COLUMBUS DISCOVERING AMERICA THE HISTORY OF THE UNITED STATES: TOLD IN ONE SYLLABLE- WORDS B } MISS JOSEPHINE POLLARD, WITH COLORED ILLUSTRATIONS. N E W YORK: MCLOUGHLIN BROTHERS, PUBLISHERS. A FEW IVORDS. THIS is a tale in short words for small folks, on the way our land grew. There is much that all boys and girls aught to know, of the brave deeds of our great men. To read this will make you want to read more and to learn more, of what the men of old times and oj new times did to make our land the great land it now is. The men of old times fought to make the land free. We who live in this day should be proud to have it free, and do our best to keep it so. All young folks should be glad to learn of the land in which they live ; to know who were its chief men; and to tell of the wars which were fought, in which the foes of the land were put to flight. They should know, too, what a bright and glad thing it is that we now have peace in the land, after all the wars we have been through. God has led us on through ways that have been strange, to reach the place where we now stand. The men of all the earth look on our land, and we are glad to have them call it THE LAND OF THE FREE and THE HOME OF THE BRAVE. 442815 CONTENTS CHAPTER I. CHAPTER II. CHAPTER III. CHAPTER IV. CHAPTER V. CHAPTER VI. CHAPTER VII. CHAPTER VIII. CHAPTER IX. CHAPTER X. CHAPTER XI. CHAPTER XII. CHAPTER XIII. CHAPTER XIV. CHAPTER XV. CHAPTER XVI. CHAPTER XVII THE NORTH MEN A GREAT MAN A NEW WORLD NEW HOMES WARS WITH THE RED MEN. . TWO MEN OF PEACE FRENCH AND IN-DI-AN WARS. . THE CAUSE OF A GREAT WAR. THE FIRST FIGHT GEORGE WASH-ING-TON. . DARK DAYS THE CLOSE OF THE WAR. ON SHIP AND SHORE. WHAT TOOK PLACE IN MEX-I-CO AND CAL-I-FOR-NIA NORTH AND SOUTH AT WAR TIMES OF PEACE AND GROWTH. . THE WAR WITH SPAIN PAM. 5 M 26 39 46 58 62 66 69 77 81 86 90 97 103 H5 125 THE HISTORY OF THE UNITED STATES. CHAPTER I. THE NORTH MEN. iN the North of Europe chance, and in a few years lived the North, or some Danes went there to Norse men, who were fond j live, and kept up a trade of the sea. They were a : with the main-land. When large, strong race. They j some years had gone by, wore the skins of wild j Green-land was found by beasts for clothes, and when an Ice-land-er who set sail they went out to fight wore ; in a way that no one else great coats of mail. These i had gone, and in a short men were great thieves, time some of the Ice-land 5-nd stole all that came in folks went to live in the heir way. new land where there was Some of these men | less ice and snow, sailed from Den-mark in You would think from the year 900, and, in a the name that it was a storm, were cast on the place where green grass shores of Ice-land. Thus grew, and there were green Ice- land was found by fields, and green trees, and THE HISTORY OF THE UNITED STATES. high green hills such as you can see in your own land. But if you look the map you will on see that this could not be ; for Green-land is near the North Pole, where there is ice and snow all the year round, and the folks there have to live in huts, that have a hole in the side for them to crawl through, and a hole in the top to let the smoke out. Eric, the Red, was one of the first who went from Ice-land to Green-land to make a home. Men in those days were as fond of change as they are now, and as they had but few clothes and did not need much to keep house with, they could go from place to place with great ease. Their ships were strange in shape, with a tall prow in front, and must have been made stout and strong or they could not have stood the rough waves in the great north sea. How would you like to live where there were ice and snow all the time, and the sun did not shine bright or warm for six months at a time. I have said that the Danes kept up a trade with the main-land ; but it was not the land that you will see near Green-land or Ice-land on the map. They did not know that such a great land was so near ; for when they set sail they took but one course and that was to the land they had come from, which was Den -mark. THE HISTORY OF THE UNITED STATES. You can judge by the had not set in that drove map how far off that was, him out of his course and will not think it strange Part of the time they were that it took so long a time shut in by thick fogs, so to find out the great land that they could not tell that lay so near, but in a where they were. Then way they were not wont the bleak winds blew from to go. the north and drove their c5 One of the men who ship far to the south-west, went with Eric, the Red, when their aim had been to had a son, who at that keep to the north-east, time was in Nor-way, with At length they saw a land which a trade was kept up. which they knew could not When the son came back be Green-land, for they had to Ice-land and found that been told that its shores those with whom he made , were rough and full of ice his home were not there, hills, and these shores were he made up his mind to go quite flat and great trees to Green-land too, though grew there ; so they stood he did not know how to out to sea, and in two days get there, and there was no ! with a south-west wind one to show him the way. they came in sight of a But for all that he set out with a ship s crew, and might have found his way coast, which was also flat and full of trees. This did not please them, so they set to Green-land, if a storm j sail once more and in three THE HISTORY OF THE UNITED STATES. days came to a third land, which they found out had the sea on all sides and was | not as large as Ice-land. Its great ice-hills they did not like, so they did not j land, but bore off with the same wind, and in four days came to the coast of Green-land. This was in the year 986. If they had known that the land they had been so near was part of a great and a new world, how changed would have been their course ! But the men were sick of the sea and glad to get ! back to their own homes i and their friends, and to tell them all they had seen. In eight years this same man, whose name was Bard-son, and who had a ship of his own, went off to spend some time with the Earl of Nor-way to whom he spoke of the strange land he had seen but a few days sail from Green-land; and the Earl, and all those who heard him, thought it was a great shame that he did not go on shore when he was so near, and had such a good chance to find out what sort of a place it was. The young men of Green land were quite sure they would not have done as Bard-son did ; and as they had no books to read, and not much else to think of, their whole talk for years and years was of what some of their own folks had seen with their own eyes. It was so strange a tale that some of them did not think it could be true. THE HISTORY OF THE CXI TED STATES. Green trees and a flat coast so near? It could not be! The men had dreamt it ! No one cared to send a ship down that way to see if it were so. They did not care a great deal for land. The great sea was the field they plow d ; it gave them their food, and they could ride at ease on its waves and feel free to go here or there. But in the year 1,000, Leif, one of the sons of Eric, the Red, made up his mind to go out in search of those strange lands of which he had heard since he was a boy, and to find out if these tales were all true. So he bought the same ship that Bard-son used to call his own, the name of which has not come down to us, and with quite a large crew set sail from Green-land. The first land they made was that which Bard-son had seen last. Here they went on shore. Not a blade of grass was to be seen ; on all sides were great hills of ice, and twixt these and the shore a great bare field of slate, on which no weed could find a place to grow. As they did not like the looks of the land they gave it a bad name, Hell-u-land, and put to sea at once. It is thought that this land was what is now known as New-found-land, which sets out from the I main-land so that the : waves can dash all round | its coast, and the north winds pile their drifts of ice j and snow up on the shore. 10 THE HISTORY OF THE UNITED STATES. The next land these brave men came to, and where they went on shore, was quite flat, but thick woods could be seen back from the low coast. To this place they gave the name of Wood-land. It is now known as No-va Sco-tia. But Leif did not choose to stay here ; so he set sail, and in a few days came to a point of land that set out at the east of the main-land like a great bare arm of stone, or a hook to reap with. This you will see, if you look on the map, was Cape Cod, and through Cape Cod Bay, Leif went with his ship and soon found a nice place to land on the coast of Mas-sa-chu- setts. Here they at first built huts to live in ; but ! as they liked the place and ! made up their minds to stay for some time, they put up log houses in which they could keep warm | when the days grew cold, and ice and snow were on the ground. From time to time men were sent out to view the land, and one day when one of them, a German, did not come back with the rest, Leif and a few of I his crew went out to look for him. They soon met him, and he told them he had not been far, but had found vines and grapes which were well known to him, as he had been born , in a land where they grew. At first they did not think he told the truth ; but the next day some of the men went with him, and THE HISTORY OF THE UNITED STATES. n found it just as he had said it was. When Leif and his men made up their minds to go home, they piled the deck of their ship with the trees they had cut down, and filled the long boat with grapes. The place was so full of vines and grapes that Leif gave it the name of Vin-land ; and in the spring he and his men set out for Green-land. These brave Norse men and their sons could not tell the rest of the world what they had seen ; so years went by and few found their way to this new world. Now and then a ship went out from Ice land or Green-land, and there is proof that these North men found their way down the coast of North A-mer-i-ca as far as M as -sa-chu- setts and Rhode Is-land. Bronze breast - plates, bronze belts, and s\vord- hilts, have been found from ; time to time, which could not have been worn by the red men of the woods, who had no use for such things. Strange signs were found cut in the rocks, and at New-port there is now a round house of gray stone which was built, no one knows when, but long ere Co-lum-bus came to A-mer-i-ca. At this time, and for a long term of years, the whole of the U-ni-ted States, from the At-lan-tic to the Mis-sis-sip-pi, was a wild land where great woods grew, and where bears, wolves, wild-cats, and deer 12 THE HISTORY OF THE UNITED STATES. were free to roam. Here and there at the foot of high hills were wide fields of long grass that spread for miles and miles like a great green sea. Snakes of all kinds made their home in this long grass through which they slid with ease, and basked in the warm rays of the sun. Here, too, the wild ox I made a path, and went back and forth where the foot of man had not trod, and no one had as yet found out the worth of his horns and his skin. It is said that long ere a white man saw this land, ! strange men with dark skins lived here and built large towns, fought great fights, and served false gods. But of this we can not be sure. No one can tell what took place, or what they did who lived here in those far off days when no white man had set foot on the land. The first white men who came to this new world found here a wild race who wore the skins of wild beasts tied round their waists, and lived in a rude sort of way. They were tall and straight, with dark red skins, high cheek bones, and coarse black hair. The whites gave these red men the name of In-di-ans, as it was then thought that A-mer-i-ca was a part of In-di-a. These In-di-ans could do three things: hunt, fish, and fight. They made their squaws do all the hard work. These poor squaws had to dig the THE HISTORY OF THE UNITED STA TES. ground, sow the corn, and weave the mats of which their huts were made; and not a smile or a kind word did they get to pay them for their hard tasks. The men spent the most of their time in the woods, where they could hunt for game, by the streams where fish were to be caught, or else in fights with those who dwelt near them. They made use of bows and clubs with great skill. Their darts had sharp stones at the end, or bits of shells. They were such good shots that they could bring down a bird, or a deer, or a man a long way off. Their clubs were made of hard wood. When they killed a man, they would cut off his scalp, which was the skin of his head with the hair on, and these scalps were tied to their belts and worn with much pride. These were not nice men to meet with in a strange land, and as you read on you will learn how the white men had to fight these foes, and in what ways they tried to make friends with the red men. THE HISTORY OF THE UNITED STA TES. CHAPTER II. GREAT MAN. At the time of which I write, the earth was thought to be flat, and men who went to sea made use of the stars to steer by. But a great change came, and a great man. His name was Chris- to- pher Co-lum-bus, and he was born at Gen-o-a, It-a-ly. As a boy he was fond of the sea, and he learned, while quite a lad, how to sail a ship and to take charge of a crew. When he grew to be a man he had a ship of his own, and kept up a trade with lands that were far off. In those days men went to Af-ri-ca for gold and for slaves, and to A-sia for rich fruits and fine goods that could be found no where else. The sea was a great high-way, and bad men would lie in wait to seize the ships on their way back from the East, and to take from each one of them the rich prize that it bore. Of course the men did not want to lose what they had gone so far to get, and there would be great fights on the sea. In a sea-fight off the coast of Spain Co-lum-bus ship was set on fire, and all on board had to swim for their lives. Co-lum-btis found his way to Lis-bon, THE HISTORY OF THE UNITED STATES. 15 where there were some folks who spoke his tongue, and they gave him the best the short cut from Eu-rope to In-di-a would be straight through North A-mer-i-ca. of care. Here he made his No ship could make this, home, and took a wife, and of course. But at the time in time had charts and I speak of, the folks in books of his own, that told Eu-rope did not know that him all that was known of there was such a place as the great wide sea, of which North A-mer-i-ca, and Co- he was so fond. lum-bus thought it would Each day he grew more be a fine thing to take this wise, and his mind was full short cut from Spain to In- of great schemes. di-a. The more he thought From what he read, and of it, the more he felt that from what he had seen in it could be done. He was his trips to far off coasts, j both brave and bold. He from the shape of the land did not ask that men and and the bend of the sky, ships should be sent to see Co-lum-bus made up his if this were so. He wished mind that the world was to take the lead and to round and not so large as prove that he was not such it was thought to be, and a fool as they thought, that men must sail west to What faith he had ! find a short way to In-di-a. For long, long years he If you look at a map of tried hard to prove that the world you will see that j this thing could be done; x6 THE HISTORY OF THE UNITED STATES. but no one had faith in him. They had been taught that the earth was flat, and that it was not safe for ships to go west for fear they would fall off. He could get no help in his plans, and wise men told him to give them up. He asked in vain for ships and gold, for he was too poor to buy what he would need on such a long trip. Some made fun of him to his face and said, if the world were round, some folks would have to walk on their heads. One day when Co-lum- \ bus felt worn and sad, for j it was a great grief to him that he could get no one to think as he did, he sat down to rest in the shade of a house where some monks made their home. It was high noon, and he asked the monk to give him a cool drink. The monk brought him the draught, and sat down by Co-lum-bus to have a talk with him. Co-lum-bus told him his views and his plans, and the monk thought so well of them that he said he would speak to his friends at the court of Spain and see what they would do to aid him in his bold scheme. Co-lum-bus first went to It-a-ly, in 1484, but the king of that place would give him no help. Then he went to Por-tu-gal, and bad men laid a scheme to fit him out with ships and then rob him of the wealth or fame he might win. But Co-lum-bus found this out, and when the king THE HISTORY OF THE UNITED STATES. 17 of Por-tu-gal sought to | means to buy clothes that make terms with him, Co- j were fit to wear at court lum-bus would give him And not till then did he no heed. go to see the king. This This will show you how | was in the year 1488. he came to go to Spain and Co-lum-bus had gone to to sail from there, when he Spain to try his luck there, was born in Gen-o-a, and and found a friend in good had made his home in Lis- Queen Is-a-bel-la. He bon for so many years. had made up his mind In the mean time he to go to France if Spain had sent a friend to Kng- would not fit him out with land, to see what King Hen-ry the Sev-enth would do for him. This friend ships ; and if it had not been for the queen, Co-lum- bus might have died and fell in with those sea the New World might thieves I have told you j not have been found at all. of, and they took all that But these things do not he had, so that when he take place by chance, got to Eng-land he was When the right time in a sad plight. He was comes, God puts it in the sick for some time, but as hearts of men to do what soon as he got well he is wise and good in His went to work and made sight. And God put it in and sold maps, and in a the heart of Queen Is-a- year or two he had the bel-la to help Co-lum-bus THE HISTORr OF THE UNITED STATES. just at this time. u All things work for good to them that love God." The monk who had been so kind to Co-lum-bus and such a friend to the cause from the first, set out to see what the king and queen of Spain would do. They were in camp at San-ta Fe, where the court was held, with the troops who at that time laid siege to Gra-na- da. The Fra, as the monk was called, told them that he had great faith in Co- lum-bus, who was a wise and good man, and there was no doubt that he had the skill to do all that he laid out. To such a man there was no such word as fail. The Fra said it would be a great loss if they let slip so fair a chance to add to the wealth of Spain, and it would not do to let Co-lum- bus go off in a rage, and have the rich prize fall in the hands of kings who would be glad to seize it from the grasp of Spain. So well did he plead that the queen bade that Co-lum-bus should be sent for, with gold from the king s purse to pay his way. Co-lum-bus came and spoke in strong terms; some thought what he said was wise, and were pleased with the way he spoke; some thought him a vain man, and his terms much too high. The war had cost Spain a great deal of gold, and they had none to waste on such a wild scheme as this in which Co-lum-bus would like them to take part. THE HISTORY OF THE UNITED STATES. 19 Co-lum-bus gave up all hopes. Hymns were sung, and feasts were spread, and none but a man of his rank would dare to speak. He said that it was a shame all Spain was glad, for ; that so grand a scheme Gra-na-da had been won should fall through for from the hands of the foe. want of some one like the No one had time to think queen to give it aid. She of poor Co-lum-bus, who was fond of good deeds, felt that the years he had ; and glad to do all she spent in Spain were in \ could to build up the truth lost years. He took church of Christ, and raise leave of his friends and the Cross in lands where set out for Cor-do-va, from His name was not known, which port he could sail It was a sin to lose such a for France where, as I have chance to let the light in a told you, he thought he dark place. Why should might find friends to aid they let a small sum of him in his plans. This gold stand in the way of was in the first month of such a grand work and the year 1492. such a great prize? At this time, one of the If Co-lum-bus would risk men who served the crown j his life, could Spain not and had great love and risk her gold ? Friends and zeal for the land that gave foes of his dear land would him birth, went to the blame those who had been queen and spoke to her as so blind and so weak as THE HISTORY OF THE UNITED STA TES. not to seize on this chance, and in the years to come each child of Spain would feel the loss and shame of it. The queen could not be deaf to these words. She said she would pledge her own gems to get the means, if Spain could not spare the gold. But there was no need of this. A man was sent in great haste to Co-lum-bus whom he found on the bridge of Pi-nas, two miles from Gra-na-da, and when he came back to the town of San-ta-Fe, he found the folks there so kind and good that he gave no thought to the things that had vexed him. Those whom God means shall do great things have to fight their way through much that is hard and sad This makes them brave and strong, if they are made of the right kind of stuff. What joy must have been in the heart of Co-lum-bus when he was told that the king and queen of Spain would fit out a fleet of ships, and place him at the head ! At a sea port of Spain s named Pa-los, three small craft were put in charge of Co-lum-bus. They were such poor ships that he had hard work to find men to go in them as crews. Few men in our day would care to risk their lives in such poor ships as the king and queen of Spain gave to Co- lum-bus. But it was the best they could do. The king said the crews must THE HISTORY OF THE UXITED STATES. 21 go on board and do as fear that they should not Co-lum-bus said, and they have a fair wind to take went, but in great fear, for them back, they shrank from such a The sea gulls, and the wild cruise and were sure weeds, and the small birds they would not find their they met at break of day way back to their homes. made them think the land The three ships were was near, and when the named the San-ta Ma-ri-a sun rose and they saw but [Ma-ree-ah] the Pin-ta, and the broad, deep sea, they the Ni-na [Ne-nah.] Co- were wroth with the man lum-bus went on board the who had brought them so San-ta Ma-ri-a which had a far from home. Their hopes deck. The Pin-ta and the gave way to fears as day by Ni-na had no decks, and day they watched and saw there was deep gloom in no signs of land. They Pa-los when the fleet put had been made to go on out to sea in 1492. At the this wild cruise. Their end of a week they \vere hearts were not in it. They out of sight of land. Great had left all that was dear fear fell on the crews, who to them, and for what ? had no wish but to get Some of the rough men back home as fast as they shed tears, and some gave could. The wind blew vent to loud cries. All of them on in a straight them found fault with Co- course, and this made them , lum-bus, and thought he 22 THE HISTORY OF THE UNITED STA TES. was to blame for all their woes. He had led them off in search of a land that was no-where to be found, and they had a mind to kill him if he did not turn back. Then they would soon change the ship s course, and when they got back to Spain would tell the king that Co-lum-bus fell in the sea while his gaze was fixed on the stars. Co-lum- bus stood firm. He tried to soothe the men, and to lift up their hearts. He told them of the wealth in store for them in the new land he was quite sure he should find, and which could not be far off, and in this way and by the inreats that he made kept the men from crime. He said that he was bound by the help of God to go to In-di-a, and if they did not do as they ought it would be worse for them when the word was sent to the king of Spain. In a few days the wind blew from the right course, the sea was calm, and the three ships stood so near that Co-lum-bus could talk to those in charge of the Pin-ta and Ni-na. The air had a sweet smell, and ! fields of sea-weed came near the ship. While Co lumbus bent his head on the chart to see if he could have gone out of his track, a shout went up from the Pin-ta, and the cry of -Land! Land!" The men were wild with joy. Co-lum-bus knelt down and gave thanks to God. The crews on all of the ships joined in a song THE HISTORY OF THE UNITED STA TES. of praise. Some of the men climb to the mast head, and strain their eyes to see the land that lay but a few leagues off. All that night, to please the men who were so sure it was the land, Co- lum-bus set the ship out of its course, and stood to the north west. The light of day put an end to all their hopes, as to a dream. What they had thought was land was but a dark cloud ! With hearts full of grief they once more turn their course to the west, and for some days sail on with the same fair wind, smooth sea, and bright skies. The one who first saw the land was to have a great prize, and this kept the men on the watch. But if one should cry out Land! and it did not prove to be so, he was to have no share in the prize, though his eyes might be the first to catch a glimpse of the real land, and his voice the first to tell the good news. Once those on board the Ni-na, which took the lead the most of the time, fired a gun, and sent up a flag and were sure they had seen land ; but as they went on they found out that they were wrong. All this time the crew of the San-ta Ma-ri-a had it in their hearts to kill Co-lum-bus, and he knew it, but showed no fear, though he kept a close watch on all the signs that told him the land could not be far off. They had been at least two months at sea, a long THE HISTORY OF THE UNITED STATES. time for men of ill-will to keep their rage in check, when birds and land fowl that Co-lum-bus knew could not fly far, came quite near the ship. The songs of birds were in the air, and one day the men on board the Pin-ta took up a staff on which strange signs were wrought, and saw a cane float by, and a large lot of weeds torn fresh from the shore. Co-lum-bus spoke to his men ; told them how good God had been to them to lead them so far and keep them safe from all harm, and said that as he had sure proofs they were near land he would have them watch all night. New joy rose in the hearts of the home -sick men. Not an eye was closed that night. The breeze had been fresh all day with more sea than they had had for some time, and the ships went with more speed. As it grew dark Co-lum-bus took his stand on the top of the high deck of his ship, and kept his eyes fixed on the west. At ten o clock at night he thought he saw a light on shore. It came and went, as if it were a torch in a boat that rose and sunk with the waves, or in the hand of some one on shore borne up and down as he went from house to house. In two hours more the shout of Land ! Land ! was heard from the Pin-ta, and the ships laid to, to wait for the dawn. What pride and joy THE HISTORY OF THE UXITED STATES. 25 must have been in the and with a drawn sword heart of Co-lum-bus ! in his hand. The flag of Those who had thought Spain is set up which has him a fool would now on it a green cross with learn that he was a wise crowns and the names of man. Fer-di-nand and Is-a-bel-la. At break of day they All kneel on the sand, and saw a long strip of low ! kiss the earth, and thank Land five miles to the north. \ God with tears of joy. In Trees rise in view and ! this way Co-lum-bus lays the shores are green. All ; claim to the land in the shed tears of joy, and sing name of the king and a hymn of praise to God. queen of Spain, and all the The crews man the men vow to serve Co-lum- boats and in great pomp bus, and through him the row to the shore. Co-lum- king and queen of the bus lands in a rich dress, land they love. >6 THE HIS TORT OF THE UXITED STATES. CHAPTER III. N E W WORLD. Colum-busgave the name of San Sal-va-dor to this land which he thought was on the coast of In-di-a. He did not see the gold and gems he knew were to be found in that rich land, but he saw a new race of men with dark skins, who wore no clothes at all, and stared at him and his men as if thev thought they had J C3 come down from the sky, or out of the deep sea. When these red men on the land saw the boats draw near the shore, and a lot of strange men clad in bright steel and gay clothes land on the beach, they fled to the woods in great fear. But when they found that no one sought to harm them they came back and drew near the men of Spain with great awe, fell on their knees, and made signs as if thev thought o o they were gods. These men were not so dark as Af-ri-cans, nor was their hair so crisp. It was straight and coarse, cut short at the tops of the ears, and some locks left long hung down their backs. Each man held a long lance in his hand the point of which was made hard by fire, while some of them were made more sharp by a piece of flint, or the teeth or bone of a THE HISTORY OF THE UNITED STATES. fish. They knew not the use of a sword, and when one was held out to them they took it by the edge. Co-lum-bus gave them gay caps, glass beads, hawks bells, and such things as were used in trade on the gold coast of Af-ri-ca, and made friends of them at once. They hung the beads round their necks, and were pleased with their fine toys, and with the sound of the bells. When Co-lum-bus asked these men, to whom he gave the name of In-di- ans, where he could find gold, they would point to the south, and make signs that led him to think that a king dwelt there of such wealth that his food was served on plates of wrought gold. He heard, too, some talk of Cu-ba, and of large ships that went there to trade, and he made up his mind that all these bits of land he saw were on the ! coast of A-si-a, and that the ships were those of the Great Khan, of whom he had read. So he set sail for Cu-ba, where he thought to find | mines of gold, groves of spice, and shores full of pearls, but when he got there he found no signs of wealth. One man of the tribe who came out to meet him wore a ring and that was in his nose ! But though the land was not rich in gold it was rich in much else that would bring wealth to those who set up a trade with these new lands, which are now known as the West In-dies. 28 THE HISTORY OF THE UNITED STATES. As Co-lum-bus steered his boat by the east coast of Cu-ba he saw land to the south-east, with great high hills that rose up to the sky. The In-di-ans cried out in a way that made Co-lum- bus think that that was the place to look for gold, but when they saw him steer his boat that way they were in great fear and made signs to him to come back. They told him as well as they could that a fierce race dwelt there, that they had but one eye, and would eat a man up raw. But Co-lum-bus went on and in two days came to a fine piece of land to which he gave the name of Hay- ti [Ha-tee]. High rocks rose from out a rich growth of trees, the soil was rich, broad plains of green grass lay at the foot of the hills ; and the fires at night and the smoke that was seen by day, were signs that more men would be found here than they had seen else where in the New World. But though the soil was rich, the streams full offish, and the In-di-ans kind, the men of Spain were sad, for they saw no signs of gold. Co-lum-bus found at Hay-ti, now known as San Do-min-go, a race of men not at all like those he had met with. Some of them wore rings and chains of gold, which they were glad to change for the beads and bells the crews gave them. A young chief came to see Co-lum-bus and gave him a rich belt and two bits of gold ; and he and all his men thought that /v *& THE PILGRIMS FIGHTING THE INDIANS THE HISTORY OF THE UNITED STATES. 29 Colum-bus and those with were of gold. The chief him must have come down sent word that it was his from the skies. wish that the ships should Though not much gold come to that part of the was found in this place, ; coast near which he dwelt. Co-lum-bus was told by As the wind was not one of the wise men that right, Co-lum-bus could not he would soon reach the get his boats off at once, lands that were rich in this so he sent one of his head ore. It was near the end j men who was well read in of the year 1492, when j the law, with some of the Co-lum-bus and his crews i crew to call on the chief, came to the Bay of Saint j whom they found in a Thom-as. Some of the men j large and well-built town on shore came off in boats which was called Pun-ta made of light bark ; some j San-ta. The chief met the swam to them and all men in a kind of square, brought gifts of rare fruits, which had been swept clean and with free hands gave \ and made fine, and did all all the gold they wore. j he could to show how glad The chief who ruled the he was to see them. When land sent to Co-lum-bus a they left he gave them broad belt wrought with birds and bits of gold, and gay beads and bones, and i crowds of men went with a mask of wood, the eyes, them to their boats, nose, and tongue of which j When Co-lum-bus set sail THE HISTORY OF THE UXITED STATES. out of this bay, the wind was from the land, and so light that it did not fill the sails. It was Christ-mas eve. Co-lum-bus had kept watch each night since they left Spain. This night as the sea was calm and smooth, and the ship scarce moved at all, he thought he would lie down and rest. He felt quite safe as the boats that were out that day found no rocks nor shoals in their course. As soon as Co-lum-bus left the deck the man whose place it was to steer the San-ta Ma-ri-a gave the helm in charge of one of the ship-boys, and went to sleep. The rest of the men who had the watch, now that Co-lum-bus was out of the way, thought that they might as well take their ease, and in a short time the whole crew had gone to sleep. In the mean time the strong tides that ran by this coast swept the ship with no noise but with great force up on a sand bank. The boy could not have been a smart lad, for it is said that he took no heed of the big waves whose loud roar could be heard for at least three miles. But as soon as he felt the boat strike and heard the wild rush of the sea, he gave a loud cry for help. Co-lum-bus was the first on deck. He and his I men did their best to save I the ship, but it was too late. The keel was fixed deep in the sand, and as the sea | would soon break her up, Co-lum-bus and his crew i went on board the Ni-na. THE HISTORY OF THE UXITED STA TES. It is not well to set aj boy to do a man s work. Co-lum-bus knew this, and was not to blame for the loss of the ship. The wreck took place on the shore near where the chief i dwelt, and he went on board the Ni-na to see Co- lum-bus, and wept to find him so much cast down. While the two stood on deck they saw a light bark draw near in which were some In-di-ans who had brought a lot of bright bits of gold, which they wished to change for hawks bells. These toys gave the In-di- ans great joy. I will tell ; you why. The In-di-ans were fond of the dance, and would mark the time with the strange songs they sung, and take their steps to the sound of a kind of drum, made from the trunk of a tree, and the noise that could be made with small bits of wood. When they hung the hawks bells on their necks, waists, and arms, and heard the clear sweet sound they gave, in time with each move that was made in the dance, the In-di-ans were wild with joy. It is said that one In-di-an gave half a hand- full of gold-dust for one of o these bells, and fled to the woods for fear the men of Spain would rob him when they found out how cheap they had sold it. When the chief saw how the face of Co-lum-bus lit up at the sight of the gold, and found out that it was his wish to reach a land where this ore could be dug out of the ground, he THE HISTORY OF THE UNITED STATES. told him by signs that there was a place not far off where there was so much gold that the folks there did not care much for it. This news brought good j cheer to the heart of Co- lum-bus and he felt that his ship-wreck was not such a sad thing as he had thought. But for fear the Pin-ta or the Ni-na should meet with the same fate as the San-ta Ma-ri-a, he thought it best to go back to Spain and make it known what a great and a rich land he had found. On his way back there rose a great storm. Co- lum-bus thought his ships would go down and the good news be lost to Spain. So he wrote it all out, sealed it up in a cake of | wax, put the wax in a cask, and threw the cask in the sea. But God took care of the brave men, and his crews, and the ships found their way to port. When Co-lum-bus told of all the strange sights he had seen, there was great joy in Spain. Some of his men had brought back with them great lumps of gold ; and when they showed these to their friends, all had a strong wish to go to the New World and get rich at once. Large fleets of ships set sail from Spain, Port-u-gal, and It-a-ly. Some of them found the same lands that Co-lum-bus had seen, and some of them found their way to the main-land. There were some folks who thought it was no THE HISTORY OF THE V XI TED STATES. 33 great thing that Co-lum-bus not please them at all, had done. It is told that and they grew cross, and at a feast a fine young man thought Co-lum-bus was ;n a court dress said that to blame for all they had Me did not think it was to put up with, hard to find such a land. The fourth time Co-lum- Co-lum-bus bade him bus crossed the sea he make an egg stand on end. found land at a point He tried and could not south of the West In-di-es, do it. Then Co-lum-bus and this was the first that broke the end of the egg was known of the large so that it stood with ease, tract of land which we call and in this way taught the South A-mer-i-ca. This vain man that he knew less was in 1498. than he thought he did. The fame of Co-lum-bus Co-lum-bus went three won for him the hate of or four times to the West great men at the court of In-di-es, and on each trip Spain, and they did all he took hosts of men to they could to harm him. join him in the search for False tales were told ; and gold. But they had hard men he had thought were work to live in the strange his friends, and for whom lands, and they did not he had done so much, did pick up the gold they not treat him well, and he thought they should find was sent back to Spain in in all the fields. This did chains. Was it not hard 34 THE HISTORY OF THE UNITED STA TES. to drive him out of the New World that might not have been found at all but for him? What poor pay he got for all he had gone through ! It was still worse for Co- lum-bus when Queen Is-a- bel-la died, for then he had no kind friend at court to save him from the wrath of his foes. No one took pains to see that he had food to eat or clothes to | wear, and so he had to do the best that he could. He died at last, a poor lone old man, who did not know how much good he had done in the world, nor dream of the great fame that would be his for all time to come. In the year 1512, an old man, whose name was Ponce de Le-on. set sail from Spain to seek for a fount of which he had heard. If he could bathe in it he would be young and gay once more. His search was vain. But he found a part of the New World which had not yet been seen by men from the old, and he gave it the name of Flo-ri-da. In one of the ships that set sail from It-a-ly was a man named A-mer-i-cus Ves-pu-ci-us, and he went all round the coast of South A-mer-i-ca where no one else had been. When he went back home he wrote of all he had seen, and said that he had been the first to find the main land, and so they gave the name of A-mer-i-ca to the New World to which Co-lum- bus had first led the way. THE HISTORY OF THE UNITED STATES. 35 The king of Eng-land heard what had been done by Spain, and he sent men and kept right on in their work, and from time to time fresh crews came from and ships to the New | the Old World to give World. Some of them had them cheer, the bad luck to land in the A man, named John cold north, in the midst of Cab-ot, as soon as he heard ice and snow. Some found of what Co-lum-bus had their way south, where the done, set sail from Eng- air was soft and mild, and land, by the King s leave, birds sang, and the fields and made his way to the were green the whole year j New World. He went too round. far to the north where he Men came from all parts | found the land so bleak to seek homes in the New | and so cold that he did not World, and to grow rich care to stay, and soon made on the gold that was there, his way back to the place They had to work hard to he came from, till the soil, to cut down In a short time his son trees, and to fight their way j Se-bas-tian set sail with as through the dense swamps large a crew as he could and thick woods. Some ! hire, and kept his ship well died for want of food, to the west. At length For some the life was too i he came in sight of land, hard. But those that were But there were no green left were brave and strong, fields, no ripe fruits, nor THE HISTORY OF THE UNITED STATES. birds, such as Co-lum-bus and his men had seen. As far as the eye could see there were bleak rocks, dark pine trees, and heaps of snow. White bears made their homes in deep caves, and the woods were full of a strange kind of deer. This was not the place to look for gold, and Se-bas-tian went back to Eng-land with a sad heart. All this time men from Spain and the lands near by, went to the south part of the New World where they found gold and things of great worth. They were for the most part bad men who thought they had a right to kill the In-di-ans and steal their land. Some times the men of Spain had a great fight with the red men, and drove them out of the land. This was what Cor-tes did in Mex- i-co. Some times the red men had the best of the fight, and shot at the white men and drove them back to their ships. Then the French thought they must have a share in the New World, so they sent men and ships to the west. Some of them went as far north as the Gulf of Saint Law-rence, and up to the place where Mon tre-al now stands. The In-di-ans here were much scared at first at the sight of white men. But in a short time they grew used to them, and brought the French men food, and herbs to cure those who were sick, and were as kind as they knew how to be. How did :he French men THE HISTORY OF THE UNITED STATES. 37 pay them for the use they died ; and the rest went made of them as guides back to France, and made through these strange, wild up their minds that the lands? I will tell you. They New World was not a fit caught the In-di-an chief place for a white man to and took him by force to : live in. France. The King of ! But the King of France France thought there was j had no mind to let the no harm in this, and so King of Spain have more he sent this base man, than his share of the New Car-tier, back to the New World. So he sent more World, and with him one men and more ships, and who was to act as a sort one of these men went by of king in the land which the coast of Flo-ri-da, and Car-tier had seen, and to all the way up to New- vvhich he had no more found-land, and set up the right than you or I. But flag of the French king, this time the In-di-ans and gave the place the would have nought to do name of New France. This with the white men. They was in the year i 524. did not hurt the French Do you know how much men, but they would give a score is? It is twice ten. them no food and would If one score is twice ten, not act as guides. This then four score must be served them just right, eight times ten. Well, Some grew sick ; some \ I have told you that when THE HISTORY OF THE UNITED STATES. Se-bas-tian Cab-ot went back to Eng-land he said that A-mer-i-ca was a poor cold place, where bears and deer lived, and no gold could be found. So for four score years Eng-land sent no ships to the New World. At length a bold young man, named Wal-ter Ra- 1 leigh (raw -lee), made up | his mind to go and see if what Cab-ot said was true. Queen E-liz-a-beth, who ruled Eng-land at that time, was fond of Ra-leigh, and she gave him leave to seize the new lands he might find and lay claim to them in her name. All he had to do was to set up j the flag of Great Brit-ain, and draw his sword from its sheath. His ships steered to the south west. and came to a land where there was no ice or snow, and green trees and ripe grapes grew close to the shore. The In-di-ans came down to meet the white men, and gave them corn, or maize, as they called it, and fish. Ra-leigh gave to the new land he found the name of Vir-gm-ia, and he left men at Ro-an-oake, where he first went on shore, and spent much gold in the hope that a large town would be built there and be called by his name. But ere this could be done Spain found out that the Eng-lish flag had been set up on the coast, and went to work to drive off the ships that were sent down. Ra-leigh did not lose heart. But at this time news came that the King of Spain THE HISTORY OF THE UNITED STATES. 39 with a large fleet of ships of war was on its way to lay siege to Eng-land, and so Eng-land had need of all her ships, and Ra-leigh s with the rest. So the poor folks on the coast of Vir- gin-ia were left to starve and die. Though Eng-land and France laid claim to a large part of North A-mer- i-ca, it was a long, long time ere they sent men to make homes in the New World, to clear off the wild lands, and to till the soil and plant such things as would grow there. CHAPTER IV. NEW HOMES. In the year 1606, the King of Eng-land, whose name was James the First, gave a large tract of land in Vir-gin-ia to some men who had found out it was a fine place for poor men, as the streams were full of fish, and the woods were full of game. Ship loads of folks with small means, set sail from Eng-land, and made their homes at a place they called James town. The red men came to see them and to smoke their pipe of peace with the white men, and for a while all went well. But as soon 40 THE HISTORY OF THE UNITED STATES. as they found that the white men had come to rob them of their lands, and to drive them from the soil to which they felt they had the first and best right they grew cold and stern, and were friends no more. They were a strange race and their mode of life was not at all like ours. The red men had no books. They could hunt and fish, and raise corn and beans and such things ; and with rude skill made their bows and darts, and the bowls in which to pound their corn. Their boats were made of birch-bark, and their huts, of bark or mats, were in the shape of a cone. They were fond of war, and proud of the scalps they won from their foes. They had no fear of death, and would scorn to plead for their lives. The white men gave them guns and rum ; and these two things were the cause i of much strife, and made the red men hard to deal with. With the band who came from Eng-land was one John Smith, who was wise and brave, and knew how to deal with the red men, and but for him the white men would soon have been swept out of Vir-gin-ia. He was taught how to fight when a boy, and had been in great wars. He had led a wild life, and once, it is said, he fought with three Turks, cut off their heads and bore them to his tent. He was young and strong, and so wise and good that THE HISTORY OF THE UXITED STATES. 41 the white men made him But John Smith did not their chief. He did not lose heart. He spoke to like to hear an oath, and the men in words of cheer, he made a law that each and would not let them man who swore was to launch their boats. \Yhile have a cold bath and sleep some of the men spent in his wet clothes. This their time in a vain search soon put a stop to that sin for gold, he was on the look of the tongue. out for food for them to o Some of the white men eat. While they wept and were not fond of good John sighed for home, he built Smith. They thought he j huts, took care of the sick, knew too much and held j and kept on good terms his head too high, and- they I with the red men. laid a plot to drive him out One day John Smith set of Yir-gin-ia. They had out on foot with a few men come to seek orold and did to see more of the new o not want to work, and did land. They fell in the not plant crops as they hands of a fierce band of should have done. So, of red men who put all but course, there was lack of John Smith to death. He food. This made them ill, was quite calm, and when and the loss by death was ; they saw him write and do so great, that the rest of strange things, they were the band made up their in great fear of him. For minds to leave the place. a while they kept him as THE HISTORY OF THE UNITED STA TES. a show; then they said he must die. Smith was bound hand and foot and laid on the ground. His head was on a great stone. The big club was raised to dash out his brains when a child ten or twelve years of age sprang from the crowd, put her arms round the poor man s neck and plead for his life. Her name was Po-ca-hon-tas, and she was the dear child of the great chief Pow-hat-an. She was fond of John Smith, and could not bear to see him killed ; so for her sake he was set free. This young girl twice saved the life of John Smith at the risk of her own, and she is said to have been as fond of him as if she were his own child. In the same year that this took place, that is in 1608, a small band of men tried to fly from Eng-land with their wives and young folks. As they drew near the sea shore a great crowd gave chase, and they were seized and shut up in jail. What had they done? They were poor, but that was no crime. They loved God, and tried to do what was right They were fond of the word of God ? and read in it a great deal and each night and morn they prayed that God would bless them and teach them His will. This did not please the king, who saia there must be but one church, and those who loved God must serve him in one way. The more these poor men THE HISTORY OF THE US [TED STATES. 43 read the word of God the at home in peace, and so more they felt that the king s when they tried to leave way was not the right way. Eng-land they were caught So they made up their like thieves and shut up minds not to go to the in jail. kings church ; and those The next spring the Pu- who were too poor to build j ri-tans were more wise, a church to suit their own They laid their plans in taste met in their own | such a way that not a word homes, or in barns, or in got to the king s ears, and fields, and prayed and sang j they made out to set sail psalms their own way. from Eng-land. They went This put the king in a to Hoi-land, where they great rage, and he set men \ dwelt for some years. But to work to do all they could in course of time they grew to vex these Pu-n-tans. , sad when they thought of They left them no peace, home. They were in a and those who could not strange land. The folks stand the fight went back to there spoke a strange the king s church. Those tongue. They did not who would not yield to dare to go back to Eng- threats or force sought to land, for fear King James leave their homes and find would treat them worse a safe place in the New than he had done, so they World. But the king would thought it best to go to A- not let them go or stay j mer-i-ca where they could THE HISTORY OF THE UNITED STATES. pray as they chose, and still be with the old flag and serve Eng-land. It was in the fall of the year 1620 when five score Pu-n-tans set sail from the port of Ply-mouth in the ship May Flow-er, for New Eng-land, which was the name John Smith gave to all that part of A-mer- i-ca that lay north of Vir- gin-ia. For more than two months they were at sea. The winds and waves were rough, and one of their band died on the way. They came at last to Cape Cod, where they found a rough and rock bound coast. The spray froze on their clothes. There was not much to cheer them. It took them some time to find a place where they could build their homes. At length a spot was found, where the soil seemed to be good, and there were fine clear springs where they could quench their thirst. They called the place New Ply-mouth, and the stone on which they first set foot in the New World can be seen at this day. Weak and ill as the most of them were, they went to work to build a few huts in which they could live till the warm days came. Day by day an old man, or a young wife, or a small child was borne out of the huts and a hole dug in the ground for a grave. But spring came; the birds sang in the woods; the sick folks found health in the air, and all was peace and joy. THE HISTORY OF THE UNITED STATES. 45 When the Pil-grims who had made their homes in Ply-mouth wrote to their friends in Eng-land and told them how free they were, and that they could serve God as they chose, with no fear of the King or the head men of his church, those who were of the same mind in the Old World felt their hearts yearn for the shores of New Eng-land. The king was their foe. They were forced to meet and pray by stealth. Yet they knew that if they left Eng-land they would have to give up their nice homes, and to live in the woods, and put up with much that would be hard for them to bear. But they did not care so long as they were free, and could serve God in their own way. At this time ships went each year from Eng-land to A-mer-i-ca, and men who went to trade, or to fish, had built huts on the coast. A man named Ma-son, who I came from H amp -shire, Eng-land, gave to a tract of land the name of New i Hamp-shire. It is nice to know how the old towns and states got their names. Two small towns in New . Hamp-shire, were known as Ports-mouth and Do-ver. Twixt these towns and New Ply-mouth the Pu-ri= tans made up their minds to make their new home. They first sent John En- di-cott with a few men to make the paths straight for their feet. He was a brave man with a kind heart, and was full of good cheer. THE HISTORY OF THE UNITED STA TES. In the fall a ship came from Eng-land with more Pil-grims, butasshe brought no stores of food, there was great fear that the whole band would starve to death. At one time they had but one pint of corn left, which was dealt out with great care, and each one of the band had five grains. Yet, hard as was their lot, these brave men were full of faith, and hope, and trust in God. At the end of four years the Pu-ri-tans were in strong force in Mas - sa - chu - setts, where they built towns, and ships, and sowed large fields of corn and built mills to grind it. One band made their way to a place which they called Bos-ton, as that was the name of the town in Eng-land from which the most of them had come. One band made their home on the coast, and gave to the place the name oi Sa-lem. CHAPTER V. WARS WITH THE RED MEN. At first the red men, or In-di-ans, were good friends with the whites, or Pu-ri-tans as they were now called ; and brought them furs, and game, and fish, in change for hoes and cloth and such things. The whites were kind to them and they were kind THE HISTORY OF TKE UNITED STA TES. 47 to the whites. But this state of things did not last long. It made the red man s eye flash to see the white smoke curl up from the homes that were built on the ground where he and his brave men had been wont to meet and call their own. In the long cold nights as the red men sat round their camp fires they had hard thoughts of those who had laid out farms, and raised fine crops, and were so well off; and they laid plans to pounce on these homes of the white men some dark night, kill them in their beds, and seize their corn, their tools, and their warm clothes. These bad thoughts took deep root in the hearts of the fierce tribe of Pe-quods who dwelt on the banks of a stream, now known as the Thames, on which, if you look on the map of Con-nec-ti-cut, you will see there is the town of New Lon-don. A slight thing brought on the war, which broke out in 1637. The Pe-quods had a thirst for blood. The new homes were laid waste, no one felt safe. Fire and death met the white men in the fields, in their beds, in church or at home. Some of the chiefs tried to get the Nar-ra-gan-sets to form a league, and kill all the white men in the land. The scheme came to the ears of Rog-er Wil- li-ams, and he set out with no one with him to see the head chief of the Nar-ra- gan-sets. There he met the Pe- THE HISTORY OF THE UNITED STA TES. quod chiefs with the white man s blood still thick on their knives. They glared at Wil-li-ams, as if to tell him to look out for his scalp. But he had no fear of them. He sat down by his old friends Ca-non-i-cus and Mi-an-to-ni-mah, who had once saved his life in the woods, and was as calm as if he had been in his own house. Three days and three nights he staid in the camp of the Nar-ra-gan-sets, and plead the cause of those who had sent him out of Bos-ton. Each night when he lay down to sleep he knew that he might be put to death by the Pe-quods. But his trust was in God, and he thought not of self. On the fourth day the Nar-ra-gan-sets made up their minds that they would not join the Pe-quods. Rog-er Wil-li-ams went home with a glad heart, while the Pe-quod chiefs with fierce scowls slunk back to their tribe. At the mouth of the Thames were the two chief forts of the Pe-quods, and these the men of Con-nect- ti-cut made up their minds lay low. They were but four score men and the Pe- quods were a large and fierce tribe. But the rage of the white men was great; their hearts were on fire< They had seen their friends killed and scalped, or borne to a fate worse than death, and day and night were in dread of a raid from these Pe-quods, whom they meant to show how white men could fight. Their plan THE HISTORY OF THE UNITED STATES. 49 was to sail down the coast they were six to one at past the mouth of the least, the fight was fierce Thames, to land far up to and much blood was shed, the east and then march At last Ma-son cried out to the forts. \ " We must burn them!" The Pe-quods saw them seized a fire-brand and sail past, and at first did thrust it in the dry mats of not know what to make which the walls were made, of it. They made up their and soon the whole fort minds that the white men was in a blaze. Choked were scared, and set up and dazed by the smoke, loud shouts and songs that the Pe-quods tried to fly, were heard at Ma-son s but Ma-son had ranged his camp. Long ere it was day on troops on all sides, and when a red man showed this May morn the dogs his head he was shot down, at the. Pe-quod fort were When the rest of the heard to bark and howl. Pe-quods came down from A cry went through the their fort, and saw what fort that the Eng-lish were the white men had done, at hand. As soon as it was they were in a great rage light the white men sent and made a rush at Ma-son their fire of shot at the red to kill him. But a charge men s tort. The red men of shot from the white made good use of their men s guns drove them bows and clubs ; and as back, and they fled to the THE HISTORY OF THE UNITED STATES. woods. Troops came up from Mas-sa-chu-setts, and the Nar-ra-gan-set tribe lent their aid to the white men. The Pe-quods found no place of rest, for the white men kept close on their track, and in a short time there was not a Pe-quod to be found in all the land. But you must not think that this brought to an end the wars with the red men. It takes a deep wound a long while to heal ; and in the year 1675 a great war broke out, which is known as King Phil-ip s war. It made King Phil-ip s heart swell with rage to see the white men drive back the In-di-ans and take their land as if the red men had no right to it. He laid a plot to get all the tribes to join, and fall on the white men and kill them. A red man ran in to one of the towns and told of this plot to the white men, and put them on their guard, and one night three of his tribe caught and killed him. These three In-di-ans were caught by some of the white men of Ply-mouth, tried by law, and hung for their crime. Phil-ip and his tribe could not bear this, and it brought on the war for which some think the whites were as much to blame as the reds. Troops on horse and on foot went out of Bos-ton and Ply-mouth to aid the men in the small towns where King Phil-ip and his tribe had done much harm, and they kept close on the track of the red men. THE HISTORY OF THE UNITED STA TES. King Phil-ip fled to a swamp to get out of the way of the troops. When the white men came to the swamp they saw no one, but they sent a shot each time they heard a noise or saw a bush shake, and in this way hurt some of their own friends. When night came on they formed a ring on the out side of the *,wamp, and made sure they would catch Phil-ip as soon as it was light. When the morn came he had gone with all his friends ; no one knew where. The next thing the white men heard was that the red -skins were at North- field and Deer-field. There was not a place in New. Eng-land that was safe from the raids of the red men who had set out to kill the whites and to burn down their homes. In the dead of night when all was still the fierce war-whoop of the red-skins would ring out from the woods. Soon a gleam of flame would burst from some house they had set on fire ; then with yells and shouts the wild crew would leap in on those whom they had brought, with a start out of their sleep, and scalp them in their beds. Some times when a white man went to the door of his house, and saw no foe in sight, a shot from an In- di-an hid by a tree would lay him low. Or he would leave his house to go to the field, hear a scream at his back, and find his wife and babes dead on the floor. THE HISTORY OF THE UNITED STATES. No one could feel safe. To add to the fears of the white men, strange sights were seen in the skies. Some saw large stars with long bright tails, which they thought were like In-di-anson horse back. Some said they had seen a long bright sword in the sky; and an In-di-an bow in the clouds ; and a long scalp that fell from the north star. Then it seemed, too, as though the howl of the wolves came up close to their homes in the dead hour of the night, so that their flesh crept with fear. In great crowds the whites left their farms and trades, and came to the large towns where they felt more j safe. They thought their sins had brought on the war and all its ills. One of their great sins was that they wore long hair! They thought this did not please God, so they cut off their hair, and then set to work to do all they could to harm the poor Qua-kers, to whom for some time they had been quite kind. All this would have been of no use if they had not sent out a large force of troops to fight the red men in their swamps. They were led by Jo-si-ah Wins- low. He went straight to where the Nar-ra-gan-sets were. It was in the heart of a swamp. A thick hedge shut them in. There was but one way to get through it and in the fort, and for three hours the Ene-lish tried to force their o way through this small space. At last a few of THE HISTORY OF THE UXITED STATES. 53 the whites broke through a part of the hedge and catch him. He was a tall strong man, and they had fought the red men from hard work to keep on his the rear, and so won the track. But at last his foot day. Some of the red men slipped and he was caught. fled in great haste to the woods. Some staid in the The whites tried to make friends with him, and to fort and were burnt to ! coax him to make terms of death when the white men peace, and to give up some set it on fire. Some lost of his tribe who had done their way in the deep snow the most harm. But he drifts and soon fioze to said he would not be at death. peace with the white men, The "Swamp Fight" did and would not give up to not bring the red men to ! them one of the red men. terms. In a few weeks "We will fight to the last they were at their old work, man," he said. "We will with hearts of hate and not be slaves of the white hands swift to do deeds of men." blood. Some white men The great chief was then from Con-nec-ti-cut heard led forth to be shot. He one day that the chief Ca- was told he might live if non-chet, the son of Mi-an- he would be at peace with to-ni-mah, of whom you ! the whites. This he would have heard, was near at not do. He chose to die. hand, and they set out to ; " I like it well," he said in THE HISTORY OF THE UNITED STA TES. his quaint speech. " Now my heart is not soft, and I have said no words that would hurt the pride of an In-di-an chief. It is the time for me to die." Two red men took him to the woods and shot him, and his head was sent to Hart-ford. Still there were no signs of peace. All this while King Phil ip was in the north, by the great lakes, where he had gone to try to get the tribes there to help his cause. But they had a great fear of the white men, and would not join Phil-ip, so he came back to his own land. One of his braves told him that the whites were sure to win, and urged Phil-ip to make terms of peace. The proud chief struck him dead with a blow from the small axe he bore. There could be no peace, he said, twixt the white men and the red. But King Phil-ip lost heart when he saw the great tribes forced to make terms of peace. Most of his own brave men were dead, and he had to fly for his life. He laid in swamps, and hid in caves and dense woods as he tried to creep back to his old home. On the way he heard that his wife had been killed, and his young son sold as a slave, and in his great grief he cried out "My heart breaks! Now let me die!" King Phil-ip was shot as he lay hid in a swamp, by one of his own men, and with his own gun. This brought the war to THE HISTOR* M TtiE UNITED STATES. a close, which had been kept up for more than a year, and drove the red men quite out of New Eng-land. I must now Q-Q back a _> ways and tell you how the Dutch came to find their way to A-mer-i-ca. Cap tain John Smith, of whom you have heard so much, had a friend, named Hen ry Hud -son, who went with him on his first trip to Vir-gin-ia. He thought, as Co-lum-bus did, that there must be a short cut to Chi-na and the East In dies right through A-mer- i-ca. There were no maps in those days to show the length and breadth of the land, and so it is not strange that men thought queer things. But the Dutch were rich, and their ships were on all the seas, and as they thought it would be a fine thing to be the first to find out a short cut to Chi-na, they gave Hud-son a yacht called the Half Moon, in which he set sail for A-mer- i-ca. He took a new route, and when he came to Sandy- Hook, he was sure I he had found the short cut he was in search of. He came up the Bay of New York and saw both shores green with grass and trees> I and sweet scents were borne to him on each breeze. Red men came out to meet him, and sold him beans, and corn, and shell fish, and seemed glad to see the white men. Hud-son sailed up the stream which bears his name, but soon found THE HISTORY OF THE UNITED STATES. it was not the right way to get to Chi-na, and the Half Moon had to turn back. Then the Eng-lish gave him a ship, and this time he took a course that brought him to what is now known as Hud-son s Bay. He felt that he was right at last. But he sailed round and round the shores of the bay, and found there was but one way to get in or out. His ship froze fast in the ice, and had to stay there till spring. The crew blamed Hud-son for the hard life they had had in that cold place; so on the way back these bad men, who were worse than brutes, put him and his boy and eight more men in a small boat, and left them to drift on the wide, wide sea. That is the last that is known of this brave man. But he had told the Dutch what a fine land he had seen when he went in the Half-Moon, and they at unce sent ships to the spot and set up a trade in furs. It is said that they bought their furs by the pound, and as they had no weights such as are in use in these days, they told the In-di-ans that a Dutch man s hand weighed just one pound, and his foot two. And the red men thought it must be so. This may not be true, but it is a fact that the Dutch gave a few beads and things of no worth, for a large lot of rich furs which they could sell at a high price. When they saw a piece of land they THE HISTORY OF THE UNITED STATES. 57 liked they bought it, and and they made the In-di- gave the In-di-ans a string ans drunk, and that was of beads, or a bit of gay the chief cause of the wars silk, or a pipe for it. They that took place. The rum went all round the coast made brutes of the red to see if there were furs to men. The Dutch had to sell, and if they found a fly from the north. Their good place to trade they homes were burned down, put up a small fort, and Great tracts of land were (eft some one there to buy ! laid waste, from the In-di-ans. For long years this state In a few years men left of things was kept up, and their farms in Hoi-land and the Dutch had such a hard came to New York, which time that there is no doubt was then known as New they wished they were back Am-ster-dam. They had in Hoi-land, their farms in the woods At the south end of and swamps where Broad- Man-hat-tan a small band way now is, and let their of Dutch men, with old cows and pigs run wild | Pe-ter Stuy-ve-sant at their where the Cit-y Hall now stands. head, kept the red men at bay. For a while they The Dutch did not love j had things their own way ; to fight, but they were too j but in 1673 the Duke of fond of beer for their own | York came from Eng-lancl good. They got drunk, and laid claim to New THE HISTORY OF THE UNITED STA TES. Am-ster-dam, which since that time has been known as New York. The old In-di-an name of Man-hat-tan, was Man- a-hack-tan-i-enks, which means " the place where they all get drunk." CHAPTER VI. TWO MEN OF PEACE. The wars in the new and the old world were much talked of by old and young, and it was strange to hear of a boy who did not love to fight. Bad kings made bad laws, and good men found it hard to live in these days. Some of those who loved peace, and not war, formed a sect known as Qua-kers or "Friends." These "Friends" had their own views of what was right and wrong, and were not much thought of in Eng-land at that time. They were bold in their speech, and though they thought it wrong to fight, thought it much worse to tell a lie. Wil-liam Penn, the son of a rich man, was one of them. The king was in his debt, and to pay him gave Penn a tract of land in A-mer-i-ca, part of which was the home of Swedes who had bought it from the red men. Here Penn came THE HISTORY OF THE UNITED STATES. 59 to found a State where men could be free and live in peace. They were to make their own laws, and live up to them. Penn was just and kind with the red men, and soon made them his friends. He met the chief men of the tribes by a great elm-tree, where Phil- a-del-phia now is, and there made terms of " good faith and good will." Strong in truth and love he bent the fierce tribes of the Del- a-ware to his will. They vowed to live in love with Penn and his " Friends" as long as the moon and sun should last. And both sides kept their vows. The fame of Penn and his men went to all lands. Grave and good men from all parts sought the home made for them in the New World. In three years Phil-a-del-phia was a large town, and the "Friends" there grew rich and wise and strong. Some of the New Eng land States did not treat the "Friends" well. Those who went to preach the word of the Lord there were sent back. Some were hung, some were whipped, some had their ears cut off. But the Qua-kers had friends at home, friends who stood near the king. The king took their part, and sent word to New Eng land that this kind of war must stop at once. Since that time A-mer-i-cans have claimed the right to think as they choose, and to praise God as they please, and the Qua-kers are known all through the world as 6o THE HISTORY OF THE UNITED STATES. the true friends of love and peace. I will tell you here of a wise man who was born in Bos-ton, and went on foot to Phil-a-del-phia when quite a lad. He was a poor boy, and had to work hard. He kept a shop where he sold ink and quill -pens, rags, soap, and such things. He bound books. He had a small hand - press, and knew how to set type so that he could print all the news of the day. This was his trade, of which he was so fond that he kept at it till he grew to be quite rich. He had not the least bit of mean pride or false shame. As a boy he was fond of books and thought a great deal on what he read. This made him a wise man. whom it was safe to trust He had thought for some time that the light that went with a flash through the sky could be made of use. So one day when there was a fierce storm he sent up a kite with a key tied to its string. He saw a spark come from the key, and knew that what he had thought out in his own mind was quite true. You will learn as you read on how that which he found out was put to great use, and how much A-mer-i-ca owes to Ben-ja-min Frank lin. His great good sense made him a man of mark in his own time, and is the chief cause of the fame he has in these days. The Swedes, who made their home in Phil-a-del- phia, were in great fear of THE DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE THE HISTORY OF THE UNITED STA TES. 6r the In-di-ans whose ways, speed to the church, that speech, and dress were all was built like a block-house, so strange that they could and took with them the not hope to make friends soap that was as hot as with them. The white men fire and lye could make it. felt that they must be on They made the door fast, guard all the time, or the and the red men, who knew foe would come and drive | how few and how weak them out of the place. But they were, thought it would one day it chanced that all be no task to seize the the men Swedes went off "white squaws." So they to the woods and left their stole up to the church, and wives at home. It was as soon as they came near soft-soap day; and I guess, the "white squaws" slung if the truth were known, out the soft-soap so that that was just why the men it went in their eyes and went off at that time. made them howl and dance The great pots were on in a queer kind of a way the fire, and the soap was The red men were scared just at a boil, when word by this kind of hot shot, came that the In-di-ans and ran off as fast as they were close at hand. What could go ; and I guess the was to be done ? They had . white men had a good no guns with which to fire laugh when they came on the foe, and no help was home and heard how brave near. They ran with all ; their wives had been. 62 THE HISTORY OF THE UNITED STATES. CHAPTER VII. FRENCH AND IN-DI-AN WARS. The wars in the old world brought on wars in the new, and in 1754 the Eng-lish tried to drive the French from the lands they held in the New World. The French said they would keep that which they had found and had a right to, if they had to fight for it. So they built new forts, made their old ones more strong, and called the red men to their aid. The red men did not stand and fight as white men are taught to do, but hid near trees and rocks, or shot at the troops from shrubs or thick woods. Gen-er-al Brad -dock, who was a brave man, would not let his troops fight in that way, so that they had the worst of it. The first great fight with the French took place at Fort Du Quesne [kane] where Pitts -burg now stands. The fort was built of the trunks of trees, and near it were rude huts in which the French troops lived. Here and there was a patch of wheat or corn, which grew well in the rich soil. Brad-dock had no doubt the fort would yield to him as soon as he came near it. So he led his men on THE HISTORY OF THE UNITED STATES. through a road twelve feet wide with high ground in front and on both sides. Soon a war-whoop burst from the woods. The troops were shot down by a foe they could not see. For three hours the fight was kept up. Then the men broke ranks and fled. Brad- dock had a bad wound. "Who would have thought it?" he said in a low voice, as his men bore him from the field he was so sure he would win. These were the last words he spoke, and he died in two or three days. He had been warned by such wise men as George Wash -ing- ton and Ben- ja-min Frank-lin, but he gave no heed to their words, and so met his fate. Up to this time Eng-land and France had been at peace. Now they were at I strife, and the flames of war spread far and wide. Blood was shed on land and on sea, and hearts were full of woe. Brit-ish troops were sent to A-mer-i-ca to fio;ht the French there. <ij Que-bec was one of the strong points held by the French. To this place came a fleet in charge of Gen-e- ral Wolfe. There were two towns, one on the beach, and one on the cliff. Wolf fired bomb-shells at the town on the beach, which was soon laid low. The town on the cliff was too far off for him to reach in this way. At last he hit on a plan so bold that the French did not dream of it. The shore for miles and miles was searched THE HISTORY OF THE UNITED STA TEt. with care. A spot was found whence a path wound up to the cliff. At this point Wolfe could land his men and lead them to the Heights of A-bra-ham. Once there they would turn out the French, take Que-bec, or die where they stood. At night the troops went down the stream in boats to the place known as Wolfe s Cave. All through the night they scaled the tall cliffs, and with the aid of the ship s crew drew up a few guns. When it was light, the whole force was drawn up on the plain. As soon as he could, Mont- calm went out with his French troops to meet the Brit-ish. The fight was fierce on both sides but did not last long. The French were put to flight. Both Mont -calm and Wolfe fell in the strife- While Wolfe lay on the ground he heard some one say: "They fly! they fly!" "Who fly?" said he. "The French," they told him. "Then" said the brave man, "I die in peace ;" and he died. The French lost heart when they lost Que-bec^ and the long war was clos^ in 1763. The King or France gave up all right to the lands he had laid claim to in that part of the New World, and no one but King George could make laws that should rule A-mer-i-ca. In all parts of A-mer-i- ca the French were ill-used by the Brit-ish king. They FHE HISTORY OF THE UNITED STA TES. were torn from their homes and friends, and some of | them were left to die on a cold, bleak coast, where they were told to wait for the ships to take them back to their own dear France. It is said that an I-rish- man, named John-son, wrote to Eng-land of the brave way in which he had fought the French at Crown Point. He was not a brave man at all and there were those in New Eng-land who knew that he had not told the whole truth. But in Old Eng land they thought it must be true, and he was made Sir Wil-liam John-son, and had more praise than was his due. He was a vain man and fond of fine clothes, and was quite proud of the rich suits that were I sent him from Eng-land, all trimmed with lace as was the style in those days. A Mo-hawk chief saw these gay clothes, and thought how much he should like to own them. He went up to Sir Wil-li am, and said he had had a dream. "Ah?" said Sir Wil-li am, u and what did you dream ? " " I dreamt that you gave me one of those rich suits of clothes." John-son was as shrewd as the In-di-an. He took one of the fine suits and gave it to the chief, who went off much pleased. In a few days John-son met the chief, and said to him. "By-the-by, I have had a dream. 66 THE HISTORY OF THE UNITED STATES. "Ah!" said the In-di-an, was i it?" "what " Why, that you gave me that tract of land," a fine large tract on the Mo-hawk Riv er. The In-di-an saw how he was caught. But he gave the land, and said, with a sigh, "I dream no more with you, Sir Wil-li-am, you dream too hard." CHAPTER VIII. THE CAUSE OF A GREAT WAR. Those who sat on thrones thought that they had the best right to make laws and to rule men. But the men who came to the New World had come to be free from the hard laws that kings made. It did not suit them to be at the beck and call of those who were not wise or good, and they found in their new homes that it was best for them to make their own laws. They must have free speech as well as free air. They said the king s laws were not just. The war with France had cost a great deal, and King George said it was but right that the men in A-mer-i-ca should pay it back. So he made a law that no note, bond, or deed was good that had not the king s seal on it. The "Stamp Act" was passed in 1765. The A- THE HISTORY OF THE UNITED STA TES. 67 mer-i-cans thought it a paid, and so sent ship mean trick to make them ; loads of troops to see that pay a tax in this way, and , his will was done. Three they said they would not ! pence on a pound did not use the stamps at all. They seem much of a tax, and got up a " strike," just as had it been a just tax it men do now- a -days when would have been paid, laws do not please them, | The troops came to all and made such a stir that the large towns, which the king said they need not were soon filled with red- be bound by the "Stamp coats who had to be fed Act." This gave them great jov, and cared for by the men who could not but hate the but it did not last long, sight of them. Mobs met They made up their minds in the streets, and there they would not eat, drink, j was now and then a fight or wear the least thing with the king s troops. This that came from Eng-land. was in the year 1770. In When the king found they March of that year the would not buy goods that mob grew too bold, and had a tax on them, he was bore so hard on the king s wise and took it off. But : troops that the troops had one tax he left ; and that | to fire on the crowd. Ten was the tax on tea. The or more were killed, and king made up his mind blood stained the snow and that this tax should be [ ice that lay in the streets. 68 THE HISTORY OF THE UNITED STATES. This was the " Bos-ton Mas- sa-cre" which made our men hate the king and all his laws still more than they had done. One day ships that were known to have tea on board showed their tall masts in the bay. It was Sun-day and the men of Bos-ton were strict in their views, and did no work on the Lord s-day. But old rules had to give way to this new case, which must be met at once. Sam-u-el Ad-ams was the true king of Bos-ton at that time. He was the firsc to see what must be done. "We are free," he said, "and want no king !" Men were wild with rage. If the ships came to land, the tea would be sold! What must be done? All talk was vain. Ad-ams stood up in the church and told them if they would be free, now was the time to strike the blow. With a wild shout the men ran out of the church. Some ot them, drest to look like In-di-ans, went in great haste to the wharf, each one with an axe in his hand. They went on board the ships, brought the chests of tea on deck, broke them up and threw them in the bay. So still was the crowd that not a sound was heard but the stroke of the axe, and the splash of the chests as they fell in the sea. This is what A-mer-i-ca did. It was for Eng-land to make the next move. The king said that no THE HISTORY OF THE UNITED STATES. 69 kind of goods should be \ how mean the Brit-ish were, sent to Bos-ton. This did They would have to fight more harm than good, as to get free from such men, it showed the men there and such laws. CHAPTER IX. THE FIRST FIGHT. When our men saw that | Con-cord, a few miles from the king meant to force Bos-ton. He would seize them to do as he said and them in the king s name, to keep his laws, they went and he thought that not a to work to learn the art hint had got out of what he of war. They were led by meant to do. wise and good men. But sharp men were on The first fight took place the watch. Gen-er-al War- at Lex-ing-ton in Mas-sa- ren, who fell at Bun-ker chu-setts in the spring of Hill, at once sent Paul Reu- 1775. vere to spread the news. Gen-er-al Gage who had He rode like the wind charge of the king s troops, through Bos-ton, and then had heard that a lot of took a boat to Charles^town. guns and things that were He was none too soon, used in war, were stored in Gen-er-al Gage heard that 7 o THE HISTORY OF THE UNITED STATES. his plans had been found out, and at once sent word that no one should leave Bos-ton. It was too late. A small band of men in their farm clothes met the red-coats on the field of Lex-ing-ton, but were told by John Par-ker who led them that they should not be the first to fire. Ma-jor Pit-cairn rode up, and with an oath bade the king s troops to fire at once, and his gun sent the first shot at those brave men, who did not fear to die in so just a cause. No Eng-lish blood was shed. Cheer on cheer went up from the ranks of the red-coats who took up tl >eir march to Con-cord, which is six miles from Lex-ing-ton. Our men had left their farms and were drawn up on a hill, from whence they could see all that was done by the foe. The red-coats held the bridge, while some of their men went this way and that to search for the guns and such things that were kept at Con-cord. But these had all been hid where the red-coats could not find them. The men on the hill kept a close watch, and soon they saw a cloud of smoke rise from the spot where their homes were. The lives of those they held most dear were at stake. What could they do ? The wolf was in the fold where their lambs were! With hearts on fire the brave men fell in line, went down the hill, and took the road that led to the bridge. They were charged not to fire the first shot. THE HISTORT OF THE UNITED STATES. 7! , . . As soon as the red-coats as they ran, so that they saw them they went to had no chance to rest, work to tear up the planks The day was hot, the of the bridge. Our men march long, and they had made more haste. Then had to work hard, and with the king s- troops fired, at no food. Fresh troops, led first one or two shots, by Lord Per-cy, were sent which did no harm. Then from Bos-ton to their aid, a few more by which two i and met them near the men were hurt ; then a place where they had shot fierce charge, and two of our men fell dead. down our men that morn and it is said, that when "Fire ! For God s sake, they lay down to rest "their fire!" cried Ma-jor John : tongues hung out of their But-trick, of Con-cord, as mouths like those of a dog he gave a wild leap in the who has had a hard chase. air. His men did not wait. | The news rang through The fight was a short and the land that blood had sharp one. The red-coats been spilt. Men on horse- had to give up the bridge, back rode hard through and make their way back high-ways and by-ways to to Bos-ton. They met with spread the tale. All men great loss in the fight; some felt that the hour had come, of their best men were and in all the States there killed, and they were shot ! was a rush to arms. at all the way on the road j Down in Con-nec-ti-cut THE HISTORY OF THE UNITED STATES. there was an old man at work in the field with his plough. His name was Is- ra-el Put-nam. He had fought with the red men in his young days, and had been near death at their hands. Once he had been bound to a tree, and the In-di-ans had their arms up to strike the blow that would kill him, when he was found by some of his friends who had gone out in search of him, and his life was saved. As the old man drove his plough through the field some one told him of the fight at Lex-ing-ton. He took his horse from the plough, sent word home that he had gone to Bos ton, and rode with all speed to the A-mer-i-can camp. On a neck of land, close by Bos- ton, there are two low hills, one known as Bun-ker Hill, and one as Breed s Hill. Our men made up their minds to fight the Brit-ish from this point. There was no time to lose. It was said that Gen-er-al Gage meant to put a large force of his men on the heights on the i8th of June. He was too late. On the 1 6th, just ere the sun went down in the west, our men met on Cam-bridge Com-mon to ask God to bless them in what they had planned to do. Col-o-nel (kurnel] Pres- cott, who had fought in the wars with the French, was in charge of our troops; and Put-nam was with him, to be of use where he could. With hearts that were THE HISTORY OF THE UNITED STA TES. 73 brave to do and die, the ! went back and forth on the men set forth on their top of the earth-works. It was Pres-cott. "Will he fight?" asked march. Not a word was said. Their feet scarce made a sound. Their way j Gage of one who stood led them near the guns of i near by. "Yes, sir," said the Eng-lish ships, but they j the man to whom he spoke, were not seen or heard, "to the last drop of his The night was warm and blood ! " still. They reach the hill- A plan was made at top. How swift they work ; once. The Bnt-ish were to to build their fort of earth | march straight up the hill and logs ! With what care j and drive off the A-mer- they must use their spades, ! i-cans. It was not thought lest one stroke on a stone j that our men could stand should tell the tale, and ; the shock, as spoil all ! known they When Gen-er-al Gage ! used to peace than to war, looked out on the heights and had but few guns and the next day at dawn, he balls to fight with. At saw strong earth-works, and noon the red-coats left Bos- swarms of men in arms, ; ton in their small boats, where he had been wont , and were soon at Charles- to see a broad sweep of town. The A- mer- i-cans green grass on which no kept a close watch on them foot had trod. A tall form j from the hill-top, and felt 74 THE HISTORY OF THE UNITED STATES. no fear. From all the heights in the range of Bos-ton, on hills, house-tops, and church spires, crowds of A-mer-i-cans stood to watch the fight. It was no light task for the Brit-ish to climb that hill. The day was hot, the grass was long and thick, and the load each man bore made his step slow. While yet a long way off the red coats fired their guns as if to wake up the foe. Not a shot came back from the A-mer-i-can lines. u Aim low," said Put-nam, "and wait till you see the whites of their eyes." The Eng-lish were quite near the works when Pres- cott told his men to fire. The A-mer-i-cans could shoot to a hair s breadth. Their aim was true, and when they fired not a shot missed its mark. Men fell from the Brit-ish ranks by scores. The troops fled down the hill. Then with fresh strength they climb the heights, to be sent back with great loss. Now at the foot of the hill they strip off their great coats, that they may have a hand- to-hand fight. Up they go and climb the walls that they may take the fort. The A-mer-i-cans met them with stones and the butt- ends of their guns but the Brit-ish were too strong for them. They soon drove the brave band down the hill, and made them cross the neck to Cam-bridge, while the Eng-lish ships raked them with grape- shot as they ran. They had done their work. It was THE HISTORY OF THE UNITED STATES. 75 true the red-coats had won one long one. By this they the day; but our men had | could trace her course in found out that with the the light snow. At last help of some slight field- they drove her to a den works, green hands, fresh three miles from Put-nam s from the farm or field, who ! house. The folks from all had had no chance to drill, round, came with dogs, were a match for the best guns, straw, and fire to troops that Eng-land could i fight this fierce foe, and to send. force her from the den. I will tell you here of From ten at morn till ten two brave deeds done by at night they kept at work. Is-ra-el Put-nam, For a j The hounds came back long time he, and those ! with bad wounds, and ran who dwelt near him, had as far as they could from been ill used by a fierce the old wolf s teeth, wolf, which at night would Put-nam tried to make kill their sheep and goats, his dog go in the cave, but and lambs and kids. Put- in vain. He asked his nam made a plan for five black man to go down and men to take turns and hunt I shoot the wolf; but the the wolf till they could take black man would not. Then her life. It was known the brave man said, with a that she had lost two of her flash of his eye, that if no toes in a steel trap, and so one else would go he would, made one short track and j for he feared the wolf would r6 THE HISTORY OF THE UNITED STATES. run off through some hole in the rocks. He took some strips of birch bark that he might have light in the deep dark cave, and scare the wolf as well, for wild beasts shrink from the sight of fire. Then he threw off his coat and vest, tied a long rope to his legs, by which he might be pulled back when he gave the sign, and with a torch in his hand went head first in the den. The place was as still as the grave. He crept on his hands till he came face to face with the great red eye-balls of the wolf, who sat at the end of the cave. At the sight of fire she gnashed her teeth, and gave a low growl. As soon as Put-nam found out where the beast was he gave a kick and was at once drawn out of the cave. Those at the mouth of the den had heard the growl and thought, of course, that the wolf had sprung at their friend and would eat him up. They drew him out so fast that his clothes were torn from his back, and his flesh was much bruised. Put-nam set his clothes right, put a charge of nine buck-shot in his gun, and with that in his right hand and a torch in his left, he went once more in the den. As he drew near the wolf she snapped her teeth, put her head down, and crouched to spring when Put-nam raised his gun took a sure aim, and fired. Stunned with the shock, and choked by the smoke, he was at once drawn out to the fresh THE HISTORY OF THE UNITED STA TES. 77 air. When he had had ! he took hold of her ears, some rest, and the smoke i gave the rope a kick, for was out of the cave, he | it was still tied round his went down for the third i legs, and with great shouts time. Once more he came of joy both the man and in sight of the wolf. He the wolf were drawn out put the torch to her nose, through the mouth of the She did not move. Then cave, he knew she was dead ; so CHAPTER X. GEORGE WASH-ING-TON. George Wash -ing -ton | heart, and grew up to be a was born in Vir-gin-ia, in wise and good man. When the year 1732. As a boy he saw it was right to do he had a keen love of the a thing, he did that thing truth, and would scorn to at once. He had a strong tell a lie. He was so calm mind, a strong will, and a and just when at school strong heart; and he had that the boys would call on a great work to do in the him to make peace when world. He was born to they were at strife. He rule. Two weeks from the knew how to rule his own \ time the fight took place THE HISTORY OF THE UNITED STATES. at Bun-ker Hill, Wash-ing- ton was sent for to be j the Com-man-der-in-chief of, our men. Though brave i at heart they were green in war, and had but few of the things most used at such times. The first thing Wash-ing- ton did was to teach them the art of war. Some thought he ought to rush right on the Brit-ish in Bos-ton. But he did not think so. He kept them so close in the town all those long cold days that they were most starved to death. At last, they were in ^uch a strait that Gen-er-al Howe, the Brit-ish chief was forced to ask Wash ing-ton to let him and his troops leave Bos-ton. This Wash-ing-ton was glad to do. Then the Eng-lish set sail for Hal-i-fax in March, 1776, and the A-mer-i-cans marched in to Bos-ton to the great joy of all the folks there. The reign of King George in that place was at an end. While the Brit ish were still in Bos-ton, Howe sent a force of ships to lay siege to Charles-ton, in South Car-o-li-na. But Wash-ing-ton found out his plan, and sent Gen-er-al Lee to meet him. When the Brit-ish fleet came in sight of Charles ton it was found that a strong fort had been built of earth and logs, so that the ships could not land. The men on board sent bomb-shells at the fort, which sank in the soft wood so that not much harm was done. But the THE HISTORY OF THE UNITED STA TES. shot from the fort swept the decks of the Brit-ish ships. When the fight was at its height, a brave deed was done by a young man named Jas-per. One of the bails had cut down the staff which held the flag the men in the fort were so proud of. As soon as Jas per saw it he sprang from the breast-works, seized the flag and put it back in its place, while round him the balls fell like hail-stones. For a whole day the Brit-ish kept up the fight. But they could not take the fort. So they gave it up, and set sail. The fort was called Fort Moul-trie, as that was the name of the brave man who kept it from the foe. When the Brit-ish left Bos-ton, Wash-ing-ton had a fear that they meant to go to New York, so he made up his mind to move his own troops to that place. He left some of his men in Bos-ton so that the Brit-ish should not come back and take it, and then set sail for New York. Then he set his men to work to build forts near the town, and on Long Is-land, and up the Hud- ; son, for the war was to be kept up till the whole of A-mer-i-ca was free from Eng-lish rule. What took place on the 4th of Ju-ly, 1776 ? I will tell you. On that day our men drew up an act, called " The Dec-la-ra-tion of In- de -pen - dence" Th o m - as Jef-fer-son wrote it, and it was full of grand words 8o THE HISTORY OF THE UNITED STATES. that rang out like a chime of bells. The Con-ti-nent-al Con gress was made up of wise men who made the laws by which A-mer-i-cans chose to be ruled. They met in Phil-a-del-phia, in a room in In-de-pen-dence Hall. When the word went forth that the Dec-la-ra-tion had been signed and sealed, the old bell -man seized the tongue of the great bell and swung it back and forth with all his might. At each loud stroke The old bell spoke, "We will not wear King George s Yoke ! " From South to North Our cry shall be, From this time forth We shall be free !" So loud the peal, So great the stroke, That in its joy The big bell broke. This is true. And when you go to Phil-a-del-phia you must ask to see the great bell that rang out such a wild peal of joy on that day ; and if you look on one side of it you will see the large crack that was made, so that it could ring no more. I must tell you what the folks in New York did. In that town stood a cast of King George III. It was made of lead. In one hand he held a kind of sword ; and on his head he wore a crown. When the news of the Dec-la-ra-tion of In - de -pen-dence reached New York a great crowd ran to one spot, and the cry was heard "Down with it! down with it!" and soon a rope was put round its neck, and the lead King THE HISTORY OF THE UNITED STATES. George came down to the ground. Then it was cut all to bits, and made up in balls with which to kill the troops that had been sent from Eng-land to fight the A-mer-i-cans. CHAPTER XI. DARK DAYS. In the fall of 1776 a deep gloom spread through the land. Gen-er-al Howe had his troops in camp on Stat-en- Is-land a few miles from New York, and in full view of Brook-lyn. Wash- ing-ton sent a strong force to hold the heights of Brook-lyn and to throw up earth-works in front of the town. But the Eng-lish had more men, and the field was lost to the A-mer-i- cans, who fled to Har-lero, nine miles from New York. But the Eng-lish ships swept up the Hud-son and got in the front and rear of Wash-ing-ton and his troops. The Brit-ish took Fort Wash-ing-ton, which was so great a loss that it made Wash- ing- ton shed tears. He led his men to New Jer-sey. The ground as they went was stained with their blood. The most of them fclt that their cause THE HISTORY OF THE UNITED STATES. was lost. They were in sore need. The red-coats, though close in the rear of Wash-ing-ton, could not catch up to him. In this way he got down to the Del-a-ware, which he had to cross to get to Penn-syl- va-nia. As he took care to take all the boats with him, the Brit-ish could not cross when they got there. The stream was full of ice, \ and it was hard work for men who were not half clad or half fed. But they did it, and kept on their way by land as soon as they reached the shore. At the close of the year Wash-ing-ton had a chance to clip the wings of the Brit-ish at Trent-on and Prince-ton so that they fell back and gave up a large part of New Jer-sey. The next year, that is in 1777, our men lost ground; and dark were the days they spent at Val-ley Forge. They had not much to eat, and their clothes hung in rags. Some of them had no shoes, and their steps could be traced by the blood-marks they left in the snow. They had to keep as warm as they could in their small huts, or round the camp-fires, and if the fire of love for their own land had not burned strong in their hearts they could not have stood it at all. At this time a new force came to the aid of these brave men. France was at heart the friend of A-mer-i-ca, but did not dare to take a bold part in the war. But she let one THE HISTORY OF THE UNITED STATES. 83 of her bright young chiefs once more the land he had cross the sea to help the helped to save. The fame cause for which they fought. of his good and brave His name was La-Fay-ette. deeds will last till the end He was a young man of of time. great wealth, and in a high In the spring of 1777, place at the French court. Gen-er-al Bur-goyne set He left his young wife, his out from Can-a-da with a home, and all he held dear, fine lot of troops. He was to cast his lot with those to go south and be met who were in great need of at Al-ba-ny by a Brit-ish this kind of cheer. Wash- force which was to march ing-ton met him with tears up from New York. This of joy in his eyes, and gave was a grand plan to cut him a place on his staff, our lines in two. He. He put new strength in marched far in the New the troops, and made their Eng-land States. As he cause his own. For this drew near men took down he holds a high place in their guns from the walls the love of all true A-mer- and went to the front i-cans. When the war was They had not much skill at an end, and A-mer-i-ca in the art of war, but they free, he went back to had firm hearts and a sure France. In the year 1826, aim. It was not long ere when La-fay-ette was an the Brit-ish found out they old man he came to see , were caught as in a net. THE HISTORY OF THE UNITED STATES. Our men were at the front and rear and on all sides. In grief and shame the red-coats laid down their arms to a crowd of rough ill-dressed men, most of whom wore their guns slung on their backs! It was a great blow to Eng-land. Near the same time Gen- er-al Howe tried to cross Wash -ing- ton s path and take Phil-a-del-phia, then the chief town of all the States. As he could not get there by land he went back to New York and set sail from that place. Our men were drawn up on the banks of the Bran-dy-wine, but though they fought well the red-coats were too strong for them, and drove them from the field. In a few days a Brit-ish force with Lord Corn-wal-lis at its head made its way to Phil-a-del-phia. The band played "God save the King." The day was bright The streets were gay ; and there were some folks in. the town who were full of joy, and glad to see King George s men. They were met as friends and not as foes. Said wise Ben Frank lin, "Gen-er-al Howe did not take Phil-a-del-phia ; Phil-a-del-phia took Gen- er-al Howe." I must tell you of a great feat done by Gen-er-al Put nam, or "old Put" as he was called, while the red coats made war through New Eng-land. They robbed and set on fire the towns they went through, and at last came to Horse- neck, which is on the THE HISTORY OF THE UXITED STA TES. Sound a few miles from New York. Gen-er-al Put nam was at Horse-neck with a small force of men and two large guns. The Brit-ish had more men, but less pluck. -Old Put" was a bold man. He set his guns on a hill near the church ; and as the red-coats came up the guns were fired. At length the foe came so close that he told his men to run and hide in a swamp near by. He was on horse back, and the hill was so steep that no horse could go down it but by the road on which the red -coats were. But the man who had the wit to snare a wolf, was not the one to be caught in a trap. He saw some stone steps that had been laid so that those in the vale could get up to the church which was on the hill. It is life or death, thought Put-nam, and down he rode at break-neck speed, On came the Brit-ish. They were sure of him. But when they reached the spot they saw "old Put" a long way off. They did not dare to go down the steps, so they shot at him, and would have killed him if they could. But one ball came near him, and that went through his hat. 86 THE HIS TOR F OF THE UNITED STATES. CHAPTER XII. THE CLOSE OF THE WAR. The French had shown such good will to our men, that Frank-lin was sent to ask their aid. The King of France said he would help with ships, men, and gold, and he was as good as his word. This brought much cheer to the hearts of the A-mer-i-cans. When Eng-land heard what France meant to do, she tried her best to make peace. But it was too late. From the year 1779 tne war went on in the South, where much blood was spilt. There were loss and gain on both sides, but at last the Brit-ish troops were forced back to Charles-ton, where they stayed till the close of the war. We now come to a dark page and a dark plot by which, if it had not been found out, A-mer-i-ca would have lost all she had fought so hard to win. This was a plan to place West-Point in the hands of the Brit-ish. West-Point was a strong fort on the Hud-son which was in charge of Gen-er--al Ar-nold. The Brit-ish knew it was worth their while to get this post, so they sent word to Ar-nold that he might have a large sum in gold if he would give it up. This he meant to do if he had not been THE HISTORY OF THE UNITED STA TES. found out. No true man will take a bribe of this sort. Wash-ing-ton bade him leave the post, and he went off in a great rage. Then he came back full of grief for the wrong he had done, and said he meant from that hour to do right, and begged to be sent back to his post at West-Point. But his heart was black ; his thoughts were base ; and Wash-ing- ton, who had a kind heart, did wrong to trust him. As soon as he was once more in charge of West- Point he wrote to Sir Hen ry Clin-ton, who was with the Brit-ish in New York, to send some one to whom he could give up the fort. Ma-jor An-dre was sent up the Hud-son in a sloop of war, named the Vul-ture. The night was pitch dark when he left the boat and went to the place where he was to meet Ar-nold. Day broke ere their talk came to an end. It was not safe for An-dre to be seen. The ship from which he had come lay in full view. Would that he could reach her ! He must make his way back to New York by land as best he could. A pass from Ar-nold took him through the A-mer-i- can lines, and then he drew a free breath, and felt no more fear. He came to a small stream ; thick woods on the right and on the left made the night seem more dark. All at once three armed men came out from the trees and bade him halt. From the dress of 88 THE HISTORY OF THE UNITED STATES. one of them An-dre thought he was with friends. Poor An-dre ! He soon found out they were not friends at all. They searched him, and at first nought was found. Then one of the men said, " Boys, I am still in doubt. His boots must come off." Andre s face fell. His boots were searched, and Ar-nold s sketch of West- Point was found. The men knew then that he was a spy. Word was at once sent to Wash-ing-ton who was then at West- Point. As soon as Ar-nold heard that his plot was found out he fled in great haste to a Brit-ish man-of-war. An dre was tried, and by the rules of war he had to be i hung. It was a sad fate for so young and so good a man, and gave great pain to all those who took part in the act. Had it been Ar-nold, no tears would have been shed. This bad man, who was to blame for An-dre s death, made his way to New York, and took sides with the Brit-ish. When the war came to an end he went to England, o where in 1801 he died; and in the whole wide world there was no one who had the least love for the man, or would shed a tear at his grave. He won the hate of Eng-lish-men as well as A-mer-i-cans, and I would warn all bovs not to do ap j Ben-e-dict Ar-nold did. We come now to the fight which brought the war to a close. It took place at York-town in Vir- gin-ia, in the year 1781. THE HISTORY OF THE UNITED STA TES. Wash -ing -ton was near New York and thought to march on that place. But he changed his plan, and went in great haste to fight Lord Corn-wal-lis and to lay siege to York-town. He had the French to help him ; and their men-of-war jhut up the bay so that the Brit-ish could not get out to sea in their own boats. A sharp fire of shot and shell was kept up in front j and rear. The red -coats were shut in on all sides, and met with great loss. They had but few guns ; and their shot gave out. j For more than ten days the fight was kept up, and the Brit-ish did all that brave men could do to hold the fort. But the red- hot shot of the French set fire to their ships. Their earth-works were torn up by the fire of our troops who came up with such speed that the foe lost all hope. Corn-wal-lis sent out a flag of truce. The Brit ish laid down their arms c Peace had come at last, and the joy of A-mer-i-ca knew no bounds. It \vas eight years since the first blood was shed at Lex-ing-ton. Thus long had our men fought, and bled, and borne all sorts of ills to win what was well worth all it cost them. Now they were free; and Eng-land was the same to them as all the rest of the world " in peace, a friend ; in war, a foe." By the end of the year 1783 the last red-coat had left our shores : and our 00 THE HISTORY OF THE UNITED STATES. troops went back to their homes. Wash-ing-ton had won ! the love of all hearts. The men who had fought with him were loath to leave him. It was a sad time. Strong men shed tears when Wash-ing-ton bade them good-by. Tears were in his own eyes. He would take no pay for what he had done. His troops would have made him king, but he had no wish to be on a throne. He was sick of war and of a life of care, and glad to go back to his farm and spend the rest of his days in peace. CHAPTER XIII. ON SHIP AND SHORE. The war left A-mer-i-ca in a sad state. Towns and fields had been laid waste by fire. All the arts of peace had been made to stop. There was a big debt to be paid. Laws must be made for those who were now free from the rule of Eng-land, It took wise and good men three or four years to work out a plan that would meet the case. They had need of some wise and good man at the head. It was the vote of the States that George Wash-ing-ton was the man to fill the place. At the THE HISTORY OF THE UXITED STATES. same time they cast their votes for two men, so that in case the chief died there would be some one to take his place. George Wash- mg-ton and John Ad-ams were the two they chose, and on the fourth of March, 1789, Wash -ing- ton took his place as the chief of the band who were to make the laws of A-mer-i-ca. He served for eight years, and did so well for the U-ni-ted States as they were now called that it was said of him " He was first in war first in peace." It was the wish of all that he should serve a third term, but he would not, and in the year 1799! he died, and his death was felt to be a great loss. John Ad-ams was chief for one term of four years from 1797 to 1801. Thomas Jef-fer-son two terms, from 1801 to 1809. James Mad-i-son two terms, from 1809 to 1817. While Mad-i-son was chief, and our land had been at peace not quite a score of years, it had to go to war once more with Eng-land. It is called "the war of 1812," as it took place in that year. This was the cause of it : Eng land said that she had a right to search our ships, to see if they had on board of them men who ought to serve Great Brit-ain The search was not just, and men were seized and made to serve a flag they did not love. Some of 9 2 THE HISTORY OF THE UNITED STA TES. our men would not let a search be made on their ships and much blood was shed. These deeds brought on the war which was kept up on the sea and on the land. Our men could not do much on the land, but with their ships they kept up a brave fight and had good luck on the sea, and took five Brit-ish ships- of-war. The first light was with the Con-sti-tu-tion and Guer-ri-ere. The last named was a Brit-ish ship. So fierce was the fire of shot from our side that in half an hour there was not a spar left on the deck of the Guer-ri-ere ; and the next day she was blown up, as there was no way in which she could be towed to port. The next one was that of the Mac-e-do-ni-an and U-ni-ted States. The brave Com-mo-dore De-ca-tur had charge of our ship, which took the Eng-lish ship as a prize. The Ja-va was next caught by the Con-sti-tu- tion, and the Pea-cock by the Hor-net. The Pea cock had such great holes made in her hull by the balls sent from the Hor net by our men, that she sank with some of her men on board. Two Eng-lish ships lay off Bos-ton in the warm months of the year 1813. In the bay the A-mer-i-can ship Ches-a-peake had lain ior some months. Broke sent off one of his ships, and sent word to Law-rence that he would match his QC QC UJ D O Q 2 < 2 O h D h 2 O O UJ I h 2 LJ UJ h UJ CO H I O THE HISTORY OF THE UNITED STATES. 93 ship, the Shan-non, with the Ches-a-peake. Then \ he stood close in to the shore to wait for his foe to come forth. Crowds went on house-top and hill to see the fight. Not a shot was fired till the ships were so near that the men could see the eyes of those they meant to kill. The fire of the Brit-ish soon told on our ship. Her sails are torn ; her masts fall ; her deck is swept by the balls sent from the huge guns, i The ships are now side by side. The Shan-non still fires grape-shot from two of her guns. Broke leaps on board the Ches-a-peake whose deck is wet with blood, tears down the flag, and the fight is at an end in less than half an hour. If it is sad for us to read of such things, what must it have been for those who took part in them ? Law-rence had his death- wound in this fight, and with his last breath he said to his men. " Don t give up the ship !" This has been since that day the watch word of A-mer-i-can tars. I will now tell you of a fight that took place on Lake E-rie, in the fall of 1813, in which our men won the day. The A-mer- i-can fleet of nine ships was in charge of Com-mo- dore Per-ry. The Brit ish had but six ships, but these had more guns than ours. Per-ry s flag- ship was the Law-rence, and the words " Don t give up the ship" the last that brave 94 THE HISTORY OF THE UNITED STATES. man spoke were on the flag that was sent up as a sign that the fight was to set in. The Brit-ish ships point most of their guns at the Law-rence. For two hours they pour the shot at her till her guns have no place to rest, and she lies a wreck on the wave. There are but few of her crew who are not hurt. It is clear to Com-mo-dore Per-ry that he must leave his ship and make his way, if he can, to one of those that lie near. He took his flag with him, and in a small boat made his way to the Ni- aof-a-ra, while the whole of o the Brit-ish fleet kept up the fire of their guns in hopes to stop his course. In less than half an hour Per-ry took the whole of the Brit-ish fleet, and then sat down and wrote of it in these words; "We have met the foe, and they are ours." For three years the war was kept up. The A-mer- i-cans were sick of it The Brit-ish lost more than they gained. Men from both sides met at Ghent, and made terms of peace. A Brit-ish sloop-of-war brought the news to New York ; and none too soon. The fight at New Or-leans took place while the ship was on the sea. It was won by the A-mer-i-cans, led by Gen-er-al Jack-son. He was rough in his ways, but his men were fond of him, and they gave him the pet name of "Old Hick-o-ry." The cry of " Peace ! THE HISTORY OF THE UNITED STATES. 95 peace!" rang through the streets. Fires were lit. Bos-ton was wild with joy. Ships that had long lain | at her wharves were soon sent out to sea, to trade, and not to make war. It was a glad time. New States were formed. Men j came in swarms from the j Old World, and went to j the west to make new homes. On the fourth of March, 1817, James Mon-roe, was sworn in as chief of our land, and he made a tour j through most of the States, to learn their needs and their growth, that his rule might be a wise one. In 1825 John Quin-cy Ad-ams was made chief, by a large vote, for a term of four years. His rule was one of peace. As there were more men to choose from, those who had a right to vote took sides. Each had its own friend. In 1829 the votes were cast for John Quin-cy Ad ams and An-drew Jack-son. When they came to count them, Jack-son had the most, so he was made chief on the 4th of March. His home was in Ten-nes-see. Jack-son was a man of strong will, and did some things that did not please some of the folks. But he was much liked, and held the place of chief for two terms. In 1837 Mar-tin Van Bu-ren was made chief for a term of four years. By this time some of the States felt that Jack-son had not been the right kind of man for them, and the 9 6 THE HISTORY OF THE UNITED STA TES. most that Van Bu-ren could do was to try to keep the peace. In 1841 Gen-er-al Wil- li-am Hen-ry Har-ri-son was made chief with great pomp. His friends had hopes that his rule would prove a great joy to the land. He was a brave man, and a good man ; one that had been tried and found as true as steel. All was bright and fair. But just one month from the day he was made chief the old man died. He was sick but a few days. John Ty-ler took his place, but he did not please those who had cast their votes for Har-ri-son. In the band that were kept near the chief, to aid him in time of need, were such men as Hen-ry Clay, and Dan-i-el Web ster, of whom you may have heard. These men had large brains, and large hearts, and when they got up to speak it was worth while to hear what they had to say. A-mer-i-ca was proud of these men, and is to this day. THE HISTORY OF THE L XITED STATES. 97 CHAPTER XIV. WHAT TOOK PLACE IN MEX-I-CO AND CAL-I-FOR-NIA. In 1845 James K. Polk was sworn in. He had to cake an oath, as did all the rest of the chiefs, that he would be true, and would serve his land the best he knew how. In his term a war with Mex-i-co broke out. The cause of this war was three -fold. In the first place Mex-i-co did not want Tex-as to join the States, which she did in 1845, and was full of ill-will. In the next place those States in the South that held slaves did not like Mex-i-co at all. I will tell you why. The Pope of Rome would have no slaves in Mex-i-co, and so if a slave could make his way there he would be a free man. I will tell you more of the Slave States by-and-by. In the third place Mex- i-co was not sure how big o Tex-as ought to be, and was at strife all the time with the U-ni-ted States, who wished to have men sent from both sides to fix the line. This did not suit Mex-i-co, and so there was a war. In the spring of 1846, Gen-er-al Zach-a-ry Tay-lor was sent with a force to the Ri-o Gran-de, which our men claimed as the line that bound Tex-as on THE HISTORY OF THE UNITED STATES. the south and south-west. Two fights took place at this point, both of which were won by Gen-er-al Tay lor. This gave great joy to all the States ; and a large force was at once raised, and Gen-er-al Win- field Scott put at its head, In the mean-time Gen- er-al Tay-lor beat San-ta An-na in two more fights -at Mon-te-rey and Bu- e-na Vis-ta. At the last named place San-ta An-na had four or five times more troops than Gen-er-al Tay lor. In the last fight San ta An-na fled in such haste that he left his cork leg ! Gen-er-al Tay-lor was fond of a joke, and did not mind a bit of fun now and then. He was rough in his speech and had a quick wit, and that is how he won the name of "Old Rough and Read-y." He knew just what to say and what to do when the time came for him to speak and act, and though a man of war had a great big heart, and more friends than foes. At one time, in the midst of a great fight with the Mex-i-cans, the balls came thick and fast quite near the place where Tay-lor stood with some of his staff. The men did not like this kind of fun, and would duck their heads when a ball went by. The old Gen-er-al saw this, and said " Don t dodge ! Brave men should not dodge!" It was not long ere a big ball came so near the old man s nose that it made him start back. At this his men set up a loud laugh. THE HISTORY OF THE UNITED STATES. 99 A flush of shame lit the our troops marched in the old man s face, and he felt chief town of Mex-i-co, that he was in a fix. Then and there put up the Stars a smile broke through the and Stripes. In the next cloud, and with a light year terms of peace were laugh he said, made, which gave us the "Well, well, my men ; I whole of Cal-i-for-nia and guess you will have to New Mex-i-co. dodge the balls. Dodge Who has not heard of but don t run." Cal-i-for-nia ? I will tell In March, 1847, Win- you how gold came to be field Scott set out with his found there, force to seize Ve-ra Cruz, Some men had been set which was a laro-e and to work to build a mill-race. o strong town with a fort on \ As they dug out the trench the sea- coast. They had they saw that the sand was to fight each step of their full of bits of stuff that way through Mex-i-co. shone like gold. They They took Cer-ro Gor-do did not think much of it by storm, and at last came at first. But as they dug to Cha-pul-te-pec, which down they found more of was built on a rock, and it. It was gold! Here in was the great strong- hold the rock ! there in the of the Mex-i-cans. When sand! now in a big lump ! this fell all hope was lost, now in a small one! It was and in the Fall of 1847, like a dream! The men too THE HISTORY OF THE UNITED STATES. were wild ! They had but Cal-i-for-nia has grown to stoop down and take to be a great State. San up this great wealth. The j Fran-cis-co is its chief town. news spread. Young men and old men from the East, and from all parts of the Gold is still found in the State. Her soil is rich, and her fruits grow to a great world flocked to the land size. She has a large trade of gold. Some went by in wheat, wool, and wine, land and some by sea. which are all first-class. Some were sick on the In 1849 t le U-ni-ted way. A host of them died | States made Gen-er-al Tay and left their bones where lor their chief. In this way there was no friend to dig they thought to prove their a grave. Still the crowds I love for, and their faith kept on, and some of them in him. In less than four were made rich by the gold months he died, and Fill- they found in the strange , more took his place. There land. But they had to work was strife here and there hard for it, and lead strange I through the land, which lives; and not all of those! was brought to an end by who went to Cal-i-for-nia wise means, so that no real in the year 1 849 grew to war took place, be rich men. No; some At this time three great spent all they had, and men died:- -John C. Cal- were poor to the end of houn, Hen-ry Clay, and their days. Dan-i-el Web-ster. THE HISTORY OF THE UNITED STATES. 101 Frank -lin Pierce was j white man, and he took the sworn in as chief in 1853. law in his own hands in a By this time there was rash way. He saw a great much strife in the North ! wrong and meant to do his and in the South as the best to set it right, with New States came in. There God s help. He could not were those who said Kan- hope to change the laws of sas should be a free State, the land, but he was full and there were those who of fight for a cause so dear said she should have slaves. | to his heart. He took his This of course, made a two sons and went to Kan- great war of words. It sas to help make it and was left for the folks in keep it a free State. A Kan-sas to say if they few men who thought as would have slaves or not, he did went with him. He and then there was a great laid up a store of arms, and rush to that State from i he and his friends made a both sides. way for slaves to get to I must tell you now of a Can-a-da where they would man named John Brown be free. Brown was a who felt that the curse of shrewd man, and for some God was on the land that time these things were done bought and sold men as on the sly. But some one slaves. He thought the found out his plans and black man had just as good made them known to those a right to be free as the who were his foes. 102 THE HISTORY OF THE UNITED STATES. This roused the wrath of old John Brown, and led him to do in haste what he might have known would hurt his cause. This is what he did. At the town of Har-per s Fer-ry there was a place where a large stock of arms and tools of war were kept. This he made up his mind to seize. His hopes were high. He was sure he should not fail. He went to work with a small force of black and white men ; made the trains stop that here cross the Po-to-mac ; brought work of all kinds to a stand-still, and held the place for more than a day. Most all his men were hurt or slain. His two sons were shot dead. Brown stood by his dead boys, and in a calm voice told his men to stand firm, and sell their lives dear. But the foe was too strong for the brave old man. He was at last caught, tried, and hung; and the name and fame of John Brown are sung in one of the songs of the land. This act is known as "John Brown s raid." THE HISTORY OF THE UNITED STA TES. 103 CHAPTER XV. NORTH AND SOUTH AT WAR. From the year 1857 to 1861 James Bu-chan-an was the chief of these U-ni-ted States. At this time the Mor-mons were at strife with our laws. The Mor-mons think it is right for a man to have more than one wife. They claim to serve God in this way. They make their home in Utah. Their chief town is Salt Lake Cit-y. Troops were sent to quell the strife, but terms were made so that no blood was shed, and so long as the Mor mons keep the peace we have no law that can touch them. Their mode of life is a great blot on our land. While Bu-chan-an was chief there was a stir at the South that the men at the North knew not how to deal with. The South said it had a right to keep slaves. Bu-chan-an thought it was wrong, but did not know how to go to work to bring it to an end. Men of wealth who first came from Eng-land to A-mer-i- ca had brought their slaves with them, and their sons were brought up to think that they could own slaves, the same as they owned cows or pigs, and could treat them just as they chose. Six States cut loose from 104 THE HISTORY OF THE UNITED STATES. the rest. They were U-ni- ted States no more. South Car-o-li-na led them, and they set up as free States; that is, free from the laws that bound them to the North. The bells of Charles ton rang for joy. Wild shouts of joy were heard in her streets. They chose Jeff-er-son Da-vis to be their chief for the next six years. Those States thought they had the right to do just as they did. All in the South were not of the same mind. The North felt that the States must be kept as one. Those who had gone off must be made to come back by force of arms. Such was the state of our land in the year 1860, when the time came to choose a chief to take the place of James Bu-chan-an. The choice fell on A- bra-ham Lin-coin. He had been born in the South, but had gone to the west to live when quite a young man. He was tall and gaunt, and had a sad and care-worn face. He took his place on the 4th of March, 1 86 1. At this time Fort Sum-ter, which was off Charles-ton, was the sole fort left in the South where the North had the least foot-hold. It was in charge of a few men with Ma-jor An-der-son at their head. A large force of troops from the South, led by Gen-er-al Beau-re-gard, had built earth-works from which to fire on the fort. He tried at first to starve out the men in the fort, but word was sent to them that THE HISTORY OF THE UNITED STATES. 105 ships were on their way Both sides thought the war with food. would be a short one. At dawn of a spring day The first great fight of a bomb-shell went with a the war took place at Bull whizz through the air and Run. Gen-er-al Scott was burst on Fort Sum-ter. Its too old to take the field, so sound went through the the troops from the North land. It was plain there were led out by Gen-er-al was now to be war. With Me Dow-ell. At first it more men the fort might was thought the North have been held, for it was , would win, but fresh troops strong and well built, but came to the aid of Beau-re- at the end of a day and gard, and they broke the a half An-der-son was ranks of their foes, who set forced to give up the fort, off on a wild run and did Not a man was hurt. not stop till they got back It had been thought by I to Wash-ing-ton. This some that the North would ! taught the North that it not fight. But she went j was not a play war. to work with zeal. Men ! Lin-coin sent out a call left their farms, their shops, for more men. The whole their trades, their homes, South was in arms, and their dear ones, and Gen-er-al George B. Me were soon in arms and on Clel-lan, who had done the way to meet the foe. some good work in Vir- It was 9 strange, sad sight, gin-ia, was now made Gen- io6 THE HISTORY OF THE UNITED STATES. er-al in chief. He knew how to train troops, but was not the man to lead them in fight. To tell of all the fights that took place in the long war of four years would make too large a book. In 1862 the war took a start in the West. A force, led by Brig-a-dier Gen-er- al U. S. Grant, set out in a fleet of gun-boats to take Fort Don-el-son. They laid siege to the fort by land, and by sea, and took it from the hands of the South. The next great fight in the West was at Shi-loh, on the Ten-nes-see. Grant and Bu-ell led the troops from the North, and Al bert Syd-ney John-ston and Beau-re-gard the troops from the South. The first shot came from the South, who drove the North down to the brink of the stream. But John-ston was killed ; night came on, fresh troops j came up to aid the North, and the next day there was a brisk fight, and Beau- re-gard and his men were put to flight. The next great fight in the west was at Stone Riv er in Ten-nes-see. It was kept up for three days. There was great loss on both sides, but the North held the field. At An-tie-tam in Ma ry-land, a great fight took place, twixt Gen-er-al Lee and Gen-er-al Me Clel-lan. This was in the fall of 1862. It was hard fought on both sides, and there was great loss of life. The next fight was in Vir-gin-ia, at Fred-er-icks- THE HISTORY OF THE UNITED STATES. 107 burg. Burn-side had been put in Me Clel-lan s place, but he was no match for Gen-er-al Lee, who won the day. In the spring of 1862 a large fleet of gun-boats, in charge of Ad-mi-ral Far- ra-gut went out to fight the force at New-Or-leans. For six days Far-ra-gut sent shot and shell at the two forts that were in his ! way, but he could not do them much harm. The foe had put a stout chain from shore to shore so that ships could not get by, and fire-rafts and gun-boats were let loose to do all the harm they could to those that came too near. But Far-ra-gut made his way past forts and gun -boats and took New-Or-leans, which was a great prize. The South had thought of a new kind of a gun- o boat. It was clad in a coat of mail, and did much harm. It was called the Mer-ri-mac. One night there came from New York a strange kind of a craft, which had just been built and was called the Mon-i- tor. There were no masts to be seen. It looked like a cheese box on a raft. There was a fierce fight twixt these two boats, and the steam -ram, the Mer-ri- mac, had to put in to Nor folk. These sea-fights were kept up for some time, and more gun-boats of the same sort were built in Eu-rope as well as in A-mer-i-ca. On the first day of the year 1863, Lin-coin did a deed that gave great joy to the black race. He said io8 THE HISTORY OF THE UNITED STATES. that from that day all the slaves should be free. Just j think of it! The whole! North gave thanks to God. The South was not so well pleased, of course, but had to yield to the law. In May 1863, Gen-er-al Joe Hook-er, who took Burn-side s place, led his troops out to fight Lee s men. They met at Chan- cel-lors-ville in Vir-gin-ia. Lee had but a small force, and Jack-son came up from the South to help him. As Jack-son rode up with his staff he was shot by some of his own men, and ; had to be borne from the j field. He was calm in the j midst of great pain. u If I live it will be for the best," he said ; "and if I die it will be for the best." He died at the end of eight days, and the death of "Stone wall" Jack-son was a great grief to the South, and to his friends at the North. Lee, by his great skill, won the fight at Chan-cel- lors-vilh, and Hook-er had to turn back the troops he had sworn to lead "On to Rich-mond." This was a great blow to the North. The chief fight of the whole war took place at Get-tys-burg, a town in Penn-syl-va-nia. Lee had had such good luck that it made him bold ; and his plan now was to march to the North and take Phil- a-del-phia and New York. The North shook with fear at Lee s move, for he had shown great skill. Gen-er-al Meade was put in Gen-er-al Hook-er s place, and he and a large THE BATTLE OF GETTYSBURG THE HISTORY OF THE UNITED STATES. 109 force of troops set out to Some of the tomb -stones meet Gen-er-al Rob-ert E. \ were so old and moss-grown Lee. Meade, though a that the names and dates brave man, felt that he had could not be seen. Some a hard task. In the first ; of them were fresh and place, the troops were all new. The men in gray strange to him ; and what swore they would take the was worse than all, they j hill on which Meade and had had such bad luck, his men were, that they had no hope i The morn of the day in their hearts. But the on which hung the life, we work had to be done, and | may say, of the U-ni-ted he and his men must move States, was bright and warm at once. "Theirs but to do and still. Lee laid his and die." plans to crush his foe at The first fight in Get- one point. Meade brought tys-burg took place on the his troops to this place first day of Ju-ly, 1863 w ith : where they were to win or the loss of a few men on lose the fight. At noon both sides. At night fresh all was in trim, and at the troops came in for the sign from Lee s guns a fierce North and the South, and rain of shot and shell fell the fight was kept up all on both sides. For three the next day. On the third hours this was kept up, day Meade held a hill and in the midst of it Lee which was full of graves, sent forth a large force of 1X0 THE HISTORY OF THE UNITED STATES. his men to break through Meade s ranks. Down the hill they went and through the vale, and up to the low stone wall, back of which stood the foe. But Lee s brave men did not stop here. On they went, up close to the guns whose fire cut deep in their ranks, while Lee kept watch from the height they had left. The smoke lifts, and Lee sees the flag of the South wave in the midst of the strife. The sight cheers his heart. His men are on the hill from which they think they will soon drive the foe. A dense cloud of smoke veils the scene. When it next lifts the boys in gray are in flight down the slope where the grass is strewn thick with the slain. Lee s plan did not j work well. He lost the ! fight, and went back to Vir-gin-ia, and as far South as the Rap-id-an. There was great loss on both sides. For days and days men did nought but dig graves for the dead. For miles round there was not a barn or a house that did not hold men with ! such bad wounds it was not safe to move them. Some were so hurt and torn that they could not bear the touch of kind hands, but had to lie on the field till death put an end to their pain. Oh, that there were no such thing as war ! In the spring of 1864 Gen-er-al Grant, who had been put at the head of all the U-ni-ted States troops, left his men at the west in THE HISTORY OF THE UNITED STATES. in charge of Gen-er-al Sher- strength all through the man, and took the field war. He now felt that he to rout Gen-er-al Lee, and had the foe by the throat, to force his way to Rich- and did not mean to let go mond. There were fierce his grasp. But for Lee s fights on both sides, and great skill the war would great loss of life. The not have gone on for so North had more men and ! long a time, means than the South, and Let us now turn to the Grant felt that each move west. At the time that he made brought the end Grant met and fought with more near. His aim was Lee in a place known as to get Pe-ters-burg and the Wil-der-ness- -May, Rich-mond, but not much 1864 Sher -man had a was done till the spring fight with Gen-er-al J. E. of 1865. Grant was a man Johns-ton, in Geor-gia, and of few words. It is said won his way to At-lan-ta, that "a still tongue shows which was a great gain, a wise head." He wrote Gen-er-al Hood was now " I will fight it out on this put in place of Johns-ton, line," and the North had and he made up his mind great faith in him. From to march to Ten-nes-see the first there had not been and make Sher- man fall a doubt in his own mind back. But in place of this but that the North would Sher-man gave Gen-er-al win. And this ave him Thom-as one half of his 112 THE HISTORY OF THE UNITED STATES. force to keep guard in Ten-nes-see, while with the rest of his troops he went through Geor-gia and oh ! what harm was done with fire and sword! till he came to the sea-coast and took Sa-van-nah. Not a word had been heard from him in a whole month. This is known as "Sher man s march to the sea," and the fame of it went through the land and made his name great in Eu-rope as well as in A-mer-i-ca. In the mean time Thom as had met Hood at Nash ville and put an end to his whole force. In Ju-ly, 1864, Ad-mi-ral Far-ra-gut, with a large I fleet, went to Mo-bile, which had two strong forts to keep foes at bay. What do you think Far-ra-gut did ? He tied his boats in pairs, and then stood in I the main-top of his flag ship, and thus ran the fire of the forts with the loss of but one boat. He had a fight with and took the gun-boat Ten-nes-see, and in a short time, with the aid of a land force, took the two forts and made his way to Mo-bile. In this year the North met with great loss from gun-boats that were built in Eng-land to cruise the seas and catch or burn all ships that bore the Stars and Stripes. The trade of the North was much hurt, and it was not safe for her to send out ships with rich freight. The Al-a-ba-ma had done the most harm, and in June, 1864, she fought her last fight. THE HISTORY OF THE UNITED STATES. 113 The U-ni-ted States war- Rich-mond and Pe-ters- ship Kear-sarge came up burg. On the first of with the Al-a-ba-ma off the A-pril Grant sent a force coast of France, and at the of men to lay siege to the end of an hour s hard fight works at Five Forks, where she sank to rise no more, they drove ofi Lee s men. The North knew that Eng- The next day the whole land had built the Al-a-ba- line of works in front of ma for the South and had Pe-ters-burg fell. When tried to get the Brit-ish Lee found he could not not to let her go to sea. < hold Pe-ters-burg or Rich- But in spite of this she set mond, he took flight with sail and did a great deal his troops for the west, of harm, for which the j Grant gave chase and kept North said England must close in Lee s rear. At o pay, as she had been to last Lee had to give in. blame. Now when you ! His men were foot-sore hear men talk of the "Al- and in dire need of food, a-ba-ma Claims" you will They could not keep up know what they mean. the fight. Terms of peace In the spring of 1865 it were drawn up by Grant, was clear that the South which Lee read and made would have to give up the haste to sign with his name, cause for which it had Then he told how his men fought for four long years, had had no food for two Gen-er-al Lee still held days and Grant at once THE HISTORT OF THE UNITED STA TES. sent them what he could spare. Lee rode back to his troops and in a few words told them what he had done. " Men," he said, "we have fought, side by side, through the war, and I have done the best I could for you." By the end of May the South had laid down its arms. The Great War was at an end. The joy was great. All hearts were glad. Flags were at high- mast; bells rang; guns were fired ; and at night the streets were bright and gay. In the midst of this joy came the shock of a great grief. Lin-coin was shot by a bad man named Booth. The deed was done at a play-house in Wash-ing- ton. Booth fled, but was found in a barn, and the shot sent at him was his death wound. Lin-coin died ; and grief was deep in the land. Flags are hung at half-mast; the bells that so late rang out a peal of joy, now toll a dirge. Strong men stand in their fields and weep. It is a sad, sad time. Lin-coin still lives in the hearts of men whom he taught to be firm in the right. He had a warm, true heart, a sound mind, and a strong trust in God who was his help at all times. On the bright roll of fame the name of A-bra- ham Lin-coin stands next to George Wash -ing- ton. One of the few that were not born to die. THE HISTORY OF THE UXITED STATES. CHAPTER XVI. TIMES OF PEACE AND GROWTH. It took the North and South some time to bind up the wounds that war had made. The freed slaves had to be set at work. The men who had fought in the war were paid the sums due them, and then they laid down their arms and went back to their homes. When a chief dies the one next in rank rules, in his stead. The votes of the men of the U-ni-ted States had made An-drew John son next in rank to A-bra- ham Lin-coin. John-son took his place in A-pril, 1865, * ne same day that Lin-coin died. John-son did not go to work right. He made foes both in the North and in the South. He did things that he had no right to do, and broke laws that he should have kept. For this he was tried in 1868, but as his guilt was not proved, he was not put out. The South came back in 1868 and 1869, and once more all the States from Maine to Cal-i-for-nia were as one. I have not yet told you of Sam-u-el F. B. Morse, who first taught us how to talk to folks a long way off by means of a wire. The first wire was put up THE HISTORY OF THE UNITED STATES. from Bal-ti-more to Wash ing-ton in the year 1844. Now it seems as if that wire went round and round and round the world, there is so much of it. In 1858 the wire was first put down in the bed of the sea, and in 1866 what was said in New York could be read and known in Eng-land. It was a grand scheme, and there was a great time in all the large towns when the first words were sent through this long wire. What do you think were the first words that were sent through the first wire that was put up ? I will put them in big type so that they will stand out on the page. Here they are : "WHAT HATH GOD WROUGHT!" Should you go to New York you will find there a brown stone house, in the front of which is set a white stone, on which you may read these words : "In this house S. F. B. Morse lived for some years ; and here he died." In 1867 the U-ni-ted States bought from Rus-sia a large tract of land known as A-las-ka, for which they paid a large sum in gold. We get fur from there as well as fish. When John-son s time was out, Gen-er-al Grant was put in his place by a large vote. He soon set things straight, and North and South were on good terms once more. He who had shown his skill in war, had now a chance to bring peace and good will to THE HISTORr OF THE UNITED STATES. 117 men. When the time came to choose a chief for the next term, the choice fell once more on Gen-er-al Grant, who took the oath, March 4th, 1873. There was quite a strife when Grant s friends tried to put him in for a third term, for it was not thought to be a wise plan. So Grant went back to the home-life of which he was so fond, and not much was heard of him for some years. Then came the sad news that he had lost all his wealth, and was in such ill- health that he must soon die. The best of care could not save him ; but he lived on for days and months, and bore his pains as none but a brave man could. Death was his worst foe, but he was calm through out the hard fight, and felt no fear. Grant died Ju-ly 23, 1885; and on Au~gust 8, North and South met as one, and bore the great man to his tomb. The line of march stretched out for miles and miles ; and crowds came in by boat and rail to take part in the sad scene. The show of grief was real, for all hearts felt as if they owed a debt to him, who by God s help, had brought the war to an end. " Let us have peace ! " he cried ; and then set to work to bring back peace to the land which had been at strife for more than four years. Grant was great in war, and great in peace, n8 THE HISTORY OP THE UNITED STA TES. and his name and fame stand with those of Wash- 1 ing-ton and Lin-coin. But we must now go back to the year 1876 when the U-ni-ted States kept its birth -day. Ten times ten years had gone by since A-mer-i-ca was made free, and the U. S. was born. By this time it was a great strong child. A World s Fair was held at Phil- a- del-phia for six months, to which came crowds from all parts of the world. It was a grand sight ; such as one could not hope to see but once in a life-time. Ruth-er-ford B. Hayes took Grant s place in March, 1877. He was a mild man, and ruled in peace. In 1 88 1 the choice fell on James A. Gar- field. He was once a poor boy, and had won his way by hard work. He had been through the war, and was much thought of in the West, where he was best known. All the acts of his life show that he was a brave man ; and he was so wise and just that he soon had a host of friends. The warm days came on, and Gar-field left the White House to take the train for New Eng-land. It was good to be free from the cares that had kept him at Wash-ing-ton. He felt like a boy let out of school. He was at peace with all men. He did not think he had a foe in the world. How soon all this was changed ! A bad man stood near where Gar-field had to pass, and shot at him as he went bv. For THE HISTOKT OF THE UNITED STATES. 119 long, long weeks Gar-field were brought to the front, lay on a bed of pain at ; and the claims of each set the White House. Then | forth in fine style. it was thought the sea air might help him, so he was Elaine was a Re-pub-li- can ; Cleve-land a Dem-o- borne to Long Branch, j crat. Both had hosts of where he had the best of friends, and strife ran care and skill. But all was | high through all the land, in vain. He died in the \ Blame was a fine states- fall of the year 1881, and I man ; for a score of years all men felt that it was a he had helped make the great grief to lose so good \ laws of the U-ni-ted States, and brave a man. Tears and twice be-fore had his fell from the eyes of old and friends tried their best to get young when the word was him in-to the White House sent from Long Branch- for at least one term. But "Gar-field is dead !" he did not get the votes. Ches-ter A. Ar-thur took Cleve-land, at this time, Gar-field s place. His rule l was Gov-er-nor of New was a wise and just one, York State, and had had a and North and South were j chance to show what kind at peace. But it was soon j of stuff he was made of. time to choose a new man Each good act of his life for the White House, and was made the most of by the names of Gro-ver Cleve- j his friends ; each wrong land and James G. Blaine deed was brought to light 120 THE HISTORY OF THE UNITE J) STATES. by his foes, and it was the same way with Elaine. When the votes were cast, Cleve-land won, but did not have much to spare. Cleve-land was sworn in as Pres-i-dent on March 4, 1885. He was the first Dem-o-crat who had sat in the chair for more than a score of years, and those of his side felt a great joy to see him there. In Ar-thur s term, a bill had been passed to spend a large sum $30,000,000 on new war ships, of which we were in much need ; for the old ones, built for the most part of wood, were out of date. The work on these ships was pushed at a great rate while Cleve land was in the White House, and aft-er, till we had a grand new na-vy. On June 2, 1886, Cleve land took as wife Miss Fran-ces Fol-som. He was the first Pres-i-dent to be wed in the White House. Near the end of Cleve land s term there was great strife o-ver the tax which is put on goods that come in to our ports from far lands. This tax was so high that it brought in a sum that there was no use for, and Cleve-land said it ought to be cut down. His side tried to pass a bill to do this, called the Mills Bill, but the Re-pub-li-cans were too strong, and it did not pass. This strife stirred up a great lot of talk a-bout " Pro-tec- tion" and " Free trade," and when the time came once more to choose a chief, not much else was heard of but these things. The Re-pub- THE HISTORY OF THE UNITED STATES. 131 li-cans were for Pro-tec-tion, which means that a high tax should be put on all those kinds of goods from out-side that can be made here, so that they will be dear, and the home goods can be sold with-out a cut in the wa-ges of those who do the work, to bring them down to the low rate that is paid in the old lands. Those who are for Free Trade, hold that it is best that all goods should be made where the work can be done at least cost, and that laws should not be passed to make things dear. Cleve-land and the Demo crats were not for out-and- out Free Trade, which means no tax at all, but they were for a low tax. The Re-pub-li-cans put up Ben-ja-min Har-ri-son, of In-di-an-a, to run a- gainst Cleve-land. He is the grand-son of Will-Jam Hen-ry Har-ri-son, the ninth Pres-i-dent. He had served in the war, and been made a Brig-a-dier Gen-er- al, and since then his state had sent him to the Sen-ate. He got more votes than Cleve-land, and was sworn in as Pres-i-dent, March 4, 1889. There were two small war clouds in Har-ri-son s time. One was raised by a thing that took place in Chi-le in South A-mer-i-ca. Some men from one of our war ships who were on shore were set on, and two were killed. We made a call on Chi-le to pay the wives of the slain men for their loss. Chi-le did not like to do this at first, but 122 THE HISTORY OF THE UNITED STATES. at last she did so, and good will reigned once more. Then we had some strife with It-a-ly, be-cause some It-al-ians who were in jail in New Or-leans were "lynched;" that is, put to death by a mob without a tri-al. Aft-er much talk, we a-greed to pay $25,000 to the friends of the lynched men, and It-a-ly was con tent. A new tax bill, called the Me Kin-ley Bill, was passed in 1890. It made the tax high on goods that can be made here, and pleased those who were for Pro-tec-tion, but the Dem- o-crats found much fault with it. At the end of four years, Har-ri-son was put up a- gain by the Re-pub-li-cans, while the Dem-o-crats ran Cleve-land for the third time. Cleve-land was the choice of the land, and took the chair once more. Four huri-dred years had now flown since Co-lum-bus had found the New World, and in hon-or of that great deed a World s Fair was held at Chi-ca-go. It was o-pened May i, 1893. The grounds were on the shore of Lake Mich-i-gan, and the build-ings put up on them were called the White Cit-y. Here were sent from all parts of the world fine goods, and works of art, ma-chines, tools, boats, cars, fruits, grains, in fact all the things that men make or grow. The build-ings in which they were shown, though not made to last, were as fine in looks as the pal-ace of a king and much THE HISTORY OF THE UNITED STATES. 123 more vast, and there were lakes and ca-nals crossed by fine brid-ges. The show went on for six months, and vast crowds came to see it all the time. For a while in 1895 it looked as if we might have a war with Eng-land. Ve- nez-ue-la, in South A-mer- i-ca, claimed that she was tak-ing some of her land, and called on us for help to stop her, for we have a rule, called the "Mon-roe Doc trine" that we will let no pow-er of Eu-rope seize land by force on this side of the sea. Cleve-land took a firm stand, and said that Eng-land must not take the land un-less she could show a clear right to it, and that men should be named to look in-to the case, and see just where the line should) go. Eng-land at first would not yield to this, but claimed she must her-self be the judge, but in the end she gave in some, and the strife was brought to an end with out war. Times were hard and trade poor all through Cleve-land s sec-ond term, and there was much talk as to what was the cause. Most of the Re-pub-li-cans said it was be-cause the Dem-o-crats wished to put an end to the high tar-iff. Cleve-land thought it was from a bill that had been passed in Har-ri-son s time, called the Sher-man Sil-ver Bill, by which a great lot of sil-ver had to be bought and coined. The price of sil-ver had gone down till the weight that is in a dol lar was not worth more than 124 THE HISTORY OF THE UXITED SlATES. half a dol-lar in gold. A stop was put to the buy-ing of sil-ver, but things did not mend fast, and then a large part of the Dem-o-crats, who were for sil-ver, turned to be foes of Cleve-land, and there was great strife be- o tween those who were for gold, and those who were for sil-ver. The gold men said that we should stick to gold, for it was the coin of all the rest of the world, and the one that did not change in worth, while if we coined sil-ver free for all who brought it, as the sil-ver men wished to do, those who had debts due them, and those who worked for wa-ges, would be paid in dol-lars worth but half their face. The sil-ver men claimed that if sil-ver were coined free, it would soon be worth as much as gold, and that with more coin in the land, trade would grow brisk, and times would be good. When Cleve-land s time was near out, the Re-pub- li-cans, most of whom were for gold, put up \Vill-iam Me Kin-ley, of O-hi-o, for Pres-i-dent, and the Dem-o- crats came out for sil-ver, and put up Will-iam J. Bryan, of Ne-bras-ka. There were a few Re- pub-li-cans who were for sil-ver, and cast their votes for Bry-an, but there were far more Dem-o-crats who were for gold, and cast their votes for McKin-ley, so he was made Pres-i-dent by a large vote. Will-iam McKin-ley was born at Niles, in O-hi-o, in 1 843. When the war broke out, he went to the front as THE HISTORY OF THE UXITKD STATES. 125 a pri-vate, and served so well that he rose from the ranks, and at the end of the made a Ma-jor. In 1877 he was sent to Con gress. He had a bright mind, and coul 1 speak well, so he made a mark in Con gress, in which he sat till 1890. He took the chair as Pres-i-dent, March 4, 1896. CHAPTER XVII. THE WAR WITH SPAIN. The isle of Cu-ba, which lies off our coast to the south, had oft been the scene of war twixt Spain, which ruled it, and a large part of the Cu-bans, who thought that her rule was not just. The last of these wars broke out in 1895. For three years it went on, and still peace seemed far off, for one side did not get much the best of the oth-er. Spain called home Gen- er-al Cam-pos, who had been her head man in the isle, I and sent in his place Gen- er-al Wey-ler. He tried more harsh means to put down the Cu-bans than Cam-pos had used, and in the end it came to pass that a large part of the poor folks in the isle were like to starve to death. Folks in the U-ni-ted States were much moved t< > hear of the hard-ships of the 126 THE HISTORY OF THE UNITED STATES. Cu-bans, and not a few said that we ought to f rce Spain to let Cu-ba go free, so that these sad things would come to an end. The Span-iards did not like this talk, and thought that if it were not for the help we gave the Cu-bans they would give up the fight ; and so a strong hate for us grew up a-mongst them. At last a thing took place which brought the ill-will on both sides to a head. On Feb-ru-a-ry 15, 1898, a U-ni-ted States war-ship, the Maine, which had been sent to Ha-va-na to guard the lives and goods of A- mer-i-cans who were there, was blown up in the night, and 259 of the men on board were slain in their sleep. Great was the shock that this gave to all A-mer- i-can hearts, and there was at once a cry for war. To make sure that the ship had not been blown up by chance from the inside, men were sent to look at the wreck, and to talk with those who had been on board, but had not been killed. These men made a re-port that the ship had been blown up from the out-side, and when an end had been thus put to doubt, all minds were made up that Spain must be made to smart for this crime. It was thought that the least that should be done was to force her to give up Cu-ba to the Cu bans, and a de-mand was made that she do this. She said that she would not, so war was de-clared a-gainst her. The Pres-i-dent made a THE HISTORY OF THE UM 1 ED STATES. 127 call for troops, and soon j Phil-ip-pine Isles, which the land was all a-stir with were owned by Spam, there men on the march. Camps j was known to be a Span-ish were formed, and the men I fleet. Com-mo-dore Dew- be-gan to drill and train for ey got or-ders to find this the work they had to do. | fleet and fight it. He A large fleet, with Ad-mi- steamed to Ma-ni-la, the ral Samp-son at the head, chief town of the isles, and was sent to close the ports reached the mouth of the of Cu-ba, and one not so bay in which it lies late at large, but made up of fast night on A-pril 30, 1898. ships, and called a " Fly-ing He passed the forts at the Squad-ron," with Com-mo- bay s mouth with-out hurt, dore Schley in charge, was and at dawn next day found kept on hand to meet a-ny j the Span-ish fleet at Ca-vi-te, fleet that Spain might send I a place near Ma-ni-la where a-gainst our shores. there are forts. The first great fight did Our ships steamed up in not take place in Cu-ba, but j a line, and soon each ship off on the oth-er side of the j in both fleets was fir-ing each world. When war broke gun it could bring to bear, out, Com-mo-dore George and the forts were giv-ing Devv-ey, with an A-mer-i- what help they could, can fleet, was at Hong Com-mo-dore Dew-ey kept Kong, in Chi-na. Six hun- his ships on the move, so dred miles a-way at the that they would not make 128 THE HISTORY OF THE UNITED STATES. good marks to fire at, and as they passed back and forth, they sent a hail of shots in-to the Span-ish ships that smashed and tore them, and sent death to those on board. The Span iards fought as brave men, but their aim was wild, and their shots fell wide of the mark. At the end of two hours the whole Span-ish fleet seemed to be wrecked, and Com-mo-dore Dew-ey gave the word to stop fir-ing, and his ships drew out of range to give the men a chance to rest and eat. At a quar-ter past e-lev-en, they went back, and a few more rounds put an end to the work. The Span-ish ships were all wrecked and sunk, and the Span-ish flag was hauled down from tiie forts. On the Span-ish side the killed and wound-ed were 412, while on ours but one was killed and but sev-en got wounds, and no great harm was done to a-ny of the ships. Such great gains with so small a loss had scarce ev-er been known. When the news reached this side of the world, there was a great burst of praise for Com-mo-dore Dew-ey and his men, and all A-mer- i-cans felt proud of the grand deed that had been done. Com-mo-dore Dew-ey was raised to the rank of Ad- mi-ral, and was thanked by the Pres-i-dent and Con gress. On A-pril 30, a strong Span-ish fleet, with Ad-mi- ral Cer-ve-ra at the head, put to sea from the Cape Verde Isles, and there was THE HISTORY OF THE UXITED STATES. 129 great con-cern to know son. He thought of a plan where it meant to go. All to sink a ship in the mouth our ships were on the watch of the bay where it was not to catch the first sight of it. wide, so there would be no There were a lot of false room to pass. There was tales for a while, but at last small hope that those who it was known for sure that did the deed would get off Cer-ve-ra had reached the with their lives, for they port of San-ti-a-go, in the had to go right un-der the east end of Cu-ba. Samp- guns of the forts. But son and Schley both though there was need of brought their fleets to this but sev-en,hun-dreds wished place, and lay off the mouth to go. The Mer-ri-mac, a of the bay, to pounce on ship that was used to haul Cer-ve-ra if he came out. coal, was picked out to be There were strong forts at sunk ; and at 3 o clock, the mouth of the bay, and A. M., June 3d, Hob-son mines that would blow up a and the brave sev-en set out ship that tried to pass in, or on their task. A storm of our men would have gone shot and shell from the forts in to fight at once. soon fell on them. They To make it hard for Cer- brought the Mer-ri-mac to ve-ra to slip out in case a the spot, and then Hob-son storm should drive our ships fired the bombs on board. a-way, a brave feat was done by Lieu-ten-ant Hob- He and his men sprang to HISTORY OF THE VNIT&D STATES. brought with them, and drifted about in it for a while, till a Span-ish steam launch picked them up and took them on shore as cap-tives. Ad-mi-ral Cer-ve-ra was so struck by their brave deed that he sent word to Ad- mi-ral Samp-son that they were safe, and that he would take good care of them till they could be changed for Span-iards whom we held. When the foe gave such praise to Hob-son, there is no need to say that those of his own land were stirred up to laud him, and that his fame ivas on all lips. There had been much doubt as to where in Cu-ba it would be best to strike a blow with the land force, and now that Cer-ve-ra was shut up in the bay at San-ti-a-go, it was thought that that was the right point. So a force of 1 6,000 troops, with Gen-er-al Sh af ter in charge, was sent in ships from Tarn-pa in Flo- ri-da. On June 22d, the first of these troops were put on shore at a point twelve miles to the east of San-ti-a-go. There was a large Span-ish force in and near San-ti-a-go, and they had done all they could to make the place strong. On each road that led to the town they dug pits in which to stand and fire, and great use was made of barbed wire- a new thing in war. Wires were stretched near the ground to trip up our men as they ran ; and at points in reach of the fire of the men in the pits, fen-ces too high to be jumped were THE HISTORY OF THE UXITED STATES. 131 put up, so that our men June 24th at a post where would have to stop and cut the Span-iards had a strong them, and thus be good force, and in this our troops marks to fire at. met their first loss. A- It took three days to land mong those who took part all the troops, for it had to were a troop called Roose- be done in small boats, velt s Rough Ri-ders. They The Span-iards dare not came face to face \vith a come near the shore to stop Span-ish force that was hid the land-ing, as our men-of- in the tall shrubs, and had war stood off rea-dy to pour all at once to stand a fierce out their shot if there was \ fire. They did not flinch, need. but pushed on in a brave The troops at once be- way, and in the end drove gan to stretch out their lines the Span-iards be-fore them, to sur-round San-ti-a-g . though there were ma-ny The roads in those parts more of them, are not much more than Some of the Rough Ri- foot-paths that go through ders were cow-boys from a dense growth of rank the West, and some were brush and plants, and our young men who had left men had to cut their way lives of ease, and all fought through these while the hot for the flag with great dash 3 O O sun poured a fierce heat and pluck, and at all times down on them. ! had a strong wish to be in A fight took place on , the thick of the fight, and 132 THE HISTORY OF THE UNITED STATES. to take the lead where there was the most dan-ger. This first fight in which they took part is called the bat-tie of Si-bo-ney. By June 3oth, the A-mer- i-can lines were well spread out to the east of San-ti-a- go, and on Ju-ly ist a great fight be-gan. The whole line was in the fight, but the main bat-ties took place at the hill town of San Juan, and at El Ca-ney. The Span-iards fought at both points in pits and in stone block-hou-ses that had to be stormed by our men in the face of a hot fire, but they went at them with a dash that swept all be-fore them. The Span-iards made a brave stand, but by night they had been forced from all the posts they had held at the dawn of the day. The next morn they took up posts far-ther back, and the fight went on all this day. Our men ha 1 to put up with great hard-ships. Be sides be-ing all the time un der fire, they were tired out, and half starved, for not much food had been brought for-ward. By turns they were drenched with rain, or scorched by the sun. A thous-and men had been killed and wound-ed, and ma-ny had to be drawn from the fir-ing line to search for the wound-ed and bear them to the rear. This state of things, and the fact that his lines were now stretched out so as to be quite thin, made Gen-er- al Shaf-ter think it best not to go on till he could get more troops. So he sent word home that they should THE HISTORY OF THE UNITED STATES. 133 be sent on, and in the mean | to be whipped in a fair time did not try to do more fight on the o-pen sea, than than hold the ground that to wait tame-ly for the foe had been gained. to come and take them in When Hob-son sank the port. Mer-ri-mac in the mouth of He made his rush out on San-ti-a-go Bay, he did not the morn-ing of Ju-ly 3d. take it quite to the spot, His ships were four fine, where it would shut the bay j swift, steel-clad cruis-ers, and up tight, for the helm was two craft not so large, called shot off, and it could not be tor-pe-do boat des-troy-ers. swung round. In a short They tore out from the bay time the Span-iards found in a line, and once past the out that, with care, ships forts, turned sharp to the could pass through, one at west. They were seen at a time. When it be-came al-most the same time by plain to Cer-ve-ra that the five of the chief ships of our town was like-ly to fall in-to fleet that lay most near to the hands of the A-mer-i- the course they took. One can land force, he thought ! was the Brook-lyn, Corn- he might as well try to break mo-dore Schley s ship, and through the fleet that lay on the oth-ers were the Or-e- guard out-side, as to wait in gon, Tex-as, I-o-wa, and the bay. He might get off In-di-an-a. with some or all of his ships; Quick as a flash the men and if not, it was more brave j were at their posts, and the 34 THE HISTORY OF THE UNITED STATES. guns be-gan to flame and roar, and send out shot and shell thick, as the ships dashed aft-er the fly-ing foe. The Span-ish ships, as they fled, worked all their guns too, and clouds of smoke soon spread o-ver the sea. The Brook-lyn was the most swift of our ships, and took the lead, and on her the Span-iards brought most of their guns to bear, for they thought that if she were stopped they stood a good chance to get a- way. But their aim was poor, while our men sent the shots straight to the mark. In not much more than an hour from the time they came out of the bay, three of the Span-ish cruis-ers, and both of the des-troy-ers had been wrecked and sunk. The Chris-to-bel Co-Ion had got a lead of six miles, and for a time it looked as if she might get a-way. But the Brook-lyn and the Or- e-gon tore aft-er her with speed that grew fast-er and fast-er. and at last came so close they could use all their guns, large and small, on her. With the shells fall-ing vhick a-bout her, she ran for the shore and hauled down her flag. This was the end of the fight, and our men now set to work to trv to save the j Span-iards from death by burn-ing and drown-ing in their ships. Of the 2300 men who had been on board the Span-ish fleet, 350 were killed, burned, or drowned; the rest were made cap-tives. On our side but one man was killed, and the harm done the ships was slight THE mSTO&r OF THE UXITED STATES. 135 There was not much land loss of life. Most of the fight-ing a-bout San-ti-a-go folks in the isle were glad aft-er this. Gen-er-al Shaf- to have our troops come, ter got more troops, and and cheered our flag when made a call on the Span-ish they saw it. Gen-er-al, To-ral, to give up Aft-er Dew-ey had put the town, or he would have an end to the Span-ish fleet it shelled by the ships, while in the bay of Ma-ni-la, he he made a charge by land, sent word that though he Gen-er-al To-ral would not might shell and des-troy yield at once, but aft-er the town with the guns of much talk, and a few small his fleet, he could not take fights, gave up in the end. and hold it with-out a land On Ju-ly i yth, the Span- force. So as soon as they ish troops laid down their could be got off, troops were arms, and the Stars and sent from our Pa-cif-ic coast, Stripes were raised o-ver with Gen-er-al Mer-ritt at San-ti-a-go, which was to be the head. There were reb- no more a Span-ish town, i els in the Phil-ip-pines, as in Gen-er-al Miles now went Cu-ba, who wished to be free with a force to the isle of from the rule of Spain, and Por-to Ri-co, which was these joined in the siege al-so owned by Spain. In which was laid to Ma-ni-la. less than three weeks a large part of the isle was in our hands, with but slight There was a fight on Ju-ly 3ist, in which the Span-ish loss of life was large, while THE HISTORY OF THE UNITED STA TES. on the A-mer-i-can side it was but slight. On Au-gust :jth, an at-tack was made at the same time by both the fleet and the land force. Aft-er a fight of six hours, the Span-iards were beat-en. They had to give up the town, and 7,000 Span-ish troops laid down their arms. Our loss in killed and wound-ed was but 50 men. This was the last fight of the war with Spain, for she had al-rea-dy made a move for peace. On Ju-ly 26th, the French Am-bas-sa-ior, in the name of Spain, had asked Pres-i-dent McKin- ley to say on what terms he would stop the war. In a few days the Pres-i-dent gave him the terms, and on Au-gust gth news came that Spain would do all that was asked. Word was at once sent to all in charge of our troops to put a stop to the fight-ing. This was be fore the bat- tie of Ma-ni-la, but the word did not get there till aft-er the fight took place. Men were named by Spain and the U-ni-ted States to draw up and sign a trea-ty that would make peace between the foes. These men met at Par-is, and there the full terms were fixed. By them, Spain gave up all claim to rule in Cu-ba, and gave to the U-ni-ted States the isle of Por-to Ri-co and the Phil-ip-pine Isles. THIS BOOK IS DUE ON THE LAST DATE STAMPED BELOW AN INITIAL FINE OF 25 CENTS WILL BE ASSESSED FOR FAILURE TO RETURN THIS BOOK ON THE DATE DUE. THE PENALTY WILL INCREASE TO SO CENTS ON THE FOURTH DAY AND TO $1.OO ON THE SEVENTH DAY OVERDUE. 1W9 fjQV LD 21-95H-7, 37 YE 03227 UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA LIBRARY