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Tous les autres exemplaires originaux sont film6s en commenpant par la premiere page qui comporte une empreinte d'impression ou d'illustration et en terminant par la dernidre page qui comporte une telle empreinte. Un des symboles suivants apparattra sur la dernidre image de cheque microfiche, selon le cas: le symbols — ► signifie "A SUIVRE", le symbole V signifie "FIN". Les cartes, planches, tableaux, etc., peuvent dtre fiim^s d des taux de reduction diff6rents. Lorsque le document est trop grand pour dtre reproduit en un seul cliche, il est film6 d partir de I'angle sup6rieur gauche, de gauche d droite, et de haut en bas, en prenant le nombre d'images ndcessaire. Les diagrammes suivants illustrent la mdthode. >y errata ed to mtr ine pelure, apon d 32X 1 2 3 4 5 6 ^ d6^0('i^ A./^^; / CS CORRESPONDENCE AND REMARKS BANCROFT'S HISTORY OP THE NORTHERN CAMPAIGN OP 1777, AND THK CHAKACTKK OF MAJOR-GEN. PHILIP SCHUYLER. BY GEORGE L": SCHUYLER. NEW YORK: DAVID a. FRANCIS, 506 BROADWAY. 1867. ■IF ,:1 / BRAUSTREET HRESS. ■J \ REMARKS AND CORRESPONDENCE. The Northern Campaign of 1777, from the import- ance of its results, has always been a subject of great interest to the student of American history. In En- gland the plan of it was devised by the King, Lord George Germain and General Burgoyne ; the latter having returned to England from Canada the preced- ing year. Its object was to form a junction between the two armies — that in Canada and that under Gen- eral Howe in New York, which was considered "the speediest mode of quelling the rebellion." The army was composed of about 8000 men, admira- bly appointed. Burgoyne, with the main force, was to proceed by Lake Champlain; a detachment of regulars under St. Leger, and of Tories and Indians under Sir John Johnson, were to enter the Mohawk country, draw the attention of General Schuyler in that direction, attack Fort Stanwix, and, having rav- aged the valley of the Mohawk, rejoin Burgoyne at Albany. +f^ V It was not, however, until late in June, and after General Burgoyne had actually started upon his expe- dition, that General Washington was certain of its destination. He did not know that Burgoyne had returned from England with large re-enforcements, and it seemed not improbable that the movement toward Ticonderoga might be a feint, while the main body of the army in Canada should come round by sea, and form a junction with the army under General Howe. After protracted discussions in Congress as to what should be the relative positions of Schuyler and Gates, the former being in commanc of the Northern Depart- ment, with head-quarters fixed at Albany— the latter posted at Ticonderoga, and claiming to have an in- dependent command, on the 22d of May, General Schuyler was appointed to the command of the whole Northern Department, embracing Ticonderoga, Fort Stanwix, and their dependencies. He reached Albany, from Philadelphia, on the 3d of June. Gates declining to accept the command of Ticonderoga, it was assigned to General St. Clair. General Schuyler found that "nothing had been done during his absence to improve the means of defense on the frontiers. Nothing, .comparatively speaking, to supply Ticonderoga with provisions." He md after lis expe- n of its )yne had ents, and t toward body of sea, and Howe. 1 to what nd Gates, 1 Depart- bhe latter ve an in- , General tihe whole oga. Fort d Albany, i declining s assigned had been means of paratively ions." He T proceeded at once, with his usual "activity, fervor, and energy," to procure supplies, rouse the committees of Massachusetts, Connecticut, and New York to the im- portance of sending forward their militia, and was on his way to re-enforce St. Clair with about 2000 men, when, on the 7th of July, he received the intelligence that Ticonderoga was evacuated. The whole country was astounded. So great had beei^ the confidence in the strength of that post, that the wildest rumors circulated with reference to the cause of this disaster. General Schuyler, as command- ing the Department, was suspected, and charges of all kinds were heaped upon him, of varying nature. By some he was accused of treason, by others of coward- ice, principally because he was not present when the evacuation occurred. It was asserted that he had ordered the heavy cannon to be removed from the fort and smaller ones to be substituted for them. Absurd rumors were circulated, and believed, that the price for his treason was inclosed in balls shot by the enemy into his lines. It is needless to dwell upon the well-known fact that General Schuyler, by the verdict of a court-martial, by resolutions of Congress, and by the testimony of all historians from that time to this, is acquitted of all >: I I 1 "1 blame for this surrender ; and, until now, of all the imputations growing out of it to which I have referred. After the evacuation of Ticonderoga and the losses at Hubbardton, General St. Clair was five days wan- dering, unheard from, through the woods of Vermont, and finally joined General Schuyler at Fort Edward with only "1500 regulars, the militia having all returned to their homes." They were "without tents or artillery — sickness, distress, and desertion prevail- ing." From this time, until relieved of his command by General Gates, which was after the defeat of St. Leger and the battle of Bennington, the conduct of the cam- paign by General Schuyler has met with the unqualified approbation of those who have studied its details or written its history, until the appearance of Mr. Ban- croft's ninth volume. Chancellor Kent says: "The enemy kept pressing upon his advanced posts, but in the midst of unparal- leled difficulties his retreat was slow and safe, and every inch of ground disputed." Speaking of the state of his army, he says : " By the advice of a council of general officers, Schuyler was obUged to let one half of the militia go home, under a promise of the residue to continue for three weeks." n ■ I K I l i jwu. i i,'.' I "r ngi . ' .w of all the 3 referred, the losses iays wan- Vermont, rt Edward laving all hout tents m prevail- nmand by f St. Leger f the cam- unqualified details or ' Mr. Ban- pt pressing [)f unparal- l safe, and i: "By the huyler was ne, under a ; weeks." Irving, in describing Washington's admirable fore- sight at this time, says: "Due credit must also be given to the sagacious counsels and executive energy of Schuyler, who suggested some of the best moves in the campaign, and carried them vigorously into action. Never was Washington more ably and loyally seconded by any of his generals." Chief-Justice Marshall, in his Life of Washington, says : "In this gloomy state of things no officer could have exerted more diligence and skill than Schuyler." He describes with fervor his proceedings — the impedi- ments thrown in the way of an advance by Burgoyne — the destruction of roads, bridges, and growing crops — the driving away of live stock, and his endeavors to divide the enemy's force by posting troops upon his flanks. I have thus, generally, referred to these accounts, in order to contrast what has hitherto been the estimate of General Schuyler's conduct and personal attributes in this campaign, with that now given by Mr. Bancroft. He writes as follows : "Meantime the British were never harried by the troops with Schuyler, against whom pubUc opinion was rising. Men reasoned rightly, that, if Ticonderoga was untenable, he should have known it, and given timely I J 8 orders for its evacuation ; instead of which, he had been heaping up stores there to the last. To screen his popularity, he insisted that the retreat was made without the least hint from himself, and was 'ill- judged, and not warranted by necessity.' With manly frankness St. Clair assumed the whole responsibility of the praiseworthy act which had saved to the country many of its bravest defenders. " " Schuyler owed his place to his social position — not to military talents. Anxious, and suspected of a want of personal courage, he found everything go ill under his command. To the Continental troops of St. Clair, who were suffering from the loss of their clothes and tents, he was unable to restore confidence ; nor could he rouse the people. The choice for Governor of New York fell on George Clinton ; 'his character,' said Washington to the Council of Safety, ' will make him peculiarly useful at the head of your State.' Schuyler wrote : ' His family and connections do not entitle him to so distinguished pre-eminence.' The aid of Vermont was needed ; Schuyler would never address its Secretary except in his ' private capacity.' There could be no hope of a successful campaign, but with the hearty co-operation of New England ; yet Schuyler gave leave for one half of its jnilitia to go home at K 9 1, he had To screen was made was ' ill- ''ith manly ponsibility ae country lition — not cted of a ling go ill )ops of St. leir clothes ience ; nor Governor character,' will make )ur State.' )ns do not .' The aid ^rer address iy.' There I, but with et Schuyler o home at once, and the rest to follow in three weeks, and then called upon Washington to supply their places by troops from the south of Hudson River, saying to his friends that one Southern soldier was worth two from New England. " On the twenty-second, long before Burgoyne was ready to advance, Schuyler retreated to a position four miles below Fort Edward. Here again he com- plained of his ' exposure to immediate ruin.' His friends urged him to silence the growing suspicion of his cowardice ; he answered : ' If there is a battle, I shall certainly expose myself more than is prudent.' To the New York Council of Safety he wrote on the twenty-fourth : ' I mean to dispute every inch of ground with Burgoyne, and retard his descent as long as pos- sible ;' and in less than a week, without disputing any- thing, he retreated to Saratoga, having his heart set on a position at the junction of the Mohawk and Hudson. The courage of the commander being gone, his officers and his army became spiritless; and, as his only resource, he solicited aid from Washington with unreasoning importunity." Further on, he says : "All this while Schuyler con- tinued to despond. On the thirteenth of August he could write from Stillwater to Washington : ' We are t\ 1 I/. 10 obliged to give way and retreat before a vastly supe- rior force, daily increasing in numbers, and which will be doubled if General Burgoyne reaches Albany, which, I apprehend, will be very soon ;' and the next day, flying from a shadow cast before him, he moved his army to the first island in the mouth of the Mohawk River. He pitied the man who should succeed him, and accepted the applause of his admirers at Albany for ' the wisdom of his safe retreat.' For all this half- heartedness, the failure of Burgoyne was certain ; but the glory of his defeat was reserved for soldiers of Vir- ginia, New York, and New England." Upon my return from Europe (in December last), I read Mr. Bancroft's volume, and having determined, as far as possible, to confine myself to what I consider per- sonal in this matter, viz. : that General Schuyler's con- duct of the campaign was influenced by cowardice, I asked Mr. Bancroft for the authority upon which this view was founded. He sent me the following docu- ments : Extract of a letter from Richard Montgomery to Roht. R. Livingston, dated New York, 3d Juno, 1176. " Phil. Schuyler was mentioned to me by Mr. Scot, [for Mnjor-General for Now York.] His consequence in the province makes him a lit subject for an important trust, but has he strong nerves 7 I could wish to have that point well ascertained vastly supe- id which will Ibany, which, he next day, le moved his the Mohawk succeed him, rs at Albany r all this half- certain ; but )ldiers of Vir- jmber last), I [etermined, as consider per- chuyler's con- cowardice, I )n which this llowing docu- , R. Livingston, IK, 3d Juno, 1776. jor-General for Now (jeot for an important oint well ascertained ) I 11 with respect to any man so employed." — Livingston Papers, 1775-1777, pp. 31 and 33. Extract of a letter fivm Gen. Richard Montgomery, to Gen. Schuyler, dated August, 1775. Moving without your orders, I do not like ; but, on the otlicr liand, the preven- tion of tiio enemy is of tlie utmost ccnsetiuence; for if ho gets Ids vessels into the Lake, it is over with us for the pres^-'Ut summer. Let me entreat you to follow in a whale boat, leaving some one to bring on the troops and artillery. It will give the men great confldenee in your spirit and activity; and how necessary to a general this confidence is, I need not toll you. I most earnestly wish, that this may meet your approbation; and he assured that I have your honor and reputa- tion much at heart. — Sparks' Am. Biography, vol. I., pp. 194-195. Extract of a letter from Samuel Adainx to Richard Henry Lee, dated PiiiLAnEiiPHiA, July 15, 1777. " Wo have Letters from Genl. Schuyler in the Northern Department giving us an account of the untoward situation of our affairs in that Quarter. I confess it is no more than I expected when he [Schuyler] was again appointed to the command there. You know that it was urg'd l)y some Gentlemen, that as he hati a large interest and powerfuU connections in that part of the country, no one eoidd so readily avail himself of supplies for an army there, if wanted upon an emergency, as ho could. A most substantial reason why he shoidd have been appointed a Quarter Master or a Commissary. But it seems .o have l)een a pre- vailing motive to appoint him to the chief command. You have his account in the inclosed News Paper, which leaves us to guess what is become of the Gar- rison, It is ind('(!d droll enough to see u General not knowing where to find the main Body of his army I Gates is the man of my choice. He is honest and true, and has the art of gaining the Love of his Soldiers, particularly because he is I ■BaSBWaSBRBWHMW 12 always present and shares with thera in Fatigue and Danger. But Gates has been disgu.tcd! Wo are ho.irly expecting to be relieved fron> this disagreeable state of uncertainty, by a particular account from some person who was near the nrmv who trusts not to memory altogether, lest some circ.mistances may be omiUed wliile others are mianpprehended."-Papers of Samuel Adams, IV, 912. Exb-art of an oruiinal com "r - Very truly youra, Geo. Bancroft. New York, Dec. 29th, 1866. Dear Sir: The words which bear upon the private character of General Schuyler, referred to in my note of yesterday, are on pages 872 and 373 of your last volume. "Anxious, and suspected of a want of "personal courage^ " His fiiends urged him to silence the (jroiving sttspicmi of his cowardice." Page 374 you give an intimation that Washington shared in these views; but as the expression "want of fortitude" admits of a different construction, I confine myself, as stated in my note, to asking for the grounds on which you are satisfied to write of General Schuyler as a man suspected of want of per- sonal courage. Respectfully youre, George L. Schuyler. The same day I received from Mr. Bancroft the extracts already published. New York, January 16th, 1867. Dear Sir : Absence from New York has prevented me from acknowl- edging, at an earlier date, the receipt of your note of December 29th, and the documents accompanying it 'Mi ills m 18 I s When I asked for the evidence upon which, in your History of the Campaign of 1777, you stamp the private character of General Schuyler as a man "suspected of want of personal courage," I did not propose to question the fact that reports to that effect were circulated in obscure or interested quarters. He was, in like manner, suspected of frauds upon the Gov- ernment ; of treason to the national cause ; of eveiy minor oftense that prejudice or malice could devise, by some who had private animosities to avenge, and by others who, in public life, were aiming at * the removal of those generals who placed implicit confidence in the ability and patriotism of Washington ; thus inaugurating a policy which was to culminate in the appointment of General Gates as Commander-in-Chief of the araiies of the United States. All of these charges which were brought foi*ward with any semblance of authority were closely investigated and refuted. Most of them were withdrawn by the parties who made them. A Committee of Inquiry- of Congi-ess made a report which placed the character of General Schuyler " higher than ever as an able and active commander, and a zealous and disinterested patriot" When the charge of treason, with documents supposed amply to sustain it, was forwarded to General Washington, he thus writes to General Schuyler: "I look upon the charge against you with an eye of disbelief, and sentiments of detestation and abhorrence." Of the vague rumora that w^ant of pereonal courage was among the causes which influenced General Schuyler in his pol- icy of retarding the advance of Burgoyne for more than two months to a progress of half a mile a day, until the enlistment of fresh troops enabled him, as he did, to take the offensive, no pub- lic notice appears ever to have been taken. His pl.an, approved by Washington, and sustained by all subsequent military criti- cism, except yom-s, when once understood, seems to have left f i 19 your History ! character of t of pei-sonal hat reports to quarters, pon the Gov- minor oft'ense o had private jlic life, were laced implicit lington; thus J appointment armies of the ard with any and refuted, made them, report which than ever as disinterested pposed amply ^on, he thus iharge against 3testation and ler in his pol- ore than two enlistment of nsive, no pub- Ian, approved military criti- j to have left such rumors to fall to the gi-ound. Nor am I aware that they were ever called up again during his after career. This portion of your history aj)i)(?ars nearly fifty years after the actors in the war of the Revolution have passed away. It is written in the namative style ; autliorities are not referred to, but quotations of sentences are freely interpolated in the text ; a method which gives force and weight to a paragraph, but dan- gerous as to the coiTectness of the impressions which may be produced. Your conclusions, as you state in the preface, are the result of long study and investigation, and of a careful weighing of testimony as regards the public services and private character of those of whom you treat. When, tiierefore, you attribute to " want of personal courage" General Schuyler's management of the Campaign of 1777, no one who reads, can doubt that your impressions are based upon evidence of a most convincing kind. But if this is not the case ; if, nearly a hundred years after the termination of his militaiy career, such charges can be brought up against a commanding general, based only upon the camp gossip and partisan rumors of the day, what man's reputation is safe ? Who, of the generals ranking among the first in our late war of the rebellion, is not aware Uiat his official conduct and his private character have both been assailed, at times, by ignorance, prejudice, or malice ; that reports have been circulated which pereonal friends have commented upon with bitterness, urging him to refute them by word or deed, and yet who lives on with the firm assurance that, when the future historian shall examine calmly and without prejudice into his personal character and official career, they will not have a feather's weight in determ- ining the position he is to hold in the estimation of succeeding generations? Presuming, therefore, that you are acting upon fair and delib- erate conviction, and after careftil examination, the papers you 3 ■sij Mi 20 r ' inclose to me, as giving the just gi'ouncls for the conchxsions to which you have arrived, seeui to nie wholly insufficient Many of them do not refer to his personal chai'acter at all, and those that do, only prove that such repoiis existed ; that they were fostered by the j)olitieal and private enemies of General Schuy- ler, to the great indignation of his personal friends, who treat them with contempt. I shall refer to them generally. When General Montgomery, having learned that Carleton had completed his armed vessels at St Johns, hastened to the Isle au Noix without orders, he knew, as you are aware, that General Schuyler was, by order of Congress, attending a Conference of the Six Nations at Albany. He felt the importance of his presence, as the campaign was about to open. Their personal relations were of the warmest kind. General Montgomery, than whom no braver man lived, always leaned upon the suppoi't of General Schuyler for his greater powers of organization, as well as for his indefatigable spirit and energy. You are also aware that General Schuyler did join him immediately upon the receipt of his letter, though suffering under illness of the most excruciating character. The letter you inclose from General Montgomery is not the whole letter, or a continuous extract from it Your clerk, in transcribing it, has omitted the closing words of the last sentence. He ends his extract with these words : " Be assured I have your honor and reputation much at heart;" but the sentence is as follows : "Be assured I have your honor and reputation much at heart, as of the greatest consequerwe to the piihlic service; — that all my ambition is to do my duty in a subordinate capacity, without the least ungenerous intention of lessening that merit .so justly your due, and which I omit no opportunity of setting in its fullest light" General Montgomery was no hypocrite. I find nothing in this letter, or in anything said or written by General Montgomeiy, which even alludes to the question of General Schuyler's peraonal courage. Their relations were close I I 21 onclnsions to c'ient Many nil, and those lat they were jneral Schuy- ids, who treat Montgomery, [inned vessels Dut orders, he s, by order oi' ns at Albany, ampaign was the wannest er man lived, inyler for his indefatigable 3ral Schuyler letter, though laracter, 3ry is not the ''our clerk, in last sentence. 1 1 have your sentence is as utation much se)^vice; — that late capacity, tig that merit lity of setting ) hypocrite. or written by e question of ons were close and warm up to the glorious end of Montgomeiy's careor. They were both "ausjiected of want of skill and bravery" by rumors attributed to General Wooster (thoivgh subsetpu-ntly denied by him to be true), and each did all in his power to encourage and support the other, under the load of difliculties, caused by mal- ice and insubordination, which tried them almost beyond ])ower of endurance. The sneers of Samuel Adams tall harmlessly to the ground when he insinuates of General Schuyler what he does of Wash- ington, criticising his "Fabian policy" as being caused by want of proper sj)irit, and when he launches forth in praises of the honesty, truth and courage of Gates, "the man of his choice."* All that he says of General Schuyler's ignorance of the where- abouts of St. Clair, after his flight from Ticonderoga, and his insinuations as to General Schuyler's not being where he could give an account of that affair, of course have no weight in form- ing your opinion, as a very few days sufficed, after that letter was written, to explain the reasons, which are well known to you. I almost think that General Schuyler's letter to John Jay has been sent to me by mistake. When near the prospect of a general engagement, which .he desires, if possible, to prevent, — (he had but 4500 men, regulars and militia included, to oppose to the whole army of Burgoyne,) — at the same time, if it does occur, feeling there is a necessity, "with a smaller and dispirited force, for him to expose himself more than is customary for a commanding officer to do," it does not seem to me unmanly in General Schuyler to confide this to * The biographer of Samuel Adams thus comments upon the result of his per- severing and successful efforts in Congress to obtain General Schuyler's removal : "Time has removed from General Schuyler all blame in the disasters, and the investigation of his conduct resulted in his honorable acquittal. The substitution of Gates gave to the country a General who was in no respect superior to Schuyler, than whom a braver or more trustworthy patriot never lived." in I \\\ ^1 a most intimate personal friend, and to request him, in case of accidoiit, to tiike cliargo of his papei-s, and relieve his memory from "that load of calnnniy that ever follows the unfortunate. " On the contrary, it seems to me to show that at sueh a time it was not fear of death, but of the loss of reputation, dearer to him than life, which was uppermost in General Schuyler's thoughts and feelings. The letter of Colonel Udney Ilay to George Clinton is but an ignorant criticism of the plan of a campaign which he did not comprehend, while the letter of Mr. Duer refers to the mali- cious reports in circulation after the loss of Ticonderoga, api)ar- ently to assure General Schuyler how much they provoke, but how little they move, him and others of his personal friends. Had you deemed it worth while to have copied for my use the whole of this letter as published in Irving's History (Vol. iii., p. 132), the bearing of your extract, as in the case of General Montgomery's letter, would have been better understood. The partial extracts of letters of Jay and Duane show still more clearly that these reports are fomented by personal and political foes, who endeavor to keep themselves out of sight. Well may General Schuyler say, in his reply to Mr. Duen " The scoundrels who doubt my pereonal fortitude dare not put it to the trial." On the other hand, the whole tenor of General Schuyler's character and pui-suits seems to be at variance with the conclu- sions you have drawn from these very slight premises. He was descended from a family which, from the first settlement of the Colony, ever bore an active and honorable part in the savage warfare which characterized the contests of those days, when small bodies of men met in close conflict, and when battles were more especially lost or won by the personal bearing of those who were engaged in them. In that region, between the lakes and the upper waters of the Hudson, appropriately styled " the bloody ground " of the Col- -mi ) I lim, in cnse of e his memory unfortunate. " such a time it ;ion, dearer to ■al Schuyler's Dlinton is but wliich he tlid rs to the mali- deroga, api)ar- provoke, but ami friends. !d for my use story (Vol. iii., vse of General erstoocL ane show still personal and lit of sight. ■ to Mr. Duel", e dare not put ral Schuyler's th the conclu- lises. He was tlement of the in the savage ie days, when in battles were iring of those r waters of the i"of theCol- 28 ony of New York, there is scarcely a district where lie (!ould not point to the grave of an ancestor, or to some record of their unflinching energy in victory or defeat. This may appear to you irrelevant, but it ought, and does, have ita weight when we are called upon to believe that a man with sucth antecedents should have so basely degenerated in lieart, while he apparently followed so closely in the footsteps of his ancestors, making war the profession of his choice, when there was but little induce- ment for a native of the Cokmy t<^ enter the service of the Brit- ish army. At eighteen years of age he embarked in tho.se ex])editions among the Indians of the Six Nations, which were always cus- tomary with his family, when he. obtained that influence over them, aftenvard .so important in the war of the Revolution, an influence based in part upon his reputation for truth and jus- tice ; but of far more weight with that rude and warlike race was his wide-spread renown for activity, firmness, and contempt of danger. He served in the old French war as a captain, under Colonel Bradstreet, one of the bravest and most adventurous of tiie commanders of the time. He was by his side through a severe fight of unequal numbei-s on the Oswego Kiver, and there had an occasion for displaying qualities of humanity which savor little of want of self-confidence or courage, " When it became necessary to abandon the island to meet the enemy, advancing in large numbei-s on the shore of the river, there being but one batteau, already overloaded, the sol- diers refused, on the score of safety, to receive in it a wounded soldier of the enemy. Captain Schuyler, handing his weapoHS and coat to a companion, bore the wounded man to the water, swam with him on his back across the deep channel, placed him in the hands of a surgeon, and joined his command in time to lead them in the severe fight which followed, and which ended in the repulse of the enemy." ■■.5; ! i i -* > * > : •r- . -»- . '**''«f ? !»" ;i ■ 24 With General Bradstreet he maintained the closest peraonal relations, which lasted through life. So also with Lord Vis- count Howe, who fell at Ticonderoga With all his brother ofRcere, after the peace of 1V63, he held a place utterly in- compatible with any suspicion as to his wanting personal courage. , . • . His subsequent career as a member of the Colonial Legisla- ture, and of various other public bodies, was marked by a bold- ness and independence which often put both his moral and personal courage to the proof When a fi-ightened and pliant legislature, composed almost exclusively of men of wealth and high standing, strove to crush the somewhat violent remonstrances of the advocates of popular rights by proposing measures to detect and imprison the authors of them, he alone stood up for their rights; and the sole negative vote on the reccd, in their behalf, is that of Philip Schuyler. Private lettei-s show that he was ready, if necessary, to respond to the custom of his time, which requii-ed personal satisfaction to be given f /r real or supposed injuries, and from which no family has suffered more than his own ; a custom now almost generally condemned, but the observance of which was then deemed indispensable. When subsequently appointed a Major-General in the Army of the United States, the only period of his life to which the rumors now under consideration refer, it is difficult to discrimi- nate between the personal character of the man and his public services as a commanding officer; the latter being a subject from which, in this correspondence, I purposely refrain. As against the rumore, however, upon which your conclusions are founded, I am satisfied to rest General Schuyler's reputation as a man of courage, upon general grounds. If a person so sit- uated has been ivanting in courage, it is generally not difficult to establish the fact; but it is not always easy to prove positively lest pei*sonal h Lord Vis- his brother 3 utterly in- ng personal tiial Legisla- j id by a bold- i moral and •osed almost ove to crush !s of popular I the authors nd the sole at of Philip y, to respond satisfaction [n which no now almost )h was then n the Army which the to discrimi- i his public subject from conclusions s reputation lerson so sit- not difficult fe positively WB"^ 25 the reverse, unless circumstances have afforded an exceptional opportunity in the case of a general officer to do so. General Schuyler has now been dead more than sixty yeare. Sufficient time has elapsed to fonn an impartial estimate of his private character, as well as of his public sei-vices. Whatever may be thought of ihe latter, no man until now has publicly impugned the former. Many have borne their testimony to its worth, embi-acing in that tribute their sense of his " fiery spirit " as one of its prominent attributes. Daniel "Webster said to me, upon a social occasion, " When a life of your grandfather is to be published, I should like to write a preface. I was brought up with New England prejudices against him, but I consider him as second only to Washing- ton in the services he rendered to the country in the war of the Revolution. His zeal and devotion to the cause, under difficulties which would have paralyzed the efforts of most men, and his fortitude and courage when assailed by malicious attacks upon his public and private character, every one of which was jyroved to he false, have impressed me with a strong desire to express publicly my sense of his gi-eat qualities." Chief Justice Kent, writing of General Schuyler, says : " In acuteness of intellect, profound Liiought, indefatigable activity, exhaustless energy, jjure patriotism, and persevering and intrepid public efforts, he had no superior." The campaigns of 1776 and 1777 are treated by Washing- ton Irving much more in detail than they are by you. You are well aware how differently he judges of the public ser- vices of General Schuyler from youraelf ; and surely no one could have a quicker or more refined perception than Mr. Irving of all that was noble or contemptible in any man's private character. His pages beam throughout with warm expressions of his high esteem for General Schuyler as a soldier and a man. I may also say that Mr. Irving frequently •ii fi .1 I ; ii'r ! ^1 i lt^ 2C expressed to me in conversation his appreciation of General Schuyler in terms almost identical with those used by Mr. Webster. General Schuyler lived twenty years after the war, quite long enough for all matters of a personal character to be scru- tinized and detei-mined. He took an active part in politics; and at no period of our country's history were rival partisans more bitter and personal. Yet no one ever brought up, in the excitement of party strife, these rumors against his reputation, started during the war. They wei-e deemed so idle, and were considered so amply refated, as to have no longer a place in men's minds or memories. With all the companions of his militaiy life — with Washing- ton, Lafayette, and other surviving leaders, as well as with those who served under him, or were a part of his military family, to whom his personal militaiy character was thoroughly known, he ever preserved the most intimate pereonal relations — rel s wholly incompatible with any suspicion on their part that he had ever been deficient in personal courage. As he advanced in years, that respect for his personal character appears to have increased. He was the fiiend and adviser of Hamilton, and though a bitter political opponent of Jefferson, the latter was a visitor at his house, and consulted with him upon questions of finance. He died with the conviction, shared until now by his family and friends, that whatever esti- mate the future historian might place upon his capacity as a public servant, his private character was beyond the reach of cavil or of blame. I do not think, as against this general recoixi of his life, the grounds you rely upon for an opposite conclusion are sound. I feel justified in asking you to reconsider your opinion ; and should you find occasion to change it, so far as to admit that the charge of " suspicion of want of personal courage" had no more ground for belief than those other charges which were i-i -'tm-i 1 of General ased by Mr. e war, quite sr to be scru- t in politics; val partisans lit up, in the is reputation, lie, and were sr a place in 27 publicly inquired into and refuted, that you will, in justice to General Schuyler's memory, publish a note to that effect in the preface to your next forthcoming volume. Respectfully youra, &c., George L. Schuvlek, Hon. George Bancrofi', 21st Street, New York. ith Washing- svell as with his military s thoroughly mal relations cion on Hieir iourage. As nal character id adviser of of Jefferson, ed with him ! conviction, whatever esti- 3apacity as a the reach of his life, the n are sound. ipinion ; and o admit that •age" had no which were Nkw York, Feb. 4th, 1867. Dear Sir: Excuse me for reminding you that my communication of January 16th ended with a request May I ask you, at your earliest convenience, to inform me of your decision in regard to it Respectfully yours, &c., George L. Schuyler. Hon. George Bancroft, 17 West 21st Street, New York. New York, Febrnary 5th, 1867. Dear Sir: If your views of the duty of a historian coincide in any degree with mine, you will on second thought ngree with me that he ought never to settle in advance with the representative of a family the terms in which he should speak of any member of that family who lias played a public pai-t My next volume 4 5 H '^"mimismm 4k i;- 28 will in<*ike honorable mention of the public services of General Schuyler ; but what I shall say of him I cannot communicate to you now. This is so obviously the dictate of propriety, that it must meet your approval. a In reference to any reasonings or documents which you may communicate to me, they will receive my most respectful and impartial consideration. As to the special point on which you have written to me, we are not so far apart as some phrases in your letter would seem to imply. We are agreed that General Schuyler was removed from the Northern command at the end of the sum- mer of 1777, by an almost unanimous . vote of the States in Congress, notwithstanding that New York had at that time in its delegation friends of Schuyler thoroughly skilled in parliamentary tactics. We are also agreed that the change of command was founded, not on the odium which attended the losing of Ticonderoga, but merely on the representation of the Eastern States that their militia, suspicious of his military character, would not turn out in defence of New York while he presided in the Northern Department But whether the men thus suspicious, in Congress or out of Congi-ess, were in the right, or were simply mistaken, or were such as deserve to be called by so harsh an epithet as scoundrels, is a point on which I have expressed no opinion ; and where I refer in words of my own to the antipathy which existed between Schuyler and the New England troops, I call it, in words carefully chosen, "a not wholly unreasonable aversion" on their pai-t Nay, more, though I believe Schuyler himself, at a later day, declared Congress to have acted wisely in supei-seding him, I have nowhere said so ; but have simply narrated the events as they happened I sometimes think you have never read my volume. High praise is awarded to Schuyler as an officer and as a man. On page 200, for example, I speak of him as a military com- 29 i!^ ncefi of General )t communicate i" propriety, that R^hich you may respectful and written to me, ur letter would [ Schuyler was !nd of the sum- f the States in d at that time ^hly skilled in t the change of sh attended the sentation of the of his military ew York while at whether the sngi'ess, were in lUch as deserve Is, is a point on I refer in words tween Schuyler ATords carefully on their part at a later day, ereeding him, I ?d the events as volume. High and as a man. a military com- mander ever on the alert, and doing the right tiling, and a most important thing, at the right moment, and from his own impulse, leaving the reader to contrast his conduct with that of Gates under similar circumstances. And again, on page 338, he is described as one who loved his country more than rank or fortune. Yours respectfully, Geo. Bancroft. New York, Feb. 9th, 1867. Dear Sir ; Your note of the 5th instant is received. As connected with the special point on which I have written to you, namely, General Schuyler's want of personal courage, you introduce as new matter the circumstances connected with his removal fi'om the command of the Northern Army, upon which you say that we agree. There are, however, several statements to which I do not agree. I refer to them in their order : Whether the vote for the removal of General Schuyler (August 1st, 1777) was nearly unanimous or not, I have no means of ascertaining. The " yeas and nays" for any resolu- tion in Congress were called, for the first time in its history, on the 8th of August, one week later. The resolution, as it appears upon the journal, reads as follows: Resolved, That Major-General Schuyler be directed to repair to head-quarters. That General Washington be directed to order such General Officer as he shall think proper, to repair immediately to the Northern Department to relieve Major-General Schuyler in his command there. ! : '■ ■ m^-n.: fljMi' I 30 'Hii General Washington declined taking any part in this busi- ness. In a letter to Congress (August 3d) " he desires to be ex- cused fi'om making any appointment to the command of the Northern Army." It was Upon the receipt of this letter that General Gates (as stated in your last volume) was appointed, by the vote of eleven states. That the adherents of General Gates, in and out of Congress, made large use of " the want of confidence of the militia of the Eastern States in General Schuyler's military chara'iter," is cer- tainly true ; but that such want of confidence was in any way connected with suspicions of his lack of personal courage re- mains to be shown. I find no evidence of it in any quarter entitled to consideration. You are, I think, mistaken in assuming that General Schuy- ler's harsh epithet of " Scoundrels" was applied to any persons, in or out of Congress, who openly criticised his military charac- ter. The letter of Mr. Duer, in answer to which he uses that expression, refers to the hints and sneere of malicious individ- uals — not to any outspoken manly attacks ; and to such peraons the epithet justly appliea I was not aware that General Schuyler, at a later day, de- clared Congress to have acted wisely in superseding him ; but if so, he certainly did not thereby indorse the idea that his want of personal courage was questioned, by his removal. Upon the petition of six General Officers of the Northern Army, Congress requested him to remain with them, after being deprived of his command. He did remain, even under such trying circumstances, and was present when Burgoyne laid down his arms on his own grounds, amid the smouldering ruins of his home, which the latter had so wantonly destroyed. If the action of Congress in removing General Schuyler from his command can be brought forward as bearing upon Mi in this busi- ires to be ex- [iniand of the eral GatCvS (as vote of eleven t of Congress, militia of the ra'iter," is cer- IS in any way il courage re- 1 any quarter eneral Schuy- ) any persons, ilitary charac- he uses that 3ious individ- > such pereons later day, do- ing him ; but idea that his emoval. the Northern m, after being n under such lurgoyne laid smouldering ly destroyed. ;ral Schuyler bearing upon 31 his pei"sonal character, the subsequent action of the same body upon the subject of his resignation, should be entitled to some weight in arriving at a conclusion. • On the 5th of March, 1779, more than eighteen months after his removal from an active command. General Schuyler sent in his resignation to Congress. On the 8th of March it was moved that it be accepted. To this an amendment was offered in the following words: "Eesolved, That the President be directed to inform General Schuyler that Congress are very- desirous of retaining him in the sei-vice, especially in the present situation of affairs; but if the state of his health is such as that he judges it absolutely necessary to retire. Con- gress, though reluctantly, will acquiesce and admit his resig- natioa" This amendment was rejected by a vote of eleven out of the twelve states represented, to give place to the following resolu- tion, which luas carried (against the votes of New England and Pennsylvania): "Resolved, That the President be directed to acquaint Major-General Schuyler that the situation of the army renders it inconvenient to accept his resignation, and therefore Congress cannot comply with his request." Would it have been possible to pass such a resolution were there even a suspicion of General Schuyler's want of peraonal courage ? A part of this, however, seems foreign to the subject of this correspondence; and referring back to the commencement of your note, I see that I have failed to explain, with sufficient clearness, my position in addressing you. I have no desire to settle in advance the terms upon which, as an historian, you should speak of General Schuyler in your forthcoming volume ; nor do I conceive myself entitled to ques- tion you personally (except to ask for authorities) upon what you have already said about his public services. For this you are open to criticism through the usual channels, and this much in i 'li i iwm 32 I expressed in my first note, asking you for the grounds upon whicli you speak of General Schuyler " as a man wanting in personal courage." Such a charge, you are well aware, is a criminal charge — as against a soldier — more disgraceful to him in the world's esti- mation, than any other that can be brought forward, however base or contemptible. Upon conviction, the rules of war pun- ish it with death ; and society enshrouds its victim with a pall of obloquy which never can be raised. A charge made in this careful and deliberate manner during General Schuyler's life- time must irretrievably have destroyed, publicly and sixjially, either him or the person who made it — the one if the position was made goo } 35 state that what T ask of him refers to what has been, and not to what is to be, written. In my note of April loth, written to know whether he objects to my pnblishinfi; tiie correspondence between us, there is no menace. It merely refers to the alterna- tive I had already announced as incumbent upon me, if no action were taken by him. That my communications to Mr. Bancroft are far from being what I should like them to be, I am well aware. I have neither the ability, the knowledge, nor the facility in writing which would enable me to cope with him, had I attempted to enter the field of history in my wish to excuse General Schuyler's failures. But I have attempted nothing of the kin ' ]M r iM i u i » i HpwT- 3 the siipe- those who he broader jssessors. ressing the larks hi a iiitative of a personal ed to keep gs, assum- } would be yit. le that the documents tifies what 3 who are t after the ead at full mds, writ- form more 11 be at a d him to 47 No one of a true and manly spirit would charge another with cowardice, unless upon incontestable proof. Even then the instincts of a gentleman would make him shrink from bringing it forward, unless compelled theri^to by its bearing upon others, or by the require- ments of history. This, however, Mr. Bancroft has done, and has. given it the large circulation of his history. To those few who feel sufficient hiterest in the per- sonal character of General Schuyler to read my protest against this wanton insult to his memory, I deem it my duty to point out, to this extent, the relative positions in the estimation of their contemporaries, of the accuser and the accused. The complete life of General Schuyler is yet to be published. In the meantime I look without much apprehension upon this attempt of Mr. Bancroft to deprive him of the reputation of a brave and unselfish patriot — a reputation hitherto accorded to him by his countrymen, based upon the verdict of historians whose names are honored and whose works are destined to live. George L. Schuyler, 6 East 14th street. New York, April 16th, 1867. ^^ ,«f«-'*>" X r- LbApIO -i^ r X ■ilif