changes and more melan choly scenes still, ' proclaimed John Adams gran(Uy ; while the pious Trumbull urged that the disappointment should be received 'with that steadiness and fortitude which becomes the soldier and the Christian, who be lieves that Heaven will never forsake the cause that is just.' But others felt a chagrin too deep to bear. ' The subject is disgusting to me — I will dismiss it,' cried Samuel Adams, though dismiss it he could not." All joined, however, in John Adams's outburst, ' For 3 3 §Wash. to Hancock, June 30, 1776: Wash., Writings (Ford), IV., p. 196. Greaton to Heath, July 31, 1776: Heath Papers, I. J. Adams, July 26, 1776: 4 Force, VI., 1083. TrumbuU to Sch., June 28, 1776; ib., 1126. S. Adams to Haw ley, July 9, 1776: S. Adaras Papers. Causes of the Failure 45 1 God's sake explain to me the causes ! ' And many tried, with honest hearts, to find them. A committee of Congress, appointed for that purpose, named short enli'st- ments, the lack of hard money, and the small-pox. Sam uel Adams, though he dared not state what he took to be the real difficulty, suggested that ' Our secret Enemies had found Means to sow the Seeds of Discord and Fac tion there.' To Jefferson, the want of gold and silver, the pestilence, and an unlucky choice of officers, explained the sad outcome. ' Pray did not opening the trade to the upper country and letting loose the tories bring upon us so many disasters ? ' demanded John Adams ; while at another time he traced the misfortune partly ' to the indecision of Philadelphia and partly to the mistakes or misconduct of our officers in that department. ' Whoever has followed the events carefully has observed every one of these causes and some others ; and at the bottom of nearly all, except the small-pox and personal errors, he has found what the President of Congress laid bare : ' We were compelled, unprepared, hastily to take up the weapons of self-preservation, and have, consequently, had numberless difficulties to struggle with ; of which the expedition into Canada has been a continued scene. ' " Yet America had reason to congratulate itself upon the northern campaigns. Only the invasion of Canada pre vented Carleton from regaining the command of Lake Champlain, rolling up a substantial force and coming south in 1775 ; and the effect of such a movement upon the situation in that year and the next would have been serious, perhaps decisive. The invasion did still more. It caused a division ofthe British strength, which other- 3 4 § J. Adams to Sullivan, June 23, 1776 : Works, IX., p. 407. Journ. Cong., July 30, 1776. S. Adaras to J. Hawley, July 9, 1776: S. Adams Papers. Jefferson to Fleming, July i, 1776: Jeff., Writings (Ford), II., p. 39. J. Adams to Bul lock, July 1 , 1776: Works, IX., p. 414. Hancock to Sch., Apr. 26, 1776 : 4 Force, v., 1086. ^ f ..X I' ,\p 4>^ s < oI- 5 < I Reasons for Satisfaction 453 wise would very Ukely have been concentrated .against us, as a wedge of steel, at New York. This, to be sure, might hafve proved a doubtful advantage, had the north ern British army succeeded in coming down by the Hudson. But that, as will presently appear, the war in Canada prevented." Other advantages, also, ripened on the same thorny tree. The early successes at the north inspirited the patriots and attracted volunteers to the ranks. The bright instances of heroism set an example for the Americans, and ennobled them in the eyes of the world. The martyrs' blood was seed for the cause. Even the common people, who seldom perceive a principle until it strikes them, came to realize the value of discipline and the evil of short enlistments. The idea that officers ought to manage affairs after the manner of a caucus gave way in Congress to a saving belief in authority. '° The meaning of war and some knowledge of its methods got abroad, as they could not firom a mere fight like Bunker Hill or a mere investment like that round Boston. Many volunteers had time to graduate as veterans. Many clever, preten tious rogues, who had got into uniforms for the sake of the buttons, the sword, and the epaulettes, were sternly sifted out ; and sterUng officers had a chance to show themselves and qualify before the real tussle began. The manufacture of munitions and equipments gained a start. In short, the Canada struggle was a dress rehearsal for the war. It revealed weak points ; it made plain some things that could be done and some that could not ; and perhaps its failure was a schooling that made the Revolu tion succeed. Politically, it created a compulsive common interest and 3 s Remark CVI. See also the next Chapter. 3« Chase to Gates, June 13, 1776: Sparks MSS., No. 60, p. 95. 454 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony helped evolve the nation in several other ways : particu larly two. The first was internal. At the beginning of the north ern campaigns. Colonies addressed one another almost as foreign states. Repeatedlyduring their stress, trouble, and disappointments, provincial jealousies, jibes, and accusa tions did great and evident mischief; but at its close, before the real war began, the Congress instructed Schuyler ' to recommend, in the strongest terms, harmony between the officers and troops of the different states ; to discounte nance and suppress all provincial reflections and ungener ous jealousies of every kind, and to promote, by every possible means, discipline, order, and zeal in the public service.' This was a lesson not too dearly learned." ExtemaUy, the war in Canada helped lead a confused agitation to its logical goal. One after another, step by step, a series of exigencies not met with at Cambridge drew Congress and the country toward a plain issue : in dependence or subjection. Events in Canada taught that the army must have a flag and the Colonies must have constitutions. ' Our Declaration of Independence has given Vigor to the Spirits of the People,' wrote Samuel Adams ; ' Had this decisive Measure been taken Nine Months ago it is my Opinion that Canada would now have been in our hands. ' ' Had a declaration of Inde pendency been made seven months ago,' declared his cousin, John, ' we should have mastered Quebec, and been in possession of Canada. ' What these men felt so strongly in July, 1776, they and others must have fore seen long before. Joseph Hawley, for one, on hearing of the flight from Quebec, exclaimed : ' Will your Congress now delay for a Moment the most explicit declaration of independence ? ' And the fact that such leaders understood 3 ' Joum. Cong., July 19, 1776. RICHARD, VISCOUNT HOWE 455 A Sublime Choice 457 what aid this measure would give, tended to bring it about." While Sullivan's routed army lay gasping at Nut Island in the last extremity of wretchedness, while defeat and gloom seemed to overwhelm the patriot cause, Rich ard, Viscount Howe, parading grandly in ' His Majes ty's Ship, the Eagle, off the coast of the Province of Massachusetts Bay, ' flung broadly to the wind ' free and general pardons to all those who in the tumult and disorder of the times might have deviated from their just allegiance, and who were willing, by a speedy return to their duty, to reap the benefits ofthe Royal favour.'" Could sane men, with two such pictures before their eyes — the wretched failure and the easy escape — could sane men dream of rejecting the King's offer and defying the power of Great Britain ? Dr. Senter, who had watched the long series of ' most peculiar and unparalleled rebuffs and sufferings ' firom the Kennebec toMon treal andfirom Montreal to Nut Island, con cluded his Joumal in these words : ' Thus ended an ex pedition of nine months continuance, the ill success of which in any other cause would have induced us to have renounced the principles. ' It was not a shrewd calcul ation of self-interest but devotion to a cause that controlled the hearts of the patriots, and therefore no thought of surrender could be entertained. This gave immense dig nity to the attitude of America. But the circumstances of the hour added vastly to its dignity. To challenge Great Britain, even under a sunny sky, for the sake of an ideal, would have been grand ; to do that under the cloud of July 4, 1776, was sublime. Were there nothing else to say for those campaigns in Canada, as a background for the 3 8 See pp.64, 328. S. Adaras to R.H.Lee, July 15, 1776: S. Adams Papers. J. Adams to Mrs. Adams, July 3, 1776: Works, IX., p. 419. Hawley to S. Adams, May 22. 1776; S. Adams Papers. 39 Howe, June 20, 1776: 4 Force, VI. , looi. 458 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony Declaration of Independence they were fully worth what they cost. And their significance reached farther. In spite of many human frailties displayed in the struggle, the lofty patriot ism, the keen intelligence, the bold initiative, the daunt less courage, and the splendid fortitude exhibited there made it a fit prologue of our whole national career ; while, as if in retum, the bell of the first glorious Fourth rang in a new era, not only for the cause of self-government, but for the hopes of those — and they were not few — who still dreamed of securing Canada. xxxv FROM THE SUBLIME TO GENERAL GATES ^T TNTIL that,' cried the venerable Joseph Hawley LJ when praying for a declaration of independence; ' Until that the Continent will never act compactly and with vigor — but will entertain thoughts of returning back into Egypt — until that the Tories will look with hopes and some assurance— until that the Conclusions and re solves of your Congress will be languid and like a lamp burning in a cold damp Vault.' And now the glorious Declaration had beeu fiung to the free winds.' What the campaign in the north had suffered from the im pediments that Hawley pointed out, measured how greatly the cause was to profit by this change ; and other gains also could be expected. The army would have a flag now, — the flag of a great and popular hope. The Canadians could be offered something precious and inspiring, — self- government and partnership in a nation. The Colonies, no longer kneeling at the foot of a contemptuous throne but appealing as a firee, brave people to the admiration and sympathy of generous humanity,^ were sure to win aid for the emancipation of the fourteenth as well as the thirteen. Indeed, they themselves had now more rea son than ever to labor for it, since — if they became inde pendent — the northern province must be either a support ' § Hawley to S. Adams, May 22, 1776 : S. Adams Papers. 2 E. g., Doniol, La F., p. 15 ; Id., Particip., I., p. 632. 459 460 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony or a menace, either a partner or a possible foe, not merely during the settlement of a quarrel with England but for many years, perhaps forever. ' Canada, Canada is the Object,' exclaimed Hawley himself when begging for the Declaration. First, however, the retort expected from the very hour Ticonderoga was seized, had to come and be met. Carle ton's pursuit of the Americans halted perforce on the shore at St. Johns, but he began at once his preparations ' to retum the visit of the rebels,' as he pleasantly phrased it.' When Lieutenant Pringle went over to England, the November before, the Governor had enjoined very ur gently upon him to call for ' a number of flat bottomed Boats, and materials prepared and ready to be joyned to gether, with all their apparatus for rigging, arming &c ' ; and that officer obeyed his orders with great zeal and thoroughness. ' Representations ' were made to the Ad miralty for ' a number of armed ships drawing little water ' ; and, as that Board had no such vessels to send, steps were taken to find them. By the first of April, they were reported as ' nearly fitted out. ' * The Governor, however, not venturing to take any thing for granted, bent all his power toward the building of a fleet. The next day after his army halted, he re quested Commodore Douglas to have ' every means' em ployed in forwarding materials for ' armed vessels ' to sail 3 Carleton to Hamilton, July 19, 1776: Can. Arch., B, 39, p. 76. The para graphs that follow, dealing with the invasion ofthe Colonies by Carleton and Burgoyne, do not properly belong in this work, for the people of Canada had only the most incidental connection with the operations ; but it has seemed desirable to insert them as ' connective tissue.' The author has used many original documents, but has not undertaken to investigate matters thoroughly, and gives references in special cases only. * § Carleton to Germain, Sept. 28, 1776: Can. Arch., Q, 12, p. 188. Id. to Phillips, Nov. 18, 1776: Can. Arch., B, 39, p. 258. Robinson to Burgoyne, Mar. 29, 1776: Can. Arch., B, 38, p. 41. Sept. 26, 1776, Carleton reported that ten boats and raaterials for building fourteen one-gun boats had arrived. These were evi dently very little toward gaining control of Lake Champlain. Besides a fight ing navy, it was necessary to construct boats for the transportation of troops. "^V ^Ay/i/Za^ XU Z^!^^*' - *^**^ ^**/:^^y^/yt^,c-y*»y — y^^^y»** -^ 2-yi^j&.e^y y^f^CL^^iL^ yiCtyry»^^ym^f^^ y^-*-< - AC 3^^ rf?5«*^— >V^ ^yry y ^ .^^r y j ^ y^'^y^ ^y . , , x'Vr r«4 ^ FROM A MEMORANDUM BY SAMUEL ADAMS, AUQ. 1, 1776. 461 462 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony the lake and in sending men to work them up. Cool though he was, he confessed his ' impatience in this, so essential, point.' Artisans were drafted from all depart ments of the service, wherever found ; a squad arrived by water at Quebec ; and General Phillips, Commodore Douglas, and the rest did their all to advance the work. There was 'a prodigious deal to execute,' as the Govemor found ; materials could not easily be obtained ; rhany of the workmen fell sick ; but at length, on the twenty- eighth of September, Carleton found himself able to an nounce, ' I expect our fleet will soon sail. ' ' On the other side, equal efforts were made. Before the fleeing Americans reached Crown Point, Arnold pro nounced it ' of the utmost importance that the Lakes be immediately secured by a large number (at least twenty or thirty) of gondolas, row-galleys, and floating-batteries.' ' His advice was followed as well as it could be ; Arnold himself took command of the fleet ; and, early in Septem ber, a line of American vessels, moored across the outlet of Lake Champlain, permitted not so much as a bateau, hailing from the north, to ruffle its liquid glass. Appar ently the Americans meant fight. Carleton saw he must reckon upon that ; and priceless days were spent by the British in preparing to meet them. At last, not only was the fieet ready to sail, but in the weight and also in the number of available guns, it had the superiority.' Amold, for his part, studied the situation with masterly insight. What were his vessels good for ? To beat the British, if possible, but at all events to delay them ; for ' § Carleton to Douglas, June 21, 1776: Can. Arch., B, 39, p. 29. Id. to Id. July 3, 1776 : ib., p. 55. Id. to Germain, Aug. 15 ; Sept. 28, 1776: Can. Arch., Q, 12, pp. 170, 188. Id. to Cramahfi, Aug. 27, 1776 : Can. Arch., B, 39, p. 116. * The exact distinctions between these three kinds of vessels are not fully understood. The galleys appear to have been larger and quicker than the gondolas: see Mahan, Scribner's Mag., Feb., 1898, p. 150. ' § Amold to Wash., June 25, 1776: 4 Force, VI., 1107. Gates to Cont. Cong.. July 29, 1776: 5 Force, I., 649. Amold to Gates, Sept. 7. 1776 : s Force, II. , 223. -arleton to Germain, Sept. 28, 1776: Note 5. The Americans Resolve to Stand Fast 463, a check signified a victory. Already the season was late, and soon the campaign must end. Horatius-at-the-Bridge represented the correct policy, then. Vessels and men should be hurled at the enemy and all sacrificed without hesitation, if need be, to gain time. Yet not a point was to be thrown away ; and the ad miral, after exploring and refiect- ing, decided to station his fieet in the strait between Valcour Island and the New York shore, near the lower end of the lake. Should the enemy attack him there from the north, a knob in the middle of the passage might catch a vessel or two ; while, should they sail past the long, high screen of the island, not aware the Americans lay behind it, and attack from the south, they would have the wind more or less against them. It was the second chance that befell ; and, on the eleventh of October, Carleton's fleet, discovering its enemy after passing the island, sailed back as well as it could and brought as much as possible of its force to bear. A single one of his vessels — the square-rigged Inflexible, carried to St. Johns in sections from the St. Lawrence — was probably more than a match, in a good wind, for everything Ar nold had ; but she could not work effectively until late in the day. A schooner, however, and a flotilla of gunboats got soon within half-musket range, and, like dwarfs bat tling for the prize of titans, the two little fleets hammered one another for hours. Arnold's principal vessel — the Royal Savage, captured at St. Johns — ran aground at the beginning of the action, and was taken by the enemy. His men were mostly a 'very indifferent lot,' in need of 464 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony shoes and stockings, breeches and blankets, hats and caps, and there had not been powder enough to practise often with the heavy guns ; whereas the British had been able to draw firom a large fleet, from an army of regulars, and from overflowing magazines. On his own 'galley, Amold found it necessary to point most ofthe guns himself. Yet the Americans bravely stood to their work, and played a noble prelude to Macdonough' s glorious fight at Cumber land Head (1814). 'The cannonade was tremendous,' testified Riedesel. Arnold's galley was hulled a dozen times, and seven shot struck her between wind and water. A second vessel lost every officer but the captain. A third sank.' Toward evening, the British drew back for a better spring the next moming, anchoring in a line firom the island to the mainland. But, when darkness had arrived, bring ing with it a mist, the American fleet silently got under way, passed the British Une without detection, and saUed south until its hurts compelled it to halt for repairs. On the thirteenth, Carleton and his mortified comrades, favored by the wind, overtook the fugitives. A hopeless running fight ensued ; and after some hours, finding him self at the end of his cable, Amold ran five of his vessels into a creek, set them afire, watched them bum with their colors flying, and then retreated by land ; whUe the re maining five of his original fifteen, less closely pursued, managed to reach Crown Point. Some of the Americans thought it a shame to break so beautiful an egg merely for the sake of an omelet. It was an excellent fieet, groaned Maxwell, till Arnold, 8 § For the naval campaign, see paticularly Mahan : Scribner's Mag., Feb. 1898, p. 150. Amold'saccount of the battle at Valcour Id.: 5 Force, II., 1038. Carleton'sreports ofthetwobatUes:Can. Arch., B, 39, pp. 218,219; Q, 12, p. 224. Indifferent: Arnold to Gates, Sept. 7, 1776: Sparks MSS., No. 52, II., p. 45- Id. told., Oct. 10; Sept. 21, 1776; 5 Force, III., 932, 440. Carleton to Douglas, June 28, 1776: Cat.. Arch., B, 39, p. 35. 465 MOUNT DEFIANCE AND UPPER LAKE CHAMPLAIN SEEN FROM TICONDEROGA. Burgoyne Invades the Colonies 467 ' our evil genius to the north ... got us clear ' of it. But Carleton understood the case better. About a week after the stmggle ended— if not before— he realized that his army could accomplish nothing in the Colonies that season. He pushed on, indeed, occupied Crown Point, and sent for tools to build quarters there ; but all that he counted upon was to draw the attention of the Americans, ' and keep back part of their force from General Howe. ' This done, so far as possible, he returned to Canada early in November ; and Lord George Germain's great hope of seeing him strike hands with the New York army fell to the ground.' But the fleet and the troops were still there ; and the _first_day_of July, 1777, saw a commander setting out from Crown Point for the south, whom every lady driving in St. James Street would have pronounced the ideal soldier: a man that believed in gallantry instead of humdrum study, relied on spirit rather than prosy knowledge, and seemed so much a general that he had little strength left to be one. It was General Burgoyne, of course ; or, as he described himself, 'John Burgoyne, Esquire, Lieutenant-General of His Majesty's forces in America, Colonel of the Queen's regiment of Light Dragoons, Governour of Fort William in North Britain, one of the Commons of Great Britain in Parliament, and command ing an army and fleet employed on an expedition firom Canada ' ; and, as one column of scarlet moved against the ' rebels ' at Ticonderoga, while another moved against the new Fort Independence on the opposite side of the lake, and a line of floating batteries swept the water, he flung a decisive watchword to the breeze : ' This army must not retreat.' Victory was now assured.'" ' § Maxwell to Gov. Liv., Oct. 20, 1776: 5 Force II., 1143. Carleton to Ger main, Nov. 17, 1776: Can. Arch., Q, 12, p. 236. id. to Burgoyne, Oct. 14, 1776; Can. Arch., B, 39, p. 216. Id. to Howe, Oct. 20, 1776: ib., p. 224. Id. to Germain, Sept. 28, 1776: Can. Arch., Q, 12, p. 188. ' " § For Burgoyne's campaign, see Burgoyne, State of the Expedition, etc. , 468 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony General Gates, who had commanded at the lake in the previous autumn, had considered Mt. Defiance — which overlooked both forts — inaccessible, and therefore had left it unfortified. Naturally the British now dragged cannon to the summit ; the poor little force of Americans had to flee as best they could; and Burgoyne went south to Skenesborough in pursuit. Here came a pause. Gen eral Schuyler at Fort Edward, after gathering the fugi tives, could muster less than 4,500 men fit for duty, while Burgoyne had nearly 8,000. But he appealed to nature. Houses were abandoned, pro visions carried away, cattle driven off, pastures and fields tumed into ponds or mo rasses, bridges torn down, roads destroyed, trees felled. Burgoyne's wise policy was to go back and take the water-route by Lake George. But no ! ' This army must not retreat,' — must not even seem to retreat, for to Bur goyne seeming meant a great deal; and in twenty-four days his soldiers, exhausted with toil, melted by the heat, and drunk up bj^ the insects, made twenty-six miles. Nature, then as ever, was on the side of liberty. On the British left, Baum soon found himself in a closing circle of fire at Bennington, and the people learned how easy it really was to beat the regulars. On the right, Gansevoort at Fort Schuyler— threatened, Uke Butter- NE YORK( particularly p. 17 ; Burgoyne, Orderly Book ; Hadden, Journal ; Riedesel, Letters ; Letters of Brunswick and Hessian Officers ; I. N. Arnold, B. Amold ; the standard histories ; Can. Arch., Q, 13 and 14 ; etc. The literature is very extensive. His titles : Thacher, Mil. Joumal, p. 97. Burgoyne's Failure 469 field at the Cedars, with Indian vengeance — indignantly refused to yield, and, aided by a Herkimer instead of a Sherburne and by the same Amold that had stopped Foster at Lachine, proved, by routing St. Leger, what Bedel might have done. More fatal, perhaps, than either ofthese misfortunes, Burgoyne's Indian allies atrociously murdered poor Jane McCrea, and in a moment the name of an obscure girl became a battle-cry that roused the very mountains. Burgoyne himself, at the centre, found his provisions failing, the enemy gathering fast, his Cana dians wilting, and his Indians taking French leave. No doubt he might still have saved his main body ; but the army could not retreat. As the old New England feeling against Schuyler had now gathered great force, he was removed, and that ' old midwife, ' Gates —as the British general described him — took command of the department. But Arnold (though Congress had promoted juniors over his head), the chival ric Lincoln, and the lion-hearted Morgan were there to prop him ; and when Burgoyne, at the first battle of Saratoga, laid a plan to outfiank Gates's left while amus ing him in firont, Arnold stmck so furiously at the British centre that the scheme failed. Burgoyne could now advance as little as he could retreat. Then came the second battle of Saratoga. Arnold, not even mentioned in Gates's report of the previous affair and in effect relieved of his command, heard the noise of the fight and exclaimed : ' No man shall keep me in my tent today. If I am without command, I will fight in the ranks ; but the soldiers, God bless them, will follow my lead. Come on ! Victory or death ! ' and soon a coal-black thoroughbred was seen dashing into the fight, while an aide of Gates's, far in the rear, pursued the horseman with an order to leave the field. On the side toward the Hudson, Poor had shattered the 470 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony British left ; on the other, Morgan and Dearborn were driving the right ; but the tough German centre stood firm. Placing himself at the head of his old division, Arnold blew the men to a mad heat and poured them like molten iron upon the foe. In the former battle, if backed with some of Gates's ii,ooo idle troops, he might have won a complete victory : so now he de termined to find his own support. Wherever he saw an available corps, he swept it into his fight as a tornado carries off a hayrick. Now here, now there he dashed. To make a short cut, he would run the gauntlet of both fires. First, he drove the Germans into their defences, and then he stormed the fortifications. Musketry, cannon, abatis, breastworks — nothing could stop him. When the day ended, the central British position lay open ; and it was only then, as his charger sank and he himself fell inside the enemy's works, with his Quebec leg fractured by a ball, that Gates's aide overtook him. Burgoyne found now that he could retreat, but he had leamed the lesson too late ; and about a week after, riding jauntily to the American headquarters in all his scarlet and gold, he gracefully doffed his cocked hat and pleasantly remarked, ' The fortune of war, General Gates, has made me your prisoner. ' A new chapter could now be added to the history of the war in Canada. The stubborn perseverance of the northern army in 1776, which prevented Carle ton from building water-craft early enough in the season to accomplish his mission toward the south, probably saved the cause of America. Only four weeks more, exclaimed General Riedesel at the close of the campaign, and ' everything would have been ended this year. ' Even more brilliant was the other side of this result. Carleton's merely negative success in 1776, mis understood by the government, cost him the King's favor Gates Plans to Invade Canada 471 for a time. As a consequence, it was Burgoyne that directed the invasion, and under him the British troops marched to the Caudine Forks instead of the Capitol. Bennington and Saratoga gave us the French alliance ; and the aid of France ensured our independence. " Almost immediately on Burgoyne's capitulation, the American commander at the north began to think of re turning the attack. Before the month was out, Colonel Bedel appearedsuddenly at Dartmouth College, and, with out a word of explanation to the President, ordered all the St. Francis Indians to go home. Poor Dr. Wheelock felt not a little troubled ; but, had he been calmer, he might have suspected that his pupils were needed for some service in Canada. Ten days later, the Colonel — who had been court-martialled from the army after the Cedars episode but was a power still in his neighborhood — received a new commission from President Laurens of the Continental Congress. Under orders from Gates, he sent scouting parties into the north, and gathered Indians at Coos. In short, a movement against Canada was on the tapis. Jacob Bayley, of Newbury, pronounced it ' highly necessary ' to visit St. Johns without delay ; and at the Albany headquarters, in a certain pigeon-hole, lay ' A plan of an expedition An order by the Honble. Maj Genl. Gates Commander in Chief of the Northern De partment.' '" On the fifteenth of November, the contents of the pigeon hole took final shape in the form of definite instructions to Colonel Bedel. Without delay but with the ' greatest »' Remark CVI. 1 ' § wheelock. Diary, Oct. 27, 1777: Wheelock Papers. N. H. Hist. Soc. Proc, HI., pp. 204, 217. Bedel to Gates, Nov. 29, 30, 1777 : N. H. State Papers, XVII., p. 152. Id to Sch., Nov. 30, 1777: ib. Plan: Force Transcripts of Gates Corres., Lib. of Cong. The Plan bears no date : but the heading shows that it was dravm up before Gates became Prest. of the Bd. of War. ' Coos ' was the westem side of Coos Co., N. H., but the term covered also Newbury, Vt., and its vicinity. «^K^ /^ayS: y^'^ J>f^fS^ ^ ,-^L«V5Vl«C- FROM SAMUEL ADAMS'S LETTER TO TRUMBULL ILLUSTRATING THE NEW ENGLAND FEELING AGAINST SCHUYLER. 473 Congress Also Has a Scheme 473 secrecy,' .said the order, enroll five hundredmen; and, about noon on the first day of February, giving out that you intend to join the army, take the direct road for Al bany. The next morning at daj'break, however, ' turn short about to St. Johns, ' and go on that way, pretending that your mission is to cut off a strong scouting-party of the British. In case you can surprise the fort, .seize it and ' instantly ' put the torch to that, the shipping, and ' every article that can be Burnt. ' If your scouts describe the post as beyond your strength, attempt only to burn the vessels ; but, whatever you do, retum at once to Coos and send me word immediately. Enlist only reliable Indians and ' Staunch Whiggs' ; appoint John Wheelock, son of the President, your Lieutenant-Colonel, and Whit comb, the dreaded scout, your Major ; and let not a soul, except these two, know the truth about your plan. ' I have in contemplation a stroke of importance , ' Gates in formed the President of Congress." Five days later, James Duane, then at Livingston Manor, wrote to Gates : ' Congress have been pleased to appoint Brigr Gen Stark to the Command of an Enterprise which they have much at Heart ' ; and so ex,tremely private is the affair that I have been sent on to explain matters to him 'in a personal Conference at Albany.' Congress, also, it appeared, had a secret stroke in view, and — stranger yet — it was the same as Gates's." In brief, that body had voted, on the third of December,. to bum the British vessels at St. Johns. The idea was that ' the adventurous spirit of the Inhabitants in those parts, the Dangers to which they must be exposed while • 3 § Gates to Bedel, Nov. 15, 1777 : Bedel Papers, p. 52 ; N. H. State Papers,, XVIL, p. 150 Gates to Prest. Cong, (from Albany), Dec. 11, 1777: Force Trans- scripts of Gates Corres., Lib of Cong. Wash, to Cong., Nov. 20, 1778: Chase, Hanover, I., p. 396. 1* I Duane to Gates, Dec. 16, 1777: Force Transcripts of Gates Corres., Lib. of Cong. 474 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony the British Vessels commanded the Lakes, and the pros pect of a great Reward if they should succeed in the At tempt,' would be inducements enough to call out three or four hundred volunteers ; though a choice between the reward and double pay was offered. To clinch matters, the command was given to General Stark, now so famous and so popular in that region, ' and in ever}- other re spect qualified for the undertaking."' Duane, not knowing where he could place his finger upon Stark, sent a letter for him to Gates ; and the Gen eral, little suspecting to what it referred, forwarded it 'by special express.' ' Not a moment is to be lost,' urged the delegate from Congress ; and Stark, with Bennington fire already kindled in his piercing light-blue e}'es, hurried to Albany." At first he seized upon the plan hopefully ; but on con sidering it longer, he concluded ' that a Reward which depended only on a prosperous Issue, was too slender a Motive for the undertaking. ' As evidently Duane agreed with him, it was decided to ask Congress for ' pay at all events, & the bounty [also] in case of Success ' ; and, counting upon this favor. Stark began work immediately. For one thing, he went across to Bennington, androusedthe Council of Safety ; for another, he applied to the Commit tee of Vermont for aid, and was promised ' all the Assistance in their power ' ; and for a third he wrote to Bedel. Evi dently something was to be done. If Molly Stark's John could not bury the British fieet vrith firebrands, in Heaven's name who could ?" 1 5 § Secret Joum. Cong,, Dec. 3, 1777. Duane to Waslj., Mar. 13, 1777: Coll. of C. H. Swan, Esq. The quotations are from this letter. Remark CVII. ' ' § Duane to Gates, Dec. 16, 1777: Force Transcripts of Gates Corres., Lib. of Cong. Gates to Stark, Dec. 17, 1777: ib. Duane to Stark, Dec. 16, 1777: C. Stark, Gen. Stark, pp. 79, 93. 1' § Duane to Wash. : Note 15. Stark to Council of Safety, Bennington, Feb. 3, 1778 ; Proceedings of Council ; Wilkinson to Wash., Feb. 22, 1778: all in Cont. Cong. Papers, Letters, No. 78, W, XXIIL, pp. 451-456. Bedel to Gates, Mar. 14, 1778: N. H. State Papers, XVII., p. 218. Opposition to Washington 475 At this precise juncture, however, a grand shifting of scenes took place. A certain opposition to the Commander-in-chief had now grown up in the country. It was impossible for the generality to understand his character ; therefore not a few questioned it. He stood apart from the common and rather aloof ; and some, governed by the sort of wolfish instinct that often rules us, noting that he did not run with the pack, looked upon him as an alien and enemy. Others, observing that he did not seem to be dominated by their own very ordinary motive for doing right — the fear of opinion— concluded that he had no principle. Still others, finding their eminent wits could not see through him, decided that he must be wrapping up some villainy within. When a man is different from those about him, many cannot bear to imagine that he may be superior. To misconstrue and denounce answer all questions and soothe all misgivings. There were also more tangible objections to him. Some wearied of hearing Aristides called the Just. Others — Clark, of New Jersey, for example — believed that he was overriding the people's rights. Not a few, judging by the plausible standard of immediate results, felt that he had proved no great success as a general, and pointed, by way of contrast, at Gates's great achievements against Burgoyne. Many, forgetting that the pen is mightier than the sword and that a march is easier on paper than on land, wondered why the combinations they could suggest far surpassed those actually carried out. Still others, or their friends, had been disappointed in personal hopes, exposed in some crookedness, compelled to do their duty, or thwarted in unrighteous designs. Self- seeking was common enough in the Revolutionary epoch, and even reasonable wishes could not always be gratified. To make matters worse, Tories in disguise observed this 476 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony rift and labored to widen it, thinking in that way to damage the cause of independence." John Adams asserted stoutly in his autobiography that he was a firm supporter of Washington in 1777, as at all other times, and that his reputation for a contrary stand was chargeable to Tom Paine, ' that insolent blasphemer of things sacred, and transcendent libeller of all that is good. ' But Adams was undoubtedly piqued by the praise accorded Washington ; he had a just grievance, as he be lieved, against the Virginia group, because the jealousy felt toward Massachusetts made it wise to yield them posts of distinction that belonged, perhaps, to him ; he aflSliated with men found acting later against Washing ton ; and he condemned sharply the ' timorous, defensive ' military policy of the Commander-in-chief as the cause of ' so many disasters.' Naturally enough, then, many besides Tom Paine have classed him with the Opposition. Lafayette did so; and, though Adams took leave of Con gress on the eleventh of November, 1777, to represent the nation abroad, his influence had been exerted, and it remained behind. '° Samuel Adams had scarcely any points of contact with George Washington. A democrat, a Puritan, a civihan, a town-meeting man, a puller of strings, an apostle of talk, how could he understand an aristocrat, an Episco palian, a sportsman, a believer in strong rule, a fighter, upreared by a grand force of character — but silently and imperceptibly — ^^into the sublime, divinely patient Atlas of the national cause, self-communing and unknown ? Though equally opposed to oppression, they stood other wise at the antipodes from each other ; and the greater part ofthe word antipodes reappears in ' antipathy.' ' 8 Sparks MSS., No. 32, I. : MS. on the Cabal found at Lafayette's residence. " § J. Adams, Works, H. p. 439 ; IIL, p. 93 ; Lodge, Wash., I., p. 215. Morse, J. Adams, pp. 133, 134. Laf , M€m., I., p. 38. On the sectional feeling, see also Gerard de Rayneval: Durand, New Materials, p. 173. 'Ye /At niTdi^int/^ii. a*tnf //it-^„rT,t/itt «}f(ir>\oity j^i /etAt^ {j»rreyi^x flu ^^ty of ^vnu.fttuf'y *if .^m (lAAin^'tJid 6xf t*y •'« ao i/nTi) Jt*.»itxU., flu^t ^ tr^.t^iya^'T yueJt J^iyytn^t^, anrvmtnua^ «/M« (tpvCuY^ ^ (Ju ^Liitte^t /wyf^Cic) ^o^xl^. /ft y^/t/>njfyiy urfit'X* ^T Ui9 PlOuo^^ 4niV%^'f, S'y'yf^ ^> [SIGNED BY FRANKLIN, HARRISON, DICKINSON, JAY, AND MORRIS.] 477 478 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony By principle also, as well as by prejudice, the agitator drew away from the soldier. Adams well knew how many times in the past freedom had been shamelessly betrayed by its trusted guardian. He believed that vigi lance was the price of liberty, and that another name for vigilance was distrust. He felt that Washington might prove not only a weak champion of liberty but even its worst foe. And, though he charged John Hancock, now his bitter enemy, with giving him a false color of antagon ism to the General, he too has been fixed so fast in this group that he never can escape. Richard Henry Lee of Virginia — who possibly had some local or personal pique — was a confidant of Samuel Adams aud stood, like him, in the Opposition; and of course the Adamses had the other New England Congressmen at their back.^° What these men might have done, had the circum stances developed and organized their sentiment, no one can say. Probably they themselves did not know, and so far their disclaimers were justified. They were not ready to call for Washington's removal. They were not even plotting against him. A gentleman who had im portant dealings with them at the time wrote to the Commander-in-chief, ' every hon&st man in Congress is your friend.' Yet, lacking that appreciation of his char acter and policy which time alone could give and pro foundly discouraged by his military non-success, even the most sincere patriots among them could reasonably doubt whether the cause ought to be bound up wholly in this one man. Apparently, it was felt that there should be a second in reserve, to take the place of Wash ington should he fall, fail, or prove untrue; and it was largely for this reason, or to serve as a curtain-raiser for 2° I Distrust: Luzerne (Durand, New Materials, pp. 234, 235). Hosmer, S. ams, pp. 338-341. Laf , Mfm., r, p. 33. I ' - — --- toS. Adams, July 29, 1776; S. .Adams Papers. Adams, pp. 338-341. Laf , Mfm., L, p. 38. Lodge, Wash., I., p. 214. R.H.Lee ^" *" '^ July 2( . .- . . - General Gates 479 Charles Lee, that Gates had been brought forward in the Burgoyne campaign.'" There his fortune, if not his merits, had filled his sup porters with joy; and now, at precisely this point, a still more distinguished place was found for him. ReaHzing the imperative need of a miUtary executive. Congress had maintained for some time a Board of War; and, at the very close of November, Gates was elected the President, or rather — one may say— the Dictator of this body. In requesting him to come to York and assume his new responsibilities, it was voted that he be informed of ' the high sense ' Congress entertained of his abilities and his peculiar fitness for this ofi&ce ; ' upon the right execution of which,' added the Resolution, 'the success of the American cause does eminently depend.' In effect, then, he was now the Secretary of War." Parallel with the Opposition in Congress, which had secured this action, ran a short line of ofiicers in the army, the foremost of whom was Gates himself. Viewed in the abstract and at a distance, the idea of a competition between George Washington and Horatio Gates appears ridiculous ; but, in the actual world, things are not done at a distance nor in the abstract. Gates be longed to the same class as beau Burgoyne and cursing Campbell, standing about midway between the extremes. Like them, he made an impressive appearance, as Lafay ette said; and why not? — this was perhaps the one matter that he studied. Four times out of five, it is the principal thing demanded by the public, and the superficially smart 2' ILaf to Wash., Feb. 23, 1778 : Sparks MSS., No. 87 (unpaged). Morse. J. Adams, p. 134. J. Adams, Works, I., pp. 265, 282 (C. F. A.). S. Adams ap pears to have originated the plan of having a chief in reserve. Hosmer, S. Adams, p. 339, Lee : Laf, Mem., I., p. 38 ; MS. on the Cabal found at Laf.'s residence (Note 18). It should be noted that on Dec. 30, 1777, Congress ex tended until April 10 certain extraordinary powers previously vested in Wash ington,— perhaps a sign that it was not bent upon unhorsing him. 22 § Journ. Cong., Oct. 17 ; Nov. 7, 17, 27, 1777. 480 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony discover that fact early in life. When the squealing mountebank won the popular verdict against the farmer with a real pig in his blouse, it was doubtless because his attitudes, his gestures, and his grins convinced people that he was a clever fellow and must be able to squeal better than a simple, honest countryman like themselves. A general cry for roast pork would have turned the tables, but famines are rare. Gates was vulgar"; but millions have enjoyed Sairy Gamp and called her a good soul. He was an inferior person ; but he had been trained in the regular army, knew military routine better than his chief, and at Cam bridge, as the adjutant-general, had been given oppor tunities enough to ascertain that fact. Just because he was an inferior person, he could not realize the comparative unimportance of this technical proficiency. He was doubtless a very clubbable fellow : always ready to inform a hunched-up circle how matters could be fin ished ; well able to reel off yards of messroom strategy; and abundantly qualified, like every one-eyed man that cares for such subjects, to be king among the blind. After the manner ofhis class, he possessed a streak of cunning. Some diffident little fellow, back in the circle, would ven ture a suggestion and be promptly sat upon by all present ; whereupon Gates would quietly pocket the idea, carry it home, turn it round, cock the brim, dent the crown, and flourish it as his best head-gear for the next week or ten days. In this way, he could seem to be quite a thinker. With liquor for the convivial — well mellowed himself every afternoon, according to report " — with abundant military small-talk, with more or less veracious chapters from his experience in the British army, with large 23 A case: Amold, B. Arnold, p. 202. ^-^ F. Bayley, Narrative. Mififlin and Conway 481 schemes and liberal promises, with an impressive appear ance, and with Burgoyne's defeat as a foundation for every assumption : with all this and a pretty talent for intrigue, he made a formidable showing against the reserved, pre occupied Washington ; and, by common opinion, he as pired at this time to the Commander-in-chiefs epaulettes. " HORATIO GATES. The brilliant Mifflin asserted most emphatically, in a confidential letter at this very period, that he loved his country too much to desire a change at the head of the army ; but he certainly thought Washington had erred, and, like other brilliant men, he probably said quite as much as he thought. As a Pennsylvanian, he bitterly 2^ § Sparks, Wash., I., pp. 247-250. Lodge, Wash., I., pp. 214-222, 224 MarshaU, Wash. (London, 1805), III., p. 282. Thacher, Mil. Journal, p. 202. 482 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony mourned the loss of Philadelphia. He knew that he was not a favorite at headquarters. No independent command, save in the trifling affair at Lechmere's Point, had been entrusted to him. It went upon the records of the Board of War, of which he was a member, that he expressed ' A Warm SoUicitude ' to have Gates for its President ; and Lafayette cannot have erred greatly in saying that MifEin aided the Opposition." One other officer — perhaps only one — belonged to the group. This was Thomas Conway, a man of Irish descent employed in the French service, who had thought the shortest road to promotion in France ran through Phila delphia. Washington had stood squarely in his way. With but little to lose, Conway could afford to be out spoken in his disparagement of the General and persever ing in his intrigues against him ; and since a mishap to him would injure no American, others felt particularly free to make him say what they wanted expressed, and possibly even to charge him with what they wished he had said. In this manner, he came to represent in a way the sentiment of opposition, and perhaps really thought himself the leader of a party. Indeed, people speak now, for convenience, of the Conway Cabal ; but in reality he led the vague, unorganized spirit of antagonism to Washington, not as a head, but as a great toe. Strong or weak, however, Conway's influence was hostile." It was under these circumstances that Gates's project and the Stark project came together on his arrival at York, where Congress was then sitting. The two schemes com- 2' § Mifflin: Mem. Penna. Hist. Soc, II., Part n., pp. 124, 125. Bd. of War Papers, L, Nov. 21, 1777. Laf., M^m., I., p. 38. 2' § Statement of Troup: Sparks MSS., No. 49, 1., p. 20. Sparks, Wash., pp. 248, 250. Aim : Conway to Sullivan, Jan. 3, 1778 : U. S. Revol. MSS., III., Lib. of Cong. Disparage: Conway to Hancock, Oct. 19, 1777 (Sparks MSS., No. 52, III., p. 133). Tool: Laf, Mem., I., p. 38 ; Durand, New Materials, p. 191 ; Doniol, Particip., III., p. 264 ; Sullivan to Wash., Dec. i, 1779 (Wash., Writings (Ford), VIII., p. 140, note). The Plan is Enlarged 483 bined, of course. Very naturally, too, as Duane put it , later, 'the Plan was enlarged.' It was decided. Stark soon heard, 'to penetrate into Canada instead of St. Johns,' and this involved — since the American army would march among the Canadians, instead of merely bat tering the door of their province — a recasting of the whole affair. It offered Gates another opportunity to distin guish himself, and it gave the whole sentiment of opposi tion another occasion to develop a policy. ^° Prorainent among the lively young officers at Metz, France, while Schuyler was preparing to attack St. Johns in 1775, was a certain precocious young fellow, married at sixteen, a captain of dragoons a month later, and now in his eighteenth year. One evening he dined, as he often did, at the table of his commander and friend, the Comte de Broglie ; and there he heard a chance guest — an Englishman, the brother of George III. — give some news of a revolt in America. America ? — where was America ? Never mind ; people determined to be free lived there ; and, while others listened indifferently to pass a few idle minutes, he drank in the spirit of our Revolution. Instantly the blood of his mountain ancestry took fire. 'The Moment I heard of America, I lov'd her,' he wrote later ; ' the Moment I knew she was fighting for freedom, I burnt with the desire of bleeding for her.' Thus the spirit of American independence, appealing to generous humanity, bore fruit. "' Silas Deane, sent across the water as an informal repre sentative of the Colonies in France, encouraged these aspirations. He and the Frenchman made a sort of con tract ; and already this precocious young enthusiast, the 28 § Duane to Wash.; Note 15. Stark to Council: Note 17. 29 § Doniol, La F., pp. 17, 18. The Nation, LXXVI., p. 513. Doniol, Particip., I., p. 651. Charavay, La F., p. 6. Laf to Cong., Sept., 23, 1778: Cont. Cong. Papers, 156, p. 27. 484 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony Marquis de Lafayette, after fighting bravely in the Amer ican army, was a Continental major-general. His blood, his title, his ardor, his abil ities — how could they fail to stir the Canadians, were he to go among them ? " All in authority saw this, and many saw farther. Inti mately connected, as the Marquis was, with the French court and with many leaders in the public affairs of that country, it might be worth an immense deal to pay him a substantial com pliment ; and an indepen dent command, especially one so conspicuous, would certainly delight him, his friends, and his nation. The assistance ofthe French gov ernment was eagerly hoped for ; such a factor might be decisive ; and, in conse quence, the prestige of secur ing a grand alliance might accrue to the promoters of this plan. Others could see still more. Conway was eager to have Lafayette speak a LAFAYETTE'S AGREEMENT TO gQod word for him at home ; COME TO AMERICA "and, particularly since the Board of War proposed to make him the second in 3 0 Wharton, Revol. Dipl. Corres., I., p. 560. Doniol, La F., p. 20. Marshall, Lafayette to Command 485 command, he favored the programme with all his energy. Gates had been carrying on an affectionate correspondence with the Marquis, and, only a little while before, had received this from him : ' The know ledge I got of your character adds infinitely to the pleasure my heart feels in receiving the assurance of your future affection towards a young soldier who desires it very heartily ' ; so that Gates doubtless felt that by ad vancing Lafayette's fortunes he could improve his own. Besides, the creation of this independent command would damage the prestige of Washington, tend to isolate him, lessen the importance of his army, and possibly provoke him into resigning. Finally, the whole Opposition deemed it wise, very probably, to detach Lafayette and all that he represented from too close an affiliation with the distrusted Commander-in-chief." So it came to pass that Major-General the Honorable Horatio Gates, Esquire, became the head of the depart ment of war, and that under his direction Major-General the Marquis of Lafayette received orders to lead an 'irruption' into Canada. One of the consequences was that Brigadier-General Stark suddenly found himself de posed, ' for wise and prudential Reasons,' from the lead ership of a raid again.st St. Johns, and learned that he was expected to assist young Lafayette in ' promoting the Interest, and political Views of the United States in Canada.' == This, however, was not the only nor the greatest sur prise that followed. Wash. (London, 1805), IIL, p. 329. Gates to Laf, Jan. 14, 1778: Bancroft Coll., Revol. Papers, III. , p. 267. Joum. Cong., July 31, 1777. 3 1 § Conway : Laf, M€m., I., p. 135 ; Gates to Laf, Jan. 24, 1778 (Bancroft Coll., Revol Papers, IIL, p. 267). Gates to Laf, Nov. 12, 1777, and Laf to Gates, Dec. 14, 1777 : Force Transcripts of Gates Corres., Lib. of Cong. Detach: Doniol, Particip., III., p. 264 ; Laf, M&n., p. 72. Remark CVIH. 5 2 SJoum. Cong., Jan. 22, 23, 1778. GatestoLaf , Jan. 24, 1778: Note 31. Id. to Wash., Jan. 24, 1778: Bancroft Coll., Revol. Papers, III., p. 263. Id. to Stark, Jan. 24, 1778: Mag. of Am. Hist., 1885, p. 90. XXXVI A BRIEF CAMPAIGN LAFAYETTE abounded in sentiment, and it was only fair to allow General Gates a taste ; but for Wash ington he felt a regard far above that plane. Consequently, when he received the notification ofhis Canadian appoint ment, not from^ — but merely through — the Commander- in-chief, with a few words revealing at the same time the General's personal attachment and his aloofness from this matter, he felt surprised and troubled. A committee of Congress on military affairs, of which Gouverneur Mor ris was a member, chanced to be in the camp, and to them Lafayette applied for counsel. He found that they did not approve of the plan and probably he learned some thing of the spirit behind it. It was his impulse then to decline the commission ; but Washington pointed out that in any event he would conduct himself so as to win distinction, while the blame, should misfortune be the outcome, would fall upon the projectors of the campaign ; and he decided to accept the place.^ He varied from his orders, however. Gates had re quested that he should ' immediately repair to Albany, ' adding that his instructions would be forwarded by Con- 1 § Gates to Wash., Jan. 24, 1778: Bancroft Coll., Revol. Papers, in., p. 263. Laf, M&n., p. 73. Laf to Cong., Jan. 31, 1778: Cont. Cong. Papers, 156, p. 5. Joum. Cong., Jan. 10, 20, 1778. Diary of the Com.: U. S. Revol. Papers, III.. Lib. of Cong. G. Morris to B. Arnold, Feb. 21, 1778: Freeman's Journal, July 18, 1781. Sparks, Wash., p. 250. Morris appears to have arrived at the camp on Jan. 26 (Laf. to Laurens, P. S., rec'd Jan. 27, 1778: So. Car. Hist, and Gen Mag., vii., p. 126). 486 Lafayette Takes a Stand 487 way ; but the Marquis thought — and so did the committee of Congress — that he should first go to York for a look at the bottom of the scheme ; and, with a firm determina tion to show his Washington colors at the first opportu nity, he rode away toward the west.^ The opportunity soon came. On arriving at Gates's house, he found a merry company at table ; and, with all his liveliness and good-fellowship, he joined them. Toasts followed the dinner, and in those, too, he bore a con vivial part. But finally, as the company began to rise, he remarked, with an edge of seriousness on his gayety : ' One toast, gentlemen, has been omitted, and I will give it.' All filled their glasses. 'The Commander-in-chief of the American armies.' Down went the wine, perforce ; but it went so hard that a little of it — the color, at least — got into the faces of some in the party.' The committee of Congress had been surprised at the young fellow's mature j udgment, and probably he didnot spend many hours at the old court-house in the middle of York square, where the Delegates met, before that body felt the same. ' My first step toward albany will be de cisive for my fate,' he believed ; and he proposed to take it carefully. First of all, he was determined not to be cut adrift from Washington. I think it a higher honor, he chivalrously declared, to be considered ' only as an officer of his under his immediate orders, than if I was in any other light.' A 'detachment of his excellency's army ' he was determined his command should be, and on no other basis would he move. Congress found it necessary to yield that point.* 2 § Gates to Laf, Jan. 24, 1778: Bancroft Coll., Revol. Papers, III., p. 267. Laf to Cong., Jan. 31, 1778: Note i. ' §Laf, M^m., I., p. 39. Ami du Gal. Lafayette (MS.): Lib. Cong. Sparks, Wash., p. 251, note. « § Maturity: G. Morris to Cont. Cong., Jan. 26, 1777, i. e., 1778 (Cont. Cong. 488 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony Next, he proceeded to oust Conway from the second place. At the camp, he had called attention to the dan ger of exciting jealousies, were the two best positions occupied by foreigners, and the imprudence of trusting 'a Person whose object it was to push his Fortunes in France' with an opportunity to ' imbue the Minds of the Cana dians with a Love of the Grand Monarque ' ; and no doubt similar ideas came forward at York. However this may have been, he certainly pronounced Conway 'most dis agreeable' on account of his attacking and abusing Wash ington, and, when he found the authorities inclined to insist upon carrying out the plan agreed upon, threatened that he would ' go to france with most all the french offi cers in the army.' ' No Canadians will join under that irish man,' he added, 'princi pally when they will see us going of and publishing the reasons ' ; and, in short, he required Congress to accept the terms he proposed, — also, to ac cept them ' immediately. ' By way of lever, perhaps. General McDougall was proposed by the Marquis for the second place ; and then, as McDougaU was very ill at the time, La- faj'ette remarked, ' there is the Baron De Kalb ' ; he has ' seen more wars ' than any other officer in the army ; he desires to go, and I recom mend him strongly; and at last, as there was no escape, Con way accepted the third position. Whatever the expedition was now, it could no longer be called anti- Washington.' Papers, Letters, 78, M, XV., p. 295). Court House: Lossing, Revol. Field-Book, II. p. 133. Laf to Cong., Jan. 31, 1778 : Cont. Cong. Papers, 156, p. 5. Laf., Mem., p. 39. Ami du Gal. Laf: Note 3. ' § G. Morris: Note 4. Laf. to Laurens: So. Car. Hist, and Gen. Mag., VII, G. MORRIS The Resources 489 Finally, the Marquis inquired into the means for carry ing out the plan, and again everything seemed to favor him. ' At a low estim,ate,' 2,500 effectives would be found ready, he was assured ; and informally ' a much larger body was foretold.' There needed to be no concern on his part about provisions, forage, and transportation. The trifle of clothing would, also, take care of itself, for the clothier-general had been ordered to furnish everything the stores afforded. The ships could be burned with the straw collected by the British. Stark would be on hand, and very likely would touch off this bonfire before his chief could arrive. Consternation would throw down the rest of the barriers, and Lafayette would be in Montreal. What gave all this an air of certainty was the fact that Gates, the famous Gates, had been in command at Al bany until a few weeks before. How could Lafayette imagine that perhaps he had fallen into that pit which al ways yawns for men who win their glory by others' toil, — the blunder of taking things for granted ? The General himself suspected nothing of the sort. Let there be a victory and there was a victory, summed up fairly well what he knew about the defeat of Burgoyne ; and now he said. Let there be an expedition to Canada. Such confidence is always impressive, and Lafayette set out.° On the ninth of February, as the chilly day came to a chillier close, a young man drew rein at the unpretending inn of Flemington, in the State of New Jersey, eagerly entrusted his tired horse to a servant, made his way to the fireplace, and rapidly threw off his outer garments. A tall, erect, strongly built figure was his, with large pp. 126, 179, 182, 183. Unsigned letter from Fishkill to Gates, Nov. 27, 1777; Force Transcripts of Gates Corres., Lib. of Cong. Laf to Cong.: Note 4. Bd. War Papers, I., p. 469. The Nation, LX., p. 222. <• § Laf to Bd. War, Feb. 20, 1778: Cont. Cong. Papers, Canad. Affairs, 166, p. 97. His statements are borne out by his Instmctions: U. S. Revol. Papers, III., Lib. of Cong Duane to Wash., Mar. 13, 1778; Coll. of C. H. Swan. Esq. Gates had been at Albany as late as Dec. 28, 1777: see his letter of that date to Greaton in Force's Transcripts of Gates Correspondence., Lib. of Cong. 490 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony limbs and broad shoulders, — though he looked as if con sumptive tendencies might have asserted themselves, but for the active out-of door life he evidently enjoyed. A high and ample forehead, a large, long nose, reddish hair, bushy eyebrows projecting over fine, animated, hazel eyes, mobile, interesting, though not symmetrical features, gestures that would have been graceful if less hurried, and an air that blended real dignity with a sort of lightness completed his person.' The loungers about the fire concluded very promptly that a rare bird had flown into their humble cote, and they were right. No ordinary traveUer was this, indeed, but a beautiful, romantic, pathetic figure; Keats' s poetic youth, ' forever panting and [alas !] forever young,' for ever loved yet in vain forever pursuing ; now a stripling of twenty in a rude hostelry, but fated to be known in a few years the world over; a leader who, gifted with more wisdom or less honor, might sit in the very front rank of historical figures ; a favored son of fortune, destined to hold France in his hand but not know what to do with it; a noble, true patriot, whose chiefest honor was to be the epithet Noodle * from that arch-traitor, arch-brigand, and arch-cutthroat. Napoleon : in a word, Washington's bright French moon — Lafayette — in his first and loveliest quarter. ' Very slow ' the Marquis had found his journey. Great cakes of ice in the Susquehanna had threatened to sink him ; and, after escaping that peril, he had toiled painfully on, ' angry against ' the roads, against his horse, against every obstacle that delayed him, ' sometimes drenched by rain, sometimes covered by snow,' vrith only a country inn ' § Laf., M4m., p. 40. Pers. appear.: Thacher, Mil. Joumal, p. 186 ; Chara vay, La F., p. 6 ; Atlantic Monthly, VIII., p. 660 ; Niles' Register, XIII., p. 141. etc. It seems fair to infer, since Laf. stopped at F. long enough to write to Wash., that he ended his day's joumey there. The scene is constructive. s Bigelow in Encyc. Brit., ' Lafeyette.' THE MARQUIS DE LAFAYETTE 491 Lafayette's Anxiety 493 to solace the close of his day. Very different had been the gay fellowship round the table of the Count at Metz. Very different a leading place at Marie Antoinette's balls. Very different the jolly and intimate camaraderie at the restaurant of The Wooden Sword {A I'Epie de Bois) at Paris." Yet it was none of these things that printed the look of anxiety on his lively features. Many desires — most ardent ones — thronged his bosom, and each presented itself now with a face like a challenge. He desired to merit the confidence of Washington and of Congress : would it be possible to do so on this mission ? He longed to strike a blow for America and for liberty ; to humble the pride of ' that insolent nation,' Great Britain, which had brought his country low a few years before ; to prove his fitness for a high command in France ; to gratify his friends ; to slake his intense and ever-raging thirst for distinction and praise : and was all this likely to be accomplished on the Canada expedition ? '" The military problem — could it be as simple as the Board of War supposed ? And if it were, would not the officers who had gone on ahead of him reap the honors ? Alas, yes ; even that was possible. ' I expect to meet them at the Governors house in Quebec,' wrote the Marquis half-seriously." And those ' political Views ' of which Gates had written to Stark and no doubt said much to Lafayette ! ' If upon your entering Canada,' said his Instructions, ' you find a general disinclination ofthe Natives, to join the American ' §Laf, M^m., p. 40. Laf to Wash., Feb. 9, 1778 : Sparks MSS., No. 87 (unpaged). Id. to Laurens (undated) : So. Car. Hist, and Gen. Mag., VII., p. 187. Charavay, La F., p. 6. Doniol, Particip., I., p. 663. ' ° § Laf to Bd. War., Feb. 20, 1778: Cont. Cong. Papers, Canad. Affairs, 166, p. 97. Doniol, Particip., I., p. 4 ; IIL, pp. 443, 447. Doniol, La F., p. 45 and passim. Jefferson's remarlc in Bigelow, ' Lafayette,' Encyc. Brit. Laf. to Wash., Feb. 23, 1778: Sparks MSS., No. 87 (unpaged). ' 1 Laf to Wash., Feb. 9, 1778: Sparks MSS., No. 87 (unpaged). 494 O^'" Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony Standard,' you will destroy the British works as far as Chambly and return at once ; but ' If, on the contrary the Canadians are ardently desirous of assisting to establish the Freedom and Independence of America, you will inform them, that when they embark in the common cause, they must determine to receive the Resolves of Congress and the Currency of America, with that Rever ence and Alacrity, which have ever been manifested in the Acts and Dealings, of the Subjects of the United States ' ; must send delegates to the American Congress ; and must ' conform in all Political Respects to the Union and Confederation.' Ah, how difficult it might be to decide, without a vote, what the sentiment of Canada really was ! How many shades of feeling there might lie between a general disinclination and an ardent desire ! How much skill it might need to bring even an ardent desire to the acceptance of paper money and the rest of the American policy ! '" And this was not all of the difficulty. Evidently some members of Congress had become rather frightened after commissioning Lafayette, Kalb, Conway, and a small army of minor French officers to lead troops into Canada. Such trustfulness did not reign in every American breast. France was eyed askance by not a few. Hugh Hughes had written Samuel Adams in February, 1776, that he -, feared the French would try %/4^^JiXf'*y.^ to recover Canada. Accord- y ^X\,^1-,^C^ ing to Thomas Walker, the "^^^"^ Commissioners of Congress had stated in May that, rather than call in the assistance of France, 'they would come to a reconciliation w* G[reat] B[ritain] upon any Terms ' ; and Joseph Hawley had cautioned Samuel Adams at about the same time. ' 2 u. S. Revol. Papers, III., Lib. of Cong. On Shifting Ground 495 'Dont put too much trust in Strangers.' Gouverneur Morris promptly called attention to the danger of sending these French officers north, and Wayne was alarmed at the bare idea that Lafayette was to lead the expedition. ' Is it not worth some reflection,' he asked Gates at once; ' does it not deserve a serious thought before you determine to commit the..commaud to a Stranger f ' " Much in this tone doubtless rained upon the Board of War, and so a cautionary section was hastily tacked on to Lafayette's orders. The ' grand Object,' it explained, was the destruction or capture of the enemy's property on the lake and at Montreal; and 'the holding the Coun try or prevailing upon the Inhabitants to confederate with the States' was ' not to be undertaken but with the great est Prudence, and with a Prospect of durable Success.' The contrast in spirit between this and what had gone before was evidently wide ; and it suggested that perhaps the Board of War, in their own minds, had really quite abandoned the political views, only — for the sake of con sistency—they did not wish to state that fact." Turning it all over, Lafayette could find but few 'hand some thoughts about the projected incurtion into Can ada.' 'Lake Champlain is too cold for producing the least bit of laurels,' he wrote to Washington. But he fell back once more upon the evident fact that Gates could not afford to blunder. 'This project is yours. Sir,' the Marquis had reminded him two days before, 'therefore you must make it succeed. If I had not depended so much on you, I would not have undertaken the operation.' And, with this comfort, he said a hasty good-bye to " I Secret Joum. Cong., Feb. 2, 7, 11, 1778. Laf to Wash., Feb. 23, 177? : sparks MSS., No. 87 (unpaged). Hughes, JFeb. 4, 1776] : S. Adams Papers. Walker to S. Adams, May 30, 1776; ib. Hawley, May 22, 1776: ib. G. Morris to Prest. Cong., Jan. 26, 1778 : Note 4. Wayne to Gates, Jan. 26, 1778 : Bancroft Coll., Revol. Papers, III., p. 271. Remark CIX. '* § Laf 's Instr.: U. S. Revol. Papers, III., Lib. of Cong. Gates to [Cong.]: Cont. Cong. Papers, 156, p. 63. Remark CX. 49^ Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony Flemington, struggled on through bleak New Jersey, and crossed the Hudson above New York.'^ Then he turned to the north and soon found himself in the Highlands, among scenes that fitted his thoughts. Stem Donderberg, pushing into the stream, looked down upon him with a defiance gloomy as night ; and, though its old Dutch goblin in trunk-hose and sugar-loaf hat that roused the summer storms lay asleep under the drifts, every dark ledge topped with snow seemed an eyebrow raised at his un dertaking. Just beyond, An thony s Nose— descending to the stream like a black cliff hurled from the battlements of heaven — seemed to bar his progress as it had seemed to bar brave Henry Hudson's long before. At the upper gateway. Storm King and Cro' Nest scowled a parting menace ; and the lovely bay of Newburg, bound fast now in chains of ice, reminded him how scarce the laurel must be at Lake Champlain. But at Poughkeepsie, George Clinton's maul}-, genial face and hearty voice bade him welcome and God-speed; and, when he reached Manor Livingston, the roaring hearth of the great patroon roared louder than ever in honor of such a guest.'" On the fifteenth of February, he took leave of this hos- AT ANTHONY'S NOSE 15 § Laf. to Wash., Feb. 9, 1778: Sparks MSS., No. 87 (unpaged). Id. to Gates, Feb. 7, 1778: Sparks MSS., No. 22, p. 129. ' ' § Hudson: Pictur. Amer., II., p. 17. Clinton: see portraits, particularly frontis. of Clinton, Public Papers, I. Met Clinton : ib., II., 865. Duane to Wash., Mar. 13, 1778: Coll. of C. H. Swan, Esq. The State of Things at Albany 497 pitable mansion and set out, with the ghostly Catskills at his left, on the final stretch of his four hundred frigid miles. Beside him rode now the long-nosed New York attorney, James Duane, — lately the messenger of Con gress to John Stark. In Duane's mind, too, boiled many ideas. For one thing, he doubtless pictured to himself the thin, set lips and vise-like jaw of that rough-and- ready war-horse, when he found that not only a boy-aris tocrat, but the peaceful McDougall, an Irish adventurer, and a German hireling had all been preferred to him. But he deemed it wise to keep his opinions to himself, and the Marquis reached Albany (February 17) with no coun sel but his own tumultuous thoughts and the suggestions of the Highland scenery." One man, he soon found, was deeply in earnest about the expedition and had been working energetically for nearly a fortnight. Colonel Moses Hazen, who was to be the Quartermaster-General, had arranged witb General Heath at Boston to send a small party down the Chaudiere aud scatter word that an army was to invade Canada by that route ; had obtained authority from the Massachusetts Legislature to impress all the needed ' carriages' in Berkshire and Hampshire Counties; had secured a similar power from the New York authorities ; had collected provisions enough, as he believed, besides fat cattle, snow-shoes, felling-axes, and what not ; had made sure of the necessary forage ; had set Easton at work enlisting men ; had stimulated Bayley and Bedel ; and had written pressingly to the Council of Safety at Bennington. He felt prepared to transport the hospital and military stores ; and his Canadian soldiers were ' so ' ' § Duane: Note i6. Engraved portrait of Duane. Stark : C. Stark, J. stark, frontis. and p. 93. Kalb: Laf, M6m., p. 73 ; Wharton, Dipl. Corres., I., p. 416. K., by birth a German, was in the French service. 17th: Laf to Bd. War, Feb. 20, 1778: Note 10. VOL. II. — 32. 498 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony warm for the expedition that they would consent to go almost naked into Canada.' " But sleds aud provisions did not make an army ; and, when Lafayette looked for his 2,500 men, he did not find them." Gates, in his comfortable way of taking things for granted, had accepted the muster-rolls as Gospel ; and the rolls had not been correct. Soldiers had figured there, for example, who had been dropped in hospitals hundreds of miles distant and had sent no report of them selves since. ' By this Means,' explained Richard Var ick later, 'Congress is amuzed by the abstracts of the D[eputy] M[uster] M[aster] Gen', with Returns of a Large Army of Men, who are most probably not in Exist ence, or at least, not now in their Service.' Others were iU at Albany, no doubt ; desertions and furloughs had thinned the rest ; and, in all, only 960 effectives of the rank and file could be discovered, a number of whom, boys of twelve or patriarchs of sixty, were quite unfit for the proposed march." As for the clothing required by a winter campaign in Canada, these poor fellows might about as well have been in breech-clouts and nose-rings. Three hundred and 1 8 § Gates to Wash., Jan. 24, 1778: Bancroft Coll., Revol. Papers, III., p. 263. Id. to Laf , .Tan. 24, 1778 :ib., p. 267. Hazen to Bedel, Jan. 29, 1778: N. H. State Papers, XVIL, p. 212. Id. to Laf, Feb. 18, 1778 : Cont. Cong. Papers, 166, p. 67. Id. to Conway, Feb. 17, 1778: ib., p. 103. Id. to Gates, Feb. 20, 1778: ib., p. 117. Laf to Wash., Feb. 19, 1778; Sparks MSS., No. 87 (unpaged). 1 ' § For the state of things at Albany : Note 18 ; Conway to Hazen, Feb. 18, 1778 (Cont. Cong. Papers, 166, p. 65); Retura, Feb. 20 (ib., p. 77); Clinton to Conway, Feb. 17, 1778 (ib., p. 87); Sch. to Conway, Feb. 17, 1778 (ib., p. 93); Return of provisions, Feb. 18, 1778 (ib., p. loi) ; Amold to Conway, Feb. 16, 1778 (tb., p. 71); Lincoln to Conway, Feb. 16, 1778 (ib., p. 81); J. Pierce, Jr., to Bd. \Var, Feb. 20, 1778 (ib., p. 115); Laf to Couvray, Feb. 19, 1778 (Bancroft CoU., Revol. Papers, III., p. 287); Troup to Gates, Feb. 19, 1778 (ib., p. 283); Id. to Id., [Feb. 6, 1778] (lb., p. 279); Laf to Bd. War, Feb. 20, 1778 (Cont. Cong. Papers, Canad. Affairs, No. 166, p. 97); Id. to Hazen, Feb. 18, 1778 (ib.. p. 59); Conway to Gates, Feb. 19, 1778 (ib., p. m); Laf., M&n., p. 41 ; Ami du Gal. Laf. (Lib. of Cong.). 20 § Varick to Gates, Nov. 28, 1777: Cont. Cong. Papers, Letters, 78, V, Vol. XXIII., p. 69. Id. to Id., Mar. 23, 1778: ib., p. 77. V. was Dep. M.-M.-Gen'l, No. Dept. Conway and Troup to Gates, Feb. 19, 1778: Note 19. Clinton to Con way, Feb. 17, 1778: Cont. Cong. Papers, 166, p. 87. Remarks on the Retum of Feb. 20: Note 19. A Lack of Clothing 499 .sixty-nine coats, seven hundred 'vest-coats,' three hundred and twenty-one pairs of breeches, one thousand and thir ty-five shirts, seven hundred and eighteen ' hoses,' seven hundred and twenty-one pairs of shoes, two hundred and ninety-two caps, four hundred and twenty-nine pairs of leggings, nine hundred and eighty-eight pairs of socks, and six hundred and fifty-seven blankets were needed. Instead of obtaining every necessary from the clothier- general, the Marquis had to report : ' there is nothing, or almost nothing at all ' in his boasted stores. The ener getic Hazen had procured some clothing in Boston, but only about enough for his own men. Clinton wished he could help, but the New York authorities could barely furnish a small number of shirts."' THE HIGHLANDS OF THE HUDSON VIEWED FROM WEST POINT Funds could have eased things a great deal, no doubt ; but money was literally a minus quantity. Four hundred thousand dollars in Continental paper had seemed ample to the Board of War ; but, when the first half of the amount landed at Albany, this report went back to York : ' Words 2 1 § Remarks on Retum of Feb. 20 ; Laf. to Bd. War, Feb. 20; and Clinton, Feb. 17: Note 19. Hazen to Gates, Feb. 20, 1778: Cont. Cong Papers, 166, p. 117. 500 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony cannot express the distress we are in for want of Money— and this is but a small sum in comparison of what is absolutely wanted in the Department. ' Back pay and the like amounted to nearly $500,000. Half as much more was owing for the militia, the staff, and the rations ; and there were many other debts. Needless to say, with pay already due them for more than five months and a half and only shivers to keep their blood in circulation, the soldiers received the announcement of an expedition to the north with no great enthusiasm. ' I found here a general Aver sion to the expedition,' reported Conway ; and Troup added, The men are ' almost ready to mutiny for want of pay.'" Bedel — annoyed, perhaps, by the shifting ground of the campaign — had lost faith in it, and, though he kept men scouting, felt little inclination to move. Provisions were costly in his region ; and naturally, as Gates for warded no money, Lieutenant-Colonel Wheelock found them very hard to purchase. Hazen's urgent orders and $5,000, received about the seventh of February, had finaUy set the wheels in motion ; but only two hundred and fifty men could be raised, and those would not march. Bedel reported, without such equipments as blankets, moccasins, and Indian stockings, — that is to say, accord ing to Conway's gloss, " every Necessary article of Cloath ing. ' Nothing, then, could be counted upon in that quarter." 2 2 Pierce, Conway (Feb. 19), Troup (Feb. 19): Note 19. 25 § Bedel to Hazen, Feb. 7, 1778 : Cont. Cong. Papers, 166, p. 63. Id. to Gates, Mar. 14, 1778: N. H. State Papers, XVIL, p. 218. Wheelock to Gates, Dec. 30, 1777 : Force Transcripts of Gates Corres. Bd. War Papers, I., p. 465. Wheelock, receipt, Feb. 7, 1778 : N. H. State Papers, XVII., p. 218. Troup to Gates, Feb. 19: Note 19. Hazen to Bedel, Jan. 29, 1778: N. H. State Papers, XVII., p. 212. Hazen to Laf, Feb. 18, 1778 : Note 19. Conway to Gates, Feb. 19, 1778: Note 19. Bedel stated to Gates (Mar. 14 : N. H. State Papers, XVII., p. 218) that he received word on the day he would have marched that the expedition had been given up (see Conway to Bedel, Feb. 15, 16, 1778: N. H. State eapers, XVIL, pp. 213, 217); but how many men he really had is somewhat cloudy : see Chase, Hanover, I., pp. 390-393. GENERAL JOHN STARK 501 Stark is Passive 503 Stark had decided that, as Congress had pretty well forgotten his enterprise, he would do the same, and blandly wrote to Lafayette (February 3) : ' Being Informed by the Hon'ble General Gates that you are appointed to Command an expedition against the British troops in Canada, & that I am to go on the same expedition, should be glad to know as soon as possible what Number of troops you expect I shall Bring with me what States I shall Raise them in, the place of rendevouz & when to Be rende- vouzed.' To the Bennington Council he said: the plan has been changed, — ' I hope,' forthe best ; and, as for the officers who wish a bounty for recruiting, I have no doubt that Congress will reward them according to their merit. In short, the fiery Stark was neutral and passive, which — from a man like him — seemed antagonistic. Ac cording to Troup, Congress had expected fifteen hundred volunteers from this direction ; but Schuyler declared, the day Lafayette reached Albany, that Stark had not yet 'raised a single man,' and Conway repeated the same words two days later. To expect ' the least assistance ' from him would be ' folly,' said Colonel Troup." The Council at Bennington had resolved to furnish three hundred old rangers and their officers, but had added that it would be necessary to provide them with shoes, stockings, and blankets, and highly desirable to settle back pay, before asking them to re-enlist. In other words, these men could not be expected. Of Easton's four hun dred, nothing was heard ; but news did come, in a round about way, that Colonel Fellows had called the Berkshire officers together, and it had been decided, ' after mature deliberation,' that unless ' a proper encouragement was 2< § stark to Laf, Feb. 3, 1778: Cont. Cong. Papers, 166, p. 57. Id. to Benn. Council : Cont. Cong. Papers, Letters, 78, W, XXIII., pp. 451-456- Sch., Conway, and Troup (Feb. 19) to Gates: Note 19. Stark's letter to Prest. Cong., May 24, 1778 (C. stark. Gen. Stark, p. 150) seems to imply that, on hearing of Laf 's appointment, he dismissed men already enroUed. 504 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony given ... it was unnecessary to attempt raising any men.' That accounted for western Massachusetts." To leave no stone unturned, Lafayette heaved also at the Albany Committee. But it would not budge. We can do little, for we are cut off from our seaport, was the reply. Enlisting troops is not our affair. The question of forage belongs to the commissary. There is little to be had — ^we can tell you so much — for the enemy took what they could in the late campaign, the American troops used up a deal, and, as many farmers were called from their hay -fields to serve in the army , much of the grass was not cut. As for transportation, Hazen has authority to im press ' carriages, ' and certainly they can be got in that way ; but, ' owing to the Averseness ' of the people to so tedious and hazardous a joumey, it wijl take time. Besides, if this is done, the transportation of supplies to the other garrisons will probably be delayed. But of course we wiU do everything we can, — certainly." Before Lafayette's anival, Conway, who had preceded him three days, had asked the advice of the general officers on the ground, and his ' first word ' to the Mar quis was: ' quite impossible.' The advice fully supported him. Lincoln said that all ideas of prosecuting the plan should be abandoned, and the sooner the better. Schuyler added that Congress itself would consider the force R. R. LIVINGSTON 2 5 Cont. Cong. Papers, Letters, No. 78, W, XXIII., pp. 451-456. 2s§Laf to Alb. Com. and reply, Feb. 19, 1778: Cont. Cong. Papers, 166, pp. 105, 107. Peter Kalm, who visited Albany, said that if a Jew were to settle there, he would be ruined: Munsell, Coll., II , p 13. The Opinions of the Generals 505 inadequate, else it would not have promised one so much greater. Arnold was ' fully of Opinion ' that nothing could be done, and even that an attempt to carry out the scheme as matters actually stood would be to ' deviate ' from the instructions given the Marquis. Duane and the minor officers consulted held similar views. Nobody be lieved that Hazen would be able to accomplish what he promised. Out of a hundred and fifty sleds that he ex pected, only thirteen arrived. Lafayette distrusted his motives ; and that officer himself, though ' greatly hurt ' by the thought of giving up, conceded that such a lack of men and clothes was fatal. To crown the whole, so moderate had been the weather, that it seemed a question whether the ice on Lake Champlain would bear." Such a crown merited a rare gem to top it, and this Arnold offered to supply. In his judgment, the expedi tion was essentially imprudent and ought not to have been undertaken. Should it fail, how could the troops return ? The ice would not hold so late in the season. Should it succeed, how were they to be subsisted ? They could not carry provisions enough to last them; none could be purchased without hard money ; and what could be obtained by force — aside from the folly of using such means — had already been taken by the British. As for getting military aid from the Canadians, they had neither arms nor ammunition. To send away the Continental troops at Albany would leave only militia to defend the Hudson and back Fort Schuyler. There were no signs that Burgoyne's expedition was to be repeated; therefore 2 ' § Conway arrived on the 14th (Laf to Wash., Feb. 19, 1778 : Sparks MSS., No. 87). In Sparks MSS., No. 12, p. 327, the letter to Lincoln is dated Feb. 6 ; but the letters of Lincoln and Clinton to Conway prove thatthe date should be Feb. 16. Laf, Feb. 20, 1778 (Conway, Hazen, Duane, etc.), Lincoln, Sch., Arnold, Troup (Feb. 19) : Note 19. Sleds: Conway to Gates, Feb. 19, 1778 (Cont. Cong. Papers, Canad. Affairs, 166, p. 59). Suspected : Laf. to Wash., Feb. 19, 1778 (Sparks MSS., No. 87). Hazen to Gates, Feb. 20, 1778: Note 18. Duane to wash., Mar. 13, 1778: Coll. of C. H. Swan, Esq. Ice: Arnold to G. Morris, Feb. 2, 1778 (Freeman's Journal, July 18, 1781). 5o6 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony the vessels on Lake Champlain could do no great harm. And the best way, after all, to secure Canada was to enable Washington, by sending him all the troops that could be had, to ' drive Mr. Howe and his banditti from the country.' °' Then, to polish the jewel, it appeared that perhaps the situation in Canada was not so promising as Gates had supposed. John NeviU, an American soldier captured on the retreat from Quebec, after serving a long while in Maclean's Highland Emigrants, had taken French leave; and he now reported under oath upon the present state of things at the north. According to his testimony, the British kept a party at Iron Point, which could no doubt, even if surprised, send notice of the expedition; about four hundred men and thirteen cannon were on guard, under the brave Nairne, at Nut Island ; as many or more lay at St. Johns, with at least a hundred pieces of ar tillery; some five hundred Hessians were scattered be tween Montreal and the Richelieu; Sir John Johnson's regiment of Tories occupied Laprairie; two or three hundred regulars were in garrison at Montreal; there were now three redoubts and a blockhouse at St. Johns ; nearly all the shipping lay under their guns, and no straw to bum the vessels with had been stowed away in their holds." Heavy artillery could not be transported by Lafayette ; and ' if they do their duty [at St. Johns] ten thousand men cannot take it with small arms,' remarked Arnold. To imagine that such a bristling series of posts would sud denly be overwhelmed with ' consternation ' was absurd ; yet that was the very nub of Lafayette's instructions. 2 8 Arnold to Morris, Feb. 2, 1778: Freeman's Joumal, July 18, 1781. The point about money was urged by Franklin also: Wharton, Dipl. Corres., IIL, P- 215. 2 '§ NeviU, Statement: Cont. Cong. Papers, 166, p. 75. Laf to Bd. War, Feb. 20, 1778: Note 19. Id. to Wash., Feb. 19, 1778: Note 27. .'iX'yy'»/^i>-Y'oy /yyjT fir fi^ y) *¦ ? AiSf fS-fyi^^^ /yaiy.'^ Jf, ^ex y/«*)«», ('1^ /io^ y^H/it /o tjo f!M yie yixtfiK ftyft^t-A'^'^,. .'ilo/./^ /• y/JO /b yf^/u>/M/ .ny yireM 0^ .i'Aay/ y^^^».,j ,^1/i, ^,,,, ^^jfafy^r./ .^ ^ ^y^n^f /M><,a r,n .//>i/7;i>^ ttStTuJ fo i^yiAuiy iyg,ti,^^f At/To/t-y 507 5o8 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony 'They suppose the Enemy are to be pannic Struck & fly,' said the impartial Clinton, after a careful look at the document. Besides, if men could come south with interesting information, men could go north with as good,. making a surprise impossible ; and prudence had to reckon more or less on what actually occurred : loyalists carr}'- ing news to the British. To sum up: scarcely one pale ray of encouragement filtered upon the enterprise from any quarter. '° Dazed, at first, rather than enlightened by the terrible truth, Lafayette determined to push on with what he had. But soon he realized that it would be mad, even wicked, to squander the men's lives; and finaUy he de termined to ask the advice of Congress, keeping at work meanwhile and listening eagerly to everj' scheme suggested." It was not a happy family, that group of officers in Albany. By this time, more than twenty Frenchmen had come up, — every one a Hannibal, in his own opinion, except the Scipios; and all they could do was to climb the hill for a look at the ruined fort, watch the steaming breath of a Dutch housewife poking skeptically at frozen deer-meat in the little market, or sit on one of the front stoops, in summer so carefully scoured but now swept by the zero gales, and listen to the resinous creak of horses' hoofs on the snow. On Sunday, as a special treat, they could hear the English bell on St. Peter's chapel in the middle of State Street ; or they could file into the old Dutch church and see a black figure slowly rise in the octagonal oak pulpit, invert the hour-glass on the bracket in front of it, and then lay out a series of 3 0 § Arnold to Morris: Note 28. Clinton to [Alex. Hamilton] I Clinton, Pub. Papers, II., p. 865. Powell to Carleton, Mar. 2, 1778: Can. Arch., B, 129, p. i. See also Can. Arch., B, 100, p. 17. 5' § Conway to Hazen, Feb. 18, 1778: Cont. Cong. Papers, 166, p. 65. Laf to Bd. War, Feb. 20: Note 19. Id. to Wash., Mar. 25, 1778: Sparks, Corres., IL, p. 93. Id. to Gates, Feb. 23, 1778: Sparks MSS., No. 22, p. 130. Lafayette's Deep Chagrin 509 'heads' as if sands could not run; but even this did little toward satisfying their dreams of glory and riches. Colo nel Troup, Gates's aide-de-camp and confidant, who had pronounced Lafayette — after his famous toast at the ban quet — 'strongly tinctured with the Fabian principles of Head Quarters,' was still sniffing discontentedly at his heels like an ill-bred black-and-tan. Conway was thor oughly vexed with Congress for making General De Kalb, whom he described as his junior in France, out rank him in America, and especially for sending this rival to lord it over him at Albany. Hazen felt deeply disappointed and bitterly angry with Arnold. Lincoln was pain fully curing a severe wound. Schuyler — although, like the gen tleman and patriot that he was, he had buttoned a civilian coat about him and gone over to con gratulate Gates on Burgoyne's defeat — could not feel reconciled to the disgrace of removal. And Arnold, still in his bed, was raging like a furnace over his enemies and his leg." But all of this misery, piled together, would not have equalled Lafayette's. The ' most solemn promises ' had been made him that he should ' find here a large field of glory.' An 'immensity of laurels' had been predicted. He had been induced to inform his friends and 'let know THE DUTCH MEETINQ-HOUSE. ALBANY 32 §Laf to Wash., Feb. 23, 1778: Sparks MSS., No. 87. Troup, Statement: Sparks MSS., No. 49, I., pp. 20, 21. Fleury to Laurens, Feb. 14, 1778: Emmet Coll., F. Munsell, Coll., II., pp. 12, 13, 24, 26, 27, 374. Porter, Diary Apr. i, 1776. Troup to Gates, Feb. [6], 19, 23, 1778: Bancroft Coll, Revol. Papers, IIL, pp. 279, 291, 299. Conway to Gates, Feb. 24, 1778 : ib., p. 303. Hazen to Gates, Feb. 20, 1778: Cont. Cong. Papers, 166, p. 117. Sch.: Stone, Memoir, p. 81. I. N. Arnold, B. Amold, pp. 213, 214. G. Morris to Amold, Feb. 21, 1778: Freeman's Joumal, July 18, 1781. 5 to Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony to the whole europe,' that he stood at the head of an American force ' directed to do great things.' As a letter to his wife showed, he had felt convinced in his sanguine moments that it would be impossible to keep his movement within any small bounds. All Canada would be freed from the British yoke, and his army would sweU to an 'immense' host. There had been, indeed, a 'charming prospect,' as he said; but now — 'the people [in Europe] will be in great expectations, & what shall I answer?' ' I shall be laughed at,' he groaned; 'I will become very ridiculous.' What his 'perhaps too quick and too warm heart' felt, could not be measured. Said an eye-witness, James Duane, Esq. , it was ' unexpressible chagreen.' " His one consolation was that he felt sure where to place the blame, and he made considerable use of it. ' What business had the board of war to hurry me thro ' the ice & snow without knowing what I should do neither what they were doing themselves ? ' he exclaimed. In his judgment, it was tardiness at York that had ruined the plan. ' If proper orders, proper monnies had been sent sometime ago we should have been able to carry the expedition,' he informed the Board itself; 'if as soon as the intended expedition began to [be talked about] in the streets of york General Washington had been desired of giving me the order to repair to Congress, we should have had some time before hand.' A ' hell of blunders, madness, and deception,' was his picture of the case. ' Your deceived friend,' he described himself to his General." 33 §Laf to Bd. War., Feb. 20, 1778: Note 19. Id. to Wash., Feb. 19, 1778: Sparks MSS., No. 87. Id. to his wife, Feb. 3, 1778: Laf, M€m., p. 151. Id. to Laurens, rec'd Jan. 28, 177S: So. Car. Hist, and Gen. Mag., VIL, p. 179. Id. to Gates, Feb. 23, 1778: Sparks MSS., No. 22, p. 130. Duane to Wash., Mar. 13, 1778: CoU. of C. H. Swan, Esq. 3< § Laf to Wash., Feb. 19, 1778: Note 33. Id. to Bd. War, Feb. 20, 1778: Note 19. Id.to Wash., Mar. 25, 1778: Sparks, Corres., II., p. 93. Id. to Laurens, Feb. 19, 1778: So. Car. Hist, and Gen. Mag., VIL, p. 189. Misgivings in Congress 511 Nor was Congress happy at this time. For one thing, Washington's attitude did not seem precisely reassuring. When Gates invited him, after the orders to Lafayette had been issued, to give his opinion and advice on the matter, the Commander-in-chief had replied to what was a perfunctory, if not a patronizing, letter: 'as I neither know the extent of the objects in view, nor the means to be employed to effect them, it is not in my power to pass any judgment upon the subject.' Evidently Washington felt no desire to be connected in any way with the expe dition ; and while no doubt his sense of propriety and his regard for Lafayette combined to prevent any public criti cism upon it, an equal sense of duty may have led him to make some remarks to the committee of Congress." At any rate, the committee worked hard against the scheme. ' We have taken every measure in our power to ruin the Canada expedition, ' wrote Gouverneur Morris ; ' it is necessary that we should destroy it, or it will de stroy us.' One letter of theirs in particular disturbed Congress so much that, on the sixteenth of February, the Board of War were directed ' to report specially thereon, and to laj' before Congress a copy of the orders given to the officers commanding the irruption.' Whatever was thought of the extravagant orders, it cannot have been reassuring to find that one part of them — and that the final, cautionary part — had been lost, and could only be given from memory.^' Arnold had very promptly, very cheerfully, and very emphatically written to Gouverneur Morris against the expedition ; and, as this was a prime opportunity to set tle scores with both Gates and Hazen, he doubtless ex 's § Gates to Wash., Jan. 24, 1778: Bancroft Coll., Revol. Papers, III., p 263. Reply, Jan. 27, 1778: Wash., Writings (Ford), VI. , p. 296. " § Morris to Arnold, Feb.21, 1778: Freeman 's JoumaL JulyiS, 1781. (This was in reply to Arnold's of Feb. 2; but, as that did not arrive until Feb. 20, tne action ofthe Com. was not due to Arnold's advice.) Secret Joum. Cong , ijeb. 16, 1778. Memory: Gates's memorandum (Cont. Cong. Papers, 156, p. 63). Ki 1 I The End of the Enterprise 513 pressed his opinion to other friends of his in Congress. Lincoln and Schuyler, understanding the difficulties, very likely did the same. Evidently some persons addressed remarks to the Board of War itself ; and, on the twenty- third, sundry papers from that body, communicated to Con gress, were referred to a special committee with orders to consider them, 'collect the best information' it could upon the subject, ' and lay the same before Congress as soon as possible.' This led, the next day, to a vote that Lafayette should be ' particularly attentive ' to the mat ters of clothing and provisions, and that, if he could not obtain sufficient men and supplies, he should 'regulate his conduct according to the probability of success.' " By the second of March, Lafayette's full report of the situation, wich the returns and the opinions of the officers, evidently arrived. ' I hope it will open their eyes,' the Marquis had said ; and that it did. Congress voted that, ' Whereas, it appears from authentick accounts, that diffi culties attend the prosecution of the irruption . which render the attempt not only hazardous in a high degree, but extremely imprudent,' it should be suspended for the present, and the officers — in particular, the Mar quis — be treated to the most appreciative and compli mentary phrases. A few days later, Washington was authorized to recall Lafayette and Kalb to the ' grand army.' On the morrow, a snub was administered to the Board of War by voting down its recommendation in favor of Conway's aide-de-camp. Still later, Conway was ordered to join McDougall ; Schuyler offered Louis, the faithful Caughnawaga chief, a thousand dollars in specie if he would burn the vessels at St. Johns, thus fitly wind ing up Gates's great miHtary and political operation as an attempt at arson ; Lafayette's passionate mortification ' ^ Secret Journ. Cong , Feb. 23, 24, 1778. 514 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony grew calm enough to laugh — rather grimly, no doubt — at the whole affair; and finaUy aU traces of the many anxious, hurrying feet melted away with the snows of Albany into Albany mud." One thing, however, did not melt : the idea of using, as a lever on Canada, the affection of its people for France. 3s § Secret Joum. Cong., Mar. 2, 13, 14, 1778. Laf. to Wash., Feb. 19, 1778: Note 33. Bd. War. Papers, I., p. 551. Conway to Gates, Apr. 2, 1778: Bancroft CoU., Revol. Papers, IIL, p. 323. Sch. to Prest. Cong., Mar. 15, 1778 : Cont. Cong. Papers, 170, p. 261. LafftoWash., Mar. 25, 1778: Note 34. Mar. 10, 1778, Wash, wrote consolingly to Laf. (Writings, Ford's ed., VI., p. 410). Re mark CXI. XXXVII REASONS OF STATE PERSONAL sympathy and aid such as Lafayette's — however cheering, however valuable — were not the principal reinforcement which the Declaration of Inde pendence ensured. That act opened the way to foreign alliances ; and when France, precisely as the Marquis was about leaving Valley Forge for Albany, concluded a treaty with the United States, we found ourselves on intimate terms with the beloved fatherland of the Canadians. A great change then occurred in the northern problem. It ceased to be an affair of quick dashes, of personal en thusiasm and address ; and it became a question of high diplomacy and far-reaching strategy, with all the advan tages and all the disadvantages which that new fact implied. Another change, also — a military one — took place now in the schemes for invading Canada. The fleet at St. Johns had not been burned. The British still held full control of Lake Champlain, and seemed very likely to re tain it. Schuyler suggested that perhaps vessels enough to beat them could be secretly constructed somewhere on those waters; but, as Washington pointed out, this was extremely improbable. In a winter campaign, the fieet would have been helpless, no doubt ; but military opera tions at that season were exceedingly exhausting and required the costliest preparation. Consequently, some 515 l<>?r. /yf£^aw>T<:.A^ ^ RESOLUTION MOVED IN CONGRESS, JUNE 7, 1776 516 Hazen's Road 517 other convenient route into the north seemed quite essential. ' Fortunately, that problem appeared to have been solved in advance. As early as December, 1775, Jacob Bayley of Coos — more precisely Newbury, Vermont — proposed to Washington the building of a road to Canada from the Connecticut River at that point, and Washington laid the matter promptly before Congress. In February, 1776, Frye Bayley and two comrades went from Cobs to Mon treal and described the region they crossed in Vermont as ' the best country for a road ' that any of them had ever seen, 'through any woods ofthe same length.' The dis tance from Boston to St. Johns along that line was found to be eighty-two miles less than by Crown Point, no slight advantage ; and the settlements of Coos appeared to give the route a solid fulcrum. Private interests would be served, no doubt, by carrying out the project, but that was true in every such affair. Samuel Adams, as well as Washington, recommended the plan ; and in May Congress ordered the road built." Under Washington's orders it was promptly begun; and by the first of July, according to a loyalist informer, the route had been marked all the way to St. Johns. At the southern end, to the infinite astonishment of many a catbird and lynx, the trees and bushes were cleared away for a breadth of twenty-two yards, a carriage road lev elled half as wide, and strips of trees killed along the way by girdling, so that the sun might dry the ground. In this fashion, the work proceeded thoroughly to Peacham ' Wash, to Sch., Nov. 20, 1778: Wash., Writings (Ford), VII., p. 265. 2 5 Wash, to Cong., Dec. 25j 1775: Wash., Writings (Ford), III., p. 297. Bayley et al.. Report: 4 Force, IV., 1500. Bayley to Wash., Apr. 15, 1776: 4 Force, v., 947. Wash, to Cong., May 5, 1776: Wash., Writings (Ford), IV., p. 59. Johnson, Journal: 4 Force, V., 948. Wells, S. Adams, II., p. 402. Wash, to S. Adams, Mar. 22, 1776: S. Adams Papers. Id. to Bayley, Apr. 29, 1776: 4 Force, v., 1113. Private: Bayley, Narrative. S. Adams to Wash., May 15, 1776: S. Adams Papers. Joum. Cong., May 10, 1776. 5i8 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony TH/ill JiiyiRS and several miles beyond. Then, as a consequence of the American retreat from Canada, the British seemed likely to attack the laborers at any moment. In fact, news came that a party was close upon them, and the work hastily ended. But the line had now been laid out and the road could manifestly be completed with no great difficulty. That done, an American force could strike St. Johns by land, or — passing down one of the rivers just east of the Richelieu — arrive at the St. Lawrence without encountering any of the British forts. = Gates, not wholly pleased with the re sults of his Lafayette 'irruption,' felt very ambitious to carry through some scheme for the invasion of Canada; and, in the month of July, 1778, Traversie, one of the principal Canadian scouts, presented himself to Colonel Bedel with this mysterious DARTMOUTH COLLCat Ij. CHARLISTOWN • BENKItlCTO, 3 % Wash, to Bayley, Apr. 29, 1776 ; Note 2. Work vras ordered to be begun before Congress acted. Bayley to Wash., May 28, 1776: 4 Force, VI., 611. In former to Carleton, July 11, 1776: Can. Arch., B, 181, p. 10. Wells, Newbury, p. 76. Bittinger, Haverhill, p. 170. Bedel to Gates, Aug. 25, 1778: N. H. State Papers, XVIL, p. 265. Gates's New Plan 519 letter : ' Traversie has my directions to acquaint you with a message I have sent by him,' — Horatio Gates.* Louis Vincent was called in to interpret, and with his aid the message was written down : ' General Gates Ordered me to tell Col° Bedel to Chuse a proper Person for a Pilot to find out a Road to Saint Francois. I was to Consult with them about the same, [and] when the Road is looked out to send Lieu' Col° Wheelock to him and no other Persons, with the Proceedings, to be done with the utmost despatch. . . . Gen' Gates also told me not to Inform Generals Schuyler or Starks of the same on pain of Punishment. Gen' Gates in Person wo'' March this way with the troops. Gen' Gates upon his arrival at Saint Francois wo'' divide the Army into two Divisions and wo'' be in Canada in September, where there is plenty of Provisions, and that the French would come up the River.' To this Traversie put his mark in the presence of two safe witnesses, and before long Colonel Hazen arrived to confirm it ; while Gates, to protect the secret still further, assured Stark : ' You need be under no man ner of concern of another Canada expedition being need lessly undertaken,' — saving himself by the adverb.*^ Bedel replied that ' No kind of difficulty ' was to be feared about a route. There were three practicable ways to go north from Coos, all of them indicated on Hazen's plan, and they should be examined and marked at once. Further, he would send three parties of spies to as many different sections of Canada for intelligence ' with orders to retum withall possible expedition,' and would hold himself in readiness with his men. Within five days. * § Ambitious : Gates to Wash., Mar. 4, 1779 (Sparks, Corres., II., p. 256). Id. to Bedel, June 26, 1778, etc. : Chase, Hanover, I., p. 392. ^ § Message: Wheelock Papers (Chase, Hanover, I., p. 392). Gates to Stark, July 14, 1778 : C. Stark, Stark, p. i3i. What warrant Gates had for saying the French would aid, the author does not know. Perhaps he made the statement merely to rouse the Canadians. Frangois is, of course, the French form of Francis. 520 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony the surveyors and spies were out. Fifteen hundred or two thousand volunteers. Be del assured Wheelock, could be found for the expedition in those parts. Don't delay about recruiting, he added.' But now came one of those whirls that kept the Cana dian operations perpetually waltzing. Within a week Hazen wrote : ' Our proposed expedition to Canada, must be Post poned,' for Congress and the generals are busy shutting up Howe's fleet, ' in hopes of Burgoyning Clin tons Army.' ' Soon, however, and under better auspices, another plan for invading the north by this route began to take shape. It was a general belief that Great Britain would soon evacuate the States ; and, were that done, the men and resources for au expedition could be spared. Still firm in his opinion that Canada ought to make a part of the Union, Washington lost no time. Gates, Bayley and Hazen were appointed as a Board of Officers, to con- <• § Bedel to Gates, July, 14, 1778 : Chase, Hanover, I., p. 393. Bedel to Wheelock, July 19, 1778: N. H. State Papers, XVII., p. 243 ; Wheelock Papers. I Hazen to Bedel, July 25, 1778 : N. H. State Papers, XVII., p. 248. FROM TRAVERSIE'S MESSAGE Washington's Move 521 sider ' what would be the most eligible plan ' ; and, about the middle of September, the Commander-in-chief sent their findings to Congress with his own cautious and conditional endorsement. ' Essential advantages ' might be derived, he thought, from such a movement, should Congress regard it as warranted by the circumstances. In the interim, he had ordered stores of provisions and forage gathered at Coos, and the best possible answers obtained in Canada to a series of important questions. As Colonel Hazen was deputed to carry and supplement the letter. Congress was evidently to hear all that could be said for the project. To send him was itself an argument.' Then the kaleidoscope turned again. Lafayette also found the glamour of the north too strong to resist. In August, he sent an engineer to examine the route from Coos, and in October he proposed the co-operation of France and the United States in a vigorous invasion. Congress took the project up at once, and, on the twenty- second of the month, in the form of Instructions to Doc tor Franklin, the American representative at Paris, an elaborate scheme was adopted." By this plan, sixteen hundred chosen men ofthe rank and file were to be gathered at Fort Pitt from Virginia and Pennsylvania, and march by the first day of June against Detroit. A nearly equal force, drawn from Pennsylvania and New Jersey would rendezvous in the Wyoming val ley on the upper Susquehanna, and move not later than June the first against Niagara ; and a third party of the 8 § Wash, to Jay, Apr. 14, 1779: Wash., Writings (Ford), VII., p. 393. Id. to Carter, May 30, 1778: ib., p. 37. Id. to Cong., Sept. 12. 1778: ib., p. 191 and note. Bayley to Bedel, Oct. 13, 1778: N. H. State Papers, XVII., p. 276. ' § Engineer to Lafayette, Aug. 25, 1778: N. H. State Papers, XVII., p. 264. Wash, to Jay : Notes. Journ. Cong., Oct. 21, 22, 1778. Secret Joum. Cong., Oct. 22. Instmctions: Cont. Cong. Papers, Reports of Committees, 25, 1., p. 35. The Committee were G. Morris, Chase, Drayton, S. Adams, R. H. L,ee, and Witherspoon . 522 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony same strength, assembled on the Mohawk, would march west at about the .same time, destroy the hostile Indian towns on its route, and join the Susquehanna men on the way to Niagara. Twenty-five hundred more, drawn in part from the regu lar army and in part from the militia of New York, Massachusetts, and Connecticut, would advance from the Mohawk as early as possible to Oswego, and proceed — suitable preparations having been made in the winter — to build vessels of force, gain control of the lake, and assist the work at Niagara by alarming the Indian country. Further, a body of five thousand Continentals, rank and file, gathered in the course ofthe winter ou the upper Connecticut, would advance as early as they could to St. Francis, and gain possession of Montreal, St. Johns, and Lake Champlain. A detachment would then join the forces at Oswego, and as many as possible of the troops assembled there would finally go to Niagara, where the Detroit party, also, whether successful or npt, was to end its campaign. Meanwhile, ' a Body [of] from 2,000 to 5,000 French Troops,' convoyed b}' four ships ofthe line and as many frigates, would pass up the St. Lawrence, and about the first of July reach Quebec, which ' they would in all Probability find quite defenceless ' on account of the de mand for troops in the west. After occupying that capital, gathering and arming the Canadians, and planting a small garrison of marines and regulars, they would go on with the frigates and transports to St. Francis, and combine with the Americans for the operations against Montreal and St. Johns. Should the Americans not have arrived, a part of the French troops would await them, and the rest advance in the lightest vessels. ' By the latter End of July or about the Middle of August the Reduction of Canada might be so far compleated that the Ships might The State of Canada 523 proceed to the Investiture of Halifax' aided by a ' con siderable Body of American Troops . . . with the Militia ofthe States of Massachusetts and New Hampshire ' ; and, by the beginning or middle of October, the victorious forces might occupy Newfoundland. <}UlBtC^ Shrewd plans were laid for deceiving the British. Whereas the other parts of the scheme were to be kept profoundly secret, the movements against Detroit and Niagara might be judiciously mentioned. While the real destination of the French troops was to be given out, their clothing and stores were apparently to 'designate them for the West Indies ' ; but each soldier was to have ' a good Blanket of a large Size to be made into a Coat ' when the weather grew cool ; regular winter clothes were to be despatched separately ; and arms for the Canadians were to be marked ' as for the Militia of one of the French Islands' in the Antilles.'" '° § Instructions: Note 9. Secret Journ. Cong., Oct. 22, 1778; Jan. ^, 1779. 524 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony The state of things in Canada at this time invited an attack. Carleton had turned over the govemment to General Haldimand in July ; and the new head, though capable, had found it an immense labor to gather up the reins of Greater Quebec, a line of champing steeds that reached from Labrador to the Mississippi. The mere dis tances were enough to make his work difficult. The task of transporting provisions to the upper posts was by no means a light one, and at present a dearth of supplies could be seen in the near future. The walls of Quebec were still pronounced ' rotten,' and repairs or new works were needed at other points also. A ' swarm of Priva teers ' infested the Gulf of St. Lawrence, as the Governor himself admitted, — greatly injuring trade, almost ruining the fisheries in that quarter, and undermining confidence in the power of Britain ; and, for almost six months ofthe year, the intense cold paralyzed work so completely, that anxious Haldimand was driven to dancing and fierce Maclean to getting up theatricals. " The Governor's most serious difficulty, however, was the temper of the people. Canada had not found the expulsion of the Americans an unqualified boon. The day Carleton's army halted in its pursuit of them, he directed the habitants to ' hold them selves in readiness to March ' as soon as the chase could be resumed. Four days later General Phillips, in charge of the naval preparations, ' sent an order for the assem bling the Country people with their Tools.' Only during the harvest were they exempt from forced labor {corvies). Troops were billeted upou them ; and, as many petitions revealed, they squirmed lustily under the burdens of un paid work and uninvited guests. Burgoyne tried to coax ' ' §Hald. to Germain, July 25, 1778: Can. Arch., B, 42, p. 6. Id. to Id., Sept. 14, 1779: ib., 54, p. 178. Id. to Id.. June 7, 1779 : ib., 54, p. 85. Id. to Id., Oct. 24^ 1778 : ib., 54, p. .47. Id. to Buda, Mar. i, 1779: ib., 66, p. 105. Maclean to Mathews, Dec. II, 1780: ib., 129, p. 191. o 1- Many Canadians Discontented 527 them; but, when coaxing failed, he put six hundred of the young men under guard, and forced them to march south on his ill-fated excursion. ' Cuff and kick them well about ! ' appeared to be the general prescription of the regular officers for making Canadians work ; and very possibly the poor habitants remembered now the occa sional exactions of the American troops as almost acts of kindness." Besides these afflictions, which fell like the rain on the just and the unjust alike, that large percentage ofthe peo ple which had sided with the Americans found a heavy hand upon them. ' The rewarding those who had pre served their Loyalty and the punishing those who had forsaken their Allegiance,' was recommended by Ger main ; and Carleton himself, however excusable he con sidered the people, realized the sound policy of this rule. At the first anniversary of Montgomery's assault, a ser vice of thanksgiving was held in the cathedral with Bishop Briand upon his throne ; and eight Canadians who had taken part with the invaders had to present them selves with ropes about their necks, do penance before the congregation, and humbly 'crave pardon of their God, Church and King.' " More substantial punishments also were meted out. Not Rusoe d'Eres and his family alone, but many others ofthe people, found themselves persecuted. Carleton ' has rendered himself very odious to the Canadians by levying contributions on them in general,' said Thomas Jef ferson, ' & confiscating the estates of all those who fol lowed our army or who abscond ' ; and of course he did ' 2 § Carleton to Burgoyne, June 20, 1776: Can. Arch., B, 39, p. 25. Foy to Fraser, June 24, 1776: ib., 39, p. 31. Harvest: Carleton to Powell, Aug. 24, 1776 (ib., 39, p. no (inference)). Foy to Marr, Aug. 18, 1777: ib., p. 678. Billeting; petitions: Can. Arch., B, 218, pp. 12, 90, loi, 106, 221, 266 ; 219, pp. 39, ico, etc. Bayley, Narrative. Burgoyne: Rey to S. Adams, 1780 [?] (S. Adams Papers). ' Cuff ' : I/iv., Joumal, Oct. 19. ¦' § Germain to Carleton, Aug. 22, 1776: Can. Arch., Q, 12, p. 88. Carleton to Germain, May 23, 1777; ib., 13, p. ibo. Stone (ed.), I,etters, p. 66. 528 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony not make the statement without grounds. Jean Menard, and nobody knows how mauy others, were cast into prison and there vegetated until the war came to an end. A German staff-officer saw the houses of many disloyal habitants pulled down. Moreover, the Tories doubtless went far beyond, when they could, the Governor's official sternness. Haldimand suggested their temper by lament ing later that too little severity was shown at this time. Goulet's American commission was bumed to ashes in his haud at the church door by royalist neighbors, and con tinual insults finally drove him from the country. No wonder the German officer could write : ' I have indeed passed through Parishes in which the faces of all the hab- itans seemed to betray their rebellious tendencies' (No vember, 1776). " St. Leger's failure and still more Burgoyne's disaster had naturally a great effect in Canada. At first deserters, and then fugitives, made ' very unfavourable impressions' upon the minds of the people, reported the Governor. The brilliant prowess displayed by the Americans can celled the bad effects of their repulses in Canada, and it was necessary to make special efforts ' to raise the spirits ofthe [loyal] People from that Dejected state into which they had been plunged.' Once more the Tories felt abandoned, as in 1775 ; and sympathy with the Americans gathered force. Carleton's departure deepened the gloom. ' No people ever loved their ruler more than the Canadians do theirs,' testified a German ; and his resignation, growing out of just resentment against Lord George Germain, could but stimulate the reaction." n § C. D. R. d'Eres, Memoirs, *(W«'m. Jeff, to Page, Aug. 20, 1776: Jeff., Writings (Ford), II., p. 85. Menard, Petition: Cont. Cong. Papers, No. 35, P- 157. stone (ed.). Letters, pp. 24. 29. Haid. to Germain, June 7, 1779: Can Arch., B, 54, p. 85. Goulet to Wash., Jan., 1781 : Wash. Papers, VI., p. 250, Lib. of Cong. ' 5 § Carleton to Germain, June 10, 1778: Can. Arch., B, 37, p. 187. Stone (ed.). Letters, p. 20. American Scouts 529 Influences from beyond the border had a powerful effect in the same direction. Every effort had been made by the British to build a voice-proof wall on the frontier, with gates of bronze and no latch-string. Parliament prohibited all intercourse ; King George, to give the law a special sanctity, put his royal hand to the parchment ; and Germain ordered Carleton to pay this command ' the most punctual and exact obedience.' All strangers were jealously watched. The pass of the Chaudiere was guarded. Scouts were glued upon all the avenues leading into Canada from Os wego and Fort Schuyler. At St. Johns and Nut Island the sharpest precautions were taken. When any person arrived at a British post or vessel, whatever papers he carried were seized, ' packed up, sealed & directed to the Commander in Chief or Officer Commanding at Montreal to be forwarded to him,' and the bearer was then passed along under guard from post to post, in a silence as deep as possible, to the same destination. Caughnawagas as sured an officer of Stark's that, on a mere suspicion of dealings between them and the States, 'our friends in that Country would be instantly secured and obliged to suffer at least a Close Confinement.' In fact, a party from the south under a flag of truce, conducting an exchanged British officer back to Canada, were arrested and held as prisoners.'* Every effort possible was made to catch the American spies. In the Chaudiere district, both sides of the river were patrolled, and scouts went long distances back and forth across the country at right angles to the stream. If Carleton heard that three St. Regis Indians or two from ' « § Germain to Carleton, Feb. 26, 1776: Can. Arch., B, 37, p. 126. Carleton to Cramahfi, Aug. 27, 1776: Can. Arch., B, 39, p. 116. Id. to OfScer, Jan. 21, 1777: ib., 39, p. 339. Precautions, e. g. : Carleton to Germain, June 10, 1778 (Can. Ar^h., B,'37, p. 187). Circular to officers, Aug. 19, 1778 : ib., 62, p. 88. Cochran to Stark, Oct. 20, 1778 : Emmet Coll. Arrested: Bayley, Narrative. VOL. II.— 34 530 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony Caughnawaga had been talking with ' rebels,' he or dered the matter investigated. ' I employ all methods,' reported Haldimand, ' to become acquainted with the in tricate & secret Paths, ' by which American scouts reach the parishes." But ' all methods ' were not methods enough. Many a bold and wary eye, trained to read the moss on the tree- trunks, familiar with every dell and crag, acquainted with each peasant's inmost feelings, threaded safel3' those intricate paths. Colonel Hazen was known to visit Can ada, but he could not be found. Major Whitcomb, a mild, benevolent-looking justice of the peace at home, but a hard, cunning, restless dare-devil when on British soil, was a frequent invader, and his tall, thin figure, broad shoulders, rough-hewn face, light-brown hair tied behind, blue vest, flask-pockets, leather breeches, grey woollen stockings, and flapped hat with a gold cord round it, were made known to every British officer ; yet he went and came as he pleased. Traversie, a ' famous Canadian Rebel,' as Haldimand described him to Germain, did the same. Goulet, Boileau, Cadieux, and Gosselin were some of the other Canadian spies. Bayley and Bedel kept men out almost constantly. Stark and Schuyler busied themselves in the same work. Messengers came and went by Oswegatchie; and, now and then, volun teers in the cause ventured south, even to Philadelphia, with information." The field was too large and the arts of secrecy were ' ' § Foy to oflScer, Dec. 8, 1776 : Can. Arch., B, 39, p. 295. Carleton to Mac lean, Aug. 21, 1777: ib., 39, "p. 680. Haid. to Germain, Oct. 15, 1778: ib., 54, p. 30. 1 8 5 Powell to Haid., July 30, 1778 : Can. Arch., B, 129, p. 16. Whitcomb: Morris, Address, pp. 19, 21, etc.; F. Bayley, Narrative; Burgoyne, Gen. Ord., July 23, 1776 (Can. Arch., B, 83, p. 27). Traversie: Haid. to Germain, Oct. 15, 1778 (Can. Arch., B, 54, p. 30) ; Gates to S. Adams, Aug. 23, 1779 (S. Adams Papers) ; Verreau (Badeaux), Invasion, p. 187; etc. Wash. Papers, VI. and VII., passim; particularly VII., pp. 244-247, 249, 250-253, 361. N. H. State Papers, XVIL, pp. 133, 152, 218, 241, 243, 265, 276. etc. Hemck to Stark, May 19, 1779: C. Stark, Stark, p. 195. Sch., Colon. N. Y., II., p. 275. Cochran to Stark, Oct. 20, 1778: Emmet Coll. Cramahf to Foy, Sept. 17, 1778: Can. Arch., B, 95, p. 44. ADMIRAL D' ESTAING 53i Messages from the States 533 too many for the Governor's patrols to accomplish much. Chambly Mountain was a roomy hiding-place. Any big hollow log served Whitcomb for a nest. A tipsy Indian might be Traversie. Women, stealing to the woods at night with little packets, could bear priceless documents. Invisible messages were easily written with milk and brought out before a fire, or the signature of a letter could be torn off and forwarded separately. While the British scouts were peering at stumps in Sertigan, illicit papers could be laid on door-sills or fastened to doors at Three Rivers. While the bearer of an American flag of truce was being clapped into the guard-house at St. Johns, a man with a scar on his cheek, dressed in a blue coat with a crimson velvet collar, could slip into a cot tage near Quebec, utter a few words, and vanish. I can not discover the channels of communication, admitted Haldimand, precisely while Congress was meditating on Lafayette's plans. The province was full of secret Amer ican agents, he discovered at about the same time. ' People receive Earlier Intelligence of the state of Affairs in all quarters than I can possibly obtain,' he lamented helplessly. '° These operations of the American scouts were sure evidence that many people in Canada sympathised with their cause, and they were also sure evidence that what the scouts carried north would increase this kind feeling. Countless exhortations from the Canadian refugees natu raUy made up a large part of the papers and messages that entered the province. News of the military operations and the military outlook, inevitably colored, were no " § Genevay to Schmid, May i8, 1780: Can. Arch., B, 117, p. 184. Morris, Address, p. 17. Deserters, June 20, 1779 : Can. Arch., B, 181, p. 197. Haid. to St. Leger, June 28, 1779: ib.,139, p. 17. St. Leger to Mathews, Jan. 17, 1781: ib., 134, p. 5. Maj. Carleton to Haid., July 30, 1780: ib., 205, p. 64. Secret letters: ib., 205, passitn. Affidavit, June 14, 1779 : ib., 175, p. 60. Affidavit, Mar. 23, 1779: ib., 184, I, p. 50. Haid. to Gugy, Nov. i, 1778: ib., 62, p. 294. Id. to Buda, Oct. 24. 1778: ib., 66, p. 92. Ib. to Germain, June 18, 1779: ib., 54, p. 109. The later letters doubtless illustrate what existed earlier. 534 O""" Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony doubt another part ; and information as to the political doings and prospects of the young nation went in com pany. Under this last head, the Articles of Confedera tion were transmitted with an Address; and the Canadians found that, in laying the foundations of the new Repub lic, the Congress had left one place vacant. Their province and no other, whenever her people should choose, might occupy it; and such an opportunity was itself an inducement. " All the while, in the same clandestine manner, the cam paign of political education went on. Ideas and argu ments crept unseen from mind to mind, from parish to parish. We have at length satisfied the Canadians 'of the natural rights of man in the social state,' asserted a leader in this business while Lafayette's plan was under consideration ; they are not willing to have their civil and religious institutions depend upon the will of a for eign state ; they desire the power to legislate on such matters for themselves ; in brief, they wish the liberty and self-government of the American States. Many were the ' conversions ' to this agreeable doctrine, it was reported. Even the noblesse and the clergy were said to realize at last that all their privileges depended, as Con gress had pointed out, upon the nod ofa Minister." As the result of everything, Haldimand felt satisfied that the Canadians — except the nobles, the clergy, and some of the people in the towns — could not be relied upon ; and a spy declared that the suspects, who fiUed the jails and overflowed into the churches, rejoiced in their sufferings and received constant encouragement 'from multitudes of the 'inhabitants.' Even the King's chief 2° I Powell to Haid., July 2, 1779: Can. Arch., B, 133, p. 122. Colored, e. g.: Gosselin to wife, Oct. 19, 1778 (Can. Arch., 184, 2, p. 595); Indians (ib., 133, p. 57). Art. Confed., XL Van Tyne, Am. Revol., p. 202. " to Estaing, Dec. 31, 1778: Sparks MSS., No. 22, p. 74. The Alliance 535 interpreter was accounted a friend by the American agents." But the grand, the essential, the deeply exciting mess age that crossed the border was the news of an alliance between the United States and France. The supreme military fact and prospect for the Canadians were that the flag of the lilies was to march now with the flag of the stars. Nothing could have interested them more. As Haldimand admitted, a cordial feeling toward the Americans was ' undoubtedly raised in numbers of them, who in regard of the Rebellion were unquestionably at tached to Government ' ; and the symptoms of the change were ' everywhere manifest.' In all quarters, the habitants became ' adherents to the united Cause of France & the Americans.' Even the gentry cooled. 'What!' ex claimed Lafayette, on meeting some of them detained as prisoners at Boston, ' What ! you fought in order to remain colonials instead of becoming independent ! Re main slaves, then ! ' and the logic of the sarcasm could be felt, even where the remark was not heard. Few of them, said the Governor, had sagacity enough to see the bear ings of the French alliance; and some, on hearing that an ambassador from the Court of VersaiUes had arrived at Philadelphia, resigned their places in the British ser vice at once. The clergy, too, fell off. Already the French priests in Canada had been restive for years, and now their Canadian brethren yielded to the contagion. American spies were aided by clergymen, and men of the cloth even stole across the border.^' 2 2 § Haid. to Germain, July 25, 1778: Can. Arch., B, 42, p. 10. (At this date the effect ofthe French alliance had not had time to declare itself.) Bedel to Gates, July 15, 1778: N. H. State Papers, XVIL, p. 241. Interpreter; J.Wheelock to Gates, Dec. 30, 1777 (Force Transcripts of Gates corres.. Lib. of Cong.). 25 § Haid. to Germain, Oct. 15, 1778: Can. Arch., B, 54, p. 30. Id. to Id., June 7, 1779 (conceming an earlier time) : ib., 54, p. 85. Id. to Id., Sept. 19, 1779 : ib., 54, p. 178. to Estaing: Note 21. Laf (traditional, perhaps): Institut Canadien, Centenaire, p. 58. Cramahe to Hillsborough, July 25, 1772 : Can. Arch., Q, 8, p. 160. Bayley to Gates, Jan. i, 1779: Letters of Gates, No. 171, Lib. 536 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony About the time Lafayette's plan was under discussion, messengers from Canada went down to Philadelphia and called upon the French ambassador, to see with their own eyes that no lie had been told about the alliance; and from him they journeyed over to Boston for a long look at the banner of Estaing's fleet. Already the Admiral had in mind an address to the Canadians. /\<>-^ This appeared to him the very time for ^ ^ launching it; and, on the twenty-eighth of October, the press of his flag-ship issued a striking yet subtle appeal." ' I will not say, as a Gentleman of France,' he ex claimed, ' I will not say, as a Gentleman of France, to those of you born Gentlemen like myself, that only one august house exists in the universe, under which the Frenchman can be happy & serve with delight, since its head & those nearest him in blood have been pleased, through a long succession of Monarchs, during all epochs, & are more pleased today than ever, to bear this very title, which Henri IV. regarded as the noblest he possessed. I will not evoke regret for those dignities, those badges, those decorations, — precious treasures to all who think as we do, but at present, by our common misfortuue, beyond the reach of the French Americans who knew so well how to merit them. Their zeal, I venture to hope & to promise, will soon win them in plenty : they will deserve such rewards when they dare to become the friends of our allies. ' I will not ask the comrades of Monsieur the Marquis de Levy, those who shared his glory, who admired his talents [and] his military skill, who cherish the memory of his cordiality and frankness — the essential characteristic of Cong. P. Bayley, Narrative. Bedel to [Sch.], Jan. 11, 1779 : N. H. State. Papers, XVIL, p. 311. Spy's report, Oct. 16, 1778 : ib., p. 276. 2 •• Doniol, Particip., HI., pp. 180, 423. Estaing's Address 537 of our noblesse — whether, among other peoples, they can find names beside which they would rather place their own. The Canadians who saw the brave Monsieur de Montcalm fall in t'neir defense, could they be the enemies of his nephews, fight against their former leaders & take up arms against their own relatives ? At the mere name, these arms would fall from their hands ! ' I will not point out to the Ministry of the altars that their apostolic labors will need the special protection of providence, if [heretical] examples are not to undermine faith, if temporal interests are not to gain the upper hand, if the kindness of the Sovereigns — due to necessity — is not to diminish as the Sovereigns have less and less to fear. [I will not point out] how needful it is for the cause of Religion that its ministers form a Body in the State, & that no Body would be more esteemed nor more able to do good than that of the Priests of Canada, taking part in the Government ; for their worthy conduct has won the confidence of the public. ' I will not remind this people, all my Fellow-countrymen in general, that a vast Kingdom having the same Re ligion, the same customs, the same Language, where relatives, old friends, & brethren are to be found, is an inexhaustible [source] of Commerce, & of Wealth, more easily to be gained & better secured by union with power ful neighbors than with Strangers in another hemisphere among whom everything is foreign, [and] that soon or late jealous & tyrannical Sovereigns will treat them as vanquished, — indeed, even worse, no doubt, than did their Fellow-countrymen of a former day, the actual conquerors. I will not suggest to a whole people when it is gaining the right to think and act, [and] understands its interests, that to link itself with the United States is to ensure its happiness : but I will declare, as formally I do in the name of His Majesty, who authorized & commanded me 538 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony so to act, that all his former subjects in North America who shall cease to recognize the supremacy of England may count upon his protection & upon his aid.' " . Most seductive to the Canadian heart. Governor Haldi mand rightly pronounced this bit of minstrelsy. Hopes, ambitions, pride, vanity, race instincts and darling memo ries, were all deftly thrilled. Followed, as it was, by ' a multiplicity of Papers of the same Tendency, ' the docu ment set a still more dangerous edge upon the defection of the people, and Haldimand could observe ' a very visi ble alteration amongst all Ranks of Men.' "° In a word, then, by the time the expedition against Canada was to be in motion, the province had become a honeycomb. American prisoners could always find ways to escape. Captain Lawe described the whole parish where he was as hoping for rebellion. The spirit of revolt seemed almost ready to burst into flames. The Jesuits were found intriguing against the government ; the priests in general showed an ' extraordinary ' aloofness ; and the Governor believed that a glimpse of white uni forms and a French vessel or two in the St. Lawrence would ' most probably ' tum all the habitants into rebels. To such a sentiment, the news of Hamilton's disaster at Vincennes (February, 1779) made an admirable primer." All this while, the Indians of the north had been studying the faces of their Canadian brethren and the signs of the time. Whatever influenced the peasants affected them. The Caughnawagas kept up a correspond ence with the Americans. Some at St. Francis did the like. 2 5 Cont. Cong. Papers, 35, p. 105 (the second half). In order to make the translation clear, the punctuation ofthe original has been slightly changed. 2« § Haid. to Bud6[?], June 17, 1779; Can. Arch., B, 66, p. 137. Id. to Clinton, May 26, 1779 :ib., 147, p. 51. 2 1 § Haid. to Rouville, Apr. 19, 1779 : Can. Arch., B, 66, p. 117. Lawe to , Feb. 7, 1779: ib., 181, p. 157. Haid. to St. Leger, June 5, 17^9: ib., 139, p. 12. Id. to Montgolfier, Feb. 15, 1779 :ib., 66, p. 102. Id. to Germain, Sept. 19, 1779: ib., 54, p. 178. Intelligence, Sept. 18, 1779: ib., 181, p. 242. Hamilton: Haid. to Clinton, May 26, 1779 (ib., 147, p. 49); to Germain, June 7, 1779 (ib., 54, p. 8s). DECLARATION ADRESSBE AU NOM DU ROI A TOUS LES ANCIENS FRANCOIS DE vamsriqve septentrionale. A_iE foufligni autorif6 par Sa Ma)eUe, 8c xeveru par li, du plus Seau des Titres; de celui qui efiace tous les autres : charge au nom du Pere dc la Patrie & du Prote&eur bicnfaifant de fcs fujcts , d'ofirir un appui a ceux qui ^coient ties pour gouter les douceurs dc fon Gou vernement ; \ tous fes Compatriotcs dc I'An-.crique Septentrionale. Vous tiei a€s Francois , vous n'avtz pi'r ccrtcr de I'ccrc : une Guerre ^u! ne nous avoit tii annoncic que par I'cnliJvenicnt dc prefquc tous nos Matelots , tc. dont nos ennemis coniiiiuns n'ont du les princi paux fuccts qu'aux courage, au ralcm , & au nombrc des Braves Am^ricains qui les combatteni aujourdhiii , vous :i arradic , cc qui «ft Ie plus cher Jl tous les hommes, jiifqu'au nom dc votre patrie; vous forcer Jl porter malgrd vous des mains parricides contrc elle , feroit Ic comble des malhcurs , vous cn tits mcnacds : une nouvelle Guerre doit vous faire redouter qu'on ne vous oblige \ fubir cette loi la plus rdvohame de I'efclavage : cette Guerre \ commence comme la pr^cddente , pat les ddpradations de la parcie la plus intereflante ds notre commerce. Les prifons dc I'Amerique conticnnent depuis trop longcems un grand nombre de Francois inforcunds ; vous cntendcz leurs gemiHemens. Cette Guerre & iii declarce p.ir Ic mcflage du mois de Mars dernier , par I'AAc le plus authentique de U Souverainec^ 539 540 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony By October, 1778, the latter tribe become ' very ungovern able.' Not only did many of the savages, reaching the conclusion that King George had the weaker arm, grow lukewarm toward the British, but some even showed signs of joining the other side. And now, at this critical junc ture, a trumpet note — sweet and magical j'et darkened with an undertone of menace — addressed itself to their ears." 'My Children,' — it was the voice of Lafayette that spoke ; 'My Children . . . You remember that wheu your Fathers [the French] left j-ou, they said that some day they would Return ; . . . nor have you forgotten your promise to join Them as soon as they should begin War upon the English. Well, my children, they are going to keep their word, and it is for you to keep yours.' Al ready France and the States are bound together as brothers. Our struggle with Great Britain has begun, and both French and Americans have brought the English banner low. ' You will soon see us arrive in Canada with General Washington, the Great War Chiefof the Ameri cans, and we shall know our friends from our Enemies.' Hard would it be for you to strike your Fathers, and for them to strike you, — they who fought with you in the late war aud loaded you with benefits. ' I hope soon to hear that my Words have passed through your ears and rested in your Hearts, and to be able to Report to the King, your Father, that you all wish to be his friends, and that you renounce his Enemies for all time to come.' "* Some of the Indian chiefs wore still on their necks the medals of Vaudreuil. Many had guns and knives from the 2 8 § Cochran to Stark, Oct. 20, 1778: Emmet CoU. Haid. to Germain, Oct. 15. '778: Can. Arch., B, 54, p. 30. Id. told., June 7, 1779: ib., 54, p. 85. 2' Boston, Dec 18, 1778 (in French): Sparks MSS., No. 13, p. 36 ; Can. Arch., B, 181, p. 260. The effects of this letter could not be leamed before the de cision regarding Lafayette's plan was made, but they could be foreseen. The punctuation of the extracts has been slighUy altered to make the sense of the translation clear. The British Forces in Canada 541 arsenals of Louis XV. In reality or in fancy, all had hstened to Montcalm's inspiring voice and eaten at his generous table. The hearts of those who saw Estaing's white flag waving in Boston harbor had danced within them. Every bosom was ready for the message ; and soon ' the faithful Traversie ' was hurrying with it from Coos to St. Francis. Ere long the trumpet note pene trated all the forest villages and set every tall pine above the cabins murmuring; and Haldimand realized that another had been added to his catalogue of perils.'" And what forces had the Governor, to hold all these dangers under safe control ? He himself answered the question. Below Lake Ontario there were only about sixteen hundred British regulars fit for duty, and these were so divided that, even on the ' greatest emergency,' he could not reckon upon assembling more than a thousand, while he felt that he ought to have eight times that number, besides adequate garrisons for all the posts. The small body of Highland Emigrants, made up of several nationalities, lacked solidity. Sir John Johnson's regiment of Tories, though ornamental in their blue-and- white and handy with the axe, could not be depended upon with the firelock. And the German troops, numer ically the largest corps, were for the most part ' only the refuse of those who accompanied Genl Burgoyne,' and all of them ' both by nature and Education totally unfit for an American War.' Moreover, they had ' imbibed the Principles of the Inhabitants,' and frequently deserted in numbers ' even from the most secure Cantonments in the Province.' As for a naval force, the onl)' vessel to be uear Quebec at the end of May, 1779, was a small old sloop of little value. In short, reported Haldimand for- "> § Doniol, Particip., HI., p. 423. Gates to Bedel, Dec. 22, 1778: N. H. State Papers, XVII., p. 290. Haid. to Maclean, May 26, 1779 : Can. Arch., B, 150, p. 6. 542 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony mally, about the time Lafayette submitted his plans to Congress, ' this Province cannot be preserved should the Rebels exert the efforts against it, which it is evidently not less their inclination to attempt, than it is their inter est to prosecute.'" Naturally, the Governor did not favor Congress with copies of his reports, but others did what they could to atone for this neglect. It was as easy to bring informa tion out of Canada as to carry it in. Some of the refu gees — particularly Hazen's men — did so much in this way that Haldimand proposed to pardon the whole corps in order to get them home. Indians helped ; and the American scouts were active in all parts of the border. Very important also was the aid of a deserter. According to his account, the total force in Canada, as far west as Niagara, was less than four thousand men ; the garrison of Quebec numbered only four hundred ; that of St. Johns was but three hundred ; and, while two thousand soldiers lay at Sorel, they had no defences. General Bayley be lieved that two thousand Americans, with the aid of the Canadians, could have ' Burgoyned the Tote of them without much Risque.' From another source, it was learned that no works had been erected at Point Levi or the Island of Orleans. The approaches to Quebec, then, were open ; and, even should notice of an expedition be received in that city, little or nothing could be done to fortify it before the opening of navigation in the spring would allow a French squadron to arrive. The Cana dians were described as ' very desirous to see us come in Earnest.' Frye Bayley, held as a prisoner in Canada for months, was told by a British officer that all the people east of the St. Lawrence were hostile to the government ; ' 1 § Haid. to Clinton, May 26. 1779: Can. Arch., B, 147, p. 51. Id. to Ger main, Oct. 15. 1778: ib., 54, p. 30. Uniform: I/iyalists to Haid., Dec. 2, .778: ib.. 161, p. 6. Haid. to Hughes, May 29, 1779: ib., 150, p. 10. Enthusiasm for Lafayette's Project 543 and he reached home with his news in October. At least three-fourths of them were said by one of the spies to be prepared for action. The horses were kept fat so they could be in readiness for a campaign. And all this information from the north, with much more, doubtless went regularly on to Congress." At the same time, that body was eagerly stimulated by Lafayette. ' How happy I would be,' he wrote with contagious enthusiasm ; ' How happy I would be to serve with these cooperating [French] troops, I hope I need not to say.' In one sentence he appealed to their fears : ' if the bad luck of America makes a peace without join ing these Provinces to the United States, I shall ever be fearful for their safety and liberty' ; and in another he excited their hopes: 'Anything Congress will ask [of France] in the name of mutual friendship, & in the view of removing the English, I dare say they will obtain if possible provided the French Court sees that America makes exertions on her side.' Congress, as it put on record a little later, had the emancipation of Canada and her union with the States ' greatly at heart ' still, and the enthusiasm over these broad, large plans rose high. ' Nothing is spoken of but the conquest of Canada,' wrote Kalb ; and, to borrow Lafayette's phraseology, ' all im aginations put on snow-shoes and went skimming across Lake Champlain.' " But some in Congress had a very cooling recollection ' 2 § Haid. to Germain, Sept. 13, 1779: Can. Arch., B, 54, p. 149. All parts: J. Wheelock to Wash., Nov. 20, 1778 (Chase, Hanover, I., p. 397). Bayley to Gates, Jan. i, 2, 1779 : Cont. Cong. Papers, tetters of Gates, 171, I,ib. Cong. Bedel to [Sch.], Jan. 11, 1779 : N. H. State Papers, XVII., p. 311. to Estaing, Dec. 31, 1778: Sparks MSS., No. 22, p. 74. Bedel to Gates, July 15, 1778: N. H. State Papers, XVII., p. 241. F. Bayley reported personally to Wash. : see his Narrative ; Bedel to Wash., Nov. 5, 1778 (N. H. State Papers, XVII., p. 281). Id.to Hazen, Nov. 5, 1778 ib , p. 282. To Congress : Gates to Bedel, Dec. 22, 1778 (ib., p. 290). Rbmark CXII. " § I,af to Cong., Nov. 29, 1778: Sparks MSS., No. 52, HI., p. 172. Secret Joum. Cong., Jan. i, 1779. Kalb to Comte [de Broglie], Nov. 7, 1778: Stevens Facsimiles, No. 1987. Ivaf. to Estaing, Oct. i, 1778 (in French): Doniol, Particip., HI., p. 417. A^(^ ^^ r/'>^;^ '*9*1^ 544 ^5^-^^IXi^ ^^f%,Ay^^y «a..*w-nt— aj^a.-fc'"?^^t/!k^ OT^^x..^ FROM WASHINGTON'S LETTER TO CONGRESS (HARRISON'S WRITING) Washington's Opinion 545 of a certain Canada expedition planned about a year be fore, and this time it was decided to consult Washington." After careful reflection, the Commander-in-chief sub mitted the 'observations' requested. It would be im politic, he pointed out, ' to enter into engagements with the Court of France for carrying on a combined operation without a moral certainty of being able to fulfill our part,' and this, he went on to show, did not exist. Un less the British army should evacuate the States — which could not safely be predicted — it would be necessary first of all to attack it, or at least to protect the neighboring country against its incursions. Indeed, no other policy would satisfy the people. To provide men at the same time for such extensive northern operations, would re quire about double the force which the utmost efforts had been able, so far, to place in the field ; and this, too, when both army and nation seemed to be losing interest in the war, and the pay of the soldiers was constantly diminishing in value. The difficulties of transporting and subsisting what troops could be raised, had proved ' extreme ' ; how then, with Continental money sinking in credit every day, could a greater load be supported? The cost of provisions was already 'enormous,' and much had to be feared from the spirit which had even created an ' artifi cial scarcity ' in order to raise prices. Besides, the north ern expeditions would have to cross wide stretches of wilderness, ' incapable of affording any aid, and great part of it hostile, ' so that regular magazines, in place of the local and occasional supplies relied upon in the States themselves, would need to be provided, and the expense of gathering and transporting the stores — in case it should be possible to obtain them — could be ' more easily conceived than described.' 3-* Secret Joum. Cong., Oct. 22, 1778. VOL. II.— 35. 546 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony To send five thousand men, with an immense train of wagons, to St. Francis, a hundred and fifty miles beyond Coos, through a country in great part uninhabited and trackless, would prove extremely difficult. Probably not more than four thousand effectives would reach their destination,— fewer still, were posts established to guard the road and protect the convoys of supplies ; and, at the St. Lawrence, fresh obstacles would be encountered, for the British, if they could not make head against the attack, would lay waste the country, remove all the boats, and destroy everything required for building water-craft. As for Niagara, it was a very strong fortress indeed ; and the reduction of it would probably, at the very best, prove slow and tedious. Our allies, for their part, might have no less trouble. The secret of the expedition could not be kept, and the English, ' now greatly superior ' to the French on the sea, could surely intercept the squadron proposed as a convoy, or destroy it in the St. Lawrence. Nor was it certain that Quebec would surrender at once. The au thorities in Canada might decide to sacrifice the western posts, ' and collect their strength at the heart.' Nothing more would be essential than to defend Quebec and Mon treal ; and this, with the troops already in the province and the reinforcements that might, aud probablj' would, arrive in the spring, could well be done. But, over and above the lack ofa moral certainty on our part and the many objections to the plan in detail, it was a scheme of co-operation, and this co-operation was 'as deli cate and precarious an enterprise as could be imagined.* The impediments aud delays of a march like that proposed to St. Francis 'almost exceed conception,' and the Ameri can troops might be very late in reaching this point ; while a tempest or a British fleet might prevent the French from ever arriving. The plan, in short, was ' not only An Immense Danger 547 too extensive and beyond our abilities, but too complex ' ; and to succeed required ' such a fortunate coincidence of circumstances ' as could not be counted upon.'' HENRY LAURENS All this was true, too true ; and it fell like a Niagara of ice upon the enthusiasm of Congress. Yet was there not something singular about it ? Why did the Commander- in-chief Hmit himself to destructive criticism ? Why did he not prune, amend, adjust, reinforce the plan? Was it pique ? No, it was not. Washington felt that the scheme must 3s Wash, to Cong., Nov. ii, 1778: Wash., Writings (Ford), VII., p. 239. 548 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony positively be discarded, and this letter was designed to give sufficient public reasons for shelving it ; but he wrote something still more serious to President Laurens." France had been the mistress of Canada, and could not have forgotten that fact. Only force had shaken off her grip. Her subjects had been loyal; and the very en couragements brought by the spies indicated how eager the people were, as might have been foretold, to see the white banner waving over them again. The policy ofthe French regarding that province did not stand forth clear and explicit ; their minister had thrown cold water upon the plan of Congress ; and, above all, Estaing's proclama tion said ten words for France while saying one for the States. ' You were bom Frenchmen, and such you have not ceased to be,' it ran; you were 'born to enjoy the favors ' of His Majesty, 'the beneficent Protector of his subj ects. ' The}' were French memories that he evoked, and French honors that he promised ; and what he bade the Canadians relj' upon, was the support and aid ofthe French king." All this Washington had observed, and now he felt it his duty to speak. There exists another objection to the Canadian plan, he informed Laurens, ' which is, in my estimation, insurmountable, and alarms all my feelings for the true and permanent interests of my countrj-. This is the introduction of a large body of French troops into Canada, and putting them in possession of the Capital of that Province, attached to them by all the ties of blood, habits, manners, religion, and former connexion of government.' To France, Canada would mean a great territory, full 3 0 Wash, to Laurens, Nov. 14, 1778: Wash., Writings (Ford), \1I., p. 260. Note the reply of Laurens: ib., p. 264, note. 3 ' § Sparks, G. Morris, I., p. 189. Cont. Cong. Papers, 35, p. 105. The Fate of the Project 549 of the supplies needed in her West India islands. It would mean a rich trade with the savages ; control of ' the finest nursery for seamen in the world,' and strategic se curity for her insular possessions in the Atlantic. Al ready the strongest military power in Europe, and, if aided by her ally, Spain, superior to England on the sea, with Canada on the north enthusiastically loyal, with the In dians on the west — ' a people so generally friendly to her, and whom she knows so well to conciliate ' — active in her interest, and with New Orleans, by some arrangement with Spain, co-operating in the south, France might have the power 'of awing and controlling these States, the natu ral and most formidable rival of every maritime power in Europe.' Such advantages could not be ignored by that nation ; and moreover, even were she actuated at present by the purest of motives, events or the wishes of the people might render it impracticable for her, once in Canada, to withdraw. Both letters from Washington were carefully studied by Congress, and he was invited to confer personally with a committee. His military objections halted the plan of campaign ; and his political objections, though nothing could be said publicly about them, had no doubt still greater weight. Far better, evidently, that Canada remain a discontented, mutinous British province, than become a firm strand in a coil round the neck of the United States, with France pulling at the end of it. Hard indeed it was to draw the curtain upon the brilliant hopes that had been entertained. For weeks. Congress labored over the situation. But finally, on the first of January, 1779, it was voted that the invasion of the north ' should be deferred till circumstances should render the co-operation ofthese states more certain, practicable, and effectual,' with other phrases pointing in the same direc tion ; and so Lafayette's grand scheme for sweeping the 550 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony British from the continent found itself laid, for good and for all, upon the table." Great was the disappointment. Congress was dis appointed, though convinced. The Marquis was dis appointed. Hazen, Bayley, Bedel, the refugees, and the scouts were disappointed. But greatest of all, per haps, was the disappointment in Canada. In October, Gosselin had sent word : The French fleets will go up the St. Lawrence in the spring ; the French generals also are going with their troops ; the great General Washing ton will drive all the beggars out ; there is nothing to worry over, now. And the glad news, coming no doubt from more than one source, had quickly spread through the province in circles that grew no fainter as they widened. 'There is scarcely a Rebel, or Canadian, or Indian, iu, or near the Province but believe' the fleet is coming, said the Governor ; ' & I fear most even expect it with Pleasure.' Great quantities of provisions — se creted by peasants, as Whitcomb reported, for the use of the allies — were ready. Notice of a sail in the river set the people all agog. Not much would be required, Haldi mand admitted, to 'raise the whole Country in Arms' against England. He even suspected members of the Legislative Council. But spring passed on into summer, summer into autumn ; and no Bourbon pennants fluttered into the Basin at Quebec, no white lines chalked the green Plains of Abraham, no loud ' Vive le Roi ! ' burst from charging columns." Yet this did not settle the Canada question, after all. The war did not end then ; and so wide, so deep a feel ds § Joum. Cong., Nov. 19 ; Dec. 17, 24, 1778. Secret Joum. Cong., Dec. 5, 1778 ; Jan. I, 1779. See Wash, to Cong., Dec. 13, 1778: Wash. Writings (Ford), VII., p. 285 ; Laurens to Wash., Nov. 20, 1778; Note 36. Remark CXHI. 3 ' § Gosselin to his wife, Oct. 19,1778 : Can. Arch., B, 184, 2, p. 595. Haid. to Germain, June 18, 1779: ib., 54, p. 109. Whitcomb: report of loyalists, July 13, 1779 (ib., 181, p. 215). Haid. to Germain, Oct. 24, 1779: ib., 54, p. 199. Hope Not Abandoned 551 ing, as that in the north, based on substantial causes, could not soon die out. Indeed, the Governor himself was obliged to feed it by repressive acts. And Washing ton, instead of dismissing all thoughts of Canada, ordered the preparations to move that way continued." 40 § Haid. to Germain, Sept, 13, 1779 : Can. Arch., B, 54, p. 135. Wash, to Sch., Nov. 20. 1778: Wash., Writings (FordJ, VH., p. 265. Bayley to Bedel, Nov. 30, 1778: N. H. State Papers, XVII., p. 283. XXXVIII THE LINE IS DRAWN HOW little the men who shape the destinies of the world can shape their own destinies ! The leader leads, because, when the people are halted by a door, the little key that he finds in his pocket slides the bolt, while other men's keys do not fit. He passes on, therefore, and the people follow. At the next door, simple-minded fellow that he is, he steps up to offer his key again ; but now, perhaps greatly to his astonishment, the bolt refuses to yield. Another man has the right implement this time, and the recent hero — for a moment the supreme, the essential being, worthy a whole pedestal of epithets — be comes as absurd, possibly, as the pathetic starling would be, if it still cried, ' I want to get out, I want to get out ! ' after the gate ofits cage had been thrown open. Fortunate indeed is the great man who dies before he becomes an anachronism. Samuel Adams began to drift into this condition before the Revolutionary War ended. He believed thoroughly in freedom ; but liberty found itself sternly limited by the necessity of discipline in the army. He favored a system of conducting public business that should make oppres sion impossible ; but the need of efficiency required some concentration of power. He understood and relied upon the methods of the agitator ; but the best means of dis solving old bonds were not the best means of solidifying new ones. He saw the importance of jealously watching 552 Samuel Adams Loses Prestige 553 those in authority ; but the common-sense of the nation realized that it must believe in its leaders and trust them amply. For all these reasons, the influence of Adams waned ; and his distrust of Washington tended the same way." Nor were these his only misfortunes. Very naturally, he looked upon France with no excess of confidence. Not only was fear of that power widespread among the leading Americans, but there was a substantial reason for it aside from her suspicious glances toward Can ada. At the beginning of the Anierican revolt, it had been seriously proposed in France to have the Comte de Broglie command the republican armies, become the Dictator or at least the Stadtholder ofthe new nation, and tow it hither and yon in the wake of his own country ; and the fact that Silas Deane had considered the plan worth laying before Congress was a further proof that patriots needed to be awake. Early iu 1777, it was whis pered in Paris that King Louis might be willing to help England reduce her Colonies, if England would give up Canada in return ; and possibly some inkling of this reached Adams. At all events, he doubtless understood that policy, not affection, was actuating the cabinet of Louis XVL, and distrusted it accordingly. Such mo tives, added to his principle of watchfulness,, his di.slike of all foreign influences, and his innate gift of leadership, made him prominently, though not offensively, anti- French. But, as matters stood, the alliance with France and her armed assistance were looked upon with favor by the American army and people, and therefore Adams's jealousy of her threw him still farther to one side.' 1 § Most of these points have already been brought out. Public business: Durand, New Materials, p. 240 (Luzerne); Hosmer, S. Adams, pp. 316-337, 3431 346. 2 § widespread: See note by Laf. on a copy ofa letter of his which he sent to Sparks (Sparks MSS., No. 85, p. 20). -The Broglie affair may be traced at length in Doniol, Particip., II., Chap, II.; Wharton, Revol. DipI. Corres., I., pp., 392-396; Doniol, La P., p. 15 ; etc. Durand, New Materials, pp. 200, 201, 215, 554 Oiif Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony When peace began to be seriously talked of in the spring of 1779, he found himself again with the minority. He dreaded negotiations in which a foreign state was to have a voice, and though he pretended — said the envoy of France, Gerard — on account of the popular clamor, to favor a settlement with Great Britain, he was regarded as an obstacle. Vergennes, the French minister of foreign affairs, even hinted that he was really ' sold to England.' Finally, he stood squarely for Arthur Lee, the enemy of Franklin and the friend of no wise man. He even did all in his power to have Lee placed in charge of our foreign office; and he brought upon himself, in consequence, a crushing blow, for the French envoy refused flatly to do business with that gentleman.^ All this weakened the influence of the eastern States in Congress, and other causes aided. Hancock had become the bitter and unreasonable enemy of Samuel Adams. John Adams had gone abroad. And as New England — in 1775 the national martyr, for whom all hearts bled, whom all hearts burned to aid — hardly felt the weight of a British hand after March, 1776, she naturally fell in the general interest and regard. The possession of Canada was coveted there in 1779 as keenly, perhaps, asin 1775. The position ofthe province made it no less dangerous as an enemy, and its ocean treasures made it no less desirable as a partner. ' Is not the Fishery as valuable to America and more so to old [?] Massachusetts,' cried Samuel Adams, ' than the Tobacco Fields of the middle States & the Rice Swamps of the South ? ' All the representatives from that quarter con tinued to demand a northern expedition. If our resources 241, 249. stormont to Weymouth, Feb. 5, 1777: Stevens Facsimiles, No. 1428. Policy: Doniol, Particip., I., pp, 2, 4, 8, 568, etc. Favor ; e. g., Rochambeau, M€m., I., p. 314. 3 § Wharton, Revol. Dipl. Corres., HI., p. 194, etc. Durand, New Materials, pp. 202, 203, 209, 215, 234, 235, 241. 1^^'U^i 556 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony were small, so had they been in 1775. But now, said Gerard, the other States decUned to sacrifice their own interests or opinions for the sake of New England; the military plans were arranged without special reference to her wishes; and when — early in 1779 — it seemed best, on the score of economy, to make the next campaign purely defensive, Washington called a halt in the preparations for an advance into Canada. This closed the record of one year more.* In 1780, however, the sky brightened. Hazen's regi ment had been sent up to Coos the preceding summer, and the road toward the north had been pushed on to a notch in the soapstone ledges quite near the boundary. The main object of this movement was doubtless to alarm Haldimand, and warn him to keep his troops at home; but, whatever the reason for making it, the road existed, and barracks, ovens, and storehouses waited.* In May, 1780, the New Hampshire Committee of Safety urged all residents on the Connecticut River to hold their wheat and flour till these could be purchased for the United States. At the end of that month, Hazen went to Boston; and, a week after, he reported that every one in authority there was disposed to ' under Take ' what he and his friends desired. Nine days later, he wrote from New Jersey, ' Northern opperations are now on the Car- pit,' ' The Marques is warm & the commander in Cheif is steady to the point ' ; and, on the fourth of July, he added. ' § Durand, New Materials, p. 195. S. Adams, Apr, 27, 1779 : S. Adams Papers, Wells, S, Adams, III,, p, 66. Marbois to Vergennes, Mar. 13, 1782: Hale, Franklin in France, II., p. 163. Cooper to S. Adams, Mar. 14, 1779: S. Adams Papers, Wash, to Jay, Apr, 14, 1779: Wash,, Writings (Ford), VII,, p, 393. Id.to Cong,, Jan. 15, 1779: Wash,, Writings (Sparks), VL, p, 158, Id, to Sch,, Mar, 25, 1779: lb,, p, 375. An expedition against the Indians was the only exception, 5 § Road: Hazen to Charlestown, Apr, 22, 1779 (N. H. State Papers, XVII.' p. 331); Id. to Bedel, Aug. 24, 1779 (ib., p. 345); N. H, Hist. Soc. Proc, HI., p. 21-j; Avery to McClure, June 26, 1779 (Wheelock Papers); Collins, Vt., p. 44. Object: Wash, to Sch., Mar. 25, 1779 (Wash., Writings (Ford), VIL, p 379). Bedel to Clinton, Jan. 6, 1779: N. H. State Papers, XVIL, p. 310. Remark CXIV. The Prospect in 1780 557 ' everything is Perfectly right in this Quarter to the utmost of our wishes.' Scouts were to be sent into Canada at once.' What Washington really designed was, at first, only to remind Haldimand again of his own vitreous tenement ; and, with that in view, he urged Lafayette in May to get up a proclamation or two announcing a northern cam paign. ' The more mystery in this business the better,' he suggested ; ' It will get out, and it ought to seem to be against our intention.' But, after a little, he began to look more hopefully on the idea, and discussed it seriously with the Marquis; for, by this time, he had probably observed France long enough to feel safer about her policy. In June, his principal officers were asked their judgment as to a plan of campaign, and a strong sentiment in favor of attempting Canada came out. Wayne opposed the scheme ; Stark thought the season already too late ; but Greene, St. Clair, and Hand recommended it. Lafayette's hope began to spring again, and the French minister took tbe matter in earnest.' ' I am fully sensible,' General Bayle5f argued to Samuel Adams in August, ' that the present expence of defending our Frontiers is greater than to take possession, and Keep the District of Montreal. I am fully of the opinion that the Eneniy have done as much damage to our Frontiers, as would pay the cost of one Campaign into Canada, with a force sufficient to take possession of said District. ' Al most that same day, ' the principal inhabitants on Con necticut river on both sides,' north of Charlestown, met in the shadow of Dartmouth College with an officer of the College for their clerk, and petitioned Congress to secure <¦ § N. H. Hist. Soc. Coll., VIL, p. 217. Hazen to Bedel, June 6, 1780: N. H. state Papers, XVIL, p 363. Id. to Bedel and to Chase, June 15, 1780: ib., pp. 365,367. Id. to Bedel, July 4, 1780: ib., p. 368. ' § Wash, to ',af.. May 19, 1780 : Wash., Writings (Ford), VIIL, p. 280. Officers, June, 1780: Sparks MSS., No. 57, IL Doniol, Particip., IV., p. 370. 558 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony the long-coveted Quebec, presenting, in addition to many other arguments, this very point of expense. ' We had almost said,' they urged, ' the enemy destroy and take yearly from the frontiers bordering on Canada as much in value as the cost of reducing and holding that coun try — we are sure the defence of our frontiers costs more.' Here was au argument that economy itself could feel.' In September, Washington met the Comte de Rocham beau and Admiral de Ternay at Hartford to concert opera tions, and among his papers — doubtless on the top —lay a plan in Hamilton's clear hand, that gave special attention, among the three projects offered for consideration, to the idea of a northern campaign. But the French leaders declared posi tively for an attack upon New York, the ' Centre and Focus of all y^ British Forces,' as they termed it; and at once the Can ada scheme — although, said Hazen, ' the wish of every one ' — vanished from sight once more." In 1 78 1, the French troops and fleet were blockaded for months at Newport, while the Americans had enough to do in the south ; but finally the allies combined their forces happily in Virginia, and the surrender of Corn wallis at Yorktown ended the campaign with glory. In winning this victory, Washington had another opportunity ROCHAMBEAU 8 § Bayley, Aug. 31, 1780:5. Adams Papers. Petition, Aug. 30, 1780: Cont. Cong. Papers, 40,1., p. 559. ' § Plan: Sparks MSS., No. 52, III., p. 340. Opinion of Roch. and Temay, and substance of their agreement with Wash., Sept. 22, 1780: ib.. No. 57, II., pp. 168, 171. Rochambeau, M6m., I., p. 250. Hazen to Bedel, Oct. 12, 1780; N. H. State Papers, XVIL, p. 379. Washington's Plan in 178 1 559 for studying his allies ; and evidently he became still less suspicious of their designs. Accordingly, about the first of November, he himself proposed to Luzerne, the French minister, a joint invasion of Canada.'" The situation there still invited it; and, as the Governor still bore witness that nothing could be kept from the Americans, no doubt they understood the case." The Bishop stood firm, and did his all to carry out Haldimand' s blunt injunction that, in view of the benefits received from the King, the clergy should teach their people fidelity, zeal, and respect for His Majesty. But the Governor still believed that, since France had takeu part in the contest, 'many of the Priests' had changed their opinions, and he strongly suspected that clergymen were the principals in a serious combination against the govern ment. American papers were found to have been secreted in a church and circulated by the cur6. A priest arrived at Fort Edward with five Indians and as many Tory prisoners, and stated that he was on his way to Congress with despatches. A Recollet was reported as leaving for the south with ' a great Number of Letters, ' and a Jesuit who knew of his intention did nothing to thwart it. Father Floquet, another Jesuit, was described as a rebel emissary ; and Haldimand referred to the Order in gen eral as attached to the Americans. As for the nobles, ' I have for many months, ' wrote the Governor about the time Washington proposed his plan to Luzerne, ' I have for many months observed in the Canadian Gentry Ex pectations of a Revolution.' ' I say ready to join us, if they think we can hold the Country ,' was General Bay- ley's digest of the information, touching both clergy and nobles, that he received from his agents." i» Doniol, Particip., IV., p. 565. < • Haid. to Shelburne, Aug. 17, 1782 ; Can. Arch., B, 55, p. 204. 12 § Haid. to Germain, July 6, 1781: Can. Arch., B, 55, p. 54. Id.to Briand, Oct. 14, 1779 : ib., 66, p. 161. Briand, circular, Jan. 17, 1781 : ib., 171, p. 48, Haid. 560 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony The peasants ' are all in our favour,' added Bayley. Three-fourths, was the estimate that Pillon sent Wash ington of the number now prepared to act. Calvet, another leader of the seditious, had more than two hun dred at his call, ready to join an American advance-guard. Arbitrary, though unavoidable, acts of severity had con tinued to alarm and anger the people. To ease their consciences, a theory went about that, as twenty-one 3'ears had passed since the capitulation, the oath of alle giance was no longer bind ing ; and the surrender of Corn wallis, added to the success of the French fleet off Chesa peake Bay, could not fail to have a profound influence. As regarded the Indians, finally, Haldimand beheved they were ' from Habit as well as the assiduous Persuasion of the Canadians strongly attached to the French,' and that they ' would undoubtedly declare for them upon the appearance of a french Arln3^"^ The fortifications were now in a tolerable state, though it had been found impossible to build the regular citadel to Germain, Oct. 25, 1780: ib., 54, p. 339. Combination : Id. to Clinton, Jan. 3, 1781 (ib., 147, p. 287). Flood's depos., .Mar. 10, 1780 : ib., 184, 2, p. 523, Sherwood to Powell, Dec. 12, 1779: ib., 182, p. 131. R&oUet: Maclean to Haid., Dec. 13, 1779 (ib., 129, p. 80). Jolibois, affidavit, Oct. 26, 1784 : ib., 205, p. 301, Haid, to North, June 19, 1783: ib., 57, 2, p. 535. See also Haid. to Germain, Nov. 23, 17S1 : ib., 55, p. 130. Nobles: Haid. to Germain, Nov. 23, 1781 ; Can. Arch., B, 55, p. 130. Bayley to S. Adams, Aug. 31, 17S0: S. Adams Papers. " 5 Bayley: Note 12. Pillon, Sept. 7, 1780: Can. Arch., B, 205, p,. 70.^ Du Calvetto his son, Sept. 9, 1780: ib., p. 77. Arbitrary: Haid. to Germain, June, 7, 1779 (ib., 54, p. 85); id. to Id., July 6, 1781 (ib., 55, p. 54); Mathews to Maclean, ftlar. 30, 1780 (ib., 131, p. 44); etc. The Cont. Cong. Papers contain interesting documents relating to Du Calvet, Cazeau, and others of that class. Theory : Maj. Carleton to Haid., July 9, 1780 (Can. Arch., B, 133, p. 204). Haid. to Ger main. Nov. 18, 1781: ib., 55, p. 122. The French Decline to Aid 561 planned for Quebec. Troops, however, the real defence, were lacking. The best in Canada had been stationed at the western posts, and those within Haldimand' s reach were still mostly Germans, — in the main, invalids rejected by General Burgoyne or ' Recruits Totally Ignorant of Military Discipline.' To meet an invader, not more than 2,500 men ' Capable of Keeping the Field two Months ' could be assembled, — ' many of them ' ready to join the Americans at their first opportunity. On the other hand, six thousand excellent French troops had actually landed on American soil, so that co-operation was no longer a precarious undertaking, and, as Spain had allied her red and yellow to the red, white, and blue, Britannia no longer ruled the waves." The time for sweeping England from the Continent seemed to have arrived, then ; the besom was ready ; and Washington himself proposed the enterprise. What could possibly occur now to prevent the long-hoped-for consum mation ? Would Congress object? By no means; but — the French minister said. No. The King had taken up arms to help America win her independence, not make conquests, he explained ; and there was enough work still to do in the southern States." What did this mean? Two years before, the minister had informed Washington that His Christian Majesty felt a sincere and disinterested wish to see Canada form a part of the confederacy, but would make no move in that di rection until the plan had been approved by the leader of his allies.'" Now, that leader himself proposed the plan, and his proposition was rejected. Was this a " § Rey to S. Adams, 1780 [?]: S. Adams Papers. Haid. to Germain, Oct. 15, 1778 : Can. Arch., B, 54, p. 30. Id. to Townshend, Oct. 22, 1781: ib., 55, p. 73. Id. to Id., Oct. 25, 1780; ib., 55, p. 9. Troops : Haid. to Germain, Nov. 23, 1781 (ib., 55, p. 130). IS § Doniol, Particip., IV., p. 565. Durand, New Materials, p. 195. ' 6 Conference, Sept. 16, 1779: Wharton, Revol. Dipl. Corres., III., p. 319. vol.. II.— 36. 562 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony temporary whim of the minister? Was it the settled policy of his government ? What could it signify ? It signified, for one thing, that probably Washington had given himself unnecessary trouble in vetoing the great scheme of October, 1778 ; for, had he not intervened, France would almost certainly have done as much. The Due de Choiseul,- recently the prime minister of Louis, had been so eager to strike England through the revolt of her North American subjects, that he had thought it worth while to sacrifice the national hope of regaining Canada, and Bonvouloir was instructed to as sure the Americans unofficially, in 1775, that France had no design of re-establishing herself on the continent ; yet the hope still existed beside or below the pledge. At the same time it was felt that, should England retain Canada, the United States would have a lasting need of French support. Lafayette urged France to liberate her op pressed sons in America by helping them join the Union, and win as her reward the fur business, the Indian trade, and the gratitude of the people ; but Spain, on the other hand, suggested that she recover the province, and insisted, as a condition — more or less explicit — of taking part in the war, that it should not be given to the United States. Moreover, the obvious difficulty and expense of driving England from the St. Lawrence counted with the French cabinet." A subtle, obscure policy was the natural consequence. The upshot of it was that France determined to make no direct move towards regaining Canada, lo let the Amer icans win it if they could, to give them pleasant words but no real help to that end, and meanwhile — in view of the possibilities — to keep a firm hold upon the affection ' ' § Doniol, Particip., I., pp. 129, 241 ; IV., p. 43 ; III., pp. 156, 292. Laf Vergennes, Juli " «...«-..„ . . ...^ j_ the margin by Laf to Vergennes, July 18, 1779: Sparks MSS., No. 85, p. 20, and a note writtenin " " ' ' ' Laf The Policy of France 563 and confidence of the Canadians. Hence the orders to Estaing to aid the Americans against Canada by nothing more than a cruise or an attack upon the outposts, and, should anything seem likely to be accomplished there, to assure Canadians and Indians of the King's protection. Hence the instructions to Gerard, the first French envoy, to express in general terms, provided it should be neces- ray to say something, the King's desire to do whatever y^ ^" '-. ^''^- ' *-^Jffi k 3- :' ' '-: - i.r 1 t^ W ^^^^^^^^^sHBM^ J irjfiffl^^e'SgbjH f/ ^^^^^B^^t^SP "v ^^^^^r H S. CONWAY would benefit America, but avoid — if possible — -commit ting himself in regard to Canada. Hence Luzerne's cordial but guarded assurances to Washington in 1779 ; and hence, finally, his refusal to co-operate in 1781." Yet even now the American leader did not give up the ' * § Doniol, Particip., III., pp. 191, 192 ; V., p. 164, note ; III., pp. 156, 157; IV., p. 43. Note Gamier's advice (to Vergennes, Aug. 16, 1776: Stevens Facsimiles, No. 891; Gerard's reflections, 1775 (ib.. No. 1310); and Kalb's remarks to Broglie (ib.. No. 1987). 564 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony idea. May the first, 1782, he drew up a surve)'^ of the field, and dwelt upon the advantages of securing Canada. Lafayette, also, had the north still in mind. But peace was at last in sight. On Washington's birthday. Gen eral H. S. Conway, a good frieud of America, had moved in Parliament that war cease between Great Britain and her former Colonies. One vote, one only, had defeated the motion ; and, on the fourth of March, the day we inaugurate our Presidents, it was voted that all were to be considered enemies to His Majesty and the country, who should undertake to continue the hostilities. The news of this action was very welcome in America. The nation desired rest ; and it was clearly impolitic to cloud the prospect bj' an annoying activity. As the months passed, this view of the situation grew stronger and stronger, and the last chance of reaching Quebec now was evidently by the winding road of diplomac}'." Here, if nowhere else, all the recent efforts in the north bore fruit ; for they had kept the British government in constant anxiety about Canada, hampered its operations in other quarters, and aided in preparing it for conces sions. In December, 1777, Lord Shelburne informed the House of Lords that Carleton was in the greatest distress, fearing every moment to lose the province. In October, 1778, Haldimand assured the government that Congress declared no peace could be made until Canada had been secured, and that, unless heavy reinforcements were sent, thej' would carry out their design. In 1779, in 1780, in '81, and in '82, it continued to be essentially the same story ; sedition, conspiracy, the ' rebels ' com ing, troops needed, works needed, provisions needed, ships needed, money needed." * ^ § Wash,, Writings (Ford), IX,, p. 490. Laf, M^moire: Stevens Facsimiles, No. 1642, See Journ. Cong., Feb. 20. 1783. A\'iusor, Narr. and Crit. Hist., VII., p. 95. 20 § NoaiUes to Vergennes, Dec. 12, 1777 : Stevens Facsimiles, No. 1772. Diplomacy 565 Clinton felt a constant anxiety about the province, and inevitably transmitted a share of his worry to London. In November, 1779, he wrote : 'you must look to Canada next year ' ; in May, 1780 : 'I think that [French] arma ment is intended against Canada' ; in the following Au gust : ' I shall tremble for Canada next year ' ; and in February, 1782, he felt satisfied that now the crisis was at last impending. He was put under orders, early in 1778, to send whatever troops Haldimand should require of him, and this compelled him to plan operations with out knowing how long his arm was to be. A year and a half later, a call from the north found him distressed for men, yet he despatched four regiments. A storm scattered the transports ; about four hundred Hessians fell into American hands; and there were probably other losses." From the very first, in the negotiations for peace, Frank lin proposed the cession of Canada. Great Britain, he charmingly suggested, ought to offer the province wjll- ingly, in order to obliterate a frontier that might be troublesome and make easier an adjustment of sundry other matters. Personally, he was good enough to give it as his advice that England yield the point, in order to cement the two countries more firmly together ; and he went so far as to say that no pleasant or peaceable relations could be expected unless this were done. What he had not succeeded in accomplishing at Montreal, he in- Hald.to Germain, Oct. 15, 1778: Can. Arch., B, 54, p. 30. It seems unnecessary to set down references to the many documents which are before the author, after what has been already stated in the text. 2 ' § Clinton to [Eden], Nov. 10, 1779 : Stevens Facsimiles, No. 1032. Id. to Id., May 12, 1780 : ib.. No. 726. Id. to [Id.], Aug. 14, 1780 : ib.. No. 1043. Id. to Haid., Feb. 22, 1782 ; Can. Arch., B, 148, p. 8. Eden, minute, July 29, 1778: Stevens Facsimiles, No. 508 ; Germain to Clinton, Mar. 8. 1778: ib.. No. 1062. Clinton to Haid., Sept. 9, 1779: Can. Arch., B, 147, P- 85 ; Wash, to Laf, Oct. 20, 1779: Wash., Writings (Sparks), VL, p. 382; Maclean to Haid,, Dec. 3, 1779: Can. Arch., B, 149, p. 108. in March, 1780, Haldimand still had authority to call on Clinton for aid: Germain to Haid., Mar. 17 (Can. Arch., B, 43, p. 20). 566 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony tended to bring about at Paris ; and John Adams, another of our Commissioners, took a similar stand." But Great Britain, though probably willing — while she held the other Colonies — to let France have Canada, did not wish now to part with it. In the scheme of October, 1778, Congress itself had mentioned two reasons : first, by holding Quebec and Nova Scotia, she could easily attack the United States and the French possessions; and, secondly, she needed these provinces to supply her West India islands with bread and lumber, and to fur nish her army and navy with hospitals and dockyards. The Canadian trade was precious, and the seamen of the fisheries were almost invaluable. For Great Britain, said Washington, the loss of Canada ' would be a deadly blow to her trade and empire.'" At Whitehall, this was understood quite as well. In April, 1778, when there was talk of a peace. Lord North exclaimed, ' If we have recovered & preserved that prov ince by arms, we must take care not to lose it by Treaty.' When Hartley, his agent, was asked in Paris the same month whether he had powers to treat, he rephed that he would certainly have them very soon, . ' if it were possible to open negotiations on conditions admissible by England' ; and he intimated thatGreat Britain would recog nize the independence of the United States, provided Can ada and Nova Scotia were solemnly conceded to her. To Germain, the holding of Canada seemed essential. Though he sometimes found it impossible, or judged it unneces sary, to supply Haldimand with everjrthing desired, he was willing that, should the case prove critical, Clinton should strip himself of troops to reinforce the Govemor. 22 § Doniol, Particip., V., pp. 99, 134, 163, note. Wharton, Revol. Dipl. Corres,, V,, pp. 476, 540, 541, 542, 544, 545. Hale, Franklin in France, II., p. ns, etc. 23 § Instructions to Franklin, Cont. Cong. Papers, Reports of Committees. 25, 1-, P, 35- Wash, to Cong., Nov. 11, 1778: Wash., Writings (Ford), VIL, p. 239. GEORGE WASHINGTON 567 The American Viewr of Canada 569 And Shelburne, on coming into power, said the preserva tion of Canada was so important that His Majesty him self had ordered the new British Commander-in-chief — General Sir Guy Carleton — to leave New York and go there personally, should he deem it necessary, taking with him as many of the troops as he should think required." For the United States, on the other hand — fighting for its very existence as a nation, and struggling not only against enemies but against allies — Canada was highly desirable yet not essential, and it seemed by no means wise to risk the vital forthe valuable. In 1779, Con gress had declared that while it was ' of the utmost im portance to the peace and commerce of the United States that Canada and Nova Scotia be ceded ' , yet ' a desire of terminating the war ' prevented it from making the cession of them a sine qua non of peace ; and the same reasoning held good in 1782." For atime, indeed, it looked as ifthe hope of the Amer ican diplomats to obtain the northern province would be realized. Oswald, the British agent, spoke that way. Yet he spoke with a singular reserve ; and, when the for mal project of a treaty was submitted by the Americans in October, 1782, no allusion to the matter was made. Apparently, the subject had simply evaporated, as if struck by some thirsty breeze from the desert. In fact, nobody seemed even to note its disappearance, and neither Franklin, Jay, nor Adams ever cared to explain the mys- 2< § North to Eden, Apr. 23, 1778: Stevens Facsimiles, No. 447. Frances to IVergennesl, Apr. 26, 1778: ib.. No. 1919. Doniol, Particip., IIL, p. 281. Reasons for not sending reinf. : Germain to Haid., Aug. 3, 1779 (Can. Arch., B, 43, p. 169); Mar. 2, 1780 (ib., 44, p. 3); Apr. 12, 1781 (ib., 50, p. 83); May 4, 1781 (ib., 44, p. 86); Admiralty to Haid., Aug. 7, 1779 (ib., 49, p. 86) ; etc. Germain to Clinton, Nov. 4, 1779: .Sparks MSS,, No, 58, p, 18. Shelburne to Haid,, Apr, 22, 1782 : Can, Arch., B, 50, p. 164. 25 § Wharton, Revol. Dipl. Corres., III., p. 295. R. R. Liv. to Franklin (giving the views of Congress), Jan. 7, 1782: Sparks, Dipl. Corres., IIL, p. 268. See ib., IV., p. 339 ; X., p. 75. 570 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony tery. Very likely, indeed, they felt that any one who desired could solve the apparent riddle for himself. The plain truth doubtless was that it seemed impossible to carry the project through or unwise to make the attempt. Though Oswald had permitted Franklin to convince him that England might well cede the province, and Lord Shelburne had probably thought it unnecessary to throw cold water upon the incipient negotiations by fully stating his views to Oswald, the British government had at the proper time emphatically rejected the idea ; and our Com missioners understood now that France also opposed it. They felt, therefore, as Congress had anticipated, that it would be sounder policy to battle for other points ; and so it came to pass that, when the treaty of peace was agreed upon, it drew an invisible yet adamantine line between the United States and Canada. The long struggle for that rich and beautiful province, the fourteenth Colony, the fourteenth State that might have been, was at last over."' Eight Years of Failure the whole series of plans and measures to win it might be called. Yet they were by no means altogether a failure. In the first place, their in direct benefits, already pointed out," were neither few nor slight. In the second, two great facts of enduring signifi cance were graven deep upon the Laurentian cliffs : that our fathers, the builders of this republic, believed that Canada should form a part of it ; and that only force, aided by remarkable circumstances, prevented this consum mation. In the third, while the centre of the American advance was checked, each wing secured a victory : on the east, the use, if not the ownership, of the fisheries 2 6 § Doniol, Particip., V., pp. 162, 163, and note. Wharton, Revol. Dipl. Corres., v., ijp. 548, 549. Hale, Frankin in France, II., p. 115. Winsor, Narr. and Crit. Hist., VIL, pp. loi, 104, 109. Lewis, Admin., pp. 47, 48. J. Adams, Works, I., p. 360. 2' See pp. 451-458 of this volume. Results 571 was gained ; and, on the west, the portion of Canada — as defined by the Quebec Act — that fell into our possession has to-day three times the population of all that England retained. Even where the failure was greatest, we are not utterly without comfort. The fathers did not succeed in ensuring peace on the northern frontier by bringing our neighbor within the Union, yet their hopes and plans do not hover like unshriven ghosts about the rocky pinnacle of Quebec ; for the days of Frontenac, those dreaded daj's, have never returned. Upon the grave of the American martyr by the St. Lawrence the flag of his country sheds no con soling benediction, yet he sleeps in peace ; for above his resting-place floats in amity — so may it ever float ! — the starry banner of the deep Canadian sky. REMARKS XIvII. (see page lo) According toLindsay (Can. Rev., No. 5, Sept., 1826, p. 89) Indians hrought word 'on the ist of November' that Arnold was rapidly approaching. But, as this account (though from a man present in Quebec at the time of the siege, and based, to a greater or less ex tent, on documents) was apparently written long after the events, the author has concluded that the date was a mistake or was in tended in a general sense for 'very early in November.' Ainslie gives Nov. 3 as the date, and this seems more probable. XLIII. (see page 21) Ainslie says that Maclean brought ' a party ' of Emigrants and a few Fusiliers ; Finlay that he brought 200 Emigrants and Fusil iers ; Ogden (Nov. 14) that the Americans heard he came with 200 Emigrants and ' about 80 of the Eighth ' [doubtless a slip for Seventh]. The ofScial report for Nov. 16 included no Fusiliers and only 200 Emigrants, so that — since a part of the men from Newfoundland and St. John's Island had no doubt enlisted as Emi grants — Maclean must have brought less than 200. He seems in fact to have come.^ith about 120. (See Vol. I., p. 451.) Hamilton (Can. Arch., Q, 11, p. 339) said ' about 100 of his men.' Caldwell (Letter) wrote the same. Some other small difficulties present themsleves : e.g., a Quebec Letter of Nov. 7 (4 Force, III., 1396) says that no regulars were there, Lindsay (Can. Rev., No. 5, Sept., 1826, p. 89) concurs, and Caldwell (Letter) says the same in effect (' not a soldier'); but the official return of Nov. 6 mentioned 6 artillerymen. Whence came they? However, these difficulties are of slight importance. XLIV. (see page 26) Thayer states in his Journal .that shortly before the river was crossed a council decided, against a strong minority, not to assault the town immediately after landing. Ogden, however, says this matter was left to the Colonel's pleasure, and that, as he believed it ought to be done, the scaling ladders and pikes were taken to the place of embarking, with a view to carrying them across that night. Whatever the fact about the council, the question seems to 573 574 O'J'" Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony have come up after the crossing. For Arnold's attitude after the crossing, see Marshall (i.e. Heath), Life of Washington, IL, p. 294; for Morgan's, see Graham, Morgan, p. 85. Marshall (toe. cit.) says Arnold did not urge an assault strongly. Who ordered the firing on the barge? Thayer wrote (Joumal) that the barge ' was hail'd by col amold inyself and 4 more But on her not coming too we fir'd at her.' As Amold was in the party he must almost certainly have given the order. In his letter of Nov. 14 to Montgomery he wrote 'vee fired into her.' Arnold's letter to Montgomery, Nov. 14, represents the affair of the barge as what prevented him from surprising the town. Fobes, writing long after, said that ' if Arnold and the soldiers had kept still the boat and crew might have been taken without alarming the city ' ; but that is more than he could prove. That the report of the affair did not reach the Lt.-Gov. till the next day is stated in Account, 4 Force^ IIL, 1723; see also Marshall, Washington, II., p. 295. What is the proof that a gate was open? It was so stated to the Americans shortly afterward by Quebec people (Henry Journal, p. 83 ; Marshall, Washington, II. , p. 295). Fobes said : ' St. John's gate was open. We stopped a man thathadjust comeoutof it and could have entered, with nothing to hinder.' (Apparently this must bave been after the Americans had marched to Caldwell's, for when he marched up the bluff Amold supposed that Maclean had been aroused.) And it was reported in Quebec that on the next day the keys of St. John's gate could not be found, ' and the fastening in such a situation that they were obliged to procure handspikes and ropes ' (4 Force, IIL, 1723). This last account states that it was necessary to send to the Lizardfor matches for the cannon, Nov. 14; also, that the gate was in the keeping of the French militia. Jan. 8, 1776, an Anierican soldier wrote from Montreal that two French gentlemen, just arrived there, said that ' Arnold might have march'd into Quebec, when he first arrived' (in Tryon's No. 30, Feb. 8, 1776: Pub. Rec. Off., Am. and W. I., Vol. 186; p. 309). From the return of Nov. 16 one can see that the garrison consisted at this time of 243 men besides the militia, for the sailors had not yet been organized ; but Amold wrote Washington, Nov. 20, that by the night of the 13th, the garrison had been ' augmented to near seven hundred men, besides the inhabitants' (Me. Hist. Soc. Coll., I., p. 379). To enter an open gate (where there might be an ambush) and attack an alert enemy (such as Amold then supposed Maclean to be) who had (as Arnold believed) superior numbers as well as all the advantages of position, besides more or less help from the militia, could not seem prudent. Now that (as Arnold concluded) a surprise was impossible, the only chances lay in producing a re volt within the town, or drawing the garrison out. Could Arnold have pursued a different course and succeeded ? The author holds that — as the text intimates — he might have done so. But this inquiry has often been confounded with a distinct one : Ought Arnold, in view of the evidence, to have adopted a different course, and was he to be blamed for not succeeding ? To these questions the author would reply in the negative. Remarks 575 Gordon, on the other hand (Hist. U. , S., I., p. 430), says that Arnold should have taken the scaling ladders across, concealed himself, and tried a coup-de-main the next night ; and this is per haps as reasonable a criticism as could be suggested. But (i) it was important first to get men across, since a small party left on the north shore might have been discovered and destroyed ; it was there fore wise to leave tbe ladders for the last trip ; and circumstances prevented that trip. .^(2) The chance that 500 men could remain close to Quebec undiscovered for twenty-four hours, especially when a considerable number of people were on the lookout for them, seems very small. (3) As a matter of fact, Arnold's presence was discovered by the guard boat. As for the wisdom of hailing and firing upon that boat, it depended on deHcate circumstances which no one cau be sure about now, and we cannot decide that Arnold acted wrongly. XLV. (see page 27) Several of the American Journals become wholly or partially silent after Nov. 14; but Meigs, Dearborn, Humphrey, Thayer, Topham, Senter,, Haskell, Henry, and Melvin continue about as before. Of the Canadian Journals the fullest and perhaps the best is that of Thomas Ainslie, Collector of Customs, which may be found in the Spa'rks MSS., No. i. (For convenient evidence that he was the Collector : letter, Dec. 16, 1775, 4 Force, IV., 290.) The ' Chalmers' Journal (Sparks MSS., No. 142) was kept by an impor tant officer of the garrison. This name (iu default of any other) is given it because George Chalmers found and bought it. Finlay's Journal (Quebec Lit. and Hist. Soc, 4th ser.), there is good reason to believe (as Malcolm Fraser endorsed upon the MS.), was kept by a prominent official named Hugh Finlay. The 'Shortt ' Jour nal (edited by W. T. P. Shortt, London, 1824) is represented as 'collected from some old MSS. originally written by an officer,' and is, of course, less authoritative. A 'Journal of the Most Re markable Occurrences in Quebec ' was published in the N. Y. Hist. Soc. Coll., 1880; it presents itself as 'By au Officer of the Garrison.' The same Journal is quoted by Smith, Canada, II. , beginning with p. 81. In 1905, a very similar Journal bearing substantially the same title was published at Quebec (Wiirtele, ed.). Both ofthese were perhaps based upon Ainslie's. It is not considered necessary to give references to the Journals for minor details. XLVI. (see page 31) Was it Arnold's purpose, when he retired from Quebec, to join Montgomery ? Such was the plan announced in his letter to Mont gomery of Nov. 8, 1775 (4 Force, IIL, 1634). The letter in Henry's Journal (p. 185) says that Arnold found it absolutely necessary to halt until he could provide the men with footgear ; and that implies an intention to go farther. But Arnold's letters of Nov. 20 to 576 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony Montgomery and to Washington, and that of Nov. 27 all say it was judged prudent to 'retire to this place.' One cannot be sure therefore, as to his purpose. Perhaps he himself did not feel certain what he should do, but did not care to admit either indecision or disappoin tm en t. XLVII. (see page 35) The author searched Pointe aux Trembles and the district around it for traces of the Americans, and found, besides vague traditions of their friendly behavior there, this song : ' Yankee doddle [5zV] Tiens toi bien ! J'entends la musique ! Ce sont les Americains Qui viennent prendre le fort Pique.'* XLVIII. (see page 41) The habits of Lake Champlain signify so much in this campaign that the author took pains to inform himself by careful inquiry of people concerned in navigating it. He was informed that the northern part is not usually covered with solid ice before about the middle of February. The Committee of Congress wrote that the lake might ' take' about the beginning of that month (4 Force, IV., 442), which marks that as the earliest possible time. Much depends, of course, upon the severity of the winter. The southern end ofthe lake as far down as Crowu Point closes during the first half of December, as a rule. See [Bedel] to Schuyler, Dec. ig, 1775 : Sparks MSS., No. 60, p. 39 ; Schuyler to Hancock, Nov. 22, 1775 : 4 Force, IIL, 1633. XLIX. (see page 53) In this and the following paragraphs, the author has made no attempt to be exhaustive, for iu this work the subject is of course only incidental ; but it is hoped that enough illustrative cases are cited to justify his position. See Remark CXV. L. (see page 73) Three weeks and more appear to have been wasted by Congress at this juncture, for the orders to raise or assign troops might and should have been issued at Philadelphia not later than Nov. I. Even in the summer, although (as stated above) Congress kept ' abreast ' of the events, it was unfortunate that more was not done and in particular that Schuyler was not aided aud urged to carry out the order of June 27 prompth-. 'The grounds by the site of the present Parliament building at Quebec. Remarks . 577 LL (see page 86) Attention has been called to the story that Arnold sent Burr in disguise from Lake Megantic to Montgomery. According to Parton (Burr, I., p. 71) this was done when Arnold neared Quebec. But the reply is as before : Arnold's letter introducing Burr to Montgomery was dated Nov. 30, more than two weeks after he reached Quebec. Montgomery was at that time nearly down to Arnold, on his way to attack Quebec, so that Parton's tale of Burr's lying concealed at Three Rivers on his way to find Mont gomery at Montreal is incredible. Besides, under date of Nov. 19 (4 Force, IIL, 1682) Montgomery wrote to Schuyler that his expresses passed freely between the two cities, so that there was no occasion for either disguise or concealment. LIL (see page 87) Strangely enough, it is not certaiu on what day Montgomery landed. Humphrey's careful Journal has been followed in the text, and most of the accounts which apparently disagree with that cau in a measure be reconciled with it. As Montgomery was known to be close at hand on the ist, he could be said to have arrived on that date ; aud, as he could not begin work until the 3d, that day could be given. Wooster wrote Schuyler on December 4 that he had a letter of the second instant from Montgomery who was then at Pointe aux Trembles (Schuyler Papers). Fortunately, nothing depends upon certainty about this point. See the vari ous Journals and Arnold's Orderly Book, Dec. 2, which seems to confirm the date in the text. J. Livingston (Jan. 25, 1819 : Bancroft Coll.) said that the cannon had to be landed because the boats conveying them were frozen in at Lake St. Peter ; but this, written long after, seems doubtful. LIII. (see page 98) LeMoine (Quebec Past and Present, p. 201) names the Com mander of the Canadians Col. Lecompte Dupr^ ; but Caldwell wrote, 'old Voyer, their Colonel'; and this is confirmed by Sanguinet (Verreau, Invasion, p. 37). It needs to be remembered, in reading accounts ofthese events, that British officers were often given a higher title in Canada than their rank iu the regular service. E.g., Carleton speaks of Cap tain Hamilton as ' Colonel.' LIV. (see page 99) According to Ritzema (Journal), Montgomery took from Mon treal, Nov. 28, apart of Lamb's Co., Cheeseman's and Weisenfel's Cos. of Ritzema's Regt., one Co. ofthe 2d regt., two Cos. of the 3d regt.; and, on Dec. i, Zedtwitz set out for Quebec with the vol.. II. — 37 578 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony Cos. of Mott, Varick, and Quackenbos. A letter of Dec. 17 from Montreal (Conn. Gazette, Jan. 26, 1776) states that Weisenfels, Cheeseman, Mott, Varick, and Quackenbos w'ere before Quebec, Willet at St. Johns, Goforth and Lyon at Montreal. The name St. Roch seems to have been written quite commonly St. Roques or St. Roc in 1775. LV. (see page 104) Force (4, IV., 289) prints, as the letter of Dec. 16, what the author has described as that of Dec. 6. There seems no lack of evidence (Note 26) that the letter was written on the latter date, and it fits that case. Was the same letter sent on the 16th? (i) It does not contain an offer of a safe-conduct, which Mont gomery said he made (see also letter, Dec. 16, 4 Force, IV., 290). (2j The object on the i6th (as Montgomery wrote R. R. Livingston: Note 31) was ' to prevail on Mr. Carleton ' to give him peace able possession, and the menacing tone of the former letter was not well adapted to that end. LVI. (see page 117) Parton (Burr, I., p. 72) says that, after two weeks of work. Burr completed on Dec. 20 the drilling of a forlorn hope, which was to storm Quebec under his command. The preparations began, then, Dec. 6. But this seems inconsistent with Montgomery's cautious way of approaching the matter with the soldiers and masking his design from Carleton. Besides (even though the plan of attack was changed) it is hard to understand why, if Burr picked and prepared a forlorn hope, his corps did not figure at all and he himself did not appear prominently in the assault. A reliable for lorn hope was precisely what Montgomery needed and did not have. Parton's account contains so many errors that it cannot be con sidered authoritative in the least. LVII. (see page 124) The opinion has often been expressed that Montgomery in tended to force the passage to the Upper Town (e. g., Smyth, Prdcis, p. 115 ; Cullum, Sketch, p. 14), and censure has been meted out accordingly ; but there seems to be no evidence for this view, while plenty of evidence for the view of the text is given in the footnotes. Further : Ainslie (Journal, Jan. l) says, ' It was re ported before daylight that the Lower town was in Mr. Mont- gomeries possession ; this acceptable piece of news, brought all the blackguards of the adjacent Parishes to St. Roc to wait the siu-render of the upper town.' I. e. it was commonly understood on the American side that the Upper Town would yield were the Lower Towu captured. That Montgomery had carefully studied Wolfe's campaign is Remarks 5 79 proved, e. g., by his letter to R. R. Livingston : 4 Force, III., 1638. One is surprised to hear nothing of Major Brown in the accounts of the assault (Remark LX). One is also surprised by Ritzema's statement that Montgomery had 466 men (Journal, Jan. 2, 1776), whereas the accounts represent him as followed by the New York ers only. Smith (Pittsfield, I., p. 258) says that Montgomery had, besides the New Yorkers, a part of Easton's regiment (with whicli Major Brown would have gone, since he was the commander of it), and that the force led by Jacob Brown (Remark LX.) was a newly formed corps, composed of men just about to be disbanded. This would seem to solve the riddle ; but (i) the accounts give it no support, (2) it is hard to understand why a new corps should be formed of men not yet free, and (3), if the men of Easton's regi ment followed Montgomery, as Smith states, it is not easy to see whence such a new corps could have come. To be sure, it might be surmised that some of Arnold's troops went into it ; but the dis affection in his detachment seems to have been confined to the cap tains, and, as Senter (Journal, Dec. 30) intimates, the soldiers would naturally wish to fight in company with their tried comrades of the wilderness march. The author has, therefore, followed the accounts and left the riddle unexplained. LVIIL (see page 127) This is based upon the letter, of which the owner, Hon. John D. Crimmins of New York, kindly gave the author a copy. The letter was written after midnight, for the date is Dec. 31. As the attack, ordered the evening before (see, e. g., Macpherson's letter, dated Dec. 30, Note 20) was conditional only upon the weather, it must be inferred that the storm gave signs of ceasing. Evidently the letter was not sent, for a white flag could not have been seen in the darkness and storm. It must have been written to be sent after daybreak. It seems to have been intended as a ruse de guerre. LIX. (see page 128) The author's study of the assault would make a volume, and would be published as such did there seem likely to be a general call for so extended a treatment of the subject. Selecting about fifty of the most valuable sources, he gave each a number and then resolved each into separate statements. These were grouped, and after each was placed the number or numbers ofthe source or sources in which it occurred. The following extract from this compilation will show what is meant (the reference is to Arnold's attack). The front got lost in the storm: 9 The main body missed their way; i. The path made by Arnold, Morgan, and I,amb was almost imperceptible because of the falling snow ; 3. The main body were led astray ; 4, 6. 580 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony Thayer undertook to guide them : 9. The piece of artillery had to be abandoned : 6, 14, 27. On account ofthe sno"w^ the field-piece had to be abandoned : 1, 4, 19. Another reason was the difficulty ofthe way; i, 4, 15, 19, 25. The streets were narrow and crooked : 6. By carefully studying this digest, bearing in mind the relative value of each source, and adding the valuable points ofthe other sources, the author felt that a fairly complete and trustworthy narrative could be produced, though in not a few cases the evidence is conflicting. Necessarily, many details come from single wit nesses, and the fight was observed under circumstances not favor able to precision ; but nothing hangs upon the strict accuracy of these details (except in certain cases specially studied below), and the picture is really truer to the reality with some fairly supported yet not scientifically proven details in it than it would be without them. LX. (see page 130) For the Canadians, see Montgomery to Wooster, Dec. 16, 1775 ; Sparks MSS., No. 52, II., p. 60 ; Schuyler to Hancock, Jan. 13, 1776 I 4 Force, IV., 665; Henry, Journal, p. 104; Senter, Journal, Dec. 31. J. Livingston (Jan. 25, 1819 : Bancroft Coll., separate) said that a shifting of the wind, favorable to the city, prevented his attempt to bum St. John's Gate from being completely successful. Brown's men are said to have numbered 94 (Ritzema, Journal, Jan. 2), and were led by Captain Jacob Brown, Major John's brother, possibly in consequence of the latter's having become compro. mised in the cabal against Arnold. See Campbell, Mar. 28, 1776 ; Livingston Papers, 1775-1777, p. 145; Smith, Pittsfield, I., p. 258. LXL (see page 130) Ritzema (Journal, Jan. 2, 1776) says that Arnold had 560 men, to whom, we may add, as an estimate, 40 Canadians and Indians. Carleton's official report gave 431 as the number of the prisoners, including the wounded (Can. Arch., Q, 12, p. 37). The killed (in cluding those wbo died iu the suow of wounds) may perhaps be estimated at 100, and those who skulked or escaped at 50. We thus have 581 as his force at the beginning, plus the Canadians and Indians. We may get at the figures in another way. Arnold stated (to Washington, Jan. 14, 1776 : 4 Force, IV., 674) that all of his detachment except about 200 'sick aud on command' were captured, i.e. (as he says nothing ofthe wounded) this number went into the fight. If we add 60 meu of Lamb's and 40 Canadians and Indians we get 575. If ' about 200' meant 175, we then have 600 as the total. Arnold had all but 7 or 8 of Lamb's Co. (Camp bell to , Mar. 28, 1775 : Livingston Papers, 1775-1777, p. 145). LXII. (see page 141) Caldwell (Letter) complained that ' had the officer of the Canadian Remarks 581 Militia, who commanded there [at the Cape Diamond blockhouse], done his duty, great havoc might have been made among the enemy'; but Engineer Marr (Report, July i, 1778: Cau. Arch., B, 154, p. 6) said that the blockhouse was 'too high to fire upon people passing below unless when the snow falls so deep as to make an inclined plane to the water's edge,' and perhaps this state of things had not been reached when the Americans passed. LXIII. (see page 144) The Americans advanced through what is now called Dog Lane or the Canoterie ; the second barrier was probably at St. James St., protecting the ends of St. Peter and Sault au Matelot Streets; and the house entered by Nairne and Dambourges is believed to have been where the No. 5 fire-engine station is at present. Lym- burner's house, from the windows of which cannon fired on the Americans, stood where the Quebec Bank has been erected. See LeMoine, Quebec P. and P., pp. 316, 318. The text states that Morgan went over the barrier first and Porterfield immediately after him. Some good authorities reverse this order. It is hard for the author to believe that Morgan would have been second at such a time ; but, so far as glory is concerned, an instant's difference either way would signify nothing. LXIV. (see page 146) It is impossible to be sure with reference to the losses on either side. According to the account published by Congress, about 60 Americans were killed or wounded and 300 captured. Arnold called the 'prisoners and missing' about 400 (to Cong., Jan. 11, 1776 : Sparks MSS., No. 52, IL, p. 34). Dearborn estimated the number of sergeants, corporals, and privates killed and wounded in Arnold's detachment as about 100, and those captured unhurt as about 300. No American could really know. At Pres de Ville the killed were ' about 15,' said one who was present (4 Force, IV., 582), and Ainslie (Journal) recorded that 13 bodies were brought in. Two wounded men crawled to the guard-house (' Chalmers' Journal). Carleton's official report of the American loss (Can. Arch., Q, 12, p. 37) was : 30 killed, 42 wounded prisoners and 389 unwounded prisoners, besides whom he believed that ' many per ished in the River' (to Germain :Can. Arch., Q, 12, p. 14). As the slightly wounded and some of those badly hurt went or were carried to the Hospital until the sally into St. Roch occurred (Senter, Journal), as some escaped iu the confusion at the end (e. g., Dearbom, Journal), as some (including some or most ofthe Cana dians and nearly all of the Indians : Henry, Journal) took their chances on the ice, and as many of the dead were hidden in the snow, this report seems to tally fairly well with what we know or believe regarding Montgomery's forces. The total American loss might, then, be called about 500. Maclean, however, wrote, May 582 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony 25, 1776 (Can. Arch., Q, 12, p. 69), ' we buried 220 and since the snow went away we found 20 more'; and Carleton wrote Howe (Can. Arch., Q, 12, p. 11) that the American loss was 600-700 men and 40-50 officers killed, wounded and captured. But these state ments can hardly be reconciled with Carleton's official retum or with the numbers that Amold had after the assault. of the British accounts, Ainslie gives 5 killed and 14 wounded as the loss on that side, while Carleton wrote Howe (Can. Arch., Q, 12, p. 11) of 'only' three dead and two wounded; but Henry (Joumal, p. 114) says the sentries who guarded the prisoners 'fre quently admitted of 40 or 50 killed and many more wounded.' As the space between the two barriers was held first by the British and then by the Americans and to a large extent the costumes of the two sides were similar, one is tempted to suppose that some of the American killed referred to by Maclean were really British ; but this seems hardly credible. For an official list of the Americans captured, see Can. Arch., Q, 12, p. 159. For the principal American list of the losses, see ' Ware's ' Journal (N. Eng. Hist, and Geneal. Register, April, 1852). For partial lists, see, e.g., Dearborn, Jotumal; Hinman, Conn., p. 554 ; 4 Force, IV., 708. LXV. (see page 146) It is extremely difficult (indeed impossible) to satisfy oneself perfectly as to the details of the assault at Sault au Matelot, be cause the reports are incomplete, and, on account ofthe darkness and excitement, necessarily inaccurate ; but the difficulties concern details. On the other hand, the essential features of the affair at PrSs de Ville are in question. To feel sure about them is impossible ; but it seems a duty to inquire closely. I. What were the defences ? The text follows Henry's account. This, to be sure, was written about thirty-five years later ; but (i) Henry's honesty and intention to be careful cannot be questioned; (2) while a prisoner at Quebec he felt extremely desirous of exam ining the spot, and, wheu permitted to do so, went there expressly for the purpose of observing ; (3) he undoubtedly did his utmost to fix the facts in his memory ; and (4), as no doubt he told scores, if not hundreds, of times what he saw, his recollection became con firmed. Campbell represented the house as 'in the line of the pickets'; but so it would have appeared — especially in the feeble light — if viewed from a little distance, and Campbell's remark seems to signify only that he did not pass or come very near the second palisade. Caldwell states (this part of his letter has not been correctly printed) that there were ' four cannon, 3- and 4-pounders '; and he was quite likely to know about this. II. What men were there ? Thompson, who had been appointed Supt. of Mil. Defences at Quebec and had charge of the palisading, etc., said in 1828 (LeMoine, Quebec Past and Present, p. 206) that Sergt. Hugh McQuarters had charge of the barrier guard, and Remarks 583 LeMoine (p. 204) accepts this on the ground of the ' immemorial usage of the British army to have a trusty N[on] C[ommissioned] 0[fficer] of artillery at every guard where there was a gun'; but, as Quebec had only one officer of artillery, this rule could not be carried out, and Thompson's recollection, fifty-three years after the event, as to a detail that he had no special reason for keeping fresh in his mind, is of very little value. Sanguinet (in Verreau, Invasion, p. 121) says that Chabotte (Chabot) and Picard ordered the cannon fired, and the Canadian writers credit these two with a joint command of the guard ; but (i) Sanguinet's account of this affair came from hearsay and contains many errors, and (2) a joint command would not have been appointed by Carleton : the two officers might have paralyzed the operations by disagreement. Caldwell says what is given in the text. That Barnfair (the correct spelling) had charge of the gunners seems very probable : (i) we know that many ofthe seamen could work guns (Verreau, Invasion, p. 112), but can hardly suppose the Canadian militia were able to do so, (2) Barnfair's letter is evidence, and (3) it is improbable that, when Carleton relied npon the sailors and distrusted the Canadians, he would place theae guns in the keeping of the latter. III. Did Montgomery's approach cause a panic? (A) There was a panic at some stage, as is proved by ample testimony. (B) Caldwell says that the panic occurred (after Montgomery had been repulsed) in consequence of a report by 'some old womeij' that Arnold had got into the Lower Town, and that a Mr. Coffin, aided by Barnfair, stopped it in a very heroic manner ; but (i) Caldwell was not there ; {2) Caldwell himself makes the story improbable by saying that, during the panic caused by news of S. au Matelot being surprised, Arnold's division might have taken the Lower Town and 'let their friends in at the other side,' for this implies (since news no doubt travelled there as rapidly as the Americans could have felt their way across) that the post at Pr^s de Ville heard ofthe entry ofthe Americans at S. au M. (siuce the Ameri cans at P. de V. were but a few moments in a position to be let in) before Montgomery made his attack ; (3) men capable of one panic were capable of two panics ; (4) if only one panic occurred, it was more likely to come when the guard suddenly found that the enemy had passed two lines of defence and were upon them, than after the guard had won a victory, had only old women's tales of a distant enemy, and knew that the whole force of the garrison could either interpose between them and this enemy or assail this enemy in the rear ; (5) the story about Coffin was a mistake, for he presented to the government later an application for assistance, and made no mention of what (had it occurred) would have been a far stronger basis for his claim than what he offered (Can. Arch., B, 42, p. 21 ; see also B, 54, p. 244); (6) Henry (Joumal, p. 131) said that the guard was intoxicated and fled ; that a half-drunk sailor returned, etc.; and that some of those very sailors, a part ofthe guard over the Americans that same morning, said so ; (7) the re port that the guard fled was current among the Americans (e. g.. Journals of Meigs and Dearborn) and was believed by Sanguinet, 584 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony (Verreau, Invasion, p. 121); (8) the writers of the British Journals were not likely to hear the truth, especially as Barnfair (see his letter) was evidently a bold braggart, nor, if they heard, to record it ; and (9), in spite of the natural interest in smothering accounts of such a panic, reports ' iu print, representing the guard at Pres de Ville as paralyzed by fear ' became so current in Canada before 1834 that Hawkins (Picture) felt obliged to contradict them, which he did (in spite of ample evidence to the contrary) by denying that any panic at all occurred. From the 'Chalmers' Journal and Campbell's account it would seem that, as the Americans did not advance, the guard retumed to their post and did some more firing, both with cannon and with muskets. Possibly this may explain some stories of vigorous action earlier. IV. What firing was done ? Along with the author's conclusion about the panic goes naturally the opinion that, as Henry heard, a half-drunken sailor went back and fired a gun. Barnfair's letter is of some value as confirming this. As he asserts, he himself was probably the man. The letter sounds like it. Perhaps, as he says, he fired two guns. If he did, he was in such haste that probably they went off almost at the same instant, and so it was said that only one gun was fired. Perhaps some of his comrades followed him back and made the hasty fire of small arms reported by some of the authorities ; or perhaps there were (as Thompson states) bullets in the cannon, and this fact gave rise to the report that muskets were fired. V. Did Montgomery pass the second palisade ? (i) Henry (p. 130) so states ; (2) Montgomery seems to have fallen in the act of charg ing, sword in hand, and he would not have charged upon an intact palisade ; (3) had there been a strong palisade between the Amer icans and theenemy, the British fire would not have been so deadly ; (4) Campbell mentions ordering the carpenters on to the second palisade some time before Montgomery fell. VI. What did Burr do ? It has been denied that Burr went with Montgomery (e. g., by Cullum), and certainly Arnold's letter of Dec. 31 sounds at first as if Burr had been with him. But the testi mony of Campbell and Lieut. Platt (Parton, Burr, I., p. 75) proves that he did ; and, as he was Montgomery's aide, he could hardly have fought elsewhere. But he does not seem to have played an important part. If, as Parton intimates (Burr, I., pp. 73, 75) Burr had actually led the storming party, it is inconceivable that no one of the eye-witnesses shonld have mentioned the fart, and that the accounts should represent Montgomery himself as leading the attack and Cheeseman as heading the first company. This brings us to the famous tale of Burr's attempting to carry off Montgomery's body (Parton, Burr, I., p. 76). The stories of Burr's doings already discredited (Remarks XXXIX., LL) show how this one should be approached, and the evidence confirms our presumption. The testimony of Thompson, who found the American dead (Anderson, Siege and Blockade, p. 65), seems to prove that Montgomery's body was uot moved from the spot where it fell. An officer who saw his body on the ground made a statement to Henry Remarks 585 (Journal, p. 131) which confirms this. Further ; Parton says (Mag. Am. Hist., Apr., 1884, p. 454) that Burr carried it 'down the hill,' whereas he would have carried it along the river bank, and that he was forced to leave it by the pursuing foe, whereas we find no sign of any pursuit. Parton (Mag. Am. Hist., Apr., 1884, p. 454) relied especially on the testimony of Spring, who, Parton says, ' saw' the body carried 'some distance,' whereas Spring belonged to Arnold's detachment aud according to Henry (p. 109) helped Arnold to the Hospital. Spring's testimony was not given until about forty-five years after the events, and was not reported until 1S38, nineteen years after he died (Parton, Burr, I., p. 374). Dearborn's company had been stationed on the farther side of the St. Charles River, and the sergeant-major, carrying the order to march, was delayed by the tide. Dearborn set out, however, when he had evidence that an attack had begun, and met with the same difficulties as the others. His company became divided, and both parts fell a prey to the party that sallied from Palace Gate. Smith had been stationed at the Island of Orleans, and had no personal share in the battle. LXVI. (see page 152) For Montgomery's burial, etc., see : Lindsay (Can. Rev., No. 5, Sept., 1826, p. 89) ; Henry, Journal, p. 170 ; Dearborn, Journal, Jan. 4 ; Mass. Hist. Soc. Coll., First Series, I., p. iii ; Warren, Am. Rev., I., p. 268 ; LeMoine, Quebec Past and Present, pp. 205-208 (Thomp son); Ainslie, Joumal, Jan. i, 4. He seems to have been buried at once and without ceremony, but a lady who afterward married Cramahd begged him to show the dead hero more respect. J. Liv ingston (to , Jan. 25, 1819: Bancroft Coll.) said that Campbell knew Cramahd and wrote him, asking that Montgomery might be decently interred ; but Meigs appears to have been the only chan nel of communication, and, as he did not return to Quebec until after Montgomery had finally been buried, Campbell's letter — if artually written — had nothing to do with the matter (cf. Haskell, Diary, Jan. 5, with Ainslie, Journal, Jan. 4). The consent of the Governor was doubtless obtained ; and on Jan. 4thebod3-, enclosed in a suitable coffin, was privately but respectfully interred with the services of a Protestant clergym.in. For the spaniel, see Gaspe, Memoires, p. 40. Gasp^'s uncle, Charles deLanaudiSre, hearing that a dog had been lying for three days on Montgomery's grave, went to the place and found him howling, moaning, aud scratching the ground. The word ' Montgomery ' caught its attention, and after 'a week of efforts' the dog was induced to leave the spot. Mont gomery's body was laid before burial in the house which is now No. 72, .St. Louis St. Ainslie traces the identification of Montgomery's body to a report of his disappearance brought by two deserters. The bodies were then shown to prisoners. For the transferring of Montgomery's remains to New York in 1818, see Harper's Mag., LXX., p. 358 ; Niles's Register, July, 1S18 ; LeMoine (supra) : Lossing, Am. Rev., I., p. 201, note. 586 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony If the visitor at Quebec turns from St. Louis St. toward the Citadel near St. Louis Gate, he soon passes a tablet in the end ofa building, recording that thirteen ofthe American killed were buried below. A few rods from this tablet, in a yard surrounded by build ings, four cannon balls may be seen on the ground. At the centre of the square of which they suggest the corners, is a flat stone. Under this, as a responsible military officer informed the author, Montgomery lay and Cheeseman and Macpherson rest still. LXVII. (see pages ii6, 154) Campbell (to , Mar. 28, 1776 : Livingston Papers, 1775-1777, p. 145) asserted that Amold wished the powder removed from the magazine, and Campbell represented himself as the one determined to keep it there. It is not difficult, however, to decide which ofthe two was likely to favor a backward move. To the author it seems necessary to regard this verj' interesting letter of Campbell's with much reserve, (i) because of the writer's conduct and character, (2) because it was a private letter which he did not expect to be challenged, and (3) because — though he knew (see the letter) that very serious charges against him were current — he does not seem to have desired an official investigation. It is impossible to tell just how many effectives there were, Jan. I. Arnold's figures vary. Writing Wooster on Jan. 5, he said that by an ' exact return,' made on the 2d, there were not quite 800, including Livingston's corps. This is the basis ofthe text, Camp bell (supra) said 450 [Americans]. The men appear to have been quartered in buildings, perhaps hired, perhaps ' borrowed ' from British partisans. LXVIII. (see page 175) Hancock informed the N. H. Com. Safety (4 Force, IV., 654) that a battalion should include eight companies, each company to have seventy-six privates, a drummer, a fifer, four corporals, four ser geants, two lieutenants, oue ensign, a surgeon, a quartermaster, an adjutant, and the captain. LXIX. (see page 190) According to Schuyler's ledger, Wooster was sent ^'10,691, sh. 7, d. I I in specie during Jan. and Feb., 1776. This was probably reckoned iu 'York' currency, and was therefore equivalent to about $28,000. This is inferred from Schuyler's referring to ' something above ;^2,ioo' as about $5,300 (to Hancock, March 6 : 4 Force, V., 91 ; to Trumbull, Mar. 9 : ib., 147). LXX. (see page 234) It is necessary to form an idea of Wooster's rule at Montreal Remarks 587 mainly from hints and inferences, as we have very few documents relating to that period. If it be thought that the author is severe with him, one should reflect that, at a period when the Continental Congress was almost or quite timid in its desire to avoid giving offense, he was summarily ordered home. Lotbiniere (to Sullivan, nndated, Cont. Cong. Papers, Letters, 78, Vol. XIV., p. 423) repre sents Wooster as the one insurmountable obstacle that prevented the Americans from winning Canada. LXXI. (see page 235) A thoughtful writer on this subject has expressed the opinions: (i) that the Americans were trusted up to about May i, 1776, and (2) that even paper money failed early ; but the references for this and the succeeding paragraphs appear to disprove both points, though no doubt there was a delay in sending the paper. See also Wooster to Schuyler, Feb. 19, 21, 1776: 4 Force, IV., 1483, 1499 ; and Arnold to Deane, Mar. 30, 1776 : 4 Force, V., 549. LXXII. (see page 257) Accounts differ as to the precise location of this battery. Fiulay (Joumal, Mar. 20) said it was 200 yards to the ' east of where Wolfe's was ' ; but a letter written by a soldier who had visited the ground (Conn. Gazette, Apr. 19, 1776) stated (Mar. ro) that 'the King's old battery ' was to be refitted. See map of the Siege of Quebec (Jef ferys). The old works appear to have been reinforced with fascines (Haskell, Diary, Mar. 16) and perhaps earth also, for Arnold reported that the frost was out of the ground before the snow disappeared (Arnold to , Mar. 26, 1776 : 4 Force, V., 512). LXXIII. (see page 260) In some cases we find three batteries mentioned and in other cases four. The explanation seems to be that the gun battery and the mortar battery on the Heights could be spoken of either as one or as two. Maclean, for example, said 'two' (May 25, 1776: Can. Arch., Q, 12, p. 69). Did the Americans obtain shot and shells from the Forges St. Maurice? According to Ursul. de T. Rivieres (I., p. 369), Yes. An article in Proc. and Trans., Roy. Soc. of Can., 1886, Sect. II., p. 77, states the same. Badeaux (Verreau, Invasion, p. 207), says Pelissier was to begin making shells May i; which would mean, No, so far as shells were concerned. Apparently he contributed but few, if auy. LXXIV. (see page 262) The battery at the ferry was not iti eluded in Arnold's scheme (see his letters of Mar. 26 and 30 : 4 Force, V., 512, 549). Work upon it 588 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony began on Apr. 5 (Haskell), and the 24-pounder, intended by Amold for use on the Heights, was transferred to it. This very likely offended Arnold. The battery is said to have had two guns ; but Haskell's account proves there were more. According to Carleton (May 14) there were two guns and a howitzer. Caldwell (Letter) said 'three guns.' LXXV. (see page 266 ) As Amold stated, another fire-ship (the Gaspi) was preparing above the city, but the work did not reach completion (Ainslie, Journal, May 7). Possibly the fire-ship of May 3 was a vessel of Arnold's. That opinion prevailed in Quebec (Ainslie, Journal, May 3). Ainslie stated that a brigantine ofhis wintered below, and the Journ. of Remark. Occurr. (Jan. 25) that a vessel laden with rum was driven ashore on Orleans Island ' November last.' Arnold's vessel (I., p. 502) would have been likely to have a cargo of that sort. Adjt. Anderson, who had charge of the fire-ship was very badly burned by the premature ignition of the combustibles (caused per haps by the fire of the garrison), but threw himself from a porthole and got safely ashore. Very possibly had the vessel been a little earlier, it would have reached its destination, for the wind was N. E. but the tide had begun to ebb. The Cul-de-sac occupied the space between Queen's wharf and the jetty on the west (LeMoine, Pict. Queb., p. 197). Ships were bedded there on the clay bottom for the wiuter. Dearborn (Journal, May 4) ' heard ' that an assault would have been made had the fire ship succeeded; and Porter says that the ladders were carried near the walls, under cover of darkness and a fog (Diary, Apr. 30: Mag. Am. Hist., Jan., 1893, p. 187). LXXVI. (see page 269) One is surprised that heavy cannon were not sent to Quebec earlier, since Arnold called for them ou Jan. 11 (Sparks MSS., No. 52, IL, p. 34); but it appears from a letter of T. Walker to S. Adams, May 30, 1776 (S. Adams Papers), that it was not believed such ordnance could be transported over the, ice. Walker, how ever, declared that the ice would have borne them. LXXVII. (see page 273) Fdlix de Bercy, head of the Recollets of Quebec, defending his Order against Du Calvet's charges in 17S4, said that upwards of 400 American prisoners had the sniall-pox in their convent, and that only one died (Can. Arch., Report, 1888, p. 55); but this was a mistake. It is completely disproved by the Joumals and Carleton's report. Remarks 589 LXXVIII. (see page 290) It was very natural for the prisoners to decide to wait for a dark and stormy night for their outbreak. Ainslie, whose report doubt less came from Hall, states that they did so. Stocking concurs. This may explain why Arnold was suspicious. According to Fobes, a number of pistols were obtained by the prisoners; but Henry, who was in a better position to know the facts, states the contrary. LXXIX. (see page 308) Wooster wrote to Congress on April 27 (Cont. Cong. Papers, 161, II. , p. 309) that he had sent a company to take post and fortify at Deschambault and proposed also to fortify at Jacques Cartier ; but evidently very little if anything had been done when Thomas passed, for on April 30 Antill ordered Desdevens (often called Dudevan by the Americans) to take measurements of the old fort at the mouth of the Jacques Cartier river with a view to drawing a plan, and Desdevens was employed also on May i and 2 in draw ing this plan and studying the course ofthe river at Deschambault so that batteries might be planted there (Cont. Cong. Papers, 35, pp. 222, 227). Wooster's action seems to have been caused by something written him by Arnold, for had he moved on his own initiative he would not have waited so long after seeing these two points, and we know that Arnold took hold at once after going up the river. LXXX. (see page 309) It is inferred that Thomas arrived late in the day from the fact that while he states that he arrived on May i, Haskell (Diary) and Alexander (Journal : Temple aud Sheldon, Northfield, p. 326) re corded that he came on May 2. Porter says that he arrived on the morning of the second (Diary: Mag. Am. Hist., Jan., 1893, p. X87). LXXXI. (see page 310) Besides the New Yorkers who re-enlisted to April 15 at Montreal (Chap. XXII.) and Livingston's men, Warner's regiment agreed to serve only to about that date (Morey to Weare, Mar. 7, 1776 : 4 Force, V., 117 ; Arnold to Deane, Note 19); but these were spoken of as still in the service the latter part of May (Schuyler to Wash ington, May 24, 1776 : 4 Force, VI., 564), though the report seems questionable. The same was true of Col. Fellows's Berkshire men (Schuyler to Hancock, Jan. 22, 1776: 4 Force, IV., 802). Amold reported (Mar. 30) the following corps : Warner, 373 ; Maj. Cady, 132 ; De Haas, 225 ; Brown, 170 (as 132 of these were under inocu lation, it would appear that most of them were recruits); Wooster, 90; McDougall, 191; Van Schaick, 158; Clinton, 227; Holmes, 114; Livingston, 206 ; Amold, 167 ; Wool (artillery), 31 ; Dugan, 123; Maxwell, 216; Fellows, 82 (4 Force, V., 550). Perfect ac- 590 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony curacy regarding the figures was not attained at the time and cannot be now. LXXXII. (see page 316) It is impossible to be exact about the arrival of troops. Haskell says that Thomas came on the 2d with 500 men, and makes no mention of others. This seems to mean in a general way that Thomas was supposed to be followed by that number of troops, for it is not probable, in view of what Robbins tells of their move ments above, that so many arrived together on May 2. St. Clair says that on May 11 he arrived somewhere near Quebec; but his date must be wrong, for he adds that he was just in time to cover the movement whicli took place on May 6. LXXXIII. (see page 317) It has often been said that the Americans ought to have retreated before, and so Thomas himself suggested forcibly, somewhat in fluenced, no doubt, by chagrin at finding himself forced to give up the siege so unfortunately. Perhaps that is true ; but the impor tance of taking Quebec, the belief that Carleton could not hold out, the expectation that the fire-ship would accomplish some thing, the news of reinforcements at hand, the uncertainty about the arrival of the British, and the danger of destroying the con fidence of the friendly Canadians, were powerful arguments for holding on until the last possible moment. Several times at Quebec, caution had defeated the Americans when victory lay within their grasp. It is a suggestive fact that one of the trans ports had not reached Quebec on May 15, being 'detained by contrary winds ' (Gordon to Barrington, May 15, 1776 : War Off., Orig. Corres., N. Am., Vol. 12). Doubtless it was true, as Marshall suggested, that the American leaders feared they would be blamed, should they retire from Quebec, and also that they were extremely reluctant to abandon or alarm the Canadians. It seems, however, as if a plausible pretext could have been found for placing the hospitals a considerable distance np the river, and certainly Woos ter could not be excused for neglecting to entrench. What tools the army had (and they had some : Ainslie, Joumal, May 6), with what could have been obtained from the people, would have enabled them to throw up something respectable in a month's time. Some fortifications with troops and cannon behind them would probably have justified Thomas in making a stand, pre vented the panic, and changed a rout into a retreat. Further, it was Wooster's plain duty to push forward with more energy the plans for the fire-ships and batteries, so that — should all the offen sive measures fail — there might be ample time for retreat before the British vessels could possibly arrive. He seems to have had almost no power of initiative, perhaps none whatever. LXXXIV. (see page 319) Walker, in his letter to S. Adams, May 30, 1776 (S. Adams Papers) Remarks 591 charged Thomas with indiscretion for attempting to retreat in daylight. But (i) Ainslie's Journal shows that the work began before the arrival of the Surprise ; (2) the fact that the Canadians helped until the arrival of the vessels became known proves the same ; (3) since an effectual stand could not be made, the quicker the flight the better, in case Carleton should decide to sally imme diately ; (4) should Carleton delay, a quick flight might soon harden into an orderly retreat ; (5) a delay on Thomas's part might have enabled Carleton to cut the line of retreat ; (6) from Shallus's Journal it appears probable that Thomas had intended to complete (or perhaps begin) the retreat in the night of May 6-7. Walker thought the retreat caused the sally ; but, even if this was true, it would have done as much harm or more had it been made later, for whenever made, it was sure to be known by Carleton. through some disaffected Canadian. LXXXV. (see page 335) For the discussions between Carroll and the Canadian clergy^ see TStu, EvSques, p. 332, and particularly Campbell on Carroll, U. S. Cath. Mag., III., p. 244. Campbell obtained his informatioa from Bishop Fenwick of Boston, who was given the points on a. visit to Canada by a priest who had met Carroll (Carroll, Journal, p. 30, note). Aside from this evidence, the position attributed to the Canadian priests could be inferred from their known views. The references to the bishop and the Americans in Canada have been added. Ainslie (Joumalj May 7) praises ' the steady & distinguish'd loyalty of the Canadian Clergy.' The Abb6 Casgrain, a well- known writer on Canadian history, expressed to the present author his emphatic opinion that it was the religious question which held Canada on the British side at the time ofthe American Revolution. Our study of the situation has perhaps shown that so concise an explanation can hardly be complete ; but these and many other evidences which might be adduced, in addition to those cited in the Notes, are enough to prove that the influence of the Church, as an organization, was thrown against the Colonies. See also Verreau, Invasion, p. 95. LXXXVI. (see page 340) This and several following paragraphs are based mainly, in default of anyother adequate source of information, upon Walker's letter of May 30 to S. Adams (Walker suggests, though he does not express, the dialogue form ; his diction has been slightly emended). He was hostile to the Commissioners and therefore liable to give a prejudiced account of their doings ; but (i) his hostility is an evidence that they adopted the policy he denounced, (2) he was too shrewd a man to state things to Adams about Adams's colleagues which they could refute, (3) the principles to which the Commis sioners were committed made it impossible for them to pursue any 592 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony other policy, and (4) the consequences alleged by Walker, given the state of feeling that certainly existed, were sure to follow. LXXXVII. (see page 346) Just what new troops reached Thomas at this time it is impos sible to say. At the Deschambault Council were Col. Burrell, of the Coun. regt., who probably left Chambly with a considerable part of his men on May 3 (Robbins, Journ.); Lt. Col. Buel, who left Chambly on that day (Robbins, Journal); Lt.Col. Irvine ofthe First Penn. Regt. (DeHaas); Lt. Col. Shreve, Lt. Col. Allen of the Second Penn. Regt. (St. Clair); and Lt. Col. Williams. But regiments were often divided ; and the fact that the colonels ofthese were not present would of itself suggest that some ofthe men were not. LXXXVIII. (see page 349) The author has not been able to discover all the letters that passed at this time, and some points are not perfectly clear. For example, Amold wrote on May 15 from Sorel that Thomas pro posed to make a stand at Deschambault ; why, then, since his vessels arrived that day (Vose, Journal) at Sorel, did he not go on ? It was perhaps because, after, writing this letter, he received word {before he had a chance to sail) that Thomas had retreated. Pos sibly Vose was wrong about his date, as he certainly was in several cases; but, if so, the date should probably be the 13th, and the query remains. LXXXIX. (see page 358) 'Jacob Shallus, Esq., of Philadelphia,' who went to Quebec as a volunteer and whose Journal proves that he was intelligent and self-possessed, states that about 900 meu were formed by Maxwell at the time of the British sally, 'ready to receive the Enemy.' Thomas (to Washington, May 8 : 4 Force, VL, 453) reported that he had (probably on May 2) only 500 men besides the classes excluded in the text. It seems doubtful whether many more than 400 new troops had come down by the forenoon ofthe 6th. James Caldwell wrote to Elias Boudinot, May 15, 1.776, that only one battalion of Thompson's had arrived (Emmet Coll.). XC. (see page 366) Bayley's 'Narrative,' which will be referred to a number of times, was written in 1826 to give his son Enoch an account of their family and ofhis life. Frye Bayley, the author, belonged to the same family as Jacob Bayley of Newbury. His home was at Peacham, Vt. His narrative, which is quite long and very minute, is not a diary but evidently must have been based (so far as his own life was concerned) upou something of that sort. In fact, a portion Remarks 593 of his Journal for 1776 is given by Wells in his Hist, of Newbury, p. 383. The writer was plainly a very careful, conscientious man, and he evidently took great pains with his narrative. To the present author it seems highly trustworthy. Bayley went to Canada, not as a soldier, but to guide a part of Bedel's regiment. He declined an ensign's commission, which Bedel offered him, but consented to remain three weeks in order to carry word back how Bedel fared with the small-pox. Then he drifted into the service because capable and willing to help at a time when such men were scarce. The Journal shows that he was on very good terms wilh Bedel. XCI. (see page 370) Amold (theu at Sorel) counted upon Price, the Commissary, to keep the Cedars supplied with provisions, and put the Commis sioners in mind to make sure that he did so (Arnold to Commrs., May 15, 1776: 4 Force, VL, 579). Bedel reported. May 16, that the garrison had been 'four days without any other provisions than bread' (Commrs. to Hancock, May 17, 1776: 4 Force, VI., 587); but Capts. Estabrook and Wilkins made oath that when attacked they had 3 bbls. pork, lyi do. beef, 20 bu. meal, and 5 or 5 horses. The barrelled provisions could not have been obtained from the neighbors after Bedel left the fort, and did not go from Montreal, for Bedel brought the first notice that supplies were needed. The same officers testified as to the quantity of ammunition (5 Force, I., 166). XCII. (see page 372) As the text suggests, the author found himself driven to the conclusion that Bedel did not do his duty. A somewhat extended study of the affair was prepared for insertion at this point ; but as the book is quite large and the question of Bedel's responsibility is no way essential, it has been omitted. Bedel said that he left the Cedars to attend an important Indian council; but this repre sentation did not save him at the court-martial and does not bear examination now. XCIII. (see page 373) Amold (5 Force, I., 166) wrote that on strict inquiry he found that Sherburne had acted with 'great prudence, spirit and resolu tion'; but the British account aud Bayley's narrative do not ex actly bear that out. Indeed, scepticism as to Sherburne's conduct seems to have arrived soon. Col. Greaton wrote from Ticonderoga to Gen. Heath, July 31, 1776 (Heath Papers): 'You rote me about Maj. Sherburne's great honours to himself amongst you, it is not so here.' According to Dawson, the village in which the American officers vol.. n. — 38 594 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony were confined is that now called Oka, and Quinze Chiens was the present Vaudreuil. XCIV. (see page 380) Wilkinson tells of the trouble at the council (of which he acted as the secretarj). Arnold reported the decision to attack as unani mous ; but, mindful perhaps of the unpleasant reputation he had gained at the lakes, he seems to have avoided in his letters every suggestion of quarrelling. XCV. (see page 380) The truce was to last six days (the British account says four), Forster declaring that he could not agree to deliver all of the prisoners within a shorter time. Apparently he told the truth about this, for some of them had to be purchased of Indians who did not wish to give them up. Besides other inducements, it was urged that the prisoners, if permitted to live, could be used in the process of exchange to free British soldiers from captivity (Lori mier in Verreau, Invasion). Forster agreed to deliver the prisoners as soon as possible, and professed great eagerness to begin hostili ties (on due notice being given) when that had been done. Amold wrote the Commissioners that the truce did not cover the Indians, but apparently he found that it did. The cartel was rejected by Congress and great bitterness arose on both sides. Congress asserted that the prisoners were plun dered and stripped, contrary to the agreement, and forced to live for about a week in cold weather in the open ; that they were nearly starved ; that some were murdered ; and that when the last of the prisoners were leaving the north shore they were fired upon. The evidence presented to Congress appeared to support all these complaints. The British, on the other hand, charged Congress with falsehood, slander, aud a breach of faith. The version of Congress was no doubt honestly intended; but (i) it was designed to be as favorable as possible to the American side, (2) it was prepared under the stress of extreme chagrin and irrita tion, (3) Congress was far from the scene and the witnesses, (4) both feeling and self-interest inclined the actors in the affair to color their reports, and (5) the British account had not yet been issued. To expect good history from such conditions would be unreasonable. The account prepared by the British officers admitted but ex plained the plundering. By the terms of capitulation, Butterfield's men were entitled only to the clothes they wore. They made up packs, however ; and, in spite of a warning from Forster, took them out of the fort, because two chiefs, without consulting the rest, gave them permission to do so. The consequence was dissatis faction among the Indians and some pillage. Sherburne's men, surrendering unconditionally to the Indians, could not be saved Remarks 595 from plundering. Finally, when the two parties of prisoners were lodged together in the barracks at the Cedars, some Indians, going in to take things from Sherburne's men, took things also from Butterfield's. (The death of a distinguished Seneca chief in the fight with Sherburne's party had made the Indians peculiarly rabid.) Of course, the British could not provide new clothing. Ample provisions, it was asserted, and the same quantity given the British, were allowed the prisoners. (Perhaps their Canadian guards appropriated a part.) The charge of butchery was roundly denied ; but the British officers were not present when Sherburne surrendered, and some of the wounded at least appear to have been murdered at that time. Perhaps one or two more were killed later ; on this point the evidence is contradictory. The prisoners, it was maintained, were treated as well by the British as the necessities of the case permitted ; and there seems no reason to doubt in general the truth of this or to deny that Forster and his officers tried hard to protect them. The British admitted that some of the Indians fired their guns when the last prisoners were leaving, but denied that they injured or intended to injure any one. How it could be known what the savages intended is hard to see ; and certainly it was more difficult still for the prisoners — now a long time under the threat of mas sacre — to have any faith in their tenderness or decency. This firing was naturally construed as an act of war by the Congress, and as justifying a refusal to confirm the cartel. Of course, Forster did uot wish the Indians to fire ; but, as he had had the advantage of employing irresponsible savages, he could uot reatsonably complain of now suffering the disadvantage. Four American captains (Stevens, Green, Sullivan, and Bliss) were left in the hands of the British, but were finally permitted to go quietly home. Eben Sullivan, one of them, wrote his brother. General John Sullivan, vigorously against the course of Congress (Can. Arch., B, l8i, p. 32). The Americans had had enough of war and most of them promptly deserted, so tbat it was not practicable to send them back to the British (Schuyler to Sullivan, June 17, 1776: Sullivan Papers, N. H. Hist. Soc). Forster certainly used sharp practice and it galled the Americans keenly that he could control the savages well enough for the interest ofhis own side but not for the protection ofthe other. The British account of the prisoners was : ' The cartel had in dorsed on the back, 2 majors, 9 captains, 21 subalterns [in the Ameri can copies of Sparks and Force, 20] 443 privates; Total 475 ; to whom let us now add, hostages remaining at Montreal, 4; Cana dians released, 8; prisoners who remained with, and were after wards bought from the savages, and are now at Montreal, 8; yet remaining with the savages, 2; thus do we account for 497 prison ers, being the full number who fell into the hands of the savages ' (Authentic Narrative). A factor of uncertainty is introduced, how ever, by Hazen's statement, nearly two and a half years later (Note 19), that a subaltern and sixteen men from his company were not included in the exchange. Half a dozen unanswerable queries are 596 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony at once suggested ; but, if these men were regarded all the way through as outsiders, the above reckoning is not affected. The British govemment, though not ready to make a formal exchange of prisoners with the ' rebels,' approved of this cartel as necessary uuder the circumstances (Germain to Carleton, Aug. 22,1776: Can. Arch., Q, 12, p. 84). The losses were not positively known, but were small. A prisoner who escaped reported to Amold on May 25 that only ten American privates had been killed and that Forster had lost twice as many ; but that was not authoritative. Amold, after returning to Montreal, gave De Haas positive orders to destroy Conosadaga and all the people within it. This harsh measure appears to have been as justifiable as the punitive expedi tions of Sullivan and Wajne, which have been so much praised. De Haas, however, not wishing to do the job, laid the order before a council of war, and the council voted against it. De Haas pre tended that seven hundred Indians threatened him (Amold to Commrs., June 2, 1776: 5 Force, I., 165; Shallus, Journal ; Wilkin son, Memoirs, I., p. 47). Arnold also ordered the burning ofthe fort at St. Anne, which belonged to the leader of Forster's Canadians ; and this was done. The course of De Haas was obviously rank in subordination. Arnold's order was the basis of one of John Brown's charges against him (Smith, Pittsfield, I., p. 272). It has often been said that Brant led the Indians in this affair; but he had gone to England with Guy Johnson in November, 1 1775, and did not retum until he landed at New York on July 29, 1776 (Trans. Can. Inst., v., p. 246). XCVI. (see page 384) The seizure of goods was justified on two grounds : (1) That it prevented the troops from getting food by miscellaneous plun dering with the consequence of bloodshed ; (2) and that the owners had forfeited all claim to protection by acting or conspiring against the Americans. May 12, Carleton issued a proclamation forbidding all persons who left Quebec iu November, 1775, (to avoid bearing arms in the militia) to re-enter Quebec without permission in writing (Can. Arch., Q, 12, p. 31). This amounted to a partial confiscation of the property of all not actively zealous for the King (Walker to S. Adams, May 30, 1776 : S. Adams Papers). Admit ting that Montgomery's capture of Montreal gave the Americans a right to govern there, their act of seizure would seem quite as justifiable as Carleton's. Besides, they at least promised to pay. It was alleged that the seizures were contrary to the terms on which Montreal had capitulated. But Montgomery expressly re fused to give any terms of capitulation ; and the protection which he promised was undoubtedly based upon the understanding that the people of Montreal would not be hostile. XCVII. (see page 387) One is surprised at first to find no signs of Thomas's activity at Remarks 597 Sorel. But he did not arrive there until May 17 (or early on the i8th), and on May 21 he wrote Wooster that he had been taken with the small-pox and desired to be removed from the camp (Thomas Papers). See Trumbull, Autobiog., p. 27. XCVIII. (see page 396) The fact that men of the 29th Regiment had arrived at Quebec was evidence that reinforcements had been sent direct from England ; but the Americans could not be expected to understand that. XCIX. (see page 411) Nothing more will be heard in this campaign ofthe Royal Fusi liers (7th Foot), for the officers went home to enlist new men, and the privates were drafted into the 47th (Carleton to Barrington, May 21, 1776). Fraser was a lieutenant-colonel (24th Regt.); but in this campaign he had local rank as a brigadier-general. The same was true of Nesbitt (47th), Powell (53d), and Gordon (29th) : Carleton to Barrington, June 22, 1776 (Can. Arch., Q, 12, p. 68). In Am. and W. I. (Pub. Rec. Off.), Vol. 290, p. 127, is the following : 'State of the Army in Canada at the beginning . . . ofthe campaign, 1776. British : 11 Batt"? of Foot viz. : the 8*, 9*, 20* 21!', 24*, 29*, 31!', 34"?, 47'?, 53? and 62""?, at 677 each Supernumeraries to the British Regulars . I Battn. Maclean's Emigrants, incomplete British Artillery, about .... ach 7.447 . 150 . 150 • 400 8,147 2,280 684 2,964 Foreign: 1=.' Div? of Brunswickers. I Batt". Hanau ...... Total strength at the beginning ofthe Campgn. 11,111 . . . N. B. It is to be observed that the Sth Reg! did duty in the Back Forts, and was not with the Army. If this Reg! and 30 Non-effective Men p; Batt? from the British and Foreigners, making about 1,127 Men, are deducted from 11, in, the remainder 9,984 will show nearly what was the effective strength at the opening ofthe Campaign.' C. (see page 416) One is surprised that a general alarm was not given the British by the vessels that fired upon the Americans above; but the Ameri cans may have been seen very indistinctly, may have been believed to be a small party, and may have been thought to have taken flight. 598 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony For Carleton's treatment of the American prisoners and his policy regarding them, see also : Diaries and Journals of the prisoners (e. g.. Dearborn, May 16; 'Ware' (Tolman), June 5; Morison, at end; Porterfield, June 14; Nichols, Diary, Aug. 10); Carleton to Douglas, June 13, 1776 (Can. Arch., B, 39, p. 7) ; Id. to Pownall, June 28, 1776 (ib., p. 37); Id. to Howe, Aug. 8, 1776 (ib., p. 93); Id. to Germain, Aug. 10, 1776 (Can. Arch., Q, 12, p. 135). CI. (see page 416) Sullivan wrote to Schuyler, June 19, 1776, that his loss amounted to ' about 150 '; but, in the chaotic state of the army, it was doubt less impossible to ascertain it. The British list of prisoners (Can. Arch., Q, 12, p. 149) gives 236 names. 'Upwards of fifty' dead were found in the woods (Digby). As many must have fallen in the attack, and as the pursuit continued for many miles, it would appear safe to reckon the total loss as not under 400. Carleton (June 20) reported his killed and wounded as 12 or 13 ; other ac counts made the number a little larger (e. g., Digby, 19). Instead of a bridge, St. Clair speaks of a ford across the Du Loup ; but he evidently refers to the same spot, for he mentions it as the only way to escape. CII. (see page 438) Sullivan had to leave three poor iron cannon at Chambly and burn his gondolas there. The British found two bateaux and took two prisoners at that poiut (Digby). Digby saj'S no bridges were destroyed between Sorel and Chambly. The American guard at Berthier, not joining the army when ordered to do so, were met by the British, forced to abandon their nine bateaux and make for Chambly by land. CIII. (see page 438) Did Arnold at his own instance evacuate Montreal and then re turn to the place by order of Sullivan ? Senter states (Journal, near the end) that the troops evacuated Montreal on June 9, and implies that he himself left at that time, so that he ought to know; but Senter's Joumal contains many inaccuracies. Sullivan mentions with much regret a report tnat Arnold was about leaving Montreal. On the other hand, we find no evidence of such a movement in Ar nold's letters or Sanguinet's Journal, nor an order sending him back. June 6, Arnold wrote Schuyler that he should remain at Montreal ' until I receive orders to leave it, or am obliged to quit it, by a superior force' (Sparks MSS., No. 60, p. 93); and neither of these conditions was fulfilled before June 15. What seems even more convincing is the fact that, had he evacuated Montreal, the place would no doubt have been occupied at once by the Scotch, Cana- Remarks 599 dians and Indians who were hovering near. It is clear that about this time he reduced his force from 450 to 300 men (very likely by sending off those under inoculation), and this might easily explain what Senter and Sullivan wrote. As the author does not consider it a part of his duty to discuss Arnold's character, it seems unnecessary to examine the charge that he seized goods at Montreal on his own account and had them sold at Albany, as Wilkinson charged in his Memoirs ; but a word may be said. The seizures in general were made by authority, e. g., Schuyler gave Thomas orders for 'bringing away from Montreal all the goods you possibly can' (4 Force, VL, 711). Amold wrote about them repeatedly and. as openly as about any other military operations. Very likely he would not have scrupled to take a case of wine for his own use or a bundle of silks for some friend. But how he could have managed to get any large quantity of goods conveyed surreptitiously to Albany under the circumstances, it is impossible forthe author to imagine. Sept. 7, 1776, Arnold wrote Gates (Sparks MSS., No. 52, IL, p. 45) : ' He [Samuel Chase] ob serves my character is much injured by a report prevailing in Phila delphia of my having sequestered the goods seized in Montreal. As you have had an opportunity of hearing that matter canvassed on the trial of Col. Hazen [charged by Arnold with failing to take proper care of the seized goods], I beg you will be kind enough to write your sentiments to him on the matter.' In other words Arnold was willing to rest his case on the judgment of a superior officer so placed as to hear all that could be said about the matter. Conscious innocence could not have taken a fairer or more digni fied attitude. As the seized goods were neglected (contrary to Arnold's orders), broken into and plundered (Arnold to Sullivan, June 13, 1776 ; Sparks MSS., No. 20, p. 258), some of them may have been taken by the thieves to Albany and sold there. Wilkinson ]s statement was evidently based upon hearsay, and his testimony is always to be cautiously used. Arnold seems during this campaign to have been uuder the spell of Washington's influence and eager to prove himself worthy ofhis confidence. The account of Wilkinson's doings rests upon his own testimony; but in this case there was little motive for misrepresentation, and all that he tells appears probable.- CIV. (see page 442) Did Carleton favor the escape ofthe Americans here as he did at Three Rivers ? So Wilkinson thought. The presumption is, how ever, very strongly against that idea, for the question this time was not the capture of a few wretched prisoners, but the possession of a strategic point and of priceless boats, and the complete elimina tion of the only army that stood between the British and New York. An examination of Carleton's letters and orders shows no sign ofa desire to forego these immense advantages, and he was not the nian to conceal his views. His plan to reach Sullivan's rear, the caution enjoined by the affair at Three Rivers, the softness of his troops 6oo Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony (see particularly Digby) the difficulties of transportation, the failure of the wind, and the extraordinary activity of the Americans appear to explain the case. CV. (see page 445) Jonathan Trumbull (Hinman, Conn., p. 560) estimated that at least 10,400 men went into Canada in 1776. (Substantially all who were there prior to Jan. i came away (Schuyler : 4 Force, VL, 939), some time before the province was evacuated.) Of these, he charged ' perhaps ' 1,000 dead to the enemy and 1,000 to disease. This left 2,400 to be accounted for. Of course many deserted ; but,-lacking accurate returns of any sort and none at all of desertions and deaths by disease, it is useless to figure on the losses. CVI. (see pages 453, 471) June 2, Carleton wrote Germain that he had retumed to Quebec to see about refitting and building bateaux. June 28, he directed Cramah^ to ' employ every possible means to procure 200 flatt bottom boats for the use of the army, and then to send them up without loss of time to Chambly' (Can. Arch., B, 39; p. 34). Other letters of about the same date had the same burden (ib., pp. 35, 39, 40, 51). It may be, said on the other hand that Carleton had asked Germain to send boats for the lake service and therefore would not have begun to build until he kuew that enough had not heen supplied. But (i) when Carleton asked to have such boats sent, he did not expect to be able to build them in the spring; (2) his ship-building operations in August, 1775, are evidence that he would have begun the same in 1776 as promptly as possible, for so experi enced a man would not have risked the chances that enough suitable boats wouldbe sent, would escape the American cruisers, and would have favoring gales to bring them in time (see his letter to Germain, Sept. 28, 1776 : Can. Arch., Q, 12, p. 188); aud (3) there is no evidence (but much probability the other way) that, when he began taking steps to collect boats as stated above, the transports had been over hauled thoroughly enough to show what materials and sections of boats they contained (see his letter of Sept. 28, supra, and that of Aug. 10, 1776: Can. Arch., Q, 12, p. 119). For Carleton's loss of favor see, e. g., Precis of Operations; Carle ton to Germain, Sept. 28, 1776 : Can. Arch., Q, 12, p. 188 ; Germain to Carleton, Mar. 26, 1777 (Separate) : Can. Arch., Q, 13, p. 73; Carleton to Germain, May 20, 1777, printed in Can. Arch., Report 1885, p. CXXXII. ; and Germain to Carieton, July 25, 1777, ib., p. CXXXVI. Burgoyne (State ofthe Expedition, p. 2), in order to clear himself from the charge of having intrigued to obtain a com mand belonging of right to Carleton, says that it was decided before the result ofthe campaign of 1776 was known in England that Carle ton should remain in Canada, (i) because the civil govemment of the province required his presence there, and (2) because his Commis- Remarks 60 1 sion did not permit him to pass the frontier; and it is true that in his letter of Aug. 22, 1776 (Can. Arch., Q, 12, p. 88), Germain or dered Carleton to return to Quebec and put the civil administration in order, detaching some officer to advance with the troops. But, as for (i), this task once accomplished, the order ceased to operate. As for (2), Carleton's authority extended over his frontiers (Dart mouth to Carleton, Aug. 2, 1775: Can. Arch., Q, 11, p. 19S; Carle ton to Germain, May 20, 1777), and this was an elastic term, as /¦ ^^^^^ m^ 3^c4. o'>c^^oyi ^^ ^e/»-z*v/~ '&ry7!c^Z^r^ d^^lAy%' ^firyi TO LORD GERMAIN, MAY 25, 1776 (Note the word ' due ') Germain's letter of Aug. 22, 1776, illustrated. As a matterof fact, Carleton did pass the frontier in 1776. The main point, however, is not whether Carleton was personally to lead troops south, but whether he was to direct such an expeditiou, as he could have done without leaving the province; and Germain's letter of Mar. 26, 1777 (confirmed by Carleton's of May 20, 1777) indicates clearly that it was the result of the campaign of 1776 which led to taking the command of the inva.sion from Carleton and giving it to Bur goyne. Carleton showed that he felt great bitterness because this was done. One who goes over the correspondence between Carleton and Germain may discern signs of contempt on the one hand and enmity 6o2 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony on the other before the open breach occurred ; and personal feeling may have influenced Germain. It is of course possible that an army would have been sent to Canada in the spring of 1776 even if the Americans had not invaded that province, and that the British army would not have been able to reach Albany even under Carleton's direction. CVII. (see page 474) Lossing (Life of Schuyler, II. , p. 391) states that on Nov. 4, 1777, Schuyler wrote to Congress at length, recommending a winter cam paign against Canada. The author has searched for the letter carefully but without success. This by no means proves, however, that Lossing was in error. CVIII. (see page 4S5) Conway's correspondence seems to prove conclusively that he was not on the terms of a fellow conspirator with either Gates or Congress. See his letters to Charles Carroll (Nov. 14, 1777 : Cont. Cong. Papers, No. 159, p. 461); to Gates (Nov. 9 and 11, 1777: Force Transcripts of Gates's corres.); Gates to Conway (Dec. 3, 1777: ib.); Conway to Gates (Feb. 24; April 2, 1778: Bancroft Coll., Revol. Papers, IIL, pp. 303, 323); etc. Lafayette observed at Albany that Conway was ou excellent terms with Gates's ene mies (Lafayette to Laurens, Feb. 19, 1778 : S. Car. Hist, and Gen. Mag., VIL, p. 189). Even Conway's famous letter to Gates in criticism of Washington (reported by Wilkinson and Stirling) points in the same direction, for by the time two men are deep in a cabal together, they have ceased to speak iu that way to each other. He was, to be sure, elected as an Inspector General at this time ; but such au officer was needed and his long military experience appeared to have qualified him particularly well to drill American recruits. Even Lafaj-ette, writing to Laurens, spoke very strongly of his qualifications (S. Car. Hist, and Gen. Mag., VII., p. 63). In his letter of Apr. 2 to Gates, he stated that he had not sought employment in America 'but was frequently solicited by your agent,' and, so far as this was true. Congress was under an obligation to employ him. At the same time, his election is suggestive of the feeling against Washington, even though not an evidence that Conway governed Congress. Conway's com plaints and his vain protests against Kalb's promotion are proof enough under the latter head ; and no less significant is the fact that Lovell, the most outspoken New England critic of Wash ington (Lodge, Washington, I., p. 214), took strong ground in Congress against Conway (Conway to Ch. Carroll, Nov. 14, 1777: Sparks MSS., No. 52, III., p. 137). CIX. (see page 495) The letters of Morris and Wayne are later than Lafayette's Remarks 603 Instructions ; but (i) they show what was in people's minds and doubtless made itself felt in Congress as soon as the matter was made known ; (2) this paragraph was not in the original Instruc tions and probably was considerably later than they, for Gates spoke, in writing Congress, of something ' superadded ' (evidently this paragraph) the draft of which could not be found. The copy of the Instructions in Revol. Papers, III., Lib. of Cong., has no date except on the back, CX. (see page 495) There are two copies of Lafayette's Instructions in the Library of Congress. That in Cont. Cong. Papers, No. 156, p. 55 (printed by Tower, Lafayette in the Am. Revol., I., p. 274) appears to be the one sent to Congress by the Board of War. It does not con tain the cautionary appendix ; but is followed by a note in the hand of Peters, signed by Gates, giving the substance of that appendix from memory. The other copy is in U. S. Revol. MSS., III. This is in the handwriting of President Laurens, and was probably made for Washington after Lafayette received the origi nal. Omitting a concluding paragraph which advised Lafayette to call upon the New York authorities at Poughkeepsie, this copy adds three paragraphs, the first of which refers to Hazen's regi ment while the other two embody the cautionary remarks. This copy seems therefore to be the real and entire Instructions received by Lafayette, and it is the one used by the present author. CXI. (see page 514) One of the most competent of the American writers on this expedition has taken the ground that it was ' nothing but a plot,' solely intended to draw Lafayette over from Washington to the Opposition party. But (i) the facts laid before the reader (not all of them known to this writer, probably) seem quite enough to prove that the expedition was seriously intended and seriously believed in by Congress ; (2) this is confirmed by the history ofits genesis through the Bedel and Stark schemes ; and (3) Gates and the Opposition would have been imbeciles to think of winning Lafayette by deliberately getting him to take the leading place in a ridiculous fiasco. In fact, it looks as if Gates had expected the expedition to go through without Lafayette if not with him, for Troup wrote him on [Feb. 6] : ' My opinion is, that he [Lafayette] will be too tardy to reap the benefits Congress promise themselves from the Expedition. I shall therefore endeavour to forward it not only by delivering my packet by Gen. Conway, but by every other means in my power.' Troup had been ordered to reach Albany in the quickest possible time (Lafayette to Laurens, rec'd Feb. 4: So. Car. Hist, and Gen. Mag., VIL, p. 185). CXII. (see page 543) It will be noted that, here and elsewhere, letters bearing upon 6o4 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony the state of things in Canada are appHed to a period some months distant from their date. In some instances the writer refers ex pressly to an earlier time ; and, in general, since the temper of the Canadians changed but slowly and evidently remained about the same from 1777 to 1782, such a use of the letters seems right. It should be remembered, too, that, since reports from Canada were constantly coming to the Americans, it is safe to assume that the state of things at any given time was fairly well understood. Most of the reports quoted in this paragraph were too late to affect the decision upon Lafayette's plan, but they indicate what was doubtless reported earlier. It is natural to suppose (particularly as information of this kind was secret) that the documents in our possession are merely speci mens of what actually existed. On the other hand, it is obvious that the reports of spies needed to be discounted somewhat. CXIII. (see page 550) Wells (S. Adams, III., p. 40) attributes the paternity of this plan to a letter from Amold to Congress. The author has looked for such a letter iu all the accessible places where it seemed likely to be, but without success. This, however, does not prove that it was not written nor even that it does not exist ; but Washington, who suspected the plan was suggested by France (letter to Laurens), and Laurens (Sparks, Corres., IL, p. 233) believed ' on good ground ' that it originated with Lafayette, probably encouraged by Estaing. Besides, Arnold had argued strongly in February against mak ing an attempt upon Canada. CXIV. (see page 556) The road toward Canada is commonly called Hazen's Road, because the greater part of it was built under his direction. It ends at ' Hazen's Notch' iu Westfield, near the line between that town and Montgomery. So far as possible, it ran through the hardwood timber on the high ground. A letter of Hazen's (N. H. State Papers, XVIL, p. 276) shows that he completed his work in the latter part of August, 1779. See The Vermonter, Nov., 1906, and a map in the office of the Sec. of State, Montpelier, Vt. CXV. (see pages 57, 58) Why, if peaceful measures were expected to bring England to terms, was it deemed necessary to convince her that we would fight? A prudent man, in a case of shipwreck, takes a life-pre server if he can, even though confident of his ability to swim without it. Besides, some had not full faith in the peaceful measures. (This Remark is out of place because at first the author thought — probably he was right — that it was unnecessary.) INDEX OF PERSONS, PLACES, AND SUBJECTS Abbreviations. — Adjt, Adjutant; Amer., American or Americans; Brig.- •Gen., Brigadier -General ; Brit., British; Can., Canada; Canad., Canadian, Cana dians; Com., Committee; Cong., Congress; Conn., Connecticut; Croivn Pt., Crown Point; Dept., Department; Eng., England; Exped., Expedition; Gen., General; Gov. Govemor; Gt. Britain, Great Britain; Ind., Indian, Indians; Maj., Major; Mass., Massachusetts; Montg., Montgomery; A''. H., New Hamp shire; N. J., New Jersey; N. Y., NewYork; Penn., Pennsylvania. Acadia, i., 22, 30. Act, Administration of Justice, i., 88. Act, Mass. Govemment, i., 88. Adams, John, i,, .3, 11, 102, 174; ii., 424; on the purpose of the Quebec Act, i., 77. 82; on the exped. against Ticonderoga, 1G9; as to the birth of Independence, ii., 50; when sus pected of leaning toward disunion, 52; opposed to Dickinson, 61; on the views of Cong, regarding the war in Can., 62; on Dickinson's op position, 64 ; supports S. Adams, 7 1 ; on the death of Montg., r6g; on the instructions to the Delegates to Can,, 328; on Chas. Carroll, 331 ; ou the attitude of Cong, toward the Can. Dept., 389; signature, 450; accounts for the failure of the Can. camjjaigns, 450, 451; on the Dec laration of Independence, 454; his attitude toward Washington, 476; representative abroad, 476, 554; stands for the cession of Can., 566. Adams, Samuel, i., 83, 84, 85, 89, 103, 169; proposes Boston Com. of Corre spondence, i., i; described, 3, 8-9; argues for the annexation of Can., 7-8 and note 11; portrait, 9; the Father of the Revolution, 11; his gurpose, 12; signature, 48; in Mass. rovincial Cong, and on Boston Com. of Correspondence, 90-93; his letter to Can., 92-93; on the Com. of Safety, 94 ; endorsement on above letter, 95; prepares a letter to Can,, 214-is; proclaimed traitor, 242; from his letter to Mrs. Adams, 549; on Arnold's responsibility, 550; continues his efforts to win the fourteenth colony, ii., 37""38. 7i; desires union with Gt. Britain, 52; ¦on N. Y. Toryism, 66, 67; from his letter to A, Lee, 70; his party in Cong, wins, 71-73; rouses Cong., 176; from a memorandum of, 368; thinks Quebec was relieved by British from Nova Scotia, 396, 398; from a memorandum of, 443; from his letter to Joseph Hawley, 447; suggests the causes of the failure in Can., 451; on the Declaration of Independence, 454; from a memo randum of, 461; from his letter to Trumbull on Schuyler, 472; con trasted with Washington, 476-7S; his attitude toward Washington, 478 and note 21; loses prestige, 552- 54; still strong for Can. in 1779, 554. Ainslie, Thomas, i., 212, 216, 222, 230; ii., 12, 13, 573; of the Canad, jour nals, his the fullest. Remark XLV,; on Carleton's return to Quebec, ii., 93; on Montg. 's intended assault on Quebec, iig-20; on the intense cold at Quebec, 181; signature, 181. Albany, i., 94, 113, 257; refuses aid for the Lake affairs, i., 166-67; raises forces for the lakes, 182.^254; Ind. council at, 298-303; in danger, 178; regarded as an arsenal, ii., 197 and note 16; Duan and Stark in conference at, 474 ; cold toward Lafayette, 504; picture of Dutch meeting-house at, 509. Algonquins, See Indians. Allen, Ethan, i., 283, $33, 4041 412; contests claims of N. Y., i., 1 13-16; plans to take Ticonderoga, 116-17; joins exped. against Ticonderoga, 126-2S; disputes with Amold, 129- 34; victory at Ticonderoga, 134-40; causes of Allen-Arnold trouble, 150- 55 ; defeated at St. Johns, 157-63". yields command to Amold , 163; calls for aid at Ticonderoga, 178, 181; against Ari--old, 185; news of, 605 6o6 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony Allen, Ethan — Continued. reaches Quebec, 211-13; his letter to Can., 213-14; would invade Can., 23 1-33; supplanted by Warner, 254- 55; on the Ind. question, 287, 288; on Carleton's preparations, 309; takes Schuyler's letter to Can., 327; review of past career, 373, 378; picture of his house, 373, 376; before Cong., 374-75; before N. Y. Cong., 375-77; in Can., 378-94; helps win the Caughnawagas, 380; letter to Montg., 380-81; portion of a letter, 382; in sight of Montreal, 381-83; the Allen-Brown scheme, 384-94; letter to the Ind., 392; before Prescott, 393-94; in th^Gasp^, 394; signature, 394; effect of his failure, 398-99, 406-10; set free, 429. Allen, Heman, i., 123 and note, 453. Allen, Ira, i., 487. Allen, Thomas, i., 125; on the seizure of Ticonderoga, i. , 229; portrait, 229; picture of his parsonage, ii., 168. America, North, i., 4, 47. 80, 83, loi. American Philosophical Society, i., 83. Americans. See Colonials. Amherst, Jeffrey, i., 78. Arameguntick Pond. See Lake Meg- antic. Anderson, Adjt. Remark LXXV. Anderson, Lieutenant, ii., 136. Andre, John, signature, i., 458; his picture of himself, 461; a prisoner, 465. Annance River, i., 579. Annual Register, The, ii., 226. Anthony's Nose, ii., 496; scene near, 496. Antill, Edward, banished from Quebec, ii., 96; carries the news of the Quebec disaster to Cong., 158- 68; at Three Rivers, 159; at Mon treal, 160; at Albany, 164-67; at Philadelphia, 168; before Cong., 170; Lieut.-Col. of Second Canad. regi ment, 177; demands cash for boun ties, 201; suspected at Montreal, 221; leagued with Hazen against Dugan, 222; on the state of Montreal under Wooster, 234; fearful for the result of Arnold's decree, 237; his map of Quebec, 247; votes to make a stand at Deschambault, 345 ; ad vises retreat from Sorel, 433. Apostles of Liberty, The. See Dele gates of Congress to Canada. Arnold, Benedict, i., 46; ii., 351, 574; sketch of, i., 117 and note, 118; en route for Cambridge, 118-19; picture of his home, 119; instructed to reduce Ticonderoga , 120, 129 and Remark IV. ; sends for recruits 130; disputes with Allen, 129-34 shares command at Ticonderoga 134—40; ensures capture of SkeneS' borough, 150 and Remark VII.: the causes of the Allen— Arnold' trouble, 150-55; his treatment of Easton, 152 and Remark VIIL; and of Green Mt. Boys, 152-53 and Remark IX.; the conspiracy against, 154-55 and Remark X,; captures sloop at St. Johns 155-58; prepares to resist Carleton, 163-65; to transport Ticonderoga cannon to Cambridge, 171; opposes evac. of Ticonderoga, 178, iSi; the Hinman— Amold trouble, 183-92; portion of his letter to Cong., 187; ordered by Mass. Prov. Committee to give place to Hinman, 188-90; at Crown Pt., 188; retires to New Haven, 190; news of, reaches Can., 211— 13; captures Brit, mail, 230; his plan to reduce Can., 240-41, 248; offers his services, 240; at Cambridge, 494 ; his grievances, 494-95 ; wins the sympathy of Washington, 495-96 and note 6 ; eager for the leadership of the Kennebec exped., 499 and Remark XII. ; writes to Colburn conceming the route, 499-501; leams the con dition of Quebec, 501-02; submits plans for the exped., 502; grows impatient, 502; urged by Gates not to drop the scheme, 503 ; settles his doubts, 504; portrait, 504; map of his route, 512; ordered to move, 515; delayed by settlement of soldiers' pay, 515-16 and Remark XXXV.; to Newburyport, 516-17 and note 33 ; delayed by bad weather, etc., 517; entertained, 517; on to the Kennebec, 519-21; at Parker's Flats, 521; up the Kenne bec, 521-553 ; disappointed with Colburn's boats, 524-25 and note 7; secures information, etc., from Colbum, 525-27 and Remark XXXVI.; entertained at Gar- dinerston, 528; his receipt for Col burn's boats, 529; orders advance parties up the Kennebec, 531; begins Wildemess march, 531; at the Great Carrying -Place, 548; his anxieties, 550; entrusts Ind. with let ter to Mercier and Schuyler, 550-51 ; difficulties on the Dead River, 557~ 68; camp flooded, 558-59; his race against hunger, 562-63 ; deserted by Enos, 5 64-6 7 ; pushes ahead of army, 573 ; his letter encourages the men, 576-78; maps of his route, 572, 582, 601; down the Chaudiere, 586-589; is wrecked, 588; reaches first settlement, 589; sets afloat Washington's manifesto, 598; or ganizes a relief -party, 599; enlists Ind., 603; on to Quebec, 603-06; at St. Mary, 604-05; at Point Levi, 605-06; applauded, ii., 3-4; reviews his force, 17-18 and note 16; aided by Halstead, 18-19; detained at Index of Persons, Places, and Subjects 607 Arnold — Continued, Point Levi, 19-20; his letter to Montg. reaches Maclean, 21; his force described, 21-22; his letter to Washington quoted, 23; crosses the St. Lawrence, 24—25, note 27 and Remark XLIV. ; quarters his troops at Caldwell's, 26; his schemes to take Quebec, 27-28; lacks provi sions , 2 8-2 9 ; retreats, 3 0-3 1 and Remark XLVL; at Aspen Point, 31; in communication with Montg., 85; greets Montg. at Aspen Pt., 87- 88; to Quebec, 89-91; occupies the suburb of St. Roch, 99 ; attempts to parley with Carleton, 103-04; in the assault, 130 and Remark LXI.; is wounded, 131-32; bravery at the Hospital, 149-51; chosen leader of forces before Quebec, 153; on the importance of taking Quebec, 154; his efforts to raise a new Canad. regiment , 1 5 5-5 7 ; reinforcements begin to appear, 186; made brig.- gen, by Cong., 189; reinforcements continue to arrive, 202; on the ravages of the small -pox, 202-03; advises forcing men to serve, 221; his troubles with Brown renewed, 222 and note 2 7 ; favors exiling Tories from Can. , 2 2 8—2 9 ; lacks funds, 235 ; his decree, 235, 337; frora his decree, 236; from his letter to McNeill, 242; defeats Beaujeu, 243; sets free all but the leaders of the Beaujeu uprising, 243; surmises as to the nuraber of his troops, 249; is superseded by Wooster, 255 ; goes to Montreal, 256; slow answer to his call for artillery, 259 and Remark LXXVI.; desires a 'Committee of Congress,' 325; greets the Apostles of Liberty, 329-30; tries to support Thomas at Deschambault, 346-49 and Remark LXXXVIII.; reaches Sorel, 349 ; from his letter to Clinton, 375; checks Forster at Lachine, 376- 77; the Ind. refuse his demand for their prisoners, 378; fails to land at Quinze Chiens, 378-79; holds a council of war, 379-80 and Remark XCIV.; arranges an exchange of his prisoners, 380 and Remark XCV.; succeeds Wooster as commander-in- chief in Can., 399; to Schuyler, 423; his powerlessness, 428; urges SiU- li van to retreat from Sorel , 433; orders St. Johns fortified, 438; and stores and sick withdrawn from Chambly, 438; returns to Montreal 438; informed by Wilkinson of the British at Varennes, 438; evacuates Montreal, 438-39 and Remark CIII.; sends to Sullivan for rein forcements, 439; reaches St. Johns 440; last acts at St. Johns, 441; sent from Nut Island to Schuyler, 444; delays Carleton's invasion, 462-67; in the battles of Lake Champlain, 463-64; retreats. 464; the result of his policy, 467; at the battles of Saratoga, 469-70; argues against Lafayette's exped., 505-06, 511. Arnold Falls, picture, i., 559. Amold Pond, i., 570; picture, 571. Arnold River, map, i., 572; Arnold's men beside, 573-77; picture, 576; outlet and picture 579; the Dead Arnold, 579 and Remark XXXIX, Articles of Confederation, The, effect of, in Can., ii., 534, Aspen Point, ii., 308; Arnold retreats to, ii., 31; sketch of, 31-32 ; picture, 33; Colonials at, 32-35 and Remark XLVII. Assembly, Canadian, promised, i. , 46-48; vain struggle for, 48-69. Assembly, Conn., i., 232; resolution of, i., 167; report of, 175; order of, 419. Assembly, N. J., ii., 54. Assembly, Penn., ii., 54. Aston, Sergeant, ii., 280, 287-88. Attucks, Crispus, i., 3. Ayot, P., ii., 241. B Baby, M., ii., 10, 81 and note 8. Badeaux, i., 103; ii., 218. Baker, Remember, i., 275, 310, 319; officer of Green Mt. Boys, i., 115; his death, 300-01; result of his im prudence, 324. Barlow, Sergeant., i., 366. Barnfair, Captain, Remark LXV, Barr^, Isaac, i., 200; protests against the Quebec Act, 1., 72, 73, 74; signature, 72. Barrington, Lieut., i., 428; ii., 3S2. Bayley, Frye, ii., 374, 418, 542; on the characterof the Canad., ii., 212— 13 ; at the Cedars, 366, 367 and Remark XC. ; extract from his Narrative, 368. Bayley, Jacob, i., 231; to the Ind,, i., 281: on the necessity of visiting St. Johns, ii,, 471; proposes a road from Coos to Can., 517; sends spies into Can., 530; favors a Can. cam paign, 557; on the sentiment in Can., 559-60. Beach, Major, i., 132-33. ^4&- Beaman, Nathan, i., 134. Beaubassin, ii., 246. Beaujeu, M. de, leads uprising against Amold, ii., 241; defeated, 243; effect of his defeat, 337. Bedel, Timothy, i,, 413. 423. 448; ii.. 469; described, i,, 364-65 and note 34; at St. Johns, 366; deals with the mutinous Canad., 407 ; urged to prevent the escape of Preston, 434 ; his post reinforced, 457; en route to Montreal, 471 ; ordered to pursue Carleton, and 6o8 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony Bedel — Continued. join Amold, ii., 36; his corps dis banded, 86; colonel of a N. H. regi ment, 192; ordered to occupy the Cedars, 365-66; signature, 366; dissatisfied, 366-67; down with small-pox, 367; announces at Mon treal a threatened attack of the Cedars, 367 ; drops out of Sher burne's relief -party, 371-72 and Remark XCII.; court-martialled, 471; orders home the St. Francis Ind. at Dartmouth Coll., 471; his new commission, 471; under orders from Gates, 471-73; not to be counted on, 500 and note 23; re ceives Gates's orders as to his pro posed invasion of Can., 519; and acts on it, 519-20. Belair, Captain, i., 396-97. Bennington (Vt.), i., 114-116; ii., 468. 'Bennington Mob,' The, i., 114, 149, 168, 374. Berkshire County (Mass.), ii., 165, 186, 193. 503- Berry, Samuel, sent as scout along Arnold's route, i., 525; his report, 526; closing lines of his report, 529. Berthier, Americans at, i., 485. Biddle, Edward, i., 102. Bigelow, Timothy, at the Great Carry ing-Place, i., 547-48; sent back to Enos for provisions, 557; signature, ii., 118; in the assaiUt on Quebec, 136. Bigot, Intendant, ii., 96-97. Bindon (Montreal merchant), i., 158, 482; ii., 365. Bliss, Captain, ii., 372, 374, 380. Board of VVar, The, established by Cong., ii., 479; Gates its President, 479, 485 ; appoints Lafayette to lead a Can. exped. , 485 ; its in structions to Lafayette, 493-95 ; in fluenced by the opponents of the new Canad. campaign, 494-95 ; fails to meet the requirements, 499- 500; blamed by Lafayette, 510; lays before Cong, a copy of its instruc tions to Lafayette, 511; sundry papers of, referred by Cong, to a special committee, 513; snubbed by Cong., 513. Bog Brook, i., 542, 553. Bombazee Rips, i., 537; picture, i., 539. Bond, Colonel, sent north by Washing ton, ii., 333; at Sorel, 349; all his men inoculated, 418. Bondfield, John, ii., 95, 218, 446. Bonvouloir, M. de ii., 562. Boston (Mass.), i., 80, 94, 97, 105, 109; ii., 14-15- Boston Evemng Post, The, ii., 56-57. Boston Massacre, The, i., 8, 118, Boston Port Bill. The, i., 71, 88. Bougainville, L. A. de, i., 28. Boyd, John, i., 109. Boyd, Robert, Jr., ii., 190—91. Brant, Joseph, a Mohawk chief, i., 273; aids Johnson, 291-96; at Caughnawaga, 359; Remark XCV. Breboeuf, i., 1 7 ; silver bust of , ii. , 120. Brewer, Jonathan, j., 498; portion of his letter, 500. Briand, Bishop, i., 33-34; favors the Brit., 210 and note 16; disregarded by the peasants, 3 5 4-5 6 ; un friendly to the Amer., ii., 212, 386; his residence, 270; firra for the B ri tish , 559. See also Clergy in Canada, The. British -Canadians, The, i., 40, 46, why they settled in Can., i., 36; Murray's opinion of, 36-37; Carle ton's opinion and treatment of, 37; their business, 37—38; despised by noblesse, 39; their relations with French Canad., 39; proportion to French Canad., 48 and TWie; largely from New Eng. ,51; their American ideas, 5 1 ; their struggle for an Assembly, 51-59; hopes for an Assembly crushed, 59-69; in corre spondence with Colonials, 99- 103; object to commercial policy of Colonials, 104; petition for repeal of Quebec Act, 194—201; send Price to Cong., 206; the anti -govemment party broken, 216-17; under martial law, 221; refuse to support Carleton, 34 7—48 ; organized into militia at Quebec, ii., 6; sorae try to force a surrender of Quebec, 13. Broad Bay, The, i., 519. Brogden, ii,, 241, 242. Broglie, Comte de. ii., 483, 553. Brown, Captain,, aids in capture of Skenesborough, i., 150 and note 13, Brown, Jacob, Remarks LVII. and LX. Brown, John, i,, 90, 185, 3^$', offers to go to Can. and is accepted, i., 91- 92; sketch of, 93-94; his jomrney. 94-96; cheered by political situa tion in Montreal, 99-103; portion of his report, 100; results of his mission, 103—06; advises seizure of Ticonderoga, 115; joins the Ticon deroga exped., 125; gets important news, 175 ; uses his influence against Arnold, 185; charges Amold with treason. Remark XI.; becomes major, 190; on the Ind. question, 2S8; as scout, 307-08, 319; takes letter to Livingston, 327; leaves Nut Island for Chambly. 362; has skirraish with the British, 371-72; the Allen-Brown scheme, 384-88; to negotiate with La Come, 424; joins J. Livingston at Chambly, 426; objects to Montg.'s plan at St. Johns, 446; reaches Sorel, 469; drives Maclean from Sorel, 469-70; frightens Brit, fleet into surrender, 488-90; on to Quebec, ii., 86; sides Index of Persons, Places, anci Subjects 609 Brown, John — Continued. with Hanchet against Amold, 121; not mentioned in the accounts of the Quebec assatilt. Remark LVIL; trouble with Amold renewed, 222 and note 1 7 ; an unfounded charge of, against Amold, 387, note 34; his mis sion to Can,, why doomedto fail, 445. Brunswick (Me.), i., 21. Bunker Hill, i., 3, 105. Burgoyne, John, j., 36; to lead the main Brit, army for the relief of Quebec, ii., 296; reaches Quebec, 400; signature, 415; in pursuit of Sullivan, 434; his object, 43S; his g ledge, 437; reaches Chambly, 438; t, Johns, 44 1 ; his expedition south, 467-71; sketched, 467; oc cupies Ticonderoga, 468 ; baffled by Schuyler, 468; defeated at Sara toga, 469-70; surrenders to Gates, 470-71; political consequences, 471. Burke, Edmund, i., 88, 227; protests against the Quebec Act, i., 72. Burke, William, on the Quebec Act, i., 73. Burr, Aaron, 1., 124; enthusiasm for Kennebec exped., i., 506-07; at the Great Carrying-Place, 548; not sent disguised to Montg., Remarks XXXlX. and LL; Montg.'s second aide, ii., ir6 and Remarks LVL, LXV. (p. 584) Burrell, Colonel, ii., 195. Bute, Lord, i., 80. Butler, John, supports the Iroquois on the supply question, ii,, 359-60; induces the Ind. to enlist for the king, 427-28. Butterfield, Major, fortifies the Cedars, ii., 366; attacked by Forster. 370-71; his poltroonery, 370-71; surrenders, 371. C Caldwell, Colonel, in command at De troit excites the Ind. against the Amer., ii., 360; orders Forster to deliver Montreal, 367. Caldwell, Major, i , 201, 219, 337, 401; ii., 18, 93, 312; picture of his mill ii., 19; Arnold's men quartered in his mansion, 26; coramands the Brit. militia at Quebec, 79; on Morgan's lost opportunity, 134; complains of those at Cape Diamond blockhouse, Remark LXIL; helps check the Amer., 144; attitude of, toward Amer. prisoners, 271; in Carleton's move against the Heights, 320. Callender, Amos, captures Ft. George, 1., 145 Calvet, P. du, leader of seditious Canad., ii., 560. Cambridge (Mass.), i, 109, 164, 165; Arnold at, i., 119; Arnold to bring Ticonderoga cannon to, 171 ; Wash ington's headquarters at, 493; ^^^ riflemen at, 509; Arnold's troops leave, 516, Caraden, Lord, i., 199, 200. Carapbell, Donald, i., 420; sketch of, ii., 1 1 5-1 6 and note 7; retreats with Montg.'s detachment, 143; his assertion as to the powder magazine, Heights of Abraham, Remark LXVIL; brings news to Montreal of the retreat from Quebec, 343. Campbell, Major, i., 177, 277, ii., 233. Canada, i., 4. 8, 29, 31, 46, 47, 48, 58, 60, 66, 70, 71, 74, 85, go, 92, 94, III, 140; first voyage into (Cartier), i. , 13-14; second vovage into (Champlain) , 1 4-1 7 ; Jesuit mis sionaries in, 17; growth under set tlers, 17; entrusted to a trading Co., 17; 1663, a royal province., 17; under Frontenac, 18; Ind, troubles in, 18; wars with the Brit, colonies, 21-27; falls into Eng. hands, 24; becoraes an Eng. colony, 27; the social elements in, 27-40; indebt ed to Brit, Canad. traders, 38 ; struggle for self-government in, 46-49; effect of Quebec Act on, 60- 68; J. Brown in, 92-106; feared by _ Americans 173-76; receives news ot~^ Lake affairs, 211-13; Jetters from^ the Colonies,-2i3-is; course""df fhe Brit. Canad. in, 217; of the French Canad., 218-19; martial law in, 220- 28; speedy invasion of it necessary, 248; map of N. Y.-Canad. boundary line, 306; threatened, 341-42; loses St. Johns, 460; and Montreal, 481- 83 ; ,££[orts of Cong, to secure delegates' "from, ii.7" 37-381 — 326T the mission of tlie Delegates from Corrgress— toT^ 327— zSj^ AmericarLS„ withdra-wfrom, 445-42; review of fhe endeavor tcrwin, 445-50; Gates's proposed movement against, 471^ 5i3;Arnold suggests the best way to secure it, 506 ; well protected against invasion, 506-08; the changed pol icy as to its invasion, 515; the new road to, 517-18; under Haldimand 524-28; the reaction in, 528-35; through the failures of St. Leger and Burgoyne, 528; through Amer ican spies, 529-35; vain efforts to keep out the spies, 529-35; reported weak, 541-42 and Rkmark CXII.; and ripe for revolt, 550; the posses sion of, still coveted in 1779. 554; Washington plans to invade in 1780, 556-58; and in 1781, 559-61; the attitude of its classes toward the Americans, 559-60; the state of defence in (1781), 560-61; anxiety of the British conceming, 564-65; __Franklin proposes its cession, 565; why valuable to Great Britain,- S'6'6- 6g; desired by the ^United States, 569;'Tnr-attusibh to, in fhe trea t,y"of peace, 569; and the probable reason, 6io Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony Canada — Continued. 570; the benefits resulting from the struggle for, 570-71. Canada carapaign, i77S~76, prep arations for, i., 244-73; Montg. first move raakes in, 3i7-i9;capture of St. Johns, 465-66; of Montreal, 483; at Point Levi, ii., 2—24; with Arnold before Quebec, 24-29; the retreat, 30-31; at Aspen Point, 32- 35; its alleged purpose, 58-59; the obstacles to, 62-70; N. Y. hostile to, 69; measures of Cong, for, 71-74; the Amer. again before Quebec, 98— 126; sraall-pox in camp, 121; Lower Quebec entered, 130-46; defence of the Hospital, 149-51; weakness of the Amer. army, 152-53; new disposition of troops under Arnold, 153-54; carap hardships of, before Quebec, iSi; the weakness of the new battalions, 200 and note 19; weakness and disorders of those before Quebec, 2 1 8-2 5 ; quarrels among the army chiefs, 221-2 5 ; attitude of the troops toward the Canad., 225—26; of the officers, 227— 37; the bombardment of Quebec, 257-63; trial of the fire-ships, 263- 67; disorders in camp, 309-14; re treat from Quebec, 317-23; provi sions fail, 382-84; reduced to the last extreraity at Sorel, 3S4— 87; its ruin threatened, 389; relieved by Sullivan, 395-96; failure of the Three Rivers enterprise, 400—4 1 6 ; again in distress, 4 1 7-2 1 ; for money, 418; for food, 419-20; for stores in general , 420-21; panic sets in, 422 ; Sullivan's retreat frora Sorel to St. Johns, 434-36; to Nut Island, 441-44; to Crown Pt., 445; its chances reviewed, 445—50; comments on its failure, 450; opin ions as to the cause of its failure, 451; the good results of, 451-58; divided the Brit, strength, 451-53; served as ' a dress -rehearsal ' for the war, 453; showed the necessity of harmony among the Colonies, 454; led up to the Declaration or Independence, 454-58; its real suc cess, 470-71; see also 570. Canada expeditions, proposed, that planned by Gates, 1777, ii., 471; and by Cong., 473-74 ; opposed, 486; its three leaders, 488; instructions as to, 493-95; Hazen's warm sup port of, 497; the general weakness of, 498-504; the opposition to, 504- 08, 511; voted down by Cong., 513; Gates's new plan of invasion, 1778, 518-20; Washington's raove for an invasion, 1778, 520-21; Lafayette's scheme for joint invasion with France, 1778, 521-49; with sketch map, 523; the plans for occupying Brit, posts, 521-23; and for deceiv ing the British, 524; criticised by Washington, 545-49; and discarded by Cong., 549; Washington's thoughts of invasion in 1780, 556- 58 and Remark CXV.; urged as saving expenses, 5 5 7-5 8; Washing ton's plan of joint invasion in 1781, 559-63; why no move was made later, 564; value of these later menaces, 564; final summary, 570, Canadians, The (French), i., 59, 175; ii-i 505; relations with the Ind., i,,. 18-23; their numbers, 48; regard ing admittance of. to Assembly, 49; refuse to co-operate with Brit.- Canad., 57; gradually side against the British, 68-69; offended by the Quebec Act, 73; home life of, 98-99; correspond with Colonials, 99-103; will not act for repeal, 195-96; course of, 218-19; under martial law, 228-29; favor Colonies, 304-05,. 326, 348; effect of Allen fiasco on, 39S-99; as soldiers, 400-01 and Remark XXIV. ; motives of, 402— 06 ; annoy Montg. and Carleton, 406—11; real position of, 411; help capture Chambly, 426 ; backslide, 451; relieve Arnold's men, 597-602; reception of Amold and men, 599, 602 ; described, 602 ; formed at Quebec into eleven companies, ii,, 6; some try to force a surrender of Quebec, 13; affected by Arnold's approach, 12—13; 3- regiment from, enlisted by Livingston, 74 ; not roused against the Amer., 81- 82 ; backward in volunteering for Amold, 155—57 ; distrusted by Wooster, 160; a second regiment from, authorized by Cong. , 177; weakness of their two regiments, 201; do not understand the issue between Gt. Britain and her Col onies, 209-10; unreliable, 213; the American synapathizers among, have no Canad. leaders, 213 ; in fluenced against the Colonials, 213—18; by the Church, 214, 216-17; by harmful papers, 215; by Carle ton, 217-18; treated fraternally at first by the Amer., 225; later as vassals, 227-29; the question of Continental currency, 237—43; their changed attitude toward the Brit. and the Amer. , 239—40 ; the up rising under Beaujeu, 241—43; their sup port of the Araer. lessens, 297; in the retreat from Quebec, 317, 323; said to be influenced by Maryland Catholics, 332; growing disaffection of, 337-39; refuse Con tinental currency, 339; protest against the favors of Cong, to the Tories, 341-43; some of them allied with Forster, 367; they desert him, 377; dangerous allies to the Americans, 3 86 ; along the Richelieu^ Index of Persons, Places, and Subjects 6ii Cana dians — Continued. encouraged, 39s ; many ready to betray America, 428; reasons for fraternizing with the Amer., 446; the result, had they taken strong sides with the Amer., 448-49; after the retreat of the Amer. frora Can., 524-38; punished by the Brit., 527- 28; new sympathy for Amer. stimulated by spies, 529-35 ; by the Articles of Confederation, 534; by the alliance between France and the United States, 535 ; by Estaing's Address, 536-38; await the aid of the French fleet, 550. See also Cath olics, Roman, ana Habitants. Cap Diamant. See Cape Diamond. Cape Diamond, ii., 98, 309; described, ii., 3; how fortified in 1775, 77; proposed escalade at, 117; Montg. rounds, 141. Cap Rouge. See Red Cape. Carillon. See Ticonderoga. Carleton, Guy. i., 49, 51, 85, 102, 105, 163, 232, 288, 406, 468, 497; ii., 79; second civil gov. of Can., i., 27; on the noblesse, 32* sKetch of, 34—36; his judgment of Brit, -Canad., 37; his attitude toward the social classes of Can,, 38-39; his estimate of the population of Can., 47-48; portrait, 53; sails for Eng., 55; why he supports Quebec Act, 59 and note 21; signature, 60; retums to Quebec, 65-66 ; fears result of Amer. propagandism, 68; on Mass. spirit in Can., 69; on using Canad. against Colonists, 77, 78; on the Address of Cong,, 103; on the defence of Lake posts, 111-13; bis enlarged powers, 174-75; action on receipt of Gage's order and Lake news, 211-ig; pro claims raartial law, 220-28; his strength known, 230-31 and KOie 15; excites the Ind., 283; checks John son, 295; embarrassed, 336—42; St. Johns, his rallying point, 342-47; portion of letter to Preston, 345; lacks support, 347-61; on news of Allen's approach, 389; orders arrest of Walker, 395-96; on the Canad. as soldiers, 400-01; orders the Canad. to take up arms, 398-99, 405-06; annoyed by Canad., 407-11; on capture of Chambly, 429; explains treatment of Arnold, Remark XXVI.; cautious, 450; defeated at Longueuil, 452-55; on the fall of St. Johns, 467, 481; escapes from Montreal, 484-90; between Easton and Montg., 487-90; escapes again, 490; knows of Arnold's expedition? 527; on the disaffection of the habitants, ii., 82; reaches Quebec, 92-93; expels the disloyal, 95-96; organizes the troops, 97-98; bums Montg.'s letter, 99-100; refuses to parley with Amold, 103-04; at the assault, 129, 134, 144—45; methods of mnning converts, 217-18; orders Beaujeu to cut off Arnold at Point Levi, 241; reasons for his Fabian policy, 248-54 ; severe measures necessary for his garrison , 250— 53; his view of the 'rebellion,' 271; tries to entrap the Amer., 290; reinforced, 319; leads a force from Quebec, 319—20; takes the Heights, 320-21; his fleet pursues the Amer icans, 3 2 3-24 ; from his letter to Germain, 381; theories as to force sent for his relief, 396, 398; sets off up the St. Lawrence, 408; posts a guard just below Three Rivers, 409; retums to Quebec, 409; his full relief force from England, 409-10; hurries fleet up to Three Rivers, 410-11; his proclamation of mercy, after the retreat from Quebec, 414; his dismissal on parole of prisoners, 416 and Remark C; allows escape of Americans at "Three Rivers, 416; his chances for ending the 'Rebellion,' 428-29; in pursuit of Sullivan, 430-32; at Sorel, 433-34; breeze fails him at Varennes, 435, 438; enters St. Johns, 441; calls a halt to the pursuit, 442 and Re mark CIV.; prepares to invade the Colonies, 460 and note 3; his orders to Pringle, 460 and note 4; to Doug las, 460-62; thwarted by Amold on Lake Champlain, 462-67; oc cupies Crown Pt., 467; retums to Can., 467; succeeded by Bur goyne as leader of the Colonial in- vgision, 470-71 and Remark CVL; Succeeded by Haldimand as Gov., h%A\ favors punishing disloyal habitants, S^Ti cause for his resigna tion, 528; becomes Brit, com raander-in-chief in the U. S., 569; signature of a letter to Germain, 601. Carpenter's Hall, i., 86. Carritunk Falls, i,, 541; picture of, 543- Carroll of CarroUton, Charles, ii., 303; onthe'grand battery' near Sorel, i., 489 and Remark XXX. ; portrait, ii., 327; signature, 330; one of the Delegates of Congress to Can., 329— 31; sketch of, 331-32; from Chase- Carroll letter to Thomas, 336; re tums home, 387; suggests how to hold Can,, 425. See aiso Delegates. Carroll, John, accompanies the Dele gates of Cong, to Can., ii., 332; to influence the Canad. clergy, 332; fails, 334-3 5 and Remark LXXXV. ; leaves Can. with Franklin, 343; from his letter on Mrs. Walker's conduct, 353. Cartier, Jacques, i., 17; ascends the St. Lawrence, i., 13- 14; portrait, 15. 6i2 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony Castle St. Louis (Quebec), ii., 2, 129; picture, ii., 126, 256; in the Amer. bombardment, 258. Castieton (Vt.), i., 128-32. Catamount Tavem, i., 114, 126, 373; picture, i., 116. Catholics, Roman, in Canada, i., 193; under French rule, i., 33; under English rule, 33-34 ; question of their adraission to Assembly, 47—48 and note 49; their admission to juries protested against, 52; refuse to co-operate with Brit. Canad., 57; under Quebec Act 60-62, 71, 79; employmentof, for reducing the Col onies ,81,87; their friendly rece ption of Protestant Provincials, 602-03; influence of their priests against the Amer,, ii., 214—17; their faith de nounced by Cong.. 215; Carroll's overtures rejected by their priests, 334-35. S^e also Clergy in Canada, The. Caughnawaga, castle of, i., 275 ; pictures, 276, 353; the Albany en voys at, 358-59. Caughnawagas, The, i., 45 1 ; in- portance of, i., 274-75; excited by the British, 283; attitude toward the Colonials, 288, 289; kill R. Baker, 301 ; Albany envoys sent to, 302; incline toward the British, 326; envoys from Albany council reach, 358; neutral, 359; yield to Allen, 380; their wish to enter the Amer ican service not granted, ii., 362; their promise to the Coramissioners of Congress not kept, 362; sorae of, employed by Amold to demand captive Americans, 378; waver in their allegiance to the Americans, J3&6; how treated if suspected of dealings with the Colonies, 529: in correspondence with Amer. , 538. Cavanaugh, ii., 274. Cazeau, i., 283-84, and Remark XIV. •Cedars, The, described, ii., 365 ; Bedel ordered to occupy, 365; Butterfield fortifies, 366; Bedel reaches and leaves, 366-67; Forster's .attack upon, 367-71; and Remark XCI.; the cowardly surrender of, 371. See Remarks XCII.— XCV. Chain of Ponds, The, map, i., 565; picture, 568; description, 568-69 and note 14; Arnold crosses, 568-71 ; sketch map, 572; present names. Remark XXXVIII. Chambly, i., 459; ii., 315; its people roused by J. Livingston, i., 362 {see "ynap, ii., 311); J, Brown sent to, 362 and Remark XXL; Canad. at, 399; picture, 417; described, 425: taken by Livingston, 425-30 and Remark XXVI.; garrisoned by the Amer., 468; Hazen in charge of, ii., 257, note 11; gondolas building at, 350; small-pox at, 427; fort fired by Sullivan, 436. Chambly, M. de, i., 425. Champigny, Intendant, i., 31. Champlain, S. de, i., no; sketch of, i., 14, 17; his picture of fight with Iroquois, 25; of his house, 30. Charlesbourg, ii., 322. Charlevoix, i., 28-29. Chase, Samuel, ii., 424; letter to Schuyler, i., 329—30; a delegate of Congress to Can., 32-319; from the Chase-Carroll letter to Thomas, 336; threatened by Canad. officer, 342-43; returns home, 387. See also Delegates. Chateau de Ramezay (Montreal), The American headquarters at Montreal, ii-. 303 endnote 11; picture, 305; the Delegates of Congress in, 329-332; Mesplet'sprinting-pressset up there, 334 and note 14. Chatham, Earl of, i., 88, 227; ii., 51; on the Quebec Act, i., 74, 80; por trait, 7S; signature, 81. Chaudiere River, The, i., 501, 571, 577; the Kennebec-CIhaudiere route to Can., i., 496, 506; its upper settle ments slightly guarded, 497; Good win's map of, 527; Arnold des cends, 586-89; picture, 587; dangers of, 587-8S and note 4; pictures, 589, 593. S96, 604; march along, 589-9?; its upper settlements unguarded, 597-98; Amold at its first settle ment, 598-603; the march along, to Quebec, 603-06; 'Verry beauti ful!' 604; a second exped. by that route threatepejdf ^-j-A?!?- Cheeseman, Gaptaih,'^., 578; raises Brit, vessels at St. Johns, i., 468; at Quebec, ii., 116; on the eve of the assault, 126; falls, 142-43. Chimney Point (Vt.), i., 141. Choiseul, Due de, i., 17; his policy with regard to Can., ii., 562. Church, Benjarain, i., 3, 90. Church, Lieut., deputed to recon noitre, i,, 531; rejoins Amold and despatched again, 548; down the Chaudiere, 586; heads a Canad. relief party, 599. Claus, Daniel, deputy, superintendent of Ind., i., 277; receives complaints of Ind., 357; at Caughnawaga, 359. Clergy in Canada, The, high state of the Roman church, i., 32-33; its hurailiation, 33 ; relations with Carleton, 34; relations to the peasants, 40, 6r; status under the Quebec Act, 61 ; hail Carleton's retum, 66; support the Quebec Act, 196; John Brown's opinion of, 209 ; real attitude, 209 ; the Bishop's action, 210; lose influence, 335; endeavor to move the Ind,, 359; influence the French Canad. Index of Persons, Places, and Subjects 613 Clergy in Canada — Continued. against tbe Americans, ii., 214, 216— 17; well treated by Montg. 233; act against the Amer., 243; unin fluenced by Carroll , 33 4-3 5 and Remark LXXXV. ; the French priests restive, 535; unfriendly to Great Britain, 535, 538, 559. See also Briand, and Catholics, Roman. of Ind., 357; at Caughnawaga, 359. Clinton, George, welcomes Lafayette, ii., 496; unable to help him, 499, Clinton, Henry, ii., 14; anxious about Can., ii., 565. Clinton, James, i., 257, 447; ii., 149, 310; sent by Wooster to command before Quebec, 162. Colbert, i., 17- Colbum, Reuben, informs Amold re garding Kennebec route, i., 499- 502, 504 and note 20; receives in structions from Washington, 508; at his shipyard, 524; his boats in spected by Arnold, 524-25; in formation given Amold by him, 525-27; site of his boat -yard, 526; repairs Arnold's boats, 538- Colden, Cadwallader, on expected Bnt. favors to N, Y,, ii., 66; on N. Y,'s Toryism, 67. Colonials, i,, 59, in; wars of, i., 21- 22; those settled in Can, cause im.- rest, 50-51; effect of Quebec Act on 70; use of Can. against, 74-87; Quebec Act in Cong, of, 86-87; correspond with Can., 99—106; not responsible for Lake affairs, 166-69; prepare for war, i72;fearCan., 173- 76; fear the Ind,, 176-77; their letters to Can., 213-15; effect of these, 217-19; hated by noblesse, 223; friendliness of habitants to, 224; their arguments for invading Can., 229-42; lack powder and arms, 257-60; jealousies among, 262-64; dangers of, 271; efforts of, to win Ind,, 278-96; in council with Ind,, 296-303; leam of Carleton's preparations to move south, 309; win neutrality of Ind., 358-60; their relation to Can,, 402-04; as soldiers, 412-18; their muttml aloof ness, 418-21; dread of betrayal, 421-23; those m Montreal, on the news of Allen's approach, 480; their main army gathering, 49 2 ; opposing views regarding, in Can,, ii., 22-24; fraternize with the Canad,, 34-35 and note 39; their objections to re- enlistment and the result, 40-50; not conspiring for independence from Gt. Britain, 50-54; denounced in Parliament as hypocrites, 55; their purpose, constitutional re sistance, 55-57; why, then, their army?58-59; favored by theCanad., 80-82; formidable, 82-85- their credit in Can., Remark LXXL; reports as to their ultimate purpose regarding Can., 238-39; base their policy on surmises as to the Brit. plans, 297-98; attempts of, to supply the northern array, 418-21; survey of their endeavor to win Can., 445-50; the dignity of their attitude toward Great Britain, ^457-58. Commissioners of Congress, The. See Delegates. Comraittee, The Albany, i., 181, 257, 261; does not aid Lafayette, ii., 504. Coraraittee of Congress (i^ys), The, sent to Schuyler, ii., 72; its futility, 73-74 ; retums south, log ; its report referred to a special com mittee, 174. Committee of Correspondence, Boston, session of, Feb. . 1775, 1., i-i i ; appoint J. Brown their agent to Can., and result, 92-106. Comraittee of Correspondence, Hart ford, i., 167. Committee of Donations, Boston, i., 99, Committee of Safety, Mass., i., 94, 119, 168, 186, Committee of Safety, N. H., i., 364; ii., 192, Committee of Safety, N, Y., i., 166, 256, 258, 289. Committee of Safety, Penn., i., 260, Congress, First (Continental, en dorses Suffolk Resolves, i., 86; de nounces Quebec Act, 87; petitions the King, 87; its protests genuine, 87-88; formally addresses Can., 99 (and note 38)-io3; agrees not to iraport from Gt. Britain, 104. Congress, Second Continental, The, i,, 279; ii., 16, 53; convened, May 10, 1775, i., 166; resolution of, 169-70; to Gt. Britain, 170; orders abandon ment of Ticonderoga, 178; result, 178-92; reassures Can., 213; opposes invasion of Can., 237-40; orders Schuyler to move north, 241-43; portion of its secret journal, 240; despatches men north, 255; lacks powder, 2 5 8^-5 9 ; sends money north, 268; discusses the issue, 271; tries to win the Ind., 280-81, 284— 87; result, 288-96; calls Ind. council at Albany, 296-303; to the Eng, people, 328; its efforts for the northern army, 440-42 ; treatmentof Arnold, 49 5 ; calls for volunteer rifle men, 509; the Adams party in, ii., 37-38; raeans to preserve the union with Gt. Britain, 54; forced to the issue by Eng., 60; its opposing parties cause indecision , 6 1 64 ; overworked, 65; not properly in formed, 65; desires not to estrange N Y , 69; its measures for the Canad. exped., 71 and Remark L.; 6x4 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony Congress, Second Continental — Cont. sends a committee northward. 72- 74; questions Antill on the Quebec disaster, 170-73 and note 28; its reraissness, 173-76; refers the re port of its northern Committee to a special committee, 174; roused by the tragic news frora the north, 174-76; refers the Quebec letters to a committee of five, 176; its meas ures for the support of the Quebec force, 1 7 6-7 7 ; embarrassed , 1 90- 191; arms N. J. regiment, 191; and Second Penn. regiment, 196; the unfavorable interpretation of its ¦ Address to the Canad., 215; thinks of trying to explain its aims orally to the Canad., 215; excuses the disaster of Dec. 31 to the Canad., 219; Schuyler complains to , of Wooster, 223-24; appoints Thomas to command in Can., 300; its plan to secure the St. Lawrence, 304—07; urged to send a Committee to Can., 325; desires Delegates to be sent from Can., 326; chooses Delegates to Can., 326; instructs the Dele gates, 327-28; requests Washing ton to send four regiments north, 333; called bankrupt, 338; vain promises to the Ind. regarding sup plies, 359; unable to thwart the Brit. influence among the Ind., 360-61; reopens the Ind, traffic in Can., 363-65; leaves nothing undone for the Can, Department, 389, 390; on the importance of holding Des chambault, 406; no general hospital in Can. furnished by, 418; sends all its cash to Schuyler, 418; unable to supply its northern army, 421; on the importance of holding Can. , 424-25; orders six thousand militia north, 440 ; responsible for the failure of the Can. campaign, 445 ; instructs Schuyler, 454; votes to bum the Brit, vessels at St. Johns, 473-74; the Opposition in, to Washington, 476-79 and note 21; from a letter of its Comraittee for secret correspondence, 477 ; its Board of War elect Gates their President, 479; sits at York, 481- 83; forced out of its anti-Washing ton plan by Lafayette. 487-S8; directs its Board of War to re port. 511; refers papers of Board of War to a special committee, 5 13 ; instructs Lafayette, 513; votes that his invasion of Can. be suspended, 513; orders the road from Coos to Can. built, 517; takes up Lafayette's scheme of invasion, 177S, 524; is doubtless informed of Haldimand's weakness, 542-43; stimulated by Lafayette, 543; receives Washing ton's criticisms of Lafayette's scheme, 545; votes to shelve it, 549-50; position regarding the cession of Can., 569. Congress, Mass. Provincial, refers a matter to Boston Committee of Correspondence, i., 90-92; declares .hat Ticonderoga must be held 180; message to Cong., 181-82; commends Arnold, 186; orders him to give place to Hinman, 88-89; on Easton's letter, 233; appeals to the Ind., 281-83 and note 14; en dorses the action of Spooner's Committee, 494; professes loyalty to the King, ii., 53. Congress, N. Y. Provincial, on re moval of Ticonderoga stores, i., 170-71, 181; invites Conn, to send forces to Ticonderoga, 182 ; its letter to Cong., 213; slow to supply Schuyler, 250-60; fears the Ind., 291; accepts Green Mt., Boys 376- 77; on loyalty to the King, ii., 54; unable to arm its forces, 196; to supply lead, 420. Connecticut, i,, 85; ii., 421; no official share in the Lake affairs, i., 167 ¦ prepares for war, 172; message to Cong., 182; sends forces to the Lakes, 182, 183; sends Wooster to N. Y,, 255; jealous of N. Y., 262-64; her troops complain of Schuyler, ii., 46; 200 of her troops remain for the Quebec campaign, 50. Conway, H. S., ii,, 564. Conway, Thomas, prominent in op position to Washington, ii., 482; supports Lafayette from selfish motives, 484-85 ; was he a fellow- conspirator with Gates or Cong.,? Remark C\'III.; ousted from second place in Lafayette's Canad. enterprise, 488 ; thinks the new campaign impossible, 504; vexed with Cong., 509. Conway Cabal, the, the origin of, ii., 482; its schemes, 482-83; 484; see also Remark CVIII. Coos, Bedel gathers Ind. at, ii., 471 and note 12; Bayley proposes a new road from, to Can., 517; Washing ton orders stores to be gathered at, 521; route from, examined by Lafayette's engineer, 521. Cornwallis, General, surrender of, ii., 558; its effect, 560. Council, Legislative (Canada), estab lished i., 27; preferred to an Assem bly by French Canad., 49; mere shadow of authority, 51 ; dependent on the Govemor, 101. Council of Safety (Bennington). Hazen writes to, ii., 497; addressed by Stark, 503; promises troops con ditionally, 503. Cramahe, T., i., 29, 51, 56, 227. 405, 406, 468; ii., 12, 28; in possession of Arnold's letter to Mercier, i., 589, ii., 9; described, ii., 5; in charge of Index of Persons, Places, and Subjects 615 Cramah^, T. — Continued. Quebec, 5; tries to prepare Quebec for attack, 6-10; his weak reinforce ments, 16; threatened by Arnold, 27; does not count, 93; writes to Germain conceming the relief of Quebec, 178; writes to the govern ment on the lack of provisions, 267. Crown Point, i., 146; ii., 300; good ordnance at, i., iii; plans of British to strengthen, 111-13; vicinity, map of, 112; under the French, 143; under the British and capture of, by the Amer., 143-44; pictures, 151, 155; Amold at ,188; under Hinman, 190; view from, 225; after capture of, 229-30, 247; Montg. at, 321—23; not fortified by the Amer., ii., 427; the Amer. retreat to, 445; occupied by Carleton, 467. Cunningham, ii., 280. Cushing, Thomas i., 102. Cuthbert, i., 352. Dambourgfes, ii., 144. Dartmouth College, founded, i., 279; aided by Cong., 280; volunteers from, 365; its St. Francis Ind. ordered home, ii., 471; a raeeting near, petitions Cong, to secure Can., 557-58. Dartmouth Earl of, i., 57, 65, 72, 83, 88, 103, 199, 200, 467; on the Quebec Act, i., 60, 6g; portrait, 63; signature, 67; S. Adams's thrust at, 93 ; on the defence of Lake posts, 1 1 1 ; on capture of Ticonderoga, 141; has alliance with Ind. in view, 176; to Carleton, 338-41, 360, Dauphin Jail, (Quebec), The, the privates captured Dec. 31, impris oned in, ii,, 277; their attempt to escape, from, 277-89; incidents in, 281-82; failure of plan, Remark LXXVIII. Dead River, i., 531 ; its course, i., 542; Arnold reaches, 553-54; described, 554—56; before and after a flood, 560-61, Dean, James, missionary to Canad, Ind., i., 280; signature, 290; leams of plot against his life, 361. Deane, Barnabas, i., 154, Deane, Silas, i., 172, 236; iL, 58, 168, 553 ; promotes exped, against Ticonderoga, i., 121-22; portrait, 168; his part in the Lake affairs ,169; prepares address to Can., 214-15; on the dress of the riflemen, 510, 513; declares Wooster incompetent ii,, 229; influences Lafayette, 483; Dearborn, Henry, i., 506, 548, 597- encamped on Dead River, i., 556; opinion of Enos's retreat, 574; finds Goodrich, 580; his fate and that of his men, 580-81; on his starving men, 592; fever-stricken, ii., 17; attacked by sallying party from Palace Gate, Quebec, Re mark LXV.; portrait, 289; at Sara toga, 470. Declaration of Independence, opin ions regarding, ii., 454; the sub limity of its challenge, 457-58; the gains to be expected from it, 459-60; leads to a treaty with France, 515; resolution preliminary to, 516. Deerfield (Mass.), i., 21. De Haas, Colonel, J. P., ii., 380, 399; Arnold reinforced lay, ii,, 377; or dered by Arnold to destroy Con- osadagas. Remark XCV. Delaplace, Wra., i., 184; surrenders, Ticonderoga, i., 139-40; portion of his letter to Schuyler, 142. Delegates of Congress to Canada, The, ii., 423; requests for, ii., 325; chosen, 326; instructed by Cong., 327-28; from New York to Montreal, 328- 29; with Schuyler, 328; with Arnold, 329-32; sketches of, 330-32; their powers, 332; to establish a 'free press' in Can., 334; they find Con tinental credit low, 338; their meas ures to restore it, 339; attempt to give a 'taste of liberty' to the Canad., 340; from their letter to Cong., 341; rewarded with protests and threats, 342-43 ; superintend Thomas's army, 343-56; raeasures to fortify at Jacques Cartier and Deschambault, 343; on news of the retreat from Quebec, 343; call a council at Montreal, 345; permit Arnold to attempt a union with Thomas, 346; on the food supplies at Sorel, 350-51 ; and the confusion, 352; their town-raeeting system of discipline a failure, 354-56; accused by the Walkers, 355; to Hancock, 355-56,357; offer passports to the traders conditionally, 365 ; take raeasures against Tories, 376; on the desperate state of the American army in Can,, 383, 384, 387; forced to order seizure of goods for army, 384 and Remark XCVI.; and letter to Wooster on the same, 385 ; advise Cong, to recall Wooster, 387 ; retum home, 387; quoted by Walker, 494- Denonville, (governor, i., 31. Deschambault, sketch of, ii., 303- 04 {see map, 311); plans to fortify, 307-08 and Remark LXXIX., as Thomas found it, 308; picture, 315; the fugitives from Quebec at, 323- 24; shall the Americans meet the enemy at?, 345^46; its disadvan tages, 345 ; Thomas withdraws from, 349; Thorapson ordered to, 398. Desdevens, Remark LXXIX. Detroit, Caldwell at, stirs up the Ind. against the Amer,, ii., 360; St. Clair's scheme to surprise, 360; 6i6 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony Detroit. — Continued. ^ Ind. near, ready to attack the Amer., 361; an objective point in the Lafayette plan of 1778, 521. Dickinson, John, ii., 68; letter of Cong, to people of Quebec drawn by i., 99-103, and Remark II.; por trait, ii., 56; gives the reason for raising an Amer. army, 58; and for the Can. campaign, 58; signature, 60; character, 60-61; leads the opposition to the war in Can., 61; thinks it points toward separation, 64 ; inactive as chairman of a special committee of Cong., 174. Dieskau, i., 22, 110; on Colonials as soldiers, i., 416. Dixon, Sergeant, ii., 29, Douglas, Charles, of the Ists, ordered to the Isle aux Coudres, ii., 294; pushes up the St. Lawrence, 316 and note 26; reaches Orleans Island, 317; and Quebec, 319; instructed by Carleton to prepare a fleet, 460-62. Douglas, The, i., 469. Douw, i., 296; in council, 298—303. Dover (N. H.), i., 21. Dragonnades, The, i., 33. Duane, James, ii., 505; writes to Gates, ii., 473; appointed by Cong, to confer with Stark, 473, 474; on the way, 497; witnesses Lafayette's chagrin, 510. Duer, Judge, on the Hinman-Amold trouble, i., 190. Dugan, John, i., 389, 401, 402; ii., 383; wins Canad., i., 405; at Chambly, 426; his influence among the Canad., ii., 221; coraraissioned by Cong, to raise a Canad. force, 222; aids Sullivan, 395. Du Loup River, i., 598. Duncan (Volunteer), ii., 152. Dupuy, Paul, i., 23. Dwight, Timothy, ii., 52. Easton, James, i., 213, 362, 444, 469; let into secret of the Ticonderoga exped. , i. , 1 24-1 2 5 ; gathers recruits, 125; in the exped., 124— 40; his trouble with Arnold, 152; opposes the evacuation of "Ticon deroga, 178; his designs against Amold, 184; a Provincial colonel 190; favors invasion of Can., 233; on the Ind. question, 287; at Sorel, 469; demands surrender of Carleton, 487; his corps disbanded, ii., 86; urged to enlist men for invasion of Can., 497; but to no purpose, 503. Edwards, Jonathan, i., 124, 281. Emerson, Wm., i., 492. England, i., 74, 81; ii., 561; her promise of an Assembly to Can., not kept, i., 46-51; how affected, were she to lose Can., 236; gifts for the Ind., 356; inter-relations T\ ith France, and the States, ii., 562; her Parliament votes for peace, 564. See also Great Britain. England, New, i., 7, 12, 80; thrift of, i., 28; regarding the forcing of po pery upon, 85; exhorted to arms, 108; Washington's opinion of the troops of, 416; Colonial jealousy in, ii., 43; independent spirit of, 49; less influential after 1776, 554, Enos, Roger, i., 538; commander of Arnold's rear division, i., 532; lured on to Dead River by Arnold, 551 declines to supply provisions, 557 asks Greene for conference, 564-66 retreats 566 and Remark XXXVII on the provisions question, 566 and note 10; feeling about his re treat, 574-75- Enterprise, The, i., 164. Essex, Gazette, The, i., 66, note 90; publishes letter regarding popery in Can., i., 85; regarding removal of troops from Quebec and Montreal 502. Estaing, Adrairal d*, portrait, ii.» 531; signature, 536; his address to the Canad., 536-3S and note 25; from the Address, 539, 548; how instructed, 563. Exeter (N. H.), i., 21. Faden from his American Atlas, ii., 359. 397- Falmouth (Me.), i., 497. Faneuil Hall, i., 12; Boston Com mittee of Correspondence meets in, i., 1, 92; picture, 2. FeUows, Colonel, raise troops for Quebec, ii., 166; does not aid Lafayette, ii., 503. Fell, The, i., 469, 470; ii., 9, 30, 86, 91-93, 258. Feudal system in Canada, The. established, i., 30; nature and value of. 31; broken up, 32; retum of. 67. Fireships, The Amer., ii., 263-67, 321, Remark LXXV. Five Mile Falls, i., 534-36. Fobes, Siraon, ii., 131, Forster, Captain, ordered to deliver Montreal, ii., 367 ; from Oswegatchie to the Cedars, 367-69 and note 19; attacks the Cedars, 370—7 1 ; his chances compared with Butter field's, 370; Butterfleld surrenders to, 371; takes Fort at St. Anne, 374; advances toward Montreal, 374; checked by Amold, 376-7 7 ; retreats to the Cedars, 377; prevents Amold from landing at Quinze Chiens, 378— 79; exchanges his prisoners, 379-80; his sharp practice. Remark XCV.^; escapes, 380. Index of Persons, Places, and Subjects 617 Fort George, ii., 427; picture of, i., 158. Fort Halifax, described, i., 532-33; picture of its blockhouse, 535. Fort Independence, ii., 467; see sketch map, ii., 468 Fort Orange, i., 278. Fort Pitt, ii., 360, 521. Fort Richmond, i., 523. Fort Schuyler, ii., 468, 505. Fort St. Frt^deric, i., 143; picture, i., 149. Fort Westem, Amold reaches, i., 528— 30; described, 530; a nodal point of Kennebec exped., 530-31; the head of Kennebec navigation, 531; Arnold despatches troops from, 531-32. Fort WiUiam Henry, i., 22, 110, 471. Foucher, i., 456. France, i., 24, 30, 39^ no; ii., 570; allies herself with America, ii., 471, 515; effect of this alliance on Can., 535; the King of, offers aid con ditionally to Can., 538; the danger of co-operating with her, for the acquisition of Can., 548-49; dis trusted by many Americans, 553; Washington grows less suspicious of, 557, 559; 6000 of her troops on American soil, 561; declines Wash ington's proposal of co-operation, 1780, 561; urged by Lafayette to help Can. join the Union, 562; by Spain, to recover Can., 562. France, New, i., 18, 24, 32-33. See also Canada, Francis, Colonel, Ind. Commissioner, i., 296; in council, 298—303. Franklin, Benjamin, i., 83, 259; ii., 58; to Chatham, on separation from Great Britain, ii., 51; as chairman of the Delegates of Congress to Can., 330; from his letter to Chase and Carroll , 336; retums horae, 343 ; instructed by Cong, as to Lafayette's scheme of invading Can., 521 and note 9; his arguments for the cession of Can., 565-66. See also Delegates. Fraser, General, At Three Rivers, 410-11; drives Thompson back, 412-13; and helps cut off his retreat, 413 ; up the north shore of the St. Lawrence, 430-31; toward Sullivan's rear, 433; near St. Johns, 441. Fraser, Judge, ii,, 233. Fraser, Malcolm, i,, 175; ii., 127. Fraser, Simon, ii., 141-42. French, The, Gates promises the aid of, ii., 519 and note 5; combine with Amer, at Yorktown, 558. See also France and Lafayette Frontenac, i., 85; ii., 2; leader of New France, i., 18; signature, i. 33 Gage, Thos., i., 35, 65, 88, 107, 360; on the habitants, i., 29; asks for aid of Canad. and Ind., 78, 81; to defend Lake posts, ni-13; secret instructions of, 176; his order reaches Carleton, 211; on Canad. and Ind. support, 218; on reinfor cing Can,, 231; signature, 231; pro claims Adams and Hancock traitors, 242; instructs Johnson, 292-93, 295 ; on supporting Carleton, 360; on the Montreal defences, 476; hears of exped. from Newburyport, 521; on Quebec's weak defences, ii., 79 and note 5. Gamble, Captain, i,, 99, 352, 354, Gansevoort, ii., 468-69. Gardiner, S., i., 523, 528. Gardinerston (Me.), how named, i., 523; home of Colbum , 524-2 5 ; picture of North house in, 533. Gamier, M., ii., 50, 358, Gasps, The, i., 464, 485; in the St. Lawrence, i., 343; Ethan Allen in, 394; captured by the Amer., a9o; partially prepared as a fireship ii., 321; recaptured by the British 322. Gates, Horatio, at American head quarters, i,, 493; favors the Ken nebec exped. and Amold, 503 ; his orders to Colburn, 504-05; leaves Mt. Deflance unfortified, ii. , 468 ; succeeds Schuyler, 469 ; at first battle of Saratoga, 469; at second battle of Saratoga, 469-70; accepts surrender of Burgoyne, 470; plans to invade Can., 47 1 ; his secret order to Bedel, 471-73 and note 12; elected by Cong. President of its Board of War, 479; sketch of, 479- 81; portrait, 481; the union of his scheme and Stark's, 482-83 ; his selfish motives for supporting Lafayette, 485 ; his misleading confldence, 489, 506; asks Wash ington's opinion of the new in vasion of Can., 511; the fitting con clusion of his scheme, 513 and Remark CXL; his new plan of invasion, 519-20; which is an nounced to Bedel by Traversie, 519- Gautier, Antoine, ii. , 404-05 , 411* 417. Genera] Hospital, The (Quebec), aids Arnold's men, ii., 28; picture, 96; its location, 98 {see also map, 78); held by a large force of Arnold's men, gg; the wounded Arnold and his man are in, 148-49; and boldly prepare for its defence, 149-51 ; incidents in, 216, 225; its patients, in the retreat from Quebec. 321. George III., i., 83, 107, 271; his proclamation of 1763. i-. 46-47; as 6i8 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony George III. — Continued. the head of the Church, 6i; proc lamation quoted, 62; full power of, 70; refuses petition for dismissal of Ministers, 1 93 ; portrait, 197; his bust at Montreal disfigured, 204; forces America to an issue, ii., 59- 60 ; signs parliament's non -inter course act, 529. Georgetown (Me. ) , i, , 52 1—2 2 and note 3, G erard de Rayneval, C. A. , on S. Adams, ii., 554; refuses to negoti ate with A. Lee, 554; on the atti tude of the other states toward New Eng., 556; instructed not to commit himself in regard to Can., 563. Germain, George, i., 36; to Gen. Clinton, ii., 14; on Howe's failure to support Quebec, 15; receives Carle ton's despatches, 178; announces the King's intention to relieve Quebec, 178; communicates with the Brit. Admiralty as to this relief, 294—9 5 and note; portrait , 296; counts on Carleton's uniting with Howe, 428; disappointed, 467; recommends punishment of disloyal habitants, 527 ; Carleton's resent ment against, 528; to Carleton, 529; considers Can. essential to Gt. Britain, 566. See Remark CVI. Gerry, Elbridge, portion of his letter to S. Adams, i., 89. Getchell, Dennis, i., 525; his report, 526; closing lines of report, 529. Gibbs, Lieutenant, ii., 47. Gibson, Sergeant, ii., 282. Glover, Colonel, i., 513. Goforth, Captain, ii., 159; con siderate treatment of the Canad,, by, ii., 225; on the Amer. privates' abuses of the Canad., 226; on the expected Ind. attack, 363. Goodrich, Captain, trapped at the Dead Arnold, i., 580; his fortune and that of his men, 580-81, 589-90; sets off from Aspen Pt., ii., 87. Goodwin, Samuel, i., 497, 527. Gosselin, ii., 530, 550. Goulet, ii., 528, 530. Grafton, Lord, i., 58. Grand Committee, The, governing body of Green Mt. Boys, i., 114; appoints Sunderland as J. Brown's guide, lis. Grant, John, i., 381. Grant, Major, ii,, 413, 414, 416. Graves, Samuel, against convoying a fleet to Quebec from Boston, ii., 1^4-15; signature, 15. Great Britain, i., 11, 24, 56, 59, 77, 79, 101, 102, 108, 173, 289; on the proclamation of 1763 and the Quebec Act, i., 62. 65, 81; her efforts to protect Quebec, ii., 14-17; the Colonies have no desire to separate from, 50—54; the purpose of cutting off her trade with the Colonies, 57; suspected of corrupting X. Y., 66- 67; takes measures to relieve Quebec, 178; to send over Russians for the defence of Quebec, 228; sends reinforceraents to Quebec, 295-97; her agents stir up the Ind. against the Amer., 359; chances under which she might have abandoned Can., 446-49; challenged through Declaration of Independ ence, 457; prohibits all intercourse between Can. and Colonials, 529; Can. valuable to, 566-69. See also England. Great Carrying-Place, The, where situated,!,. 542 a-ndnote 20; pleasing features of, 543—44; Arnold's men cross, 544-51 ; surplus provisions ordered to, 54S and note 23. Greaton, John, ii,, 376; sent north by Washington, ii,, 333; reaches Sorel, 349; all his men inoculated, 418; signature, 418. Green Mountain Boys, The, i., 124, 132. 375; sketch of, i. . 11 3—1 1 1 ; contest claims of N. Y., 114-16; plan to take Ticonderoga, 116-17; raessage to, 123; march to Ticon deroga, and help capture it, 122-40; conduct of, after the capture, 154, in the St. Johns exped., 157-63; disputes among, 254-55; reach Nut Island, 362; how accepted by N. Y., 376-77 ; help defeat Carleton at Longueuil, 452-55; at the fall of St. Johns, 463 ; regarding their pay, ii., 43; asked to re-enlist, 162, 166. Greene, Christopher, i., 531, 556; ii.. 17; portrait, i., 516; at the Great Carrying -Place, 547-48; his men on half -rations at Dead River, 557; but he pushes on, 558; in con ference ^-ith Enos, 564-65 and note 9 ; advances without Enos, 566; trapped at Rush Lake, 581; at Spider Lake, 583-85; crosses Spider River and gets out of the trap, 585-86; in the assault upon Quebec, ii,, 13.6, Greene, Nathanael, in camp before Boston, i., 492; signature, 493. Griffin, Sergeant, portion 01 his affidavit, i., 318; as scout, 319. H Habeas Corpus, Act, i., 67, 193, 200. Habitants, The, i. , 177; ii. , 219; character of, i,, 27-28; ignorant and poor, 2 S-2 9 ; submission to Brit. govemment, 29; favored by Gov. Carleton, 38; relation to the other social classes, 39-40; released from church dues, 40; which are imposed again by Quebec Act, 60; under martial law, 222-24, 227; favor the Index of Persons, Places, and Subjects 619 Habitants, The — Continued. Colonials 304-05; rebellious, 348-54; captives of, defended by E. Allen, 393-94; influenced by Maclean, 451; on the Fall of St. Johns, 467; addressed in Washington's mani festo, 598; in Quebec region, sympathize with the Amer. , ii. , 81-82; desert C)arleton, 82; char acter of, 208, 209 and note 1; in fluenced against the Amer. by the Tories, 215; aware of the weak ness of the Amer. array, 219; ill-used by Amer. troops, 226; waver, 239; uprising of, 241-43; along the Richelieu, aid Sullivan, 39s; their increased burdens after the retreat of the Amer., 525- 28; forced into Burgoyne's exped., S 2 4-2 7 ; punished for disaffection , 527—28; on the side of France and America, 535, 538, 560. See also Canadians, and Catholics, Roman. Haldimand, General , i. , 29; his estimate of numbei of French Cath olics in Can., i., 48 and note; urges employment of Canad, against Col onies, 78; on Quebec Act, 88 and note; on defence of the Lake posts, 111; becomes Gov. of Can., ii,, 524; his difficulties, 524-41; with the habitants, 527-28; with Amer. spies, 529-35; notes the defection of the Canad., 534, 535, 538; in danger of losing the Ind, support, 538-41 ; acknowledges his weak condition, 541; his report of the same, 542; and how carried south, 542; on the disaffected condition of Can., 550, 559; says Cong, will accept no terms of peace without Can., 564. Halifax (N. Seo.), ii., 523. Hall, John, ii., 289. Halstead, John, aids Amold, ii., 18-19. Hamilton, Alexander, i., 82, 88; ii., 558; on the Quebec Act, i., 7g. Hamilton, Captain (of the Lizard") , ii., 16; fears the betrayal of Quebec, ii., 30; lands his men and cargo for defence of Quebec, 94 ; letter to England, 267. Hamilton, Henry, i., 351. Hampton, Jonathan, i., 109. Hanchet, Captain, i., 554; pushes ahead of Arnold's main army, i,, 563-64,573; trapped at L. Megantic, 580; marches along the Chaudiere, 586; rejoins Arnold, 599; offended with Amold, ii., 121-22; in prison 293. Hancock, John, i., 11, 90, 169; ii., 59, 328; Pres. of Second Continental Cong., i., 172; portion of his letter to Washington, 234-35; proclaimed traitor, 242 ; portrait, 403 ; Schuyler's complaints to, ii., 46; supports S. Adams, 71; to N. H. Committee of Safety, Remark LXVIIL; on the correct time for crossing the Lakes, 198; Schuyler's ultimatum to, in Schuyler-Wooster quarrel 224; the Commissioners of Cong, to, 355- 56; on the Amer. army in Can., 386; on the attitude of Cong, to the Canada Dept., 389, 418; on the importance of holding Can., 424; accounts for the failure of the Can. campaign, 451; enemy of S. Adams, 478, 554. Hand's Cove, i., 132, 133. Harnett, Cornelius, i., log. Hartley, David, ii,, 566, Hartley, Lieut, -Colonel, leads the reserves under Thompson, ii., 404; in the attack on Three Rivers, 412. Haskell, Caleb, i,, 535, 592, Haverhill (Mass.), i., 363-64. Hawks, Sergeant, i., 21. Hawley, Joseph, i., 85, 173; ii., 460; on the importance of Ticonderoga, i., 179; signature, 179; from his letter to S. Adaras, ii,, 452; urges the Declaration of independence, 454, 459; on the risk of accepting help from France, 494-95. Hazen, Moses, ii., 310, 530; brings news of Lake affairs to Carleton, i., 211; advises Schuyler to retreat, 329-30 and Remark XIX.; colonel of second Canad. regiment, ii., 177; his past career, 200-01; difficulties in recruiting, 201; on the small force of Araer. before Quebec, 202; sus pected by many Amer. , ? 2 1 ; leagued with Antill against Dugan, 2 2 2 ; on the abuse of the habitants by Amer. privates, 2 2 6-2 7 ; on the military regime of the Araer. in Can., 227; protests against Wooster, 232; sent to look after Chambly and St. Johns, 257, note 11; regard ing the desertion of his men on the way to Quebec, 312; to Schuyler on the needs of Can., 325-26; on the disaffection of the Canad., 335-37; on the attitude of the Ind, toward the Amer., 362; in temporary command at Montreal, 365 ; on Montreal's hostility towards the Amer., 374; advises retreat from Sorel, 433; ordered to remove stores and sick from Chambly, 438; in council, at Chambly, 439; fires his mansion, 441; his efforts for the second Canad. exped., 497; are not a success, 505; angry with Arnold, 509 ; writes that Gates's proposed in vasion must be postponed, 520; meraber of a Board of Officers, 520; deputed to act as envoy for the Board to Cong, , 524; bis men spread reports of Canada's weak ness, 542; his regiment sent to Coos, 556; and his road pushed 620 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony Hazen. — Continued. neariy to Can., 556 and Remark CXIV.; on the general disposition to undertake the invasion of Can., 557. ^ Hazen's Road, origin of name. Re mark CXIV. ; proposed by J. Bayley, ii., 517; ordered built by Cong., 517; laid out, 517, 518; sketch map, 518; continued, 556. Heath, William, ii,, 497. Height of Land, The, separates Can. from the south, i., 568; crossed by Arnold., 571-73; sketch map, 572; picture, 574. Heights of Abrahara, The, location, ii-1 77-79; Montg, plants battery on, 102; its batteries fire on Quebec, 259, 261-63 and Remark LXXIIL; the fire from, ridiculed by Quebec garrison, 314; reinforced , 316; attacked by Carleton,- 319-20; abandoned by the Amer., 319-21. Hendrick, Chief, i., 278. Hendricks, Captain, a leader of Penn. riflemen, i,, 509; misconduct of his company, 5 14 ; reaches Morgan in Lower Quebec, ii., 136; falls, 139. Henry, J. J., i., 591; ii., 29, 282; regarding the Height of Land, i., 573; to assist in carrying the guard house opposite Dauphin Jail, ii., 280; portrait, 283. Henshaw, Colonel, i., 180, 183. Herrick, Captain, to take Skenes borough, i., 129; Why? 145-46; the capture, 148-50. Hervey, Captaiu (of the Martin), ordered to the Isle aux Coudres, ii. , 2 94 ; reaches Quebec , 319; ordered up the St. Lawrence, 321; opens fire on Thompson, 405. Hey, Chief -Justice, i., 66 and note, 68, 173. 231, 360, 361, 404. Hillsborough, Lord, i., 32, on the proclamation of 1763, i., 64 and Remark I. Hinman, Benjainin, Colonel of Conn. forces, i. , 182; has trouble with Arnold 183-92; portion of his letter to Schuyler, 191; ordered to pre vent hostilities, 213; found want ing, 247; at St. Johns, 463. Hochelaga, i., 13; ii., 96. Hodgkinson, Sergeant, ii., 265-66. Holland House, The (Quebec), ii., 304; headquarters of the York troops, ii., 99; main body of Amer. about a mile from, 153. Holt, John, i., 65, 80. Horseshoe Pond, picture, i., 569; 570 and note 16. Hotel Dieu, The (Quebec), ii., z, 273- Hough, Benjamin, i., 114-15. Howard, James, i., 530. Howe, William, ii., 299, 398; unable to relieve Quebec, ii., 14-15; sends aid to Carleton, 295; expects to co operate with Carleton, 429. Howe, Richard, Viscount, portrait, ii.. 455 ; through whom the King- offers pardon to the Amer., 457. Hoyt, Winthrop, to Can, i., 94, 283. Hubbard, Captain, i., 514; ii., 130— 3T. Hudson, The, ii., 198, 505; its strategic value, ii. , 69 ; its High - lands described, 496; pictures, 496 ^ 499. Hughes, Hugh, ii., 494. Humphrey, Lieutenant, i., 538, 541^ 557; ii.. 87; regarding Dead River^ i.. 554; and the troops, 592; ii,, 32; on Montg., 87. Humphreys, Lieutenant, falls in thfr assault on Lower Quebec, ii., 139. Hunter, Lieutenant, i.. 343, 426, Hunter, The, ii., 15, 18, 19, 24, 86,. 94. 258. Hurons. See Indians. Hutchinson, Thomas, i., 74-77. Iberville, i., 497. lie aux Noix, See Nut Island. IlelaMotte, Montg. at, i., 323; view ^ of, 331. Independence Hall, Second Con tinental Cong, meets in, i., 166; picture, ii., 51. Indians, The, i., 16, 17, 18, 232, 501; atrocities of, i., 21—22; to be used against Colonies, 81-82; dreaded by the Amer., 176-77; the Six. Nations, 273; the Seven Nations^ 274-75; outlying tribes, 275; effect of Amer. Revolution on, 275-76; wards of the Brit., 277-78; the: Iroquois, enemies of N. Y., 278; in council with Johnson, 291-g^ ; Amer. steps to win, 279-96; in_ council with Colonials, 296-303; Ind. depts. established by Cong., 287; at St. Johns 331-32; neutral,. 356-60; heed the Albany envoys, 358; in Montg.'s camp, 433; join Carleton, 451 ; said to support- Carleton, 526; St. Francis Ind, to aid Arnold, 551 and Remark XXXVI. ; along the Chaudiere, 597- 98; enlisted in Arnold's army, 603; complain to Schuyler of lack of" supplies, ii., 358-59; egged on by the Brit., 359—63; a hostile incur sion of, expected by the Amer.^ 362; its piirpose variously reported, 363; the incursion under Forster. 370-80; enlist for the King, 428; Burgoyne's allies murder Jane McCrea, 469; desert Burgoyne, 469; waver in their allegiance to the King, 538-41; addressed by Lafay ette, 540; believed to be strongly Index of Persons, Places, and Subjects 621 Indians, The — Continued. attached to the French, 560. See Caughnaw agas, Infiextble, The, ii., 463. Inoculation, ii., 312, 366 {note 17), 386. Intendant of Canada, The, i., 17, 23, 31, 49 ; his palace, map, ii. , 78; picture, 83; the riflemen fire from the palace into Quebec, 102- Iron Point, ii., 315; importance of, i. , 31 2-1 3 ; reconnoitred by Sul livan, ii., 444; Brit, force at, 506. Iroquois, See Indians. Irvine, William, embarks for Three Rivers, ii., 402; from Nicolet to the intrenchments of Three Rivers, 402- 08 ; in the retreat , 414; at Sorel again, 416. Isis, The. See Douglas. Isle Seguin, i., 520. Jaconick Falls {see Ticonic Falls). Jacques Cartier River, described, ii,, 308-09 {see map, 311); Thomas posts a guard at, 323, 346; aban doned, 349. Jay, John, prepares the Address to Can,, i., 214-15; portrait, ii., 44; signature, 47; on the desire of the Colonies for union with Gt. Britain, 53; on instructions to the dele gates to Can., 328, Jefferson, Thomas, on preserving the union with Gt, Britain, ii., 53; explains presence of the Amer. army in Cambridge, 58; on Dick inson, 61; accoimts for the failure of the Canad. campaigns, 451; on Carleton's hard treatment of the Canad,, 527, Johannes~4n-Eremo, i,, loS, Johnson, Guy, i,, 338, 388, 389; ii., 359; Brit, Ind. Superintendent in N, Y., i., 176, 277, 280; stirs up the Ind., 291-93; Dartmouth to, Re mark XV.; checked by Carleton, 295-96; his map, 297; has no hopes of Ind- support, 357; fails to gain support of Caughnawagas, 358-59; helps rouse the Highlanders, N. Y., ii., 165, Johnson, John, i., 277; ii-. 165, 541; signature, i., 294; stirs up trouble in Tryon County, ii., 165, 382; John son Hall (picture), 166; leads Highlanders and Ind., 428; guards Laprairie, 506. Johnson, William, I., 277. Jury, optional proposed, i., 65; policy of Quebec Act, 67, 193. Jury, Grand, at Quebec, i., 52, K Kalb, Johann, ii., 497, note; given second place in Lafayette's Canad. enterprise, ii., 488, 509; quoted, 543- Kalm, Peter, i., 77; ii,, 504 (note). Kanaghquaesa. i., 296, 298. Kennebec detachment. The. its ex periences from Cambridge to Buebec {see Kennebec Expedition) ; uebec experiences under Amold {see Amold, ii., 3-132); under Morgan {see Morgan, 132-47); most of, imprisoned in Quebec, the officers in the Seminary, 270; and the privates in the Recollet mon astery, 271-77; well used, 272-73; prison life of the privates, 275-70; privates transferred to Dauphin Jail. 277; their plan to escape, 277-81; their scheme of conquest, 281-89; their plan carried to the American army, 283-84; are betrayed, 289; shackled, 289-go; failure of its officers to escape from the Sem - inary, 291-93; freed by Carleton, 416, Kennebec expedit'on. The, first suggestions of its route, i., 496-97 and Remark XXXL; proposed by Brewer, 498; approved by Wash ington, with Arnold as leader, 499. 503 and Remark XXXIL; favored by Gates, 403; its route given Cong. by Washington, 505-06 and note 2 1 ; looks inviting, 506-07; enlistments for, 507-1 1 ; map of route, 512; reaches Newburyport, 516-17; to the Kennebec, 518-21; up the lower Kennebec, 521-31; begins Wilder ness march, 531-97; at the Gt. Carrying-Place, 542-51; conduct of its officers, 547-48; along Dead River, 553-68; perils, 557-63; re treat of rear division, 563-67; crosses chain of ponds, 568-71; and Height of Land, 57i~73; comraon provision fund at Amold River, 575 and note 20; good news from Arnold, 576-77; entrapped, 578-86; down the Chaudiere, 589-97; at the first settlement, 589-603 and Re mark XLI, ; to Quebec, 603-06 ; crosses the St. Lawrence, ii., 24-25, before Quebec, 25-31; to Aspen Pt., 31; taken command of by Montg,, 87. Kennebec River, The, i., 499; the Kennebec-Chaudiere route to Can., i., 496, 505; Amold reaches, 516; picture of mouth, 521; Arnold's voyage up, 521—53; Goodwin's map of, 527; upper course described, 542; pictures, 523, 538, 539, 541, 543. 545. Kirkland, Samuel, ii., 361; preaches among the Ind., i., 280-81; in council with the Ind,, 298. Knox, Henry, ii,, 300; takes the Ticonderoga cannon to Cambridge, ii. , 203 ; some of his artillery ordered to Quebec, 259, 62 2 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony Lachine, ii., 371; Brit. -Ind. camp at, i., 293-96; picture of rapids at, ii., 364; the traders set out from, 365; Forster checked at, 376-77; picture, 3 79- La Come, St. Luc, i., 177, 201, 291; attempt of Americans to negotiate with, 424 and Remark XX\'. ; un der Carleton at Longueuil, 453. La Come (nephew of St. Luc), i., 351. Lafayette, Marquis de, ii., 483-84; from his letter agreeing to corae to America, 484; the value of honoring him with an independent command, 484 ; favored by the ' Conway Cabal,' 484—85; appointed leader of the ' irruption ' into Can., 485 ; doubtful about accepting the honor, 486; shows his Washington colors, 487 ; forces Cong, from its anti- Washington attitude, 487-88 ; his grounds for confidence in the ex ped., 489; at Flemington, 489-96; sketched, 490; portrait, 491; lacks confidence in the exped.. 493-96; signature, 494; Gates's instructions to, 493-95 and Remark CX,; re minds Gates of his responsibility, 495 ; up the Hudson, to Albany, 496-97; finds a lack of mei, 498; of clothing, 499; of fim.ds, 499-500; his consequent misery, 508-09 ; and chagrin, 510; blames Board of War, 510; from his letter to the Board, 512; his report to Cong, acted upon, 513; recalled, 513; proposes co-operation of France and the Uni ted States in new invasion (17 78), 521 and Remark CXIII,; addresses the Ind,, 540; his plan criticised by Washington, 545-49; ^^^ shelved by Cong., 549; consulted by Wash ington as to a northern campaign, 557. Lake Champlain, i, , 21, ^ , 132, 141, 228; ii., 505, 506; description and history of, i., 110-13; fighting on, 134-69; map, 146; as to its habits. Remark XLVIIL; diffi- cultiesat. ii.. 30o;battleon, between Carleton's fleet and Arnold's, 462- 67; picture, 465; British have control of, 515; Schuyler's scheme to clear it of the British, 515. Lake George, i., 22, 164; ii., sketch of, i., 144-45; picture, 159; Ticon deroga stores to be removed to and opposition, 170-92; picture of out let, 222; map, 249; pictures, 253, 258; difficulties at, ii., 301. Lake Megantic, i., 527, 577, 581; Arnold's raen en route to, i., 578 and note 1; southern end of, 578-80 and note 3; Hanchet at, 580; main 258; armyat, 580-86. Lake St. Peter, ii,, 303 and maps,. 311, 315, 402, 403, 427; Carleton's- neet on, ii,, 431. Lallemant, i., 17. Lamb, John, i., 362, 467, 469; ii., 287; at St. Johns, i., 463; leads- force to occupy St. Johns, 465 and Remark XXIX.; portrait, ii., 103; on the Heights before Quebec, 104; in the assault on Quebec, 124, 130; wounded, 139; in prison, 147; re leased, 416. Lanaudiere, M. de, i., 389, 407. Landron, Captain, ii., 411. Laprairie, i., 475, 485; defended by the Amer., i., 366; Brown at, 384, 449; picture of its mole, 470; in Montcalm's day and in '75, 471-72; picture of old cottage at, 472; oc cupied by J, Johnson, ii., 506. La Salle, Sieur de, i., 31; ii., 376. La Tours, i., 469. Laurens, Henry, President of Cong., ii., 471; portrait, 547; Washington writes to, on Lafayette's plan of in vading Can., 548 and note 36, Laval, Bishop, i., 18, 33. Laws, Captain, ii. , 270; defeats Morgan by rear attack, ii., 145-46; spared by Meigs, 145 and note 32. Lee, Arthur, ii., 554. Lee, Charles, in carap before Boston, i., 492; proposed by Montg., as leader of the Quebec campaign, ii., 76; applauds Montg. and Amold, 8s; signature, 159; on the death of Montg. , 170; portrait, 199 ; his orders to Wooster, 204-05 ; ordered to take command of Amer. forces in Can., 206; then sent south, 207; a probable consequence of his order to Wooster, 227; on establishing a post at Deschambatdt, 307; remiss ness causes shortage at Sorel, 350; Gates as a 'curtain-raiser' for, 478-97. Lee. R. H,, i., 83; from his letter to S. Adams, ii., 63; wants Can. at any cost, 71; points out the lesson of the Quebec disaster, 169 ; opposed to Washington, 478. Lee, William, i,, 81; from his letter to S. Adams, ii., 70. Leffingwell, Christopher, i., 121, 122, 236; ii,, 58. Lexington, i., 107, 113; news of the battle of, i., 108-109. L'Hory, M. de, i., 206-07. Lincoln, Benj., ii., 509; at Saratoga, ii., 469 ; opposes the second invasion of Can., 504, Linzee, Captain, of the Surprise ordered to Isle aux Coudres, ii., 294 ; ordered to Quebec, 317; reaches Quebec, 318; ordered up the St. Lawrence, 321. Lithgow, Captain, i,, 533, Livingston, Governor, i., 22, Index of Persons, Places, and Subjects 623 Livingston. H. B., at Ticonderoga. i., 256; pays his men from his own pocket, 257; reaches Nut Island, 362. Livingston, James, i., 332, 411, 4^4, 450; writes to Schuyler, i., 324-26; portion of letter from, 325; begins war in Can,, 361-62; on the Colo nials, 402; writes to Schuyler, 403- 04; wins Canad, support, 405; his plan to take Brit, vessels fails, 424; helps take Chambly, 425-30; at St. Johns, 434-37; discouraged, 448; at La Tours, 469; commissioned to enlist a Canad. regiment, ii,, 74; embarks for Quebec, 86; to attack. St. John's Gate, Quebec, 124 ; helps cause the retreat of the Brit. at St. Roch, 149; on the lack of specie, 219. Livingston, Philip, i., 83. Livingston, R. R, , sets up powder, mill, i. , 2 59 ; on >. Y. politics, ii. , 68 ; portrait, 504. Livingston, Walter, ii., 419. Lizard, The, ii., 16, 19, 27, 30, 94, 120, 258. Lockwood, Captain, ii., 291—93. London (Eng.), i., 80, 81, 85, 517. Longue Pointe, i., 387, 401. Longueuil. ii. , 438; Amer. posted at, i., 366 {see map, ii., 311); excited by news of probable attack, 381; Allen leaves, for Montreal, 386-87; view of, 449; Warner at, 449; Carleton defeated at, 452-55; and note, 453; Arnold's retreat from, ii., 439, Lorimier, M, de, i,, 301; at Longueuil, i-, 453; a-t St, Johns, 456; rouses the Ind., 362, 363; threatens an im mediate attack of British and Ind., 363 ; terrorizes Sherbume, 372; ordered to cut oflf Sherburne, 373; Sherbume surrenders to, 373-74; arrives too late at St. Johns, ii., 442. Lotbiniere, Father, ii., 214; on the ignorance of the habitants, i,, 28; reported to be the only Canad. priest absolving 'rebels,' ii., 217. Louis XIV., i., 17, 23, 27, 33. Louis, Chief, reports about Caughna wagas, i., 289; gives information conceming Quebec, 502; and bids the Amer. farewell on their retreat from Can., ii., 441; asked by Schuyler to bum the vessels at St. Johns, 513. Louisburg (C. B.). i., 22. Loyalists, See Tories. Lutridge, Captain, ii., 294. Luzerne, Chev. de la, French min ister, to whom Washington pro poses a joint invasion of Can,, ii., 559; portrait, 560; rejects the pro posal, 561-62, 563. Lynch, Thomas, supports S. Adams in Cong., ii., 71; portion of letter to Schuyler, 107; on the news of Montg's death, 173; urges Cong. to appoint delegates to Can., 326. Lyon, Captain, ii., 159. Lyttleton, Lord, ii., 55. M Maclean, Allan, i., 455, 468; ii., 28, 524'; recruits Scots, i,, 343-44; on Carleton's inactivity, 450; gathers forces, 450—51; driven from Sorel, 469-70; gets ammunition at Three Rivers, ii. , 2 1 ; is given a letter from Arnold to Montg., 21; enters Quebec, 22, note 21 and Re mark XLIII. ; endeavors to rouse the people against Colonials, 22-24; fears for Quebec, 30; his reported plan of a sally from, 31, 32; on its weak defences, 80; from a letter to Barrington, 92; on Carle ton's military policy, 93 ; ranks second in Quebec garrison, 97 ; learns that the Amer. are in Lower Quebec, 130 and Remark LX,; on the dependence of the Amer. on the Canad., 218; severe measures with his officers, 250; attitude toward the Amer. prisoners, 271; stations few guards at Dauphin Jail, 278; arrests Thayer, 292; in Carleton's move against the Heights 320; on the retreat from Quebec, 357; reported as occupying Three Rivers, 399; at Quebec, forwarding troops, 410; gets up theatricals, 524. Macpherson, John, as aide-de-camp, ii., 103-04; portrait, 112; sig nature, 115; a hero, 116; on the eve of battle, 125-26; falls in the assault on Quebec, 142, Maisonneuve, Sieur de, i., 96, Mansfleld, Lord, i., 47. March through the Wilderness. See Arnold and Kennebec detachment, Maria, The, ii,, 321-22- Marr, Captain, on the strategic value of Nut Island, i., 313; on the defences of Quebec, ii. 79 and note 5; on the character of the Canad., 210; on the strategic value of Deschambault, 304. Martial Law, in Canada, proclaimed, June 9, 1775, i., 220; effect, 221- 27. Martin (of Lamb's company), ii., 283- 84. Martin, The, See Hervey. Maryland, i., 4i9; ii., 332. Maseres, Francis, London agent for Brit. -Canad- and description of, i., 57 and note. Massachusetts, i., 11, 12, 85, 86, 93, 102, 140, 255, attacked by French 624 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony Massachusetts — Continued. and Ind. , i. , 21; her spirit in Canada, 69; 'rebellion' in, 107; no official share in the Lake affairs, 16S; on removal of Ticonderoga stores to Cambridge, 171; opposes abandon ment of Ticonderoga, 180; struggles to supply arms, 256—60; is asked for a new regiment, ii,, 167. See also Porter. Maxwell, William, ii., 191-92; sets out for Chambly, 315; in the re treat from Quebec, 321; as rear guard at Jacques Cartier, 346; re joins Thomas, 349 ; in charge of Three Rivers, 349; recalled thence, 351; the number of his men at the time of the Brit, sally. Remark LXXXIX.; in exped. against Three Rivers, 411; at Chambly, in the retreat, 43_>, McClellan, Lieutenant, fate of, i., 590-91, McCord, John, i., 56-57; ii., 95, 398. McCoy, Sergeant, ii,, 2S2; chosen colonel of the prisoners of Dauphin Jail, ii., 280; to support Aston in attacking the guard of St. John's Gate, 280. McCrea, Jane, ii,, 469, McDougall, Alex., ii,, 206; proposed by Lafayette for second place in the second Canad, campaign, ii., 4S8, McKenzie, Captain, ii,, 15 ; lands raen and cargo for defence of Quebec, ii., 94; aims the cannon, Quebec, 262. McNeill, Hector, ii., 263. Meigs, Retum J,, i.. 521, 532, 540, 554. 556; ii., 270; at the Great Carrying -place, i., 54S; on receipt ot news from Arnold, 577 ; in the siege of Quebec, ii,, 102; in the assault, 136; saves Laws. 145 and note 32; carries news from Quebec of Arnold's division, 153; portrait, 274. Melvin, James, i., 520; on the fate of Goodrich's men, i., 5S9— 90. Mercier, J. D. Arnold's letter sent to, i-. 550-51; fate of letter and Mercier. 588-89, ii., 9. Merrimac, The, i., 516. 517. Merrymeeting Bay, Amold in, i., 522; picture, 523. Mesplet, Fleury, ii.. 334 and note 14. Michilimackinack. i., 291; Brit, post at. and the Ind., ii.. 360. Mifflin, Thomas, his attitude toward Washington, ii., 481-82. Mills, Sir Thoraas, i., 72. Milton (Mass.), i., 86. Missionaries, Jesuit, i., 17, 22. Minot, Jonas Clark, i., 90. Mohawks, See Indians. Montcalm, Marquis de, i., 18, 97, 110. 401 ; ii., 27; leads against Ticonderoga, i., 22 ; bust of, 36; his Latin inscription at Carillon, 110; burial-place, ii,. 120. Montesquieu. Baron, i., loi. Montgolfier (Director), receives from Gov, Tryon Wooster's des patch to Cong., ii., 216; and passes it on to Carleton, 217. Montgomery, Richard, i., 244, 406, 425, 4S0, 576; Schuyler's lieutenant, i,. 249 ; his discipline at Ticon deroga, 270; past career in Brit. army, Remark XII.; portion of his will, 311; to Schuyler, 315; decides for Schuyler, 317-19 and Remark XVIII.; sends Brown north, 319; sketch of, 321; from Cro^iTi Pt. to lie la Motte. 3 2 1—23 ; sword of, 321; at St. Johns, 32S-32, 333-34; in the Ind, council, 359-60; at St. Johns again, 366-6 7 ; past history and character of, 367-70; his arms, 369; relieves Brown, 372; hindered by Allen, 373 ; on the Allen— Brown scheme, 388 and Remark XXIIL; annoyed by the Canad., 406-07; letter to Bedel quoted, 408-09; on Colonial troops, 412, 418, 421; writes to La Come. 424; warns Carleton, 429; his diffi culties at St. Johns, 433-45 ; his plans upset, 446—48; captures St. Johns, 455-66 ; negotiates with Preston, 460; marches to Montreal. 470-74; Montreal suburbs submit to, 4 74-7 5 ; Montreal nego tiates with, and submits to , 4S1-83: his letter to Montreal quoted', 484; closes upon Carleton. 488; his opinion of Prescott, 490; on Amold 's chances of reaching Quebec, 550; plans to aid Arnold at Quebec, ii., 36-39; his political aims. 37-39; urges the troops to re-enlist, 39-50; frora a letter to Bedel, 40, 45 ; manages Wooster. 45; why desirous of capturing Quebec, 59; prepares for a winter campaign, 74-75; trouble with his officers, 74; his unselfishness, 76-77; on Quebec's weak defences. So; feels encouraged, 85; in communication w-ith Arnold, 85; o,ff for Quebec, 86; reaches Amold at Aspen Pt., 87 and Remark LIL; his reception, 87-89; from Aspen Pt. to Quebec. 89-91; blockades Quebec, 98-99; ruse for addressing Carleton fails 99-100; other devices for getting letters into Quebec, 100—04 and Remark LV. ; plants battery on the Heights, 102; demands surrender 103-04; cannonades, 104; his ter rible situation, 105—10; a regular siege impracticable, 105; also a blockade, 106-08; the logic of an assault, 1 11-12 ; decides on an assault, 113-17; his proclamation to the armv promises booty, 113- Index of Persons, Places, and Subjects 625 Montgomery. — Continued. 14 and note 4; regarding his own and Carleton's strength, 1 14-15 and note 6; quiets insubordination, 121-22; first attempt at an assault, 122; his plan is carried to the enemy, 122—23; his new plan, 123- 24 and Remark LVIL; his final letter to Carleton (unsent), 126-27 and Remark LVIIL; advances to Cape Diamond, 140-41; reaches the Pres de Ville defences, 141; falls in the charge, 142-43 and Remark LXV. (V,); picture, of spot where he fell, 143 and Remark LXV. (VI.) ; buried, 151-52 and Remark LXVI. ; picture of house to which his body was carried, 152; praised by all, 169-70; his attitude toward the Tories, 227-28; and the clergy, 233; on lack of specie, 234, on the strate gic value of Deschambault, 304; his desire for a Comraittee of Congress, 325. See- Colonials and frontispiece of Vol. I, Montreal i.. 22, 29, 39, 43, 51, 56, 102, 502; Ind, troubles in, i,, 18; frontier turbulence in, 23; cap itulation of 24; Roman church in. 32; merchants in, 38; British in, petition King for an Assemb., 57 opposition in, to the Quebec Act, 68; forwards money to Boston, 90; early history of, 96-97; as J. Brown found it, 97-99; letter of Warren to, 105; picture, 207; course of British in, 2 1 6-1 7 ; of Canad. , 219; why not Carleton's rallying point, 342; Allen-Brown scheme to capture, 384-94; picture, 385; Montg. pre pares to besiege it, 468-73; a glimpse of, 473; picture, 475; its defences, 475-80; picture of Bon secours Church in, 477; a plan of, 479; surrenders to Montg,, 481-83; Montg. 's efforts for union and free govemment in, ii., 38-39; condition under Wooster, 160—232; picture of house in, occupied by Amer, officers, 211; Amold in command at, ^56, 303 and note 11; Commrs. of Congress at, 329-30; Mesplet sets up printing-press in, 334; under the management of the Commrs., 340— 43; on news of the retreat from Quebec, 343; the results to the Amer. of holding, 358-59; hostile to to the Amer., 374; Arnold evacu ates, 438-39; Laf ay ette expected to capture it, 489; garrisoned by the British, 506; proposed effort of French and Americans against, 522, Montresor, John, i., 533; ordered to repair the Lake posts, i., iii; reconnoitres the Kennebec route to Can., 497; his Joumal and map secured by Arnold, 527 and Remark XXXVL; on the Amold River valley, 5 74 ; his map defective, 583; from his map, 584. Morgan, Daniel, ii,, 17, leads Virginia riflemen, i., 509; his early career, 511-13; riot between his men and Glover's, 513; ideas of discipline, 514; ordered to clear carrying- places, 531, 544-45; his spirit, 548, 571; paddles down Amold River. 578; boats smashed, 590; raarches down the Chaudiere, 591; favors iraraediate attack, ii., 25; withdraws from Aspen Point to watch Quebec, 34; in the dash from fat. Roch, 130; takes the wounded Amold's place, 132-33; carries the first barrier, 133; receives surrender of many Quebeckers, 134; portrait 134; yields to the other officers and waits for reinforcements, 135-36; his fierce fight at the second banner, 136-40; and retreat from, 143-44 and Remark LXIII.; cut off by Laws and surrenders, 145-47 and »o^ 3S; signature, 146; in prison 147; order on the Paymaster-Gen. - eral, 276; at Saratoga, 469-70. Morison, George, i., 540; denounces Colbum, i., 538; regarding the Height of Land, 573; quoted, 595, 600; admires Montg., ii., 88-S9. Morris, Gouverneur, disapproves of the second Canad, attempt, ii., 486; portrait, 4S8; on the danger of relying upon the French, 495; as a member of a committee of Cong., 486, 511. Morris, Robert, ii., 218; portrait, ii., 171; signature, 177. Mott, Edward, enlisted in the Ticonderoga exped i., 122; chair man Committee 01 War, 129; in Arnold-Allen trouble, 154. Mott. Samuel, i., 305, 320, 444, 445, 457; on the Canad. situation, 406; on the N. Y. troops, 418, 420; on La Come, 424; objects to Montg.'s plan, 446; before St. Johns, 458, Mt, Bigelow, i., 553 and note 1, 554- 5S; pictures, 554, 556. Mt. Defiance, picture, ii,, 465; not fortifled by Gates, 468; seized by Burgoyne, 468- Murray, James, i., 39, 40, 49, 51. 59- 61; Eng. military gov. of Can,, i,,24; character of, 24; first civil gov, of Can., 27; his opinion of the habi tants, 28; of the noblesse, 31; his opinion of Brit.Ganadians, 36-38; the Brit, petition for his recall, 40; recalled, 38, note 31; astounded at demands of Quebec grand jury, 52; petition against hira, 52; misjudges the Canad., 227; on Quebec's weak defences, ii., 79, So, and note 5, Miuray, Major, ii.. 288, 289. 626 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony N Naime, Captain, ii., 144 and Re mark LXIIL; 319-21, 506. Napier. Captain, i., 469, 470; ii., 9, 30, 91- Natanis, raeets Colburn's scouts, i., 526; discredited by Amold, 527; his cabin, 556; his words proved false, 597 ; enlists in Amold's army, 603. Nesbitt, General, cuts off Thompson from his boats, ii., 413; repulses St. Clair, 413-14; at Sorel, 434. Neville, John, report on Can., ii., 506. Newbury (Vt.), ii., Remark XC; picture from, 525. Newburyport (Mass.), rendezvous for the Kennebec exped., i„ 516; entertains Amold. 517-19. New England Chronicle, The. i., 483, Newfoundland, Troops from, ii., 16; Lafayette's plan to occupy, 523. New Hampshire, i.. So, 102; attacked by French and Ind., i., 21; affair of Castle William and Mary, 172; on the necessity of holding 'Ticon deroga, 180-81; sends a corps to St. Johns, 364; votes a new regiment, ii., 192; impediments, 192-93. New Hampshire Grants, The. See Vermont, New Haven (Conn.), i., 108, 117. 118, 190, New Jersey, i., log; ii., 58, 191-92, New York, i., 22, 80, 88, 93, 102. 108: attacked by French and Ind., i., 2 ; regarding the forcing of popery upon, 85; claims of, disputed by Green Mt. Boys, 113—16; troubles with the N. H. Grants, 153 ; no official share in Lake affairs, 166; prepares for war, 172: N. Y. — Conn. jealousies, 262-63; map of northern boundary line, 306; relation of, to other Colonies, 418-20; feeling of Conn, men about, ii. , 46-47: suspected of Toryism, 66-68; of being corrupted by the British, 66-67; hostile to the Canad, cam paign, 69 ; must be kept in the Union, 69; its Toryism, 165, 215, 298, 382. See also Albany atul Congress, Provincial, of N. Y. Niagara, ii., 427; desirable to destroy Brit, power at. ii., 360; Butler an nounces raeeting of Ind. at, 361; an objective point in the Lafayette plan of invading Can. (1778), 521. Nichols, Lieutenant, ii,, 273. Nicolet, reached by Thompson, ii., 402; Carleton's fleet, reaches, 431. Noblesse of Can., The, under French rule, i., 30-31; under Brit. rule, 32 ; their suspected attach ment to France, 32; Carleton's in terest in, 39; their attitude toward the other social classes, 3 9—40 ; dread an Assembly, 50; supposed to be leaders of the habitants, 58-59; new power of, under Queb.ec Act, 67, 2o9; under martial law, 221. 223; offended at being classed as militia, ii., 82; said to be influenced by Amer, ideas, 534, 535, 559. See also Seigneurs, Norridgewock Falls, i.. 537-38; con dition of provisions at, 539-40; the limit of civilization, 540; picture, 541. North. Lord, i., 58, 79, 237; against Assembly in Can., i., 48; signature, 56; derides opposition, 71-72; ad mission regarding Quebec Act, 73; imaginary soliloquy, 82; his re ception of petitions frora Quebec, 200; portrait, 212; favors, N. Y., ii.. 66, 67; realizes the importance of winning N. Y., 6g; says Can. must not be lost by treaty, 566. Northampton (Mass.), i., 21; ii., 193. Novanglus (J. Adams), i., 82. Nova Scotia, S. Adams pleads for annexation of, i., 8; Lafayette's plan to occupy, ii., 523; England's reasons for holding, 566. Nut Island, ii., 457; importance of, i., 313 and Remark XVL; Schuyler at, 324, 332; picture, 334; Montg. in command at, 361 ; Amer. re inforcements at. 362-65; the Amer. in retreat to, ii., 442-44; Naime guards, 506. Ogden, Matthias, i., 547, 599 and note 10; ii,, 197; Amold's envoy to Cramahe, ii., 27-28; brings to Amold the news of Montg.'s arrival, 87- Old South Chtirch, Boston, The, i., 3. 22, Orders in Council, i., 257. Oriet, M.. i., 405-06. 455- Orleans Island, ii., 18, 265, 317 {see map, ii., 311). Oswald, Eleazer, i., 150, 54S; down the Chaudiere, i., 586; signature, ii., 122; in the assault of Quebec, 130. Oswald, Richard, ii., 569, 570. Oswegatchie (N. Y.), ii., 360 and note 8, 363. Oswego (N. Y. ) , The Brit . -Ind. council at, i., 293; work planned for Amer. at, ii., 522. Otis, James, i., 2; ii., so. Paine, Thomas, ii., 476. Palace Gate, The (Quebec), ii., 261, 319; see plan of Quebec, ii., 78; vain attempt of Amer. to bum. Index of Persons, Places, and Subjects 627 Palace Gate, The — Continued. 129; Law's sally from, 145; picture, 260, 262. Paris; i., 96, 98. Parker's Flats, 1.. 520-21. Parkman, Francis, i., 77. Parsons. Jonathan, i. , 518; picture of his church, 518. Parsons, H., i., 121. Paterson. John, sent north by Wash ington, li,. 333; at Montreal, 349; despatches Sherbume to the Cedars, 371; his regiment depleted by in oculation, 418. Pelissier, M.. ii., 261; on the necessity of taking Quebec, i., 39; picture of his iron -works, ii,. 187; furnishes Amer. with petards, 189; delayed in supplying Amer., 203; suggests the fire-ship to Arnold, 263. Pennsylvania, i,, 80, 102; ii,, 421; delegates of, have charge of pub lishing letters of Cong, to Quebec, i., 102. Pepperell, William, i., 22, Petersham, Lord, ii., 319 and Re mark LXXXIV. Phelps, Elisha, advises invasion of Can., i., 232. Phelps, Noah, i., 122; sent to N. H. Grants, i., 121; brings news from Ticonderoga, 128-29 and Remark IV. Philadelphia (Pa.), i., 93, 258; Cong. at, i., 86, 166; John Brown arrives there, 166; in arms, 172; citizen of, in jail in Can., 205; news of Montg.'s death in, ii., 170; contributes blankets, igo. Phillips, General, assists in prepar ing fleet for Carleton, ii., 462; sends order for the habitants to assemble, 524. Phipps, Captain, i., 73. Phippsburg (Me.), i., 520. Pitt, William, i., 227. Pitts, John, letter of, to S. Adams, i., 84; suspicious of Eng., 85. Pittsfield, (Mass.), i., 124-25; view of, i., 126; picture of first meeting house in, 128; picture of parsonage, il., 168. Pittston (Me.), i., 523. See also Gardinerston. Plains of Abraham, The, i., 24, 28, 105; ii., 26, 29. 98. See also Heights of Abrahara, The. Pointe a la CaiUe, ii., 82. Pointe au Fer, See Iron Point. Pointe aux Trembles. See Aspen Point. Pointe du Lac, Thompson reaches, ii., 403; Thompson's boats and garrison left at, 403: picture of swamp, 421. Point Levi, ii., 318; reached by Amold, i., 60s; meaning of, "¦• 2 and note i; review of Amer. at, 17-18; Arnold's men leave for Wolfe's Cove, 24-25; Amer, at, 31; battery at, 257-59 and Remark LXXIL; Amer, retreat from, 322. Poor, Enoch, sent north by Wash ington, ii,, 333 ; at Sorel. 349; regi ment depleted by inoculation, 418; at Saratoga, 469-70, Popham Beach (Me,), i.. 520. Porter, Elisha, ii,. 193; from a letter of Washington to, 194. Porterfield, Charles, i., 547; clears the second barrier, Quebec, ii., 144 and Remark LXIII. Potash, The, ii.. 140 and Remark LXV. (I., II. , IIL, IV.), Potter, Captain, i , 452-53. Povvnalborough (Me.), i., 523, Pownall, Thomas, i., 496, 497. Prescott, Richard, i. , 429, 475; ii. , 86; threatens Allen, i,, 392-g4; arrests Walker, 396-9S; his plan for watching Mrs, Walker, 480; orders Montreal burned, 484-85; signature, 489; Montg.'s opinion of, 490. Pr^s de Ville. See Potash, The. Preston, Major, i., 156; puts Allen to flight, i., 162; at St. Johns, 357, 426, 434-37, 456; surrenders, 460, Price, James, i,, 68, 175, 176; sent by Brit- merchants to Cong., i., 206; his danger, 233; reveals the weakness of Montreal, 482; delegate to Montreal, 483; loans money for the Quebec campaign, ii., 74 ; deputed to raise funds for Arnold, 162; to Cong., 235 ; as Deputy Commissary -(jen., 351; opposes re opening the Ind. traffic in Can., 364. Pringle, Lieutenant Carleton's ex press to Lord Germain, ii., 177; enjoined by Carieton to call for boats, 460. Protestants (in Canada), The, i., 46, 73. 97. 196; mutual distrust of them and Roman Catholics, i., 46, 48 so; their move for an Assembly, S6; protest against Quebec Act, 60-61. Protestants (in the Colonies) , The , proposed raid of Canad. and Ind. against, i., 82; their friendly re ception by Canad. Catholics, 602- 03. Providence, The. i., 469, 470. Provincials. See Colonials. Putnam, Israel, i., 115, 268, 27gi 288, 493; signature, i., 280. Q Gazette, The, i., 27. 102, 372, 480; attempts to arouse the peas ants, i,, 353; against the Colonials, ii., 22; addresses the Canadians, 81. Quebec (the city), i., 17, 18, 22, 78, 85, 87, 93, 97, 574. 575; her troubles 628 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony Quebec. — Continued with Montreal, i., 23: with Sulpician fathers, 23; Roman church in 32- 33; merchants in, 38; grand jury at, 52; British in, 57, town meetings in, 68; aids Boston, 90, 99; receives news of Amold and Allen, 211-13; course of British in, 216-17; Ken nebec-Chaudiere route to, 496-99; its reported condition, 502 , 519, 576; a view of, ii., 1-3: the pros pects of taking, 4: on Schuyler's entry into Can , 5-9, measures to defend, 5-9; picture. 7; on Arnold's approach, 9-14; its weakness, 10- 14; map, 11; why ungarrisoned? 14-17; Maclean enters 20-24; treachery feared within. 29-30. after Arnold's retreat from, 32; situation, 77; plan of, 78: its weak defences 79-80; the Quebec region favors the Americans, 80-82 ; Arnold and Montg. before, 9 1 ; Carleton reaches, 91-93; the va rious measures of defence, 94; the disloyal expelled from, 95. the character of many of its citizens, 96-9 7 ; blockaded by Montg. , 98-99 , resists all Montg.'s devices to win, 105; the importance of taking, 106, 1 og ; learns of Montg. 's intended assault, iig; iu suspense, iig-21; how guarded, 123-24; awakened by attack, 127-29, note 22 and Remark LIX.; sketch plan of lower barri cades, 129; the American disaster at, 131-42; panic-stricken, 133-34; the bluffs just above (picture), 137; distress from the cold at, 180-S2; a view of, 183 ; Arnold's troops dare not retreat from. 235 , preparing for another attack by the Amer., 245-46; Antill's map of. 247, lacks wood and provisions, 247-48; picture, 251; on the watch, 254-55, bombarded, 257-63; from Point Levi, 257-59; from the farther bank of the St. Charles and the Heights, 261-63; her answer, 258, 262; her experience with the Amer. fire-ship, 264-67 and Remark LXXV. ; picture, 285 ; Brit, rein forcements sent to, 294—97 ; the Brit, fleet reaches, 316-19; re inforced , 319; the Amer. re treat from, 321; and the effect, 357— 58; theory as to the source and nature of its relief, 396 and Re.mark XCVIIL; the probable result, had it been taken 449-50; proposed occupation of, by the French, 522; said to be open to attack, 542. Quebec (the province), extended by the Quebec Act, i., 70 and note 1; strategic position of. Si; letter of Cong, to, 99-103; feared by the Colonials, 173-76. See also Ca.na.da,. Quebec Act, 'The, i., 47, 51, 66. 104, 171, 173. 223; nature of, 1,, 59-60; effect of, on Protestants, 60-61; on Canad., 61-62; on the British, 62- 6s; complaints of the Opposition, 67: Opposition supported by Col onists, 68; effect of, on Colonists, 70; aimed against Colonists, 71; the Opposition in Eng., 72-78; in Amer. 78-86; in Cong., S6-87; the petition for repeal of, 194-201; in force, 203. Quebec expedition (Montg. 's) , why undertaken by Montg., ii., 59; preparations for, 74-75; from Montreal to Aspen Point, S6-87 ; from Aspen Point to Quebec, 89-91. Quince, Richard, i., 109. Quincy, Josiah, i., 2, 85. Quinze Chiens, ii., 378-79; Remark XCIIL R R&le, Sebastien, i., 540; ii., 335 and Remark LXXXV. Rangers, N. H., The, to protect the settlements, i., 363—64; to reinforce Schuyler. 364-65. Recollet Monastery (Quebec) , The, il,, 120, 129, 271—77 and Remark LXXVII. Red Cape, ii., 309 and map, 311. Reed, Joseph, on the Quebec Bill, i.. 82-83 ; Washington's private secretary, i., 493; sends word con ceming Quebec, 550. Regulus. i,, 107, Reid, Colonel, i., 114. Revolution, Amencan, The, i., 107, 27s; weapons of (picture), i., 363, its unintended course, ii,, 50-61; effect of this on the war in Can., 61-65, influence of the war in Can. upon, 64, 451-58; Carleton s view of, 271. Richelieu, Cardinal, i., 17, 30. Richelieu Rapids, "The, ii., 303. See also Deschambault. Richelieu River, Tne, i., 18, 327, 424-. ii., 395, 428, 435; picture, i., 414. Riedesel, General, i., 34; li.. 470. Riflemen, The, Cong, calls for, i., 5 og : described , 509; their d ress , 5 10; their skill, 510-11 . lack of discipline, 511-13; not among, 513; misconduct of, 514: to join Arnold's force, 515; to Newbury port, 516; camp flooded at Dead River, 559; their grounds for curs ing Enos, 574-75;annoyQuebec from the Intendant's Palace, u., 101-02, Rigaud, M., i., 471 Rigaudville, Father, ii , 216. Rigauville, M. de, i., 410. Ripley, Sylvanus, ii., 210, 219: from his letter to Wheelock, ii., 220. Index of Persons, Places, and Subjects 629 Ritzema, Rudolph, leads N. Y. regi ment, i., 256; moves northward, 320; at St. Johns, 333, 459. on \Vooster as commander in Montreal, ii., 160; to the N. Y. Committee of Safety, 164; on the weakness of the new Amer. forces, 200; on the at titude of the Canad. toward the Colonies, 210; on the influence of Dugan among the Canad., 221; on the difBculty of disciplining the Amer. troops, 309-10. Robbins, A. R., ii., 315.324,354, 383. 386. Robbisho, Remark XL. Rochambeau, Comte de, portrait, ii., 558: favors securing New York rather than Can., 558. Romans, Bernard, i., 121, 122. Rome, letter from, i,, 85. Rousseau, The, ii., 431-33- Route Juslinienne, i., 605. Rouville, M., i., 203. Royal Fusihers, The, 1., 428, 450, 464, 470. u-j 97. 98, 128, 139. Re mark XCIX. Royal Highland Emigrants, The, 1., 343-44, 464 and note 37; li., 54 I- Roi/al Savage, The, i., 426, 447-48; ii., 463- Rush Lake, Map, 1., 572, 576; Greene's men at, 581. Salaberry, M. de, i., 459-^ . Salisbury Furnace (Conn.), 1., 123. Sanguinet, ii.. 240. St. Anne, ii., 372, 374, Remark XCV. St. Castin, Baron de, i., 497. St. Charles River ii., 2, 29, 91, 318; relatively to Quebec, ii., 77 and map, 78; view from, 251. St Clair, Arthur, ii., 427; directed by Thompson to recover Three Rivers, ii., 399; under Thompson, 400 , leaves Nicolet for Three Rivers, 402-08; portrait, 405; signature, 407; at Three Rivers, 408; attempts to reach the bateaux,- 413; escapes from Nesbitt, 414; at Sorel, 416; at Chambly in the retreat, 439- . St. Francis, Ind. from, at Dartmouth College, i., 279; a chief at Cam bridge, 289; its Ind. at Dartmouth College ordered home, ii., 47 1; Gates's proposed route to, 519; proposed rendezvous for Amer., 522 <.see map, 523); proposed place for union of French and Americans, 522; its Ind. in state of revolt against the Brit., 538; receives Lafayette's message, 541. St. Helen's Island, i,, 452. St. Ignatius Island, i., 488; u., 426. St. Johns, i., 230, 362; Amold cap tures sloop at, i., 155-58 {see tnap, ii-. 311), Allen's failure at, 158-62; Amer. scouts attacked at, 175; Carleton attempts defence of, 217; Baker at, 300, defences at, 310; Schuyler's failure at, 328-35: pic ture C1903), 339; Bntish troops at, 341, 343; Carleton's rallying-point, 342-47; its fort and fleet, 344^47: picture (1776), 349: Montg. at, 366-67; strength of Amer. force at, 367 and Remark XXIL: impor tance of taking, 412: difficulties of Colonials, at, 433-45: siege and fall of, 446-48, 455-66: garrisoned by the Amer., 468; Hazen m charge of, ii., 257, note 11; fresh troops touch at, 315; Sullivan at, 394-95; the Americans' weak hold of, 427; Sullivan retreats to, 436. 440: Arnold also. 440; Amer. evacuate, 441-42; Bedel and Stark to move against, 473; Lafayette to destroy, 494; guarded by the British, 506: its vessels to be burned by Chief Louis, 513; proposed union of French and Amer. against, 522; said to be weakly garrisoned. 542. St. John's Gate (Quebec), The, ii., 319; open, ii., 25, 27 and Remark. XLlV-; see plan of Quebec, 79; vam attempt of Amer. to bum, 129 and Remark LX, ; relative to the Dauphin Jail. 277; picture, 279; studied by the prisoners of Dauphin Jail, 280; failure of the scheme to open, 280, 287-88. St, Lawrence River, i,, 14, 96, 97, 452, 469, 471, ii,, 20, 21, 303; presents difficulties of passage to Amer. troops, ii,, 198: Thomas's route along, from Montreal to Quebec, 303-09 {see map, 311); plans of Amer, to secure, 304-08 and note 15 ; Carleton's fleet sails up, 410-11, 430-33- St. Leger, Barry, ii., 468. St. Louis Gate (Quebec), The, ii,, 79, 319, pictures, ii,, 30, 320 {see also map, 78); its adjacent block house, 80, St. Mary, i,, 604. St, Paul's Island, 1,, 474- St. Roch, ii,, 117; situation, ii,, 98, and note 24; occupied by Arnold, 99 and Re.mark LIV,, its people disarmed, loi; Wool's mortars planted in, loi; the British sally into and retreat from, 149; Amer, troops hasten from, to defend the Heights, 320. St Roques, See St, Roch, St. Sulpice, Seminary of, ii., 216, Saratoga, i., 244, 315; ii., 328; battles of, ii., 469-70, 530 Our Struggle forthe Fourteenth Colony Sault au Matelot Precipice, The, See sketch-plan of Lower Quebec, ii., 129; picture, 132; the assault at, 132 and Remark LXV. Savile, George, i., 200. Sayre, Stephen, i., 81 Schuyler, Philip, i., 166, 412, 429, 445. 47Si 506; ii., 36, 42; appointed maj. -gen., i., 192; his instructions from Cong., 241-42; character, 244- 47; portrait, 245; lack of despatch, 247—50; difficulties at the Lakes, 250-60; his *nerves,' 264-65; his zeal, 269-70; holds Ind. council, 29S-301; on the Baker affair, 301— 02; despatches Brown as scout, 307; inactive, 312—17; his force compared with Carleton's, 315 and Remark VII.; portion of his letter to Cong., 314; yields to Montg. , 317; joins Montg., 324; at Nut Island, 324—27; addresses the Canad. , 3 2 6-2 7 ; before St. Johns, 328-32; induced to retreat, 329-30 and Remark XIX.; goes to the rear, ill, 335 and Remark XX.; 'much better,' 363; portion of letter from, 422; on the need of specie, 434; on lack of provisions and powder, 438-41 ; portion of letter to Washington 443. 454; on Conn, troops at St. Johns, 463; from his letter to Wash ington, 4S6; receives from Washing ton the project of the Kennebec exped., 499; favors the exped., 504; effect of his entry into Can., ii., 6; instructions of Cong, as to Can., 37, 38; on the payment of the troops, 43; his complaints, 43-44; his trouble with Wooster, 45-46; with privates, 46-47; quoted, 59; probably influenced by Tories in N. Y., 67; Cong, sends a committee to, 72-74; from a letter of, 88; from his letter to Montg., 156; his Albg,ny house (picture), 161; from his letter to Washington, 163; re ceives news of the Amold-Montg. disaster, 165; his hard straits, 165; measures to help Arnold, 166-67; success in Tryon County campaign, 166; on the devotion of the Amer., 186; raises money on his own credit, 1S9; feeling against, 19s; bis difficulties, 196-204; tremendous expenses, 198-99; scanty rein forcements, 200-02; and supplies, 203-04; his quarrel with Wooster, 222-25; services valuable in New York, 298; ordered by Cong, to secure the St. Lawrence, 307; de sires a Committee of Cong., 325; entertains the Delegates of Cong., 328; annoyed by Ind. demands, 359; accused of Toryism, 382; anxious about food supplies, 420; disheartened, 421; feeble, 428; how responsible for the failure of the northern campaign, 445; delays Burgoyne, 468; succeeded by Gates, 469; congratulates Gates, 509; sug gests a plan for gaining Lake Champlain, 515. See also Colonials. Seigneuries, i., 31, note. Seigneurs, i., 32, 38, 39, 351-S3; ii.. 215. See a/so Noblesse. Self-government in Canada, The struggle for, i., 46-48, 55; French Canad. do not desire, 49; dreaded by the noblesse and priests, 50; demanded by traders, 50-52 ; by Quebec grand jury, 52; petition for, sent to England, 55-56; attempt to win, through co-operation of French-Canad., 56-57; hope for, lost, 60. See also Quebec Act. Seminary (Quebec), The, ii., 270, 291-93; picttire, 271, 291. Senter, Isaac, i., 530, 534, 590, 600; in Dead River camp, i., 554, 560, 564; on Greene's advance, 566; on the suffering of the troops, 571; de scribes Rush Lake swamp, 581; on the bombarding of Quebec, ii., 101; offers to lead a company, 122; on Amold's wound (extract from Journal), 150; on Amold's refusal to retreat from the Hospital, 149-51; on the failure of the Can. campaign, 457. Seven Mile Stream. See Amold River. Shadagee Falls, pictture near, i., 562. Shelburne, Lord, ii., 570; to the House of Lords, ii., 546: on the importance of holding Can., 569. Sherbume, Major, in the Cedars affair, ii., 371-374, 380. Shirley, Wilham. i., 419, 497, 530. Shoreham (Vt.), i., 129, 133. Sillery, ii., 24. Simpson, Lieutenant, ii., 29. Sinclair, Patrick, i., 291. Singleton, Sergeant, ii., 122. Skene, Andrew Philip, i., 14S. Skene, Philip, i., 113; settles Skenes borough, i., 147; signature, 163; exults over the Quebec disaster, ii., 168; and over prospect of aid from Gt. Britain, 228; on the treatmentof the clergy in Montreal, 234. Skenesborough, i., 129, 133; captiire of, 147-50. Skowhegan FaUs, The, Amold's exped. passes, i., 536-37; picture, Smith, Captain, i., 509; ii., 122 ; restrains Morgan, 514; character of his company, 514; rescues Good rich's and Dearborn's men, 581; wrecked. 590. Social elements in Canada, The, the 'new subjects,' i., 27—34; the 'old subjects,' 34-3S; attitude of the Govemor toward, 38-39; their mutual attitude, 39-40; the clash Index of Persons, Places, and Subjects 631 Social elements — Continued. of the military and the civil elements illustrated, 201. Sorel, i., 485; ii., ^03; Brown at, i., 469 {see map, ii., 311); Maclean driven from, 469-70; ii., 20; Brown and Easton at, 488-90; Amer. to abandon Deschambault for, ii., 345; picture, 347; Arnold reaches, 349; Thomas's army, at 349-55* the Amer. fleet at, 350; lack of food supplies at, 350-55; strength ened by Sullivan, 396; Thompson ordered from, 398; strategic weak ness, 426—27; Carleton reaches, 431— 33; Sullivan retreats from, 434. Spain, ii., 561, 562. Spider Lake, map, i., 572, 579; Greene at, 583, Spider River, i., 579, 585. Spring, Samuel, i., 532; preaches to Amold's men, i., 518; and the Amer. before Quebec, ii., 118. Squier, E., i., 546, 547, 5S8. Stamford (Conn.), i., 85, 86. Stark, John, i., 115; leads a regi ment, to Can., ii., 390; signature, §90; delayed at Albany, 391-93; to t. Johns, 393-94; force depleted by moculation, 418* appointed by Cong, to bum the Brit, vessels at St. Johns, 473-74; his conditional acceptance of the appointment, 474; displaced by Lafayette, 485; portrait, 501; to Lafayette, 503; to the Bennington Council, 503; not to be counted on, 503; his letter to Lafayette, 507. Steele, Archibald, i., 533, 544, 573; deputed to reconnoitre, i., 531; rejoins Amold and is despatched again, 548; remnant of his party reaches Amold, 551; his experience on Dead River, 556-57; down the Chaudiere, 586; wounded, ii., 139. Stevens, Captain, at Sorel, ii., 349. Stockbridges, The, i., 359; enlisted, i., 281; theirmessage to Mass. Cong., 282 ; their ambassadors arrested, 283 ; their attitude toward Colonials, 289, 292, 300. Stocking, Abner, i., 518, 537, 600; ii.. 31. Stopford, Major, i., 426-30. Strong, (Captain, i., 460. Suffolk, Lord, i., 429, Suffolk Resolves, The, drawn, and endorsed by Cong., i., 86; quoted 238. Sullivan, John, in camp before Boston, i,, 493; leads a brigade to Can., ii., 391; delayed at Albany, 391; review of his troops, 391-92; delayed again, 393; from Albany to St. Johns, 393-94; at St. Johns, 394-95; picture, 395; aided by the Canad., 395; by Dugan, 395; at Sorel, 396; plans to regain Three Rivers and Deschambault, 400; sends encouraging word to Wash ington, 400; from his instructions to Thompson, 401; after the defeat at Three Rivers, 417; on Sorel, as the 'Hospital of America,' 418; signature, 425; his peril at Sorel, 426-29; why determined to hold Sorel, 429-30; persuaded to retreat, 433-34; from Sorel to St. Johns, 434-36; ascends Chambly Rapids 435^36; fires Chambly, 436; reaches St. Johns, 440; retreats to Nut Island, 442 ; unwilling to retreat farther, 442 ; on order from Schuyler, withdraws to Crown Pt., 445. Sunderland, Peleg, i., 94, 115, 144, 178, 229-30. Surprise, The. See Linzee. Tadousac, i., 14; Champlain's map of, i., 19. Taschereau, M. de, fails to enlist the peasants, i., 348; attitude toward Arnold, 604; Amold's headquarters at his house, 604—05 and note 15. Terlaye, Father de, i., 359. Ternay, Admiral de, ii., 558. Testreau, i,, 405. Thayer, Simeon, i,, 548, 566, 597; his Journal quoted, i., 570-71; his chivalry, 592; regarding the firing on the barge at Wolfe's Cove, Remark XLIV.; leaves Aspen Pt. for Quebec, ii. , 89-90 ; under British fire, 106; assists Montg. at Cape Diamond, 122; a leader in the plot to escape from the Serainary, 291; caught, 292. Thomas, John, i., 492; sketch of, ii., 299; portrait, 299; to command in Can. , 3 00 ; his joumey to Quebec, 300-09; reaches Albany, 300; his delays and bad news, 300- 01 ; reaches Montreal, 303 ; from Montreal to Quebec, 303-09; finds Deschambault unsecured, 308 and Remark LXXIX.; finds the Amer. army feeble, 313-14; calls council of war, 316-17; driven from the Heights by Carleton, 319-21 and note 32; retreats to Descham bault, 321-24; blamed, Remark LXXXIV,; signature, 322; posts a guard at Jacques Cartier, 323; de sires to hold Deschambault, 345- 46; as to his new troops, Remark LXXXVII.; forced to leave it. 349; at Sorel, 349-Ss; his diffi culties at Sorel, 35^2-55; not sup ported by the Delegates, 354- 55; his retreat from Quebec discussed, 357-58; on the destitute condition of his army, 384 and Remark XCVII.; death of, at Sorel, 387. 632 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony Thompson, William, ii., 351, 399; sent north in command of a brigade, ii., 333; at Sorel, 351; describes the army at Sorel, 352; forced into irreg ularities, 354; ordereci to Des chambault, 398; orders St. Clair to recover Three Rivers, 399; is or dered by Sullivan to conduct that enterprise, 400; from his instruc tions, 401; unites with St. Clair at Nicolet, 402; embarks for Three Rivers, 402; the attempt fails, 403- 14; surrenders, 414. Three Rivers, i., 29, 38, note 32; ii., 21, 39, 159, 303; submits to Montg., ii., 74 {see map, ii., 311); the con dition of Amer. soldiers at, 218; and their discipline, 225; conspiracy in, against the Amer., 240; the Amer. sick to be removed to, 317; act of the Grand Vicar at, 337; Maxwell in charge of, 349; evac uated, 351 ; Maclean said to occupy, 399; Thompson ordered to, 399- 400; reports of, reach Thompson, 402; the British at, 410-11; drive back Thompson, 411-13; picture, 412; organization of Brit, army at, 430-31 and note 12. Tice, Captain, i., 331. Ticonderoga, i., 80, 102 ; ii., 303 ; French name exchanged for, i., 110— 11; plans of British to strengthen, 111-13; map of, 112, 120; plans of Colonials to take, 116—17; secret re cruiting for exped. to, 121—22 and Remark III.; the expedition and capture, 124-40 and Remark VI. ; picture, 135; opposition to abandonment of, 178-92 ; under Hinman, 191, 247; N, Y. troops at, 2 5 6-5 7 ; pictures, 261, 263 , 269; reinforced, 268; Montg. at, 270; organization and personnel of its troops, 270 and Remark XIII; the troops move north, 319; Colden, on the purpose ofits capture, ii., 67; the Amer. base of operations at the north, 69; its garrison about to quit the service, 165; the history of its cannon, captured by the Amer,, 203, 300; fresh eraibarkation from, 314; taken by Burgoyne, 467-68. Ticonic Falls, i., 533-34- Tolman, E., i.. 523. Tonnancour, M., i., 38, note 32, 354. Topham, Captain, i., 592, 597; ii., 122; his Joumal quoted, i.. 598; un der the Brit, cannon -fire, ii., 106. Tories, i., 2, 212; ii., 19, 197, 475, 559; how to be intimidated in Can., i-. 233; possible traitors. 420-21; in Jlontreal, 474, 476, 480; on the Kennebec, 523; efforts of, in Can. to misrepresent the Colonials, ii. , 22; proportion of, in the Colonies, 53; in N. Y., 66-68; in Cong., 69 and note 45; in Quebec, rejoice over Carleton's retum, 93; armed in Tryon County, N. Y., 165; among the Canad., 213; of N. Y., in fluence the habitants against Cong., 215; Montg. thinks of disamiing, 227-28; exiled from the province by Wooster, 228-29 ; Schuyler's influence against, in N. Y., 298; at a high pitch in Montreal, 337; favored by Commrs. of Cong., 340-42; egg on the Ind. against the Amer., 359; measures of the Commrs, against, 376; evil reports of, in N. Y., 382; Johnson's regi ment of, guards Laprairie, 506; lose power in Can., 528. Tracy, Nathaniel, i., 517. Trade, i., 17; of Brit. Canad., i., 37— 39. 50-56; Brit. Board of, 70, 78; fur trade in Montreal, 97 ; trade policy of Colonies, 104; Ind. trade, 194; Canad. trade, obstacle to, 216- 17; effect on, by Orders in Council, 257; effect on England's trade by America's resistance, ii., 56-57: affected unfavorably by Lee's order to Wooster, 227; the Canad. trade paralyzed, 238; the Ind. trade with the Canad. closed, 238; and with the British, 358; the Ind. trade in Can, re-opened by Cong., 364; Canad. trade injured by Amer. privateers, 524. Traversie, ii., 519, 520, 530, 533, 541. Treaty of Paris (1763), i., 27. Triton, The. See Lutridge. Trois Rivieres. See Three Rivers. Troup, Colonel, ii., 500, 503; Gates's aide-de-camp, ii., 509 ; to Gates, Remark CXI. Trumbull, Chaplain, i., 444; on the Amer., i., 471; on Wooster, ii., 45; on the treatment of Conn, men by Schuyler, 47. Trumbull, John, i., 493. Trumbull, Jonathan, i., 118, 192, 258, 304, 33^' 429; ii., 42, 424. 445i page from his memorandum -book, i., 176; negotiates with N. Y. for tents, 253; on the Ind. question, 287; warned, 288; portrait, 435; signature, 440; receives complaints about Schuyler, ii., 46-47; on the tragic news from Quebec, 168; raises a regiment for Can,, 169; on the losses in the Can. campaign. Remark CV. Tryon, William, i., 114, 421; ii., 52, 53, 249; to the Brit. Secretary of State, i., 432; on the tragic news from Quebec, ii., 167, 168; said to have urged gunsmiths to leave the country, 1 90 ; signature , 191; in fluences the Canad, against the Amer., 215-16, 228. Index of Persons, Places, and Subjects 633 u United States, The, ii., 566; Dec laration of Independence, ii., 4<;7- 55»; proposed co-operation of France with, 521; their attitude towaid the new northern exped., 554-56; attitude of France toward, 562; of Spain, 262: Hartley, on the recogni tion of her independence, 566; C^an. not essential to, 569; the growth of her share of Can., 571 See also Revolution, American The. Ursuline Convent, The (Quebec), ii., 2.; picture, 285. Valcour Island, ii., 463. Van Cortland, Philip, i., 257. Varennes, ii., 438. Varick, Richard, ii., 498. Vassall House, i., 493 and note 3; picture, 495. Vaudreuil, Marquis de, i., 22. Vergennes, Comte de, ii., 554. Vermont, i. , 105, 113: exped. to, i,, 121-28; troubles of, with N. Y. 153 and note 19. See also Green Mt. Boys. Villemarie. See Montreal. Vose, Daniel, i., 86; ii., 376, 396. Voyer, Colonel, ii., 98. W Walker, Thomas, i., 217, 233, 388, 480; ii., 311; merchant of Montreal, i., 38, 40; described, 40; outraged, 43~45; petitions for Assembly, 57; on the Quebec Act, 68; receives copies of Cong.'s letter, 102; in a political meeting, 103 ; from his letter to S. Adams, 201-02 ; dis cusses politics, 203; advice to Brit, merchants, 206 ; his letter from Arnold, 211; picture of his house, 216; on the relation of the Colonies to Can,, 216; on the helplessness of the habitants , 223; arrested, .395-98; freed, 490 ; probably influences Wooster, ii., 232; goes to Phila- adelphia, 235; on Thomas's retreat. Remark LXXXIV. ; protests against the favors of C)ong. to the Tories, 342-43 and note 24; from his letter to S. Adams, 344 and Remark LXXXVI. ; accuses the Commrs. of Congress, 355; opposes the reopening of Ind. traffic in Can., 364; quotes the Commrs. of Cong., 494. Walker, Mrs. Thomas, i., 480; in the Walker outrage, i., 43; before Carle ton, 396; on her husband's arrest, 396-97 ; accuses the Commrs. of Congress, ii., 353, 355. Wampum, picture, i., 360. Ward, Govemor, prophesies the in dependence of the Colonies, ii,. 50- 51; on the fluctuating measures of Cong., 62; in Congress, 170, 176. Ward, Samuel, ii., 32, 125; at the Great Carrying -place, i,, 547-48; helps rescue Dearborn's and Good rich's men, 581; portrait, ii., 100. Warner, Seth, i., 178; in Ticon deroga exped. , i. , 12 6-40 ; with Sunderland captures Crown Pt., 144; after its capture, 229-30; lieut. col. of Green Mt. Boys, 255, on Ind. question, 287, 288; blamed, 387 ; portion of a letter of, 391 ; vic torious at Longueuil, 449, 452-55: asked to recruit another force of Green Mt. Boys, 162, 166; disap points Wooster, 196. Warren, James, ii., 298. Warren, Joseph, i., 12, 90, 119, 173; a fascinating type, i., 3; speaks on the Boston Massacre, 3; in meeting of the Boston Committee of Corre spondence, 4-7; portrait, 5; mem ber of Committee of Safety, 94; responds to contribution from Montreal, 99; letter of, to Montreal 105; on the capture of Ticonderoga, 140; signature, 173; on war with Can., 239; on the desire of the Colonies for union with Gt. Britain, ii., 52; on the effect of cutting off the trade of Gt. Britam with the Colonies, 57. Washington, (>eorge, i., 35, 270, 292, 416, 429, 506, 550; ii., 106, 240; on the siege of St. Johns, i., 432; at headquarters, 493 ; sympathizes with Amold, 495-96; lays before Arnold and Schuyler the plan of the Kennebec exped., 499 ; de scribes its route to Cong., 505-06; from his letter of instructions to Colbum, 508; quells a riot, 513; orders Arnold's troops to move, 515; investigates safety of coast tor Arnold, 517; hears from Arnold of Natanis, 527; Arnold's situation reported to, 550; his manifesto to the Canad., 598-99, 600; conditions he imposed on Arnold, 603 ; his calm advice when Schuyler com plains, ii., 44; his position logical, 64; on the N. Y. Cong., 67; hopeful. forthe Quebec campaign, 85; not a man to spare' for Amold, 167; calls for three new regiments, 167; sees the lesson of the Quebec disaster, 168-69; directed by Cong, to send a battalion to Can., 176; still hopeful for the Can. campaign, 189; suggests canvass for woollens, 190; favors sending Lee to Can., 206-07 ; his opinion of Wooster, 229; orders Arnold to pay Canad. full value, 235; as to the difficulty of disciplining troops, 309; on the 634 Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony Washington. — Continued. importance of the Canad. cam paign, 390; reassured by Sullivan, 400, 401; recommends taking post on the lower St. Lawrence, 406; sur prised at the verbal report of the Commrs. of Cong,, 424; opposition to, 475—82; does not approve of the Canad. campaign, J^an., 1778, 486; but refuses to pass judgment on it, 511; though he may have influenced the Committee of Cong., 511; directed to recaU Lafayette and Kalb, 513; on Schuyler's scheme for gaining Lake Champlain, 515; takes up a new plan for invading Can, 5 2 0-2 1 from his letter to Cong,, 544; his arguments against Lafayette's plan for invading Can. (Oct., 1778), 545—49; as submitted to Cong., 545-4S; to Pres. Laurens, 548-49 ; does not dismiss aU thoughts of Can. , 551; from his letter to Lafayette, 555; in 1780 renews the idea of invading Can., 557; consults Rochambeau and Ternay, 558; and drops the plan, 558; proposes to Luzerne a joint invasion of Can., 559; has Can. in mind, 1782, 564; portrait, 567. Waterbury, David, sent to "Ticon deroga, i., 255; moves north, 320; at St. Johns, 333-34; leaves Nut Island to take Brit, schooner, 362; fails to capture schooner, 366 and note 37;. at St. Johns, 463; at Montreal, 474. Watson, Brook, i., 305-07, 448, 469. Wayne, Anthony, ii. 393; leads a regiment to Can., ii., 390; to his wife, 391; signature, 392; delayed at Albany, 391-93; to St. Johns, 393-94 and note 8; hopeful of the fall of Quebec, 394; in Thompson's exped. to Three Rivers, 403 ; drives back the Brit, regulars, 407-08; por trait, 409; in the retreat, 413-14; at Sorel again, 416; gathers a corps to relieve Amold, 440; on the danger of committing the command of the northern exped. to Lafayette, 495 and Remark CIX. Wedderburn, Alex., i., 48; portrait, 58; against optional jury for the Brit. -Canad., 65. Weisenfels, Captain, i., 446, Welsh, David, i., 262—63. West Indies, The, how supplied by Can., ii., 566. Wheelock, Eleazar, founds Dart mouth College, i., 279; friend of the Ind., 280; portrait, 2S5; fears the Ind., 287-88; signature, ii., 290; troubled over the loss of his St. Francis Ind., 471. Wheelock, John, to be Bedel's Lieut. -CIol., ii., 473; his difficulty in eetting provisions, 500; to inform rates as to the road to C)an., 519, Whitcomb, Major, ii., 473 ; as a. Canad. spy, 530. 533- Wilkins, Captain, ii., 371. Wilkinson, James, at Lachine, ii., 376; portrait, 431; sent by Amold with despatches to SuUivan, 438; charges Amold with seizure of goods. Remark CIII. ; notifies Arnold the British are at Varennes, 438; finds Sullivan, and gets aid for Arnold, 439-40; in the evacuation of St. Johns, 441. Williams, Captain, i., 431, 566. *' Winsor, Justin, i., 81. Woedtke, Baron de, his letter to Schuyler, ii., 302; sent north with the Commrs., 333', appHes for ad vanced post at Deschambault, 398- 99 ; Wilkinson's vain search for, 439~4o. Wolfe, James, i., 24, 401 ; ii., 25 ; portrait, i., 41. Wolfe's Cove, ii., 315; Amold at, ii,, 24-25; picture, 26. Wood Creek, i., 147, 148. Wool, Captain, shells Quebec, ii. , 101; repulses the Brit., 149. Wooster, David, i., 418; ii., 50, 316; sent by Conn, to N. Y,, i., 255; at St. Johns, 457. 463; his grievance, ii., 45; protests against being imder N, Y. orders, 67; receives word of disaster at Quebec, 160; his difficul ties at Montreal, 160-61; proposes securing Montreal for a retreat, 161 ; his measures to help Amold, 162 ; receives money from the Conti nental treasury, 189 and Remark LXIX.; mischievous passage from his letter to Cong., 216 and note 19; on the influence of the Cath. priests, 217; forces men to serve after their term of service, 221; his quarrel with Schuyler, (45), 222-25; por trait, 224; orders captains of the mUitia to resign, 227; exUes Tories from the province, 229; low es - timates of, 229-30; his defence for discharging soldiers, 230; sketch of, 230—32 and note 29; signature, 231; his blunders, 232-34 and Remark LXX.; arbitary treatment of the Canad., 232; his proclamation after the Quebec disaster, 232-33; brutal treatment of Judge rraser, 233 ; attitude toward the clergy, 233-34; arrives at Quebec, 255; supersedes Amold, 256; lets out the secret of the fire-ship, 264; from his letter to McNeill, 268; displaced by Thomas. 300 ; ordered to reconnoitre the St. Lawrence, 307 and Remark LXXIX.; angered at appointment of Thomas, 314; prompt to retreat, 317; opposes making a stand at Deschambault, 345; neglects the Ind., 362; fears a Brit.-Ind. league against Montreal, 362-63; succeeds Index of Persons, Places, and Subjects 63: Wooster — Continued. Thomas, 387; Commrs, advise his recall, 387. See also Remark LXXXIII. Yale College, i., 93; students of, enrolled under Arnold, 118. Yankee, The, i., 469. York (Pa.), Cong, sits at, ii., 481-83, 487. Yorkers, The, at Ticonderoga, i., 256; the N, Y,-Conn. jealousies among, 262-63; ii., 45-47; agree to re-enlist, 50 and Remark LXXXI.; sketch of their chief officers at Quebec, 115-16; under Montg, in the assault on Quebec, 140-43; retreat under Campbell 143; criticised by Conn, men, 152- 53 and note 5; reported mutiny among, 310-11. Yorktown, ii., 558. Young, Captain, ii,, 374. Young, Thomas, i., 3, 85, 389. Zedtwitz, Major, i,, 421; ii., 116. 2938 n