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Lorsque le document est trop grand pour dtre reproduit en un seul clichd, il est filmd 6 partir de Tangle sup6rieur gauche, de gauche 6 droite, et de haut an bas, en prenant le nombre d'images ndcdssaire. Les diagrammes suivants I'lustrent la mdthode. rrata o jelure. 1 d 1 2 3 32X 1 2 3 4 5 6 I -^ : !■■■ Ill ^^ n Price, 25 Cents. » '■I V m M m I'OKTHAIT OK CAPT. SAM.E,. VHEHTKH UEW I'>o,n the ceiehrate,! ,.ai>,ti.,« l.y Jarvis, mr,. THB3 HISTORY OF THE WONDERFUL BATTLE OF TIIK ilLi m WITH A BRITISH SQUADKON, AT FAYAL, 1814. THE FAMOUS GUN, LONG TOM. SK£TCn OF TIIK LIFE OF CAPTAIN SAMUEL CHESTER REID, CO.MMA\UEa OF THE ARMSTRON'G, WHO DESIGNED THE PRESENT FLAG OF THE UNITED STATES IN 1818. HISTORY OF THE FLAG. INTERESTING INCIDENTS, ETC. ■ ..1 I. * •!< I: h \ if d. it BOSTOX, MASS.: L. BARTA & CO., PRINTERS. 189.3. t.(l I i: ,^ 4'. I m Entered according to Act of Congress in the year 1893, by SAM C. JJEID. in the office of tlie Librariuu of Congress at Wasliiugton City, D. C. ¥ DEDICATION, In gratitude for the patriotic services of that distinguisherl, brave, and accomplished United States naval ollicer, COMMO- DORE Richard W. Meade, in aiding to commemorate the gallant deeds C)f my father in defence of the honor of his country's flag, the pages of this pamphle*^^ are specially dedicated. And, generally, to the magnanimous People of the United States of America, in appreciation of their noble, generous sentiments in never failing to recognize the heroic valor of their countrymen SAM C. REID. Wasuington City, D. C, Fourth of July, 1803. If '. PREFACE. m -.v TfTE (lesigrn of the i)ul)licatlou of tl cuio by itH sale a fund for tl lis pamphlet is to pn Ca[)itul, of ji inoiuunciital statue of C 10 erection, at the National th APTAIN SaMUKL .HiWTKR Hew, tne gallant conunander -.f the private-armed brig-of-vvar (Jeneral Armstrong, in commemoration of his lieioie valor and distinguished services to his country The people of the United States generally ill thus be enabled to contribute to this patriotic and praiseworthy object. •' Thi; pamphlet gives the historic details of one of the most wondertul and extraordinary naval battles ever fought on the seas, with uiteresting incidents never before published. It outlines the policy of Great Britain in its efforts to gain from trance the possession of the Province of Louisiana and the Mississippi River ; the causes which led to the War of 1 81" • tlie gigantic scheme of England for the conquest of New Orleans, Louisiana, and Mexico, and the circumstances which led to it« defeat; speculations as to the Treaty of Giient • a sketch of the biography and genealogy of Captain Keid and his services; vindication of our merchant marine; tribute of Senators Voorhees ,.nd Evarts ; letter of Governor Shelby: history of ''Long Tom" ; oiigin and history of the ^lag o the United States: historical connection between Admiral Sir Thomas Cochrane and Captain Reid ; the song ot the General Armstrong; the romance of the celebrated case of the Armstrong ; and the poem of James Jeffrey Roche on " The fight of the Armstrong privateer." I.KTTER FROM TFIK SE(RI:TAUV OF IIIE NAVY. Tlu' followiiifr extmct of a letter iiom JIoii. Ililiiry A. Flerhert, Secretary of the I'liited States Navy, in lela.iou to thi! sale of this ])aiiiphh't, in oider to procure a fuiul for the erection of a moimineiital statue of C^aptain Sanuiel Chester Keid, at Wa. ■ Mi^rtou City, expresses the ai>piobation of the Navy Department for this project. NAVY DEPARTMENT. WASHiNdTiDN, .July 15, 1898. Mu. Sam C. Rini), Washingcon, D. C. Dear Sllt: — . . . I think tlie pur[)ose you have in view, namely, the raising of money for the purpose of buildintr a monument to your gallant fathei-, is patriotic and noble. . . . Yours respe(!tfully, [signed] HILARY A. HERBERT. m if: il I. St- m m^ /I m m :mm EX H J HITS OF THE s h UNITED STATES NAYY DEPARTMENT. The following are among tl.e exhil.its of the United States JVavy Depai'tnient on hoard of tlie Model Battle Ship Illinois, and are thus nu'utioned in the Catalogue of the Exhibits of the United States Navy Department World's Columrian Exposition, 1803, as compiled by Lieutenant II. C. PoundsCone, United States Navy : No. 9511. Portrait of Captain Samuel Chester Reid. Tliis officer was horn in 1783, and died in 18G1 ; served as acting midshipman in the West India squadron ; com- man.led tJie private-armed hrig General Armstroncr, during the War of 1812, and fought one of the most remarkable naval battles on record, at Fay. \ one of the Azore Islands, 111 1814 ; he designed the present form of the flao- of tlie I nited States, as adopted by Congress in 1818. "captain Keid was appointe.l a sailing master in the United States Navy, wlucli position he lidd till his dtath. X(^ Ao. 9;)li'. The Sword of Captain Samuel Che Keid STEE This is the battle sabre of Captain Reid wliich was wielded with such heroic prowess during the engagement with the enemy. EXHIIUTS OF THE U. S. NAVY DEPAI'.TMENT. 7 No. 9513. Long To^r, a Forty-two Pouxdeh. One of the guns of tlie famous pi'ivat6?-anne(l brig-of-war General Armstrong, coniinandecl by Captain Samuel Chester lie id. The remarkable heroism of Captain Keid and his ol'ticers and men is conspicuous in the history of our country. In a conflict with a British squadi'on, mounting one hundred and thirty-six guns and over two thousand men, this gun did such admirable execution that the Britisli lost over three hundred men and officers, killed and wounded. The Armstrong ciu-ried only seven guns and ninety men, and lost but two killed and seven v.ounded. The battle took i)lace at Fayal, one of the Azore Islands, on the niglit of the twenty-sixth and twenty-seventh of September, 1814. The disabling of the squadron, which was a part of tlie expedition against New Orleans, so delayed Cochrane's fleet at Jamaica that it saved Louisiana from Biitish conquest. No. 9ol4. FicruE-IlEAD of the Pi:ivate-ai;med Bpjg General AitMSTitoxo. This is a quaint and curious looking specimen of the ship carver's art of other days, which has now nearly gone out of existence. Its fantastic coloring is still in a good state of preservation. It was saved by the crew of the Armstrong after slie was scuttled on the beach to prevent her falling into the hands of the enemy, and years afterwards was presented to tlie Nav.al Institute, at the Boston Navy Yard, by Mr. Dabney, the L'nited States Consul at Fayal. ' { i 3[Er^i*i^3*v^'^W^^'--^*S»«f ^Wt^ jn f 1 ■; 'U ' ■ ' ■* » , .■vp- i f'"S * ■ '-W '" ■l.:.ura i! THE WONDERFUL BATTLE OF THE BRIG GEiNERAL ARMSTRONG British Squadron, at Fayal, 1814. The wonderful battle between the United States private- armed brig-of-war General Armstrong, and a British squad- ron, was fought in the waters of Fayal, one of the Azore or Western islands, on the twenty-sixtli and twenty-seventh of Septembei', 1814. The Armstrong was a small brigantine, of only two hun- dred and forty -six tons, and mounted six long nines with a forty-two pounder, " I^mg Tom," on a pivot amidships. Her crew consisted of ninety men, including officers. She was commanded by Captain Samuel Chester Heid. Tlie British squadron was composed of the ship-of-the-line Plantagenet, of seventy-four guns ; tlie frigate Rota, of forty- four guns ; and the brig-of-war Carnation, of eio-hteen o-uns. With a total force of one hundred and thiity-six guns, and over two thousand me;: under the command of Commodore Kobert Lloyd. Considering the forces engaged, the Battle of Fayal was the most desperate, bloody, heroic, and romantic naval fight that ever occurred on the seas. That the reader may more fully comprehend the exti'aordinary results of this remarkable conflict, as affecting the destinies of botli Eng- land and America at that time, it will be necessary, before .1' 1:ti !?■■ iH 1 ■• M ' t'^l f w^^l 4- "t ■ ■:i 10 GREAT BRITAIN'S POLICY. h- ■ 1 describing the battle, to outline what was then England's [jolicy and object in regard to America. Great Britain had conqueied the Canadas from France in 17 (JO, and had for long years endenvored to obtain the pos- session of the province of Louisiana and the control of the Mississippi River. France, aware of England's designs, made a secret treaty with Spain, in 17G3, and turned over tlie Province to the Spanish authorities, with the agreement that Spain should make a retrocession whenever called for. Aftei- a period of nearly four decades, Spain made a recession of Louisiana, in 1801, back to France, and in view of the war with England, Napoleon Bonaparte, on the tliirtieth of April, 1803, sold and ceded the province of Louisiana to the United States for the small sum of about fifteen millions, a vast terri- tory now consisting of fifteen States of this Union. On the twentieth of December, 1803, the tri-colored tiag was hauled down at New Orleans, and replaced by the Stars and Stripes. Thus were the cherished hopes of England again foiled. From this period, pending the war between England and France, up to 1808 and 1809, the British navy was "mis- tress of the seas," having over nine liundred ships of war. Her unscrupulous commanders did not hesitate to commit the most atrocious and flagrant acts by violating the neutra- lity of any nation to subserve their ends. In 1804, the British frigate Cambiian, Captain Bradley, entered the hai'bor of New York, witli other cruisers, seized one of our merchant vessels, just ari'ived, and impressed and carried off a number of her seamen and passengers. In 1806, three British ships of war boarded and buined the French ship Impetueux of seventy-four guns, which had run aground on the coast of North Carolina, a few hundred yaixls from the shore. Our coasting vessels were frequently fired into, and in some instances some of the crew killed. The notorious Captain Douglas, of the Leopard, subsequently, CAUSE OF THE WAR OF 1812. 11 actually blockaded the [)oi-t of Norfolk, obstructed our citi- zens in the\i' oidinary comiiiuuicatiou between that and other places, and in fact besieged the town on the land side. For all these hostile acts of violence and outrage on our com- merce and coast, these insults to our national sovereignty, in violation of the laws of neutrality, England insolently refused to give any satisfaction or make any repaiation or apology. Finally, these outrages culminated in 1807, by the infamous attack of his Britannic majesty's ship Leopard on the American frigate Chesapeake, off the capes of \ irginia, which, after five years of diplomatic negotiation, tle- termined Congress to declare war against England on the fourth of June,1812, under the administration of Mr. Madison. In March, 1814, the allied armies entered Paris. Napoleon had abdicated the throne of France, and was secluded in the isle of Elba. The dove, with its olive branch, had spread its Avings over Europe, holding out a lasting peace. Tlie vast fleets of England that had blockaded the European coasts, and the veterans of her armies, were now free to strike a crushing and fatal blow at America's cost and humiliation. At last the o[)portunity had arrived for England to achieve her long wished for desire for the conquest of Louisiana. For this purpose, one of the boldest and grandest schemes was devised and planned by England's prime minister, the wily strategist. Lord Castlereagh, in whose hands was then couHded the policy of the British Government, the young Prince of Wales reigning at that time as Prince Regent in place of his father, George IIL, who, being mentally infirm, had been de[)osed in February, 1811. A gigantic expedition was arranged by which Negril Bay, in the West Indian island of Jamaica, was made the ren- dezvous for concentrating the transports and troo[)-ships of Generals Keane and Packenham, with Wellington's veterans, t'^erc to await reinforcements of the immense fleet of n f-:;, %M 11 , r ■tt I a ri \l m -m i i 12 ENGLAND'S SCHEME TO GAIN LOUISIANA. England's navy, under command of Admiral Cochrane, which was to control the Gulf of Mexico. 'J1ie great scheme was to carry New Oileans by surprise before anv defencr could I)e made by any large body of troops, and" with tiie Mississippi Kiver and its coast once in their jjossession, to seize the country along the Kio Grande, and all west to the Kocky Mountains and the coast of California. ''The greatest secrecy was maintained as to the ultimate object of the expedition," says an English writer, in attributing the failure of the expidition to the delay of Commodore Lhiyd'-s S(|uadron, which formed a part of the fleet. To delude and deceive our Government, and draw its attention away from the contemplated ew' mi view, a demon- stration was Hi-st made by a part of Cochrane's fleet, which entered the Chesapeake with about sixty sail, and finding no obstacle to imi)ede its progies*^, proccicded up the Potomac and burned Washington, on the twenty-fourth of August, 1814. A further demonstration was made against Balti- more, all for the purpose of concealing the real design of the expedition for the conquest of Louisiana. Intlated^ith the pride of his unexpected vandal victory, though at a severe cost, Admiral Sir Thomas Cochrane set sail on the sixth of October, for Jamaica, giving out that his destination was Halifax, while our Government was led to fear an attack on New York. So sure was England of the triumi)liant success of this brilliant and magnificent enter])rise, that Lord Castlereagh. who was banqueting in Paris at the time the news of the burning of Washington was received, exultingly and openly boasted that it would not be long before Louisiana and thi Mississipi)i Kiver would become the conquered province of Great Biitain ! But little did England's great prime minis- ter dream, while then sipping his wine, with an exti'a f/oilt of exalted triumph, that his great scheme on the chess'ooard of VINDICATION OF OUU MKltCHANT MAUINE. 13 Avar would he checkmated, and the little hiig General Arm- strong, like an unseen spectre, would dash from his lips the goblet of all his anticipations of the successful con(iueror! Nor could it then he foretold that the Battle of Fayal would not only decide the fate of both England and the United States in this war, but the hand of Destiny would save the latter from inconceivable im[)ending calamities, as well as avenge the burning of tlie capital by a fearful retribution ! During the time when the British General Ross, with his six thousand veteran soldiei's from the troop-ships of Cochrane's fleet, was burning and pillaging the American capital, for which he afterwards i)aid the penalty of his life in his demonstration against Baltimore, the "saucy" little brig General Armstrong was being reiitted in the port of New York for her fifth cruise against the enemy. She was a beautiful model, and had been schooner rigged, but Captain Reid, on being induced to take command of her, changed her rig into a l)rigantine, which made her one of the fastest ves- sels on the seas. She had a superior armament for boarding or resisting attack, witli steel-stra[)ped helmets for the men. She had a picked crew of experienced fighting sailors, all Americans, and among the marines were a number of Ken- tuckians. It is but justice to the American sailor here to state that the services and triumphs of our privateers during the war of 1812 have rarely been fully appreciated, and never were ranked or recognized Avith those of our regular navy. They have been universally ignored in our school histories, and in many so-called histories of the United States. In fact, our private-armed vessels of war, called privateers, and reproach- fully classed by some as " f reebootei-s of the seas," were in every respect on a par with the vessels of our regular navy. The only difference was that the one were built, owned, and equipped by our merchants, while the others were built, in I . r !r 'I \ ) « if ■f I if I 14 VINDICATION OF OUU MERCHANT MARINE. owned, and equipped by the Government. Tlie ottieei's of tlie piivateers were euniniissioned by tlie President, just tlie simie as our naval ollieers. 'I'liey were under the sanie ruk's and reguhitions as the reguhir navy, and subject to tlie orders and instructions of the Secretary of War (then (Jeneral .John Armstrong, after whom the famous hng was named), there being no Secretary of the Navy at tiiat time. These priva- teei's not only engaged tiie enemy in many a desperate battle, during the war of 1812, but swept the commerce of England from the ocean. A distinguished oilicer of the United States Navy lias magnanimously and most truthfully said, ^'The long delayed, tardy justice to the volunteer or mercliant sailor element of tliis country, which has taken a tremendous part in all our maritime wars, should no longer fail to be recognized. For indeed it was the element from which our Kevolutionarv Navy was entireli/ recruited, and which has since added so nuich glory to our national prowess." Tlie Armstrong lay off the Battery, at New York, the admiration of the citizens, awaiting a chance to run the blockade of British war-ships off Sandy Hook. The disci- pline of her crew was perfect, and her commander, while severely exacting, treated his men with great kindness and consideration, which greatly endeared him to the crew. On the night of the ninth of September, 1814, just two little weeks after the burning of Washington, wind and tide suit- ing, the Armstrong got under weigh with her great spread of canvas and a ten-knot breeze. At midnight she ran close aboard of an English i-azee and ship-of-the-line, and as she flew past the ''mudscows," as the crew called the Ci^iUisy Britishers, she was soon out of range of their guns, and the enemy gave up the chase in the attempted pursuit. 4 of the ik'S lei's >liii lere va- tle, iiid lias ed, of )ur U)r irv so he lie ei- ile 11(1 )n la it- of se !ie le it W p'* If- r'--^ •^;" '.,•* ■ ..,.^ - if 2 ■= ii "5 TIIK IIATTLK OK I'AVAL. THE BATTLE OF FAYAL. lo At noun, on tlio twoiity-sixth day of September, just ti (lays before A(biiiral Coebrane saiU-d from Uii; Cliesapeake, tbe Annstrontr made tbe isbuid of Fayal, and ran into tbe bay of tb(! town of Da Ilorta, to relill witb water. Fayal is one of tlie ^ronp of tlie A/.ore or Western islands, belonging to tbe kingdom of Portngal, and lies nearly midway between tbe coast of Portugal and America. Tlie sbore of tbe bay is crescent sbaped, and is surrounded by a bigli sea-wall, in tbe centre of wbieh lies tbe castle of Santa Cru/. 0|)posity, to tbe eastward, lies tbe island of I'ieo, only four miles distant, witb its volcanic mountain rising seventy-six hun- dred feet bigb. It was in tins U\y of Da Ilorta of tbe island of Fayal. surrounded by tbe most romantic scenery, tbat tbe battle took place. Ca[)tain lleid liad gone asbore to make arrangenn^nts witb tbe American consul, xMr. .lolni H. Dabney, for a snpi)ly of fresb water, and bad accepted the hospitality of tbat patriotic gentleman of the old school, to dine with him. In making inrpiiry about tbe enemy's cruisers, Captain Reid was informed by Mr. Dabney that none bad visited those islands for several weeks. About 6 p. M. Captain Reid leturned aboard his vessel with tbe consul and several gentlemen in company. While they were conversing, it being nearly sundown, tbe British brig- of-war Carnation suddenly hove in sight close under the northeast headland of the harbor, and entering the bay anchored within half a cable's length of the Armstrong. Soon after the frigate Rosa and ship-of-tbe-line Plantagenet followed, and came to anchor in tbe roads, tbe squadron being on its way t' join Cochrane's fleet at Jamaica. Commodore Lloyd, wlio commanded the squadron, had previously been informed by ,:>t out at sea tbat the Armstrong was in tbe harbc v.ic \e at once determined L L "I i i' ' £1 1 f- I !■; ■ !1 r i 1 !■ 1 1 ' 1 ■4 (^^^1 'H ? ^^^1 1 - I ^M I I 1 1 1 i lU THK UATTLE OF FAYAL. In ■ npnn her Ciiplare. Thy hi% Carnation inimetliacely Injgan Hi,«,Mializing with the fleet, threw out four hirge hiunehes or hi.atH, and commenced passing arms into them. All these movements could be seen, and the orders given were distinctly heard on board the Armstrong. At the same time the British biig made every preparation to inttrcept the ja-ivateer should she attemi)t to escape. Although Captain Keid had been assured of the perfect safety of his vessel by the American consul, Ixjing in a neutral port, he. now felt certain, from the man(.'uvr(!s of the fleet and the prei)aration8 going on, that thei-e would be trouble, and he accordingly told the gentle- men that they had better go on shore. After their departure a council was held among the oflicers of the Armstrong, and it was flrst suggested that they should make an effort to get out to sea ; but the wind lieing very light, it was determined to haul close in under the guns' of the castle for protection. Captain Reid inmiediately gave secret orders to clear the deck for action, and cautioned the crew to make as little noise as possible. He then cut his cable, got out sweeps and commenced i ulling in shore to the castle. The Carnation iiumediately dropped her topsails and made sail, to prevent the privateer from going out of the harbor si ould she attempt it, while the boats, which were lying alo;;gside, were ordered in chase of the Armstrong. It was now about eight o'clock in the evening. The moon, which was near its full, was gradually lising, and silver-sprinkling with its beams the beautiful bay, the hills of Da Horta, and Mount Pico, while not a ripple broke the stillness of th; -littering surface, save the splash of the oars of the four large liiunones, well trr.ied, carrying about forty men each, which were pulling swiftly towards the privateer. Captain Reid immediately ceased pulling towards the shore, let go an anchor, and got springs on his cable so as to bring the vessel broadside to the enemy. At this tmie one of the large launches, which was consid- THK BATTLE OF FAYAL ; FUIST ATTACt 17 erably in tho advuuco, i)ulled up under the stern of the Arm- strong, wl'.eu Captain Keid, with speaking-trumpet in hand, hvAUg in his shirt-sleeves, and all hands at (p'arters, hailed the boat three times. No answer was returned except hy one of the sailors, who asked in a jrrutt' voiee wliat was the matter. Tiie ollieer replied: ''Make no answer, sir; pull away, my lads," and the next moment the word was given to "toss oars," and with their boat-hooks they hauled along- side under the port (piarter of the privateer. The ollieer in the boat then eried out : " Fire and board, my lads," and as the men rose from their seats, ('ai)tain Keid instantly gave the word to his marines to lire, which was almost simultaneous on the part of both. One man on board the privateer was instantly killed, and the tirst lieutenant, Fred. A. Worth, n brother of the late General Worth, of the United States Army, was wounded. Tho men in the boat were severely cut up, and they cried out for quarter, while the other three boats, l)ulling u[) at full si)eed on the starboard side, inunediately oi)eued their lire. They were received with a full broadside of grape and canister, which was followed by the shrieks and groans of the woiuuled and dying. A lierce struggle now ensued, in which the enemy made a desperate attempt to board ; but staggered and appalled by the galling lire of the privateer, they cried out for (quarter, and the boats pulled off in a sinking condition with great loss, Captain Keid refusing to take them prisoners. The General Armstrong then weighed anchor and pulled in toward the shore, about half-pistol shot from the castle, where she was moored head and stern near the beach, with her port side next to the shore. The Carnation, in the meanwhile, sailed down to the fleet, and it was soon evident that they had determined on a more formidable attack. Tlie American consul at this time had written a note to the Portuguese Governor, demanding protection for the privateer, [h 18 THE BATTLK OV FAYAL. u ■ but the Governor simply de.s[)atched a note to Admiral Lloyd, requesting him to ahstain from further hostilities. To this note Lloyd replied that, as the Americans had (irst fired into one of their boats without any provocation, he now deter- mined to take the privateer at all hazards, and, if protection were aft'orded her, he would lire into the town. About P. M., the wind having breezed U'\ the enemy's brig was observed standing in with a large fleet of boats in tow, luimbering fourteen, and carrying between forty and fifty men each, armed with cari'onades, swivels, blunder- busses and musketry, making an aggregate foice of at least five hundred and sixty men. When within gunshot, the boats cast off from the brig, and took their stations in three divisions under cover of a small reef or island of rocks, within musket-shot of the privateer. The biig kept under way to act witli the boats in case the privateer attempted to esca[)e. In the meantime terror and consternation had spread through the town. The windows of the houses nearest thi, scene were filled with women, and the sea-walls were crowded with the inhabitants, awaiting with intense excitement and breathless expectation the coming attack. There lay the American brig with her tall, ta[)ering spars, sleeping on the mooidit waters as quiet and as peaceful as an over-wearied child. There she lay, like the ai)parition of a phantom ship : not a movement was to be seen, not a sound was heard to break the stillness of her decks, and seemingly deserted, from the death-like silence which prevailed. Notwitl)staudiiig, Cap- tain Keid had made every preparation to receive the enemy on all sides, and his crew were then lying concealed at their quarters. In this position the Ixdligerents remained for nearly three haul's, watching each other with [)ainful interest. When it is considered that the crew of the Armstrong had nothing * gain, and had no motive for remaining by their vessel but the defence of their country's honor, when thej- mi '^ 1 1 i r * „! !i 1! '< d \h- o ■fj -^ ■y. a = a THE BATTLE OE FAYAL ; MIDNIGHT ATTACK. ;9 o r/j ..' s a o u saw the terrible odds that opposed them, and which threat- ened a fearful retribution, with no hope of reward except death for the defence of the American flag, while a leap to the shore held out to them the inducement of safety, it is remarkable that they stood so firm, and their wonderful dis- cipline and courage may be imagined. At length, at midnight, the enemy seemed resolved upon the attack, and the boats were observed in motion. Instead of approaching l^y divisions, as Captain Keid expected, they came on in solid column in a direct line. When about twenty-live yards off. Captain Reid ordered his men \(^ stand by after the fire, to run in the guns and lash in the ports, in order to prevent the enemy from getting through the port- holes on boarding, as they would not have time to reload the guns before the enemy would be alongside. The men were then cautioned to wait for the word, and to be sure of their object. The Long Tom, a lieavy forty-two pounder, pb'ced on a pivot amidshi[)s, was sighted with fearful accu- racy. On came the Britisli boats with undaunted intrepidity, when they were again hailed l)y Captain Reid, but no answer was returned. The fatal command was then given, and a tremendous fire was opened on the enemy, the thundt ' ana crash of which broke the charmed stillness of the before (piiet midnight scene. The discharge of our Long Tom rather staggered them. Reeling back and recoiling from the missiles of death, they warmly returned the fire, remanned their oars and giving three cheers, came on most spiritedly. The crew of the privateer asked if they should return the cheer? "No," replied Captain Reid, "no cheering until we have gained a victory." In a moment they succeeded in gaining the bow and starboard quarter of the Armstrong. Tlie cry of the officers commanding the boats was, " Uj) and board, my lads — no quarter I " At the same instant they opened a terrific lire with carronades, swivels, blunderbusses i.n 1 1' \:A t:, ill \ < ' 'M f .' I f I ^ i J I '.I I ' I, hi 1 n s'iM:i:---jiUtsiEB ■' I ■■, ' ! 20 THE BATTLE OF FAYAL ; MIDNIGHT ATTACK. and musketry. They were gallantly met by the crew of the privateer in their black leather boarding caps, strapped with steel, looking like demons, with board iug-pikes, muskets, battle-axes, pistols and cutlasses. The vessel soon became one broad sheet of fire, the red glare of which strangely con- trasted with the brilliant light of the moon, now riding high in mid-heaven. Shrieks and yells, orders and oaths, amid the clang of sabres, were heard on both sides through the din and roar of the musketry. Again and again the enemy, led by their officers, attempted to gain the decks of the privateer, but were repulsed at all times with immense loss. The battle now raged with the greatest fury. The Americans fought with the desperation of fiends. Making a last desperate effort to board, the enemy gained the spritsail-yard and bow- sprit of the Armstrong, and were pressing their way to her decks, when the American sailors, wielding their battle-axes, sabres, and pikes with the skill and might of knights of old, drove back England's best and bravest men with horrid slaufrhter. The second lieutenant of the Armstrong, Mr. Alex. O. Williams, was killed at this moment while gallantly leading on liis forward division ; and the third lieutenant, Mr. Robert Johnson, also fell dangerously wounded. At the same instant Captain Reid, who commanded the after divis- ion, was engaged beating off two large launches, the men and officers of which had succeeded in climbing up the sides of the privateer. One of the latter, the first lieutenant of the Rota, William Matterface, who commanded the attack, had engaged Captain Reid in a hand-to-liand fight with cut- lasses, and once or twice came near overpowering him. Captain Reid, being left-handed, used his right in firing pistols, which the powder boys handed him, wliile he con- tinued to fight with the British lieutenant with his left hantl, disdaining to shoot down his brave adversary. At last the Bricish lieutenant, making a feint, brought down a desperate THE BATTL?: OF FAYAL ; MIDISIGHT ATTACK. 21 blow, which Captain Reid had just time to break the force of, cutting the cai)tain sliglitly across tlie head and nearly sev- ering his thumb and forefinger. Before the Englishmen could recover. Captain Reid struck him down and he fell back a corpse into the boat. It was at this critical juncture that Captain Reid was in- formed of the death of his second lieutenant, and that his third lieutenant was badly wounded. Having succeeded in boating the boats off the quarter, and thus left the only officer on the deck, he perceived tliat the fire liad slackened on the forecastle. At once rallying the wliole of the after division, they ruslied foi'ward with a shout and opened a fresh fire, while he ordered the forward division to heave cold shot into the Ijoats and sink them, as those men Avere out of car- tridges. The enemy, appalled with consternation and dismay, fell back to their l)oats and retreated, when Captain Reid bringing the Long Tom to bear upon them, fired the gun himself (which Hew off the carriage), doing fearful destruc- tion, and ending in the total defeat of the British. Then it was that Captain Reid cried out, " Now is the time to cheer, my boys," and three wild, enthusiastic cheers re-echoed over the bay from shore to shore. The Americans among the crowd on the sea-walls hailed the Armstrong, and asked if Captain Reid was safe, and, being answered in the affirmative, gave three tremendous cheers in return. The scene whicli now presented itself was one of indescrib- able horror. Tlie silvered waters of the bay were crimsoned with blood. Dark forms of numerous dead l)odies floated around on every side, while the groans and death shrieks of the wounded struggling ground the boats pierced the very air. Many of the boats had been sunk. Two large launches belonging to the frigate Rota lay alongside the privateer, with two other boats, literally loaded with their own dead. In a boat belonging to the Plantagenet all were killed save , i r I I f I U hi il \_n.'ii.<N. «!/ Ill tlui tlircc cm; iijifoiudiils tli;it occiukmI with llii; Arin- stroiijr, according to a lair cstiniatc (if tin- wliolc imnilHT ♦'iiufatlfi'd, of tliii Hritisli s(iua(ln)ii, their loss was two ImiKhcd luid ten kiUcd, and oiu> liuiuhci^ and forty wo\iiid('hh,'tt\ W>u'hhi lir,iixtc)\ \)vy. 10, 1S14. The writer in ,i;ivin^' tlu- nnnd)er of British killed at over one Innidred and twenty, and the wcmnded at nintfty in the mid- night attack, does not incdnde the loss in the lirst and last encasement. After mentionini;' the arrival of the Arm- strong,' and the scjuadron, he says : ''The authorities all considei'cd the American privateer perfectly secure, and that His Majesty's ollicers were too veil aecjuainted with the respect due to a neuti'al port to molest her; hut, lo the great surprise of everyone, about nine in the evening four boats were di'spatched, armed and manned, from His Majesty's ships, for the purpose of cutting her out. It being about full moon, the night perfectly c 'ar and calm, we could see evi'ry movement made. The boats ai)proached with rapidity toward her, when, it ai)i)ears the captain of the privateer iiailed them, and told them to keep off, several times. They, notwithstanding, imshed on, and were in the act of boarding before any defemte was made by the privateer. A warm contest Misued on both sides. The boats were linally rei)nlsed with great loss, " After the tirst attack all tlu> inhabitants were gathered about the walls, expecting a renewal of the light. The American, now calculating on a very superior force b^'ing sent, cut his cables, and rowed the privateer within half cable's length of the fort, where he moored her, head and If !' ■. ■If. ■t;.. I ''Ij 1 I- i, ii;i J: f vf ■fl-. '--■ ' ■ ,j.. ;., J ■ ■ r . ■;> fli 20 A milTISH ACCOU. r. \1 ■r, %■ stern. At midnight fourteen launches were discovered to he coming in rotation for the purpose. When they got within gunshot a tremendous and eti'ectual discliarge was made from the privateer, wliich threw the I)oats into confusion. They now returned a spirited iire, hut the i)rivateer kept up so continual a discliarge it was .almost impossihle for the boats to make any progress. They finally succeeded, after im- mense loss, to get alongside of her, and attempted to board at every quarter, cheered by the officers with a shout of *No quarter,' which we could distinctly hear, as well as their shrieks and cries. Tlie termination was near about a total massacre. Three of the boats were sunk, and but one poor solitary officer escaped death in a boat that contained fifty souls. He was wounded. The Americans fought with great firmness. Some of the boats were left without a single man to row them ; others with three and foui-. The most that any one returned with was about ten. Several boats floated ashore full of dead bodies. "With great reluctance I state that they were manned with picked men, and commanded by the first, second, third, and fourth lieutenants of the Plantagenet ; first, second, third, and fourth ditto of the frigate, and the first officer of the brig; together with a great number of midshipmen. Our whole force exceeded four hundred men. But three officers escaped, two of whom are wounded. This bloody and un- fortunate contest lasted about forty minutes. Notliing moie was attempted until daylight next morning, when the Carnation hauled in alongside and engaged her. The priva- teer still continued to make a most gallant defence. These veterans reminded me of Lawrence's dying words, of the Chesai)eake. ' Don't give up the ship.' The Carnation lost one of her topniasts and her yards were shot away. She was much cut up in her rigging and received several shots in hev hull. This obliged her to haul off to repair, and to cease firing. THE FKiUUK-HEAD OF THE AUM8TK0NO. 27 " The Americans now lindinjr their prinoijuil gun, Long Tom, and several others dismounted, deemed it folly to think of saving her against so superior a force. They there- fore scuttled her and went ashore. Two boats' crews were soon after despatched from our vessels, which went on lx)ard, took out some provisions, and set her on tire. For three days after we were employed in burying tlie dead that -wasntd on shore in the surf. The number of British killed excet 'a -^ne hundred and twenty, and ninety wounded. After bui ■- the privateer, Commodore Lloyd made a demand on tjio Governor to deliver u{) the Americans as his prisoners, which the Governor refused. He threatened to send five hundred men on shore and take them by force. The vVmericans immediately retired, with their arms, to an old Gothic con- vent, knocked away the adjoining draw-bridge, and determined to defend themselves to the last. The Commodore, however, thought better tlian to send his men. . . . The scjuadron was detained ten days at Fayal repairing damages and in burying their dead. Two sloops-of-war, the Thais and Calypso, which arrived tno days afterwards, were sent back to England with their wounded. " Being an eye-witness to this transaction, I have given you a correct statement as it occurred. With respect, I am, etc., H. K. F." 1 ?! V I ill I ; I -'I I 1' ii TPIE FIGURE-HEAD OF THE ARMSTIiONG. At the time the Armstrong was scuttled, and the crew were deserting their gallant craft, some of the sailors cried out, " We must save the ' Old General,' lads," as they called the ligure-head, for which it seems they had a great affection. No sooner said, than with their battle-axes they severed from the bow the grim-looking bust of the " Old General," which ■■■I ! r W! 28 INTKHKSTlNd INCIDKNTS. l»ad iHicn a silent witness of their victory, and boro it in tri- umph to the shore. This ([Uiiint sj)ecinien of the sliip-ciirvor's art of the U'coraled every Fonrtli of .Inly by tiu' Dahneys, with ilowers and the American Hag. It was ealhid hy the Portuguese peasantry " Kl Santo Ameri- eano," the American Saint, who never failed to eross them- selves as they passed by it. In later years, the American consnl, Mr. Charles H. Dahney, son of John M. Dabncy, prcscnt(!(l this venerable relic t(» the Naval Lyceum, at Boston, Mass., where it now remains in a good state of preservation. m >-f INTKKKS'tTN(i INC^IDENTS. INTKItVIEW Ol'' nuiTlSH OKKICElt.S WITH CAl'TAIN itEID. After it became evident that Connnodore T.loyd did not intend to execute his threat to take Captain Reid and his crew prisoners, they left their (quarters in the old convent and returned to the town of Ilorta. Several Hritish ofVicers, who had come ashore to attend the burial of their deceased comrades, sent a note to Cai)tain Reid, who was then staying at the house of Consul Daliney, with the request that he would meet them at the British consul's. Mr. Dabney, who was of the opinion that it was only a ruse to arrest Captain Reid or bring about a duel, counselled him not to go. But Reid said he did not apprehend any in- dignity, and not to go would be treating them with dis- courtesy. He accordingly dressed in full uniform, with sash and saln-e, and as he approached the ((uarters of the British consul he observed a number of British otlicers standing in I:" I ■ INTKItKSTI N( J I SV, 1 1 )KNTS. 29 front of tlio house, who rocoj^iiiziiis him, lifted thoir oajw and j,'iivo liim a eheer, to the great surpriso of Captain Ueid. On heiiipf invited to enter the iiouse, and after the conipli- nients of the day were passed, one f)f the lieutenants said, "» Wo have di'siied the; pleasure of your eonii)any, Cai)tain, in order to settle a (pieslion among oui-selves, as to whether or not you and your erew wore steel shirts of mail during th(! hattle? Vov hoth our men and olhcers arc; eontident that they saw our bullets strike your erew and yourself freipiently, and they glanced off like hail I '' Captain Reid laughed at this eliarge, and replied, "Why, gentlemen, I can assure you that the only steel annor that my ol'licei's and men wure was their cutlasses and steel- strapped iielmots. A:^ for myself, I admit that your bullets tickled my ears so often that I was almost afraid to turn my head. But you saw I was in my shirt sleeves, and I pledge you, on the honor of a sailor, tliat the only shirt of mail 1 wore was a linen shirt, which 1 don't deny was a shirt of a mal^'!'" A hearty laugh followed, which ended in several bottles of wine being oi)ened and a jolly time. This reception by (he liritisli o.licers of their deadly foe was certainly remarkable under the circumstances, and proved that by the laws of hospitality Ibitish honor was inviolable. GENERAL JACKSON'S OPINION. This rcmarkid)lc battle was the last fought upon the seas in i.ie war with England, while that of New Orleans was the last fought upon the land ; though so widel}' apart, the chain of destiny has lirdced them close together. When General .laekson afterwards learned that a portion of the fleet which was engaged in the assault upon New Orleans was composed of the same vessels which attacked the Armstrong, he ex- pressed the opinion that but for the determined bravery of U! 'fi IM 30 INTFKESTIXG INCIDENTS. Captain Reid in resisting tlie enemy, he (Jackson) would never liave fought tlie battle of New Orleans, but that, most probably, the l)attlo ground would have been nearer the shores of his own State. KETIUBUTION. A most singular case of retribution connected with the burning of Washington City and the battle of New Orleans was related by the late Commodore Ap Catesby Jones. It seems that Lieutenant G. Pratt, of her Britannic Majesty's frigate Seahorse, led a storming jmrty of marines at Wash- ington, and in looking up at the monument erected to our naval officers at Tripoli, then at the west front of the Capitol, which represented the Muse of History recording with a pen the brave deeds of our fallen heroes, Pratt with his sword bioke the hand and took out the pen as a trophy, saying, " The Muse of History needed no pen to record the deeds of runaway cowards ! " Afterwards, Catesby Jones, then a lieutenant in connnand of our gunboats on Lake Pontchartrain during the attack on New Orleans, came in conflict with some British boats commanded by Lieutenant Pratt, whom Jones killed in the conflict with his own sword, but was overpowered, however, and taken prisoner. On bohig removed to the ship of Lieutenant Pi'att, the British oflicers showed Jones the identical marble pen which Pratt had kept as a trophy. This statue is now at the Naval Academy, Annapolis, Md. A CONTRAST. To show the unparalleled victoiy of the battle of the Armstrong it is stated that in the great naval engao-ement off Capo \ uicent in 1797, between a Spanish fleet of twenty- HOW NI>:W OULKAXS WAS SAVED. 31 seven sliips-of-the-line and twelve frigates, and a British squadron of fifteen ships-of-the-line and seven frigates and two sloops-of-war, the British acknowledged a loss of seventy- three killed and two Jiundred and twenty-three wounded, making a total of two hundred and ninety-six. Yet in this tremendous conflict, which lasted over six hours, the English did not lose as many men as they did in trying to capture a little brig of only seven guns I Admiral Jervis, who com- manded tlie British fleet, having defeated the Spaniards, was created an earl by the king of England, and gi'anted a pen- sion of twenty-flve tliousand dollars a year ; while Captain Kcid and Ids men were granted the privilege of prosecuting their claim for their losses before Congress for over Iralf a century, and died without receiving one cent of recompense, thus proving the ingratitude of republics. The news of the Battle of Fayal reached the United States about the middle of November, 1814 ; the reverses which had attended our arms on land, the bankrupt condition of the Government, and the burning of our national capital, liad tlu'own a general gloom and despondency over the country. Under these circumstances, the news of the battle of the Arm- strong and the extraordinary victory sent a thrill of joy and enthusiasm through the hearts of the American people. But our (xovernment was as ignorant as Captain Heid at the time, tliat tlie gallant defence of the little brig Armstrong was to be the means of saving Louisiana from becoming another em[)ire of India, by the grasp of England, and winning for General Jackson the higliest })innacle of fame, glorv, and civic honors, by the success of his great victory at New Orleans. All was ready at Jamaica. The troopslii[is and transports with twelve thousand veterans, undei' Generals Packeuliam and Keene, were eager for the fray. Admiral Sir Thomas Cochrane, as lie paced the deck of his flagsliip. was impa- rl 'i, ^1 .3 It ■'■ 32 TRIIJUTE OF SENATORS VOOllHEES AND EVAKTS. tiently awaitiug the arrival of Lloyd's squadron. How could he know that, Avhen his fleet Avas sailing past the Capes of the Chesapeake, on the sixtli of October, Lloyd was at that very time at Fayal burying- liis dead and repairing damages, caus- ing the delay of his squadron for ten or twelve days ? Fin- ally, when Lloyd's squadron arrived in Negril Bay in its crippled condition, he was loaded with bitter reproaches by Cochrane, Packenliam, and Keene, and a further detention of a week followed. At this time, General Jackson's headquarters were at Mobile. On the seventh of November lie liad driven the British forces from the neutral Spanish town of Pensacola, and on his return to Mobile liad learned of tlie suspected designs of the British fleet against New Orleans. By a forced march of his two tin isand Tennessee militia, he arrived at New Orleans oai the second day of December. Cochrane's fleet arrived at Lake Borgue on tlie sixth of December, just four (Za/ys afterwards. New Orleans was tlien utterly defenceless. It is evident that if Coclirane's fleet liad arrived lifteen days sooner, the period of its delay, say tlie twentieth of November, the British troops could have taken possession of New Orleans before any possible defence could have been made. And even as it was, General Jackson had barely time to check the enemy by the affair of the twenty- third of December. On the occasion of a resolution in the United States Senate, in 1890, to strike a gold medal in connnemoration of the services of Captain IJeid, whose battle sabre was offered by his son as a free gilt to the United Stales, the Honorable Senator Daniel W. Voorhees, in a speech of thrilling elo- quence, said : " But for the terrific injury inflicted on Lloyd's forces at Fayal, the British would have reached New Orleans as soon. TUinUTE OF SENATORS VOORHEES AND EVARTS. 33 if not much sooner than General Jackson. Had this happened that city Avould have fallen without a blow. . . . "It is my simple task on this occasion to show that the sword now offered for the acceptance of the Government so guarded the passage-ways of the ocean and so crippled and retarded the enemy, that time was gained by Avhich General Jackson pre[>ared for and won the inunortal victory at New Orleans. No such battle would have been fought, no such victory won, but for the stubborn and invincible courage of Captain Reid and his crew at Fayal." The Hon. William M. Evarts, Senator from New York, followed in this glowing tribute to Captain Reid : " Mr. President, I have no need to add anything to the eloquent homage paid to the great fame of Captain Reid. Every word that the Senator from Indiana [Mr, Voorhees] has said is as truthful as it was eloquent. . . . The sword is offered us and the matter brought thus to our attention, and we, with shame and remorse, if I do not use too strong words, feel that it has been a shame and disgrace to the people of this country that a medal lias never been struck in honor of an event so glorious to the prowess not only of our great captain in this battle, but honorable to human nature. " There is not to be found in the classics or in modern history any stronger instance of personal prowess performed in modern times, that used to be done under the old v/arfare of personal pi-owess. But for Captain Reid that fight would not have been made ; and but for Captain Reid that battle would not have been won. So strong is this simile under the most diverse circumstances, that it may be said of Captain Reid as was said of Horatius at the bridge : 'If he had not kept the bridge, who would have saved the town ? ' And Rome was ' tlie town,' and ' the bridge ' was across 1 'i' i I '! -I '4^^ I i Kt 1, ■■ *& , t •! i i I i '* i HI 84 LETTER OF GOVERNOR SHELBY. an: the Tiber. This battle in the port of Fayal was the bridge that he kept that saved the town of New Orleans, and saved the honor of the country." The Honorable Senator from Ohio [Mr. John Sherman] antagonized this resolution, and by his opposition it went over, and was never acted upon. LETTER OF GOVERNOR SHELBY. The following letter from that distinguished veteran warrior and statesmen, Governor Isaac Shelby, of Kentucky, to Captain Reid, illustrates the enthusiasm which prevailed throughout the West, on the news being received of the battle of the Armstrong : "Frankfort, Ky., May 8, 1815. Sir : _ The return of peace to our country upon honorable terms, with a national character exalted in an eminent degree, affords us leisure to review the various conflicts in which that character has been developed. " On the ocean, Avhere we had most to dread, we have found a rich harvest of glory; and the American tars have secured to themselves the admiration of the ^^()rld. To the ofticers and crews of our public vessels much is due, and the nation, through its public functionaries and in other forms, has fully demonstrated its gratitude. We are not less indebted to the officers and crews of our private armed vessels. Instances of talent, skill, discipline, and of a determined, unconquemble bravery have been manifested by our privateersmen. When their situations might have presented to ordinary minds sufficient iLduccment for avoiding the contest, nothing but a generous and noble patriotism could have led to such deeds. I have no reason to believe that the nation at large is not LETTER OF GOVEItNOR SHELBY. 85 fully impressed with the gratitude due to this class of our heroes. But I have regretted that there have been so few demonstrations of that sentiment; you will, therefore, altliough a stranger to you, permit me, for myself individually and on behalf of the State over which I have the lionor to preside, to assure you that the conduct of yourself and of your officers and crew in defence of the General Armstrong in the port of Fayal merits the first applause of the nation, and is duly appreciated by our citizens. " No one conflict during the war has placed the American character in so proud a view. " The baseness of the attack in a neutral port, the over- whelming force of the assailants, the small prospect of success to yourself and crew, and the unparalleled disparity of loss, demonstrated a combination of talents, skill, and lieroism seldom equalled and never surpassed. I trust our Govern- ment will fully appreciate your services. " May you, your officers and crew, long live to enjoy the laurels you so nobly won. " I have the honor to be, with high consideration of respect and esteem, your most obedient, humble servant, Isaac Shelby. Captain Samuel C. Reid, late Commander of the United States Privateer General Armstrong." These exalted and noble sentiments will be the more appreciated when it is recalled that Governor Shelby, as an officer of the Revolutionary War, greatly distinguished him- self at the battle of King's Mountain, in October, 1780, and afterwards led his brave Kentuckians, in 1813, against his old enemy in the campaign of the Northwest, with General Harrison. He was born in Maryland, in 1750, and twice served as Governor of Kentucky. -■I, !•■ ,M p. Vi ■ i- 36 INCIDENTS OF THE TREATY OF GHENT. INCIDENTS OF THE TREATY OF GHENT. In connection with the failure of Lord Castlereagh's great exi)edition, and the circumstances which led to it, it will be interesting to note that the British Government, during the year 1813, had shown a disposition for a reconciliation and for peace. The ■; tlegent was in favor of a cessation of liostilities. Butt. , ay Castlereagh had over-ruled him in order to carry out his great scheme of conquest. Russia had previously offered to act as mediator, but the offer was rejected by the British Ministry. Finally, early in January, 1814, Commissioners were ap- pointed by the two powers to negotiate a treaty of peace. The Ministry kept the American Commissioners waiting month after month by putting them off on dilatory pleas, first proposing one place and then another for the negotia- tions. In this way, after six months' delay, the Commis- sioners of the two governments met at Ghent, in Belgium, in August, 1814, at which time Cochrane's fleet was sailing up the Potomac for the attack on Washington ! Every resort was made to procrastinate and protract the sessions of the Commission in order to gain time, which is shown by the fact that the treaty was not finally concluded until the twenty-fourth of December, 1814, the night previous to which General Jackson had driven back General Keene's troops who were marching on New Orleans, and as we have seen, Castlereagh was expecting that it had already fallen ! About the twenty-fifth of October, after the rejoicing by the British Ministry over the news of the burning of Wash- ington had hardly subsided, the British sloops-of-war Thais and Calypso had arrived, loaded with their wounded from the battle between the Armstrong and Lloyd's squadron, and the details of their dead buried at Fayal. A gloom of sor- row spread over England and filled the land with grief. INCIDENTS OF THE TREATY OF GHENT. 07 o i Whether this news had any effect on the British Commis- sion, or daunted the hopes of Lord Castlereagh, can easily be conjectured. As to the question, whether the English Gov- ernment would have stood by the treaty in good faith or not, in case of the conquest of Louisiana, it is a matter of broad s[)ec- ulation. The precedents of the faithlessness and treachery of England in violating treaties and the laws of nations were numerous, and there was but little contidence to be i)ut in her diplomatic negotiations. It is most remarkable that the subject of the right of search and impressment of our seamen, the chief cause of the war, weie passed over in the Treaty of Ghent without any stipulation whatever, espe- cially as the treaty with England, made m 1806, was ignored and rejected by President Jefferson, because the rVlit of search and impressment were not fully disavowed, and he became so indignant that he refused to submit it to the Senate. Mr. Clay, one of the Commissioners of the treaty of Ghent, had but little faith in the honor of the British Gov- ernment, knowing that its treaty obligations were never respected whenever conflicting with its interest and policy. Ke is said to have expressed the belief that, if General Jack- son had been defeated at New Orleans, with the Mississippi River in possession of the British fleet, England would no more have hesitated to nullify the Treaty of Ghent than she did the Treaty of Amiens with Bonaparte, which obligated her to withdraw her troops from and give up the island of Malta to France. It is fair to presume, therefore, from the studied design and great effort that England made for the conquest of Louisiana, that if tlie British flag had ever once floated over New Orleans it would never have been hauled down without a struggle. Under these circumstances, it is not arrogating too much praise to Captain Reid and his heroic crew to give them the credit of not only having "J i ^1 m I K ! 1 h If ii TV "^ 38 LIFE OF CAITAIN SAMUEL C. REID. Struck the fatal blow that effected tlie liopeless ruin of the grand scheme of the Britisli Ministry, but saved the United States Government from a terrible disaster, and the country from an incalculable calamity. U: I mi SKETCH OF THE LIFE OF CAPTAIN SAMUEL CHESTER REH). There are but few men whose lives, in a career of over threescore and ten, have been more distinguished for the historical and romantic incidents which liave attended them than that of Cai)tain Samuel Chester Reid, the late heroic commander of the United States private-armed brig-of-war General Armstrong. The preceding pages have given the details of a battle that immortalized his name and called forth the admiration of the world. Captain Reid was highly honored on his return to the United States. He arrived at Amelia Island in a Portuguese brig from Fayal with his officers and crew, on the fifteenth of November, 1814, and proceeded thence to St. Mary's, Fla. He received ovations all the way from Savannah to New York. At Richmond, Va., the members of the Legislature gave him a dinner, at which Gov. W. C. Nichols, Mr. Stevenson, Speaker of the House, Mr. William Wirt, and others were present. The legislature of his own State, New York, in April, 1815, passed resolutions of thanks to C- ptain Reid, his officers and crew "for their intrepid valor in thus gloriously maintaining the honor of tlie American flag," and voted liim a gold sword. The owners of the General Arm- strong and his fellow-citizens of New York City presented to Captain Reid an elegant service of silver plate, " as a mark of the high sense entertained for his distinguished skill and valor " in the defence of the Armstrong. Captain Reid was not only known as the valorous com- LIFE OF CAPTAIN SAMUKL C. REID. 89 manderof the Armstrong; he was equally conspicuous in de- voting his talents and genius to the benefit and service of his country. Me designed the present form of tlie United States flag as ado[)ted by Congress in 1818, and which was first hoisted on the Capitol on the thirteenth of April of that year. In 1821, he invented and erected the first marine telegraph between the Highlands of the Neversink on Staten Island, and the Battery at New York City. He also designed find published a national code of signals for all vessels belonging to the United States. He reorganized and perfected regula- tions for governing the pilots of the port of New York, and had the i)ilot boats numbered. Through his efforts and in- stigation he caused the Government to establish a lightship off Sandy Hook, the first ever constructed. In 1820 he in- vented a new system of land telegra[)hs, by means of wliich he satisfactorily demonstrated that a message could be sent from Wasliington city to New Orleans in two hours. A bill was before Congress for its adoption, when Morse's discovery superseded it. He likewise instituted and organized the Shipmasters' and Marine Society of New York, for the im- provement of sea captains, and the support of their widows and children, and in many ways devoted himself to the cause of education, art, and science. On the death of Captain Reid, twenty-eighth of January, 1801, the New Y'^ork Herald characterized the battle of the Armstrong as being " The ThermopyUe of the ocean," and in mentioning his services to his country, said : " They are, aside from the romantic personal interest which hangs about them, among the most im^jortant events in the history of our nation. Reid was indeed a man of rare com- binations, possessing great genius and talent, the courage of a lion, the adventurous spirit of a crusader, the taste of a poet, and the tenderness of a woman. He belonged to that ill m t ii If^^ 40 GENEALOGY OF CAPTAIN UEID. old school of patriots of whom Paul Jones was the first and Iiimself the last." Captain Reid was born in the town of Norwich, State of Connecticut, on the twenty-fifth of August, 1783, the year of peaoe, just after the throes of the devolution. He was the second and only surviving son of Lieutenant John Reid of the British navy, who was captured at New London, Coini., in October, 1778, while in command of a night-boat expedition sent out from the British squadror., under Adnural Hotham, which was then ravaging the cor,st. Lieutenant Reid was a son of Lord John Reid, ( f Glasgow, Scotland, and a lineal descendant of Henry Reid, Earl of Orkney, and Lord High Admiral to Robert HL (Bruce), King of Scotland, in 1393. His great-grandson was William Reid, of Aikenhead, county of Clackmannan, whose son, Robert Reid, became Bishop of Orkney in 151S. and these were the progenitors of Lieutenant John Reid, the father of Capt. Samuel Chester Reid. During the time Lieutenant Reid was a prisoner and held as hostage, he resigned his commission under George IH., and espoused the American cause. In February, 1781, he mar- ried Miss Rebecca Chester, of Norwich, by whom he had but two sons, the eldest of which died young, leaving Sanuiel Chester Reid the only child. Miss Chester ivas a descendant of the fourth generation of Captain Samuel Chester, formerly an officer of the British navy, ^vho, in 1062, emigrated to Con- necticut and settled in New London. He was a soii of Sir Robert Chester, who was knighted by James L, in 1603, and was a dire- descendant of the Earls of Chester, through whom he was collaterally connected with Robert I. (Bruce), King of Scotland. Johr , the son of Captain Samuel Chester^ was the great-grandfather of Rebecca, and in 1685 was one of the magistrates of the upper house of the assembly of the colony of Connecticut. His son, the second John Chester, i 3 n.M' 1'! ■ i HISTOllY OF LONG TOM. 1747, iiiul wh 41 th Hucceeded lii.s father as maufistmte ^'iiiiuii'ather of Miss C'liestLr. His son, the third .loiiii Cliester, served at Hunker Hill and the Battle of Lexington in 1775, and was a colonel in Hri<;adier-(ieneral Wadsworth's Con- nectieut brigade. He was a delegate to the Connectieut Convention in Jannary, 1788, which ratified the Constitution of the United States. He was the father of Uebeet-a Chester, who was the mother of Captain .Samuel Chester Reid. Captain Ueid, following the inherited vocation of his fore- fathers, went to sea from New York, at the early age of eleven, on a voyage to the West Indies. He was ca[)tured by a French privateer, and carried into Basseterre, Guade- loupe, where he was confined for six months. He subse- quently served as acting midshipman on the sloop-of-war Baltimore with Commodore Thomas Truxton, who com- manded the West India squadron. He connuanded the brig Merchant, of New York, when oidy twenty years of age. Captain Reid mariied, at New York City, on tiie eighth of June, 1813, Mary, daughter of Captain Nathan Jennings, of Willington, Conn., who volunteered as private at the Battle of Lexington, April, 177''). He afterwards enlisted and served in Captain Willes's fifth company of General S[)eneer's brigade. He crossed the Delaware with General Washiufj- ton, and commanded a company at the Battle of Trenton, twenty-sixth of December. 1776, being distinguished for gallant services on the field. HISTORY OF THE GUN "LONG TOM" OF THE UNITED STATES PRIVATE-ARMED BRIG- OF-WAR GENERAL ARMSTRONG. The following extraordinary and romantic historv oi this gun was furnished by Commander A. S. Crowniushield, of the United States Navy. H *; Hi •T^ 42 HISTOKY OF LONG TOM. In the month of October, 1798, the French line of battle- ship Hoche, of eighty-four guns, was captured by a British squadron, commanded by Sir John B. Warren (afterwards well known on our coast), and sent into an English port where her armament was offered for sale. Colonel Ephraim Bowen, of Providence, aiid Mr. John B= Murray, of New York, who were in England at the time, purchased her main battery of forty-two pounder cannons on speculation, and shipped them to New York. There they were sold to the United States Government, to be mounted in the harbor, and General Ebenezer Stevens was appointed to inspect them. He rejected one gun, in consequence of a severe indentation on the muzzle, that somewhat affected the bore, which, hov ever, was afterwards reamed out by the owners, and the gun was retained by them. In 1804, Mr. Murray,' in^ co)>junction with others, entered into a contract with the Emperor of Hayti for a supply of munitions of war, to carry on his conflict with France. These gentlemen fitted out three vessels, all of which Avere armed for the protection of that island against the French. Among them was the " Samson," Captain Palmer, a large ship carrying fourteen guns, vvith this rejected forty-two-, pounder mounted amidships on a pivot. Its first service was the carrying away of a foremast of a large French privateer, which gave chase to the little squad- ron, and thus disabled her from further pursuit. The contract with Hayti having been completed and the little fleet dis- posed of, Mr. Murray purchased the Samson, which vessel he forthwith disarmed for the merchant service. This was in 1807, when the " big gun " being dismounted was laid on the bulkhead, in South Street, New York City, where it remained for several years in that situation, when it was finally transferred to the foundry of Robert McQueen in Duane Street, in view of being recast in old metal. While HISTORY OF LONG TOM. 48 there, the War of 1812 wiis declared, and New York was alive with preparations for fitting out privateers. Among them was the celebrated brig Geneial Armstrong, commanded by Captain Samuel Chester Reid, which vessel was built by Adam and Noah Brown, the eminent shipbuilders, who purchased the " big gun " at the price of two hundred and fifty dollars. It was mounted on a pivot amidships, and remained there through her cruises until slie was finally blockaded in the bay of Fayal, one of the Azore islands belonging to Portugal, in September, 1814, by a large British squadron, whose com- mander, in violation of the laws of neutrality and all rules of war, attempted her capture. Tlie gun. Long Tom, was brought to bear with terrible execution against this powerful squadron, resulting in their defeat and a loss of over three hundred of their officers and men. The su[)erior forces of the British squadron finally prevailed, so far as to cause the destruction of the Armstrong, which after being scuttled on the beach and abandoned by her crew, the British set her on fire, when she became a total wreck. Long Tom ^\ as afterwards fished uj) from its watery grave, and was mounted in the Castle of Santa Cruz, at Fayal, where it had been exhibited as a relic of this wonderful battle for the past seventy -eight years, before it was tran- shipped back again to New York. It is a singular coinci- dence that this gun should have remained at Fayal just the period of Captain Reid's life, who died at the age of seventy- eight. The return of the gun to the United States was effected through tlie means of Colonel Sava C. Reid, the son of the commander of the Armstrong, who visited Fayal in 1890, with a view of obtaining a sketch of the battle ground and the harbor and bay, for his work on the Memoirs of his father, lie was conducted to the Castle of Santa Cruz by f!> .i 1 1 i II . t f i , 1. 1 } 'J 4'^ ' im I; ' : 44 HISTORY OF LONG TOM. Mr. Samuel W. Dabney, then the United States consul at Fayal, and was introduced to Long Tom, which had caused so much fame and celebrity. In September, 1891, Colonel Reid addressed a letter to President Harrison requesting our minister at Lisbon, Gen- eral Geo. S. Batcheller, be instructed to make an amicable demand for the transfer of this gun to our Government. To this request the King of Portugal, Don Carlos L, most gra- ciously consented, and the transfer of the gun to the Ameri- can Minister was made at Fayal on the twelfth of May, 1892, with great ceremony by a commission of the Portu- guese military officers, and in the presence of tlie troops of the garrison. The following is a translated copy of the official report deposited in the Portuguese military archives at Lisbon : Headquarters of the Military Commander OF THE Western Azores, Horta, Twelfth of May, 1892. Record of the delivery of the forty-two-pounder, Long Tom, now being in the Castle of Santa Cruz, described by the let- ters, F. L. S. P. 17 C, to liis Excellency, Mr. Batcheller, Minister of the United States of North America, in Poi'tucral. On the twelfth day of the month of May, 1892, at twelve o'clock in the day, there assembled at the Secretariate of the Military Commander of the Western Azores, a commission composed of the following officers: Francisco Alfonso da Costa Chaves e Mello, Captain of the Eleventh Regiment of Chasseurs ; Bernardo Pereira de Vasconcellos, First Lieuten- ant of the Second Company of the (rarrison Artillerymen ; and Jos(5 Ign; io da Silva, ensign in the Eleventh Regiment of Chasseurs, (o proceed to deliver the forty-two-pounder. Long Tom, to his Excellency, Mr. Batcheller, Minister of the HISTORY OF LONG TOM. 46 United States of North America, in Portugal, who is present at this Secretariate. His Excellency having expressed a desire that the delivery- should be made immediately, the Commission proceeded to the Castle of Santa Cruz, in this town of Horta, and there in the presence of their Excellencies, Jos6 Estauislau Ventura, Lieutenant Colonel of Infantry, and Military Commander of the Western Azores ; Lewis Dexter, Consul of the United States of America, in this Island; Francisco da Nazareth Vicira, Lieutenant and Sheriff; and Alfredo de Sampaio Leite, Ensign in the Eleventh Regiment of Chasseurs, was recognized the gun F. L. S. P. 17 C, by his Excellency the Minister referred to, as being the forty-two-pounder, " Long Tom," wherefore it was delivered to him, and at the same time this record was drawn up which is signed by his Ex- cellency Mr. Batcheller, and by the members of the Commis- sion : GEORGE S. BATCHELLER, Minister of the United States of America. FRANCISCO ALFONSO da COSTA CHAVES e MELLO, Caj^tain of the Eleventh Regiment of Chasseurs. BERN ADO PEREIRO de VASCONCELLOS, First Zieutenant of the Second Company of Artillerymen of the Garrison. JOSE IGNACIO DE SILVA, Ensign of the Eleventh Regiment of Chasseurs. Executed in due form. Headquarters of Military Commander of the Western Azores, Horta, twelfth of May, 1892. JOSE ESTANISLAU VENTURA, Lieutenant Colonel of Infantry. it It is but justice to say that great credit is due to General Batcheller for his patriotic zeal and diplomatic energy in 46 THE FLAG OF THE UNITED STATES. obtaining the consent of the Portuguese G(/venimeut to deliver up Long Tom. It was the intention of the Secretary of the Navy, Hon. B. F. Tracy, to send a ship-of-war to Fayal for tlie gun, but as no vessel was available at the time, Messrs. Bensaude & Co., the enterprising owners of the Insular Navigation Steamsliip Company, of Lisbon, which runs monthly fi'om Lisbon via the Azores to New Yoik, generously offered to bring it over free of charge, which offer was accepted by our Goveinment. The gun was shipped from Fayal on the eighth of April, on the splendid steamship " Vega," Captain Da Rossa, which arrived at New York on the night of the eighteenth of April, 1893. The return of this famous gun to Amerifa, after its seclusion of over three quarters of a century in the ancient Castle of Santa Cruz, has revived the historic glory of its brilliant exploits, and created the greatest public interest. At the request of tliat gallant, patriotic naval oilicer, Commodore Richard W. Meade, ^vhose genius and enterprise designed the celebrated model battleship Illinois, at Chicago, this gun, on its arrival at New York, was sent to the Expo sition as one of the naval exhibits, together with the portrait ard battle sabre of Captain Reid. THE FLAG OF THE UNITED STATES. — ITS ORIGIN AND HISTORY. ITS PRESENT FORM DESIGNED BY CAPTAIN SAMUEL CHESTER REID. It is important that every American citizen should become familiar with the history of the flag of his country. The fol- lowing account is from the most authentic historical records : The American flag in 1775 was "the Britisli union with the crosses of St. George and St. Andrew in a red field," and was displayed at New York on a liberty pole with the inscrip- i«t^ THE FLAG OF THE UNITED STATES. 47 tion, " George Rex and the Liberties of America." It is a little singular that the first flag adopted as our national ensign by our ships of war consisted of horizontal stripes with the British union still i-etained in a canton, but was aftej-wards replaced by the stars on a blue field. There is no question of the fact that the origin of our national flag was taken from the coat of arms of the Wash- ington family, which was constituted of stars and bars. In 1776 the construction of the first national standard with the stars and stripes took place in Philadelphia under the personal direction of General Washington and a committee of the old Continental Congress. The first flags bore twelve stars in a circle, as then only twelve States had ratified the Articles of Confederation. On June 14, 1777, Congress resolved that " the flag of the United States " be thirteen stripes, alternate white and red, and the union be thirteen white stars in a blue field. On January 13, 1794, after tAvo nev/ States had been admitted. Congress passed an act that the stripes and stars be increased to fifteen each. Upon the admission of new States subsequently stripes and stars were being added to the flag, which soon rendered it unwieldy and destroyed its form and perspicuity. On the admission of the State of Indiana into the Union, in 1816, a resolution was introduced at the second session of tlie Fourteenth Congi'ess in the House, by Mr. Wendover, of New York, to inquire into the expediency of altering " the flag of the United States." Afterwards the Committee on Naval Affairs called on Captain Samuel Chester Reid, of New York, who was in Washington at the time, late com- mander of the brig-of-war General Armstrong, to make a permanent design for the flag. He reduced the stripes to thirteen, to represent the original States, and to add a star to the union for each new State. 48 THE FLAG OF THE UNITED STATES. He presented two forms of the flag, one with the stars formed into one great star in the union exjjressing signiti- cantly the symbol, - E Pluribus Unum," for our ships and steamers in the merchant service, and the other with the stars in parallel lines for the halls of Congress, our ships of war, and public buildings. Congress ai)proved of the design by '' an act to establish the flag of the United States," passed thirty-first of March, 1818, Fifteenth Congress, first session, and approved by President Monroe on April 4, 1818. The first flag of the present design was made by the wife of Captain Reid, assisted by some young ladies, at her house in New Y6rk City, on Cherry Street, near Franklin Square, and was first hoisted on the Capitol on the thirteenth of April, 1818, seventy-five years ago. The lines of Drake are here appropriate : " Flag of tlie free heart's only home. By angel hands to valor given ; Thy stars have lit the welkin dome. And all thy hues were born in heaven." The genius that designed the settled form and permanency of the United States flag was most aptly chosen. No braver or more gallant sailor could have been selected for the task — none more deserving than he, who had won the world's applause and immortal fame at the battle of Fayal with a British squadron in 1814. A brilliant September midnight moon lit up with its sil- very sheen the waters of the bay and the walls of Horta, burnishing the towering volcanic peak of Mount Pico, which seemed excited to eruption as it looked down upon the battle scene below. The American ensign floated defiantly from the peak of the General Armstrong, amid the roar and smoke of guns and the clash of steel — then the battle cry and m^ ^\ THE FLAG OF THE UNITED STATES. 49 shout of victory rang out upon the air, and re-echoed again and again over the bay and the hills of Horta. The stars in that flag that night were silvered with a brilliant lustre, which not even the moonbeams dancing on the waves of the bay, blood-red with the human gore of England's bravest and best, could make more dazzling than the splendors of that victory ! It would seem that Drake was painting this scene, when he wrote: " Flag of the seas ! on ocean's wave Thy stars shall glitter o'er the brave, When death careering on the gale Sweeps darkly round tlie t:-.velling sail. And frighted waves rush wildly back Before the broadside's reeling rack, The dying wanderer on the sea Shall look at once to heaven and thee — And smile, to see thy splendoi-s fly, In triumph, o'er his closing eye." The prowess of nations and the heroism on their battle-fields have been inspired and achieved by the emblems of their battle-banners and flags, stimulating their warriors to deeds of valor and the highest courage. Carlyle says : " We see in flags the divine idea of duty, of heroic daring, and some- times of freedom and right." THE FLAG THAT REID DESIGNED. This is the flag that Reid designed ; Whose splendors by his art enshrined. Transformed anew the stripes and stare That proudly triumphed in our wai-s. Long as it waves 'twill bear his name, And tell of his immortal fame. tt n V ]^ i I 'f [■-iiiiir--"iiittiiiii 1 1-'. - . 60 ADMIUAL COCHUAXE AND CAPTAIN llEID. Who was the ])ero of Fayal? A battle that exceeded all E'er fought upon the seas. A British squadron, ten to one, He vanquished with his "Long Tom" gun. And brought proud Albion to her knees. 'Twas Reid, who on that fearful night Wielded his sword with giant's might ; 'Twas Reid, amid the cannon's roar. When steel flashed steel reeking with gore, In British blood he bathed anew The crimson in his flag so true. He added lustre still more bright, By this heroic, gallant fight, And to his country gloiy gave. Not knowing that he was to save The victory which Jackson won, Revenging the fall of Washington ! S. C. Reid. !,'>'*•■ U ADMIRAL SIR THOMAS LORD COCHRANE AND CAPTAIN SAMUEL CHESTER REID. The London correspondent of the Baltimore Sun, in April, 1879, gave the following interesting statement in relation to the unjust treatment of the British naval hero, Admiral Sir Thomas Cochrane, by his government, whose name is historically connected with an American naval hero of equal, if not of greater renown. Captain Samuel Chester Reid: " You, good reader from ' north of the Tweed,' may call to memory the name of Thomas Lord Cochrane ; and you who ADMIRAL COCHUANE AND CAJ'TAIN KEID. 61 know better tlie b.aiiks of the Potomac may not be unmindful of this naval name. Last week this name was given justice in the election of a Scotch peer, and tliat peer was of the loins of l^ord Cochrane, the late Earl of Dundonald. In European waters, on the Atlantic and Pacific oceans, the name of Lord Dnndonald is a household word with readers of naval history. A vicious sentence of years hung over him, and an enormous fine paid by the subscriptions of two million six hundred and forty thousand persons at one penny each, told him of his persecution and popularity at one and the same time. He was expelled from the House of Commons, but at once re-elected by the people of Westminster. By piecemeal his rights were I'estored in part when the sun of his life was setting. On a twilight eve in 1860 he died, bequeathing his claim against the British Government to his grandson, Douglas, the present Lord Cochrane. Last year all the back pay and rights of the great naval hero were fully paid and handed over to this Lord Cochrane, and on Tuesday last the son of the ill-treated hero was elected a peer of Scotland, and his son, the aforesaid Lord Cochrane, beheld the memory and name of his grandfather and his father thus slowly but surely reinstated in the roll of history. How many men in America have been similarly ill-treated, but not similarly justified and rewarded I " There is a remarkable incident connecting the names of these two naval heroes with each other, and though as distant as the first and last links of a chain, they are nevertheless closely associated in both English and American history, the one having exercised a fatal destiny over the other. As we have seen, but for Captain Reid's heroic defence of the Armstrong in defeating and delaying Lloyd's Squadron, Admiral Sir Thomas Cochrane, Earl of Dundonald, might have been a victorious hero, with his fleet triumphantly anch- ored in the Mississippi, off New Orleans, and the British flag i 1 h ^ I )r s« .r ill M ' 1 4- 'If 62 A NEW 80N0. lit' of the Cross of St. George procloiming the conquest of an ^ erican India ! Thus Captain Reid's fame and name are singularly linked with that of Sir Admiral Cochrane's, the late Earl of Dun- doiicald, who died in 1860, and the former in 1861, without the reward of justice by either of their governments. THE GENERAL ARMSTRONG.— A NEW SONG. TUNE. — " VIVE-LA." The following song was composed by the geneiT.l officers of the Armstrong on their voyage from Fayal to the United States. It is in the old ballad style of that day, and is worthy of preservation. Come, listen to a gallant action. Which was fought in Fayal Bay, By the saucy General Armstrong ; From eight P. M. till break of day. Chorus. — Hail ! the saucy (Tcneral Armstrong : Reid's immortalized her name — Her cannon dealt death and destruction To furbish young Columbia's fame. Plantagenet, Rota, and Carnation Thought with her to have rare sport, Sent in their boats, with an intention To cut her out of a neutral port. — Chorus. At eight, four boats commenc'd the action. Which fifteen minutes' work laid low ; Quarters next came in r'^tation, Which on them we did bestow. — Chorus. A y«:W SOVG. 68 Fourteen boats, with nen five hundred, At midnight made the grand attack ; In forty minutes half thtnr number Were killed and wounded, falling back. — Chorus. Britain's killed in both engagements, Amounted to three hundred men ; Fifty more of them were wounded — The rest retreated back again. — Chorus. The number killed on board the General, It dotli grieve us to relate, The falling of liieutenant Williams, And one man we do regret. — Chorus. Two lieutenants more were wounded, And likewise five of our men ; But we've got them safely landed, And recovering fast again. — Chorus. Then at break of day next morning, The sloop of war got urider way, And opened her broadside upon us, British courage to display. — Chorus. Lest she should fall in their possession, We thought it prudent her to sink ; Which was put in execution. And thus the General became extinct. — Chorus. Then by the British she Avas boarded (Who finding her partly destroyed Set her on fire) when thus abandoned. By command of Captain Lloyd. — Chorus. .1' I <; ! 4. |V| c - '1 1 * i'l !• -i 1 i I 64 CASE OF IMlUi IJENKlfAl- AKMSTKONO. Although \vi! conhl not save the General, Columhiii's fame wo held in view ; We have ehastis'd the haughty Britons With our little Yankee erew. — Chorus. THE CELEBUATi:!) CASE OK THE BRIG GENEHAL ARMSTRONG. Tiie final destruction of the brig General Armstrong by the British sciuadroii in tlie neutral waters of the island of Fayal, belonging to Portugal, in violation of the laws of neutrality, became a subject of earnest diplomatic correspondence between this government and Portugal for over forty years from the time of its occurrence. The Portuguese government had at once acknowledged its liability to this government', and made a peremptory demand on Great Britain for satisfaction and indenuiincatioii for the violation of the neutrality of its territory and the destruction of the Armstrong. The liritish gjvernment made an ajjology to Portugal for the violation of theii' neutrality, and indemnity for the loss of property sustained by the taring of the British warships, but refused to pay for the burning of the Arm- strong, for which Portugal was responsible to the United States fo: not having, as a neutral power, protected the Armstrong. The Briti jh government contended that the American biig firnt tired into the British boats, which were merely recon- noitering, without any cause or provocation I After yv3ars of fruitless efforts to obtain any satisfaction from Portugal, that goveinrnent, in 1843, wholly denied its liability, and boldly declared that the Americans had first violated the neutrality of their port ! This government, under Van Buren's administration, then abandoned the claim, on the ground that "argument and Wi" CASE OF IJUKJ (iENEUAL AUM8TU0NU. 66 ifMportiuiity had btv^n exluiusted, and the ciicuinstaiicus did not warrant it in having rocouiise to any other weapons." Mr. Sam C. Ueid, Jr., who was then proseentin*,' thin (;hiim in behalf of liis father, jiiid the owners, otHeers, and crew of the hrig, proeured its revival in 1845, under Mr. Polk's ad- ministration. It may be interesting to the reade," to give the following coincidence in relation to this claim. During the war with Mexico Mr. Keid was attached to ('aptain Ben McCuUoeh's scouting eom[)any of the celebrated Jack Hays' rtjgiment of Texas l{angers. In August, 1840, the army of (leneral Taylor was on its march from Comargo to Monterey. Mr. Ileid had been sent with a des[)atch from the front to (leneral Taylor, and after some friendly conversation, in taking his leave, Mr. Reid remarked, " Well, General, we may never meet again, but I think I know the popular pulse of our [)eoi)le well enough to predict that, if you win the battle of Mont(!i'ey, you will become President of the United States ! " The (Jenend laughed, and expressing his incredulity, said, as Mr. Reid was mounting his i.-"rL;e, " Reid, when I get to be President your father shall have his claim against Portugal." "Good," replied Reid, " I'll hold you to it." General Taylor became President, and kept his word. He instructed Mr. John M. Clayton, Secretary of State in 1849, to renew this claim against Portugal. That government, backed up by England, refused to pay the claim, but urged tliat it be submitted to a third power for arbitration. Mr. Clayton declined to arbitrate so just a claim, and pledged the national honor never to consent to submit to so liumiliating a proposition. Mr. Jas. B. Clay, our minister at Lisbon, so- of Henry Clay, was then instructed to make a perem.ptoi' lemand on Portugal, and our Mediterranean squadron proceeded, in July, 1850, up the river Tagus to Lisbon to receive the ultimatum. h 1 s i '! ' I '.'I ? '•■; i 66 CASE OF BRIG GENEEAL AEMSTEONG. ih -I Portugal positively declined, and Mr. Clay took his passports and left for the United States. The case was being prepared to submit to Congress when General Taylor died, on the ninth of July, 1850. Mr. Fillmore's administration succeeded. The proposition to arbitrate was renewed, and accepted by this government in September, 1850, notwithstanding the national faith was plighted never to consent to tarnish its spotless escutcheon. Louis Napoleon, President of the French republic, was chosen arbiter, under a treaty which excluded the important testi- mony of the claimants. In 1853, when Louis Napoleon had become Emperor, he decided the case in favor of Portugal and England, in violation of the treaty. In 1854, an appeal Avas made to Congress ; unanimous re- ports were made in favor of the claim ; it passed the Senate twice, and was lost in the House the last time for the want of two of a quorum ! In the debate in the Senate, in Jan- uary, 1855, Senator James A. Bayard, in referring to Louis Napoleon's decision, said : " Well, sir, looking on that decision as an atrocity through- out, unsustainable by any known principle of law, but a per- version of facts from beginning to end, I cannot believe that it would have been made if our government had not rejected the right of the claimant to be heard by his counsel, or by its own agents, before the authority deputed by the French Em- peror to examine the case, I tlierefore conceive that this party has lost a dc vision in this case from what I term the gross neglect of our government, arising from a misconstruc- tion of a treaty which does not preclude the right to be heard. ... In this country no man who wishes to be heard in defence of his rights should be refused a fair opportunit}- to be he& xl in vindication of those riglits when they are to be decided upon. It is on this ground that I shall vote in favor of the claim as an obligation on the government." tLv If R.,Ki- CASE OF BRIG GENERAL ARiMSTRONG. 57 i The case was finally referred to the Court of Claims, which first decided in favor of the claimants, then, on a rehearing, it reversed its decision, but admitted the equity of the case. It was again submitted to Congress in 1858 ; unanimous reports were made in its favor, but, as usual, it failed for want of action. Twenty years had elapsed. All the original claimants had died. They had sunk into unrequited graves, with the in- gratitude of a government oblivious to their heroism and the great benefits they had rendered to their country, for their only requiem. Their claims on the government had become forgotten in the dark labyrinth-^ of the past, and the waves of time had washed over them as a long-abandoned wreck. During the forty-fifth Congress, Mr. Keid under these hopeless circumstances, renewed this claim for the benefit of the heirs. At the session of the forty-sixth Congress, unan- imous reports were made in favor of the bill, which had passed the Senate and lay on the speaker's table. On the last day of the session, Hon. Proctor Knott, of Kentucky, stood on the floor of the House from noon until midnieht in vain endeavoring to get the recognition of the Speaker, and the bill, with its usual fatality, again failed to pass. At the first session of the forty-seventh Congress, 1882, unanimous reports were again made in favor of the bill. The Honorable W. W. Rice, of Massachusetts, that able and dic-tinguished jurist and statesman, from the Comiuittee on Foreign Affairs of the House, in his report said : " Senate conunittees and House committees have many times reported in its favor, and never against it, and yet it is an unquestionable fact that the owners of the privateer General Armstrong, burnt by a British squadron in the neutral waters of Fayal, in September, 1814, after a defence by her crew which won the admiration of the world and the gratitude of J 58 CASE OF BRIG GENERAL ARMSTRONG, their country, have never been paid for the proi)eity they then lost, and their representatives now stand where their fathers stood, at the doors of Congress, still waiting for tardy justice." At the same session, the late Hon. George H. Pendleton, of Ohio, in his masterly and exhaustive report from the Committee on Foreign relations of the Senate, thus alludes to this claim : " The event out of which the claim arose is most creditable to the valor and skill of American seamen, and in its remoter influences evidently secured victory to the American arms at New Orleans. The accompanying papers will give the nar- rative, whicli, in romantic incidents, almost equals a tale of the imagination." The bill for the relief of the captain, owners, officers and crew of the brig General Armstrong finally passed at this session, April, 1882, appropriating the sum of seventy thousand seven hundred and thirty-nine dollars, which simply was for tlie actual loss of the owners for the brig, and for the personal loss of the effects of the officers and crew, without interest for sixty-eight years, the period for which the claimants had been awaiting the long delayed justice of this government, and which had been demanded from the govern- ment of Portugal. It is a remarkable and astonisliing fact, that tlu-ough the blunders of the Department of State in illegally distributing this appropriation, a claim is still pending, unadjusted at tliis late day, for a portion of the sum thus awarded. This case occupied the attention of all Europe at the time of the unjust award of Louis Napoleon, which was afterward denounced by the Baron de Cussy, of France, in his great work on " International Law and the Rights of Neutrals," in which this case is cited as the most remarkable of the couKes oelebre. 111 it THE FIGHT OF THii "ARMSTROI.j" PRIVATEER. 59 The Armstrong Claim has been given a world-wide celeb- rity and notoriety, by itb having been dramatized and made the foundation foi- the comedy of " The Senator." written by David D. Lloyd and Sidney liosenfeld, and in which Mr. Wra. H. Crane has achieved such distinguished laurels. If the Press of the United States will, in their generosity and patriotism, advocate the raising of this monument to Captain Reid, by tlie contributions of The Pp:ople in the purchase of this pamphlet to effect the same, there is no question of its success. THE FIGHT OF THE -ARMSTRONG " PRIVATEER. BY JAMES JEFFREY' ROCHE. (From the Ctntnry Magazine, June, 1892.) Tell the story to your sons Of the gallant days of yore, When tlie brig of seven p-uns Fought the fleet of seven score. From the set of sun till morn, through the long September nio-ht — Ninety men against two thousand, and the ninety won the light — In the harbor of Fayal the Azore. Three lofty British ships came a-sailing to Fayal : One was a line-of-battle shi[), and two were frigates tall ; Nelson's valiant men of war, l)rave as Britons ever ai'e. Manned the guns they served so well at ^Vboukir and Tra- falgar. Lord Dundonald and his fleet at Jamaica, far away, Waited eager for their coming, fretted sore at their delay. There was work for men of mettle, ere the shameful peace was made, . ( i-m • iflff m • ill if I i . V ' ''■ 60 THE FIGHT OF THE "ARMSTRONG" PRIVATEER. And the sword was overbalanced in the sordid scales of trade ; There were rebel knaves to swing, there were prisoners to bring Home in fetters to old England for the glory of the King ! At the setting of the sun and the ebbing of the tide Came the great ships, one by one, with their portals opened wide, And their cannon frowning down on the castle and the town And the privateer that lay close inside ; Came the eighteen-gun Carnation and the Rota, forty-four, 7\nd the triple-decked Plantagenet an admiral's pennon bore ; And the privateer grew smaller as their topmasts towered taller, And she bent her springs: and anchored by the castle on the shore- Spake the noble Portuguese to the stranger: " Have no fear; They are neutral waters, these, and your sliip is sacred here As if fifty stout armadas stood to shelter you from harm. For the honor of the Briton will defend you from his arm." But the privateersman said, " Well we know the Englislunen, And their faith is written red in the Dartmoor slaughter-pen. Come what fortune God may send, we will £ght them to the end. And the mercy of the sharks may spare us then.' 9) "Seize the pirate where she lies! " cried the English admiral ; " If the Portuguese protect her, all the worse for Portugal I " And four launches at his bidding leaped impatient for the fi'ay, Speeding shoreward where the Armstrong grim and dark and ready lay. Twice she hailed and gave them warning ; but the feeble menace scorning, THE FIGHT OF THE " ARMSTIJONG " PRIVATEER. 61 Oil they came in splendid silance till a cable's length away — Tlien the Yankee pivot spoke ; Pico's thousand echoes woke, And four balHed, beaten launches drifted helpless on the bay. Then the wrath of Lloyd arose till the lion roared again, And he called out all his launches, and he called live hun- dred men ; And he gave the word, " No quarter I " and he sent them forth to smite. Heaven help the foe before him when the Briton comes in might ! Heaven helped the little Armstrong in her hour of bitter need ; God Almighty nerved the heart and guided well the arm of Reid. Launches to port and starboard, launches forward and aft, Fourteen launches all together striking the little craft. They hacked at the boarding nettings, they swarmed above the rail ; But the Long Tom roared from his pivot and the grape-shot fell like hail ; Pike and pistol and !utlass, and hearts that knew not fear, Bulwarks of brawn and mettle, guarded the privateer. And ever where fight was fiercest the form of Reid was seen ; Ever where foes drew nearest, his quick sword fell between. Once in the deadly strife The boarders' leader pressed Forward of all the rest, Challenging life for life ; But ere their blades had crossed, A dying sailor tossed His pistol to Reid, and cried, " Now riddle the lubber's hide ! " But the privateersman laughed and flung the weapon aside, Mfll 'I 1 1 1 • 1 i I tij fggfggg, 62 THE FIGHT OF THE " ARMSTHONG " PRIVATEER. And he drove his Uade to the hilt, and the foeman gasped and died. Then the boarders took to their launches, laden with hurt and dead, But little with glory burdened, and out of the battle fled. Now the tide was at flood again, and the night was almost done, When the sloop- of-war came up with her odds of two to one, And she opened fire ; but the Armstrong answered her, gun for gun, And the gay Carnation wilted in half an hour of sun. Then the Armstrong, looking seaward, saw the mighty sev- enty-four, With her triple tier of cannon, drawing slowly to the shore. And the dauntless captain said: "Take our wounded and our dead. Bear them tenderly to land, for the Armstrong's days are o'er ; But no foe shall tread her deck, and no flag above it wave — To the ship that saved our honor we will give a shipman's grave." So they did as he commanded, and they bore their mates to land, With the figurehead of Armstrong and the good sword in his hand. Then they turned the Long Tom downward, and they pierced her oaken side, And they cheered her, and they blessed her, and they sunk her in the tide. Tell the story to your sons, When the haughty stranger boasts THE FIGHT OF THE "ARMSTRONG Of liis mighty ships and guns And I lie muster of hi hosts, How the word of (rod was witnessed in the gallant days of yore, When the twenty fled from one ere the rising of the sun. In the harbor of Fayal the Azore. \l ■•i: § 11 li '■- t *i I -« 1 1