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A
CONCISE HISTORY
AMERICAN PEOPLE,
/
FROM THE DISCOVERIES OF THE CONTINENT
TO THE PRESENT TIME.
JACOB HARRIS PATTON, A.M.,
Author of " Yorktown, 1781 — 1881 ;" "The Natural Resources of the
United Slates, " etc.
jWustratrtr
WITH ABOUT ONE HUNDRED PORTRAITS, CHARTS, MAPS, ETC.,
AND CONTAINING MARGINAL DATES, STATISTICAL REFERENCES,
AND A FULL ANALYTICAL INDEX.
Vol. I.
NEW YORK:
Fords, Howard. & Hulbert.
f auu 8 1972
V Qf tf$
$>.
Copyright, 1882, by
FORDS, HOWARD & HULBERT
V.I
PREFACE.
Elaborate histories of the United States have been ably
written, while compends and school histories — well adapted
to the place they are designed to fill — are numerous. Be-
tween these compends and the works extending from four
to twelve volumes there is necessity, as well as room, for a
history that shall be sufficiently elaborate to trace the
direct influences that have had effect in moulding the
character of the Nation and its institutions, moral and
political — one that treats more fully of the "Inner Life"
of the American people, and so constructed that the reader
can obtain a clear conception of the forces that have made
the Nation what it is. In accordance with this view, the
present work is designed to present, as fully as is consistent
with such a plan, those events which are interesting in
themselves and characteristic of the times and people.
While the author has availed himself as much as possible
of original authorities, and acknowledges his obligations to
the many elaborate United States and State histories, his
main effort has been to set forth our story in his own
language, wrought into a consecutive narrative, confining
himself to the true elements of history — that is, only to
those events and principles that have had influence;
making, as occasion requires, an informal summary of the
less important facts or events, in order to keep perfect the
11 PREFACE.
thread of the narrative. Among the motive forces, due
recognition has been given to the influence of moral truths
derived from the Bible, in leading the people to cherish
liberty of speech, free institutions, and the general educa-
tion of their children.
The reader has no reason to quarrel with the facts of
History; but it is his privilege and duty to deduce from
them his own inferences. In these latter days public docu-
ments are published to the world; thus the materials for
writing history become accessible. By this means the
leading facts of the late Civil War are as well known
to-day as they ever will be. Some incidents and complica-
tions in the careers of individuals will be revealed only
when the "Life and Times" of each comes to be written.
This latter class of material, unfortunately often largely
embellished and explained by, perhaps, unconscious apolo-
gies and after-thoughts, may throw light upon personal
motives and actions, but will shed little upon the great
events themselves. For in the late exciting period states-
men groped their way; no man saw the end from the
beginning. An overruling Hand brought about the great
result, not by the plannings of men, but in spite of them.
It is hoped that the intelligent reader will find in these
volumes a succinct as well as a comprehensive view of the
history of the American people, and of the influential
elements that have gone to form their characteristics and
their Government.
J. H. P.
New York City, July 1, 1882.
CONTENTS.
VOLUME I.
CHAPTER I.
COLUMBUS.
His Discoveries, 34. Misfortunes — Death, 37. Amerigo Vespucci
and the name America, 38.
CHAPTER II.
ABORIGINES.
CHAPTER III.
SPANISH DISCOVERIES AND CONQUESTS.
South Sea — First Voyage Round the World, 43. Ponce de Leon.
44. Florida, Discovery and Attempt to Settle, 44. Vasquez de
Ayllon, 45. Conquest of Mexico and Peru, 46.
CHAPTER IV.
ENGLISH AND FRENCH DISCOVERIES.
John Cabot discovers the American Continent, 47. His son, Sebas-
tian, 48. Voyages of Verrazzani, 49. Voyages of Cartier, 50.
Attempts at Settlement, 52.
CHAPTER V.
DE SOTO AND THE MISSISSIPPI.
Lands at Tampa Bay, 55. On the Mississippi, 57. Death of De
Soto, 58
CHAPTER VI.
THE REFORMATION AND ITS EFFECTS.
CHAPTER VII.
THE HUGUENOTS IN THE SOUTH.
Their Settlement destroyed, 62, 63. The Colony of St. Augustine,
64. De Gourges, 66. Settlements in New France, 67. Cham-
plain, and his Success, 68.
iii
IT CONTENTS.
CHAPTER VIII.
ENGLISH ENTERPRISE.
Sir Humphrey Gilbert, 70. The Fisheries— St. John's, Newfound-
land, 71. Sir Walter Raleigh, 71. Exploring Expedition-
Virginia, 72. Failures to colonize, 73. Contest with Spain, 74.
Death of Sir Walter, 75.
CHAPTER IX.
THE SETTLEMENT OF VIRGINIA.
London and Plymouth Companies, 78. King James's Laws, 78. The
Voyage and Arrival — Jamestown, 79. John Smith; his energy,
79. His Captivity, 81. Misery of the Colonists, 82. New Emi-
grants, 83. Lord Delaware, 84. Sir Thomas Gates, 85. Poca-
hontas; her Capture and Marriage, 86. George Yeardley, 87.
First Legislative Assembly, 88.
CHAPTER X.
COLONIZATION OF NEW ENGLAND.
First Voyage to, 89. Explorations of John Smith, 90. The Church
of England. 91. The Puritans, 92. Congregation of John Rob-
inson, 93. Pilgrims in Holland, 94. Arrangements to Emigrate,
95. The Voyage, 97. Their prominent Men, 98. A Constitu-
tion adopted, 99. Landing at Plymouth, 100. Sufferings —
Indians. 101. Weston's Men, 103. Thanksgiving, 104. Dem-
ocratic Government, 105.
CHAPTER XI.
COLONY OF MASSACHUSETTS BAT.
A Company organized: Settlement of Salem, 107. The Charter
transferred." 108. Boston and Vicinity settled, 109. Rosier
Williams: his Banishment: he founds Providence, 110. Dis-
cussions renewed — Anne Hutchinson: Settlement of Rhode
Island, 112, 113. The Dutch at Hartford; Disputes with, 113.
Migrations to the Connecticut; Hooker and Haynes, 114.
Pequod War, 116. Rev. John Davenport: Settlement of New
Haven, 120. Sir Ferdinand Gorges; New Hampshire, 121. The
United Colonies, 122. Educated Men; Harvard College, Print-
ins: Press, Common Schools, 123. Quakers: Persecution of, 124.
Eliot the Apostle— the Mayhews. 125. 126. Inner Life of the
Colonists, 126. The Tithing Man, 127. The title of Mr., 128.
Progress, 129.
CHAPTER XII.
VIRGINIA AND MARYLAND.
Slavery — Massacre by the Indians, 130. Kin <r James's Sympathies,
131. Lord Baltimore, 133. Settlement of Maryland, 134. Clay-
CONTENTS. V
borne's Rebellion, 135. Toleration — Berkeley, Governor of
Virginia, intolerance, 136. State of Society, 137. Aristocratic
Assembly, 138. War witb the Susquehannas — Nathaniel Bacon,
139. Disturbances, Obnoxious Assembly dissolved, 140. James-
town burned; Death of Bacon, 141. Tyranny of Berkeley;
Aristocratic Assembly; its Illiberal Acts, 142. Deplorable state
of the Colony, 143. College of William and Mary, 144. Troub-
les in Maryland, 145
CHAPTER XIII.
COLONIZATION OF NEW YORK.
Hudson's Discoveries, 146. A Change wrought, 147. The Fort on
the Isle of Manhattan, 148. Walloons— the first Settlers— Peter
Minuits, 149. The Patroons; Van Twiller Governor, 150.
Kieft his Successor, 151. Difficulties with the Indians, 152.
They seek Protection; their Massacre, 153. Peace concluded,
156. Stuyvesant Governor, 157. The Swedish Settlement on
the Delaware; Pavonia, 158. New Netherlands Surrendered to
England, 160. The Influence of the Dutch, 161. Settlements
in New Jersey; Scotch Presbyterians, 163.
CHAPTER XIV.
COLONIZATION OP PENNSYLVANIA.
The Quakers, 164. William Penn; his Education, 165. Obtains a
Charter, 167. Lands at New Castle; Philadelphia Founded, 168.
Rights of the Indians, 169. German Emigrants, 170. Fletcher
the Royal Governor, 171. New Charter granted the People —
Presbyterians from Ireland and Scotland, 172. Trials of Penn;
his Death — Benjamin Franklin, 173.
CHAPTER XV.
COLONIZATION OF THE CAROLINAS.
The first Settlers, 175. Grants to Royal Favorites— The "Grand
Model," 176. Settlement at Cape Fear River — Sir John Yea-
mans. 177. Emigrants under Sayle, 178. The Huguenots, 179.
The People Independent, 180. Churchmen and Dissenters, 181.
Rice — Manufactures prohibited, 182. War — Failure to capture
St. Augustine, 183. The ruin of the Apalachees, 184. Religious
Controversies, 185. German Emigrants, 186. Indian Wars, 187.
The People repudiate the Authority of the Proprietaries, 189.
CHAPTER XVI.
COLONIZATION OF GEORGIA.
Founded in Benevolence — Oglethorpe, 190. First Imigration, 191.
Savannah — Encouragements. 192. Germans from the Western
Alps, 193. The Moravians — Scotch Highlanders, 195. TheWes-
leys— Whitefield; his Orphan House, 196. War with Spain, its
\1 CONTENTS.
Cause, 197. Failure to capture St. Augustine, 193. Repulse of
the Spanish Invaders, 199. The Colony becomes a Royal Prov-
ince, 200.
CHAPTER XVII.
NEW ENGLAND UNDER CHARLES IL AND JAMES 1L
The Restoration, 201. The Commissioners— Progress of Trade, 202.
Causes of King Philip's War, 203. Death of Wamsutta, 204
State of the Colony— Attack at Swanzey, 205. Philip among
the Nipmucks, 206. Attacks on Northneld— on Hadley, Goffe,
207. Tragedy at Bloody Brook— The Narraganset Fort destroyed,
208. Philip returns to Mount Hope to die, 209. The Disasters
of the War, 210. James II.— his Intolerance, 211. The Char-
ters in Danger— Andros Governor— his Illegal Measures, 212.
Charter of Rhode Island taken away— Andros at Hartford, 213.
Andros in Jail; the Charters resumed, 214. The Men of influ-
ence, 215.
CHAPTER XVIII.
COMMOTION IN NEW YORK — WITCHCRAFT IN MASSACHUSETTS.
Leisler acting Governor of New York, 216. The Old Council re-
fuses to yield — Sloughter, Governor, 217. Trial and Execution
of Leisler and Melbourne, 218. Benjamin Fletcher, Governor;
his failure at Hartford, 219. Yale College. 220. The Triumph
of a Free Press, 221. Witchcraft; belief in, 222. Cotton
Mather, 223. Various Persons accused at Salem, 224. Stough-
ton as Judge, and Parris as Accuser, 225. Minister Burroughs,
226. Calef's Pamphlet, 227. Mather's stand in favor of Inocu-
lation, 228. Persons put to death as Witches in England and
Scotlaud, 229. The humane Penal Laws in New England, 230.
Land Holding in New England, 231. The effect of the Revolu-
tion of 1688, 233. Land Holding in Virginia, 234. Education
in Virginia, 235. Management of Civil Affairs, 236. Literary
Culture in the Middle Colonies and Newspapers, 237. The inner
Life in New England and Virginia, 239.
CHAPTER XIX.
MISSIONS AND SETTLEMENTS IN NEW FRANCE.
The Immigrants, 240. The Jesuits; their zeal as Teachers and Ex-
plorers, 241. The Chief Ahasistari, 242 The Five Nations, or
Iroquois, 243. Father Jogues, 244. The Abenakis; Dreuilettes,
245. French Settlers at Oswesro — Father Allouez, 246. James
Marquette— The Mississippi, 247. La Salle, 248. His Enter-
prise; his failure and Tragical End, 250.
CHAPTER XX.
MARAUDING EXPEDITIONS; SETTLEMENT OF LOUISIANA ; CAPTURE OF
LOUISBURG.
Mohawks hostile to the French. 252. Dover attacked: Major Wal-
dron, 253. Schenectady burned — the inhuman. Frontenac. 254.
The Colonists act for themselves — Invasion of Canada, 255.
CONTENTS. VII
Heroism of Hannah Dustin, 256. Deerfield taken; Eunice Will-
iams, 257. D'lbberville plants a Colony on the Pascagoula, 259.
Trading Posts on the Illinois and the Mississippi, 260. The
Choctaws, 261. Destruction of the Natchez, 262. Attempts to
subdue the Ohickasaws, 263. King George's War; Capture of
Louisburg, 264. The English Ministry alarmed, 266. Jonathan
Edwards — The "Great Revival," 267. Princeton College, 268.
CHAPTER XXI.
FRENCH AND INDIAN WAR.
The Valley of the Ohio— French and English Claimants, 269. Gist,
the Pioneer, 270. George Washington, 271. His Character —
His Mission to the French on the Alleghany, 273. St. Pierre's
Letter unsatisfactory, 275. Fort du Quesne built — Washington
sent to defend the Frontiers, 276. The first Conflict of the N^ar
—Fort Necessity, 277. British Troops arrive in America, 278.
Plan of Operations — General Braddock, 279. The Army on the
March — Captain Jack, 2S0. The Battle of Monongahela, 282.
Death and Burial of Braddock, 284. Dunbar's Panic — The
Effects of these Events, 285.
CHAPTER XXII.
FRENCH AND INDIAN WAR — CONTINUED.
The French Acadiens, 288. Their Industry and good Morals. 289.
Their Mournful .Exile, 290. Expedition against Crown Point,
292. The English defeated— Death of Colonel Williams, 293.
Repulse of the French— Death of Dieskau— Williams College,
294. Kittanins: destroved, 295. Montcalm Acts with Energy,
297. Fort William Henry taken, 298. Canada Exhausted, 299.
CHAPTER XXIII.
FRENCH AND INDIAN WAR — CONTINUED.
William Pitt, Prime Minister. 300. Lord Amherst— Plan of Opera-
tions—Louisburg captured, 301. English repulsed— Fort Fron-
tenac captured. 302 Washington takes Possession of Fort du
Quesne. 303. Pittsburg, 304. The French abandon Ticonde-
roga, 305. Wolfe before Quebec, 306. The Battle on the Heights
of Abraham. 308. Deaths of Wolfe and Montcalm— their Mem-
ories, 309. Quebec Canitulates— Cherokee War, 310. Destruc-
tion of their Crops and Villages, 312. Ponliac, 313. Desolations
along the Frontiers, 314. "General Bouquet, 315. Pontiac's
Death, 316.
CHAPTER XXIV.
CHARACTERISTICS OF THE COLONISTS.
Religious Influences among the early Settlers. 317. Love of domestic
Life, 318. Laws enjoining Morality, 319. Systems of Educa-
VI 11 CONTEXTS.
tion; Common Schools, 320. Free Inquiry and Civil Liberty,
321. John Calvin — The Anglo-Saxon Element; the ISormuu,
322. The Southerner; the .Northerner — Influences in Pennsyl-
vania, 323. In New York — Diversity of Ancestry, 324.
CHAPTER XXV.
CAUSES THAT LED TO THE REVOLUTION.
Restrictions on Trade and Manufactures — Taxes Imposed by Parlia-
ment, 326. Writs of Assistance, 327. James Otis— Samuel
Adams, 328. The " Parsons' " Case in Virginia — Patrick Henry,
329. Colonel Barre's Speech— The Stamp Act, 331. Excite-
ment in the Colonies — Resolutions not to use Stamps, 333. " Sous
of Liberty," 334. A Call for a Congress; it Meets, 335. S< lf-
Denial ot the Colonists— Pitt defends them, 388. Stamp Act re-
pealed—Rejoicings, 337. Dartmouth College, 338.
CHAPTER XXVI.
CAUSES THAT LED TO THE REVOLUTION — CONTINUED.
The English Ministry determine to obtain a Revenue. 339. Massa-
chusetts invites to harmonious Action, 340. The Sloop Liberty
— A British Regiment at Boston, 341. Collision with the Citizens
— Articles of Association proposed by Washington, 342. Tax
upon Tea, 343. The Gaspc captured, 344. The Resolutions not
to receive the Tea, 345. Tea Thrown into Boston Harbor— Its
Reception at other Places, 347. Boston Pqrt Bill — Aid Sent to
Boston. 348. Gage's Difficulties, 349. Alexander Hamilton,
350. The Old Continental Congress— The first Prayer, 351. The
Papers issued by the Congress, 353. Views of Pitt in relation to
them, 354.
CHAPTER XXVIL
BEGINNING OF THE REVOLUTION.
The Spirit of the People, 355. They seize Guns and Ammunition, 356.
The Massachusetts Provincial Congress; its Measures, 357. The
Restraining Bill. 358. Conflicts at Lexington and Concord, 359.
Volunteers fly to Arms, and Beleaguer Boston — Stark — Putnam,
S61. Benedict Arnold — Ethan Allen, and the Green Mountain
Boys. 362. Capture of Ticonderoga, 363. Lord Dunmore in
Virginia — Henry and the Independent Companies, 364. The
News from Lexington rouses a Spirit of Resistance, 365. The
Second Continental Congress, 367. Its Measures, 368. Adopts the
Armv, before Boston, and appoints Washington Commander-in-
Chief, 369.
CHAPTER XXVIH.
THE WAR OF THE REVOLUTION.
Battle of Bunker Hill. 372. Death of Warren— Generals Charles
Lee and Philip Schuyler, 377. State of Affairs in New York—
CONTENTS. IX
Sir William Johnson, 378. Condition of the Army, 379. Nathaniel
Greene — Morgan and his Riflemen, 380. Wauts of the Army,
381. Expedition against Canada, 382. Richard Montgomery-
Allen's Rash Adventure, 383. Montreal captured— Arnold's toil-
some March to Quebec, 384. That place besieged, 385. Failure
to Storm the Town— Death of Montgomery, 386. Arnold in bis
icy Fortress, 387.
CHAPTER XXIX.
WAR OP THE REVOLUTION— CONTINUED.
Meeting of Congress— Alarming evils. 388. Portland burned— Efforts
to defend the Coast, 389. Parliament resolves to crush the
Rebels, 390. Henry Kuox, 391. Provincial Prejudices— Suc-
cess of the Privateers; British Theatricals; Union Flag, 393.
Affairs in New York— Rivington's Gazette, 394. Governor
Tryon— General Lee in the City, 395. Dunmore's Measures-
Norfolk burned, 396. Defeat of North Carolina Tories, 397.
Cannon and powder obtained, 398. Dorchester Heights fortified
—Boston evacuated, 400. Washington in New York, 402.
Numerous Disasters — Retreat from Canada, 403. Horatio Gates,
404. A British Fleet before Fort Moultrie, 405. Stonny Pros-
pects, 407.
CHAPTER XXX.
WAR OF THE REVOLUTION — CONTINUED.
Independence, Influences in favor of, 409. The Tories — Common
Sense, 410. The Declaration ; its Reception by the People and
Army, 412. Arrival of Admiral Howe, 413. His Overtures.
414. The American Army — Sectional Jealousies, 415. The
Clintons, 416. Battle of Long Island, 417. The Masterly Re-
treat, 420. Incidents, 421. Howe confers with a Committee of
Congress, 422. Nathan Hale, 423. The British at Kipp's Bav,
424. New York Evacuated, 425. Conflict at White Plains,
426. Loss of Fort Washington, 428. Retreat across New Jersey,
429. Waywardness of Lee, 430.
CHAPTER XXXI.
WAR OF THE REVOLUTION — CONTINUED.
Discouragements— Howe's Proclamation, 431. Affairs on Lake
Champlain, 432. Heroism of Arnold, 433. Capture of Lee,
435. Battle of Trenton, 437. Battle of Princeton, 443. Death
of Mercer, 444. Washington returns to Morristown, 445. Corn-
wallis in his lines at Brunswick, 445. Putnam at Princeton,
446. Ill-treatment of American Prisoners, 447. Appointment
of General Officers— Medical Department. 448. The Navy, 449.
Expeditions — Peekskill — Dan bury, 449. Death of Wooster— Re-
taliation at Sag Harbor, 451. Schuyler and .Gates, 452. The
National Flag, 453.
X CONTENTS.
CHAPTER XXm
WAB OP THE REVOLUTION— CONTINUED.
The Interest taken in England and France, 454. Privateers fitted
out in Prance, 455. Munitions of War, 456. Howe's Manoeuvres,
457. Burgoyne on his way from Canada, 457. Ticonderoga
captured, 458. St. Clair's retreat, 459. Capture of General
Prescott, 460. The Secret Expedition — Germantown, 461.
Lafayette, Pulaski and Kosciusko, 462. Aid sent to Schuyler —
Howe lands at Elkton, 464. Battle of Brandywine, 465. Phila-
delphia taken possession of, 468. Battle of Gennantown, 469.
Hessians repulsed at Fort Mercer, 470. Winter at4 Valley Forge,
471.
CHAPTER XXXIII.
WAR OP THE REVOLUTION — CONTINUED.
Invasion from Canada — Appointment of General Gates, 472. Jenny
McCrea, 473. St. Leger besieges Fort Stanwix, 474. The At-
tempt to relieve it, 475. Battle of Bennington, 476. Change of
Prospects, 477. Battle of Behmus's Heights, 478. Ticonderoga
besieged, 479. Burgoyne surrenders his Army at Saratoga, 480.
The Prisoners — Capture of Forts on the Hudson, 482. Schuyler,
483.
CHAPTER XXXIV.
WAR OP THE REVOLUTION — CONTINUED.
Sufferings at Valley Forge, 484. England disappointed — Concilia-
tory Measures of Parliament, 485. The War presses hard upon
the American people, 486. Difficulties in Congress, 487. The
"Conway Cabal," 488. Baron Steuben, 490. Attempt to in-
crease the army, 491. Exchange of Lee ; his Treason, 492. Treaty
with France — British Commissioners, 493. Battle of Monmouth,
494. Misconduct of Lee, 495. His death. 496. Combined at-
tack upon Newport fails, 497. Massacre at Wyoming — at Cherry
Valley, 498. Invasion of Georgia, 500.
CHAPTER XXXV.
WAR OF THE REVOLUTION — CONTINUED.
Dissensions in Congress, 501. Expedition against the Indians, 502.
The War in the South, 503. Marauding Expeditions sent to Vir-
ginia, and up the Hudson — Tryon ravages Connecticut, 504.
Wayne captures Stony Point, 505. Lee surprises the Garrison
at Jersey City — Combined assault upon Savannah, 506. Daniel
Boon, 507. George Rogers Clarke; Kaskaskia — Pioneers of
Tennessee ; Nashville, 508. John Paul Jones, 509.
CHAPTER XXXVI.
WAR OF THE REVOLUTION — CONTINUED.
Hardships of the Soldiers, 510. British Success at the South. 511.
Colonel Tarleton, 512. Charleston capitulates — Defeat at Wax
CONTENTS. XI
haws, 513. Rev. James Caldwell, 514. Maraud into Jersey,
515. French Fleet at Newport — The Partisan Leaders in the
South, 516. Gates in Command — Disastrous Battle of Camden,
518. Death of De Kalb, 519. Sumter's Success and Defeat, 520.
The Treason of Arnold — Major Andre, 521. Movements of
Cornwallis, 523. Colonel Ferguson — The Battle of King's
Mountain, 524. Tarleton repulsed, 526. Green in command —
British triumphant in the South — Affairs in Europe, 527. Henry
Laurens — Dangers of England; her Energy, 528.
CHAPTER XXXVII.
WAR OF THE REVOLUTION — CONTINUED.
The Spirit of Revolt among the Soldiers, 530. Arnold ravages the
Shores of Chesapeake, 532. Battle of the Cowpens, 533. Mor-
gan retreats; Cornwallis pursues, 535. Green marches South —
Lee scatters the Tories, 537. Battle of Guildford Court-House,
538. Conflict at Hobkirk's Hill, 539. The Execution of Hayne,
540. Battle of Eutaw Springs, 541. Plans to Capture New
York, 542. Wayne's Daring at James River, 543. National
Finances — Robert Morris, 544. Clinton deceived — Combined
Armies beyond the Delaware, 545. French Fleet in the Chesa-
peake, 546. New London burned, 547. The Attack, 548. Corn-
wallis Surrenders, 549. Thanksgiving, 550. Number of Sol-
diers furnished, 551.
CHAPTER XXXVIII.
CLOSING EVENTS OF THE WAR — FORMATION OF THE CONSTITUTION
British Efforts Paralyzed, 552. The States form independent Gov
ernments — Indian Wars, 553. Massacre of the Christian Dela-
wares — Battle of the Blue Lick, 554. Lord North — Commission-
ers of Peace, 555. Peace concluded — Dissatisfaction in the
American Army, 556. The "Anonymous Address," 557. British
Prisoners; the Tories, 558. Disband ment of the Army — Wash-
ington takes leave of his Officers, 559. Resigns his Commission,
560. Shay's Rebellion, 562. Interests of the States clash, 563.
The Constitutional Convention, 564. The Constitution — its Rati-
fication, 565. The Territory North-west of the Ohio, 566. Ec-
clesiastical Organizations, 567. Fathers of the Republic, 570.
CHAPTER XXXIX.
WASHINGTON'S ADMINISTRATION.
Reception and Inauguration of the President, 572. Ah Era in human
Progress, 573. The Departments of State organized, 574. Hamil-
ton's Financial Report, 575. Congress Assumes the Debts of the
Nation — National Bank, 576. Commercial Enterprise — Mann
facturers, 577. Indian War, 578. St. Clair defeated, 579.
Wayne defeats the Indians, 580. Political Parties — Jefferson,
581. The French Revolution, 582. Genet arrives as French
Xii CONTENTS.
Minister — Neutrality proclaimed by the President — Democratic
Societies, 583. The Partisans of France — Recall of Genet, 584.
The first Settlers of Western Pennsylvania, 585. The Whiskey
Insurrection, 586. Special Mission to Great Britain, 587. A
Treaty concluded, 588. Other Treaties, 589. Washington's
Farewell Address, 590.
CHAPTER XL.
JOHN ADAMS'S ADMINISTRATION.
Serious Aspect of Relations with France, 591. Commissioners of
Peace, 592. The French Cruisers, 593. The Alien Act— War
impending, 594. Washington Commander-in-Chief — Capture of
the Frigate LTnsurgente, 595. Peace concluded — Death of
Washington, 596. Eulogiums on his Character, 597. The City
of Washington becomes the Seat of Government, 598.
VOLUME II.
CHAPTER XLI.
JEFFERSON'S ADMINISTRATION.
The President's Inaugural, 559. Purchase of Louisiana, 600. Pi-
rates in the Mediterranean, 601. Burning of the Philadelphia,
602. Tripoli Bombarded, 603. Death of Hamilton, 604. Aaron
Burr, 605. Opposition to the Navy — Gunboats, 606. The Rights
of Neutrals, 607. Impressment of American Seamen, 608.
Treaty with England rejected — Affair of the Chesapeake, 610.
The Embargo; its effect, 612. The Embargo repealed, 614.
CHAPTER XLII.
MADISON'S ADMINISTRATION.
Condition of the Countiy — Erskine's Negotiations, 615. Depreda-
tions upon American Commerce — The Rambouillet Decree, 617.
Affair of the Little Belt, 618. Indian Troubles — Tecumseh and
the Prophet, 619. Battle of Tippecanoe, 621. The Twelfth
Congress — Henry Clay — John C. Calhoun, 622. Foreign Rela-
tions, 623 Debates in Congress — John Randolph. 624. An-
other Embargo. 627. War declared against Great Britain, 628.
West Point, 629. Riots at Baltimore, 630. Operations in the
Northwest, 631. Surrender of Hull, 632. Impressment of
American Seamen, 632. American Ships in English Ports, 633.
Failures to Invade Canada, 634. Missionary Societies, 636.
CHAPTER XLin.
MADISON'S ADMINISTRATION — CONTINUED.
Vessels of the Navy, 637. The chase of the Constitution — Capture
of the Alert, 638. The Guerriere— Incidents, 639. The Mace-
CONTENTS. Xlil
donian— The Frolic— The Java, G40. The effects of these Naval
Conflicts in the United States and England, 641. Plan of Oper-
ations— Harrison advances on Detroit, 648. General Winchester
a Prisoner; Indian Barbarities — The Keutuckians fall into an
Ambuscade, 644. Eepulse at Fort Stephenson — The loss of the
Chesapeake, 645. Perry's Victory, 646. Battle of the Thames
— Andrew Jackson, 647. Leads an Expedition; its Termination,
649. \ork Captured; Death of General Pike, 650. Failures,
651. Newark burned, the severe Retaliation, 652. Ravages on
Shores of the Chesapeake — Indian War in the South, 653. Jack-
son and others in the Field — Battle of the Great Horse Shoe,
654. Captain Porter's Cruise, 655. Formation of the Bible
Society, 656.
CHAPTER XLIV.
MADISON'S ADMINISTRATION — CONTINUED.
The Thirteenth Congress; its Members, Daniel Webster, 657. Mani-
festo of the British Government, 658. Embarrassments — Com-
missioners of Peace, 659. Jacob Brown — Winfield Scott —
Wilkinson unsuccessful, 661. Battle of Lundy's Lane, 662.
Battle on Lake Champlain, 605. The British on the Shores of
the Chesapeake, 667. Bladensburg, 669. Capture of Washing-
ton— Public Buildings burned, 670. Defense of Fort McHenry
— Death of General Ross, 671. Bombardment of Stonington —
Distress in New England, 672. Debates in Congress, 673. Hart-
ford Convention, 674.
CHAPTER XLY.
madison's administration — continued.
Jackson enters Pensacola, 677. New Orleans defenseless— The Brit-
ish land, 678. Jackson's Measures of Defense, 679. Battle of
New Orleans, 680. The Distress of the Country— The Relief,
682. Treaty of Peace, 683. Frigate President captured, 684.
War with Algiers, 685. Treatv with the Indians — National
Bank— State of Indiana, 686. John Fitch— Robert Fulton-
First Steamboat, 687.
CHAPTER XLVI.
monroe's administration.
A Return to the earlier Policy of the Government, 688. The Presi-
dent's Tour in the Eastern States — The Colonization Societv,
689. Revolutions in the Spanish Colonies — Indian War, 690.
General Jackson in the Field — Purchase of Florida, 691. The
Missouri Compromise, 692. The Monroe Doctrine — Financial
Distress 696. Increase of Tariff— Visit of Lafayette, 697.
CHAPTER XL VII.
JOHN QUINCY ADAMS'S ADMINISTRATION.
Manufactures and Internal Improvements. 699. Indian Lands in
Georgia, 700. Death of the ex-Presidents Thomas Jefferson and
XIV CONTENTS.
John Adams, 701. Free Masonry — Protection to American In-
dustry, 702. Debates in Congress — Presidential Contest, 704.
CHAPTER XLVIII.
jackson's administration.
Appointments to Office, 705. Removal of the Indians from Georgia,
706. Bank Bill Vetoed— Nullification; the Causes of, 707. Ex-
treme State Rights, 708. Influence of Jefferson's Theories, 709.
Resolutions of '98, 711. Efforts to Secure pure Morals, 712.
Cotton Manufacture; its Progress, 713. Far-reaching Policy,
715. A Protective Tariff, Constitutional, 716. The Twofold
Object, 717. Slaves in Mills— Price of Cotton Cloth, 718. The
Motives; Views on Labor and Capital, 719. The Production of
Wool, 720. The Equalizing Measure, 721. Hayne and Webster's
Debate, 722. The President's Proclamation, 724. The Compro
mise Bill; its final Passage, 725. Removal of the Deposits, 726.
Effect upon the Country — Indian Wars. 727. Osceola — Death
of Judge Marshall, 728. Indemnity for French Spoliations, 729.
Influence of General Jackson, 730.
CHAPTER XLIX.
VAN btjren's administration.
Apparent Prosperity, 731. The Specie Circular — Distribution of the
Surplus Funds — Speculation, 732. The Sub-Treasury, 733.
State Indebtedness, 734.
CHAPTER L.
HARRISON AND TYLER'S ADMINISTRATION.
The Inauguration, 735. Death of Harrison; Tyler President, 736.
Bankrupt Law — The Bank Charters; their Vetoes, 737. Propo-
sition to treat with Great Britain — Insurrection in Canada — The
Caroline, 738. Trial of McLeod, 739. Boundary Disputes in
Maine— Treaty of Washington, 740. Questions of Visit and
Impressment, 741. Exploring Expedition, 742. Texas Coloni-
zation ; Struggles, 743. Siece of the Alamo, 744. Davy Crockett
—Goliad, Siege of— Massacre of Prisoners, 745. Battle of San
Jacinto, 746. Houston President— Question of Annexation in
Congress, 747. Texas Annexed— Disturbances in Rhode Island,
749. Iowa and Florida become States— Cheap Postage, 750.
CHAPTER LI.
POI-K'S ADMINISTRATION.
Difficulties with Mexico, 752t General Taylor at Corpus Christ!,
753. Oregon Territory; respective Claims to, 754. Settlement
of Boundary, 756. Taylor Marches to the Rio Grande — Thorn-
ton's Party Surprised, 757. Attack on Fort Brown, 758. Battle
of Palo Alto, 759. Battle of Resaca de la Palma, 760. Mata-
moras occupied — Measures of Congress, 762. The Volunteers
— Plan of Operations — Mexico declares War, 763. Capture of
Monterey, 765.
CONTENTS. XT
CHAPTER LII.
POLK'S ADMINISTRATION — CONTINUED.
The President hopes for Peace — Santa Anna, 768. Hostilities to be
renewed, 770. Troops withdrawn from General Taylor — Volun-
teers arrive at Monterey, 771. Santa Anna's Plans and Prepara-
tions, 772. Taylor advances to Agua Nueva, 773. Battle of
Buena Vista, 774. The Mexican Chiefs Urrea and Romero, 788.
CHAPTER LIII.
Polk's administration — continued.
Emigration to Oregon, 790. John C. Fremont; his explorations, 791.
Difficulties with the Mexican Governor, 793. American Settlers
in alarm, 794. California free — Monterey on the Pacific cap-
tured, 795. Commodores Sloat and Stockton — Expedition of
Kearney, 796. Santa Fe taken; a Government organized, 797.
Doniphan's Expedition, 798. El Paso taken, 800. Chihuahua
occupied, 801. An Insurrection; its Suppression, 802. Trial of
Fremont, 803.
CHAPTER LIV.
FOLK'S ADMINISTRATION — CONCLUDED.
Movement of Troops, 804. Vera Cruz invested, 805. Its Bombard-
ment and Capitulation, 806. Santa Anna's Energy, 807. Battle
of Cerro Gordo, 808. General Scott at Pirjbla — His Misunder-
standings with the Authorities at Washington, 809. N. P. Trist,
Commissioner, 810. Dissensions in Mexico, 812. Scott's Man-
ifesto, 813. Advance upon the Capital, 814. Battle of Con-
treras, 815. Of Churubusco, 816. Attempts to obtain Peace,
818. Conflict of Molino del Rey, 819. The Castle of Chapul-
tepcc captured, 820. The American Army enters the City, 821.
Santa Anna again in the Field, 822. Treaty of Peace. 823.
Misunderstandings among the American Officers, 824. Condi-
tions of the Peace — Discoveiy of Gold in California, 825. The
Effects — Death of John Quiney Adams. 826. Wilmot Proviso,
827. The Presidential Election— Death of Mr. Polk, 828.
CHAPTER LV.
TAYLOR AND FILMORE'S ADMINISTRATION.
Discussion on Slavery — Wilmot Proviso, '830. The Powers of (lie
Constitution; their Application in the Territories. 832. The
President's Message; its Recommendations, 834. Debate on the
Omnibus Bill, 835. Death of Calhoun— Death of Pre sident Tax -
lor— Filmore Inaugurated, 836. The Fugitive Slave Law, 837.
The Mormons, their Origin, 838. Troubles — Settlement in Utah
—A Disunion Convention, 839. Lopez invades Cuba, 840.
Search for Sir John Franklin— Dr. E. K. Kane. 841. Death of
Henry Clay; of Daniel Webster; the Tripartite Treaty. 842.
The Ratio of Members in the House and the Terms in the Senate,
843.
XVI CONTENTS.
CHAPTER LVI.
PIERCE'S ADMINISTRATION.
Purchase of the Mesilla Valley, 844. Treaty with Japan, 845. The
Kansas-Nebraska Bill; the effects of the Measure, 846. Emi-
grants to Kansas, 847. Struggles and Conflicts, 848. James
Buchanan, President, 850. The Contest continues in Kansas,
851. John Browu, 852. Platforms of Political Parties, 855.
CHAPTER LVIL
Buchanan's administration — continued.
Traits of Character, North and South. 857. Comparative Intel-
ligence in the Free and Slave States, 858. The two Systems —
Illiteracy compared, 859. Influences of different, 860. Benevo-
lent Operations, 862. Change in the Slavery Discussion, 863.
The Abolitionists, 864. Material Progress, 866. Compromises,
867. Republican Party, 868. Democratic Convention, 869.
The Election, how received, 870. Intent of Personal Liberty
Bills — Union Men, 871. Legislatures aud Conventions, South,
872. Non-coercion; Border States; Finances, 873. Buchanan';*
Message, 874. Fort Sumter, 875. Yulee's Letter, 877. Mr.
Lincoln's Journey, 878. Confederate Constitution; Fallacies,
879.
CHAPTER LVIII.
Lincoln's administration.
The Inauguration, 880. Effect of the Inaugural, 881. Sumter Bom-
barded, 883. The President's call for Volunteers; Responses,
885. Spirit of Loyalty, 886. Riot in Baltimore, 887. Confed-
erate Congress at "Richmond, 888. Loyalty in Tennessee and
Missouri, 889. Advance into Virginia;" Death of Ellsworth, 890.
Proclamations; Instructions to United States Ministers abroad,
891. English Neutrality, 892. Big Bethel Skirmish. 893. West
Vinrinia freed of Confederates, 894. Battle of Bull Run, 895.
Missouri, 898. Battle of Wilson's Creek; Death of Lyon, 899.
Fremont's Proclamation. 901. Kentuckv's Legislation, 902.
Finances and the Army, 903. Ball's Bluff Disaster. 904. Hat-
teras Expedition, 905. " Capture of Hilton Head. 906. Soldiers
and Money; Mason and Slidell, 907. Battle of Belmont, 909.
Battle of Mill Spring, 910. Davis's Special Message, 911.
Meeting of Congress; the Union Army, 912. Capture of Forts
Henry and Donelsou, 913-917.
CHAPTER LIX.
Lincoln's administration — continued.
Burnside's Expedition to North Carolina, 918. Battle of Pea Ridge.
919. Capture of New Madrid and Island No. 10, 921. Battle of
Pittsburg Landing, or Shiloh, 923-925. Capture of New Orleans,
926. Death of Admiral Foote; Battle of River Ironclads, 930.
CONTENTS. XVli
Evacuation of Corinth, 931. Plans of Movements on Richmond,
932. The Merrimac and Monitor Duel, 933. Contrabands, 936.
CHAPTER LX.
Lincoln's administration — continued.
Movement of the Army of the Potomac, 937. Evacuation of Manas-
sas, 938. Yorktown, Siege of, 939. Battle of Williamsburg, 941 .
Sanitary Commission, 942 Excitement in Richmond ; Conscrip-
tion Law. 943. Generals Banks and Jackson in the Valley, 944.
The Chickahominy ; Battle of Fair Oaks, 945. Lee in command,
946. Battle of Cold Harbor, 947. Change of Base, 949. Battle
of Malvern Hill, 950. Harrison's Landing, 952. Cedar Moun-
tain, 953. Second Battle of Bull Run, 955. Lee invades Mary-
land, 956. Harper's Ferry captured, 957. Battle of Antietam.
958. Lee retreats, 960. McClellan's slowness; his removal, 961.
Bumside in command; Battle of Fredericksburg, 962.
CHAPTER LXI.
Lincoln's administration— continued.
Invasion of Kentucky; Battle of Perryville, 964. Battle of Iuka;
Preliminary Proclamation, 965. Opposition; 1 he Slave's Hope,
966. Battle of Murfreesboro, 967. Confederate Failures, 968.
Sherman on the Yazoo, 969. Capture of Fort Hindman; Presi-
dent's Message, 970. Finances; Northern Industries, 971. Con-
federate Finances, 972. Battle of Chancellorville, 973. Death
of "Stonewall" Jackson, 974.
CHAPTER LXIL
Lincoln's administration — continued.
Lee's Advance North, 976. Crosses the Potomac, 977. Hooker re-
signs; Meade in command, 978. Battle of Gettysburg, 979-984.
Lee's retreat, 985. Vicksburg; Victories, 986. Vicksburg and
Port Hudson captured, 987. Naval Expedition, 988. The Draft
and Riot, 989. French Protestant Address, 990. Colored Sol-
diers— National Banks, 991.
CHAPTER LXIII.
Lincoln's administration — continued.
The March to Chattanooga, 992. The Battle; Chickamauga, 993.
Bumside ; Knoxville, 994. Battle above the Clouds, 995. Bragg's
defeat. 996. Marauders in Missouri, 997. Red River Expedition ;
Fort Pillow Massacre, 998. Grant ; Lieutenant-General ; Position
of Affairs, 999. Sherman flanks Johnston; he falls back. 1000.
Death of Bishop Polk; Kenesaw Mountain, 1001. Hood in com-
mand; Battles, 1002. Death of McPherson; Railways broken,
1003. "Atlanta ours;" March to the Sea; The Christmas Gift;
Orders, 1004-1005.
XVlll COSTTiiNTS
CHAPTER LXIV.
LINCOLN'S ADMINISTRATION — CONTINUED.
Grant's choice of Subordinates, 1006. Battles in the Wilderness,
1007-1010. Butler at Bermuda Hundreds, 1009. Confederate
repulses; Movement to the James, 1010. Early in the Valley,
1011. Sheridan in command; his ride, 1013. The Mine; Capture
of Mobile 1014. Outrages in Missouri; Wilmington captured,
1015 Hood on the march, 1016. Battle of Nashville; Hood's
defeat, 1017. Union Men; Conscript Soldiers; Women, 1018.
CHAPTER LXV.
LINCOLN'S ADMINISTRATION — CONTINUED.
Grant's design ; Platforms of Parties, 1019. Second Inauguration, 1020 ;
Disposition of Union Forces, 1021. Lee's Plans, 1022. Battle,
Five Forks, 1023. Lee surrenders; Richmond on tire and occu-
pied, 1024. Jefferson Davis captured; Columbia burned, 1025.
Johnston surrenders, 1026. The Assassination, 1026. Andrew
Johuson; Booth shot— Mr. Lincoln, Grant and Sherman; Inter-
view, 1027. Last reviews; Union loss i:i the Rebellion, 1028.
Blockade raised ; Old Flag on Sumter, 1029. Amnesty Proclama-
tion; The Kearsarge and the Alabama, 1030. Lord John Rus-
sell's Protest ; Louis Napoleon, 1031. Article XIII.; The Tele-
graph, Article XIV., 1032. Reconstruction, 1033-1044. Ne-
braska; Impeachment, 1045 Treaty with China; Presidential
Election, 1046.
CHAPTER LXVI.
grant's administration.
Pacific Railway; Fifteenth Amendment, 1047. Death of General
Lee, 1048. State Rights Influence. 1049. Alabama Claims,
1050-1052. Fraudulent Voting. 1053. The Ku Klux, 1055.
Suspension of Habeas Corpus — Signal Service. 1056. Fires;
Chicago, Boston, 1057. Manufactures, 1058. Railroad Panic.
1059. Bill for Resumption — Disturbances in Louisiana, 1060.
Indian Question, 1061. State of Colorado— Deaths, 1062.
Census of 1870; Election Law, 1063. Centennial, 1063-1064.
Presidential Election. 1064. Greeley — Sumner. 1065. Influences
binding the Union. 1066. Civil Service Reform, 1068. Political
Opinions. 1069. Presidential Election — Electoral Commission.
1070.
CHAPTER LXVII.
HAYE8'8 ADMINISTRATION.
Sketch of Life. 1071. Inaugural— Cabinet, 1072. Civil Service-
Railway Riot — Coinage of Silver, 1073. Fisheries Indemnity —
Resumption of Specie Payments, 1074. Progress — Platforms
of Parties, 1075. Tenth "Census — Ratio of "Representatives,
1076. Good Influence, 1077.
CONTENTS. XIX
•
CHAPTER LXVIII.
garpield's administration.
Sketch of Life, 1078. Senate of the State of Ohio, 1079. In Com-
mand in Eastern Kentucky, 1080. In Congress, 1081. Inau-
gurated President, 1082. Success of the Finances, 1083. The
Assassination of Garfield — Sympathy of the Civilized World,
1084. Removal to Long Branch, 1085. Death; Funeral, 1086.
Incident, 1087. Training of Citizens, 1088. The Assassinations
and their causes, 1090. The Spoils System, 1091.
CHAPTER LXIX.
Arthur's administration.
Sketch of Life— The two Law Cases, 1093. The second Oath of
Office — The Inaugural, 1095. Destructive Fires, 1095. York-
town Celebration, 1096. Meeting of Congress and the Message,
1097. Progress of the Country, 1098. Arctic Explorations,
1098-1100. Conclusion, — Progress, — Agriculture, 1101. In-
ventions, 1102. Immigrants, 1103. Results of the Homestead
Law, 1104. Young 31en's Christian Associations, 1105. Intel-
ligent Voting Assured, 1105. The Press and Libraries, 1106.
Authors, 1107. Temperance, 1107. Individual Responsibility,
1108. The English Language, 1109.
CHAPTER LXX.
HOW WE ARE GOVERNED.
Political Training, 1111. Colonial Governments, 1112. Articles of
Confederation, 1113. Framing the Constitution, 1114. The
House, 1116. The Senate, 1117. Passage of Bills,— The Presi-
dent, 1118. The Cabinet— Department of State, 1119. Of the
Treasury, 1120. Of War and Navy Departments, 1121. Of
Interior and the Post Office, 1122. Of Justice,— Judiciary, 1123.
Impeachments; Election of the President, 1124. State Govern
ments, 1126. Territorial Governments, 1127. District of Colum-
bia, 1128.
Analytical Index 1129
Topical Index 1138
Appendix: Constitution of the United States, 1143. Additions and
Amendments, 1153. Presidents of the Continental Congress,
1157. Dates of Independence and Confederation, 1157. Chief
Justices of the United States Supreme Court, 1157. Presidents
of the United States, 1158. Population of the United States
(Census of 1880), 1159. Forty most populous cities of the U. S.,
1160.
PORTE AIT ILLUSTRATIONS.
VOL. I.
PAG3
1. George Washington. 17:32-1799 Frontispiece.
Of Virginia. Had common school education, with addi-
tion of book-keeping and surveying; physically athletic;
surveyor; militia officer in French and Indian war; large
proprietor and farmer; member of the Colonial House of
Burgesses; commander-in-chief of the armies of the Revo-
lution; first President of the United States. Portrait en-
graving by Spiegle after Marshall's steel engraving of the
Stuart portrait in the Boston Athenaeum.
2. Christopher Columbus. 1435 or '36-1506 to face p. 33
The discoverer of the New World. From an ancient
Italian engraving.
3. Amkkuus Vespucci. 1451-1512 40
Whose published account of his voyages caused German
geographers to name the new land " America."
I. Sebastian Cabot. 1475 or '77-1557 or '60 49
Who with his father, John, made the most direct and
practical discoveries on the American Continent.
.-». Si n Walter Raleigh, or Ralegh. 1552-1618 72
English soldier, courtier, navigator, and author in the
reigns of Queen Elizabeth and King James I. ; sent sev-
eral exploring expeditions to America, opening up the
North Carolina coast, which, with the region north,
was named Virginia by the Queen. Here he sent two
successive colonies; also engaged personally in several
expeditions to West India and South America; beheaded
under King James.
6. John Winthrop. 1588-1649 106
English Justice of Peace: emigrant to America; perma-
nent organizer and many years Governor of the colony of
Massachusetts Bay.
xx
PORTRAIT ILLUSTRATIONS. XXI
PACK
7. Sib Geobge Calvekt (first Lord Baltimore). 1580-1633. 130
Obtained from Charles I. a grant of land, named Mary-
land after Henrietta Maria, the King's wife; prepared
foundations of a colony, granting self-rule, voice in taxa-
tion, and religious freedom. The settlement of the colony
was carried out by his sons Cecil and Leonard.
8. Petbus Stuyvesant. 1603-1682 146
The last of the Dutch Governors of New Amsterdam be-
fore it was ceded to the English and called New York.
9. David Pietebsen De Vbies. Active in America, 1630-50. 152
Lieut. Admiral in the Dutch Navy, sent as Patroon and
Governor of a colony in Delaware, but the colony having
been broken up he settled on Staten Island (named after
the States-General), and was an efficient manager of tur-
bulent Indians in the vicinity of Manhattan.
10. William Pbhh. 1644-1718 168
English Quaker and courtier, grantee of large lands in the
New World, and founder of Pennsylvania.
11. James Edwabd Oglethorpe. 1688-1785 192
English soldier, member of Parliament, and colonist.
Founder of the State of Georgia.
12. Cotton Matheb. 1663-1728 224
American clergyman and author, son of Rev. Increase
Mather of Dorchester, Mass. Especially prominent as
prosecutor of Salem " witchcraft, " and writer against that
form of " diabolism."
13. Jonathan Edwabds. 1703-1758 265
Of Connecticut; celebrated theologian and metaphysician;
pastor in Massachusetts; President Princeton College,
New Jersey; deeply influential in intellectual theology
of New England.
14. JamesOtis. 1725-1783 328
Massachusetts lawyer and orator. First public opponent
of "British writs" in America.
15. Patbick Henby. 1736-1799 333
Virginian lawyer and orator. Opponent of royal preroga-
tive in American courts.
X-Xll PORTRAIT ILLUSTRATIONS.
PAGE
16. Benjamin Franklin. 1706-1790 337
Boston born; a Philadelphia and London printer; philos-
opher, author, and statesman.
17. Samuel Adams. 1722-1803 340
Massachusetts lawyer. Early advocate of native rights of
the American colonists.
18. John Withekspoon. 1722-1794 853
Scotchman; descendant of John Knox; President Prince-
ten College, New Jersey; Continental Congressman from
New Jersey ; a signer of the Declaration of Independence.
19. John Hancock. 1737-1793 368
American statesman, of Massachusetts. Among early op-
ponents of British oppression in America; President of
Concord Provincial Congress and of Continental Congress
which proclaimed Independence. Afterward Governor
of Massachusetts.
20. Israel Putnam. 1718-1790 376
Of Connecticut. One of the earliest and best known of
the Revolutionary soldiers.
21. Nathaniel Greene. 1742-1786 380
Of Rhode Island. Washington's favorite General; an
officer of rare sagacity, skill, and success.
22. Thomas Jefferson. 1743-1826 408
Virginian delegate to Continental Congress; author of
Declaration of Independence; Vice-President and Presi-
dent of United States.
23. James Monroe. 1758-1831 ;. . . . 488
American statesman; Revolutionary soldier; lawyer, Con-
gressman; Minister to France; Governor of Virginia; Sec-
retary of State under Madison; and President of the
United States.
24. Marie-Joseph Paul Yves Roch Gilbert du Motier
(Marquis i>e Lafayette) 463
French statesman; Major -General in American Revolu-
tionary army; in France, ardent republican advocate;
member of House of Deputies; originator of the tri-color
French flag; of great influence with both people and
king; and life-long friend of Washington.
PORTRAIT ILLUSTRATIONS. XX1U
PA6K
25. Philip Schuyler. 1733-1804 472
American soldier, of Albany, N. Y.; Major-General in
Revolutionary army; member of Continental Congress;
U. S. Senator.
26. Frederick William Augustus Henry Ferdinand von
Steuben. 1730-1794 490
Prussian soldier, distinguished in the line; Adjutant-Gen-
eral in staff of Frederick the Great ; volunteer in Amer-
ican Revolutionary army, performing valuable service
in disciplining the troops as Inspector-General; highly
esteemed by Washington.
27. Anthony Wayne. 1745-1796 505
Of Pennsylvania. A natural soldier, of great daring,
from which he was called "Mad Anthony."
28. John Paul Jones. 1747-1792 509
Scottish born. Trader with West Indies; volunteer in
American Revolutionary war, rendering distinguished
services in naval actions, for which Congress voted him
a gold medal.
29. Daniel Boone. 1738-1820 512
American pioneer. Born in Pennsylvania, he lived an
adventurous life in North Carolina; was prominent in
settlement of Kentucky and afterwards Missouri, and all
his life fought the Indians.
30. Jean Baptiste Donatien de Vimeur (Count de Ro-
chambeau). 1725-1807 520
French soldier; Major-General commanding the French
army in America, co-operating with Washington in York-
town campaign and surrender of Cornwall is.
31. Admiral Comte De Grasse. Active in America, 1781... 544
French naval officer, commanding fleet in West Indies;
ably cooperated with combined French and American
forces (under Rochambeau and Washington) in the reduc-
tion of Yorktown and forcing the surrender of Corn-
wallis.
32. Alexander Hamilton. 1757-1804 548
Born in West Indies, of Scotch and French descent.
Student in King's (now Columbia) College when Revolu-
tionary war broke out; officer of the Revolutionary army;
personal aide on Washington's staff; first Secretary of the
United States Treasury; high financial and Constitutional
authority. Killed in a duel by Aaron Burr.
XXIV PORTRAIT ILLUSTRATIONS.
PAGE
33. John Adams. 1735-1826 555
American statesman of Massachusetts. Lawyer, orator;
opponent of Stamp Act; political writer; member of Pro-
vincial and Continental Congresses; first Vice-President
and second President of the United States.
34. Noah Webster. 1758-1843 558
American philologist; served in Revolutionary army;
school teacher; engaged in preparing school books, espe-
cially grammars and spelling-book; and in 1807 com-
menced his great Dictionary.
35. William White. 1748-1836 562
Of Philadelphia. First Episcopal bishop in America;
Chaplain of Congress, 1777; elected Bishop of Pennsyl-
vania, 1786; consecrated in England by Archbishop of
Canterbury, 1787; President of Convention to organize
Protestant Episcopal Church in U. S.
36. ThomasCoke. 1747-1814 568
First Bishop of Methodist Episcopal Church in America.
Born in Wales; high in confidence of Wesley; a volumin-
ous and able writer, and very successful in mission work.
37. John Marshall. 1755-1855 593
OfVirginia. Revolutionary officer; lawyer; State Legis-
lator; Envoy to Paris; Congressman; Adams's Secretary
of State; first Chief Justice U.S. Supreme Court. His de-
cisions in constitutional and commercial law are of the
highest authority to this day.
VOL. II.
38. Abraham Lincoln. 1809-1865 Frontispiece.
Born in Kentucky. "Poor white;" Mississippi boatman ;
Illinois lawyer and politician; President of the United
States during the great Civil War; destroyer of slavery
by military proclamation; victim of a fanatical assassin.
A great man, remembered and revered for his genius of
common sense, patient practical statesmanship, rare gifts
of expression, ready wit, and unselfish, kindly nature.
39. William Wirt. 1772-1834 605
Virginian lawyer of commanding forensic ability and suc-
cess. Prominent in the trial of Aaron Burr for treason.
PORTRAIT ILLUSTRATIONS. XXV
pag a
40. Washington Irving. 1783-1859 60S
Early and distinguished American author; man of great
industry and rare graces of style.
41. Henry Clay. 1777-1852 622
United States Senator from Kentucky; popular Whig
leader; renowned orator.
42. Stephen Decatur. 1779-1820 640
American naval officer. Distinguished himself in war
with Tripoli in 1803-5, and afterwards in the war of 1812
with Great Britain.
43. Oliver Hazard Perry. 1785-1819 647
American naval officer. Born in Newport, R. I. Served
with distiuction in the war of 1812, but gained especial
renown as the hero of tbe battle of Lake Erie.
44. Daniel Webster. 1782-1852 657
Massachusetts lawyer, United States Senator, and orator.
45. John Randolph, of Roanoke. 1773-1833 661
Of Virginia. Descended from an old and wealthy family,
claiming Pocahontas as one of their ancestors. Lawyer.
Congressman, U. S. Senator, Minister to Russia. Tall and
thin in appearance; eccentric in character; eloquent, sar-
castic, and witty; for 30 years a well-known public man.
46. Robert Fulton. 1715-1815 685
Pennsylvania. Pupil of Sir Benjamin West, the painter;
inventor of first successful steamboat ever launched.
47. Eli Whitney. 1768-1825 700
Inventor, of Massachusetts. Lived in Savannah; invented
the cotton-gin, and afterwards, in Connecticut, invented
duplicating parts of firearms, any one part being fitted to
any one of thousands of arms.
48. James Fennimore Cooper. 1789-1851 708
Widely known as a novelist, especially of sea tales.
49. Lyman Beecher. 1775-1863 712
Of Connecticut. A renowned preacher and theological
disputant; advocate of temperance movement; pastor in
New England and Long Island; President Lane Theo-
logical Seminary, Cincinnati. O.
50. John Caldwell Calhoun. 1782-1850 716
United States Senator from South Carolina; Vice-Presi-
dent of the United States; Secretary of State; powerful
orator; original advocate of doctrine of secession.
XX vi PORTRAIT ILLUSTRATIONS.
PAGE
51. Andrew Jackson. 1767-1845. 724
Born in North Carolina of Scotch-Irish parents. Lawyer;
Congressman; U. S. Senator; Judge of Supreme Court of
Tennessee; Commander of Tennessee militia in war of
1812; conquered Indians in same war; Major-General and
Commander in South West; Governor of Florida; Presi-
dent of the United States.
52. Thomas Hart Benton. 1782-1858 736
American statesman, of North Carolina and Missouri.
Lawyer; U. S. Senator for thirty years; early advocate
of Pacific Kailroad; opponent of nullification and seces-
sion. A man of great force and influence.
53. William Cullen Bryant. 1794-1878 744
Journalist; editor of New York Evening Post; one of the
earliest of American poets; especially valued for poems
of nature, and his admirable version of Homer. A man
of large acquirements, a wide and critical knowledge of
poetical and general literature, living an upright, pure,
and useful life.
54. Samuel Houston. 1793-1633 752
Of Virginia. Soldier in war of 1812; lawyer in Tennes-
see; Congressman and Governor of the State; Indian
agent in Arkansas; leader of Texan revolt against Mexico;
General of Texan forces; President of Texas; U. S. Sen-
ator from Texas after annexation.
55. James Gordon Bennett. 1795-1872 776
Scotchman. Founder and editor of New York Jlerald; a
genius for news- gathering; inventor of the (now common)
condensed news-of-the-day column.
56. Hokace Greeley. 1811-1872 784
Of New Hampshire. A printer by trade; founder and
editor of New York Tribune; foremost in all the social
and political agitations of his time, especially in the aboli-
tion of Slavery and promotion of the Protective Tariff.
57. Zachary Taylor. 1784-1850 789
Of Virginia. Officer in the war of 1812; distinguished
success as Major-General in Mexican War; twelfth Presi-
dent of the United States.
58. Eliab Howe. 1819-1867 816
Of Massachusetts. Inventor of the sewing-machine needle.
PORTRAIT ILLUSTRATIONS. xxvii
PAOK
59. George Denison Prentice. 1802-1870 820
Editor of Louisville Journal; a keen writer, great wit;
journalist of influence and wide repute.
60. Rcfus Choate. 1799-1859 834
Massachusetts lawyer, especially noted for power with
juries.
61. Nathaniel Hawthorne. 1804-1864. 844
Of Salem, Mass. Famous American author of romantic
fiction; witty, satirical, tender, subtle in analysis of life
and character, fond of strange, weird effects.
62. John Greenleaf Whittier. 1807 848
Quaker, of Massachusetts. Essentially the American poei
of Freedom ; writer of remarkable strength, purity, and
delicacy of style.
63. John Brown. 1800-1*59 853
Born in Connecticut, of Puritan stock; hanged in Vir-
ginia for attempt to inaugurate a servile war. A sturdy
abolitionist, hater of slavery, and friend to the negro, he
spent his life in New York State, Kansas, and Virginia
in the service of the slaves.
64. Wendell Phillips. 1811 861
American orator, of Boston, Mass. Prominent leader
among the abolitionists, renowned for his eloquence.
65. William Lloyd Garrison. 1804 863
Born in Massachusetts resided in New York State.
Printer; editor; denouncer of slave trade; violent aboli-
tionist ; recognized leader of the Anti-Slavery movement.
66. Stephen Arnold Douglas. 1813-1861 869
American statesman; born in Vermont, resided in Illi-
nois. School teacher; lawyer; Judge of State Supreme
Court; Congressman; Senator; introducer of the Kansas-
Nebraska Bill; and rival of Abraham Lincoln for the
Presidency.
67. Jefferson Davts. 1808 879
Born in Kentucky; resident of Mississippi. United States
army officer; United States Senator; cabinet officer; leader
of Southern secession ; President Confederate States.
68. William Henry Seward. 1801-1872 881
New York lawyer and politician ; United States Senator;
Lincoln's Secretary of State during the Civil War.
Sxviii PORTRAIT ILLUSTRATIONS.
PAGE
69. Bum Ward Beecher. 1813 886
Born in Connecticut; son of Dr. Lyman Beecher. Edu-
cated in New England ; preached ten years in the "West,
then took the pastorate of Plymouth Church, Brooklyn,
N. Y. Famous as clergyman, orator, editor, author: a
man of remarkable personal influence — socially, politically,
morally, and in the world of religious thought.
70. Henry Jarvis Raymond. 1820-1869 896
Of New York. Prominent and brilliant journalist;
founder of the New York Times. Skillful politician;
Lieut. -Governor of New York State.
71. John Charles Fremont. 1813 901
Of South Carolina. Surveyor; U. S. army officer; ex-
plorer of the Rocky Mountains for Pacific R. R. route;
called the "Path-Finder;" conqueror of California from
Mexico; first Republican candidate for the U. S. Presi-
dency; Major-General U. S. A. during the Rebellion.
72. Salmon Portland Chase. 1808-1873 904
New Hampshire born ; Ohio lawyer, prominent in Anti-
Slavery agitation; U. S. Senator; Governor of Ohio: Lin-
coln's Sec. of Treasury; Chief Justice U.S. Supreme Court.
73. Edwin McMasters Stanton. 1814-1869 912
Ohio lawyer; Buchanan's Secretary of State after depart-
ure of Secessionists; Lincoln's Secretary of War from 1862
to end of War; of extraordinary executive force.
74. Ulysses Simson Grant. 1822 916
Born in Ohio; United States arm}* officer; successful army
commander in Western States during early part of Civil
War; General of United States forces, and final conqueror
of main Confederate forces; twice President of the V. S..
75. David Dixon Porter. 1813 926
United States naval officer; midshipman at 16; successful
commander during Civil War; succeeded Farragut as
Vice-Admiral and Admiral.
76. Andrew Hull Foote. 1806-1863 930
Of Connecticut, United States naval officer: promoted
for gallantry in Chinese expedition, 1856; during Civil
War conspicuous in Western gunboat service, especially
the reduction of Forts Henry and Donaldson, Tenn.
PORTRAIT ILLUSTRATIONS. 5Xix
PAGK
77. Alexander Hamilton Stephens. 1812 938
American statesman, of Georgia. Lawyer; Congress-
man; U. 8. Senator; Vice-President Confederate States;
promoter of restoration of Southern States; again Con-
gressman and U. S. Senator.
78. Robert Edward Lee. 1807-1870 946
Of Virginia. United States army officer; commander of
the Confederate "Army of Northern Virginia" during
the Civil War; a great soldier; after the war, President
of Washington College, Lexington, Virginia.
79. Phild? Henry Sheridan. 1831 969
United States army officer; dashing cavalry general dur-
ing Civil War.
80. Thomas Jonathan Jackson. 1824-1860 974
Of Virginia; United States army officer; Professor of
Mathematics at Washington College at Lexington, Va. ;
Geueral in Confederate army; an officer of remarkable
energy, persistency, rapidity of action, and success.
81 John Hughes. 1797-1864 989
Archbishop of Roman Catholic Church in America. Born
in Ireland; educated in Pennsylvania; priest; pulpit
orator; bishop; archbishop; private envoy from Presi-
dent Lincoln to the French Government; active in quell-
ing draft riots of 1863; a man of character and influence.
82. William Tectjmseh Sherman. 1820 1000
Of Ohio; United States army officer; military professor
in Mississippi; brilliant and successful army commander
of United States forces in West and South during Civil
War; a soldier of great reputation.
83. David Glascoe Farragtjt. 1801-1870 1014
Of Tennessee; United States navy officer; midshipman
at 11 years; was 60 years old when Civil War began; cap-
tured New Orleans, Mobile, etc. ; Congress created grades
Vice-Admiral and Admiral in his honor.
84. Samuel Finley Breese Morse. 1791-1872 1032
Native of Massachusetts; resident of New York; artist
and scientist; inventor of first practical recording electric
telegraph.
85. Charles Sumner. 1811-1874 1043
American statesman, of Massachusetts. Lawyer; law
editor, lecturer; anti-slavery leader; orator; successor of
Daniel Webster in U. S. Senate.
XXX PORTRAIT ILLUSTRATIONS.
PA OK
86. William Maxwell Evakts. 1818 .- 1G")2
New York lawyer; United States Attorney-General;
counsel for United States in Alabama Claims Interna-
tional Commission; Secretary of State under President
Hayes; high authority in constitutional, criminal, and
commercial law; finished orator.
87. Frederick Douglass. 1817 1056
American slave; shipwright; escaped freeman; anti-
slavery orator; editor; U. S. Marshal, Dist. of Columbia.
88. Louis John Rodolph Agassiz. 1807-1873 1060
Born in Switzerland. Distinguished naturalist. Famous
for researches and writings on Fossil Fishes, Glaciers, and
Comparative Physiology. Professor in Harvard College
from 1846.
89. Joseph Henry. 1797-1881 1062
American scientist; born in Albany, N. Y. ; inventor of
first electro- magnetic machine, and first demonstrator of
possible telegraphic communication; Secretary Smith-
souian Institution.
90. ROSCOE CONKLING 1070
American politician, of New York; lawyer; promiuent
U. S. Senator; brilliant political orator and party leader.
91. James Abram Garfield. 1831-1881 1078
American soldier and statesman, of Ohio. Born poor;
canal driver; student; school teacher; lay preacher; law-
yer; State Senator; Major-General in war of the Rebel-
lion; Congressman; U. S. Senator; President of the
United States. Assassinated July 2; died Sept. 19, 1881.
92. James Gillespie Blaine 1082
American politician ; Congressman; U. S. Senator; Sec. of
State under Pres't. Garfield. A brilliant political orator.
93. Chester Alan Arthur. 1830 1093
Of Vermont, residing in New York. School teacher;
lawyer; Quartermaster-General New York State during
the Rebellion; Collector of Customs, Port of New York;
Vice-President under President Garfield, and now Presi-
dent of the United States. Of great executive ability.
94. Theodore Thomas. 1837 1098
American musician; born in Germany; came to America
a boy; precocious as a violinist One of the most skilful
musical conductors and organizers ever known. Identi-
fied with the growth of musical intelligence in America.
POETHAIT ILLUSTRATIONS. XXii
PAGE
95. Charles Hodge. 1797-1880 1103
American theologian ; born in Philadelphia; graduated at
Princeton College and Theological Seminary, and to the
end of life associated with the latter institution as profes-
sor of didactic exegetics and polemic theology. Most prom-
inent representative of the orthodox Presbyterian school.
98. Theodore Dwight Woolsey. 1801 1105
American scholar and publicist; born in New York. For
more than forty years associated with the academic fac-
ulty of Yale College, New Haven, Conn. — eighteen years
as instructor and twenty-five as President. A voluminous
writer of acknowledged authority, especially in questions
of international law.
97. Henry Wadsworth Longfellow. 1807-1882 1107
Professor of Scandinavian Literature in Harvard College;
the most popular American poet; translator of Dante.
98. Ralph Waldo Emerson. 1803-1882 1109
Philosopher, poet, essayist, and general author; a man of
marked originality of thought, and singular influence
among the thoughtful; a leader in "liberal" as dis-
tinguished from " orthodox" views in theology.
MAPS AND CHARTS.
Engraved and Prepared Especially for this Work by
G. W. & C. B. Colton, New Yokk.
I. Chart. Showing the routes of the principal voyages of dis-
covery and adventure from the Old World to the New,
giving the European ports of departure, names of com-
manders, dates, etc 52
II. Map of the territory occupied by the United States, showing
boundaries of the "Original Thirteen" as they stood at
close of Revolution; also subsequent cessions from States
to the general Government, or from foreign Governments,
with dates; giving an idea of the mode and rapidity of
territorial growth of the United States 558
HI. Map of the United States in 1882. Revised a'nd cor-
rected according to the best authorities; giving dates of
admission of each State, centre of population by latest cen-
sus, all important geographical details, etc 1088
.5*
A CONCISE HISTORY
AMERICAN PEOPLE.
CHAPTER I.
COLUMBUS.
Sis Discoveries, Misfortunes, and Death. — Amerigo Vespucci, and the nan*)
America.
Foe nearly fifteen hundred years after the birth of cur ceap
Saviour, the great Western Continent was unknown to
the inhabitants of the Old World. 1492.
The people of Europe had looked upon the Atlantic
Ocean as a boundless expanse of water, surrounding the
land and stretching far away they knew not whither.
This vast unknown, their imaginations had peopled with
all sorts of terrible monsters, ever ready to devour those
who should rashly venture among them. But the cloud
of mystery and superstition that hung over this world of
waters was now to be dispelled — a spirit of discovery was
awakened in Europe.
The Azores and Madeira Isles were already known.
Mariners, driven out by adverse winds, had discovered
them. Tradition told of islands still farther west, but as
yet no one had gone in search of them. The attention of
the people of maritime Europe was turned in the opposite
direction ; they wished to find a passage by water to the
eastern coasts of Asia. The stories told by those early
84 HISTOKY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
chap, travellers, Sir John Mandeville and Marco Polo, had
fired their imaginations ; they believed that among those
1492. distant regions of which they wrote, so abundant in pre-
cious stones, diamonds, and gold, was the veritable
land of Ophir itself. Their intense desire to obtain the
treasures of India, led to a result most important in the
world's history — a result little anticipated, but which was
to have a never-ending influence upon the destinies of
ths human family — the discovery of America.
As God had ordered, there appeared at this time a
remarkable man ; a man whose perseverance, no less than
his genius, commands our respect. He was a native of
Genoa, one of the great commercial cities of Italy. He
had been from his childhood familiar with the sea, and
had visited the most distant portions of the world then
known. His time and talents were devoted to the study
of navigation, geography, and astronomy. He began to
astonish his countrymen with strange notions about the
world. He boldly asserted that it was round, instead oi
flat ; that it went around the sun instead of the sun going
around it ; and moreover, that day and night were caused
by its revolution on its axis. These doctrines the priests
denounced as contrary to those of the church. He could
not convince these learned gentlemen by his arguments,
neither could they silence him by their ridicule. When
he ventured to assert that by sailing west, he could reach
the East Indies, these philosophers questioned not only
the soundness of his theory, but that of his intellect. For
years he labored to obtain the means to explore the great
western ocean, to prove that it was the pathway to the
coveted treasures of the East. This remarkable man was
Christopher Columbus.
He applied first to John the Second, king of Portugal,
to aid him in his enterprise, but without success ; he then
applied to Henry the Seventh, king of England, with a
similar result. After years of delay and disappointment,
COLUMBUS SAILS FROM PALOS. 35
his project having been twice rejected by the Spanish chap.
court, and he himself branded as a wild enthusiast, he sue-
ceeded in enlisting in its favor the benevolent Isabella, 1492.
Queen of Spain. She offered to pledge her private jewels
to obtain means to defray the expenses of the expedition.
Thus the blessings, which have accrued to the world from
the discovery of America, may be traced to the beneficence
of one of the noblest of women.
A little more than three hundred and fifty years ago,
on Friday, the 3d of August, 1492, Columbus sailed from
the little port of Palos, in Spain.
He confidently launched forth upon the unknown ocean.
His three little vessels were mere sail-boats compared
with the magnificent ships that now pass over the same
waters. He sailed on and on, day^after day, and at length
came within the influence of the trade winds, which with-
out intermission urged his vessels toward the west. The
sailors began to fear— if these winds continued, they never
could return. They noticed the variation of the compass ;
it no longer pointed to the pole, — was this mysterious, but
hitherto trusty friend, about to fail them ?
Ten weeks had already elapsed, and the winds were still
bearing them farther and farther from their homes. It is
true, there were many indications that land was near ; land
birds were seen ; land weeds, a bush with fresh berries
upon it, and a cane curiously carved, were found floating in
the water. Again and again, from those on the watch,
was heard the cry of land, but as often the morning sun
dispelled the illusion ; they had been deceived by the
evening clouds that fringed the western horizon. Now,
the sailors terror-stricken, became mutinous, and clamored
to return. They thought they had sinned in venturing so
far from land, and as a punishment were thus lured on to
perish amid the dangers with which their imaginations had
filled the waste of waters.
Columbus alone was calm and hopeful ; in the midst
6b HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN" PEOPLE.
uhap. 0f a]i these difficulties, he preserved the courage and noble
self-control that so dignifies his character. His confidence
1492. in the success of his enterprise, was not the idle dream of
a mere enthusiast ; it was founded in reason, it was based
on science. His courage was the courage of one, who, in
the earnest pursuit of truth, loses sight of every personal
consideration. He asked only for a little more time, that
he might prove to others the truth of what he himself so
firmly believed. When lo ! the following night the land
breeze, fragrant with the perfume of flowers, greeted them;
never was it more grateful to the worn and weary sailor.
The ships were ordered to lie to, lest they should run upon
rocks. Suddenly the ever watchful eye of Columbus saw
a light, a moving light ! The alternations of hope and
fear, the visions of fame and greatness, or the higher aspi-
rations that may have filled his soul on that eventful night,
are more easily imagined than described.
Frid., The next morning, they saw lying before them in all
j2 ' its luxuriant beauty an island, called by the natives Guan-
ahani, but renamed by Columbus, San Salvador, or Holy
Saviour.
With a portion of his crew he landed. Falling on
their knees, they offered thanksgivings to God, who had
crowned their labors with success.
Columbus raised a banner, and planted a cross, and
thus took formal possession of the land in the names of his
sovereigns, Ferdinand and Isabella. The awe-stricken
natives watched the ceremony from amid the groves ; they
thought the white strangers were the children of the sun,
their great deity. Alas ! the cross did not prove to them
the emblem of peace and good-will !
Columbus explored this island — one of the Bahama
group — and discovered others, now known as the West
Indies. Thus he spent three months ; then taking with
him seven of the natives, he sailed for home. On the 15th
1498. of March he arrived at Palos. From that port to the court
HIS THIRD VOYAGE. 37
at Barcelona, his progress was a triumphal procession. He chap.
was graciously received by the King and Queen, who
appointed him Viceroy or Governor of all the countries he 1493
had or should discover. They conferred upon him and his
family titles of nobility, and permission to use a coat of
arms. The day he made his discovery, was the day of his
triumph ; this day was the recognition of it by his patrons
and by the world. His past life had been one of unremit-
ting toil and hope deferred ; but in the future were
bright prospects for himself and his family. But his
title, the object of his honorable ambition, proved the
occasion of all his after sorrows. The honors so justly
conferred upon him, excited the jealousy of the Spanish
nobility.
From this time his life was one continued contest with
his enemies. He made more voyages, and more discoveries
in the West Indies. On his third voyage he saw the main- 1498
land at the mouth of the Orinoco. It seems never to have
occurred to him, that a river so large must necessarily
drain a vast territory. He supposed the lands he had dis-
covered were islands belonging to Cathay, or Farther
India ; from this circumstance the natives of the New
World were called Indians. It is more than probable
Columbus died without knowing that he had found a
great continent.
After a few years his enemies so far prevailed, that on
a false accusation he was sent home in chains from the
island of Hispaniola. Isabella, indignant at the treat-
ment he had received, ordered them to be taken off, and
all his rights and honors restored. Ferdinand promised to
aid her in rendering him justice, and in punishing his ene-
mies ; but, double-dealing and ungenerous, he did neither.
To the misfortunes of Columbus was added the death of
Isabella, his kind and generous patroness. And now he
was openly maligned and persecuted. Their work was soon
done ; in a short time he died, worn out by disease and
38 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
chap, disappointment. His last words were : " Into thy hands,
0 Lord, I commend my spirit."
1506. His body was deposited in a convent in Spain. Fer-
dinand, it is said, ordered a monument to his memory.
The justice he had denied him in life he was willing to
inscribe upon his tomb, — it was to bear the inscription :
" Columbus has given a world to Castile and Leon."
The body of Columbus was afterwards conveyed to
Hispaniola. After a lapse of almost three hundred years
that island passed into the hands of the French. Gene-
rations had come and gone, but the Spanish nation re-
membered that Columbus had " given a world to Castile
and Leon ; " and they wished to retain his remains within
their own territories. They disinterred them, and with
imposing ceremonies transferred them to Havana in the
1795, island of Cuba, where they still remain.
About seven years after the first voyage of Columbus,
Amerigo Vespucci, a Florentine gentleman, visited the
"West Indies, and also landed on the eastern coast of South
America. On his return he published a glowing descrip-
tion of the newly discovered countries. From this cir-
cumstance the name America was given to the New
World by a German writer on Geography, who may have
been ignorant of the claims of Columbus.
CHAPTER II.
THE ABORIGINES.
In the earliest ages of the world the ancient inhabit- chap
ants of America may have come from Asia. The prox-
imity of the two continents in the vicinity of Behring's
Straits and the Aleutian Isles, renders such an emigration
comparatively easy. There is reason to believe the people
found here by Europeans, were not the original inhabit-
ants of the land.
Throughout the continent, more especially in the val-
ley of the Mississippi, are found monuments of a race
more ancient, — mounds and enclosures of great extent, —
the work, not of roving savages, but of a people who lived
in settled habitations, it may be, as prosperous and peace-
ful cultivators of the soil. To build these immense
monuments, the materials of which were frequently
brought from a distance, required the labor and toil of a
numerous population. Perhaps in the vicinity of these
works, villages and cities once stood. The enclosures
were used either as places of defence, or for purposes of
worship, and perhaps for both ; the mounds evidently as
places of burial for kings or chiefs.
The antiquary finds here no inscriptions, which, like
those found on the plains of Shinar or in the valley of the
Nile, can unfold the mysteries of bygone centuries. He
finds only the scattered remnants of vessels of earthen-
40 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
chap, ware, rude weapons of warfare, axes made of stone, and
ornaments worn only by a people rude and uncultivated.
How much of happiness or of misery this ancient people
experienced during those many ages, none can tell. In an
evil hour came some dire calamity. It may have been
civil war, which in its path spread desolation far and wide ;
blotted out their imperfect civilization, and drove the more
peaceful inhabitants further south, where they founded the
empires of Mexico and Peru ; while those who remained
degenerated into roving savages, and converted those .fer-
tile plains into hunting-grounds. Or may we not rather
suppose that centuries after the first emigration, there came
another from the same mother of nations, Asia ; — that the
latter were warlike savages, who lived not by cultivating
the soil but by hunting ; — that these invaders drove the
peaceful inhabitants of that beautiful region to the far
south, and took possession of the conquered land as their
own home and hunting-ground ?
Travellers have noticed the near resemblance of the
aborigines of North America to the people of north-
eastern Asia, not only in their customs but in their
physical appearance. " The daring traveller Ledyard, as
he stood in Siberia with men of the Mongolian race before
him, and compared them with the Indians who had been
his old play-fellows and school-mates at Dartmouth, writes
deliberately that, 'universally and circumstantially they
resemble the aborigines of America/ On the Connecticut
and the Obi, he saw but one race." l
More than two thousand years ago, Herodotus wrote in
his history, that the Scythians practised the custom of
scalping their enemies slain in battle ; that the warrior
preserved these scalps as the evidence of his bravery, and
used them to decorate his tent and the trappings of his
horse. The wonderful skill of these Scythians in han-
J Bancroft's History of the United States, vol. III., page 318.
AMERICUS VESPUCCI.
INDIANS FOUR DIVISIONS. 41
dling the "bow and arrow was proverbial in ancient times CI\f*
Who can tell but the ancestors of the aborigines of America
came from Scythia, and brought with them their skill in
using the bow and arrow, and the singular custom of
scalping ?
Of the North American Indians there were four general
divisions ; these occupied as many separate portions of the
United States and Canada. The Algonquin branch, with
its various tribes, claimed the territory extending from the
north of Maine to Cape Fear, thence to the Mississippi, and
north of the great lakes to the vicinity of Hudson Bay ;
their territory completely encircled that claimed by their
enemies, the powerful Huron-Iroquois, whose central por-
tion was along the north shores of the Lakes Erie and
Ontario, beyond Georgian bay of Lake Huron, and almost
to the Ottawa river, and south of the same lakes to the
waters of the Ohio and the Susquehannah, and from the
west end of Lake Erie to Lake Champlain and the Hud-
son. The Mobilian branch extended from Cape Fear to
the south point of Florida ; west along the north shores
of the Gulf of Mexico to the Mississippi ; north as far as
the Tennessee river and the southern spurs of the Cum-
berland mountains. West of the Mississippi were the roving
tribes of the Dahcotahs, or Sioux.
As the natives of these different portions of the conti-
nent closely resembled each other in physical constitution
and personal appearance, the first explorers supposed they
were one and the same people ; but when their languages
became better known, ethnologists classified them as dif-
ferent branches of the same great family. In earlier ages
they may have been one people, speaking the same lan-
guage ; afterward, revengeful wars, unrelentingly waged
for ages, separated them. Each little tribe or family wan-
dered alone ; as differing circumstances and necessities re-
quired, they added new words to the original language ;
thus were formed dialects, which philologists have par-
42 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
uhap. tially traced, and which apparently lead to the same mothei
tongue.
Their mode of living, customs, and religious belief were
also similar ; their houses, or wigwams, were formed of
poles placed in the ground, and bent toward each other at
the top, and covered with birch or chestnut bark ; thej
dressed in the skins of animals ; wore as ornaments the
feathers of the eagle and the claws of the bear, — trophies
of their skill as hunters, — and valued more than all the
scalps of their enemies ; proofs of their bravery and success
in war.
They believed in a Great Spirit that pervaded all
things ; their heaven lay away beyond the mountains of
the setting sun : it was a land of bright meadows and
crystal springs, a happy hunting-ground stocked with wild
animals, where the Indian hunter after death enjoyed
the chase, and never suffered cold, nor thirst, nor hunger
more.
Note. — As the several tribes of Indians come within the scope of this
lilctory they will be further noticed.
CHAPTER III.
SPANISH DISCOVERIES AND CONQUESTS.
South Sea. — First Voyage round the World. — Ponce de Leon. — Florida,
Discovery and Attempt to settle. — Vasquez de Aylion. — Conquest of
Mexico and Peru.
In a few years the Spaniards subdued and colonized the c^f p
most important islands of the West Indies. The poor
timid natives were either murdered or reduced to slavery. 1506.
Unheard-of cruelties in a short time wasted, and almost
exterminated the entire race.
Not satisfied with the possession of these islands, the
Spaniards made further discoveries from time to time
around the Gulf of Mexico ; they explored the southern
part of the peninsula of Yucatan ; they planted a colony
on the narrow Isthmus of Darien. Until this time, no 151°-
settlement had been made on the Western Continent.
When in search of gold, Nunez de Balboa, the govern-
or of this colony, made an exploring tour into the interior,
he ascended a high mountain, and from its top his eyes
were greeted with the sight of a vast expanse of water
extending away to the south, as far as the eye could reach.
He called it the South Sea. But seven years later, Magel- 1520,
Ian, a Portuguese mariner in the service of Spain, passed
through the dangerous and stormy Straits which bear his
name ; and sailing out into the great field of waters, found
it so calm, so free from storms, that he called it the Pacific
or peaceful ocean. Magellan died on the voyage, but his
ship reached the coast of Asia, and thence returned home
44 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
f;HAp. to Spain by the Cape of Good Hope, thus realizing the
vision of Columbus, that the world was a globe, and could
1512. be sailed round.
Juan Ponce de Leon, a former governor of Porto Rico, fit-
ted out at his own expense, three ships to make a voyage
of discovery. He had heard from the natives of Porto Rice
that somewhere in the Bahama Islands, was a fountain
that would restore to the vigor of youth all those who
should drink of its waters or bathe in its stream. This
absurd story many of the Spaniards believed, and none
more firmly than De Leon. He was an old man, and
anxious to renew his youthful pleasures ; with eager hopes
he hastened in search of the marvellous fountain.
He did not find it, but in coasting along to the west of
the islands, he came in sight of an unknown country. It
appeared to bloom with flowers, and to be covered with
magnificent forests. As this country was first seen on
Easter Sunday, which the Spaniards call Pascua Florida,
he named it Florida. With great difficulty he landed to
the north of where St. Augustine now stands, and took
formal possession of the country in the name of the Spanish
sovereign. He sailed to the south along the unknown and
dangerous coast, around the extreme point, Cape Florida,
and to the south-west among the Tortugas islands. He
received for his services the honor of being appointed Gov-
ernor of Florida by the King of Spain, — rather an expen-
sive honor, being based on the condition that he should
colonize the country.
A year or two afterward, he attempted to plant a
colony, but found the natives exceedingly hostile. They
attacked him and his men with great fury — many were
killed, the rest were forced to flee to their ships, and Ponce
de Leon himself was mortally wounded. He had been a
soldier of Spain ; a companion of Columbus on his second
voyage ; had been governor of Porto Rico, where he had
oppressed the natives with great cruelty ; he had sought
VASQUEZ DE AYLLON. 45
an exemption from the ills of old age ; had attempted to chap
found a colony and gain the immortality of fame. But he
returned to Cuba to die, without planting his colony or 1512
drinking of the fountain of youth.
About this time was made the first attempt to obtain
Indians from the Continent as slaves to work in the mines
and on the plantations of Hispaniola or St. Domingo. The
ignominy of this attempt belongs to a company of seven
men, the most distinguished of whom was Lucas Vasquez
de Ayllon. They went first to the Bahama Islands, from
these they passed to the coast of the present State of South
Carolina, landing at or near St. Helena Sound.
The natives of this region knew not as yet what they
had to fear from Europeans. They were, however, shy at
first, but after presents had been distributed among them,
they received the strangers kindly. They were invited to
visit the ships. Curiosity overcame their timidity, and
they went on board in crowds. The treacherous Spaniards
immediately set sail for St. Domingo, regardless of the
sorrows they inflicted upon the victims of their cruelty and
avarice. Thus far their plot was successful ; soon how- 152k
ever a storm arose, and one of the ships went down with
all on board ; sickness and death carried off many of the
captives on the other vessel. Such outrages upon the na-
tives were common ; and instead of being condemned and
punished, they were commended. Vasquez went to Spain,
boasting of his expedition as if it had been praiseworthy.
As a reward, he received from the Spanish monarch a,
commission to conquer the country.
"When he had expended his fortune in preparations, he
set sail, and landed upon the coast. Bitter wrongs had
been inflicted upon the natives, and their spirit was roused.
They attacked him with great vigor, killed nearly all
his men, and forced him to give up the enterprise. It is
said that grief and disappointment hastened the death of
Vasquez.
46 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
chap. The Spaniards were more successful elsewhere. The
explorers of the west coast of the Gulf had heard of the
1620. famed empire of Mexico and its golden riches. As evi-
dence of the truth of these marvellous stories, they exhib-
ited the costly presents given them by the unsuspecting
natives. Under the lead of Fernando Cortez, six hun-
dred and seventeen adventurers invaded the empire ; and
though they met with the most determined resistance, in
the end Spanish arms and skill prevailed. Defeated at
every point, and disheartened at the death of their em
1521. peror, Montezuma, the Mexicans submitted, and their em-
1821. pire became a province of Spain. Just three hundred
years from that time, the province threw off the Spanish
yoke, and became a republic.
Kumor told also of the splendor and wealth of a great
empire lying to the south, known as Peru. Pizarro,
another daring adventurer, set out from Panama with only
one hundred foot soldiers and sixty-seven horsemen to in-
vade and conquer it. After enduring toil and labors
almost unparalleled, he succeeded ; and that empire, con
taining millions of inhabitants, wealthy, and quite civilized,
1531. was reduced to a province. Pizarro founded Lima, which
became his capital. He oppressed the natives with great
cruelty, and accumulated unbounded wealth drawn from
mines of the precious metals, but after a rule of nine yean;
he fell a victim to a conspiracy.
CHAPTER IV.
ENGLISH AND FKENCH DISCOVERIES.
John Cabot discovers the American Continent. — Enterprise of his son Se-
bastian.—Voyages of Verrazzani and Cartier. — Attempts at Settlement.
Whilst these discoveries, conquests, and settlements chap
were in progress in the South, a series of discoveries was '__
going on in the North. 1497.
John Cabot, a native of Venice, residing, as a merchant,
in Bristol, in the West of England, made application to
Henry VII., the reigning sovereign, for permission to go
on a voyage of discovery. The king gave to Cabot and
his three sons a patent, or commission, granting them cer-
tain privileges. This is said to be the most ancient state
paper of England relating to America.
As Henry VII. was proverbially prudent in money
matters, he would not aid the Cabots by sharing with
them the expense of the expedition, but he was careful to
bind them to land, on their return, at the port of Bristol,
and pay him one-fifth part of the profits of their trade.
They were, in the name of the king, to take possession of
all the territories they should discover, and to have the ex-
clusive privilege of trading to them.
Bristol, at this time, was the greatest commercial town
in the West of England, and had trained up multitudes
of hardy seamen. These seamen had become habituated
to the storms of the ocean, by battling tempests in the
Northern seas around Iceland, in their yearly fishing ex-
cursions. It is quite probable they had there heard the
48 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN" PEOPLE.
CHAP, tradition, that at a remote period the Icelanders had dis-
covered a country to the west of their island.
1497. Cabot and his son Sebastian sailed almost due west,
and before long discovered the American continent, it is
supposed near the fifty-sixth degree of north latitude.
What must have been their surprise to find, in the lati-
tude of England, a land dreary with snow and ice, barren
rocks, frowning cliffs, polar bears, and wild savages ! This
discovery was made more than a year before Columbus, on
his third voyage, saw the South American coast, at the
mouth of the Orinoco.
Thus the Western continent was discovered by pri-
vate enterprise alone. The next year a voyage was under-
taken for the purposes of trade, and also to ascertain
if the country was suitable for making settlements. The
king now ventured to become a partner in the speculation,
and defrayed some of the expense. Sebastian Cabot sailed,
with a company of three hundred men, for Labrador, and
landed still further north than at his first voyage. The
severity of the cold, though it was the commencement of
summer, and the barrenness of the country, deterred him
from remaining any length of time. He sailed to the
South and explored the coast, till want of provisions forced
him to return home. The family of the Cabots derived
no benefit from their discovery, as the trade to those barren
regions amounted to nothing.
It is a matter of regret that so little is known of the
many voyages of Sebastian Cabot. Around his name there
lingers a pleasing interest. He is represented as being
very youthful, not more than twenty years of age, when
he went on his first voyage. Mild and courteous in
his manners ; determined in purpose, and persevering
in execution ; with a mind of extraordinary activity ;
daring in his enterprises, but never rash or imprudent ;
he won the hearts of his sailors by his kindness, and
commanded their respect by his skill. Such was the
SEBASTIAN CABOT.
VOYAGE OF VERRaZZANI. 49
man who, for more than fifty years, was the foremost in ceap
maritime adventure. He explored the eastern coast of
South America ; sailed within twenty degrees of the North 1497,
Pole, in search of the North- Western passage ; and at dif-
ferent times explored the eastern coast of this continent,
from Hudson's straits to Albemarle sound.
The Cahots had noticed the immense shoals of fish 1524
which frequented the waters around Newfoundland. The
English prosecuted these fisheries, but to no great extent,
as they continued to visit the Icelandic seas. French fish-
ermen, however, availed themselves of the way opened by
their rivals, and prosecuted them with great vigor. Plans
for planting colonies in those regions were often proposed
in France, yet nothing was done beyond the yearly visits
of the fishermen. Francis I. was finally induced to attempt
further explorations. For this purpose he employed Ver-
razzani, a native of Florence, in Italy, a navigator of some
celebrity, to take charge of an expedition. This was the •
first voyage, for the purpose of discovery, undertaken at
the expense of the French government.
Verrazzani sailed south to the Madeira Isles, and thence
due west, in quest of new countries. On the passage he
battled a terrible tempest, but at length saw land in the
latitude of Wilmington, North Carolina. No good har-
bor could be found as he coasted along to the south for
one hundred and fifty miles. Then turning north, he cast
anchor from time to time and explored the coast. The
surprise of the natives and that of the voyagers was mu-
tual ; the one wondered at the white strangers, their ships
and equipments ; the other at the " russet color" of the
simple natives ; their dress of skins set off with various rude
ornaments and gaudy-colored feathers. The imagination
of the voyagers had much to do with the report they made
of their discoveries. The groves, they said, bloomed with
flowers, whose fragrance greeted them far from the shore,
50 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
chap, reminding them of the spices of the East ; the reddish
, color of the earth was, no douht, caused by gold.
1524. The explorers examined carefully the spacious harbors
of New York and Newport ; in the latter they remained
fifteen days. They noticed the fine personal appearance
of the natives, who were hospitable, but could not be in-
duced to trade, and appeared to be ignorant of the use of
iron. They continued their voyage along the then name-
less shores of New England to Nova Scotia, and still fur-
ther north. There the natives were hostile ; they had
learned, by sad experience, the cruelty and treachery of
white men. Gaspar Cortereal, a Portuguese, some years
before, had visited their coast, stolen some of their friends,
and sold them into slavery. They were willing to trade
for instruments of iron or steel, but were very cautious,
fearful of being again entrapped.
After his return, Verrazzani published a narrative of
• his voyage, giving much more information of the country
than had hitherto been known. On the ground of his dis-
coveries, France laid claim to the territory extending from
South Carolina to Newfoundland.
1534. Ten years after, an expedition was sent, under James
Cartier, a mariner of St. Malo, to make further discoveries,
with the ultimate design of founding a colony. His voyage
was very successful ; he reached Newfoundland in twenty
days ; passed through the Straits of Belleisle ; sailed to the
south-west across a gulf and entered a bay ; which, from
the extreme heat of the weather, he named Des Chaleurs.
Coasting along still further west, he landed at the inlet
called Gaspe, where he took formal possession of the coun-
try, in the name of his sovereign. This he did by plant-
ing a cross, surmounted by the lilies of France, and bear-
ing a suitable inscription. Continuing his course still
further west, he entered the mouth of a great estuary, into
which he ascertained flowed an immense river, larger by
far than any river in Europe. These explorations were
VOYAGE OF CARTIER.
51
made during the months of July and August. It was now °hap.
necessary for him to return home.
His account of the climate as "hotter than that of 1584.
Spain," and of the country as " the fairest that can pos-
sibly he found ;" of its " sweet-smelling trees ;" of its
" strawberries, blackberries, prunes and wild corn ;" its
" figs, apples and other fruits," together with his descrip-
tion of the great gulf and noble river, excited in France
the most intense interest.
Immediately plans were devised to colonize the coun-
try. The court entered into the scheme. Some of the
young nobility volunteered to become colonists. By the
following May the arrangements were completed. Cartier,
" who was very religious," first conducted his company to
the cathedral, where they received the bishop's blessing,
then set sail, with high hopes of founding a State in what
was then called New France.
After a somewhat stormy passage, he reached the
northern part of the gulf, on the day of St. Lawrence the 153&
Martyr, in honor of whom it was named — in time, the
name was applied to river also.
The strangers were received hospitably by the natives.
Cartier ascended the river in a boat to an island, on which
was the principal Indian settlement. It was in the mild
and pleasant month of September. He ascended a hill, at
the foot of which lay the Indian village; he was enraptur-
ed by the magnificent scene ; the river before him evidently
drained a vast territory ; the natives told him " that it
went so far to the west, that they had never heard of any
man who had gone to the head of it." He named the hill
Mont-Keal, Koyal-Mount ; a name since transferred to the
island, and to the city.
This country was in the same latitude with France ; he
thought its climate must be equally mild, its soil equally
fertile ; and that it might become the home of a happy and
industrious people, and this beautiful island the centre of
52 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
chap, an almost unbounded commerce. He did not know that
God had sent the warm waters of the south through the
1535. Gulf Stream to the west of Europe ; that they warmed
the bleak west winds, and made the delightful climate of
his native France different from that in the same latitude
in North America.'
A rigorous winter dissipated his visions. His honest
narrative of the voyage, and of the intense coldness of the
climate, deterred his countrymen from making further
attempts to colonize the country. There was no gold nor
silver to he found — no mines of precious stones. What
inducement was there for them to leave their fertile and
beautiful France, with its mild and healthful climate, tc
shiver on the banks of the St. Lawrence ?
1540. Thus it remained for four years. Among many who
thought it unworthy a great nation not to found a State
on the shores of the magnificent gulf and river of the New
World, was a nobleman of Picardy, Francis de la Roque,
lord of Roberval. He obtained a commission from Fran-
cis I. to plant a colony, with full legal authority as viceroy
over the territories and regions on or near the Gulf and
River of St. Lawrence. These were to be known in his-
tory under the ambitious name of Norimbega.
Cartier was induced by Roberval to receive a commission
as chief pilot of the expedition. They did not act in con-
cert; both were tenacious of honor and authority, and they
were jealous of each other.
1540. Cartier sailed the following spring, passed up the river,
and built a fort near where Quebec now stands. To estab-
lish a prosperous colony, virtue, industry, and perseverance
must be found in the colonists. The first enterprise, com-
1 "The quantity of heat discharged over the Atlantic from the waters
of the Gulf Stream in a winter's day, would be sufficient to raise the whole
column of atmosphere that rests upon France an i the Briti.-h Isles, from the
freezing point to summer heat."
Maury's Physical Geography of the. Sea. v 61.
ATTEMPTS AT SETTLEMENT. 53
posed of young noblemen and amateur colonists, failed, as chap.
might have been expected. In the second attempt they '_
went to the other extreme, — the colonists were criminals, 1542.
drawn from the prisons of France.
During the winter Cartier hung one of them for theft ;
put some in irons ; and whipped others, men and women,
for minor faults. In the spring, just as Koberval himself
arrived with a reinforcement, he slipped off to France,
heartily disgusted with his winter's occupation. Eoberval
remained about a year, and then returned home, perfectly
willing to resign the viceroyalty of Norimbega, and retire
to his estates in Picardy. After a lapse of fifty years, a
successful attempt was made by the French to colonize the
same territory.
CHAPTER V.
DE SOTO AND THE MISSISSIPPI.
chap. The name Florida was given by the Spaniards to the
. entire southern portion of the United States. Their at-
1539. tempts to conquer this territory had hitherto failed. Foi
some unexplained reason, the most exaggerated stories
were told of the richness of the country ; there was no evi-
dence of their truth, yet they were implicitly believed.
The success of Cortez in conquering Mexico, and of
Pizarro in conquering Peru, excited the emulation of
Ferdinand de Soto. He had been a companion of Pizarro ;
had gained honor by his valor, and, in accordance with the
morals of the times, had accumulated an immense amount
of wealth by various means of extortion. Still it must be
said in his favor, that he was, by tar, the most humane of
any of the Spanish officers who pillaged Mexico and
Peru. Foreseeing the endless quarrels and jealousies of
the Spaniards in Peru, he prudently retired to Spain with
his ill-gotten gains.
Ambition did not permit him to remain long in retire-
ment. He panted for a name, for military glory, to sur-
pass the two conquerors of the New World. He asked
permission to conquer Florida, at his own expense. The
request was graciously granted by the Emperor, Charles V.
He also received an honor much more grateful to his am-
bition ; he was appointed Governor of Cuba, and of all the
countries he should conquer.
THE LANDING AT TAMPA BAT. 55
The announcement that he was about to embark on chap.
this enterprise, excited in Spain the highest hopes, — hopes
of military glory and of unbounded wealth. Enthusiastic 1539
men said these hopes must be realized ; there were cities
in the interior of Florida as rich, if not richer than those
of Mexico or Peru ; temples equally splendid, to be plun-
dered of their golden ornaments. Volunteers offered in
crowds, many of noble birth, and all proud to be led by so
renowned a chief. From these numerous applicants De
Soto chose six hundred men, in " the bloom of life." The
enthusiasm was so great, that it appeared more like a
holiday excursion than a military expedition.
He sailed for Cuba, where he was received with great
distinction. Leaving his wife to govern the island, he
sailed for Florida, and landed at Espiritu Santo, now Tampa
bay. He never harbored the thought that his enterprise
could fail. He sent his ships back to Cuba ; thus, in imi-
tation of Cortez, he deprived his followers of the means to
return. Volunteers in Cuba had increased his army to
nearly one thousand men, of whom three hundred were
horsemen, all well armed. Every thing was provided that
De Soto's foresight and experience could suggest ; ample
stores of provisions, and for future supplies, a drove of
swine, for which Indian corn and the fruits of the forest
would furnish* an abundance of food. The company was
provided with cards, that they might spend their " leisure
time in gaming ;" a dozen of priests, that the " festivals of
the church might be kept," and her ceremonies rigidly per-
formed ; chains for the captive Indians, and bloodhounds,
to track and tear them in pieces, should they attempt to
escape ; — incongruities of which the adventurers seemed
unconscious.
They now commenced their march through pathless
forests. The Indian guides, who had been kidnapped on
former invasions, soon learned that they were in search of
gold. Anxious to lead them as far as possible from the
56 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
chap, neighborhood of their own tribes, they humored their fan-
cies, and told them of regions far away, where the precioua
1540. metal was abundant. In one instance they pointed to the
north-east, where they said the people understood the art
of refining it, and sent them away over the rivers and
plains of Georgia. It is possible they may have referred
to the gold region of North Carolina.
When one of the guides honestly confessed that he
knew of no such country, De Soto ordered him to be burned
for telling an untruth. From this time onward the
guides continued to allure the Spaniards on in search of
a golden region, — a region they were ever approaching, but
never reached.
At length the men grew weary of wandering through
forests and swamps ; they looked for cities, rich and
splendid, they found only Indian towns, small and poor,
whose finest buildings were wigwams. They wished to
return ; but De Soto was determined to proceed, and his
faithful followers submitted. They pillaged the Indians
of their provisions, thus rendered them hostile, and many
conflicts ensued. They treated their captives with great
barbarity ; wantonly cut off their hands, burned them at
the stake, suffered them to be torn in pieces by the blood-
hounds, or chained them together with iron collars, and
compelled them to carry their baggage.
They moved toward the south-west, and came into the
neighborhood of a large walled town, named Mavilla, since
Mobile. It was a rude town, but it afforded a better shel-
ter than the forests and the open plains, and they wished
to occupy it. The Indians resisted, and a fierce battle
ensued. The Spanish cavalry gained a victory, — a victory
dearly bought ; the town was burned, and with it nearly
all their baggage.
Meantime, according to appointment, ships from Cuba
had arrived at Pensacola. De Soto would not confess thai
he had thus far failed : he would send no news until he
DISCOVERY OF THE MISSISSIPPI. 57
had rivalled Cortez in military renown. They now diiected chap.
their course to the north-west, and spent the following win-
ter in the northern part of the State of Mississippi. From 1540
the Indian corn in the fields they obtained food, and made
their winter quarters in a deserted town. When spring
returned, a demand was made of the Chickasaw chief to
furnish men to carry their baggage. The indignant chief
refused. The hostile Indians deceived the sentinels, and
in the night set fire to the village and attacked the Span-
iards, but after a severe contest they were repulsed. It
was another dear victory to the invaders ; the little
they had saved from the flames at Mobile was now con-
"sumed. This company, once so " brilliant in silks and
glittering armor," were now scantily clothed in skins, and
mats made of ivy.
Again they commenced their weary wanderings, and
before many days found themselves on the banks of the
Mississippi. De Soto expressed no feelings of pleasure or
of admiration at the discovery of the magnificent river,
with its ever-flowing stream of turbid waters. Ambition
and avarice consume the finer feelings of the soul ; they
destroy the appreciation of what is noble in man and
beautiful in nature. De Soto was only anxious to cross
the river, and press on in search of cities and of gold. A 1541
month elapsed before boats could be built to transport the
horses. At length they were ready, and white men, for
the first time, launched forth upon the Father of Waters.
The natives on the west bank received the strangers
kindly, and gave them presents. The Indians of southern
Missouri supposed them to be superior beings — children of
the sun — and they brought them their blind to be restored
to sight. De Soto answered them, "The Lord made the
heavens and the earth : pray to Him only for whatsoever
ye need." Here they remained forty days ; sent out ex-
plorers further north, who reported that buffaloes were so
numerous in that region that corn could not be raised ;
58 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
chap, that the inhabitants were few, and lived by hunting
They wandered two hundred miles further west ; then
1541. turned to the south, and went nearly as far, among In-
dians who were an agricultural people, living in villages,
and subsisting upon the produce of the soil.
In this region another winter was passed. It was now
almost three years since De Soto had landed at Tampa
bay. With all his toil and suffering, he had accomplished
;542. nothing. In the spring, he descended the Wachita to
the Ked river, and thence once more to the Mississippi.
There he learned that the country, extending to the sea,
was a waste of swamj s, where no man dwelt.
His cup of disappointment was full ; his pride, which
had hitherto sustained him, must confess that his enter-
prise had been a failure. He had set out with higher
hopes than any Spanish conqueror of the New World ;
now his faithful band was wasted by disease and death.
He was far from aid ; a deep gloom settled upon his spirit ;
his soul was agitated by a conflict of emotions ; a violent
fever was induced ; and when sinking rapidly, he called
his followers around him, they, faithful to the last, im-
plored him to appoint a successor : he did so. The next
day De Soto was no more. His soldiers mourned for him ;
the priests performed his funeral rites ; with sad hearts
they wrapped his body in a mantle, and, at the silent hour
of midnight, sunk it beneath the waters of the Mississippi.
His followers again wandered for awhile, in hopes of
getting to Mexico. Finally they halted upon the banks of
the Mississippi ; erected a forge ; struck the fetters off
their Indian captives, and made the iron into nails to build
boats ; killed their horses and swine, and dried their flesh
for provisions. When the boats were finished they
launched them upon the river, and floated down its
stream to the Gulf of Mexico.
1672. After the lapse of one hundred and thirty years, the Mis-
sissippi was again visited by white men of another nation
CHAPTER VI.
THE REFORMATION AND ITS EFFECTS.
From this period we find interwoven with the early his- chap
tory of our country a class of persons who were not mere VL
adventurers, seekers after gold or fame — but who sought 1517j
here a home, where they might enjoy civil and religious
liberty, and who held the principles of which we see the
result in the institutions of the United States, so different
in some respects from those of any other nation. This differ-
ence did not spring from chance, but was the legitimate ef-
fect of certain influences. What has made this younger
member of the great family of governments to differ so much
from the others ? What were the principles, what the in-
fluences, which produced such men and women as our
revolutionary aricestors ? The world has never seen their
equals for self-denying patriotism ; for enlightened views
of government, of religious liberty, and of the rights of con-
science.
When great changes are to be introduced among the
nations of the earth, God orders the means to accomplish
them, as well as the end to be attained. He trains the
people for the change. He not only prepared the way for
the discovery of this continent, but for its colonization by
a Christian people. Fifty years before the first voyage of
Columbus, the art of printing was invented — and twenty-
five years after the same voyage, commenced the Reforma-
tion in Germany under Martin Luther. The art of print-
ing, by multiplying books, became the means of diffusing
60 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
chap, knowledge among men, and of awakening the human mind
from the sleep of ages. One of the consequences of this
1517. awakening, was the Keformation. The simple truths 01
the Gospel had been obscured by the teachings of men.
The decrees of the church had drawn a veil between the
throne of God and the human soul. The priesthood had
denied to the people the right of studying for themselves
the word of God. The views of the Reformers were the
reverse of this. They believed that God, as Lord of the
conscience, had given a revelation of his will to man, and
that it was the inherent right and privilege of every human
being to study that will, each one for himself. They did
not stop here : they were diligent seekers for truth ; the
advocates of education and of free inquiry. Throwing
aside the traditions of men, they went directly to the
Bible, and taught all men to do the same.
On the continent, the Reformation began among the
learned men of the universities, and gradually extended to
the uneducated people. In England, the common people
were reading the Bible in their own language, long before
it was the privilege of any nation on the continent.* Thus
the English were prepared to enter into the spirit of the
Reformation under Luther. Soon persecutions of the Re-
formers arose ; with civil commotions and oppressions
involving all Europe in war. These troubles drove the
Huguenot from France and the Puritan from England, to
seek homes in the wilderness of the New World.
From the Bible they learned their high and holy prin-
ciples ; fiery trials taught them endurance. They brought
with them to our shores the spirit of the Reformation, the
recognition of civil rights and religious liberty. These
principles have been transmitted to us in our national
institutions and form of government.
* D'Aubigne's Hist, of the Reformation, Vol. V.
CHAPTER VII.
THE HUGUENOTS IN THE SOUTH.
Their settlement destroyed. — The Colony of St. Augustine. — De Gourges.
Settlements in New France. — Champlain and his Success.
While these contests were going on in Europe between chap
the friends of religious liberty and the Roman Catholics,
Coligny, the high-admiral of France, a devoted Protestant, 1562
conceived the idea of founding a colony in the New World,
to which his persecuted countrymen might flee, and enjoy
that which was denied them in their native land ; the
inestimable privilege of worshipping God according to the
dictates of their own conscience, enlightened by his holy
word.
The French government took no interest in the matter.
Those influences were then at work, which a few years 1572
later produced their dire effect in the massacre of St. Bar-
tholomew. Coligny, however, easily obtained a commission
from Charles IX. Preparations were soon made, and the
expedition sailed under the direction of John Ribault, a
worthy man, and a sincere Protestant.
They knew the character of the country and of the
climate in the latitude of the St. Lawrence, and they wish-
ed to find a region more fertile and a climate more genial.
They made land in the vicinity of St. Augustine, Florida;
then continued further north along the coast, and landed
at Port Royal entrance. They were delighted with the May.
country, its fine climate, its magnificent forests, fragrant
62 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
chap, with wild flowers ; but above all with the capacious har-
bor, which was capable of floating the largest ships. Here
1562. it was determined to make a settlement : a fort was built
on an island in the harbor, and in honor of their sovereign
called Carolina. Leaving twenty-five men to keep pos-
session of the country, Ribault departed for France, with
the intention of returning the next year with supplies and
more emigrants. He found France in confusion ; civil
war was raging with all its attendant horrors. In vain the
colonists looked for reinforcements and supplies — none
ever came. Disheartened, they resolved to return home ;
they hastily built a brigantine, and with an insufficiency of
provisions, set sail. They came near perishing at sea by
famine, but were providentially rescued by an English bark.
Part of these colonists were taken to France, and part to
England, — there they told of the fine climate and the rich
soil of the country they had attempted to colonize. "We
shall yet see the effect of this information in directing
English enterprise.
Two years after, there was a treacherous lull in the
storm of civil discord in France ; Coligny again attempted
to found a colony. The care of this expedition was intrust-
ed to Laudoniere, a man of uprightness and intelligence,
who had been on the former voyage. The healthfulness of
the climate of Florida was represented to be wonderful :
it was believed, that under its genial influence, human life
was extended more than one-half, while the stories of the
wealth of the interior still found credence. Unfortunately
proper care was not exercised in selecting the colonists
from the numerous volunteers who offered. Some were
chosen who were not worthy to be members of a colony
based on religious principles, and founded for noble pur-
poses.
They reached the coast of Florida, avoided Port Royal,
1664. the scene of former misery, and found a suitable location
for a settlement on the banks of the river May, now called
FORT CAROLINA. 63
the St. Johns. They offered songs of thanksgiving to God c*?ap.
for his guiding care, and trusted to his promises for the
future. They built another fort, which like the first they 1564.
called Carolina. The true character of some of the colo- June
nists soon began to appear, — these had joined the enter-
prise with no higher motive than gain. They were muti-
nous, idle, and dissolute, wasting the provisions of the com-
pany. They robbed the Indians, who became hostile, and
refused to furnish the colony with provisions.
Under the pretext of avoiding famine, these fellows of
the baser sort asked permission of Laudoniere to go to New
Spain. He granted it, thinking it a happy riddance for
himself and the colony. They embarked, only to become
pirates. The Spaniards, whom they attacked, took their
vessel and made most of them slaves ; the remainder es-
caped in a boat. They knew of no safer place than Fort
Carolina. When they returned Laudoniere had them
arrested for piracy ; they were tried, and the ringleaders
condemned and executed ; — a sufficient evidence that
their conduct was detested by the better portion of the
colonists.
Famine now came pressing on. Month after month
passed away, and still there came no tidings — no supplies
from home. Just at this time arrived Sir John Hawkins
from the West Indies, where he had disposed of a cargo of
negroes as slaves. He was the first Englishman, it is
said, who had engaged in that unrighteous traffic. Though
hard-hearted toward the wretched Africans, he manifested
much sympathy for the famishing colonists ; supplied them
with provisions, and gave them one of his ships. They
aontinued their preparations to leave for home, when sud-
denly the cry was raised that ships were coming into the Aug.
harbor. It was Ribault returning with supplies and fami-
lies of emigrants. He was provided with domestic ani-
mals, seeds and implements for cultivating the soil. The
scene was now changed ; all were willing to remain, and
64 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
CvnP* the hope of founding a French Protestant State in the
New World was revived.
1564. Philip II., the cruel and bigoted King of Spain, heard
that the French — French Protestants — had presumed to
make a settlement in Florida ! Immediately plans were laid
to exterminate the heretics. The king found a fit instru-
ment for the purpose in Pedro Melendez ; a man familiar
with scenes of carnage and cruelty, whose life was stained
with almost every crime. The king knew his desperate
character ; gave him permission to conquer Florida at his
own expense, and appointed him its governor for life, with
the right to name his successor. His colony was to consist
of not less than five hundred persons, one hundred of whom
should be married men. He was also to introduce the
sugar-cane, and five hundred negro slaves to cultivate it.
The expedition was soon under way. Melendez first saw the
land on the day consecrated to St. Augustine ; some days
after, sailing along the coast, he discovered a fine harbor
and river, to which he gave the name of that saint. From
the Indians he learned where the Huguenots had estab-
lished themselves. They were much surprised at the ap-
pearance of a fleet, and they inquired of the stranger who
he was and why he came ; he replied, " I am Melendez, of
^Pt- Spain, sent by my sovereign with strict orders to behead
and gibbet every Protestant in these regions ; the Catholic
shall be spared, but every Protestant shall die !" The
French fleet, unprepared for a conflict, put to sea ; the
Spaniards pursued but did not overtake it. Melendez then
returned to St. Augustine. After a religious festival in
honor of the Virgin Mary, he proceeded to mark out the
boundaries for a town. St. Augustine is, by more than
forty years, the oldest town in the United States.
His determination was now to attack the Huguenots
by land, and carry out his cruel orders. The French sup-
posing the Spaniards would come by sea, set sail to meet
them. Melendez found the colonists unprepared and de-
THE MASSACRE. 65
fenceless : their men were nearly all on board the fleet. A cHAp.
7 J VII.
short contest ensued ; the French were overcome, and the
fanatic Spaniards massacred nearly the whole number, — 1564.
men, women, and children ; they spared not even the aged
and the sick. A few were reserved as slaves, and a few
escaped to the woods. To show to the world upon what
principles he acted, Melendez placed over the dead this
inscription : — " I do not this as unto Frenchmen, but as
unto heretics." Mass was celebrated, and on the ground
still reeking with the blood of the innocent victims of re-
ligious bigotry and fanaticism, he erected a cross and
marked out a site for a church — the first on the soil of
the United States.
Among those who escaped, were Laudoni^re and Le
Moyne, an artist, sent by Coligny to make drawings of the
most interesting scenery of the country ; and Challus, who
afterward wrote an account of the calamity. When they
seemed about to perish in the forests from hunger, they
questioned whether they should appeal to the mercy of
their conquerors. ""No," said Challus, "let us trust in
the mercy of God rather than of these men." After en-
during many hardships, they succeeded in reaching two
small French vessels which had remained in the harbor,
and thus escaped to France. A few of their companions,
who threw themselves upon the mercy of the Spaniards,
were instantly murdered.
While these scenes of carnage were in progress, a ter-
rible storm wrecked the French fleet ; some of the soldiers
and sailors were enabled to reach the shore, but in a des-
titute condition. These poor men when invited, surren-
dered themselves to the promised clemency of Melendez.
They were taken across the river in little companies ; as
they landed their hands were tied behind them, and they
driven to a convenient place, where at a given signal they
were all murdered. Altogether nine hundred persons
perished by shipwreck and violence. It is the office of
(5(3 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
chap, history to record the deeds of the past — the evil and the
good ; let the one be condemned and avoided, the other
1504. commended and imitated. May we not hope that the day
'of fanatic zeal and religious persecution has passed away
forever ?
The French government was indifferent, and did not
avenge the wrongs of her loyal and good subjects ; but the
Huguenots, and the generous portion of the nation, were
roused to a high state of indignation at such wanton, such
unheard-of cruelty. This feeling found a representative
in Dominic de Gourges, a native of Gascony. He fitted
out, at his own expense, three ships, and with one hun-
dred and fifty men sailed for Florida. He suddenly came
upon the Spaniards and completely overpowered them.
1568. Near the scene of their former cruelty he hanged about
two hundred on the trees ; placing over them the inscrip-
tion, " I do not this as unto Spaniards and mariners, but
as unto traitors, robbers, and murderers I" Gourges im-
mediately returned to France, when the " Most Christian"
king set a price upon his head ; and he who had exposed
his life, and sacrificed his fortune to avenge the insult
offered to his country, was obliged to conceal himself to
escape the gallows. Thus perished the attempt of the
noble Coliguy and the Huguenots to found a French Prot-
estant State in the New World.
After the unsuccessful expeditions of Cartier and Eo-
berval, French fishermen, in great numbers, continued to
visit the waters around Newfoundland. As the govern-
ment had relinquished its claim to Florida, the idea was
once more revived of colonizing on the shores of the St.
Lawrence.
1567, The Marquis de la Koche obtained a commission for this
purpose. His colonists, like those of Roberval, were crimi-
nals taken from the prisons of France : like his, this enter-
prise proved an utter failure. The efforts of some mer-
POET ROYAL SETTLEMENT.
67
chants, who obtained by patent a monopoly of the fur- C3AF-
trade, also failed.
At length, a company of merchants of Kouen engaged 1603.
in the enterprise with more success. That success may be
Bafely attributed to Samuel Champlain, a man of compre-
hensive mind, of great energy o^ character, cautious in all
nis plans ; a keen observer of the habits of the Indians,
and an unwearied explorer of the country.
In the latter part of this same year, a patent, exclu-
sive in its character, was given to a Protestant, the excel-
lent and patriotic Sieur De Monts. The patent conferred
on him the sovereignty of the country called Acadie — a
territory extending from Philadelphia on the south, to be-
yond Montreal on the north, and to the west indefinitely.
It granted him a monopoly of the fur-trade and other
branches of commerce ; and freedom in religion to the
Huguenots who should become colonists. It was enjoined
upon all idlers, and men of no profession, and banished
persons to aid in founding the colony.
The expedition was soon under way in two ships. In
due time they entered a spacious harbor on the western
part of Nova Scotia, which they named Port Royal, since
Annapolis. The waters abounded in fish, and the coun-
try was fertile and level — advantages that induced some of
the emigrants to form a settlement. Others went to an
island at the mouth of the St. Croix, but the next spring 1607.
they removed to Port Royal. This was the first perma-
nent French settlement in the New World ; and these
were the ancestors of those unfortunate Acadiens whose
fate, nearly a century and a half later, forms a melancholy
episode in American history.
Among the influences exerted upon the Indians was
that of the Jesuits, who, a few years afterward, were sent
as missionaries to the tribes between the Penobscot and
the Kennebec in Maine. These tribes became the allies
of the French, and remained so during all their contests
°o HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
chap, with the English. De Monts explored the coast and rivers
of New England as far south as Cape Cod, intending
1608. somewhere in that region to make a settlement ; but disas-
ter followed disaster, till the project was finally abandoned.
Meantime, Champlain, whose ambition was to estab-
lish a State, had founded Quebec, that is, it was the
centre of a few cultivated fields and gardens. Huguenots
were among the settlers ; they had taken an active part in
the enterprise ; but there were also others who were of the
Catholic faith. Soon religious disputes as well as commer-
cial jealousies arose, which retarded the progress of the
colony. Champlain, the soul of the enterprise, was not
idle ; he made many exploring expeditions, and discovered
1609. the beautiful lake which bears his name. In spite of the
quarrels between the Jesuits and the Huguenots, and the
restlessness of the Indians and disappointments of various
kinds, the persevering Champlain succeeded in establish-
1684. ing a French colony on the banks of the St. Lawrence.
For one hundred and twenty years it remained under the
dominion of his native France, and then passed into the
hands of her great rival.
69
CHAPTER VIII.
ENGLISH ENTERPRISE.
Sir Humphrey Gilbert. — The Fisheries. — St. Johns, Newfoundland. — Sir
Walter Raleigh. — Exploring Expedition. — Virginia ; failures to colo-
nize.— Contest with Spain. — Death of Sir Walter.
CHAP
VIII.
England never relinquished her claims to North Amer-
ica ; they were based upon the discovery and explorations 1569.
of Sebastian Cabot. According to the received rules of
the times, she was . right, as he was undoubtedly the 1497.
first discoverer. For many reasons, she was not pre-
pared to avail herself of these claims, till nearly ninety
years after that discovery. This time was not passed by
the English sailors in maritime idleness. During the reign
of Henry VIII., intercourse was kept up with the fisheries
of Newfoundland, that school of English seamen, in which
were trained the men who gave to that nation the suprem-
acy of the ocean, — the element upon which the military
glory of England was to be achieved. The king cherished
his navy, and took commerce under his special protection.
The reign of Mary, of bloody memory, saw the strug-
gle commence between England and Spain for the suprem-
acy on the ocean. She married Philip II., the most
powerful monarch of the age : he designed to subject the
English nation to himself, and its religion to the church of
Rome. When this became known, the Protestant spirit
rose in opposition. This spirit pervaded the entire people ;
1549
70 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
C\m' *^ey exerted their energies to the utmost. Instead of sub*
mitting to the dictation of Spain, England boldly assumed
1570. the position of an antagonist. There was a marked con-
trast between the two nations. The navy of the one was
immense, that of the other was small, but brave and effi-
cient : the one drew her wealth from mines of gold and
silver in the New World — the other obtained hers by the
slow process of industry and economy. The one became
proud and indolent, luxurious and imbecile — the other
may have become proud, but certainly not indolent; luxu-
rious, but certainly not imbecile.
On her accession, Queen Elizabeth pursued the policy
of her father Henry VIII., towards her navy and com-
From merce. While some of her subjects were trading by land
with the east, others were on the ocean cruising against
the Spaniards : some were prosecuting the fisheries around
Newfoundland and in the seas northwest of Europe ; some
were exploring the western coast of America, and the east-
ern coast of Asia : others were groping their way among
the islands of the extreme north, in a vain search for the
north-west passage.
Explorers were still haunted with the idea that mines
of exhaustless wealth were yet to be found in the New
World. Great was the exultation when a " mineral-man"
of London declared that a stone brought by an English
sailor from the Polar regions, contained gold. England
was to find in the region of eternal snow mines of the pre-
cious metal, more prolific than Spain had found in Mexico.
Soon fifteen vessels set sail for this northern island, where
there was " ore enough to suffice all the gold-gluttons of
the world." They returned laden, not with golden ore, but
1578. with worthless yellow stones.
Meanwhile, the fisheries around Newfoundland had be-
come a certain, though a slow source of wealth. Sir
Humphrey Gilbert, a gentleman of distinction and of up-
right principles, obtained a commission from the Queen *o
.o
SIR WALTER RALEIGH. 71
plant a colony in the vicinity of these fisheries. He chap
landed at St. Johns, Newfoundland, and there in the .
presence of the fishermen of other nations, took formal Ang.,
possession of the territory in the name of his sovereign. He
then passed further south, exploring the coast — but losing
his largest ship with all on hoard, he found it necessary to
sail for home. Only two vessels remained, one of which,
the Squirrel, was a mere boat of ten tons, used to explore
the shallow bays and inlets. The closing acts of Sir Hum
phrey's life afford proofs of his piety and nobleness of char-
acter. Unwilling that the humblest of his men should
risk more danger than himself, he chose to sail in the boat
rather than in the larger and safer vessel. A terrible storm
arose ; he sat calmly reading a book — doubtless that book
from which he drew consolation in times of sorrow and
trial. To encourage those who were in the other vessel, he
was heard to cry to them, " we are as near to heaven on
sea as on land," — 'the reality of this cheering thought he
was soon to experience. That night, those on the larger
vessel saw the lights of the little boat suddenly disappear.
The next attempt at colonization was made by Gilbert's 1534,
half-brother, Sir Walter Kaleigh, one of the noblest of that
age of noble spirits : gallant and courteous in his manners;
a scholar, a poet, a benefactor of his race ; his name should
ever be held in grateful remembrance by the people of this
country. He studied the art of war with Coligny, the high
admiral of France. When in that country, he determined
to plant a colony in those delightful regions from which the
Huguenots had been driven by the hand of violence. He
had learned from them of the charming climate, where
winter lingered only for a short time, — where the magnifi-
cent trees and fragrant woods bloomed during nearly all
the year, — where the gushing fountains, noble rivers, and
fertile soil invited the industrious to enjoy the fruits of
their labor. When Sir Walter returned home from France,
he found the people prepared to enter upon schemes of
72 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
Cvnf ' c°lonizati°n m the south. They, too, had heard of those
" delightful regions " from the Huguenots, who at sea had
1584. been rescued from death, and brought to England. Ra-
leigh without difficulty obtained a commission, granting
him ample powers, as proprietor of the territories he waa
about to colonize. He first sent an exploring expedition,
consisting of two ships, under Philip Amidas and Arthur
Barlow, to obtain more definite information of the country.
They sailed the usual route, by the Canaries and the West
Indies, came first upon the coast of North Carolina, landed
upon one of the islands forming Ocracock inlet, and took
formal possession of the country. They partially explored
Albemarle and Pamlico sounds, and the islands and coast
in the vicinity, and then sailed for home. They took with
them two of the natives, Wanchese and Manteo ; the lat-
ter was afterward very useful to the colonists as an inter-
preter. Amidas and Barlow on their return, confirmed
what the Huguenots had reported of the excellence of the
country. They saw it in the month of July. They
described the unruffled ocean, dotted with beautiful islands;
the clearness of the atmosphere ; the luxuriant forests
vocal with the songs of birds ; the vines draping the trees,
and the grapes hanging in clusters. This sunny land, in
all its virgin beauty, appeared to these natives of foggy
England, as the very paradise of the world. Elizabeth,
delighted with the description, named the country Virginia,
in honor of herself, as she took pride in being known as the
Virgin Queen.
^Pri1) It was not difficult now to obtain colonists ; soon a
fleet of seven vessels was equipped, containing one hun-
dred and eight persons, who intended to form a settle-
ment. Sir Richard Grenville, a friend of Raleigh, and a
man of eminence, commanded the fleet, and lia Iph Lane
was appointed governor of the colony. After a tedious*
voyage, they landed, in June, fifteen hundred and eighty-
five, on an island called Roanake, lying between Albemar
1585.
ROANOKE ABANDONED.
73
and Pamlico sounds. Before long they excited the enmity <^IP
of the Indians. On one of their exploring expeditions, a
silver cup was lost or stolen. The Indians were charged June,
with the theft ; perhaps they were innocent. Because it
was not restored, Grenville, with very little prudence and
less justice, set fire to their village and destroyed their
standing corn. Little did he know the train of sorrow and
death he introduced by thus harshly treating the Indians
and making them enemies. A few weeks after the fleet
sailed for England, unlawfully cruising against the Span-
ish on the voyage. Governor Lane now explored the
country, noticed the various productions of the soil, and
the general character of the inhabitants. The colonists
found many strange plants ; — the corn, the sweet potato,
the tobacco plant, were seen by them for the first time.
Lane was unfit for his station ; he became unreasonably
suspicious of the Indians. With professions of friendship,
he visited a prominent chief, and was hospitably received
and entertained ; this kindness he repaid by basely mur-
dering the chief and his followers. Men capable of such 15gg
treachery were necessarily unfit to found a Christian
State. Provisions now began to fail and the colonists
to despond.
Just at this time Sir Francis Drake, on his way home
from the West Indies, called to visit the colony of his
friend Raleigh. Though they had been but a year in the
country, the oolonists begged him to take them home.
Drake granted their request. They were scarcely out of
sight of land, when a ship, sent by Baleigh, laden with
supplies, arrived. The colonists could not be found, and
the ship returned to England. In a fortnight Grenville
appeared with three ships ; not finding the colonists he
also returned home, unwisely leaving fifteen men to keep
possession of the territory.
Though disappointed Raleigh did not despair. The
natural advantages of the country had failed to induce the
74 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
chap. first company to remain. It was hoped, that if surrounded
hy social and domestic ties, future colonists would learn tc
158C. look upon it as their true home. Sir Walter's second
company was composed of emigrants with their families,
who should cultivate the soil, and eventually found a State
for themselves and their posterity. Queen Elizaheth pro
fessed to favor the enterprise, but did nothing to aid it
The expedition was fitted out with all that was necessary
to form an agricultural settlement. Raleigh appointed
j John White governor, with directions to form the settle-
1587. ment on the shores of Chesapeake bay.
They came first to the Island of Roanoke, there to be-
hold a melancholy spectacle — the bleaching bones of the
J»ty> men whom Grenville had left. All had become a desert.
Doubtless they had been murdered by the Indians. Fer-
nando, the naval officer in command of the fleet, refused
to assist in exploring the shores of the Chesapeake, and
the colonists were compelled to remain on the Island of
Roanoke. The scene of two failures was to be the witness
of a third. The Indians were evidently hostile. The
colonists becoming alarmed, urged the governor to hasten
Aug. to England and speedily bring them assistance. Previous
to his leaving, Mrs. Dare, his daughter, and wife of one of
his lieutenants, gave birth to a female child, — the first
child of English parentage born on the soil of the United
States ; it was appropriately named Virginia.
White on his return found England in a state of great
excitement. The Pope had excommunicated Queen Eliza-
beth, and had absolved her subjects from their allegiance
to her throne ; at the same time promising her kingdom
to any Catholic prince who should take possession of it.
The revengeful Philip, of Spain, that good son of the
Church, had been for three years preparing an immense
army and fleet, with which he intended to invade and con-
quer England. The fleet was boastfully named the Invin-
1688. cible Armada. The English naval commanders flocked
DEATH OF SIR WALTER RALEIGH. 75
home from every part of the world to defend their native chap
. VIII.
land, and to hattle for the Protestant religion. English
seamanship and bravery completely triumphed. From 1588.
that hour the prestige of Spain on the ocean was gone — it
passed to England. It is not strange that in such exciting
times the poor colonists of Roanoke were overlooked or for-
gotten. As soon as the danger was passed, aid was sent ;
but it came too late : not a vestige of the colony was to be
found ; death had done its work, whether by the hand of
the savage, or by disease, none can tell. What may have
been their sufferings is veiled in darkness. Eighty years
after, the English were told by the Indians that the Hat-
teras tribe had adopted the colonists into their number.
The probability is that they were taken prisoners and car-
ried far into the interior. A few years before Sir Francis
Drake had broken up the Spanish settlement at St.
Augustine. Thus, one hundred years after the first voy-
age of Columbus, the continent was once more in the pos -
session of the Eed Men.
Sir Walter Raleigh had now expended nearly all his
fortune ; yet, when he saw no prospect of ever deriving
benefit from his endeavors, he sent several times, at his
own expense, to seek for the lost colonists and to render
them aid. Sir Walter's genius and perseverance prepared
the way for the successful settlement of Virginia ; he had
sown the seed, others enjoyed the harvest. The remainder
of his life was clouded by misfortune. On the accession
of James I., he was arraigned on a frivolous charge
of high treason ; a charge got up by his enemies, never
substantiated, and never believed by those who condemned
him. On his trial he defended himself with a dignity and
consciousness of innocence that excited the admiration of
the world and put to shame his enemies. His remaining
property was taken from him by the king, and for thirteen
years he was left to languish in the Tower of London ;
76 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
chap. James not yet daring to order the execution of the patriot
statesman, who was an ornament to England and the age
1588 in which he lived. After the lapse of sixteen years the
hour came, and Sir Walter met death on the scaffold with
the calmness and dignity of an innocert and Christian
nun.
77
CHAPTER IX.
THE SETTLEMENT OF VIRGINIA,
London and Plymouth Companies. — King James' Laws. — The Voyage and
Arrival. — Jamestown. — John Smith ; his Character, Energy, Captivity,
and Release. — Misery of the Colonists. — New Emigrants. — .Lord Dela-
ware.— Sir Thomas Gates. — Pocahontas ; her Capture and Marriage. —
Yeardley. — First Legislative Assembly.
The bold and energetic Elizabeth was succeeded by the chap
timid and pedantic James I. To sustain herself against
the power of Spain, she had raised a strong military force, 1606.
both on sea and land. But James had an instinctive
dread of gunpowder, he was in favor of peace at all
hazards, even at the expense of national honor. He dis-
banded the greater portion of the army, and dismissed
many of those employed in the navy. These men, left
without regular employment, were easily induced to try
their fortunes as colonists in Virginia. They were not
good material, as we shall see, but they prepared the way
for better men, and ultimately for success. Sir Walter
Kaleigh having sacrificed his fortune in fruitless attempts
to found a colony, had induced some gentlemen to form a
company, and engage in the enterprise. To this com-
pany he had transferred his patent, with all its privileges,
on very liberal terms. The company manifested but little
energy : they had neither the enthusiasm nor the liberality
of Sir Walter.
England claimed the territory from Cape Fear, in North
Carolina, to Newfoundland, and to the West indefinitely.
78 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
chap. This territory King James divided into two parts : South
. Virginia, extending from Cape Fear to the Potomac ; and
1606. North Virginia, from the mouth of the Hudson to New-
foundland. There were now formed two companies : one
known as the London Company, principally composed of
" noblemen, gentlemen, and merchants," residing in Lon-
don ; the other the Plymouth Company, composed of
" knights, gentlemen, and merchants/' living in the West
of England. To the London Company James granted
South Virginia, to the Plymouth Company North Vir-
ginia. The region between the Potomac and the mouth
of the Hudson was to be neutral ground, on which the
companies were at liberty to form settlements within
fifty miles of their respective boundaries. The London
Company was the first to send emigrants.
King James was enamored of what he called king-
craft. He believed that a king had a divine right to make
and unmake laws at his own pleasure, and was bound by
no obligation, — not even to keep his own word. In main-
taining the former of these kingly rights, James sometimes
found difficulty; he was more successful in exercising the
latter. He took upon himself the authority and labor of
framing laws for the colony about to sail. These laws are
a fair specimen of his kingcraft. They did not grant a
single civil privilege to the colonists, who had no vote in
choosing their own magistrates ; but were to be governed
by two councils, both appointed by the king, — one resid-
ing in England, the other in the colony. In religious mat-
ters, differences of opinion were forbidden ; all must con-
form to the rites of the church of England. The Indians
were to be treated kindly, and if possible, converted to
Christianity.
L607 Three ships were sent with one hundred and five emi-
grants ; of the whole number, not twenty were agricul-
turists or mechanics. — there was not a family nor a woman
in the company. The great majority were gentlemen, a
18.
SETTLEMENT OF JAMESTOWN. 79
term then applied to those who had no regular employment, c^p
but spent their time in idleness and dissipation.
The names of those who were to form the governing 1607.
council, together with their instructions, were, by order of
the king, foolishly sealed up in a box, there to remain until
they were ready to form a government. Thus when dis-
sensions arose on the voyage, there was no legal authority
to restore harmony.
Captain Newport, who commanded the expedition,
came first upon the coast of North Carolina, intending to
visit the island of Koanoke, the scene of Raleigh's failures,
but a storm suddenly arose, and fortunately drove him
north into Chesapeake bay. The little fleet soon entered
a large river, and explored its stream for fifty miles — then
on the thirteenth of May, one thousand, six hundred and M&y
seven, the members of the colony landed, and determined
to form a settlement. The river was named James, and
the settlement Jamestown, in honor of the king ; while the
capes at the entrance of the bay, were named Charles and
Henry, in honor of his sons.
In every successful enterprise, we observe the power of
some one leading spirit. In this case, the man worthy the
confidence of all, because of his knowledge, and natural
superiority of mind, was Captain John Smith, justly styled
the " Father of Virginia/' Though but thirty years of
age, he had acquired much knowledge of the world. He
had travelled over the western part of Europe, and in Egypt;
had been a soldier in the cause of freedom in Holland ; had
fought against the Turks in Hungary, where he was taken
prisoner, and sent to Constantinople as a slave. He was
rescued from slavery by a Turkish lady, conveyed to the
Crimea, where he was ill-treated ; his'proud spirit resisted,
he slew his oppressor and escaped, wandered across the
continent, and returned to England just as plans were
maturing to colonize Virginia. He entered into the enter-
prise with his habitual energy. His cool courage, his
fi{) iri>T0iJY of Tin: American people.
chap, knowledge of human nature, civilized and savage, — Imt
IX- . . .
above all, bis honesty and common sense, fitted him lor the
1(!07. undertaking:.
The superiority of Smith excited the envy and jealousy
of tlmse who expected to be named members of the coun-
cil, when the mysterious box should be opened. On falsa
and absurd charges he was arrested and placed in confine-
ment. The box was opened — the kino; had appointed him
one of the council. An effort was made to exclude him,
but he demanded a trial ; his accusers, unable to substan-
tiate their charges, withdrew them, and lie took his seat.
Wingficld, an avaricious and unprincipled man. was chosen
president of the council and governor of the colony.
When these difficulties were arranged. Newport and
Smith, accompanied by some twenty men, spent three
weeks in exploring the neighboring rivers and country.
They visited Powhatan, the principal Indian chief in the
vicinity — "'a man about sixty years of age, tall, sour, and
athletic.'' His capital of twelve wigwams, was situated at
the falls of James river, near where Richmond now stands.
His tribe seems to have been fearful and suspicious of the
intruding white men from the very first — impressed, it may
be. with a foreboding of evil to come.
Soon after. Newport sailed for home, leaving the colo-
Jnne. nists in a wretched condition. Their provisions nearly all
>;> >il ■ i. and they too idle to provide against the effects of
tii" climate— much sickness prevailed, and more than half
the company died before winter. To add to their distress,
it was discovered that Wingfield had been living upon
their choicest stores, and that lie intended to seize the
remainder of their provisions, and escape to the West
Indies. The council- deposed him, and elected Ratcliffe
president. The change was not for the better: he wag
not more honest than Wingiield. and mentally less lit
for the station. In this emergency the control of affairs
passed by tacit consent into the hands of Smith. He knew
SMITH A PRISONER.
81
from the first what was needed for the colony. As it was c^£p-
now too late in the season to obtain food of their own rais-
ing, he had recourse to trading with the Indians for corn. 1607.
Toward the close of autumn, an abundance of wild fowl
furnished additional provisions. The colony thus provided Dec.
for, Smith further explored the neighboring rivers and
country. In one of these expeditions he ascended a branch
of the James river, and leaving the boat in care of his men,
took with him his Indian guide, and struck out into the
forest.' Finding himself pursued by the Indians, he fas-
tened his guide to his arm as a shield against their arrows,
and defended himself with great bravery, but at length
sinking in a swamp, he was taken prisoner. His captors
regarded him with strange wonder ; his cool courage and
self-possession struck them with awe. He, aware of the
simplicity and inquisitiveness of the savage character,
showed them his pocket compass. They wondered at the
motion of the needle, and at the strange transparent cover,
which secured it from their touch. Was their captive a
superior being ? — was he friendly to themselves ? — how
should they dispose of him ? — were questions that now per-
plexed them. They permitted him to send a letter to 1608.
Jamestown. The fact that he could impress his thoughts
upon paper, and send them far away, they regarded as
strong proof of his superiority. He was led from place to
place, to be gazed at by the wondering natives of the
forest. For three days they performed powwows, or religious
ceremonies, in order to learn from the spirit world some-
thing of his nature and intentions. Finally, he was sent
to Powhatan, to be disposed of as he should decide. The
Indian chief received him with a great display of savage
pomp, but decided that he must die. Preparations were
made, but the eventful life of Smith was not destined to
be closed by the war-club of the savage. The heart of
Focahontas, a young daughter of Powhatan, a girl of ten
or twelve years of age, was touched with sympathy and
82 HISTORY. OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
C1/xP ^J- &he pleaded with her father for his life. She clung
tenderly to him as he bowed his head to receive the fatal
1608. stroke. Her interposition was received hy the savages as
an indication of the will of heaven, and the life of Smith
was spared. Her people have passed away — most of their
names are forgotten, but the name of Pocahontas, and the
story of her generous deed, will ever be honored and re-
membered.
The Indians now wished to adopt Smith into their
number : they strove to induce him to join them against
the English. He dissuaded them from an attack upon
Jamestown, by representing to them the wonderful effects
of the " big guns." After an absence of seven weeks, he
jan was permitted to return. He had obtained much valuable
information of the country, of its inhabitants, their lan-
guage and customs.
He found the colony reduced in number to forty — in
want of provisions, and in anarchy and confusion, while
some were making preparations to desert in the pinnace ;
this he prevented at the risk of his life. The famishing
colonists were partly sustained through the winter by the
generous Pocahontas, who with her companions almost
every day brought them baskets of corn.
In the spring, Newport returned with another com-
pany of emigrants ; like the first, " vagabond gentlemen,"
idlers, and gold-hunters. These gold-hunters lighted upon
some earth, glittering with yellow mica ; they thought it
golden ore. Every thing else was neglected ; the entire
company engaged in loading the ships with this useless
earth. What a blessing to England and the colony that
it was not gold !
While the people of Jamestown were thus foolishly em-
ployed, Smith explored the harbors and rivers of Chesa-
peake bay, and established friendly relations with the
Indians along its shores. From them he learned of the
Mohawks, who " made war upon all the world." On his
UNWORTHY EMIGRANTS. 83
return, lie was, for the first time, formally elected Presi- C^AP
dent of the Council. Industry was now more wisely ,
directed ; but in the autumn came another company of 1608,
idle and useless emigrants. Smith, indignant that his
efforts to improve the colony should thus be frustrated,
wrote to the council to send him but a few husbandmen
and mechanics, and " diggers up of trees' roots," rather
than a thousand such men as had been sent. The com-
plaint was just. During two years they had not brought
under cultivation more than forty acres of land, while
the number of able-bodied men was more than two hun-
dred. The energetic arm of Smith was soon felt. The
first law he made and enforced was, that " He who would
not work should not eat ;" the second, that " Each man
for six days in the week should work six hours each
day/'
In England, about this time, an unusual interest was May,
manifested in the colony ; subscriptions were made to its
stock, and the charter materially changed. The council
was now chosen by the stockholders of the company, in-
stead of being appointed by the king. This council ap-
pointed the governor, but he could rule with absolute
authority. Not a single privilege was yet granted the
colonist : his property, his liberty, his life were at the dis-
posal of the governor ; and he the agent of a soulless cor-
poration, whose only object was gain. The company had
expended money, but the course they themselves pursued
prevented their receiving a return. Instead of sending the
industrious and virtuous, they sent idlers and libertines ;
instead of farmers and mechanics, they sent gold-seekers
and bankrupt gentlemen. Instead of offering a reward to
industry they gave a premium to idleness, by making the
proceeds of their labor go into a common stock.
The new charter excited so great an interest in the
cause, that a fleet of nine ships was soon under way, con-
taining more than five hundred emigrants, and, for the
1609.
84 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
chap, first time, domestic animals and fowls. Lord Delaware, a
IX.
1_ nobleman of excellent character, was appointed governor
1609 for life. As he was not prepared to come with this com-
pany, he nominated Sir Thomas Gates, Sir George Somers,
and Newport, to act as his commissioners until his own
arrival. Seven of the vessels came safely, but the ship on
which the commissioners embarked, with another, wap
wrecked on one of the Bermuda islands.
This company of emigrants appears to have been worse
than any before. As the commissioners had failed to reach
the colony, these worthies refused to submit to the author-
ity of Smith, the acting President, contending that there
was no legalized government. But these men, who " would
rule all or ruin all," found in him a determined foe to dis-
order and idleness ; he compelled them to submit. Un-
fortunately, just at this time, he was injured by an acci-
dental explosion of gunpowder, and obliged to return to
England for surgical aid. He delegated his authority to
George Percy, a brother of the Duke of Northumberland.
And now the man who had more than once saved the
colony from utter ruin, bade farewell to Virginia forever ;
from his arduous labors he derived no benefit, but ex-
Oct, perienced at the hands of the company the basest in-
gratitude.
During the administration of Smith the Indians were
held in check ; he inspired them with confidence and
respect. When the colonists " beat them, stole their
corn, and robbed their gardens," they complained to him,
and he protected their rights. After his departure, they
formed a plan to cut off the white men at a single blow ;
but Pocahontas, that good genius of the English, came at
night, in a driving storm, to Jamestown, revealed the plot,
and saved the colony.
1610. What the Indians failed to do, vice and famine nearly
accomplished. In six months after the departure of Smith,
of the four hundred and ninety colonists only sixty were
EMIGRANTS AND SUPPLIES. 85
living, and they would have perished in a few days had c^p-
they not obtained relief. Sir Thomas Gates, and those ;
who were wrecked with him, found means to build a 1611.
small vessel, in which, at this crisis, they reached James %q
river. They were astonished at the desolation. They
all determined to abandon the place and sail to New-
foundland, and there distribute themselves among the
fishermen. . They dropped down the river with the tide,
leaving the place without a regret. What was their sur-
prise the next morning to meet Lord Delaware coming in
with more emigrants and abundance of supplies. They re-
turned with a favoring wind to Jamestown the same night.
From this tenth day of June, one thousand six hun- 1611.
dred and eleven, the colony began, under more favorable cir-
cumstances, to revive. Other influences moulded their
characters. They acknowledged God in all their ways,
and their paths were directed by His providential care.
Under the just administration of the excellent Delaware,
factions were unknown ; each one was disposed to do his
duty. Before they commenced the labors of the day, they
met in their little church to implore the blessing of
heaven. The effects were soon visible in the order and
comfort of the community. They cheered their friends in
England : " Doubt not," said they, " God will raise our
state and build his Church in this excellent clime." In
about a year, failing health compelled Lord Delaware to
return to England. He left Percy, Smith's successor, as
his representative.
The next year Sir Thomas Gates arrived, with six Aug.
ships and three hundred emigrants ; a majority of whom
were of a better class, temperate and industrious in their
habits. A measure was now introduced which produced
the greatest effect on the well-being of the colony : to each
man was given a portion of land, which he was to culti-
vate for himself. The good result of this was soon seen in
the abundance of provisions. The colony became so pros-
1614
86 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
chap, perous that some of the neighboring tribes of Indians
ix. . .
. '__ wished to be "called Englishmen," and to be subjects of
101:2. King James. Some of the colonists, however, manifested
neither gratitude nor justice toward the natives. A neigh-
boring chief was won by the gift of a copper kettle to be-
tray into the hands of Captain Argall, Pocahontas, that
faithful friend of the colony. Argall had the meanness to
demand of her father a ransom. For three months the
indignant Powhatan did not deign to reply. Meantime
Pocahontas received religious instruction : her susceptible
heart was moved, she became a Christian and was baptized ;
she was the first of her race " who openly renounced her
country's idolatry." John llolfe, a pious young man, of
" honest and discreet carriage," became interested in the
youthful princess ; he won her affections and asked her in
marriage. Powhatan was delighted. This marriage con-
ciliated him and his tribe, and indeed gave general satis-
faction, except to King James, who was greatly scandal-
ized that any man, but one of royal blood, should presume
to marry a princess. Rolfe took his wife to England,
where she was much caressed. She never again saw her
native land. Just as she was leaving England for Vir-
ginia she died, at the early age of twenty-two. She left
one son, whose posterity count it an honor to have de-
scended from this noble Indian girl.
Sir Thomas Dale introduced laws, by which private
individuals could become proprietors of the soil. The land-
holders directed their attention almost exclusively to the
raising of tobacco, which became so profitable an article of
export, that it was used as the currency of the colony. At
one time, the public squares and streets of Jamestown
were planted with tobacco, and the raising of corn so
much neglected, that there was danger of a famine.
lfi1g After a rule of two years, Dale resigned and returned
to England, leaving George Yeardley as deputy-governor.
During his administration, industry and prosperity con-
HOUSE OF BURGESSES. 87
tinued to increase. Under the influence of a faction, c^£p-
Yeardley was superseded by the tyrannical Argall, but in
two years his vices and extortion, in connection with frauds Jan.,
upon the company, procured his dismissal, and the people
once more breathed freely under the second administration
of the benevolent and popular Yeardley.
Although the colony had been in existence twelve
years, it contained not more than six hundred persons, and
they appeared to have no settled intention of making the
country their permanent home. Efforts were still made
to send emigrants, twelve hundred of whom came in one
year, and every means were used to attach them to the
soil. At different times the company sent over more than
one hundred and fifty respectable young women, who be-
came wives in the colony, their husbands paying the ex-
pense of their passage. This was paid in tobacco, the cost
of each passage varying from one hundred and twenty to
one hundred and fifty pounds. It was deemed dishonorable
not to pay a debt contracted for a wife ; and to aid the
husbands, the government, in giving employment, preferred
married men. Thus surrounded by the endearments of
home and domestic ties, the colonists were willing to remain
in the New World.
Governor Yeardley was " commissioned by the com-
pany " to grant the people the right to assist in making
their own laws, for which purpose they could hold an
Assembly once a year. In July, one thousand six hundred
and nineteen, met the House of Burgesses, consisting of
twenty-two members chosen by the people. A peculiar
interest is attached to this first Legislative Assembly in
the New World. The laws enacted exhibit the spirit of
the people. " Forasmuche," said the Assembly, "as man's
affaires doe little prosper when God's service is neglected,
we invite Mr. Bucke, the minister, to open our sessions
by prayer, — that it would please God to sanctifie all our
proceedinges to his owne glory and the good of this plan-
tation." They passed laws against vices, and in favor of
88 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
°hap. industry and good order. " In detestation of idleness,"
the idler was " to be sold to a master for wages till he
1 619. shewe apparent signes of amendment." Laws were made
against playing of dice and cards, drunkenness, and other
vices ; and to promote the " planting of eorne," of vines,
of mulberry trees, and the raising of flax and hemp. They
made provision " towards the erecting of the University
and College." This was designed for the education of
their own children, as well as for " the most towardly boyes
in witt and graces" of the " natives' children." The gov-
ernor and council sat with the Assembly, and took part in
its deliberations. It was granted that a " generall Assem-
bly should be held yearly once," " to ordain whatsoever
laws and orders would be thought good and profitable for
our subsistence." '
This right of the people to have a voice in making
their own laws, was rigidly maintained until it found its
full fruition in the institutions established one hundred
and fifty years afterward by the Revolution. Emigration
from England was greatly stimulated ; in a few years the
population numbered nearly four thousand, while the
inducements to industry and general prosperity increased
in the same proportion. The company granted a written
constitution, under which the people could have a legisla-
tive assembly of their own choosing. It was necessary
that the laws passed by the colonial legislature should be
sanctioned by the company in England. As a check to
royal interference, no laws emanating from the court
could be valid, unless ratified by the House of Burgesses.
Thus it continued until the dissolution of the London com-
pany, when King James arbitrarily took away its charter.
1 Art. IX., Vol. III., Part I. Second Series of Collections of the New
York Historical Society. The " Reporte" of the proceedings of this "First
Assembly of Virginia," was discovered among the papers of the British
State Paper Office. All trace of it had been lost for perhaps more than two
centuries ; at length a search, instituted by Bancroft the historian, was sue
oesafuL
CHAPTEE X.
COLONIZATION OF NEW ENGLAND.
First voyages to. — Plymouth Company. — Explorations of John Smith. — The
Church of England. — The Puritans. — Congregation of John Robinson. —
" Pilgrims" in Holland. — Arrangements to emigrate. — The Voyage. —
A Constitution framed on board the May-Flower. — Landing at Plym-
outh.— Sufferings. — Indians, Treaties with. — " Weston's Men. " —
Thanksgiving. — Shares of the London Partners purchased. — Democratic
Government.
The usual route to America had "been by the Canaries and chap
the West Indies. Bartholomew G-osnold was the first t
navigator who attempted to find a shorter one, by sailing 1602.
directly across the Atlantic. His effort was crowned with
success : after a voyage of seven weeks, he came upon the
coast in the vicinity of Nahant. Coasting along to the
south, he landed upon a sandy point, which he named Cape
Cod ; and passing round it he discovered Martha's Vine-
yard, and several other islands in the vicinity. While he
explored the coast he also traded with the natives, and
when he had obtained a cargo of sassafras root, which in
that day was much valued for its medicinal qualities, he
sailed for home. The voyage consumed but five weeks,
thus demonstrating the superiority of the new route.
Grosnold, who saw the country in the montl s of May
and June, was enraptured with its appearance — its forests
blooming with shrubs and flowers; its springs of pure fresh
water, and little lakes; its beautiful islands nestling among
equally beautiful bays along the coast. His description,
90 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
CHAP, together with the shortness and safety of the voyage, led
to many visits and minor discoveries by Martin Pring and
1 607. others, all along the coast of New England.
The Plymouth Company, of which mention has been
made, attempted to form a settlement at the mouth of the
Kennebec in Maine. The rigors of a severe winter, and the
death of their president, so discouraged the colonists, that
they abandoned the enterprise, and returned to England.
A few years afterward, Smith, whose valuable services
we have seen in Virginia, undertook to explore the coun-
try. He constructed a map of the eastern portion, and
noted the prominent features of the territory. The coun-
1614. try he named New England — a name confirmed by the
Prince of Wales, afterward Charles I. After Smith left
for England, his associate, a captain named Hunt, treacher-
ously enticed twenty-seven of the natives with their chief,
Squanto, on board his ship, then set sail. He sold these
victims of his avarice into slavery in Spain. A few of
them were purchased by some friars, who kindly taught
them, in order to send them back as missionaries to their
countrymen. Among this number was Squanto.
In this age, we are unable to appreciate fully the trials
and sufferings experienced by the explorers and first settlers
of this continent. When we remember the frailty of the
vessels in which their voyages were made, the perils of the
unexplored ocean, the dangers of its unknown coasts, the
hostility of the wily savage, the diseases of an untried
climate, the labor of converting the primitive forests into
cultivated fields, we may well be astonished that such dif-
ficulties were ever overcome.
We have now co narrate the causes which led to the
settlement of New England. Previous to the time of
Henry VIII. the clergy and government of England had
been in religious matters the implicit subjects of the church
of Kome. While this may be said of the clergy it was dif-
ferent with great numbers of the people. The spirit of
THE EXILES RETURN HOME. 91
religious truth was pervading their minds and moulding chap.
their character. They read the Bible in their own Ian- ,
guage, discussed freely its truths, and compared them with 1525
the doctrines and practices of the Komish church. The
Pope claimed to be the temporal and spiritual head of the
church, and by virtue of this claim to depose princes 01
absolve subjects from their allegiance. Henry wished t(
be divorced from his queen in order to marry another ; bui
the Pope, to whom he applied, as the highest authority,
hesitated to dissolve the marriage. The angry king, wheD
threatened with excommunication, repudiated the Pope
and his authority, and declared the English church inde- 1534
pendent of that of Rome. Parliament afterward confirmed
by law what the king in a fit of anger had done, and
recognized him as the head of the church in his own do-
minions. Thus England, by the act of her own govern-
ment, became Protestant. True reformation in religion
does not apply so much to its external form, as to its effect
upon the hearts and consciences of men. That portion of
the English people who had learned this truth from the
Word of God, recognized no human being as the head of his
church ; they received Christ alone as the Head of his own
church, and they refused to acknowledge the pretensions
of the king. For the maintenance of this belief they, were j 55a.
persecuted through a series of years : during the reign of
Henry for not admitting his authority in spiritual matters ;
during the reign of his daughter Mary, still more fiercely,
for denying the authority of the church of Rome. Many
at the stake sealed their faith with their lives, and many
fled to foreign lands.
After the leath of Mary the persecuting fires were ex-
tinguished, and the accession of Elizabeth was the signal
for the exiles to return home. They came back with more
enlightened views of the rights of conscience and of free
inquiry. Of these some were Presbyterians, some Con-
gregationalists, and others members of the Established
92 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
2HAP. Church. They demanded a more pure and spiritual wor-
ship than that of the church of EngJand. For this they
1558. were in derision called Puritans — a name which they
soon made respected, even by their enemies. Elizabeth
was a Protestant, but she was far from being a Puritan.
She wished to have a church that should reconcile all
parties, whose ceremonies should be a happy medium be-
tween the showy church of Rome and the simple form of
worship asked for by the Puritans. She contended stren-
uously for her headship of the church, while the Puritan
rejected the presumptuous doctrine. She demanded of her
subjects implicit obedience to her in religious matters :
the Puritan took the high ground that it was his right to
worship God according to his own conscience.
Severe laws were passed from time to time, and they
were enforced with unrelenting cruelty. All were en-
joined to conform to certain ceremonies in worship. Those
who did not comply were banished ; if they returned with-
160*. out permission, the penalty was death. The person accused
was compelled to answer on oath all questions, whether per-
taining to himself or to his fellow-worshippers. Ministers
who would not comply with these laws were driven from
their parishes ; the members of their congregations were
" beset and watched night and day ;" if they were de-
tected in listening to their deprived ministers, or were
absent a certain length of time from the services of the
Established Church, they were fined and imprisoned, and
punished in various ways. To avoid the effects of such
intolerable laws, many bade farewell to their native land,
and Holland and Switzerland became the asylum of some
of the noblest men and women of England.
Thus the contest had raged for nearly forty years,
when, in the latter part of Queen Elizabeth's reign, the
Puritans began to hope that the dark clouds of persecu-
tion which had so long overshadowed the land would be
dispelled under her successor, James I., who was edu-
CONGREGATION OF JOHN ROBINSON. »o
cated in Scotland, principally under Presbyterian influ- CH^P
ence. They had reason to believe he would protect thera
in the exercise oi their form of worship. They were grossly 1603
deceived, and cruelly disappointed. When it was for his
interest, James professed to be very favorable to the Ref-
ormation, and more especially to the Puritan form. Upon
one occasion, standing with his hands lifted up to heaven,
he " praised God that he was king of such a kirk — the
purest kirk in all the world ; " adding, " As for the kirk of
England, its service is an evil said mass." Such was the
language of James just before he became king. The mo-
ment he ascended the throne he threw off the mask, and
openly proclaimed his famous maxim, " No bishop, no
king." The Puritans humbly petitioned him for a redress
of grievances ; he treated them with the greatest con-
tempt. Said he to his bishops : " I will make them con-
form, or I will harry them out of the land, or else worse :
only hang them — that's all."
During all these years they hoped for better times, and
were unwilling to separate from the church of their fathers ;
but suffering and persecution at length brought that hour.
Hitherto individuals and families had gone into exile ; but
now, in the north of England, a pastor, with all his con-
gregation, determined to leave their homes and flee to
Holland, where there was already a church of English
exiles. This was the congregation of John Robinson.
These poor people were harassed by the minions of the
king and clergy, and subjected to the petty annoyances
dictated by religious intolerance. Preparations were made
for them to leave. As they were about to sail, the officers
of the government, with the connivance of the captain of jooa
the ship, came on board the vessel, and arrested the whole
company ; searched their persons, took possession of their
effects, and carried them to prison ; men, women, and
children. In a short time most of them were released ;
only seven persons were brought to trial. They also
94 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
chap were liberated. The court could not convict them of
x.
crime.
1 608. The members of the congregation perslvered ; and soon
they engaged a Dutch captain to take them from an un-
frequented common. The women and children were to be
taken to the place of embarkation in a small boat, the
men to go by land. The latter reached the ship, and
were taken on board. The boat containing the women
and children was stranded, and before it could be got oif
they were seized by a party of their enemies. The cap-
tain, lest he should become involved in difficulties with
the English authorities, sailed immediately, taking with
him the men, overwhelmed with grief for their defenceless
wives and children in the hands of their cruel oppressors.
The poor women and helpless children were dragged, suf-
fering from cold, hunger, and fear, before a magistrate, as
if they had been guilty of crime. They were treated very
harshly, but were finally permitted to join their husbands
and fathers in Holland.
Now they were Pilgrims indeed, strangers in a strange
land ; " but they lifted up their eyes to heaven, their
dearest country, and quieted their spirits/' They re-
mained about a year at Amsterdam ; not satisfied, how-
ever, they removed to Leyden. Their integrity and in-
dustry, their piety and self-denial, in what they believed
to be the cause of truth, elicited the respect of the
Dutch. The government officers would have treated
them with marked favor, but they feared to offend King
James. From year to year they received accessions from
their brethren in England. They were still surrounded
by evils, which made it necessary for them again to
change their homes. Their labors were severe ; though
frugal and industrious, they obtained a support with
great difficulty. The desecration of the Sabbath, the
dissolute morals of the disbanded soldiers and sailors
among whom they were thrown, caused them to fear for
THEY APPLY TO THE LONDON COMPANY. 95
their children. Holland could not be their permanent chap.
home. It dawned upon the minds of the more intelligent,
that it was their duty to seek some other land. Their 1G16
thoughts were directed to the wilderness of the New
World. They* express not a wish in regard to worldly
comfort, hut a desire to consecrate all to the great cause
of promoting Christianity.
Though they had been so harshly treated by England,
they loved her still, and were not willing to accept the
offers made them, to colonize under the protection of the
Dutch. They had heard of the fine climate and the set-
tlement of Virginia, and resolved to apply to the London 1617
Company for permission to emigrate to their territory. For
this purpose they sent two of their number, John Carver
and Robert Cushman, to confer with the company. Their
proposition was favorably received by the excellent Sir
Edwin Sandys, the secretary. Their request, signed by the
greater part of the congregation, was afterward sent to the
company. In it they made a summary of their principles,
and a statement of their motives of action. They said, " We
verily believe that God is with us, and will prosper us in our
endeavors ; we are weaned from our mother country, and
have learned patience in a hard and strange land. We
are industrious and frugal ; we are bound together by a
sacred bond of the Lord, whereof we make great con- ifjjg
science, holding ourselves to each other's good. We do not
wish ourselves home again ; we have nothing to hope from
England or Holland ; we are men who will not be easily
discouraged."
They were to emigrate under the sanction of the com-
pany ; but owing to dissensions in the company itself, the
plan was not carried out. At this time the king was op-
pressing their brethren in England more and more ; the
only favor the Pilgrims could obtain from him was a half
promise that he would not molest them in the wilds of
America In truth, James wished to be freed from those
96 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
CHAP, of his subjects who had any just notions of human rights
' Said he, " I would rather live like a hermit in the forest,
1619. than be a king over such people as the pack of Puritans
that overrule the House of Commons !"
There was yet another difficulty. The Pilgrims were
poor — poor indeed ; in their persecution and exile they had
lost their all. Upon very hard conditions they secured the
means to emigrate ; yet they were willing to make any
sacrifice could they but worship God in peace, and protect
the morals of their children.
A company was now formed of London merchants, who
agreed to furnish the money, while the emigrant was to
give his entire services for seven years ; these services were
to constitute his stock in the company. The profits were
to be reserved to the end of that time, then a valuation of
all the property held by the company was to be made, and
1620. the amount distributed to each in proportion to his in-
vestment. By contract, the merchant who invested ten
pounds received as much as the colonist who gave seven
years of labor. This throwing of all their labor and capital
into a common stock, was the result of necessity, not of
choice.
They purchased one ship, the Speedwell, and hired
another, the May-Flower, a ship of one hundred and eighty
tons. As these vessels could carry only a part of the con-
gregation, they determined to send the younger and more
vigorous, while the pastor, Robinson, and the aged and in-
firm, were to remain at Leyden. Their ruling Elder,
William Brewster, who had suffered much in the cause,
and was respected and loved for his integrity, was to
conduct the emigrants. Before they left, they observed a
day of fasting and prayer. They " sought of God a right
way for themselves and their little ones."
The parting address of the venerable Robinson gives
us a glimpse of the principles in which, from year to year,
he had instructed them. As he addressed them for th*
THE EMBARKATION. 97
last time, he said : " I charge you before God and his holy chap.
angels, that you follow me no farther than you have seen
me follow the Lord Jesus Christ. If God reveal any thing 1620.
to you, he ready to receive it ; for I am verily persuaded
the Lord has more truth yet to break forth out of his Holy
Word. I beseech you remember it is an article of your
church covenant, that you be ready to receive whatever
truth shall be made known to you from the written Word
of God. Take heed what you receive as truth ; examine
it, consider it, and compare it with other scriptures of
truth before you receive it ; the Christian world has not
yet come to the perfection of knowledge."
A number of their brethren came from Leyden to
Delft-Haven, where they were to embark. The night
before their departure was passed in religious inter-
course and prayer : as the morning dawned, they prepared
to go on board the ship. On the shore they all knelt,
and the venerable Eobinson led them in prayer — they
heard his voice for the last time. They sailed first to
Southampton ; in a fortnight they left that place for their
distant home. It is soon discovered that the Speedwell
needs repairs, and they must return. After the lapse of Aug.
eight days of precious time, again they make the attempt, °-
and still again the captain of the Speedwell asserts that his
ship cannot cross the Atlantic. They put back to Plym-
outh : they there leave the Speedwell, and those whose
courage failed them, and to the number of one hundred and
one once more commit themselves to the winds and waves,
trusting to the good providence of God. Sept.
Let us glance for a moment at the circumstances and 6*
characteristics of this company. They were bound to-
gether by the strong bond of religious sympathy — united
in interest and purpose, they expected to endure, to suffer,
to rejoice together for many years, even to the end of life.
Prominent among them was William Brewster, the
ruling elder and lay preacher, already mentioned, who was
98 HISTOKT OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
chap, to supply the place of the pastor Robinson. He was a man
of education, of refined associations, and above all of a
1620. lovely and Christian spirit. " He laid his hand to the daily
tasks of life, as well as spent his soul in trying to benefit
his fellows — so bringing himself as near as possible to the
early Christian practices ; he was worthy of being the first
minister of New England." ' There was also the dignified
and benevolent John Carver, the worthy governor of this
band of Christian exiles, who in the cause laid down his
fortune, and at length his life — for he soon sank beneath
the hardships to which he was unused. These two were
comparatively old men, but most of the " Pilgrim
Fathers " were in the bloom and vigor of life.
William Bradford was but thirty-two, earnest, saga-
cious, true and steady in purpose, " a man of nerve and
public spirit '" self-educated, and so ardent in the pursuit
of knowledge, that amidst all his trials and labors, he
accumulated books, and found time to read and even to
study them. As a farmer's boy in England, as a dyer in
Holland, as the governor of a small nation in the wilds of
America, he acted well his part.
Edward Winslow was "a gentleman born," with a
mind cultivated by travel and books ; gentle in manner as
in spirit, his soul melted at the sorrows of others. Miles
Standish was a soldier, fearless, but not rash ; impetuous,
but not vindictive : though not a member of the church,
he was strongly attached to its institutions and to its most
rigorous advocates. Winslow was twenty-six, and Stan-
dish thirty-six years of age.
fl-ov# A tedious voyage of sixty-three days brought them in
10- sight of Cape Cod. They had left their native land to
seek in a howling wilderness an asylum from persecution.
They had not the sanction of a charter from their king,
and they appealed to no body of men for protection : they
1 Elliott's History of New England.
A CONSTITUTION ADOPTED. 99
must have a government ; they were all on an equality, chap
and they now drew up a constitution, or compact, to which
the men, servants and all, to the number of forty-one, sub- 1620.
scribed their names, and mutually pledged their obedience.
The words of this first constitution, made and adopted
by an entire people, plainly indicate whence its principles
were derived. They say, " In the name of God, amen :
we whose names are underwritten, having undertaken for
the glory of God and advancement of the Christian faith,
a voyage to plant the first colony in the northern parts of
Virginia, do solemnly and mutually in the presence of God,
and one of another, covenant and combine ourselves together
into a body politic ; and by virtue hereof, to enact such
just and equal laws from time to time, as shall be thought
most convenient for the good of the colony. Unto which
we promise all due submission and obedience." Thus the
principle of popular liberty, that laws and constitutions
should be framed for the benefit of the entire people, found
its utterance in the cabin of the May-Flower, by the act
of the people themselves.
John Carver was elected governor for one year. Miles
Standish, who had been an officer in the army sent by
Queen Elizabeth to aid the Dutch against the Spaniards,
was chosen captain. Winter was coming on — they were
anxious to land, but unfortunately the shallop needed
repairs. In the mean time Standish, Bradford, and others,
impatient of delay, went to seek a convenient harbor, and
a suitable place for a settlement. The country was covered
with snow ; in one place they found some baskets of corn,
and in another an Indian burial-ground.
In a fortnight the shallop was ready for use, and the
governor, Winslow, Bradford, and Standish, with others
and some seamen, went to explore the bay. The cold was
intense, freezing the spray of the sea on their clothes, until,
as they expressed it, they were made as hard as iron. They
landed occasionally, found graves and a few deserted wig-
100 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
chap, warns, but no other evidence of human beings. On one o»
, these occasions they encamped at night on the shore near
1620. where the shallop was moored. The next morning as they
were closing their devotions, they were startled by a strange
cry — the war-whoop of the savage — it was accompanied by
a flight of arrows. At the report of their guns the Indians
fled. All that day was spent in seeking a safe harbor for
the ship. Near night a violent storm of rain and snow
drove them through the breakers into a cove, protected
from the blast by a hill. In the midst of the tempest they
landed, and with difficulty kindled a fire. In the morning
they found they were on an island at the entrance of a
harbor. The next day was the Sabbath ; though urged by
every consideration to hasten to the ship, they religiously
observed the day.
On the morrow, December twenty-second ', one thousand
Dec. six hundred and twenty — a day ever to be remembered in
22- the annals of our country, the Pilgrims landed. The
place they named after the town in England from
which they last sailed. The blessings which have flowed
from the settlement of New England are associated with
the spot where they first set foot — the Kock of Plym-
outh.
No time was spent in idleness. A place was selected
for the settlement, and divided into lots for families. On
the third day they began to build ; their houses went up
but slowly ; the forest trees must first be felled and split
into timbers ; the season was inclement — their strength
failed them : many from exposure had received into their
bodies the seeds of death ; many were sick, and many died.
At one time there were only seven of the whole company
not disabled by sickness. During the winter, more than
forty were numbered with the dead; among these were the
wives of Bradford and Winslow, and also Kose, the young
bride of Miles Standish. The benevolent Carver lost his
son — then he himself sunk in death, soon to be followed
PRIVATIONS AND HEROISM. 101
by his broken-hearted widow. They were all buried but CI|AP
a short distance from the rock on which they had landed.
Lest the many graves should tell the Indians the story of 1621.
weakness and of death, the spot where they rested was |"
levelled and sown with grass. At length spring drew near,
and warm winds from the south moderated the cold. The
trees began to put forth their foliage, and among their
branches the "birds to sing pleasantly," while the sick
were gradually recovering.
When the May-Flower left for England, not one of
these heroic men and women desired to leave the land of
their adoption. They had now a government ; they had a
church covenant ; they had a constitution under which
their rights were secured, and each one according to his
individual merit could be respected and honored. So dear
to them were these privileges, that all the privations they
had suffered, the sickness and death which had been in
their midst, the gloomy prospect before them, could not
induce them to swerve from their determination to found a
State, where these blessings should be the birth-right of
their children.
Famine pressed hard upon them, for in the autumn No?
they were joined by some new emigrants, who had come 19-
ill-provisioned ; and for the succeeding six months they
had only half a supply. " I have seen men," says Wins-
low, " stagger by reason of faintness for want of food."
Their privations for two or three years were greater than
those of any colony planted in the country. But their
implicit confidence in the goodness of God was never
shaken. At times Indians were seon hovering around their
settlement, but no communication had been held with
them, as they fled when approached. One day, to their
surprise, an Indian boldly entered their village, crying out,
welcome Englishmen ! welcome Englishmen ! It was
Samoset. He belonged to the Wampanoags, a tribe living
102 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
chap in the vicinity. He had learned a few English words frorjc
' the fishermen on the Penobscot.
1021. Samoset, in the name of his tribe, told the Pilgrims
to possess the land, for the year before those to whom it
belonged had been swept away by a pestilence. This an-
nouncement was a great relief to their fears. Samoset
soon again appeared, and with him Squanto, who, as has
been mentioned, had been kidnapped and sold into slavery
in Spain, had been freed, found his way to England, and
finally home. They announced that Massasoit, the grand
sachem of the Wampanoags, desired an interview. The
chief and his retinue of warriors had taken their position
on a neighboring hill. Squanto acted as interpreter. A
treaty of friendship was made between the chief and the
English, by which they promised to defend each other
when attacked by enemies. For more than fifty years, till
King Philip's war, this treaty was observed. The Pil-
grims offered to pay for the baskets of corn they had
found buried ; this they did six months afterward when
the owners appeared. A trade, very beneficial to the
colony, commenced with the Indians, who promised to sell
them all their furs.
Why not remember the humble services of Squanto?
The Pilgrims looked upon him as, " a special instrument
sent of G-od for their good beyond their expectation." He
taught them how to plant corn, to put fish with it to make
it grow, where to find the fish and how to take them. He
was their interpreter and their pilot. Under his tuition
they soon raised corn so abundantly as to have a surplus tc
exchange with the Indians for furs. By means of these
furs they obtained from England the merchandise they
wanted. He remained their friend till his death, and when
dying asked the governor to pray that he might go to
the " Englishman's God in heaven."
Massasoit desired the alliance with the Pilgrims as a
protection against Canonicus, the chief of the powerful
" weston's men." 103
Narragansetts, who lived on the shores of the beautiful bay chap.,
which bears their name. Canonicus was not, however, to
be deterred from exhibiting his hostility. As a challenge 1622.
he sent to Plymouth some arrows wrapped in the skin of
a rattlesnake. Bradford, who was now governor, sent
back the same skin filled with powder and shot. The In-
dians looked upon it as containing a deadly influence, to
be exerted against the enemies of the English. In terror
they sent it from tribe to tribe, none of whom dared either
keep or destroy it. Finally, the skin and its contents
were returned to the colony. Canonicus himself, in a
short time, desired an alliance of peace ; evidently more
from fear than from good-will.
In trade the Pilgrims took no advantage of the igno-
rance of the Indians. They became involved in difficul-
ties with them, however, through the improper conduct
of others.
Thomas Weston, a merchant of London, who had in-
vested money in the enterprise of founding the Plymouth
Colony, now wished to engross the entire profits of the fur
trade with the Indians. He obtained a patent for a small
district, near Weymouth, on Boston harbor, and sent over
about sixty men, chiefly indented servants. These men
ill treated the Indians, stole their corn, and thus excited
their hostility. The savage seeks redress by murdering
those who do him wrong. The Indians did not distinguish
between the honesty and good-will of the Pilgrims, and
the dishonesty and evil acts of " Weston's men ;" they
plotted to involve all the white strangers in one common
ruin. Massasoit was dangerously sick ; Winslow kindly
visited him ; turned out of the wigwam the Indian doctors,
who were making a great noise to drive off the disease, and
relieved the chief by giving him medicine and quiet. The
grateful Massasoit revealed the plot. The people were
greatly alarmed ; they had heard of a terrible massacre in
Virginia, and they feared such would be their own expe-
104 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
chap, rience. Not a moment was to be lost ; they must act in
self-defence. Captain Standish hastened with eight men
1628. to the assistance of those at Weymouth. He arrived in
2^' time not only to prevent the attack, but to surprise the
Indians themselves. In the conflict, the principal plotting
chief and some of his men were killed. This exploit
taught the Indians to respect the English ; many of the
neighboring chiefs now sought peace and alliance. When
the good pastor, Mr. Kobinson, heard of this conflict, he
exclaimed, " Oh that they had converted some before they
killed any I " One year saw the beginning and the end of
this trading establishment at Weymouth. Apprehension
of danger from the natives was now removed.
Since j^s « Thanksgiving " has now become a national festival,
the manner in which it was first instituted has a peculiar
interest. In the autumn of 1623, after the fruits of the
harvest were gathered in, Governor Bradford sent out a
company for game, to furnish dainty materials for a feast
God had blessed their labors, and this was to be a feast of
thanks-giving. " So they met together and thanked
God with all their hearts, for the good world and the good
things in it."
The merchant partners in England complained of the
small profits derived from their investments. They began
to neglect the interests of the colony, and to manifest their
displeasure in various ways. They would not permit
Robinson and his family, with the remainder of the church
at Leyden, to join their friends at Plymouth. They sold
the colonists goods at enormous prices, and sent a ship tc
rival them in their limited fur trade. They outraged their
feelings by attempting to force upon them one Lyford, a
clergyman friendly to the Established Church. Lyford was
expelled from Plymouth, not on account of his religious
views, but, according to Bradford, for conduct injurious to
the colony and immorality.
In time industry and frugality triumphed ; the Pil-
DEMOCRATIC GOVERNMENT. 105
grims in five or six years were able to purchase the entire chap
stock of those who were annoying them in this ungenerous L_
manner. The stock and the land were equitably divided, Nov.
and the arrangement of private property fully carried out,
each one becoming the owner of a piece of land.
Though the Pilgrims had no charter, they formed a
government upon the most liberal principles. They had a
governor, who was chosen by the people, and whose power
was limited by a council of five. For more than eighteen
years the whole male population were the legislators. 1640.
They were the pioneers of religious freedom — the
openers of an asylum in the New World, to which the
persecuted for religion's sake, and political opinions, have
been flocking from that day to this. Says Governor Brad-
ford, in his history of the colony : " Out of small begin-
nings great things have been produced, by His hand that
made all things out of nothing ; and as one small candle
will light a thousand, so the light here kindled hath shone
to many, yea to our whole nation."
OHAPTEK XI.
COLONY OF MASSACHUSETTS BAY.
A Company organized. — Settlement of Salem. — The Charter transferred. —
Boston and Vicinity settled. — Encouragements. — Disputes. — Roger
Williams; his Banishment; he founds Providence. — Discussions re-
newed.— -Anne Hutchinson. — Settlement of Rhode Island. — The Dutch
at Hartford ; Disputes with. — Migrations to the fertile Valley of the Con-
necticut ; Hooker and Haynes. — Springfield. — Fort at Saybrooke. — Pe-
quods become hostile. — Expeditions against them ; their utter Ruin. —
Rev. John Davenport. — Settlement of New Haven. — Sir Ferdinand
Gorges. — New Hampshire. — The United Colonies. — The Providence
Plantations. — Educated Men. — Harvard College. — The Priuting Press. —
Common Schools. — Grammar Schools. — Quakers; Persecution of. — Eliot
the Apostle. — The Mayhews. — Progress.
chap. Persecution raged through the reign of James, and
threatened to continue through the reign of his son and
1624. successor, Charles I.
The various accounts sent to England by the colonists
at Plymouth, excited great interest, especially in the
minds of the Puritans. They listened to them as to a
voice from Heaven, calling upon them to leave their native
land, and join their brethren in these ends of the earth.
This was not wild enthusiasm, but the calm promptings
of duty.
Pamphlets were published giving descriptions of the
land of promise ; it promised not wealth and ease, but only
peace and quietness. There were many who preferred
these, with toils and privations in the wilds of America, tc
religious persecutions in their own land.
THE SETTLEMENT OF SALEM. 107
The Rev. Mr. White, of Dorchester, was a controlling chap
spirit in the enterprise. He was a Puritan, but not of the
Separatists from the Established Church, as were Robin- 1624.
son and his congregation.
The Council of Plymouth had taken the place of the 1620.
old Plymouth Company. This council had no worthier
object than gain ; it granted the same region to different
individuals, and thus laid the foundation for endless dis-
putes. It sold to some gentlemen of Dorchester a belt of
territory, extending from three miles south of Massachu-
setts bay to three miles north of any part of Merrimac 1628.
river, and, as usual, west to the Pacific. The company
prepared to send a colony. The care of the enterprise
was intrusted to one of their number, John Endicott, a
man of stern character and sterling integrity. He brought
with him his family, and about one hundred other per-
sons ; they landed at Salem, and there commenced the
colony of Massachusetts Bay. Men of wealth and influ- Sept.
ence, such as Winthrop, Thomas Dudley, Saltonstall, Bel-
lingham, Johnson, Simon Bradstreet, William Codding-
ton, and others, who afterward exerted a great influence
in the colony, were willing to bear a part in carrying the
"pure gospel" to New England. The king looked upon
the colony about to be founded more as a trading corpo-
ration than as the germ of an independent nation, and he
willingly gave them a charter, under which they lived more
than fifty years. By the terms of this charter the royal jf.,r-
signature was not necessary to give validity to the laws 1629'
made under it.
Soon another choice company, in which " no idle per-
sons were found," was ready to sail. The good Francis
Higginson accompanied them as their minister. As the
shores of England receded from sight, Higginson expressed
the feelings of the emigrants ; as from the deck of the ship
his eyes turned for the last time to his native land, he
exclaimed, " Farewell, England ! — farewell, all Christian
108
HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
CxfP' ^"eu(^s • — we separate not from the church, but from its
corruptions ; — we go to spread the gospel in America/'
1629. There were about two hundred in this company ; the ma-
' jority remained at Salem, the rest went to Charlestown.
Privations and exposure brought sickness, and before the
end of a year death had laid his hand on more than half
their number, among whom was their pastor, Higginson.
When the summons came, the dying seemed only to re-
gret that they were not permitted to aid their brethren in
founding a pure church in the wilderness.
The charter contained no provision for the rights of
the people, it left them at the mercy of the corporation :
and as long as that charter remained in England, they
could take no part in their own government. It was also
silent on the subject of their religious freedom ; at any
moment this might be interfered with by the king and his
clergy. There was only one way to be freed from such
undue interference. By the charter their governing coun-
cil could choose the place of meeting for the transaction
of business. It was a bold step ; but they chose, here-
after, to meet on the soil of the colony. This transfer of
the governing council and charter made its government
virtually independent.
The officers were to be a governor, a deputy governor,
and eighteen assistants. These were elected before leav-
1680. ing England. John Winthrop was chosen governor, and
Thomas Dudley deputy governor. A fleet of seventeen
ships set sail with the officers elect, and fifteen hundred
emigrants ; they arrived in June and July. Their arrival
was opportune, for those who had preceded them were in
great distress from sickness and scarcity of food.
Settlements were now made at various places around
the bay; Charlestown, Newtown, Dorchester, Watertown,
A fine spring of pure water, on the peninsula called Shaw-
mut, induced the governor and some other persons to settle
there. The position was central, and it became the capital,
s
ENCOURAGEMENTS. 109
under the name of Boston. The change of climate and chap
mode of living brought disease upon great numbers ; yet
they looked upon their sorrows as so many trials, designed 1630.
to make them appreciate still more the blessings which
the future had in store for them. As they hoped, these
evils gradually passed away, and prosperity smiled.
At first, the assistants could hold office for life, and
in addition it was their privilege to elect the governor.
The people became jealous of their liberties ; the dispute
was compromised by their electing their magistrates annu-
ally. They were to be chosen by the freemen of the 1631
colony, of whom no one who was not a church member
could have a vote. This law was injudicious, though
enacted with the best intentions. They wished a govern-
ment based on purely religious principles, and they thought
to secure such a government by allowing none but the
religious to take part in it. Another change was made
from the purely democratic form, when all the freemen
met in convention and voted on the laws, to that of the
republican, when the people elected deputies, who were au-
thorized to legislate and transact the affairs of the colony.
The colonists dealt honestly with the Indians and en-
deavored to preserve their good will. They " were to
buy their lands, and not to intrude upon, and in no respect
injure them ;" they also " hoped to send the gospel to the
poor natives." Many of the neighboring chiefs desired
their friendship. One came from the distant river Con-
necticut ; he extolled its fertile valleys and blooming
meadows ; he offered them land near him, because he
wished their protection against the brave and fiery
Pequods. Fraternal and Christian intercourse was held
from time to time with the old colony of Plymouth ; as a
harbinger of the future, there came from Virginia a vessel
laden with corn ; and the Dutch, who some years before
had settled at Manhattan, visited them with kindly greet-
ings. Thus dawned a brighter day.
li" IIISTORT OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
chap. During this year more than three thousand persons
came from England, many of whom were men of influence,
1035. wealth, and education. Prominent among these was Hugh
Peters, an eloquent clergyman, and Harry Yane, a young
man of much promise, the son and heir of a privy- council-
lor— a fact of some importance in the eyes of the people.
Yane, however, was a true Republican. The people the
next year unwisely elected him governor, in place of the
dignified and benevolent Winthrop.
The Puritans had experienced all the evils of religious
intolerance, but unfortunately they had not themselves
learned to be lenient. In the colony there was a young
clergyman, Roger Williams, a man of ardent temperament,
a clear reasoner, and very decided in his opinions. He
came in conflict with the magistrates as he advanced sen-
timents which they deemed subversive of all authority, —
such as that obedience to the magistrate should not be en-
forced— that the oath of allegiance should not be required :
he also denounced the law that compelled all persons to
attend worship, as an infringement of the rights of con-
science : he said the service of the church should be sup-
ported by its members, and not by a tax upon all the peo-
ple. His principles were in advance of the age in which
he lived : one hundred and forty years after this time they
were fully carried out. He contended that the charter
from the king was invalid ; the Indians were the original
proprietors. The people repelled the aspersion as unjust,
because they had purchased their lands from the Indians,
and acknowledged their rights by making treaties with
them. The contest waxed warm. Williams accepted an
invitation to Salem : the people of that place were admon-
Oct., islied by the General Court to beware, lest they should
encourage sedition. Upon this he retired to Plymouth, —
there for two years he maintained his opinions unmo-
lested. The people of the old colony had learned the les-
son of toleration in their exile in Holland.
WILLIAMS A WANDERER.
Ill
Williams was again invited to Salem, in open defiance chap.
of the authority of the General Court, the governing power
of the colony. A committee of ministers held conferences 1635.
and discussions with him, but without inducing him to
retract. As the people of Salem sustained him, the Court
admonished them, and pronounced the sentence of banish-
ment against Williams. It was not the expression of
opinions on the subject of conscience, or " soul-oppression/'
as he termed it, that alarmed the Court, but the expression
of opinions which, if carried into effect, would, they affirmed,
destroy all human government.
In midwinter, Williams became a wanderer for con-
science' sake. He went to the sons of the forest for that
protection denied him by his Christian brethren. For four-
teen weeks he wandered : sometimes he received the simple
hospitality of the natives ; sometimes his lodging-place was
a hollow-tree. At last he was received into the cabin of
Massasoit, at Mount Hope. He was the Indians' friend,
and they loved him. He thought of settling at Seekonk,
on Pawtucket river; that place being within the bounds of
the Plymouth colony, Winslow, the governor, advised him
to remove beyond their limits, lest it should create diffi-
culty with the Bay colony. Williams received this advice
in the spirit in which it was given, and removed to the
country of the Narragansets. With five companions in a
canoe, he went round to the west side of the arm of the
bay. Landing at a beautiful spot, he found a spring of
pure water. He resolved there to make a settlement. In
thankfulness he called the place Providence. Tradition t636.
at this day points out the spring near which he built his
cabin. Canonicus, the chief of the Narragansets, would
not sell his land, but gave him a little domain " to enjoy
forever."
Williams here put in practice his theory of government.
The land was given to him, and he distributed it to his
followers. Tt was purely a government of the people. AH
112 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
CttAP- promised to obey the voice of the majority in temporal
things : in things spiritual, to obey only God.
1637. Discussions were still rife in Massachusetts on all sub-
jects. The men held meetings, in which they discussed
matters pertaining to their liberties ; edified each other
with expositions of passages of Scripture, and criticized the
weekly sermons of their ministers. As women were not
allowed to speak in these meetings, Mrs. Anne Hutchin-
son, a woman of great eloquence and talent, thought the
rights of her sex were not properly respected ; she there-
fore held meetings for their benefit at her own house. At
these meetings, theological opinions were advocated, at
variance with those of the ministers and magistrates. The
people became divided into two parties, and the affair soon
took a political turn : on the one side were arrayed Win-
throp and the older settlers, and with few exceptions, the
ministers : on the other, Governor Vane and the adherents
of Mrs. Hutchinson. She and her party were accustomed
to speak of themselves as "being under a covenant of
grace," and of their opponents as " being under a covenant
of works." These indefinite phrases irritated her opponents
exceedingly. They proclaimed her a despiser of all spirit-
ual authority ; " like Koger Williams, or worse ;" and
darkly insinuated that she was a witch. The friends of
Mrs. Hutchinson spoke of appealing to the king; this was
downright treason in the eyes of their opponents, — their
allegiance was given to the government of the colony, not
to the king. A convention of ministers was held, they
investigated her doctrines, and declared them unsound and
injurious. At the ensuing election, Winthrop was chosen
governor; and soon after Yane left for England. Mrs.
Hutchinson and her followers were admonished, but with-
out effect ; she, with her brother-in-law John Wheelwright;
1638. and others, were exiled from the colony. How much wiser
it would have been had the magistrates permitted her to
THE DUTCH AT HARTFORD. 11H
exercise her " gift of discussing," even if she did say they c^p
were " under a covenant of works I"
Eoger Williams invited the exiles to settle in his vicin- 1638.
ity. By his influence they obtained from Miantonomoh,
the nephew and prospective successor of Canonicus, a
beautiful island, which they named the Isle of Khodes.
Here this little company of not more than twenty persons,
formed a settlement. William Coddington, who had been
a magistrate in the Bay Colony, was elected judge or ruler.
They, too, covenanted with each other to obey the laws
made by the majority, and to respect the rights of con- Oct.
science. Mrs. Hutchinson and her family remained here
several years, and then removed farther west beyond New
Haven, into the territory of the Dutch ; there she and all
her family who were with her, with the exception of one
daughter, who was taken captive, were murdered by the
Indians. 1643.
The Dutch from Manhattan explored the Connecticut 1614:
river six years before the landing of the Pilgrims at
Plymouth. They erected a fortified trading-house near
where Hartford now stands, but by ill-treating the In-
dians they excited their hostility, and lost a trade that
might have been valuable.
Unable to occupy the territory, and unwilling to lose
its advantages, they invited the Pilgrims to leave the 1627.
sterile soil of Plymouth and remove to the fertile vales of
the Connecticut, and live under their protection. The
invitation was not accepted ; but as the Pilgrims were
convinced that a change to more fertile lands was desira-
ble, Governor Winslow went on an exploring tour to that
region ; having found the soil as fertile as had been repre- 1632.
sented he promoted emigration.
The Council of Plymouth had given a grant of Connec- 1630.
ticut to the Earl of Warwick, who the next year trans-
ferred his claim or patent to Lords Say and Brooke, John
114 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
chap. Hampden, and others. The eastern boundary of this grant
was the Narraganset river, and the western the Pacific
i«33. ocean. When the Dutch learned of this grant, they pur-
chased of the Indians the tract of land in the vicinity of
Hartford, on which stood their trading-house, and pre-
pared to defend their rights ; they erected a fort and
mounted two cannons, to prevent the English from ascend-
ing the river. In the latter part of the year Gaptain
William Holmes, who was sent by Governor Winslow,
arrived in a sloop, with a company, and prepared to make a
settlement. The Dutch commandant threatened him with
destruction if he should attempt to pass his fort. The
undaunted Holmes passed by uninjured, and put up a
fortified house at Windsor. He was not permitted to en-
joy his place in peace ; the next year the Dutch made an
effort to drive him away, but not succeeding they compro-
mised the matter by relinquishing all claim to the valley.
The parties agreed upon a dividing line, very nearly the
same as that existing at . this day between the States of
New York and Connecticut. As the natural meadows on
the Connecticut would furnish much more grass and hay
for their cattle than the region nearer the sea-shore, many
of the Pilgrims determined to remove thither.
1685. The following autumn, a party of sixty persons, men,
women, and children, undertook the desperate work of
going through the woods and swamps from Plymouth to
Connecticut. The journey was laborious and the suffer-
ing great. When they arrived at the river the ground
was covered with snow, the precursor of an unusually severe
Nov. winter. A sloop from Plymouth, laden with provisions
and their household furniture, failed to reach them on
account of storms and ice. Their cattle all perished ; a
little corn obtained from the Indians, and acorns, were their
only food ; they barely escaped starvation.
During this year three thousand persons came to Bos-
ton from England. Among these was the Keverend
JOURNEY THROUGH THE WILDERNESS.
115
1635
Mar.
1630
Thomas Hooker, who has been called " The Light of the chap
Western Churches." He was a man of great eloquence,
and of humble piety ; his talents, of a high order, com-
manded universal respect, while his modesty won him
ardent friends. When he was silenced for non-conformity
in England, great numbers of the clergy of the Escablished
Church petitioned that he might be restored. But in
those days to be a Non-Conformist was an unpardonable
offence.
A portion of his congregation had emigrated the year
before. When he arrived at Boston with the remainder
of his flock, the colony was in a ferment — the Williams
controversy was going on ; his people were wearied with
the turmoil. John Haynes, who was a member of his
congregation in England, and who had been Governor of
Massachusetts, determined, with others, to remove to Con-
necticut. In the spring, a company, under the lead of
Hooker and Haynes, set out from the vicinity of Boston
for the pleasant valley. They numbered about one hun-
dred persons, some of whom had been accustomed to the
luxuries of life in England. With no guide but a com-
pass they entered the untrodden wilderness ; toiled on foot
over hills and valleys ; waded through swamps and forded
streams. They subsisted principally on the milk of the
kine that they drove before them, and which browsed on
the tender leaves and grass. They moved but slowly.
Their sick they carried on litters. The trustful spirit of
piety and faith was present, and the silence of the forest
was broken for the first time by Christian songs of
praise. The man whose eloquence in his native land at-
tracted crowds of the educated and refined, now, in the
wilderness, comfortqd and cherished the humble exiles for re-
ligion's sake. The first of July brought an end to their la-
borious journey. The greater part of the company remained
at Hartford ; some went up the river and founded Spring-
field ; some went down and joined those at Wethersfield.
116
HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
C1xiP' John Winthrop, the younger, who had been sent tc
England on business for the colony, returned as agent for
1636. Lords Say and Brooke. He was directed to build a fort
at the mouth of the Connecticut river ; it was named
1685. Saybrooke.
These settlements were now threatened with destruc-
tion. The valley of the river and the region adjoining
were more densely populated with Indians than any por-
tion of New England. The powerful Pequods, the most
warlike tribe in the country, numbered almost two thou-
sand warriors, and ruled over a number of smaller tribes ;
they inhabited the south-eastern part of Connecticut,
and the shore of Long Island Sound to the mouth of
Connecticut river, and west almost to the Hudson.
The Mohegans, who dwelt in the north-eastern part of
Connecticut, and the Narragansets, who lived around
Narraganset bay, were the enemies of the Pequods and
the friends of the English. The Pequods were jealous of
1686 the English, not merely because they had settled near
them, but because they were friendly to their enemies.
These Pequods were charged with murdering, some years
before, a Virginia trader, named Stone, with his crew, on
the Connecticut river. Stone had the reputation of being
intemperate and quarrelsome ; the Pequods said that he
had attacked them and they killed him in self-defence.
Captain Oldham, who was exploring the Connecticut, was
murdered, with his crew, by the Indians living on Block
Island. Captain John Endicott was sent to punish the
murderers. Previous to this the Pequods had sent chiefs
to Boston to make an alliance, and explain the difficulty
in relation to the Virginia trader. They promised to de-
liver up — so the magistrates understood them — the two
men who had killed him. Endicott was ordered to call,
on his way home from Block Island, at the Pequod town,
and demand the promised satisfaction. The Indians, ac-
cording to their custom, offered a ransom for the two men,
THE PEQUOD WAR. 117
but refused to give them up to certain death. Endieott cup
had uo respect for their customs ; he must have hlood for
blood. Angry at their refusal, he burned two of their vil- 1636
lages and destroyed their corn. It was after this that the
Pequods began to prowl about the settlements, and pick
off stragglers, until they had, during the winter, killed
more than thirty persons.
The people in the Connecticut valley were in great
alarm ; they knew not at what moment nor at what point
the storm would burst. They called upon Massachusetts
for aid ; only twenty men were sent under Captain Un-
derbill. The whole community were so much absorbed in
discussing theological questions with Mrs. Hutchinson that
every other consideration was overlooked.
Although the Pequods were more warlike and more
numerous than any other tribe, they were not willing to
enter upon the war single-handed. They sent a deputa-
tion to Miantonomoh, the chief of the Narragansets, to
enlist him against the common enemy. Governor Vane
wrote to Roger Williams, urging him, if possible, to pre-
vent the alliance. Williams hastened to visit Miantono-
moh ; he found the. Pequod chiefs already there, urging
their ancient enemy to join them and exterminate the
white intruders — the Narragansets were wavering. At the
risk of his life, Williams labored for three days to prevent
these tribes uniting their forces against the colonists. The
disappointed and angry Pequods threatened him with
death. He not only prevented the alliance, but obtained
the promise of the Narragansets to aid the English. Oct.
Meantime, he sent a messenger to Boston to warn them of
the impending danger.
At length the infant settlements of Connecticut in ^ay
convention at Hartford declared war against the Pequods. i°<
The little army of not more than eighty men, including
those sent from Massachusetts, assembled at Hartford :
the pious Hooker exhorted them, and gave the staff of com-
118 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
chap, mand to Captain J ohn Mason, who had been a soldier in
the Netherlands. At the request of the soldiers, part of
1637. the night preceding the day they were to march was spent
in prayer. Stone, one of their ministers, accompanied
them as chaplain. They fleeted down the river, and sailed
round the coast to Narraganset bay, intending to go across
the country, and attack the Pequods in their fort. As the
latter had a very exalted opinion of their own prowess, they
supposed the English were making their escape, when they
saw them sailing past the mouth of the Pequod, now the
Thames river. The English landed at a harbor in the
bay, and religiously observed the Sabbath. On the follow-
May ing day they repaired to Canonicus, the old Narraganset
chief, but his nephew Miantonomoh hesitated to join them;
their numbers were so small, and the Pequods so numer-
ous. Two hundred warriors, however, consented to accomr
pany them, but as rather doubtful friends — and about
seventy Mohegans joined them under their chief Uncas.
Sassacus, the bold chief of the Pequods, was too confi-
dent in the strength of his two forts, and in the bravery of
his warriors to be cautious. His main fort, on the top of a
high hill, was defended by posts driven in the ground, and
deemed by him impregnable. He was yet to experience
an attack from the English. In the night Mason, guided
by an Indian deserter, approached the main fort, and halted
within hearing of the triumphant shouts of the Pe-
quods, as they exulted over his supposed flight. Toward
the break of day the English moved to the attack, while
their Indian allies took a position to surround the fort.
N'ay The coming struggle was one of life or death to all that
was dear to the little army: if they were defeated, all
hope would be lost for their families on the Connecticut.
The barking of a dog awoke the Indian sentinel ; he
rushed into the fort with the cry, The English ! the English !
In a moment more, the English were through the pali-
sades, and fighting hand to hand with the half awakened
26
MASSACRE OF THE PEQUODS. 119
warriors. Their numbers were overwhelming. " We must c^p
burn them," shouted Mason, as he applied a torch to the
dry reeds which covered a wigwam — the flames spread with 1637.
great rapidity. ' All was in confusion — as the despairing
warriors vainly endeavored to extinguish the flames they
became targets for the English marksmen. The Narra-
gansets and Mohegans now joined in the conflict. More
than six hundred of the Pequods perished, men, women,
and children in one common ruin, merciless and unrelent-
ing : only seven escaped. In an hour's time the work was
done ; just then appeared the warriors, three hundred
strong, from the other fort. They came forth expecting
victory. When they perceived the ruin which had come
upon their friends, they raved and stamped the ground in
despair. Mason with a chosen band held them in check,
till the remainder of the army had embarked on the boats,
which had come round from Narraganset Bay. Then
they hastened home, lest there should be a sudden attack
upon the settlements.
In a few days Captain Stoughton arrived from Massa- June
chusetts with one hundred men. The spirit of the Pequods
was broken ; they fled to the west, and were pursued with
untiring energy. Their villages were burnt — their corn-
fields destroyed — their women and children slain without
mercy. They took refuge in a swamp, and in desperation
once more made a stand : again they were overwhelmed
with great slaughter. Sassacus, their chief, escaped with a Aug.
few followers, and made his way to the Mohawks, where
he was afterward basely murdered by one of his own sub-
jects. The remainder, old and young, surrendered to the
victors, who disposed of them : some they gave as captives
of war to their enemies, the Narragansets and Mohegans;
and some they sent to the West Indies to be sold as slaves.
Their territory was declared to be conquered, and their
name to be blotted out. They were the foremost in that
mournful procession in which the Indian race, from that
120 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
C xiP' ^ay *° ^s> ^ave ^een movmS on toward utter extennina*
. tion. This terrible example of the white man's power
1637. sent a thrill of horror through the other tribes ; and for
more than forty years, they dared not raise an arm in de-
fence of the graves of their lathers.
1 688. The year following, John Davenport, a celebrated cler-
gyman of London, arrived at Boston — with him came his
friend Theophilus Eaton, a rich merchant. They and their
associates had been exiled. They were cordially welcomed
in Massachusetts, and urgently pressed to remain in that
colony. They preferred to go into the wilderness rather
than dwell in the midst of so much controversy. Humor
had told of the fine region found to the west by the pursu-
ers of the Pequods. Eaton, with a few men, after explor-
ing the coast of the Sound, spent the following winter at a
desirable place in that region. As soon as spring opened,
the company sailed from Boston ; in due time they arrived
at the place where Eaton had spent the winter ; there,
under a large tree, on the Sabbath after their arrival,
April. Davenport preached his first sermon in the wilderness. A
day of fasting and prayer for direction was observed, and
then they formed a government, pledging themselves " to
be governed in all things by the rules which the Scriptures
held forth to them." Such was the settlement of New
Haven, and thus was it to be governed. They purchased
from the Indians the right to the land — Eaton was elected
governor ; and to the end of his life, for more than twenty
years, he was annually chosen to that office.
After the war with the Pequods was ended, the people
of the several settlements on the Connecticut held a con-
vention at Hartford, and adopted a constitution and form
1639. of government. The constitution was framed on liberal
principles. They agreed to " maintain the purity of the
gospel," and in civil affairs to be governed by the laws
made under their constitution. No jurisdiction was admit-
ted to belong to the King of England. Every one who
THE SPIBIT OF THE COLONISTS. 121
look the oath of allegiance to the commonwealth was enti- c^p-
tied to vote. The governor and the other officers were to
be chosen annually by ballot. The number of their repre- 1639.
sentatives to the General Assembly was to be apportioned
to the towns, according to the number of inhabitants. For
one hundred and fifty years this constitution remained in
force.
Sir Ferdinand Gorges and John Mason obtained, from
their associates of the Council of Plymouth, a grant of
land, lying partly in New Hampshire and partly in Maine. 1022
This was named Laconia. A small number of emigrants
were sent over, who settled at Portsmouth, Dover, and a
few other places near the mouth of the Piscataqua. Wheel-
wright, when banished from Massachusetts, settled with
his fellow-exiles at Exeter. These settlements progressed
very slowly. Only a few trading houses were scattered
along the coast, and for many years they took no more
permanent form. These settlers were not all Puritans,
and were but little united among themselves ; yet, they
applied and were annexed to the colony of Massachusetts. i64i,
The General Court agreed not to insist that the freemen
and deputies should be church members.
In all their troubles the colonists of New England had 1639,
never appealed to the mother country. They felt under
no obligation to her ; she had driven them forth with a
harsh hand to take care of themselves, or to perish in the
wilderness. A spirit of independence pervaded their
minds. They had the energy and industry to sustain
themselves, and the courage to act in every emergency.
Rumors had reached them that unprincipled men
were planning to take away their charter ; that Arch-
bishop Laud was meditating to establish over them the
rule of the Church of England ; that a governor-general
had been appointed, and was on his way.
They would not recognize the right of the king even
i'2'2 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
uiiap. to investigate by what authority they held their charter,
lest it might he interred that they were in any respect de-
i o : j L» . pendent upon his will. Fur the same reason, when the-
Long Parliament professed to be their friend, they respect-
fully declined any favors. When they feared an attempt
to place over them a royal governor, and to change their
colony into a royal province, they determined to delend
their liberties, and poor as they were, raised six hundred
pounds for fortifications.
1640. Twenty thousand emigrants were in New England,
when the Puritans of the mother country, galled beyond
endurance by the outrages committed on their rights and
persons, commenced that fearful struggle, which, in its
throes, overturned the throne, and brought the tyrannical
Charles I. to the scaffold, and established the Common-
wealth under Cromwell. During this period emigration
almost entirely ceased. Many hastened home to England
to engage in the conflict, anions; whom were the Rev. Hugh
Peters and Harry Vane. They both perished on the
scaffold after the Restoration.
The colonists, though unmolested by the home gov-
ernment, were still surrounded with dangers. They were
in the midst of hostile Indians ; the French were threat-
ening them in the North-East, and the Dutch in the West.
For mutual safety and interest, Plymouth. Massachusetts,
Connecticut, and New Haven, joined themselves together,
1G43. under the title of " The United Coloniks of New7 Eng-
land." Each was to be perfectly free in the management
of its own affairs ; while those which properly belonged to
the whole confederacy were to be intrusted to commis-
sioners— two from each colony. Church-membership was
the only qualification required of these commissioners.
The expenses of the government were to be assessed ac-
cording to the number of inhabitants. The purity of the
gospel was also to be preserved. This confederacy, the
germ of " The United States of America/' lasted forty
THE COLLEGE AND THE PBESS. 123
years. Rhode Island was not permitted to join it because CHA¥
she would not acknowledge the jurisdiction of Plymouth. ,
The two settlements on Narraganset bay now determined 1643
to apply for an independent charter. When, for this pur-
pose, Roger Williams arrived in England, he found the
country engaged in civil war ; the Puritans and Parlia-
ment on the one side and Charles I. on the other. Wil-
liams applied to his friend Harry Vane, and through his
influence obtained from the Parliament a charter, under
the title of " The Providence Plantations/' Roger Wil-
liams afterwards became a Baptist, and founded the first 1644.
church of that denomination in the United States.
A very great number of men of education, ministers
and laymen, emigrated to New England. There were of
ministers alone more than eighty, some of whom were equal
to any of their profession in their native land. There was
an unusual amount of general intelligence among all classes
of the community. The Bible to them was as familiar
as household words. In truth, it was the intelligent alone
who could appreciate the blessings for which they exiled
themselves. They wished to secure for their children the
benefits of education ; and as soon as possible an effort
was made to found a high school and ultimately a col-
lege. Funds, with some books, were obtained. The place
selected was Newtown, but as many of the men had been
educated at Cambridge University, England, the name was
changed to Cambridge. The Reverend John Harvard left
the infant institution half his fortune and his library.
Gratitude has embalmed his memory in its name. 1638.
The next year a printing-press, the gift of some friends ]g39.
in Holland, was established. Its first work was to print
a metrical version of the Psalms, which continued for a long
time to be used in the worship of the churches in New Eng-
land. The following preamble explains the next law on the
subject of education : — " It being a chief project of that old
deluder Sathan to keep men from the knowledge of the
124 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
chap. Scriptures," it was determined that every child, rich and
poor alike, should have the privilege of learning to read
1647. its own language. It was enacted that every town or
district having fifty householders should have a common
school ; and that every town or district, having one hun-
dred families, should have a grammar-school, taught by
teachers competent to prepare youth for the college. All
the New England colonies, with the exception of Khode
Island, adopted the system of common schools.
This event deserves more than a mere record. It was
the first instance in Christendom, in which a civil
government took measures to confer upon its youth the
blessings of education. There had been, indeed, parish
schools connected with individual churches, and founda-
tions for universities, but never before was embodied in
practice a principle so comprehensive in its nature and so
fruitful in good results, as that of training a nation of in-
telligent people by educating all its youth.
There had arisen among the Puritans in England a
new sect, called in derision Quakers. An unfavorable re-
port of their doctrines and doings had reached Massa-
chusetts ; they were represented as denouncing all forms
of worship and denying all civil authority. At length two
1656. women of the dreaded sect appeared ; they were arrested
and detained until their books could be examined, and the
question was raised whether they themselves were not
witches. Their books were burnt by the hangman, and
they sent back to England. Barbarous laws were made
to deter Quakers from coming to the colony ; but they
lame, and were inhumanly treated and sent back. Then
a law was passed that if a Quaker, after being banished,
returned, he should be put to death. This the magis-
trates fondly hoped would be effectual. We may judge
their surprise when some of those who had been banished
returned. They came to call the magistrates to repent-
ance for their persecuting spirit. What was to be done ?
ELIOT THE APOSTLE.
125
165*.
1645
Must the law be enforced or repealed ? It had been passed chap
by only one majority. The vote was taken again ; one
majority decided that the law must be obeyed. Four of
the Quakers suffered the penalty of death. Severity did
not accomplish the end in view; their brethren flocked to
Massachusetts as if courting the honor of martyrdom.
From the first the people had been opposed to the cruel
law, and at their instance it was repealed. There was
little apology for these harsh proceedings ; the magistrates
could only say they acted in self-defence, in excluding
those who taught doctrines that would interfere with the
affairs of the colony. As soon as persecution ceased, the
Quakers became quiet citizens ; many of them devoted
themselves to teaching the Indians under the direction of
the missionary Eliot.
The Puritans had long desired to carry the gospel to
the Indians. John Eliot, the devout and benevolent
pastor of the church in Roxbury, in addition to his pas-
toral labors, gave them regular instruction in Christianity.
He learned their language that he might preach to them ;
he translated the Bible, and taught them to read in
their own tongue its precious truths. This translation,
which cost him years of labor, is now valued only as a
literary curiosity ; it is a sealed book, no living man can
read it. The language has passed away with the people
who spoke it.
Their kind instructor induced them to cease from
roving, and to settle in villages ; he taught the men to
cultivate the soil, and the women to spin and weave
cloth, to supply their wants. He mingled with them as a
brother ; and though he met with much opposition from
their priests and chiefs, he led many of them in the right
path. His disciples loved him ; his gentleness and good-
ness, won their hearts.
As he lived so he died, laboring for the good of others.
In his last days, when borne down by years and infirmi-
126 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
chap, ties, he said, " My memory, my utterance fails me, but I
thank God my charity holds out still." Even up to the
1645. day 0f his death, which took place when he was eighty-
six years of age, he continued to teach some poor negroes
and a little blind boy. To Minister Walton, who came to
see him, he said, " Brother, you are welcome, but retire to
your study, and pray that 1 may be gone." Soon after,
without a fear or a pang, the spirit of this good " Apostle"
passed away ; his last words were " "Welcome joy !"
Eliot was not alone in his labors. The young, the
winning, the pious Mayhew, an accomplished scholar,
thought it a privilege to toil for the souls of the poor
Indians who lived upon the islands in and around Massa-
chusetts bay. He took passage for England to excite
there an interest in his mission. He was never heard of
more ; the ship in which he sailed went down in unknown
waters. His father, although at this time seventy years
of age, was moved to take his place as a teacher of the
Indians. There, for twenty-two years, he labored with
the happiest results, till death withdrew him from the
work.
Let us glance at the inner life of these colonists
during the first generation or two after their settlement
in the wilderness. In these earlier days the magistrates
had a sort of patriarchal authority over the community,
. somewhat as a parent over his own household. And as
the inhabitants were then comparatively few in number,
and were perhaps known . individually to the respective
magistrates in their own vicinity, the influence of the latter
was more directly exercised than when the population
had largely increased. The children received instruc-
tion in Scripture lessons, and in the catechism, as well as
in the very important virtue — obedience to parents. In
all such matters the magistrates and ministers took a
special interest, and thus aided the parents in training
the young. Nor is it strange, under these considerations,
RESULTS OF SEVERE TRAIHItfG.
127
1645.
that the magistrates censured the wearing of costly ap- chap.
parel, and the following of vain new fashions, because the '_
people were poor and did wrong, they thought, to waste
their means on dress unnecessarily expensive, and they
exercised their prerogative as a parent who reproves the
extravagance of his children. Their descendants some-
times smile at what they term the crude notions of these
Puritan fathers ; but do these sons and daughters reflect
how they themselves acquired this consciousness of their
own superiority over their ancestors who lived more than
two hundred years ago ? Their own attainments unques-
tionably have been the result of that severe training con-
tinued from generation to generation ; each succeeding
one modified and refined by the experience, the educa-
tion, and correct moral influence of the one preceding ;
so that each generation thus profiting, unconsciously rose
to a still higher plane of Christianized civilization. This
result is in accordance with the God-implanted principle
in the hearts of parents, to desire that their children
should have better advantages than they themselves en-
joyed in their own youth. The Puritans were far in
advance of their contemporaries in the training of their
children and households in the sterling virtues of honor
and integrity ; these combined influences have produced,
in the course of five or six generations, the most remark-
able progress known to history.
The Puritans felt the vast importance of sacred things,
and were strenuous in carrying out their principles. They
were careful to leave off labor at three o'clock on Satur-
day afternoon to prepare for the Sabbath. They went to
church, heard sermons twice a day, each two hours long,
heard prayers and sang psalms of proportionate length,
and enjoyed it. The tithing-man passed round with his
staff of office, on the one end of which was a brass ball,
the other a tuft of feathers : with the former he
on
tapped the heads of the men who fell asleep during the
128 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
chap, sermon ; with the latter he gently tickled the faces of the
L_ drowsy women.
1645. They were not so democratic as to make no distinc-
tions in social life.1 The term gentleman was seldom
used ; the well-born and the well-bred by courtesy re-
ceived the title of Mr., while the common folk were
dignified with that of Goodman or Goody. These titles
were sometimes taken away by the court as a punish-
ment. It is recorded that Mr. Josias Plaistow robbed an
Indian of corn, for which he was sentenced to lose his
title of Mr., and henceforth to be known only as Josias.
Their luxuries were few indeed, but the women prized
none more highly than that of tea. In those days it was
customary for them to carry their own china cup and
saucer and spoon to visiting parties. To be the possessor
of a " tea equipage of silver" was deemed a worldly de-
sire, to be sure, but not of an objectionable kind ; it was
commendable.
Though there has been associated with these colonists
a certain austere manner, chilling the heart of cheerful-
ness, yet let it not be forgotten they had their innocent
pleasure parties, especially when the neighbors joined to
aid each other in harvest times or in house-raisings. The
farmers and their families were accustomed to go in
groups at least once a year, to spend a season at the sea-
shore and supply themselves with salt and fish. They
usually went at the close of harvest, when the weather
was suitable for camping out. If they rejected the festi-
val of Christmas as a "relic of Popery," they instituted
Thanksgiving, and enjoyed it with as much relish as the
entire nation does to-day.
• Within thirty years great changes had taken place in
the colony. The people were prosperous : industry and
self-denial had wrought wonders.
Elliott's History of New England.
THE GROWTH OF BOSTON". 129
Says an enthusiastic chronicler of the times : * " The chap.
XI
Lord hath been pleased to turn all the wigwams, huts, and L_
hovels the English dwelt in at their first coming, into 1645«
orderly, fair, and well-built houses, well furnished, many
of them, with orchards filled with goodly fruit-trees and
garden flowers." The people had numerous cattle and
herds of sheep and swine, and plenty of poultry ; their
fields produced an abundance of wheat, rye, oats, barley,
and Indian corn ; and they could furnish fish, lumber, and
many commodities for export. " This poor wilderness hath
equalized England in food, and goes beyond it for the
plenty of wine, and apples, pears, quince-tarts, instead of
their former pumpkin pies." " Good white and wheaten
bread is no dainty ; the poorest person in the country hath
a house and land of his own, and bread of his own grow-
ing— if not some cattle."
These good things were not obtained without labor.
Of the thirty-two trades carried on, the most successful
were those of coopers, tanners, shoemakers, and ship-
builders. " Many fair ships and lesser vessels, barques,
and ketches were built." Thus the chronicler anticipates 1655.
the growth of Boston, which, " of a poor country village,
is become like unto a small city ; its buildings beautiful
and large — some fairly set out with brick, tile, stone, and
slate, orderly placed, with comely streets, whose continual
enlargements presageth some sumptuous city." They
had their soldiers, too, and a " very gallant horse-troop,"
each one of which had by him " powder, bullets, and
match." Their enemies were graciously warned that these
soldiers " were all experienced in the deliverances of the
Lord from the mouth of the lion and the paw of the bear."
> Johnson's " Wonder-working Providence of Zion's Saviour in New
England,"— as quoted by Hildreth.
CHAPTER XII.
VIRGINIA AND MARYLAND.
Slavery. — Massacre by the Indians. — Lord Baltimore. — The Settlement ol
Maryland. — Clayborne's Rebellion. — The Colony prosperous. — Tolera-
tion.— Berkeley governor of Virginia; Trade crippled; Intolerance. —
Indian War. — State of Society. — Aristocratic Assembly. — Complaints of
Berkeley. — War with the Susquehannahs. — Nathaniel Bacon. — Disturb-
ances.— Obnoxious Assembly dissolved. — Evils corrected. — Bacon goes
against the Indians. — Insincerity of Berkeley. — Jamestown captured
and burned. — Death of Bacon. — Tyranny of Berkeley. — Aristocratic
Assembly ; its illiberal Acts. — Culpepper governor. — A Series of extor-
tions.— Deplorable state of the Colony. — Difficulties in Maryland.
chap. In August of this year slavery was introduced into the
colonies. A Dutch ship entered James river, having on
1620. t»oai'd twenty negroes for sale as slaves. Although the
Dutch continued occasionally to bring Africans to the
Virginia market, the numher of slaves increased but slowly
for a third of a century. The trade was discouraged, but
not absolutely forbidden.
The Indians were scattered throughout the country, in
little villages, along the streams and in the most fertile
districts. The planters, who wanted these places for their
tobacco, took possession of them. Powhatan, the friend
1618. of the English, was dead ; his brother and successor, Ope-
chancanough, though professing friendship, was their
enemy : his proud spirit burned within him at the wronga
of his people. Not daring to meet the English in open
conflict, he planned secretly a terrible revenge ; even their
entire extermination. At this time the number of colo-
GEORGE CALVERT, Lord Baltimore.
THE MASSACRE. 131
nists was about four thousand ; that of the Indians within c1*av.
sixty or a hundred miles of Jamestown, about five thou-
sand. At noon on a certain day, the Indians were to fall 1622,
upon every settlement, and murder all the whites. Mean-
while, Opechancanough was warmer than ever in his pro-
fessions; " sooner would the skies fall," said he, " than that
my friendship for the English should cease." On the
morning of the intended massacre, the Indians were in the
houses and at the tables of the planters, and manifested
more than their usual good will. On that morning, a con-
verted Indian, named Chauco, brought the news of the plot
to Jamestown. He had learned of it only the night before.
Messengers were sent in every direction to warn the people,
but it was too late to reach the distant settlements.
Throughout the extent of one hundred and forty miles, the
merciless savages attacked the settlers at the same moment;
and on the twenty-second of March, there perished within
one hour, three hundred and forty-seven persons, men, Mar.
women, and children. Some of the settlements, though
taken by surprise, repulsed their assailants, yet the effect
was terrible. Of eighty plantations, all but eight were
laid waste, and the people hastened for safety to James-
town. Desolation reigned over the whole colony; death
had entered almost every family, and now famine and sick-
ness prevailed. Within three months the four thousand
colonists were reduced to twenty-five hundred ; the de-
crease continued, and at the end of two years not more
than two thousand remained of the nine thousand who had
emigrated to Virginia. Their misfortunes excited much
feeling in England. Assistance was sent ; the city of
London did much to relieve their pressing wants, and pri-
vate individuals were not backward in sending aid. Even
King James's sympathies were enlisted ; he had never aided
the colonists, but he now gave them some old muskets
that had been thrown aside as useless.
The planters did not fear the Indians in open conflict;
132 HISTOBY OF THE AMEBICAH" PEOPLE.
CxnP' ^U^ ^ was nece8sary to guard against tlieir secret attacks.
In their turn, they formed plans to exterminate the
1622. savages, or drive them far back into the wilderness. Expe-
ditions for this purpose were sent against them from time
to time, during the space of ten years. In time industry
began to revive, and signs of prosperity once more were
seen.
The London Company was now bankrupt ; endless
discussions arose among the numerous stockholders. They
became divided into two political parties, — one favored
the king's prerogative ; the other, the liberty of the colo-
nists. These questions were freely discussed at the meet-
ings of the company, greatly to the annoyance of James.
When he found it impossible to prevent the stockholders
from expressing their opinions, he arbitrarily took away
the charter of the company. To console the colonists, he
announced that he had taken them under his own special
protection. He began to frame laws for their government —
laws no doubt in accordance with his peculiar notions of
1625. kingcraft ; but his labors and life were suddenly ended.
Charles I., his son and successor, appeared to favor the
colony : it conformed to the church of England, and he did
not suspect its politics. More than this, he wished to
ingratiate himself with the colonists, for he desired the
monopoly of their tobacco trade. He even went so far as
to recognize the House of Burgesses as a legislative body,
and requested them to pass a law by which he alone could
purchase the tobacco of the colony. The House, in a dig-
nified and respectful manner, refused to comply with the
1629. royal request, as it would be injurious to their trade.
After the death of the liberal and high-minded Yeardley,
the council elected Francis West governor. Charles,
piqued at this independence, as well as the refusal to
grant him the monopoly, appointed Sir John Harvey.
Harvey had been a member of the colonial council, where
he was the willing instrument of a faction that had almost
SIR GEORGE CALVERT. 133
ruined the prospects of the colony. The enemy of the C**AP-
rights of the people, he was exceedingly unpopular ; he
now took special care of his own interests and those of his 1 638.
friends, by appointing them alone to office.
The histories of Virginia and Maryland are intimately
connected. As has been mentioned, Captain Smith was
the first to explore the Chesapeake ; the trade with the
Indians along its shores had now become profitable.
Though the Potomac river was the northern boundary of
Virginia, the colonists had extended their trade and influ-
ence with the Indians on both sides, up to the head of the
bay. William Clayborne, a bold and restless spirit, a sur-
veyor of land by profession, was employed by the Governor
of Virginia to explore the sources of the Chesapeake. A
company was formed in England for the purpose of trading
with the Indians, who lived on both sides of the bay.
Clayborne, the agent of the company, obtained a license to
trade, and established two stations, one on Kent Island,
opposite Annapolis, and one at the mouth of the Susque-
hannah.
During the turmoil of religious parties and persecu-
tions in England, Sir George Calvert, afterward Lord
Baltimore, left the Protestant church, resigned his office
of Secretary of State, and professed himself a Roman
Catholic. This did not affect his standing with James 01
his son Charles. Calvert manifested a strong interest in
the cause of colonization. He wished to found a colony to
which Catholics might flee to avoid persecution. He first
obtained permission to found a settlement on the cold and
barren shores of Newfoundland ; that enterprise was soon 1621
abandoned. He turned to Virginia, a clime more genial ;
there he was met by the oaths of supremacy and alle-
giance, to which, as a good Catholic, Lord Baltimore could
not subscribe ; Virginia could never be a peaceful asylum
for those of his faith. The region north of it attracted his
134 HISTOEY OF THE AMEBICAJBT PEOPLE.
chap, attention, and he applied to King Charles for a portion of
that territory.
1632 Charles gave him a grant of land, most of which is now
included in the State of Maryland ; it was named after
Henrietta Maria, the wife of the king. As a proprietary
Lord Baltimore deserves all praise for his liberality. The
colonists were to have a voice in making their own laws ;
they were not to be taxed without their own consent.
He was bold to repudiate intolerance, and politic to
adopt a form of government which alone could insure
success. He designed his colony to be an asylum for the
Catholic, but the Protestant was invited to share it. Just
as the charter was about to be issued he died. To his son
Cecil, under the same title, the charter was continued ; to
him belongs the honor of carrying into effect the inten-
tions of his father.
Feb., He deputed his brother, Leonard, to take charge of
the emigrants, who, to the number of two hundred, after
a protracted voyage, arrived safely in the Chesapeake. A
tribe of Indians residing on the St. Mary's, a branch of the
Potomac, were about to remove on account of their ene-
mies the Susquehannahs ; they sold to the infant colony
their cultivated land and their village. The Indian
women taught the strangers' wives to make bread of
maize ; and soon the emigrants had corn-fields and
gardens, and obtained abundance of game in the forest.
A few days after their arrival, Governor Harvey, of Vir-
ginia, paid them a friendly visit ; it was the desire of
Charles that they should be welcomed by the sister colony.
Friendly relations were established with the neighboring
Indians ; the colonists for a time obtained their necessary
provisions from Virginia, but as they were industrious, the
fruitful earth soon repaid their labor. At the commence-
ment of the second year, the freemen of the colony held
their first legislative Assembly.
Claybome was the evil genius of Maryland. His license
1632.
EFFORTS TO CONVERT THE INDIANS.
VST)
to trade with the Indians was made void by Lord Balti- cHAp
. XII.
more's charter. He attempted to excite a rebellion, but ,
was overpowered and compelled to flee to Virginia. The 1635
Governor of Maryland demanded him as a fugitive from
justice ; to evade the demand Harvey sent him to Eng-
land to be tried. This offended the people of Virginia,
who sympathized with Clayborne ; to avenge him, they
impeached Harvey himself, " and thrust him out of his
government." The Assembly appointed commissioners
to prosecute the charges against him in England. The
commissioners met with no favor from the king ; and soon, April,
under a new appointment, the unpopular Harvey came
back as governor.
Meanwhile peace and plenty continued to be the lot
of Maryland. Every year the rights of the people were
better understood ; they acknowledged their allegiance to
England, and respected the rights of Lord Baltimore.
Their lands produced an abundance of tobacco, and com-
merce began to prosper. Efforts were now made to con-
vert some of the neighboring Indians to Christianity.
The priests established four stations among them, and not
without effect. One chief, Tayac, with his wife, was bap-
tized, he taking the name of Charles and she that of Mary.
Soon after one hundred and thirty other converts received
baptism, some of whom sent their children to receive a
Christian education under the care of the priests. But,
alas ! these efforts were as vain as the other attempts of
the times to Christianize the poor natives. The same evil
causes were here at work — wars and the influence of bad
men. It is said these grateful tribes ever after remained
friendly to those who endeavored to instruct them.
The persevering Clayborne returned, to mar their 1545
peace by another and more successful insurrection. The
Governor of Maryland was now, in his turn, compelled to
flee to Virginia. After two years of misrule, peace was
again restored, and all the offenders were pardoned.
136 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
chap. As an interesting fact, it may be mentioned, that in
this year Maryland passed a law of perfect toleration to
1649. all Christian sects ; two years previous Rhode Island had
granted toleration to all opinions, Infidel as well as
Christian.
During the rule of Cromwell the government of Mary-
land was very unsettled. The Assembly, finally, repu-
diated both Cromwell and Baltimore, and proclaimed the
authority of the people as supreme. Scarcely was this ac-
complished when the restoration of Charles II. took place.
1660. Lord Baltimore made known to the king that his profes-
sions of republicanism were made only to obtain the favoi
of Cromwell, and that really he was a good royalist
Charles immediately restored him his proprietary rights.
Baltimore was not vindictive ; he proclaimed a general
pardon, and for almost thirty years the colony enjoyed
repose.
Sir William Berkeley, as successor to Harvey, was ap-
1642. pointed Governor of Virginia. The trade of the colony
was crippled by severe restrictions ; as England claimed
its trade for herself alone. Thus began a series of acts
and infringements on commerce by the home government,
which annoyed the people of the colonies, and interfered
with their industry and commercial prosperity for more
than one hundred and thirty years, when these grievances
1776. were swept away by the Revolution. The colony was now
permitted for a time to take care of itself, Charles I. being
engaged in a contest with his subjects at home. The Vir-
ginians were stanch friends of the king, and the party in
the mother country contending against him met with no
favor from them. The Puritans who were living in Vir-
ginia, being identified with republicanism, were looked
upon with suspicion ; those of their number who would
not conform to the ceremonies of the Church of England
were banished. A majority of these passed over into
Maryland. Thus it was, the Puritan would not permit
THE LOYALTY OF VIRGINIA. 137
the Episcopalian to come to New England, and the Epis- celap.
copalian banished the Puritan from Virginia.
No peace was granted to the Indians. After a space 1644.
of twenty-two years, they once more made an effort to free
.themselves from their enemies. The frontier settlements
were suddenly attacked, and about three hundred persons .
killed. When resisted, the savages fled to the wilderness.
They were pursued with great vigor, and after a contest
of two years their power was completely broken. Opechan-
canough, their aged chief, was taken captive, and soon
after died in prison ; his proud spirit deeply wounded that
he should be gazed at by his enemies. The next year a
treaty was made, by which they relinquished forever the
fertile valleys of their fathers, and with sorrowful hearts
retired far into the wilderness.
After the execution of Charles I., great numbers of the
royalists, " good cavalier families," fled to Virginia, where
they were welcomed as exiled patriots. She was the last
of the colonies to acknowledge the authority of the Common-
wealth. But when commissioners were sent, who granted
the people all the civil rights and privileges they asked,
they submitted.
After the death of Cromwell, and before it was known
who was to rule in England, the House of Burgesses re-
solved, u that the supreme power will be resident in the
Assembly." Then Berkeley was elected governor. In
accepting office, he acknowledged the authority of the
people's representatives, saying, " I am but the servant oi
the Assembly." We shall see how sincere was that decla-
ration.
When Charles II. was in exile, he was invited to come
and be " king of Virginia; * from this incident, it has
been called " The Old Dominion." This loyalty Charles
after his restoration repaid, by basely taking away their
privileges, and distributing their lands among his favorites.
The society of Virginia was peculiar. The first settle-
loS HISTORY OF TTIE AMERICAN PE0PI.T..
vJiJAi'. ments were made under the protection of the nobility; this
favored the growth of an aristocratic class of landholders.
16Gu. There were two other classes — the negro, who was a slave
for life, and the indented white man, sent from the mother
country to serve a certain number of years. These white
servants were sometimes criminals, but oftener political
offenders. The latter, when their term of servitude ex-
pired, mingled with the people on an equality.
The Assembly held their sessions once in two years ,
their members were chosen by the people, and only for one
session. The first Assembly held after the Restoration,
was composed of landholders. Berkeley now declared him-
self governor, not because he was elected by the people,
but beeause Charles when in exile had appointed him.
1602. The Assembly went still further, and deprived the peo-
ple of the privilege of choosing their own legislators, by
assuming to themselves the right to be perpetual. This
Assembly remained thus in violation of law for fourteen
1676. years. During this usurpation, all that the people had
gained of civil rights for more than a third of a century,
this aristocratic House of Burgesses swept away. The only
right allowed them was that of petitioning their rulers for
redress of grievances — but these petitions were disregarded.
The Church of England was declared to be the religion of
the State, and all were bound by law under penalties of
tines and banishment, not only to attend its services, but
to pay a tax to support it. Governor Berkeley complained
of its ministers : " as of all other commodities, so of this —
the worst are sent us, and we have lew that we can boast
of, since the persecutions in Cromwell's tyranny drove
divers worthy men hither.''' The cause of education was
neglected, and almost prohibited. The poor were pecu-
liarly unfortunate — " out of towns," says a chronicler of
the times, " every man instructs his children as best he
can :" — no aid was afforded them by those in authority.
Says the aristocratic Berkeley : " I thank God there are
NATHANIEL BACON.
139
no free schools nor printing ; and I hope we will not have C^I1|P-
them these hundred years ! " Such was the language of ,
a man who was Governor of* Virginia for nearly forty years. 1639.
The printing-press was established in Massachusetts ninety 1729.
years before there was one in Virginia.
The people of Maryland became involved in war with
the Indians. A company of Virginians, under John Wash- 1675.
ington, great-grandfather of George Washington, crossed
over the Potomac to aid them. Six chiefs of the Susque-
hannahs came to treat for peace, but the Virginians treach-
erously murdered the whole company. For this evil deed
the innocent were made to suffer. The Susquehannahs
immediately passed over into Virginia to revenge their
death, by killing ten persons for each chief. According to
their belief, until this sacrifice was made, the souls of their
chiefs could not be at rest in the spirit land. The people
cried to the governor for protection, which he was slow to
give ; they attributed his tardiness to his interest in the
fur-trade. They now asked permission to defend them-
selves ; to invade the enemies' country, and drive them
from their hiding-places ; this was also refused. During
this delay, the Indians pursued their murderous work all
along the frontiers.
There was in the colony a young planter, not more than
thirty years of age, a native of England ; a lawyer by pro-
fession ; eloquent and winning in his manners ; bold and
determined in spirit ; a true patriot ; disliked by the gov-
ernor, because he was a republican ; but dear to the peo-
ple for the same reason : such was Nathaniel Bacon. To
him, in their extremity, they turned. Those who had
volunteered to go against the Indians, asked of the gover-
nor a commission for Bacon to command them. Berkeley
obstinately refused to grant it. He would not countenance
such presumption on the part of the " common people."
The murders continued ; the volunteers waited no longer
on the tardy government, but set out under the command
140 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
chap. 0f Bacon to repel the savages. The moment they were
gone, Berkeley proclaimed Bacon a traitor, and his soldiers
167G. rebels, and gave orders for them to disperse.
April.
The populous counties on the Bay began to show signs
of insurrection. Their quarrel was not with the Indians,
but with the acts and continued existence of the House of
Burgesses. Bacon, meanwhile, had returned successful
from his expedition. The haughty old governor was forced
to yield ; the obnoxious Assembly was dissolved, and writs
issued for the election of members for another, to which
Bacon was returned triumphantly from Henrico county.
This Assembly corrected the evils of the long one. The
unjust taxes on the poor were removed ; the privilege of
voting for their legislators was restored to the people, and
many abuses in relation to the expenditure of the public
money rectified. The House elected Bacon commander of
the army. These measures were very distasteful to Berke-
ley and his advisers — he would not give them his sanction.
Finally, however, he yielded to necessity ; and even went
so far as to transmit to England, his own and the council's
commendations of Bacon's loyalty and patriotism.
The Indians still continued their attacks upon the
settlements, and Bacon with a small force went to punish
them : again the insincere Berkeley proclaimed him a
traitor. Such treachery excited his indignation and that
of the army. No confidence could be placed in the gov-
ernor's word. " It vexes me to the heart," said the gal-
lant patriot, " that while I am hunting the wolves which
destroy our lambs, that I should myself be pursued like 8
savage — the whole country is witness to our peaceable
behavior ; but those in authority, how have they obtained
their estates ? Have they not devoured the common trea-
sury ? What schools of learning have they promoted ? "
Such were the questions asked, and such were the senti-
ments that stirred the hearts of the people. They must
JAMESTOWN BURKED. 141
have their rights restored : wives urged their husbands to chaf
contend for their liberties.
Berkeley with a few royalist followers and advisers, went 1676
to the eastern shore of the bay. There by promises of plun-
der, he collected a rabble of sailors belonging to some Eng-
lish vessels, and a company of vagabond Indians. When the
rumor of the governor's intentions spread throughout the
land, the people with one accord met in convention at the
Middle Plantation, now Williamsburg, where they deliber-
ated all day, even until midnight. They decided it was
their duty to defend themselves from the tyranny of the
governor. They adjourned, however, and went to their
homes, determined to be guided in their conduct by the
course he should pursue. They were not long in suspense,
for Berkeley crossed over with five ships to Jamestown, to
put down what he was pleased to call a rebellion. In a Sept
very short time the little army so successful against the
Indians, was gathered once more under the same leader.
The conflict was short ; Berkeley's cowardly rabble broke
and fled ; deserting Jamestown, they went on board their
ships and dropped down the river. The victors entered
the deserted town. A council was held as to what was to
be done. Should they leave it as a place of defence for
their enemies ? It was deemed necessary to burn it.
Drummond and Lawrence, men prominent in the popular
movement, applied the torch to their own dwellings; the
example was followed by others, and, in a few hours, the
first town founded by Englishmen on this continent was in
ruins. A crumbling church-tower is all that now remains
to mark the site of old Jamestown.
The good results of this struggle were doomed to be
lost. Bacon suddenly fell ill of a violent fever, which
terminated his life in a few days. He was called a traitor Oct
and a rebel by Berkeley and his royalist party, as was
Washington by the same party one hundred years after-
ward.
142 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PIIOPLP.
\rrP' ^ie PeoP^e were now without a leader — without auy
. one to plead their cause. Berkeley played the tyrant,
J 676. ravaged the country and confiscated the property of the
patriots. He caused to perish on the scaffold more than
twenty of the best men of Virginia. One or two incidents
may serve to exhibit his spirit. When Drummond (who
is represented as a '"sober, Scotch gentleman, of good
repute") was brought into his presence, "You are very
welcome," said he, bowing at the same time, with mock
civility ; " I am more glad to see you than any man in
Virginia ; you shall be hanged in half an hour ! " He
derided, in vulgar terms, a young wife who came to plead
for her husband, to take the blame of his offence upon
herself, and to offer her own life for his.
If any one dared speak disrespectfully of Berkeley
or his rule, he was publicly whipped. The end came at
last ; Berkeley left the country, and the people celebrated
his departure with bonfires and rejoicings. When he
arrived in England lie found that public opinion severely
condemned his conduct ; and, what was more wounding
to his pride, even Charles, to serve whom he had stained
his soul with innocent blood, exclaimed, " That old fool
has taken away more lives in that naked land than I for
the death of my father!" The names and characters of
Bacon and his adherents were vilified, and for a century
these slanders were not disproved ; the truth was not per-
mitted to be published. The facts, as now known, prove
that the men who thus opposed the tyranny of Berkeley
were not rebels and traitors, but worthy to be num-
bered among the patriots of the land.
1377. The first Assembly held after this unsuccessful strug-
gle was devoted to the interests of the aristocracy. All
the liberal laws passed by the preceding one were re-
pealed ; henceforth only freeholders could vote for mem-
bers of the House of Burgesses. The poor man was as
CULPEPPER AND EFFINGHAM. 143
heavily taxed as the rich, but unless he was a landholder chap
he had no vote.
The profligate Charles gave Virginia to two of his 1678
favorites — Arlington and Culpepper ; the latter soon after
purchased the claim of the former. T he king appointed C ul-
pepper governor for life. He came authorized to heal differ-
ences between the people and the government, but he used 1680
the power for his own interest alone ; he valued Virginia
only in proportion to the money his rapacity could extort ;
even the soldiers, sent to maintain his authority, he de-
frauded of their wages. When he had secured to himself
the highest possible revenue, he sailed for England. The
condition of the Virginians was wretched in the extreme ;
the rewards of their industry went to their rapacious rulers,
and they, goaded to desperation, were on the point of
rebellion.
Rumors of these discontents reached England, and the
truant governor reluctantly left his pleasures to visit his
domain. Having the authority of the king, Culpepper 1682.
caused several men of influence to be hanged as traitors.
The people who owned farms in the territory, given him
by royal grant, he now compelled to lose their estates, or
compromise by paying money. Charles had now another
favorite to provide for ; Culpepper was removed, and 1684.
Effingham appointed. This change was even for the
worse ; Effingham was more needy and more avaricious.
On the accession of James II. what is known in his-
tory as Monmouth's Rebellion occurred. After its sup- 1685
pression, multitudes of those implicated in it were sent to
Virginia and Maryland to be sold as servants for a term
of ten years. Many of these were men of education and
of good families. The House of Burgesses, to their hon^r
be it said, declared these poor men free, though the cruel
James had forbidden the exercise of such lenity.
So little were the claims of humanity respected at this
time in the West of England, that it was a common occur-
144
HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
Cxn?* rence *° kidnap persons of the poorer sort, and send them
to the colonies to he sold as servants for a term of years
1685. These were principally brought to Virginia and Mary-
land, as there the planters required many laborers. The
trade was profitable, more so than the African slave
trade.
1688. After the accession of William and Mary an effort was
made to establish a college in Virginia, " to educate a do-
mestic succession of Church of England ministers," as well
as to teach the children of the Indians. The celebrated
Robert Boyle made a large donation, and the king gave,
in addition to three other grants, outstanding quit-rents,
valued at about £2,000. Such was the foundation of the
1691. college of William and Mary.
The Rev. James Blair, said to be the first commissary
sent to the colonies by the Bishop of London, " to supply
the office and jurisdiction of the bishop in the out-places
of the diocese," was its president for fifty years.
Though William was thus moderately liberal, he was
by no means the representative of the true feeling of his
ministry ; they even looked upon this pittance as uncalled
for. Blair, the pious and energetic Scotchman, once urged
upon Seymour, the attorney-general, the importance of
establishing schools to educate ministers of the gospel.
" Consider, sir," said he, " that the people of Virginia
have souls to save." He was answered by a profane im-
precation upon their souls, and told to " make tobacco."
This pithy rebuff indicated the spirit and general policy
of the home government ; it valued the colonies only as a
source of wealth.
For many years voluntary emigration to Virginia almost
ceased. There were no inducements, no encouragement
to industry, all commerce was restricted. The planters
were at the mercy of the English trader ; he alone was
permitted to buy their tobacco and to sell them merchan-
dise. The whole province was given over to the tender
, TROUBLES IN MARYLAND. 145
mercies of royal favorites and extortioners, while the C^AP
printing-press, that dread of -tyrants, was still forbidden. '_
How dearly did loyal Virginia pay for the honor of being 1685.
named the " Old dominion ! "
The struggles of the people of Virginia under Bacon
and others, had an effect on the people of Maryland. At
the death of Lord Baltimore, his son and heir assumed the 1675.
government, and ruled with justice till another revolution
in England brought a change. The deputy-governor hesi- 1688.
tated to acknowledge William and Mary. This was seized
upon by some restless spirits to excite discontent in the
minds of the people. Among other absurd stories, it was said
that the Catholics, who were few in number, were about to in-
vite the Indians to aid them in massacring the Protestants.
At this time the Jesuits had excited the Indians of New
England and Canada against the New England colonies.
This gave a shadow of probability to the charge. Under
the lead of some persons, who professed to be very zealous
Protestants, the deputy-governor was seized, and a con-
vention called, which deposed Lord Baltimore, and pro-
claimed the people the true sovereign. Two years after, 1691.
King William, taking them at their word, unjustly de-
prived Lord Baltimore of his property, and made the colony
a royal province. The people now suffered the penalty
for ill treating their benevolent proprietary. The king
placed over them a royal governor ; changed their laws for
the worse ; established the Church of England, and taxed
them to maintain it ; did not promote education, but pro-
hibited printing ; discouraged their domestic manufac-
tures ; and finally disfranchised the Catholics, who had
laid the foundation of the colony sixty years before. The
rights of Lord Baltimore were afterward restored to his
infant child, and the original form of government was 1716
established. No colony experienced so many vicissitudes
as Maryland.
CHAPTER XIII.
COLONIZATION OF NEW YORK.
Hudson's Discoveries. — Indian Traffic. — Fort on tho Isle of Manhattan.—
Walloons the first Settlers. — Peter Minuits. — The Patroons. — Van
Twiller Governor; his Misrule.— Succeeded by Kieft. — Difficulties with
the Indians. — They seek Protection; their Massacre. — Peace con-
cluded.— Stuyvesant Governor. — The Swedish Settlement on the Dela-
ware.— Pavonia. — Threatening Rumors. — New Nctherland surrendered
to England. — New Jersey sold by the Duke of York. — The Influence ot
the Dutch.
chap. When there were high hopes of discovering a north-west
XIII. . ?
passage to India, Henry Hudson was sent in search of it
1609. by a company of London merchants. He was unsuccess-
ful : yet his enthusiasm was not diminished by his failure.
He requested to he again sent on the same errand, hut the
merchants were unwilling to incur further expense. He then
applied to the Dutch East India Company ; the directors of
which, at Amsterdam, furnished him with a ship, the Half-
Moon, with liberty to exercise his own judgment in the pro-
secution of the enterprise. He first sailed to the north-east,
away beyond the Capes of Norway, as far as the ice would
permit. He saw that an effort in that direction would be
fruitless. He turned to the west, crossed the Atlantic,
and coasted along the continent till he found himself op-
posite the Capes of Virginia : then turning to the north
he entered "a great bay with rivers," since known as the
Delaware ; still further north he passed through a narrow
channel, and found himself in a beautiful bay. Here he
jS"^ ^^ r
^tFT
A CHANGE WROUGHT. 147
remained some days. The natives, " clothed in mantles chap
• • • m XIII.
of feathers and robes of fur/' visited his ship. Their ,
astonishment was great ; they thought it was the canoe 1609.
of the Great Spirit, and the white faces, so unlike them-
selves, were his servants. Hudson explored the hay, and
noticed a large stream flowing from the north ; this, thought
he, leads to the Eastern Seas. That stream, called by
some of the native tribes the Cahohatatea, or Biver of
Mountains, and by others the Shatemuc, he explored for
one hundred and fifty miles ; it did not lead to the
Eastern Seas, yet that river has immortalized the name
of Henry Hudson.
What a change has come over the " River of Moun-
tains" since he threaded his way up its stream two hun-
dred and fifty years ago ! It has become the highway to
the great inland seas of a continent, upon whose bosoms
float the fruits of the industry of millions ; and the island
at its mouth the heart of a nation's commerce, whose every
throb is felt throughout that nation's length and breadth.
From the highest church-steeple,1 on this Isle of Man-
hattan, the eye takes in a horizon containing a population 1880.
two-thirds as great as that of the thirteen colonies at the
time of the Declaration of Independence. There are other
changes which the philanthropist loves to contemplate.
Here are seen the humanizing influences of Christianity,
of civilization, of intelligence, and of industry, embodied
in institutions of learning, of science, and of benevo-
lence, that pour forth their charities and blessings, not
alone for this land but for others.
The coincidence is striking, that, nearly at the same
time, the representatives of three nations were penetrating
the wilderness and approaching each other. Champlain,
on behalf of France, was exploring the northern part of
New York ; John Smith, one of the pioneers of English
1 Trinity.
148 HISTORY OV THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
chap, colonization, was pushing Lis discoveries up to the head
waters of the Chesapeake, while the Half-Moon was slowly
1610. sounding her way up the Hudson.
Hudson arrived safely in England, hut he was not per-
mitted by the government to continue in the service of the
Dutch, lest they should derive advantage in trade from his
discoveries. However, he found means to transmit to his
employers at Amsterdam, an account of his voyage. Once
more he sailed under the patronage of some English mer-
chants. He passed through the straits into the bay known
by his name; groped among a multitude of islands till late
in the season, and then determined to winter there, and in
the spring continue his search for the wished-for passage.
When spring came his provisions were nearly exhausted ;
it was impossible to prosecute his design. With tears of
disappointment he gave orders to turn the prow of his ves-
sel homeward. A day or two afterward his crew mutinied;
They seized him, put him, with his son and seven seamen,
four of whom were ill, on board the shallop, and inhumanly
left them to perish. " The gloomy waste of waters which
bears his name, is his tomb and his monument."
Hudson, in his communication to his employers,
described the extensive region he had discovered as well
watered by rivers, and as lying around bays and inlets ; as
covered with forests abounding in the finest timber for
ship-building ; and as "a land as beautiful as ever man
trod upon." The numerous tribes of Indians who met
him in friendship, and the multitudes of beaver and otter,
gave indication also of a profitable trade.
The next year a ship was sent to trade ; the traffic was
profitable, and was still further prosecuted. In a few
years there were forts or trading houses on the river, as far
up as Fort Orange, since Albany. A rude fort at the
1614. lower end of Manhattan island was the germ of the present
city of New York. The Dutch during this time were
EMIGRATION ENCOURAGED. 149
busy exploring the waters from the Delaware to Cape (^TP-
Cod. They were as yet but a company of traders ; no ,
emigrants had left Holland with the intention of making 1614.
a permanent settlement.
A company was formed, under the title of the Dutch 1621.
West India Company ; an association for the purpose of
trade only. They took possession of the territory as tem-
porary occupants ; if they grew rich they were indifferent
as to other matters ; they had no promise of protection
from Holland, and as a matter of policy they were peace-
ful. The States-General granted them the monopoly of
trade from Cape May to Nova Scotia, and named the
entire territory New Netherland. The claims of the Eng-
lish, French, and Dutch thus overlapped each other, and
led to " territorial disputes, national rivalries, religious
antipathies, and all the petty hatreds and jealousies of
trade."
About thirty families, Walloons or French Protestants,
who had fled to Holland to avoid persecution, were the
first to emigrate with the intention of remaining. Some
of these settled in the vicinity of what is now the Navy
Yard in Brooklyn, others went up the river to Fort 1625
Orange.
The central position of the island of Manhattan ob-
tained for it the honor of being chosen as the residence of
the agent for the company. Peter Minuits was appointed
such, under the title of governor, and the few cottages at
the south end of the island were dignified with the name of
New Amsterdam. The island itself belonged exclusively
to the company, and was purchased from the Indians for
about twenty-four dollars. Effort was now made to found
a State. Every person who should emigrate had the privi-
lege of owning as much land as he could properly culti-
vate, provided it was not on lands especially claimed by
the company. To encourage emigration, it was ordered
that any member of the company who in four years should
l')() niSTOKY OF THE AMERICAN" PEOPLE.
UxmF' m(luce fi^y persons to settle anywhere in New Netber-
land, except on the island of Manhattan, should be recog-
1625. nised as " Patroon," or c: Lord of the Manor." Under
this arrangement "Patroons" could purchase a tract of
land sixteen miles long by eight in width. They secured
to themselves, by purchase from the Indians, the most
valuable lands and places for trade. The less rich were
by necessity compelled to become tenants of the Patroons.
The people, thus deprived of that independence which is
essential to the progress of any community, took but little
interest in cultivating the soil, or in improving the
country.
The company, for the sake of gain, determined, even at
the expense of the prosperity of the colonists, to make
New Amsterdam the centre of the trade of New Nether-
land. Under the penalty of banishment the people were
forbidden to manufacture the most common fabrics for
clothing. No provision was made for the education of the
young, or the preaching of the gospel ; although it was
enjoined upon the Patroons to provide " a minister and a
schoolmaster," or at least a " comforter of the sick," whose
duty it should be to read to the people texts of Scripture
and the creeds. The company also agreed, if the specu-
lation should prove profitable, to furnish the Patroons with
African slaves.
As Hudson had discovered Delaware bay and river, the
Dutch claimed the territory. Samuel Godyn purchased
from the Indians all their lands from Cape Henlopen to
1629. the mouth of the Delaware river. Two years after this
thirty colonists arrived, fully prepared to found a settle-
ment. When De Vries, who was to be Patroon and com-
mander, came the next year, he found not a vestige of
the settlement ; all had perished by the hands of the
savages.
After the resignation of Minuits, Walter Van Twiller
through the " influence of kinsmen and friends," was ap-
WILLIAM KIEFT GOVERNOR. 1^1
pointed governor. He proved himself unfitted for the crap
station. As a clerk, he was acquainted with the mere ,
routine of business, hut ignorant of human nature ; as con- 1633.
ceited as he was deficient in judgment and prudence,
he failed to secure the respect of those he governed.
In his zeal for the interests of his employers, he neglected
the rights of the people, and was so inconsistent in the
management of public affairs that Dominie Bogardus sent
him a letter of severe reproof, threatening to give him
" such a shake from the pulpit on the following Sunday 1638.
as would make him shudder."
The inefficient Van Twiller was succeeded by William
Kieft. Though he had not the same defects as Van
Twiller, his appointment was a most unfortunate event for
the colony. A bankrupt in Holland, his portrait was
affixed to the gallows ; an evidence of the estimation in
which his character was held. Avaricious and unscrupu-
lous, so arbitrary in his measures that during his rule the
colony was in a continual turmoil, he quarrelled with the
Swedes on the Delaware, had difficulties with the Eng-
lish in New England, made the Indians his enemies, and
had scarcely a friend in his own colony.
The Dutch were on friendly terms with the Indians
during the rule of Van Twiller. It was forbidden by law
to sell them fire-arms ; but the traders up the river, indif-
ferent to the interests of the settlers, sold them guns to
such an extent, that at one time more than four hundred
of the Mohawks, or Iroquois, were armed with muskets.
By this means these terrible marauders and despots of the
wilderness were rendered more haughty and dangerous.
They paid enormous prices for guns, that they might be
able to meet their enemies the Canadian Indians, who
were supplied with fire-arms by the French. Though
the traders did not sell guns to the tribes living near New
Amsterdam and on the river, yet they sold them rum.
Kieft pretended that the company had ordered him to
1^2 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
chap. jeVy an annual tribute upon the river Indians— the Mo-
hegans and other clans of the Algonquin race. They re-
1638. fused to pay any tribute, saying he "was a shabby fellow
to come and live on their lands without being invited, and
then want to take away their corn for nothing." Such
injustice, with the partiality shown to their enemies, the
Mohawks, gradually alienated their feelings of friendship
for the Dutch.
An act of Kieft awoke the slumbering anger of the
savages. The Raritans, a tribe living on the river which
bears their name, were accused of stealing hogs, which
had been taken by some Dutch traders. Kieft did not
inquire into the truth of the charge, but sent soldiers to
punish them, who destroyed their corn and killed some of
their number. De Vries, who, in the mean time, had
planted a settlement on Staten Island, was himself a
friend of the Indians. The Raritans attacked this settle-
1641. ment and killed four men. The people now urged the
governor to conciliate the savages, but without effect.
Twenty years before a chieftain had been killed by a Dutch
hunter in the presence of his nephew, then a little boy ;
that boy, now a man, according to their custom, avenged
the death of his uncle by murdering an innocent Dutch-
man. Kieft demanded that the young man should be
given up to him, to be punished as a murderer. The
tribe would not comply with the demand, but offered to
pay the price of blood. The violent governor refused any
such compromise.
1642 With his permission a meeting of the heads of fami-
lies was called. They chose twelve of their number to
investigate the affairs of the colony. They passed very
soon from the Indian difficulties to other abuses ; even to
the despotic actions of the governor himself. As the
" twelve men *' refused to be controlled by Kieft, but per-
severed in expressing their opinions of his conduct, he
DAVID PIETERSEN DE VRIES.
MASSACEE OF THE INDIANS. 153
dissolved the Assembly. Thus ended the first representa- chai
tive Assembly in New Netherland.
Nearly all the difficulties with the Indians may be 1642
traced to some injustice practised upon them by the
whites. An instance of this kind now occurred which led
to direful results. A Dutchman sold a young Indian, the
son of a chief, brandy, and when he was intoxicated,
cheated and drove him away. The Indian, raging with
drink, and maddened by the treatment he had received,
went to his home, obtained his bow and arrows, returned
and shot the Dutchman dead. The chiefs of the murder-
er's tribe hastened to the governor to explain the matter,
and to pay the price of blood ; they wished for peace ; but
the governor was inexorable. He demanded the murderer ;
but he had fled to a neighboring tribe. " It is your own
fault ! " exclaimed the indignant chiefs ; " why do you
sell brandy to our young men ? it makes them crazy ; —
your own people get drunk, and fight with knives/'
Just at this time came a company of eighty Mohawks,
all armed with muskets, to demand tribute of the enfee-
bled River Tribes. The latter fled to the Dutch for pro-
tection. Now is the time, urged the people, to obtain
forever the friendship of the Indians living around us, by
rescuing them from the rapacious Mohawks. Now is the
time, thought the stubborn and cruel Kieft, to extermi-
nate those who have fled to me for safety.
" If you murder these poor creatures who have put
themselves under your protection, you will involve the
whole colony in ruin, and their blood, and the blood of
your own people, will be required at your hands ! " urged
the kind-hearted De Tries. The admonition was un-
heeded.
The unsuspecting victims of this scheme of treachery
and barbarous cruelty were with the tribe of Hacken-
sacks, just beyond Hoboken. About the hour of mid- Feb.,
night the soldiers from the fort, and some freebooters from 1648,
154 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
CxnF" the ships in the harbor, passed over the river. Soon were
heard the shrieks of the dying Indians ; — the carnage
16*3. continued, the poor victims ran to the river, to pass over
to their supposed friends in New Amsterdam. But they
were driven into the water ; the mother, who rushed to
save her drowning child, was pushed in, that both might
perish in the freezing flood. These were not the only
victims. Another company of Indians, trusting to the
Dutch for protection, were encamped on the island, but a
short distance from the fort. They were nearly all mur-
dered in the same manner. In the morning the returning
soldiers received the congratulations of Kieft. When the
people learned of the massacre they were filled with hor-
ror at its atrocity, and expressed their detestation of its
author, and their fears that all the Indians in their neigh-
borhood would become their deadly enemies. The guilty
Kieft cowered before the storm ; it would have been well
if the only effects of his acts had been the reproaches of
the people.
When it became known that it was not their enemies
the Mohawks, but their pretended friends the Dutch, who
had wantonly killed their countrymen, the rage of the
River Tribes knew no bounds. They rose as one man to
take revenge. Every nook and corner, every swamp and
thicket, became an ambush for the enraged savages The
settlements up the river were destroyed. On Long Island,
on Staten Island, the retribution fell ; all around Man-
hattan the smoke of burning dwellings arose to heaven.
The people at a distance from the fort were either mur-
dered or taken captive, especially the women and chil-
dren. All who could deserted their homes, and sought
safety in the fort at Manhattan ; many of whom after-
ward left for Holland.
A pleasing incident is related of Indian gratitude.
De Vries had, on that fearful night, rescued an Indian
and his wife from death. When his settlement on Staten
A TEMPORARY TRUCE.
155
Island was attacked, this Indian hastened to his country- c^p-
men who were besieging the people in the block-house,
and told them how he and his wife had been rescued. The 1643.
besiegers immediately told the people they would molest,
them no more ; and they kept their word.
A temporary truce was made at Rockaway on Long Sept
Island. The chiefs of a number of tribes agreed to meet
the messengers of the Dutch, and treat of peace. De
Vries, whom the Indians knew to be their friend, went
with two others to the interview. When the conference
was opened one of the chiefs arose, having in his hand a
number of little sticks; taking one, he commenced : " When
you first came to our shores you wanted food ; we gave
you our beans and our corn, and now you murder our
people." He took another stick : " The men whom your
first ships left to trade, we guarded and fed ; we gave
them our daughters for wives ; some of those whom you
murdered were of your own blood." Many sticks still re-
mained, but the envoys did not wish to hear a further re-
cital of wrongs. They proposed that they should both
forget the past, and now make peace forever. Peace was
made. It was not satisfactory to the young warriors ; they
thought " the bloody men," as they now called the
Dutch, had not paid the full price of the lives they had
taken ; and war broke forth again. Now the leader of
the Dutch was Captain John Underhill, who had had ex-
perience in the Pequod war in New England. For two
years the Indians were hunted from swamp to swamp,
through winter and summer ; yet they were not sub-
dued. They lay in ambush round the settlements, and
picked off the husbandman from his labor, and carried
into captivity his wife and children. There was no security
from the midnight attack ; scarcely any corn was planted ;
famine and utter ruin stared the colony in the face.
Sixteen hundred of the Indians had been killed, and the
number of white people was so much reduced, that, besides
156 IIISTORY OF TIIE AMERICAN" PEOPLE.
CxnrP' tra(^ers» there were not more than one hundred persons' on
the Isle of Manhattan. What a ruin had been wrought
1043. by the wicked perverseness of one man !
At length both parties became weary of war. The
chieftains of the tribes around New Amsterdam, and, as
mediators, a deputation from their ancient enemies the
Mohawks, met the deputies of the Dutch beneath the
open sky, on the place now known as the Battery, in New
York city, and there concluded a peace.
1645. Thanksgivings burst forth from the people at the
prospect of returning safety. There was no consolation
for Kieft ; he was justly charged by them with being the
cause of all their misfortunes. The company censured
him, and disclaimed his barbarous conduct. He was
without a friend in the colony. After two years, with his
ill-gotten gains, he sailed for his native land. The vessel
was wrecked on the coast of Wales, and, with many others,
1616. he was lost.
In the midst of all these difficulties there were those
who labored to instruct the poor heathen Indians of New
Netherland. Several years before the missionary Eliot
commenced his labors with the tribes near Boston, Mega-
polensis, the Dutch clergyman at Fort Orange, endeavored
to teach the Mohawks the truths of the gospel. He strove
to learn their language, that he might " speak and preach
to them fluently," but without much success ; their lan-
guage was, as he expressed it, so " heavy." The grave
wrarriors would listen respectfully when told to renounce
certain sins, but they would immediately ask why white
men committed the same. Efforts were made afterward
to instruct in Christianity the tribes around Manhattan,
but the good work was neutralized by other and evil in-
fluences.
The West India Company appointed Peter Stuyvesant
to succeed Kieft as governor. He had been accustomed
to military rule, and was exceedingly arbitrary in his gov-
THE SWEDES ON THE DELAWARE. 157
eminent ; honest in his endeavors to fulfil his trust to the c£j?
company, he also overlooked the rights of the people. He
thought their duty was to pursue their business, and pay 1646.
their taxes, and not trouble their brains about his man-
ner of government. The colony was well-nigh ruined
when Stuyvesant came into power ; for nearly five years
the dark cloud of war had been hanging over it. The In-
dians had been dealt with harshly and treacherously ;
policy as well as mercy demanded that they should be
treated leniently. The company desired peace with the
various tribes, for the success of trade depended upon
their good-will.
Although the Dutch claimed the territory from Cape
Cod to the Capes of Virginia, they preferred to negotiate
with New England, and desired that the wars between
their mother countries in the Old World should not dis-
turb the harmony of the New.
It must be confessed that the Connecticut people
annoyed Stuyvesant exceedingly. The absurd stories told
by the wily Mohegan chief, Uncas, of the Dutch con-
spiring with the Narragansets to cut off the English, found
a too ready credence ; so ready as to leave the impression
that such stories were rather welcome than otherwise, pro-
vided they furnished an excuse for encroaching upon
the territory of the Dutch. When accused of this con-
spiracy, said a sachem of the Narragansets, " I am poor,
but no present can make me an enemy of the English ! "
We have now to speak of others settling on territory
claimed by the Dutch. Gustavus Adolphus, the King of
Sweden, was induced to engage in sending a colony to the
New World. He wished to found an asylum to which
Protestants of Europe could flee. Peter Minuits, who has
already been mentioned, as commercial agent at New
Amsterdam, offered his services to lead the company of
emigrants. The same year that Kieft came as governor
to New Amsterdam, Minuits landed on the shores of the
158 HTSTOET OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
CxinP* Delaware witli a company of emigrants, about fifty in num-
ber. They purchased from the Indians the territory on
1638. the west side of the bay and river from Cape Henlopen
to the falls at Trenton. This was very nearly the soil of
the present State of Delaware. Nearly all this territory
had been purchased some years before by the Dutch, who
looked upon the Swedes as intruders. The latter built a fort
and a church on the site of Wilmington, and named the
country New Sweden. The Dutch protested, but the
Swedes went quietly to work, and increased from year to
year by accessions from their native land. For years the
disputes between the two colonies continued ; at length
Stuyvesant, obeying the orders of the company, determined
to make the Swedes submit to Dutch rule. The former,
1655. jjj surrendering, were to lose none of their rights as citi-
zens. Thus, after an existence of seventeen years, the
Swedish colony passed under the sway of the Dutch.
Many of them became dissatisfied with the arbitrary acts
of their rulers, and from time to time emigrated to Vir-
ginia and Maryland.
What is now New Jersey was also included in the ter-
ritory claimed by the Dutch. They built a fort, a short
distance below Camden, which they named Nassau.
16 '3. Michael Pauw bought of the Indians Staten Island, and
all the land extending from Hoboken to the river Earitan.
He named the territory Pavonia. Meanwhile the Swedes
passed over to the east side of Delaware bay, and estab-
lished trading-houses from Cape May to Burlington.
Manhattan in the meanwhile was gaining numbers by
emigration. The stern Stuyvesant was sometimes intol-
erant, but the company wished the people to enjoy the
rights of conscience. They wished New Amsterdam to be
as liberal to the exile for religion's sake as was its name-
sake in the Old World. Every nation in Europe had
here its representatives. It was remarked " that the in-
habitants were of different sects and nations, and that
DISCONTENTS OF THE PEOPLE.
159
they spoke many different languages." The public docu- chap
ments were issued sometimes in Dutch, sometimes in Eng-
lish, and sometimes in French. Two centuries ago it was
prophesied that here would be centred the commerce of 1658.
the world. Time is realizing the prediction. To pro-
mote emigration the mechanic had his passage given him.
The poor persecuted Waldenses came from their native
valleys and mountains at the expense of the old city of
Amsterdam. Africa, too, had her representatives. Her
sons and daughters were brought as slaves at the charge
of the West India Company; and the city of Amsterdam,
in this case also, shared the expense and the profit.
The spirit of democracy began to pervade the minds
of the Dutch ; the credit of this has been given to the
New Englanders, who were continually enlightening them
on the subject of the freedom of Englishmen. This
annoyed Stuyvesant beyond endurance. He often ex-
pressed his contempt for the "wavering multitude ;" he
despised the people, and scoffed at the idea that they
could govern themselves : it was their duty to work, and
not discuss the mysteries of government. They had no
voice in the choice of their rulers, and were even forbidden
to hold meetings to talk of their affairs. Stuyvesant
finally consented to let them hold a convention of two
delegates from each settlement ; but as soon as these dele-
gates began to discuss his conduct as governor, he dis-
solved the convention, bluntly telling them he derived his
authority from the company, and not from " a few ignorant
subjects." When a citizen, in a case in which he thought
himself aggrieved, threatened to appeal to the States-
General of Holland, " If you do," said the angry gov-
ernor, " I will make you a foot shorter than you are."
When the day of trial came, Stuyvesant found that by
such despotic measures he had lost the good-will of the
people of every class and nation.
Rumors were now rife that the English were about to
160 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
CxnF* subdue New Netherland. The people for the most part
were indifferent ; they had now no civil rights, and to
1664. them the change might be for the better ; it was not
probable that it would be for the worse. The English
portion longed for the rights of Englishmen. Though
there had been war between England and Holland, the
people of Virginia and New England, except perhaps
those of Connecticut, were well-disposed toward the
Dutch as neighbors.
Stuyvesant was soon relieved of his troubles with the
people of Manhattan. Charles II., without regard to the
rights of Holland, with whom he was at peace, or to the
rights of the people of Connecticut under their charter,
gave to his brother, the Duke of York, the entire country
from the Connecticut to the Delaware. The first intima-
tion Stuyvesant had of this intended robbery, was the pres-
ence of a fleet, under Richard Nicholls, sent to put in
execution the orders of the English king. The fleet had
brought to Boston the commissioners for New England, and
there received recruits, and sailed for New Amsterdam.
All was in confusion ; Stuyvesant wished to make resist-
ance, but the people were indifferent. What was to be
done ? The fleet was in the bay, and the recruits from
New England had just pitched their tents in Brooklyn :
Long Island was already in the hands of the enemy.
Nicholls sent Stuyvesant a letter requiring him to surren-
der his post, which the valiant governor refused to do with-
out a struggle. A meeting of the principal inhabitants
was called ; they very properly asked for the letter which
the governor had received from the English admiral. They
wished to know the terms he offered to induce them to
acknowledge English authority. Rather than send the
letter to be read to the " wavering multitude," the angry
Stuyvesant tore it to pieces. Instead, therefore, of prepar-
ing to defend themselves against the enemy, the people
protested against the arbitrary conduct of the governor.
THE INFLUENCE OF THE DUTCH. 161
At length the capitulation was made, on the condition that chap.
the people should be protected in their rights and property,
religion and institutions. Sept.
In a few days Fort Orange surrendered ; and in a few
weeks the Dutch and the Swedes on the shores of the Dela-
ware passed under the rule of England. Nicholls was
appointed governor. New Amsterdam was to he hereafter
known as New York, and Fort Orange as Albany.
A treaty was also made with the Mohawks : they had
been the friends of the Dutch, and they now became the
friends of the English, and remained so in all their contests,
both with the French, and the Colonies during the revolu-
tion. They served as a bulwark against incursions from
Canada. Their hatred of the French was intense. They
said, the Canada Indians never invaded their territory
unaccompanied by a " skulking " Frenchman.
England and Holland were soon at war again; and sud-
denly a Dutch squadron anchored in the bay, and demand-
ed the surrender of the colony. Thus the territory became
New Netherland once more.
In a little more than a year peace was made, and the
province was restored to England. Thus after half a cen-
tury, the rule of the Dutch passed away, but not their
influence — it still remains to bless. The struggles of their
fathers in Holland in the cause of civil and religious free-
dom, are embalmed in the history of the progress of the
human mind. In their principles tolerant, in religion
Protestant, a nation of merchants and manufacturers,
laborious and frugal, they acquired a fame as wide as the
world for the noble virtue of honesty. Defenders of the
right, they were brave, bold, and plain spoken; they were
peaceful; they were justly celebrated for their moral and
domestic virtues : nowhere was the wife, the mother, the
bister more honored and cherished. Such were the ances-
try and such the traditions of the people just come under
British rule. A little more than a century elapsed, and
162 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN" PEOPLE.
CxnF* tneir descendants, with scarcely an exception, took their
places with the lovers of their country in the struggle for
1664. independence.
The change of rulers was not beneficial to the people ;
the promises made to them were not kept ; their taxes
were increased ; the titles to their lands were even called
in question, that the rapacious governors might reap a har-
vest of fees for giving new ones. It was openly avowed by
the unprincipled Lovelace, the successor of Nicholls, that
the true way to govern was by severity ; to impose taxes so
1667. heavy that the people should have " liberty for no thought
but how to discharge them." When the people respect-
fully petitioned in relation to their grievances, their petition
was burned by the hangman before the town-hall in New
York, by order of the same Lovelace. The same species
of tyranny was exercised over the colonists on the Dela-
ware.
The Duke of York sold to Lord Berkeley, brother of Sir
William Berkeley, governor of Virginia, and Sir George
Carteret, the soil of New Jersey. They made liberal offers
to emigrants to settle in the territory, promising to collect
no rents for five years. Many families were induced to
come from Long Island. Their principal settlement was
1670. named, in honor of Carteret's wife, Elizabethtown. All
went smoothly till pay-day came, and then those colonists
who had lived under Dutch rule refused to pay. They
contended that they had bought their lands from the In-
dians, the original owners of the soil, and that Carteret had
no claim to rent because the king had given him a grant
of land which did not belong to him. Others said they
derived no benefit from the proprietary, and why should
they pay him quit-rents ?
The Duke of York had but little regard to the rights
1674, of Carteret or Berkeley; he appointed Andros, " the tyrant
of New England," governor of the colony. Berkeley, dis-
SCOTCH PEESBYTERIANS IN EAST JERSEY.
16IJ
gusted by such treatment, sold what was called West c|jnp-
Jersey to Edward Byllinge, an English Quaker, who in a
short time transferred his claim to William Penn and two 1674.
others, who afterward made an arrangement with Carteret
to divide the territory. Penn and his associates taking
West Jersey^ and Carteret retaining East Jersey, the line
of division being drawn from the ocean, at Little Egg
Harbor, to the north-western corner of the province.
Episcopacy having been re-established in Scotland, a
certain portion of the Presbyterians, the Cameronians or
Covenanters, refused to acknowledge the authority of that
church, and in consequence they became the victims of a
severe persecution. To escape this they were induced to
emigrate in great numbers to East Jersey, which thus 1688.
became the cradle of Presbyterianism in America. The
original settlers of New Jersey were the Dutch, English,
Quakers, Puritans, from New England, and Presbyterians,
from Scotland, which may account for that sturdy opposi-
tion to royal or ecclestiastical tyranny so characteristic of
its inhabitants.
CHAPTER XIV.
COLONIZATION OF PENNSYLVANIA.
The Quakers. — William Penn. — His Education. — Obtains a Charter. — Prepa
rations to plant a Colony.- — -lie lands at Ncwonstle.- — Philadelphia. —
Rights of the Indians. — Settlement of Gerniantowii. — Fletcher, the Royal
Governor. — New Charter granted the People. — Prosperity of the Col-
ony.— Trials of Penn : his Death. — Benjamin Franklin.
ciiap. We have in the course of this history met with the sect
xiv.
1 known as Quakers, — a sect, perhaps, more than any other
1G50. drawn from the humbler classes of the English people.
We have found them at one time few in number, despised
and persecuted; treated as the enemies of social order and
morals. They were persecuted by all ihc sects in turn.
The Puritans of Xew England endeavored to drive them
from their shores; the Churchmen of Virginia refused them
a resting place ; and the politic and trading Dutch, though
desirous for colonists, treated them harshly.
The Quakers loved and cherished the truths of the
Bible with as much zeal as the most devoted Puritans. As
non-resistants, they believed that the only evil a Christian
should resist, was the evil of his own heart : as followers of
the Prince of Peace, they were opposed to war. How much
blood and sorrow would be spared the nations, if in this
respect they were governed by the principles of Quakerism !
We have now to speak of this despised sect as the found-
ers of a State, where their principles were to be applied to
the p-overnment of men.
WILLIAM PENN. 165
George Fox, their founder, had visited the American chap.
colonies ; the condition of his followers touched his heart.
Was there no asylum for them in the New World ? Who 1673.
should furnish them the means to form for themselves a
settlement ?
Among the few who joined them from the higher classes
of English society, was one destined to exert a great influ-
ence on the sect, and to be admired and reverenced as a
benefactor of his race by the good of every age. When a igoi.
mere youth, his heart was touched by the conversation of a
simple-minded Quaker, who spoke of the peace and comfort
derived from the witnessing of God's Spirit with his own :
" the inner light," or voice of conscience. This youth was
William Penn, the son of Sir William Penn, who was dis-
tinguished as a successful naval commander in the times
of Cromwell and Charles II. The position of his father
afforded him great advantages. He studied at Oxford
University, was then sent to the Continent to improve his
mind by travel and intercourse with men, and to eradicate
his tendency toward Quakerism. After the absence of two
years he returned, improved it is true, but in religion still
a member of that despised sect everywhere spoken against :
a sect, which its enemies affirmed, would destroy every
government. The ambitious and worldly-minded Admiral
was angry and disappointed. He insisted that his son
should renounce Quakerism. The son reflected — he loved
and reverenced his father ; he desired to obey and please
him, but could he violate his conscience ? No; he calmly
resigned all earthly preferment, and became an exile from
his father's house. A mother's love secretly relieved his
pressing wants.
Before long we find him in prison for his religion.
When the Bishop of London threatened him with im-
prisonment for life if he did not recant, he calmly replied,
" Then my prison shall be my grave ! " When a clergy-
man, the learned Stillingfleet, was sent to convince him
106 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
chap, by arguments, he referred to his prison-walls, and re-
L_ marked, " The Tower is to me the worst argument in the
J 663. world ; those who use force for religion never can be in the
right ! " " Religion," said he, on another occasion, " is my
crime and my innocence ; it makes me a prisoner to
malice, but my own freeman." At the expiration of a
year he was released, through the intercession of his
father.
Promotion in the navy, royal favor, and every worldly
inducement was now urged to tempt him to desert his
principles ; but in vain. Within a year he was arraigned
again for having spoken at a Quaker meeting. As he
pleaded his own cause, he told the court " that no power
on earth had the right to debar him from worshipping
God." The jury brought in a verdict of not guilty. The
court, determined to persecute, ordered them back to their
room ; saying, " We will have a verdict, or you shall
starve for it." Penn admonished them as Englishmen to
remember their rights. To the great annoyance of his
enemies, the jury, though they " received no refreshments
for two days and two nights," again brought in a verdict
of not guilty. The court fined the jury it could not
intimidate. Though thus acquitted, the recorder, under
the plea of contempt of court, fined Penn, and again re-
manded him to prison. As he was leaving the room, he
mildly remarked to the angry magistrate : M Thy religion
persecutes and mine forgives." His father soon afterward
paid the fine, and he was liberated. Ere long that father,
when dying, became reconciled to his son, and called him
to his bedside. Worldly prosperity and honor did not
seem so important to the admiral in his dying hour as
they had done in other days. " Son William," said he,
" if you and your friends keep to your plain way 01
preaching and living, you will make an end to the
priests ! "
Weary of persecutions, Penn determined to seek in
PENNSYLVANIA PURCHASED.
167
1680.
the New World an asylum for himself and his suffering chap
friends. There was, perhaps, no man in the kingdom
better fitted to take the lead in colonizing a State : fa-
miliar, from books as well as from observation, with the
governments of Europe, and by personal intercourse with
some of the* most enlightened statesmen of the age ; the
friend and companion of men, as eminent in science and
philosophy as they were in purity of morals.
His father had bequeathed him a claim of sixteen
thousand pounds against the government. He offered to
receive lands in payment. Charles II., always in want of
money, readily granted him territory west of the Delaware
river, corresponding very nearly with the present limits of
the State of Pennsylvania, — a name given it by the king.
The Duke of York claimed the region now known as the
State of Delaware ; Penn wishing to have free access to
the bay obtained it from him.
As proprietary he now drew up a proclamation for those
who were about to emigrate, as well as for the settlers
already on the Delaware. He proposed that they should
make their own laws, and pledged himself to interfere with
nothing that should be for their benefit ; saying, " I
propose to leave myself and successors no power of doing
mischief ; that the will of no one man may hinder the good
of a whole country."
With instructions to govern in accordance with law,
he sent his nephew, William Markham, as agent. He had
expended so much to aid his suffering brethren, that his
estate was now nearly exhausted. When about to sail for
his colony he wrote to his wife : " Live low and sparingly
till my debts are paid ; I desire not riches, but to owe
nothing ; be liberal to the poor, and kind to all." At this
time of embarrassment a very large sum was offered him
by a company of traders for the exclusive right to trade
Detween the rivers Susquehannah and Delaware. He re-
1681.
Mar.
4.
1682.
April
168 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
3HAP. fused to sell such right, saying each one in his colony
should have an equal privilege to acquire property.
1682. Penn, accompanied by one hundred emigrants, landed
2^" at New Castle. The Swedes, Dutch, and English alike
welcomed him. He passed up the river to where the
capital of his province was yet to rise ; there, under a
spreading elm, he met a large number of sachems of the
neighboring tribes, and with them entered into a treaty.
No record of this treaty has been preserved, yet it re-
mained for fifty years in force ; neither party violating its
provisions. The sons of the forest received the " Quaker
King" as a friend, and they never had cause to regret
their confidence. He promised to treat them justly;
a promise observed not only by himself but by the Quakei
settlers. During this year twenty-three ships laden with
emigrants arrived safely in the colony ; and they continued
to flock thither from year to year.
Lands, lying between the Schuylkill and the Delaware,
were purchased from the Swedes : a place desirable for a
city, from its situation, healthy air, and springs of fresh
water. It was to be a " greene country town, gardens
round each house, that it might never be burned, and
always be wholesome." The streets were marked out in
the primitive forest by blazing the trees — the walnut, the
spruce, the chestnut. A city for all mankind, it was sig-
1683. nificantly named Philadelphia.
The new city grew very rapidly ; in three years it con-
tained more than six hundred houses, while the colony
had a population of nearly ten thousand. Well might
the benevolent proprietary look forward to the future in
cheerful hope ; he had based his government on truth and
justice. The rights of the Red Men were respected ; no
one could wrong them without incurring the same penalty
as that for wronging a fellow planter. If difficulties oc-
curred between them and the settlers, the juries to try
such cases were to be composed of six Indians and sis
<z?
FIRST LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY. 169
white men. In the earlier days of the colony the natives chap
manifested their friendship by bringing as presents the ,
products of the chase, wild fowl and venison. 1683
• ]Mur
Presently the first Assembly in Pennsylvania was con-
vened. Penn gave to the people a " charter of liberties,"
a representative government, and toleration in religious
matters ; to prevent lawsuits, three " peace-makers"
were appointed for each county. Laws were made to
restrain vice and to promote virtue. Labor upon the Sab- 1684.
bath was forbidden. The confidence which the Indians had
in his integrity gave security to their friendship, and Penn-
sylvania was free from frontier wars, and more prosperous
and happy than any other colony. Had the Red Men been
treated as justly by the other colonists as by the Quakers,
thousands of lives would have been spared and the general
prosperity of the whole country promoted.
The interests of the young were not forgotten ; efforts 1692.
were made for their education, and a public high-school
chartered by Penn, was established at Philadelphia, where
already a printing-press, the third in the colonies, was
doing its work.
After Penn returned to England, the people of Dela-
ware, or the three lower counties, who sympathized but
little with the Quakers, began to be restless. They feigned 16&l
grievances, as a means to become independent. He yielded
to their request, and appointed for them a separate deputy-
governor.
Being the personal friend of the Duke of York, Penn
urged him when he became king, to relieve the oppressed;
and in consequence more than twelve hundred Quakers
were liberated, who had been imprisoned many years for
conscience' sake. His benevolence was not limited to
those of his own persuasion, but extended to all, both
Catholic and Protestant.
When the great revolution drove the arbitrary James
nto exile, and placed William of Orange on the throne, 1688-
170 HISTORY OP THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
CxivP" -Penn was accused by his enemies of favoring the interests
of the exiled monarch, with whom he corresponded. This
1692. correspondence afforded no evidence of the truth of these
calumnies, but "William lent them too ready an ear. He
was at a loss to conceive how Penn could be the friend of
James in exile, without wishing him to return to England
as a sovereign. These false charges, together with rumors
of dissensions in the colony, furnished the royal government
a pretext for depriving Penn of his proprietary rights.
The Quakers became divided in their sentiments; a few
went to the extreme of non-resistance, saying, that it was
inconsistent for a Quaker to engage in public affairs, either
as a magistrate or as a legislator. The prime leader in
this was George Keith. After disturbing the province be-
yond even Quaker endurance, he was indicted by the grand
jury, as a disturber of the peace and violator of the laws.
He was tried, and fined for using improper language ; but
lest it might be thought a punishment for the free expres-
sion of opinion, the fine was remitted. The cry of perse-
cution was raised ; but time proved the falsehood of the
charge.
The first German emigrants to Pennsylvania were
Quakers in their religious views — converts of Penn and
Barclay, who some years before had travelled on the conti-
nent as missionaries. These settled Germantown and the
vicinity. Twenty years later, the ravages of war drove
1690. many Germans from their homes on the banks of the Rhine.
These emigrated in great numbers first to England, and
then to Pennsylvania. In religious views they were Ger-
man Reformed and Lutherans. They chose fertile dis-
tricts, settled together, and soon became celebrated as the
best farmers in America. Their numbers gradually increas-
ed by accessions of emigrants from home. They did not
assimilate with the English colonists : preserved inviolate
their customs, their religion, and their language, which
alone they permitted to be taught their children. The
OPPOSITION TO ROYAL AUTHORITY. 171
isolation of a population so large, had an important influ- chat
ence upon the people of Pennsylvania, on their system of
education by common schools, on the struggle for independ- 1692.
ence, and since politically.
An attempt was now made to convert Pennsylvania
and Delaware into one royal province, over which Benja-
min Fletcher was appointed governor. Some of the magis-
trates refused to recognize his authority, and some resigned
their offices. When the Assembly met, the opposition
became more determined. The members of this body
deemed the laws made under the charter received from
Penn as valid; neither would they legislate under any other
authority. The charter given by King Charles, said they,
is as valid as one given by King William ; and they re-
fused to throw a suspicion over their existing laws by
re-enacting them. They never noticed the governor ; with
Quaker coolness passed and repassed his door, and in every
respect ignored his presence.
Meanwhile, Penn had been persecuted and annoyed ;
he was arraigned three times on frivolous charges, which
were as often not sustained. He prepared once more to iggo,
visit his colony. Crowds of emigrants were ready to go
with him, when he was arrested again. Forced to go into
retirement, he determined to wait till time should bring
him justice. This delay ruined the remainder of his for-
tune ; death entered his family, and robbed him of his
wife and eldest son. Treated harshly by the world, and in
some instances by those whom he thought his friends, he
mildly persevered; never changed his views of right and
justice ; conscious of the purity of his motives, he serenely
waited for the time when his character should be vindi-
cated from the aspersions cast upon it. Ere long that time
came, the charges laid against him were proved to be false,
and he was restored to his proprietary rights. 1(594,
The want of means delayed his visit to his colony, but
he sent Markham as his deputy. He called an Assembly;
1 ~2 HISTORY OF TIIE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
CHAP, the people, alarmed at the recent encroachments upon
J '_ their chartered rights, framed tor themselves a libera
1094:. constitution. The Assembly would levy no tax until
this was granted. When Penn arrived, he recognized as
valid what the people had done. "When the proposition
1700. was made to form a " constitution which would be firm
and lasting." he said to them, " Keep what is good in the
charter and frame of government, and add what may best
suit the common good." It was agreed to surrender the
old charter, and in its place frame a new constitution.
3702. The territories wished to be separate, and Delaware
was permitted to have her own legislature ; though the
governor was to be the same as that of Pennsylvania
The two governments were never again united. All the
political privileges the people desired he cheerfully
granted ; they enjoyed religious liberty, and annually
elected their own magistrates.
A large emigration began about this period, and con-
tinued for half a century, to pour into Pennsylvania from
the north of Ireland and from Scotland. These were
principally Presbyterians. They settled in the eastern
and middle parts of the colony, and thence gradually ex-
tended their settlements west, making inroads upon the
forest.
When Penn returned to the colony it was his inten-
tion to remain, and make it the home of his children.
Rumors, however, reached the province that the charters
of all the colonies were to be taken away, and they
thrown upon the tender mercies of court iavorites. He
had not qnly purchased his territory from Charles, but he
had bought the laud from the Indians themselves ; he
was therefore the sole owner of the unoccupied soil of
Pennsylvania. These rumors rendered it necessary for
him to return to England. Having arranged the govern-
ment so as best to promote the interests of the people, he
bade farewell to the colony, for which he had spent the
BENJAMIN FRANKLIN.
173
1700.
1718.
1776
better part of his life, and for which he breathed his part- chaf
ing blessing.
The virtues of William Penn saved the colony, so
dear to his heart, from becoming a province ruled by
royal governors and impoverished by tax-gatherers. His
enemies never could persuade the court to deprive him
of his property. Though in his old age so poor, on ac-
count of the sacrifices he had made, as to be compelled to
go for a season to a debtor's prison, he refused to sell his
estates in America unless he could secure for the people
the full enjoyment of their liberties. His death was as
peaceful as his life had been benevolent. He left three
sons, who were minors. For them the government was
administered by deputies until the Kevolution, when the
Commonwealth of Pennsylvania purchased their claims for
more than half a million of dollars.
Six years after the death of Penn, there came to
Philadelphia a youth of seventeen, who was yet to exert
a great influence, not merely upon that colony but upon
the others, while his fame was to be as great in the world
of science. This youth was Benjamin Franklin, a
native of Boston, the son of a tallow-chandler ; at which
business, till ten years of age, he labored. But his ardent
mind craved something far beyond. During his leisure
time, and till late at night, he read and appreciated
all the books he could borrow, and his limited means
could purchase.
At twelve he was bound to his eldest brother, a print-
er, to leam the art. There he experienced, not the
kindness of a brother but the harshness of a tyrant.
Worn out with this oppression, the determined youth
Bold his little library to furnish means to travel, and,
without giving notice to his friends, left to seek his for-
tune in the wide world. He travelled first to New
York, where he tarried but a day, and then passed on to
Philadelphia. There he arrived a stranger — his money
174 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
C\rv' reduced to a single dollar ; a penny roll served him for
. Lis first dinner. In one of the two printing-offices of the
172-i. city he sought and obtained employment. Afterward he
went to London, where he spent a year and a half in the
same business ; then returned, but every thing that could
be of avail to him he had carefully marked and treasured
up. In truth he never lost a moment ; nothing escaped
his notice, whether in the natural or political world. His
wonderful combination of diligence, keen observation, and
practical wisdom, fitted him to trace the current of
human affairs, as well as deduce laws from the phenomena
of nature.
His experiments in electricity, the discovery of its
identity with lightning, and the invention of the light-
ning-rod, made his name famous in the universities and
courts of the Old "World ; while his " Poor Richard's
Almanac," with its aphorisms of worldly wisdom, pene-
trated every nook and corner of his native land, and by
its silent influence did much to inculcate the virtues of
industry and economy.
" The first native of America, who wrote the Eng-
lish language with classic taste and elegance," his influ-
ence was impressed upon the literature of the land. He
established the first American periodical magazine, con-
ducted a newspaper, and wrote popular pamphlets on
topics of public interest.
Pennsylvania seems to have been the chosen home of
1750 the Germans. In the autumn of one year came twenty
ships to Philadelphia, with twelve thousand German em-
igrants on board. The two following years brought each
nearly as many. The Rev. Henry M. Muhlenburg, whose
influence was exerted fo ' fifty years in laying the foundation
of the Lutheran church in America, had already com-
1742. menced his labors. The Swedish churches on the Delaware
sympathized in doctrine with the Lutheran, but in time
the former, more inclined to adopt the English language,
united with the Episcopal church.
CHAPTER XV.
COLONIZATION OF THE CAROLINAS.
ITie first Settlers. — Grants to Royal Favorites. — The " Grand Model." — Set-
tlement at Cape Fear River. — Sir John Yeamans. — Emigrants under
Sayle. — The Huguenots. — The People Independent. — Rice. — Church-
men and Dissenters. — Manufactures prohibited. — War between Eng-
land and Spain. — Failure to Capture St. Augustine. — The ruin of the
Appalachees. — Indian Wars. — German Emigrants. — The People repu-
diate the Authority of the Proprietaries.
We have now to speak of the permanent settlement of chap
the land, which the chivalric Sir Walter Raleigh en- —
deavored to colonize ; and to which the noble Coligny 1622.
sent his countrymen to found a Protestant State, and
where they perished by the hand of Spanish violence.
That vast region, extending from the southern border of
Virginia to the northern border of Florida, was repre-
sented as a " delightsome land " by the adventurers who
had explored it. Thither, during the space of forty years,
emigrants had gone from Virginia. These were Dis-
senters, a term which now began to be applied to all
Protestants not attached to the Church of England.
This Church, established by law in Virginia, exercised
great illiberality toward those who would not conform to
its ceremonies ; and many Dissenters, greatly annoyed by
the collectors of tythes, emigrated further south. Among
them was a company of Presbyterians who settled on the 1053.
Chowan. Berkeley, governor of Virginia, assumed juris-
diction over them by appointing one of their number,
176
HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
nJ)p- William Drummond, governor. Drummond was a Scotch-
man by birth, a devoted advocate of popular liberty, the
1053. same who afterward, as has been related, returned tc
Virginia, and was put to death by Berkeley for the part
he took in Bacon's attempt to vindicate the rights of the
K.76. people.
Charles II., who gave away vast regions with as much
coolness as if they really belonged to him, granted to
eight of his favorites a charter and certain privileges, to
1603. repay them for their loyalty in restoring him to the throne
of his father. This grant was of the territory extending
from the present southern line of Virginia to the St.
Johns, in Florida, and from the Atlantie to the Pacific.
Many of these proprietaries were men of influence in their
day. Among these were the Earl of Clarendon, who was
prime minister ; Sir Ashley Cooper, better known as the
Earl of Shaftesbury ; General Monk. Duke of Albemarle,
who took an active part in the restoration of Charles ; Sir
William Berkeley, whom we have met in Virginia his-
tory ; and Sir George Carteret, a proprietary of New
Jersey. They professed to have "a pious zeal for the
spread of the gospel," but their conduct has led the world
to believe that they desired more to enrich themselves by
means of a vast land speculation.
The labor of framing a government for their empire in
the New World +hey intrusted to Shaftesbury, and the
celebrated philosopher, John Locke. Their joint produc-
tion by pre-eminence was named the "Grand Model" or
'; Fundamental Constitutions." In it the right to rule
was assumed to belong only to those of noble blood ; and
therefore its principles were pronounced immortal. It
made provision for Earls, Barons, and Squires, in whose
hands, under various forms, should be the entire adminis-
tration of affairs ; while the people were to be attached to
the soil as tenants. Those who owned fifty acres of land
had the privilege of voting, and were termed freemen ; but
THE "GRAND MODEL.'
177.
those who were tenants had no such privilege, neither c^p
could they ever rise above that station. To the freemen
an Assembly was granted, but on such conditions, that its 1668.
acts were under the control of the aristocracy. Every re-
ligion was professedly tolerated, but care was taken to
declare that the Church of England alone was orthodox.
Such was the frame of government prepared for the people
of the Carolinas by the united wisdom of two philosophers.
Had it been designed for a people living in the Middle
Ages, it might, at least, have had a trial ; an honor to
which the " G-rand Model" never attained. It was
as easy to convert log-cabins into castles, as to make
the people perpetual tenants ; they might be made
nobles, but never dependents. Great numbers of them had
left Virginia expressly to escape restraint and oppression ;
and they had very little respect for the authority of the
proprietaries, while they certainly did not fear and honor
the king.
The contest soon began. The proprietaries claimed
the territory because the king had given them a charter,
and they demanded quit-rents ; the settlers, already in
possession, claimed their lands because they had pur-
chased them from the Indians. Why should they pay
quit-rents ?
A few years before, a small company from New Eng- 1661,
land had formed a settlement on Cape Fear river. Every
inducement was held out to retain these settlers, and to
encourage others to join them. To each one was offered one
hundred acres of land, at a quitrrent of half a penny an
acre ; but the barrenness of the soil neutralized every
effort. Many of these colonists returned home, and the
distress of the remainder was so great, that contributions
in their behalf were taken up in New England.
Three years later quite an accession was made to this ic>64
settlement by a company of planters from the Barbadoes.
Sir John Yeamans, their leader, was appointed governor.
178 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
chap. He was instructed, in order to induce others to come, to
'_. be "very tender" toward the New Englanders. The
1664. people did the best they could with their pine barrens, by
making staves and shingles ; these they sent to the West
Indies : a trade carried on to this day from that region.
It was enacted that debts contracted out of the colony
could not be collected from the emigrant by process of
law until he had been a resident five years. It thus be-
came a partial asylum for debtors.
1670. A company of emigrants, under the direction of Wil-
liam Sayle, was also sent by the proprietaries ; and to
superintend their own interests they appointed Joseph
West commercial agent. They landed first at Port
Royal, where the remains of the fort built by the Hugue-
nots, one hundred years before, were still visible. It had
been called Carolina, in honor of the reigning French
king ; the name was now retained in honor of Charles of
England. One of the proprietaries, Carteret, gave hia
name to the colony. For some reason they, before long,
removed to another situation further north, where they
formed a settlement between two rivers, which, in honor
of Shaftesbury, were named the Ashley and the Cooper.
A location near the harbor, and better suited for commer-
cial purposes, was afterward noticed. In process of time
a village grew up on this spot ; it is now known as the city
of Charleston.
The colony continued to increase from emigration.
Dissenters came, hoping to enjoy the religious rights
denied them at home ; Dutch and Germans from Europe ;
Presbyterians from the North of Ireland as well as from
Scotland — the latter furnishing great numbers of " phy-
sicians, clergymen, lawyers, and schoolmasters;" — Church-
men from England, who expected their church to be
established in accordance with the provisions of the
" Grand Model ; " emigrants from New York, because of
the high-handed measures of the English governors ;
THE HUGUENOTS.
179
and Huguenots, under the patronage of Charles II. He
wished to introduce the culture of the vine and olive, the
raising of silk- worms, and ultimately the manufacture of
silk. Great numbers of the Huguenots, from Languedoc,
in the South of France, came to the Carolinas, attracted
by the genial climal e.
A law granting toleration to the Protestants of France
was made by Henry IV. : this was the famous Edict of
Nantes, thus named from the city where it was given.
This law remained in force almost ninety years, when it
was revoked by Louis XIV. He had, as long as he
could enjoy it, spent his life in vice and the grossest de-
bauchery ; now he thought to silence the clamors of con-
science, that terrible enemy of wicked men, and yet win
heaven by converting to the Komish church his Protestant
subjects. Encouraged in this by the priests- and the
wiles of an apostate woman, he let loose upon these indus-
trious and well-disposed people the terrors of persecution.
Why go into the detail of their wrongs ? — the heart
sickens at the remembrance. By a refinement of cruelty,
they were forbidden to flee from their native land, and
every avenue of escape was guarded by their inveterate
enemies. Yet, after encountering unheard-of dangers and
trials, many of them did escape, and more than five hun-
dred thousand fled to different parts of the world. In the
New World they were everywhere welcomed by sympa-
thizing friends.
The Huguenots were so far superior to the Catholic
portion of the French nation, in intelligence and the
knowledge of the mechanic arts, that nearly all the manu-
factures of the country were in their hands. This skill
they carried with them, and they thus became desirable
citizens wherever they chose to settle. In South Carolina
their influence was specially felt. Their quiet and inof-
fensive manners won for them respect ; their integrity and
industry gave them influence. Ere long they mingled
10
CHAP.
XV.
1670.
1598.
1685.
180 HISTOET OF THE AMEEICAN PEOPLE.
chap, with the inhabitants; and their descendants, almost uni-
versally, when the hour of trial came, were found on the
1670. side of justice and liberty.
The original inhabitants of the Carolinas were peculiar
in their character. Numbers of them went thither from
the other colonies to avoid restraint ; they refused to pay
taxes to the proprietaries or to the king, or duties on
trade ; they were friendly to the buccaneers or pirates, who
infested the Southern waters ; they warred against the In-
dians, to obtain captives to be sent to the West Indies and
sold as slaves. There were no towns in the colony ; the
planters were scattered along the streams and valleys.
There were no roads ; they travelled along paths through
the woods, known only by the blazed trees, or on the
rivers by means of row-boats. The proprietaries soon saw
the impossibility of inducing a people so free and fearless
to conform to a government under the " Grand Model."
Sir John Yeamans, who had been appointed governor,
1671. brought with him, on his return from Barbadoes, fifty
families, and nearly two hundred slaves. This was the
commencement of negro slavery in South Carolina. The
slaves increased very rapidly, and in a few years so many
had been introduced that in number they were nearly two
to one of the whites.
Yeamans, "a sordid calculator," had been impover-
ished in England, and went abroad to improve his fortune.
He took special pains to guard his own interests ; for this
reason he was dismissed by the proprietaries. Under his
successor, the wise and liberal West, the colony flourished
for some years. He, too, was dismissed, not because he
favored himself but because he favored the people.
The next struggle came, when an attempt was made
to levy duties on the little trade of the colony. The people
considered themselves independent of the proprietaries as
well as of the king, and under no obligation to pay taxes
in any form. That there was much dissatisfaction in the
DISPUTES AND PARTIES. 181
colony, may be inferred from the fact that in the C|^F-
space of six years it had five governors. To allay these .
troubles James Colleton, a brother of one of the pro- 1671.
prietaries, was sent as governor. But when he attempted
to collect rents and taxes he met with as little success as
any of his predecessors : the people seized tl» records of
the province, imprisoned his secretary, and h. Idly defied
him and his authority.
Though many of the settlers left Virginia on account
of the want of religious privileges, they found but very few
ministers of the gospel in the country. Quaker preachers
were the first to visit the Carolinas ; afterward George
Fox himself carried them the truth as he believed it. The
people warmly welcomed the messenger of the gospel.
The influence of this visit was to strengthen the hearts of
his followers, and to make many converts. The Quakers,
everywhere the friends of popular rights, exerted much in-
fluence against the arbitrary rule of the proprietaries.
There arose a party of " Cavaliers and ill-livers/''
whose morals were fashioned after those of the court of the
profligate Charles. Opposition was excited by their high-
handed measures, and another party sprang into existence;
it was composed of the Presbyterians, Quakers, and the
Huguenots, who had recently been admitted to the rights
of citizenship. The disputes were chiefly in relation to
rents and land tenures.
In the midst of this confusion, an upright Quaker,
John Archdale, was elected governor. He assumed the 1694.
part of mediator, and attempted, with some success, to
reconcile the disputants. In selecting his council he chose
men of all parties, and by various judicious regulations
partially allayed the strife. By just treatment he made
friends of the Indians ; he ransomed and sent home some
of their Indian converts, who were held by a neighboring
tribe as slaves, and thus conciliated the Spaniards at St.
Augustine. The kind act was reciprocated ; the Spaniards
182 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
°xvP* rest°re(l to their friends some English sailors shipwrecked
on their coast.
1694. The Dissenters numbered two-thirds of the population,
yet, for the sake of peace, they consented that one minister
of the Church of England should be maintained at the
public expense. Upon one occasion the Churchmen and
aristocracy accidentally had a majority of one in the
Assembly ; they manifested their gratitude for the con-
cession just mentioned, by depriving the Dissenters of all
their political privileges ; they made the Church of Eng-
land the established church, to be maintained at the pub-
lic expense, and proceeded to divide the colony into
parishes, to which the " Society for the Propagation of
1704. the Gospel" was to appoint pastors. The aggrieved
people appealed to the House of Lords for redress ; and
• the intolerant act of the Legislature was declared to be
null and void. The law disfranchising Dissenters was re-
pealed, that granting a support to the Church of England
remained in force till the Kevolution.
Notwithstanding these difficulties the colony pros-
pered, and increased in numbers from emigration. Among
these a company from Massachusetts formed a settlement
1698 twenty miles back of Charleston. During Archdale's ad-
ministration, the captain of a ship from Madagascar gave
him some rice, which he distributed among the planters
to be sown. The experiment was successful, and soon
Carolina rice was celebrated as the best in the world.
The fur trade with the Indians was also profitable, while
the forests produced their share of profit in lumber and
tar.
The colonists attempted to manufacture domestic
cloths to supply their own wants ; an enterprise they were
soon compelled to abandon. The manufacturers and mer-
chants of England complained, as they themselves wished
to enjoy the profits that would arise from supplying them.
Parliament passed an act forbidding woollen goods to be
EXPEDITION AGAINST ST. AUGUSTINE.
183
transported from one colony to another, or to any foreign C^AP-
port. This unrighteous law, as was designed, broke up . ■>.
nearly all colonial trade and manufactures, and gave the 1699.
English trader and manufacturer the monopoly of both.
We shall see how this policy affected all the colonists. In
the Carolinas, they could only engage in planting, and a
new impulse was given to the slave trade.
War had arisen between England and Spain, and their
children in the New World unfortunately took up arms
against each other. James Moore, who was now governor
of Carolina, undertook an expedition against St. Augus-
tine. He is represented as a " needy, forward, ambitious
man," who was in the habit of kidnapping Indians and
selling them as slaves : now he hoped to plunder the
Spaniards at St. Augustine. He pressed some vessels into 1702.
his service, and set sail with a portion of the troops, and
sent others with the Indian allies by land. The town was
easily taken, but the soldiers retired to a well fortified fort,
and defied the besiegers. Moore must send to the island
of Jamaica for cannon, to enable him to take the fort.
Meanwhile an Indian runner had sped through the forest
to Mobile, and informed the French settlers there of what
was going on. They sent word to Havana. We may judge
the surprise of Moore, when he saw two Spanish men-of-
war come to rescue St. Augustine, instead of the vessel he
expected from Jamaica. He immediately abandoned his
supplies and stores, and made his way by land as best he
could, to Charleston. The colony, by this unwise and
wicked expedition, only gained a debt which pressed heavily
upon the people for years.
The Appalachees of Florida, under the influence of
Spanish priests, had become converts to Romanism ; they
built churches, and began to cultivate the soil and live in
villages. As free intercourse existed between Florida and
Louisiana; the English colonists professed alarm at the
influence the French and Spaniards might have over the
184 HISTORY OF TIIE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
CHAP. Indians of that region. This furnished an excuse for the
. ambitious Moore to lead an expedition against these inoffen-
1705. Hive Indians, whose only crime was, *hat they were willing
to he taught religion and agricultuic by Spanish priests.
With about fifty whites and one thousand friendly Indians,
he went through the wilderness, away across the State of
Georgia, down on the Gulf to Appalachee Bay. The first
intimation the Indians had of this freebooting expedition
was an attack upon their village, one morning at daylight.
The assailants met with so warm a reception, that at first
they were forced to retire, but not until they had set fire
to a church. There happened to be in the bay a Spanish
ship, whose commander the next day, with a few white
men and four hundred Indians, made an attack on the
invaders, but he was defeated. The Indian villages were
now destroyed, the churches plundered of their plate, and
numbers of Indians taken captive, and removed to the banks
of the Altamaha, while their own country was given to the
Seminolcs, the allies of the invaders. Thus the English
placed Indians friendly to themselves between the Spanish
and French settlements, while in virtue of this expedition
they claimed the soil of Georgia. More than one hundred
and twenty-five years afterward, the descendants of these
Seminoles were removed beyond the Mississippi. Even
then the ruins of churches marked the stations of the Span-
ish missions among the Appalachees.
The next year brought Charleston two unexpected
enemies — a malignant fever, and while it was raging, a
squadron of Spanish and French ships to avenge the attack
1706. upon the Appalachees. The people, under William Khet
and Sir Nathaniel Johnson, were soon ready to meet them.
When they landed, they were opposed at every point, and
driven back. A French ship was captured ; and of the
eight hundred men who landed, more than three hundred
were either killed or taken prisoners. This victory was
looked upon as a great triumph.
RELIGIOUS CONTROVERSIES. 185
In this conflict the Huguenots performed well their c^p
part. An unusual number of them had settled in Charles-
ton ; here they founded a church, its forms of worship the 1693.
same as those to which they were accustomed at home.
This church still remains, the only one in the land that has
preserved inviolate these pristine forms.
A general effort was now made to extend the influence
of the Church of England in the colonies. The politic
William of Orange looked upon the project with a favor-
able eye. A " Society for the Propagation of the Gospel
in foreign parts " was formed in England. Its object, the 1701.
conversion of the Indians, was worthy ; but at this time,
by means of worldly men and politicians, its influence was
directed to the establishment of the Church of England in
all the American colonies. The project everywhere met
with great opposition except in Virginia; there the dissent-
ers were few in number. This society founded many
churches in the colonies, which remain even to this day.
North Carolina was called the " Sanctuary of Run- 1712.
aways," a " land where there was scarcely any government,"
with a population made up of " Presbyterians, Independ-
ents, Quakers, and other evil-disposed persons." Such was
the language of royalists and those opposed to freedom in
religious opinions. The proprietaries determined to estab-
lish the Church of England, and maintain it at public ex-
pense. Those who refused to conform to this law were
debarred from holding offices of trust. The people did
refuse, and soon there "was but one clergyman in the
whole country;" and those in favor of freedom in religious
opinions, were stigmatized as a " rabble of profligate per-
sons." These tyrannies finally led to open rebellion on the
part of the people, who wished to govern themselves, and
when unmolested did it well.
Thus far North Carolina had escaped the horrors of
Indian warfare. There were many tribes west and south
of their territory. The greater part of the region now
180 HISTORY OP THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
Cx'vP occul,i°(l by tlif States of Georgia and Alabama, was the
home of the Creeks or Muscogees, numbering nearly thirty
1712. thousand.
The tciritory of the Yamassees lay immediately west
of the settlement on the north bank of the Savannah. In
the vicinity were the Catawbas, on the river which per-
petuates their name. AVest of these, a mountaineer tribe,
the Cherokees, roamed through the beautiful valleys of
the upper Tennessee, while they claimed as their hunting
grounds the regions north of them to the Kanawha and
the Ohio.
A great change had eome over the powerful tribes
along the coast. The Hatteras tribe, which, in Raleigh's
time, one hundred and twenty-five years before, numbered
nearly twenty thousand, was now reduced to less than one
hundred. Some tribes had entirely disappeared ; had
retired farther back into the wilderness, or become extinct.
Vices copied from the white man had wrought this ruin.
The Tuscaroras, a warlike tribe, whose ancestors had
emigrated from the north, became alarmed at the en-
croachments of the colonists upon their lands. They
determined to make an effort to regain their beautiful
valleys.
A company of German exiles from the Rhine had
come under the direction of De Graffenried. The proprieta-
ries assigned them lands that belonged to the Indians.
Lawson, the surveyor-general of the province, and Graffen-
ried, when on an exploring tour up the Neuse, were seized
by a party of Tuscaroras, who hurried them on, day and
night, to one of their villages. There several chiefs of the
tribe held a council, and discussed the wrongs they had
suffered from the English. They finally determined to
burn the man, who with compass and chain had marked
out their lands into farms for the settlers. When Graff-
enried made known to them that lie had been only a short
time in the country ; that he was the "chief of a differ-
THE TUSCARORAS EMIGRATE. 187
»nt tribe from the English/' and moreover promised to c^p-
take no more of their lands, they did not put him to death L
with Lawson. He was kept a prisoner five weeks, and 1712
then permitted to return home. During this time, the
Tuscaroras and their allies, the Corees, had attacked the
settlements on the Koanoke and Pamlico sound. The 1711.
carnage continued for three days, and many of the poor
people, who had fled from persecution at home, perished
by the tomahawk in the land of their adoption.
The people appealed to Virginia and to South Carolina 1712
for aid. Only a part of the Tuscaroras had engaged in
the attack. With another portion of the tribe, Spots-
wood, governor of Virginia, made a treaty of peace, — the
only assistance he could give. Governor Craven of South
Carolina sent to their aid a small force, and a number of
friendly Indians. These drove the Tuscaroras to their
fort, and compelled them to make peace. These same
troops, as they were returning home, basely violated the
treaty just made ; attacked some Indian towns, and seized
their inhabitants to sell them as slaves. The war was of
course renewed. The Tuscaroras, driven from one place
of concealment to another, and hunted for their scalps or
for slaves, finally abandoned their fair lands of the south ;
emigrated across Virginia and Pennsylvania to the home
of their fathers, and there, at the great council-fire of the
Iroquois, or Five Nations, on Onoida lake in New York,
were admitted into that confederacy, of which they
became the sixth nation. At this time, the people of 1713
Pennsylvania complained of the importation of these cap-
tives into their colony. A law was therefore enacted,
forbidding the introduction of " negroes and slaves, as
exciting the suspicion and dissatisfaction of the Indians
of the province."
The war seemed to be ended, and the traders of South
Carolina especially, extended their traffic with the tribes
who lived in the region between that colony and the Mis-
188 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
( yv1'' P'ssippi- Soon after, these traders were driven from the
villages of some of the more western tribes. This was
1713. attributed to the influence of the French of Louisiana.
The Yamassees, whom we have seen in alliance with
the colonists against the Tuscaroras, when they hoped to
obtain captives, now renewed their friendship with the
Spaniards, with whom they had been at variance, — for they
hated the priests, who attempted to convert them. They
induced the Catawbas, the Creeks and the Cherokees,
who had also been allies of the colonists against the
Tuscaroras, to join them. This alliance was likewise
attributed to Spanish and French influence. Governor
Spotswood seems to have revealed the truth, when he wrote
to the " Board of Trade " in London, that " the Indians
never break with the English without gross provocation
from persons trading with them." These tribes had been
looked upon as :< a tame and peaceable people," and fair
game for unprincipled traders.
1715. The savages cunningly laid their plans, and suddenly,
one morning, fell upon the unsuspecting settlers, killed
great numbers and took many prisoners. The people fled
toward the sea-shore. A swift runner hastened to Port
Royal and alarmed the inhabitants, who escaped as best
they could to Charleston. The Indians continued to
prowl around the settlements, and drove the inhabitants
before them, until the colony was on the verge of ruin.
The enemy received their first check from forces sent
from North Carolina. Governor Craven acted with his
usual energy, he raised a few troops and went to meet the
savage foe. The contest was long and severe ; in the end
the Indian power was broken. The Yamassees emigrated
to Florida, where they were welcomed with joy by the
Spaniards at St. Augustine. The other tribes retired fur-
ther into the wilderness. Yet war-parties of the Yamas-
sees continued, for years, to make incursions against the
frontier settlements, and kept them in a state of alarm.
CHAETER OF THE PROPRIETARIES FORFEITED. 189
The proprietaries made no effort to protect the colo- C*J£P
nists or to share the expense of the war. They at length
determined, as they must defend themselves, also to man- 1715.
age their own affairs, and they resolved " to have no more
to do with the proprietaries, nor to have any regard to
their officers."' On the other hand, the proprietaries com-
plained that the " people were industriously searching for
grounds of quarrel with them, with the view of throwing
off their authority/' The matter was brought before Par-
liament, which declared the charter of the proprietaries to
be forfeited.
Francis Nicholson, who for many years had been ex-
perimenting as a colonial governor, and, as he said, " been
falsely sworn out of Virginia and lied out of Nova Scotia,"
was appointed provisional governor. He was not an exam- 1720.
pie of good temper, and much less of good morals. He
made a treaty with the Cherokees, who were to permit
only Englishmen to settle on their lands ; and with the
Creeks, whose hunting-grounds were to extend to the
Savannah. He had battled against popular rights in the
north, now he thought best to make his path easy, and he
confirmed all the laws passed by the revolutionary Assem-
bly. However, when he left the country he mourned over
the " spirit of commonwealth notions which prevailed,"
as the result, as he said, of intercourse with the New
Englanders, who, at this time, were busily engaged in
trading with the Carolinas.
These disputes were at length ended by an act of Par-
liament. Seven of the proprietaries sold out their claims
to the government of England. The two Carolinas were 1729
now separated, and a royal governor appointed for each.
CHAPTER XVI.
COLONIZATION OF GEORGIA.
Founded in Benevolence. — Oglethorpe — First Emigration. — Savannah.—
Encouragements. — Germans from the Western Alps. — Augusta. — Thr:
Moravians. — Scotch Highlanders. — The Wesley?. — Whitefield, his Or-
phan House. — War with Spain ; its Cause. — Failure to Capture St. Au-
gustine. Repulse of the Spanish Invaders. — The Colony becomes a
Royal Province.
rJ*-:\p- We have seen some colonies founded as asylums for
AM. , J
the oppressed for conscience' sake, and others the off-
1732. spring of royal grants to needy courtiers, — bankrupt in
fortune, and sometimes in morals, seeking in their old age
to retrieve the follies of their youth. It is now a pleasure
to record the founding of an asylum not alone for the
oppressed for conscience' sake, but for the victims of un-
righteous law — a colony the offspring of benevolence ; the
benevolence of one noble-hearted man ; — one who, born
in affluence, devoted his wealth, his mind and his energies
to the great work. James Edward Oglethorpe, " the poor
man's friend," " a Christian gentleman of the Cavalier
school," had sympathy for the unfortunate who were im-
mured within prison walls, not for crime, but for debt.
He labored to have repealed the laws authorizing such
imprisonment, and to reform the entire prison discipline
of England.
His efforts did not end here ; he desired to provide in
America an asylum for those who were, while in their own
land, at the mercy of hcard-hearted creditors, as well as
A. TEUST FOR THE POOR. 191
a place of refuge for the poor, where comfort and happi- chap
ness might be the reward of industry and virtue. There
were, at this time, in England, more than four thousand 1732.
men in prison for debt, with no hope of relief. Through
his exertions, "multitudes were restored to light and
freedom, who- by long confinement were strangers and
helpless in the country of their birth."
Others became interested in his schemes of benevo-
lence, and a petition numerously signed by men of influ-
ence and family was presented to the king. They asked
a charter to colonize the territory south of the Savannah
river, then included in Carolina, with unfortunate debtors,
and with Protestants from the continent of Europe. A
grant was given by George II. of the region lying between
the Savannah and the Altamaha, and from their head
springs west to the Pacific. The territory was to be
known as Georgia. It was given " in trust for the poor "
to twenty-one trustees for the space of twenty-one years.
The trustees manifested their zeal by giving their services
without any reward.
The climate of this region was thought to be very fa-
vorable for the raising of silk-worms, and the cultivation
of the grape. Merchants, therefore, who could not be
otherwise influenced, were induced to favor the cause by
hopes of gain. The " free exercise of religion " was guar-
anteed to all u except papists/' Under no conditions was
land to be granted in tracts of more than five hundred
acres. This was designed to enable the poor to become
owners of the soil, and to prevent the rich from monopo-
lizing the best lands.
Much interest was taken in this new field of benevo-
lence, and donations were made by all classes of society.
What a transition for the poor debtor ! He was to ex-
change the gloomy walls of a prison for a home in that
delightful land, where grim poverty never would annoy
him more ! It was determined to take as colonists only
102 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
CiiAF. tlio most needy and helpless, -and, as far as possible., ex-
elude those of bad morals.
1732. Thirty-live families, numbering altogether one hundred
and fifty persons, embarked for their new homes. AY bile
others gave to the enterprise their substance and influ-
ence, Oglethorpe volunteered to superintend the colony in
person. They took with them " a clergyman with Bibles,
Prayer-books, and Catechisms," and one person who was
skilled in the raising of silk. The company landed first
at Charleston ; by a vote of the Assembly, they were
welcomed, and presented with supplies of rice and cattle.
Oglethorpe hastened to explore the Savannah. On a
bluff twenty miles from its mouth he planted his colony.
This bluff was already in the possession of a small band
of Indians, from whom it was named the Yamacraw.
Through the efforts of Marv Musgrove, who acted as in-
tc-rpreter, the bluff was purchased. This woman was a
daughter of a Uchee chief, and had been sent to school
in Charleston, where she had married an English trader.
J733. The colonists immediately began to build and fortify
their town, which they named Savannah, the Indian name
of the river. The town was regularly laid out, with wide
streets and spacious squares. A garden of some acres
was inclosed for a nursery of mulberry-trees to feed silk-
worms ; and here also experiments were made, in order to
introduce European fruits.
The aged chief of the little band of Indians wished
protection. He presented to Oglethorpe a buffalo skin,
on the inside of which was painted an eagle. " The eagle,"
said he, " signifies speed, and the buffalo strength ; the
English are swift as the eagle, for they have flown over
vast seas ; they are as strong as the buffalo, for nothing
can withstand them ; the feathers of the eagle are soft,
and signify love ; the buffalo's skin is warm, and signifies
protection ; therefore, I hope the English will love and
protect our little families." The hopes of poor old
JAMES EDWARD OGLETHORPE.
EMIGRANTS J LUTHERANS. 193
Tomochechi and his tribe were doomed to be sadly dis- chap
appointed.
The genial climate delighted the colonists, and they 1733.
went cheerfully to work, building their houses. The
chiefs of the lower Creeks came and made a treaty ; they
acknowledged the English rule from the Savannah to the
St. John's, and west to the Chattahoochee, and gave
them permission to cultivate the lands not used by their
own people. Then came a messenger from the distant
Cherokees, pledging the friendship of his tribe. Soon
after came a Choctaw chief saying, " I have come a
great way ; I belong to a great nation ; the French are
among us ; we do not like them ; they build forts and
trade with us ; their goods are poor, and we wish to trade
with you.'* Thus the way was opened for a profitable
traffic with the tribes north of the gulf, and west to the
Mississippi.
The fame of this delightful land reached Europe, and
penetrated even into the fastnesses of the western Alps.
There, long ages before the Keformation, a pure gospel
had been taught. Now a persecution was raging, and the
sufferings of these Christians, now become Lutherans, deep-
ly enlisted the sympathies of the English people. These
Germans were invited by the " Society for the Propaga-
tion of the Gospel," to emigrate to Georgia, where they
could be free from their persecutors, and lands were offered
them ; but they rejoiced more than all in the opportunity
given them to carry the gospel to the Indians. Money
was subscribed by the benevolent in England to enable
them to travel from Augsburg, across the country to
Frankfort on the Main. Nearly one hundred set out on
their pilgrimage ; they took with them, in wagons, their
wives and children ; their Bibles and books of devotion.
The men as they travelled on foot beguiled the toils of their
journey by singing praises to God, and offering prayers for
his guiding hand, and his blessing on their enterprise.
194 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
1 vy/'' '^ieY Passed down the Main to its junction with the
Rhine, and thence floated down to Rotterdam, where they
1733. were joined by two clergymen, Bolzius and Gronau. They
sailed to England, and were there met and encouraged by
a committee of the trustees, and thence to their distant
home across the ocean. The faith that had cheered them
on their native mountains, sustained them amid the
storms of the Atlantic ; when, during a terrible tempest,
the waves broke over the ship, and caused an outcry of
alarm from the English, they continued their devotions
and calmly sung on. When one of them was asked,
" Were you not afraid ? " " I thank God, no," was the
reply. " But were not your women and children afraid ? "
" No, our women and children are not afraid to die."
A passage of fifty-seven days brought them to receive
a hearty welcome at Charleston from Oglethorpe, and in
1734. less than a week they were at their journey's end. A
suitable place had been chosen for their residence, they
founded a village a short distance above Savannah, and
significantly named it Ebenezer. In gratitude they raised
a monumental stone as a memento of the goodness of God
in thus bringing them to a land of rest. They were joined
from time to time by others from their native land. By
their industry and good morals they secured prosperity,
and also the respect of their fellow-colonists.
At the head of boat navigation on the Savannah the
town of Augusta was now founded. This soon became
an important trading post with the Indians.
Oglethorpe gave himself unweariedly to the work of
benefiting those he governed. The success of the enter-
prise may be safely attributed to his disinterested labors.
" He," said Governor Johnson, of South Carolina, " nobly
devotes all his powers to save the poor, and to rescue them
from their wretchedness." After the residence of a yeal
and a half he returned to England, taking with him
JOHN AND CHARLES WESLEY. 195
several Indian chiefs, and raw silk — the product of the c**Ap
colony — sufficient to make a robe for the queen.
As an inducement for settlers, the trustees offered to 1734.
each one who should emigrate, at his own expense,
fifty acres of land. On these conditions came a number
of Moravians or United Brethren, with the intention of
devoting themselves to the conversion of the Indians. 1735.
They formed a new settlement on the Ogeechee, south of
the Savannah. •
The same benevolent spirit which had relieved poor
debtors in prison, now devised measures to ward off one
of the most effective causes of debt and wretchedness ;
and accordingly the importation of rum into the colony
was prohibited. The trustees also forbid negro slavery,
" that misfortune of other plantations." They did not
wish to see their province " filled with blacks, the preca-
rious property of a few." They looked upon it as cruel
and inhuman, and injurious to the " poor white settlers,"
for whom, in trust, they held the colony.
The next year Oglethorpe returned, with more emi- 1736.
grants, among whom was a party of Scotch Highlanders,
with their minister, John McLeod. These founded a set-
tlement at Darien, on the Altamaha. There likewise
came two young men as preachers to the people, and as
missionaries to the Indians. These were the brothers
John and Charles Wesley, — men of ardent piety and zeal-
ous in the cause of religion, they hoped to make the
colony eminent for its religious character. Enthusiastic
in their feelings, and perhaps a little wanting in discretion,
certainly in experience, they were soon involved in trouble.
For a time, John Wesley drew crowds of hearers ; places
of amusement were almost deserted. We doubt not that
he spoke the truth plainly, and in accordance with his
duty, but his austere manners and denunciation of sin
created him enemies. In one case, his severe exercise of
church discipline excited bitter feeling against himself,
196 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
chap, and sympathy for the victim of his injudicious zeal
Charles Wesley was, for awhile, the secretary of Ogle-
1738. thorpe, but in some unexplained manner he gave offence
to his patron ; at length an explanation took place, and a
reconciliation. Kind and gentle in his nature, he was
unfitted to endure the hardships to be encountered, and
to sympathize with the unpolished colonists of Georgia.
After a residence of less than two years, the Wesleys, dis-
appointed, in their hopes of doing good there, left the
colony forever. In their native land they became the
founders of the denomination of Methodists, who have
been, in that very colony, as well as in others, among the
foremost in carrying the gospel to destitute settlements.
Thus their labors were blessed, their prayers were an-
swered, and their hopes realized ; but, as is often the case
in the ways of Infinite Wisdom, not in the form and
manner in which they expected.
Just as the Wesleys, on their return home, were pass-
ing up the channel, their friend and fellow-laborer, the
celebrated George Whitefield, the most eloquent preacher
of his day, was leaving England to join them in Georgia.
Whitefield had commenced preaching when a mere youth,
and by his wonderful eloquence drew great crowds. He
first preached in the prisons, and then to the poor in the
open fields. Now he felt it his duty to visit the colonies.
When he arrived in Georgia, his sympathies were much
enlisted in behalf of the destitute children, left orphans.
He visited the Lutherans at Ebenezer, where he noticed
their asylum for poor children, and determined, if possible,
to found a similar one. By his fervent zeal in the cause
he obtained sufficient funds in England and America.
The institution was founded a few miles from Savannah.
During his lifetime it flourished ; at his death it began to
languish, and finally passed out of existence.
The Spaniards were not pleased with the encroach-
ments of the English upon what they deemed their terri-
ENGLISH TRADERS ; WAR WITH SPAIN. 197
tory, and they sent commissioners to protest against it, C_H1AIP
and to demand the surrender of all Georgia and part of
Carolina. When this was unheeded, they prepared to ex- 1788.
pel the invaders. There were other causes, which made
it evident that war would soon take place between the
mother countries, in which the colonies would certainly
become involved.
The European governments restricted the commerce
of their colonies so as to make them subserve their own
interests. Those belonging to Spain must trade only with
the port of Cadiz, and the merchandise shipped to them
was sold at enormous prices. The English traders per-
sisted in smuggling goods into the Spanish ports. To
accomplish this they resorted to various stratagems. By
treaty, an English vessel was permitted to come once a
year to Portobello and dispose of her cargo ; but this
vessel was followed by others ; they came in the night
time, and slipped in more bales to supply the place of
those sold, and continued to do this, till the market was
supplied. Sometimes, under the pretence of distress, ships
would run into Spanish ports, and thus dispose of their
cargoes.
Though Spain was rich and feeble, she was haughty
and cruel ; and when any of these worthies, who were
engaged in violating her laws, were caught, they were
severely dealt with. Sometimes they were imprisoned,
and sometimes their ears were cropped. This exasperated
the traders, and though justly punished, they came with
the assurance of ill-treated men, to ask protection from
their own government. They were looked upon as mar-
tyrs to the cause of free commerce, and merchants, in
defence of such men as these, did not blush to clamor for
war, in the face of justice and national integrity. In
truth, the English government connived at this clandes-
tine trade, and secretly rejoiced ■ at the advantage gained
over her rival. By this connivance at injustice she gave
198 HISTOKY 0? THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
Cxvf' ^er own c°l°mes a lesson on the subject of their trade,
which, in less than half a century, she found, to her sur-
17S8. prise, they had fully learned.
Another source of irritation to the people of South
Carolina, was that slaves, who ran away to Florida and
put themselves under Spanish protection, were not onlj
welcomed, but given lands ; organized into military com-
panies, and armed at the public expense. A demand
made upon the authorities at St. Augustine to restore the
runaways, was promptly refused. Oglethorpe hastened to
1737. England to make preparations for the coming contest, and
returned in less than a year, with a regiment of six hun-
dred men, which he himself had raised and disciplined.
He was now prepared to defend the southern boundary of
Georgia. He renewed treaties with the Indian tribes
north of the Gulf from the Atlantic to the Mississippi,
and hoped to retain them in his interest. War was, at
1739> length, declared by England against Spain, and Ogle-
thorpe received orders, as military commander in Georgia
and the Carolinas, to invade Florida. With his usual
energy, he hastened to Charleston to make the necessary
preparations. Supplies were voted and a regiment en-
listed ; and, joined by Indian allies, he set out to lay
siege to St. Augustine. He found the garrison much
more numerous than he expected, and the fortifications
stronger. After a short siege, the Indians began to desert,
and the Carolina regiment, enfeebled by sickness, returned
home. In five weeks the enterprise was abandoned. On
this occasion, Oglethorpe exhibited the kindness of his
nature ; he endured all the privations of the common sol-
diers. The captives taken were treated kindly, no houses
1740. were burned, and but little property destroyed.
This war had a very bad effect upon the colony of
Georgia. Instead of making farmers of the settlers, it
made them soldiers, and their farms were neglected. The
Moravians, who were religiously opposed to bearing arms,
THE SPANIARDS INVADE GEORGIA. 199
emigrated, one and all, to Pennsylvania, where they chap
founded the towns of Bethlehem and Nazareth. .
It was ere long the turn of Georgia to be invaded, ^^
For this purpose, the Spaniards at Havana and St.
Augustine fitted put thirty-six vessels and three thousand 1742.
troops. The commander, Monteano, instead of sailing
direct for Savannah, became entangled among the islands,
near the mouths of the St. Mary and the Altamaha, while
endeavoring to take possession of one or two insignificant
settlements. Oglethorpe ascertained the intention of the
enemy, but as he had received no assistance from Carolina,
was ill prepared to meet them. Having but eight hun-
dred men, he was forced to retreat from Cumberland juiy
island to St. Simons, on which was the little town of
Frederica, the special object of the Spanish attack.
After the enemy landed he went to surprise them in
the night, but as he approached their lines, one of his
soldiers, a Frenchman, fired his gun, rushed into the ene-
my's camp, and gave the alarm. Oglethorpe employed
stratagem to throw suspicion upon the deserter ; he wrote
him a letter, in which he addressed him as a spy for the
English, and directed him to induce the Spaniards to
attack them, or at least to remain where they were until
the English fleet of six men-of-war, which had sailed from
Charleston, should reach St. Augustine, and capture it.
This letter he bribed a Spanish prisoner to carry to the
Frenchman. As was to be expected, it was taken imme-
diately to the Spanish commander, and the Frenchman
soon found himself in irons. In the midst of the alarm,
some Carolina ships, laden with supplies, for Oglethorpe,
appeared in the offing. Thinking these the veritable men-
of-war mentioned in the letter, the invaders determined
to attack and destroy Frederica, before they should sail
to defend St. Augustine. On the way they fell into an
ambuscade, and, at a place since known as the " Bloody
Marsh," they were signally defeated. The following night
200
HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
CxviF' *^e^ emkai"ked, and sailed to defend St. Augustine from
the expected attack. Thus Georgia and the Carolinas
1743. were saved from ruin.
The following year Oglethorpe left the colony forever.
There he had spent ten years of toil and self-denial ; he
had for his reward no personal benefit, but the satisfaction
of founding a State, and of leaving it in a prosperous con-
dition. The form of government was changed from a
military to a civil rule, and the various magistrates were
appointed.
In time, slavery was gradually introduced. Slaves
were at first hired from the Carolinas, for a short time,
and then for one hundred years. The German settlers
were industrious and frugal, and so were the Highlanders.
They were opposed to the introduction of slaves. On the
other hand, great numbers of the English settlers were
idle and bankrupt from their improvidence ; " they were
unwilling to labor, but were clamorous for privileges to
which they had no right." They contended that rum was
essential to health in that climate, and that none but
slaves could cultivate the soil of Georgia ; and, in seven
years after the benevolent Oglethorpe left, slave ships
brought negroes to Savannah, direct from Africa.
1750. The trustees, when the twenty-one years for which
they were to manage the " colony for the poor " were
expired, resigned their trust, and Georgia became a royal
1753. province.
CHAPTER XVII.
NEW ENGLAND UNDER CHARLES II. AND JAMES IL
The Restoration. — The Commissioners. — Progress of Trade. — Causes of
King Philip's War.— Death of Wamsutta. — State of the Colony. — At-
tack at Swanzey. — Philip among the Nipmucks. — Attacks on Northfield,
and on Hadley. — Goffe. — The Tragedy at Bloody Brook. — Philip among
the Narragansets. — Their Fort captured. — The Warriors take Revenge.
— Philip returns to Mount Hope to die. — Disasters of the War. — James
II. — The Charters in danger. — Andros Governor ; bis illegal Measures ;
takes away the Charter of Rhode Island ; not so successful at Hart-
ford.— Andros in Jail. — The Charters resumed.
The first intimation of the restoration of Charles II. chap.
> VII
was Drought to New England by two fugitives, Whalley _* m
and Goffe. They came branded as regicides, for they sat /dO.
on the trial of Charles I. They had fled for their lives ;
ere long came the royal command to deliver them up to
their pursuers, that they might be taken back to England
and there punished. But royal commands and rewards
were of no avail, the stern republicans were not betrayed ;
the people gloried in protecting them.
Rumors were afloat that the governments of all the
colonies were to be changed, and that soon armed ships
might be expected in the harbor of Boston, sent to enforce
the royal authority. After a year's delay, it was thought
prudent to proclaim Charles as king. It was done ungra-
ciously, as all manifestations of joy were forbidden.
From time to time intelligence came of the execution
of many of their best friends in England ; among these
were Hugh Peters and Sir Harry Vane : news came also
202 HISTORY 01? THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
xvn?* ^at ^piSC0Pacy was again in power, and that more than
, . two thousand clergymen had been driven from their con-
1663. gregations because they would not conform. At length,
two agents were sent to conciliate the king, and to make
guarded professions of loyalty, as well as to ask permission
to make laws against the Quakers.
Connecticut and Rhode Island had both received lib-
eral charters from Charles, the former obtained principally
through the influence of the younger Winthrop. Mean-
time the intolerance of Massachusetts had raised up
against her a host of enemies, who were continually whis-
pering their complaints into the royal ear. The alarm was
presently increased, by information that commissioners
had been appointed to inquire into the affairs of the
colony. To provide for the future, the charter was, for
safe-keeping, secretly given to a committee appointed by
the General Court.
When the commissioners came, they outraged the
prejudices of the people by having the Episcopal service
performed in Boston. The Puritans observed the evening
of Saturday as holy time ; after the Jewish custom, they
commenced their Sabbath at sunset. As if to annoy
them, the commissioners habitually spent their Saturday
evenings in carousals. They also took in hand to redress
grievances, and invited all those who had complaints to
make against the Massachusetts colony, to bring them to
their knowledge. Rhode Island came with her complaints,
and the Narraganset chiefs with theirs ; but the General
Court cut the matter short, by forbidding such proceed-
ings, as contrary to the charter.
The laws passed by the mother country for the express
purpose of crippling the trade of the colonies, could not
be enforced, and Boston especially attracted attention by
her prosperous commerce. Industry and temperance in-
sured the prosperity of the people, and they increased in
riches and in numbers ; they also found means to indulge
CAUSES OF KING PHILIP'S WAR. 203
their taste, and began to embellish their villages. Massa- chap
chusetts traded not only with the other colonies, but her
ships were found in every sea where commerce invited, 1663.
and not only England traded with her, but France and
Spain, Holland and Italy, were competitors for her favors.
For forty years there had been no Indian war in New
England ; the fate of the Pequods was not forgotten.
During this time the number of the Indians had not
diminished, while that of the colonists had greatly in-
creased. Their farms had extended in every direction ;
they gradually absorbed the best lands of the country,
and crowded the Indians down on the little bays and pen-
insulas, on the southern shore of Massachusetts and Rhode
Island. This policy was openly avowed, as thereby they
could be more easily watched.
The Wampanoags and Narragansets were especially
aggrieved. They could not, without great exertion, obtain
the means of living ; the animals which they hunted, had
been nearly all driven away, and they were forced to de-
pend upon fish, and of these they could obtain but a
scanty supply, and they had not learned the art of culti-
vating the soil, but in a very rude manner.
Massasoit, the friend who had welcomed the early
Pilgrims, left two sons, Wamsutta and Metacom. Years
before their father's death these young men went to Plym-
outh, where they entered into friendly relations with the
English, and received from them the names by which we
know them, Alexander and Philip. They were no ordi-
nary men, they seemed to have perceived from the first
the dangers that threatened their race. If so, they con-
cealed their impressions, and could never be won over to
the religion of the English. When Massasoit died, and
Wamsutta became chief sachem of the Wampanoags, the
colonists, incited by Uncas, chief of the Mohegans, his
bitter enemy, became suspicious of him. As he reposed
204 HISTORY OP THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
xvn' a^ ^is nuntmg lodge with eighty of his followers, he was
surprised by Winslow, who had been sent with an armed
1671. force to bring him to the court at Plymouth. Wamsutta
thought not of danger ; his arms and those of his warriors
were outside the lodge and easily secured. When Wins-
low, with his pistol at his breast, told the astonished :hief
he must go with him, his proud spirit was roused to bitter
indignation. His exasperation threw him into a fever so
violent, that he was unable to proceed far. In conse-
quence of his illness he was permitted to return home.
" He died on his way. He was carried home on the shoul-
ders of men, and borne to his silent grave near Mount
Hope, in the evening of the day, and in the prime of his
life, between lines of sad, quick-minded Indians, who well
believed him the victim of injustice and ingratitude ; for
his father had been the ally, not the subject of England,
and so was he, and the like indignity had not before been
put upon any sachem."*
It is natural to suppose that the untimely and tragical
fate of Wamsutta gave character to the latent hostility
that existed in the mind of his brother Philip toward the
English race. Soon suspicions fell upon him, and at one
time he was harshly treated, and compelled to give up his
fire-arms. A praying Indian, who lived with Philip, told
1675. the colonists that the Wampanoags entertained some de-
signs against them. There is some doubt as to the truth
of this story ; however, a short time after this Indian was
found murdered. Suspicion fell upon three of Philip's
men, who were apprehended by the authorities of Plym-
outh, and brought to trial ; they were pronounced guilty
by a jury composed of English and Indians. The execu-
tion of these men aroused the slumbering enmity of the
tribe. The young warriors were clamorous for war, while
the old men dreaded the contest. Philip, from his supe-
* Elliott's Hist, of New England.
THE WAR BEGINS AT 3WANZEY. 205
rior sagacity, foresaw that an attempt to regain their chap
lands would end in their own destruction.
The colonists could now have warded off the strife by 1675
conciliating the Indians. No effort was made to soothe
their wounded feelings, they were treated as " bloody
heathen/' whom it was their duty, as " the chosen of the
Lord," to drive out of the land. Avarice, contrary to ex-
press law, had been for many years furnishing the savages
with fire-arms, and when the contest came, they were far
more formidable than the Pequods had been ; to conquer
them required a great sacrifice of the best blood of the
colony.
Though there were settlements more or less extending
from Boston to Westfield on the west, and to Northfield
in the Connecticut valley on the borders of Vermont, and
on the north to Haverhill on the Merrimac, there were
vast solitudes, whose secret glens and hiding-places were
known only to the Indians. The spirit of the tribes near
the settlements was broken by their contact with the
superior whites, but Philip had under his control seven
hundred brave warriors, who rejoiced in their freedom, and
scorned to be the subjects of any white chief beyond the
great waters. They not only rejected the religion of the
white man, but despised those tribes who had adopted it.
In prospect of the threatened war, a day of fasting
and prayer was observed ; as the people were returning
from church at Swanzey, they were suddenly attacked by
a company of Philip's men, and seven or eight persons June
killed. Philip shed tears when he heard that blood had
been shed ; the dreaded ruin of his people was drawing
near. His tribe, single-handed, entered upon the con-
test ; the others were either the allies of the English or
indifferent. He scorned to desert his people, or forfeit his
character as a warrior, and he threw himself into the con-
test with the whole energy of his nature.
The war began within the bounds of the Plymouth
206 HI8TOEY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
chap- colony ; but volunteers hastened to its aid from Massa-
chusetts. The army invaded the territory of the Wam-
1675. panoags, and in a few weeks Philip, driven from Mount
Hope, became a fugitive among the Nipmucks, a tiibe
in the interior of Massachusetts. After the flight of
Philip and his warriors, the little army went into the
territory of the Narragansets, and compelled them to
promise neutrality, and also to deliver up the fugitive
Indians who should flee to them. They fondly hoped the
war was at an end ; but this was only its beginning.
The Nipmucks were induced to make common cause
July with Philip and his tribe. His warriors, partially armed
24, with muskets, prowled round the settlements, ruthlessly
murdered the whites, and treated their remains with sav-
age barbarity. The Indians were familiar with the hidden
paths of the wilderness ; not daring to meet the colonists
in open conflict, they watched for opportunities of secret
attack. It was not known when or where the storm
would burst, and the terror-stricken inhabitants along the
frontiers fled to the more thickly settled portions.
Superstition added her terrors. The people saw an
Indian bow drawn across the heavens ; a scalp appeared
on the face of the eclipsed moon ; troops of phantom
horsemen galloped through the air ; the howlings of the
wolves were more than usually fearful, and portended some
terrible ruin ; whizzing bullets were heard in the whist-
ling wind ; the northern lights glowed with an unusual
glare — the harbinger of the punishment of sin. They be-
gan to enumerate their sins ; among these were the
neglect of the training of children, the using of profane
language, the existence of tippling houses, the want of
respect for parents, the wearing of long and curled hair
by the men, the flaunting of gaudy-colored ribbons by
the women ; and intolerance whispered that they had
been too lenient to the Quakers.
The Nipmucks had fifteen hundred warriors ; with
GOFFE THE REGICIDE. 207
Borne of these Philip hastened to the valley of the Con- c^:\
nectieut, and spread desolation from Springfield, through
all the settlements to the farthest town of Northfield. 1075.
An effort was made to win back the Nipmucks to Aug,
their old allegiance'; and Captain Hutchinson, son of
Anne Hutchinson, was sent with twenty men to treat
with them, hut the whole company was waylaid and mur-
dered at Brookfield. That place was burned ; the people
fled to the strongest house, which was besieged two days,
and finally set on fire ; but providentially a storm of rain
extinguished the flames, and others coming to their assist-
ance, the Indians were driven off.
The enemy concerted to make their attacks on the
same day and hour, in different parts of the country. On
the Sabbath, which seems to have been chosen by them
as the day most favorable for an attack, they burned
Deerfield ; and, as the people were worshipping in church,
they attacked Hadley. Suddenly there appeared a tall
and venerable looking man, with a white flowing beard,
who brandished a sword and encouraged and directed the
people in the battle. When the savages were driven off,
he disappeared ; some thought him an angel, specially
sent by heaven to their aid. It was Groffe, one of the reg-
icides of whom we have spoken. These regicides had
been hunted by zealous royalists from one place of refuge
to another ; now they were sheltered by the good minister,
John Davenport, of New Haven ; now by friends at Mil-
ford ; now they had wandered in the pathless wilderness,
and once they had heard the sound of their enemies'
horses, as in hot pursuit of them, they crossed the very
bridge under which they were secreted ; they had rested
in a cave on the top of " West Kock," New Haven, known
to this day as the " Judges' Cave," and at this time they
were living secretly in the house of minister Kussell, at
Hadley. Thus they passed their remaining years ban-
ished from society and from the occupations of life.
208 HISTORY 01? THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
chap. A company of chosen young men, "the flower of the
county of Essex," eighty in number, were engaged in
1675. bringing the fruits of harvest down from the vicinity of
Deerfield to Hadley, where it was proposed to establish a
magazine for provisions. They fell into an ambuscade of
seven hundred warriors, and, after a desperate encounter,
nearly all perished, at the crossing of a little stream, since
called the " Bloody Brook."
Sept Ere long the flourishing settlement of Hatfield was
18
attacked ; and the Indians in the vicinity of Springfield
were induced to take up arms ; but the people were pre-
Oct. pared, and repulsed them. Philip returned home, but
finding Mount Hope in ruins, he went among the Narra-
gansets. The colonists feared that he would induce them
to join him, and in self-defence they resolved to treat
them as enemies. The winter, by stripping the trees and
bushes of their leaves, had deprived the Indians of their
hiding places, and the swamps, their favorite sites for
forts, could be passed over when frozen. A company of
one thousand men set out to attack their principal fort.
This place of defence contained about six hundred wig-
wams and nearly three thousand of the tribe ; warriors
with their wives and children, and an abundance of pro-
visions for the winter. They thought themselves secure ;
they had taken no part in the war.
G-uided by an Indian traitor, the army marched fifteen
miles through a deep snow, and finally arrived at the Nar-
raganset fort, situated near where the village of Kingston
in Rhode Island now stands. Their fort, surrounded by
a palisade, stood in the midst of a swamp, and was almost
inaccessible ; it had but one entrance, the narrow passage
1gC' to which was along the body of a fallen tree. After a
severe contest of two hours, the English forced themselves
within the fort, and applied the torch to the frail and
combustible wigwams. A thousand warriors were slain,
and hundreds were made prisoners. Their provision?
DEATH OF PHILIP. 209
were all destroyed, and those who escaped were left shel- ^hap.
terless in the winter storms. They were forced to dig in
the snow for nuts and acorns to sustain life, and great 1675.
numbers died of exposure and famine before spring. The
colonists suffered severely ; they lost six captains, and two
hundred and fifty men killed and wounded.
The surviving Narraganset warriors took vengeance ;
they went from place to place ; they massacred, they
burned, they destroyed. The settlements in their vicinity
were abandoned. Though Khode Island had not joined
in the war, they made no distinction, and Providence was
almost destroyed. The now aged Koger Williams felt
it his duty to act as captain, in defending the town
he had founded. Bands of warriors swept through and
through the territory of Plymouth, and the people were
only safe when within their forts. Towns in different
parts of the country were attacked at the same time ; the
enemy seemed to be every where.
The majority of the Indians continued to fight ; and 1676.
though they fought without hope, they preferred death to
submission. Others quarrelled among themselves, charg-
ing one another with being the cause of the war. At
length the Nipmucks submitted ; and the tribes on the J»n*
Connecticut, having grown weary of the contest, would
shelter Philip no longer. He now appealed, but in vain,
to the Mohawks to take up arms. In desperation, he
determined to return and die at Mount Hope. When
one of his followers proposed to make peace, the indignant
chieftain struck him dead at a blow. It was soon noised
abroad that Philip had returned to his old home. Benja-
min Church, the most energetic of the English captains,
surprised his camp, dispersed his followers, and took pris-
oner his wife and little son. Philip's spirit was now
crushed ; he exclaimed : " My heart breaks ; I am ready
to die ! " A few days after he was shot by a traitor of his Aug
own tribe. His orphan boy was now to be disposed oil
210 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN" PEOPLE.
chap. He was taken to Boston ; some were in favor of putting
, him to death, others of selling him into slavery. The
1676. latter prevailed, and the last prince of the W/impanoags.
the grandson of generous old Massasoit, who had welcomed
the Pilgrims, and had given them his friendship, was sent
to toil as a slave under the burning sun of Bermuda.
After the close of the war, renewed efforts were made
to convert the remaining Indians, but without success
The habits of a people are not easily changed. If those
who came in contact with them had set them a Christian
example, as did Eliot, and the "learned and gentle"
Mayhew, the effect might have been different. The war
had completely broken the power of the Indians. The
more bold emigrated to Canada, and avenged themselves
in after years, by guiding war parties of the French against
the English settlements. Some went to the west, and, it
is said, their descendants are at this day roaming over its
wide prairies. But the great majority lost their native
independence, and became still more degraded by marry-
ing with the negroes. At this day, a few descendants of
the warriors who once roved over the hills and valleys of
New England, may be seen lingering in the land of their
fathers.
For a time the effect of the war was disastrous ;
though it lasted but little more than a year, a dozen vil-
lages were in ashes, and others nearly destroyed. Of the
private dwellings, a tenth part had been burned, six hun-
dred of the men of the colony had perished in battle, not
to mention the women and children ruthlessly massacred.
Almost every family was in mourning. The expenses of
the war were great, and for years weighed heavily upon
the people, while the desolation of the settlements par-
alyzed their energies.
No aid came to the sufferers from England ; but be it
remembered, that a Non-conformist church in Dublin
sent them five hundred pounds. Instead of aiding them,
DESPOTISM OF JAMES. 211
the spendthrift Charles devised means to extort money ^hap
from them by taxing their trade. This led to the estah-
lishment of a royal custom-house in Boston. To compel 1676.
the merchants to pay tribute, he threatened to deprive
them of English passes for their ships in the Mediterra-
nean, where, without redress, they might be robbed by
pirates along the Barbary coast ; and he also threatened
to deprive them of their trade with the southern colonies.
These threats had little effect upon men who had learned
to take care of themselves.
James II., the brother and successor of Charles, was 1685.
bigoted and stubborn ; a Catholic in disguise, he wished
to establish that form of religion, not only in England,
but in the colonies. The more easily to accomplish this
object he professed to be very tolerant, and proclaimed
what he termed an Indulgence, by which persecution for
religious opinions was henceforth to end. This tolerance
was only a means to evade the laws, which prohibited the
introduction of Eomish ceremonies and doctrines into the
Church of England. He became a bitter persecutor ; in
truth, to comprehend the idea of the rights of conscience
or of religious freedom, was far beyond the capacity of
James. That time-serving politician, Joseph Dudley, a
native of Massachusetts, who, when it was profitable, was
a zealous advocate of colonial rights, now became an ear- lfi8g
nest defender of the prerogative of the king. He was
appointed the royal president of Massachusetts, until a
governor should arrive. There could be no free press
under a Stuart, and Edward Randolph was appointed its
censor. Randolph disliked the people of Massachusetts
as cordially as they hated him. The commission of Dud-
ley contained no recognition of an Assembly or Represent-
atives of the people. James was at a loss to see the use
of a legislature to make laws, when his wisdom could be
appealed to for that purpose. Dudley, looked upon as
the betrayer of his country's liberties, was very unpopn-
212 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
"xvu ^ar> wnne Randolph took pains to have his character aa
little respected at court, by representing him as having
3686. "his fortune to make/' and willing to "cringe and bow
to any thing."
James had resolved to take away the charters of all
the colonies and make them royal provinces. Ere long
came Sir Edmund Andros, as governor of all New Eng-
land. A fit instrument of a despot, he was authorized
to impose taxes, to appoint his own council, to have the
control of the militia, to prohibit printing, to introduce
Episcopacy, and to enforce the laws restricting the trade
of the colonies. That he might have the means to fulfil
his instructions, he brought two companies of soldiers — the
first ever stationed in New England. As a reward for his
desertion of the people's rights, Dudley was appointed
Chief Justice, and the busy Randolph Colonial Secretary,
and William Stoughton, through the influence of Dudley,
was named one of the council. Now followed a series of
measures exceedingly annoying to the people. Their
schools were left to languish. To assemble for delibera-
tion on any public matter was forbidden ; but it was
graciously permitted them to vote for their town officers.
The customs of the country were not respected. The
usual form of administering an oath was that of an appeal
to heaven by the uplifted hand ; the form now prescribed
was that of laying the hand on the Bible, which the Pu-
ritans thought idolatrous, — a relic of popery. Exorbitant
fees were extorted ; those who held lands were told their
titles were not valid, because they were obtained under a
charter which was now declared to be forfeited ; and when
an Indian deed was presented, it was decided to be " worth
no more than the scratch of a bear's paw." No person
could leave the colony without a pass from the governor.
No magistrate nor minister — who was deemed merely a
layman — could unite persons in marriage. The Episcopal
clergyman at Boston was the only person in all New Eng-
ANDROS AT HARTFORD. 213
and authorized to perform that ceremony. Episcopacy chap.
was now fully introduced, and the people required to fur-
nish funds to build a church for its service. A tax of the 1686.
same amount was levied upon each person, poor or rich ;
this some of the towns refused to pay. John Wise, the min-
ister of Ipswich, was bold to say the tax was unjust, and
ought not to be paid. For this he was arrested. When
he spoke of his privileges as an Englishman, he was told
the only privilege he could claim was not to be sold as a
slave ; with others, he was fined heavily. When it was
said that such proceedings would affect the prosperity of
the country, it was openly avowed that " it was not for
his majesty's interest that the country should thrive."
" No man could say that any thing was his own."
Andros now demanded of Rhode Island her charter,
but as she did not send it, he went to Providence, and
breaking the seal of the colony declared its government
dissolved. He then went with an armed guard to Hart- 168^
ford, and demanded the charter of the colony of Connec-
ticut. The Assembly was in session. The members
received him with outward respect. The discussion of
the subject was protracted till evening, and when candles
were lighted, the charter was brought in and laid on the
table. As the eager Andros reached forth his hand to
seize the precious document, the lights were suddenly put
out ; when they were relighted, the charter was gone.
Captain William Wadsworth had slipped it away and hid
it in a hollow tree. Andros, foiled and in a rage, resolved,
charter or no charter, the present government should
cease, and taking the book of records of the Assembly,
he wrote at the end of the last record the word finis.
The tree in which the charter was hid stood for more than
a century and a half, and was visited as an object of his- 185&
torical interest. It was known as the Charter Oak. A
few years since it was blown down in a violent storm.
Some time before, a lady of Hartford gathered from it an
214 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
chap- acorn, which she planted. The good citizens of thai place
obtained from her the young oak, and with appropriate
1687. ceremonies planted it on the spot where stood the parent
tree.
Happily the tyranny of Andros was soon to end.
James, in his zeal to promote the introduction of the
Catholic religion, had aroused against him the entire
English people. They invited William, Prince of Orange,
the husband of Mary, the eldest daughter of James, to
take possession of the throne. After finding that his des-
potic measures and insincerity had lost him his kingdom,
James fled, and the Prince of Orange, under the title of
"William III., ascended his vacant throne.
1688. When the news of that great revolution, which estab-
^5IV* lished the constitutional rights of the English people,
reached Boston, it excited the greatest joy ; now they
could rid themselves of the tyrant. Andros imprisoned
the messenger for spreading false news. The trained
bands soon assembled in arms. The craven and guilty
governor, bewildered with fear, fled, with his servile coun-
cil, to a fort in the town. The aged Simon Bradstreet,
now more than fourscore, who was one of the original emi-
grants, and had been a magistrate, was urged to assume
the office of governor.
A declaration, said to have been written by Cotton
Mather, was published, maintaining the rights of the peo-
ple, in which they commit the enterprise to " Him who
hears the cry of the oppressed." Andros, in the mean
time, made an effort to escape ; but he and Dudley, with
the troublesome Randolph, were speedily lodged in jail.
Many were clamorous for their punishment, but generous
forbearance prevailed, and they were sent to England for
trial.
Connecticut, paying little respect to the " Finis " of
Andros, now brought forth her charter from its hidden
place, and resumed her former government. Plymouth
THE MEN OF INFLUENCE. 215
resumed the constitution framed on board the May- chap
Flower, and Khode Island her charter. The people of _
Massachusetts voted almost unanimously to resume theirs, 1688
but a moderate party, consisting of the former magistrates,
and some of the principal inhabitants, chose rather to
defer it for the present ; as they hoped to obtain one
from William, more in accordance with their own views.
The patriarchs who laid the foundation of the New
England colonies had nearly all passed away ; their places
were filled by those who had not experienced the trials of
their fathers, but had learned of them by tradition. The
Puritans lived in serious times — times that made rugged
Christians as well as rugged soldiers. They may have
lacked the gentler graces that adorn those living almost
vwo centuries later, and enjoying greater privileges, when
the combined influence of Christianity, science, and refine-
ment have produced a more perfect effect. They consci-
entiously filled their sphere of duty in the age in which
they lived, and we honor their memories.
The influence of their ministers was the influence of
mind upon mind, enhanced by that implicit trust reposed
in moral worth. They were peculiarly the educated class ;
the people looked up to them as their spiritual instructors.
They were the friends of education, and wished to elevate
the children of their flocks by cultivating their minds,
and training them for usefulness in the world ; — what
higher position for his children could the Puritan desire ?
In process of time, New England became more inviting
to men of education belonging to the professions of law
and medicine. In some respects, the great influence of
the ministers gradually diminished, not because of dere-
liction of duty on their part, but because, in temporal
affairs, especially, the management passed, by degrees,
into the hands of other men of influence.
CHAPTER XVIII.
COMMOTION IN NEW YORK.— WITCHCRAFT IN MASSACHUSETTS.
Leisler acting Governor of New York. — The Old Council refuses to yield. —
Captain Ingoldsby. — Sloughter Governor. — Bitterness of Parties. — Trial
and Execution of Leisler and Milbourne. — Death of Sloughter. — Fletcher
Governor ; he goes to Connecticut. — Yale College. — The Triumph of a
Free Press. — Witchcraft ; belief in. — Cotton Mather. — The Goodwin
Children. — Various Persons accused at Salem. — Special Court. — Parris
as Accuser, and Stoughton as Judge. — Minister Burroughs. — Calefa
Pamphlet. — Revulsion in Public Sentiment. — Mather's stand in favor
of Inoculation.
chap. Difficulties with royal governors were by no means con-
' fined to New England. The people of New York were
1690. a^so m commotion, though not so much united, as the
Dutch had not yet cordially associated in feeling with the
English.
James had appointed a Catholic receiver of customs ;
this annoyed the Protestants, and Nicholson the governor
1689. was exceedingly unpopular. The military companies went
jne in a body to Jacob Leisler, a respectable and generous-
hearted merchant, and their senior captain, and urged
him to take possession of the fort and to assume the man-
agement of affairs. He consented. Leisler, a Presbyterian
and a Dutchman, was an enthusiastic admirer of the
Prince of Orange. The fort and public money were taken,
and the companies pledged themselves to hold the fort
" for the present Protestant power that rules in England."
Leisler was to act as commander-in-chief until orders
came from King William, to whom a letter was sent giv-
LEISLER ACTING GOVERNOR. 217
ing an account of the seizure of the fort and also of the chap
money, which was to be expended in building another at
the lower part of the island, to defend the harbor. 1689.
As a large majority of the people were in favor of
Leisler and of the proceedings of the militia, Nicholson,
the governor, thought best to carry his complaints to
England. The members of his council, claiming to be
the true rulers of the province, went to Albany, and de- Aug,
nounced Leisler as a " rebel."
He appointed Milbourne, his son-in-law, secretary.
Afterward the people at Albany, alarmed on account of
an expected attack from Canada, asked aid from New
York ; Milbourne was promptly sent with a body of men
to their assistance. But the members of the old council
refused to acknowledge his authority, or to give him the
command of the fort. To avoid bloodshed he returned,
eaving them to fight the French as they could. In their
extremity, the Albanians obtained assistance from Con-
necticut. Presently came a. royal letter, directed to Dec.
" such as for the time being administer affairs/' It con-
tained a commission for Nicholson as governor. As the
latter was on his way to England, Leisler injudiciously
proclaimed himself governor by virtue of the letter, and
still more imprudently ordered the members of the refrac-
tory council at Albany to be arrested. Meantime an As-
sembly was called to provide for the wants of the province.
The letter sent to the king remained unanswered, but
suddenly an English ship came into the harbor, having on 1691.
board a Captain Ingoldsby, and a company of soldiers Jan«
sent by Colonel Henry Sloughter, who had been appointed
governor. Encouraged by the party opposed to Leisler,
Ingoldsby demanded the surrender of the fort. He was
asked his authority ; as he had none to show, the fort
was not given up. Six weeks elapsed before Sloughter
made his appearance ; meanwhile, a collision took place
between the soldiers and some of the people, and blood
218 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
xvm was sne^- ^ke bitterest party spirit prevailed ; the ene-
. inies of Leisler resolved on revenge ; and when he came
1691 forward to resign his trust to the regularly appointed gov-
ernor, he was arrested, and with Milbourne taken to prison.
19 The charge against them was the convenient one of trea-
son ; their enemies knew that they were as loyal as
themselves, but it answered their purpose. Immediately
a special court was called to try the prisoners. They de-
nied the right of a court thus constituted to try them,
and refused to plead, but appealed to the king. They
were, however, condemned, and sentenced to death by the
degenerate Dudley, who, driven away by the indignant
people of Massachusetts, now appeared as Chief Justice
of New York.
Sloughter was unwilling to order their execution, and
he determined to leave the matter to the king. But thdr
blood, and it alone, could satisfy the intense hatred of
their enemies. To accomplish their end they took advan-
tage of one of the numerous failings of the governor.
They gave him a dinner-party ; when overcome by a free
indulgence in wine, they induced him to sign the death-
warrant of the unfortunate men. About daylight the
next morning, lest Sloughter should recover from his stu-
mor and recall the warrant, Leisler and Milbourne were
hurried from their weeping families to the gallows. It
was whispered abroad, and although the rain poured in
torrents, the sympathizing people hastened in multitudes
May to the place of execution. Said Milbourne, when he saw
in the crowd one of their enemies, " Robert Livingston,
I will implead thee for this at the bar of God." The last
words of Leisler were : " Weep not for us, who are depart-
ing to our God." Said Milbourne, " I die for the king
and queen, and for the Protestant religion ; Father, into
thy hands I commend my spirit." When the execution
was over, the people rushed forward to obtain some me-
morial of their friends — a lock of hair, or a piece of their
BENJAMIN FLETCHER AT HARTFORD. 219
clothing. This judicial murder increased the bitttvness ^^
of party animosity. The friends of the victims were the
advocates of popular rights, in opposition to the royalists. 16'J 1.
All that could be was done in time to remedy the wrong.
Their estates were restored to their families, and Parlia-
ment reversed the attainder under the charge of treason.
Dudley even opposed this act of justice. Three months
after this tragedy, delirium tremens ended the life of the
weak and dissolute Sloughter. It was about this time
that the "ancient Dutch usages" gave place to the com-
plete introduction of English laws.
A year had elapsed, when Benjamin Fletcher came as 1692.
successor to Sloughter. He was a military officer, arbi-
trary and avaricious. His sympathies were with the ene-
mies of Leisler. As New York was on the frontiers of 189&
Canada, all the colonies were expected to contribute to
her defence. To make this more effective, an effort was
made to put the militia of New Jersey and Connecticut,
as well as that of New York, under the command of
Fletcher. Accordingly, he went into Connecticut to en-
force his authority. To give the command of their militia
to the governor of another colony, was to sacrifice the
rights of the people under the charter. The Assembly
was in session at Hartford, and the militia engaged in
training when Fletcher arrived. He had boasted that he
" would not set foot out of the colony until he was obeyed."
When the militia were drawn up, he ordered his secretary
to read in their hearing his commission. When he com-
menced to read, the drummers began to beat. " Silence,"
commanded Fletcher. For a moment there was silence,
and the reading was renewed. " Drum ! drum ! " ordered
Wadsworth, the same who, some years before, hid the
charter. Fletcher once more ordered silence. The sturdy
captain, stepping up to him, significantly remarked, " If
I am interrupted again I will make daylight shine through
you." Fletcher thought it best to overlook the insult,
220 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
xvm an(^ re^urn to New York, without accomplishing his
threat.
1693. More than half a century before, the Kev. John
Davenport proposed to found a college in the colony of
Connecticut, but as Harvard would be affected by the
establishment of a similar institution, the project was
postponed. Now, the ministers of the colony met at
Branford, where each one laid upon the table his gift of
books, accompanied by the declaration, " I give these
books for the founding a college in this colony." Forty
volumes were thus contributed. How little did these good
men, as they made their humble offerings, anticipate the
importance and influence of the college of which they
1701. thus laid the foundation.
The following year the General Court granted a char-
ter. The professed object of the college was to promote
theological studies in particular, but afterward so modified
as to admit of " instructing youth in the arts and sci-
ences, who may be fitted for public employments, both in
church and civil state." For sixteen years, its sessions
were held at different places ; then it was permanently
located at New Haven. A native of the town, Elihu
Yale, who had acquired wealth in the East Indies, became
its benefactor, and in return he has been immortalized in
its name.
For forty years succeeding the rule of Fletcher the
annals of New York are comparatively barren of incident ;
during that time the province enjoyed the doubtful privi-
lege of having ten governors, nearly all of whom took
special care of their own interests and those of their
friends. The last of this number was the " violent and
mercenary " William Cosby, who complained to the Board
of Trade that he could not manage the "delegates" to
the Assembly ; — " the example of Boston people " had so
much infected them.
The city of New York, at this time, contained nearly
THE LIBERTY OF THE PRESS. 221
nine thousand inhabitants. The Weekly Journal, a paper chap.
recently established by John Peter Zenger, contained
articles condemning the arbitrary acts of the governor 1732.
and Assembly, in imposing illegal taxes. This was the
first time in the colonies the newspapers had dared to
criticize political measures. This new enemy of arbitrary
power must be crushed. Governor Cosby, with the appro-
bation of the council, ordered the paper to be burned by
the sheriff, imprisoned the editor, and prosecuted him for
libel. Zenger employed as counsel two lawyers, and they
denied the authority of the court, because of the illegal
appointment of the Chief Justice, Delancy, by Cosby,
without the consent of the Council. For presenting this
objection their names were promptly struck from the roll
of practitioners. This high-handed measure intimidated
the other lawyers, and deterred them from acting as coun-
sel £or the fearless editor. 1783.
On the day of trial a venerable man, a stranger to
nearly all present, took his seat at the bar. The trial
commenced, and much to the surprise of the court, the
stranger announced himself as counsel for the defendant.
It was Andrew Hamilton, the famous Quaker lawyer of
Philadelphia, and speaker of the Assembly of Pennsyl-
vania. Hamilton proposed to prove the truth of the
alleged libel, but Delancy, the judge, in accordance with
English precedents, refused to admit the plea. Then
Hamilton with great force appealed to the personal
knowledge of the jury ; — the statements in the paper
were notoriously true. He showed that the cause was not
limited to this editor alone ; a principle was involved,
that affected the liberty of speech and a free press through-
out the colonies.
In spite of the charge of the judge to the contrary,
the jury brought in a verdict of acquittal, which was
received with rapturous shouts by the people. Thus, for
the first time, had the press assumed to discuss, and even
1733.
222 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
xvfn condemn political measures, and its liberty to do so was
amply vindicated. This was thirty- seven years before the
same principle was established in England by the decision
in the trial for libel brought against the publisher of the
famous letters of Junius.
1684. We have now to relate the story of that sad delusion
so identified with the early history of the quiet and re-
spectable town of Salem, in Massachusetts. The belief
in witchcraft appears to have been almost universal in
the age of which we write. As Christians were in cove-
nant with God, so, it was believed, witches were in cove-
nant with the devil ; that he gave them power to torment
those whom they hated, by pinching them, pricking them
with invisible pins, pulling their hair, causing their cattle
and chickens to die, upsetting their carts, and by many
other annoyances, equally undignified and disagreeable.
As Christians had a sacrament or communion, witches
had a communion, also, at which the devil himself offici-
ated in the form of a " small black man." He had a book
in which his disciples signed their names, after which they
renounced their Christian baptism, and were rebaptized,
or " dipped " by himself. To their places of meeting the
witches usually rode through the air on broomsticks.
This delusion, absurd as it seems to us, was in that
age believed by learned and good men, such as Sir Matthew
Hale, Lord Chief Justice of England ; Richard Baxter,
author of the "Saints' Rest;." and Dr. Isaac Watts,
whose devotional " Psalms and Hymns " are so familiar
to the religious world. For this supposed crime many
had, at different times, been executed in Sweden, Eng-
land, France, and other countries of Europe. Before the
excitement at Salem, a few cases in the colony of Massa-
chusetts had been punished with death.
As the Bible made mention of witches and sorcerers, —
to disbelieve in their existence was counted infidelity.
To disprove such infidelity, Increase Mather, a celebrated
COTTON MATHER. 223
clergyman of New England, published an account of the chap.
cases that had occurred there, and also a description of
the manner in which the bewitched persons were afflicted. 1684.
After this publication, the first case that excited general
interest was that of a girl named Goodwin. She had ac-
cused the daughter of an Irish washerwoman of stealing
some article of clothing. The enraged mother disproved
the charge, and in addition reproved the false accuser se-
verely. Soon after, this girl became strangely affected ; 1688-
her younger brother and sister imitated her " contortions
and twistings." These children were sometimes dumb,
then deaf, then blind ; at one time they would bark like
dogs, at another mew like cats. A physician was called
in, who gravely decided that they were bewitched, as they
had many of the symptoms described in Mather's book.
The ministers became deeply interested in the subject,
and five of them held a day of fasting and prayer at the
house of the Goodwins, when lo ! the youngest child, a
boy of five years of age, was delivered ! As the children
asserted that they were bewitched by the Irish washer-
woman, she was arrested. The poor creature was fright-
ened out of her senses, if she had any, for many thought
she was " crazed in her intellectuals." She was, how-
ever, tried, convicted and hanged.
There was at this time at Boston a young clergyman,
an indefatigable student, remarkable for his memory and
for the immense amount of verbal knowledge he possessed ;
he was withal somewhat Vain and credulous, and exceed-
ingly fond of the marvellous ; no theory seems to have
been more deeply rooted in his mind than a belief in witch-
craft. Such was Cotton Mather, son of Increase Mather.
He became deeply interested in the case of the Goodwin
children, and began to study the subject with renewed
zeal ; to do so the more perfectly, he took the girl to his
home. She was cunning, and soon discovered the weak
points of his character. She told him he was under a
224 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
chap, special protection ; that devils, though they tried hard,
, could not enter his study ; that they could not strike
1688. him ; the blows were warded off by an invisible, friendly
hand. When he prayed, or read the Bible, she would be
thrown into convulsions ; while at the same time, she
read with zest Popish or Quaker books, or the Book of
Common Prayer. Mather uttered prayers in a variety
of languages to ascertain if these wicked spirits were
learned. He discovered that they were skilled in Latin,
Greek, and Hebrew, but deficient in some Indian tongues.
He sincerely believed all this, and wrote a book, " a story
all made up of wonders," to prove the truth of witch-
craft ; and gave out that, hereafter, if any one should
deny its existence, he should consider it a personal insult.
Mather's book was republished in London, with an ap-
proving preface written by Richard Baxter. This book
had its influence upon the minds of the people, and pre-
pared the way for the sad scenes which followed.
About four years after the cases just mentioned, two
young girls, one the niece and the other the daughter of
Samuel Parris, the minister at Salem village, now Dan-
vers, began to exhibit the usual signs of being bewitched.
They seem to have done this at first merely for mischief,
as they accused no one until compelled.
16&2. Between Parris and some of the members of his con-
gregation there existed much ill-feeling. Now was the
time to be revenged ! And this " beginner and procurer
of the sore affliction to Salem* village and country," in-
sisted that his niece should tell who it was that bewitched
her, for in spite of all the efforts to " deliver " them, the
children continued to practise their pranks. The niece at
length accused Rebecca Nurse, a woman of exemplary and
Christian life ; but one with whom Parris was at variance.
At his instigation she was hurried off to jail. The next
Sabbath he announced as his text these words : " Have I
not chosen you twelve, and one of you is a devil ? " Imme-
CoMrorn TtlaJ&W*
TRIAL OF WITCHES AT SALEM. , 225
diately Sarah Cloyce, a sister of the accused, arose and left S5£&
the church, — in those days, no small offence. She too was
accused and sent to prison. The excitement spread, and 1692
in a few weeks nearly a, hundred were accused and re-
manded for trial.
After the people had driven off Andros, Bradstreet
had still continued to act as governor. A new charter 1691,
was given, under which the governor was to be appointed
by the crown. Sir William Phipps, a native of New
England, "an illiterate man, of violent temper, with
more of energy than ability," was the first governor, and
William Stoughton the deputy-governor. These both
obtained their offices through the influence of Increase
Mather, who was then in England, acting as agent for the
colony. Stoughton had been the friend of Andros, and a
member of his council, and, like Dudley, was looked upon
by the people as their enemy. Of a proud and unforgiv-
ing temper, devoid of humane feelings, he was self-willed
and selfish. The people in a recent election had slighted
him ; they scarcely gave him a vote for the office of
judge ; this deeply wounded his pride. In his opinions,
as to spirits and witches, he was an implicit follower of
Cotton Mather, of whose church he was a member.
The new governor, bringing with him the new charter,
arrived at Boston on the fourteenth of May. The General 1692.
Court alone had authority to appoint Special Courts ; but ~y
the governor's first official act was to appoint one to try
the witches confined in prison at Salem. The triumph
of Mather was complete ; he rejoiced that the warfare
with the spirits of darkness was now to be carried on vig-
orously, and he " prayed for a good issue."
The illegal court met, and Parris acted as prosecutor,
producing some witnesses and keeping back others. The
prisoners were made to stand with their arms extended,
lest they should torment their victims. The glance of the
witch's eye was terrible to the " afflicted ; " for its evil
226 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
SF,££ influence there was but one remedy : the touch of the
xvin. J '
accused could alone remove the charm. Abigail Williams,
16l>2, the niece of Parris, was told to touch one of the prisoners ;
she made the attempt, but desisted, screaming out, " My
fingers, they burn, they burn ! " She was an adept in
testifying ; she had been asked to sign the devil's book by
the spectre of one of the accused women, and she had
also been permitted to see a witch's sacrament. All this
was accepted by the court as true and proper evidence.
If a witness contradicted himself, it was explained by as-
suming that the evil spirit had imposed upon his brain
A farmer had a servant, who suddenly became bewitched ;
his master whipped him, and thus exorcised the devil,
and had the rashness to say that he could cure any of
" the afflicted " by the same process. For this he soon
found himself and wife in prison. Remarks made by the
prisoners were often construed to their disadvantage.
George Burroughs, once a minister at Salem, and of whom
it is said Parris was envious, had expressed his disbelief in
witchcraft, and pronounced the whole affair a delusion.
For this he was arrested as a wizard. On his trial the
witnesses pretended to be dumb. " Why," asked the
stern Stoughton of the prisoner, " are these witnesses
dumb ? " Burroughs believed they were perjuring them-
selves, and promptly answered, " The devil is in them, I
suppose." " Ah ! ah ! " said the exulting judge ; "how
is it that he is so loath to have any testimony borne against
you ? " This decided the case ; Burroughs was condemned.
From the scaffold he made an address to the people, and
put his enemies to shame. He did what it was believed
no witch could do ; he repeated the Lord's Prayer dis-
tinctly and perfectly. The crowd was strongly impressed
in his favor ; many believed him innocent, and many
were moved even to tears, and some seemed disposed to
rescue him ; but Cotton Mather appeared on horseback,
and harangued the crowd, maintaining that Burroughs
REVULSION IN PUBLIC OPINION. 227
was not a true minister, that he had not been ordained, CHAP.
. XMII.
that the fair show he made was no proof of his innocence,
for Satan himself sometimes appeared as an angel of light. 1692.
Many of the accused confessed they were witches, and
by that means purchased their lives : and some, to make
their own safety doubly sure, accused others : thus the
delusion continued. Then, again, others who had con-
fessed, repented that they had acknowledged themselves to
be what they were not, denied their confession, and died
with the rest. The accusations were at first made against
those in the humbler walks of life ; now others were ac-
cused. Hale, the minister at Beverly, was a believer in
witchcraft, till his own wife was accused ; then he was
convinced it was all a delusion.
Some months elapsed before the General Court held
its regular session ; in the mean time twenty persons had
fallen victims, and fifty more were in prison with the same
fate hanging over them. Now a great revulsion took
place in public opinion. This was brought about by a
citizen of Boston, Robert Calef, who wrote a pamphlet,
first circulated in manuscript. He exposed the manner
in which the trials had been conducted, as well as proved
the absurdity of witchcraft itself. Cotton Mather, in his
reply, sneered at Calef as " a weaver who pretended to
be a merchant." Calef, not intimidated by this abuse,
continued to write with great effect, and presently the
book was published in London. Increase Mathei, the
President of Harvard College, to avenge his son, had the
" weaver's " book publicly burned in the college yard.
In the first case brought before the court, the jury
promptly brought in a verdict of not guilty. When news
came to Salem of the reprieve of those under sentence,
the fanatical Stoughton, in a rage, left the bench, ex-
claiming, " Who it is that obstructs the course of justice
I know not ; the Lord have mercy on the country/'
Not long after, the indignant inhabitants of Salem 1693.
228 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN" PEOPLE.
CHAP- drove Parris from their village. Many of those who had
. participated in the delusion, and given their influence in
1693. favor of extreme measures, deeply repented and publicly
asked forgiveness of their fellow-citizens. But Cotton
Mather expressed no regret for the part he had taken, or
the influence he exerted in increasing the delusion ; his
vanity never would admit that he could possibly have
been in error. Instead of being humbled on account of
the sorrows he had brought upon innocent persons, he la-
bored to convince the world that, after all, he had not
been so very active in promoting the delusion. Stoughton
passed the remainder of his days the same cold, proud,
and heartless man ; nor did he ever manifest the least
sorrow, that on such trifling and contradictory evidence,
he had sentenced to death some of the best of men and
women.
It is a pleasure to record that, thirty years after this
melancholy delusion, Cotton Mather with fearless energy
advocated the use of inoculation for the prevention of
1721. small-pox. He had learned that it was successful in Tur-
key, in arresting or modifying that terrible disease, and
he persuaded Dr. Boylston to make the experiment. Ma-
ther stood firm, amid the clamors of the ignorant mob, who
even threw a lighted grenade filled with combustibles into
his house, and paraded the streets of Boston, with halters
in their hands, threatening to hang the inoculators. The
majority of the physicians opposed inoculation on theo-
logical grounds, contending, " it was presumptuous for
men to inflict disease on man, that being the prerogative
of the Most High." " It was denounced as an infusion of
malignity into the blood ; a species of poisoning ; an at-
tempt to thwart God, who had sent the small-pox as a
punishment for sins, and whose vengeance would thus be
only provoked the more." Nearly all the ministers were
in favor of the system, and they replied with arguments
drawn from medical science. An embittered war of pam-
INOCULATION" IN BOSTON. 229
phlets ensued. The town authorities took decided ground chap
against the innovation, while the General Court passed \
a bill prohibiting the practice, but the Council wisely 1721-
refused to give it their sanction. At length science and
common sense prevailed, and the inoculists completely
triumphed.
Much has been said 'and written, more or less justly,
in condemnation of these strange proceedings ; however,
from this time forth the belief in witchcraft began to
wane in New England, and the civil authorities noticed
it no more. In justice to the misguided actors' in this
sad tragedy it ought to be remembered that for half a
century afterward, the law of the mother country, as it
always had done, still made witchcraft a capital crime ;
and within thirty years after these terrible scenes in
Salem, persons accused of witchcraft were condemned
and put to death, both in England and in Scotland ; in
the former a mother and her daughter — nine years old — 1716.
perished together on the same scaffold ; in the latter, six
years afterward, an old woman was burned as a witch ;
and even Blackstone, when writing on the laws of England
in the latter half of the eighteenth century, deems witch-
craft a crime.
No one of these persons at Salem suffered by that
barbarous form of execution — burning; nor were they
put to the rack and torture. What a tribute it is to the
integrity of these twenty victims that they refused to
stain their souls with the crime of falsehood, " and went
to the gallows rather than soil their consciences by the lie .
of confession." ' For if they confessed themselves to be
witches, "and promised blameless lives for the future,
they were uniformly pardoned."
The seven magistrates composing this illegal court held
at Salem were evidently sincere in the performance of
i Palfrey's History of New England Vol. IV., p. 133.
230 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
chap, their official duties, yet the sternness of Stoughton, the
XVIII . . .
1 chief judge, seems to savor of fanaticism, as shown in his
1716- permitting the trials to be hurried through without
proper deliberation ; had they been postponed to the
regular meeting of the General Court, some months dis-
tant, the issue, no doubt, would have been far different.
The magistrates in Plymouth Colony were more enlight-
ened, for when, many years previous to this time, two
1660. prosecutions for witchcraft having been brought before
them, the accused were declared not guilty.
Notwithstanding this mistaken zeal in punishing im-
aginary crime, it is but justice to notice that the penal
laws enacted by the Puritans of New England were in
their humane characteristics far in advance of those of
the same period in Europe, especially in England, with
which the comparison may be more properly made. Even
down to 1819 there were in England two hundred and
twenty-three offenses punishable with death, while in the
From very first formation of the government in the colonies of
t Massachusetts, Connecticut, and New Haven, the crimes
1646 punished capitally were limited to seventeen, and some of
these with express reservations, " leaving the exaction of
the supreme penalty to the discretion of the court." " Lar-
ceny above the value of twelve pence was a capital crime
in England ;" also, " to kill a deer in the king's forest, or
to export sheep from the kingdom." It is but just to
compare the laws enacted in these colonies with the con-
temporary ones in the Motherland, and not with those of
the last quarter of the nineteenth century. The marvel is
that, coming from a country where such barbarous laws
were in force, the colonists had the moral power to
rise above the prejudices and brutalities of the age, and
frame penal laws so much more humane. It may serve
as an explanation that the Puritans of New England fell
back upon the code of Moses as a model, deeming that to
be an embodiment of the law of God for His people ;
LAND HOLDERS. 231
sometimes forgetting, however, that these laws did not chap.
. XVIII
fully apply in the seventeenth century of the Christian ;
era.
In the recognition of human rights these colonial law-
givers were far in advance of the contemporary legislators
of Europe. With the former it was a cardinal principle
to give every citizen a chance to improve his temporal
affairs by industry and economy, and to educate his
children. Their settlements, in accordance with the law,
were originally arranged so that each member of the
community had an interest in its affairs by his becoming
a landholder, and a participant in the councils of the Town
Meetings, and indirectly in those of the colony at large,
through representatives elected by the aid of his vote. The
farms were so laid out that their length greatly exceeded
their breadth, and each farmer could thus have his house
near a neighbor ; usually their dwellings were built on a
single street, the farms running back, while the church
and school-house were so located as to be accessible to all.
This plan of laying out settlements, though at first en-
joined by the civil authorities, was afterward, because of
its utility, adopted in numerous instances by the people
themselves. This system accounts for the greater num-
ber of villages in the colonies of New England in propor-
tion to their extent of territory than are in the Middle,
and still more in the Southern, colonies.
Another division, the township or town as it was
usually termed, was a district marked off of convenient
size, to enable the male inhabitants to attend the town
meetings, which were held at a point known as the " Cen-
tre," in which meetings measures pertaining to the well-
being of the people were discussed and voted upon —
such as related to schools, the highways, the district taxes,
etc. Under these conditions all the residents became in-
terested in the local affairs of the community. The
transition was natural and easy for citizens thus trained
232 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
chap, to manifest a similar interest in the general prosperity of
1 the colony, and its relations with the Home Government.
In consequence of this political schooling, we find that
on the great questions which came up a hundred years
later, these " citizens of the common folk" were remark-
ably well informed, and the sentiments of the most in-
telligent patriots of that period found in their minds a
ready response. For the times, this kind of information
was therefore extensively diffused by the intercourse be-
tween citizens, as well as by means of printing ; for in
the earlier days that medium was often used by leading
minds to express their views upon current topics of
interest. The printing-press was specially utilized in the
issue of short publications in the form of pamphlets in
discussing questions of local interest ; among these theol-
ogy held a prominent place. These wars of pamphlets
were terrible of their kind. The mass of the people were
not then far enough advanced in literary attainments to
sustain newspapers, as they were known even a century
later, but on religious topics and on political subjects they
were wide awake. These short publications, so often
controversial, served their purpose, and in their way in-
fluenced the most enlightened minds, and they in turn
those with whom they came in personal contact.
The system of landholding ' and town meetings culti-
vated the self-respect of every citizen, and dignitied the
most humble with the consciousness that he was a mem-
ber of the community, and in the direction of its affairs
the influence he might have he was at liberty to exercise.
This was the outgrowth of the democratic principle
which found its expression for the first time on this side
of the world in the cabin of the May- Flower.* The sys-
tem of dividing counties into towns or townships pre-
vailed, also, in the other colonies that afterward became
> History, p. 105. * History, p. 99.
EFFECT OF THE EEVOLUTION OF 1688. 233
free states, and in them, likewise, the minor local affairs chap.
. XVIII
were managed by the citizens in township meetings ; but .
not to the same extent they were in New England, be-
cause the people were -not so homogeneous, there being
a large proportion that were not of Anglo-Saxon descent,
neither were they so harmonious nor so far advanced in
their political views. In these colonies and states, how-
ever, the people elected their own civil officers, while in
the southern they were nearly all appointed by the Gov
ernors, Legislatures, or County Courts. This latter cus-
tom, together with the restrictions on suffrage, greatly
diminished the independence of the individual ; for, in-
stead of the power being lodged with the people them-
selves, it was exercised by a self-constituted oligarchy.
During the three-quarters of a century immediately
succeeding the Great Revolution in England the principles From
— religious and political — which the colonists had adopted 1^88
as their rule of conduct, exerted a free and benign influ- 1763.
ence; consequently their progress, under the circum-
stances, was very great. This revolution secured so much
for the religious liberties of the English people, that after-
ward when any emigrated to the colonies, it was not on
account of religious disabilities, but to better their mate-
rial interests. Among those who came during this period
were companies of Protestants, such as the Presbyterians '
from Scotland, the Scotch-Irish from the north of Ireland,
Huguenots from France, and Lutherans from Germany.
These immigrants exerted a healthy influence on the
country, in promoting its material prosperity by their in-
dustry and economy, and in coalescing with the colonists
in their educational and religious matters. They blended
easily with the people, and became thoroughly assimi-
lated in less than two generations.
As New England and Virginia were populous and
' History, 163, 172, 175, 179, 193.
234 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
chap, important colonies, they became centers of influences that
XVIII .
" produced certain results during the six generations ' fol-
From lowing the witchcraft excitement in the one, and the
arKl attempt under Bacon2 to vindicate the rights of the peo-
1684 p}e jn the 0ther.
to l
1860. In the Virginia colony the distribution of the territory
was radically different from that in New England. In
the former were large undivided counties, instead of the
districts of convenient size in the latter in order to main-
tain schools and churches, thus making compact settle-
ments of land-owners independent and self-respecting.
Lands in Virginia were frequently given by the crown
to court favorites 3 in immense grants, and on these were
to be located tenants ; the effect upon these tenants was
not to cherish independence of character, but the reverse.
In consequence of this system of royal grants farms of
moderate size became the exceptions ; the tendency was
for the rich to own lands in very large estates, thus widely
separating the homes of the inhabitants. The poor or
small farmers gradually withdrew from the fertile lands
of the main settlements to districts more sterile, and being
deprived of the appropriate means to educate their chil-
dren, they made little improvement from generation to
generation. None but landholders were permitted to
vote, and, as far as known, none but that class were
elected legislators, thus laying the foundation for a landed
aristocracy modeled after that of England ; to this class
was added another element of aggrandizement — the sys-
tem of slavery. From this time forward there was more
importance attached to wealth in landed estates and
slaves than in any other form. As '"only freeholders
could vote for members of the house of burgesses," so it
came to pass, in process of time, that none but slave-
owners were elected to office.
» History, pp. 858-860. » History, pp. 139-144. » History, pp. 141-143.
INFLUENCE OF SLAVERY. 235
In respect to education the spirit of Berkeley seemed chap.
to brood over successive Virginia legislatures ; during one 1
hundred and ninety years after his time neither as a ^ESJP
colony nor as a state did they establish schools where to
all the children could be educated, while it required 1866-
more than half a century to prepare the aristocracy for
the innovation of a printing-press. The " poor whites"
in Virginia never recovered from the blow they received
at the failure of their uprising under Bacon ; twenty of
their most progressive and patriotic men perished on the
scaffold by order of the inhuman Berkeley, and from that
time forward they made little progress.1 This influence
extended gradually south from Virginia to the Carolinas
and Georgia, where the same system prevailed of large
tracts of the best lands being cultivated by slaves, and
with the usual result of driving the " poor whites" back
to the unfertile districts. In these colonies, and after-
ward when states, no schools were established to educate
all the children.
Meanwhile the influence of slavery grew stronger and
stronger ; manual labor for a white man became a badge
of degradation, which attached itself to him and to his
children. There is no sadder story in our history than is
revealed in the inner life of the "poor whites" of the
South during these two centuries. They made but little
progress. They cultivated sterile fields merely to eke out
a scanty subsistence ; as to manufactures, they were only
by hand, and of the crudest kind, to supply their domes-
tie wants ; in the main, the great mass making little ad-
vance in education or in mental improvement. This may
account for the fact that so limited a number of that class
rose above their condition in times of great trial, as in the
days of the Revolution, when, comparatively, very few of
them displayed talents of a high order. The most prorni-
• Lodge's History of the Colonies ; Virginia, p. 21, and onward
236 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
chap, nent of these was Daniel Morgan.1 When their youth
; came to manhood they were cramped by lack of education.
From Another effectual cause of hindering the political prog-
to ress of the mechanic or farmer of limited means, was the
1861- manner in which civil affairs were conducted. In the
large counties of these colonies and states, the Court-IIouse
was located near the center, and to meet at " The Court"
became the practice of the aristocracy, there to see their
compeers from all parts of the county : this custom passed
over from colonial times to be more fully carried out in
the States. In these meetings they discussed measures in
relation to the interests of the county as well as general
politics. The nominal citizen not owning land had no vote,
and therefore he took little or no interest in these county
gatherings, and the distinction became still more clear, so
that he who owned a small farm and no slaves, felt ill at
ease in an assembly where mere wealth in land and slaves
exerted so much influence. It was the landed aristocracy
who held office under colonial governors, and who were
their accepted advisers ; at the South, from this class alone
came the enlightened patriots of the Revolution ; none
scarcely from the ranks of manual labor or small farmers.
The intercourse between the rich land- and slave-owners
and their poorer neighbors was characterized by an obse-
quiousness on the part of the latter totally unknown in
the northern colonies ; in them the value of knowledge
and moral excellence was more clearly estimated, while
that of mere wealth was reckoned only secondary in the
social position of the individual.
Of the middle colonies during this period the most
advanced in literary culture was Pennsylvania. Though
she had no public schools in a wide sense, yet under the
influence of the Friends her private ones, were the best of
their kind. Then came a large immigration of Germans*
1 History, p. 380; also, Serjeant Jasper, p. 406. 2 History, pp. 170-174.
NEWSPAPERS. 237
who became famous as farmers, but unfortunately not so chap.
XVIII
famous for the interest they took in education. The con- [
trast between them in this respect and the Friends and 171°-
Presbyterians1 was very striking. In New Jersey the
schools were private, none were public ; but the Presby-
terian element l moulded the minds of the youth, by in-
stilling the truths of the Bible as they deemed them sum-
marized in their catechism ; through their influence
Princeton college was founded. The same in respect to
private schools may be said of the Dutch of New York.
In this colony, however, occurred the first instance in the
English-speaking world of a trial in court in which the
freedom a of the press was fully established, and has re-
mained so from that day to this.
When newspapers were first printed in the seventeenth
century the arbitrary colonial governments suppressed
them without hesitation if they contained anything
these gentlemen did not relish. The first newspaper pub-
lished in the colonies — " The Public Occurrences'' — was
at Boston ; it was simply a printed narrative of events, in- 1690.
stead of the usual one in manuscript, giving the current
news. The only copy of this paper known to exist is in
the Colonial State Paper Office in London.3 It was con-
fiscated no doubt. Fourteen years afterward the first
weekly newspaper in the colonies was established also
in Boston — "The News-Letter" — by Benjamin Harris. 1704.
" The News-Letter" lived seventy years.
"The American Weekly Mercury" was founded in 1719.
Philadelphia, and ten years later in the same city Benja-
min Franklin published the first number of the " Penn- 1729.
sylvania Gazette ;" two years later " The South Carolina
Gazette" began its existence in Charleston, and five years
afterward " The Virginia Gazette" made its appearance 1736.
at Williamsburg.
» History, pp. 236, 318. 9 History, p. 231.
* Hudson's Journalism, p. 44.
to
1763
238 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
chap. The influence was reciprocal ; as these papers gradu-
I I ally advanced in excellence, the people, meanwhile, were
becoming more and more intelligent and better qualified
to appreciate their merits. They flourished more vigor-
ously in the New England and in the three northern
middle colonies than elsewhere. In the former especially
the prevalence of common schools had made the great
mass of the people readers ; in addition the harsh climate
of that section, when compared with the more genial one
of the southern, led the people to cultivate indoor indus-
tries, and during the long and severe winters, to acquire
knowledge and mental improvement by reading. Mean-
time a marvelous change had been going on during
the French war, which assumed a decided character at
1756 its close. Now began the discussion, both by addresses
of prominent men and in the newspapers, of the political
questions involved in the policy of the Home Government,
in its endeavor to interfere with the civil rights and in-
dustries of the colonies. The whole people were intensely
roused to this phase of thought, and to the maintenance
of their rights. In this clash of opinions the press became
a still greater power, both in force and in numbers. It
became the exponent, to a certain extent, of the senti-
ments of the royalists as well as of the patriots, while the
people themselves were stirred to their inmost souls.1
The questions relating to civil and religious liberty
absorbed the thoughts of the colonists so much that we
learn only incidentally concerning their material prog-
ress, as the chroniclers of the times give us only occa-
sionally a glimpse of the domestic life of the people.
We know that the New Englanders, more than the
people of the middle or southern colonies, were com-
pelled by the barrenness of their soil and the bleakness
of their climate to labor almost incessantly in obtaining
' See History, chap. XXIV., pp. 817-334, for characteristics of the
colonists.
CROPS — ANIMALS. 239
a supply of the necessaries of life. They carefully cul- chap.
. XVIII
tivated wheat, but the sterile soil refused abundant crops ; '_
and they also devoted care to raising rye and Indian
corn. It was different in the middle and the southern
colonies : in them the soil was much more fertile, and the
climate more genial ; the crops of wheat and Indian corn
in the former were abundant, while in the latter tobacco
was the most valuable product, because of its ready sale.
This led to its extensive culture, almost to the exclusion
of the cereals — the latter were supplied by the middle
colonies : even in that early day the different sections of
the land were dependent upon one another. The rapid
sale and high price of tobacco led to the introduction
of foreign luxuries, and made the planters dependent
on England, especially for their needed manufactured
articles. On the contrary, the handicraft of the New
Englanders and the people of the middle colonies was
constantly improving, because they had no valuable pro-
duct like tobacco to send to Europe in exchange for mer-
chandise— not even to any extent for textile fabrics ;
hence they were compelled to manufacture these articles
for themselves.
In the one section the working animal most prized
was the ox, so patient and useful in cultivating the rocky
farms in little valleys and on hillsides, and the cows fur-
nishing so much food for the family, and the sheep for
the production of wool. In the middle colonies the ox
was used, but not so much as the draft-horse, in cultivat-
ing the large wheat fields ; while in Virginia the hoe was
as necessary, if not more, than the plow in cultivating
tobacco. The Virginian cherished the horse as the
noblest of animals, and imported from England the
finest for the saddle, for hunting, and for racing, mean-
while neglecting his domestic cattle.
CHAPTER XIX.
MISSIONS AND SETTLEMENTS IN NEW FRANCE.
Tte Emigrants few in number. — The Jesuits ; their zeal as Teachers and
Explorers. — Missions among the Hurons. — Ahasistari. — The Five Na-
tions, or Iroquois. — Father Jogues. — The Abenakis ; Dreuilettes. — The
Dangers of the Missions. — French Settlers at Oswego. — James Mar-
quette.— The Mississippi. — La Salle ; his Enterprise ; his Failure and
tragical End.
chap We have already given an account of the discoveries
L ' made in New France, and the settlements founded under
1634. ^ne direction of Samuel Champlain. We now intend to
trace the history of these settlements and missions, from
that period till the time when the Lilies of France were
supplanted by the Banner of St. George.
The climate offered hut few inducements to cultiva-
tors of the soil, and emigrants came but slowly ; they
established trading houses, rather than agricultural settle-
ments. To accumulate wealth their main resource was
in the peltries of the wilderness, and these could be ob-
tained only from the Indians, who roamed over the vast
regions west and north of the lakes.
A partial knowledge of the country had been obtained
from a priest, Father Le Caron, the friend and companion
of Champlain. He had, by groping through the woods,
and paddling over the waters his birch-bark canoe, pene-
trated far up the St. Lawrence, explored the south shore
of Lake Ontario, and even found his way to Lake Huron.
THE JESUITS. 241
Three years before the death of Champlain, Louis chap
• t JVIa.
XIII. gave a charter to a company, granting them the . ,
control of the valley of the St. Lawrence and all its trib- 1634.
utaries. An interest was felt for the poor savages, and it
was resolved to convert them to the religion of Rome ; —
not only convert them, but make them the allies of
France. Worldly policy had as much influence as reli-
gious zeal. It was plain, the only way to found a French
empire in the New World, was by making the native
tribes subjects, and not by transplanting Frenchmen.
The missions to the Indians were transferred to the
supervision of the Jesuits. This order of priests was
founded expressly to counteract the influence of the
Keformation under Luther. As the Reformers favored 1534.
education and the diffusion of general intelligence, so the
Jesuit became the advocate of education — provided it was
under his own control. He resolved to rule the world by
influencing its rulers ; he would govern by intellectual
power and the force of opinion, rather than by supersti-
tious fears. He endeavored to turn the principles of the
Reformation against itself. His vows enjoined upon him
perfect obedience to the will of his superior, — to go on
any mission to which he might be ordered. No clime so
deadly that he would not brave its danger ; no people so
savage that he would not attempt their conversion.
With their usual energy and zeal, the Jesuits began
to explore the wilds of New France, and to bring its
wilder inhabitants under the influence of the Catholic
faith. To the convert was offered the privileges of a
subject of France. From this sprang a social equality,
friendly relations were established, and intermarriages took
place between the traders and the Indian women.
Companies of Hurons, who dwelt on the shores of the
lake which bears their name, were on a trading expedition
to Quebec. On their return home the Jesuits Brebeuf
and Daniel accompanied them. They went up the Ot-
242 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
C\VvP' tawa *^ ^e^ came *° ^S largest western branch, thence
to its head waters, and thence across the wilderness to
1634. their villages on Georgian bay and Lake Simcoe. The faith
and zeal of these two men sustained them during their
toilsome journey of nine hundred miles, and though their
feet were lacerated and their garments torn, they rejoiced
in their sufferings. Here in a grove they built, with theii
own hands, a little chapel, in which they celebrated the
ceremonies of their church. The Eed Man came to hear
the morning and evening prayers ; though in a language
which he could not understand, they seemed to him to be
addressed to the Great Spirit, whom he himself wor-
shipped. Six missions were soon established in the villages
around these lakes and bays. Father Brebeuf spent four
hours of every morning in private prayer and self-flagel-
lations, the rest of the day in catechizing and teaching.
Sometimes he would go out into the village, and as he
passed along would ring his little bell and thus invite the
grave warriors to a conference, on the mysteries of his
religion. Thus he labored for fifteen years.
These teachings had an influence on the susceptible
heart of the great Huron chief Ahasistari. He professed
himself a convert and was baptized. Often as he escaped
uninjured from the perils of battle, he thought some pow-
erful spirit watched over him, and now he believed that
the God whom the white man worshipped was that guar-
dian spirit. In the first flush of his zeal he exclaimed :
" Let us strive to make all men Christians."
Thousands of the sons and daughters of the forest
listened to instruction, and the story of their willingness
to hear, when told in France, excited a new interest. The
Mng and queen and nobles vied with each other in mani-
festing their regard by giving encouragement and aid to
the missionaries, and by presents to the converts. A col-
lege, to educate men for these missions, was founded at
Quebec, two years before the founding of Harvard. Two
THE FIVE NATIONS. 243
years afterward the Ursuline convent was founded at ™*£p
Montreal for the education of Indian girls, and three
young nuns came from France to devote themselves to 1635
that labor. They were received with demonstrations of
joy by the Hurons and Algonquin s. Montreal was now
chosen as a more desirable centre for missionary operations.
The tribes most intelligent and powerful, most war-
like and cruel, with whom the colonists came in contact,
were the Mohawks, or Iroquois, as the French named
them. They were a confederacy consisting of five nations,
the Senecas, the Oneidas, the Onondagas, the Cayugas,
and the Mohawks — better known to the English by the
latter name. This confederacy had been formed in ac-
cordance with the counsels of a great and wise chief, 1539.
Hiawatha. Their traditions tell of him as having been
specially guided by the Great Spirit, and that amid strains
of unearthly music, he ascended to heaven in a snow-
white canoe. They inhabited that beautiful and fertile
region in Central New York, where we find the lakes and
rivers still bearing their names.
Their territory lay on the south shore of Lake Ontario,
and extended to the head-waters of the streams which
flow into the Chesapeake and Delaware bays, and also to
the sources of the Ohio. These streams they used as
highways in their war incursions. They pushed their con-
quests up the lakes and down the St. Lawrence, and
northward almost to the frozen regions around Hudson's
bay. They professed to hold many of the tribes of New
England as tributary, and extended their influence to the
extreme east. They made incursions down the Ohio
against the Shawnees, whom they drove to the Carolinas.
They exercised dominion over the Illinois and the Miamis.
They were the inveterate enemies of the Hurons, and a
terror to the French settlements — especially were they
hostile to the missions. In vain the Jesuits strove to
teach them ; French influence could never penetrate
244 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
Cxix' soutn °f Ontario. The Mohawks closely watched the
passes of the St. Lawrence, and the intercourse between
1635. the missionaries stationed on the distant lakes and their
head-quarters at Montreal was interrupted, unless they
travelled the toilsome route by the Ottawa and the wil-
derness beyond.
1042. An expedition from the lakes had slipped through to
Quebec, and now it endeavored to return. As the fleet
approached the narrows, suddenly the Mohawks attacked
it ; most of the Frenchmen and Hurons made for the op-
posite shore. Some were taken prisoners, among whom
was Father Jogues. The noble Ahasistari, from his
hiding-place, saw his teacher was a prisoner ; he knew
that he would be tortured to death, and he hastened to
him : •" My brother," said he, " I made oath to thee, that
I would share thy fortune, whether death or life ; here I
am to keep my vow." He received absolution at the
hands of Jogues, and met death at the stake in a manner
becoming a great warrior and a faithful convert.
Father Jogues was taken from place to place ; in each
village he was tortured a»d compelled to run the gauntlet.
His fellow-priest, Goupil, was seen to make the sign of
the cross on the forehead of an infant, as he secretly bap-
tized it. The Indians thought it a charm to kill their
children, and instantly a tomahawk was buried in the
poor priest's head. The Dutch made great efforts, but
in vain, to ransom Jogues, but after some months of cap-
tivity he made his escape to Fort Orange, where he was
gladly received and treated with great kindness by the
Dominie Megapolensis. Jogues went to France, but in a
few years he was again among his tormentors as a messen-
ger of the gospel ; ere long a blow from a savage ended
his life. A similar fate was experienced by others. Father
Bressani was driven from hamlet to hamlet, sometimes
scourged by all the inhabitants, and tortured in every pos-
INDIAN MISSIONS. 245
sible form which, savage ingenuity could invent, — yet he chap
survived, and was at last ransomed by the Dutch.
The Abenakis of Maine sent messengers to Montreal 1642.
asking missionaries. They were granted, and Father
Dreuilettes made his way across the wilderness to the
Penobscot, and a few miles above its mouth established a
mission. The Indians came to him in great numbers.
He became as one of themselves, he hunted, he fished, he
taught among them, and won their confidence. He gave
a favorable report of the place, and the disposition of the
tribes, and a permanent Jesuit mission was there estab-
lished. On one occasion Father Dreuilettes visited the
Apostle Eliot at Koxbury. The noble and benevolent
work in which they were engaged, served in the minds of
these good men to soften the asperities existing between
the Catholic and the Puritan, and they bid each other
God speed.
At this time there were sixty or seventy devoted mis- 1646.
sionaries among the tribes extending from Lake Superior
to Nova Scotia. But they did not elevate the character
of the Indian ; he never learned to till the soil, nor to
dwell in a fixed abode ; he was still a rover in the wide,
free forest, living by the chase. The Abenakis, like the
Hurons, were willing to receive religious instructions ; they
learned to chant matins and vespers, they loved those
who taught them. It is not for us to say how many of
them received into their hearts a new faith.
The continued incursions of the ferocious Mohawks
kept these missions in peril. Suddenly one morning they
attacked the mission of St. Joseph on Lake Simcoe,
founded, as we have seen, by Brebeuf and Daniel. The
time chosen was when the warriors were on a hunting ex-
cursion, and the helpless old men, women, and children
fell victims to savage treachery. The aged priest Daniel,
at the first war-cry, hastened to give absolution to all the jg48
converts he could reach, and then calmly advanced from
246 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
°xix>' *^e c^aPe^ m tne face °f tne murderers. He fell pierced
with many arrows. These marauding expeditions broke
1648. up nearly all the missions in Upper Canada. The Hu-
rons were scattered, and their country became a hunting-
ground for their inveterate enemies.
Many of the Huron converts were taken prisoners and
adopted into the tribes of the Five Nations. Some years
1^61. after, when a treaty was made between those nations and
the French, the presence of these converts excited hopes
that they would receive Jesuit teachers. A mission was
established among the Onondagas, and Oswego, their prin-
cipal village, was chosen for the station. In a year or
two missionaries were laboring among the other tribes of
the confederacy. But the French, who had an eye to se-
curing that fertile region, sent fifty colonists, who began
a settlement at the mouth of the Oswego. The jealousy
of the Indians was excited ; they compelled the colonists
to leave their country, and with them drove away the
missionaries. Thus ended the attempts of the French to
possess the soil of New York.
The zeal of the Jesuits was not diminished by these
untoward misfortunes ; they still continued to prosecute
their labors among the tribes who would receive them.
Away beyond Lake Superior one of their number lost his
way in the woods and perished, and the wild Sioux kept
his cassock as an amulet. Into that same region the un-
daunted Father Allonez penetrated ; there, at the largest
town of the Chippewas, he found a council of the chiefs
of many different tribes. They were debating whether
they should take up arms against the powerful and war-
like Sioux. He exhorted them to peace, and urged them
1666 t° join in alliance with the French against the Iroquois ;
he also promised them trade, and the protection of the
great king of the French. Then he heard for the first
time of the land of the Illinois, where there were no trees,
but vast plains covered with long grass, on which grazed
JAMES MARQUETTE. 247
innumerable herds of buffalo and deer. He heard of the c^p-
wild rice, and of the fertile lands which produced an ,
abundance of maize, and of regions where copper was ob- 1669.
tained, — the mines so famous in our own day. He learned,
too, of the great river yet farther west, which flowed
toward the south, whither, his informants could not tell-
After a sojourn of two years Allouez returned to Quebec,
to implore aid in establishing missions in that hopeful
field. He stayed only to make known his request ; in two
days, he was on his way back to his field of labor, accom-
panied by only one companion.
The next year came from France another company of
priests, among whom was James Marquette, who repaired
immediately to the missions on the distant lakes. Ac-
companied by a priest named Joliet, and five French
boatmen, with some Indians as guides and interpreters,
Marquette set out to find the great river, of which he had
heard so much. The company passed up the Fox river
in two birch-bark canoes ; they carried them across the
portage to the banks of the Wisconsin, down which they
floated, till at length their eyes were gratified by the sight
of the " Father of Waters." 167o
They coast along its shores, lined with primeval for-
ests, swarming with all kinds of game ; the prairies redo-
lent with wild flowers ; — all around them is a waste of
grandeur and of beauty. After floating one hundred and
eighty miles they meet with signs of human beings. They
land, and find, a few miles distant, an Indian village ; here
they are welcomed by a people who speak the language
of their guides. They are told that the great river ex-
tends to the far south, where the heat is deadly, and that
the great monsters of the river destroy both men and
canoes.
Nothing daunted they pass on, and ere long they reach
the place where the turbid and rapid Missouri plunges
into the tranquil and clear Mississippi. " When I return,"
248 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
chap. says Marquette, " I will ascend that river and pass beyond
its head- waters and proclaim the gospel." Further on
1670. they see a stream flowing from the north-east ; — it is the
Ohio, of which the Iroquois have told them. We can
imagine Marquette, noticing the fertility of the soil,
looking with awe upon the dark and impenetrable forests,
and hoping that in future ages these shores would be the
homes of many millions of civilized and Christian men.
As they went on they approached a warmer climate ;
and now they were sure that the great river flowed into
the Gulf of Mexico, and not into that of California, as
had been supposed. They met with Indians who showed
them tools of European manufacture ; obtained either
from the English of Virginia or from the Spaniards fur-
ther south. It was deemed prudent to return, as they
might fall into the hands of the latter, and thus be de-
prived of the privilege of making known their discovery.
At the mouth of the Arkansas they began the toilsome
labor of paddling their canoes up the stream down which
they had so easily floated. They reached the mouth of the
Illinois ; thinking it would lead them to the lakes, they
passed up that river to its head-waters, and thence across
to Lake Michigan.
Joliet immediately set out to carry the news of the
discovery to Quebec. Marquette was desirous to begin
his work, and he chose to remain in the humble station of
a missionary in the wilderness. One day he retired to his
private devotions, at a simple altar he had erected in a
grove. An hour afterward he was found kneeling beside
it ; his prayers and his labors for the good of the poor In-
dian were ended ; — in that hour of quiet retirement his
spirit had passed away.
Among the adventurers who came to Canada to seek
their fortunes, was Robert Cavalier de la Salle, a young
man who had been educated as a Jesuit, but had re-
nounced the order. A large domain at the outlet of Lake
ENTERPKISE OF LA SALLE — LOUISIANA. 249
Ontario was granted him on condition that he would main- chap
tain Fort Frontenac, now Kingston. But his main object
was to obtain the entire trade of the Iroquois. The news 1675
of the discovery of the great river inflamed his ardent mind
with a desire to make settlements on its banks, and thus
secure its vast valley for his king. Leaving his lands and
his herds, he sailed for France, and there obtained a favora- 1677
ble grant of privileges. He returned, passed up to Lake
Erie, at the foot of which he built a vessel of sixty tons, in
which, with a company of sailors, hunters, and priests, he
passed through the straits to the upper lakes, and an-
chored in Green Bay. There, lading his ship with a cargo 16f9
of precious furs, he sent her to Niagara, with orders to Aug.
return as soon as possible with supplies. Meanwhile he
passed over into the valley of the Illinois, and on a bluff
by the river side, near where Peoria now stands, built a
fort, and waited for his ship ; but he waited in vain ; she
was wrecked on the voyage.
After three years of toils, wanderings in the wilder-
ness, and voyages to France, during which he experienced
disappointments that would have broken the spirit of an
ordinary man, we find him once more on the banks of the
Illinois. Now he built a barge, on board of which, with 1682.
his companions, he floated down to the Mississippi, and APnl
thence to the Gulf. Thus were his hopes, after so much
toil and sacrifice, realized. He had triumphantly traced
the mighty stream to its mouth. He remained only to
take possession of the country in the name of his sovereign,
Louis XIV., in honor of whom he named it Louisiana.
La Salle returned to Quebec, and immediately sailed
for France. He desired to carry into effect his great de-
sign of planting a colony at the mouth of the Mississippi.
The enterprise was looked upon with favor by both the
French people and the king. He was furnished with an
armed frigate and three other vessels, and two hundred 1684
and eighty persons to form a colony. One hundred of
250 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
CH-AP. these were soldiers ; of the remainder, some were volun-
teers, some mechanics, and some priests. Unfortunately,
1684. the command of the ships was given to Beaujeu, a maD
as ignorant as he was self-willed and conceited. After
surmounting many difficulties, they entered the Gulf of
Mexico, but missed the mouth of the Mississippi. La
1685. Salle soon discovered the error, but the stubborn Beaujeu,
6 ' deaf to reason, sailed on directly west, till fortunately ar-
rested by the eastern shore of Texas. La Salle deter-
mined to disembark and seek by land the mouth of the
great river. The careless pilot ran the store-ship on the
breakers ; suddenly a storm arose, and very little was saved
of the abundance which Louis had provided for the enter-
prise. It is said that he gave more to aid this one colony
than the English sovereigns combined gave to all theirs in
North America.
As the ships were about to leave them on that desolate
shore, many became discouraged, and returned home.
The waters in the vicinity abounded in fish, and the for-
ests in game, and with a mild climate and productive soil,
there was no danger from starvation. A fort was built in
a suitable place ; the trees of a grove three miles distant
furnished the material, which they dragged across the
prairie. La Salle explored the surrounding country, but
sought in vain for the Mississippi. On his return to the
fort, he was grieved to find his colony reduced to forty per-
sons, and they disheartened and mutinous. He did not
despair ; he would yet accomplish the darling object of his
ambition ; he would thread his way through the wilder-
ness to Canada, and induce colonists to join him. With
1687 a company of sixteen men he commenced the journey ;
they travelled two months across the prairies west of the
Mississippi ; but the hopes that had cheered his heart
amidst hardships and disappointments were never to be
realized. Two of his men, watching their opportunity,
murdered him. Thus perished Robert Cavalier de la
DEATH OF LA SALLE. 251
Salle, assassinated in the wilderness by his own country- cJFIAfp-
men. He was the first to fully appreciate the importance
of securing to France the two great valleys of this conti- 1687.
nent. His name will ever be associated with his unsuc-
cessful enterprise, and his tragical fate will ever excite a
feeling of sympathy. Ketribution was not long delayed ;
his murderers, grasping at spoils, became involved in a
quarrel with their companions, and both perished by the
hand of violence.
The remainder of the company came upon a tributary
of the Mississippi, down which they passed to its mouth,
where their eyes were greeted by a cross, and the arms of
France engraved upon a tree. This had been done by
Tonti, a friend of La Salle, who had descended from the
Illinois, but in despair of seeing him had returned. The
colony of Texas perished without leaving a memento of its
existence.
CHAPTER XX.
MARAUDING EXPEDITIONS; SETTLEMENT OF LOUISIANA ; CAPTURE
OF LOUISBURG.
Mohawks hostile to the French. — Dover attacked ; Major Waldion. — Sche-
nectady captured and burned. — The inhuman Frontenac. — The Colonists
act for themselves. — Invasion of Canada. — Settlements in Maine aban-
doned.— Heroism of Hannah Dustin. — Deerfield taken ; Eunice . Wil-
liams.— D'Ibberville plants a Colony on the Pascagoula. — Trading Posts
on the Illinois and the Mississippi. — The Choctaws ; the Natchez ; at-
tempts to subdue the Chickasaws. — King George's War. — Capture of
Louisburg. — The English Ministry alarmed. — Jonathan Edwards. — The
" Great Revival." — Princeton College.
chap. Peace had continued for some time between the Five Na-
XX.
_J_ tions and the French, but now the former were suspicious
1685. of the expeditions of La Salle. James II. had instructed
Dongan, the Catholic governor of New York, to conciliate
the French, to influence the Mohawks to receive Jesuit
missionaries, and to quietly introduce the Catholic religion
into the colony. But Dongan felt more interest in the
fur trade, which the French seemed to be monopolizing,
than in Jesuit missions among the Mohawks, and he
rather encouraged the latter in their hostility. An act of
treachery increased this feeling. Some of their chiefs,
who were enticed to enter Fort Frontenac, were seized and
forcibly carried to France, and there made slaves.
When the indignant people of England drove the
bigoted James from his throne and invited William of
1688. Orange to fill it, Louis XIV. took up the quarrel in behalf
of James, or of legitimacy, as he termed it. He believed
DOVER BURNED — MAJOR WALDRON. 253
in the divine right of kings to rule, and denied the right cj*£R
of a people to change their form of government. Louis
had for years greatly abused his power, and all Europe had 1688.
suffered from his rapacity. Keligious feeling exerted its
influence in giving character to the war, and Protestant
Holland joined heart and hand with Protestant England
in opposing Catholic France.
Though the colonies were thus involved in war by the
mother countries, they had different ends in view. The
New Englanders had an eye to the fisheries and the pro-
tection of their northern frontiers ; the French wished to
extend their influence over the valleys of the St. Lawrence
and the Mississippi, and to monopolize the fisheries as well
as the fur-trade. The latter object could be obtained only
by the aid of the Indians, and they were untiring in their
efforts to make them friends. They could never conciliate
the Mohawks, nor induce them to join in an invasion of
New York. On the contrary, fifteen hundred of them
suddenly appeared before Montreal, and in a few days cap-
tured that place, and committed horrible outrages upon
the people.
Thus stood matters when Frontenac, for the second 1689.
time, appeared as governor of New France. To make the
savages respect him as a warrior, he set on foot a series of
incursions against the English colonies. The eastern In-
dians were incited to attack Dover in New Hampshire ; —
incited by the French, and also by a cherished desire for
revenge. There, at the head of the garrison, was that
Major Waldron who, thirteen years before, during King
Philip's war, had treacherously seized two hundred of
their friends, who came to him to treat of peace. He had
proposed to these unsuspecting Indians a mock fight by
way of entertainment ; when their guns were all discharged
he made them prisoners and sent them to Boston. Some
of them were hanged, and others sold into slavery. The
Indians in their turn employed stratagem and treachery.
254 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
Cx\P* r^W0 S(lliaw8 came to Dover ; they asked of the aged
Waldron, now fourscore, a nigh t's lodging. In the night
1689. they arose, unbarred the gates, and let in their friends,
who lay in ambush. Their hour for vengeance had come ;
they made the pangs of death as bitter as possible to the
brave old Waldron ; his white hairs claimed from them no
pity. In derision, they placed him in a chair on a table,
and scored his body with gashes equal in number to their
friends he had betrayed ; they jeeringly asked him, " Who
will judge Indians now ? Who will hang our brothers ?
Will the pale-faced Waldron give us life for life ? " '
They burned all the houses, murdered nearly half the in-
habitants, and carried the remainder into captivity.
This was only the beginning of a series of horrors
inflicted upon the frontier towns. The inhabitants of
Schenectady, as they slept in fancied security, were star-
tled at midnight by the terrible war-whoop of the savage,
— the harbinger of untold horrors. The enemy found easy
1090. access, as the gates of the palisades were open. The
^et>- houses were set on fire, more than sixty persons were
killed, and many helpless women and children were carried
into captivity. A few escaped and fled half clad through
the snow to Albany. This attack was made by a party
of French and Indians from Montreal, who had toiled for
twenty-two days through the snows of winter, breaking
the track with snow-shoes, and using, when they could,
the frozen streams as a pathway. At Salmon Falls, on
the Piscataqua, and at Casco, similar scenes were enacted.
Such were the means the inhuman Frontenac, now
almost fourscore, took to inspire terror in the minds of the
English colonists, and to acquire the name of a great war-
rior among the Indians, — they would follow none but a
successful leader. Among the early Jesuit missionaries
who taught the Indians of New France, there were un-
»New England History, C. W. Elliott.
EXPEDITIONS AGAINST CANADA. 255
doubtedly many good men. The priests of that generation chap.
had passed away, and others had taken their places ; „
these incited the recently converted savage, not to prac- 1690.
tise Christian charity and love, but to pillage and murder
the heretical English colonist.
King William was busy in maintaining his own cause
in England, and left the colonists to defend themselves.
Massachusetts proposed that they should combine, and re-
move the cause of their trouble by conquering Canada.
Commissioners from Massachusetts, Connecticut, and New
York met to deliberate on what course to pursue. They
resolved to invade that province from New York, by way
of Lake Champlain, and from Massachusetts by way of the
St. Lawrence. The expedition from New York failed.
Colonel Peter Schuyler led the advance with a company
of Mohawks, but the ever-watchful Frontenac was pre-
pared ; his Indian allies flocked in crowds to aid him in
defending Montreal. The Mohawks were repulsed and
could not recover their position, as the army sent to sup-
port them was compelled to stop short ; the small-pox
broke out among the soldiers, and they were in want of
provisions.
Meantime, the fleet of thirty-two vessels, and two
thousand men, which had sailed from Boston, was endeav-
oring to find its way up the St. Lawrence. It was under
the command of Sir William Phipps, to whose incompe-
tency may be attributed the failure of the enterprise. An
Indian runner cut across the woods from Piscataqua, and
in twelve days brought the news of the intended attack
to the French. Frontenac hastened to Quebec, where he
arrived three days before the fleet. When it came in
sight he was prepared to make a vigorous defence. A
party landed, but after some skirmishing the enterprise
was abandoned. While returning, the men suffered much
from sickness, and storms disabled the fleet. The disap-
pointment of the people of Massachusetts was very great ;
256
HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
hap. many lives had been lost, and the colony was laden witl
xx.
, debt.
1690 The Eastern Indians, in the mean time, were held in
check by Captain Church, celebrated in King Philip's
war. At one time, he so far forgot himself as to put to
death his prisoners, some of whom were women and chil-
dren. Such cruelty was inexcusable ; and it was avenged
by the savages with tenfold fury. Nearly all the settle-
ments of what is now Maine were destroyed or abandoned.
The enemy were continually prowling around the farms,
watching an opportunity to shoot the men at their work.
All went armed, and even the women learned to handle
effectively the musket and the rifle. It was a great in-
ducement for the Indians to go on these marauding expe-
ditions, because they could sell for slaves to the French
of Canada the women and children they took prisoners.
Peace was at length made with the Abenakis, or East-
ern Indians, and there was a lull in the storm of desola-
tion. It lasted but a year, the Indians broke the treaty.
They were incited to this by their teachers, two Jesuits,
Thury and Bigot, who even took pride in their atrocious
work.
1694 Heroic deeds were performed by men and women. A
small band of Indians attacked the house of a farmer
named Dustin, near Haverhill. When in the fields he
heard the war-whoop and the cry of distress. He hastened
to the rescue, met his children, and threw himself be-
tween them and their pursuers, whom he held at bay by
well-directed shots till the children were in a place of
safety. His house was burned ; a child only a few days
old was dashed against a tree, and his wife, Hannah Dus-
tin, and her nurse, were carried away captive. A toilsome
march brought them to an island in the Merrimac, just
above Concord, where their captors lived. There Mrs.
Dustin, with the nurse and a boy, also a captive, planned
an escape. She wished revenge, as well as to be secure
DEERFIELD DESTROYED EUNICE WILLIAMS. 257
from pursuit. The Indians, twelve in number, were asleep, chap
She arose, assigned to each of her companions whom to
strike ; their hands were steady and their hearts firm ; 169*.
they struck for their lives. Ten Indians were killed, one
woman was wounded, and a child was purposely saved.
The heroic woman wished to preserve a trophy of the deed,
and she scalped the dead. Then in a canoe the three
floated down the Merrimac to Haverhill, much to the
astonishment of their friends, who had given them up for
lost. Such were the toils and sufferings, and such the
heroism of the mothers in those days.
The friendly Mohawks had intimated to the inhabi-
tants of Deerfield, in the valley of the Connecticut, that
the enemy was plotting their destruction. The anxiety
of the people was very great, and they resolved during the
winter to keep a strict watch ; sentinels were placed every
night.
On an intensely cold night in February a company of 1701
two hundred Frenchmen, and one hundred and forty In-
dians, lay in ambush, waiting a favorable moment to
spring upon their victims. Under the command of Hertel
de Kouville, they had come all the way from Canada, on
the crust of a deep snow, with the aid of snow-shoes. The
sentinels, unconscious of danger, retired at dawn of day.
The snow had drifted as high as the palisades, thus ena-
bling the party to pass within the inclosure, which con-
sisted of twenty acres. The terrible war-cry startled the
inhabitants, the houses were set on fire, and forty-seven
persons were ruthlessly murdered ; one hundred and
twelve were taken captive, among whom were the minister
Williams, his wife, and five children. No pen can de-
scribe the sufferings of the captives on that dreary winter's
march, driven, as they were, by relentless Frenchmen and
savages. Eunice Williams, the wife, drew consolation
from her Bible, which she was permitted to read when
the party stopped for the night. Her strength soon failed ;
258 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
chap, her husband cheered her by pointing her to the " house
not made with hands, eternal in the heavens." " The
1704. mother's heart rose to her lips, as she commended her five
captive children, under God, to theii father's care, and
then one blow of the tomahawk ended htr sorrows." This
family, with the exception of one daughter, seven years of
age, were afterward ransomed, and returned home.
Many years after this, there appeared at Deerfield a
white woman wearing the Indian garb ; she was the lost
daughter of Eunice Williams, and now a Catholic, and
the wife of an Indian chief. No entreaties could influence
her to remain with her civilized relatives ; she chose to re-
turn and end her days with her own children.
Humanity shudders at the recital of the horrors that
marked those days of savage warfare. Some of the Indians
even refused to engage any more in thus murdering the
English colonists ; but the infamous Hertel, with the ap-
probation of Vaudreuil, then governor of Canada, induced
a party to accompany him on a foray. Why repeat the
story of the fiendish work, by which the little village «of
Haverhill, containing about thirty log-cabins, was burned,
and all the inhabitants either murdered or taken captive.
1708. u ]yxy heart swells with indignation," wrote Colonel Peter
Schuyler, of New York, to Vaudreuil, " when I think that
a war between Christian princes, is degenerating into a
savage and a boundless butchery ; I hold it my duty to-
ward God and my neighbor, to prevent, if possible, these
barbarous and heathen cruelties." This reproof was un-
heeded ; the cruelties continued.
Under the feelings excited by such outrages, can we
think it strange that the colonists resolved to hunt the
Indians like wild beasts, and offered a bounty for their
scalps ? or that the hostility against the French Jesuit
should have thrown suspicion upon the Catholic of Mary-
land, who about this time was disfranchised ? or that even
LEMOINE D'IBBERVILLE. 259
in liberal Rhode Island, he should have been deprived c^p
of the privilege of becoming a freeman ?
With renewed energy the French began to press for- 1708.
ward their great design of uniting, by means of trading
posts and missions, the region of the Lakes and the valley
of the Mississippi. The Spaniards had possession of the
territory on the northern shore of the Gulf of Mexico,
while they claimed the entire regions lying around that
expanse of water.
The energetic mind of Lemoine d'Ibberville conceived
a plan for planting a colony at the mouth of the Missis-
sippi. He was a native of Canada, and had, on many
occasions, distinguished himself by his talents and great
courage. Hopes were entertained of his success. The
expedition, consisting of four vessels and nearly two hun-
dred colonists, among whom were some women and chil-
dren, sailed from Canada for the mouth of the Mississippi. 1699
D'Ibberville entered the Gulf and approached the north
shore, landed at the mouth of the river Pascagoula, and
with two barges and forty-eight men went to seek the
great river. He found it by following up a current of
muddy waters, in which were many floating trees. He
passed up the stream to the mouth of Red River, where
he was surprised to receive a letter dated fourteen years
before. It was from Tonti ; he had left it with the In-
dians for La Salle ; they had preserved it carefully, and
gave it to the first Frenchman who visited them.
As the shores of the Mississippi in that region are
marshy, it was thought best to form a settlement on the
Gulf at the mouth of the Pascagoula. This was the first
colony planted within the limits of the present State of
Mississippi. D'Ibberville sailed for France to obtain sup-
plies and more colonists, leaving one of his brothers, Sau-
ville, to act as governor, and the other, Bienville, to
engage in exploring the country and river.
Some fifty miles up the Mississippi Bienville met an
260
HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
Cxx?* -English ship sent on tne same errand. Seventy years
, before, Charles I. had given to Sir Robert Heath a grant
1630. of Carolina, which as usual was to extend to the Pacific.
This worthless grant Coxe, a London physician, had pur-
chased, and to him belonged this vessel.
From the time of La Salle the Jesuits had been busy
ingratiating themselves with the tribes along the shores of
the Mississippi, and under their direction trading posts
were established, at various points, to the mouth of the
Illinois, and up that river to the Lakes.
1700. The following year D'Ibberville returned with two
ships and sixty colonists, and the aged Tonti had just ar-
rived from the Illinois. Availing himself of his counsel,
D'Ibberville ascended the river four hundred miles, and on
a bluff built a fort, which, in honor of the Duchess of
Pontchartrain, was called Rosalie. These settlements lan-
guished for twenty years ; the colonists were mere hire-
lings, unfitted for their work. The whole number of
emigrants for ten years did not exceed two hundred per-
sons. Instead of cultivating the soil, and making their
homes comfortable, many went to the far west seeking for
gold, and others to the north-west on the same errand,
while fevers and other diseases were doing the work of
death. Meantime Mobile became the centre of French
influence in the south.
Once more a special effort was made to occupy the
territory, and a monopoly of trade was granted to Arthur
1714 Crozart, who was to send every year two ships laden with
merchandise and emigrants, and also a cargo of slaves from
Africa. The French government was to appropriate an-
nually about ten thousand dollars to defray the expense
of forts and necessary protection.
A trading house was established up the Red River at
Natchitoches, and one up the Alabama near the site of
Montgomery ; Fort Rosalie became a centre of trade, and
FOUNDING OF NEW ORLEANS. 261
the germ of the present city of Natchez — the oldest town c^p
on the Mississippi. . ,
Bienville put the convicts to work on a cane-brake to 1718.
remove the trees and shrubs " from a savage and desert
place/' and built a few huts. Such were the feeble begin-
nings of New Orleans, which it was prophesied would
yet become " a rich city, the metropolis of a great colony."
Still the colony did not prosper ; instead of obtaining
their supplies from that fruitful region, they were depend-
ent on France and St. Domingo. Labor was irksome to
the convicts and vagabonds, and the overflowings of the
river, and the unhealthiness of the climate retarded prog-
ress. The chief hope for labor was based on the impor-
tation of negroes from Africa.
Some German settlers, who, a few years before, had
been induced by one Law, a great stock-jobbing and land
speculator, to emigrate to the banks of the Arkansas, de-
cided to remove. A tract of land, lying twenty miles
above New Orleans, known now as the " German coast,"
was given them. Their settlement was in contrast with 1722.
the others. They were industrious, and cultivated their
farms, raised vegetables, rice, and other provisions ; also
tobacco and indigo. The fig and the orange were now
introduced. The Illinois region had been settled by emi-
grants from Canada, who raised wheat and sent flour to
the colonists below. The priests meanwhile were not idle
in teaching the Indians, and a convent was founded at
New Orleans for the education of girls. As the colonists
had not energy enough to protect themselves, a thousand
soldiers were sent from France for that purpose. 3724,
The Choctaws, the allies of the French, occupied the
region between the lower Mississippi and the Alabama.
The principal village of the Natchez tribe was on the
bluff where now stands the city of that name. They
were not a numerous people, unlike the tribes among
whom they dwelt, in their language as well as in their
262
HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
Cx\P' re%i°n- -kike the Peruvians, they were worshippers of
the sun, and in their great wigwam they kept an undying
1724. fire. Their principal chief professed to be a descendant
of the sun. They became justly alarmed at the encroach-
ments of the French, who having Fort Rosalie, demanded
the soil on which stood their principal village, for a farm.
They suddenly fell upon the white intruders and killed
two hundred of their number, and took captive their women
and children. The negro slaves joined the Indians. Their
principal chief, the Great Sun, had the heads of the
French officers slain in the battle arranged around him,
K30. that he might smoke his pipe in triumph ; — his triumph
was short. A company, consisting of French and Choc-
taws, under Le Suer, came up from New Orleans, and
surprised them while they were yet celebrating their vic>
tory. The Great Sun and four hundred of his people were
taken captive and sent to St. Domingo as slaves. Some
of the Natchez escaped and fled to the Chickasaws, and
some fled beyond the Mississippi ; their land passed into
the hand of strangers, and soon, they as a people were
unknown.
The territory of the brave Chickasaws, almost sur-
rounding that of the Natchez, extended north to the Ohio,
and east to the land of the Cherokees. They were the
enemies of the French, whose boats, trading from Canada
and Illinois to New Orleans, they were accustomed to
plunder. English traders from Carolina were careful to
increase this enmity toward their rivals.
1735 Two expeditions were set on foot to chastise these bold
marauders. Bienville came up from the south with a
fleet of boats and canoes, and a force of twelve hundred
Choctaws ; he paddled up the Tombecbee as far as he
could, and then hastened across the country to surprise
one of their fortified places. D'Artaguette hastened down
from the Illinois country, of which he was governor, with
fifty Frenchmen and a thousand Indians, to attack an-
EXPEDITION AGAINST LOUISBURG. 263
other of their strongholds. The Chickasaws were too c5£p-
vigilant to he thus surprised. They repulsed Bienville,
dispersed the forces of- D'Artaguette, took him prisoner, 1735.
and burned him at the stake. Once more an attempt was May
20
made with all the force the French could bring to crush
this warlike tribe, but in vain ; the patriotic Chickasaws
successfully defended their country against the foreign foe. 1740.
These reverses did not deter the persevering French
from establishing trading houses south of Lake Erie, and
down the Alleghany to the Ohio, and thence to the Mis-
sissippi. The people of Pennsylvania, Maryland, and
Virginia became alarmed at these encroachments on their
territory. The Iroquois professed to have conquered all
the valley of the Ohio, and they claimed a vast region to
the north-west as their hunting grounds. Commissioners
from the above colonies met the envoys of the Iroquois at 1745.
Lancaster, and purchased from them for £400 all their July-
claim to the regions which they professed to own between
the Blue Kidge and the Alleghany mountains.
The colonies had enjoyed nearly thirty years of com-
parative freedom from French and Indian incursions, when
they were involved in what is known as King George's 1744t
War.
The first intimation of hostilities was an attack upon
the fort at Canso, in which the garrison was captured and
carried to Louisburg. Louisburg was the great strong-
hold of the French on this continent ; the centre from
which privateering expeditions were fitted out, that had
nearly destroyed the commerce as well as the fisheries of
New England. To prevent these depredations, and the
inroads to which the French incited their Indian allies,
Governor Shirley, of Massachusetts, proposed to the Gen-
eral Court to take Louisburg. No aid was expected from
the mother country — she was too much engaged at home ;
but the other colonies were invited to enlist in the com-
mon cause. New Jersey and Pennsylvania agreed to
264 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
chap furnish money, but declined to send men ; New York
furnished money and some cannon ; Connecticut offered
1744. five hundred men ; Khode Island and New Hampshire
each furnished a regiment. Massachusetts proposed the
expedition, was the most interested in its success, bore
the greater part of the expense, and furnished the greater
portion of the men and vessels. The fishermen, especially
those of Marblehead, entered upon the enterprise with
alacrity. Their fisheries had been almost ruined and they
thrown out of employment, by the continued forays from
Louisburg. Farmers, mechanics, and lumbermen volun-
teered in great numbers. Here were citizen soldiers,
without a single man whose knowledge of military tactics
went beyond bush-fighting with the Indians, and all
equally ignorant of the proper means to be used in redu-
cing a fortified place. A wealthy merchant, William Pep-
perell, of Maine, was elected commander. The artillery
was under the direction of Gridley, the same who, thirty
years afterward, held a similar position in an American
army under very different circumstances. The enthusiasm
was great, and what was lacking in means and skill, was
supplied by zeal. A strong Protestant sentiment was
mingled with the enterprise, and Whitefield, then on his
third tour of preaching in the colonies, was urged to fur-
nish a motto for a banner. He promptly suggested, " Nil
desperandum, Christo duce," — " Nothing is to be despaired
of when Christ is leader." He also preached to them an
inspiriting sermon, and they sailed, like the Crusaders of
old, confident of success.
^45 In April the fleet arrived at Canso, but owing to the
ice, could not enter the harbor of Louisburg. Intelligence
of the expedition had been sent to England, and Admiral
Warren, who commanded on the West India station, was
invited to join in the enterprise. He declined for want of
explicit orders, but afterward receiving permission, he
hastened to join them with four men-of-war.
/c~i
£7*-?T^k^/7Ca^l/
& CsCtAS#srv6r
*"?
LOUISBURG CAPTURED.
The whole armament was now put in motion for Lou- c*?£p-
isburg. That stronghold had walls forty feet thick, thirty
feet high, and surrounded by a ditch eighty feet wide, 1745.
with protecting forts around it, manned by nearly two
hundred and fifty cannon, small and great, and garrisoned
by sixteen hundred men.
As the fleet approached, the French came down to the
beach to oppose their landing, but in a moment the " whale
boats," filled with armed men, were ." flying like eagles"
to the shore. Their opposers, panic-stricken, fled ; and
the following night the soldiers of the royal battery, one
of the outside forts, spiked their cannon and retreated to
the town. The deserted fort was immediately taken pos-
session of, and the gunsmiths went to work to bore out
the spikes. The next day a detachment marched round
the town, giving it three cheers as they passed, and took
up a position that completely enclosed the place on the
land side, while the fleet did the same toward the ocean.
They threw up batteries, dragged their cannon over a
morass, and brought them to bear upon the fortress.
These amateur soldiers soon became accustomed to
encamping in the open air, and sleeping in the woods, as
well as to the cannon-balls sent among them by the be-
sieged. They not only prevented ships from entering the
harbor, but found means to decoy into the midst of their
fleet and capture a man-of-war of sixty-four guns, laden
with stores for the fort. This loss so much disheartened
the garrison that, after a siege of seven weeks, Louisburg ^e
surrendered. The news of this success sent a thrill of
joy throughout the colonies. It was the greatest feat
of the war, and was accomplished by undisciplined volun-
teers.
France resolved, at any cost, to recover her stronghold,
and also to desolate the English colonies. The fleet sent
for the purpose was disabled by storms, while pestilence
wasted the men. The commander, the Duke d'Anville,
266 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
chap, suddenly died, and his successor, a short time after, coin-
, '_ roitted suicide. The next year, the fleet sent for the same
1746. purpose was forced to strike its colors to an English squad-
ron under Admirals Anson and Warren.
Though thus successful, the frontier settlements still
suffered greatly, and in self-defence the old project was
revived of conquering Canada. The government of Eng-
land required all the colonies, as far south as Virginia, to
furnish men and means. Eight thousand men were raised,
of which number Massachusetts furnished nearly one-half.
The British ministry suddenly changed their mind, and
the enterprise was abandoned. Soon after, the treaty of
Aix la Chapelle was concluded, by which all places taken
by either party during the war were to be restored. Thus
Louisburg, the capture of which was so gratifying to the
colonists, and so significant of their daring spirit, passed
1748. again into the hands of the French.
The ministry did not relish the ardor and independ-
ence of the colonists, who appeared to have, according to
Admiral Warren, " the highest notions of the rights and
liberties of Englishmen ; and, indeed, as almost levellers."
It was in truth the foreshadowing of their complete inde-
pendence of the mother country, and measures were taken
by her to make them more subservient. They were for-
bidden to have any manufactures, to trade to any place
out of the British dominions, while no other nation than
the English were permitted to trade with them. " These
oppressions," says an intelligent traveller of that day,
" may make, within thirty or fifty years, the colonies en-
tirely independent of England."
For many years there had been a marked decline in
religion in New England. A peculiar union of church
and state had led to a sort of compromise between the
two, known as the " Half-way covenant," by which per-
sons who had been baptized, but without pretensions to
JONATHAN EDWARDS. — THE GREAT REVIVAL. 267
personal piety, were admitted to the full privileges of c^£p-
church members. .
In the midst of this declension a religious " Awaken- 1735.
ing," better known as the " Great Kevival," commenced
at Northampton, in Massachusetts, under the preaching
of Jonathan Edwards, a young man remarkable for his
intellectual endowments. His sermons were doctrinal and
strongly Calvinistic. His religious character had been
early developed. At thirteen he entered Yale College ;
thoughtful beyond his years, a metaphysician by nature,
it that early age he was enraptured with the perusal of
Locke on the " Understanding." Secluded from the world
by the love of study, he penetrated far into the mysteries
of the workings of the human mind.
Edwards drew from the Bible the knowledge of the
true relation between the church and the world. The
contest was long and strenuous, but the lines were clearly
drawn, and from that day to this the distinction is marked
and appreciated. " He repudiated the system of the Half-
way covenant," and proclaimed the old doctrines of " the
sole right of the sanctified to enjoy the privileges of church
members, and of salvation by faith alone." As the influ-
ence of the state in religious matters thus began to fade
away, a closer spiritual relation of men to men, not as
members of a commonwealth alone, but as members of a
great brotherhood, gained in importance.
Parties sprang into existence ; those who favored a
more spiritual life in religion were stigmatized as " New
Lights," while the steady conservatives were known as
the " Old Lights." So bitter was the feeling that in Con-
necticut the civil authority was invoked, and severe laws 1744
were enacted against the New Lights. The controversy
was so warm that Edwards was driven from his congrega-
tion— at that time, "the largest Protestant society in the
world." He went as a missionary to the Housatonic In-
dians at Stockbridge, Massachusetts. There in the forest,
268 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
chap, amid toils and privations, he wrote his far-famed treatise
on the " Freedom of the Will," which has exerted so
1750. much influence in the theological world, while the writer
was the first American that obtained a European reputa-
tion as an author.
1740. During this period Whitefield came, by invitation, to
New England. He had been preaching in the south with
unexampled success. At intervals, for more than thirty
years, he preached the gospel from colony to colony. " Hun-
dreds of thousands heard the highest evangelical truths
uttered with an eloquence probably never equalled." The
influence of the awakening spread till all the colonies
were visited by the same blessings, especially the Presby-
terians of New York, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania, and
in a less degree in the more southern colonies. These
influences were not limited to that age, for similar revivals
have continued to our own times.
The Baptists, hitherto but few in number, received a
new impulse, as many of the New Light churches adopted
their views ; and the preaching of Whitefield prepared
the way for the success of the Methodists.
The revival created a want for ministers of the gospel,
to supply which, the Kev. William Tennent established
an academy at Neshaminy ; an institution where young
men professing the religious fervor that characterized those
prominent in the revival, could be prepared for the sacred
office. This was the germ of Princeton College.
This religious sentiment met with little sympathy
from the authorities of the colony, and with difficulty a
1746. charter was obtained. The institution was named Nassau
Hall, in honor of the great Protestant hero, William III.
It was first located at Elizabeth town, then at Newark,
1757. and finally at Princeton. Its success was unexampled ;
in ten years the number of students increased from eight
to ninety.
CHAPTEK XXI.
FRENCH AND INDIAN WAR.
The Valley of the Ohio. — French and English Claimants. — Gist the Pioneer.
— George Washington ; his Character ; his Mission to the French on
the Alleghany. — Returns to Williamsburg. — St. Pierre's Letter unsatis-
factory.— Virginians driven from the Ohio. — Fort Du Quesne built. —
Washington sent to defend the Frontiers. — Conflict at Fort Necessity. —
The Fort abandoned. — British Troops arrive in America. — Plan of oper-
ations.— General Braddock ; his qualifications. — The Army marches
from Wills' Creek. — Obstinacy of Braddock. — Arrival on the Mouonga-
hela.— The Battle. — Defeat.— Death and Burial of Braddock.— Dun-
bar's Panic. — The Frontiers left unprotected.
Scarcely an English colonist had yet settled in the val- chap
ley of the Ohio. The traders who visited the Indians in \
that region, told marvellous stories of the fertility of the 1741).
soil, and the desirableness of the climate. It was pro-
posed to found a colony west of the Alleghany mountains.
The governor of Virginia received royal instructions to
grant the " Ohio Company" five hundred thousand acres
of land lying between the rivers Monongahela and Kana-
wha, and on the Ohio. The company engaged to send one
hundred families ; to induce them to emigrate they offered
them freedom from quit-rents for ten years.
Meantime, the French sent three hundred men to ex-
pel the English traders and take possession of the valley.
They also sent agents, who passed through the territory
north of the Ohio river, and at various points nailed on
the trees plates of lead, on which were inscribed the arms
of France. This they were careful to do in the presence
270
HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
Cxxf " °^ ^e Indians, who suspected they intended to take away
. their lands. When the English came and made surveys
1749. on the south side of the Ohio, they asked them the puz-
zling question : " If the French take possession of the
north side of the Ohio, and the English of the south,
where is the Indian's land ? "
At Wills' Creek, now Cumberland, Maryland, one of
the easiest passes over the mountains commenced. Here
the Ohio Company established a place of deposit to sup-
ply Indian traders with goods. They also wished to
explore the Ohio river to the great falls ; to ascertain the
location of the best lands, and whether the Indians were
friendly or unfriendly. They employed for this dangerous
and difficult task the celebrated trader and pioneer Chris-
topher Gist, who crossed the mountains and came upon
the Alleghany river, at a village occupied by a few Dela-
ware Indians. Thence he passed down to Logstown, a
sort of head-quarters for traders, situated some miles
below the junction of that river and the Monongahela.
Here dwelt a renowned chief of the western tribes, Tana-
charison, or half-king, as he was called, because he ac-
knowledged a sort of allegiance to the Mohawks. " You
are come to settle the Indian lands," said the resident
traders, whose suspicions were roused ; " you will never go
home safe." Gist traversed the region of the Muskingum
and of the Scioto, then crossed the Ohio, and passed up
the Cuttawa or Kentucky to its very springs. He gave a
glowing account of the beauty and fertility of the region
he had visited. It was covered with trees of immense
size, the wild cherry, the ash, the black walnut, and the
sugar maple, the two latter giving indubitable proof of the
fertility of the soil ; a land abounding in never-failing
springs and rivulets, forests interspersed with small mead-
ows, covered with long grass and white clover, on which
fed herds of elk, deer, and buffalo, while the wild turkey
and other game promised abundance to the hunter and
GEORGE WASHINGTON. 271
pioneer. Such was the primitive character of the territory c|^p-
since known as the State of Ohio.
He ascertained that French emissaries were visiting 1749.
all the western tribes, to induce them to take up arms
against the English ; that the Indians looked upon both
as intruders, and though willing to trade with both, were
unwilling that either should occupy their lands. The
French saw that if the English obtained a foothold on the
Ohio, they would cut off the communication between the
Lakes and the Mississippi. The final struggle for the
supremacy in the valley was near at hand.
While the English, by invitation of the Indians, were
approaching from the south, to build a fort at the head of
the Ohio, the French were approaching the same point
from the north. The latter had built war vessels at Fron-
tenac to give them the command of Lake Ontario ; they
had strengthened themselves by treaties with the most
powerful tribes, the Shawnees and the Delawares ; they
had repaired Fort Niagara, at the foot of Lake Erie, and
at this time had not less than sixty fortified and well gar-
risoned posts between Montreal and New Orleans. They
had also built a fort at Presque Isle, now Erie, one on
French Creek, on the site of Waterford, and another at
the junction of that creek with the Alleghany, now the
village of Franklin. ^
Dinwiddie, governor of Virginia, resolved to send a
messenger to remonstrate with the French for intruding
on English territory. Where could he find a man of en-
ergy and prudence to trust in this laborious and perilous
undertaking ? His attention was directed to a mere
youth, in his twenty-second year, a surveyor, who, in the
duties of his profession, had become somewhat familiar 1732
with the privations of forest life. That young man was 22.
George Washington. He was a native of Westmoreland
county, Virginia. The death of his father left him an
orphan when eleven years of age. The wealthy Virginia
272 HISTOET OF THE AMERICAN" PEOPLE.
chap, planters of those days were accustomed to send their
. sons to England to complete their education, and thus
1749. had Lawrence, his half-brother, fourteen years older than
himself, been educated. No such privilege was in store
for George. His father's death may have interfered with
such plans : be that as it may, he was sent to the com-
mon school in the neighborhood, and there taught only
the simplest branches of an English education — to spell,
to read, to write, to cipher. When older, he went for some
time to an academy of a somewhat higher grade, where he
devoted his time particularly to the study of mathematics.
Though his school advantages were so limited, it was
his inestimable privilege to have a mother endowed with
good sense, united to decision of character and Christian
principle, — she inspired love, she enforced obedience.
From her he inherited an ardent, impulsive temper — from
her he received its antidote ; she taught him to hold it in
subjection.
The early life of George Washington furnishes an ex-
ample worthy the imitation of the youth of his country.
We are told of his love of truth, of his generous and noble
acts, that he won the confidence of his schoolmates, and
received from them that respect which virtue alone can
secure.
He was systematic and diligent in all his studies.
There may yet be seen, in the library at Mount Vernon,
the book in which he drew his first exercises in surveying ;
every diagram made with the utmost care. Thus was
foreshadowed in the youth what was fully developed in
the man. At the early age of sixteen, we find him in the
woods on the frontiers of Virginia, performing his duties
as a surveyor ; making his measurements with so much
accuracy that to this day they are relied upon.
We must not suppose that the studious and sedate
youth, with his rules for governing his " conversation and
conduct " carefully written out, and as carefully observed,
THE FORMATION OF HIS CHARACTER. 278
was destitute of boyish feelings. He had his youthful chap.
sports and enjoyments ; he could exhibit feats of strength
and skill ; could ride a horse or throw a stone with any 1749.
boy, and was so far military in his tastes as occasionally to
drill his school-fellows during recess.
His brother Lawrence had spent some time in the Eng-
lish navy, and George had often heard of the excitements
of the seaman's life, and had boyish longings for adven-
tures on the ocean. Circumstances seemed to favor his
wishes. When fourteen, it was decided that he should
enter the navy. The man-of-war on which he was to go
as a midshipman was lying in the Potomac ; his baggage
was ready, but when the parting hour came the mother's
heart failed. Though deeply disappointed, George yielded
to her wish, and relinquished his anticipated pleasure.
Though Washington was born and spent his youth in
the wilds of Virginia, there were many refining influences
brought to bear upon the formation of his character. He
was intimate for years in the Fairfax family, who brought
with them to their western home the refinement and cul-
ture of the English aristocracy of that day. Neither
must we overlook the benign influence exerted over him
by his educated and benevolent brother Lawrence, who,
up to the time of his death, watched over his young
brother with a father's care, as well as a brother's love.
The influence of Christian principle governing the im-
pulses of a noble nature, was the secret of the moral
excellence, the dignified integrity, unaffected candor, and
sterling worth, which shone forth in the character of
Washington, — a name so much blended with the liberties
of his country, and so much cherished and honored by the
friends of humanity in every clime. Ap
Governor Dinwiddie gave his youthful messenger a
letter for the French commandant on the Ohio, in which
he demanded of him his reasons for invading the territory
of England. The very day on which Washington re-
274 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
°xxiP' ceive^ ms credentials, (October 30,) he left Williamsburg
for Winchester, then a frontier town of Virginia. By the
1753. middle of November his preparations were completed.
With a company consisting of the intrepid Gist, who
acted as guide, two interpreters, and four others, he set
out from Wills' Creek. A. journey of nine days, through
solitudes and mountain passes, and across streams swollen
by recent rains, brought them to where the Monongahela,
that river " so deep and still," meets the " swift running
Alleghany." Washington explored the neighborhood, and
remarks in his journal : "The land at the Fork is
extremely well situated for a fort, as it has absolute
command of both rivers." Thus thought the French en-
gineers, who afterward on that very spot built Fort Du
Quesne.
Shingis, chief sachem of the Delawares, who afterward
took up arms against the English, accompanied him to
Logstown. Here, by his instructions, Washington was to
confer with the Indian chiefs : he summoned them to a
grand talk. They would not commit themselves ; they
had heard that the French were coming with a strong
force to drive the English out of the land. But he in-
duced three of them to accompany him to the station of
the French commandant ; among these was the Half-
King.
When he arrived at Venango, or Franklin, the officer
in command referred him to the Chevalier St. Pierre,
general officer at the next post. Meanwhile he was
treated with politeness, and invited by the French officers
to a supper. The wine passed freely, and the talka-
tive Frenchmen began to boast of their plans ; they
would ft take possession of the Ohio ; the English could
raise two men for their one, but they were too slow and
dilatory." The sober and cautious Washington marked
well their words. The three chiefs had promised well ;
they would give back the speech belts to the French ;
THE VIRGINIANS DRIVEN FROM THE OHIO. 275
they were friends to the English. But when plied with ^hap
drink, and hailed by the French as " Indian brothers,"
they wavered for a time. 1753.
Washington obtained an interview with St. Pierre,
"an ancient and silver-haired chevalier, courteous but
ceremonious," and after some delay received an answer to
his despatches, and hastened homeward. As the pack-
horses were disabled, he left them and the baggage, and
with Gist for his only companion struck out into the wil-
derness. The cold was intense, the snow was falling, and
freezing as it fell. Wrapped in Indian blankets, with
their guns in their hands and knapsacks on their backs,
and a compass to guide them, they pushed on toward the
Alleghany river, which they hoped to cross on the ice.
Their journey through the pathless wild was marked by
some mishaps and hairbreadth escapes. Their lives were
endangered by a false guide, and Washington in endeav-
oring to force his way through the ice in the river, came
near perishing ; but, on the sixteenth of January, they 1754
arrived safely at Williamsburg.
The answer of St. Pierre was courteous but indefinite.
He referred the matter to the Marquis Du Quesne, the
governor of Canada. It was clear, however, that he did
not intend to retire from the valley of the Ohio. This
was still more evident from the preparations of boats, ar-
tillery, and military stores, which Washington noticed up
the Alleghany, waiting for the spring flood, when they
would be taken to their place of destination.
The following spring the Ohio Company sent between
thirty and forty men to build a fort at the head of the
Ohio. The French were on the alert ; a company of sol-
diers floated down the Alleghany, who surprised and sur-
rounded them at their work. They must surrender in an
hour's time or defend themselves against a thousand men.
They were glad to leave their unfinished fort and return
276 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
CyyF" *° Virginia. The French took immediate possession.
finished it, and named it Du Quesne.
1754. At the early age of nineteen Washington had been
appointed Adjutant-General of the northern district of
Virginia, an office which he filled to the entire satisfaction
of his countrymen. Now he received the commission of
lieutenant-colonel, with orders to protect the frontiers.
He was also offered the command of the expedition against
the French at Fort Du Quesne. This he declined on ac-
count of his youth ; the command was then conferred
upon Colonel Fry, who shortly after fell ill, and it virtu-
ally passed into the hands of Washington. His little
army was ill provided with tents and military stores, and
poorly clad. They moved on very slowly. It was not
easy with a train of artillery to pass through the forests,
climb mountains, and ford swollen rivers. Washington
pushed on with a detachment for the junction of the Red-
stone and Monongahela. There, on the spot now known
as Brownsville, he hoped to maintain his position until
the main force should come up, and then they would float
down the river in flat-boats to Fort Du Quesne.
On the ninth of May this detachment arrived at a
place called the Little Meadows. Here they met traders,
who informed them that the French were in great force at
Du Quesne, and that a portion of them had set out on a
secret expedition. There was but little doubt as to its
object. Presently came an Indian runner ; he had seen
the tracks of the Frenchmen ; they were near. The Half-
King with forty warriors was also in the neighborhood.
On a dark and stormy night, Washington and forty of his
men groped their way to his camp, which they reached
about daylight. This faithful ally put a couple of runners
upon the enemy's tracks ; they reported that the French
were encamped in a deep glen, where they had put up
temporary cabins.
Washington arranged his company in two divisions, and
SURRENDER OF FORT NECESSITY.
277
bo effectually surprised them that few of theii number chap
escaped. Among the slain was the youthful De Jumon- , ,
ville, the leader of the party. Here was shed the first 1751.
blood in that seven years' struggle, in which the French
power on this continent was broken. As no reinforce-
ments were sent, Washington was greatly disappointed ;
he could not maintain the advantage he had gained. He
heard that a numerous force was on its way to attack him.
In a letter to his friend Colonel Fairfax he writes : " The
motives that have led me here are pure and noble. I had
no view of acquisition, but that of honor by serving
faithfully my king and country."
He built a fort at the Great Meadows, which, from
the fact of famine pressing upon them, he named Fort
Necessity. It is a fact worthy of mention, that at this
encampment public prayer was daily observed, and con-
ducted by the youthful commander himself.
Soon five hundred French and many hundred Indians
appeared on the hills in sight of the fort. He drew out
his men for battle, but the enemy declined the contest.
Then he withdrew them within the inclosure, giving them
directions to fire only when an enemy was in sight. This
irregular fighting continued throughout the day. The
rain poured in torrents, and rendered useless many of
their muskets. At night the French desired a parley ;
suspecting stratagem to introduce a spy, Washington at
first refused, but at length consented. Much of the night
was spent in negotiation ; finally, the Virginians were
allowed to leave the fort with the honors of war, and their
equipments and stores, except artillery. The next morn-
ing the youthful hero led out his men. The Indians im- juty
mediately began to plunder ; Washington, seeing this, 8-
ordered every thing to be destroyed that the soldiers could
not carry. The loss of the Virginia regiment, which
numbered about three hundred, was nearly fifty ; the loss
of the enemy was greater. After much toil and suffering.
278
HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
Cxxf ^rom waut °^ Pro visi0118 j they arrived at Cumberland.
Thus ended the first military expedition of Washington.
1754. Although unsuccessful, he displayed so much prudence
and judgment that the people were impressed by his
merits, and which the House of Burgesses acknowledged
by a vote of thanks.
He was, however, soon after annoyed and mortified by
the course pursued by the narrow-minded Dinwiddie, who,
unwilling to promote the provincial officers, dissolved the
Virginia regiments, and formed them into independent
companies, in which there should be no officer of higher
rank than that of captain. With a dignity and self-respect
worthy of his character, Washington withdrew from the
army. When Governor Sharpe, of Maryland, was ap-
pointed commander-in-chief by the king, he invited him,
through a friend, to join it again under the title of colonel,
but really with no higher authority than that of captain.
He .declined the offer, writing in reply, " If you think me
capable of holding a commission that has neither rank
nor emolument annexed to it, you must maintain a very
contemptible opinion of my weakness, and believe me more
empty than the commission itself. " He was still further
mortified by Dinwiddie's refusal to give up the French
prisoners, according to the articles of capitulation at Fort
Necessity.
While these contests were in progress in the valley of
the Ohio, the French and English nations were ostensibly
at peace. Each, desirous of deceiving the other, professed
to hope that this little collision would not interrupt their
harmony ; the French still continued to send ships to
America laden with soldiers ; and the English matured
plans to drive them away.
Matters took a more decided form ; war was not de-
clared, but open hostilities commenced, and England, for
the first time, sent an army to aid the colonists.
GENERAL BRADDOCK — THE EXPEDITION. 279
Four expeditions were decided upon : one to capture chat
the French posts near the head of the Bay of Fundy, and ,
expel the French from Acadie ; another against Crown 1754
Point, to be led by William Johnson, Indian agent among
the Mohawks ; the third, against Niagara and Frontenac,
was to be intrusted to Shirley, Governor of Massachusetts ;
the fourth against Fort Du Quesne ; the latter the Com-
mander-in-chief, General Edward Braddock, was to lead
in person.
The struggle was about to commence in earnest ;
British troops had arrived, and the colonies responded with
a good will to the call of the mother country for levies of
soldiers.
General Braddock was perfect in the theory and prac-
tice of mere military training ; he had been in the
" Guards " many years, where he had drilled and drilled,
but had never seen actual service. With the conceited
assurance of inexperience, he believed the excellencies
of the soldier were alone found in the British regular —
the perfection of military skill in British officers. To
these qualifications he added a most supercilious con-
tempt for the provincial soldiers and their officers.
He was to lead in person the force against Fort Du
Quesne. Of the difficulties of marching an army over ^55
mountains, and through an unbroken wilderness, he was
blindly ignorant. He was unwilling to hear advice, or
even receive information on the subject ; and when Wash-
ington, whom he had invited to act as one of his aids,
suggested that " if the march was to be regulated by the
slow movements of the train, it would be tedious, very
tedious indeed," he- made no reply, but smiled at the sim-
plicity of the young man, who knew so little about the
movements of a regular army. Afterward, Benjamin
Franklin ventured to direct his attention to the danger of
Indian ambuscades. To his suggestion Braddock replied :
" The Indians are no doubt formidable to raw Americans,
280 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOrLE.
CHAP« but upon the king's regulars, and disciplined troops, /t is
sir, impossible they should make any impression."
1755. The army assembled at Wills' Creek, to which place
Braddock came in his coach, and surrounded by his staff,
" cursing the road very heartily " — its roughness had brok-
en his coach, and ruffled his temper. He refused to em-
ploy Indians as scouts on the march, or to protect the
Pennsylvanians, who were making a road for the passage
of the army ; hooted at the suggestion of Washington to
take as little baggage as possible, and to employ pack-
horses instead of wagons. The English officers could
give up neither their cumbrous baggage nor their lux-
uries, neither could the general dispense with " his
two good cooks, who could make an excellent ragout out
of a pair of boots, had they but materials to toss them
up with."
June. After a month's delay, the army commenced its march.
The difficulties of dragging heavily laden wagons and
artillery over roads filled with stumps of trees and rocks,
brought the general partially to his senses, and he inquired
of Washington what was the best to be done. From
recent accounts it was known that the garrison at Fort
Du Quesne was small, and he advised that a division of
light armed troops should be hurried forward to take pos-
session of the place, before reinforcements could arrive
from Canada. Accordingly, twelve hundred choice men
were detached from the main body and pushed forward,
taking with them ten field-pieces, and pack-horses to carry
their baggage. The main division was left under the com-
mand of Colonel Dunbar, with orders to move on as fast
as possible.
The general persisted in refusing to employ either In-
dians or backwoodsmen as scouts. There was a celebrated
hunter, known all along the frontiers as Captain Jack.
He was " the terror of the Indians." He had been their
prisoner, had lived years among them, and was familiar
THE ARMY AT THE MONONGAHELA. 281
with their habits. Afterward he cleared for himself a P^af.
piece of land, built his cabin, and, happy in his forest life,
cultivated his ground and amused himself by hunting and 1755.
fishing. On his return home on a certain evening he found
his wife and children murdered, and his cabin in ashes.
From that hour he devoted his life to defend the frontiers,
and to avenge himself upon the destroyers of his worldly
happiness. He offered his services and those of his band
to act as scouts, and seek the Indians in their lurking-
places. Braddock received him very coldly, and declined
the offer, saying that he "had experienced troops upon
whom he could rely for all purposes."
Even the advance division moved very slowly, not
more than three or four miles a day. Says Washington
in a letter, " Instead of pushing on with vigor, without
regarding a little rough road, they halt to level every
mole-hill and to erect a bridge over every brook." A
month's slow march through the woods brought the army
to the east bank of the Monongahela, about fifteen miles
above Fort Du Quesne. Only the very day before the pro-
posed attack on that fort, Washington, who had been
detained by a fit of sickness, was able to join them. As July 9
the hills came down to the water's edge, it was necessary
to cross the river directly opposite to the camp, and five
miles below, at another ford, recross to the east side.
Colonel Gage — he, who, twenty years afterward, com-
manded a British army in Boston — crossed before daylight,
and with his detachment moved rapidly to the second
ford ; then recrossing, took position to protect the passage
of the main force. Washington ventured once more to
suggest that the Virginia Bangers, consisting of three hun-
dred men, should be thrown in advance. This proposition
received an angry reply from Braddock, and, as if to make
the rebuke more conspicuous, the Virginians and other
provincials were placed as a rear-guard. At sunrise the
remainder of the army was in motion. Their equipments
282 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
chap, were in the most perfect order : their muskets were bur-
xxi. . .
nished, and charged with fresh cartridges, and in high
1755. spirits they moved along, with bayonets fixed, colors flying,
and drums beating.
About two o'clock in the afternoon, after recrossing the
river, as the army was moving along a narrow road, not
more than twelve feet wide, with scarcely a scout in front
or on the flanks, the engineer, who was marking the way,
suddenly cried out " French and Indians." Scarcely was
the alarm given, before rapid firing was heard in front,
accompanied by most terrific yells. The army was in a
broad ravine, covered with low shrubs, with moderately
rising ground in front and on both sides. On this eleva-
tion among the trees were the French and Indians, invisi-
ble to the English, but from their hiding-places able to see
every movement of the soldiers in the ravine, and to take
deliberate aim. The regulars were thrown into confusion ;
the sight of their companions shot down beside them by
an invisible enemy, together with the unearthly yells of
the savages, sent a thrill of horror through their souls.
They were ordered to charge bayonet up the hill, but no
orders could induce them to leave the line. The enemy
had been sent to occupy this very position, but had arrived
too late ; now they were spreading all along both sides of
the ravine. The English soldiers lost all control, and fired
at random into the woods, wherever they saw the smoke
of an enemy's gun. The advance party fell back upon
the second division, and threw it into still greater confu-
sion. At this moment Colonel Burton came up with a
reinforcement, eight hundred strong, but just as they had
formed to face the enemy, down upon them rushed the
two foremost divisions pell-mell , all were crowded to-
gether in inextricable confusion, and their officers were
nearly all slain or wounded. Now came Braddock him-
self. He ordered the colors to advance, and the respective
THE BATTLE. 283
regiments to separate and form in ranks — but in vain. No <<9AP-
orders were obeyed.
In a few minutes after the battle commenced the Vir- 1755
ginia Rangers were behind trees, and rapidly picking off
the Indians ; but unfortunately many of these brave men
fell victims to the random shots of the regulars. Wash-
ington entreated Braddock to permit his soldiers to pro-
tect themselves, as the Virginians had done ; but he
refused, and still persisted in striving to form them into
platoons, and when any sheltered themselves behind trees,
he called them cowards and struck them with the flat of
his sword. Thus, through his obstinacy, these unfortu-
nate men became targets for the enemy. The officers ex-
hibited the greatest bravery, and many of them fell, as
they were the special objects of the sharpshooters. Two
of the aids, Morris and Orme, were severely wounded,
and their duties devolved upon Washington. His expo-
sure was great, as he passed often from one part of the
field to another ; yet he gave his orders with calmness
and judgment. When sent to bring up the artillery, he
found the Indians surrounding it, Sir Peter Halket, the
commander, killed, and the men paralyzed with fear. He
encouraged them, leaped from his horse, pointed a field-
piece and discharged it. It was useless ; the men deserted
the guns. For three hours the desperate fight lasted.
During this time Braddock was in the centre of the con-
flict, trying, in his way, to regain the field. His officers
had nearly all fallen, and his slain soldiers covered the
ground ; still he would not permit the remainder to adopt
the Indian mode of fighting.
Five horses were shot under him, and finally he him-
self was mortally wounded. As he was falling from his
horse Captain Stewart, of the Virginia Guards, caught
him in his arms. As they bore him out of danger, he
begged to be left to die upon the field of his misfortune.
All was now abandoned. The fall of the general saved
284 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
Cx\\P" *^e army ^rom entire destruction. The soldiers were now
at liberty to save themselves as best they could. " The
L755. regulars fled like sheep before hounds." The Virginia
Kangers threw themselves in the rear, and for some time
held the enemy in check. The wagoners mounted theii
team-horses and fled ; all hurried to the ford, fiercely pur-
sued by the Indians. The love of plunder restrained the
pursuers, and after the fugitives had recrossed the river
they were not molested.
Washington rode all that night and the next day to
Dunbar's camp to obtain wagons to transport the wounded,
and soldiers to guard them. When he had obtained these
he hastened back to meet the fugitives.
Braddock was still able to issue orders, and seems to
have had a faint hope that he might hold out till he
could receive reinforcements. He was carried by the sol-
diers, being unable to mount a horse ; — at length, the
fugitives arrived at Fort Necessity. The wounded gen-
eral appeared to be heart-broken. He scarcely spoke ; as
if reflecting on his past confidence in his troops, he would
occasionally ejaculate, " Who would have thought it ? "
Tradition tells of his softened feelings toward those whom
he had treated harshly ; of his gratitude to Captain Stew-
art for his care and kindness ; of his apology to Washing-
ton for the manner in which he had received his advice.
On the night of the thirteenth of July he died. The next
morning, before the break of day, he was buried as secretly
as possible, lest the Indians, who were hovering around,
should find his grave and violate it. The chaplain was
among the wounded, and Washington read the funeral
service. Near the national road, a mile west of Fort
Necessity, may be seen a rude pile of stones — the work
of some friendly hand, — it marks the grave of Braddock.
" His dauntless conduct on the field of battle shows him
to have been a man of spirit. His melancholy end, too,
disarms censure of its asperity. Whatever may have been
THE FRONTIERS LEFT EXPOSED. 285
his faults and errors, he, in a manner expiated them by c^p-
the hardest lot that can befall a brave soldier ambitious ,
of renown, — an unhonored grave in a strange land, a 1755.
memory clouded by misfortune, and a name ever coupled
with defeat." '
The frightened Dunbar, though he had under his com-
mand fifteen hundred effective men, — enough, if properly
led, to have regained the field, — broke up his camp, de-
stroyed his stores, and retreated with all speed ; only when
he had arrived safely in Philadelphia did he breathe freely.
His failure of duty left the frontiers exposed to the inroads
of the savages.
Of eighty-six officers, twenty-six had perished, and
thirty-six were wounded. Among the latter was Captain
Horatio Gates, who, twenty-five years later, was conspicu-
ous as a major-general in the struggle for independence.
Of the soldiers, more than seven hundred were either
killed or wounded. The gallant Virginia Rangers had
perished in great numbers, for upon them had fallen the
brunt of the battle. When it became known that there
were only two hundred and twenty-five French, and about
six hundred and fifty Indians in the battle, the disgrace
was deeply felt, that this handful of men, sent merely to
hold the English in check, should have defeated a well-
equipped and disciplined army of nearly twice their own
number.
The religious sentiments of the colonists were greatly
shocked at the profanity, Sabbath-breaking, and almost
every form of vice and wickedness common in this boastful
army. So certain were the expectations of victory, that
preparations were made to celebrate it.
It is proper to notice the effect of these events upon the
minds of the colonists. With them the name of the Brit-
ish regulars had lost its prestige — they were not invincible.
1 Washington Irving.
286 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
Cxxf>' ^n Edition, the haughtiness of the British officers had
inflicted wounds destined never to be healed. The atten-
1755. tion of the people was directed especially to Washington.
In a letter to his brother Augustine he says : "By the
all-powerful dispensation of Providence, I have been pro-
tected beyond all human probability or expectation ; for
I had four bullets through my coat, two horses shot under
me, yet escaped unhurt, though death was levelling my
companions on every side around me."
The wonderful manner in which he had been preserved
in that day of peril, excited universal attention. No
doubt the Rev. Samuel Davies, one of the most celebrated
clergymen of the day, expressed the common sentiment,
when, in a sermon preached soon after Braddock's defeat,
he referred to him as " that heroic youth, Colonel Wash-
ington, whom I cannot but hope Providence has hitherto
preserved in so signal a manner for some important ser-
vice to his country." Washington was never wounded w
battle ; he was shielded by the same protecting hand.
CHAPTEK XXII.
FRENCH AND INDIAN WAR— CONTINUED.
The French Acadiens ; their simple Manners, Industry, and good Morals.—*
Expulsion from their Homes, and mournful Exile. — Expedition against
Crown Point. — Baron Dieskau. — English defeated. — Death of Colonel
Williams. — Attack on Johnson's Camp repulsed. — Death of Dieskau.—
Williams College. — Indian Ravages on the Frontiers of Virginia and
Pennsylvania. — Kittanning destroyed. — Lord Loudon Commander-in-
chief. — His tardiness and arbitrary Measures. — Montcalm acts with
Energy ; captures Fort Ontario, then Fort William Henry. — Exhausted
condition of Canada.
In the mean time other expeditions were undertaken ^xif
against the French. For this purpose Massachusetts .
alone raised eight thousand soldiers, almost one-fifth part 1755.
of her able-bodied men. A portion of Acadie or Nova
Scotia was still in the hands of the French. It consisted
of the isthmus on the northern part, which was defended
by two insignificant forts. For forty years, since the peace
of Utrecht, the peninsula had been under British rule,
and now the whole territory was completely subdued.
These forts, with scarcely any resistance, fell into the June
hands of the English. Sixteen years before the Pilgrims
landed at Plymouth this French colony was established
on the Peninsula of Acadie. It was the oldest perma-
nent French settlement in North America. For one
hundred and fifty years the Acadiens had been gradually
clearing and improving their lands, and enjoying the com-
forts of rural life. At first their chief sources of wealth
had been the fisheries and the fur-trade ; but these had
16.
288 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
xxif' graduallv given way to agriculture. Their social inter-
course was governed by a high tone of morals. Their
1755. differences, but few in number, were settled by the arbi-
tration of their old men. Seldom did they go with com-
plaints to their English rulers. Early marriages were
encouraged, and when a young man came of age, his
neighbors built him a house, and aided him for one year,
and the wife's friends aided her with gifts. Their fields
were fertile, and industry made them productive. Their
meadows, which now were covered with flocks of sheep
and herds of cattle, they had, by means of dikes, redeemed
from the great flow of the tide. Their little cottages dot-
ted the landscape. In their domestic industry each family
provided for its own wants, and clothed its members with
cloth and linen made from the wool of their flocks, or from
the flax of their fields.
As Catholics, they were happy in the exercise of their
religion ; though they belonged to the diocese of Quebec,
they were not brought into close relation with the people
of Canada. They knew but little of what was passing
beyond the limits of their own neighborhood. Independ-
ent of the world, they had its comforts, but not its luxu-
ries. They now numbered about seventeen thousand
inhabitants, and up to this time their English rulers had
left them undisturbed in their seclusion.
A dark cloud was hanging over this scene of rural
simplicity and comfort. As they were excused from bear-
ing arms against France by the terms of their surrender,
the Acadiens were known as " French neutrals ;" neither
had they been required to take the usual oaths of allegi-
ance ; they had promised submission to English au-
thority, to be neutral in times of war with France, and it
was understood they were to enjoy their religion. This
oath was one which, as good Frenchmen and good Catho-
lics, they could not take ; it required them to bear arms
against their own brethren in Canada, and it might in-
THE OATHS OP ALLEGIANCE. 289
volve the interests of their religion. " Better," urged *<£££■
the priests, " surrender your meadows to the sea, and
your houses to the flames, than at the peril of your souls 1755.
take the oath of allegiance to the British government."
But it was now to be exacted. " They possess the best
and largest tract of land in this province," writes Law-
rence, Lieutenant-governor of Nova Scotia, to Lord Hali-
fax ; " if they refuse the oaths, it would be much better
that they were away." This " largest and best tract "
seems to have been coveted by their English rulers ; they
undoubtedly were suspicious of the Acadiens as Catholics,
and it is true some of their more ardent young men be-
longed, as volunteers, to the garrisons of the recently
captured forts ; but as this simple-minded people had
neither the will nor the power to aid the enemies of Eng-
land, we cannot suppose that this suspicion alone induced
the British to visit upon them a severity so unparalleled.
The question of allegiance was, however, to be pressed to
the utmost ; if they refused to take the oath, the titles to
their lands were to be null and void. The haughty con-
duct of the British officers sent to enforce these orders
was to them a harbinger of sorrow. Their property was
wantonly taken for the public service, and " they not to
be bargained with for payment ; " if they did not bring
wood at the proper time, " the soldiers might take their
houses for fuel." Their guns were taken, and their boats
seized, under the pretence that they intended to carry
provisions to the French. The English insisted upon
treating this people, so faithful to their country and their
religion, as lawless rebels. Wearied by these oppressions,
their deputies promised allegiance ; they declared that
their consciences would not permit them to rebel against
their rulers, and they humbly asked that their arms and
boats might be restored. " The memorial is highly arro-
gant, insidious, and insulting," said the haughty Law-
rence ; " guns do not belong to you by law, for you are
290 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
UHAp. Roman Catholics." After consultation with the people,
the deputies offered to swear unconditionally. Then they
1755. were told, as they had once refused, now they should not
be permitted to swear.
A calamity, as unexpected as it was dreadful, was at
hand. By proclamation, " the old men, and young men,
as well as all lads over ten years of age/' were called upon
to assemble, on a certain day, the fifth of September, at
certain posts in their respective districts, to hear the
6ept. " wishes of the king." The call was obeyed. At Grand
Pre alone more than four hundred unsuspecting and un-
armed men and boys came together. They were gathered
into the church, its doors were closed, and Winslow, the
commander, announced to them the decision of the Brit-
ish government. They were to be banished forever from
their native province ; from the fields they had cultivated,
from the pleasant homes where they had spent their
youth. They might not emigrate to lands offered them
among friends in Canada, lest they should add strength
to the French. They were to be driven forth as beggars
among their enemies, a people of a strange language and
of a different religion. They were retained as prisoners,
till the ships which were to bear them away were ready.
As soon as possible, their wives and little children were
also seized. On the day of embarkation, the young men
and boys were first ordered on board the ship ; as their
parents and friends were not allowed to go with them,
they refused, fearing that if thus separated, they might
never meet again — a thought they could not bear. But
resistance and entreaties were useless ; driven by the bay-
onet, they were marched from the church to the ship,
which was a mile distant ; their way was lined with weep-
ing friends, mothers, and sisters, who prayed for blessings
on their heads, and they themselves wept and prayed and
mournfully chanted psalms as they passed along. Then
in the same manner the fathers were driven on board
THE SOKROWS OF THE EXILES. 291
another ship. The wives and children were left behind ; chap
these were kept for weeks near the sea without proper
shelter or food, shivering in December's cold, till ships 1755.
could come to take them away. " The soldiers hate them,
and if they can but find a pretext will kill them." Thus
wrote an English officer who was engaged in this work of
cruelty.
In some places the object of the proclamation was
suspected, and the men and youth did not assemble. In
the vicinity of Annapolis some fled to the woods, with
their wives and children, some went to Canada, while
others threw themselves upon the hospitality of the In-
dians, from whom they received a hearty welcome. That
these poor people, who had fled to the woods, might be
compelled by starvation and exposure to give themselves
up, orders were issued to lay waste their homes, and the
whole country was made a desolation, from the village
and its church, to the peasant's cottage and barn. " For
successive evenings the cattle assembled round the smoul-
dering ruins, as if in anxious expectation of the return of
their masters ; while all night long the faithful watch-
dogs howled over the scene of desolation, and mourned
alike the hand that had fed, and the house that had shel-
tered them." '
Seven thousand of these poor people were transported
and cast helpless on the shores of the English colonies,
from New Hampshire to Georgia. Families were separated
never to meet again. From time to time, for many years
afterward, advertisements in the newspapers of the colo-
nies told the tale of sorrow. Now they inquired for a lost
wife or husband, now brothers and sisters inquired for
each other; parents for their children, and children foi
their parents. When any in after years attempted to re-
turn they were driven off. Some of those taken to Georgia
1 Haliburton's History of Nova Scotia.
292 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN" PEOPLE.
CHAP, could endure their banishment no longer. They obtained
boats, and coasted along the shore toward home ; but,
1755. alas ! when almost at the end of their perilous voyage,
they were ordered away. Some wandered to Louisiana,
where lands on the river above New Orleans, still known
as the Acadien coast, were assigned them.
This work of wanton cruelty was done by men, who un-
blushingly congratulated the approving king that the work
of desolation had been so effectively accomplished — a work,
which, for its treachery and cowardly cruelty, deserves the
reprobation of every human breast. " I know not that the
annals of the human race keep the record of sorrows so
wantonly inflicted, so bitter and so perennial, as fell upon
the French inhabitants of Acadie. The hand of the Eng-
lish official seemed under a spell with regard to them,
and was never uplifted but to curse them." x
The expedition against Crown Point, on Lake Cham-
plain, had been intrusted to General William Johnson.
His troops were drawn principally from Massachusetts and
Connecticut ; a regiment from New Hampshire joined
them at Albany. At the head of boat navigation on the
Hudson, a fort was built which, in honor of their com-
mander, whom they reverenced as "a brave and virtuous
man," the soldiers named Fort Lyman. But when John-
son assumed the command he ungenerously changed the
name to Fort Edward. Leaving a garrison in this fort,
Johnson moved with about five thousand men to the head
of Lake George, and there formed a camp, intending to
descend into Lake Champlain. Hendrick, the celebrated
Mohawk chief, with his warriors, were among these troops.
Israel Putnam, too, was there, as a captain, and John
Stark as a lieutenant, each taking lessons in warfare.
The French were not idle ; the district of Montreal
made the most strenuous exertions to meet the invading foe,
1 Bancroft.
THE ENGLISH FALL INTO AN AMBUSCADE. 298
All the men who were able to bear arms were called into chap.
xxii.
active service ; so that to gather in the harvest, their
places were supplied by men from other districts. The 1755.
energetic Baron Dieskau resolved, by a bold attack, to
terrify the invaders. Taking with him two hundred reg-
ulars, and about twelve hundred Canadians and Indians,
he set out to capture Fort Edward ; but as he drew near,
the Indians heard that it was defended by cannon, which
they greatly dreaded, and they refused to advance. He
now changed his plan, and resolved to attack Johnson's
camp, which was supposed to be without cannon.
Meantime scouts had reported to Johnson, that they
had seen roads made through the woods in the direction
of Fort Edward. Not knowing the movements of Dieskau,
a detachment of a thousand men, under Colonel Ephraim
Williams, of Massachusetts, and two hundred Mohawks,
under Hendrick, marched to relieve that post. The
French had information of their approach, and placed
themselves in ambush. They were concealed among the
thick bushes of a swamp, on the one side, and rocks and
trees on the other. The English recklessly marched into
the defile. They were vigorously attacked, and thrown gept
into confusion. Hendrick was almost instantly killed, and 5-
in a, short time Williams fell also. The detachment com-
menced to retreat, occasionally halting to check their pur-
suers. The firing was heard in the camp ; as the sound
drew nearer and nearer, it was evident the detachment
was retreating. The drums beat to arms, trees were
hastily felled and thrown together to form a breastwork,
upon which were placed a few cannon, just arrived from
the Hudson. Scarcely were these preparations made,
when the panting fugitives appeared in sight, hotly pur-
sued by the French and Indians. Intending to enter the
camp with the fugitives, Dieskau urged forward his men
with the greatest impetuosity. The moment the fugitives
were past the muzzles of the cannon, they opened with
294 HISTOKT OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
C£J£' a tremendous shower of grape, which scattered the terrified
Indians and checked the Canadians, but the regulars
1755. pushed on. A determined contest ensued, which lasted five
hours, until the regulars were nearly all slain, while the
Indians and Canadians did but little execution ; they re-
mained at a respectful distance among the trees. At
length the enemy began to retreat, and the Americans
leaped over the breastwork and pursued them with great
vigor. That same evening, after the pursuit had ceased,
as the French were retreating, they were suddenly attack-
ed with great spirit by the New Hampshire regiment,
which was on its way from Fort Edward. They were so
panic-stricken by this new assault, that they abandoned
every thing, and fled for their lives.
Dieskau had been wounded once or twice at the com-
mencement of the battle, but he never left his post ; two
of his soldiers generously attempted to carry him out of
danger, but when in the act one of them received his death
wound ; he urged the other to flee. In the midst of flying
bullets he calmly seated himself on the stump of a neigh-
boring tree. He was taken prisoner, kindly treated, and
sent to England, where he died.
Johnson was slightly wounded at the commencement
of the battle, and prudently retired from danger. To
General Lyman belongs the honor of the victory, yet John-
son, in his report of the battle, did not even mention his
name. Johnson, for his exertions on that day, was made
a baronet, and received from royal favor a gift of twenty-
five thousand dollars. He had friends at court, but Lyman
was unknown.
Colonel Ephraim Williams, who fell in this battle,
while passing through Albany had taken the precaution
to make his will, in which he bequeathed property to
found a free school in western Massachusetts. That school
has since grown into Williams College — a monument
INDIAN VILLAGE OF KITTANNING DESTROYED. 295
more honorable than one of granite, one fraught with chap
blessings to future generations.
Johnson, instead of pushing on to take advantage of the 1755
victory, loitered in his camp, and finally built and garrison-
ed a useless wooden fort, which he named William Henry.
As has been mentioned, the retreat of Dunbar left the
frontiers of Virginia and Pennsylvania subject to the hor-
rors of savage warfare. Washington was intrusted with
their defence, but so few men had he at his command,
and they so scattered, as to afford but little protection.
The distant settlers of Virginia were driven in, and the
beautiful valley of the Shenandoah became almost a deso-
lation. Governor Dinwiddie, as an apology for not furnish-
ing more soldiers, wrote : " We dare not part with any
of our white men to any distance, as we must have a
watchful eye over our negro slaves." In one of his letters,
Washington says : " The supplicating tears of women
and moving petitions of the men, melt me into such
deadly sorrow, that for the people's ease, I could offer
myself a willing sacrifice to the treacherous enemy."
The village of Kittanning, twenty or thirty miles up
the Alleghany, above Fort Du Quesne, was the head-quar-
ters of a notable Indian chief, known as Captain Jacobs.
Incited by the French, he and his bands made many mur-
derous incursions against the settlements of Pennsylvania.
His associate was the Delaware chief Shingis. Benjamin
Franklin, who had been appointed colonel by the governor,
had organized the Pennsylvania militia to protect the
frontiers, and after his resignation, Colonel John Arm-
strong, afterward a major-general in the Kevolutionary
war, was chosen in his place. He resolved to destroy these
Indians and their village. Three hundred Pennsylvanians
volunteered for the enterprise. In the latter part of Sep-
tember they set out on horseback, across the mountains,
and in a few days came into the vieinity of Kittanning, at
296 HISTOKY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
uiiAP. night. They heard the savages carousing and yelling ,
1 they left their horses, approached the village, and arranged
1756. the order of attack. The night was warm, the Indians
pt* soon began to separate, some to sleep in the corn-fields
near by, and some in wigwams. As day began to dawn,
the Americans surrounded the party, and, at a given sig
nal, rushed to the attack. The Indians were taken by
surprise, but soon the voice of Jacobs was heard loud
above the din, cheering on his warriors, and shouting,
'• We are men, we will not be prisoners." The wigwams
were set on fire, and warriors were heard singing their
death-song in the midst of the flames. Jacobs attempted
to break through the surrounding foe, but his career was
cut short by a rifle-ball. This nest of savage murderers
was entirely broken up ; the survivors went further west,
and for a season the frontiers had peace.
Lord Loudon was appointed a sort of viceroy of all the
colonies. He sent General Abercrombie as his lieutenant,
having suspended Governor Shirley, and ordered him to
June, repair to England. Abercrombie arrived in June, and
brought with him several British regiments. It was con-
fidently expected that something important would now be
done. These royal gentlemen had an army of seven thou-
sand men at Albany, but, as the Frenchmen had said,
they were " slow and dilatory," — they spent the summer
in adjusting the rank of the officers. The soldiers of the
colonies, though they had, by their indomitable courage,
saved the remnant of the British army on the banks of
the Monongahela though, at Lake George, they had
driven the enenry before them, and had defended their
soil and maintained the honor of the English name, yet
they were not permitted to elect their own officers, and if
they were appointed by the colonial governors, those of
the same rank by royal appointment took the precedence.
These were the petty annoyances dictated by little minds,
that aided so much in alienating the colonists from the
FORTS ONTARIO AND WILLIAM HENRY CAPTURED. 297
mother country, and in the end leading them to independ ^hap
ence. ,
While the English were thus trifling, Montcalm, the 175«.
successor of Dieskau, was acting. With five thousand
Frenchmen, Canadians, and Indians, he darted across the
lake, and suddenly presented himself at the gates of Fort
Ontario, at the mouth of the Oswego. He met with a
vigorous resistance ; not until they had lost all hope of
receiving aid, and their brave commander, Colonel Mercer,
was killed, did the garrison surrender. An immense ^u„
amount of military stores fell into the hands of Montcalm ; !*•
he sent the captured flags to adorn the churches of Can-
ada, and to please the Iroquois, who promised neutrality,
he demolished the fort. Though it was known that this
important post was threatened, yet no means were
taken to relieve it. Thus Loudon planned and counter-
planned, accomplished nothing, and then withdrew from
his arduous labors into winter-quarters. He demanded
free quarters for his officers of the citizens of Albany,
New York, and Philadelphia. As the demand was " con-
trary to the laws of England and the liberties of America,"
they refused to accede to it. He threatened to bring his
soldiers and compel them to submit to the outrage. The
citizens, in their weakness, raised subscriptions to support
for the winter those who had wasted the resources of the
country. Thus a military chief invaded, not merely the
political rights of the people, but the sanctities of their
domestic life.
Montcalm was undisturbed in making preparations to
capture F.ort William Henry, before which he appeared, 1757
the next year, with a large French and Indian force. The
garrison numbered about three thousand men, under
Colonel Monroe, a brave officer, who, when summoned to
surrender, indignantly refused, and immediately sent to
General Webbe, at Fort Edward, fifteen miles distant, for
aid. He could have relieved Monroe, for he had four
298 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
CHAP- thousand men at his disposal, but when Putnam obtained
permission to go to the aid of the fort, and had proceeded
1757. some miles with his rangers, Webbe recalled him. Then
he sent a letter to Monroe advising him to surrender. This
letter fell into the hands of Montcalm, who was on the
point of raising the siege, but he now sent the letter to
Monroe, with another demand to surrender. The brave
veteran would not capitulate, but held out till half his
guns were rendered useless. Montcalm was too brave and
generous not to appreciate nobleness in others, and he
granted him the privilege of marching out with the honors
og* of war. The only pledge he asked, was that the soldiers
should not engage in war against the French for eighteen
months. They were to retain their private property, and
Canadian and Indian prisoners were to be restored.
Montcalm held a council of the Indians, who consented
to the terms of the treaty, though they were sadly dis-
appointed in their hopes of plunder. He refused them
rum, and thus he could restrain them ; but, unfor-
tunately, the night after the surrender they obtained it
from the English. In the morning they were frantic from
the effects of intoxication, and when the garrison were
leaving their camp, they fell upon the stragglers. The
French officers did all they could to restrain them, and
some were even wounded in their exertions to save the
English soldiers from savage violence. Montcalm, in his
agony, cried, " Kill me, but spare the English ; they are
under my protection." Instead of an orderly retreat to
Fort Edward, it was a flight. .
Thus the French, with a population in Canada, not
one-twentieth part as great as that of the English colo-
nies, seemed triumphant everywhere. Was it strange
that the colonists began to lose their respect for those sent
to protect them from their enemies— especially for the
officers ? They believed the interference of the home gov-
ernment hindered the advancement of their sause, while
CANADA EXHAUSTED. 299
the majority of the royalist governors seemed to be actu- ^*ap.
ated by no worthier motive than that of promoting their
own interests. 1757.
Though the French were thus victorious, and pos-
sessed the valleys of the St. Lawrence and the Mississippi,
and apparently all the continent, except a little strip
along the Atlantic coast, yet Canada was exhausted. The
struggle was virtually over. Her men had been drawn to
the battle-field, while their farms were left untilled, and
now famine was beginning to press upon the people. Their
cattle and sheep were destroyed, and horse-flesh was made
to supply the place of beef ; no aid could come from
France, as nearly all intercourse was cut off by the ever-
present British cruisers. The French owed their success,
not to their own strength, but to the imbecility of the
English commanders.
CHAPTER XXIII.
FRENCH AND INDIAN WAR, CONTINUED.
William Pitt, Prime Minister. — Lord Amherst, Commander-in-chief. — Plan
of Operations. — Louisburg captured. — Abercrombie on Lake George ;
Repulse and Retreat. — Bradstreet captures Fort Frontenac. — Expedi-
tion against Fort Du Quesne. — Colonel Grant. — Washington takes pos-
session of the Fort ; resigns his Commission. — Ticonderoga abandoned ;
the French retire to Canada. — Wolfe appears before Quebec. — Exer-
tions of Montcalm. — The British on the Heights of Abraham. — The
Battle. — Deaths of Wolfe and Montcalm; their Memories. — Quebec ca-
pitulates.— The Cherokee War. — Destruction of their Crops and Villa-
ges ; their Revenge. — Pontiac ; his Character and Plans. — Desolations
along the Frontiers. — General Bouquet. — Pontiac's Death.
xctjV The people of England were not indifferent spectators of
these failures ; they noticed the feeble manner in which
1757. the war was conducted, and attributed the want of success
to the inefficiency of those in command.
Through their influence William Pitt, one of them-
selves, not of the aristocracy, was called to the head of
affairs. He appreciated the character and patriotism of
the colonists. Instead of devising measures that would
impoverish them, he, at once, assumed the expenses of the
war ; announced that the money they had already spent
for that purpose, should be refunded, and that for the fu-
ture such expenses would be borne by the home govern-
ment ; also arms and clothing should be furnished the
soldiers who would enlist. This act of justice brought
into the field fifty thousand men — a number greater than
that of the entire male population of Canada at that
time. •
PLAN OF OPERATIONS. 301
Lord Jeffrey Amherst was appointed commander-in- chap
chief of the British army. He had for his lieutenant the
young and talented James Wolfe, who, although but 1757.
thirty-one years of age, had spent eighteen of those years
in the army, where, by his noble bearing, he had won for
himself the admiration of both friends and foes.
According to the general plan, Amherst himself was
to head the expedition against Louisburg and Quebec ;
while General Forbes was to capture Fort Du Quesne and
take possession of the valley of the Ohio, and Abercrombie
to take Ticonderoga, the French stronghold on Lake
Champlain. With Abercrombie was associated Lord
Howe, who was characterized as the soul of the enterprise. June,
On the 8th of June, Amherst landed with his forces
near the city of Louisburg. Under the cover of a fire
from the ships Wolfe led the first division. He forbade a
gun to be fired, urged on the rowers, and in the face of
the enemy leaped into the water, and followed by his men
waded to the shore. The French deserted their outposts,
and retired to the fortress in the town. After a bombard-
ment of fifty days, when the French shipping in the harbor
was destroyed, and all hopes of receiving assistance at an
end, the fortress surrendered. At the same time were given july
up the islands of Cape Breton and Prince Edward, five 27.
thousand prisoners, and an immense amount of military
stores.
Abercrombie and Lord Howe advanced against Ticon-
deroga. Their army, which amounted to seven thousand
English and nine thousand Americans, assembled at the
head of Lake George. They passed in flat-boats down
to the foot of the lake, where they disembarked and hur-
ried on toward Ticonderoga ; but through the ignorance
of their guide, missed their way, and the advance fell Jul
into an ambuscade of a French scouting party. The ene- 6.
my was soon put to flight, but Lord Howe fell at the head
302 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
chap. 0f ]nS men. His death threw a gloom over the camp — the
soldiers had confidence in no other leader. Their ibre-
1758. bodings were soon realized. The British engineer recon-
noitred the French works, and reported them as weak ;
but Stark, who knew their strength, affirmed they were
strong and well furnished. Abercrombie believed his en-
gineer, and without waiting for his artillery, he ordered an
attack. His soldiers performed prodigies of valor, but
were forced to retire, with a loss of two thousand of their
number. In this battle was wounded Charles Lee, then
a captain, and afterward a major-general in the Revolu-
tionary army. The indefatigable Montcalm had disposed
his small army to the very best advantage, and was pres-
ent wherever he was specially needed. Abercrombie or-
dered his men to attempt an impossibility, but judiciously
kept himself out of danger. The English army was yet
four to one of the French, and could have conquered with
the aid of the cannon which had been brought up, yet
Abercrombie hastily retreated. As Montcalm's troops
were few and exhausted, he did not attempt to pursue him.
The monotony of disasters was disturbed by Colonel
Bradstreet, of New York, who, after much solicitation,
obtained permission to go against Fort Frontenac, which,
from its position at the foot of Lake Ontario, commanded
that lake and the St. Lawrence. It was a central point
for trading with the Indians ; a great magazine which
supplied all the posts on the upper lakes and Ohio with
military stores. With twenty-seven hundred men, all
Americans, principally from New York and Massachu-
setts, Bradstreet passed rapidly and secretly to Oswego,
and thence across the lake in open boats, and landed
Aug. within a mile of the fort. The majority of the garrison,
26# terrified at the sudden appearance of enemies, fled ; the
next day the remainder surrendered. There was found
an immense amount of military stores, some of them des-
tined for Fort Du Quesne, and a fleet of nine armed ves-
THE HIGHLANDERS ROUTED. 303
sels, which held the command of the lake. The fort was &U&
razed to its foundation, two of the vessels were laden with ,
stores and brought to Oswego ; the remaining stores and 1758.
ships were destroyed.
The troops raised in Pennsylvania for the expedition
under General Forbes against Fort Du Quesne were as-
sembled at Eaystown, on the Juniata. Washington was
at Cumberland, with the Virginia regiment. His plan
was to march directly upon the fort by the road which
Braddock had made. This common-sense plan was re-
jected, and the suggestions of some land speculators
adopted, and Forbes ordered a new road to be cut through
the wilderness further north.
General Bouquet with the advance passed over the
Laurel Hill, and established a post at Loyal Hanna.
Without permission he despatched Major Grant with
eight hundred Highlanders and a company of Virginians
to reconnoitre in the vicinity of Fort Du Quesne.. Grant Sept.
was permitted to approach unmolested, though the French
knew from their scouts of all his movements. As he
drew near, he sent a party to take a plan of the fort, and
placed Major Lewis with the Virginians to guard the bag-
gage, as if they were not to be trusted in the contest.
Not a gun was fired from the fort. Grant self-compla-
cently attributed this to the dread his regulars had in-
spired. All this time the Indians lay quietly in ambush,
waiting for the signal to commence the attack. Presently
out rushed the garrison, and attacked the Highlanders in
front, while in a moment the fearful war-whoop arose on
both flanks. Terrified at the unusual contest, they were
thrown into confusion ; their bewildered officers began to
manoeuvre them as if in the open field. Major Lewis
with some of his party hastened to the rescue, and there
fought hand to hand with the savages. The detachment,
overpowered by numbers, was completely routed, and
15.
304 HI'JTOBT OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
chap. Grant and Lewis were both made prisoners. The fugi-
' ' tives soon reached the place where they left the baggage.
1-758. Captain Bullit hastily formed a barricade with the wag-
ons, behind which he waited the approach of the pursuers.
When they were within a few yards, the Virginians poured
in a fire so direct and deadly as to check them. They
soon rallied and again approached. This time, Captain
Bullit and his men advanced, as if to surrender, but when
within eight yards he again poured in an effective fire, and
immediately charged bayonet. The pursuers were so as-
tonished at the suddenness and manner of attack that
they fled in dismay, while the Virginians retreated with
all speed.
When the news of this disaster reached the main
army, it well-nigh ruined the whole enterprise , as a coun-
cil of war decided to give up the attempt for that year,
as it was now November, and there were yet fifty miles of
unbroken forest between them and the fort. Just then
some prisoners were brought in, from whom the defence-
less condition of the fort was learned. Washington was
given the command of a division with which to push for-
ward. In a few days they arrived in the neighborhood of
Du Quesne. Instead of meeting with a vigorous resist-
ance, they were surprised to learn that the place had been
abandoned the day before. The French commander had
blown up his magazines, burned every building that would
burn, and with his company gone on board of flat-boats
N-ov< and floated down the Ohio. On the twenty-fifth of No-
25< vember, Washington marched into the deserted fort, and
planted the English colors. An impulse of grateful feel-
ing changed the name to Fort Pitt — since Pittsburg, in
honor of the illustrious man — the first of English states-
men, who appreciated the character of the American colo-
nists, and who was willing to do them justice. Situated
at the head of the Ohio, in a region celebrated for its agri-
cultural and mineral wealth, and settled by a moral and
PLAN OF OPERATIONS AGAINST CANADA. 305
industrious population, it has far exceeded in importance ^fx?
any other acquisition made during the war. A fit monu-
ment to the memory of the " Great Commoner/' 1758.
The otyect of the campaign thus secured, Washington,
leaving two Virginia regiments to garrison the fort, re-
signed his commission, and retired to private life. In the
mean time he had been elected a member of the House of
Burgesses. A few months afterward, on the opening of
the session, the House, by vote, resolved to receive the
youthful champion with some befitting manifestation of
its regard. Accordingly, when he took his seat as a mem-
ber, the Speaker addressed him, giving him thanks for the
military services he had rendered his country. Taken by
surprise, Washington rose to reply, but words were want-
ing ; he faltered and blushed. " Sit down, Mr. Washing-
ton," kindly said the Speaker ; " your modesty equals
your valor, and that surpasses the power of any language
I possess."
This year closed with great advantages to the English.
The cunning Indians — still true to the winning side — be-
gan to desert the French, and to form treaties of peace or
neutrality with their enemies. The comprehensive mind
of Pitt was devising plans to crush the French power in
America. He promptly paid all the expenses incurred by
the colonists during the past year, and they with alacrity
entered into his schemes. Wolfe was to ascend the St.
Lawrence ; Amherst was to advance by way of Lake Cham-
plain, and capture Montreal, and then join Wolfe before
Quebec ; while General Prideaux was to capture Fort Ni-
agara, and then to pass down Lake Ontario to Montreal.
As Amherst advanced against Ticonderoga, the French 1759.
abandoned that post, and the others as he approached ; n y*
he wasted his time in fortifying the places deserted by the
enemy, as if they who were so exhausted as to be scarcely
able to get out of his way, would ever return ! Though
General Prideaux was unfortunately killed by the burst-
306 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
chap, ing of a gun, yet Sir William Johnson, on whom the com-
. mand devolved, took Niagara ; and thus the chain which
1759. joined the French forts of Canada, with those of the val-
ley of the Mississippi, was broken forever.
June The fleet and troops designed against Quebec, assem-
bled at Louisburg. In the latter part of June the arma-
ment arrived at the Isle of Orleans, upon which the troops
immediately landed. The rock on which stood the citadel
of St. Louis, could be seen to the west looming up more
than three hundred feet, bidding defiance to the invaders.
In the rear were the Heights of Abraham, a plain extend-
ing for miles, while all along the shore the high cliffs
seemed to be an impregnable defence.
To meet this force, Montcalm had only a few enfeebled
battalions and Canadian militia. The Indians held them-
selves aloof. The English fleet consisted of twenty-two
ships of the line, and as many frigates. As master of one
of these ships was Captain James Cook, afterward cele-
brated as the discoverer of the many isles of the Pacific.
Under Wolfe were four young and ardent commanders,
Robert Monckton, afterward governor of New York ;
George Townshend, and James Murray, and also Colonel
Howe, afterward Sir William, who for a time commanded
the British army in the American Revolution.
Quebec, situated on a peninsula between the St. Law-
rence and the river St. Charles, was defended on three
sides by these rivers, leaving only the west exposed. The
lower town was on the beach, while the upper was on the
cliff two hundred feet above. The high cliffs of the north
shore of the St. Lawrence were deemed a sufficient de-
fence. It was thought impossible for an army to scale
them. Below on the St. Lawrence, between the St.
Charles and the Montmorenci rivers, was Montcalm's
camp, guarded by many floating batteries and ships of
war. But the naval superiority of the English soon ren-
dered them masters on the water.
THE RESOLVE TO SCALE THE HEIGHTS. 307
The French troops were driven from Point Levi, di- $jj^F
rectly opposite Quebec, and Wolfe erected batteries on
that spot, and began to bombard the lower town, which 1759.
was soon reduced to ashes ; but owing to the distance, the
fortress and the upper town could not be injured. Wolfe
then passed over to the north side of the river, below the
Montmorenci, intending to pass that stream, and force
Montcalm to a battle.
When this design was carried into effect, the first
division, consisting of the grenadiers, rashly rushed on to
storm the French lines before the second division could
come up to support them. They were repulsed, with a
loss of nearly five hundred men. Diversions were also
made above the town to induce the enemy to come into
the open field, but without success. Montcalm merely
sent De Bougainville with fifteen hundred men to guard
against these attacks.
The repulse at Montmorenci occasioned the sensitive J«ly
Wolfe much suffering. He looked for the tardy Amherst,
but in vain ! No tidings came from him, and it seemed
as if the enterprise, the first under his own command,
was about to fail. He was thrown into a violent fever by
his anxiety. As a last resort, it was resolved, in a coun-
cil held around his bed, to scale the Heights of Abraham.
In order to do this, the French must be deceived. There-
fore Captain Cook was sent to take soundings and place
buoys opposite Montcalm's camp, as if that was to be the
special object of attack. Meantime, the shore for many
miles above the town, was carefully examined. At one
place was found a little indentation in the bank, from
which a path wound up the cliff, — there they determined
to make the attempt. This is now known as Wolfe's Cove.
The troops were put on shipboard and suddenly sailed up
the river, as if intending to pass beyond the French lines
and there land. At night the ships lay to, and the troops,
in boats, dropped down with the tide to Wolfe's Cove, fol-
Sept,
:>08 uistouy or in 1-; amkkicln peoplk.
<'ii\i'. lowed by the shipBdesigned to cover their landing, if r/eces-
nary. As they passed, a French sentinel hailed them with
17.V.). tiic inquiry, " Who goes there ?" " La France." answer-
ed a captain. " What regiment ? " '" The Queen's " - that
being one of the regiments up the river with Bougainville,
The sentinel was deceived. They passed on to the Cove,
and quietly landing began to grope their way up the cliif,
clinging to the shrubs and mcks for support. In the
morning the entire army was on the Heights of Abraham,
ready for battle.
Montcalm was thunderstruck, when he heard the news.
■"It must surely be," said he, '"a small party come to
pillage, and then retire.'"' .More correct information re-
vealed to him the whole truth. There was no time to be
lost, lie sent immediately for the detachment of Bou-
gainville, which was fifteen miles up the river. The
Indians and Canadians advanced first, and subjected the
English to an irregular, and galling fire. Wolfe ordered
his men to reserve their lire for the French regulars, who
were rapidly approaching. When they were within forty
yards, the English poured upon them a stream of musket-
ry, aided by grape-shot from a few guns dragged up the
cliif by the sailors. It was a tierce conilict. The respect-
ive commanders were opposite to each other. Wolfe, al-
though wounded twice, continued to give his orders with
clearness ; but as he advanced with the grenadiers, who
were to make their final charge with the bayonet, he re-
ceived a ball in the breast, lie knew the wound was
mortal, and when tailing said to the oifieer nearest to
him: "Let not my brave fellows see me tall." Ho was
carried to the rear ; when asked if he would have a sur-
geon, he answered: " It is needless ; it is all over with
me/' As his life was fast ebbing, the cry was raised —
" JSee, they run ! they run \" " Who run !" asked the
dying man. " The enemy, sir,-' was the answer. " Do
thev run already ? '" he asked with evident surprise. kSuin-
WOLFE AND MONTCALM. 309
moning his failing energies, " Go one of you, to Colonel chap.
Burton," said he ; " tell him to march Webb's regiment
with all speed down to Charles river, to cut off the retreat 1759.
by the bridge." Then turning upon his side, he mur- ^ '
mured, " Now God be praised, I die happy." These were
the last words of the young hero, in whom were centred
the hopes of his soldiers and of his country. Monckton
was severely wounded, and the command devolved upon
Townshend, who, content with being master of the field,
called the troops from the pursuit. Just at the close of
the battle Bougainville appeared with his division ; but
the contest was declined.
There is a peculiar interest attached to the name and
character of Wolfe. A mind sensitive in its emotions and
vigorous in its thoughts, animated his feeble body. He
maintained a love for the quieter paths of literature, even
amid the excitements of the camp. On the clear star-
'ight night preceding the battle, as the boat in which he
was seated with his officers was silently floating down the
St. Lawrence, he recited to them that classic poem,
Gray's " Elegy in a Country Church-yard ; " then just
published. Death seems to have already cast his dark
shadow upon him, and doubtless many of the finer pas-
sages of the poem were in accordance with his subdued and
melancholy emotions. Then for a time the aspirations
of the man of feeling and poetic taste triumphed over the
sterner ambition of the warrior, and at its close he ex-
claimed : " I would rather be the author of that poem
than to take Quebec to-morrow."
The brave and generous Montcalm was mortally
wounded near the close of the battle. When carried into
the city, the surgeon informed him that he could survive
only a few hours. " So much the better," he calmly re-
plied, " I shall not live to see the surrender of Quebec."
When asked his advice about defending the city, he an-
1827.
18.
310 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
H^Afj swered : " To your keeping I commend the honor of
, France. I will neither give orders nor interfere any fur-
1759. ther ; I have business of greater moment to attend to ;
my time is short ; I shall pass this night with God, and
prepare myself for death." He then wrote a letter to the
English commander, commending to his favor the French
prisoners. The next morning he died. That generation
passed away, and with it the animosity which existed be-
tween the conquerors and the conquered. The united
people of another generation erected a granite monument,
on which they inscribed the names of Montcalm and
Wolfe.
Sept. Five days after the battle Quebec surrendered. There
were great rejoicings both in America and England.
Praises were lavished upon Pitt. He in Parliament re-
plied, " I will aim to serve my country, but the more a
man is versed in business, the more he finds the hand of
Providence everywhere." The next year an attempt was
made by the French to recover Quebec, but it failed. An
overwhelming force was brought against Montreal. Ke-
sistance was vain, and Yaudreuil, the governor, surren-
dered all the French stations on the Lakes. The troops
were to be sent home, and the Canadians, protected in
their property, were to enjoy their religious privileges.
Thus passed away the French power in Canada. Depend-
ents upon the mother country, the inhabitants had never
exercised the right of self-government ; they lacked the
energy essential to success as an independent people.
They have assimilated but little with their conquerors.
They still preserve that gay simplicity of manners, so
characteristic of their nation, and an ardent attachment
to the church of their fathers.
Meantime disturbances had occurred on the south-
west. The Cherokees had always been the friends of the
English, and had undertaken to protect the frontiers south
of the Potomac, yet for this their warriors, when about to
WAR WITH THE CHEROKEES. 311
return home, received no reward from the government — 9J14{V
not even supplies of food for their journey. What the
State failed to do was done by Washington and his offi- 1758.
cers, who supplied their wants. The next year more
Cherokees joined the expedition under Forbes against
Fort Du Quesne. As they were returning home along
the western borders of Virginia, to avoid starvation they
helped themselves to what they wanted. This led to
quarrels with the backwoodsmen, who killed and scalped
some of their number. When this was told in the land
of the Cherokees, it caused sorrow, indignation, and alarm ;
the womeu, relatives of those who were slain, poured forth
deep and bitter wailings for the dead ; the young warriors,
indignant, armed themselves for revenge ; the old men
cautioned and counselled, and did all in their power to
prevent war, but in vain ; two white men fell victims to the
rage of the young warriors. Tiftoe and five other chieftains
went to Charleston to beg for peace, and to heal differ-
ences. The governor, the haughty and arbitrary Lyttle-
ton, demanded that the young men who, according to the Oct.
ideas of the sons of the forest, had vindicated the honor -1'59,
of their nation, " should be delivered up or put to death
in their own land." This, the Cherokees thought, would
only add fuel to the flame already kindled. The legislature
decided unanimously that there was no cause for war.
News came from the frontier that all was peaceful ;
" there were no bad talks." The obstinate governor per-
sisted in his demand, and created more disturbance. Then
he told the chiefs who wished for peace to come to him
and hold a talk, and promised them safe conduct to and
from Charleston. Trusting to his word, the great warrior
Oconostata came with thirty others. But Lyttleton must
obtain for himself the glory of a successful expedition
against the Cherokees. He called out the militia in spite
of the remonstrances of the people, of the legislature, and
of his own council, and basely retained as prisoners, those
312 EIGIOEY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
SSfw?1 ' fco had trusted his word. He marched into ihe countrv
XXIII. J
of the Cherokees, forced a treaty from a feeble old chief,
1759. who had no authority to make one, and then returned in
fancied triumph. Oconostata and a few others were lib-
erated. The remainder Lyttleton ordered to be kept pris-
oners at Fort Prince George till twenty-four warriors
should be given up to him. Oconostata made an attempt
to liberate his friends. In this effort a white man was
killed ; then, in revenge, the garrison murdered the pris-
oners. Now the rage of the Cherokees knew no bounds.
They exclaimed : " The spirits of our murdered brothers
are flying around us screaming for vengeance." The leg-
islature strongly condemned the perfidious conduct of
Lyttleton, and asserted their " birth-rights as British
subjects," and affirmed that he had " violated their un-
doubted privileges." Yet this very man received the
highest commendations from the " Board of Trade."
The Cherokees, driven to desperation by such treat-
ment, called to their aid the Muscogees, and sent to
Louisiana for military supplies. The Carolinians applied
to General Amherst, who sent them twelve hundred
17C0. men, principally Highlanders, under General Montgomery.
They, with the Carolinians, pressed forward, by forced
marches, into the land of the Cherokees. Why give the
details of desolated settlements ? Village after village
was destroyed, and fertile valleys laid waste. On the
upper Savannah was the beautiful vale of Keowee, " the
delight of the Cherokees." They had become so far civil-
ized as to build comfortable houses, and to surround them
with cultivated fields. Suddenly appeared the invaders.
The great majority of the Indians, after an attempt at
defence, fled, and from the distant mountain-tops saw the
enemy burning their houses and destroying their crops.
" I cannot help pitying them a little," writes Colonel
Grant ; " their villages are agreeably situated, their houses
PONTIAC. 313
neatly built. There were everywhere astonishing maga- chap
zines of corn, which were all consumed."
After this dash at the Cherokees, Montgomery imme- 1760.
diately returned to the north, as ordered by Amherst.
The Indians were not subdued, but enraged ; they con-
tinued to ravage the back settlements of the Carolinas.
Immediately after the surrender of Canada, all the 1763.
French stations on the lakes were occupied by the con-
querors, and the little stockade posts throughout all that;
region, and in the valley of the Ohio, were garrisoned by
a few men, in many instances not exceeding twenty. The
French, either as traders or as religious teachers, had won
the confidence and the affection of the Indians, by a
friendly intercourse extending through more than half a
century. Was it strange that the contrast appeared
great to them, between these friends and companions and
the domineering English soldiers, who insulted their priests
and vilified their religion ? The French had prohibited
the trade in rum, but the English introduced the traffic,
and the demoralization of the Indians commenced. The
capture of Fort Du Quesne was the signal for a torrent
of emigration, which poured over the mountains into the
valleys of the Monongahela and Alleghany. The Indians
feared the pale-faces would drive them from their homes.
Adopted into the tribe of the Ottawas, was a Catawba,
who had been brought from the South as a prisoner, but
who had, by his genius and bravery, risen to be a chief. He
had the most unbounded influence over his own and other
tribes, and was styled " the king and lord of all the coun-
try of the north-west." " How dare you come to visit my
country without my leave ? " demanded he of the first Eng-
lish officer who came to take possession of the French forts.
Such was Pontiac, the Philip of the north-west, who, in
the war which bears his name, made the last great- strug-
gle for the independence of the Red Man. This master
spirit planned, and partially executed, one of the most
314 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
char comprehensive schemes ever conceived by Indian sagacity
to expel the invaders, and maintain his own authority as
1703. " king and lord " of all that region. He induced the Del-
awares, the Shawnees, the Senecas, the Miamis, and many
lesser tribes, who roamed over the vast region in the basin
of the upper lakes, in the valley of the Ohio, and a portion
of that of the Mississippi, to join in the conspiracy. He
sent a prophet through the land to proclaim that the
Great Spirit had revealed to him, " that if the English
were permitted to dwell in their midst, then the white
man's diseases and poisons would utterly destroy them."
This conspiracy was more than a year in forming, yet it
was kept a profound secret.
Detroit had the largest garrison, was the great centre
for the trade of the upper lakes, and most important in
its influence. Here the French were numerous ; they
tilled their farms, as well as engaged in the traffic of furs.
Pontiac desired to obtain possession of the fort. He inti-
mated that he was coming with his warriors to have a
" talk" with his English brothers. Meantime, Gladwin,
the commander, had learned of the conspiracy. Finding
that the plot was discovered, Pontiac threw off the mask,
and boldly attacked the fort, but without success. This
was the commencement of a series of surprises ; the In-
dians, in the short space of three weeks, captured every
station w7est of Niagara, except Detroit and Pittsburg.
The soldiers of the garrisons were nearly all put to death,
more than one hundred traders were murdered and scalped
in the wilderness, and more than five hundred families,
after losing hundreds of their members, were driven from
their homes on the frontiers. A large force from several
tribes concentrated around Pittsburg, the most important
post in the valley of the Ohio ; yet the brave garrison
could not be caught by their wiles, nor conquered by their
arms. Their ravages, in the mean while, extended to all
INDIANS DEFEATED PITTSBURG RELIEVED. 315
the settlements and posts on the head-waters of the Ohio, chap
and on the lakes to the region between the Mississippi ,
and the Ohio. 1763.
General Bouquet was sent from Eastern Pennsylvania
to relieve. Fort Ligonier, just at the western foot of the
mountains, and Pittsburg. His army consisted of not
more than five hundred effective men, principally Scotch
Highlanders. They had with them a train of wagons,
drawn by oxen, and pack-horses laden with military stores
and necessary provisions, and a drove of beef cattle.
Passing through a region desolated by the savages, they
saw the remains of burnt cabins, and the harvests stand-
ing uncut in the fields.
When he arrived at Ligonier, Bouquet could learn
nothing from the west, as all intercourse had been cut off.
Leaving there his wagons and cattle, he pushed forward
to ascertain the fate of Pittsburg. The Indians besieging
that place, heard of his approach, and they resolved to
place themselves in ambush, and defeat his army. As
soon as the battle began, the Highlanders dashed at them
with the bayonet, and the Indians fled ; but when the
pursuit slackened they rallied, and were again repulsed.
At length, the number of the savages increased so much
that they completely surrounded the Highlanders, who,
during the night, encamped on the ridge of a hill. In the
morning they could not advance, for their wounded men
and baggage would fall into the hands of the enemy.
Placing two companies in ambush, Bouquet began to re-
treat, and immediately, with exulting yells, the Indians
rushed on in pursuit, but when they came to the right
point, those in ambush charged them on both sides, and
those retreating wheeled and charged also. Panic-stricken
by the suddenness of the attack, the savages broke and
fled. The division then moved on to Pittsburg. From
that day the valley of the Ohio was free from Indian vio-
316 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
CHAP, lence. The stream of emigration began again to pour
'. over the mountains. The tribes, disheartened, began to
1764. make treaties and promise peace. Pontiac would make
no treaty, nor acknowledge himself a friend of the Eng-
lish. He left his home and tribe and went to the country
of the Illinois, where he was assassinated.
1769. For nearly three-quarters of a century a dispute had
existed between the authorities of the colonies of Penn-
sylvania and Maryland in respect to their boundary line.
Finally, a compromise was agreed upon by which a start-
ing-point was to be taken " tif teen English statute miles
1760. south of the latitude of the most southerly part of Phila-
delphia." This point was to be on the circumference or
tangent of a circle whose center was New Castle — now in
Delaware — and radius twelve miles ; from that " fifteen-
mile point a line was to be run due west across the
Susquehannah, etc., to the utmost longitude of Pennsyl-
vania." This circle sweeps round from the west to the
north-east, and is said to be the only boundary in the
world in which the circle is used.
The king sent out from London two learned astrono-
mers— Charles Mason and Jeremiah Dixon — to run the
line. They commenced their labors, and in five years
made a report of their progress. Troubles with the In-
1768 dians interfered, and they could not finish the work,
which was completed fifteen years afterward by other
hands. The English surveyors cut openings through the
woods ; at the end of every mile they set up a stone, on
one side of which the letter " P" was cut in, and on the
other the letter "M;" and every five miles a stone
brought from England, but instead of the letters were en-
graved the coats-of-arms of the Penns and of Lord Balti-
more. This line is artificial, not a mountain nor a river
is used — it passes over both. No boundary has marked
greater contrasts in society and its advancement than the
famous " Mason and Dixon's Line."
CHAPTER XXIV.
CHARACTERISTICS OF THE COLONISTS.
Religious Influences among the earlier Settlers. — The later Emigrants ; their
Influence. — Love of domestic Life. — Laws enjoining Morality. — Sys-
tems of Education ; Common Schools. — John Calvin. — The Southerner ;
the Northerner. — The Anglo-Saxon Element ; the Norman. — Influences
in Pennsylvania ; in New York. — Diversity of Ancestry.
The conquest of Canada had removed apprehensions of chap.
war with France, or of incursions by the Indians. The \
colonists naturally turned to their own affairs. They 176O.
were poor and in debt ; a seven years' war had been within
their borders ; their men had been drawn from the labor
of industry to the battle-field. Yet that war, with its
evils, had conferred benefits. It had made known to them
their strength, and success had given them confidence.
Before relating the events that led to the Revolution,
let us take a rapid survey of the people, who were soon to
take their place among the nations of the earth.
From the first they were an intelligent and a religious
people. They were untrammelled in the exercise of their
religion, and its spirit moulded public sentiment in all
the colonies, whether settled by the Puritan or the Church-
man, by the Dutch Calvinist or the Quaker, by the
Huguenot or the Scotch-Irish Presbyterian. The two
latter were of more recent emigration ; they did not di-
minish the high tone of morals already sustained by the
earlier settlers.
olS history of Tin: ami:i:k ax people.
chap. The Iluiruenots came in small companies, and seldom
XXIV. . ' . '
settled together in large numbers, but mingled with the
1700. colonists, and conformed more and more to their customs,
and, in time, hecame identified with them in interests.
Calvinists in doctrine, they generally united with either
the Episcopal or Presbyterian churches, and by their piety
and industrious habits exerted an intlnence that amply
repaid the genuine hospitality with which thev were every-
where received.
The Scotch-Irish Presbyterians displayed the indomi-
table energy and perseverance of their ancestors, with the
same morality and love of their church. Hvon those who
took post on the outskirts of civilization along the western
frontiers of Pennsylvania, Maryland, Virginia, and Xorth
Carolina, had their pastor, and trained their children in
Bible truth, in the catechism, obedience to parents, —
a wholesome doctrine practically enforced by all the colo-
nists,— and reverence for the Sabbath and its sacred duties.
They were a people decided in their character. They
emigrated from their native land to enjoy civil and relig-
ious privileges, but they had also an eye to the improve-
ment of their temporal affairs.
The endearments of home and of the domestic fireside
had charms for the colonists of every creed. The educa-
tion of their children was deemed a religious duty, while
around their households clustered the comforts and many
of the refinements of the times. The example of their
ancestors, who had sought in the wilderness an asylum,
where they might enjoy their religion, had not been in
vain ; a traditionary religious spirit had come down from
those earlier days, and now pervaded the minds of tin1
people.
Though there was neither perfect uniformity in their
forms of worship, nor in their interpretation of religious
doctrines, yet one sentiment was sacred in the eyes of all — ■
a reverence for the day of IIolv Rest. The influences
LAWS ENJOINING MORALITY. 319
connected with the Sabbath, and impressed fi m week to chap.
week, penetrated their inner life, and like an all-pervading
moral antiseptic preserved, in its purity, the religious 1760.
character of the entire people.
The laws of a people may be taken as the embodiment
of their sentiments. Those enacted by our forefathers
may excite a smile, yet they show that they were no time-
servers — that they were conscientious and in earnest.
In New England the laws noticed those who dressed
more richly than their wealth would justify ; they would
not permit the man who defrauded his creditors to live in
luxury ; those who did not vote, or would not serve when
elected to office, they fined for their want of patriotism ;
they forbade " drinking of healths as a bad habit ; " they
prohibited the wearing of embroidered garments and laces ;
they discouraged the use of " ribbons and great boots ; "
sleeves must reach to the wrist, and not be more than
half an ell wide ; no one under twenty years of age was
allowed to use tobacco, unless prescribed by a physician ;
those who used it publicly were fined a sixpence ; all per-
sons were restrained from " swimming in the waters on
the Sabbath-day, or unreasonably walking in the fields or
streets."
In Virginia we see the same spirit. In every settle-
ment there was to be "a house for the worship of God."
Divine service was to be in accordance with the canons of
the Church of England. Absence from church was pun-
ished by a fine ; the wardens were sworn to report cases
of " drunkenness, swearing, and other vices." The drunk-
ards were fined, the swearers also, at the rate of " a shil-
ling an oath ; " slanderers and tale-bearers were punished ;
travelling or shooting on the Sabbath forbidden. The
minister was not to addict himself " to excess in drinking
or riot, nor play cards or dice, but to hear or read the
Holy Scriptures, catechize the children, and visit the
sick." The wardens were bound to report the masters
:!-J<>
nisTouY of Tin: a.mkkkax people
CHAP.
XXIV
1700.
1 683.
and mistresses '" who neglected to catechize the ignorant
persons uinlcr their charge." In the (Jarolinas laws of a
similar character were enacted ; and. in Pennsylvania,
against " stage plays, playing of cards, dice, May-games,
masques, and revels."
Although, at the time of which we write, many of
these, and similar laws had hecome obsolete, yel the inllu-
ences which dictated them had. for one hundred and fifty
ycars, been forming the character of the colonists. J [edged
in on the one side by the ocean, and on the other by
a howling wilderness filled with hostile savages, they
acquired a certain energy of character, the result of
watchfulness, and an individuality, which to this day dis-
tinguishes their descendants.
While emigrants were flocking to the colonies, these
influences were somewhat disturbed, hut for three-quarters
of a century — since the great revolution In England had
restrained the hand of oppression — emigration had been
gradually diminishing.
Thus uninfluenced from without, the political and re-
ligious principles with which they were imbued had time-
to produce their fruit. A national sentiment, a oneness
•A' feeling among the people, grew into vigorous being.
The common schools of New England had exerted their
undivided influence for almost three generations; the
youth left them with that conscious self-reliance which
springs spontaneously in the intelligent mind — a pledge
of success in things great as well as small. These schools,
no doubt, gave an impulse to female education. In the
earlier days of New England the women were taught to
"ead, but very few to write. i- The legal papers executed
in the first century (of the colony) by well-to-do women,
were mostly signed by a mark, (X ) ".' The custom of
'Elliott's History of New England, vol. i p. 4'28.
EDUCATION FREE INQUIRY AND CIVIL LIBERTY. 32 L
settling in townships or villages made it easy to support §££$•
common schools.
In the middle colonies, especially Pennsylvania and 1760.
New York, a system of general education had not been
introduced ; the diversity of sects prevented. In the
South, except partially in Maryland, common schools were
not adopted. The owners of slaves usually held large
tracts of the best lands, while the less wealthy were com-
pelled to retire to the outskirts of the settlements, where
they could obtain farms. The population was thus so
much scattered, that generally children could not be con-
centrated at particular places in sufficient numbers to
sustain schools. Those who, for want of means, could not
employ private teachers, taught their own children as best
they could. Among this class, from year to year, there
was but little increase in general intelligence. The
wealthy employed private instructors, or sent their chil-
dren abroad. As the nation increased in knowledge, the
people cherished the right to exercise free thought and
free speech.
Our ancestors lived not for themselves alone. With
the prophet's vision, and the patriot's hope, they looked
forward to the day, when all this continent would be un-
der the influence of their descendants, and they a Chris-
tian people. Was it strange they were self-denying and
in earnest, in endeavoring to spread the blessings of
education and religion, as the greatest boon, they could
transmit to their posterity ? Thus they labored to found
institutions of learning ; they encouraged the free ex-
pression of opinion. From the religious freedom of con-
science, which they proclaimed as the doctrine of the
Bible, the transition was easy to political freedom. The
advocate of free inquiry became the advocate of civil lib-
erty, and the same stroke which broke the chain binding
the word of God to the interpretation of the church, shat-
tered the fetters binding the political slave.
822 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
ciiap. Much of this sentiment may he traced to the influence
exerted by the opinions of one man, John Calvin. " We
1760. hoast of our common schools, Calvin was the father of
popular education, the inventor of free schools. The pil-
grims of Plymouth were Calvinists ; the best influence of
South Carolina came from the Calvinists of France. Wil-
liam Penn was the disciple of the Huguenots ; the ships
from Holland that first brought colonists to Manhattan
were filled with Calvinists. He that will not honor the
memory and respect the influence of Calvin, knows but
little of the origin of American liberty. He bequeathed
to the world a republican spirit in religion, with the kin-
dred principles of republican liberty." '
There were slight differences of character between the
people of the several colonies. In the eastern, the diffi-
culties arising from a sterile soil had made the people
industrious and frugal. There, labor was always honorable,
and when the day came " which tried men's souls," great
numbers of the prominent men came from the ranks of
manual labor. The Anglo-Saxon element greatly pre-
dominated among the colonists of New England. As
simple in manners as rigid in morals, a truly democratic
spirit and love of liberty pervaded their minds, and hence
political constitutions of whose benefits all were partici-
pants. The Norman element prevailed more in the South,
especially in Virginia. Here the wealthy colonists were
more aristocratic in spirit and feeling ; were more refined
and elegant in manners. This aristocratic spirit was fos-
tered, in time, by the system of slavery, while the dis-
tinctions in society arising from the possession of wealth
were greatly increased. In all the southern colonies, the
mildness of the climate, the labor of slaves, and the ready
sale of their tobacco, rice, and indigo, made the acquisition
of wealth comparatively easy. The planter, " having
1 Bancroft's Miscellanies, pp. 405-61
INFLUENCES IN PENNSYLVANIA. 823
more leisure, was more given to pleasures and amuse- chap.
ments — to the sports of the turf, the cock-pit, the chase,
and the gaming-table. His social habits often made him 1760.
profuse, and plunged him in debt to the English or Scotch
merchant, who sold his exported products and furnished
him his foreign supplies. He was often improvident, and
sometimes not punctual in his pecuniary engagements." '-
The planters were hospitable. Living upon isolated plan-
tations, they were in a measure deprived of social inter-
course ; but when opportunity served, they enjoyed it
with a relish. As the Southerner was hospitable, so the
Northerner was* charitable. From the hard earnings of the
farmer, of the mechanic, of the merchant, of the seafaring
man, funds were cheerfully given to support schools, to
endow colleges, or to sustain the ordinances of the gospel.
In the South, colleges were principally endowed by royal
grants.
In Pennsylvania was felt the benign influence of the
disciples of George Fox, and its benevolent founder. The
friends of suffering humanity, the enemies of war, the
opponents of classes and ranks in society founded on mere
birth, they recognized merit wherever found. There the
human mind was untrammelled — conscious of a right de-
rived from a higher authority than conventional law ;
there public posts were open to all — no tests intervened
as a barrier. At this time the ardent aspirations of Ben-
jamin Franklin in the pursuit of science received the
sympathy of the people. In Philadelphia he was the
means of founding an academy and free school, which grew
into a university. Here was founded the first medical col-
lege in the colonies, the first public library, and the first
hospital. Here, Bartram, the botanist, founded the first
botanic garden ; and here was formed the American Phil-
osophical Society. Here lived Godfrey, the inventor of
the quadrant, which bears the name of Hadley.
1 Tucker's History of the United States, vol. i, p. 97.
324 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN" PEOPLE.
chap In New York, " the key of Canada and the lakes,"
were blended many elements of character. Here com-
1760. merce began to prevail, and here the arbitrary laws of the
Board of Trade were vigorously opposed, and so often
eluded, that Holland derived more benefit from the trade
than England herself. It cost nearly as much as the
amount of the import duties to maintain the cruisers and
the " Commissioners of Customs." The " Dutch Repub-
licans " had been for nearly a century pupils in the school
where the " rights of Englishmen " were taught ; they
profited so much by the instruction, that they paid very
little attention to the king's prerogative, and thought
their own Legislature quite as respectable as the House of
Commons.
Although the great majority of the Americans were
the descendants of Englishmen, yet there were represent-
atives from Scotland, from Ireland, from Wales, from
France, from Holland, from Germany, from Sweden, and
from Denmark. In religion, there were Churchmen and
Dissenters, Quakers and Catholics. Though they differed
in many minor points, and indulged in those little ani-
mosities which unfortunately too often arise between peo-
ple of different nations and religions, yet they cherished a
sympathy for each other. They were all attached to the
mother country — the South, perhaps, more than the North;
the former had not experienced so severely the iron hand
of royal rule. Some strong external pressure was required
to bind them more closely together, if ever they were to
become an independent nation. That external pressure
was not long wanting.
CHAPTER XXV.
CAUSES WHICH LED TO THE REVOLUTION.
Restrictions of Trade and Manufactures. — Taxes imposed by Parliament. —
Writs of Assistance. — James Otis. — Samuel Adams. — The "Parsons'"
Case in Virginia. — Patrick Henry. — A Stamp Tax threatened. — Colonel
Barre's Speech. — The Stamp Act. — Excitement in the Colonies. — Henry
in the House of Burgesses. — Resolutions not to use Stamps. — " Sons
of Liberty." — A Call for a Congress ; it meets, and the Colonial As-
semblies approve its Measures. — Merchants refuse to purchase English
Merchandise. — Self-denial of the Colonists. — Pitt defends them. —
Franklin at the Bar of the House of Commons. — Stamp Act repealed. —
Rejoicings. — Dartmouth College.
The industrious habits of the colonists were no less wor- c]^'
thy of notice than their moral traits. The contest with
the mother country had its origin in her attempts to de- 1750
prive them, by means of unjust laws, of the fruits of their
labor. For one hundred years she had been imposing
restrictions on their trade and domestic manufactures.
They were treated as dependants, and inferiors who
occupied " settlements established in distant parts of the
world for the benefit of trade." They could purchase
from England alone, and only to her market could they
send their products. That English merchants might
grow rich at their expense, the products of Europe and
Asia were first to be landed in England, and then re-
shipped to America iu British vessels. The only trade
not thus taxed, was that of negroes, they being shipped
directly from Africa — a trade against which all the colo-
nies earnestly, but in vain, protested. Even the trees
326 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
chap. in the forest suitable for masts were claimed by the
king, and marked by his " Surveyor-General of Woods."
*750. " Rolling mills, forges, or tilt-hammers for making iron,"
were prohibited as " nuisances." The House of Commons
said " that the erection of manufactories in the colonies
tended to lessen their dependency upon Great Britain ; "
and the English ship-carpenters complained " that their
trade was hurt, and their workmen emigrated, since so
many vessels were built in New England." The hatter,
because he could obtain his fur from the Indians without
sending to England, was not permitted to sell hats out of
his own colony. No manufacturer was permitted to have
more than two apprentices. The government was unwil-
ling that the colonists should make for themselves a single
article which the English could supply.
These measures aroused a spirit of opposition, more
especially among the frugal and industrious inhabitants
of New England, whose manufactures, fisheries, and trade
were almost ruined. There the people mutually agreed
to buy of British manufacturers only what was absolutely
necessary ; rather than pay the English merchant exorbi-
tant prices, they would deprive themselves of every luxury.
Families determined to make their own linens and wool-
lens, and to abstain from eating mutton, and preserve the
sheep to furnish wool. It became fashionable, as well as
honorable, to wear homespi <n. Associations were formed
to promote domestic manufactures. On the anniversary
of one of these, more than three hundred young women
met en Boston Common, and devoted the day to spinning
flax. The graduating class of Harvard College, not to be
outdone in patriotism, made it a point on Commencement
Day to be clad in homespun. Eestrictions on trade did not
affect the interests of the people of the South so much,
as England could not dispense with their tobacco, rice,
and indigo, and they had scarcely any manufactories.
1763. Before the close of the French war, it was intimated
WRITS OF ASSISTANCE.
327
that England intended to tax the colonies, and make ^xvP-
them bear a portion of the burdens brought upon herself
by the mismanagement of her officials. Many plans were 1763.
discussed and laid aside. Meantime the colonists denied
the right of Parliament to tax them without granting
them, in some form, representation in the government ;
they claimed a voice in the disposal of their money. They
looked back upon their history, and were unable to dis-
cover the obligations they owed the king. They loved to
think of Old England as the " home " of their fathers ;
they rejoiced in her glories and successes, and nevei
dreamed of separating from her, until driven to that re-
solve by oppression. Yet visions of greatness, and it maj
be of independence, were floating through the minds of
the far-seeing. John Adams, when a youth, had already
written : " It looks likely to me, for if we can remove the
turbulent Gallicks, our people, according to the exactest
computations, will in another century become more nu-
merous than England itself. Should this be the case,
since we have, I may say, all the naval stores of the nation
in our hands, it will be easy to obtain the mastery of the
seas ; and then the united force of all Europe will not be
able to subdue us." ■
A special effort was now made to enforce the naviga-
tion laws, and to prevent the colonists from trading with
other nations. This policy would have converted the en-
tire people into a nation of smugglers and law-breakers,
but for the strong religious influences felt throughout the
laud.
To enforee these laws, Parliament gave authority for
using general search warrants, or "Writs of Assistance." .751
These Writs authorized any sheriff or officer of the
customs to enter a store or private dwelling, and search
for foreign merchandise, which he suspected had not paid
'Life and Writings, vol. i. p. 23.
'328 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
chap- duty. The quiet of the domestic fireside was no longei
to be held sacred. These Writs, first used in Massa-
1761. chusetts, caused great excitement and opposition. Their
legality was soon brought to the test in a court of justice.
On this occasion the eloquent James Otis sounded the
note of alarm. He was the Advocate for the Admiralty,
whose duty it was to argue in favor of the Writs ; but he
resigned, in order to plead the cause of the people. The
royalist lawyer contended that the power of Parliament
was supreme, and that good subjects ought to submit to
its every enactment. In reply, Otis exclaimed : " To my
Feb. dying day, I will oppose, with all the power and faculties
God has given me, all such instruments of slavery, on the
one hand, and villany on the other." His stirring elo-
quence gave an impulse to public opinion, which aroused
opposition to other acts of Parliament. " Then and
there," says John Adams, " was the first opposition tc
arbitrary acts of Great Britain. Then and there Ameri-
can Independence was born." The writs were scarcely
ever enforced after this trial.
Of the leading men of the times, none had greater in-
fluence than Samuel Adams — in his private life, the
devout Christian ; in his public life, the incorruptible
patriot. In him the spirit of the old Puritans seemed to
linger : mild in manners, living from choice in retire-
ment, incapable of an emotion of fear, when duty called
him to a post of danger. Learned in constitutional law,
he never went beyond its limits. Through his influence
Boston expressed her opinions, saying, " We claim Brit-
ish rights, not by charter only — we are born to them. If
we are taxed without our consent, our property is taken
without our consent, and then we are no more freemen,
but slaves." And she invited all the colonies to join in
obtaining redress. The same note of alarm was sounded
in Virginia, in New York, in Connecticut, and in the
Carolinas. Thinking minds saw in the future the cominjar
UJ
THE KING'S PREROGATIVE PATRICK HENRY. 329
contest ; that the English ministry would persist in their chap.
unjust treatment, until, in self-defence, they had driven ',
the whole American people to open rebellion. " They 1761.
wish to make us dependent, but they will make us inde-
pendent ; these oppressions will lead us to unite and thus
secure our liberty." Thus wrote Eichard Henry Lee, of
Virginia. " Oh ! poor New England," exclaimed the elo-
quent George Whitefield, "there is a deep-laid plot
against your liberties ; your golden days are ended."
The first collision in Virginia between the prerogative 1763.
of the king and the authority of the legislature occurred '
in a county court. Tobacco was the legalized currency
of the colony. Occasionally, untoward events, such as
war, or failure of the crop, made payments in tobacco very
burdensome. The legislature passed a law, authorizing
debtors to pay their public dues in money, at the rate of
twopence a pound for the tobacco due. The clergymen
of the established church refused to acquiesce in the law ;
they had a fixed salary of a certain number of pounds of
tobacco a year. At their instance, Sherlock, the Bishop
of London, used his influence and persuaded the king to
refuse his signature to this law. * The rights of the cler-
gy and the authority of the king must stand or fall
together," said the Bishop. The law was therefore null
and void.
To test it, a clergyman named Maury brought a suit
to recover damages, or the difference between twopence
per pound and the higher price for which tobacco was
selling. It became the cause of the people on the one
side, and the cause of the clergy and of the king's pre-
rogative on. the other. The people engaged a young man
of twenty-seven to plead against " the parsons." .
That young man was Patrick Henry. He belonged
not to the aristocracy, and was obscure and unknown.
On this occasion, that rare and wonderful gift of eloquence,
which has made us so familiar with his name, was first
330
HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
C\xv c^sP^aye<^- He possessed a charm of voice and tone that
fascinated his hearers ; a grasp of thought, a vividness of
1703. conception, and withal a power that allured into sympathy
with his own sentiments the emotions of his audience.
For this he was indebted to nature, not to education ; for,
when a boy, he broke away from the restraints of school
and the drudgery of book-learning, to lounge idly by
some solitary brookside with hook and line, or in more
active moods to dash away into the woods to enjoy tte ex-
citements of the chase. He learned a little of Latin, of
Greek not more than the letters, and as little of mathe-
matics. At eighteen he married, engaged in trade, and
failed ; tried farming with as little success ; then read
law six weeks, and was admitted to the bar. Yet the
mind of this young man had not been idle ; he lived in a
world of deep thought ; he studied men. He was now to
appear for the first time as an advocate.
The whole colony was interested in the trial, and the
court-room was crowded with anxious spectators. Maury
made objections to the jury; he thought them of "the
vulgar herd," " dissenters," and " New Lights." " They
are honest men," rejoined Henry. The court overruled
the insulting objections, and the jury were sworn.
The case was plainly against him, but Henry con-
tended the law was valid, and enacted by competent au-
thority ; he fell back upon the natural right of Virginia
to make her own laws, independently of the king and par-
liament. He proved the justness of the law ; he sketched
the character of a good king, as the father of his people,
but who, when he annuls good laws becomes a tyrant, and
forfeits all right to obedience. At this doctrine, so new,
so daring, the audience seemed to stand aghast. " He
has spoken treason," exclaimed the opposing counsel. A
few joined in the cry of Treason ! treason ! Yet the jury
brought in a verdict for the " parsons " of a penny dam-
ages.
THE STAMP ACT. 331
Henry denied the right of the king to aid in making chap.
laws for the colonies. His argument applied not only to ,
Virginia, but to the continent. The sentiment spread 1763.
from colony to colony.
Parliament assumed the right to tax the Americans,
and paid no attention to their protests, hut characterized
them as " absurd," " insolent," " mad." When they ex-
postulated with Grrenville, the Prime Minister, he warned
them that in a contest with England they would gain
nothing. The taxes must be levied at all events ; and
he graciously asked if there was any form in which they
would rather pay them than by means of the threatened
stamps. These were to be affixed to all documents used
in trade, and for them a certain impost duty was charged.
Only the English merchants whose interests were involved
in the American trade, appear to have sympathized with
the colonists. Franklin, who was then in London as agent
for the Assembly of Pennsylvania, wrote home : " Every
man in England regards himself as a piece of a sovereign,
over America, seems to jostle himself into the throne
with the king, and talks of our subjects in the colonies."
The Stamp Act did not pass without a struggle. Dur- 176fi
ing these discussions, Colonel Barre, who, in the war
against the French, was the friend and companion of
Wolfe, charged the members of the House of Commons
with being ignorant of the true state of the colonies.
When Charles Townshend, the Chancellor of the Ex-
chequer, asked the question, " Will our American chil-
dren, planted by our care, nourished by our indulgence,
and protected by our arms, grudge to contribute their mite
to relieve us from our burdens ? " Barre indignantly re-
plied : " They planted by your care 1 No, your oppres-
sions planted them in America. They fled from your
tyranny to an uncultivated, inhospitable country ; where
they exposed themselves to almost every hardship, and to
the cruelties of the savage foe. They nourished by your
332 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
chap, indulgence ! They grew by your neglect ; your care for
them was to send persons to rule thern ; deputies of dep-
1765. uties, to some members of this house, sent to spy out their
liberties, to misrepresent their actions, and to prey upon
them ; men who have caused the blood of tb >se sons oj
liberty to recoil within them. They protected by yom
arms ! They have nobly taken up arms in your defence.
Amidst their constant and laboriou* industry they have
defended a country whose frontiers were drenched in blood,
while its interior settlements yielded all their little savings
to your emoluments. I speak the genuine sentiments of
my heart. They are a people as truly loyal as any sub-
jects of the king ; they are jealous of their liberties, and
will vindicate them, if ever they should be violated."
But very few of the members of the house were thus
liberal in their sentiments. The great majority looked
upon the colonies as subservient to the rule of the mother
country. It was the express intention of the ministry
" to be very tender in taxing them, beginning with small
duties and taxes," and advancing as they found them
willing to bear it.
The House of Commons, on March 22d, passed the
Stamp Act by a majority of nine to one ; ten days after-
ward it passed the House of Lords almost unanimously.
The king was ill ; mystery whispered of some unusual
disease. When George III. signed the Stamp Act, he
was not a responsible being — he was insane.
This act declared that every written agreement be-
tween persons in trade, to be valid, must have affixed to
it one of these stamps. Their price was in proportion to
the importance of the writing ; the lowest a shilling, and
thence increasing indefinitely. Truly this " was to take
money without an equivalent." All business must be
thus taxed, or suspended.
In order to enforce this act, Parliament, two months
afterward, authorized the ministry to send as many troops
i
L
RESOLUTIONS OF THE VIRGINIA ASSEMBLY. 333
as they saw proper to America. For these soldiers the chap
colonies were required to find " quarters, fuel, cider or
rum, caudles, and other necessaries/' 1765
The news of the passage of these arbitrary laws threw
the people into a ferment. They became acquainted with
each other's views ; the subject was discussed in the news-
papers, was noticed in the pulpits, and became the en-
grossing topic of conversation in social intercourse. In
the Virginia Assembly, Patrick Henry introduced resolu-
tions declaring that the people of Virginia were only bound
to pay taxes imposed by their own Legislature, and any
person who maintained the contrary should be deemed an
enemy of the colony. An exciting debate followed, in
which the wonderful power of Henry in describing the
tyranny of the British government swayed the majority
of the members. In the midst of one of his bursts of
eloquence he exclaimed : " Caesar had his Brutus, Charles
I. his Cromwell, and George III. " — " Treason ! trea- M~ay
son ! " shouted the Speaker, and a few others joined him
in the cry. Henry fixed his eye upon the Speaker, and
in the tone and emphasis peculiar to himself, continued,
" may profit by their example. If that be treason, make
the most of it." The resolutions passed, but the next
morning, in Henry's absence, the timid in the Assembly
rescinded the last, and modified the others. The governor
immediately dissolved the house for this free expression of
opinion. Meantime, a manuscript copy of the resolutions
was on its way to Philadelphia, where they were speedily
printed and sent throughout the country. They raised
the drooping spirits of the people, who determined to neu-
tralize the law — they would never use the stamps.
The Legislature of Massachusetts resolved that the
courts should conduct their business without their use.
Colden, the royalist governor of New York, thought
" that the presence of a battalion would prevent mis-
chief ; " but the council suggested, " it would be more
334 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN" PEOPLE.
^y*" safe for the government to show a confidence in the peo-
_ — pie." " I will cram the stamps down their throats with
1765. my sword," said an officer. The churchmen preached
obedience to the king — the " Lord's anointed." William
Livingston answered, "The people are the ' Lord's anoint-
ed/ though named ' mob and rabble ' — the people are the
darling of Providence."
Colonel Barre, in his famous speech, characterized
those in America who opposed British oppression, as
" Sons of Liberty." He read them rightly ; Sons of Lib-
erty they were, and destined to be free ; they felt it ; they
adopted the name, it became the watchword under which
they rallied. Associations called by this name sprang up
as if by magic, and in a few weeks spread from Massachu-
setts to Maryland. They would neither use stamps nor
permit the distributers to remain in office.
One morning the famous Liberty Tree in Boston was
found decorated with the effigies of some of the friends of
the English ministry. The mob compelled Oliver, the
secretary of the colony, who had been appointed stamp
distributer, to resign, and promise that he would not aid
Aug. in their distribution. They also attacked the houses of
some of the other officials. The patriots protested against
these lawless proceedings. Five hundred Connecticut
farmers came into Wethersfield and compelled Jared
Ingersol, the stamp officer for that colony, to resign, and
then take off his hat and give three cheers for " Liberty,
Property, and no stamps." Such was the feeling, and
N°v such the result, that when the day came, on which the
law was to go into effect, not one stamp officer could be
found — all had resigned.
June. The General Court of Massachusetts issued a circular
in June, inviting all the colonies to send delegates to a
convention or Congress, to be held at New York, on the
first Tuesday of the following October. Accordingly, on
1754.
THE C0NGRE8S IN SESSION. 335
the day named delegates from nine of the colonies met at C®£V-
the place appointed.
The idea of a union of the colonies dates as far hack 1765.
as the days of William Penn, who was the first to suggest
it ; but now the question was discussed by the various
committees of correspondence. At a convention which
met at Albany eleven years before this, Benjamin Frank-
lin had proposed a plan of union. This was adopted and
laid before the Assemblies of the colonies, and the Board
of Trade, for ratification. It met with a singular fate.
The Assemblies rejected it, because it was too aristocratic,
and the Board of Trade because it was too democratic.
The Congress met and spent three weeks in delibera- Ot.
tion. They drew up a Declaration of Eights, a Memorial
to both Houses of Parliament, and a Petition to the king.
They claimed the right of being taxed only by their own
representatives, premising, that because of the distance,
and for other reasons, they could not be represented in the
House of Commons, but in their own Assemblies. These
documents were signed by nearly all the delegates, and
transmitted to England. The colonial Assemblies, at
their earliest days of meeting, gave to these proceedings
of the Congress their cordial approval. Thus the Union
was consummated, by which the colonies " became as a
bundle of sticks which could neither be bent nor broken."
While the Congress was in session, a ship with stamps on
board made its appearance in the bay. Placards were
posted throughout the city, threatening those who should
attempt to use them. " I am resolved to have the stamps
distributed," said Colden, the governor. " Let us see
who will dare to put the act into execution," said the
Sons of Liberty.
On the last day of October all the royal governors,
except the governor of Ehode Island, took the oath to
carry into execution the Stamp Act. On the next day the
law was to go into effect. But not a stamp was to be
336 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
chap. seen ; instead, in every colony the bells were tolled, and
the flags lowered to half-mast — indications that the pas-
1765. sage of this act was regarded as " the funeral of liberty."
The merchants of New York, Boston, and Philadel-
phia, agreed to send no orders to England for merchan-
dise, to countermand those already sent, and to receive no
goods on commission till the act was repealed. They were
sustained by the people, who pledged themselves not to use
the products of English manufacturers, but to encourage
their own. Circulars were sent throughout the land in-
viting to harmonious action ; these were responded to
with a hearty good- will. Luxuries were dispensed with,
and homespun was more honorable than ever.
The infatuated ministry, in view of this opposition,
resolved to modify, not to repeal the law. It would de-
tract from their dignity, to comply with the request of the
colonists. " Sooner," said one of them, " than make our
colonies our allies, I would wish to see them returned to
their primitive deserts."
1766. Infirm health had compelled Pitt to retire from active
life. " My resolution is taken," said he, " and if I can
crawl or be carried to London, I will deliver my mind and
heart upon the state of America." When accused by
Grenville of exciting sedition, " Sir," said he in reply,
" I have been charged with giving birth to sedition in
America. Sorry I am to have the liberty of speech in
this house imputed as a crime. But the imputation will
not deter me ; it is a liberty I mean to exercise. The
gentleman tells us that America is obstinate ; that Amer-
ica is almost in rebellion. I rejoice that America has re-
sisted." The sentiment startled the house ; he continued :
" If they had submitted, they would have voluntarily be-
come slaves. They have been driven to madness by injus-
tice. My opinion is, that the Stamp Act should be repealed,
absolutely, totally, immediately." The celebrated Edmund
THE STAMP ACT BEPEALED — REJOICINGS. 337
Burke, then a young man rising into notice, advocated the <3^F
repeal with great eloquence.
The House of Commons wished to inquire still further 1766.
of the temper of the Americans before taking the vote.
They accordingly called witnesses to their bar, among
whom was Benjamin Franklin. His knowledge was the
most perfect, and his testimony had the greatest effect
upon theii minds. He said the colonists could not pay
for the stamps for want of gold and silver ; that they had
borne more than their share of expense in the last war, and
that they were laboring under debts contracted by it ;
that they would soon supply themselves with domestic
manufactures ; that they had been well disposed toward
the mother country, but recent laws were lessening their
affection, and soon all commerce would be broken up, un-
less those laws were repealed ; and finally, that they never
would submit to taxes imposed by those who had no au-
thority. The vote was taken, and the Stamp Act was Mar.
repealed ; not because it was unjust, but because it could
not be enforced. The people of the English commercial
cities manifested their joy ; bonfires were lighted, the ships
displayed their gayest colors, and the city of London itself
was illuminated. Expresses were sent to the seaports,
that the news might reach America as soon as possible.
The rejoicings in the colonies were equally as great.
In Boston, the bell nearest to the Liberty Tree was the
first to ring ; soon gay flags and banners were flying from
the shipping, from private dwellings, and from the steeples
of the meeting-houses. Amidst the joy, the unfortunate
were not forgotten, and those immured in the debtor's
prison, were released by the contributions of their friends.
The ministers, from their pulpits, offered thanksgiving in
the name of the whole people, and the associations against
importing merchandise from England were dissolved.
New York, Virginia, and Maryland, each voted a statue
to Pitt, who became more than ever a popular idoL
338 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
Cxxv' ^n *^e m^8* °f triese troubles the cause of education
and religion was not forgotten. The Rev. Eleazar Whee-
1766. lock established at Lebanon, in Connecticut, a school to
educate Indian boys, and train them as teachers for their
own race. Success attended the effort. A grant of forty-
four thousand acres of land induced him to remove the
school to Hanover, New Hampshire. Under the name of
Dartmouth, a charter as a college was granted it, by
1769 Went worth, the governor. The Earl of Dartmouth, a
Methodist, a friend of John Wesley, aided it, was one of
its trustees, and took charge of the funds contributed for
it in England — hence the name.
The establishment of this institution was one of the
effects of the Great Eevival. In the midst of the native
forest of pines the work was commenced. The principal
and his students dwelt in log-cabins, built by their own
hands.
CHAPTER XXVI.
CAUSES WHICH LED TO THE REVOLUTION— CONTINUED.
The English Ministry determine to obtain a Revenue. — Massachusetts invites
to harmonious Action. — The Romney and the Sloop Liberty. — A Brit-
ish Regiment at Boston. — Collision with the Citizens. — Articles of Asso-
ciation proposed by Washington. — The Tax upon Tea. — Whigs and
Tories. — The Gaspe captured. — The King's Maxim. — The Resolutions
not to receive the Tea. — Tea thrown into Boston Harbor. — Its Recep-
tion at other Places. — More oppressive Laws passed by Parliament. —
Aid sent to Boston. — Gage's Difficulties. — Alexander Hamilton. — The
Old Continental Congress. — The Organization ; the first Prayer. — The
" Declaration of Rights." — The " American Association." — The Papers
issued by the Congress. — The Views of Pitt in relation to them-
Lord Grenville, the head of the ministry, was dismissed, ch a p.
and the Marquis of Rockingham took his place. This
ministry soon gave way, and another was appointed by 1766.
the king, at the head of which was placed Pitt, who, in
the mean time, had been created Earl of Chatham.
The following year, during Pitt's absence, Charles
Townshend, his Chancellor of the Exchequer, announced
that he intended, at all risks, to derive a revenue from *767
. .June,
America, by imposing a duty upon certain articles, which
the colonists received from abroad, such as wine, oil,
paints, glass, paper, and lead colors, and especially upon
tea, as they obtained it cheaper from Dutch smugglers
than the English themselves. It was suggested to him
to withdraw the army, and there would be no need of a
•540 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
chap. tax. " I will hear nothing on the subject," said he ; " it
LjVV L is absolutely necessary to keep an anny there."
l7G7# The colonists were startled by this news. They now
remembered the fatal reservation in the repeal of the
Stamp Act, that Parliament had the absolute right to tax
them. " We will form a universal combination to eat
nothing, to drink nothing, and wear nothing, imported
from England," passed as a watchword from one colony
to another, and very soon the non-importation associations
were again in vigor. " Courage, Americans ; liberty, relig-
ion, and science are on the wing to these shores. The
finger of God points out a mighty empire to your sons,"
said one of the lawyers of New York. " Send over an
army and fleet, and reduce the dogs to reason," wrote one
of the royal governors to the ministry.
Suddenly the Ronmey, a man-of-war, appeared in the
harbor of Boston. The question soon arose, Why is a
vessel of war sent to our harbor ? The people had resisted
no law ; they had only respectfully petitioned for redress,
and resolved to dispense with the use of British goods.
Since the arrival of the Ronmey, the haughty manner of
the Commissioners of Customs toward the people had be-
come intolerable. The Ronmey frequently impressed the
New England seamen as they came into the harbor. One
man thus impressed was forcibly rescued by his compan-
ions. These and similar outrages excited the bitterest
animosity between the royal officials and the people.
The Massachusetts Assembly issued a circular to the
other Colonial Assemblies, inviting to harmonious action
in obtaining redress. A few months afterward the minis-
1768. try sent peremptory orders to the Assembly to rescind
•June, their circular. Through the influence of Otis and Samuel
Adams, the Assembly refused to comply with the arbitrary
demand, but instead intimated that Parliament ought to
repeal their offensive laws. Meantime the other Colonial
Assemblies received the circular favorably, and also en-
4S4L rn^+^^ebz^-^1^
A BEITISH REGIMENT STATIONED IN BOSTON. 341
couraged Massachusetts in her resistance to tyranny and chap
injustice. .
At this crisis, under the pretence that she had made 1768.
a false entry, the sloop Liberty, belonging to John Han-
cock, one of the prominent leaders, was seized, and towed
under the guns of the Komney. She was laden with Ma-
deira wine, on which duties were demanded. The news
soon spread, and a crowd collected, the more violent of
whom attacked the houses of the Commissioners of Cus-
toms, who were forced to fly for safety to Castle William
in the harbor. Of these outbreaks of a few ignorant per-
sons, the most exaggerated accounts were sent to Eng-
land, and there it was resolved to send more soldiers, and
make Massachusetts submit as a conquered country. Ven-
geance was to be especially taken on " the insolent town
of Boston." As the Parliament had determined to send
troops to the colonies, Bernard, the governor, requested
Colonel Gage to bring a regiment from Halifax to Boston.
On a quiet Sabbath, these troops were landed under the gei,t
cover of the guns of their vessels, their colors flying,
drums beating, and bayonets fixed, as if they had taken
possession of an enemy's town. Neither the leaders of
the people, nor the people themselves, were intimidated
by this military demonstration. According to law, troops
could be lodged in Boston, only when the barracks at the
forts in the harbor were full. The Assembly refused the
soldiers quarters, and the food and other necessaries which
had been demanded. The royalists gravely thought the
Bostonians " had come within a hair's-breadth of commit-
ting treason." Gage wrote, " It is of no use to argue in
this country, where every man studies law." He would
enforce obedience without delay.
Boston was held as a conquered town ; sentinels were
placed at the corners of the streets, and citizens, when
passing to their ordinary business, were challenged ; even
the sacred hours of the Sabbath were not free from the
342 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
vyyl'* din of drums. A collision finally took place, between a
citizen and a soldier. This led to an affray between the
1770. soldiers and some rope-makers. A few evenings afterward
a sentinel was assaulted ; soldiers were sent to his aid,
and they were stoned by the mob. At length a soldier
fired upon their assailants ; immediately six of his com-
panions fired also. Three persons were killed and five
wounded. The town was thrown into a state of great ex-
citement ; in an hour's time the alarm bells had brought
thousands into the streets. The multitude was pacified,
only for the time, by the assurance of Hutchinson, who
was now governor, that in the morning justice should be
done. The next morning the people demanded that the
troops should be removed from the town to Castle Wil-
liam ; and that Captain Preston, who, it was said, had
commanded his soldiers to fire, should be tried for murder.
Both these requisitions were complied with. Captain
Preston and six of his men were arraigned for trial. John
Adams and Josiah Quincy, both popular leaders, volun-
teered to defend them. They were acquitted by the jury
of murder, but two of the soldiers were found guilty of
manslaughter.
The result of this trial had a good effect in England.
Contrary to the slanders of their enemies, it showed that
the Bostonians, in the midst of popular excitement, were
actuated by principles of justice. Those citizens who had
been thus killed were regarded in the colonies as martyrs
of liberty.
The Virginia Assembly passed resolutions as " bad as
those of Massachusetts." The next day, the governor,
Lord Boutetourte, dissolved the house for passing " the
.769 abominable resolves." The members immediately held a
May. meeting, at which Washington presented the resolutions,
drawn up by himself and his friend George Mason. They
were a draft of articles of association, not to import from
Great Britain merchandise that was taxed. " Such was
THE KING INSISTS ON TAXING TEA. 343
their zeal against the slave-trade, they made a special chap.
covenant with one another not to import any slaves, nor
purchase any imported." To these resolutions were signed 1769
the names of Patrick Henry, Washington, Jefferson, Rich-
ard Henry Lee, and, indeed, of all the members of the
Assembly. Then they were sent throughout the colony
for the signature of every man in it.
The non-importation associations produced their effect, 17^0
and Lord North, who was now prime minister, proposed
to remove all the duties except that on tea. That was
retained at the express command of the king, whose maxim
was, " that there should be always one tax, at least, to
keep up the right of taxing." This removed part of the
difficulty, for which the colonists were thankful ; but they
were still united in their determination not to import tea.
For these concessions they were indebted to the clamors
of those English merchants whose trade had been injured.
For a year there was an apparent lull in the storm of
popular feeling.
Governor Hutchinson issued a proclamation for a day
of thanksgiving ; this he required the ministers to read
from their pulpits on the following Sabbath. He thought
to entrap them, by inserting a clause acknowledging grat-
itude, " that civil and religious liberty were continued,"
and " trade encouraged." But he sadly mistook the men.
The ministers, with the exception of one, whose church
the governor himself attended, refused to read the proc-
lamation, but, on the contrary, agreed te " implore of Al-
mighty God the restoration of lost liberties."
The contest had continued so long that party lines
began to be drawn. Those who favored 'the lemands of
the people, were called Whigs ; those who sympathized
with the government, were called Tories. These terms
had been long in use in England, the former to designate
the opposers of royalty ; the latter its supporters.
Scarcely a colony was exempt from outrages commit-
Jan,
344 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
chap, ted by those representing the royal authority. In New
York the people, on what is now the Park, then known as
1770. the Fields, erected a liberty-pole. They were accustomed
to assemble there and discuss the affairs of the colony.
On a certain night, a party of the soldiers stationed in
the fort cut down the pole. The people retaliated, and
frequent quarrels and collisions occurred. Though these
disturbances were not so violent as those in Massachusetts,
they had the effect of exciting in the people intense hatred
of the soldiers, as the tools of tyranny.
An armed vessel, the Gaspe, engaged in the revenue
service, took her position in Narraganset Bay, and in an
insulting and arbitrary manner enforced the customs.
Sometimes she wantonly compelled the passing vessels
and market boats to lower their colors as a token of re-
spect ; sometimes landed companies on the neighboring
islands, and carried off hogs and sheep, and other provi-
sions. The lieutenant in command was appealed to for his
authority in thus acting. He referred the committee to
the admiral, stationed at Boston. The admiral haughtily
answered : " The lieutenant is fulfilling his duty ; if any
persons rescue a vessel from him, I will hang them as
pirates." The bold sailors and citizens matured their
1772. plans and executed them. The Providence packet, of a
,Uq6 light draught and a fast sailer, was passing up the bay.
\ The Gaspe hailed. The packet paid no attention, but
passed on. Immediately the Gaspe gave chase. The
packet designedly ran into shoal water near the shore ;
the Gaspe followed, and was soon aground, — the tide go-
ing out, left her fast. The following night a company of
men went down in boats, boarded her, made prisoners of
the crew, and burned the vessel. A large reward was
offered for the perpetrators of this bold act ; though well
known, not one was betrayed.
The warehouses of the East India Company were filled
with the " pernicious weed," and the company proposed
A TAX IMPOSED ON TEA.
345
to pay all its duties in England, and then export it at chap
their own risk. This would remove the difficulty, as there
would then be no collections of the duty in American 1V72.
ports. But the king was unwilling to sacrifice his maxim,
and Lord North seems to have been incapable of compre-
hending, that the Americans refused to pay the duty on
tea, not because it was great or small, but because they
looked upon a tax thus imposed as unjust. He therefore
virtually proposed to the company to pay three-fourths of
the duty in England ; to save the king's maxim, the gov-
ernment would collect the other fourth, or three pence on
a pound, in America. It was suggested to North, that
the Americans would not purchase the tea on those con-
ditions. He replied : " It is to no purpose the making
objections, for the king will have it so. The king means
to try the question with the Americans." WW
Meantime public opinion in the colonies was becoming
more and more enlightened, and more and more decided.
" We must have a convention of all the colonies," said
Samuel Adams. And he sent forth circulars inviting
them to assert their rights, when there was a prospect of
success. He saw clearly that the king and Parliament
were resolved to see whether the Americans would or
would not acknowledge their supremacy.
When the conditions became known on which tea was
to be imported, the people took measures to prevent its
being either landed or sold. In Philadelphia they held a
meeting, and requested those to whom the tea was con-
signed " to resign their appointments/' They also de-
nounced " as an enemy to his country," " whosoever shall
aid or abet in unloading, receiving, or vending the tea."
Similar meetings were held in Charleston and New York,
and similar resolutions were passed.
A ship, making a quick passage, arrived at Boston,
with intelligence that several vessels laden with tea had
sailed. Five thousand men immediately assembled to de-
846 HISTOEZ OF THE AMEEICAN PEOPLE.
yi4£ liberate on the course to be pursued. On motion ol
Samuel Adams, they unanimously resolved to send the
1773. tea back. " The only way to get rid of it," shouted
" 3 ' some one in the crowd, " is to throw it overboard." Those
to whom the tea had been consigned were invited to meet
at Liberty Tree, and resign their appointments. Two of
the consignees were sons of Governor Hutchinson, who, at
that time, was peculiarly odious on account of his double-
dealing. This had been brought to light by a number of
his letters to persons in England. These letters had
fallen into the hands of Dr. Franklin, who sent them to
the Speaker of the Massachusetts Assembly. They dis-
closed the fact, that nearly all the harsh measures directed
against the colony, had been suggested by Hutchinson.
According to law, a ship must unload within twenty
days, or be seized for non-payment of duties.
Presently a ship laden with tea came into the harbor.
By order of the committee, it was moored at a certain
wharf, and a company of twenty-five men volunteered to
guard it. The owner promised to take the cargo back, if
the governor would give his permit. Meantime came two
other vessels ; they were ordered to anchor beside the first.
The committee waited again upon the consignees, but
their answer was unsatisfactory. When the committee
made their report to the meeting, not a word was said ;
the assemblage silently broke up. The consignees were
^°v# terribly alarmed. That silence was ominous. Hutchin-
son's two sons fled to the fort, to the protection of the
regulars. The father went quietly out of town. His ob-
ject was to gain time till the twenty days should ex-
pire ; then the ships would pass into the hands of the
Commissioners of Customs and the tea would be safe for
his sons.
Another meeting of the people was protracted till after
dark ; on the morrow the twentieth day woald expire,
and the tea would be placed beyond their reach. At
THE DESTRUCTION OP THE TEA. 347
length the owner of the vessel returned from his mission £^ai\
to the governor, and reported that he would not give the ,
permit for the ships to leave the port. " This meeting," 1773.
announced Samuel Adams, " can do nothing more to save
the country."
Immediately a shout, somewhat like a war-whoop,
arose from a band of forty or fifty " very dark complex-
ioned men, dressed like Mohawks," who were around the
door. This band moved hastily down to the wharf where
lay the tea ships. Placing a guard to protect them from Dec.
spies, they went on board and took out three hundred and
forty-two chests, broke them open, and poured the tea
into the water. In silence the crowd on shore witnessed
the affair ; when the work was accomplished, they quietly
retired to their homes. Paul Revere set out immediately
to carry the news to New York and Philadelphia.
At New York, a tea ship was sent back with her ^eo
cargo ; the captain was escorted out of the city by the 25.
Committee of Vigilance, with banners flying and a band
playing God save the king. Eighteen chests of tea, found
concealed on board another vessel, were thrown into the
dock. In Charleston tea was permitted to be landed,
but was stowed in damp cellars, where it spoiled. The
captain of the vessel bound for Philadelphia, when four
miles below the city, learned that the citizens would not
permit him to land his cargo ; he prudently returned to
England. At Annapolis, a ship and its cargo were both
burned ; the owner, to allay the excitement, himself ap-
plying the torch.
Meantime the various committees of correspondence
were making preparations to hold a congress composed of
representatives from all the colonies. Ye't they said,
and no doubt honestly, that " their old good-will and
affection for the parent country were not totally lost."
" If she returned to her former moderation and good hu-
mor, their affection would revive."
348 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
chap. When it became known in England that the auda-
cious colonists would not even permit the tea to be landed,
*774. the king and ministry determined to make their power
felt ; and especially to make an example of Boston. Ac-
cordingly a bill was introduced and passed in Parliament,
four to one, to close her port to all commerce, and to
transfer the seat of government to Salem. Though her
June, citizens offered remuneration for the tea destroyed, yet
Massachusetts must be punished ; made an example, to
deter other outbreaks. Parliament immediately passed a
series of laws which violated her charter and took away
her privileges. The Port Bill, it was complacently prophe-
sied, will make Boston submit ; she will yet come as a
penitent, and promise obedience to British laws.
Parliament went still further, and passed other laws ;
one for quartering soldiers, at the people's expense, on all
the colonies, and another in connection with it, by which
officers, who, in enforcing this particular law, should com-
mit acts of violence, were to be taken to England, and
tried there for the offence. This clause would encourage
arbitrary acts, and render military and official insolence
still more intolerable. To these was added another law,
known as the Quebec act ; it granted unusual concessions
to the Catholics of Canada — a stroke of policy, if war
should occur between the colonies and the mother country.
This act revived much of the old Protestant feeling latent
in the minds of the people. These laws, opposed by many
in Parliament as unnecessary and tyrannical, excited in
America a deep feeling of indignation against the English
government.
Everywhere Boston met with sympathy. The town of
Salem refused to accept the proffered boon of becoming
the seat of government at the expense of her neighbor,
and Marblehead offered her port, free of charge, to the
merchants of Boston. In that city great distress was ex-
perienced ; multitudes, who depended upon the daily
BOSTON MEETS WITH SYMPATHY. 349
labor they obtained from commerce, were out of employ- chap.
ment, and their families suffered. The different colonies ,
sent to their aid provisions and money ; these were accom- 1774.
panied by words of encouragement, to stand firm in the
righteous cause. The ordinary necessaries of life came
from their neighbors of New England. " The patriotic
and generous people " of South Carolina sent them two
hundred barrels of rice, and promised eight hundred more,
but urged them " not to pay for an ounce of the tea."
In North Carolina " two thousand pounds were raised by
subscription " and sent. Virginia and Maryland vied
with each other in the good work. Washington presided
at a meeting of sympathizers, and subscribed himself fifty
pounds ; and even the farmers on the western frontiers of
the Old Dominion sent one hundred and thirty-seven bar-
rels of flour.
These patriots were determined " that the men of
Boston, who were deprived of their daily labor, should not
lose their daily bread, nor be compelled to change their
residence for want." l
Even the citizens of Quebec, French and English, by
joint effort sent them more than a thousand bushels of
wheat, while in London itself one hundred and fifty thou- ■
sand dollars were subscribed for their benefit. Notwith-
standing all this distress no riot or outbreak occurred
among the people.
General Gage was now Commander-in-chief of the
British army in America, and had been recently appointed
governor, in place of Hutchinson. He was sadly at a loss
how to manage the Bostonians. If they would only vio-
late the law, he could exercise his civil as well as his mili-
tary authority. They held meetings, from time to time,
and freely discussed their public affairs. They were under
1 Bancroft, vol. vii, p. 75.
350 HISTOET OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
chap, the control of leaders who never lost their self-possession,
nor transcended their constitutional rights. The govern-
1774. ment, thinking to avoid the evil, forbade them to hold such
meetings, after a certain day. They evaded the law " by
convoking the meetings before that day, and keeping them
alive." " Faneuil Hall was at times unable to hold them,
and they swarmed from that revolutionary hive into Old
South Church. The Liberty Tree became a rallying
place for any popular movement, and a flag hoisted on it
was saluted by all processions as the emblem of the popu-
lar cause." *
During this time, the people throughout the colonies
held conventions and chose delegates to the General Con-
gress about to meet at Philadelphia. One of these meet-
ings, held in the " Fields " in New York, was addressed
by a youth of seventeen. The stripling charmed his hear-
ers by his fervor, as he grappled with the question and
presented with clearness the main points at issue. When
he closed, a whisper ran through the crowd, " It is a col-
legian." The youth was Alexander Hamilton, a native
of St. Kitts, of Scotch and French descent, his mother a
Huguenot. The son combined the caution of the Scot
with the vivacity of the Gaul. At an early age he lost
his mother, whose memory he cherished with the greatest
devotion. "A father's care he seems never to have
known." At the age of twelve he was thrown upon the
world to depend upon his own resources. He came to
Boston, and thence to New York, where he found means
to enter King's, since Columbia College. He had been
known to the people simply as the West Indian, who
walked under the trees in the college green, and uncon-
scious of the observation of others, talked to himself.
Henceforth a brilliant mind and untiring energies were to
be consecrated to the welfare of the land that had adopted
the orphan.
1 Washington Irving.
THE OLD CONTINENTAL CONGRESS. 351
When the time came for the meeting of the General chap.
Congress, known as the Old Continental Congress, fifty- ,
five delegates assembled in the Carpenters' Hall, in the 1774.
city of Philadelphia. Every colony was represented, ex- gP
cept Georgia, Martin, the royalist governor, had prevented
delegates from being chosen.
Here for the first time assembled the most eminent
men of the colonies. They held in their hands, under the
Great Disposer of all things, the destinies of a people num-
bering nearly three millions. Here were names now sacred
in the memories of Americans. George Washington,
Patrick Henry, Kichard Henry Lee, Edward and John
Eutledge, Gadsden, Samuel Adams, John Adams, Roger
Sherman, Philip Livingston, John Jay, William Living-
ston, Dr. Witherspoon, President of Princeton College, a
Scotch Presbyterian minister, who had come over some
years before, but was said to be " as high a son of liberty
as any man in America," and others of lesser note, but
no less patriotism. They had corresponded with each
other, and exchanged views on the subject of their coun-
try's wrongs ; they had sympathized as brethren, though
many of them were to each other personally unknown. It
was a momentous crisis, and they felt the responsibility
of their position.
The House was organized by electing the aged Peyton
Randolph, of Virginia, Speaker, and Charles Thomson, of
Pennsylvania, Secretary. A native of Ireland, when a
youth he came to America. He was principal of the
Quaker High School in Philadelphia, and was proverbial
for his truth and honesty.
It was suggested that it would be becoming to open
their sessions with prayer. This proposition was thought
by some to be inexpedient, since perhaps the delegates
could not all join in the same form of worship. At length
Samuel Adams, who was a strict Congregationalist, arose
and said : " I will willingly join in prayer with any gen-
•552 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
chap, tlemaii of piety and virtue, whatever may be his cloth
provided he is a friend of his country." On his motion,
1774. the Kev. Mr. Duche, a popular Episcopal clergyman, of
Philadelphia, was invited to officiate as chaplain. Mr.
Duche accepted the invitation. A rumor, in the mean
time, reached Philadelphia that General Gage had bom-
barded Boston. When the Congress assembled the next
morning, anxiety and sympathy were depicted on every
countenance. The rumor, though it proved to be false,
excited feelings of brotherhood, hitherto unknown.
The chaplain read the thirty- fifth psalm, and then,
carried away by his emotions, burst forth into an extem-
porary prayer to the Lord of Hosts to be their helper.
" It seemed," says John Adams, in a letter to his wife,
u as if Heaven had ordained that psalm to be read on that
morning. He prayed, in language eloquent and sublime,
for America, for the Congress, for the province of Massa-
chusetts Bay, and especially for the town of Boston. It
has had an excellent effect upon everybody here."
When the prayer was closed, a long and death-like
silence ensued, as if each one hesitated " to open a busi-
ness so momentous." At length Patrick Henry slowly
arose, faltering at first, " as if borne down by the weight
of his subject ; " but the fires of his wonted eloquence be-
gan to glow, as he recited the colonial wrongs already
endured, and foretold those yet to come. " Kising, as he
advanced, with the grandeur of his subject, and glowing
at length with all the majesty and expectation of the
occasion, his speech seemed more than that of mortal
man." He inspired the entire Congress with his liberal
sentiments ; they found a response in every heart when
he exclaimed : " British oppression has effaced the boun-
daries of the several colonies ; the distinctions between
Virginians, Pennsylvanians, New Yorkers, and New Eng-
enders, are no more. I am not a Virginian, but an
American." When he closed, the members were not
;z^
/ f^C^/^C/Pj/W OL^*/
THE PAPERS ISSUED BY CONGRESS. 353
merely astonished at his matchless eloquence, but the gkap
importance of the subject had overwhelmed them. .
1774.
The Congress appointed a committee, which drew up
a "Declaration of Bights." In this they enumerated
their natural rights to the enjoyment of life, liberty, and
property ; as British subjects, they claimed to participate
in making their own laws ; in imposing their own taxes ;
the right of trial by jury in the vicinage ; of holding pub-
lic meetings, and of petitioning for redress of grievances.
They protested against a standing army in the colonies
without their consent, and against eleven acts passed since
the accession of George III., as violating the rights of the
colonies. It was added, " To these grievous acts and
measures Americans cannot submit."
To obtain redress they resolved to enter upon peacea-
ble measures. They agreed to form an " American Asso-
ciation," in whose articles they pledged themselves not to
trade with Great Britain or the West Indies, nor with
those engaged in the slave-trade — which was especially
denounced — not to use British goods or tea, and not to
trade with any colony which would refuse to join the asso-
ciation. Committees were to be appointed in the various
districts to see that these articles were strictly carried into
effect.
Elaborate papers were also issued, in which the views
of the Congress were set forth still more fully. A petition
to the king was written by John Dickinson, of Pennsylva-
nia ; he also wrote an Address to the people of Canada.
The Memorial to the people of the colonies was written
by Richard Henry Lee, of Virginia, and the Address to
the people of Great Britain by John Jay, of New York.
Every measure was carefully discussed, and though on
some points there was much diversity of opinion, yet, as
CoDgress sat with closed doors, only the results of these
discussions went forth to the country, embodied in resolu-
354 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
chap, tions, and signed by the members. These papers attracted
the attention of thinking men in England. Said Chat-
1774. ham, " When your lordships look at the papers trans-
mitted to us from America ; when you consider their
decency, firmness, and wisdom, you cannot but respect
their cause, and wish to make it your own. For myself,
I must avow, and I have studied the master states of the
world, I know not the people, or senate, who, for solidity
of reason, force of sagacity, and wisdom of conclusion,
under such a complication of difficult circumstances, can
stand in preference to the delegates of America assembled
in General Congress at Philadelphia. The histories of
Greece and Home give us nothing equal to it, and all
attempts to impose servitude upon such a mighty conti-
nental nation, must be vain."
CHAPTER XXVII.
COMMENCEMENT OF THE REVOLUTION.
The Spirit of the People. — Gage alarmed. — The People seize Guns and Aat-
munition. — The Massachusetts Provincial Congress ; its Measures.—"
Parliament passes the Restraining Bill. — Conflicts at Lexington and
Concord. — Volunteers fly to Arms, and beleaguer Boston. — Stark. —
Putnam. — Benedict Arnold. — Ethan Allen and the Green Mountain
Boys. — Capture of Ticonderoga. — Lord Dunm ore in Virginia. — Patrick
Henry and the Independent Companies. — The News from Lexington
rouses a Spirit of Resistance. — The second Continental Congress; it
takes decisive Measures ; adopts the Army before Boston, and ap-
points Washington Commander-in-chief.
"W hile Congress was yet in session, affairs began to wear xxvfi
a serious aspect in and around Boston. The people were
practising military exercises. Every village and district 1774.
had its company of minute-men — men pledged to each
other to be ready for action at a minute's warning. Eng-
land soon furnished them an occasion. The ministry pro-
hibited the exportation of military stores to America, and
sent secret orders to the royal governors, to seize all the
arms and gunpowder in the magazines. Gage complied
with these orders. When it became known that he had
secretly sent a company of soldiers by night, who had
seized the powder in the arsenal at Charlestown, and con-
veyed it to Castle William, the minute-men assembled at
once. Their eagerness to go to the governor and compel
him to restore it to the arsenal could scarcely be restrained.
Ere long various rumors were rife in the country — that
Boston was to be attacked ; that the fleet was bombarding
• >;>o history op the American peopee.
^'^.J- it ; that the soldiers wnv shooting down the citizens in ite
. streets. Thousands of the sturdy yeomanry of Massa-
1771. ehusetts and Connecticut credited these rumors; they
It'll their farms and their shops, and hastened to the res-
cue. Before they had advanced far they learned that the
reports were untrue. General Gage was alarmed by this
signiiieant movement ; he did not apprehend its full im-
port, neither did he rightly discern the/ signs of the times,
nor read the spirit of the people ; he was a soldier, and
understood the power that lies in soldiers and fortiliealions,
but knew nothing of the power of free principles, lie
determined to ibrtify the neck which connects Boston with
the mainland, and place there a regiment, to cut oil all
communication between the people in the country and
those in the town.
1774, Intelligence oi' these proceedings spread rapidly through
lAy- the land. The people took possession of the arsenal at
Chariest own, from which the powder had been removed.
At Portsmouth, in New Hampshire, a company, led by
John Sullivan, afterward a major-general, captured the
fort, and carried off one hundred barrels of powder and
some cannon. At Newport, in the absence of the men-of-
war, forty-four pieces of artillery were seized and conveyed
to Providence. In Connecticut, the Assembly enjoined
upon the towns to lay in a double supply oi' ammunition,
to mount their cannon, and to train the militia frequently.
This spirit was not confined to New England, but pre-
vailed in the middle and southern colonies, where the peo-
ple took energetic measures to pad themselves in a posture
oi defence.
In the midst of this commotion, Gage, thinking to
conciliate, summoned the Massachusetts Assembly to
• t. meet at Salem; but, alarmed at the spirit manifested at
the town meetings in the province, he countermanded the
order. The Assembly, however, met ; and as no one ap-
peared to administer the oaths, and open the session, the
MASSACHUSETTS ADOPTS DECIDED MEASURES. 357
members adjourned to Concord, and there organized as a £^[j
Provincial Congress. They elected John Hancock Presi-
dent, and Benjamin Lincoln Secretary. Lincoln was a 1774
farmer, and afterward became an efficient major-general
in the revolutionary army. This was the first provincial
Assembly organized independently of royal authority.
They sent an address to Gage, in which they com-
plained of the recent acts of Parliament ; of his own high-
handed measures ; of his fortifying Boston Neck, and
requested him to desist ; at the same time they protested
their loyalty to the king, and their desire for peace and
order. Gage replied that he was acting in self-defence,
and admonished them to desist from their own unlawful
proceedings.
The Assembly disregarded the admonition, went quiet-
ly to work, appointed two committees, one of safety, and
the other of supplies, — the former was empowered to
call out the minute-men, when it was necessary, and the
latter to supply them with provisions of all kinds. They
then appointed two general officers — Artemas Ward, one
of the judges of the court, and Seth Pomeroy, a veteran
of threescore and ten, who had seen service in the French
war. They resolved to enlist twelve thousand minute-
men, and invited the other New England colonies to in-
crease the number to twenty thousand. The note of alarm
was everywhere heard ; preparations for defence were
everywhere apparent. In Virginia the militia companies
burnished their arms and practised their exercises. Wash-
ington, their highest military authority, was invited, and
often visited different parts of the country, to inspect these
volunteers on their review days.
The attention of all was now turned to the new Par- 1775
liament about to assemble. To some extent, a change ''"''•
had come over the minds of many of the English people ;
the religious sympathies of the Dissenters were specially
enlisted in favor of the colonists. The papers issued by
358 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOrLF.
xxvn* ^ie Continental Congress had been published and circn-
lated extensively in England, by the exertions of Franklin
17/5. and others. Their plain, unvarnished statements of facts,
and their claim for the colonists to enjoy British as well
as natural rights, had elicited sympathy.
Chatham, though much enfeebled, hurried up to Lon-
don to plead once more for American rights. He brought
in a bill, which he hoped would remove the difficulties ;
but the House spurned every scheme of reconciliation
short of absolute submission on the part of the colonists.
Lord North, urged on by his colleagues in the ministry,
whom he had not strength of will to resist, went further
than ever. The Boston Port Bill had not accomplished
its design ; and now he introduced what was termed the
New England Eestraining Bill, which deprived the people
of those colonies of the privilege of fishing on the banks
of Newfoundland. He declared Massachusetts was in
rebellion, and the other colonies, by their associations,
were aiding and abetting her. Parliament pledged itself
to aid the king in maintaining his authority.
Mar. The next month came intelligence to England, that
the Colonial Assemblies had not only approved the reso-
lutions of the Continental Congress, but had determined
to support them. To punish them for this audacity, Par-
liament passed a second Eestraining Act, to apply to all
the colonies except New York, Delaware, and North Car-
olina. The object of this mark of favor signally failed ;
these colonies could not be bribed to desert their sisters.
General Gage had learned, by means of spies, that at
Concord, eighteen miles from Boston, the patriots had
collected ammunition and military stores. These he de-
termined to destroy. His preparations were made with
the greatest secrecy ; but the Sons of Liberty were vigi-
lant. Dr. Warren, one of the committee of safety, noticed
the unusual stir ; the collection of boats at certain points ;
LEXINGTON. 359
that the light infantry and grenadiers were taken off duty. £5££
He sent information of what he had seen and suspected
to John Hancock and Samuel Adams, who were at Lex- 1775.
ington. It was rightly surmised that Concord was the
object of the intended expedition. It was to leave Boston
on the night of the eighteenth of April ; on that day jg.
Gage issued orders forbidding any one to leave the town
after dark. Again the vigilance of Warren had antici-
pated him. Before his order could go into effect, Paul
Revere and William Dawes, two swift and trusty messen-
gers, were on the way to the country, by different routes.
A lantern held out from the steeple of the North Church —
the concerted signal to the patriots in Charlestown —
warned them that something unusual was going on. Mes-
sengers from that place hurried to rouse the countiy.
About ten o'clock, under cover of the darkness, eight
or nine hundred men, light infantry and grenadiers, em-
barked and crossed to Cambridge, and thence, with as
little noise as possible, took up their line of march. To
t^eir surprise they heard in advance of them the tolling
of bells, and the firing of alarm guns ; evidently they
were discovered. Lieutenant-colonel Smith sent back to
Gage for reinforcements, and also ordered Major Pitcairn
to press forward, and seize the two bridges at Concord.
Pitcairn advanced rapidly and arrested every person he
met or overtook, but a countryman, who evaded him,
spurred on to Lexington, and gave the alarm. At dawn
of day Pitcairn's division reached that place. Seventy
or eighty minute-men, with some other persons, were on
the green. They were uncertain as to the object of 'the
British. It was thought they wished to arrest Hancock j^
and Adams, both of whom had left the place. Pitcairn
ordered his men to halt and load their muskets ; then
riding up he cried out, — " Disperse, you rebels." " Down
with your arms, you villains, and disperse," was echoed
by his officers. Confusion ensued ; random shots were
.'fi;0 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN 1T.OPI/F.
r«AP fir0,l on both sides ; then, hx a vollov from the British,
seven men wore killed ami nine wounded. The Amcri-
'776. pans dispersed, and the British soldiers pave three cheers
for their victory ! By whom the first shot was tired is
uncertain. Lach party charged it upon tho other. Be
that as it may. here was commenced tho eight years' war
<>f i lie revolut ion.
Presently Colonel Smith came up. and in half an hour
ihe entire hody moved on toward Concord, six miles dis-
tant. Information of the firing at Lexington had already
reached that place. The minute-men wen1 assembled on
the green near the church. About seven o'clock the ene-
my appeared, in two divisions. The minute-men retreated
across a bridge to the top of a neighboring hill. The
British placed a strong guard at the bridge, and spent
two hours in destroying what stores they could find, as the
greater part had been concealed, and pillaging some private
dwellings. Meantime the little company on the hill in-
creased rapidly, and soon it numbered about four hundred
and fifty. They advanced upon tho guard, who tired upon
them, ami skirmishing commenced. As the British began
to retreat they were followed by an irregular and galling
fire from behind trees, and fences, and houses. In vain
they sent flanking-parties to free themselves from their
assailants, who were increasing every minute ; the nimble
yeomanry would retire before these parties, only to appear
at a more favorable point. Colonel Smith was severely
wounded, ainl many of his men killed. lie had consumed
more than two hours in retreating to Lexington : there,
fortunately for him, Lord Percy, who insultingly had
marched out of Boston to the tune of Yankee Doodle,
met him with a thousand men and two field-pieces. The
fainting and exhausted troops were received in a hollow
square, where they rested, while the fresh soldiers kept the
indomitable "rebels" at bay with their field-pieces.
While the enemy were thus halting, General Heath,
THE HASTY RETREAT VOLUNTEERS FLY TO ARMS. 361
whom the Massachusetts Provincial Congress had ap- chap
pointed to command the minute-men, came upon the
ground, and also Dr. Warren. They directed the Ameri- 1775.
cans, whose attacks were now more in concert, but still
irregular. The British set fire to dwellings in Lexington,
then renewed their retreat, pillaging and burning as they
went. The Americans, greatly exasperated, harassed them
at every step. Lord Percy's condition became very criti-
cal. The country was roused ; new assailants poured in
from every side ; every moment he was more and more
encumbered by the number of the wounded, while his am-
munition was nearly exhausted. Had he been delayed an
hour longer, his retreat would have been cut off by a pow-
erful force from Marblehead and Salem. " If the retreat,"
writes Washington, " had not been as precipitate as it
was — and God knows it could not well have been more
so — the ministerial troops must have surrendered, or been
totally cut off." In this affair, about eighty of the Ameri-
cans were killed or wounded, and of the British nearly
three hundred.
Intelligence of this conflict spread rapidly through the
country ; couriers hastened from colony to colony. In
New England, volunteers flew to arms, and in ten days
an irregular army completely blockaded the British in
Boston, by a line of encampments, that extended from
Roxbury to beyond Charlestown — a distance of nine miles.
The fire of other days glowed in the breasts of the old
campaigners of the French war, — none were more ready
than they. John Stark, whom we have seen leading his
men in that war, waited not for invitation nor commission ;
in ten minutes after he heard the news he was on his way.
Israel Putnam, another name associated with deeds of
daring in French and Indian warfare, was laboring in his
field when the courier passed along. He left the work,
mounted a horse, roused his neighbors, and, without
changing his clothes, hastened to Boston. Putnam was
•^62 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
xxvfi a nat^ve °f Salem, Massachusetts, but for many years a
resident of Connecticut. Though now almost sixty years
1775. of age, he was buoyant in spirits as a boy, impulsive and
frank as he was fearless, and too generous to suspect
others of guile.
At this crisis, the Massachusetts Congress took ener-
getic measures. A regiment of artillery was formed, the
command of which was given to the aged Gridley, who,
thirty years before, commanded the artillery at the taking
of Louisburg. In the other colonies, the people were not
inactive ; they seized arms and ammunition wherever
found, repudiated the royal authority, and each for itself
called a Provincial Congress.
It was suggested to the Massachusetts Committee of
Safety to seize the two posts, Ticonderoga and Crown
Point, on Lake Champlain, and thus secure the " key of
Canada," as well as the cannon and other military stores
there deposited. Benedict Arnold, who commanded a
company in the camp before Boston, entered into the proj-
ect with great ardor. Arnold was a man of impulsive
temper, petulant, headstrong, and reckless of danger ; he
thirsted for an opportunity to distinguish himself. The
Committee gave him the commission of colonel, with au-
thority to raise men and accomplish the object. He
learned that others were engaged in the same enterprise,
and -without waiting to enlist men, he set out immediately
for Vermont. There he met the redoubtable Ethan Al-
len— an original character — wno from his very singulari-
ties exerted a great influence over his companions. When
he harangued them, as he often did, " his style, though a
singular compound of local barbarisms, and scriptural
phrases, and oriental wildness, was highly animated and
forcible." The territory now known as the State of Ver-
mont, was claimed at this time by both New York and
New Hampshire ; but the inhabitants preferred to live
CAPTURE OF TICONDEROGA.
under the rule of the latter, and formed combinations to £Har
resist the authority of New York. Allen was the leader
of " the Green Mountain Boys," an association formed 1775.
for this purpose.
These Green Mountain Boys, numbering about two
hundred and seventy, with Allen at their head, were al-
ready on their way to Ticonderoga. Within a few miles
of the head of Lake Champlain, Arnold overtook them.
By virtue of his commission as colonel, he ordered Allen
to surrender the command into his hands. Allen refused,
nor would his men march under any other leader. It was
finally arranged that Arnold should go as a volunteer, re-
taining the rank of colonel without the command. The
following night the party reached Shoreham, a point on
the lake opposite Ticonderoga. At dawn of day, as they May
had but few boats, only eighty-three men with Arnold
and Allen had crossed over.
They could delay no longer, lest they should be dis-
covered, and Allen proposed to move on at once to the
fort. Guided by a boy of the neighborhood, a brisk run
up the hill soon brought them to the entrance. They
secured the two sentinels, one of whom they compelled to
show the way to the quarters of Captain Delaplace, the
commandant. The vigorous knocks of Allen at his door
soon roused him. When he appeared, half-awake and
half-dressed, Allen flourished his sword, and called upon
him to surrender the fort. The commandant stammered
out, " By whose authority do you act ? " " In the name
of the Great Jehovah and the Continental Congress,"
thundered Allen. This was a demonstration not to be
resisted. The cheers of Allen's men had already roused
the garrison, all of whom were taken prisoners.
Two days later Seth Warner, Allen's lieutenant, with
a detachment, took Crown Point. Arnold then obtained
boats, pushed on, and captured St. John's in the SoreL
Altogether, sixty prisoners were taken, and what was far
364 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
ciiaf. more important, two hundred cannons and a large supply
1775.
of gunpowder.
Two days after the affair at Lexington, Lord Dunraore,
governor of Virginia, sent a company of marines, who, in
April the night, entered the capital, Williamsburg, and carried
20, off from the public arsenal about twenty barrels of powder,
and conveyed them on board an armed schooner lying in
James river. When the inhabitants learned the fact the
next morning, they were greatly exasperated. Numbers
flew to arms with the intention of recovering the powder.
By the persuasions of the leading citizens, and of the
council, they were restrained from acts of violence.
The Council, however, addressed a remonstrance to
the governor, who promised, verbally, to restore the pow-
der when it should be needed. The people deemed his
answer unsatisfactory. When intelligence came of the
conflict at Concord, it flashed upon their minds tltat the
seizure of the powder and munitions of war in the colonies
was concerted by the royal governors, in accordance with
instructions from the ministiy.
2ay Patrick Henry invited the independent companies of
the county of Hanover to meet him at a certain place on
the second of May. They, seven hundred strong, obeyed
the call. He made known why they were called together ;
spoke of the fight at Concord, and the occasion of it.
Then, at their head, he marched towards Williamsburg,
determined either to have the powder returned, or its
value in money. On their way a messenger from the
frightened governor met them, and tendered the money
for the full value of the powder. The money was after-
ward sent to Congress.
The companies now disbanded, with the understanding
that when called upon, they were to be ready to march at
a minute's warning. Thus did Virginia emulate Massa-
chusetts.
THE PEOPLE RISE IN OPPOSITION. 365
Dunniore, in the mean while, fled with his family on char
board a man-of-war, and thence issued one of his harmless
proclamations, in which he declared " a certain Patrick 1775.
Henry and his associates to be in rebellion/'
A few days before he had said, " The whole country
can easily be made a solitude j " and he threatened to
declare freedom to the slaves, arm them, and lay Wil-
liamsburg in ashes I
As the news from Lexington and Concord reached the
various portions of the colonies the people rose in opposi-
tion. The whigs were indignant at the outrage, and the
royalists censured Gage for his rash and harsh measures.
In New York, the Sons of Liberty, with Robert Sears,
the sturdy mechanic, at their head, seized eighty thousand
pounds 01 flour, which was on board of sloops ready to be
taken to Boston for the king's troops ; they shut up the
custom-house, and forbade vessels to leave the harbor for
auy colony or port which acknowledged British authority ;
they secured the arms and ammunition belonging to the
city, while the volunteers turned out and paraded the
streets. The General Committee was dilatory ; another
was chosen to act with more energy. An association was
formed whose members pledged themselves, " under all
ties of religion, honor, and love of country, to submit to
committees and to Congress, to withhold supplies from
the British troops, and, at the risk of lives and fortunes,
to repel every attempt at enforcing taxation by Parlia-
ment."
Similar was the spirit manifested in the Jerseys. In
Philadelphia, thousands of the citizens assembled and
resolved, " To associate for the purpose of defending with
arms, their lives, their property, and liberty." Thomas
Mifflin, the warlike young Quaker, urged them in his
speech, " not to be bold in declarations and cold in action."
Military companies were formed in the neighboring coun-
366
HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
xxvfi iie8} as we^ as *n ^e c^} W^° arme(i themselves ana
daily practised their exercises.
177f. In Maryland, Eden, the royalist governor, in order to
conciliate, gave tip to the people the arms and ammunition
of the province.
In Charleston, the people at once distributed the
twelve hundred stand of arms which they seized in the
royal arsenal, while the Provincial Congress, with Henry
Laurens, a Huguenot by descent, as their president, de-
clared themselves l' ready to sacrifice their lives and for-
tunes to secure freedom and safety/' The officers of the
militia threw up their commissions from the governor, and
declared themselves ready to submit to the authority of
Congress. Regiments of infantry and rangers were imme-
diately raised.
Georgia, which had hitherto been lukewarm, now took
iecided ground. The people broke into the royal maga-
zine, from which they took all the powder, five hundred
pounds. The committee wrote words of encouragement
and commendation to the people of Massachusetts, and
sent them rice and specie.
In North Carolina, as the news passed from place to
place, it awakened the spirit of resistance to tyranny.
The highlands along her western frontier were settled by
Presbyterians of Scotch-Irish descent, " who were said to
possess the impulsiveness of the Irishman with the dogged
resolution of the Covenanter." A county convention was
in session when the courier arrived. Fired with indigna-
tion, the delegates resolved to throw off " the authority
of the king and Parliament." Ephraim Brevard, " trained
in the college at Princeton," and afterward a martyr in
the cause, embodied their sentiments in resolutions, which
declared : " All laws and commissions, confirmed by or
derived from the authority of the king and Parliament to
Mav. he annulled and vacated." To maintain their rights, they
also determined to form nine military companies, and to
10.
THE SECOND CONTINENTAL CONGRESS. 367
fiaine laws for the internal government of the country, ^y^
This was the famous Mecklenburg Declaration of Inde- ,
pendence. 177£-
Such was the spirit that pervaded the minds of the
entire people. Throughout the land free principles had
laid the train — the spark was applied at Lexington.
On the tenth of May the second Continental Congress May
commenced its session at Philadelphia. They organized
without changing the officers of the year before. In a
few days, however, Peyton Kandolph resigned the presi-
dency to return to Virginia and preside over the Assembly,
which had been called by the governor.
Thomas Jefferson was sent to supply his place as a
delegate, and John Hancock was elected president. Har-
rison, of Virginia, in conducting him to the chair, said :
" We will show Britain how much we value her pro-
scriptions." For it was well known that Hancock and
Samuel Adams were deemed rebels too great to be par-
doned.
Dr. Franklin had returned only a few days before from
England, where he had been for some years in the capacity
of agent for some of the colonies. There his enlightened
statesmanship and far-seeing judgment had won the re-
spect of liberal-minded Englishmen. He was at once
chosen a delegate. Also, in addition to the members of
the first Congress, appeared George Clinton and Eobert R.
Livingston, from New York.
The members were encouraged, for the measures of the
first Congress had been approved by the assemblies of all
the colonies.
The first General Congress met to protest and peti-
tion ; the second to assume authority and take decisive
measures. Then the door was open for reconciliation with
the mother country, now it was almost closed. The face
of affairs was changed ; blood had been wantonly shed,
368 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
chap, and a beleaguering host of rustic soldiery were besieging
the enemy.
1775. Congress was imbued with the spirit of the time. In
committee of the whole reports were called for on the
state of the country. These disposed of, they passed to
other matters ; reviewed the events of the last year ; inves-
tigated the causes which led to the conflicts at Lexington
and Concord. The timid proposed to memorialize Parlia-
ment once more. No ! argued John Adams, and many
others ; it is useless, we have been spurned from the
throne, and our petitions treated with contempt ; such a
memorial would embarrass our proceedings, and have no
influence upon Parliament. Yet another petition was, in
form, voted to the king, and while they denied any inten-
tion to cast off their allegiance, they proceeded to put the
colonies in a posture of defence.
They formed a " Federal Union," by whose provisions
each colony was to manage its own internal concerns ; but
all measures pertaining to the whole community, such as
treaties of peace or alliance, the regulation of commerce,
or declaration of war, came under the jurisdiction of Con-
gress. They recognized Him who holds in his hands the
destinies of nations. They issued a proclamation for a
day of solemn fasting and prayer.
Congress now assumed the authority of the central
power of the nation. They forbade persons, under any
circumstances, to furnish provisions to the British navy or
troops ; took measures to enlist an army and to build
fortifications, and to procure arms and ammunition. To
defray expenses, they issued " Bills of Credit," amount-
ing to two millions of dollars, for whose redemption they
pledged the faith of the " United Colonies." In accord-
ance with the request of the Provincial Congress of Massa-
chusetts, they adopted the volunteers in the camp before
Boston, as the continental army. It remained to appoint
a Commander-in-chief. On this subject there were diver-
^^J^W^Zs/
WASHINGTON CHOSEN COMMANDER-IN-CHIEF. 369
sities of opinion. Some thought a New England army chap.
would prefer a New England commander ; others strove ,
to appoint a commander acceptable to all sections of the 1775
country. The members of Congress acknowledged the
military talents of Washington, and appreciated his lib-
eral views as a statesman. As chairman of the committee
on military affairs, he had suggested the majority of the
rules for the army, and of the measures for defence. At
this time came intimations in a private letter from Dr.
Warren to Samuel Adams, that many leading men in
Massachusetts desired his appointment as commander-in-
chief.
'Patrick Henry, when asked, on his return home from
the first Congress, who of the members was the greatest
man, had replied, " If you speak of eloquence, Mr. Rut-
ledge, of South Carolina, is, by far, the greatest orator ;
but if you speak of solid information and sound judgment,
Colonel Washington is unquestionably the greatest man
on that floor."
John Adams took occasion to point out what, under
the present circumstances, should be the qualifications of
a commander-in-chief, and closed by remarking, that they
knew a man who had these qualifications — " a member of
this house from Virginia." He alluded to Washington.
A few days after, the army was regularly adopted, and
the salary of the commander-in-chief fixed at five hundred
dollars a month. That arranged, Mr. Johnson, of Mary-
land, nominated Washington for the office. The election
was by ballot, and he was unanimously chosen. The next Juno
day the president of Congress formally announced to him 16
his election. Washington rose in his seat and briefly ex-
pressed his gratitude for the unexpected honor, and his
devotion to the cause. Then he added, " I beg it may
be remembered by every gentleman in this room, that I
this day declare, with the utmost sincerity, I do not
370 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
xvvfi *amk myself equal to the command I am honored
with." Refusing any pay, he continued, " I will keep an
1775. exact account of my expenses. Those, I doubt not,
they will discharge, and that is all I desire." Con-
gress resolved " to maintain and assist, and adhere tc
him with their lives and fortunes in the defence of
American liberty"
CHAPTER XXVI11.
THE WAR OF THE REVOLUTION
Battle of Bunker Hill. — Death of Warren. — Washington on his way to join
the Army. — Generals Charles Lee and Schuyler. — State of Affairs In
New York. — Sir William Johnson. — The Condition of the Army. — Na-
thaniel Greene. — Morgan and his Riflemen. — Wants of the Army. —
Difficulties on Lake Champlain. — Expedition against Canada. — Richard
Montgomery. — Allen's rash Adventure. — Montreal captured. — Arnold's
toilsome March to Quebec. — That Place besieged. — Failure to storm
the Town. — Death of Montgomery. — Arnold in his Icy-Fortress.
For two months the armies in and around Boston had
watched each other. General Gage, in the mean time, rryni
had received large reinforcements. These were led by
three commanders of reputation : Generals Howe, Bur- 1775-
goyne, and Henry Clinton. We may judge of the sur- 25.
prise of these generals to find the king's regulars " hemmed
in by what they termed a rustic rout, with calico frocks
and fowling-pieces." " What ! " exclaimed Burgoyne,
" ten thousand peasants keep five thousand king's troops
shut up ! Well, let us get in, and we'll soon find elbow-
room." This vain boast was followed by no decided move-
ment. Gage merely sent forth a proclamation, declared
the province under martial law, and offered pardon to all
the rebels who sh )uld return to their allegiance, except
Samuel Adams and John Hancock. These " rebels" were
placed beyond the pale of the king's mercy.
The patriot soldiers, numbering about fifteen thou-
sand, had come from their various towns, in independent
companies, under their own leaders ; their friends in their
372 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
i'Jl££ respective towns supplied them with provisions. The
Massachusetts troops were under General Ward ; John
1775. Stark led the New Hampshire volunteers ; Putnam com-
manded those from Connecticut, and Nathaniel Greene
the regiment from Khode Island. The artillery, consisting
of nine pieces, was under the control of the venerable
Colonel Gridley. The great majority of the soldiers were
clad in their homespun working clothes ; some had rifles
and some had fowling-pieces. The British greatly exas-
perated them by taunts and acts expressive of contempt.
Opposed to the motley group of patriot soldiers, was a well-
disciplined army of ten thousand men, under experienced
commanders,
It was rumored that Gage intended to seize and
fortify Bunker's Hill and Dorchester Heights — the one
lying north and the other south of the town. In order to
prevent this, some of the patriots proposed that they
should take possession of the hill themselves. The more
cautious were opposed to the enterprise, as extremely
hazardous ; it might provoke a general action, and they
were deficient in ammunition and guns. But the fearless
Putnam felt confident, with proper intrenchments, the
patriots could not fail of success. " The Americans,"
said he, " are never afraid of their heads, they only think
of their legs ; shelter them, and they will fight forever."
It was reported that the enemy intended to seize Bunker
Hill on the night of the eighteenth of June, and therefore
f not a moment was to be lost. On the evening of Friday
June. m ° J
16. the sixteenth, a company of about twelve hundred men,
with their arms, and provisions for twenty-four hours, as-
sembled on the common at Cambridge. Very few of them
knew where they were going, but all knew that it was
into danger. Prayer was offered by President Langdon,
of Harvard College. About nine o'clock they commenced
their inarch, under the command of Colonel William
Prescott, a veteran of the French war ; one in whom the
BATTLE OF BUNKER HILL. 373
soldiers bad implicit confidence. Charlestown Neck was £5A£
strongly guarded, but they passed over it in safety, and
were soon on tbe ground. Bunker Hill was designated in W*
the orders, but Breed's Hill, as it had a better command
of the harbor, was fortified instead. The ground was
speedily marked out, and about midnight the men com-
menced their labors. Early daylight revealed to the aston-
ished eyes of the British sailors in the harbor the strong
redoubt that had sprung up so suddenly on the hill-top,
and the Americans still busy at their work. Without
waiting for orders, the sloop-of-war Lively opened her
guns upon them ; a floating battery and other ships did
the same. The firing roused the people of Boston. Gage,
through his spy-glass, noticed Prescott, who was on the
parapet inspecting the works. " Who is that officer in
command/' he asked ; " will he fight ? " " He is an old
soldier, and will fight to the last drop of his blood," replied
one who knew Prescott well. " The works must be car-
ried," remarked Gage. An hour later the plan of attack
was decided upon by a council of war.
From the heights the Americans saw and heard the
bustle of preparation. Repeated messages were sent to
General Ward for the promised reinforcements. Putnam
hurried to Cambridge to urge the demand in person.
Ward hesitated lest he should weaken the main division.
It was eleven o'clock before Stark and Reed, with their
regiments, were ordered to the relief of Prescott, and the
wearied soldiers, who had been laboring all night at the
redoubt.
About noon, twenty- eight barges filled with soldiers,
under the command of Generals Howe and Pigott, left
Boston. The ships kept up an incessant cannonade to
cover their landing. General Howe discovered that the
works were stronger than he anticipated, and he sent to
General Gage for reinforcements ; his men, while waiting,
were regaled with refreshments and " grog." Meantime
374 HISTOET OF THE AMEBIC AN PEOPLE.
jrxvnr ^10 Americans strengthened their works, and formed a
rustic breastwork ; to do this, they pulled up a post-and-
1?75. rail fence, placed it behind a stone fence, and filled the
space between with new-mown grass. This extended
down the side of the hill north of the redoubt to a swamp.
Now they were cheered by the sight of Stark, who ap-
peared with five hundred men. As he marched leisurely
along, some one suggested a rapid movement. The vet-
eran replied, " One fresh man in action is worth ten tired
ones ; " and he moved quietly on. A part of his force
halted with Putnam at Bunker Hill, and a part joined
Knowlton behind the fence breastwork. About two
o'clock, Dr. Warren, who had recently been appointed
major-general, but had not received his commission, ar-
rived. He came, as did Pomeroy, to serve in the ranks.
When Putnam pointed him to the redoubt, and said,
" There you will be under cover," " Don't think," replied
Warren, " that I seek a place of safety — where will the
attack be the hottest ? " Still pointing to the same spot
Putnam answered : ■" That is the enemy's object ; if that
can be maintained the day is ours." When Warren en-
tered the redoubt, the soldiers received him with hearty
cheers. Prescott offered him the command, which he
gracefully declined, saying : "I shall be happy to learn
from a soldier of your experience."
The day was clear and bright : the British, in their
brilliant uniforms, presented a fine appearance. Thou-
sands watched every movement from the house-tops in
Boston and from the neighboring hills. Fathers, husbands,
sons, and brothers were to meet the enemy, for the first
time, in a regular battle. The expedition had commenced
with prayer on Cambridge green, and now minister Mc-
Clintock, of New Hampshire, was passing among the men
praying and exhorting them to stand firm.
About half-past two o'clock, the British, confident of
an easy victory, advanced ; one division, under General
BATTLE OF BUNKER HILL. 375
Pigott, marched up the hill to storm the redoubt in front, 95A,?;
while the other, under General Howe, advanced against the — . —
fence breastwork, in order to gain the rear and cut off the 1775
retreat. The redoubt was commanded by Prescott. Stark,
Knowlton, and Reed, with some of the New Hampshire
and Connecticut men, were at the fence. As he saw the
enemy advancing, Prescott, with his usual presence of
mind, passed among his men and encouraged them. " The
redcoats," said he, " will never reach the redoubt, if you
will but withhold your fire till I give the order, and be
careful not to shoot over their heads." The impetuous
Putnam, who seems to have had no special command, was
everywhere. " Wait till you see the whites of their eyes,
aim at their waistbands, pick off the handsome coats,
steady my lads," were his directions as he rode along the
lines. " Wait for orders and fire low," was the policy
that controlled the movements on Bunker Hill.
The British, as they advanced, kept up an incessant
discharge of musketry. Not a sound issued from the
Americans. When Pigott's division came within forty
paces, those in the redoubt levelled their guns for a mo-
ment, then Prescott gave the word : " Fire ! " Whole
ranks were cut down. The enemy fell back, but urged on
by their officers, again advanced. The Americans allowed
them to come nearer than before, but received them more
warmly. The carnage was dreadful ; Pigott himself or-
dered a retreat. At the same moment Howe's division
was also retreating. The brave band who guarded the
fence, had allowed him to advance within thirty paces,
then had poured in their reserved fire with deadly effect.
Both divisions retired down the hill to the shore. Gage
had threatened that he would burn the town of Charles-
town if the Americans should occupy the heights. The
threat was now carried into execution, by bombs thrown
from the ships and Copp's Hill. The conflagration added
new horrors to the scene.
376 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
Yvvm ^ne British resolved upon a second attach Thifi
AAV 11 L
proved a counterpart of the first. By volleys discharged
1V75 at the right moment, and with unerring aim, their whole
force was driven hack. Their officers labored to check
them, even urged them on with their swords, but in vain ;
they retreated to the shore. " If we drive them back once
more," exclaimed Prescott, "they cannot rally again."
" We are ready for the redcoats again," was the response
from the redoubt.
General Clinton watched the movements from Copp's
Hill. He witnessed the repulse of the " king's regulars"
with astonishment ; he hastened over as a volunteer with
reinforcements. Some officers were opposed to another
attack ; they thought it little short of butchery to lead
men in the face of such sharp-shooting. Now they learned
that the ammunition of the Americans was nearly ex-
hausted. They resolved to carry the redoubt at the point
of the bayonet. The attack was to be specially directed
against an open space which they had noticed between
the breastwork and the fortified fence. The Americans
used Avhat little powder they had with great effect ; they
could pour in but a single volley upon the enemy ; but
by this a number of British officers were slain. The Brit-
ish, however, advanced with fixed bayonets, and assailed
the redoubt on three sides. The first who appeared on
the parapet, as he cried out, " The day is ours," was shot
down. Now followed a desperate encounter ; those Amer-
icans who had not bayonets fought with stones and the
butts of their muskets. It was impossible to maintain the
ground ; Prescott gave the word, and they commenced an
orderly retreat. The aged Pomeroy clubbed his musket
and retreated with his face to the enemy. Stark, Knowl-
ton, and Keed, kept their position at the fence till their
companions had left the redoubt and passed down the
hill, and thus prevented the enemy from cutting off the
retreat ; then they slowly retired.
Cj\
'hrzMl (jb'U/n^orn^
CHARLES LEE — PHILIP SCHUYLER. 377
About three thousand British were engaged in this chap
battle, and about fifteen hundred Americans. The British
lost more than one thousand men, an unusual proportion 1775
of whom were officers, among whom was Major Pitcairn,
of Lexington memory ; while the Americans lost but four
hundred and fifty, but among these was Dr. Warren. He
was one of the last to leave the redoubt ; he had scarcely
passed beyond it when he fell. On the morning of that
day he had expressed himself willing, if necessary, to die
for his country. — That country has embalmed his name as
one of the bravest and noblest of her sons.
The raw militia had met the British " regulars," and
had proved themselves their equals ; they left the field
only when destitute of ammunition.
The British ministry was not satisfied with this vic-
tory, nor were the Americans discouraged by this defeat.
When the news of the battle reached England, General
Gage was at once recalled. When Washington learned
of it from the courier who was hastening to Congress with
the news, he exclaimed : " The liberties of the country
are safe ! "
This famous battle took place on the seventeenth of
June ; on the twenty-first Washington, accompanied by
Generals Lee and Schuyler, left Philadelphia to join the
army as Commander-in-chief. General Charles Lee was
an Englishman by birth ; a soldier by profession, he had
been engaged in campaigns in various parts of Europe,
and in the French war. Frank in disposition, but sar-
castic in manner, and evidently soured by disappointment,
he had resigned the British service, and for some reason
indulged in feelings of bitter animosity to the English
name. His connection with their cause was counted of
great consequence by the Americans.
General Philip Schuyler was a native of New York,
of Dutch descent. As a man of wealth, position, educa-
tion, and well-known integrity, he had great influence in
^78 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
xxnu ^iat Prov*nce- He had some experience, also, in military
. affairs ; during the French war, when a youth of two and
1775. twenty, he campaigned with Sir William Johnson and his
Mohawks. Though in his native province the rich and
influential were generally loyalists, from the beginning of
the troubles Schuyler ardently espoused the cause of the
colonists. He was versed in civil affairs, having been a
member of the New York General Assembly, and recently
a delegate to Congress, where his practical good sense had
attracted attention. At this time, danger was appre-
hended from the Mohawks, who lived in the northern and
central parts of New York. It was feared that, influenced
by the Johnson family, they would rally against the colo-
nists. Sir William Johnson, of whom we have spoken,
the ancestor of this family, was of Scotch-Irish descent, a
man of vigorous mind but of coarse associations ; he had
acquired great influence over the Indians by adopting
their customs, had married an Indian wife, sister of Brandt,
the chief, afterward so famous. For nearly thirty years
he was agent for the Five Nations ; he became rich by
traffic, and lived in his castle on the Mohawk river, in
baronial style, with Scotch Highlanders as tenants. Sir
William was dead, but his son and heir, John Johnson,
and his son-in-law, Guy Johnson, were suspected of tam-
pering with the Mohawks. No one knew the state of
affairs in New York better than Schuyler ; he was ac-
quainted with the tory aristocracy ; he understood the
Johnsons, and to him Washington intrusted the charge
of that province.
As a singular incident it may be noted, that as Wash-
ington approached New York by way of New Jersey, the
ship on board of which was the royalist governor Tryon,
who was just returning from England, came into the har-
bor. The committee appointed to do the honors was
somewhat perplexed. Fortunately their principles were
not tested : th^se two men, the one the representative of
CONDITION OF THE ARMY, 379
the Continenlal Congress, the other of the king, did not 2HA^-
reach the city at the same time. The escort that received
Washington, were at leisure, a few hours later, to render 1775.
to Governor Tryon the same honor.
The Commander-in-chief was met at Springfield by
the committee of the Massachusetts Provincial Congress,
and escorted to the camp. The greatest enthusiasm pre-
vailed ;'the soldiers everywhere greeted him with hearty
cheers. Such a welcome, while it gratified his feelings.
was calculated to increase his sense of responsibility. A
great work was before him — a work not yet begun ; he
was to bring order out of confusion ; to lead on the cause
of freedom to a successful issue. In his letters written
about this time, he expresses a calm trust in a Divine
Providence, that wisely orders all things.
A personal survey of the army revealed more perfectly
the difficulties to be overcome. It numbered about four-
teen thousand men ; to be effective, it must be increased
to twenty or thirty thousand. The troops were unorgan-
ized and undisciplined, without uniforms, poorly clad, and
imperfectly armed. To discipline these volunteers would
be no easy task ; they could not be subjected to strict
military rule. Even among this noble band of patriot
officers, were jealousies to be soothed, and prejudices to
be regarded. Some felt that they had been overlooked or
underrated in the appointments made by Congress.
A council of war resolved to maintain the present line
of works, to capture the British, or drive them out of
Boston. Washington chose for his head-quarters a cen-
tral position at Cambridge ; here were stationed Major-
general Putnam and Brigadier-general Heath. General
Artemas Ward was stationed with the right wing at Rox-
oury, and General Charles Lee commanded the left on
Prospect Hill. Under Lee were the Brigadier-generals
Greene and Sullivan, and under Ward the Generals
380 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
xxvni Spencer and Thomas. Of this number, Greene merits
special notice. His father a farmer, miller, and anchor
1775. smith, as well as occasionally a Quaker preacher, endeavored
to train his son in his own faith. The son's tastes were
decidedly military. Of a genial disposition, he was fond
of social amusements, but never at the expense of things
more important. He cultivated his mind by reading the
best English authors of the time on science and history ;
to do this he snatched the moments from daily toil. Indus-
trious and strictly temperate, his perceptions were clear,
and his love of order almost a passion. With zest he read
books on military tactics, and before he had laid aside the
Quaker costume, he took lessons in the science of military
drill, by watching the exercises and manoeuvres of the
British troops on parade on Boston Common. Their order
and precision had a charm for the embryo general. None
took a deeper interest than he in the questions that agi-
tated the country, and he was more than once chosen by
the people to represent them in the Colonial Legislature.
The army was now joined by some companies of rifle-
men, mostly Scotch and Irish ; backwoodsmen of Penn-
sylvania, Virginia, and Maryland, enlisted by orders of
Congress. They had marched six hundred miles in twenty
days. If their peculiar dress, the hunting-shirt, and their
motto, " Liberty or Death," worn on their head-band,
their robust appearance, their stature, scarcely one of
them being less than six feet, excited admiration, much
more did their feats of sharp-shooting. " When advanc-
ing at a quick step," it was said, " they could hit a mark
of seven inches diameter at a distance of two hundred and
fifty yards." Their leader, Daniel Morgan, was a native
of New Jersey, though brought up on the frontiers of
Virginia. When a youth, his education had been neglect-
ed ; he could scarcely read or write ; unpolished in his
manners, generous in his impulses, honorable in his own
feelings, he instinctively scorned meanness or duplicity in
THE INFORMATION LAID BEFORE CONGRESS. 381
others. In his twentieth year, as a wagoner, he took his £$£Z
first lessons in warfare in Braddock's unfortunate cam-
paign. His character adapted itself to emergencies. When 1775.
left to act in responsible situations, his good sense was
never at fault ; wherever placed, he performed well his
part.
As soon as he obtained the requisite information,
Washington laid before Congress the state of the army,
with suggestions as to the best means to furnish it with
provisions, munitions, and men. He also suggested that
diversities of uniform had a tendency to encourage sec-
tional feelings, and recommended Congress to provide, at
least ten thousand hunting-shirts, adding, " I know noth-
ing in a speculative view more trivial, yet which, if put
in practice, would have a happier tendency to unite the
men, and abolish those provincial distinctions that lead to
jealousy and dissatisfaction." This was the origin of the
peculiar uniform of American soldiers. A few days after
this report was sent to Congress, it was discovered that,
by mistake, a false return of the powder in the camp had
been made — the supply was nearly exhausted. This dis-
covery crippled every movement, and left the Americans
at the mercy of the enemy, should they be attacked. Their
only safety lay in silence and inaction. Messengers were
hurried in every direction to collect and send to the camp
all the powder that could be obtained. In about a fort-
night they procured a small supply.
We now turn to affairs in New York, where, it will be
remembered, Schuyler had command. After their brave
exploits on Lake Champlain, Arnold and Allen both claim-
ed authority over the captured forts — the former referred
to Massachusetts, the latter to Connecticut,' to confirm
their respective claims. As these forts belonged to New
York, Allen wrote to the Congress of that province for
supplies of men and money to defend them. But the
whole matter was, at length, referred to the Continental
382 HIST0RV OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
XXFJLL Congress, which decided that New York should have the
charge of the forts, and authorized it to call upon New
1775. England for aid in their defence. The call was made upon
Connecticut, in answer to which Colonel Hinman, with a
thousand men, was sent to join Arnold. Allen's Green
Mountain Boys were by this time disbanded, as their term
of enlistment had expired. These war spirits, Arnold and
Allen, had urged upon the Continental Congress to fur-
nish them means to invade Canada. Allen, in company
with Seth Warner, went in person to that body for au-
thority to raise a new regiment. It was granted, and the
New York Congress was recommended to receive this
regiment of their ancient enemies into the regular army.
They were to choose their own leader. For some reason
Warner was chosen, and Allen entirely neglected ; but
not to be baffled when a fight was on hand, he joined the
army as a volunteer. Arnold claimed the entire authority
at Ticonderoga, after the departure of Allen, and difficul-
ties arose between him and Hinman. A committee sent
from the Congress of Massachusetts to inquire into the
matter, decided that the command belonged to Hinman.
Arnold swore he would not be second, disbanded his men,
threw up his commission, and hurried to Cambridge.
Congress was, at first, opposed to the invasion of Can-
ada, and even thought of dismantling the forts on Lake
Champlain. Kecent intelligence that the authorities of
that province were making preparations to recapture the
forts and to regain the command of the lake, induced
them to determine upon its invasion in self-defence.
Schuyler learned that seven hundred of the king's troops
were in Canada ; that Guy Johnson, with three hundred
tenants and Indians, was at Montreal ; that St. John's
was fortified, and war-vessels were building there, and al-
most ready to pass by the Sorel into the lake. Yet he
was encouraged by rumors that some of the inhabitants
were disaffected, and might be induced to join against the
INVASION OF CANADA — RICHARD MONTGOMERY. '383
mother country ; if so, the British would be deprived of a S§££
valuable recruiting station. Two expeditions against , ,
Canada were determined upon, one by way of Lake Cham- 1775.
plain, the other by the rivers Kennebec and Chaudiere.
The former under Schuyler ; the latter was intrusted to
Arnold, who was in the camp chafed and disappointed,
but ready for any daring enterprise that promised dis-
tinction.
Operations were to commence by way of the lake,
where were assembled the New York troops, and some
from New England. Schuyler was ably seconded by
Brigadier-general Richard Montgomery. Montgomery was
a native of Ireland ; had, when a youth, been the com-
panion of Wolfe in the French war. He resigned the
British service, and remaining in America, settled in New
York, where he married. A man of education and refine-
ment, his generous sentiments led him to espouse ardently
the cause of popular rights.
General Schuyler passed from Ticonderoga down the
lake, and took possession of the Isle aux Noix, in the Sorel
river. This position commanded the entrance into Lake
Champlain. He then made an attempt on St. John's, SePt-
but finding it more strongly garrisoned than had been
represented, he retired to the Isle aux Noix, with the in-
tention of fortifying that important post, but severe sick-
ness compelled him to return to Albany. The command
devolved upon Montgomery. Schuyler was soon able to
send him supplies and ammunition, and also reinforce-
ments under General Wooster.
Ethan Allen, as usual, without orders, went on one of
his rash expeditions. With only eighty-three men, he
attempted to take Montreal, was overpowered, and taken Sept,
prisoner with his men. He himself was sent in irons to 24*
England, to be tried as a rebel. Here closed the connec-
tion of this daring leader of the Green Mountain Boys,
with the war of the Revolution.* He was not tried, but
384 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
ixvm ^Derate(l j tnen returned home, but from some dissatis-
— — faction took no further part in the struggle.
1775. Montgomery sent a detachment which took Fort
Chambly, a few miles further down the river, thus placing
troops between St. John's and Canada. Sir Guy Carle-
ton, the governor of that province, made exertions, but
without success, to raise a force for the relief of St. John's.
But when on his way he was repulsed at the passage of
the St. Lawrence by Colonel Seth Warner ; another party
going up the Sorel on the same errand was also driven
g v" back. The garrison at St. John's presently surrendered,
and immediately the energetic Montgomery pushed on to
Montreal, which submitted at the first summons, while
Carleton with a few followers fled down the river to Que-
bec. This was a very seasonable capture for the Ameri-
cans, as it supplied them with woollen clothes, of which
necessaries they were in great need.
Montgomery made great exertions in the midst of dis-
couragements, arising from insubordination, desertions,
and the lateness of the season, to push on and join Arnold
Kept, before Quebec. Two months before this time, that leader
had left the camp before Boston with eleven hundred men,
among whom were three companies of riflemen, under
Morgan, to pass up the Kennebec, and thence across the
wilderness to Quebec, there to unite with the force from
New York. Aaron Burr, then a youth of twenty, accom-
panied this expedition as a volunteer. It was a perilous
undertaking. The journey was one of intense suffering
and incessant toil. Six weeks they spent in dragging
their boats up the river, and carrying the baggage around
rapids ; they cut their way through thickets and briars,
forded streams, climbed mountains, breasted storms, and
were so much in want of food that they devoured their
dogs, and even their moccasins. Their number was re-
duced to about six hundred effective men ; one entire divi-
sion had returned home with the sick and disabled. In a
QUEBEC BESIEGED. 38.r)
forlorn condition the remainder suddenly appeared at chap
Point Levi, opposite Quebec. The inhabitants were as-
tonished at the apparition, and could Arnold have crossed 1775.
immediately, he might have taken the town ; but he was 9
unable to do so for want of boats. In a few days came
Carleton from Montreal ; he put the town in a state of
defense, and increased his force to twelve hundred men,
by enlisting traders, sailors, and others.
Although two armed vessels were on the watch, Ar-
nold managed to cross the St. Lawrence, clambered up
the Heights of Abraham, by the same rugged path that
Wolfe had used, and boldly challenged the garrison to
battle. The contest was declined. It was useless for him
to attempt to besiege the town without cannon, so he
moved twenty miles up the river, where he met Mont-
gomery. The toilsome march through the wilderness
nearly stripped Arnold's men of their clothes ; the wool-
lens obtained at Montreal were to them also an acceptable
protection against the rigors of a Canada winter.
Their united force amounted to only nine hundred
men. With these, Montgomery, who assumed the com-
mand, advanced to Quebec. The flag he sent to demand
a surrender was fired upon. A battery must be built ;
the ordinary material was not at hand, but ingenuity sup-
plied its place. Gabions were filled with snow and ice,
over which water was poured, and a Canada winter soon
rendered them solid, but no ingenuity could render the
ice otherwise than brittle — every shot from the town shat-
tered it in pieces. It was now found that their cannon
were too small. They could not batter the walls, and it
was as fruitless to attempt to scale them. Some other
plan must be adopted.
It was determined to make a sudden attack on the
lower town. Montgomery, with one division, was to ad-
vance upon the south side, while Arnold was to make an
attempt upon the north. At the same time, feint move-
386 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
xxvni men^s were to be ma(le against the upper town, and signal
rockets fired from the different points to distract and
1775. divert the attention of the enemy. On the thirty-first of
81/ December a blinding snow-storm favored their enterprise.
At two o'clock on the morning of that day they were on
the march. The feint that was to cover the movement of
Montgomery was successful. Undiscovered he descended
from the Heights of Abraham, passing safely around Cape
Diamond to the defile that led to the town. The pass, at
all times difficult, was now obstructed by ice and drifting
snow. It was defended by barriers guarded by Canadian
militia. Taken by surprise, they fled from the picket.
Montgomery passed the first barrier unopposed. As he
stepped beyond it, sanguine and exultant with hope, he
exclaimed : " Push on, my brave boys ; Quebec is ours ! "
Just then, a single gun loaded with grape-shot was fired
from a battery ; he fell, and by his side his aids and many
others, who had answered to his cheering call. The sol-
diers, disheartened at the fall of their brave leader, were
willing to abandon the town, under the lead of Quarter-
master Campbell, leaving the bodies of the slain Mont-
gomery, Cheeseman, and MacPherson where they fell.
By some neglect, no feint movement was made to
cover the march of Arnold. He was harassed by a flank-
ing fire as he pushed on to the entrance of the town. His
leg being shattered by a ball, he was unable to lead his
men against the battery. Morgan assumed the command,
and with his riflemen stormed it, and captured the men.
At daylight he reached the second battery, which was also
carried ; but now the forces of the British were concen-
trated at this point. Morgan's party made a brave resist-
ance, but were overpowered by numbers, and compelled
to surrender. He himself was the last to submit. When
called upon by the British soldiers to deliver up his sword,
he refused, planted himself against a wall, and defied them
to take it. They threatened to shoot him ; his men expos-
MORGAN AND HIS MEN PRISONERS. 387
tulated. At length he saw a man — a priest he knew him °hap
to he from his dress ; to him he gave it, saying : " I will
give my sword to you, but not a scoundrel of those cow- 1775.
ards shall take it out of my hands." The bravery of
Morgan and his men was appreciated by Carleton ; as
prisoners, they were treated with special kindness.
Arnold now retired about three miles up the river,
and there in a camp whose ramparts were formed of frozen
snow and of ice, he blockaded Quebec through the winter.
Here we leave him for the present.
Montgomery was at first buried at Quebec. When
nearly half a century had passed away, New York remem-
bered her adopted son. She transferred his remains to her
metropolis, and with appropriate honors reinterred them 181«
in St. Paul's church-yard.
CHAPTEK XXIX.
WAR OF THE REVOLUTION— CONTINUED.
Mee ting of Congress ; alarming Evils require its Attention. — British Cru>
ers. — Portland burned. — Efforts to defend the Coast. — Congress acts
with Energy. — Parliament resolves to crush the Rebels. — Henry Knox. —
Difficulties in the Army. — Provincial Prejudices. — Success of the Priva-
teers.— British Theatricals. — The Union Flag. — Affairs in New York. —
Rivington's Gazette. — Governor Try on. — General Lee in the City. — The
Johnsons. — Dunmore's Measures in Virginia ; Norfolk burned. — Defeat
of North Carolina Tories. — Lee at the South. — Cannon and Powder ob-
tained.— Dorchester Heights fortified. — Boston Evacuated. — Washing-
ton in New York. — British and German Troops in Canada. — Numerous
Disasters. — The Retreat from Canada. — Horatio Gates. — A British Fleet
before Fort Moultrie. — Gloomy Prospects.
chap When the Continental Congress reassembled, delegates
XXIX. .
1 from Georgia took their seats, for the first time, and the
1775. style was assumed of The Thirteen United Colonies.
Pk During the session, a delegate from beyond the moun-
Oct. tains presented himself as the representative of the colony
of Transylvania, the germ of the present State of Ken-
tucky, (settled by those bold pioneers, Boone, Harrod,
and Henderson), but the delegate of the fourteenth colony
was rejected, on the ground that Virginia claimed the
territory.
Alarming evils required the prompt attention of Con-
gress. The army was almost destitute of ammunition
and military stores ; the coast, to a great extent, unpro-
tected ; British cruisers hovered on the shores of New
England ; demanded of the inhabitants supplies ; burned
PORTLAND BURNED PLANS OF DEFENCE. 389
and pillaged the towns. The notorious Captain Wallace £5A?
was stationed in Narragansett Bay ; Stonington and Bris-
tol had been bombarded, and Newport was threatened 1775.
with destruction. The British Admiral, Graves, it was ^ "
said, had issued orders to burn all the rebel towns from
Halifax to Boston. This was no idle rumor. At Fal-
mouth, now Portland, in Maine, the destruction began.
This patriotic little town had, some time before, resolutely 18.
repulsed Lieutenant Mowatt of the British navy. One
evening he appeared with several vessels in the harbor,
prepared to mete out the punishment due for such rebel-
lion. He informed the inhabitants of his intention, and
allowed them two hours " to remove the human species
out of the town." A further respite until nine o'clock
next morning was with difficulty obtained. The people
removed during the night ; then, by means of bombs and
carcasses, this flourishing village of three hundred houses
was laid in ashes. The other towns assumed a posture
of defence, and avoided a similar ruin.
The colonies separately took measures to defend their
coasts against such attacks. Already Maryland, Virginia,
and South Carolina had appointed Naval Boards, and
equipped armed vessels. The British ships had been
driven from the harbor at Charleston ; a powder-ship had
been captured by a South Carolina vessel. Washington
had sent cruisers into the Gulf of St. Lawrence and Mas-
sachusetts Bay, to intercept supplies intended for the
enemy. One of these, the schooner Lee, commanded by
Captain Manly, deserves particular mention. She did
the country good service. Bhode Island, Massachusetts,
and Connecticut, now equipped a few small vessels. Al-
though a few harbors were thus defended, the force that
protected the coast was still insufficient.
Congress applied themselves vigorously to remedy
these evils They forwarded some of the powder seized by
'.M)
HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
Cxxix ^e South Carolinians to the camp ; appointed a secret
committee to import it from the West Indies ; took meas-
1775. ures to establish mills for its manufacture, and founderies
2^v for the making of cannon. They licensed privateers, and
ordered gun-boats to be prepared for the defence of the
harbors ; appointed a Naval Committee, which was au-
thorized to build thirteen frigates ; but, alas ! want of
funds interfered sadly with the accomplishment of these
proposed measures.
Dec. In this Naval Committee we recognize the germ of
the Navy Department. About this time a secret com-
mittee was authorized to open a private correspondence
with the- friends of the cause in England, Ireland, and
elsewhere ; this grew into the State Department. Thus
was the Continental Congress gradually laying the foun-
dation of the present government of the United States.
Parliament, in the mean time, took measures to crush
the " rebels ; " enacted laws against them, cr-uel in the
extreme ; gave orders to treat them in warfare not as
equals, but as criminals, who should be thankful to escape
the gallows. The ministry proclaimed all ships trading
to the colonies lawful prizes ; and the crews of all cap-
tured colonial trading vessels virtually slaves ; these were
doomed to serve in the royal navy as marines. Parlia-
ment also voted to increase their army in America to
forty thousand men — of this number twenty-five thousand
Nov. had yet to be raised. They could not be obtained in
Great Britain ; men would not enlist. Lord Howe had
written to the ministry that Catholic Irish soldiers could
not be trusted, and suggested the employment of German
troops. Negotiations were accordingly commenced with
two of the little German principalities, Brunswick and
Hesse Cassel ; and the English monarch hired seventeen
thousand Germans, or Hessians, to aid him in subduing
the descendants of Englishmen in America. In vain did
HENRY KNOX COMMITTEE OF CONGRESS. 391
the best and most humane in Parliament oppose these ™^-
measures. There was in England an honorable minority,
who felt for the cause of the colonists. Burke and Barre 1 775.
stood firm ; Conway and the Duke of Grafton resigned
their offices, and joined the opposition ; Lord Effingham
and the son of Pitt threw up their commissions in the
army, rather than take part in the unnatural struggle.
The mercantile interests of the country, and especially
the Corporation of London, were opposed to the measures
of Parliament. Intelligence of them aroused the Ameri-
cans to greater exertions, and deepened their hostility to
the mother country.
Since the battle of Bunker Hill, the armies in and
around Boston had been inactive — the British from choice,
the Americans from want of ammunition. Washington
was anxious to be ready, when the bay should be frozen
to pass over to the town on the ice. But he must have
powder and ordnance.
Henry Knox, a bookseller of Boston, had entered with
great zeal into the cause of his country. He had an in-
tuitive skill in the use of artillery, which he first displayed
on Bunker Hill, and afterward in planning the defences
of the camp. His aptness and energy attracted the atten-
tion of Washington. Knox proposed to go to Ticonde-
roga and Crown Point, and bring from those places the
cannon and powder that could be spared. Washington ap-
proved the suggestion, wrote to Schuyler at Albany to give
his assistance, and to Congress, recommending Knox as col-
onel of a regiment of artillery. Knox immediately set out.
Other difficulties surrounded the army. The soldiers
had enlisted but for one year, their terms would expire
before the first of January. In anticipation of this, a
committee of the Continental Congress, consisting of Doc-
tor Franklin, Colonel Harrison, of Virginia, and Thomas
Lynch, of Carolina, met at Cambndge, with committees
892 history' of the American people.
vxnT' ^rom *ne New England colonies, to reorganize the army,
. and to devise means to increase it to thirty-two thousand.
1 775. The committees were in favor of an attack upon Bos-
ton as soon as practicable. Their plans were well laid,
but how could they be carried out ? The soldiers were
unwilling to re-enlist ; the zeal of the patriot army had
begun to flag ; winter was coming on ; they were ill-fitted
to endure its hardships ; their fuel was scanty and their
clothing poor ; their families needed their presence ; the
attractions of home presented a delightful contrast to the'
privations of a winter campaign. Their patriotism was
not extinct, but they were weary and discouraged. Says
Washington, in a letter : " The desire of retiring into a
chimney-corner seized the troops as soon as their terms
expired."
Those who were willing to re-enlist, would do jo only
on certain conditions. They must know under what offi-
cers they were to be placed. Provincial prejudices had
their effect ; the men of one colony hesitated to serve
with those of another, or under officers not of their own
choosing. It is pleasing to record one instance of high-
minded patriotism — doubtless there were many. Colonel
Asa Whitcombe, a worthy and experienced officer, was
not reappointed on accoun t of his advanced age. His men
took offence, and refused to re-enlist. The colonel set
them an example by enlisting himself as a private soldier.
A younger officer immediately resigned the command of
his regiment that Whitcombe might be appointed, which
was done.
On the first of December, some days before their terms
expired, a portion of the Connecticut troops began to re-
turn home ; they were unwilling even to remain in camp
till their places could be supplied. Their arms were re-
tained at an assessed value.
In the midst of this gloom, the privateers did good
service. The camp was thrown into ecstasies by the
DESECRATIONS — THE UNION FLAG. 393
arrival of a long train of wagons laden with military stores, chap
The brave Captain Manly had captured off Cape Ann a
brigantine laden with guns, mortars, and working tools, 1775.
designed for the British army. Among the cannon thus
obtained was an immense mortar. This was deemed so
great a prize, that in the joy of the moment, it was pro-
posed to give it a name. " Old Putnam mounted it,
dashed on it a bottle of rum, and gave it the name of
Congress."
The blockade of the British was so stringent, that they
began to suffer seriously for fuel and fresh provisions :
they could obtain none from the land side, while the coast
was closely watched. Abundant supplies were sent from
England, but these were often wrecked or captured. Some
of the poorer houses were taken down to supply fuel, and
many of the poorer people sent out of the town, in order
to lessen the demand for provisions.
To the grief of the patriot inhabitants, the Old South
Church, that time-honored and sacred edifice, was con-
verted into a riding-school for Burgoyne's light-horse, and
the pastor's library used to kindle fires. In retaliation,
the soldiers converted the Episcopal church at Cambridge
into barracks, and melted the leaden pipes of the organ
into bullets. The British officers beguiled their time by
getting up balls and theatricals. Among the plays per-
formed was one, written by General Burgoyne, caricatur-
ing the American army and its officers.
On the first of January the Union Flag was unfurled, 1776
for the first time, over the camp at Cambridge. It was
emblematic of the state of the country. The English
cross retained in one corner, intimated a still existing
relation with the mother country, while the thirteen
stripes of red and white that represented the thirteen
colonies, now united for self-government and resistance to
394 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
C\xi\' °PPressi°n) were broadly significant of the New Republic
that was to grow out of this union.
'776. The year opened drearily for the patriots. There were
less than ten thousand men in the camp, among whom
were many undisciplined recruits, and many without arms.
The people were impatient, — why not capture or drive
the enemy out of Boston ? they asked on all sides. The
situation of Washington was painful in the extreme : he
could not publish his reasons, lest the enemy should learn
his weakness. Under these circumstances, he writes thus
to a confidential friend : " We are now left with a good
deal less than half-raised regiments, and about five thou-
sand militia. * * e If I shall be able to rise superior to
these, and many other difficulties, which might be enu-
merated, I shall most religiously believe that the finger of
Providence is in it, to blind the eyes of our enemies."
About this time, ships commanded by Sir Henry Clin-
ton left the harbor of Boston on a secret expedition. It
was justly surmised that he was bound for New York.
We turn once more to the state of affairs in that province.
As has been said, much of the wealth and influence
of New York was on the side of the Tories. Richmond
and Queen's counties had refused to send delegates to the
Provincial Congress. Governor Tryon, who had retired
to a British man-of-war in the harbor, kept up a corre-
spondence with the friends of the royal cause in the city.
There was published the most influential Tory journal in
the country, " Rivington's Gazette " — " a thorn in the
side of the patriots." Many who were opposed to this
journal were unwilling to adopt violent measures ; the
committee of safety refused to interfere with it. Colonel
Isaac Sears, one of the boldest and most energetic of the
New York Sons of Liberty, collected, in Connecticut,
about a hundred horsemen, dashed into the city, broke the
press and carried away the types to New Haven.
GENERAL LEE IN NEW YORK. 395
The possession of New York, as it was " the key to ™'^'
the whole continent, a passage to Canada, to the great
Lakes, and to all the Indian nations," was all-important 1770.
to the patriots. It was determined to place troops there.
Sears, seconded by the authority of Governor Trumbull,
proceeded to form regiments in Connecticut. Washington
ordered General Charles Lee to take command of these
regiments, and proceed with them to New York, put that
city in a state of defence, call in aid from New Jersey to
disarm the Tories on Long Island and elsewhere — duties
which Lee proceeded forthwith to perform. Governor
Tryon threatened to bombard the city if he entered it
with the Connecticut troops. The people were greatly
alarmed. The Provincial Congress requested Lee not to
advance for the present. He was determined to push on
with a sufficient number of troops to secure the city, and
threatened in his turn, " if they make a pretext of my
presence to fire on the town, the first house set on flames
by their guns shall be the funeral-pile of some of their best
friends/' He entered the city on Sunday, February fourth, Feb
and encamped on the spot where the City Hall now stands, 4
then a suburb known as " The Fields."
The threats and counter-threats had wrought up the
feelings of the people to a state of intense excitement.
During the day this was greatly increased ; cannon were
heard from the Narrows. Sir Henrv Clinton was entering
the harbor. Many of the inhabitants hastened from the
city ; on the afternoon of that Sabbath day, Kingsbridge
was thronged with people and wagons, on their way to the
country. But these fears were soon relieved. Clinton
gave notice that he came merely to pay a visit to his
" friend Tryon." He remained but a short time, then
sailed away to North Carolina. His mysterious expedition
and his " whimsical civility " to his " friend Tryon " gave
rise to much speculation ; though, as he had but few
396 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
chap, troops, his movements had, as yet, created but little alarm.
Lee now proceeded to put the city in a state of defence.
1776.
Serious difficulties threatened the interior of the prov-
ince. Guy Johnson had retired to Canada ; Sir John
Johnson had fortified his " Hall," and gathered about him
his Highlanders and Mohawks. Schuyler proceeded to
Jan- disarm and disband this dangerous company. Sir John
gave his parole not to take up arms against America. A
few months afterward he was suspected of breaking his
word ; to avoid arrest, he fled to Canada, where he re-
ceived a colonel's commission, and organized the regi-
ments called the " Royal Greens/' afterward so renowned
for deeds of cruelty.
During this winter, Governor Dunmore, of Virginia,
who, like Tryon, had taken refuge in one of the king's
June, ships, had been engaged in intrigues against the colonists.
Deo. He sent a vessel to Boston with supplies, which, however,
was captured. In a letter found on board, he had invited
General Howe to transfer the seat of war to the South ;
he also landed at Norfolk, carried off a printing press, pub-
lished a proclamation that promised freedom to the slaves
or indented white servants of the patriots, who would join
his cause. With a force thus collected he took possession
of the town. Fugitive slaves and others began to flock
to his banner. Virginia raised new regiments to dislodge
him, and oppose strong movements that were making in
Jan., his favor. The second regiment, under Woodford, took
1776. possession of the narrow neck which connects Norfolk with
the mainland, and compelled Dunmore to re-embark.
Soon after he returned, bombarded the town, and landed
a party who burned a portion of it to the ground. The
patriots burned the remainder lest it should afford shelter
to its enemies. Thus perished the principal shipping port
of Virginia, her largest and richest town.
TORIES DEFEATED — CHARLESTON THREATENED. 397
The British were secretly planning an invasion of the ^hap*
South. Governor Martin, of North Carolina, who, like
many of the royal governors of that day, carried on opera- 1776.
tions from on board a ship, was stirring up the Tories of
that province, many of whom were Highlanders. He
hoped to gather a land force to co-operate with Sir Peter
Parker, who was on his way from Ireland witji a fleet of
ten ships, on board of which were seven regiments. The
movements of Sir Henry Clinton could now be accounted
for. He had left Boston to take command of the land forces
in this intended invasion : he stopped to confer on the sub-
ject with Tryon, who had been governor of North Carolina.
Martin had commissioned two prominent Scotchmen,
McDonald and McLeod — both recent emigrants, and offi-
cers of the British army. General McDonald enlisted
some fifteen hundred men, and marched for the coast, but
the North Carolina patriots were on the alert. He was
intercepted at Moore's Creek Bridge, sixteen miles from Feb.
Wilmington. Colonel McLeod was killed ; McDonald
and eight hundred and fifty loyalists were taken prisoners.
He and his officers were sent away to the north.
This defeat, which at the first glance may appear of
little consequence, was important in its bearing ; it inter-
fered for a time with the plans of Clinton and Martin.
This delay was most valuable to the patriots ; they had
time to collect forces and mature plans for defence. Gen-
eral Lee was appointed by Congress to take command of
the southern army and to watch Clinton, who was hover-
ing on the coast in expectation of the British squadron.
After long delays it arrived at the mouth of Cape Fear May
River. Congress learned from intercepted letters that
Charleston was to be attacked. There, at the first alarm,
six thousand men, from Virginia and the Carolinas, had
assembled. The indefatigable Lee reached the city just
as Clinton appeared in the harbor. Had the enemy at-
tacked that place at once, they might have taken it with
398 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
chap. ease. It was, wrote Lee, " perfectly defenceless. The
opportunity was not improved, and both parties began to
1776. fortify and prepare for a contest. Here we leave them for
u£e the present, and return to the camp before Boston.
During the month of January there was little im-
provement in the state of the army. On the tenth of
February Washington writes : " Without men, without
arms, without ammunition, little is to be done." The
patriots had looked hopefully toward Canada, only to be
disappointed. Montgomery had fallen ; Morgan and his
brave band were prisoners ; the remnant of the shattered
forces that lingered with Arnold in his icy fortress before
the walls of Quebec, could accomplish nothing. The
whole line of the Atlantic coast was threatened ; and in
view of these circumstances Washington was anxious to
strike a decisive blow, that should encourage the despond-
ing and revive popular enthusiasm. In truth, the state
of public feeling demanded such a course. Congress had
Dec. authorized him to push the attack upon Boston, to the
• destruction of the town, should it be necessarv. John
Hancock, who had large possessions there, said : " Do it,
and may God crown your attempt with success." When
the bay became frozen, Washington was impatient to cross
over on the ice ; again and again he proposed an attack,
but a council of war as often decided that the force was
still too weak, the ammunition too scant. Meanwhile,
Putnam was actively engaged in constructing works on
the neighboring heights. Many of the labors conducted
by the brave old general had to be attended to in the night-
time, to avoid the fire from the enemy's ships. Toward
spring, affairs began to wear a brighter aspect. Ten new
regiments of militia were enlisted ; the great want that
paralyzed every effort — powder — was supplied from various
quarters ; some was obtained from New York, some from
Bermuda : the Connecticut mills were also in operation
DORCHESTER HEIGHTS TO BE FOR11FIED. 899
Now, to the great joy of the camp, Knox returned with S5££
his long train of sledges laden with ammunition, and can- ,
non of various kinds. With the joy was mingled admira- 1776.
tion for the energy displayed. He had travelled more
than four hundred miles, over frozen streams and through
a wilderness obstructed by the snows of winter. The dull
monotony of inaction gave way to bustle and excitement.
All was now ready for active operations. The heights
that commanded the town must be seized and fortified.
Putnam had already fortified Lechmere Point, on the
north ; there he had mounted his famous " Congress : *"
that point had only to be supplied with more large cannon
and with powder. Now the main object was to secure
Dorchester Heights, which commanded the town on the
south, and also the harbor. This would compel the enemy
to leave the town, or bring on a general engagement :
plans were laid accordingly.
To divert the attention of the enemy while prepara-
tions were in progress, Boston was to be bombarded, and
cannonaded from different points. Should the Americans
attain the heights, and the enemy attempt to dislodge
them, Putnam, with four thousand picked men, was pre-
pared to cross Charles river and attack the north part of
the town.
Washington, deeply impressed with the importance of
the coming struggle, issued orders forbidding " all playing
at cards or other games of chance," adding, " In this time
of public distress, men may find enough to do in the ser-
vice of God and their country, without abandoning them-
selves to vice and immorality." He also warned the troops,
" If any man in action shall presume to skulk, hide him-
self, or retreat from the enemy without orders, he will be
instantly shot down as an example of cowardice."
The fourth of March was fixed upon for the enterprise. £r
On the evening of that day, the detachment under Gen-
eral Thomas, designed to occupy the heights, moved as
400 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
chap. quietly as possible. In the advance were eight hundred
men ; then came the carts with the intrenching tools ;
1776. then twelve hundred more men, and in the rear were three
hundred wagons laden with bales of hay and bundles of
fagots to be used in making the breastwork. They reached
the heights about eight o'clock ; amid the roar of artillery
— for the enemy were returning the fire directed against
them with great spirit — the noise of the wagons and the
necessary bustle of the movement had been unheard.
Though the earth was frozen eighteen inches deep, they
threw up an embankment, and used their hay and other
material to great advantage. During that night of labor,
the Commander-in-chief was drawn by his interest to the
spot. In the morning the fortification appeared very
formidable. General Howe, as he examined it through
the mist, exclaimed : " The rebels have done more work
in one night than my whole army would have done in a
month." The patriots, at this crisis, watched the move-
ments of the enemy with intense interest. A cannonade
was opened upon the heights, but without much effect.
Howe did not attempt to storm the works. A night
attack was resolved upon, but a furious storm arose, the
ships of war could render no service, nor could the boats
land in the heavy surf. Before the storm was over, the
Americans were too strong to be assaulted. A council of
war advised Howe to evacuate the town, as both it and
the shipping were exposed to a destructive bombardment.
To insure the safety of his army during the embarkation,
Howe appealed to the fears of the inhabitants ; he inti-
mated he would burn the town if his troops were fired
upon. A deputation of citizens made this known, in an
informal manner to Washington, and the British were
suffered to depart unmolested.
Eleven days were employed in the embarkation. About
fifteen hundred loyalists made ready to leave with the
departing army ; thus was the good city of Boston purged
WASHINGTON IN NEW YORK. 401
of its Tory population. Authorized by Howe, the British chap.
demanded of the inhabitants all the linen and woollen
goods ; salt, molasses, and other necessaries were destroyed. 1776.
Crean Brush, a New York Tory, who was commissioned to
take charge of the goods that were seized, took advantage
of his authority, and broke open and pillaged stores and
private houses, as did some of the soldiers. The embarka-
tion was hastened, at the last, by a false alarm that the
Americans were about to assault the town.
On the next Monday, March eighteenth, Washington Mftr
entered the city. He was received with joy by the remain- 18.
ing inhabitants. After a siege of ten months Boston was
again free ; above it waved the Union flag of thirteen
stripes. The British fleet, consisting of one hundred and
fifty vessels, lay for some days in Nantasket roads, and
then bore away. Washington feared its destination was
New York. As soon as possible he hastened thither with
the main body of the army. Five regiments remained at
Boston with General Ward. Soon afterward he resigned,
but served the cause in the Massachusetts council and in
Congress.
The land rejoiced greatly at this success. On motion
of John Adams, Congress gave Washington a unanimous
vote of thanks, and ordered a gold medal to be struck in
commemoration of the event.
The expenses of the war were so great, that just before ^®b*
this Congress had been obliged to issue four additional
millions of continental paper. A financial committee had
been appointed, and now an auditor-general and assistants April,
were to act under this committee ; this assumed the form
of a Treasury Department. Two months later Congress
established a War Office, and appointed a committee of
five members to superintend its operations. To act as
chairman of this committee, John Adams resigned the
office of chief justice of Massachusetts.
402 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
chap. Washington reached New York on the thirteenth of
April ; there he found much to be done. The Heights
1776. of Long Island, Kingsbridge, the main avenue from the
city by land, were at best but imperfectly guarded, and
many prominent points on the river and Sound were en-
tirely undefended.
Governor Tryon and the British ships in the harbor
were in constant communication with the Tories in the
city. To guard against these dangers, external and inter-
nal, Washington had but eight thousand effective men.
General Greene was sent with one division to fortify what
is now Brooklyn Heights, on Long Island, as they com-
manded New York. He was also to make himself familiar
with the surrounding country. Urged by the commander-
in-chief, the committee of safety were induced to prohibit
all intercourse with Governor Tryon. Any such inter-
course, if discovered, was to be severely punished. But
Tryon, aided by spies and agents, continued his efforts in
the king's cause. A conspiracy, to which he had insti-
gated the Tories, was fortunately discovered. Some of
these may have been true loyalists, but there were others
basely won by the promise of reward. In low taverns and
drinking-saloons the patriot soldiers were tampered with.
The mayor of the city was arrested, as well as some of
Washington's body-guard, charged with being concerned
in the plot. One of the guard, Thomas Hickey, a deserter
from the British army, was hanged, " for mutiny, sedition,
and treachery." This example alarmed the Tories, and
June we hear of no more plots.
28.
17.
For the first time Washington learned of the measures
M^y of the British Parliament. The hired Hessian and Ger-
man troops were landing in Canada. New apprehensions
were awakened for the army in that province. Great
efforts were made to reinforce it , regiments were sent
under Sullivan and Thompson. Early in the spring Gen-
AMERICAN TROOPS DRIVEN . CT OF CANADA. 403
eral Wooster had joined Arnold, and taken the commaLd °hap.
at Quebec. But it was not easy for Arnold to act in con- ..
cert with a superior officer ; as usual, he had difficulty 1776.
with Wooster, and retired to Montreal. Soon after Woos-
ter was recalled, and Thomas, now a major-general, was
appointed to the northern army. General Carleton was
strongly reinforced, and Thomas was compelled to make
a hasty retreat from before Quebec — so hasty, that the
baggage, the artillery, and even the sick were left behind.
The noble humanity of Carleton deserves to be recorded.
He sought out the sick, many of whom had hid from him
in terror, conveyed them to the general hospitals, and prom-
ised that on their recovery they should be permitted to
return home. Thomas hastened to the Sorel, where, on June,
the second of June, he died of the small-pox, which pre-
vailed greatly in the army. Though the army once more
changed its commander, there was no change in its pros-
pects ; they continued to be of the gloomiest character.
Carleton came pressing on with a force of thirteen thou-
sand men. General Thompson, with a portion of the
American troops, was defeated at Three Rivers ; and he,
with his officers and many of his men, were taken prison-
ers. Those who escaped joined Sullivan on the Sorel.
Arnold had been equally unfortunate at Montreal. He
stationed a detachment of four hundred men at a point
called The Cedars, about forty miles above that place, in
order to intercept the stores sent to the enemy. As this
post was threatened with an attack, it was shamefully
surrendered by Colonel Butterworth, without a blow. A
reinforcement sent to their aid was also taken prisoners.
Arnold now joined Sullivan. A council of war decided
upon a retreat, and the wreck of the army passed out of
Canada, followed by a strong British force.
The army was in a deplorable condition when it reached
Crown Point. To use the words of John Adams, it was
" defeated, discontented, dispirited, diseased, no clothes,
404 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
chap, beds, blankets, nor medicines ; no victuals but salt pork
and flour." Thus ended this invasion, famous for its
1776. daring exploits and numerous disasters.
Congress approved of Sullivan's prudent retreat ; they
did not, however, confirm him in the authority that had
devolved upon him on the death of General Thomas.
They appointed Major-general Gates to the command,
and awarded Sullivan a vote of thanks — an honor as un-
satisfactory to him as it was empty in itself. Sullivan
was deeply wounded, as was General Schuyler, for Gates
claimed the command, not only of the forces on Lake
Champlain, but of the whole northern army.
Horatio Gates, like Lee, was of foreign birth ; like
him, he was a disappointed man. Of his very early life
little is known. He served in America under Braddock,
in the West Indies under Monckton ; but as he did not
receive from his native England the honors which he
thought his due, he sold his commission in the British
army, and retired to Virginia, where he renewed his ac-
quaintance with Washington, and with his former asso-
ciate, General Lee. Gates was ambitious, and the revo-
lution opened a path to distinction. As an office-seeker
he had, it is said, learned to " flatter and accommodate
himself to the humors of others." He could be " the boon
companion of gentlemen, and l hail fellow well met ' with
the vulgar." He ingratiated himself with the New Eng-
enders, with whom, for some reason, Schuyler was un-
popular. Through their influence, it is thought, Gates
obtained what he aimed at — promotion. The enemies of
Schuyler advanced serious charges against him ; attribu-
ted to him the failure of the Canada expedition, and even
hinted at treason. There is an instinct common to noble
minds by which they discern truth in others. Washington
never doubted the integrity of Schuyler, nor did Congress
sustain Gates in his claim to supersede him. The appoint-
BRITISH FLEET BEFORE FORT MOULTRIE. 405
inent of the latter, they said, referred only to the forces ^hap
while in Canada ; elsewhere he was subordinate to Schuy-
ler. The difficulty was passed over, as the result of a 1776
mistake, and the rival commanders assumed the appear-
ance of satisfaction.
We now return to Charleston, where we left both par-
ties preparing for a contest. On the fate of Sullivan's
Island, the key to the harbor, the result seemed to depend.
One party was making ready to attack, the other to de-
fend it. On the south-west point of this island was a fort
commanded by Colonel William Moultrie. Fort Moultrie
was constructed of logs of palmetto, a wood soft and
spongy ; cannon-balls could not splinter it. Lee, not
familiar with the palmetto, thought it madness to attempt
to defend so fragile a fort ; he contemptuously styled it
the " Slaughter-pen." This important post was threat-
ened by sea and land. Before it lay the British fleet
under Sir Peter Parker. Sir Henry Clinton, with two
thousand men, had taken possession of Long Island, which
lay to the east of Sullivan's Island, and was separated
from it only by a narrow creek. Here he was erecting
batteries to cover his passage across the creek, to assault
the fort when the fire of the ships should make a breach.
To oppose him the Americans stationed a force under
Colonel Thompson on the opposite side of the creek. Lee
took his position on a point of the mainland north of the
island, where he stood ready, at any moment, to aid either
Thompson or Moultrie.
The strength of the fort was now to be tested. On
the twenty-eighth of June the formidable fleet of Parker ^
advanced and commenced a " most furious fire," which
was returned with great spirit. The firing had but little
effect upon the low wooden fort, while the ships of the
enemy were almost torn in pieces. In the midst of the
terrific roar of artillery the Americans stood bravely to
406 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
chap, their guns ; some of thern remained at their posts even
after they had lost a limb. For ten hours the battle
1770. raged without intermission. Then Sir Peter drew off his
ships. Among the slain was Lord Campbell, ex-governor
of the province, who fought as a volunteer on board the
admiral's ship.
Sir Henry Clinton made repeated attempts to reach
Sullivan's Island, bat was as often foiled by the batteries
of Thompson. Several of the ships ran aground ; one,
the Acteon, was set on fire with her guns loaded and colors
flying, and then abandoned. The Americans, determined
to secure a trophy, boarded the burning vessel, fired her
guns at the retreating enemy, took possession of her colors,
loaded three boats with stores, and departed in safety,
before she blew up. Among the many heroic incidents
connected with this battle, one is related of Sergeant Jas-
per. The flag-staff was cut by a ball, and the flag fell
outside the fort. Jasper immediately leaped down, and,
amid the " iron hail," picked up the flag, tied it to a pole,
deliberately placed it on the parapet, and then returned
to his companions at the guns. Governor Eutledge appre-
ciated the heroic deed ; a few days after he presented his
own sword to Jasper, and offered him a lieutenant's com-
mission. He accepted the sword, but modestly declined pro-
motion, on the ground that he could neither read nor write.
J me On ^e ver7 ^ay *hat *n^s kattle took place at the
28. South, a British fleet of forty vessels entered the harbor
of New York. On board was General Howe, and with
him the late garrison of Boston. Since the evacuation of
that place he had been at Halifax awaiting the arrival of
his brother, Admiral Howe. He landed his forces on
Staten Island, where he was received with demonstrations
of joy by the Tories. Clouds of deeper darkness were gath-
ering around New York. The Admiral with more forces
might be expected at any moment ; the crisis so long
dreaded was at hand. The American soldiers were ordered
A CBISIS AT HAND. 407
to be each day at their alarm posts, and to be in readiness SS^f
for instant action. Orders to the same effect were sent
up the river. Humors of disaffection in that quarter 1776.
added the fear of treachery to the general alarm. Such
was the state of things ; — the northern army defeated and
broken, the fleet of Sir Henry Clinton on its way from the
South, Admiral Howe on his way from England, the har-
bor of New York filled with the enemy's ships, — when an
event took place, most important in American history.
The colonies declared themselves independent of all foreign
authority, and took their place among the nations of the
earth.
CHAPTER XXX.
WAR OF THE REVOLUTION-CONTINUED.
The Question of Independence ; Influences in favor of. — The Tories.—
" Common Sense." — The Declaration ; its Reception by the People and
Army. — Arrival of Admiral Howe. — His Overtures for Reconciliation. —
The American Army ; its Composition. — Sectional Jealousies. — The
Forts on the Hudson. — The Clintons. — Battle of Long Island. — The
Masterly Retreat. — Incidents. — Camp on Harlem Heights. — Howe con-
fers with a Committee of Congress. — Nathan Hale. — The British at
Kipp's Bay. — New York evacuated. Conflict at White Plains. — The
Retreat across New Jersey. — Waywardness of Lee.
l'Hap. The alienation between the colonies and the mother coun-
xxx.
try began at the close of the French war. It was not the
1776. result of any one cause, but of many ; the change of feel-
ing was not instantaneous, but gradual. As the struggle
took a more decided form, many, who were determined in
their resistance to oppression, were unwilling to cast off
their allegiance to the land to which their fathers still
gave the endearing name of " home." There were, how-
ever, among the true Sons of Liberty a few who had seen
the end from the beginning. Such men as Samuel Adams
and Patrick Henry foresaw the haughty obstinacy of the
British ministry, and foretold the result. "Independent
we are and independent we will be/' said Adams ; and
Henry exclaimed, in the Virginia Assembly : " We must
fight 1 An appeal to arms and the God of Hosts is all
that is left us ! "
What had long been felt by the few, now flashed upon
THE QUESTION OF INDEPENDENCE. 409
the minds of the many, that they could never enjoy their chap
rights but as a self-governing nation. Would the op-
pressions of the home government justify separation, which 1776.
Avould involve all the horrors of a protracted and doubtful
war ? This question became the subject of discussion in
the Provincial Assemblies, and among the people them-
selves.
It was not arbitrary and unjust laws alone, nor the
refusal of political rights, that had estranged the American
people. Keligious views had their influence in moulding
uublic sentiment in favor of independence. Long-con-
tinued and persistent efforts to establish the Episcopal
church in New England, had roused the latent hostility
of the Congregationalists — they would not submit to Eng-
lish control in matters of religion. The Presbyterians of
the middle and southern colonies, derived, as they were,
from the dissenting Scottish church, had a traditionary
feeling of opposition to the same influence. Both pastors
and people were stanch Whigs, and went hand in hand
with the ministers and people of New England. Even in
Virginia, where the Episcopal church was established by
law, and where the majority of the people were its advo-
cates, the attempt to place over them a bishop was de-
nounced by the House of Burgesses as a " pernicious pro-
ject." Though strenuous churchmen, they were jealous
of external influences, and repudiated the control of the
mother church. On the contrary, the Episcopal clergy,
great numbers of whom were Englishmen by birth, from
their associations were inclined to favor the royal author-
ity. Nor should we judge them harshly ; they acted in
accordance with their views of the intimate connection of
church and state. These views influenced the members
of that church more in the northern than in the southern
colonies, and great numbers of them faithfully adhered to
the " Lord's anointed," as they termed the king.
The peace-loving Quakers, numerous in Pennsylvania,
410 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
Cxxx' "^ew JersevJ an(l Delaware, opposed war as wrong in itsel£
The Moravians held similar views. These grieved ovei
1776. the violation of their rights, yet they hoped by pacific
measures to obtain justice.
There were others who, though not opposed to war,
believed it to be wrong to rise in opposition to the rule of
the mother country. There were also the timid, who
deemed it madness to resist a power so colossal. There
were the low and grovelling, who sought only an opportu-
nity to plunder ; the time-serving and the avaricious, who,
for the gain they might acquire as contractors for the
British army, or by furnishing provisions for prisoners,
joined the enemies of their country.
The evacuation of Boston strengthened the already
strong feeling in favor of independence so prevalent in
New England. In the South^ the recent risings of the
Tories in North Carolina, the ravages of Dunmore in Vir-
ginia, and the attack upon Charleston, served still more
to alienate the affections of the people ; while their suc-
cess in repelling the invasion gave them assurance. For
many reasons they wished to be independent. Then they
could form treaties with other nations, and the brand of
rebel, so repugnant to an honorable mind, would be re-
moved. In truth, Congress had already taken the ground
of an independent government by offering free trade to
other nations, in all merchandise except that of British
manufacture, and slaves, — the latter traffic they had pro-
hibited some months before.
About the first of the year, a pamphlet was issued in
Philadelphia, under the title of " Common Sense," which
had a great influence upon the public mind. Its author,
Thomas Paine, an Englishman, had been in the country
but a few months. In a style adapted to convince the
popular mind, he exposed the folly of delaying any longer
a formal separation from the mother country. The pam-
phlet had a very great circulation, and a proportionate
THE COMMITTEE. 411
influence in deciding the timid and wavering in favor of G££?-
independence.
1776
On the seventh of June, Richard Henry Lee intro-
duced a resolution into Congress, declaring, " That the
United Colonies are and ought to be free and independent
States, and that their political connection with Great
Britain is and ought to be dissolved." Upon this resolution
sprang up an animated discussion. It was opposed, prin-
cipally, on the ground that it was premature. Some of
the best and strongest advocates of colonial rights spoke
and voted against the motion, which passed only by a
bare majority of seven States to six. Some of the dele-
gates had not received instructions from their constituents
on the subject, and others were instructed to vote against
it. Its consideration was prudently deferred until there
was a prospect of greater unanimity. Accordingly on the
eleventh a committee, consisting of Doctor Franklin, John
Adams, Thomas Jefferson, of Virginia, Roger Sherman,
of Connecticut, and Robert R. Livingston, of New York,
was appointed to prepare a Declaration. To give oppor-
tunity for union of opinion, the consideration of the sub-
ject was postponed to the first of July. At the same time
two other committees were appointed ; one to draw up a
plan for uniting all the colonies, the other to devise meas-
ures to form foreign alliances.
On the twenty-eighth the committee reported the dec- June,
laration to the house. It was drawn by Jefferson, and
contained a gracefully written summary of the sentiments
of the people and Congress. After a few verbal altera-
tions suggested by Adams and Franklin, it was approved
by the committee. The house, however, struck out a few
passages. One of these reflected severely upon the British
government ; another denounced the slave-trade ; another
censured the king for his attempts to prevent, by the re-
fusal of his signature, the enactment of laws designed to
412 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
chap, prohibit that traffic. They were unwilling to offend the
friends of the colonies in Britain, and feared lest these
1776. strong expressions might prevent the declaration from
receiving a unanimous vote. The vote was taken by
States ; the delegates were noi unanimous, hut there were
a sufficient number to give the vote of all the colonies,
New York alone excepted, which was given in a few days.
The announcement was delayed till the declaration should
receive a few amendments, and then, on July the fourth,
4. it was formally adopted, and the thirteen colonies became
The Thirteen United States of America.
The bell of the State House, in which Congress held
its sessions, has upon it the inscription : " Proclaim lib-
erty throughout all the land unto all the inhabitants
thereof" — words taken from the Bible. Congress sat with
closed doors, but it was known far and wide, that the
subject of independence was under discussion. Crowds
assembled outside the Hall, and waited anxiously to
learn the result. At mid-day the appointed signal was
given. The bell was struck, and to its tones responded
the joyous shouts of multitudes. The friends of liberty
and independence breathed more freely ; the declara-
tion was made ; the hesitancy of indecision was over,
and the spirit of determination arose. It was published ;
it was read to the army ; the soldiers received it with
shouts of exultation and pledges to defend its prin-
ciples ; it was announced in the papers ; from the pulpits,
and everywhere the Whigs hailed it with joy. Hopes of
reconciliation, which had so much paralyzed measures of
defence, were at an end ; there was now no neutral ground.
The timid though honest friends of their country, who had
so long hesitated, generally sided with liberty. The Tories
were in a sad condition ; the great majority of them were
wealthy, and had hoped mat the difficulties would yet be
arranged. Laws passed by the new State authorities had
rendered them liable to fines and imprisonments, and theif
ARRIVAL OF ADMIRAL HOWE — HIS CIRCULAR. 413
property to confiscation. They endured many outrages, chap
and were subjected to " tarrings and featherings " innu-
merable, by self-constituted vigilance committees. Con- 1776
gress, to prevent these outrages, gave the supervision of
Tories to committees of inspection. The most obnoxious
were fain to emigrate, and the committee admonished or
restrained the others within certain limits.
The soldiers in New York manifested their zeal by
taking a leaden statue of King George, which stood in the
Bowling Green, and running it into bullets, to be used in
the cause of independence. To impress upon their minds
a sense of the dignity of their position, as well as to re-
prove this irregularity, Washington, in the orders, the fol-
lowing dayj referred to the subject. " The general hopes
and trusts/' said he, " that every officer and soldier will
endeavor so to live and act, as becomes a Christian soldier
defending the dearest rights and liberties of his country."
A few days after the public Declaration of Independ-
ence, the booming of cannon from the British vessels in
the harbor of New York announced the arrival of Admiral
Howe. To his brother and himself had been committed
the general control of American affairs.
Before he proceeded to hostilities, the admiral ad-
dressed a circular to the people ; he offered them pardon
if they would cease to be rebels, lay down their arms, and
trust the king's mercy. As soon as this circular reached
Congress, that body caused it to be published in all the
newspapers, that the people might see that Britain would
grant nothing, and accept no concession short of absolute
submission. " They must fight or be slaves."
Howe also attempted to open a correspondence with
Washington. As Parliament refused to acknowledge
titles conferred by Congress, his letters were addressed,
first to Mr. George Washington, then to George Wash-
ington, Esquire, dc, dc, hoping that the &c.'s would
414 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
chap, remove the difficulty ; but the Commander-in-chief, justly
_1 tenacious of the dignity of his office, and of the honor of
1776. his country, politely but firmly refused to receive them,
The messenger expressed his regret that the correspond-
ence could not be opened. His lordship, he said, wished
for peace ; he was vested with great powers. Washington
replied that he understood Lord Howe had power to grant
pardons ; the Americans had defended their rights ; they
had committed no crime, and needed no pardon.
The Admiral was disappointed, he really desired peace.
The reception he had met with had encouraged his hopes ;
he had received loyal addresses from the Tories of New
Jersey, Long and Staten Islands ; Governor Tryon had
assured him there were many others, secret friends of
England, who might be induced to join him. But, to
his surprise, his circular, from which he had hoped much,
produced little or no effect. He was now convinced that
nothing could be accomplished except by force of arms.
Meanwhile his army, now on Staten Island, received
many accessions ; Sir Henry Clinton had arrived, and
more Hessian troops had landed. His whole force was
about thirty-five thousand.
As it had become more and more evident that New
York was to be the theatre of the war, further prepara-
tions had been made to defend the city and neighborhood.
Pennsylvania had sent four continental regiments, com-
manded respectively by Colonels St. Clair, Shee, Anthony
Wayne, and Magaw ; three provincial battalions, under
Colonels Miles, Cadwallader, and Atlee, and rifle regi-
ments, under Colonels Hand and Allen. These were all
commanded by Brigadier-general Mifflin, of that State.
Virginia sent troops under Major Leitch, and from
Maryland came the brave company known as Smallwood's
regiment, who afterward distinguished themselves in many
conflicts, while from Delaware came a regiment under
Colonel Hazlet. In addition to these, Pennsylvania,
JEALOUSIES AMONG THE TROOPS. 415
Maryland, and Delaware, furnished troops to form what c^^-
was called " a flying camp," a sort of reserve, stationed ,
in New Jersey, in a favorable position, and ready to act 1776.
in emergencies. This was under Brigadier-general Mercer.
In the troops thus drawn together from different parts
of the country, there were marked differences in appear-
ance and discipline. The New England officers were most
of them farmers and mechanics — brave, honorable, but
plain men. Their soldiers were men of the same stamp ;
in many cases their intimates and associates in private
life. Their intercourse with each other was less formal
than was consistent with strict military discipline. They
met not as mere soldiers, but as a band of brethren, united
in a cause in which each had a personal interest. With
the portion of the army drawn from the other States, the
case was different ; with them, there was a marked dis-
tinction between the officers and soldiers. The officers were
brave and honorable also, but city bred — " gentlemen,"
as they called themselves — and from wealthy families,
while the " common soldiers, for the most part, were a
very inferior set." Sectional jealousies arose. The Mary-
landers, in " scarlet and buff," looked down upon the
rustic soldiery in "homespun," while the officers of the
other provinces were inclined to despise their associates
from New England. These jealousies became so great an
evil, that Washington strongly reprobated them in general
orders.
As the British were masters of the bay of New York,
it was feared they would surround the American army in
the city, and take possession of the Hudson, that great
highway to the interior. To prevent this, General Mifflin
was sent with the Pennsylvania troops to guard the forts
at the north end of the island. One of these stood just
below, the other just above Kingsbridge, the only avenue
to the mainland ; they were known as Forts Washington
and Independence. On the west side of the Hudson.
416 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
chap- nearly opposite Fort Washington, stood Fort Lee. Neai
the entrance to the Highlands, and just opposite the well-
1776. known promontory of Anthony's Nose, was Fort Mont-
gomery. Six miles higher up the river was Fort Consti-
tution.
The posts last named were under the command of
Colonel James Clinton. His brother George commanded
the militia of Ulster and Orange counties. These brothers
were of Irish descent, natives of New York, and their
ancestors were identified with the early settlements on
the Hudson. They had been soldiers from their youth —
like many of the Revolutionary officers — they had been
trained in the French war, in which one of them had
served as a captain at twenty, and the other as a lieuten-
ant at seventeen years of age. The elder, James, had
also served under Montgomery at the capture of Montreal,
while G-eorge had been active in the service of his country
as a member of the New York Legislature, and as a dele-
gate to the Continental Congress.
In spite of obstructions thrown across the channel, two
British vessels, the Phoenix and the Kose, passed up the
Hudson. The latter was commanded by the notorious
Captain Wallace, who had pillaged the shores of Rhode
Island. They passed the forts unharmed, and gallantly
returned the fire from Fort Washington. As they boldly
pushed their way up the river, their appearance created
great alarm. Signal guns were heard from the forts, and
July false rumors increased the general excitement. The sturdy
yeomanry left their harvests uncut in their fields, and has-
tened to join the forces under Clinton to defend the passes
of the Highlands. Theh° fears were in a great measure
groundless. The vessels quietly anchored here and there,
while their boats took soundings ; but the event proved the
inefficiency of the defences at the mouth of the Hudson.
The Americans, from the Jersey shore and the city
12.
THE BRITISH LAND ON LONG ISLAND. 417
continued to watch, with intense interest, the movements ^*ap
of the enemy on Staten Island. A spy reported that they
were about to land on Long Island, with twenty thousand 1776.
men, and take possession of the Heights, which com-
manded New York ; he had heard the orders read, and
the conversation of the officers in the camp. The next Aug.
day the roar of artillery was heard from Long Island, and
soon the news reached the city that the enemy had landed
at Gravesend Bay.
General Greene had thrown up a line of intrenchments
and redoubts across the neck of the peninsula upon which
stood the village of Brooklyn. He had made himself ac-
quainted with the ground in the neighborhood, and nearly
completed his plans for defence, when he was suddenly
taken ill with a raging fever. He was still unable to be
at his post, and Sullivan held the temporary command.
Between the American intrenchments and Gravesend
Bay lay a range of thickly-wooded hills, that stretched
across the island from south-west to north-east. Over
and around these hills were three roads : one along the
shore passed around their south-western base ; another
crossed over their centre toward Flatbush ; while a third,
which was near the north-east extremity of the range,
passed over them from the village of Bedford to Jamaica.
Nine thousand of the British had already landed at
Gravesend, under the command of Sir Henry Clinton and
his associates, the Earls of Cornwallis and Percy, and Gen-
erals Grant and Erskine. Colonel Hand, who was sta-
tioned there, retired on their approach to a position that
commanded the central or Flatbush road. The British
continued to land more forces secretly in the night time,
but for several days nothing occurred, except skirmishing
between the enemy and the troops at the outposts, along
the wooded hills.
At the first alarm, the Commander-in-chief had hast-
ened to send to the aid of Sullivan a reinforcement of six
24.
418 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
"Hap. battalions, — all he could well spare. He exhorted these
soldiers to he cool, and not to fire too soon. They ap-
1776. peared in high spirits, though most of them were going
into battle for the first time.
Aug. On the twenty-fourth, Washington, somewhat relieved
from his apprehensions with regard to the city, crossed
over to Brooklyn to inspect the lines. He was pained to
observe a great want of system among the officers, and of
discipline among the soldiers. A strong redoubt had been
thrown up at the central pass, but the plans for defence
were imperfect, and affairs in much confusion.
On his return, he appointed General Putnam to the
command, with orders to remedy these evils. The " brave
old man " hastened with joy to the post of danger.
From day to day the number of tents on Staten Island
became gradually less, and one by one ships dropped
silently down to the narrows. Washington became con-
vinced that the British designed to attack the lines at
Brooklyn. He sent over further reinforcements, among
which was Haslet's Delaware regiment — troops whose sol-
dierly bearing and discipline had won his special regard.
He proceeded in person to aid Putnam with his coun-
sel. On the evening of the twenty-sixth he returned to
New York, perplexed and depressed, for a dark cloud of
uncertainty and danger hung over the future.
His fears were soon realized. On that very evening
the British proceeded to carry out their plan of attack.
By this plan, Sir Henry Clinton was to march along by-
paths across to the eastern or Jamaica road, to seize the
pass in the Bedford hills, thence proceed onward, and turn
the left flank of the Americans ; General Grant was to
pass along the shore-road, and attack them on the right,
while General De Heister, with his Hessians, was to
threaten the central pass, where Colonel Hand was sta-
tioned with his riflemen.
At nine o'clock, Sir Henrv, guided by a Long Island
BATTLE OF LONG ISLAND. 419
Tory, commenced his march toward the eastern road ; C**AP-
about midnight, Colonel Grant's division moved in an op-
posite direction, along the western or shore-road. Colonel 1776.
Atlee, who was stationed there with a small company of
militia, was driven back from point to point. News of
Grant's approach soon reached General Putnam. Lord
Stirling, with Smallwood's and Haslet's regiments, was
sent to the relief of Colonel Atlee. About daylight they
came up with him, and soon the front of the approaching
enemy appeared in view.
Presently the redoubt at the central pass was cannon-
aded from Flatbush. This firing attracted the attention
of Sullivan, who went to the relief of Colonel Hand.
Thus the object of the British was in part accom-
plished. The attention of the Americans was diverted,
their troops were scattered beyond the lines ; silently and
rapidly the forces of Clinton were moving on to cut off 27
their return. He had found the eastern pass unguarded,
and continued his march undiscovered, and now signal-
guns announced that he was close upon the American
lines. The Hessians advanced at once upon the redoubt.
Colonel Grant pushed on. Sullivan and Stirling both
perceived their danger, and endeavored to retreat, but in
vain. The enemy had gained their rear ; they were com-
pletely entrapped and hemmed in. It is true, a portion
of Stirling's troops escaped by fording a creek ; the re-
mainder, most of whom were of Smallwood's regiment,
took a brave but desperate stand. A scene of carnage
ensued ; more than two hundred and fifty of them were
slain within sight of the lines. Some of these were most
cruelly and wantonly bayoneted by the merciless Hessians.
At length Stirling sought De Heister and surrendered.
Sullivan's forces were driven back and forth by the two
divisions of the enemy, and treated in a like barbarous
manner ; some were taken prisoners, among whom was
Sullivan himself ; others fought their way back to the
420 HISTOKY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
chap, lines. Some portion of this conflict took place amid the
' ' " hills now embraced in the beautiful cemetery of Green -
1776. wood.
Washington reached the spot just in time to witness
the catastrophe. As from the lines he saw his brave
troops surrounded and cruelly slaughtered — touched to
the heart with deep and humane sorrow, he wrung his
hands and exclaimed : " Good God ! what brave fellows
I must lose this day ! "
The loss of the Americans in this battle was very se-
vere ; of the five thousand engaged, nearly two thousand
were slain or taken prisoners, while out of sixteen thou-
sand the British lost but about four hundred. They made
no assault on the American lines, but encamped directly
in front of them, and prepared to carry them by regular
approaches.
Although reinforced the next day, by Mifflin's and
Glover's regiments, the Americans had still a very inferior
force. On the morning of the twenty-ninth, as General
Mifflin, with Adjutant-general Keed and Colonel Grayson,
was inspecting the outposts at Red Hook, a light breeze,
that dispersed the fog for a moment, revealed to them the
enemy's fleet. They were justly alarmed ; the unusual
stir among the boats convinced them that some great
movement was on foot. It was probable the enemy in-
tended to pass up the bay and surround them. They hast-
ened to Washington, who summoned a council of war,
and it was decided that the army should that night be
secretly withdrawn from the island. It was a hazardous
enterprise, and much was to be done ; boats weie to be
collected, and preparations for the removal of nine thou-
sand men were to be made, in the face of the enemy, rap-
idly, and yet so silently and cautiously, as not to awaken
the slightest suspicion. It was already noon, but the or-
ders were issued, and all the boats around Manhattan
Island were impressed and in readiness at eight o'clock
THE RETREAT INCIDENTS. 421
that evening. And at the silent midnight hour the regi- c«ap
ments. one by one, began to march to the ferry, and in
boats manned by Glover's regiment, most of whom were 1776
Marblehead fishermen, they were borne to the city. By
eight o'clock the entire army, with their military stores,
cattle, horses, and carts, were safely landed.
Several incidents occurred, which have a peculiar in-
terest as connected with this famous retreat. General
Mifflin, who was stationed nearest to the enemy's lines,
was to remain at his post until the others had embarked.
Colonel Scammell, who was sent to hasten forward a par-
ticular regiment, mistook his orders, and sent on Mifflin
with his whole covering party ; and great was the conster-
nation of the Commander-in-chief when they joined the
others at the ferry. " This is a dreadful mistake, General
Mifflin," said he, " and unless the troops can regain the
lines before their absence is discovered by the enemy, the
most disastrous consequences are to be apprehended."
They returned to their post with all expedition. " This
was a trying business to young soldiers," says one of their
number, " it was, nevertheless, strictly complied with, and
we remained not less than an hour in the lines before we
received the second order to abandon them." '
A story is told of a woman, wife of a suspected Tory,
who lived near the ferry. She sent her negro servant to
the British with news that the Americans were retreating.
He reached the Hessian outposts in safety, but they did
not understand his language, and detained him a close
prisoner till morning. Then an English officer, who exam-
ined him, learned the truth, but it was too late. The
British did not. reach the ferry till the last boat was be-
yond musket shot. It was an August morning ; but for Aug,
a dense fog, the boats which left after daylight must have
been discovered. The safe retreat of the patriot army
1 < Gray don's Memoirs.
422 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
(^^p- was by many attributed to a peculiar Providence. It was
a trust in this Providence, a calm assurance of ultimate
1776. success under its guiding care, that strengthened the
hearts of the patriots in their darkest hour of trial.
A few days after this retreat, Admiral Howe, who
hoped the Americans would now accept peace on his
terms, sent General Sullivan on parole with a letter to
Congress. He invited them to send, in an informal man-
ner, a committee to confer with him on some measures of
reconciliation. He would receive them as private gentle-
men, as the ministry would not acknowledge the legal ex-
istence of Congress. Accordingly, John Adams, Doctor
Franklin, and Edward Kutledge, held a conference with
him at a house on Staten Island, opposite Amboy.
Doctor Franklin and Lord Howe had often conversed
together in England on the present difficulties. His lord-
ship made known the terms on which peace could be ob-
tained. These terms were unconditional submission. When
told that the Congress and people would treat on no other
basis than that " of a free and independent nation," he
expressed regret, that he should be compelled to dis-
tress the Americans. Doctor Franklin reciprocated his
good will, but quietly remarked, " The Americans will
endeavor to lessen the pain you may feel, by taking good
care of themselves." Thus ended the much talked-of in-
terview. The result was good. The people were strength-
ened in the belief that England had no terms to offer,
which would lead them to regret the course they had
adopted.
The British, now in possession of Long Island, ex-
tended their lines along the East Kiver, and stationed in
them a large number of Hessian troops, of whom reinforce-
ments had come within a few days. The defeat at Brook-
lyn had a very disheartening effect on the minds of the
militia, great numbers of whom deserted, and soon Wash-
DISPOSITION OF THE TROOPS NATHAN HALE. 423
ington's army was less than twenty thousand men, and on c^^>-
many of these little dependence could be placed. The
question soon arose, Should New York be defended to the 1776.
last, or should it be evacuated ? Some proposed to burn
it to the ground, as " two-thirds of the property belonged
to Tories," rather than it should furnish comfortable win-
ter-quarters for the enemy. Congress decided that the
city should not be burned.
The sick and wounded, in the meanwhile, were trans-
ferred to Orange, in New Jersey, and most of the military
stores were removed to Dobbs' Ferry, that the garrison
might be unencumbered should they be obliged to make a
hasty retreat. It was decided by a council of war that
Putnam, with five thousand troops, should remain to gar-
rison New York, while General Heath, with the main body,
was to fortify the heights in the neighborhood of Kings-
bridge, where, presently, Washington transferred his head-
quarters.
Washington was anxious to learn the designs of the ene-
my on Long Island. At the suggestion of Colonel Knowl-
ton, Nathan Hale volunteered to go on the perilous errand.
Hale was a native of Connecticut, a graduate of Yale Col-
lege, had thoughts of studying for the ministry, and at the
commencement of the war was a teacher of youth. After
the battle of Lexington, he hastened to Boston to join the
army, in which he served as a lieutenant. On one occa-
sion, to induce his men to continue their term of enlist-
ment, he offered them his own pay. Soon after he received
from Congress the commission of captain.
He passed to the island, obtained the knowledge de-
sired, notes of which he took in Latin. As he was return-
ing he fell in with a party of the enemy, was recognized
by a Tory relative, seized and taken to Howe's head-
quarters, and, without much ceremony, was ordered to be
executed the next morning.
The provost-marshal, named Cunningham, treated
424 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
cg.AP. him with great brutality, denied him a Bible, tore up the
letter he had written to his mother, giving as a reason,
1776. " that the rebels should never know they had a man who
could die with such firmness." The last words of Hale
were : "I only regret that I have but one life to lose for
my country."
The entire British fleet was within cannon-shot of the
city, and some of their vessels had passed up the Hudson
and East rivers. They had landed troops on the islands
at the mouth of Harlem river, and there erected a bat-
tery. Soon British and Hessians, under Clinton and Colo-
nel Donop, crossed over from the camp on Long Island
to Kipp's Bay, three miles above the city. Washington
heard the cannonading in that quarter, and, as he was on
the way to learn the cause, met the militia, who, on the
first approach of the enemy had fled in sad confusion, fol-
lowed by two brigades of Connecticut troops, who that
very morning had been sent to support them. He strove
to rally them, but in vain ; neither entreaties nor com-
mands had any effect upon these panic-stricken soldiers.
Mortified and indignant at their cowardice, he dashed his
hat upon the ground, and exclaimed : " Are these the
men with whom I am to defend America ? " The enemy
in pursuit were now not more than eighty yards from him,
but in his excitement he forgot his own safety, and had
not an attendant seized the bridle of his horse and hurried
15. him from the field, he must have fallen into their hands.
Washington ordered General Heath to secure Harlem
Heights, and sent an express order to Putnam to evacuate
the city, and retire to those heights with all speed ; for he
feared that the enemy would extend their lines across the
island from Kipp's Bay, and cut off his retreat. Fortu-
nately the British did not pursue their advantage. Put-
nam retreated along the west side of the island by the
Bloomingdale road. His line, encumbered with women and
children, was exposed to the fire of the ships lying in the
A SUCCESSFUL SKIRMISH. 425
Hudson He ordered, encouraged, and aided, and by his C^A?-
extraordinary exertions, it is said, saved his corps from
entire destruction. However, his heavy artillery and three 1776.
hundred men fell into the hands of the enemy.
Now the British had possession of the city, and the
main body of the Americans was encamped on the northern
portion of the island, across which they threw a double
row of lines, about four and a half miles below Kings-
bridge. Two miles above these lines, was Fort Washing-
ton, and a few miles below them were the British lines,
extending also from river to river.
On the sixteenth the enemy made an attack upon the Sept.
American advanced posts, but were repulsed and driven
off by Virginia and Connecticut troops, but their com-
manders, Major Leitch, and the brave Colonel Knowlton,
one of the heroes of Bunker Hill, both fell in this en-
counter. The spirits of the soldiers, depressed by repeated
defeats and disasters, were somewhat revived by this suc-
cessful skirmish.
The armies watched each other for some weeks. Many
were sick in the American camp ; "it was impossible to
find proper hospitals ; and they lay about in almost every
barn, stable, shed, and even under the fences and bushes."
Sir William Howe now began to collect forces at
Throg's Neck, a peninsula in the Sound about nine miles
from the American camp. This peninsula was separated
from the mainland by a narrow creek and a marsh, which
was overflowed at high tide. By means of the bridge and
fords, Howe hoped to pass over to the mainland and gain
the rear of the Americans, and cut off their communica-
tion with New England, whence they received most of
their supplies. His plans, though well laid, were defeated.
General Heath was on the alert ; he was joined by Colonel
William Prescott, who commanded at Bunker Hill, and
by Hand with his riflemen, and others ; every pass was
guarded, and the planks of the bridge removed. Howe,
420 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
chap, with his usual caution, waited six days for reinforcements,
xxx. . - J
By this time General Lee, now more a favorite than ever,
1776. had returned from his successful campaign at the South,
and Sullivan, Stirling, and Morgan had been restored to
the army by exchange. While Howe thus delayed, it was
decided, in a council of war, that every American post on
New York island, excepting Fort Washington, should be
abandoned. This plan was promptly executed. The
army, in four divisions, commanded by Generals Lee,
Heath, Sullivan, and Lincoln, withdrew across Kings-
, bridge, and gradually concentrated their forces in a forti-
23. fied camp near the village of White Plains.
Still hoping to gain their rear, Howe moved on toward
New Kochelle, where he was reinforced by light-horse
troops, and Hessians under General Knyphausen, who
had recently arrived from Europe. He advanced upon
the camp. Scarcely had the Americans intrenched them-
selves at White Plains, when a rumor of his approach
reached them. On the twenty-eighth, as Washington,
accompanied by his general officers, was reconnoitring the
heights in the neighborhood, the alarm was given that the
enemy had driven in the picket-guards, and were within
the camp. When he reached headquarters he found the
army already posted in order of battle. The enemy did
not advance upon them ; they turned their attention to a
height known as Chatterton's Hill, which lay a little south
of the camp, and was separated from it by tne river Bronx.
This height was occupied by sixteen hundred men under
General McDougall, and the attack was made at this
point. After a feeble resistance, the militia iled, but
Hazlet's and Smallwood's regiments, so famous on Long
Island, made a brave stand, and repeatedly repulsed the
enemy ; but, at length, overpowered by numbers, they
retreated across the bridge to the camp. This battle of
A NIGHT OF LABOR — THREATENED DANGERS. 427
White Plains was a spirited encounter, in which each of c^ap
the parties lost about four hundred men. 1
The British took possession of the hill, and began to 1776
intrench themselves ; and now, for the third time, the
" armies lay looking at each other ; * they were within
long cannon-shot.
Could the undisciplined, war-worn, and disheartened
Americans hope to escape from a force so well equipped
and so powerful ? That night was to them an anxious
one. It was passed in severe labor ; they doubled their in-
trenchments and threw up redoubts. Some of these were
hastily constructed of stalks of corn, pulled up from a neigh-
boring field, with the earth clinging to the roots. These
piled with the roots outward, presented an appearance so
formidable, that Howe, deceived as to their strength, did
not attack them, but ordered up reinforcements.
Howe's cautious conduct of the war has been severely
criticised, and various reasons have been assigned, but it
has never been satisfactorily explained ; whatever his
reasons may have been, his delay at this time cost him
another golden opportunity. Washington withdrew his
army in the night-time to the heights of North Castle, a
strong position, about five miles distant. His enemy had Nov
again eluded him, and Howe retired with his forces to 4.
Dobb's Ferry, on the Hudson.
This movement awakened new fears ;— did he intend
to pass down the river to Fort Washington, or to cross
into New Jersey ? " He must attempt something/'
writes Washington, "on account of his reputation, for
what has he done yet with his great army ? "
To meet the threatened dangers a new disposition was
made of the American forces. Lee, with a portion, was to
remain at North Castle ; Putnam, with another, was to
guard the west side of the Hudson ; Heath, the guardian
of the passes of the Highlands, was to encamp at Peeks-
kill ; while General Greene commanded at Fort Lee, and
428 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
Cxxx' C°l°nel Magaw, with the Pennsylvania troops, occupied
Fort Washington.
1776. With respect to maintaining Fort Washington, there
was a diversity of opinion, as neither that fort nor the ob-
structions across the channel had prevented the passage
of vessels up the Hudson. Washington, with Lee, Eeed,
and others, was in favor of withdrawing the troops at once.
He addressed a letter to Greene, in which he advised this
course, but left the matter to his discretion. Greene and
Magaw, who were both on the spot, and knew the condi-
tion of the fort, decided that it could be maintained, and
made preparations accordingly. This was, as the result
proved, an injudicious decision. The post was compara-
tively useless ; it was accessible on three sides from the
water ; the fort was very small, and would not contain
more than a thousand men, the lines were very extensive,
and the garrison insufficient to man them.
Washington visited the posts along the river. When
he arrived at Fort Lee, he was greatly disappointed to find
that the troops had not been withdrawn from Fort Wash-
ington ; and, before he could make a personal examina-
tion, the fort was invested. It was attacked on all sides.
The garrison, after a brave resistance, which cost the ene-
my four hundred men, was driven from the outer lines,
and crowded into the fort, where they were unable to fight
to advantage, and were exposed to the shells of the enemy.
Further resistance was impossible, and Colonel Magaw
surrendered all his troops, two thousand in number. Dur-
ing this action, the troops of Cadwallader especially dis-
tinguished themselves. Of the officers, Colonel Baxter,
of Pennsylvania, fell while cheering on his men.
jgV' From the New Jersey shore, the Commander-in-chief
witnessed a portion of the battle, and again he saw some
of his brave troops bayoneted by the merciless Hessians,
and wept, it is said, * with the tenderness of a child."
It was resolved to abandon Fort Lee, but before it
THE RETREAT. 429
was fully accomplished, Cornwallis, with, a force six thou- cgAP.
sand strong, crossed the Hudson to the foot of the rocky .
cliffs known as the Palipades. The force sent down from 1776.
North Castle was encamped at Hackensack, which lay be-
tween the river of that name and the Hudson, and Wash-
ington saw at once that the object of the enemy was to
form a line across the country, and hem them in between
the rivers. To avoid this he retreated, with all his forces,
including the garrison of Fort Lee, to secure the bridge
over the Hackensack, thence across the Passaic to the
neighborhood of Newark. This retreat was made in such
haste that nearly all the artillery was abandoned, the tents
left standing, and the fires burning. That night the
enemy found shelter in the tents of the deserted camp.
From Newark, the army moved on across the Karitan
to Brunswick, thence to Princeton, where they left twelve
hundred men, under Lord Stirling, to check the enemy,
while the main body proceeded to Trenton, and thence be-
yond the Delaware. The enemy pressed so closely upon
them, that the advance of Cornwallis entered Newark at
one end, as their rear-guard passed out at the other, and
often during this march, " the American rear-guard, em-
ployed in pulling up bridges, was within sight and shot of
the British pioneers, sent forward to rebuild them/'
Thus less than four thousand men — a mere shadow
of an army — poorly clad, with a scant supply of blankets,
without tents, and enfeebled for want of wholesome food,
evaded, by an orderly retreat, a well appointed force that
far outnumbered them, well fed, well clothed, well disci-
plined, and flushed with victory. When the enemy reached
the Delaware, they were unable to cross over, not a boat
was to be found ; Washington had taken the precaution to
have them all secured for a distance of seventy miles, and
transferred to the west side. Thus ended this famous re-
treat, remarkable for the manner in which it was con-
ducted, and the circumstances under which it took place.
430 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
Cx^f" Cornwallis was anxious to procure boats and push on
to Philadelphia, but Howe decided to wait till the river
1776. should be frozen. Meanwhile, the Hessians were stationed
along the eastern bank for some miles above and below
Trenton.
During his harassed march, Washington had sent re-
peated and urgent orders to Lee to hasten to his aid with
reinforcements. Notwithstanding the emergency, which
he well knew, Lee lingered for two or three weeks on the
east side of the Hudson, and when actually on the march,
proceeded so slowly, that he did not reach Morristown
until the eleventh of December.
Lee had a high opinion of his own military abilities,
and evidently desired an independent command. The
deference which the Americans had paid to his judgment,
and the importance they attached to his presence in the
army, had flattered his natural self-conceit ; his success
at the South, and the correctness of his views in relation
to Fort Washington, had strengthened his influence over
them, and now, in this time of depression and discourage-
ment, he hoped by some brilliant exploit to retrieve the
fortunes of the army, and gain more glory to himself. In
this mood he writes : " I am going into the Jerseys foi
the salvation of America." And again : " I am in hopes
to reconquer, if I may so express myself, the Jerseys ;
it was really in the hands of the enemy before my arri-
val/' While he pondered over these vain projects, he dis-
regarded the authority of the Commander-in-chief, and,
to say the least, subjected him to cruel inconvenience.
We have no reason to believe that Lee was untrue to the
cause he had embraced, but his .wayward conduct, at this
time and afterward, has diminished the grateful respect
with which Americans would have cherished his memory.
CHAPTEK XXXI.
THE WAR OF THE REVOLUTION— CONTINUED.
Discouragements. — Effects of Howe's Proclamation. — Affairs on Lake Cham-
plain. — Heroism of Arnold. — Carleton retires to Canada. — Capture of
Lee. — Troops from the Northern Army. — Battle of Trenton. — Battle
of Princeton. — Death of Mercer. — Washington retires to Morristown. —
Cornwallis in his Lines at Brunswick. — Encouragements. — Putnam at
Princeton. — Ill-treatment of American Prisoners ; their Exchange un-
der Negotiation. — Appointment of General Officers. — Muhlenburg. —
Wayne. — Conway. — Medical Department. — The Navy. — Marauding Ex-
peditions.— Peekskill. — Danbury. — Death of Wooster. — Retaliation at
Sag Harbor. — Efforts to recruit the Army. — Schuyler and Gates. — The
National Flag.
As the news of this retreat went abroad, the friends of the chap.
XXXI
cause were discouraged. What remained of the army was m
fast wasting away ; their enlistments were about to ex- 1776.
pire, and the militia, especially that of New Jersey, re-
fused to take the field in behalf of a ruined enterprise.
Many thought the States could not maintain their inde-
pendence ; but there were a few who, confident in the
justice of their cause, were firm and undaunted. Among
these was Washington. In a conversation with General
Mercer he remarked : " That even if driven beyond the
Alleghanies, he would stand to the last for the liberties of
his country."
Howe felt certain the game was his own ; he had only
to bide his time. He sent forth another proclamation, in
432 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
xxxi' wm(m ne ca^e(i upon all insurgents to disband, and Con«
gress to lay down their usurped authority ; and offered
1T76. pardon to all who should accept the terms within sixty
days. Many persons, most of whom wTere wealthy, com-
plied. Among these were two of the delegates from Penn-
sylvania to the late Continental Congress, and the presi-
dent of the New Jersey Convention which had sanctioned
the Declaration of Independence, and others who had
taken an active part in favor of the Revolution. For ten
days after the proclamation was issued, from two to three
hundred came every day to take the required oath.
The movements of the enemy, and the effect produced
by the proclamation, caused great excitement in Phila-
delphia. Putnam, who had been sent to command there,
advised that, during this season of peril, Congress should
~ hold its sessions elsewhere, and it adjourned to meet again
12. at Baltimore.
At this time a reinforcement of seven regiments was
on its way from Canada. We now return to the forces on
Lake Champlain, where we left Schuyler and Gates in a
sort of joint command.
The army driven out of Canada, broken, diseased, and
dispirited, rested first at Crown Point, and then at Ticon-
deroga. During his retreat, Sullivan wisely secured or
destroyed all the boats on Lake Champlain. Its shores
were an unbroken wilderness ; thus the British were una-
ble to follow up their pursuit by land or by water.
Sir Guy Carleton, flushed with victory, and full of
ardor, determined to overcome all obstacles and push his
victory to the utmost. He would obtain the command
of the Lakes Champlain and George, and by that means
subdue northern New York, and then proceed to take
possession of Albany, where he hoped to take up his win-
ter-quarters. From that point, he hoped, by means of
the Hudson, to co-operate with the Howes at New York,
to cut off the communication between New England and
HEROISM OF ARNOLD.
433
the States west and south. This he believed would bring <gAP.
the contest to a speedy close, and secure to himself a share ,
of the honors of the victory. He exerted himself with so 3776.
much energy and success, that at the end of three months
he had a well-equipped fleet. The frames of five large
vessels, that had been brought from England, were put
together at St. John's on the SoreL These, with twenty
smaller craft, and some armed boats, which had been
dragged up the rapids of that river, were now launched
upon the lake.
The Americans were not idle. General Gates author-
ized Arnold, who was somewhat of a seaman, to fit out
and command a flotilla. Arnold threw himself into the
enterprise with all the energy of his nature, and soon was
master of a force, in vessels and men, nearly half as large
as that of Carleton. He moved his little fleet across a
narrow strait between Valcour Island and the mainland,
in such a position that the whole force of the enemy could
not be made to bear upon him at one time ; there he awaited
the contest. As Carleton, with a favorable wind, swept
briskly up the lake, he passed the island behind which
Arnold's flotilla lay snugly anchored, before he observed
it. The wind was such that the larger ships could not
beat up the strait, but the smaller vessels advanced, and
a desperate encounter ensued, which was continued until
evening came on. Then Carleton arranged his squadron
so as to intercept Arnold's escape, and awaited the morn-
ing ; when, if his larger vessels could be made to bear, he
felt certain of the prize. The night proved dark and
cloudy ; favored by this circumstance, Arnold slipped by
the enemy, and at daylight was some miles on his way to
Crown Point. But as most of his vessels were in bad con-
dition, they could make but little headway ; only six
reached that place in safety, two were sunk, and the oth- 0
ers were overtaken by Carleton a few miles from the Point. 6.
434 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
xxx**' where one was captured with the crew. Arnold fought
desperately, until his galley, the Congress, was cut to
1776. pieces, and one-third of her crew killed. Determined that
his flag should not be struck, he ordered his vessels to be
grounded and set on fire. When this was done, he, with
his men, leaped out and waded to the shore, and by well-
directed rifle-shots kept the enemy at bay till the vessels
were consumed, and with them the still waving flag ; then
giving a triumphant cheer, they moved off through the
woods to Crown Point, where they found the remnant of
the fleet. They stayed only to destroy the houses and the
stores at the fort, and then embarked for Ticonderoga.
Before the enemy arrived, Gates, who commanded at that
post, had so strengthened his position that Carleton decid-
ed not to attack it, but to retire to Canada, and postpone
his wintering in Albany to some future day.
As the forts on the Lakes were safe for the present,
General Schuyler detached the seven regiments, of which
we have spoken, to the relief of Washington. When Lee
learned that three of these regiments were at Peekskill,
he ordered them to join him at Morristown. The remain-
ing four, under General Gates, were passing through
northern New Jersey toward Trenton.
Gates was detained by a severe snow-storm, and un-
certain as to the exact position of the army, he sent for-
ward Major Wilkinson with a letter to Washington,
stating his position, and asking what route he should take
to the camp. Wilkinson learned that Washington had
crossed the Delaware ; and as General Lee, the second in
command, was at Morristown, he made his way thither.
Just at this time, Lee with a small guard was quartered,
for the night, at a tavern at Baskenridge, three miles from
his army, which was left under the command of Sullivan.
Here he was joined by Wilkinson, on the morning of the
Dec. thirteenth of December. Lee took his breakfast in a
leisurely manner, discussed the news, and had just finished
CAPTURE OF LEE. 435
a letter to General Gates, when, much to his surprise, the chap.
house was surrounded by a party of British dragoons. He
had not dreamed that an enemy was near, and his guards 1776
were off duty. But a Tory of the neighborhood had
learned the evening before where he intended to lodge and
breakfast, and had, during the night, ridden eighteen
miles to Brunswick, to inform the enemy, and to pilot
them to the spot. For a few moments all was confusion.
The dragoons were calling for the General, and the Gen-
eral was calling for the guards, who were scattered in all
directions. " The scene was soon closed. General Lee,
without a hat, clad in a blanket-coat and slippers, was
mounted on a horse that stood at the door, and borne off
in triumph to the British army at Brunswick."
Had Lee, by some fortunate accident, succeeded in re-
trieving the fortunes of the army, unsuccessful under
Washington, it is probable that the wishes of the people
might have turned toward him as commander-in-chief.
For men are too apt to judge of those who live in the same
age with themselves, merely by their success ; and too
often they yield to what is self-confident and assuming,
the honor and respect due to sober judgment and high
moral principles.
Under these circumstances, Lee's success would have
proved most unfortunate for the country, for he had nei-
ther the judgment nor the principle necessary to guide it
safely through the approaching crisis.
After the capture of Lee, the troops under Sullivan
moved on at once to join the Commander-in-chief. Gen-
eral Gates, who had left his regiments at Morristown,
reached the camp on the same day. As Washington had
now a force of about six thousand men fit for service, he
was anxious to strike a blow, that should revive the cour-
age of the army and the people, before the disbandment
of those troops, whose terms of enlistments were about to
436 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
x'yyi' exP*re- ^ie Pr08Pect of success was doubtful, but he felt
that, under the circumstances, inaction would ruin the
1776. cause, and defeat could do no more.
Howe was in New York ; Cornwallis, who was on the
eve of embarking for England, was there also. The Brit-
ish forces in New Jersey, though strong, were much scat-
tered. The Hessians, who were in the advance, were
carelessly cantoned at different points along the eastern
bank of the Delaware. Colonel Donop was stationed at
Burlington, and his forces were quartered above and be-
low that point. Colonel Kahl, who had distinguished
himself at White Plains and Fort Washington, was at
Trenton, with a force of fifteen hundred men. This brave
but careless commander took his ease, enjoyed his music
and bath, and when it was proposed to throw up works
upon which to mount cannon, in readiness against an
assault, said, merrily : " Pooh ! pooh ! an assault by
the rebels ! Let them come ; we'll at them with the
bayonet." The Hessians were a terror to the people ;
they plundered indiscriminately Whig and Tory. The
American soldiers hated them intensely for their savage
bay one tings on the battle-field, and were eager to avenge
the outrages inflicted upon their friends and countrymen.
Washington proposed to cross the river and surprise
the Hessians at different points. A council of war was
held, and Christmas night was fixed upon for the enter-
prise. By the plan proposed, Washington himself was to
cross nine miles above Trenton, and march down upon
that place. Colonel Ewing, with the Pennsylvania mili-
tia, was to cross a mile below the town, and secure the
bridge over Assunpink creek, at the south side of it, and
thus cut off the enemy's retreat. Adjutant-general Reed
and Colonel Cadwallader, who were stationed at Bristol,
nearly opposite Burlington, were to cross below that place
BATTLE OF TRENTON.
437
and advance against Count Donop's division. The attacks chap
were to be simultaneous, and five o'clock on the morning
of the twenty-sixth was the hour agreed upon. 1776.
Just after sunset, on Christmas night, the division un-
der Washington, twenty-four hundred in number, began
to pass over. With this division was a train of twenty
field-pieces, under the command of Colonel Knox. The
river was filled with floating ice, and the weather was in-
tensely cold. The boats were guided by Colonel Glover,
and his regiment of Marblehead fishermen, the same who
had guided the boats on the memorable retreat from Long
Island. The night was extremely dark and tempestuous,
and the floating ice and strong wind drove them out of
their course again and again.
Washington had hoped to be on the march by mid-
night, but hour after hour passed, and it was four o'clock
before the artillery was landed, and the troops ready to
move on. They marched in two divisions, one led by
Washington, (with whom were Generals Greene, Stirling,
Mercer, and Stephen,) by a circuitous route to the north
of the town, while the other, under Sullivan, with whom
was Colonel John Stark, with his New Hampshire band,
was to advance by a direct road along the river, to the
west and south side. Sullivan was to halt at a certain
point to allow time for the main division to make the
circuit.
It was eight o'clock before this division reached the
immediate neighborhood of Trenton ; they had struggled
through a terrible storm of hail and snow ; it had impeded Dea
their march, but it had also aided to conceal their move-
ments from the enemy. Washington, who had pushed on
with the advance, asked of a man who was chopping wood
by the road-side the way to the Hessian picket. He an-
swered gruffly, " I don't know," and went on with his
work. " You may tell," said Captain Forrest, of the ar-
tillery, " for that is General Washington." " God bless
438 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
xxxi" anc* ProsPer y°u • " exclaimed the man, raising his hands
to heaven, " the picket is in that house, and the sentry
1776. stands near that tree."
In a few minutes the picket-guards were driven in.
Late as it was, the Hessians were completely surprised.
According to their custom, they had indulged freely in the
festivities of Christmas, and were resting thoughtless of
daDger, when the drums suddenly beat to arms. All was
confusion. At the first alarm, Colonel Rahl, who learned
from the lieutenant of the picket-guard that a large force
was advancing to surround him, endeavored to rally his
panic-stricken troops. He seems to have meditated a re-
treat to Princeton ; he had, in fact, passed out of the
town, but the ambition of the soldier triumphed in his
breast ; how could he fly before the rebels he had de-
spised ? He rashly returned to the charge. By this time
Washington had gained the main street, and opened a
battery of six field-pieces, which swept it from end to end.
As Rahl advanced, at the head of his grenadiers, he fell
mortally wounded. At the fall of their leader his soldiers
attempted to retreat, but they were intercepted by Colonel
Hand, with his Pennsylvania riflemen ; and, hemmed in
on all sides, they grounded their arms and surrendered at
discretion.
Stark, with his detachment, had assaulted the south
side of the town, and the firing in that quarter had added
to the general confusion. A party of British light-horse,
and five hundred Hessians stationed there " took headlong
flight, by the bridge across the Assunpink," and thus
escaped and joined Donop at Bordentown. Had Colonel
Ewing been able to cross, according to the arrangement,
their escape would have been prevented.
The Americans took one thousand prisoners, of whom
thirty-two were officers ; of their own number, only two
were killed, and two were froeen to death on the march.
Several were wounded, among whom was James Monroe,
£ <*^T f^Ztr^L^r^t
PLANS TO DRIVE THE ENEMY OUT OF JERSEY. 439
afterward President of the United States, who was at this chap.
time a lieutenant in the array.
The attack designed by Reed and Cadwallader, like 1770.
that of Colonel Ewing, was prevented by the ice, which
made it impossible for them to embark their cannon.
Thus the success was incomplete, and Washington at .
Trenton, encumbered by his prisoners, with a strong force
of the enemy below him, under Count Donop, and another
in his rear at Princeton, prudently resolved to recross the
Delaware.
Before he left the town, he, with General Greene, visit-
ed Colonel Eahl, who survived until the evening of the
day after the battle. The dying Colonel remembered his
grenadiers, and during this visit he commended them to
the consideration of Washington. Rahl lies buried in the
grave-yard of the Presbyterian church in Trenton.
When Washington had disposed of his prisoners, and
allowed his troops a little time to recruit, he resolved to
return and follow up his success, before the enthusiasm it
had awakened had time to cool. Meantime, he had re-
ceived from Eeed and Cadwallader, who had crossed on
the twenty-seventh, the encouraging news that all the D*a
Hessian posts on the river were deserted ; that Count
Donop had retreated with all haste to Brunswick, with a
portion of his forces, while the remainder had made their
way .to Princeton.
" A fair opportunity is now offered," writes Washing-
ton at this time, " to drive the enemy out of New Jersey,"
and he formed his plans accordingly. The American
forces, now no longer needed to guard the Delaware, were
gradually concentrating at Trenton. Parties were sent to
harass the retreating enemy, and General Heath was or-
dered to make a demonstration from the Highlands, as if
he intended to attack New York. The New England
regiments, whose terms were about to expire, were induced
by a 'bounty of ten dollars and the persuasions of their
440 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
shap. officefs to remain six weeks longer. Men of standing and
. influence were sent abroad to rouse the militia of New
1776. Jersey to avenge the outrages inflicted upon the people
by the Hessians. Matters began to wear a brighter aspect,
and hope and enthusiasm were revived.
At this crisis, Washington received the highest mark
of confidence in the gift of the people — Congress invested
him with unlimited military authority for six months.
The letter of the committee which conveyed to him this
resolution closed with these words : " Happy is it for this
country that the general of their forces can safely be in-
trusted with the most unlimited power, and neither per-
sonal security, liberty, nor property be in the least endan-
gered thereby." '
Nothing could exceed the astonishment of Howe when
he learned that his Hessians, veterans in war, had fled
before the militia. Cornwallis was hurried back to resume
his command in the Jerseys.
Washington, anxious to ascertain the movements and
designs of the enemy, sent forward Colonel Reed, who
was well acquainted with the country, to reconnoitre.
With Reed were six young horsemen, members of the
"Philadelphia City Troop," full of fire and zeal, but who
had never seen active service. No reward could induce
the terror-stricken people to approach Princeton and bring
them information. Nothing daunted, the party dashed
on till they were in view of the top of the college building,
when they observed a British dragoon passing from a barn
to a farm-house. Supposing him to be a marauder, they
determined to capture him, and obtain the desired infor-
mation. Presently they saw another, and another. They
charged at once and surrounded the house, " and twelve
dragoons, well armed, with their pieces loaded, and hav-
Correspondence of the Revolution vol. iv. p. 552.
2.
BOTH ARMIES ON THE BANKS OF ASSUNPINK CREEK, 441
ing the advantage of the house, surrendered to seven chap.
horsemen, six of whom had never seen an enemy before,
and, almost in sight of the British army, were brought 1776.
into the American camp at Trenton, on the same even-
ing." ' The sergeant of the .dragoons alone escaped. The
information obtained from these prisoners was most im-
portant. Comwalli s, with a body of picked troops, had
joined Colonel Grant the day before at Princeton, and they
were ready to march the next day upon Trenton, with a
strong force of seven or eight thousand men.
In anticipation of an attack, Washington arranged
his men, in number about six thousand, in a favorable
position on the east bank of Assunpink creek. As the
enemy approached, on the second of January, their ad- Jan.
vance was harassed, and so effectually held in check, by
forces sent forward under General Greene and Colonel
Hand, that they did not reach Trenton till near sunset.
The fords and bridge over the creek were carefully guarded
and defended by the American batteries. Cornwallis made
repeated attempts to cross, but was as often repulsed ; at
each repulse a shout ran along the American lines. Think-
ing that the struggle might be a desperate one, the British
commander concluded to defer it till the next day, and
retired with the boast that he would " bag the fox in the
morning." Both armies kindled their camp-fires, and
once more they rested in sight of each other.
Never had the prospect of the Americans been so
gloomy. The officers gathered at the quarters of General
Mercer to hold a council of war ; to retreat was impossi-
ble ; behind them was the Delaware, filled with floating
ice. Who could propose an expedient that would relieve
them from the present dilemma ? Such an expedient,
one of the boldest and best conceived of the whole war,
1 Life of Colonel Reed, p. 369.
442 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
x^xi' ^a(^ crosse(i *ne mind of the Commander-in-chief. He
judged that the main division of the British forces was
1777. with Cornwallis ; that Princeton and Brunswick, where
their stores were deposited, could be but imperfectly
guarded. He proposed to march by a circuitous and
obscure road, around the left flank of the enemy, to
Princeton, capture the forces there, and then push on and
seize the stores at Brunswick. The plan was accepted at
once, and the officers entered into it with alacrity. The
stores were sent down the river to Burlington, and various
stratagems were resorted to to deceive the enemy. Small
parties were left behind, some to be noisily employed in
digging trenches within hearing of their sentinels ; others
to relieve the guards and replenish the camp-fires, and
preserve all the appearance of a regular encampment J at
daylight these were to hasten after the army.
About midnight the Americans began their silent
march. The road over which they moved was new and
rough, and at sunrise they were still three miles from
Princeton. Here they halted, and formed into two divi-
sions, one of which, under Washington, was to proceed
by a cross-cut to the town, while the other, under General
Mercer, was to gain the main road, and destroy the bridge,
when they had passed over, to prevent the approach of
Cornwallis.
Three British regiments had passed the night at
Jan. Princeton, and two of them were already on their march
to join the forces at Trenton. Colonel Mawhood, com-
mander of the foremost, when about two miles from the
town, caught sight of Mercer's division. Believing it a
party of Americans who had been driven from Trenton, he
sent back a messenger to Princeton to hurry on the other
regiments, that they might surround them, and cut off
their retreat. Presently Mercer espied the British, and
now both parties rushed to gain a favorable position on a
rising ground. The Americans were successful, and with
BATTLE OF PRINCETON. 443
their rifles opened a severe fire upon the enemy, who re- ffi*ffi
turned it vigorously. Almost at the first fire Mercer's ,
horse was shot under him, and the second officer in com- 1777.
mand fell mortally wounded. The enemy took advantage
of the confusion that followed the fall of the leaders, and
rushed on with the bayonet. The Americans, who were
without bayonets, unable to withstand the charge, gave
way. As Mercer, now on foot, endeavored to rally them,
he was struck down, bayoneted, and left on the field ap-
parently dead.
As his men retreated in confusion, a body of Pennsyl-
vania militia, which Washington had sent to their aid,
appeared in sight. Mawhood instantly checked his pur-
suit of the fugitives, and opened upon these fresh troops a
heavy fire of artillery, which brought them to a stand.
Convinced by the continued firing that the conflict
was serious, Washington spurred on in advance of his
division, and just at this crisis had reached a rising ground
near by, from which he witnessed the scene. He saw the
scattered forces of Mercer, the hesitation of the militia ;
every thing was at stake. He dashed forward in the face
of Mawhood's artillery, exposed both to the fire of the
enemy and the random shots of his own soldiers, and
waving his hat called upon the faltering and broken forces
to follow him. Inspired by his voice and example, they
rallied at once and returned to the charge. At this mo-
ment a Virginia regiment emerged from a neighboring
wood, and with loud cheers engaged in the conflict ; while
the American artillery, now within range, began to shower
grape-shot upon the enemy. The fight was desperate,
but the field was won. Mawhood, who, a few minutes
before, had felt certain of victory, now with great difficulty
forced his way back to the main road, and retreated with
all haste toward Trenton.
The second regiment was attacked by the brigade un-
der St. Clair ; broken and scattered, it fled across the
444 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
chap, fields towards New Brunswick. Alarmed at the general
rout, a part of the third regiment fled in the same direc-
1777. tion, while another portion took refuge in the college
building. The American artillery was immediately brought
to bear upon it, and they soon surrendered.
The British loss in this battle was about one hundred
slain, and three hundred prisoners, while the Americans
lost but few ; among these was the brave Colonel Haslet.
Mercer, who was left on the field for dead, was after the
battle discovered by Colonel Armstrong, still alive, but
suffering greatly from his wounds, and exposure to the
cold. He was borne to a neighboring farm-house, where,
after a few days, he expired. As a soldier, he was brave ;
as a man of sterling merit, he was worthy the respect of
his adopted countrymen, for, like Montgomery, he was of
foreign birth, and like him, he has won an honorable name
among the heroes of the Bevolution.
Washington, eager to secure the stores so necessary
for his army, pushed on some distance toward Brunswick.
A little reflection convinced him that his troops, in their
exhausted condition, could not reach there before they
would be overtaken. They had been a night and a day
without rest ; they were thinly clad, and some of them
were barefoot. He stopped and held a consultation with
his officers on horseback. They decided that it was inju-
dicious to proceed. Grieved and disappointed, that they
were unable to reap the advantage of their recent success,
they turned their steps toward Morristown.
When morning revealed to the enemy on the banks of
the Assunpink the deserted camp of the Americans, Corn-
wallis was greatly at a loss to divine to what covert the
" fox " had fled. Soon the booming of cannon at Prince-
ton gave him the desired information His thoughts
turned at once to the stores at Brunswick : he must save
THE BEITISH CONFINED TO THEIR CAMP. 445
them from the hands of his enemy. His march back to Cgffi
Princeton was much impeded. The Americans had not
forgotten to throw obstacles in his way. He found the 1777.
bridge over Stony Creek, a few miles from the town, bro-
ken down, and the party of Americans left for that pur-
pose still in sight. Impatient of delay he .urged on his
soldiers, who, although the waters were breast high, dashed
across the stream. Believing that Washington was in
full march for Brunswick, he halted not at Princeton, but
hurried on in pursuit with so much eagerness, that he did
oot observe that the Americans had diverged from the
road.
The American army retreated to a strong position at
Morristown. There the soldiers provided themselves huts,
and remained until the last of May.
For six months after the battle of Princeton no enter-
prise of importance was undertaken by either party.
The yeomanry of New Jersey were now thoroughly
roused to preserve their State from further depredations.
They warmly seconded the efforts of Washington, and
greatly aided the detachments from the army, who were
on the alert to cut off the foraging parties of the enemy ;
and so effectually did they harass them, that they scarcely
ventured out of sight of their camp. Thus unable to ob-
tain provisions for his army, Cornwallis gradually with-
drew within his lines, at Brunswick and Amboy, that he
might be in communication with New York by water,
whence alone he could draw his supplies. Thus those
who, a few weeks before, were in possession of nearly all
New Jersey, were now able to retain scarcely more of her
soil than was sufficient for a camp.
The success that had crowned the American arms at
Trenton and Princeton cheered the hearts and revived the
hopes of the patriots ; but they knew well that the enemy
was checked, not conquered ; that the struggle must be
renewed, and the result was still doubtful.
446
HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
chap. Washington had established his head-quarters at Mor~
ristown, while the right wing of his army, under Putnam,
1777. was stationed at Princeton, and the left was in the High-
lands, under General Heath. Along this extended line,
at convenient distances, were established cantonments.
Though weak in numbers, the army was so judiciously
posted that the enemy, deceived by its apparent strength,
hesitated to attack it.
Putnam, who had with him but a few hundred men,
resorted to stratagem to hide his weakness. A British
officer, who lay mortally wounded at Princeton, desired
the presence of a military comrade in his last mo'uents.
The kind hearted general could not deny the requesc ; he
sent a flag to Brunswick in quest of the friend, who en-
tered Princeton after dark. Every unoccupied house was
carefully lighted, lights gleamed in all the college windows,
and the Old General marched and countermarched his
scanty forces to such effect, that the British soldier, on
his return to the camp, reported them as at least five
thousand strong.
The winter at Morristown was a season of comparative
quiet, during which the Commander-in-chief was engaged
in earnest efforts to improve the state of his army. The
evil effects of the system of short enlistments adopted by
Congress, and repeatedly protested against by Washing-
ton, were severely felt at this juncture. The terms of
great numbers were about to expire, and new recruits
came in but slowly. To guard against the ravages of
small-pox, which at times had been fatally prevalent in
the army, these were inoculated as fast as they came in.
The exchange of prisoners had become a subject of
negotiation. At first the British refused to exchange on
equal terms, on the plea that the Americans were rebels,
but Howe, who had at this time about five thousand on
his hands, opened a correspondence with Washington on
the subject. Now the Americans in their turn objected
SUFFERINGS OF AMERICAN PRISONERS. 447
to an exchange. Their captured countrymen had "been V&AP
left to the tender mercies of the New York Tories, crowded
into warehouses, which had heen converted into prisons, 1777.
or into loathsome hulks anchored in the bay ; fed with
impure food, and left to languish in filth and nakedness.
Thrilling tales are told of the sufferings of those confined
in the sugar-house, and on board the Jersey, a prison-
ship. More than ten thousand wretched American pris-
oners died during the war, and were buried without cere-
mony in shallow graves at Brooklyn, on Long Island. Of
those who survived, scarcely one ever fully recovered from
the effects of these hardships.
Washington refused to recruit the British army by an
exchange of well-fed and hale Hessian and British prison-
ers, for emaciated and diseased Americans, whose terms
of enlistment had expired, and who were scarcely able,
from very weakness, to return to their homes. His policy
was sanctioned by Congress — a severe policy, but author-
ized by the necessities of the times.
To supply the want of field-officers, Congress com- Feb.
missioned five major-generals : Stirling, St. Clair, Mifflin, 19,
Stephen, and Lincoln. The latter we have seen as the
secretary of the first Provincial Congress of Massachu-
setts. He was afterward the efficient commander of the
militia of that State, and now he was promoted over the
heads of all the brigadiers. In these appointments, Ar-
nold, whose meritorious conduct on the battle-field, as
well as his seniority as a brigadier, entitled him to promo-
tion, was entirely overlooked. He complained bitterly of
this injustice ; the wound rankled in his proud breast ;
from this hour, till he found consolation in revenge, he
seems to have brooded over the disrespect shown him by
his countrymen.
Eighteen brigadier-generals were also commissioned,
among whom were Glover, the leader of the Marblehead
fishermen ; George Clinton, of New York, the sturdy
448 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
CkAP- guardian of the Highlands, and afterward Vice-President ,
xxxi. ° ° ' . . '
Woodford and Muhlenburg, of Virginia — the latter an
'777. Episcopal clergyman, who at the commencement of hos-
tilities had " laid aside the surplice to put on a uniform,"
raised a company of soldiers, and who continued in the
army till the close of the war — and Hand and Anthony
Wayne, of Pennsylvania. Wayne was by nature a sol-
dier ; even in his school-days he turned the heads of hif.
companions by telling them stories of battles and sieges,
and drilled them in making and capturing mud forts. In
later years he was so distinguished for his daring, that he
became known in the army by the appellation of " Mad
Anthony."
An Irish adventurer named Conway, who professed to
have served for thirty years in the French army, and to
be thoroughly skilled in the science of war, was also com-
missioned. He proved, however, more famous for intrigues
than for military genius or courage.
Congress also authorized the enlistment of four regi-
ments of cavalry. The quartermaster's department was
more perfectly arranged, and General Mifflin was placed
at its head.
The hospital department was also reorganized, and
placed under the charge of Doctor Shippen, of the Medi-
cal College at Philadelphia. His principal assistant was
Doctor Craik, the friend and companion of Washington in
his expeditions against Fort Du Quesne.
Doctor Eush, one of the signers of the Declaration of
Independence, and afterward celebrated in his profession,
was appointed surgeon-general. The office of adjutant-
general, resigned by Colonel Eeed, was given to Timothy
Pickering, of Massachusetts.
Nor was the navy neglected. Of the vessels authorized
to be built, several frigates had been finished and equipped,
but the want of funds prevented the completion of the
remainder, for the Continental money began to depreciate,
MARAUDING EXPEDITIONS DANBURY BURNED. 449
and loans could not be obtained. The entire American chap.
fleet, under Admiral Hopkins, was at this time blockaded
at Providence. But privateers, especially from New Eng- 1777.
land, were eager in pursuit of British vessels trading to
the West Indies, of which they captured nearly three
hundred and fifty, whose cargoes were worth five millions
of dollars. A profitable trade, principally by way of the
West Indies, was also opened with France, Spain, and
Holland, but it was attended by great risks, and a large
number of American vessels thus engaged fell into the
hands of British cruisers. „
In the spring, while Washington still remained at
Morristown, the British commenced a series of marauding
expeditions. A strong party was sent up the Hudson to
seize the military stores at Peekskill. General McDou-
gall, finding it impossible to defend them against a force
so superior, burned them, and retired with his men to the
hills in the vicinity. As General Heath had been trans-
ferred to the command in Massachusetts, Washington sent
Putnam to command in the Highlands.
A month later Cornwallis made an attack on a corps ^pri!
under General Lincoln, stationed at Boundbrook, a few 18.
miles from Brunswick. The militia, to whom the duty
was intrusted, imperfectly guarded the camp. Lincoln
with difficulty extricated himself, after losing a few men
and some cannon.
Presently a fleet of twenty-six sail was seen proceed-
ing up the Sound ; anxious eyes watched it from the shore.
It was the intriguing Tryon, now a major-general, in com-
mand of a body of Tories, two thousand strong, who was
on his way to destroy the military stores collected at Dan-
bury, Connecticut. He landed on the beach between
Fairfield and Norwalk, on the afternoon of the twenty-
fifth, and immediately commenced his march. April.
450 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
xxxi' ^ke alarm spread ; General Silliman, of the Con-
necticut militia, called out his men, and sent expresses in
1777. every direction. Arnold, who had been sent by Washing-
ton, some months before, to prepare defences at Provi-
dence, and obtain recruits, happened to be in New Haven
when the express arrived with the intelligence of the in-
road. He hastened with some volunteers to join Generals
Wooster and Silliman, whose forces amounted to about
six hundred militia ; and the whole company moved after
the marauders.
Tryon, who had marched all night, reached Danbury
on the afternoon of the twenty-sixth. He commenced at
once to destroy the magazines of stores. Although the
inhabitants had abandoned their homes at his approach,
he permitted his soldiers to burn almost every house in
the village. By morning the work of destruction was
complete. The militia were approaching, and the ma-
rauders were compelled to run the gauntlet to their ships,
t venty miles distant.
The Americans were separated into two divisions, one
under Wooster, the other under Arnold ; while the former
was to harass the enemy in the rear, the latter was to
make a stand at a convenient point in advance and ob-
struct their progress.
The brave Wooster, though sixty-eight years of age,
led forward his men with great spirit. When they, un-
used to war, faltered in the face of the enemy's musketry
and artillery, he rode to the front and cheered them.
" Come on, my boys," cried he, " never mind such random
shots." At that moment a musket-ball pierced his side,
and he fell from his horse mortally wounded. His soldiers
now retreated in confusion.
Arnold had made a stand at Ridgefield, two miles be-
yond the spot where Wooster fell, and while the enemy
was delayed by this skirmishing, he had thrown up a bar-
ricade or breastwork. He acted with his usual daring,
DEATH OF GENERAL WOOSTER. 451
out, after a spirited resistance, his little force was over- chap
powered by numbers and driven back. As he was bring- ,
ing off the rear-guard his horse was shot under him ; 1777.
before he could disengage himself from the struggling ani-
mal, a Tory rushed up with a fixed bayonet, and cried
out, " You are my prisoner." " Not yet," replied Arnold,
as he coolly levelled his pistol and shot him dead. He then
escaped, rallied his men, and renewed the attack.
The determined resistance of the militia retarded the ,
British so much, that they were forced to encamp for the
night. The next day they were greeted with the same APril
galling fire from behind trees, fences, and houses, which
continued until they came within range of the guns of
their ships. They speedily embarked, fain to escape the
rifles of the exasperated yeomanry.
General Wooster was conveyed to Danbury, where he
died surrounded by his family. His loss was greatly de-
plored by the patriots. A neat monument in the ceme-
tery of that place now marks his grave.
When Congress learned of the gallant conduct of Ar-
nold, they commissioned him a major-general, and pre-
sented him with a horse richly caparisoned. Yet even
this tardy acknowledgment of his military merit was
marred, — the date of his commission still left him below
his proper rank. He seemed to feel this second slight
more keenly than the first.
The Americans resolved to retaliate in kind, and Colo-
nel Keturn Jonathan Meigs, of Connecticut, with one
hundred and seventy men, passed over the Sound to the
east end of Long Island. They carried their boats, during
the night, fifteen miles across the neck, launched them May
on the bay, passed over to Sag Harbor, and destroyed a
great amount of provisions and forage, collected there for
the British. In addition, they burned twelve vessels,
452 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
Cxxit ^°°k n'nety prisoners, and returned without losing a man,
having passed over ninety miles in twenty-five hours.
17YT. Though strenuous efforts were made to ohtain recruits,
the smallness of the American army still continued ; want
of fund 8 crippled every measure. At the instance of
Washington, Congress declared that those redemptioners
or indented servants who enlisted in the army should, by
that act, become freemen ; and bounties in land were
offered the Hessians to induce them to desert.
Meanwhile General Schuyler labored with great zeal
in the northern department. But his feelings were se-
verely tried by the aspersions which his enemies cast upon
his character, and conduct of affairs. In the autumn of
1776 he wrote : " [ am so sincerely tired of abuse, that I
will let my enemies arrive at the completion of their wishes
as soon as I shall have been tried ; and attempt to serve
my injured country in some other way, where envy and
detraction will have no temptation to follow me." But
Congress would not accept his resignation. During the
winter he made repeated appeals to the Commander-in-
chief for reinforcements and supplies, which, for want of
means, could not be sent. There were but six or seven
hundred men at Ticonderoga ; Carleton, he thought,
might cross Lake Champlain on the ice and attack them ;
if successful, he might follow out his original plan and
push on to Albany. As the abuse of which Schuyler com-
plained was continued, early in April he proceeded to
Philadelphia, and demanded of Congress a committee to
inquire into his conduct. Meantime General Gates had
been ordered to take command at Ticonderoga.
Schuyler's patriotism was not an impulse, not a matter
of mere words, nor did injustice rouse in his breast, as in
that of Arnold, the dark spirit of revenge. However, the
committee reported in his favor ; and, with his character
and conduct fully vindicated, he returned to the charge
of the Northern Department. The ambitious Gates was
NATIONAL FLAG. 453
deeply chagrined and disappointed ; he had flattered him- gAP.
self that Schuyler would never resume his command, and
regarded himself as virtually his successor. Professing to 1777.
be aggrieved, he hastened to Philadelphia to seek redress
at the hands of Congress.
The want of a national flag was greatly felt, especially
in the marine service. Congress adopted the " Union
Flag," with its thirteen stripes, hut displaced the " Cross
of St. George," and substituted for it thirteen stars ; to Jaue*
which one star has since been added for each additional
State.
CHAPTEK XXXII.
WAR OF THE REVOLUTION -CONTINUED.
The Struggle excites an Interest in England and France. — Baron De Kalb.—
Privateers fitted out in France. — Negotiations for Munitions of War. —
Howe's Manoeuvres. — Burgoyne on his Way from Canada. — Ticonde-
roga Captured. — St. Clair's Retreat to Fort Edward. — Efforts to arrest
the Progress of Burgoyne. — Capture of General Prescott. — The secret
Expedition. — The British Fleet puts to sea. — The American Army at
Germantown. — La Fayette. — Pulaski and Kosciusko. — Aid sent tc
Schuyler. — Howe lands at Elkton. — Battle of Brandywine. — Possession
taken of Philadelphia. — Battle of Germantown. — Hessians repulsed at
Fort Mercer. — Winter Quarters at Valley Forge.
chap ^HE unfortunate result of the battle of Long Island ; the
xxxii. ioss 0f New York and Fort Washington ; and the retreat
m7 across New Jersey, were all significant of the weakness of
the patriot army. Intelligence of these disasters disheart-
ened the friends of the cause in Europe. Edmund Burke,
their firm friend, remarked that, although the Americans
had accomplished wonders, yet the overpowering forces to
be brought against them in the following campaign, must
completely crush their hopes of Independence. Said he :
" An army that is obliged, at all times, and in all situa-
tions, to decline an engagement, may delay their ruin, but
can never defend their country."
The intelligent portion of the people of France were
not indifferent spectators of this struggle ; it was watched
with intense interest by her merchants, her manufacturers.
FRIENDS OF THE CAUSE IN EUROPE ENCOURAGED. 455
her statesmen. From the day on which Canada was wrested £HAP.
from her, France had ardently hoped that her proud rival
might in turn lose her own American colonies. Ten years 177?.
before the commencement of hostilities, Choiseul, the en-
lightened statesman and prime minister of Louis XV., sent
an agent through the colonies, to ascertain the feelings of
the people. That agent was Baron De Kalb, the same
who afterward so nobly served the cause in the American
army. He was indefatigable in " collecting pamphlets,
newspapers, and sermons," which he sent to his employer.
Choiseul gathered from them the proofs that the British
king and ministry, by their blindness and injustice, were
fast alienating the good will of their colonists ; and he
hoped by offering them, without restriction, the commerce
of France, to alienate them more and more. Thus the
minds of the French people and government were pre-
pared to afford aid, but not under the present aspect of
affairs. /
Early in the spring, intelligence reached Europe, that
the American army, which was supposed to be broken
beyond recovery, had suddenly rallied, boldly attacked,
and driven the invaders out of New Jersey. It was
scarcely thought possible. How could a handful of ill-
disciplined, ill-armed yeomanry, so destitute of clothes
that some of them froze to death while on duty, and oth-
ers stained the snow with the blood that flowed from their
naked feet, meet and defeat a regular army ? Surely,
men who would thus cheerfully suffer, deserved independ-
ence ! A thrill of enthusiasm was excited in their favor.
They were regarded as a nation of heroes, and Washing-
ton, because of his prudence and skill, was extolled as the
American Fabius.
With the connivance of the government, American
privateers were secretly fitted out, and even permitted to
sell their prizes in French ports, in spite of the protests
456 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
x\\ir °^ ^e -British ambassador. The government itself secretly
sent arms and military stores for the American army.
1777. This was done by means of a fictitious trading-house,
known as " Hortales and Company." These supplies were
to be paid for in tobacco, sent by the way of the West
Indies. Soon after the battle of Lexington, secret nego-
tiations on the subject had been entered upon in London
by Beaumarchais, an agent of the French court, and Ar-
thur Lee, who for some years had resided in that city as
a barrister. The latter was a brother of Richard Henry
Lee, of Virginia, for which colony he had acted as agent
in England. The Secret Committee of Congress, in the
mean time, sent Silas Deane to Paris, as an agent to obtain
supplies. Though Deane appeared in that city simply as
a merchant, he became an object of suspicion, and was
closely watched by British spies. Beaumarchais now made
arrangements with him to send three ships laden with
military stores, to the United States. Unfortunately two
of these ships were captured by British cruisers ; the third,
however, arrived opportunely to furnish some of the regi-
April. ments recently enlisted at Morristown.
Three months after the Declaration of Independence,
Doctor Franklin was sent to join Deane in France, and
thither, Lee was also directed to repair. To these com-
missioners Congress delegated authority to make a treaty
of alliance with the French court. They were admitted
to private interviews by Vergennes, Minister of Foreign
Affairs, and encouraged, but the government was not yet
prepared to make an open declaration of its true senti-
ments.
The British ministry, by means of spies, obtained in-
formation of some of these proceedings. They immedi-
ately issued letters of marque and reprisal against the
Americans, while Parliament cheerfully voted supplies
F^. ami men to prosecute the war.
HOWE'S MOVEMENTS NEWS FROM THE NORTH. 457
As the spring advanced, the enemy's movements were £?£!;
watched with anxious interest. That he might observe ,
them to better advantage, Washington, on the twenty- 1777.
eighth of May, removed his camp to the heights of Middle-
brook, a strong and central position. Early in June, Sir May.
William Howe, who had received large reinforcements,
and supplies of tents and camp equipage, established his
head-quarters at Brunswick, about ten miles distant.
He commenced a series of manceuvres, and made a
feint movement toward Philadelphia, in the hope of draw-
ing Washington from the heights into the open plain,
where British discipline might prevail ; the latter was
too cautious to be thus entrapped, and Howe, foiled in his
attempt, retraced his steps to Brunswick. Presently he
evacuated that place, and hastened with all speed toward
Amboy. Washington sent an advance party in pursuit,
but suspecting this move was also a feint, he followed
slowly with the main body. The suspicion was just ;
Howe suddenly wheeled, and by a rapid movement en-
deavored to turn the Americans' left, in order to gain the
passes and heights in their rear, but Washington saw his
object in time to gain his stronghold. Unable to bring
on an engagement, Howe in a few days withdrew his forces
to Stcten Island. J«r-e
20.
Just before this time, important news had been received
from the North. Burgoyne, who had succeeded Sir Guy
Carleton, was about to advance by way of Lake Cham-
plain, while a detachment under General St. Leger and
Sir John Johnson, was to make its way by Oswego to the
Mohawk river. On the very day that the British left
New Jersey, further 'ntelligence came from St. Clair that
the enemy's fleet waa actually approaching Ticonderoga,
where he was in command.
The force under Burgoyne was not precisely known ;
it was, however, thought to be small, but in truth he had
a finely equipped army of nearly ten thousand men, four-
458 HISTOKT OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
xx An fifths of whom were regulars, British and Hessian ; the
remainder Canadians and Indians. It was furnished with
J777. one of the finest parks of field-artillery, under the com-
mand of General Phillips, who had acquired his great
reputation as an artillery officer in the wars of Germany.
He was also ably supported by the second in command,
General Fraser, an officer of great merit, and who was
characterized as the soul of the army. The Hessians
were under Baron Reidesel.
Near Crown Point, Burgoyne met the chiefs of the
Six Nations in council, and induced four hundred of their
June, warriors to join him. A few days later he issued a bom-
bastic proclamation, in which he threatened to punish the
patriots who would not immediately submit, and to let
loose upon them the Indians.
St. Clair, who had but three thousand men, wrote to
General Schuyler at Albany, that he could not defend
Ticonderoga unless he had reinforcements, ending his let-
ter by saying : " Every thing will be done that is practi-
cable to frustrate the enemy's designs ; but what can be
expected from troops ill-armed, naked, and unaccoutred ? "
Still unaware of the force of the enemy, he trusted in his
position, and that he could hold out for some time.
There was an abrupt hill on the edge of the narrow
channel which connects Lakes Champlain and George.
This hill commanded Fort Ticonderoga, and also Fort
Independence, on the east side of Champlain. It was
thought by St. Clair, and others, to be absolutely inac-
cessible for artillery. But the " wily Phillips/' acting on
the principle that " where a goat can go, a man may go ;
and where a man can go, artillery may be drawn up,"
suddenly appeared on this hill-top. For three days he
had been at work taking his cannon up the height, and in
twenty-four hours he would be ready to " rain iron hail n
on both the forts, from his Fort Defiance.
The Americans must now evacuate the forts, or b«
irt? »
btjrgoyne's ADVANCE ST. clair's retreat. 459
made prisoners. St. Clair chose the former. He could S5I&
only escape in the night, and his preparations must he
made in the face of the enemy. The two hundred hateaux 1777.
were to he laden with stores, the women, the sick and
wounded, and sent up South River. St. Clair, with the
main body, was to pass to Fort Independence, and with
its garrison march through the woods to Skeenesborough,
now Whitehall. With the greatest secrecy and speed,
the arrangements were made ; the boats, concealed by the July
deep shadows of the mountains, were under way ; the 6*
main body had passed over the drawbridge to Independ-
ence, and was on its march, and the rear division was just
leaving Ticonderoga, when suddenly, about four o'clock in
the morning, the whole heavens were lighted up ; a house
on mount Independence was on fire, and its light revealed
the Americans in full retreat. Alarm guns and beating
of drums aroused the British. General Fraser was soon
in motion with his division, the abandoned forts were
taken possession of, and by daylight measures concerted
to pursue the fugitives both by land and water. Fraser
was to pursue St. Clair with his division, and General
Reidesel to follow with his Hessians, while Burgoyne him-
self sailed in his ships to overtake the American flotilla.
On the afternoon of the next day, the flotilla reached
Whitehall ; but scarcely were they landed, when the roar-
ing of artillery told that the British gunboats had over-
taken the rear-guard of galleys. Presently, fugitives from
these brought intelligence that the British frigates had
landed Indians, who were coming to cut off their retreat.
Every thing was abandoned, and set on fire ; all took to
flight toward Fort Anne, at which place, after a most
harassing night-march, they arrived. The enemy appeared
the same day, but were held in check by sharp skirmish-
ing. The Americans thought this the vanguard of Bur-
goyne's army, and they set Fort Anne on fire, and retreated
460 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
chap, sixteen miles further to Fort Edward, where General
Schuyler had just arrived with reinforcements.
"i777. General St. Clair continued his retreat, and at night
arrived at Castleton ; his rear-guard, contrary to his ex-
press orders, stopped six miles short of that place. The
next morning, the guard was startled by an attack from
Fraser's division, which had marched nearly all night. At
the first onset a regiment of militia fled, but the regiments
of Warner and Francis made a spirited resistance ; yet
they were compelled to yield to superior numbers, and
make the best retreat they could. St. Clair, in the mean
time, pushed on through the woods ; after seven days, he
appeared at Fort Edward, with his soldiers wearied and
haggard from toil and exposure.
Schuyler sent at once a strong force to put obstructions
in Wood Creek ; to fell trees and break down the bridges
on the road from Fort Anne to Fort Edward. This being
the only road across that rough and thickly wooded coun-
try, it took Burgoyne three weeks to remove these obstruc-
tions and arrive at Fort Edward. The British hailed
with shouts of exultation the Hudson ; the object of their
toil. It would be easy, they thought, to force their way
July to Albany, in which place Burgoyne boasted he would eat
' his Christmas dinner.
Schuyler now retreated to Saratoga. In these reverses
the loss of military stores, artillery, and ammunition was
immense, and the intelligence spread consternation through
the country. The American army under Schuyler con-
sisted of only about five thousand men, the majority of
whom were militia ; many were without arms, while there
was a deficiency of ammunition and provisions.
Just at this time, a daring and successful adventure
mortified the enemy, and afforded no little triumph to
American enterprise. The commanding officer at New-
port, General Prescott, famous for the arbitrary and con-
A BRITISH FLEET PUTS TO SEA. 461
temptuous manner in which he treated the "rebels/' 9?^?;
offered a reward for the capture of Arnold, who replied to
the insult by offering half the sum for the capture of 1777
Prescott. It was ascertained, by means of spies, that the
latter was lodging at a certain house in the outskirts of
the town. On a dark night a company of select men,
with Colonel Barton at their head, crossed Narraganset Ju^
. .13
Bay, in whale-boats, threading their way through the Brit-
ish fleet. They secured the sentinel at the door, burst
into the house, and seized Prescott, who was in bed. The
astonished General only asked if he might put on his
clothes. "Very few and very quick," replied Barton.
He returned with his prisoner across the bay without being
discovered. This was a counterpart to the capture of Lee,
for whom Prescott was afterward exchanged.
The uncertainty as to the designs of the enemy was
perplexing. Washington learned from spies in New York
that Howe was preparing for an expedition by water, but
its destination was a profound secret. Burgoyne was evi-
dently pressing on toward the South, to obtain possession
of the Hudson. Did Howe intend to move up that river to
co-operate with him, and thus cut off the communication
between New England and the other States ; to make an at-
tack on Boston, and thus employ the militia of those States
at home, and prevent their joining Schuyler, or to endeavor
to reach Philadelphia by water ? were questions difficult
to answer. In the midst of these speculations as to its des-
tination, the British fleet, on board of which were about
eighteen thousand men, under the command of Howe,
passed out through the Narrows, and bore away. Intelli-
gence came in the course of ten days that it was seen off
Cape May, and Washington moved the army across the July
Delaware to Germantown, a few miles from Philadelphia. 30-
Presently it was ascertained that the fleet had sailed
to the eastward. Was it to return to New York, or had
462 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
Syxj/ it sailed for Boston ? Till the designs of the enemy were
more definitely known, the army was held in readiness to
1777. march at a moment's notice.
While waiting for time to unravel these mysterious
movements of Sir William, Washington visited Philadel-
phia to consult with Congress, and to give directions for
the further construction of fortifications on the Delaware,
to prevent the enemy from ascending to the city. Some
months before, Arnold, after refusing the command in the
Highlands, offered him by Washington to soothe his
wounded feelings, had accepted that in Philadelphia, and
with the aid of General Mifflin, had already partiaDy con-
structed defences.
The Duke of Gloucester, the brother of the king of
England, at a dinner given him by French officers in the
town of Mentz, had told the story, and the cause of the
rebellion then going on in America. A youth of nineteen
belonging to one of the noble families of France was a
listener. For the first time, he heard of the Declaration
of Independence, and the full particulars of the struggle
for liberty then in progress in the colonies beyond the At-
lantic. His generous sympathies were enlisted ; he could
appreciate the nobleness of their cause, and his soul was
fired with the desire to fly to their aid. Though happily
married, and blest with wealth, high social position, and
domestic joys, he was willing to leave them all, and risk
his life in the cause of freedom. This young man was
the Marquis De Lafayette.
Though the French government was not prepared to
take a decided stand, while the issue seemed doubtful, yet
this consideration, instead of checking, inflamed his ardor.
" Now I see a chance for usefulness, which I had not an-
ticipated. I have money ; I will purchase a ship, which
will convey to America myself, my companions, and the
freight for Congress." Such were his words ; and he se-
Aa.
iytJZr
LAFAYETTE THE FOREIGN OFFICERS. 463
cretly purchased a vessel, which Deane loaded with military chap.
A A All
stores, and accompanied by eleven officers, among whom
was the Baron De Kalb, he sailed directly for the United 1777.
States. He landed on the coast of South Carolina, and
proceeded at once to Philadelphia, to have an interview
with Congress. The number of foreign officers who were
applicants for employment in the army was so great, that
Congress found difficulty in disposing of them. Deane had
been authorized to engage a few competent officers, but
he seems to have accepted all who applied ; and many
came as adventurers, and " even some who brought high
recommendations, were remarkable for nothing but extrav-
agant self-conceit, and boundless demands for rank, com-
mand, and pay." '
But the earnest disinterestedness of Lafayette capti-
vated all hearts. Though he offered to serve as a volun-
teer without pay, Congress commissioned him a major-
general, but without any special command. A few days
after this Washington and Lafayette met — names to be
ever linked in the annals of freedom. Congress also ac- Aug
cepted the services of Count Pulaski, already famous for
his patriotic defence of his native Poland. His fellow-
countryman, Thaddeus Kosciusko — a youth of twenty-
one — afterward equally celebrated in fighting, though un-
successfully, for the liberties of the same Poland, was
already with General Schuyler, acting in the capacity of
engineer.
It was now ascertained that Sir Henry Clinton, whom
Howe had left in command in New York, had a force
sufficient, not merely to penetrate up the Hudson and co-
operate with Burgoyne, but to send detachments and
create a diversion in favor of Howe in the vicinity of Phil-
adelphia.
Just at this time came urgent appeals from Schuyler,
1 Hildreth, vol. iii. p. 194.
464 HISTORY OF TTIE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
kxxii an(^ Washington detached to his aid two brigades from
. the Highlands, and soon after Colonel Morgan with his
1777. riflemen, to counteract the Indians, of whom the militia
had a great dread. He had already sent Arnold, who
would be of special service in that region — the scene of
some of his brilliant exploits. Now he directed General
Lincoln, who was in Mssachusetts, to repair thither with a
portion of the militia of that State, and sent an express to
Putnam to hold himself in readiness to repel any attack
from Clinton, and prevent his forming a junction with Bur-
goyne. We will now leave the affairs in the North till we
have disposed of those connected with Howe's expedition.
In the midst of uncertainty, Washington was about to
issue orders for the army at Grermantown to move toward
New York, when an express brought him the intelligence
that the British fleet had passed into the Chesapeake.
The mystery was easily explained. Howe had learned of
the obstructions in the Delaware, and he now designed to
land his troops at the head of the Chesapeake, and march
thence to Philadelphia, while the fleet should return, and
in concert with the land forces, reduce the forts on the
Delaware. After being delayed some weeks by adverse
winds, his army was now landed at Elkton, about sixty
miles from Philadelphia. His first demonstration was to
issue another of his famous proclamations ; again he offered
pardon to those rebels who would submit, and promised
A protection to those persons who would remain peaceably
25. at home.
The main body of the American army was still at
Grermantown, where the militia, that had been called out,
had assembled. Washington was sadly deficient in men
and means to meet the British in open conflict ; and there
were no hills in the region, which he could occupy. He
had only eleven thousand effective men ; there was none
of that enthusiasm which was then bringing the militia in
BATTLE OF BRANDYWINE. 465
thousands to repel Burgoyne. The Quakers of Delaware CHAP.
and Pennsylvania were at best but lukewarm in the cause, ,
while the Germans wished to be neutral, and to avoid the 1777.
expense.
Washington concentrated his army in the vicinity of
Wilmington, but after examining the country resolved to
fall back beyond the Brandy wine creek, which was every-
where fordable. The map road to Philadelphia crossed
the creek at Chadd's Ford. This, it was thought, would
be the main point of attack. A hill overlooking the ford
had been intrenched, and there Wayne was stationed with
the artillery. The right wing was commanded by Sulli-
van, who had just arrived with three thousand men from
Jersey ; his division extended two miles up the creek.
The left wing, under General Armstrong — the same who
destroyed the Indian town of Kittaning — extended a mile
below ; while General Greene, with the reserve, was sta-
tioned in the rear of the centre on the hills.
In the morning, the enemy, in heavy column, was Sept
descried moving toward Chadd's Ford. This division 11-
could be only partially seen, because of intervening woods,
but it appeared to be the main body of the enemy. Skir-
mishing soon commenced between the riflemen and the
enemy, who made several attempts to cross the ford, but
were as often repulsed.
Near raid-day a note from Sullivan stated he had heard
that Howe, with a large body of troops, was passing up
another road, with the intention of reaching the uppei
fords of the creek, and then turning the right flank of the
Americans. Washington sent a company to reconnoitre.
In the mean time, he determined to throw his entire force
on the enemy immediately in his front, and rout them be-
fore they could obtain assistance from the division march-
ing the other road ; his orders were given for both wings
to co-operate. This would have been a skilful move, and,
4G6
HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
xxxfi *n a^ probability, have secured the defeat of Knypkausen
who, with his Hessians, was in front.
1777. At the moment Sullivan was complying with the order,
unfortunately Major Spicer came from the upper fords,
and reported that there was no enemy in that quarter.
This information was transmitted to the Commander-in-
chief, who, in consequence, countermanded the former
order, till he could receive farther information. After
waiting some time, a patriot of the neighborhood, with his
horse in a foam, dashed into the presence of Washington,
and declared that Howe was really passing the fords, and
rapidly gaining the rear of the American army. Wash-
ington replied, that he had just heard there was no enemy
in that quarter. " You are mistaken, general," exclaim-
ed the excited countryman ; " my life for it, you are mis-
taken." And tracing the course of the roads in the sand,
he showed him the position. All doubts were removed in
a few minutes, by the return of the party sent to recon-
noitre with intelligence that a large body of the enemy
was fast gaining their rear.
Lord Cornwallis, led by Tory guides, had marched a
circuit of seventeen miles, and Knyphausen was merely
waiting at Chadd's Ford for that circuit to be accom-
plished.
Sullivan was ordered to oppose Cornwallis, and Greene,
with the reserve, to give aid where it might be needed.
Sullivan made a vigorous resistance, but was forced to fall
back to a piece of woods, in which the British became
entangled. The Americans rallied on a hill, and there
made a still firmer resistance, but were at length com-
pelled to fall back. Greene was now ordered to move to
their support, which he did with such rapidity, that his
men marched, or rather ran, five miles in less than an
hour. Such was the skilful disposition of his soldiers,
that they not only checked the enemy, but opened theii
ranks and let the retreating Americans pass through. This
AMERICANS RETREAT TO GERMANTOWN. 467
brave conduct of the reserve saved Wayne's division from chap.
a complete rout. He had stubbornly withstood the Hes-
sians at the Ford, hut when he saw the forces under Sul- 1777.
livan retreating, unahle to cope with half the British
army, he gradually, and in order, fell back. The Hessians
were not disposed to press upon their determined foe.
Thus ended the hattle of Brandywine. The Americans
were driven from the field, hut the soldiers were not aware
that they had suffered a defeat ; they thought they had
received only a check. Though some of the militia gave
way at once, the great majority fought bravely, met the
enemy in deadly conflict with the bayonet, and forced
them hack ; hut, at last, numbers prevailed.
Lafayette behaved with great bravery and prudence ;
he had leaped from his horse to rally the troops, when he
was severely wounded in the leg. Count Pulaski also dis-
tinguished himself greatly — riding up within pistol-shot
of the enemy to reconnoitre. Congress promoted him to
the rank of brigadier-general, and gave him the coinmajnd
of the horse.
Sir William Howe loved repose, and he did not press
his advantage, but remained two days encamped near the
field of battle.
During this time, the Americans retreated, first to
Chester, and on the twelfth safely crossed the Schuylkill,
and thence proceeded to Germantown ; there Washington
let them repose a day or two. They were in good spirits,
he prepared to meet the enemy again, and with this inten-
tion crossed the river. About twenty-five miles from Sepl
Philadelphia the two armies met, but a furious storm pre-
vented a conflict. The rain so much injured the arms and
ammunition that Washington deemed it prudent once
more to recross the river, and retire to Pott's Grove, about
thirty miles from Philadelphia. General Wayne was de-
tached, in the meanwhile, with fifteen hundred men, to
secretly gain the rear of the British army, and cut off their
468 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
chap, baggage ; but a Tory carried information of the enter*
. prise, and Wayne himself was surprised, and after the losi
1777. of three hundred men forced to retreat.
20* When it seemed certain that the city must fall into
the hands of the British, the military stores were removed^
and a contribution levied upon the inhabitants for blank-
ets, clothes, shoes, and other necessaries for the army
during the approaching winter.
It was a time of great danger, and Congress again
clothed Washington with absolute power, first for sixty
days, and soon after for double that period. This done,
that body adjourned, first to Lancaster, and then in a few
days to York, beyond the Susquehanna.
Howe, by a night march, was enabled to pass the
Schuylkill ; he then pushed on a detachment which took
g . possession of Philadelphia, while the main body of his
22. army halted at Germantown.
Though the city was in the hands of the enemy, the
Americans still held possession of the forts on the lower
Delaware.
With much exertion, Admiral Howe had brought the
fleet round from the Chesapeake, and anchored it below
the forts. Fort Mifflin was situated on a low mud island,
at the confluence of the Schuylkill and the Delaware.
Directly opposite, at Red Bank, on the Jersey shore, was
Fort Mercer. These were famished with heavy cannon.
Heavy timbers framed together, with beams projecting,
and armed with iron spikes, were sunk in the river by
means of weights ; in addition to these obstructions, were
floating batteries above.
Washington having learned, from intercepted letters,
that a detachment had left Germantown to aid the fleet
in an attack on these forts, resolved to surprise the re-
mainder. After a night's march of fourteen miles, he
entered Germantown at sunrise. A dense fog: concealed
BATTLE OF GERMANTOWN.
469
the outskirts of the town, and he was unable to learn the £**ap.
precise position of the enemy, or that of his own troops.
The British, taken by surprise and thrown into confusion, 1777.
gave way on all sides. The Americans, instead of pur-
suing their advantage, lingered to attack a strong stone
house, in which a few of the enemy had taken refuge,
when an unaccountable panic seized them : the complete oot.
victory within their grasp was lost. The enemy now ral- 4-
lied and attacked in their turn ; but the Americans re-
treated without loss, and carried off all their cannon and
their wounded.
Washington, in writing to Congress, says : " Every
account confirms the opinion I at first entertained, that
our troops retreated at the instant when victory was de-
claring herself in our favor/' And such is the testimony
of many officers in their letters to their friends.
The effect of the bold attack upon Germantown was
soon perceptible, in the spirit of the Americans. One
writes : " Though we gave away a complete victory, we
have learnt this valuable truth, that we are able to beat
them by vigorous exertions, and that we are far superior
in point of swiftness ; we are in high spirits." Again we
find expressions of confidence of a different character. An
officer writes : " For my own part, I am so fully convinced
of the justice of the cause in which we are contending,
and that Providence, in its own good time, will succeed
and bless it, that were I to see twelve of the United
{States overrun by our cruel invaders, I should still believe
the thirteenth would not only save itself, but also work
out the deliverance of the others."
Howe immediately withdrew his troops from German-
town. He must either obtain possession of the forts, that
his fleet might come up, or evacuate the city for want of
provisions. The Americans, on the other hand, resolved
to defend the forts to the last extremity. Howe sent
Count Donop, with twelve hundred picked men, grena-
470 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
chap, diers, to make an assault on Fort Mercer, while th» men-
of-war should open on Fort Mifflin and the floatir g bat«
J 777. teries. The outworks of Fort Mercer were not fully coin-
go ' pleted, when Count Donop suddenly appeared. Colonel
Christopher Greene ordered the men — four hundred Rhode
Island Continentals — to keep out of sight as much as
possible. To deceive the enemy, he made a short stand
at the outer works, and then retreated rapidly to the inner
redoubt. The enemy advanced in two columns ; the
Americans received them with a brisk fire, and then re-
treated in haste. The Hessians thought the day their
own, and with shouts of triumph rushed to storm the inner
redoubt. They were met by an overwhelming discharge
of grape-shot and musketry, and completely repulsed, with
the loss of four hundred men ; the Americans lost but
eight slain and twenty-nine wounded. After the battle,
as an American officer was passing among the slain, a
voice called out : " Whoever you are, draw me hence."
It was Count Donop. A few days afterward, when he
felt his end approaching, he lamented his condition. " I
die," said he, " the victim of my ambition, and of the
avarice of my sovereign."
Fort Mifflin was commanded by Colonel Samuel Smith,
of Maryland. In their attack upon it, the British lost
two men-of-war — one of which was blown up, the other
burned.
Meantime the enemy received reinforcements from
New York, and were able to take possession of another
island, on which they erected batteries, and opened an
incessant fire upon Fort Mifflin. After a most undaunted
defence, both forts were abandoned, and the enemy left to
£7 remove the obstructions in the river at their leisure.
On the twenty-ninth, Washington retired to White
Marsh, fourteen miles from Philadelphia. Before going
into winter-quarters, Howe thought to surprise his camp.
A Quaker lady, Mrs. Darrah, overheard some British
WINTER QUARTERS AT VALLEY FORGE. 471
officers speaking of the intended expedition ; she imme- 95££
diately gave Washington information of what was going
on. Preparations were made to give the British a warm 1777.
reception. A company was sent to harass them on their
night-march. Finding themselves discovered, they hesi-
tated to press on. The next day, Howe labored to draw Deo.
Washington into the plain, where British discipline might
be successful. When he saw the effort was useless, he
retired to Philadelphia.
Congress now summoned the militia to repair to the
main army. A few days after Howe's withdrawal from
Germantown, Washington also retired to winter-quarters
at Valley Forge, a rugged hollow on the Schuylkill, about
twenty miles from Philadelphia. He could thus protect
the Congress at York, as well as his stores at Beading.
We now turn to relate events — most important in
their influence — which, during the last few months, had
transpired in the North.
CHAPTER XXXIII.
THE WAR OF THE REVOLUTION— CONTINUE D.
The Invasion from Canada. — Appointment of General Gates. — Burgoyne's
Advance. — Jenny McCrea. — St. Leger besieges Fort Stanwix. — The
Attempt to relieve it. — St. Leger retreats. — Battle of Bennington. —
Change of Prospects. — Battle of Behmus's Heights. — Ticonderoga be»
sieged. — Burgoyne surrenders his Army at Saratoga. — The Prisoners.-
Capture of Forts on the Hudson. — Schuyler.
chap. The unlooked for loss of Ticonderoga, with the disasters
' that so rapidly followed, startled the people of the north-
1777. era States more than any event of the war. So little
did Congress appreciate the difficulties under which Schuy-
ler and his officers labored, that they attributed, these
misfortunes to their incapacity. John Adams, then Presi-
dent of the Board of War, gave expression to this feel-
ing when he wrote : " We shall never be able to defend a
post till we shoot a general." In the excitement of the
moment, Congress ordered all the northern generals to be
recalled, and an inquiry instituted into their conduct.
The northern army would thus be without officers ; but,
on a representation to this effect, Washington obtained
a suspension of the injudicious order. Clamors against
Schuyler were renewed with greater violence than ever.
In truth, many members of Congress were influenced by
an unreasonable prejudice, which had been excited in New
England against him. When Washington, whose confi-
dence in Schuyler was unshaken, declined to make any
BURGOYNE'S PROCLAMATION — JENNY M'CRFA. 473
change in the Northern Department, " Congress made the chap.
nomination ; the Eastern influence prevailed, and Gates
received the appointment, so long the object of his aspi- 1777.
rations, if not intrigues." •
The correspondence between Washington and Schuy-
ler makes known the plan upon which they agreed to repel
the invaders. This was to keep bodies of men on their
flank and rear, intercept their supplies, and cut off the
detachments sent from the main army. We shall see how
completely this plan succeeded.
Confident of subduing the " rebels," Burgoyne, on his
arrival at Fort Edward, issued a second proclamation, in
which he called upon the people to appoint deputies to
meet in convention at Castleton, and take measures to
re-establish the royal authority. To counteract this,
Schuyler issued a proclamation, threatening to punish
those as traitors who in this manner should aid the enemy.
Burgoyne's proclamation had no effect ; the hardy yeo-
manry were too patriotic. The whole northern portion of
the country was deeply moved, and the militia rallied
to arms.
The Indians of Burgoyne's army prowled about the
country, murdering and scalping. A beautiful girl, Jenny
McCrea, the daughter of a Scotch Presbyterian clergy-
man, of New Jersey, who died before the war, was visiting
a friend in the vicinity of Fort Edward. Her family were
Whigs ; she was, however, betrothed to a young man,
David Jones, a Tory, who had gone to Canada some time
before, and was now a lieutenant in Burgoyne's army.
When Fort Edward was about to be abandoned, her
brother urged her to leave with the families of the neigh-
borhood, who were going out of danger to Albany. She
lingered ; she hoped, perhaps, to see her lover, but as
1 Washington Irving.
474 HISTOKY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
XXXin danger drew nearer she prepared to comply with hei
brother's request.
1^77. At the moment of leaving, a band of Indians, sent by
Burgoyne to harass the Americans, burst into the house,
and carried her off a captive. Anxious for her safety, she
promised her captors a reward, if they would take her to
the British camp. On the way, the Indians quarrelled as
to who should have the promised reward, and one of them
in a rage killed the poor girl, and carried off her scalp.
This murder sent a thrill of horror throughout the land.
The people remembered the murders of former days, when
the Indians were urged on by French influence ; and now
they asked, Must those scenes be re-enacted by the savage
hirelings of England, our mother country ? And they
flocked in thousands to repel such an enemy. Thus " the
blood of this unfortunate girl was not shed in vain. Ar-
mies sprang up from it. Her name passed as a note of
alarm along the banks of the Hudson ; it was a rallying-
ing word among the green mountains of Vermont, and
brought down all her hardy yeomanry." '
St. Leger had passed up the Oswego, and was besieg-
ing Fort Stanwix, or Schuyler. This fort was on the
A.ug. Mohawk, at the carrying-place to Lake Oneida. With
St. Leger was Sir John Johnson, with his Eoyal Greens,
and his savage retainers, the Mohawks, under the cele-
brated chief, Brant. This Brant had been a pupil in
Wheelock's school — since Dartmouth College — establish-
ed for the education of Indians and others. The fort was
held by two New York regiments, under Colonels Ganse-
voort and Willet. General Herkimer raised the militia
of the neighborhood, and went to relieve the fort. But
owing to the impatience of his men, he fell into an ambus-
cade of Tories and Indians. Johnson's Greens were Tories
from this vicinity, and neighbor met neighbor in deadly
Washington Irving.
DEATH OF HERKIMER RETREAT OF ST. LEGER. 475
conflict. It was erne of the most desperate encounters of QfJff':
the war ; quarter was neither given nor asked. There
were instances, when all was over, where the death-grasp 1777.
still held the knife plunged into a neighbor's heart. It
seems as if the tight had been presided over by demons.
The brave old Herkimer was mortally wounded, but lean-
ing against a tree, he continued to encourage his men, till
a successful sortie from the fort compelled the enemy to
defend their own camp. The Americans retreated, taking
with them their worthy commander, who died a few days
after.
The fort was still in a precarious condition, and must
be relieved. When intelligence of this came to the army,
Arnold volunteered to march to its aid. To frighten the
Indians he employed stratagem. He sent in advance the
most exaggerated stories of the number of his men, and
proclaimed that Burgoyne had been totally defeated. As
anticipated, the Indians deserted in great numbers. The
panic became so great, that two days before Arnold arrived
at the fort, St. Leger had retreated, leaving his tents
,. Aug.
standing. 22.
General Schuyler now moved from Saratoga down to
the mouth of the Mohawk, and there intrenched himself.
The British had the full command of Lake George ; but,
with all their exertions, they were nearly out of provisions.
The distance from the upper end of that lake to the Hud-
son was only eighteen miles, but so effectively had the
draft-cattle and horses been removed, that it seemed al-
most impossible to transport their baggage.
To obtain horses for a company of dismounted German
dragoons, and seize stores collected at Bennington, Ver-
mont, Burgoyne sent a detachment of Indians and Tories,
and five hundred Germans, under Lieutenant-colonel
Baum. He had been told that the grain and provisions
deposited in that place were but poorly guarded. He was
476 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
£HAP. ais0 made to believe that five to one of the people were
A. A A Hi*
royalists.
1777. It was soon noised abroad that the enemy were on the
way, and the Green Mountain Boys began to assemble.
Colonel Stark having been slighted, as he thought, at the
recent appointment of officers by Congress, had withdrawn
from the Continental army. He was invited to take com-
mand of the assembling yeomanry ; he accepted the invi-
tation with joy. Expresses were sent in every direction
to warn the people to drive off their cattle and horses, and
conceal their grain and wagons, and also to Manchester,
tor Seth Warner to hasten to Bennington with his regi-
ment.
When Baum — who moved very slowly, his men stop-
A ping in the woods every few minutes to dress their lines —
14. was within six miles of Bennington, he heard of Stark's
approach ; he halted, began to intrench, and sent to Bur-
goyne for reinforcements. Colonel Breyman was sent to
his aid, with five hundred Hessians and two field-pieces.
A severe storm prevented Stark from making an attack,
and also retarded the march of Breyman and Warner.
During the night the Berkshire militia joined Stark. An
incident may show the spirit of the times : " Among these
militia was a belligerent parson, full of fight, Allen by
name, possibly of the bellicose family of the hero of Ticon-
deroga." l " General," cried he, " the people of Berkshire
have been often called out to no purpose ; if you don't
give them a chance to fight now they will never turn out
again." " You would not turn out now, while it is dark
and raining, would you ? " demanded Stark. " Not just
now," was the reply. " Well, if the Lord should once
more give us sunshine, and I don't give you fighting
enough," rejoired the veteran, " I'll never ask you to turn
out again '
• Irving.
BATTLE OF BENNINGTON — CHANGE OF PROSPECTS. 477
The next morning the sun did shine, and Stark drew SP£jEf
out his forces. When he came in sight of the enemy,
turning to his men he exclaimed : " There are the red- 1777.
coats ! We must beat to-day, or Molly Stark's a widow." 16f*
The attack was made in both rear and front at the same
time. The Indians and Tories generally fled to the woods.
Baum defended his lines with great determination, and
his field-pieces were well manned, but after two hours'
fighting, the works were stormed. The Americans had
no artillery, but they rushed up within a few yards of the
enemy's cannon, the better to take aim at the gunners.
At length Baum fell mortally wounded, and his men sur-
rendered.
Scarcely was the battle ended, when Breyman appeared
on the one side, and Warner, who had marched all night
in the rain, on the other. The fighting was renewed, and
continued till night. Favored by the darkness, Breyman
left his artillery and made the best of his way back to
Burgoyne. About two hundred of the enemy were slain,
and six hundred taken prisoners. A thousand stand of
arms and four pieces of artillery fell into the hands of the
Americans, who had but fourteen killed and forty wounded.
What a change a few weeks had produced in the pros-
pects of the two main armies ! To the American, the
militia were flocking, the brigades from the Highlands had
arrived, arid Morgan with that terror of the Indians, his
riflemen, five hundred strong. Disasters, in the mean
while, crowded upon Burgoyne. The side enterprises of
St. Leger and Baum had failed ; the New Hampshire and
Massachusetts troops were pressing on toward Ticonderoga
to cut off his supplies and intercourse with Canada. ' The
Indians, in great numbers, were deserting. They had
taken umbrage because their atrocities were to be hereafter
restrained Burgoyne was a gentleman, humane and cul-
tivated ; he abhorred these outrages, and, to his honor be
it said, preferred that the savages should leave his army,
478 HISTORY OF TIIE AMERICAN TEOPLE.
oxni ratner tftan tney ^ould remain and be unrestrained. The
disgrace of employing them belongs to his government at
1777. home, Dot to him.
It was at this juncture that Gates arrived to take
command. He found the army in high spirits, nearly six
thousand in number, and increasing every day. Schuyler
met him with his usual highminded courtesy, explained
fully the condition of the two armies, and offered him all
the assistance he could give, by his counsel or otherwise.
So little could Gates appreciate such generous impulses,
that, a few days after, when he called his first council of
war, he omitted to invite Schuyler.
Leaving the islands at the mouth of the Mohawk,
Gates moved up the river and took position on Behmus's
Heights — a ridge of hills extending close to the river-bank
and lying nearly east of Saratoga. There he intrenched
his army by strong batteries on the right and left.
Burgoyne had thrown a bridge of boats over the Hud-
son, and led over the English portion of his army to Sara-
toga, while the Hessians remained on the eastern side.
Both divisions moved slowly down the river. There were
deep ravines and woods between the two armies, and knolls
covered with dense forests ; also, in one place, a cleared
field. On the nineteenth it was announced that the
enemy were in motion toward the American left. Here
Arnold commanded, while Gates took charge of the right.
It was the intention of the British to draw the Americans
in that direction, and then to make an assault on their
centre, when thus weakened, and cut their way through
to Albany. Gates designed to wait the attack in his
camp, but Arnold wished to hold the enemy in check, and
not permit them to turn the American left. After much
solicitation, he obtained permission from Gates to send
Morgan with his riflemen to check the enemy. The rifle-
men soon met, and put to flight the advance-guard, but
pursuing them with two much ardor they came upon a
BATTLE OF BEHMUS'S HEIGHTS. 479
strong column, and were themselves forced to fall back in ^hap
confusion. Arnold now came to their aid with other regi-
ments, and soon he was contending almost hand to hand lift.
with the entire British right wing. He sent repeatedly
to Gates for reinforcements, which the latter refused to
send, and excused himself on the ground that he would
thus weaken his own wing ; and Arnold, with only three
thousand men, was left for four hours to sustain the attack.
The severest conflict was around, and in the open field.
The Americans were posted on the one side in a dense jP*
wood, where cannon could not he used ; the British on
the opposite side in a thin pine grove, where they could
use their artillery. When the British would move into
the field, the American riflemen would drive them back,
and when the Americans became the pursuers, the British
would sweep their ranks with their cannon. A dozen
times this field was lost and won. The riflemen repeat-
edly took possession of the British artillery, but the rough-
ness of the ground would not permit them to secure the
guns ; and before they could turn them, they themselves,
were driven off at the point of the bayonet. Night ended
the contest ; the Americans withdrew to their camp, and
the British remained on the field of battle. The latter
lost more than five hundred, while the Americans lost
less than three hundred. They looked upon the result as
a triumph ; they had accomplished all they intended, and
the enemy had failed in their designs.
Two days before the battle of Behmus's Heights, a
detachment of Lincoln's militia, under Colonel Brown,
had seized the posts at the outlet of Lake George ; also a
fleet of bateaux laden with provisions for Burgoyne's ar-
my, and three hundred prisoners. The same party united
with another, and laid siege to Ticonderoga.
Burgoyne's intercourse with Canada was thus cut off ;
his provisions were fast diminishing, and his horses were
dying for want of forage. At this moment of darkness
480 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN" PEOPLE.
chap, came a gleam of light — a note from Sir Henry Clinton-^
informing him that in a few days he would make an effort
1777. to ascend the Hudson. In hopes of maintaining his posi-
tion until Clinton could relieve him, Burgoyne began to
fortify his camp. For nearly three weeks the two armies
watched each other. Almost every day advanced parties
skirmished, but as Gates was deficient in ammunition, he
hesitated to attack.
Meantime there was trouble in the American camp.
The soldiers attributed the success of the late battle to
generalship of Arnold. But for some reason, jealousy
perhaps, Gates removed him from his command.
Hearing nothing further from Clinton, Burgoyne re-
solved to risk a battle, and cut his way through the oppos-
ing force. He therefore sent a detachment of fifteen
hundred picked men to take position within a mile of the
Oct American lines. A New Hampshire brigade attacked
this division furiously, and Morgan, with his riflemen,
managed to cut them off from their camp.
Arnold was in his tent, brooding over the treatment
he had received, and had almost resolved to leave the
army. Suddenly he heard the noise of battle ; his ruling
passion was instantly on fire. Mounting his horse, he rode
with all speed to the scene of conflict. Gates, who saw
him as he dashed away, exclaimed : " He will do some
rash thing," and sent after him orders, by Major Wilkin-
son, to return ; but in vain, — Arnold heard only the roar
cf battle. He rushed into the thickest of the fight, cheered
on the men, who answered him with shouts of recognition.
To those looking on, he seemed insane. By his exertions
the British lines were broken again and again, but as often
General Frazer would rally his men and renew the conflict
Presently Frazer fell mortally wounded by one of Morgan's
riflemen. The whole line gave way, abandoned their can-
non, and with the greatest effort regained their camp. In
burgoyne's surrender. 481
spite of a shower of grape and musketry, the Americans char
rushed headlong to the assault. Arnold rode directly into
a sally-port, where his horse was shot under him, and he 1777.
himself was severely wounded — a ball had shattered his
leg. His men now fell back. A regiment of Massachu-
setts men, more fortunate, forced their way through the
German intrenchments, and maintained their position for
the night, and secured a large amount of ammunition.
The Americans slept on their arms, intending to renew
the contest in the morning. But when morning came,
Burgoyne's army, drawn up in order of battle, appeared
on the heights in the rear. During the night, he had
abandoned his sick and wounded, and skilfully led off his
men. The next day he retreated to Saratoga, six miles
distant. It was to cover this retreat that he ordered Gen-
eral Schuyler's mansion and extensive saw mills to be
burned. That he might continue his retreat, he sent a
party to repair the bridges toward Fort Edward, but they
found the way occupied by the Americans, who had taken
nearly all the boats laden with provisions for his army.
All the passes by which he could extricate himself were
in the hands of his enemy ; cannon-balls and bullets fell
almost every moment in his camp. He had only three
days' provisions ; his effective force was reduced to four
thousand men, and they were dispirited, worn out with
hunger and fatigue. Not a word had he heard from Clin-
ton, while the American army, already twelve thousand
strong, was increasing daily.
Burgoyne now called a council of war, which resolved *
to open negotiations with General Gates. Having heard
that Clinton, a few days previous, had succeeded in taking Oct
two of the forts on the Hudson, and that he might possi- 13'
bly reach Albany, Gates was disposed to make liberal
terms. The conditions of the surrender were : That the
British army should march out with the honors of war ;
that the soldiers should be taken to Boston, and thence
482 HISTOEY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
XXXIII *° -England > and they were not to serve against the
— United States until exchanged. The number of prisoners
1777. was about six thousand ; the arms, artillery, and military
stores were immense. The German regiments saved their
colors ; they took them off their staves, and concealed
them among the baggage of the Baroness de Riedesel.'
The British garrison of Ticonderoga evacuated that place
and retired to Canada.
Congress refused to ratify the terms under which Bur-
goyne surrendered. His soldiers, if taken to England,
would doubtless be placed in garrison, while those thus
relieved would be sent to reinforce Clinton at New York.
Only Burgoyne himself, with two attendants, was per-
mitted to proceed to England, while the soldiers were
retained as prisoners. The following year they were
marched to Charlottesville, in Virginia, where they were
quartered in log huts, and where the greater number of
them remained till the close of the war.
As has been already stated, the garrisons in the High-
lands were much weakened, by sending detachments both
to the North and to the South. Sir Henry Clinton had
received the long expected reinforcements from England,
and he now proposed to force his way up the Hudson, in
order to unite with Burgoyne. On the day before that
general's last battle, Clinton attacked and captured the
OcL Forts Montgomery and Clinton. Though the New York
militia turned out well, the forts could not be maintained.
Governor George Clinton commanded. He sent to Put-
nam for aid, which he would have received had not the
messenger turned traitor, and deserted to the enemy.
Under the directions of Governor Tryon, Kingston, or
Esopus, was burned. When these marauders heard thai
1 This lady accompanied her husband, Baron de Riedesel, during thia
campaign. She has left a thrilling narrative of the trying scenes at Sara-
toga.
SCHUYLER A MEMBER OF CONGRESS. 483
Burgoyne had surrendered, they retreated, setting fire to £§£&
every house within reach. This was about the very time
that Burgoyne and his army were receiving liberal terms IrVt.
of capitulation.
General Gates, in transmitting his report of the sur- .
render, did not send it to the Commander-in-chief, as was
his duty, and as courtesy required, but sent it directly to
Congress. The soldiers in the army attributed the success
of the battles at Saratoga to the skilful management of
Arnold and Morgan. Gates did not even mention their
names in his full dispatches to Congress.
Soon after, General Schuyler insisted that his manage-
ment of the Northern Department, previous to the ap-
pointment of Gates, should be investigated.
A Court of Inquiry was instituted, and he was not
only acquitted of the charge of mismanagement of any
kind, but with the highest honor. Though strongly urged
by Congress to remain in the army, he declined. He had
too much self-respect to continue in a position where he
could be made a victim of unfriendly prejudice, yet too
patriotic to relinquish his country's cause. Soon after he
took his seat as a member of Congress.
CHAPTER XXXIV.
WAR OF THE REVOLUTION— CONTINUED.
Sufferings at Valley Forge. — England disappointed ; conciliatory measures
of Parliament. — The War presses hard upon the American People. —
Difficulties and Jealousies in Congress. — The "Conway Cabal." — Baron
Steuben. — Attempt to increase the Army. — Congress in Want of
Funds. — Exchange of Lee ; his Treason. — Treaty with France. — En-
couragements.— British Commissioners. — Philadelphia evacuated. — Bat-
tle of Monmouth. — Misconduct of Lee. — The French Fleet. — Combined
attack upon Newport fails. — Marauding Expeditions. — A British Fleet. —
Massacre at Wyoming and Cherry Valley. — Invasion of Georgia.
xxSav" l^HE surrender of Burgoyne revived the hopes of the
Whigs, and sent dismay into the ranks of the Tories.
1778. The American soldiers suffered intensely in their rude
huts at Valley Forge. For days at a time without meat,
and again without bread ; no medicines for the sick, nor
comfortable lodgings. Many of the soldiers were so defi-
cient in clothes that they could not lie down, lest they
should freeze to death, but were forced to sit round their
camp-fires.
These were the men, few of whose names have ever
reached us, but who clung to their country's cause in this
hour of suffering, and who, in the day of battle, poured
out their life's blood. They were, for the most part, the
intelligent yeomanry of the land ; from the farm, from the
workshop, from the merchant's store ; supporters of their
own families, or sustainers of orphan brothers and sisters.
What a contrast with the common soldiers of the invading
THE FRIENDS OF AMERICA IN PARLIAMENT. 486
army ! They were, in part, the enlisted rabble of the char
British Isles. In their bosoms there was not a throb of
generous feeling, nor with them was it a question in what 1778
cause, or on what field they fought ; and yet in the same
army were others, even more degraded, drawn from " the
shambles of petty German despots."
The king and ministry were sanguine their plans, so
wisely laid, would be successfully carried out ; that- at the
end of the campaign the American army would be broken
and scattered ; that they would have a line of posts -ex-
tending from Lake Champlain to the Bay of New York.
Instead of the realization of these hopes, intelligence came
that Burgoyne had surrendered his entire army. The
sensation produced in England was great indeed. Bumors
stole into the country, that France, their ancient enemy,
was about to aid the Americans ; that Holland was about
to loan them money. England's pride was touched.
Should she, who had made all Europe tremble, be baffled
in her efforts to subdue her revolted colonists ? A new
spirit was awakened ; many of the large commercial towns
offered to raise regiments to supply the places of those
surrendered at Saratoga, and present them to the king.
Yet there were others, moved by compassion, and it may
be by sympathy for the cause, who liberally subscribed
money to relieve the wants of the American prisoners in
England, whom the government had left to suffer for the
necessaries of life.
These sentiments had their effect on Parliament, and
when it assembled, the friends of America renewed their
assaults upon the policy of the king. They, from the first,
had opposed the war as unjust, and had opposed the en-
listing of Hessians ; but more especially did they denounce
the inhuman policy of employing savages to murder and
scalp their brethren beyond the Atlantic. There were
other causes of complaint. The merchants clamored for
•>i*
IIISTOIIY < L' TI.'K .')!l;i;ll'AN VY.Ol'Li:.
chap,
redress ; tlie American trade was broken up ; debts could
not he collected : esjx'eially were they aggrieved that
the slave-trade liad hen reduced four-fifths. American
cruisers had already seized nearly six hundred of their
vessels. These cruisers swarmed to such an extent, even
in the British seas, that it hecame necessary to convoy hy
armed ships merchant vessels from one port of the king-
dom to another. More than twenty thousand men had
perished in the war ; more than a hundred millions of
dollars had been expended ; their expectations had been
greatly raised, but as yet nothing was gained.
Lord North was constrained to bring in two bills, by
which the king hoped to reconcile his American subjects.
On this occasion, the former declared in the House that
he himself had always been opposed to taxing the colonies.
The king, in truth, was the prime mover and sustainer of
the measure. One of these hills exempted the Americans
from taxation, the other appointed commissioners to nego-
tiate with them, for the purpose of restoring the royal
authority. Thus was yielded, but ungraciously, the whole
ground of the contest.
The moment the French government heard of the
passage of these bills, it proposed to acknowledge the In-
dependence of the United States, and to make with them
a treaty offensive and defensive. That the belligerents
should fight and weaken each other, Trance was willing,
but rather than they should become reconciled, she de-
clared for the Americans.
Though the Avar had cost England much, it had cost
the Americans more. In many portions of the country,
their ruthless invaders had laid waste their cultivated
fields; in other portions they were unsown, because the
husbandmen were in the army ; property was wasting
away; debts were accumulating, with no prospect of pay-
ment. The I '.ill- of Credit issued bv Congress were almost
THE EMBARRASSMENTS OF CONGRESS. 487
worthless. As with individuals, so with the State ; both £*?ap.
were bankrupt. On the sea-board, foreign commerce, the .
coasting trade, and the fisheries, were carried on at such 1778.
risks, as to be almost annihilated. Nine hundred vessels
had fallen into the hands of the enemy. The loss of life
had been great ; not so many had perished on the field of
battle, but disease, the deficiency of necessary comforts in
hospitals, the want of clothes and of wholesome food, had
as effectively done the work of death. Multitudes died
miserably, either in the jails and loathsome prison-ships
of. the enemy, or contracted diseases which clung to them
through life. These calamities, instead of depressing the
patriots, roused their indignant spirits to more determina-
tion. They would listen to no terms of reconciliation
with England, short of absolute independence.
Congress was embarrassed more and more. That no-
ble spirit of conciliation and mutual forbearance, which
distinguished the members of the Old Congress, was not
so prominent. Many of the ablest members had retired
to take part in the recently organized governments of their
own States, or to attend to their private affairs, lest their
families should come to want ; and some had been sent
on foreign missions, and some were in the army.
There were other difficulties ; jealousies between north-
ern and southern men still existed in the army, and jeal-
ousies between American officers and some of those of
foreign birth. Congress, now numbering not more than
twenty or thirty members, manifested an undue prejudice
against the army, because the officers and soldiers earnestly
urged that their wants should be supplied. Washington
protested against this spirit, and showed the unreasona-
bleness of such a prejudice. After remarking that in other
countries the army was looked upon with suspicion in time
of peace, he adds : " It is our policy to be prejudiced
against them (the troops) in time of war ; though they
488 HISTORY O? THE AMERICAN" PEOPLE.
chap, are citizens, having all the ties and interests of citizens.''
In violation of military usage, and contrary to his advice,
1778. Congress made several promotions in the army, which not
only slighted but wronged some of its best and bravest
officers.
While Washington labored at Valley Forge to keep
the army together, and to prevent its disbanding from
sheer necessity, a few were intriguing to remove him from
the command. Some members of Congress, a few officers,
and perhaps some others, joined in what was known as the
" Conway Cabal," a name derived from the Irish adven-
turer, already mentioned, who, if not the prime mover in
the plot, was a pliant tool of others. The whole truth on
the subject can never be fully known, as each actor ever
after desired to conceal the part he had taken in the affair.
By means of anonymous letters, underhand appeals, de-
signed to seduce the officers of the army, and other dis-
honorable measures, the attempt was made to defame
Washington ; to draw invidious comparisons between his
military successes and those of Gates ; and to destroy
that confidence which the people and soldiers reposed in
his integrity. They dared not attack him openly, but by
these means they hoped to disgust him with his office, and
induce him to resign ; and General Gates, their hero,
would receive the appointment of Commander-in-chief.
Thus the intrigue was carried on for months. General
Mifflin and Gates himself were prominent in the scheme,
but their efforts to win over Lafayette signally failed.
Anonymous letters were sent to Henry Laurens, President
of Congress, and to Patrick Henry, then Governor of Vir-
ginia ; but these high-minded men forwarded them at
once to the Commander-in-chief. Washington himself,
though he knew, to some extent, of the existence of these
plots, never publicly noticed them, nor turned aside a mo-
ment from his great work. He was only anxious lest the
THE CONWAY CABAL. 489
enemy should learn of these dissensions. But when it chap
was proposed in Congress to appoint Conway inspector of ,
the army, he remonstrated, and in writing to Richard 1778.
Henry Lee, then a memher, he says : " General Conway's
merit as an officer, and his importance in this army, exist
more in his own imagination than in reality." Yet Con-
gress, under the influence of the Cabal, appointed Con-
way " Inspector of the Armies of the United States ! "
— with the rank of major-general.
Ere long intelligence of these intrigues stole abroad.
So great was the indignation which burst forth from the
officers and soldiers, from the Legislatures of the States,
and from the people themselves, that the Cabal cowered
before it.
The effect of this abortive attempt to remove Wash-
ington from the chief command was only to strengthen his
hold on the confidence of the nation. The invidious com-
parisons made between his successes and those of Gates,
were unjust, but that some persons should be influenced
by them is not strange. " The Washington of that day
was not Washington as we know him, tried and proved
by twenty years of the most disinterested and most suc-
cessful public services." The capture of Burgoyne at
Saratoga was due to his plan of defence, as concerted with
Schuyler, and not to General Gates. In his effort to save
Philadelphia, he was surrounded with almost insurmount-
able difficulties. His army, ill-equipped and imperfectly
disciplined, was smaller than that of Howe's-; the scene
of operation was in a region filled with Tories, who gavf
every facility to the British. He says himself : " Had the
same spirit pervaded the people of this and the neighbor-
ing States, as the States of New York and New England,
we might have had General Howe nearly in the same sit-
uation of General Burgoyne."
We may here anticipate. Conway found his position
490 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
x\xi7' Unenvia^e5 an(l ne sent to Congress a note complaining
that he had been ill-treated, and intimated that he would
15T7S. resign because he was ordered to the Northern Depart-
ment. His self-complacency never doubted but he would
be urged to remain as " Inspector." But Congress,
ashamed of having ever appointed him, interpreted it as
a resignation, and gladly accepted it. No explanation of
Conway, though urged in person, could induce them to
change their decision. Some time afterward he was
wounded in a duel with General Cadwallader, who had
charged him with cowardice at the battle of Germantown,
and also of derogatory remarks in relation to the Com-
mander-in-chief. When he thought himself near death,
Conway wrote to Washington : " You are in my eyes the
great and good man. May you long enjoy the love, ven-
eration, and esteem of these States, whose liberties you
have asserted by your virtues." He recovered from his
wound, and soon after he left the country.
During the winter at Valley Forge, every effort was
made to increase the army, and make it more efficient.
To accomplish this end, Baron Steuben, a Prussian officer
of great merit as a disciplinarian, was appointed Inspector,
with the rank of major-general. Congress called upon all
the States, except Georgia and South Carolina, for their
quotas of men to the continental army. These States
were excused, except for local defence, in consideration of
their large slave population. Several independent bodies
of horse were raised by Count Pulaski and Henry Lee,
who, because of his success and genius as a commander
of light-horse, was known in the army as Light-Horse
Harry.
Baron Steuben soon infused his own spirit into the
officers and men. He was prompt, and they obeyed him
with alacrity. The tactics were taught by system, and
the result was very gratifying. Congress designed to raise
FINANCIAL DIFFICULTIES. 491
the army to sixty thousand, but it really never reached chap.
more than half that number. Many of the more expe-
rienced officers were compelled by necessity to resign ; 1778
their families were dependent upon them, and they re-
ceived scarcely any pay. These resignations were unfor-
tunate. Washington appealed to Congress in behalf of
the officers, and also of the soldiers. That body promised
half pay for seven years to those officers who should serve
to the end of the war, and to the soldiers thus serving a
gratuity of eighty dollars. But the treasury was empty ;
new bills of credit were issued, and the several States were
called upon to levy taxes for the public expenses ; but
the States were poor, and some of them were negligent.
Their bills of credit continued to lose their value ; and to
increase the evil, the British and Tories flooded the coun-
try with counterfeits. The depreciation became so great,
that a pair of boots cost more than seven hundred dollars in
some of these bills of credit. Yet it shows the patriotism
of the great mass of the people, that at this time of despond-
ency and distress, the British, with their promises of gold
and protection, could induce only three thousand five hun-
dred Tories to enlist in their army. •
The office of quartermaster had been held during the
last campaign by Mifflin ; but he was seldom at his post,
and the department was in great confusion. Many diffi-
culties had grown out of this neglect ; the army was irreg-
ularly supplied with provisions and forage, while the
country people suffered much on account of the demands
made upon them for provisions by unauthorized foraging
parties. At the urgent request of Washington, Congress
appointed General Greene quartermaster. He assumed
the duties of the office, so irksome to him, for one year,
but without compensation. The system with which
Greene performed all his duties was soon apparent ; the
army was regularly furnished with provisions and ammu-
492 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
CH^P- nition, so tnat it could be ready to march at a few min-
utes* notice.
1778.
General Lee was returned to the army in exchange for
p General Prescott. Lee was as selfish as he was destitute
of the true nobleness of a man of honor. In a document
in his own handwriting, written when a prisoner in New
York, dated " March 29, 1777," and endorsed by Lord
and Sir William Howe as " Mr. Lee's plan," may be found
the evidence of his willingness to ruin the cause of Ameri-
can Independence. In this elaborate plan, he urged with
great earnestness upon the British ministry to send a
large force ; part of which to take position at Alexandria,
on the Potomac, and part at Annapolis, on the Chesa-
peake. Thus to separate the Northern and Southern colo-
nies, and prevent them from aiding each other, wThile to
oppose Burgoyne's advance would require all the force
that New England could raise. He was willing to forfeit
his life, if the measure did not speedily terminate the war
and dissolve the " Congress Government."
For some reason the ministry did not adopt Lee's sug-
gestion, and th§ document was filed away among British
state papers, to bear testimony to the dishonesty of the
author three-quarters of a century after his death.1
In the Spring, Sir William Howe, after complaining
that his government did not famish him a sufficiency of
men and supplies, resigned his command, and Sir Henry
Clinton was appointed his successor. With the exception
of foraging parties, the British, as yet, made no military
May movements. About this time came intelligence of the
passage of Lord North's conciliatory bills, and that the
commissioners would soon be on their way to open nego-
tiations. The substance of these bills was circulated very
extensively by zealous Tories. Congress ordered them to
1 " Treason of General Charles Lee," by George H. Moore. Esq..
TREATY WITH FRANCE BRITISH COMMISSIONERS. 493
be printed in the newspapers, accompanied by a severe chap
criticism, furnished by a committee of the House.
Presently came the news that France had acknow- !^8.
le'dged the independence of the States, and had entered 30.'
into a treaty with them of commerce and defence. The
light had dawned upon the American cause 1 A thrill of
joy went throughout the land.
The treaty between the United States and France May
produced a great sensation in England. It is madness to
protract the war ! said the friends of America. Let us
acknowledge the independence of the States, and obtain
their good will by liberal terms of commerce, lest our great
rival win them to herself. But no ! the idea was scouted ;
the war must be prosecuted, blood must still flow.
In June came the commissioners to treat under Lord
North's conciliatory bills. They were the Earl of Carlisle,
William Eden, brother of the late governor of Maryland,
and George Johnstone, formerly governor of Florida, and
who had been a friend of the Americans in Parliament.
The commissioners sent their proposals to Congress,
but that body refused to treat, until the independence of
the States was acknowledged, and the British troops with-
drawn. As the commissioners could not grant these de-
mands, negotiations were not commenced. Some of the
commissioners indirectly resorted to bribery, and by means
of a loyalist lady of Philadelphia, made propositions to
General Joseph Keed, of ten thousand pounds, and any
office in the colonies he might choose, if he would aid the
object of the mission. To which offer he made this mem-
orable reply : " I am not worth purchasing, but such as I
am, the king of England is not rich enough to buy me."
When it was known that a French fleet was expected
on the coast, the British hastened to evacuate Philadel-
phia, and retreat to New York. Most of the stores, to- is.
gether with the sick and wounded, were sent round by
494 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
chap, water, while the army, twelve thousand strong, took up
its line of march across New Jersey. Washington was
1778. soon in pursuit. The weather was excessively warm, and
the heavily armed British moved very slowly. The Ameri-
cans soon came up. A council of war was held, and the
question discussed, whether to attack the enemy and
bring on a general engagement, or merely harass them on
their march. Washington, with Greene and Lafayette,
was in favor of the former manner of attack, and Lee,
for some reason, strenuously advocated the latter. When
it was decided to bring on a general engagement, Lee, as
his advice had not been taken, declined to take any com-
mand in the affair.
Washington therefore sent Lafayette forward with two
thousand men, to take position on the hills, and thus
crowd Sir Henry Clinton off into the plain. The next
morning Lee had changed his mind, and asked to be given
a command. Washington sent him forward with two
brigades, and when he came up with Lafayette, being of
superior rank, he assumed the command of the entire ad-
vance division.
The British encamped near Monmouth Court-house.
There were morasses and groves of woods in the vicinity,
a difficult place in which to manoeuvre troops.
„"ne When Lee advanced, he found a force of apparently
about two thousand on the march, but a portion of the
woods obstructed a full view. He made his arrangements
to cut off this force, and sent word of his movements to
Washington. But when he came upon the division, he
found it much stronger than he anticipated — in truth,
Clinton had thrown this strong force of German and Brit-
ish there, for the express purpose of giving the Americans
a severe check.
The battle had scarcely begun, before occurred a misap-
prehension of orders. The Americans began to retreat, and
Lee, in the hurry of the moment, forgot to send word of
BATTLE OF MONMOUTH. 495
the movement to Washington, who was advancing with £9£&
the main hody to his support. The retreat had passed
into almost a flight. When Washington met the troops 1778.
he inquired why they were retreating. The reply was,
they did not know, but they had received the order. Sus-
pecting that this movement was designed to mar the plan
of attack, he spurred on, and presently met Lee, of whom
he demanded, in a stern manner : " What is the meaning
of all this, sir ?" Lee, disconcerted, hesitated for a mo-
ment to reply, and was asked again. He then began to
explain, that the confusion had arisen from disobedience
of orders ; and, moreover, he did not wish to meet the
whole British army. Washington rejoined, " that he un-
derstood it was a mere covering party," adding : " I am
very sorry that you undertook the command unless you
meant to fight the enemy." Lee replied, that he did not
think it prudent to bring on a general engagement.
Whatever your opinion may have been," replied Wash-
ington, disdainfully, " I expect my orders to be obeyed."
This conversation took but a moment.
Washington hastily formed the men on a rising ground.
The enemy came up in force, and other divisions of the
Americans also mingled in the conflict. Night ended the
battle. The Americans slept upon their arms, expecting
to renew the contest in the morning. But Clinton skil-
fully drew off his army during the night, and at daylight
was far on his way. Washington did not attempt to pur-
sue, as the weather was intolerably warm, and the march
through a sandy region, destitute of water. The Ameri-
cans lost altogether about two hundred, many of them on
account of the extreme heat : the British about three
hundred in the battle, and on the march two thousand
Hessians deserted.
After refreshing his men, Washington marched across
New Jersey, passed the Hudson, and took position at White
Plains, to be ready to co-operate with the French fleet
4''0 niSTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
\\\Yv ]U an atlac^ llI)on ^ew York. Lord Howe had scarcely
left the Delaware when Count D'Estaing appeared with a
1778. squadron. While at sea, D'Estaing communicated with
Washington by letter. Finding that the British had
evacuated Philadelphia, he put to sea, and soon anchored
off Sandy Hook.
The day after the battle, Lee wrote a note, disre-
spectful in its tone, to Washington, who replied : and this
produced another note from Lee, still more offensive, de-
manding a court of inquiry, and in the mean time inti-
mating that he should retire from the army. The court
found him guilty of disobedience of orders and disrespect
to the Commander-in-chief, and sentenced him to be sus-
pended for one year from the army. He retired to his
estate in Virginia, and there beguiled his leisure in writing
scurrilous letters concerning the army and its commander.
When his sentence of suspension was about to expire, he,
for some fancied neglect, wrote an insolent letter to Con-
gress. That bodv immediately dismissed him from the
army. Thus ended the military career of General Charles
Lee. A few years afterward he died in Philadelphia. His
life had been that of the soldier ; and in the delirium of
death lie murmured, " Stand by me. my brave grena-
diers ! "
The French fleet brought Monsieur Gerard as ambas-
sador to the United States, and also Silas Dcane, Doctor
Franklin, and Arthur Lee, with whom, on the part of the
United States, the treaty had been made.
Howe ran his ships within the bay of New York, and
as the large vessels of the French could not pass the bar
at Sandy Hook, the combined attack upon the city was
abandoned. Instead, it was resolved to make an attack
upon Newport, on the island of Rhode Island. This was
a British stronghold and depot, and garrisoned by six
thousand men, under General Pigot. The brutality of
these British troops had excited against them the bitterest
THE FAILURE AT NEWPORT. 497
hatred, and when called upon by General Sullivan, who £**ar
• • • n i AAJL1Y
was in command, thousands of the militia of the surround-
ing country flocked to avenge their wrongs. John Han- 1778.
cock, on this occasion, led the Massachusetts militia, as
general. D'Estaing sailed to Newport, where he arrived a
week before the force sent by Washington under Greene
and Lafayette. This unavoidable delay ruined the enter-
prise. When the Americans appeared, the British guard
left the works on the north end of the island, and retired
to their inner lines. The Americans immediately passed -^8-
over and occupied the abandoned works. The very day
of this occupancy, Lord Howe appeared with a fleet, and
D'Estaing went out to give him battle. They both ma-
noeuvred their fleets to obtain the advantage of position,
when a terrible storm arose and separated them. 12.
In the mean time, the Americans moved near the ene-
my's works, and commenced to cannonade them, expect-
ing that the French fleet would soon return to their aid.
D'Estaing did return, but instead of landing the four 20-
thousand troops on board, he set sail for Boston to refit
his vessels, which the late storm had shattered.
The Americans now abandoned their lines, and by
night retreated, repulsing the division of the enemy sent
in pursuit. It was time, for the British were strongly
reinforced from New York by four thousand troops, under
Clinton himself.
To deceive the enemy, and escape safely from the
island, Sullivan sent a party to occupy a hill in sight of
the British lines. The party began to throw up intrench-
ments, and in the evening pitched their tents ; but as
soon as it was night, they silently decamped, and in the
morning were all safely on the main land.
A great clamor arose because D'Estaing failed to co-
operate with the Americans at Newport. Subsequent
investigation seemed to justify him ; at least, Congress
passed a resolution approving his conduct. This may,
498 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
luxiv nowevei'j have oeen mere policy, as Congress was uuwil-
ling to offend the French by passing a vote of censure.
1778. The war degenerated into marauding expeditions
against defenceless villages. The first object of this bar-
barity was the island of Martha's Vineyard, whose inhabi-
tants were stripped of every thing the robbers could carry
off. The towns of New Bedford and Fair Haven were
Sept. wantonly burned, and also seventy vessels in their ports.
Scenes of cruelty were enacted in New Jersey, where an
Oct. American regiment of horse was cut to pieces, and a com-
pany of infantry, when crying for quarter, was butchered
with the bayonet without mercy.
When it was certainly known that a French fleet had
sailed to the United States, the English ministry sent
Admiral Byron in pursuit. He appeared off Boston har-
bor while the French were refitting, but did not dare at-
tack them, and the French were unwilling to come out of
their place of security. Lord Howe resigned his command
into the hands of Admiral Byron. At length a storm
arose which scattered the English fleet ; then the French
Nov. slipped out of the harbor, and sailed to the West Indies.
On the same day, five thousand British troops sailed from
New York for the same destination. Three weeks after,
another expedition of three thousand sailed for Georgia ;
yet the British army remaining was far more numerous
than the forces under Washington.
During the summer, one of the most atrocious outra-
ges which disgraced the war, was committed upon the
settlement of Wyoming, situated in a beautiful valley on
the Susquehanna. There had been previously much con-
tention among the inhabitants, some of whom were Tories.
These had been seized, and sent out of the settlement ;
July, they took their revenge with more than savage ferocity
After the defeat of St. Leger at Fort Schuyler, Fort
Niagara became the head-quarters of Tories and Indians ;
DESTRUCTION OF WYOMING. 499
at that place was planned the murderous expedition. char
The party was guided by Tories who had lived in the val-
ley. The chief leader in this expedition was John Butler, 1778.
a Tory notorious for his cruelty. His force, about eleven
hundred, was composed of his Rangers, Johnson's Greens,
and Mohawks. There were block-houses in the settle-
ment ; to these the people fled in times of danger. Nearly
all the able-bodied men were absent in the army under
Washington. There were left only the women and chil-
dren, the aged and infirm. Suddenly the savage enemy
appeared at various points in the valley, and commenced
murdering the husbandmen in the fields, and burning the
houses. It had been rumored that such an attack was
meditated, and a small force had already been dispatched
by Washington to defend the settlement. They had
themselves, under Zebulon Butler, (no relation of John
Butler), about three hundred and fifty men. Unfortunate-
ly, Butler did not wait the arrival of the reinforcement,
but sallied forth to restrain the ravaging of the country.
Intelligence of this intended attack was conveyed to the en-
emy, and they were fully prepared. The fight began, and
the Tories were forced to give way, but the Indians passed
round a swamp toward the rear. Butler, seeing this move-
ment, ordered his men to fall back, lest they should be
surrounded. This order was mistaken for one to retreat ;
all was thrown into confusion, and a portion, panic-strick-
en, fled. They were pursued by the Tories and Indians
with unrelenting fury. The whole valley was desolated.
Those of the people who escaped, fled to the mountains,
and there women and children perished by hundreds,
while some, after incredible sufferings, reached the settle-
ments.
A month later, similar scenes were witnessed at Cherry
Valley, in New York. The Tories and Indians were
equally as cruel as at the Wyoming massacre. The peo- Aug.
pie were either murdered or carried into captivity. All
600 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
chap, the region of the upper Susquehanna, the Delaware, and
the Mohawk, was at the mercy of the savages.
1778. jn the latter part of November, Clinton sent Colonel
Campbell, with two thousand men, to invade Georgia.
He landed three miles below Savannah, the capital, on the
twenty-ninth of December.
General Kobert Howe, who was in command, could
make but little resistance. He and his men behaved no-
bly, but a negro guiding the British by a path through a
swamp, they gained the rear of the Americans, who were
now thrown into confusion and defeated. The town of
Savannah fell into the hands of the victors.
General Prevost, who commanded in East Florida,
was ordered by Clinton to pass across to Savannah, and
there join Campbell and assume the command. On his
march, Prevost took Sunbury, a fort of some importance.
Arriving at Savannah, he sent Campbell to take possession
of Augusta. Thus was Georgia subdued, in the space of
a few weeks. The British now transferred their active
operations to the South, which became the principal thea-
tre of the war till its close.
General Benjamin Lincoln, who had been appointed
to take command of the Southern Department, arrived
about this time. The delegates from South Carolina and
Georgia had solicited his appointment.
CHAPTER XXXV.
WAR OF THE REVOLUTION— CONTINUED.
Dissensions in Congress. — Expedition against the Indians. — The War in the
South. — Augusta reoccupied. — Charleston threatened. — Marauding Ex-
peditions sent to Virginia, and up the Hudson. — Tryon ravages Con-
necticut.— Capture of Stony Point by Wayne. — Lee surprises the Gar-
rison at Jersey City. — Combined assault upon Savannah. — Daniel
Boone ; Kentucky. — George Rogers Clarke ; Kaskaskia. — Pioneers of
Tennessee ; Nashville. — John Paul Jones.
The American army was distributed, at the end of the CHAP#
year, in a series of cantonments, which extended from the xxxv
east end of Long Island Sound to the Delaware ; thus 7^7"
effectually enclosing the British forces. The head-quarters
were in a central position at Middlebrook, New Jersey.
The British were so strong at New York and Newport,
that to attack them with success was hopeless. The
French fleet had been of no practical use to the Ameri-
cans, and now Count D'Estaing took with him his land
troops to the West Indies.
Four years had passed since the war commenced ; the
finances of the country were still in a wretched condition.
The enemy held important places, and were watching for
opportunities to pillage. In the South, the Tories were
specially active. Yet there were other elements at work,
more injurious to the cause than even these.
Congress was filled with dissensions. The prospect
5()2 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
xxxv °^ ass'stance from France caused many to rel»x theii
efforts, as though the war was virtually ended. Wash-
1779. ington wrote, at the beginning of the year : " Our affairs
are in a more distressed, ruinous, and deplorable condition
than they have been since the commencement of the war."
A large majority of Congress was carried away with the
scheme of joining with the French in an expedition against
Canada. But when the matter was laid before the Com-
mander-in-chief, at a glance he saw the difficulties of the
undertaking, and, with the comprehensive views of the
true statesman, pointed out the disadvantages of having,
on this continent, a power different in nation, in religion,
and in customs from the Americans. Moreover, he desired
the people of the United States to be as little under obli-
gations as possible to other nations.
For the ensuing campaign, it was evident the British
intended to confine themselves to pillaging expeditions,
and to cripple the Union in the South. Washington now
recommended an expedition against the Indians, to punish
them for their outrages at Wyoming and other places. It
was to be conducted on their own plan — to invade and
lay waste their territory.
In April a body of troops suddenly invaded and deso-
lated the territory of the Onondagas. The principal ex-
pedition, under Sullivan, went against the Senecas, to
revenge their attack on Wyoming. With five thousand
men he penetrated their country, met them under Brant,
with their worthy allies, the Tories, Johnson and Butler,
at Newtown, now Elmira, and completely routed them.
aa' Without giving them time to recover from their panic,
Sullivan pursued them into the valley of the Genesee, and
in a few weeks destroyed more than forty of their villages,
all their cornfields, gardens, and orchards. It was a ter-
rible vengeance ; but the only means to prevent their
depredations on the settlements.
CHARLESTON THREATENED. 503
Want of food compelled the Indians and Tories to chap
emigrate to Canada, yet they soon after renewed their
depredations, and continued them, with their usual fero- 1779
city, till the end of the war. In the mean while, another
successful expedition was conducted against the Indian
towns on the Alleghany, above Pittsburg.
As in the North, so in the South, the British entered
into alliances with the Indians — there they induced the
Creeks to join them. The Tories desolated the upper part
of Georgia ; but as they drew near Augusta, Colonel
Pickens suddenly attacked and routed them. Seventy-
five were made prisoners and condemned to death, as trai-
tors ; however, only five were executed. Feb.
The next month, General Lincoln sent General Ashe,
with two thousand men, to drive Campbell from Augusta.
Campbell, hearing of his approach, retreated in haste, and
Ashe pursued, but was himself surprised, some days after,
and his entire force dispersed. The British now reoccupied
Augusta, and opened a communication with the Chero-
kees and the South Carolina Tories.
While Lincoln recruited his army, Prevost marched
slowly in the direction of Charleston ; and Lincoln has-
tened to the aid of that city. The inhabitants were
indefatigable in their exertions to give the foe a warm
reception. They threw up intrenchments across the neck May
of the peninsula, on which their city stood. Presently,
Prevost arrived and summoned them to surrender, but
they boldly refused.
He prepared to .enter upon a regular siege, but hearing
of the approach of Lincoln, he first ravaged the planta-
tions in the vicinity, carried off an immense amount of
plunder, and three or four thousand slaves, and then re-
treated toward Savannah, by way of the islands along the
coast. As the hot season approached, hostilities ceased. Jine
While these events were in progress in the South,
Clinton was fulfilling his instructions from the ministry to
504 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
xxxv sen(^ ou* Pmndering expeditions. One of these, undei
General Mathews, he sent from New York, with twenty-
1779. five hundred men, into Virginia. The fleet entered the
May Chesapeake, the troops landed, and plundered the towns
of Portsmouth and Norfolk. A little higher up, at Gos-
port, was established a navy-yard by the State ; there
they burned one hundred and thirty merchant ships, and
several war-vessels on the stocks. The facilities afforded
the enemy by the rivers to pass from point to point, and
the danger of the slaves rising, prevented much resistance.
When these soldiers returned, Clinton went up the
Hudson, against the posts Verplanck's and Stony Points.
These forts protected King's Ferry, a very important
crossing-place, on the main road from the eastern to the
middle States. The works at Stony Point — not yet fin-
ished— were abandoned ; and the garrison at Verplanck's
Point were forced to surrender.
The next expedition, of twenty-five hundred men, was
under Try on, whose barbarities, on such occasions, have
justly rendered his name infamous. Tryon plundered
New Haven, and burned Fairfield and Norwalk. In the
July course of a few days, he burned two hundred and twenty-
five private dwellings, half as many barns and stores, and
five places of worship. Many of the inhabitants were
murdered, or subjected to the brutal passions of the sol-
diers. This "journeyman of desolation," so insensible to
the promptings of humanity, contemplated these outrages
with pleasure, and afterward even claimed for himself the
honor of having exercised mercy, because he did not burn
every dwelling on the coast of New England.
Clinton had been grossly deceived by the Tories, who
assured him that the principal inhabitants of Connecticut
were so much dissatisfied because their homes were not
protected by the American army, that they were about to
withdraw from the cause, and put themselves under Brit-
iL^<fr*fo&*y**,
CAPTURE OP STONY POINT. 505
ish protection. And it was thought a few more such Si|£
expeditions would accomplish this result.
Washington now devised a plan to recapture Stony 1779.
Point. The fort was so situated, that to surprise it seemed
an impossibility. He proposed to General Wayne — " Mad
Anthony " — to undertake the desperate enterprise. The
proposal was accepted with delight. Washington himself,
accompanied by Wayne, carefully reconnoitred the Point.
The attempt was to be made at the hour of midnight.
Every precaution to secure success was taken, even the
dogs of the neighborhood were privately destroyed. A
negro, who was in the habit of visiting the fort to sell
fruit, and also as a spy for the Americans, was to act as
guide. July
The men, with fixed bayonets, and, to remove the pos- 16«
sibility of discovery, with unloaded muskets, approached
in two divisions, at the appointed hour. The negro,
accompanied by two soldiers, disguised as farmers, ap-
proached the outer sentinel, and gave the countersign.
The sentinel was seized and gagged, and the second
treated in the same manner ; at the third, the alarm was
given, but the impetuosity of the Americans was so great,
that in a few minutes the two divisions from the opposite
sides of the fort met in the centre. They took more than
five hundred prisoners. This was one of the most brilliant
exploits of the war. How great was the contrast between
the humanity of Wayne and the savage cruelty of the
British in their midnight attacks with the bayonet ! Sted-
man, the British historian, records that " the conduct of
the Americans upon this occasion was highly meritorious,
for they would have been fully justified in putting the
garrison to the sword ; not one man of which was put to
death but in fair combat." When Clinton heard of the
taking of Stony Point, he hastily recalled Try on, who was
about to move against New London.
The exploit of Wayne was speedily followed by another
506 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
chap, daring adventure by Light Horse Harry. He had learned
[ by reconnoitring, and by means of spies, the exact condi-
1779. tion of the garrison at Paulus Hook, now Jersey City,
opposite New York. Thinking themselves secure from
attack, because of their nearness to the main army, the
officers, as well as men, were careless. Lee asked permis-
Aug- sion to strike a blow within " cannon-shot of New York."
18
Washington directed him "to surprise the fort, bring oft
the garrison immediately, and effect a retreat," and not
to linger, lest he should himself be overpowered. About
two o'clock in the morning they made themselves masters
of the fort, and secured one hundred and fifty prisoners,
with a loss to themselves of only two men. Soon alarm
guns roused the garrison in New York, and Lee com-
menced his retreat. The exploit redounded much to his
credit, and that of his company of horse. In compliment.
Congress voted Wayne, as well as Lee, a gold medal.
An effort was again made to take Savannah. Count
D'Estaing appeared with his fleet from the West Indies,
and General Lincoln marched to aid in the siege. Several
North Carolina regiments had been sent by the Com-
mander-in-chief, and the militia turned out well. Prevost
made every exertion to defend himself. But D'Estaing
soon grew impatient ; he must return to the West Indies
lest the British fleet might accomplish some enterprise of
importance. The siege must be either abandoned, or the
Oct town taken by assault. The latter was resolved upon ;
9- and it was undertaken with great disadvantages staring
the assailants in the face. After they had carried some
of the outworks, the Americans were forced to retire.
Count Pulaski, when gallantly leading his men, was mor-
tally wounded. The French, who were at the post of the
greatest danger, were also repulsed, and D'Estaing him-
self was wounded. Lincoln now retreated to Charleston,
disbanded the militia, and the Count sailed to the West
Indies. Thus, for the second time, the French, under the
"EXPEDITION TO THE SOUTH — DANIEL BOONE. 507
same officer, failed to co-operate efficiently with the chap.
Americans. Very great dissatisfaction was excited at this
throughout the country. i^79-
Clinton oheyed his instructions from home, evacuated
Newport, and concentrated his main force at New York,
which place he "thought in danger of a combined attack
from the Americans and French. In truth, Washington,
in expectation of such aid, had called out the militia for
that purpose, but when he heard that the French had
sailed for the West Indies, he dismissed them, and went
into winter-quarters near Morristown, New Jersey. 25.
When the coast was clear, Clinton sent seven thou-
sand men by sea to Savannah, and soon after sailed him-
self with two thousand more, leaving a powerful garrison
in New York, under the command of Knyphausen. ^®c-
Some years before the commencement of the war,
Daniel Boone, the bold hunter and pioneer, had visited
the region of Kentucky. Attracted by the fertility of the
soil, the beauty of the forests, and the mildness of the
climate, in connection with others, he formed a settlement
on the Kentucky river. Thither Boone took his wife and
daughters, the first white women in that region. There, W?&
during the war, these bold pioneers were in perils, fighting
the Indians and levelling the forests. Harrod, another bold
backwoodsman, founded Harrodsburg. The territory on
the lower Kentucky, had been purchased of the Cherokees.
Though Dunmore, the governor of Virginia, denounced
the purchase as illegal, yet in spite of his proclamation,
and the hostility of the Indians, the people, in numbers,
emigrated to that delightful region.
The Indians at the West were becoming hostile under
the influence of British emissaries. The principal, actor
in this was Hamilton, the commandant at Detroit, against
which place Congress resolved to send an expedition.
508 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
CHAP While this was under consideration, George Rogers Clarke,
an adventurous Virginian, set out from Pittsburg on an
1779. expedition against Kaskaskia, an old French town on the
Mississippi. Clarke, though a backwoodsman of Ken-
tucky, acted under the authority of Virginia. With two
hundred men he floated in boats down the Ohio to the
Falls, and there, on an island, thirteen families, his follow-
ers, made a settlement. Joined by some Kentuckians, he
proceeded down the river, to near its mouth. Then hiding
his canoes, the company struck through the woods to Kas-
kaskia. This town was claimed by the English since the
surrender of Canada. The inhabitants were at once con-
ciliated, when they heard of the alliance between the
United States and France, and when they saw their relig-
1778. ion respected and their property protected. Clarke also
u y' entered into friendly relations with the Spaniards west of
the Mississippi, at St. Louis. When he returned to the
Falls, he built a stockade fort on the south side of the
Ohio ; this was the germ of the present city of Louisville.
Virginia claimed the region north of the Ohio, as con-
quered territory, erected it into the county of Illinois, and
made arrangements to keep possession of it.
Other bold pioneers were, about the same time, pene-
trating the wilderness further south. James Robertson,
from North Carolina, who, eleven years before, led emi-
grants to settle on the head-waters of the Tennessee, now,
May. with a company, crossed over into the valley of the Cum-
berland. They passed down that river till they found a
desirable location, a bluff on its south shore. The com-
pany altogether amounted to nearly fifty persons. There,
in the midst of the primeval forest, more than a hundred
miles from the nearest settlement, they cleared some land
and planted corn. Three of their number remained to
guard the growing crop, and the others returned to bring
their families. Emigration now began : one party set out
through the wilderness, driving their cattle before them ;
NASHVILLE JOHN PAUL JONES. 509
another, with the women and children, went on board of chap.
boats, on the head-waters of the Tennessee. They were
to pass down that river to its mouth, thence find their 1779.
way up the Cumberland to the chosen spot. A laborious
journey of more than six months brought them to their
anxious friends. The settlement increased with great
rapidity, notwithstanding the hostility of the Indians.
Such were the beginnings of the now prosperous and
beautiful city of Nashville.
Congress, from time to time, made efforts to increase
the continental navy, but many of the vessels had been
lost. The privateers had aroused the ire and the vigilance
of the entire British navy. Yet some American cruisers,
fitted out in France, fearlessly sailed in quest of the enemy.
The most distinguished of these commanders was John
Paul Jones, a native of Scotland, but who had been
brought to Virginia in childhood. He was one of the first
officers commissioned by Congress for the navy. Jones, in
command of the Eanger, of eighteen guns, spread terror
around England, and even made a descent on the coast of
Scotland. •
A small squadron of five French and American ships
was fitted out at L'Orient, and placed under his com-
mand, to cruise in the British seas. Off the coast of
Scotland, he met with a fleet of merchantmen, convoyed
by a frigate and another armed vessel. It was night, and gept
the battle, the most desperate in the annals of naval war- 28
fare, lasted three hours. Jones lashed his flag-ship, the
Richard, to the British frigate Serapis, and thus, muzzle
to muzzle, they poured into each other their broadsides.
At length, both the English ships surrendered. Jones'
flag-ship was so damaged, that in a few hours it went to
the bottom.
CHAPTER XXXVI.
WAR OF THE REVOLUTION— CONTINUED.
Hardships of the Soldiers. — British Success at the South. — Colonel Tarle>
ton. — Charleston capitulates. — Defeat at Waxhaws. — Rev. James Cald-
well. — Maraud into Jersey. — Fleet at Newport. — The South unsubdued ;
her partisan Leaders. — Gates sent to take Command. — Disastrous Bat-
tle of Camden. — Death of De Kalb. — Sumter's Success and Defeat. —
Treason of Arnold. — Major Andre. — Movements of Cornwallis. — Colonel
Ferguson. — Battle of King's Mountain. — Tarleton repulsed. — General
Greene in Command. — Rancorous Spirit between the Whigs and To-
ries.— British triumphant. — Affairs in Europe. — Henry Laurens. — Dan-
gers of England ; her Energy.
chap. This winter, like the preceding, witnessed the hardships
of the soldiers, who were often in great straits for pro-
1780. visions, and other necessaries. The depreciation of the
currency continued ; Congress was in debt, without money
and without credit. To preserve the soldiers from starva-
tion, Washington was under, to him, the painful necessity
of levying contributions upon the people of the surround-
ing country. Jersey was drained almost to exhaustion ;
but her patriotism rose in proportion to her sacrifices ; at
one time, when deep snows cut off supplies from a dis-
tance, the subsistence of the whole army devolved upon
her. " The women met together to knit and sew for the
soldiery/' and the farmers hastened to the camp with
provisions, " stockings, shoes, coats, and blankets."
A committee sent by Congress to inquire into the con-
May, dition of affairs at Morristown, reported : " That the army
was five months unpaid ; that it seldom had more thaD
BKITISH SUCCESS IN THE SOUTH. 511
six days' provisions in advance, and was, on several occa- chap.
sions, for sundry successive days, without meat ; was des-
titute of forage ; that the medical department had neither 1780,
sugar, tea, chocolate, wine, nor spirits." No other prin-
ciple than true patriotism could have held men together
in the midst of privations and sufferings such as these.
In preparation for the ensuing campaign, Congress made
great exertions to increase the army ; large bounties were
offered, yet recruits came in slowly.
The winter was exceedingly severe. The waters around
New York were frozen, communication with the sea was
cut off, so that the garrison and the citizens suffered for
provisions. Knyphausen was alarmed lest the Americans
should pass on the ice and attack the city ; his ships of
war were frozen fast, and no longer useful to defend it.
He transferred the seamen to the shore, and formed them
into companies, and placed the entire male population
under arms. But his apprehensions were groundless, as
Washington was too deficient in men and means to make
a successful attack upon the garrison.
In the South, the British were very successful. When
Clinton arrived at Savannah, he immediately went North
for the purpose of blockading Charleston. General Lin- Jaa
coin made every exertion to fortify the city. Four thou-
sand of its militia enrolled themselves ; but the assistance
received from the surrounding country numbered only two
hundred men. South Carolina had represented to Con-
gress her utter inability to defend herself, " by reason of
the great number of citizens necessary to remain at home
to prevent insurrection among the negroes, and their de-
sertion to the enemy." The only hope of Charleston lay
in the regiments then on their march from Virginia and
North Carolina. These regiments increased Lincoln's
512 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
chap, force to seven thousand, only two thousand of whom were
continentals.
1780. . The British occupied so much time in their approach,
that an opportunity was given to fortify the harbor and
city. It was of no avail ; the superior English fleet passed
by Fort Moultrie without receiving much damage, though
four years before the same fort had repulsed a similar at-
tempt. The channel, at this time, was deeper, and the
vessels could pass.
Sir Henry Clinton had lost nearly all his horses on the
voyage ; but he had with him Lieutenant-colonel Ban-
astre Tarleton, a native of Liverpool. Let us take a
glance at the colonel, who figures so largely in these south-
ern campaigns. He was at this time only twenty-six
years of age. He is described as short of stature, broad
shouldered and muscular, of swarthy complexion, with a
countenance lighted up by small, keen black eyes, the
embodiment of ardent, prompt energy, and indomitable
perseverance, that never pursued without overtaking ;
always in front of his men ; as insensible to weariness as he
was to fear. To be scrupulous was not one of his virtues.
He soon, from friends or enemies, by money or by force,
obtained horses for his dragoons.
April Thirty miles from Charleston, at Monk's Corner, Gen-
eral Huger and Colonel William Washington had two
regiments of continental cavalry to guard the passes to
the north country. On a dark night, Tarleton, guided by
a negro, pounced upon them with his dragoons, and scat-
tered them. Huger and Washington escaped, with some
of their officers and men, but Tarleton took a hundred
prisoners, and four hundred wagons laden with stores.
Fort Moultrie surrendered, and soon after another division
of American cavalry was almost annihilated by Tarleton,
and Charleston was now completely invested.
As the defences of the town continued to fail in suc-
cession, Lincoln thought to abandon the place, and force
14
CHARLESTON CAPITULATES. 513
his way through the enemy ; but the superiority of the £5^
besiegers in number and position rendered that impossible. ,
The British fleet was ready to pour ruin upon the devoted 1780.
town. Clinton had thrown up intrenchments across the
neck, and at this crisis Cornwallis arrived from New York
with three thousand fresh troops. April
On the ninth of May commenced a terrible cannonade
from two hundred cannons. All night long bombshells
poured upon the town, which at one time was on fire in
five different places. The morning dawned, but no hope
dawned for the besieged. Their guns were nearly all dis-
mounted, their works in ruins, the soldiers exhausted by
fatigue. The fleet moved to a position much nearer. The
following night an offer to capitulate was sent to Clinton.
Negotiations commenced, which resulted in the surrender
of the garrison as prisoners of war ; the militia were to
be dismissed on their parole, not to engage again in the
war ; with the promise, that so long as they kept their
parole, their persons and property should be secure. The
whole number of prisoners was about six thousand. May
This was an irreparable loss to the patriots. Immedi-
ately after Clinton sent off three expeditions ; one to
intercept Colonel Beaufort, who was approaching with a
Virginia regiment to the aid of Charleston ; a second to-
ward Augusta, and the third toward Camden. He also
issued a proclamation, threatening terrible punishments
on those who would not submit. This was soon after fol-
lowed by another, which offered pardon to all those who
would return to their allegiance, and assist in restoring
the royal authority.
When Beaufort heard of the loss of Charleston he
commenced to retreat ; but there was no escaping Tarle-
ton, who made a forced march of one hundred and five
utiles in fifty-four hours. He surprised Beaufort at Wax-
haw's, on the boundary of North Carolina, and scattered
his men, giving them no quarter, but treating them in the
514 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
chap, most cruel and barbarous manner. This act has left a
, stain upon his reputation.
1780. The other detachments passed through the country,
meeting with no resistance, as the people felt it would be
useless to attack them. In a short time another procla-
mation was issued, calling upon all, except those actually
taken in arms, to renounce their parole, and take the oath
of allegiance. During this time, the negroes in great
numbers deserted their masters and fled to the British.
June. South Carolina thus conquered, Clinton returned to New
York, leaving Cornwallis to hold the country in subjection.
Incidents show *the spirit of the times. The Kev.
James Caldwell, a Presbyterian clergyman, was pastor of
a church at Elizabethtown. He had excited the ire of
the Tories and British by his ardent appeals in the cause
of his country. When he preached he would lay his pis-
tols beside him : his eloquence stirred the people, with
whom his popularity was unbounded. His church, a sort
o\ rallying point, had been used by the American soldiers
as a shelter, while its bell gave the alarm when the enemy
approached. The Tories called him a "frantic priest,"
and " rebel firebrand ; " but the people spoke of him as
" a rousing gospel preacher." During the winter a ma-
rauding company of the British and Tories from New
York burned the church, and Caldwell removed his family
to Connecticut Farms.
Juno After Knyphausen heard of the capture of Charleston,
5- thinking that event would have an influence upon the
people of Jersey, he set out on an expedition, landing at
Elizabethtown, and penetrated as far as Connecticut
Farms. He met, at every step, with the most determined
opposition ; but, nevertheless, the village was sacked and
burned. Mrs. Caldwell, in the midst of the terror and
confusion, retired to a room in the rear of the parsonage,
and knelt in prayer, having by the hand one of her chil-
THE MURDER OF MRS. CALDWELL. 515
dren. Presently some one fired through the window, and ^har
she fell dead, pierced by two balls. The church and par- .
sonage were both burned. Knyphausen, harassed by the 1780
militia, made an inglorious retreat.
Meantime, the atrocious murder of Mrs. Caldwell rous-
ed a spirit of revenge, unprecedented in its influence.
She was highly connected and universally beloved ; the
murder was thought to have been designed. Caldwell
preached more " rousing" sermons than ever. Three
weeks later, Washington moved some of his forces toward
the Highlands, and Knyphausen once more landed in Jer-
sey, and pushed on toward Springfield, hoping to gain the
passes beyond Morristown ; but alarm-guns spread the
news of his approach, and General Greene, who had been
left in command, was on the alert. Knyphausen found
as much opposition as on the other occasion. The Jersey
regiment, commanded by Dayton, and of which Caldwell
was chaplain, was engaged in the battle. The soldiers
were in want of wadding, and the chaplain galloped to
the Presbyterian church, and brought a quantity of Watts'
psalm ami hymn books and distributed them for the pur-
pose among the soldiers. " Now," cried he, " put Watts
into them, boys ! "l The Americans increasing, Knyp-
hausen, after burning the village of Springfield, effected
another inglorious retreat.
The Baron De Kalb was sent, soon after the surrender
of Lincoln, to take command of the army South, and all
the continental troops south of Pennsylvania were detach-
ed for that service. In the midst of these discourage- March
ments, Lafayette returned from his visit to France. He
brought intelligence that a French fleet, with an army on
board, had sailed to America, and also there might be
1 Washington Irving.
516 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
xxxvl exPec^ed soon a sllPply °f arms and clothing from the
same source.
1780. The several States were now urged to send forward
their quotas of men and provisions, to enable the army to
co-operate with the French. In the camp there was al-
most a famine ; a Connecticut regiment was on the point
of marching home, where they could obtain provisions.
Congress was laboring to borrow money in Holland in
order to supply these wants.
A French fleet, consisting of seven ships of the line,
and also frigates and transports, at length appeared at
u y' Newport. This was the first division, consisting of six
thousand land troops. To avoid disputes that might arise
from military etiquette, Count Rochambcau, their com-
mander, was instructed to put himself under the command
of Washington. The expected supplies of arms and
clothing did not arrive, and for the want of them, the
American army could not co-operate in an attack upon
New York.
The French fleet was followed by one from England,
of equal strength, and now Clinton, trusting to his supe-
rior naval force, made preparations to attack the French
at Newport ; but as he and Admiral Arbuthnot could not
agree as to the plan, the project was abandoned. The
British, instead, blockaded the French. News came, not
long after, that the second division designed for the Uni-
ted States was blockaded at Brest by another British
squadron. Thus, for the third time, the Americans were
disappointed in their hopes of lid from the French fleet,
and, instead, the militia of Ni w England was called out
to defend it at Newport.
In the South was the quietness that reigns in a con-
quered country ; but the unsubdued spirit of the patriots
was soon aroused by their partisan leaders, — Sumter,
Clarke, Pickens, and Francis Marion, the latter a Hugue-
not by descent, and who had served against the Cherokees
GATES ASSUMES THE COMMAND. 617
at the close of the French war. These leaders, with their chap.
XXXVI
bands, generally horsemen, scoured the country, and im- '
proved every opportunity to make a dash at parties of 1780.
British or Tories. At first they were almost destitute of
arms ; these their ingenuity partially supplied by con-
verting scythes and knives fastened to poles into lances ;
wood saws into broadswords, while the women cheerfully
gave their pewter dishes to be melted into bullets ; from
nitre found in caverns in the mountains, and charcoal
burned upon their hearths, they made their powder. So
effectually did they conduct this irregular warfare, that
ere long foraging parties of the enemy dared not venture
far from the main army. If these patriots were repulsed
in one place, they would suddenly appear in another, as
vigorous as ever. While Sumter — characterized by Corn-
^allis, as the South Carolina " Game Cock " — with his
band, was on the Catawba, Marion — known as the " Swamp
Fox " — was issuing, " with his ragged followers," from the
swamps along the Lower Peedee,
Congress now resolved to send General Gates to take
command of the southern army. Great expectations were
raised when it was known that the conqueror of Burgoyne
was about to assume the command. But General Charles
Lee remarked, " That his northern laurels would soon be
changed into southern willows."
De Kalb, with the regiments under his command, re-
tarded by want of provisions, moved slowly south. His
soldiers could only by great exertion obtain their necessary
supplies in the barren region through which they passed.
Because of this want, he was forced to halt three weeks
on Deep Kiver, one of the upper tributaries of Cape Fear
River ; there Gates overtook him, and assumed the com-
mand. Contrary to the advice of De Kalb and his offi-
cers, who recommended a circuitous route through the
fertile and friendly county of Mecklenburg, Gates imme-
518 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
xxxy{ diately gave orders to march direct on Camden. He said
the wagons coming from the north, and laden with pro-
1780. visions, would overtake them in two days. They marched
through a region of pine barrens interspersed with swamps,
and almost destitute of inhabitants. Their only food waa
green corn, unripe apples and peaches, and such lean wild
cattle as chance threw in their way. The wagons never
overtook them, but disease did, and the suffering soldiers
were greatly enfeebled. After a toilsome march of nearly
Aug. three weeks, he encamped at Clermont, about twelve
miles from Camden. His army had increased almost daily,
principally from North Carolina and Virginia, and now
numbered nearly four thousand, of whom two-thirds were
continentals.
Lord Kawdon, when he heard of the approach of Gates,
retreated and concentrated his forces at Camden, at which
place Cornwallis had just arrived from Charleston to take
command.
Gates made a move the following night to take a po-
sition nearer Camden, and Cornwallis made a similar move
to surprise Gates. The advance guards met in the woods ;
after some skirmishing, both armies halted till morning.
Aug. With the dawn, the battle commenced. The British
1 c
rushed on with fixed bayonets against the centre of the
American army, where the militia were posted ; they fled
immediately, throwing down their arms lest they should
be encumbered in their headlong flight. Gates himself
and Governor Caswell were both carried off the field by
the torrent of fugitives. The continentals stood their
ground firmly, until their brave commander, De Kalb,
who had received eleven wounds, fell exhausted — then
they also gave way.
The American army was completely routed, scattered
in small parties, and in all directions. Their loss, in slain
and prisoners, was nearly eighteen hundred, besides all
their baggage and artillery. The n)ad was strewed with
DEFEAT AT CAMDEN DEATH OF DE KALB. 519
the dead and wounded, the work of the British cavalry, chap.
which the impetuous Tarleton urged on in pursuit of the
fugitives for twenty-eight miles. 1780
Certain of victory, Gates imprudently made no ar-
rangements for a retreat, or the preservation of his stores,
but instead, he met with the most disastrous defeat ever
experienced by an American army. Truly, his northern
laurels had degenerated into southern willows ! A few
days after the battle, he arrived with about two hundred
followers at Charlotte, in North Carolina.
De Kalb was found by the British on the field still
alive ; his aide-de-camp, De Buysson, would not leave
him, but generously suffered himself to be taken prisoner.
The Baron lingered for a few days. His last moments
were employed in dictating a letter to the officers and men
of his division, expressing for them his warmest affection.
Some days before the late battle, Sumter fell upon a
convoy of supplies approaching Camden for the British,
and took two hundred prisoners. When Cornwallis heard
of it, he sent Tarleton in pursuit, who rode so hard, that
half his men and horses broke down. When he arrived
on the Catawba, Sumter had reason to think himself be-
yond pursuit, and halted to refresh his men, when he was
completely taken by surprise, his company routed, and
his prisoners rescued. Thus, within three months, two
American armies had been defeated, and scattered in
every direction.
Gates continued to retreat toward the North, having
now about a thousand men. Maryland and Virginia made
great exertions to recruit the army, but with little suc-
cess.
Cornwallis, instead of conciliating the people by clem-
ency, excited them to intense hostility by cruelty. Of the
prisoners taken at Sumter's defeat, there were some who
had given their parole not to engage in the war ; a por-
tion of these were hanged upon the spot. There was
•r>20 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
chap- more revenge and hatred exhibited in the South by the
XXaVI. ■ j m • •
VV higs and Tones against each other, than in any other
1780. section of the States. The severity of Cornwallis, how-
ever, did not deter the patriots from action. Marion was
still in the field, and the untiring Sumter soon collected
another force, with which he harassed the enemy.
Washington wished to strike a decisive blow, and he
invited Rochambeau, who was commanding the French
troops at Newport, to meet him at Hartford, to devise a
plan of attack upon New York. After consultation, it
was found that the French naval force was insufficient to
cope with the British fleet at New York. Accordingly,
the French Admiral on the West India station was invited
to co-operate ; and, until he could be heard from, the en-
terprise was postponed.
While Washington was thus absent from head-quar-
ters, a nefarious plot, which had been in train for some
months, came to light. One of the bravest officers of the
American army was about to tarnish his fair name as a
patriot, and bring upon it the scorn and contempt of all
honorable men. It was discovered that Arnold had prom-
ised to betray into the hands of the enemy the important
fortress of West Point. The wounds he had received at
the battle of Behmus's Heights had unfitted him for ac-
tive service, and he was placed in command at Philadel-
phia. There he lived in a very extravagant style ; in-
volved himself in debts, to pay which he engaged in pri-
vateering and mercantile speculations, most of which
were unsuccessful. He was accused of using the public
funds, and condemned by a court-martial to receive a
reprimand from the Commander-in-chief, who performed
the unpleasant duty as delicately as possible. Yet Arnold
felt the disgrace, and determined to be revenged. While
in Philadelphia he married into a Tory family, which
opened a way to an intercourse with British officers His
JEAN T>E VIMEUR, Comte De Rochambeau.
TREASON OF ARNOLD MAJOR JOHN ANDRE. 521
merits as an officer were great, but Congress evidently ^hap.
took into consideration his private character. The mem-
bers from Connecticut knew him well. He was prover- 1780.
bially dishonest in his dealings, disregarded the rights of
others, indifferent as to what men thought of his integrity,
and to those under him cruel and tyrannical. In conse-
quence of these inexcusable faults many distrusted him.
The question has been raised, Why did Washington trust
Arnold ? Evidently, because he knew him only as an
efficient and brave officer. It is not probable any person
took the liberty of whispering to the Commander-in-chief
the defects of Arnold's private character. We know that
during his whole life, Washington was governed by the
principle of appointing to office none but honest men.
In the midst of his troubles, Arnold's selfishness be-
came superior to his patriotism, and he opened a corre-
spondence with Sir Henry Clinton, under the signature of
Gustavus. For months this continued, when he made
himself known. In the mean time, he applied to Wash- Aug,
ington and obtained the command of West Point, with
the full intention of betraying that important post.
In the British army was a young man of pleasing ad-
dress ; accomplished in mental acquirements, and as
amiable as he was brave. Disappointed in love, he had
joined the army and made fame the object of his ambi-
tion ; as capable of planning the amusements for a ball or
a masquerade as of fulfilling the duties of his office — that
of adjutant-general. He won many friends, and with Sir
Henry Clinton was a special favorite. It devolved upon
this young man, Major John Andre, to answer the letters
of " Gustavus." This he did under the feigned name of
" John Anderson." When Arnold revealed his true char-
acter, Andre volunteered to go up the Hudson on board
the sloop-of-war Vulture, to have an interview with him,
and make the final arrangements for carrying out the
treachery
522 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
chap The Vulture came to anchor a short distance below
! the American lines. Thence a flag was sent to Arnold,
1780. giving him the information. In the evening: the latter
21/ sent a boat to bring Andre ashore. The night passed,
however, before their plans were arranged, and Andre was
compelled, though very unwillingly, to pass the next day
within the American lines. During the day the Vulture
attracted the attention of some American gunners, who
began to fire upon her, and she dropped down the stream.
For some unexplained reason, the man who had brought
Andre ashore refused to take him back to the sloop, and
he was forced to return to New York by land. He changed
his uniform for a citizen's dress, and with a pass from Ar-
nold, under the name of John Anderson, set out. Passing
to the east side of the river, he travelled on unmolested
until he came in the vicinity of Tarrytown. There he
was arrested by three young men, John Paulding, David
Williams, and Isaac Van Wart. They asked him some
questions, and he, supposing them Tories, did not pro-
duce his pass, but said he was " from below," meaning
New York, and that he was a British officer, travelling on
important business. When he found his mistake, he
offered them his watch, his purse, and any amount of
mcney, if they would let him pass. Their patriotism was
not to be seduced. Paulding declared that if he would
give ten thousand guineas he should not stir a step. In
searching his person, they found in his boots papers of a
Sept. suspicious character. They brought him to Colonel Jami-
28- son, the commanding officer on the lines at Peekskill. He
recognized the handwriting as that of Arnold. The paper
contained a description of West Point, and an account of
its garrison. But he could not believe that his superior
officer was guilty of treason, and had it not been for the
protests of Major Talmadge, the second in command, he
would have sent the prisoner to Arnold ; as it was, he
sent him a letter giving an account of the arrest, and of
TRIAL OF ANDRE — HIS EXECUTION. 523
the papers found upon his person. The papers he sent chap.
by express to Washington, now on his way from Hartford.
The letter came to Arnold while he was breakfasting 1780.
with some officers, who had just returned from that place.
Concealing his emotions, he rose from the table, called his
wife out of the room, briefly told her he was a ruined man
and must flee for his life. She fell insensible at his feet.
He directed the messenger to attend to her, returned to
the breakfast-room, excused himself on the plea that he
must hasten to the fort to receive the Commander-in-
chief. Then seizing the messenger's horse, which stood
ready saddled, he rode with all speed to the river, sprang
into his boat, and ordered the men to row to the Vulture.
Thence he wrote to Washington, begging him to protect
his wife, who, he protested, was innocent of any partici-
pation in what he had done.
When Andre heard that Arnold was safe, he wrote to
Washington, confessing the whole affair. He was imme-
diately brought to trial under the charge of being within
the American lines, as a spy. Though cautioned to say g .
nothing to criminate himself, he confessed the whole, and 29.
on his own confession he was found guilty. The commis-
sion to try him was presided over by General Greene.
Lafayette and Steuben were also members of it. Andre
protested that he had been induced to enter the American
lines by the misrepresentations of Arnold. Clinton made
every effort to save his favorite. The amiableness of An-
dre's private character enlisted much sympathy in his
behalf. And Washington wished, if possible, to spare
him ; but a higher duty forbid it. Inexorable martial law
denied him his last request, that he might be shot as a
soldier, and not hanged as a spy.
Oct.
Cornwallis at length commenced his march toward
North Carolina. His army was in three divisions ; one Sept.
of which, under Colonel Patrick Ferguson, was to move
524 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
xxivi *° ^e wes* near *ne mountams? *° intimidate the Whigs,
and enroll the numerous Tories said to he in that region.
1780. The cavalry, and a portion of the light troops, under Tarle-
ton, were to move up the Catawba, while the main body,
under Cornwallis himself, was to take the route by way
of Charlotte, Salisbury, and Hillsborough, through the
region in which the Whigs were very numerous. This
was with the expectation of forming a juncture with
troops sent to the lower Chesapeake from New York. As
soon as the British army began its march, the Whigs
sprang into activity, and harassed them ; scarcely did an
express sent from any division of the army escape being
shot or taken. Cornwallis declared Charlotte " the hor-
net's nest of North Carolina."
Ferguson, the son of a Scotch judge of eminence, had
entered the army from the love of military life, had seen
service in Germany, and was deemed by Cornwallis an
excellent officer. He excelled in the use of the rifle, and
in training others to the use of that weapon. He was
generous and humane ; in any enterprise persevering and
cool. Over his company of light-infantry regulars he had
control, and restrained them from deeds of violence ; but
he was joined by a rabble of desperadoes and rancorous
Tories. As they passed through the country, these Tories
committed outrages upon the inhabitants. He met with
scarcely any opposition. But information of these out-
rages and of his approach had spread rapidly throughout
the region. Little did Ferguson think that at this time,
when he neither saw nor heard of an enemy — for all his
expresses were cut off — that from the distant hills and
valleys of the Clinch and the Holston, and from the eastern
spurs of the mountains, companies of mounted backwoods-
men— their only baggage a knapsack and blanket, their
only weapon a rifle — were passing silently through the
forests to a place of rendezvous in his front. The most
formidable of these were from Tennessee and Kentucky,
BATTLE OF KING'S MOUNTAIN. 525
under Colonels Sevier and Shelby, — afterward first gov- £HAP
ernors of those States.
Rumors stole into his camp that these half-farmers 1780.
and graziers and half-hunters were assembling ; but he
scouted the idea that they could oppose him ; though,
when he received more correct information, he began to
retreat as rapidly as possible. He had not been long on
his way when this motley host, three thousand strong,
came together. They held a council ; they were not to
be baffled ; about nine hundred mounted their fleetest
horses and started in pursuit. They rode for thirty-six
hours, part of the time through a drenching rain, dis-
mounting but once. Ferguson was astonished at their
perseverance. He pushed for a strong position on King's
Mountain, near the Catawba. This mountain rises almost
like a cone ; its top was sparsely covered with tall forest
trees, while at the base they were more dense. On the
level space on the top he arranged his men, saying, with
an oath, that the " rebels " could not drive him from his
... ' Oct
position. 9<
The backwoodsmen approached, reconnoitred, held a
council, then dismounted to attack the enemy in three
divisions — in front, and on the right and left flanks. The
battle soon commenced, the Americans crept up the sides
of the mountain, and with deliberate aim poured in their
deadly bullets. Ferguson, on a white charger, rode round
and round the crest of the hill, and cheered his men. No
impression was made on the assailants. He ordered the
regulars to charge bayonet, and they drove the left division
down the side of the mountain — for the backwoodsmen
had no bayonets. Presently the regulars were taken in
flank, and they retreated to the top, where, by this time, .
the second division had clambered up. This they drove
back also ; but before the regulars, now almost exhausted,
could regain their position, the third division was on the
plain. Thus it was, as often as a division retired before
526 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN" PEOPLE.
chap the bayonet, another gave relief. Ferguson passed from
point to point, and cheered and rallied his men ; but sud-
1790. denly his white charger was seen dashing down the moun-
tain-side without a rider : he had fallen by a rifle-ball.
The animating spirit was gone ; the British and Tories
grounded their arms and surrendered at discretion. Three
hundred had been killed or wounded, and more than eight
hundred were made prisoners. The backwoodsmen lost
but twenty slain and a somewhat larger number wounded.
Ten of the Tories, who had been especially cruel toward
their countrymen, were hanged upon the spot.
The backwoodsmen disbanded and returned home ;
their victory had revived the drooping spirits of the south-
ern patriots. The battle of King's Mountain bore the
same relation to Cornwallis, that the battle of Bennington
did to Burgoyne ; and both were won by the undisciplined
yeomanry.
When Cornwallis heard of the defeat of Ferguson he
retreated from Salisbury to Winnsborough, in South Car-
olina. In one portion of the country Marion appeared,
but Tarleton forced him to retreat to the swamps. Then
the active Sumter appeared in force again, and repulsed a
detachment sent against him. Tarleton went in pursuit,
but Sumter learned of his approach, and began to retreat
rapidly, while Tarleton pressed on with his usual vigor.
Sumter chose an advantageous position ; Tarleton attacked
him, but was repulsed, and in turn forced to retreat. Sum-
ter was severely wounded ; he was compelled to retire for
some months ; his band, in the mean time, separated.
Gates now advanced South to Charlotte. Here he
was overtaken by Greene, who, on the suggestion of
Washington had been appointed by Congress to the com-
mand of the .southern army. Congress had also ordered
an inquiry into the conduct of Gates.
Greene found the remnants of the army in a miserable
CIVIL WAR IN TBE SOUTH — THE ARMED NEUTRALITY. 527
condition, without pay, without necessaries, and their chap.
clothes in rags. To increase the army, divisions were sent ,
from the North. Morgan with a regiment, Lee's body of 1780.
horse, and some companies of artillery, were with Gates
when Greene arrived.
During this time, a civil war, almost savage in its
character, was raging all over the Carolinas. Little par-
ties of Whigs and Tories fought with each other whenever
they met ; they ravaged each others' neighborhoods, and
plundered the people of their furniture, and even of their
clothes.
The year was about to end, with the British power
triumphant in the three southern States. In Georgia the
royal government was re-established, while the important
points held in the Carolinas gave the enemy almost the
entire control of those States. The numerous Tories were
exultant, while the whole country was nearly exhausted
by the long continuance of the war.
During the summer of this year, it was thought Eng-
land would find abundant employment for her armies
and navy nearer home. Because she had the power, by
means of a vast navy, she assumed the right to board the
ships of any neutral nation, and to search for merchandise
contraband of war — a practice as arbitrary and arrogant
as it was unjust and injurious. Queen Catharine, of Rus-
sia, would submit no longer to the imposition. She pro-
posed to enter into a combination, known as the " Armed
Neutrality," with Denmark and Sweden, to enforce the
policy that " Free ships make free goods." That, in time
of war, ships of neutral nations could carry merchandise
without liability to seizure by the belligerent powers. The
British ministry hesitated to enlist the whole maritime
world against their commerce, that was already suffering
much. Holland gave indications that she was willing,
not only to join the "armed neutrality," but to enter into
a commercial treaty with the United States. This inten-
528 HISTOKY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
£5A£* tion became known by the capture of a correspondence on
the subject. The vessel on board of which Henry Laurens,
1780. the American Minister to Holland, had sailed, was cap-
tured by an English frigate. Laurens threw the papers
overboard, but an English sailor leaped into the water and
recovered them.
Laurens was descended from one of the many Hugue-
not families that sought an asylum in South Carolina ;
nor did he belie the nobleness of his ancestry. He was
taken to England and confined a close prisoner in the
Tower of London, on a charge of high treason, plied with
inducements to desert his country's cause, but without
avail. He stood firm, and was finally liberated, to pro-
ceed to Paris, there to aid in negotiating a treaty with
England herself, on behalf of his country, which had fought
its way to independence.
The British ministry demanded that this correspond-
ence should be disavowed, but the States-General, with
their usual coolness, gave an evasive answer. England
declared war immediately, and her fleet exhibited their
thirst for plunder by entering at once on a foray against
the commerce of Holland throughout the world.
England now had reason to be alarmed at surrounding
dangers. Spain joined France, and their combined fleets
far outnumbered hers in the West Indies. Holland de-
clared war against her, while nearer home there was dan-
ger. Eighty thousand Irishmen had volunteered to repel
a threatened invasion from France ; but now these volun-
teers, with arms in their hands, were clamoring against
the oppression that England exercised over their industry
and commerce, and threatened to follow the example of
the American colonies in not using British manufactures ;
and, what was still more ominous, demanded that the
Irish Parliament should be independent of English con-
trol. The whole world was affected by these struggles.
Spain sent her ships to prey upon English commerce, and
THE ENERGY OF ENGLAND. 529
an army to besiege the English garrison at Gibraltar, chap.
France had armies against her in America and in India —
both aiding rebellious subjects. To meet these over- 1780.
whelming powers, England put forth gigantic efforts. We
must admire the indomitable spirit, that steady energy,
with which she repelled her enemies, and held the world
at bay.
CHAPTER XXXVII.
WAR OF THE REVOLUTION— CONTINUED.
The Spirit of Revolt among the Soldiers. — Arnold ravages the Shores of the
Chesapeake. — Battle of the Cowpens. — Morgan retreats; Cornwallis
pursu2S. — Greene marches South. — Lee scatters the Tories. — Battle of
Guildford Court House. — Conflict at Hobkirk's Hill. — The Execution of
Hayne. — Battle of Eutaw Springs. — Plans to Capture New York.—
Wayne's Daring at the James River. — National Finances. — Robert Mor-
ris.— French and American Armies on the Hudson. — Clinton deceived.—
Combined Armies beyond the Delaware. — French Fleet in the Ches-
apeake.— Cornwallis in the Toils. — The Attack ; Surrender of the Brit-
ish Army and Navy. — Thanksgivings.
chap. The last year of the struggle for Independence opened,
J as had all the others, with exhibitions of distress among
1781. the soldiers. The regiments of the Pennsylvania line, en-
camped for the winter near Monistown, grew impatient
at the indifference of Congress to their necessities. In
truth, that body was more or less distracted by factions,
and made no special efforts to relieve the wants of the
soldiers. Thirteen hundred of these men, indignant at
J*n- such neglect, broke out in open revolt, and under the
command of their sergeants, marched off toward Philadel
phia, to lay their complaints before Congress.
General Wayne, to prevent their pillaging, sent after
them provisions ; he himself soon followed, and urged
them to return to their duty. The sergeants, at his in-
stance, proposed to send a deputation to Congress, and
to the Pennsylvania Assembly, but the soldiers refused to
REVOLTS IN THE ARMY. ^31
entertain the proposition, and persisted in going them- SS^y,,
selves. Though thus mutinous, they scorned the thought
of turning " Arnolds," as they expressed it, but promptly 1781.
arrested as spies two Tory emissaries sent by Sir Henry
Clinton to tamper with their fidelity. These emissaries
were soon after hanged. Wayne in his zeal placed him-
self before the mutineers and cocked his pistols. In an
instant their bayonets were at his breast. They besought
him not to fire, saying : " We love, we respect you, but
you are a dead man if you fire. Do not mistake us ; we
are not going to the enemy ; were they now to come out
you would see us fight under your orders, with as much
resolution and alacrity as ever."
Intelligence of this revolt excited great alarm in Phila-
delphia. Congress sent a committee, which was accom-
panied by Reed, the President of Pennsylvania, to meet
the insurgents and induce them to return to their duty.
The committee proposed to relieve their present wants, to
give them certificates for the remainder of their pay, and
to indemnify them for the loss they had sustained by the
depreciation of the continental money. Permission was
also given to those who had served three years to with-
draw from the army. On these conditions the soldiers
returned to the ranks. When offered a reward for deliv-
ering up the British emissaries sent to corrupt them, they
refused it, saying : " We ask no reward for doing our
duty to our country."
The discontent spread. Three weeks after this affair,
the New Jersey line also revolted ; but that was sup-
pressed by a strong hand in a few days. So much discon-
tent in the army spread consternation throughout the
country ; not, however, without a salutary effect. The
patriots were awakened to make greater exertions to pro-
vide for the necessities of the soldiers. Their self-denials,
labors, and sufferings had been too long overlooked.
Urgent demands were now sent to all the States,
532 HISTOKY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
chap, especially those of New England, to furnish the arnij
. with the proper necessaries. To encourage enlistments,
1781 some of the States promised to provide for the families of
the soldiers, and Congress endeavored to obtain a foreign
loan.
Arnold, as the reward of his treachery, received fifty
thousand dollars, and the commission of brigadier-general
in the British army. Lost to shame, he put forth a
" Proclamation to the officers and soldiers of the Continen-
tal Army." He contrasted their privations and want of
pay with the comforts and full pay of the British soldiers,
and offered every man who should desert to the royal
cause, fifteen dollars as a bounty, and full pay thereafter.
The " proclamation" had no other effect than to increase
the detestation in which the soldiers held the traitor.
Clinton sent Arnold with sixteen hundred men, British
and Tories, to ravage the coasts of Virginia. Thomas
Jefferson, who was then governor, called out the militia
Jan. to defend Richmond ; but only about two hundred men
could be raised, and with great difficulty most of the pub-
lic stores were removed. After Arnold had taken pos-
session of the town, he proposed to spare it, if permitted
to bring up the ships and load them with the tobacco
found in the place. Jefferson promptly rejected the prop-
osition. Arnold destroyed a great amount of private
property, burned the public buildings, and some private
dwellings. He then dropped down the river, landing oc-
casionally to burn and destroy.
Baron Steuben, who was at this time in Virginia en-
listing soldiers for Greene's army, had not an adequate
force to repel the invaders. Washington sent to his aid
Lafayette, with twelve hundred men, principally from
New England and Jersey. They hoped to capture Ar-
nold. On the same errand, two French ships of war con-
trived to enter the Chesapeake. Soon after, the whole
BATTLE OF THE COWPENS.
French fleet, with troops on board, sailed from Newport y^xvii
for the same place. A British fleet followed from New
York, and an indecisive engagement took piace between 1781.
them off the entrance to the bay. The French fleet,
worsted in the fight, returned to Newport, while the Brit-
ish entered the bay and reinforced Arnold with two thou-
sand men, under General Phillips, who had recently been
exchanged for General Lincoln. Phillips assumed the
command, much to the satisfaction of the British officers,
who disliked to serve under the traitor.
Thus, for the fourth time, the French fleet failed to
co-operate with the American land-forces; in consequence
of which Lafayette was compelled to halt on his way at
Annapolis.
Phillips, having now a superior force, sent detach- Mar«
ments up the rivers and ravaged their shores. One of the
vessels sailed up the Potomac as as far as Mount Vernon.
The manager of the estate saved the houses from being
burned by furnishing supplies. Washington reproved
him in a letter, saying, he " would prefer the buildings
should be burned, than to save them by the pernicious
practice of furnishing supplies to the enemy/'
Cornwallis, who was at Winnsborough, detached Tarle-
ton, with about a thousand troops, cavalry and light-
infantry, to cut off Morgan's division, which was in the
region between the Broad and Catawba rivers. When
Morgan heard of Tarleton's approach, he retired toward
the Broad River, intending to cross it. Tarleton pursued
with his usual rapidity. Morgan saw that he must be
overtaken ; he halted, refreshed his men, and prepared for
the conflict. He chose his ground at a place known as
" The Cowpens/' about thirty miles west of King's Moun-
tain, and thus named because herds of cattle were pas-
tured in that portion of the Thickety mountains. The ^
two armies were about equal in numbers. More than half
of Morgan's were North and South Carolina militia, under
T>34 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
chap. Colonel Pickens. Morgan disposed bis men to the best
advantage ; the Continentals on a woody hill, and the
1781. militia in a line by themselves. He was deficient in cav-
alry, but placed what he had under Colonel Washington,
as a reserve. The British and Tories, though fatigued by
their last night's march, were confident of victory ; they
rushed on with shouts. The militia stood their ground,
delivered their fire, but quailing before the bayonet, they
broke and fled. In pursuing the fugitives, the enemy
almost passed by the Continentals, who, to avoid being
taken in flank, fell back in order. This movement the
British mistook for a retreat, and they commenced a vig-
orous pursuit, but when they approached within thirty
yards, the Continentals suddenly wheeled, poured in a
deadly volley, then charged bayonet, completely routed
them, and captured their colors and cannon. Mean time
the British cavalry, under Tarleton himself, continued the
pursuit of the militia. While thus rushing on in con-
fusion, the American cavalry attacked them in flank, and
routed them also. These two repulses occurred almost at
the same time, but in different parts of the field. The
enemy were routed beyond recovery, and the Americans
pursued them vigorously. The fiery Tarleton, accompa-
nied by a few followers, barely escaped capture. Of his
eleven hundred men he lost six hundred, while Morgan's
loss was less than eighty.
When Cornwallis, who was only twenty-five miles dis-
tant, heard of Tarleton's defeat, he at once determined
upon his course. He thought that Morgan, encumbered
with prisoners and spoils, would linger for some time near
the scene of his victory. He therefore destroyed his bag-
gage, converted his entire army into light troops, and with
all his force set out in pursuit. His object was twofold ;
to rescue the prisoners, and crush Morgan before he could
cross the Catawba and unite his force with that of Gen-
eral Greene.
THE RETREAT AND THE PURSUIT. f)3f>
Morgan was too watchful to be thus caught. He knew ££££.
ijornwallis would pursue him, and he left his wounded
under a flag of truce, and hurried on to the Catawba, and 1781
crossed over. Two hours had scarcely elapsed before the
Biitish vanguard appeared on the opposite bank. A sud-
den rise in the river detained Cornwallis two days ; in
the mean time Morgan sent off his prisoners, and refreshed
his men.
When Greene heard of Morgan's victory, he put his
troops in motion, and two days after the passage of the
Catawba joined him and assumed the command. He was
not yet able to meet the enemy, and the retreat was con-
tinued tow.ard the Yadkin, the upper course of the Peedee.
His encumbered army could move but slowly ; just as his
rear-guard was embarking on the river, the British van Feb.
came up. A skirmish ensued, in which the Americans 3
lost a few baggage wagons. To-morrow, thought Corn-
wallis, I shall secure the prize ; and he halted for the
night to rest his weary soldiers. The rain had poured in
torrents, and in the morning the river was so much swollen,
that his army could not ford it, and Greene had secured
all the boats on the other side. The latter, though here
joined by other divisions, dared not risk a battle with his
unrelenting pursuers. He called out the militia in the
neighborhood to check the enemy at the fords, and hur-
ried on to cross the river Dan into Virginia, whence alone
lie could receive recruits and supplies. General Morgan,
on account of illness, now withdrew from the army, and
Greene left Colonel Otho H. Williams, with some light-
armed troops, to keep the pursuers in check.
As soon as possible Cornwallis crossed the Yadkin ;
if the Americans could get beyond the Dan they would
be safe, and he strained every nerve to cut them off. He
supposed they could not cross at the lower ferries for want
of boats, and that they must go higher up the stream,
where it could be forded. With this impression he pushed
530 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
irxxvii ^or *^e uPPer f°rds, and Colonel Williams kept up his
delusion by manoeuvring before him in that direction.
1781. But the judicious Greene, anticipating the movement, had
taken measures to collect boats at the lower ferries, and
Bent forward Kosciusko to throw up breastworks to defend
them. He now urged on his weary soldiers, at the rate
of thirty miles a day, reached the ferries, and carried over
his main body, and the baggage. Meanwhile, when they
had sufficiently retarded the pursuers, by breaking down
bridges and carrying off provisions, the light-troops, as if
for the night, kindled their camp-fires in sight of the foe ;
j" then dashed off, and by a rapid march of forty miles,
reached the ferries and passed over. In a few hours, the
van of the British appeared on the opposite bank. Corn-
wallis, in his movement toward the upper fords, had gone
twenty-five miles out of his way. After a chase of more
than two hundred miles, the object of his pursuit lay in
sight, but the waters between could not be forded, nor
could boats be obtained. As the two armies rested in
sight of each other, how different were their emotions !
The one overflowing with gratitude, the other chafed with
disappointment.
The half-clad Americans had toiled for nearly four
weeks over roads partially frozen, through drenching rains,
without tents at night ; multitudes were without shoes,
and in this instance, as in many others during the war,
their way could be tracked in bloody foot-prints. Twice
had the waters, through which they had safely passed,
risen and become impassable to their pursuers, and again
a river swollen by recent rains lay between them. Was
it strange, that those who were accustomed to notice the
workings cf Providence, believed that He who orders all
things, had specially interposed His arm for the salvation
of the patriots ?
After resting his soldiers — who, if they were compelled
to march rapidly, were comfortably clad — Cornwallis com-
2.
GREENE MARCHES IN PURSUIT THE TORIES DEFEATED. 537
menced to move slowly back. He and his officers were £?££•..
greatly mortified at their want uf success ; they had made
great sacrifices in destroying their private stores, that 1781
when thus freed from encumbrances, they could overtake
the Americans and completely disperse them. A few
days later, he took post at Hillsborough, whence he issued
another of his famous proclamations.
General Greene refreshed his troops, of whom he wrote
to Washington, that they were " in good spirits, notwith-
standing their sufferings and excessive fatigue." He then
repassed the Dan, and boldly marched in pursuit, to en-
courage the Whigs of the Carolinas, and prevent the To-
ries from rising.
It was rumored that Tarleton was enlisting and organ-
izing great numbers of Tories in the district between the
Haw and Deep rivers. General Greene sent Colonels Mar.
Lee and Pickens, with their cavalry, against him. On
their way they met three or four hundred mounted Tories,
who mistook their men for Tarleton's, and came riding
up, shouting " Long live the king ! " It was for them a
sad mistake. The Americans made no reply, but sur-
rounded them, and without mercy cut them to pieces.
Another exhibition of that deadly rancor that prevailed in
the South between the Whigs and the royalists. This
check taught the Tories caution, and materially dimin-
ished their enlistments. Many others, on their way to
the British camp, when they heard of this conflict, re-
turned to their homes.
Cornwallis, almost destitute of supplies, changed his Fel».
position, and moved further South. Greene cautiously
followed, not daring, from very weakness, to risk an en-
gagement with the enemy's veterans, except when they
were in small parties. As for himself, he was so watchful
against surprise, that he never remained more than one
day in the same place, and never communicated to any
one beforehand where he expected to encamp.
26.
fc>& HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
chap. Fresh troops, in the mean time, were gradually joining
him from Virginia and Maryland, and when his force
1781. amounted to four thousand, he left his baggage seventeen
miles in the rear, and approached the enemy to give them
battle. It was in the vicinity of Guilford Court House.
15,' He drew his army up in two lines ; the militia, in whom
he had little confidence, as they were apt to give wty at
the first charge, he placed behind a fence, and stationed
sentries in the rear, with orders to shoot the first man
who should run. The battle was fought in a region cov-
ered with thick woods, with cleared fields interspersed.
The North Carolina militia could not withstand the shock
of the British charge, but threw down their arms and fled.
The Virginia militia, under Colonel Stevens, stood their
ground, and for a time kept up a destructive fire ; but
they too were compelled to yield to the bayonet. Now
the enemy pressed on in pursuit, but presently Colonel
Washington charged them with bis horse, and drove them
back. Then again the British artillery opened upon the
American pursuers, and they in turn were checked.
Greene depended much on his Continentals, but one of
the newly-raised Maryland regiments gave way before a
battalion led by Colonel Stewart. The battalion was
presently checked by Colonel Washington's cavalry, and
the brave Stewart was himself slain. It was impossible
to retrieve what the North Carolina militia had lost, and
Greene ordered a retreat, which he conducted with his
usual skill.
Though Greene retreated from the field, Cornwallis
was unable to pursue. More than a thousand of the mili-
tia deserted and returned home, and Greene's army was
soon as weak as ever. This has been thought one of the
severest battles of the whole war. " The wounded of both
armies lay scattered over a wide space. There were no
houses nor tents to receive them. The night that followed
the battle was dark and tempestuous ; horrid shrieks re*
CONFLICT AT HOBKIRK*S HILL. 539
sounded through the woods ; many expired before mom- $£££,
ing. Such is war ! "
Cornwallis's army was so broken by this battle, and 1781.
weakened by desertions and sickness, that it numbered
but about fourteen hundred men. He was compelled to
abandon his position, and fall back to Wilmington, near
the seaboard. After recruiting his men, Greene boldly
marched into South Carolina, and advanced rapidly upon
Camden, where Lord Rawdon with a small force held April
command. That central position was connected, on the
one hand, with Charleston, and on the other with the
strong forts of Ninety-Six and Augusta. Between these
important points, there were several smaller posts. Lee
and Marion were sent, with their cavalry, to attack
some of these. Greene himself advanced within two
miles of the British lines, and encamped at Hobkirk's
Hill, near a swamp which covered his left. Rawdon
thought to surprise the Americans, made a circuit of the
swamp, and came suddenly upon the camp ; but the sur-
prise was only partial. Greene promptly formed his line.
In moving along a narrow passage, the British were ex-
posed to a severe fire, and the American infantry were
about to attack them in flank, while the horse, under
Colonel Washington, moved to charge them in the rear.
Rawdon brought up his reserve to counteract this move- April
ment. A regiment of Continentals, in the American 25-
centre, and upon whom Greene depended veiy much,
unexpectedly gave way, and thus threw the army into
confusion, and a retreat was ordered.
The loss on each side was nearly equal ; the Americans,
however, brought off their cannon, and checked the pursuit.
In the mean while several fortified places belonging to the
British fell into the hands of Lee and Marion, thus breaking
up the communication between Charleston and the interior.
Rawdon abandoned Camden, and retreated to Monk's
Corner, in the vicinity of Charleston.
It
040 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
chap. Greene marched against the strong post of Ninety-Six,
but after besieging it for some time, he heard that Rawdoc
1781. had been reinforced, and was then hastening to relieve it.
After making a vigorous attempt to take the place by
assault, he raised the siege and retreated across the Sa-
Jnno luda. The heat had now become excessive, and both
armies retired from active operations : the American on
the hills of the Santee, and the British on the Congaree.
The British had lost in the space of seven months the
greater part of South Carolina, and were now restricted to
the region between the Santee and the Lower Savannah.
The partisan warfare continued, although the main armies
were at rest.
The British resolved to execute as traitors those who
had given their parole not to engage in the war or had re-
ceived a protection, if they should be taken prisoners with
arms in their hands. A distinguished citizen of Charleston,
Colonel Isaac Hayne, had been taken prisoner at the cap-
ture of that city, but owing to family afflictions — a sick
and dying wife and helpless children — he gave his parole
to remain neutral, and was promised protection. In vio-
lation of this pledge, he was soon after ordered to take up
arms against his countrymen'. He refused ; but instead
deemed himself justified in again joining the American
army.
He was again taken prisoner, and now condemned to
die as a traitor. The inhabitants of Charleston, Whig and
Tory, petitioned for his pardon, yet Rawdon refused, and
Hayne was hanged. His execution was looked upon as
contrary to military rule, cruel and unjust. In the minds
of the Whigs the bitterest animosity was excited. Greene
threatened to retaliate. The American soldiers were with
difficulty restrained from putting to death the British offi-
cers whom they took prisoners.
When the heat of the weather somewhat abated,
Greene moved from the hills up the Wateree to Camden,
BATTLE OF EUTAW SPRINGS. 541
and thence across the Congaree and down it to the vicinity J3U&.
of Eutaw Springs. The British, now under Colonel Stuart,
retired before him ; but the Americans surprised a large 1781.
foraging party and took a number of prisoners. The re-
mainder escaped and joined their main force, which im-
mediately drew up in order of battle. Though the attack
was made with great ardor, the enemy withstood it with
determined bravery. The contest raged most fiercely
around the artillery, which changed hands several times.
The British left at length gave way, and the Americans
pursued, but presently the fugitives took possession of a
large stone house, surrounded by a picketed garden. From
this place they could not be immediately dislodged. A Sept.
British battalion, which had successfully resisted a charge 8-
of the Americans, suddenly appeared at the rear of the
assailants. The latter, disconcerted by this movement,
and thrown into confusion, began to retreat.
The force of each army was about two thousand. The
loss of the British was seven hundred, and that of the
Americans about five hundred.
The victory was claimed by both parties, but the ad-
vantage was certainly on the side of the Americans.
Colonel Stuart, the British commander, thought it pru-
dent to fall back to the vicinity of Charleston. Greene re-
tired again to the hills of Santee to refresh his men, who were
wretchedly off for necessaries, being barefooted and half-
clad, out of hospital stores, and nearly out of ammunition.
Greene's military talents had been severely tested
during this campaign ; he was as successful in attacking
as he was in avoiding his enemies. In no instance was he
really equal to them in force and equipments ; but he
never fought a battle that did not result more to his ad-
vantage than to that of the enemy. Their very victories
were to them as injurious as ordinary defeats. It is not
strange that he was the favorite officer of the Commander-
in-chief.
Mav.
t)42 HISTORY OF THE AMEBIC AX PEOPLE.
\\xvii. While these events were in progress in the South, a series
of important operations were also in train in the North.
J 781. There were two objects, one of which might be attained :
New York might be taken, as its garrison had been much
weakened by sending detachments to the South; or Corn-
wallis might be captured in Virginia. But neither of
these could be accomplished without the aid of a French
army as well as fleet. While the matter was under con-
sideration, a frigate arrived from France bringing the
Count De Barras, who was to command the French fleet
at Newport, and also the cheering news that twenty ships
of the line, under the Count de Grasse, with land forces on
board, were shortly to sail for the West Indies, and that
a portion of this fleet and forces might be expected on
the coast of the United States in the course of a few
months. Washington and the Count de Rochambeau had
an interview at Weathersfield, Connecticut, to devise a
plan of operations. They determined to make an attack
upon New York. The French army was soon to be
put in motion to form a junction with the American on
the Hudson, and a frigate was despatched to inform the
Count de Grasse of the plan, and to invite his coopera-
tion.
Clinton, suspecting the designs against New York, be-
came alarmed, and ordered Cornwallis, who was at Wil-
liamsburg, Virginia, to send him a reinforcement of troops.
To comply with this order, the latter marched toward Ports-
mouth. Lafayette and Steuben cautiously followed. Their
men numbered about four thousand ; the army of Corn-
wallis was much more numerous and better appointed.
Lafayette intended to attack the rear-guard of the British
(3.* when the main body had passed James River. Cornwallis
suspected the design, and laid his plans to entrap the
Marquis. He sent over a portion of his troops with the
pack-horses, and so arranged them as to make a great dis-
play ; then threw in the way of the Americans a negro
Jnlv
DARING ATTACK BY WAYNE. 543
and a dragoon, who pretended to be deserters, and they jfxxvii
announced that the main body of the British army had
passed the river. Lafayette immediately detached Wayne 17S1-
with a body of riflemen and dragoons to commence
the attack, while he himself should advance to his sup-
port.
Wayne moved forward, forced a picket, which de-
signedly gave way, but presently he found himself close
upon the main body of the enemy. In a moment he saw
that he had been deceived. Wayne's daring nature de-
cided his course : he at once ordered a charge to be
sounded ; his men, horse and foot, caught his spirit, and
with shouts, as if sure of victory, they dashed against the
enemy with great impetuosity, gallantly continued the
fight for a short time, and then as rapidly retreated. The
ruse succeeded admirably. Cornwallis, astounded at the
boldness and vigor of the attack, hesitated to pursue,
thinking the movement was designed to lead him into an
ambuscade. This delay enabled Lafayette to extricate
himself from his dangerous position.
Cornwallis now crossed the river, but while the detach-
ment designed for New York was embarking, a second com-
munication was received from Clinton. He now announced
the arrival of reinforcements of Hessians from Europe, and
also directed Cornwallis to retain all his force, and choose
some central position in Virginia, and there fortify himself.
In accordance with this command, the latter chose the
towns of Gloucester and Yorktown, situated opposite each
other on York Kiver. Here, with an army of eight thou-
sand effective men, he threw up strong intrenchments,
and also moored in the harbor a number of frigates and
other vessels of war.
The financial affairs of the country continued in a de-
plorable condition. Congress hoped to remedy the evil by
544 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
txxvii aPPomtmg a single superintendent of finance, instead ot
the committee to whom it had hitherto been intrusted.
1781. Robert Morris, an eminent merchant of Philadelphia, ona
of the signers of the Declaration of Independence, received
the appointment. He accepted the office only on the ex-
press condition, that all transactions should be in specie
value. The results vindicated the wisdom of the choice ; the
genius in furnishing the "sinews of war" was as efficient
as that displayed by others in the field. At his instance
Congress established the Bank of North America, with a
capital of two millions of dollars, and to continue in force
for ten years. The bank was pledged to redeem its notes
in specie on presentation. This feature of the institution
at once secured the confidence of the public, and the
wealthy invested in it their funds. Operating by means
of the bank, Morris raised the credit of Congress higher
than it ever stood before ; and he was also enabled, in a
great measure, to furnish supplies for the army and pay
for the soldiers. Whenever public means failed he pledged
his own credit.
Washington, on his return from the interview with
Rochambeau, addressed letters to the authorities of New
Jersey and New England, urging them in this emergency
to furnish provisions and their quotas of men. But they
were dilatory and unable to comply, and he had but five
thousand effective men at Peekskill, and they would have
been destitute of provisions, had it not been for the energy
of Morris.
The French army had remained inactive eleven months
at Newport ; it now moved to join Washington in the
JaI7- Highlands. Information was received from the Count de
Grasse that he would shortly sail with a large fleet for the
United States. Washington and Rochambeau hastened
their preparations to cooperate with him upon his arrival
in the proposed attack on New York. An intercepted
letter gave Clinton the knowledge of these movements, and
CLINTON DECEIVED. THE ARMY ON THE MARCH. 545
he was soon on the alert to defend the city. The British chap.
XXXVlf
posts on Manhattan Island were reconnoitred by the Amer-
icans, the combined armies were encamped at Dobbs' Ferry 1781.
and on the Greenburg hills, waiting for reinforcements and
the Count de Grasse. Presently came a frigate from the
Count to Newport with the intelligence that he intended Aut;.
to sail for the Chesapeake. This information disconcerted
all their plans ; now they must direct their forces against
Cornwallis. To accomplish this effectively Clinton must
be deceived and Cornwallis kept in ignorance. To " mis-
guide and bewilder " Sir Henry, a space for a large en-
campment was marked out in New Jersey, near Staten
Island ; boats were collected ; ovens were built as if pre-
paring for the sustenance of a laige army ; pioneers were
sent to clear roads toward King's Bridge, and pains were
taken to keep the American soldiers ignorant of their own
destination.
General Lincoln was sent with the first division of the
army across the Jerseys ; he was followed by the French.
Wagons were in company to carry the packs of the soldiers,
to enable them to move with more rapidity. Washington
sent orders to Lafayette, who was yet in Virginia, to take
a position to prevent Cornwallis retreating to North Caro-
lina ; to retain Wayne with his Pennsylvanians, and to
communicate with General Greene. He also wrote to the
Count de Grasse, who would soon be in the Chesapeake.
Thus were the plans skilfully laid by which the con-
test was brought to a happy issue. When the Northern
soldiers arrived in the vicinity of Philadelphia, and found
that they were really going against Cornwallis, they mani-
fested some discontent in prospect of the long southern
march in the month of August. At this critical moment,
John Laurens, son of Henry Laurens, President of Con-
gress, arrived from France, whither he had been sent to
obtain aid ; he brought with him a large supply of clothing,
ammunition, and arms ; and what was just then very
fi-iO HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
chap, much wanted, half a million of dollars. By means of this,
and with the aid of Morris, the soldiers received a portion
1781. of their pay in cash. Their good humor was restored, and
they cheerfully marched on.
De Barras, who commanded the French fleet at New-
Aiiir. port, suddenly put to sea. Clinton at once divined the
object was to unite, in the Chesapeake, with another
French fleet from the West Indies ; and he sent Admiral
Graves to prevent the junction. The admiral was aston-
ished to find De Grasse, with twenty-five sail of the line,
anchored within the Capes. De Grasse ran out to sea, as
if to give the British battle, but really to divert their at-
^Pl- tention until De Barras could enter the Bay. For five
days the hostile fleets manoeuvred and skirmished. Mean-
while De Barras appeared and passed within the Capes,
and immediately De Grasse followed. Graves now re-
turned to New York.
Until the main body of the combined armies was be-
yond the Delaware, Clinton supposed the movement was a
*vpt. ruse to draw him out to fight in the open fields. Corn-
wallis himself:* was as much deceived ; thinking he would
have Lafayette only to contend with, he wrote to Clinton
that he could spare him twelve hundred men to aid in de-
fending New York. Not until he was fairly in the toils,
when the French fleet had anchored within the Capes, did
he apprehend his danger.
Thinking that perhaps a portion of the American army
might be s-mt ba&k to defend New England, Clinton sent
Arnold with a force, composed principally of Tories and
Hessians, on a marauding expedition into Connecticut.
But Washington was not to be diverted from his high pur-
pose. While he and De Rochambeau are pushing on to-
ward the head of the Chesapeake, let us turn aside to
to speak of this maraud, which closes the career of the
traitor in his own country.
NEW LONDON BURNED BY ARNOLD. 547
New London was the first to be plundered and burned, ,££££,
and there Arnold destroyed an immense amount of prop-
erty. Fort Griswold, commanded by Colonel William 1781.
Ledyard — brother of the celebrated traveller — was situated
on the opposite shore of the river. This was assaulted,
and after an obstinate resistance, in which the British lost
two hundred men and their two highest officers, it was
carried. When the enemy entered, the Americans laid
down their arms, but the massacre continued. Major
Bromfield, a New Jersey tory, by the death of the two
higher officers, became the leader of the assailants. Tra-
dition tells that when he entered the fort he inquired who
commanded, and that Colonel Ledyard came forward, say-
ing, " I did, sir ; but you do now ; " at the same time Sept.
handing him his sword : that Bromfield took the sword
and plunged it into Ledyard's breast. This was the sig-
nal for indiscriminate slaughter, and more than sixty of
the yeomanry of Connecticut were massacred in cold blood.
The militia began to collect in great numbers from the
neighboring towns. Arnold dared not meet his enraged
countrymen, and he hastily re-embarked. These outrages
were committed almost in sight of his birthplace. Thus
closed " a career of ambition without virtue, of glory ter-
minated with crime, and of depravity ending in infamy
and ruin."
The combined armies arrived at Elkton, where they g t
found transports sent by Lafayette and De Grasse to con- 27.
vey them to the scene of action. Previously De Grasse
had landed three thousand troops under the marquis St.
Simon, to unite with the forces under Lafayette, Steuben,
and Wayne.
As had been anticipated, Cornwallis endeavored to
force his way to the Carolinas, but the youthful marquis,
whom some months before he had characterized as a " boy,"
was on the alert. He then sent off expresses with urgent
T>48 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
txxvii aPPea^s *° Clinton to send him aid. In the mean tinift he
was indefatigable in strengthening his fortifications.
1781. The combined forces, French and American, were
about twelve thousand, besides the Virginia militia called
out by Governor Nelson, who, as the State treasury was
empty, pledged his own property as security to obtain a
loan of money to defray the expenses. The Governor
was a resident of Yorktown, and when the cannonade
was about to commence, he was asked where the attack
would be most effective : "He pointed to a large, hand-
some house on a rising ground as the probable head-quar-
ters of the enemy. It proved to be his own."
The plan of operations were speedily arranged, and the
allies began to press the siege with great vigor. Their
lines were within six hundred yards of the enemy's works,
which they completely surrounded. General Washington
himself put the match to the first gun. The heavy ord-
nance brought by De Barras was soon thundering at the
fortifications. The British outworks were very strong,
and beyond these were thrown up redoubts to hinder the
approach of the assailants. The cannonade continued for
four days ; the enemy's outworks were greatly damaged
and guns dismounted, while a forty-four gun ship and
other vessels were burned by means of red-hot shot thrown
by the French. Cornwallis withdrew his men from the
outworks, but the redoubts remained. Two of these were
to be stormed ; one assigned to the French, the other to
9^t- the Americans. The assault was made about eight o'clock
in the evening. The Americans, under Alexander Ham-
ilton, were the first to enter ; they scrambled over the
parapet without regard to order, and carried the redoubt
at the point of the bayonet. The French captured theirs,
but according to rule, and they suflfered more than the
Americans in their headlong attack. The emulation ex-
hibited by both parties was generous and noble. From
14.
SURRENDER OV CORNWALLIS. 540
these captured redoubts a hundred heavy cannon poured S££K\
in an incessant storm of balls. Cornwallis, as he saw his
works one by one crumbling to pieces, his guns disabled, 1781.
his ammunition failing, determined to make a desperate
sally and check the besiegers. The British soldiers, a
little before daybreak, suddenly rushed out, and carried
two batteries, but scarcely had they obtained possession
of them, before the French in turn furiously charged, and
drove them back to their own intrenchments. But one
avenue of escape was left ; — they must cross the river to Oct.
Gloucester, cut a way through the opposing force, and by
forced marches reach New York. Cornwallis resolved to
abandon his sick and wounded and baggage, and make the
desperate attempt. Boats were collected, and in the night
a portion of the troops crossed over ; the second division
was embarking, when suddenly the sky was overcast, and
a storm of wind and rain arrested the movement. It was
now daylight. The first division with difficulty recrossed
to Yorktown, as on the river they were subjected to the
fire of the American batteries. Despairing of assistance
from Clinton, and unwilling to risk the effect of an assault
upon his shattered works, or to wantonly throw away the
lives of his soldiers, he sent to Washington an offer to sur-
render. The terms were arranged, and on the 19th of '^
October, in the presence of thousands of patriots assembled
from the neighboring country, Cornwallis surrendered seven
thousand men as prisoners of war to Washington, as com-
mander-in-chief of the combined army, and the shipping,
seamen, and. naval stores to the Count de Grasse.
At Charleston, when Lincoln capitulated, the Ameri-
cans were not permitted to march out with their colors fly-
ing, as had beon granted to Burgoyne, but with their colors
cased. It was thought proper to deny them the courtesy
granted at Saratoga, and the British soldiers were directed
to march out with their cojors cased ; and Lincoln was
deputed by Washington to receive the sword of Cornwallis.
55() HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
chap. Washington sent one of his aids to carry the joyful
news to the Congress at Philadelphia. He reached the
178 J. city at midnight. Soon the old State-house bell, that
five years before signalized to the people that the Declara-
tion of Independence was made, now awoke the slumbering
city to hear the watchmen cry, " Cornwallis is taken !
Cornwallis is taken ! " The inhabitants by thousands
rusbed into the streets to congratulate each other. Con-
gress met the next morning and proceeded in a body to a
church, and there publicly offered thanks to Almighty God
for the special favor He had manifested to their struggling
country, then issued a proclamation appointing a day for
national thanksgiving and prayer, " in acknowledgment of
the signal interposition of Divine Providence/' Through-
out the whole land arose the voice of thanksgiving from
the families of the patriots, from the pulpits, from the
army. Never did a nation rejoice more. The clouds of
uncertainty and doubt were dispelled ; the patriots were
exultant in the prospect of peace and of the established
freedom of their country. Their intelligence enabled them
to appreciate the blessings for which they had so long
struggled.
If the battle of Bunker Hill, or the evacuation of Bos-
ton, had led to a reconciliation with the mother country,
how different had been their feelings. Then an affection,
a reverence for England would have lingered, only to re-
tard the progress of the Colonists — at best but half-forgiven-
rebels — and hold them subordinate to her, not so much in
political dependence as formerly, but sufficient to stifle that
sentiment of nationality, so essential to the proper develop-
ment of the;r character and of the resources of the country.
We havfc seen how long it took illiberal laws, en-
forced in a tyrannical manner, to alienate their affections.
It now required a seven years' struggle of war, outrage
and suffering, dangers and privations, to induce a pervad-
ing national sentiment, rouse the energies of the people,
THE CONTINENTAL SOLDIERS. 561
give them confidence, and lead them to sympathize with
each other.
Congress voted thanks to Washington, to the Counts
De Kochambeau and De Grasse, and to the army gener-
ally. Eulogies were showered upon the Commander-in-
chief ; — the spontaneous outpourings of a grateful people,
who, during the darkest hours of the contest, had in him
unbounded confidence.
Yorktown was now a name to be honored even beyond
those of Bunker Hill and Saratoga. How much was involved
in that surrender ! The long struggle was virtually ended.
It had been a contest not for power, not for aggrandize-
ment, but for a great truth and principle, which had been
overshadowed by authority- and pressed down by arbitrary
rule. Said Lafayette to Napoleon, when he sneered at
the smallness of the armies engaged in the American
Revolution : " It was the grandest of causes, won by the
skirmishes of sentinels and outposts." It is true that the
number who fell on the battle-fields was comparatively
small. The names of but few of these have come down to
us ; they were written only on the hearts of friends and
relatives who mourned their loss. Scarcely was there a
family but had a precious record ; the cherished memory
of some one who had thus sacrificed his life.
Note. — The number of soldiers furnished by each State to the Con-
tinental army, during the war, may be seen by the follow'r.g table :
Massachusetts, .
. 67,907
North Carolina, .
. 7,263
Connecticut, .
31,939
South Carolina,
6,417
Virginia,
. 26,678
Rhode Island,
. r>,908
Pennsylvania,
25,678
Georgia, .
2,679
New York,
. 17,781
Delaware, .
. 2,386
Maryland,
Xew Hampshire,
13 912
. 12,497
231,791
New Jersey, . .
10,726
CHAPTER XXXVIII.
CLOSING EVENTS OF THE WAR— FORMATION OF THE CONSTI-
TUTION.
British Efforts Paralyzed. — The States form Independent Governments. —
Indian Wars. — Massacre of the Christian Delawares. — Battle of the Blue
Lick. — Carleton supersedes Clinton. — Commissioners of Peace. — The
common Distress. — Dissatisfaction ' in the Army. — The "Anonymous
Address." — Peace concluded. — British Prisoners ; the Tories. — Disband-
ment of the American Army. — Washington takes leave of his Officers.
— Resigns his Commission. — Shay's Rebellion. — Interests of the States
clash. — The Constitutional Convention. — The Constitution ratified by
the States. — The Territory North-west of the Ohio. — Ecclesiastical Or-
ganizations.
^i.^i'v On the very day that Cornwallis surrendered, Clinton
\>.XV1II. ...... ,T
sailed to his aid with seven thousand men. When off the
*78l. entrance to the Chesapeake, he learned, to his astonish-
ment, that all was lost. As the British fleet was much
inferior to that of the French, he hastily returned to New
York.
Washington requested Count de Grasse to cooperate
with General Greene in an attack upon Charleston, but
De Grasse pleaded the necessity of his presence in the
West Indies, and excused himself. The Americans now
returned to their old quarters on the Hudson. The French
army wintered at Williamsburg in Virginia, while the
British prisoners were marched to Winchester.
The capture of Cornwallis paralyzed the efforts of the
THE STATE GOVERNMENTS — BORDER WARFARE. 553
British and Tories. In the South they evacuated all the chap
posts in their possession, except Savannah and Charleston ; .
before the latter place Greene soon appeared, and disposed 1781.
his forces so as to confine them closely to the town. In
the North, the only place held by the enemy was New
York.
Washington never for a moment relaxed his watchful-
ness, but urged upon Congress and the States to prepare
for a vigorous campaign the next year. But so impover-
ished had the country become, that to raise men and money
seemed almost impossible, while the prospect of peace
furnished excuses for delay.
The several States now took measures to form inde-
pendent governments, or to strengthen or modify those
already in existence. Some of these had been hastily
formed, and, consequently, were more or less defective.
The custom was introduced of sending delegates to con-
ventions called for the purpose of framing constitutions,
which were submitted to the people for their approval or
rejection. The common law of England was adopted, and
made the basis in the administration of justice in the
courts.
A cruel border warfare was still continued by incur-
sions of Indians against the back settlements of Pennsyl-
vania and Virginia, and against the frontiers of New York,
by Indians and Tories.
Many of the Delaware Indians, under the influence of
Moravian teachers, had become Christian, and so far im-
bibed the principles of their instructors as to be opposed
to war. Some of these, nearly twenty years before, had
emigrated from the banks of the Susquehanna and settled
on the Muskingum, where they had three flourishing vil-
lages, surrounded by corn-fields. The hostile Indians
from the lakes, in their incursions against the frontiers
of Pennsylvania and Virginia, robbed these Delawares of
t554 HISTORT OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
chap, their provisions. The Delaware* became objects of sus-
' picion to both the hostile Indians and the whites. The
17S1. former accused them of revealing their plans, the latter of
conniving at the incursions of their enemies, and the hostile
Indians compelled them to emigrate to the vicinity of San-
dusky.
In the mean time, murders had been committed by the
Shawanese in the vicinity of Pittsburg. A company of
eighty or ninety backwoodsmen volunteered, under a Colo-
nel Williamson, to take revenge on the supposed murderers
— the Christian Delawares — a portion of whom had re-
turned to their old home to gather their corn. The expe-
dition reached the villages on the Muskingum, collected
the victims, it would seem, under the pretence of friend-
ship, then barbarously and in cold blood murdered about
j-j-go" ninety of these inoffensive creatures, — men, women, and
children.
This success excited to other invasions, and four hun-
dred and eighty men, under Colonels Williamson and
Crawford, marched from Western Pennsylvania to surprise
the remnants of the Christian Indians at Sandusky, and
also to attack the village of the hostile Wyandottes. The
jime Indians learned of their approach, waited for them in am-
6. bush, and defeated them ; took many prisoners, among
whom were Crawford, his son, and son-in-law. These three
they burned at the stake.
About the same time, a large body of the Indians
north of the Ohio, led by the infamous Simon Girty, a
tory refugee, invaded Kentucky. They were met by the
Kentuckians, under Colonels Boone, Todd, and Triggs, at
the Big Blue Lick, when a bloody and desperate encounter
ensued. But overwhelmed by numbers, nearly one-half
the Kentuckians were either killed or taken prisoners.
After the capture at Yorktown no battle occurred be-
tween the main armies, and but one or two skirmishes.
"ug* In one of these, in the vicinity of Charleston, the younger
c^^> <ffc&m4.
PEOPLE OF ENGLAND DESIRE TO CLOSE THE WAR. .r);>r>
Laurens was slain — a young man of great promise, who chap.
was universally lamented. :
Among the English people at large the desire to close 1782.
the war had greatly increased. With them it had ever
been unpopular ; they were unwilling that their brethren
beyond the Atlantic should be deprived of the rights which
they themselves so much valued. The intelligence of the sur-
render of Cornwallis created among them stronger opposi-
tion than ever to the harsh measures of the Government.
Yet the war party — the King and Ministry, and the majority
of the aristocracy — were unwilling to yield to the pressure
of public opinion. They were thunderstruck at this unex-
pected disaster. Says a British writer: "Lord North re-
ceived the intelligence of the capture of Cornwallis as he
would have done a cannon-ball in his breast ; he paced the
room, and throwing his arms wildly about, kept exclaiming,
' 0 God ! it is all over ; it is all over ! ' " For twelve years he
had been prime minister. The pliant servant of the King,
he had ever been in favor of prosecuting the war, but now
the voice of the English people compelled him to resign.
Sir Guy Carleton, whom we have seen winning the re-
spect of the Americans, by his upright and honorable con-
duct when Governor of Canada, was appointed to succeed
Sir Henry Clinton. In the following May he arrived at
New York, empowered to make propositions for peace. He
immediately addressed a letter to Washington, proposing
a cessation of hostilities, and also issued orders, in whicli
he forbade the marauding incursions of the Indians and
Tories on the frontiers of Western New York.
Congress appointed five commissioners to conclude a
treaty with Great Britain. These were : John Adams,
Doctor Franklin, John Jay, Henry Laurens, who, lately
released from his confinement in the Tower, was yet in
London, and Thomas Jefferson ; — the latter, however, de-
clined to serve. They met at Paris two British Commis-
sioners, who had been authorized to treat with "certain
.056 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
,£&&&, colonies" named in their instructions. The American
XaXVIiI. . .
Commissioners refused to enter upon negotiations, unless
1782. in the name of the " United States of America ; " — they
claimed the right to be recognized a power among the
nations. This right was acknowledged by Britain, and on
the 30th of November the parties signed a preliminary
treaty, which Congress ratified the following April. Ne-
gotiations continued, and the final treaty was signed on
1788. the 3d of September following. France and England in
the mean time likewise concluded a treaty of peace. The
American Commissioners also negotiated treaties of com-
merce with Spain and Holland.
Though the war was ended, the American people had
numberless difficulties with which to contend. The army,
that through the many trials of the contest had remained
faithful, was in a deplorable condition. The half-pay for
life, which, three years before, Congress had promised to
the officers, proved to be only a promise. Washington
wrote confidentially to the Secretary of War in behalf of
those about to be discharged from the service : " I cannot
help fearing the result, when I see such a number of men
about to be turned on the world, soured by penury, in-
volved in debts, without one farthing to carry them home,
after having spent the flower of their days, and many of
them their patrimonies, in establishing the freedom and
independence of their country, and having suffered every
thing which human nature is capable of enduring on this
side of death. You may rely upon it, the patience and long
sufferance of this army are almost exhausted, and there
never was so great a spirit of discontent as at this instant."
Mar. At this crisis an address, plausibly written, vras privately
circulated in the camp. It suggested to the officers and
men the propriety of taking upon themselves to redress
their grievances ; that they should intimidate Congress
and compel it to pay their just demands.
THE ANONYMOUS ADDRESSES. 557
The address seems to have been the embodied senti- chap.
XXXVFfL
ments of some half dozen officers, although written by
Captain Armstrong, the son of General Armstrong of 1783.
Pennsylvania. A call was issued for a meeting of the
officers, but the next morning, in the regular orders for the
day, Washington took occasion to disapprove of the meet-
ing as a violation of discipline. He also named a day for
the officers to assemble and hear the report of a committee
of their number who had been sent to lay their demands
before Congress. The next day a second anonymous ad-
dress was issued, but somewhat more moderate in tone
than the first. The officers met according to appoint-
ment, and Gates, being second in command, was made
chairman of the meeting. Washington presently came in,
made them a soothing address, appealed to their patriotism
and to their own fair fame in toiling for their country, and
now were they willing to tarnish their name or distrust
their country's justice ? He pledged his word to use his
influence with Congress to fulfil its promises. He then
withdrew. The meeting passed resolutions which con-
demned in severe terms the spirit of the anonymous ad-
dress.
Congress soon after resolved to accede to the proposi-
tion of the officers, and change the promise of half pay for
life, to that of full pay for five years. And also to advance
to the soldiers full pay for four months.
This was not the only instance in which the influence
of Washington arrested plots designed to ruin the prospects
of the young republic. The condition of the country was
vso desperate that many feared the States could not form a
permanent government. At the suggestion of officers
who thus thought, Lewis Nicola, a foreigner, a colonel in
the Pennsylvania line, wrote Washington an elaborate
letter, in which he discussed the expediency of establish-
ing a monarchy, and finally offered him the crown. Wash-
ington indignantly condemned the scheme. Said he * "I
f>.">8 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
/vivni cann°t conceive what I have done during my whole life,
which could cause any one to imagine that I could enter-
1788. tain such a proposition for a moment."'
When these facts became known, it was not strange
that the people feared a standing army.
Intelligence came at length of the signing of the treaty
between the United States and Great Britain. Congress
issued a proclamation giving the information to the nation.
April On the 19th of April, precisely eight years from the battle
of Lexington, the cessation of hostilities was proclaimed in
the camp at Newburg.
The soldiers of Burgoyne and Cornwallis were yet pris-
oners, and had been marched to New York in order to be seut
home. A general exchange of prisoners now "took place.
The prospects of the Tories were dreary indeed. The se-
vere laws enacted against them were still in force, and now
several thousand of them had assembled at New York, and
were compelled to leave the country. The majority of
them were wealihy. During the war many of them had
held offices in the British service, and some had grown rich
as merchants, landowners, and sutlers for the British army ;
others, the unscrupulous, by privateering. Those who
lived in the North emigrated to Canada and Nova Scotia,
while those of the South went chiefly to the West India
Islands.
A clause was inserted in the treaty which prohibited
the carrying away of the slaves, large numbers of whom
had fled to the British army during the campaigns in the
Carol inas and Virginia.
Carleton refused to comply with the demand, on the
ground that it would be highly dishonorable to deliver
them up since they had sought protection under the Brit-
ish flag. To secure their safety, he sent them away among
the very first, while at the same time he kept an accurate
AiVJit^
cor-r Ritnl
I.COLT0N»CO.I»^."
DISBANDMENT OF THE ARMY. 658
list of their number, leaving to future negotiation indem- .f^1';,
nity for their loss.
These negroes, now liberated, were first taken to Nova 1783.
Scotia ; afterward, a large number of them emigrated to
Sierra Leone : " Their descendants, as merchants and
traders, now constitute the wealthiest and most intelligent
population of that African colony."
Before the disbandment of the army, Washington ad-
dressed a letter to the Governors of the several States, June,
urging them to guard against the prejudices of one part of
the country against another ; to encourage union among
the States, and to make provision for the public debt.
On the 3d of November the army was disbanded. Nor.
These patriot soldiers returned to their homes, to mingle
with their fellow-citizens, and enjoy the blessings which
their valor had obtained for themselves and their posterity.
From that day the title of revolutionary soldier has been a
title of honor.
Before the officers of the army finally separated, they
formed a society known as the Cincinnati — a name de-
rived from the celebrated farmer-patriot of Rome. The
association was to be perpetuated chiefly through the
eldest male descendants of the original members. But as
this feature, in the eyes of many, seemed to favor an
hereditary aristocracy, it was stricken out ; still the so-
ciety continued to be to some parties an object of jealousy.
As soon as preparations could be made, the British
evacuated the few places occupied by their troops ; New
York on the 25th of November, and Charleston in the fol- No*
. 25.
lowing month. General Knox, with a small body of troops,
and accompanied by Governor George Clinton and the
State officers, entered New York as the British were leaving.
A few days after, the officers of the army assembled at
a public house to bid farewell to their beloved commander. Dec
Presently Washington entered ; his emotions were too
strong to be concealed. After a moment's pause he said :
,)IJO HISTORY OF Till-: AMERICAN PEOPLE.
chap. " With a heart full of love and gratitude, I now take leave
nt you ; 1 most devoutly wish that your latter days may
l7so. be as prosperous and happy, as your former ones have been
glorious and honorable." He then added: t: I cannot
come to each of you to take my Vave, but shall be obliged
if each of you will come and take my hand." General
Knox, being the nearest, turned to him. Washington,
affected even to tears, grasped his hand and embraced him.
In the same affectionate manner lie took leave of each
succeeding officer : " The tear of manly sensibility was in
'•very eye ; not a word was spoken to interrupt the digni-
lied silence and the tenderness of the scene. Leaving the
room, he passed through the corps of light infantry, to the
barge which was to convey him across the river. The
whole company followed in mute and solemn procession,
with dejected countenances, testifying to feelings of de-
licious melancholy, which no language can describe. Hav-
ing entered the barge, he turned to the company, and,
waving his hat, bade them a silent adieu. They paid him
the same affectionate compliment." l
On his way to Annapolis, where Congress was in
session, he left with the controller at Philadelphia an ac-
curate account of his expenses during the war ; they
amounted to sixty-four thousand dollars. These accounts
were in his own handwriting, and kept in the most perfect
manner ; every charge made was accompanied by a men-
tion of the occasion and object.
In an interview with Congress, he made a short ad-
dress. Said he : '' The successful termination of the war
has verified the most sanguine expectations ; and my
,)r gratitude for the interposition of Providence, and the as-
2->. sistance I have received from my countrymen, increases
with every review of the momentous contest." Then
recommending to the favorable notice of Congress the
' Judge Marshall.
WASHINGTON RESIGNS HIS COMMISSION. S9\
officers of his staff, and expressing his obligations to the J^ap.
army in general, he continued : "I consider it as an in- — '. —
dispensable duty to close this last act of my official life, by 1788.
commending the interests of our clearest country to the
protection of Almighty God, and those who have the
superintendence of them, to his holy keeping."
" Having now finished the work assigned me, I retire
from the great theatre of action, and, bidding an affection-
ate farewell to this august body, under whose orders I
have so long acted, I here offer my commission, and take
my leave of all the employments of public life."
The President of Congress, General Mifflin, who, in
the darkest hour of the revolution, had favored the Con-
way Cabal, replied : " Sir, the United States, in congress
assembled, receive with emotions too affecting for utter-
ance, the solemn resignation of the authorities under which
you have led their troops with success through a perilous
and doubtful war. We join with you in commending the
interests of our dearest country to the protection of Al-
mighty God : and for you, we address to Him our earnest
prayers, that a life so beloved may be fostered with all
His care ; that your days may be as happy as they have
been illustrious ; and that he will finally give you that
reward which this world cannot give." Washington
hastened to Mount Vernon, which he had not visited for
eight years, except for a few hours while on his way against
Oornwallis.
Independence was at last attained, but at immense 1784.
sacrifices. The calamities of war were visible in the ruins
of burned towns, in the ravaged country, in the prostration
of industry, and in the accumulation of debts. These
amounted to one hundred and seventy millions of dollars —
a Bum enormous in proportion to the resources of the
country — two-thirds of this debt had been contracted by
Congress, and the remainder by the individual States.
562 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
ixxvui These were evils, but there were still greater which
came home to the domestic hearth. Frequently the mem-
1784. bers of families had taken different sides, some were Whisra
and some were Tories ; and that remorseless rancor which
so often prevails in times of civil discord, extended through-
out the land. It is pleasant to record, that in th^ course
of a few years, a forgiving spirit among the peoplt led to
the repeal of the severe laws enacted against the Tories,
and very great numbers of them repented of their mis-
guided loyalty and returned to their native land.
On the conclusion of peace the English merchants,
alive to their interests, flooded the States with manufac-
tured goods at very reduced prices. This operation ruined
the domestic manufactures, which the non-importation
association, and necessities of the war had created and
cherished, drained the country of its specie, and involved
the merchants and people in debt. This poverty was fol-
lowed by discontent, which prevailed more or less, and
excited disturbances in several of the States.
1780. In Massachusetts a thousand men assembled at Wor-
Dec
25. cester, under the leadership of Daniel Shays, and forced
the Supreme Court to adjourn, to prevent its issuing writs
for the collection of debts.
Governor Bowdoin called out the militia, which was
put under the command of General Lincoln, who in a few
,p87 weeks suppressed the outbreak. It was evident, however,
Jan. that there was among the people a strong feeling of sym-
pathy with the insurgents, for the vast majority of them-
selves labored under similar grievances.
This distress was overruled for good. It was the
means of bringing all the States to view with favor a union
under the same constitution, and thus form a government
which should have power to act for the good of the whole
country.
The States made trial of independent governments.
/^ .
£/y z '/Ti ££ 7 > <z
CLASHING INTERESTS — RIVAL PORTS. 563
but after an experiment of three or four years the result chap.
proved unsatisfactory. This was especially the case in re-
lation to the subjects of legislation which concerned the 1787.
whole country ; such as the regulation of commerce, the
common defence, the adjustment of controversies between
one State and another, and making of treaties with other
nations.
These difficulties were increasing — many interests
clashed. Some of the States passed laws which con-
flicted with those of their sisters ; since the close of the
war, commerce had increased very rapidly, but American
merchants were still excluded by the British from the
West India trade. They complained to Congress, but
the States had not yet conceded authority to that body,
to regulate commerce or to legislate for the whole country.
Some States had good harbors, and imported merchan-
dise upon which duties were imposed at the expense of
their neighbors ; and ports competed with each other by
lowering the rate of imports. Thus there were rival ports
on the Delaware ; and Maryland and Virginia competed
with each other for the trade of the Chesapeake, while
New Jersey and Connecticut were laid under contribution
by their neighbors of New York and Massachusetts. No
State could protect itself by retaliation against the restric-
tions of foreign countries, as the attempt would throw its
own trade into the hands of a sister rival.
Efforts were made to obviate these evils, and those
States bordering on the waters of the Chesapeake and
Potomac sent delegates to a convention held at Alexan-
dria, to establish a uniform tariff of duties on the mer-
chandise brought into their ports. This led to corre-
spondence between the prominent men of the country and
the legislatures. Another convention was held at An-
napolis, to which there were representatives from only five
States ; finally, the people elected delegates to meet is
•*>*>4 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
ivvvm Convention in Philadelphia; to revise the Articles of Coti-
federation.
1787. On the 14th of May the members of the Convention
met in the State House, in Philadelphia, in the same hall
where the Declaration of Independence was made. Wash-
ington, who, since the war, had lived in retirement at
Mount Vernon, appeared as a delegate. He was unani-
mously chosen President of the Convention.
The Convention resolved to sit with closed doors ; not
even a transcript of their minutes was permitted to be
made public. The articles of the old confederation, found
to be very defective, were thrown aside, and the Conven-
tion addressed itself to framing an independent con-
stitution.
There were present about fifty delegates, representa-
tives from eleven different States, all of whom had the
confidence of their fellow-citizens, and were distinguished
for their intellectual and moral worth and experience in
public affairs. Some had been members of the Stamp
Act Congress in 1765, some of the Continental Congress
in 1774, and some were also among the signers of the
Declaration of Independence. Conspicuous was the
venerable Dr. Franklin, now in his eightieth year, who,
thirty years before, at a convention at Albany, had pro-
posed a plan of union for the colonies.
The various disturbances in different parts of the land
had shaken the faith of many in the power of the mul-
titude to govern themselves. Said Elbridge Gerry, in the
Convention : " All the evils we experience flow from an
excess of democracy. The people do not want virtue, but
are under the dupes of pretended patriots ; they are daily
misled into the most baleful measures of opinions."
It was necessary to have a central government, which
could give security to all the States, and at the same time
not conflict in its powers with their rights.
It was found very difficult to arrange satisfactorily the
THE CONSTITUTION COMPLETED. 5&)
representation in the two branches of the proposed govern- ^vYvih
ment. The smaller States were alarmed, lest their rights
would be infringed upon by the overwhelming majority of 1^87.
members coming from the larger ones. This difficulty
was removed by constituting the Senate, in which the
States were represented equally without reference to their
population ; each being entitled to two members, while in
the House of Representatives the States were to be repre-
sented in proportion to their population.
After four months of labor, during which every article
was thoroughly discussed, the Constitution was finished
and signed by all the members present, with the exception
of three ; Gerry, of Massachusetts, George Mason and
Edmund Randolph, of Virginia. This result was not ob-
tained without much discussion ; at one time, so adverse
were opinions that it was apprehended the Convention
would dissolve, leaving its work unfinished. It was then
that Franklin proposed they should choose a chaplain to
Open their sessions by prayer. Said he : "I have lived a
long time ; and the longer I live the more convincing
proofs I see of this truth, that God governs the affairs of
men. And if a sparrow cannot fall to the ground without
his notice, is it possible that an empire can rise without
his aid ? "
The Convention presented the Constitution thus
framed to Congress, and that body submitted it to the
people of the States for their approval or rejection.
It was a document of compromises; probably not a
member of the Convention was perfectly satisfied with it.
There were three prominent compromises ; the first, the
equal representation in the Senate, a concession to the
smaller States ; the second, that in the enumeration of
the inhabitants three-fifths of the slaves were to be in-
cluded in determining the ratio of representation in the
iower house of Congress ; a concession to the slaveholders ;
566 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
xxxvfl'i and tlie third' PermissionJ tul 1808> to tne States of
Georgia and South Carolina, to receive slaves imported
1787. from Africa, as the delegates from those two States re-
fused to sign the Constitution except on that condition.
The great desire to secure the moral power of a unanimous
vote of the members of the Convention in favor of theii
own work, alone obtained this concession.
In less than a year after the Constitution was submitted
to the people, it was adopted by all the States, except
North Carolina and Khode Island, and by them in }ess
than two years.
This ratification of the Constitution was not brought
about without a struggle. The subject was discussed in
conventions and in the legislatures, and in the newspapers.
The States were for a time unwilling to resign any of their
sovereignty to a Federal or National Government.
Many elaborate essays, collectively known as the
Federalist, were written by Alexander Hamilton, Jay,
and Madison, in favor of its adoption. These essays had
an immense influence upon the leading minds of the
country ; and these in turn greatly influenced the popular
will.
It shows the practical wisdom of those who framed the
Constitution, that in the application of its principles for
almost three, quarters of a century, it has been found
necessary to change or modify only very few of its ar-
ticles.
While the Convention which framed the Constitution
was in session in Philadelphia, the Continental Congress in
July New York passed a bill " for the government of the Terri-
tory north-west of the Ohio." That region had been ceded to
the United States by the States of Massachusetts, Connec-
ticut, New York and Virginia. In this bill were introduced
provisions securing the exercise of religious freedom, and
for the encouragement of schools, and also the proviso that
" there shall be neither slavery, nor involuntary servitude
ECCLESIASTICAL ORGANIZATIONS. 567
in said territory, otherwise than in punishment for crime." ,£2™?;,
The region south of the Ohio was to be afterward regu-
lated. Three years before Thomas Jefferson had intro- 1784.
duced a bill, and urged its passage wTith all his influence,
to exclude slavery not only from the territory then held
by the United States, but from all which should thereafter
be ceded to Congress by the respective States. This bill
failed by only a few votes.
The people, though thus engaged in moulding their
political institutions, did not neglect to conform their sys-
tems of ecclesiastical government1 to the new order of
things. The Eevolution had changed the relation of the
religious denominations to the State. In New England,
Congregationalism was the established religion, and every
citizen was required to aid in the support of some church.
In all the southern colonies the Episcopal Church was
equally favored, and partially so in New York and New
Jersey. Only in Pennsylvania, Khode Island, and Dela-
ware, were all the Protestant sects on an equality, as to
their religious rights.
The Episcopal Church was more disorganized than any
other. It had hitherto been attached to the diocese of
the Bishop of London, but now that authority was not
recognized.
As yet there was no American bishop, and no means
to obtain the consecration of any clergyman to that office,
except by English bishops. Accordingly the Reverend
Samuel Seabury, of Connecticut, at the request of the
Episcopalians of that State, visited England to obtain or-
dination as a bishop. But the English bishops were pre-
vented by law of Parliament from raising any one to that
dignity, who did not take the oaths of allegiance, and ac-
knowledge the King as head of the Church. Seabury then
applied to the non-juring bishops of the Episcopal Church
of Scotland, by whom he was ordained. Some Episco-
,M>S IIISTOKl OF THE AMLiilCAN ri.Ol'LK.
i*v\ viVi l'a^1!inp5 however, were not satisfied with an ordination at
lit:
hands of the Scottish bishops.
A convention of delegates, from several States, met
and formed a constitution for the '"Protestant Episcopal
Church in the United States of America.''' After some
revision this constitution was adopted by conventions in
the separate States. Titles were changed in order to con-
form to republicanism; such as " Lord Bishop,'' and all
such as wore ''descriptive of temporal power and prece-
dency." The Liturgy lor the same reason was modified.
A friendly letter was addressed to the English bishops, re-
questing at their hands ordination of American bishops.
An Act of Parliament gave the desired authority, and
William White, of Philadelphia, Samuel Provost, of New
York, and James Madison, of Virginia, were thus ordained.
Soon after these ordinations, a General Convention ratified
the constitution, and the organization of the Episcopal
Church in the United States was complete.
About this time came Thomas Coke, as superintend-
ent or bishop in the Methodist Episcopal Church. He
had been an able laborer with Wesley, by whom he was
ordained to that office. This sect spread very rapidly,
especially in the south ; in that section of the country
were a great many vacant parishes, which belonged t<>
the Episcopal Church, numbers of whose clergymen left
the country during the troubles o\' the Revolution. At
this time the denomination did not number more than
ninety preachers, and lift ecu thousand members.
The institutions of the Congregational and Presby-
terian Churches required no change to adapt them to the
new order of things.
The Presbyterians took measures to organize their
l*fi£ Church government on a national basis. Four Synods
were formed out of the Synod of New York and Philadel-
phia. A General Assembly, composed of delegates from
$L#?fUX-<t fdrLt
THE SEPARATION OF CHURCH AND STATE. MM
all the Presbyteries of the land, was authorized to meet $£/£:.
annually.
Soon after the treaty of peace with England, the ^fe8*
Pope's Nuncio at Paris made overtures to Congress,
through Doctor Franklin, on the subject of appointing a
Vicar Apostolic or bishop for the United States. On the
ground that the subject was purely spiritual, and there-
fore beyond its jurisdiction, Congress refused to take any
part in the matter. The Pope then appointed as his vicar
apostolic, John Carroll, a brother of Charles Carroll, of
Carrollton ; the same was afterward raised to the dignity
of Archbishop of the Roman Catholic Church in the
United States.
Almost immediately after the Declaration of Inde-
pendence the Presbytery of Hanover, in Virginia, address-
ed a memorial to the House of Assembly, in which they
petitioned for the separation of church and state. They IV 70.
preferred that the gospel should be supported by the free
gifts of its friends ; they asked no aid from the civil
power to maintain their own churches, and were unwilling
that any denomination should thus be favored. The
movement thus commenced was ardently seconded by the
Baptists and Quakers, who petitioned the Assembly to
the same effect. These petitions were met by counter-
memorials from the Episcopalians and Methodists, who
urged in behalf of the Establishment, that it was a system
which " possessed the nature of a vested right, and ought
to be maintained inviolate."
The separation of church and state soon became a
prominent question in Virginia. Jefferson took an im-
portant part in the animated contest, but the most effective
was the united influence of those who first opposed the
establishment, and who never relaxed their efforts till the
churches were declared independent of the civil power, and
every colonial law interfering with the religious rights of
the people was swept away.
570 HISTOKY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
chap. The example thus set by Yirginia was not without its
_!__ influence ; the union of church and state was dissolved
17S8. in the other States soon after the close of the Revolution,
except in Connecticut and Massachusetts, where the sys-
tem was retained many years longer.1
Thus we have seen the Fathers of the Republic equal
to every emergency as it occurred. They carried their
country through the Revolution ; then through the trying
period between its close and the formation and adoption
of the Constitution, and the adjustment of the difficult
question of the relation between church and state. As
statesmen and patriots they are held in higher estimation
to-day by enlightened and liberal men than ever before ;
while the cause they advocated takes a deeper hold upon
the general intelligence of the world. Had they been
advocates of principles that could not bear the test of
time and experience, though equally honest and sincere,
they would still be looked upon as misguided men. On
the contrary, they were in advance of their own age, and
as time moves on they are more and more appreciated ;
their cause was commensurate in importance with the
zeal and self-denial they exercised in making the prin-
ciples of true liberty the inheritance of civilized man.
It requires a good cause, as well as success, to secure the
respect of future generations.
1 Hildreth, Vol. III. Dr. Hawkes' Contributions to Ecclesiastical
History of the U. S. Dr. Baird's Religion of America.
CHAPTER XXXIX.
WASHINGTON'S ADMINISTRATION.
The Reception and Inauguration of the President. — An Era in human pro-
gress.— The Departments of State organized. — Hamilton's Financial
Report. — Congress Assumes the Debts of the Nation. — The National
Bank. — Commercial Enterprise. — Manufactures. — Indian War. — Har-
mer's Repulse. — St. Clair defeated. — Wayne defeats the Indians. — Po-
litical Parties. — Jefferson. — The French Revolution. — Genet arrives as
French Minister. — War between France and England. — Neutrality pro-
claimed by the President. — Partisans of France. — Arrogant proceed-
ings of Genet. — The Whiskey Insurrection. — Special Mission to Great
Britain. — A Treaty concluded. — Its Ratification. — Other Treaties. —
Washington's Farewell Address. — The Policy of the Government
established.
When two-thirds of the States had adopted the Fed- chap.
eral Constitution, it became the law of the land. The
Continental Congress — that body so remarkable in its 17S9.
origin, in what it had accomplished, and now about to
pass out of existence — ordained that the new government
should go into operation on the 4th of March, and also
designated the city of New York as the place where the
National Congress should holdiis sessions. The same au-
thority also named the time for electing the President and
Vice-President, according to the manner prescribed in the
Constitution.
The hearts of the American people were turned to
one man. George Washington was unanimously chosen
the first President of the Republic. John Adams received
the next highest number of votes, and was elected Vice-
572 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
chap. President. Charles Thompson, the old Secretary of Con-
_ gress, was sent to Mount Vernon to inform Washington
17S9. of his election, and another messenger to Boston, to inform
Adams of his. The latter had just returned from a resi-
dence of nine years in Europe, where he had been engaged
in public business ; he immediately set out to enter upon
the duties of his office. As a mark of respect, he was
escorted by a troop of horse through Massachusetts and
Connecticut, and was met at the New York State, line,
and in a similar manner attended to the city.
Washington wished to travel to New York in as
private a manner as possible. But enthusiasm and re-
spect, drew the people in crowds to see and honor him.
The authorities of the States through which he passed,
vied with each other in testifying their regard. The most
graceful reception, and no doubt to him the most grateful,
was the one he received at Trenton. As he came to the
bridge, over which, twelve years before, on the eve of the
battle of Princeton, he retreated with his weary and dis-
heartened soldiers, he found it spanned by a triumphal
arch bearing the inscription : " The Defender of the
Mothers will be the Protector of the Daughters/' Here
were assembled a company of matrons and young girls,
dressed in white, with baskets of flowers in their hands.
As he approached they began to sing an appropriate ode,
written for the occasion. At the close of the line, " strew
your hero's way with flowers," they suited the action to
the sentiment by strewing the flowers before him. At
Elizabethport he was met by a committee of both Houses
of Congress, and the heads of departments, and received
on board a barge, magnificently decorated, and manned
by thirteen pilots in appropriate uniforms. The barge
was accompanied by a numerous cortege of boats filled
with citizens. Welcomed to the city, amidst the salutes
of artillery from the ships in the harbor, American as well
as foreign, and from the battery, he was. conducted to
INAUGURATION OF WASHINGTON. f>70
the house prepared for his reception, by Governor George j^fe
Clinton, the State officers, and a numerous concourse of
people. 1789-
On the morning of the 30th of April, at 9 o'clock, the
churches were opened for religious services and prayer. A
little after the hour of noon, on the balcony of the Federal
Hall, on the site of the present Custom House, in the
presence of a vast concourse of people in the streets, the
oath of office was administered to the President elect, by Ap1"^
Robert R. Livingston, Chancellor of New York. At the
close of the ceremony the Chancellor exclaimed : "Long
live George Washington, President of the United States 1 "
The assembled multitude responded to the sentiment.
The members of both Houses returned to the Senate
chamber, where the President delivered an inaugural ad-
dress, replete with wisdom and with sentiments designed
to harmonize the discordant opinions which prevailed, and
with renewed expressions of gratitude to Heaven for the
favor granted the people of America, in all their struggles.
Then he closed by announcing that he would receive no
remuneration for his services, only asking that his ex-
penses might be paid. The members of Congress, ac-
companied by the President, then went in procession to
St. Paul's church, where, led by Bishop Provost, the
Chaplain of the Senate, they implored the blessing of the
King of nations upon the government just inaugurated.
The youthful nation was about to assume the powers
of self-government, under circumstances never before wit-
nessed in the history of man ; to throw off the useless
in. forms and systems, retain what was valuable, and com-
mence a new era in human progress. The people them-
selves established their own government ; its Constitution
was framed to secure their own welfare, and not to make
the State great at their expense. They had learned this
of their fathers. In English history all the great advances
in securing the enjoyment of human rights, from the day
574 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
\\\\x' on wmcn ^agna Charta was given, to the Declaration of
. Independence, had tended to protect the rights of the
1789. subject — the individual man — and now this principle, un-
trammelled by clogging forms, was to be carried out. The
individual man was to be pre-eminent ; the State only his
instrument, the mere machine of his own contriving, de-
signed and moulded from time to time to protect his civil
and religious privileges. In the great empires of the Old
World, the empire was every thing ; the people nothing.
Now the people were to be every thing ; henceforth they were
to be the fountain of power and influence. Ancient Greece
and Rome had their civilization, their literature, their
art, their liberty ; but they failed ; they had no elevating
principle like Christianity to permeate and influence the
people, penetrate their inmost life, and dignify the hum-
blest by bringing into exercise the noblest attributes of
their nature. A Christianized civilization ; the recog-
nition of man's dearest rights ; an open field for individual
enterprise ; attachment to institutions under whose ample
shield protection was secured to all, were so many pledges
of the ultimate success of a people thus governed.
The new government had before it a difficult task to
arrange the various departments of State ; to obtain
revenue, and pay off the national debt. Three executive
departments were created, the presiding officers of which
were styled secretaries — the Treasury, War, including
that of the Navy, and Foreign Affairs. These secretaries,
the President, with the concurrence of the Senate, could
appoint to office, or dismiss from the same. They were
to constitute his cabinet or council ; and when requested
by him, were bound to give in writing their opinions on
the subject under discussion. A judiciary for the nation
was established, under the title of the Supreme Court of
the United States, having subordinate Circuit and District
courts. Washington nominated Alexander Hamilton,
Secretary of the Treasury ; General Knox, Secretary of
THE FIRST SESSION OF THE FIRST CONGRESS. 575
War ; Thomas Jefferson, Secretary for Foreign Affairs ; °hap.
John Jay, Chief Justice of the United States, and Edmund '__—'
Randolph, Attorney-General. 1789.
The first session of Congress, a laborious one of six
months, was spent in organizing the government. It
shows the spirit of the times, that before they adjourned
Congress passed a resolution, requesting the President to
recommend a " day of public thanksgiving and prayer, in
acknowledgment of the many signal favors of Almighty
God, and especially his affording the people an oppor-
tunity peaceably to establish a constitution of government
for their safety and happiness."
In January, the second session of the First Congress 1790.
commenced. The President, instead of sending a written
message, as is now the custom, made to both Houses, as-
sembled in the Senate chamber, an address. He directed
their attention to the public defence ; to the encourage-
ment of agriculture, manufactures, commerce, and litera-
ture ; to the enactment of naturalization laws, and espe-
cially to the payment of the national debt. These various
heads of business were referred to committees. During
this session the official intercourse between the heads of
departments and the Houses of Congress took the form of
written communications.
Hamilton made his celebrated financial report, in which
he recommended certain measures for obtaining revenue
to defray the current expenses of the Government and pay
off the national debt. This debt was in the form of cer-
tificates or notes of obligation to pay for value received.
During the war they had been issued by the States as
well as by Congress, to persons who furnished supplies to
the army, and for other services. Congress assumed these
debts, and also the foreign debt. The expenses of two
distinct governments — the Federal and that of the separate
States — were to be borne. The revenue could be derived
only from taxes on property. As the control of commerce
i>76 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
c»ap. had been transferred to Congress by the States, it was
fitting that the revenue derived from the tax or duty levied
1700. on imported merchandise should be appropriated to the
support of the Federal Government, while that arising
from real estate and other sources, should be assigned to
the use of the States. Hamilton proposed, and the gov-
ernment adopted the system of indirect taxation by rais-
ing revenue from the duties thus imposed ; and to meet a
certain deficiency at the time, an excise, or tax on the
manufacture of domestic spirits.
Near the close of this session, Congress, after much dis-
cussion, passed a bill to locate the seat of the General
Government on the banks of the Potomac, and authorized
the President to select the spot within certain limits, and
to make arrangements for the erection of suitable build-
ings. Until these should be ready for occupation, its ses-
sions were to be held in Philadelphia, at which place, ac-
Iv-r- cordinglv, the second Congress began its first session.
The President congratulated the members on the in-
creasing prosperity of the country, and the unexpected
success in obtaining revenue. On the recommendation of
Hamilton, Congress gave a charter for twenty years for a
National Bank, with the privilege to establish branches in
any of the States. The capital of the Bank was ten mil-
lions, of which the government took two millions, and in-
dividuals the remainder. The Bank was as beneficial to
the government as it was to the commercial interests of
the country. Its bills were payable in gold or silver when
presented at its counters. This feature had a decided
effect ; it raised the credit of the General Government,
and inspired confidence in the commercial world. The
first census, just taken, showed the population of the States
to be almost four millions.
By assuming the debts contracted by the States in
the defence of their common liberties, Congress had simply
performed an act of justice ; pro :sion was made to pay
COMMERCIAL ENTERPRISE — DOMESTIC MANUFACTURES. 57?
the interest, and also in time to liquidate the debts them- £pAE
eelves. The duties imposed upon imports to raise revenue, .
had also a beneficial effect upon the struggling manufac- 1790.
tures of the country. The mutual confidence between the
States and the Federal Government, produced a like in-
fluence upon the minds of the people ; their industry was
encouraged, and their commerce extended. American
merchantmen were seen on almost every sea ; some sailed
to the north-west coast of the continent, where, in ex-
change for trinkets, they obtained furs ; these they barter-
ed for cargoes in China, and these again they sold at home
at an immense profit ; while others were as busily employ-
ed in the trade to the East and West Indies, and to Eu-
rope. About this time Captain Gray, of Boston, returned
from a voyage around the world — the first ever made by
an American. On his second voyage he discovered, and
to a certain extent, explored the Columbia river. 179'2,
Though the Revolution broke the fetters with which
English cupidity had bound the domestic manufactures
of the colonies, still there were innumerable .difficulties in
the way. A coarse fabric, known as linsey-woolsey, and
dyed in various colors, derived from the bark of trees in
the forest, comprised almost entirely the extent of domes-
tic cloths. At the town of Beverly, in Massachusetts, was
established the first factory for making cotton cloth. " The i7$s,
patriotic adventurers" were not very successful in their
enterprise, though they had machines that could " card
forty pounds of cotton in a day, and spin sixty threads at
a time." Newburyport has the honor of having the first
factory for making woollen cloths, and two years later an 17Q,
establishment for printing calico. These crude efforts
were not very successful, but they were the harbingers of
future triumphs. *
Sir Richard Arkwright improved upon a machine in-
vented by a poor man named Highs, who called it a
" Jenny, ' in honor of his daughter, and who, amid many
578 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
xxxix discouragements, and the jeers of his ignorant neighbors,
contrived to spin a dozen threads of cotton at a time.
1794. He turned his machine by hand ; Arkwright arranged it
to be driven by water-power. Samuel Slater, " the father
of American manufactures," a native of Derbyshire, an
apprentice of Arkwright's partner, made himself familiar,
not merely with the use of the machine, but with the
construction of the machines themselves. The British
government did every thing in its power to retain the
knowledge of the invention within the kingdom. Slater
resolved to emigrate to America, and there introduce this
art of spinning cotton. He landed at New York, but not
meeting with encouragement, he went to Rhode Island,
1790. and at Pawtucket put in operation sixty-two spindles on
the Arkwright principle. Sixteen years later he was join-
ed by his brother, John Slater,* who brought with him
the recent improvements in the art.
In the valley of the Ohio, Indian troubles were on the
increase. The British neglected to give up the Western
posts according to the treaty, but retained them with their
small garrisons. The Indians became restless, and oc-
casionally made incursions against the frontier settlements,
especially those in Kentucky. It was surmised that
Oct. British emissaries had excited them to these outrages.
The year previous they had repulsed General Harmer,
who had been sent against them, and this success increas-
ed their boldness. General St. Clair, now Governor of the
North-west Territory, was appointed to the command of
another expedition against them. In the mean time vol-
unteers from Kentucky made desultory expeditions into
the wilderness north of the Ohio. They attacked all the
Indians they met, friendly or unfriendly, but the latter
generally kept out of their way ; to burn empty wigwams,
and destroy cornfields, only exasperated the savages more
1791. and more.
* His descendant, John S. Slater, in April, 1882, had introduced
into the N. Y. Legislature a bill organizing an Association to manage
a fund of $1,000,000 presented by him for aid in educating the
negroes of the Southern States.
INDIAN WAR ST. CLAIR'S DEFEAT. 579
It was the middle of September before St. Clair, with char
an army of about two thousand men, began his march
from Fort Washington, the little stockade fort on the site 1791.
of the present city of Cincinnati. It was his object to
open a way, and establish a line of posts from the Ohio to
the Maumee, and there build and garrison a strong fort,
as a check upon the marauding Indians. Two of these
posts he had already established. The militia who joined
the army from Kentucky, were insubordinate, and, as the
army could move but very slowly in cutting its way
through the wilderness, they grew impatient, and finally
numbers of them returned home. The Chickasaw warriors
also deserted, and his force was reduced to fourteen hundred Nov.
men. When he reached the head-waters of the Wabash,
his army was surprised by Little Turtle, a celebrated
Miami chief, and the Indians, who had hitherto contrived
to keep out of sight. The militia fled immediately, and
threw the regulars into confusion, who could not regain
their order, nor sustain the attack. St. Clair was in his
tent prostrated by illness and not able to mount his horse,
and when Colonel Butler fell, the army commenced its
retreat, or rather flight, abandoning every thing. For-
tunately, plunder had more attractions for the savages
than pursuit of the fugitives. The remnant of the army
returned to Fort Washington, and the whole frontier was
again defenceless. St. Clair resigned his command, and
the President appointed General Wayne, whom we have
seen so daring in the battles of the Revolution, to lead
the next expedition ; for the sake of connection the ac-
count of this will be given here.
An attempt was made to negotiate a peace, but with-
out success ; in .the mean while Wayne was at Fort
Washington, earnestly engaged in recruiting and organ- 1794.
izing his army. With his usual energy he pushed his
forces rapidly forward to the scene of St. Clair's defeat, june#
and there built a fort which he named Recovery. This
580 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
chap, fort the Indians besieged for two days, but were at length
driven off. Six weeks after he suddenly marched to the
1794. Maumee. The Indians were taken by surprise. They
took position amidst some fallen timber, prostrated by a
hurricane, in order to avoid the cavalry-, of which they had
a great fear. Wayne ordered the infantry to charge with
Aug. the bayonet through the timber. The Indians were im-
mediately routed, and scattered in all directions. The
fertile valleys of the neighborhood were covered with
cornfields ; these fields of grain were destroyed up to the
very gates of the British fort, which Wayne could scarcely
restrain his army from attacking. Thus, in a campaign
of ninety days, he had marched three hundred miles, the
greater part of the road cut by the army, had completely
broken the Indian power, destroyed their provisions for
the next winter, and established a full garrisoned fort in
Nov. the midst of their country. He now returned to Green •
ville, on the Miami, to winter-quarters.
The following summer eleven hundred warriors, repre-
sentatives from the western tribes, met Wayne at that
Aj'P- place and made a treaty which secured peace to the fron-
tier. Their friends the British were about to evacuate the
western posts, and they found it more to their advantage
to submit. They ceded at this time nearly all the terri-
tory of what is now the State of Ohio, for which they were
paid. For twenty years the Indians had made incursions
into Kentucky, and during that time they had carried
off a great number of captives. By this treaty all these
captives were to be restored to their friends. It was a
moving spectacle to see parents endeavoring to find their
children, who, years before, had been taken from their
homes, some of them had forgotten their, native language,
some preferred to stay with their savage captors rather
than return to civilized life. Many husbands and wivea
who had been separated for years, were restored to each
other.
CONFLICT OF OPINIONS JEFFERSON. 581
The conflict of opinions, in regard to the adoption of 9^ix
the Constitution, had created two parties ; the Federal-
ist and the Anti-Federalist : the one, the administration 1792.
and its friends ; the other, those opposed to its policy. As
the Constitution became more and more popular, opposi-
tion was specially made to Hamilton's management of the
financial affairs of the government. Time has proved the
wisdom of his policy, which has continued, in the main,
to be that of the government from that day to this.
" He was made Secretary of the Treasury ; and how
he fulfilled the duties of such a place, at such a time, the
whole country perceived with delight, and the whole world
saw with admiration. He smote the rock of the national
resources, and abundant streams of revenue gushed forth.
He touched the dead corpse of the Public Credit, and it
sprang upon its feet." r
In this opposition Jefferson, the Secretary of State, per-
formed a secret but active part. Having been some years
in France, as American Minister, he had returned home
thoroughly imbued with French politics. He disliked
Adams almost as much as he did Hamilton, and he seems
to have been haunted with the idea that these two mem-
bers of the cabinet were, in disguise, either monarchists or
aristocrats ; that they were devising plans to change the
republican form of the government ; and that Washing-
ton was misled by them. He noticed and recorded every
remark which seemed to him suspicious, made by these
gentlemen, when in the hours of unreserved social inter-
course. While ostensibly the friend of Washington and
his administration, he was in communication with the op-
position, and diffusing his opinions in his private corre-
spondence. Measures, which at one time he himself had
approved, he now feared might have lurking in them some
laf«nt principle which might lead to the establishment of
1 Daniel Webster.
582 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
xvxix a monarchy- His party thought it expedient to repudiate!
the name, Anti-Federalists, and assume that of Kepubli
1793. can, at the same time proclaiming they were the only
true friends of the people. An incessant warfare com-
menced against the policy of the government, accompanied
with scurrilous abuse of the President.
The assumption of the State debts ; the national
bank ; the manner of raising the revenue ; the funding
system, by which provision was made to pay the interest
on the national debt, were, in the eyes of the opposition,
so many cunningly-devised plans to create friends among
the rich, and in the end subvert the liberties of the country.
The public interest demanded it, and after much so-
licitation from the leading members of the government,
Washington consented to serve for a second term. He
was unanimously chosen. Adams was re-elected Vice-
President ; he receiving seventy-seven electoral votes, and
George Clinton, of New York, fifty.
1Y89.
Two months and a half after the first inauguration of
Washington as President, a bloody revolution broke out
in France. The people of the United States looked with
much interest upon the French people struggling for
liberty. But it was soon evident that the state of the
nation's morals, political as well as private, forbade the
success of the French republic. The remembrance of the
alliance with France, by which they had received aid in
the time of need, elicited the sympathy of the American
people. The republican party wished to form an alliance
with the new Republic, while Washington, and the ma-
jority of his cabinet, as well as the more judicious states-
men, were in favor of neutrality. The unheard-of cruel-
ties, which, in the name of liberty, had been practised in
France for a year or two, had cooled the zeal of many.
One party had succeeded by guillotining the leaders of its
rival ; the amiable Louis, who had aided the Americana
NEUTRALITY PROCLAIMED CITIZEN GENET. 583
in their struggle for liberty, had been murdered by his chap.
eubjects ; and Lafayette was forced to flee. Strange that
such " excesses and horrible butcheries" found apologists 1793.
in the United States.
While the public mind was thus divided, came Ed-
mond Charles Genet or " Citizen Genet " as he was
styled, as minister of the French Kepublic. He brought
the intelligence that France had declared war against
England. Now the opposition, urged on by their hatred
to the latter power, wished to enter into an alliance with
France, and thus involve the country in war. But Wash-
ington and his cabinet, in spite of these clamors, promptly
proclaimed neutrality as the policy of the United States,
and also warned the people not to commit acts inconsist-
ent with the proclamation of neutrality, nor with the
strictest impartiality towards the belligerents. The wis-
dom of the Government saved the country from a mul-
titude of evils.
Genet took advantage of the sympathy manifested for
France by a portion of the American people, and began
to fit out privateers against English commerce. This
was an insult to the dignity of the government, and a
violation of the proclaimed neutrality. But the parti-
sans of France were determined that the country should be
committed to an alliance with the great sister Republic
in the old world.
About this time numerous societies, modelled after the
famous Jacobin clubs in Paris, began to be formed in
various parts of the Union. The more ultra assumed the
title of Democratic, while others preferred to call them-
selves Democratic Eepublican. They made strenuous
efforts to influence the public mind in favor of French
politics, and drive the government from its determination
not to interfere in the quarrels of Europe. The President
and his policy were assailed in terms of unmeasured abuse.
The principal organ of this abuse was the Gazette news-
T>84 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
£?^y' paper, edited by Philip Freneau, who at this time was em-
, ployed by Jefferson as translating clerk.
1793. The Republican newspapers continued to accuse the
President and his cabinet of being enemies of France, the
only friend of the United States, and of being friends of
England, the bitter enemy of American liberties.
Genet mistook the clamors of a few for the sentiments
of the majority of the people. He now had the audacity
to authorize the French consuls in the ports of the United
States to receive and sell prizes taken from the English,
with whom we were at peace. He had also other projects
in view, one to raise men in the Carolinas and Georgia and
wrest Florida from Spain, another to raise men in Ken-
tucky and make an attack on Louisiana.
In his correspondence with the government he became
more and more insolent, imputed improper motives to its
members, till finally the President transmitted his letters
to Gouverneur Morris, American minister at Paris, with
directions to lay them before the Executive Council — and
request his recall.
When Genet received the information of this pro-
cedure he was thunderstruck. He charged Jefferson with
insincerity, as " having an official language and a lan-
guage confidential."
Though sympathizing with France in her struggles
for liberty, but not in her atrocious excesses, the great
majority of the people, when informed of the true state of
the case, began to hold meetings and express their appro-
bation of the measures adopted by the President, to
prevent his country from being embroiled in European
quarrels.
In due time Morris presented the request that Genet
should be recalled ; but another change had occurred in
France. The management of affairs had passed into the
hands of the Jacobins ; the Reign of Terror had com-
menced. Genet was unceremoniously recalled, and Me.
1794.
FIRST SETTLERS OF WESTERN PENNSYLVANIA. 585
Fauehet appointed in his place. Genet did not return chap.
home, but became a citizen of the United States. 1 ,
Through much toil and danger had the fertile valleys From
of the Monongahela and its tributaries been settled. The 1768
pioneers were principally Scotch-Irish Presbyterians, from to
eastern Pennsylvania and Virginia. Their trials were as 1^8**
great as those of the early colonists. At first their
families lived in blockhouses or forts, through fear of the
Indians, while they, as they cleared the forest or tilled the
soil, were always armed ; they even carried their rifles in
their hands when on the Sabbath they assembled in the
grove, or the rude log church, to hear the Gospel. The
untrodden mountains lay between them and the settle-
ments on the Atlantic slope. Across these mountains the
only road was a bridle-path ; the only conveyance a pack-
horse. Iron and salt could only be obtained as these
pack-horses carried them across the mountains. Salt was
worth eight dollars a bushel ; and often twenty bushels
of wheat were given in exchange for one of salt. Their
fertile fields produced an abundance of grain, especially
wheat, from which they distilled the famed Monongahela
whiskey, while their orchards were laden with apples and
peaches from which they made brandies. To find a mar-
ket for these, almost their only product, they must take
a long and dangerous journey in flat-boats down the Ohio
and the Mississippi to New Orleans, and thence by ship to
the eastern markets.
The tax levied upon the manufacture of domestic
spirits was opposed by many. It was no doubt looked
upon as unequal, as it was appropriated to the support of
the Federal government, while the tax itself fell upon
only a small portion of the community. But nowhere
was it so persistently resisted as by these settlers of the
four western counties of Pennsylvania. They rose in open
rebellion ; not only refused to pay the tax, but drove off
the officers appointed to collect it. This opposition was
1.
586 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
chap, not confined to obscure persons, but some of the most in«
' fluential encouraged the multitude to resist the law ; but
1794. their ministers, to a man, exerted all their influence in favor
of obedience. The more violent leaders openly boasted
they would not only resist the law, but separate from
Pennsylvania, and form a new State. They professed to
have very little regard for the Federal government, and
took encouragement from the same party that sustained
Genet. To discover those who sent information of their
high-handed measures to the government, these rebels
robbed the mail ; they scoffed at the proclamation of the
Governor of the State and also at that of the President.
Aug. Thus matters continued for nearly two years. It shows
the excitement which prevailed, that at one time with
only three days' notice, there assembled on Braddock's
Field nearly seven thousand armed men. They had for
their motto " Liberty and no excise." The assemblage
passed many resolutions, indicating an intention to resort
to further acts of violence.
This meeting was presided over by Colonel Edward
Cook, one of the judges of Fayette county, who had taken
an active part in resisting the enforcement of the law. Its
secretary was Albert Gallatin, from the same county, a
native of Switzerland, who had been in the country but a
few years ; a young man of superior education ; an ardent
sympathizer with the French school of politics ; a violent
opposer of the excise law. He had risen rapidly in popu-
lar favor, had been a member of the Legislature of the
State, and also of a Convention to amend its Constitution.
Governor Mifflin wished to try the effect of a circular
addressed to the insurgents, before calling out the militia.
The circular was unheeded. The President issued a proc-
lamation ordering the rebels to desist from their illegal
proceedings ; at the same time he called out the militia,
who responded promptly to the call.
The leaders soon found that, after all, the Federal
THE WHISKEY INSURRECTION — MISSION TO ENGLAND. 587
authority had the power and was determined to enforce S^ylx
the law. The leaders became anxious to screen the people
from the anger of the government, and themselves from I?9-*.
the anger of the people. Nov-
Only when the militia, which had crossed the moun-
tains, in two divisions, formed a juncture at Union Town,
did the insurgents submit. A few arrests were made ; the
most active leaders had fled the country. Thus ended
" The Whiskey Insurrection." The vigor and energy dis-
played by the Federal government in putting down the
insurgents added strength to its authority.
The belligerents in Europe, though professing friend-
ship, had but little regard to the rights of Americans.
While France was detaining their ships in her ports, Eng-
land was issuing orders to her navy to seize and detain all
vessels freighted with French goods, or laden with pro-
visions for any French colony. These measures would ruin
American commerce. Congress passed a resolution which
forbid any trading vessel to leave an American port for
sixty days. This was designed to annoy the British, by
not furnishing provisions for their navy, — yet it operated
just as much against the French, through whose par-
ticular friends the bill was passed.
A war with England was impending. To avert
such a calamity, and to arrange the difficulties existing ApriL
between the two countries, Washington resolved to send a
special ambassador to the Court of St. James.
To this important mission he nominated the patriotic
and pure-minded Chief Justice Jay. Jay was of Huguenot
descent ; as to his revolutionary services second only to
the President himself-; of the highest reputation as a
jurist ; his integrity, learning and disinterestedness had
won him universal respect. In addition, there was a
propriety in the selection that conciliated all minds, for
he was one of the commissioners who had negotiated the
£88 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
xxxn ^ls" ^rea*y w*th Great Britain. It would be a very diffi-
cult task to obtain all that the American people thought
1791. they had a right to ask. There were many assumptions
of power which England would be unwilling to yield. To
negotiate under such circumstances required much skill
and judgment.
On his arrival in England, Jay was treated with great
courtesy and respect, and a disposition was manifested to
amicably arrange the difficulties which had arisen between
the two countries.
Both parties had their complaints to make. The one,
that the Western posts had not been given up according
to the treaty ; that their neutral rights were not respected ;
that compensation had not been given for the slaves car-
ried off at the close of the war ; that their merchants
were excluded from the West India trade, and that
British sailors, who by adoption had become Americans,
were impressed and forcibly taken out of American ships.
The other, that debts contracted with English mer-
chants prior to the Revolution could not be collected ;
that the property of Tories had not been accounted for. A
treaty was finally concluded, not such as Jay wished, nor
as justice demanded, but the best that could be obtained
under the circumstances.
The Western posts were to be given up in two years ;
the West India trade was granted on certain conditions,
while free admission was given to British ports in Europe
and in the East Indies, but no compensation could be ob-
tained for the negroes. On the other hand, provision was
made for the collection of the debts complained of.
A great clamor was raised against the treaty, which
was grossly misrepresented. One -party contended that
its ratification would produce war with France, the other
that its rejection would lead to a war with England. There
were stormy debates on the subject in Congress, and in
some of the State Legislatures. But when the difficulties
DEPREDATIONS ON COMMERCE — ALGERj NE PIRATES. 589
that stood in the way of obtaining more desirable con- chap.
ditions became known, and when the character of the .
treaty itself was understood, the more intelligent and con- 1795.
servative portion of the people, were in favor of accepting
it. After a fortnight's debate in secret session the Senate
advised its ratification, and thus was secured peace for
some years ; under the circumstances, a very important
gain.
Treaties were also negotiated with Spain, in which the
boundaries between the United States, Louisiana, and
Florida were more definitely settled. The free navigation
of the Mississippi was also secured to both parties, and
the Americans were granted for three years the privilege
of making New Orleans a place of deposit for their trade.
American commerce, deriving its main resources in the
New England States, had increased very rapidly; the
trade to the Mediterranean was, however, much hindered by
depredations committed upon it by Algerine pirates.
Whether to purchase an exemption from these annoy-
ances, as Europe had been in the habit of, or to send a fleet
and punish the marauders, was a difficult question to
answer. It was thought better, for the present, to re-
deem the American sailors held as slaves by these bar- Sept
barians. On this occasion a bill was passed to build six
frigates ; this was the foundation of the Navy of the
United States. The following year a treaty was made
with the Dey of Algiers, and the captives released on the
payment of a heavy ransom — nearly a million of dollars
were paid for this purpose. This money expended in
fitting out an armament, and thoroughly chastising the
pirates, would have been better policy, — as was proved
some years afterwards.
Three more States — Vermont, Kentucky, and Ten- 1796.
nessee — were admitted into the Union during the adminis- '
tration.
As Washington was unwilling to serve another term,
35
590 HISTORY OP THE AMERICAN" PEOPLE.
(^hap. the two parties arrayed their forces for a trial of strength.
_ — ! The Federalists nominated John Adams for President and
1796. the Republicans Thomas Jefferson. The parties were
very nearly equally divided. Adams received two more
1797. votes than Jefferson, and was declared to be elected
President, and the latter Vice-President.
Before retiring from public life Washington published
a farewell address to the people of the United States.
They responded to it with respect and affection ; the out-
burst of a nation's gratitude. It was a truly paternal ad-
dress, warning the nation against party strife and sectional
jealousies, advising the policy of impartial neutrality
toward other nations when at war with each other, and as
a safeguard to liberty, the preservation of the Union and
the Constitution.
Thus ended the eight years of Washington's adminis-
tration. When it commenced all was unsettled. Now
the government was established. In that short time it
had been severely tested.
The general policy of his administration became the
fixed policy of the government of the United States. The
most enduring monument of his integrity and wisdom ;
of his patriotic and Christian principles. Strange as it
may seem, the annals of unscrupulous political warfare
do not furnish a parallel to the scurrilous slanders that
were heaped upon him, not only during his administration,
but at its close. Such were the disreputable means used
to induce the United States to become the ally of France
and to join in a war against the hated England.
CHAPTER XL.
JOHN ADAMS' ADMINISTRATION.
Serious Aspect of Relations with France. — Commissioners of Peace. — The
French Cruisers. — The Alien Act. — War impending. — Washington,
Commander-in-Chief. — Capture of the Frigate L'Insurgente. — Peace
concluded. — Death of Washington. — Eulogiums on his Character. —
The city of Washington becomes the Seat of Government.
The policy of the new administration was like that of c^ap.
the preceding, the cabinet officers of which were retained.
The new President was not more influenced by love for 1797.
England than by admiration for France. He had no ex-
pectation that the latter country would establish a gov-
ernment upon just and righteous principles. He expressed
a " determination to maintain peace and inviolate faith
with all nations, and neutrality and impartiality with the
belligerent powers of Europe."
In the mean time relations with France assumed a
serious aspect. Nothing would satisfy that power but a
willingness on the part of the United States to be used
as a dependent. While the French partisans were clam-
oring for such an alliance, the Directory exhibited their
good will by issuing orders to seize and retain all Ameri-
can vessels having on board English manufactured goods.
Washington had recalled Monroe from the French
Mission, and in his place sent Charles C. Pinckney. The
latter sent his credentials to the Minister of Foreign
Affairs, but a few days after Monroe was notified that a
592 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
chap, minister would not be received from the United States
\Li. m m
until grievances were redressed ; but Monroe himself was
1797. complimented for his devotion to the French cause ; un-
der the circumstances, a compliment somewhat equivocal.
Pinckney was treated with studied neglect, bordering
on insult ; finally he demanded his passports and depart-
ed for Holland. During this time French privateers and
cruisers were capturing American merchantmen and treat-
ing their crews as prisoners of war. Some of the priva-
teers were commanded by renegade Americans, whc
gloried in sailing under the colors of the " Great Republic."
France also stimulated Holland and Spain to complain
of the partiality of Jay's treaty with Great Britain ; and
was also suspected of an intention to rob Spain of Louisi-
ana and Florida. With overpowering successes, and un-
scrupulous political morals, she was making rapid strides
toward becoming the great power of the world.
Still more alarming was the fact that there existed in
the United States a large party that opposed the neutral
policy of the government, and openly favored an alliance
with the " Terrible Republic."
j^ny. The President called a special session of Congress, and
laid before it a statement of the relations with France.
When it became known that in their representative the
United States had been deliberately insulted ; and that
French aggressions on American commerce were increas-
ing, the enthusiasm of the partisans of France somewhat
declined.
Two special commissioners were appointed to proceed
to Paris, and, if possible, adjust the existing difficulties.
John Marshall and Elbridge Gerry were selected for this
mission. The former, who was a Federalist, became after-
ward Chief Justice of the United States ; the latter, a
Republican in sentiment, one of the signers of the
Declaration of Independence, became afterward Vice-
President. They were authorized to conclude a treaty ;
TALLEYRAND AND THE AMERICAN ENVOYS. 593
one that should not conflict with treaties existing with c|*ap.
other nations ; and to insist upon the right of the United !__
States to remain neutral. 1798.
The envoys joined Pinckney in Paris, and imme-
diately made known to the Minister of Foreign Affairs
the object of their mission. This minister was no less a
personage than the celebrated Talleyrand, who some years
before had been an exile in the United States, where,
not receiving the attention which he thought he deserved,
had returned home in no very complacent humor. At
first he refused an audience to the commissioners, but
soon after sent irresponsible persons to make them propo-
sitions, which, if found convenient, he could easily disa-
vow. Thus for several months they were the victims of
diplomatic trickery.
Meanwhile French cruisers captured American vessels,
and French courts confiscated their cargoes, and imprison-
ed their crews. Finally the commissioners were given to
understand, if they would advance a little money for the
special benefit of Talleyrand and his worthy friends, and
also pledge the United States to make France a loan, that
negotiations would be commenced in earnest. This
proposition was indignantly refused. Marshall and Pinck-
ney were immediately ordered to leave the country, and
Gerry, whose party at home sympathized with France,
was invited to remain and negotiate a treaty. It was by
such insults and injuries, that France hoped to intimi-
date the United States, and make them as dependent on
her boasted magnanimity, as she had already made Spain.
The disrespect offered the commissioners excited great in-
dignation in the minds of the American people. Strange
as it may seem, the opposition insisted that France was
not to blame, but their own government, in faithfully en-
forcing its policy of neutrality. At length the corre-
spondence between Talleyrand's agents and the commis-
sioners was published. The French party offered no more
594 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
chap, apologies. The spirit of the insulted people was ar >used
The reply of Pinckney to the corrupt emissaries of Tal-
1798. leyrand — "Millions for defence, not one cent for tribute,'"
was echoed throughout the land. Addresses to the Presi*
dent, approving his measures, began to pour in from all
parts of the nation. The French party soon dwindled to
a small minority. The only hope Jefferson cherished wag
that Congress would adjourn. " To separate Congress
now," wrote he, " will he withdrawing the fire from a boiling
pot."
A large number of French exiles — it was thought
nearly thirty thousand — were, at this time, in the country.
Some of these acted as spies, at least so thought the gov-
ernment ; some had tampered with the people of Ken-
tucky to induce them to join in an expedition against
Louisiana, then belonging to Spain, and some planned a
similar expedition against Florida. Thus did they abuse
the hospitality tendered them by endeavoring to create
divisions among the people, and opposition to the policy
of the government.
Under these circumstances Congress passed what was
termed the " Alien Act," to continue in force two years,
July, by which the President was authorized to order out of the
country aliens, who, by their plots might endanger the
interests of the government in case of war. The law was
never enforced, but nevertheless a large number of these
exiles left the country.
Presently Marshall returned, and confirmed all that
had been reported of the demands of the French Eepub-
iic. The President sent in a message to Congress, which
contained a statement of the embarrassing relations exist-
ing between the two countries. Preparations were made
for war. It was resolved to raise and equip an army ; to
fortify important posts on the sea-coast ; to prepare a
naval armament, and to capture French armed vessels,
but not to molest merchantmen.
COMMISSIONERS OF PEACE— THE TREATY. 59f>
The people came forward with alacrity to assist. c5fp-
Money was subscribed liberally, especially in the seaboard
towns, to equip a navy. The frigates so long building 1798.
were just finished ; and the Constitution, the United
States, and the Constellation, the germ of our present navy,
were fitted for sea.
Washington was nominated as Lieutenant-General
and Commander-in-Chief of the army — a nomination
unanimously confirmed by the Senate. He heartily ap-
proved the measures of the President, and condemned
those of France, saying that the administration ought to
inspire universal satisfaction, and added, " we can with pure
hearts appeal to Heaven for the justice of our cause, and
may trust the final result to that kind Providence which
has hitherto and so often signally favored the people of
the United States."
When it was seen that the United States would not
submit to insult, but were preparing to repel it by force,
the Directory made overtures for peace. This intimation
came from Murray, the American Minister at Holland, to
whom Talleyrand had communicated the proposition.
The President accordingly nominated two commissioners.
Oliver Ellsworth and W. R. Davie, who were to join Mur-
ray in Paris.
President Adams took the ground that they should
not enter France, unless assurance was given that they
would be received in a " manner befitting the Commission-
ers of an independent nation."
On their arrival in France they found Bonaparte at
the head of affairs, and the cunning and politic Talley-
rand still in office. Negotiations commenced, and in due
time a treaty was concluded, which in its provisions ad-
justed nearly all the matters of dispute. gept
The fleet which had been fitted out to protect Ameri-
can commerce from French depredations had not been
idle. More than three hi adred private vessels had been
596 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
CI*f p- licensed to carry arms and to defend themselves from the
A 1 ,. "
. common enemy. But the incident which gave the great-
1799. est satisfaction to the country was the capture of the
French frigate L'Insurgente, by the Constellation, under
Feb. Captain Truxton. The two vessels were about equal in
their complement of men and guns. After a severe con-
test of an hour and a quarter, the L'Insurgente struck
her colors, having lost in men twenty to one of her an-
tagonist. This was the first time that an American
armed vessel had met one of another nation on equal
terms. As a presage of future triumphs it was most
grateful to the people.
Ere long intelligence came of the conclusion of peace.
The army was disbanded, bat the defences along the coast
were still maintained, and also it was resolved to keep the
navy afloat.
But before it was known in America that the Com-
missioners of peace had been kindly received, an event oc-
curred which cast a gloom over the nation, and for a season
silenced the clamors of party spirit — the death of Wash-
ington. In riding about his farm he was exposed to a
cold rain. The following morning he complained of a sore
throat, an inflammation of the windpipe followed, which
speedily produced death. With calm resignation he ex-
Dec, pressed his willingness to die.
A joint committee of both Houses of Congress reported
resolutions recommending to the people of the United
States, out of respect for his memory, to wear badges of
mourning for thirty days, and also that his approaching
birth-day be celebrated " by suitable eulogies, orations,
and discourses, or by public prayers." Thus did the
people honor him " who was first in war, first in peace,
and first in the hearts of his countrymen."
The oration before both houses of Congress, was pro-
nounced by Colonel Henry Lee, whom we have seen as
the intimate though youthful friend of Washington. In
DEATH 01 WASHINGTON. T)97
accordance with the above recommendation, his birth-day C^AP
was celebrated throughout the land ; the most eminent
in the nation delighted to honor his memory. Nor was 1799.
his name honored only in his native land. When the
news reached Europe it elicited emotions of sadness and
tokens of respect. The great British fleet of sixty ships
of the line, under the command of Lord Bridport, and at
the time lying in the English channel, lowered their flags
to half mast. In his orders of the day to the French
army, Bonaparte, then First Consul of France, paid a
tribute to his memory, and afterward caused a funeral
oration to be delivered before the civil and military au-
thorities, and the standards of the army to be draped in
mourning for ten days.
Such were the public tokens of respect. But he had
a higher honor — a place in the affections of the good and
humane in private life more than any man of any age ;
he never received an office in the gift of the people, or at
the hands of their representatives, that was not unani-
mously given. To him alone has gone forth that heartfelt
respect, that reverence and gratitude which can be embodied
only in the endearing title, the Father of his country.
Says an eminent British statesman and scholar, (Lord
John Kussell,) " To George Washington nearly alone in
modern times has it been given to accomplish a Wonder-
ful revolution, and yet to remain to all future times the
theme of a people's gratitude, and an example of virtuous
and beneficent power." " His intellectual, like his moral
qualities, were never brought out to display his own talent
or enhance his own glory. They were furthcoming as oc-
casion required, or the voice of the country called for
them ; largeness of combination, quickness of decision,
fortitude in adversity, sympathy with his officers, the
ourst of impetuous courage, were the natural emanations
of this great and magnanimous soul." '
1 Life and Times of James Fox, Vol. 1, pp. 366 and W4
598 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
C xtP" rr^ie administration of Adams, now drawing to its close,
was in its policy like that of Washington. During these
1799. twelve years, there was much opposition, but that policy
in the main has remained unchanged from that day to
this. To be free from the turmoil of European politics was
wisdom, but to carry it out required the calm determina-
tion of Washington, as well as the impulsive energy of
Adams, " who was not the man to quail " when he thought
duty called.
During the summer the seat of the Federal Govern-
1800. ment was removed to the City of Washington, then " a
little village in the midst of the woods," in the District
of Columbia.
The struggle for political power was renewed with
great vigor, and in the bitterness of party spirit. The
Federalists nominated Adams and Charles C. Pinckney for
President, while the Republicans nominated for the same
office, Thomas Jefferson and Aaron Burr. When the
electors came to cast their votes it was found that Adams
had sixty-five, Pinckney sixty-four, and Jefferson and
Burr had each seventy-three. In accordance with the
provisions of the Constitution, it became necessary for the
House of Representatives to make the choice. After
1801. thirty-six ballotings, during seven days, Jefferson was
If/ chosen President, and Burr Vice-President.
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Cbncise history of the
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