General Scott at Cbippew a. GEIEEAL VINFIELD SCOTT: EMBRACING A FULL DESCRIPTION' OF THE CAPTURE OF VERA CRUZ THE BATTLE OF CERRO GORDO, THE ADVANCE OF THE ARMY ON THE CITY OF MEXICO WITH PLANS OF THE BATTLES. to&ole I-llustratefc tn numerous NEW YORK : PUBLISHED BY A. S. BARNES & CO., 51 JOHN-STREET. SOLD ALSO BY BURGESS, STRINGER, & CO. BOSTON: REDDING ic, CO. PHILADELPHIA : ZIEBER & CO., 1847. Price Ttcenty-fre Cents. CONTENTS. FAQS Scott's Parentage Education Early Character En trance into the Army 3 Goes to the Niagara Frontier in 1812 4-5 Battle of Queenston Heights, 13th October, 1812 5-15 Scott attacked by the Indians 15-18 Captured Irishmen Scott's Interference in their behalf their joyful Interview with him 18-22 Capture of Fort George in May, 1813 Events of the Campaigns of that year 22-34 Formation of the Camp of Instruction at Buffalo Open ing of the Campaign of 1814 '. 34-36 Passage of the Niagara 36-38 Battle of Chippewa 38-45 Battle of Niagara Scott wounded and disabled 45-52 Scott's journey from Niagara to Philadelphia Is re ceived at Princeton 52-56 Public honors paid to Gen. Scott 56-63 Gen. Scott's visit to Europe 63-64 Black-hawk War Incidents and Scenes 64-81 Gen. Scott's agency in suppressing Nullification in South Carolina 81-95 Florida War 95-102 Scott's agency in quelling the Troubles on the Niagara Frontier 102-112 Scott's labors in removing the Cherokees 112-122 Gen. Scott's agency in settling the Maine Boundary 122-127 Gen. Scott ordered to Mexico 128-130 Leaves the Rio Grande for Vera Cruz Landing Attack on the City and Castle 133-143 March into the Interior 143 Battle of Cerro Gordo 14 1-156 ILLUSTRATED LIFE or GENERAL VINEIELD SCOTT ; COMMANDER-IN-CHIEF OF THE ARMY IN MEXICO ILLUSTRATED BY D. H. STROTHER, NEW YORK: PUBLISHED BY A. S. BARNES & CO. No. 51 JOHN-STREET. 1847. MAP OF THE NIAGARA FRONTIER. ILLUSTRATED LIFE GENERAL VINFIELD SCOTT. SCOTT'S FAEJEKTAG*. EDOCAXHMI. IAM. Y CHA*ACTE*- -CWHCE OF A raOFESSHnr. &XTKXSCE DTTO TMB AUTT. WCPFIELD SCOTT was born the 13th June, 1788, near Peters burg, in Virginia. His VTP" nay be traced from a Scottish gentleman of the Lowlands, who, with bis elder brother, was engaged in the Rebenion of 1745. The particulars of his early education are not fully known; '.u*. ;". -vr-r::"^ ibo". be ~* ^s i.Zi'.~~.^i !:T ".-I^T af "^r !rirr.>-ri ;r%- friaimn He pursued the usual preparatory studies, and apeot a year in the high-school at Richmond, under the teachings of Ogflvie, then quite a celebrated man. Thence, he went of Us own accord to the College of Wflliam and Mary, where be remained one or two years, and attended a course of law lec tures. He finished bis legal studies in the office of David Robertson, a Scotsman, who had been sent out originally as a tutor in the family of Scott's maternal grandfather. At this time his character is described, by one who well knew him, as distinctly formed. He was full of hope, and inimsh-d by a just sense of honor, and a generous ambition of honest tame. His bean was open and kind to aQ the worid, warm with affec tion towards his friends, and with no idea that he had, or de served to have, an enemy. In the summer of 1807, he volunteered, as member of the Petersburg troop of horse, that bad been called oat under the proclamation of the president, forbidding the harbors of the United States to British TesseJs of war. This was in quence of the attack on the frigate Chesapeake. El-oj / *+ 1 JJ LIFE OF GENERAL SCOTT. In May, 1808, through the influence of his friend and neigh bor, the Hon. Wm. B. Giles, he received from the hands of President Jefferson, a commission of Captain of Light Artillery in the army of the United States. Jefferson presenting Scott his Comiuission. SCOTT GOES TO THE NIAGARA FRONTIER IN 1812. IN July, 1812, Scott received the commission of lieutenant- colonel in the 2d artillery, (Izard's regiment,) and arrived on the Niagara frontier, with the companies of Towson and Bar ker. He took post at Black Rock, to protect the navy-yard there established. BATTLE OF QUEENSTOWW HEIGHTS. 5 Lieutenant Elliot of the navy had planned an enterprise against two British armed brigs, then lying at anchor under the guns of Fort Erie. For this purpose, he applied on the 8th of October, 1812, to Colonel Scott, for assistance in officers and men. Captain Towson, and a portion of his company, were dispatched to the aid of Elliot. The attack was success ful. On the morning of the 9th, both vessels were carried in the most gallant manner. The " Adams" was taken by Cap tain Elliot in person, assisted by Lieutenant Isaac Roach ; and the " Caledonia" by the gallant Captain Towson. In dropping down the Niagara River, the " Adams" became unmanageable, through the occurrence of a calm, and drifted into the British channel. She got aground on Squaw Island, directly under the guns of the enemy's batteries, where it was impossible to get her off. Captain Elliot, therefore, having previously se cured the prisoners, abandoned her under a heavy fire from the British shore. Then ensued an interesting and exciting scene, the British endeavoring to retake the abandoned brig, and Co lonel Scott to prevent them. The enemy sent off boats, and Scott resisted them, in which effort he was successful. The brig was recaptured, and held until she was subsequently burned, by order of General Smythe, who had then arrived. BATTLE OF QUEENSTOWN HEIGHTS, 13th OCTOBER, 1812. IN the beginning of October, 1812, Major-General Stephen Van Rensselaer had collected together, at Lewistown, about two thousand five hundred of the New York militia. The suc cessful enterprise which resulted in the capture of the " Adams" and " Caledonia," on the 8th of that month, had given such an apparent ardor and impulse to these troops, that it was be lieved impossible to restrain them. Indeed, the troops declared they must act, or go home, an alternative which imposed upon the general the necessity of some active movement. Accord ingly he planned an attack on Queenstown Heights. The BATTLE OF QUEENSTOWN HEIGHTS. 7 troops which he had at his command were the New York militia, and about four hundred and fifty regulars under the command of Colonels Fenwick and Chrystie, who, with Major Mullaney, had arrived the night before, in detachments, from Fort Niagara, for the purpose of joining in this expedition. The object of the movement was to dispossess the enemy from the fort and village of Queenstown Heights, and thus to make a lodgement for the American troops on the Canada shore, the invasion of Canada being then the leading object of the northern campaign. The plan was, to throw over the river two columns of troops, each about three hundred strong ; one to be commanded by Colonel Solomon Van Rensselaer, and the other by Lieutenant-Colonel Chrystie. The detachments of Fenwick and Mullaney were to sustain, in the best way they could, these columns. These arrangements were made on the 12th of October. Late in the evening of that day, Colonel Scott had arrived, by a forced march, partly by water, and partly through mud and rain, at Schlosser, one mile from the Falls, and eight from Lewistown, with the view of joining in the contemplated attack. He hastened to Lewistown, and volun teered his services to General Van Rensselaer. They were declined, on account of the arrangements already made ; but, not without permission that Scott should bring his regiment immediately to Lewistown, and there act as circumstances might require, or opportunities offer. This permission he at once availed himself of, and arrived with his corps, at four A. M. on the 13th. Finding no boats, he placed his train in battery on the American shore, under the immediate command of Captains Towson and Barker, and when daylight appeared, opened an effective fire on the enemy. In the mean time, the principal movement, as originally planned, had gone on. All the boats which could be collected were employed to transport the columns of Chrystie and Van Rensselaer. Unfortunately the boats were insufficient to take the whole number at once, and the passage was made by de tachments. The boat in which Chrystie was, became partially disabled, was mismanaged by the pilot, and finally carried out of the way by the eddies of the river. He made a gallant 8 LIFE OP GENERAL SCOTT. attempt to land, but was wounded and compelled to return to the American shore. In the after part of the engagement, he returned with reinforcements to the troops in Canada, and shared the fate of the day. The main body of the first embarkation, under the direction of Colonel Van Rensselaer, was more successful. Two com panies of the 13th regiment, with other small detachments of the same regiment, were able to land, and were successively reinforced, from time to time, as the few serviceable boats to be had could transport them. They were landed under a severe fire of the enemy. At this time the numbers of both contending parties were small. The British force was com posed of two flank companies of the 49th, and the York militia. The Americans did not number much over one hundred combatants. Notwithstanding the continued cannonade from the enemy's batteries, this small force formed on the bank, and marched steadily forward. In a few moments, the fire had killed or wounded every commissioned officer, and among these, Colonel Van Rensselaer himself, who received four severe wounds. Notwithstanding this, he sustained himself long enough to impart the local infor mation he possessed to other officers, who had in the mean while come up. In leaving the field, his last command was, that " all such as could move should immediately mount the hill and storm the batteries." This order was promptly obeyed by Captain (now General) Wool, who greatly distinguished himself, with Captains Ogilvie, Malcolm, and Armstrong, and Lieutenant Randolph. These brave officers stormed the heights, took a battery composed of an eighteen-pounder and two mor tars, half way up the acclivity, and were soon in possession of the highest point, called the " Mountain." At this point of time the enemy were beaten, routed, and driven into a strong stone building near the water's edge. Here the fugitives were rallied and succored by General Brock, the lieutenant-governor of Upper Canada, who had returned from the capture of Hull to defend the Niagara frontier. Here was his last act of gal lantry. He fell, at the head of the troops he was leading to the charge, and with him, his secretary, Colonel McDonald. BATTLE OF QUEENSTOWN HEIGHTS. 9 The British troops were again dispersed, and for a time there was a pause in the action of the day. Exactly at this period, Lieutenant-Colonel Scott arrived on the heights. He had been permitted, as a volunteer, to cross the river with his adjutant, Roach, and assume the command of the whole body engaged. On the Canada side, he unex pectedly found Brigadier-General William Wadsworth of the New York militia, who had crossed without orders. Scott, therefore, proposed to limit his command to the regulars. But the generous and patriotic Wadsworth would not consent. He promptly yielded the command over all the forces to Scott. " You, sir," said he, " know best professionally what ought to be done. I am here for the honor of my country, and that of the New York militia." Scott, therefore, assumed the com mand, and, throughout the movements which ensued, General Wadsworth dared every danger in aiding the views of the commander. Though they had met for the first time, he had become already attached to the young colonel. He repeatedly, during the battle, interposed his own person to shield Scott from the Indian rifles, which his tall person attracted. Reinforcements having arrived during the previous engage ments, the forces under Scott now amounted, in all, to three hundred and fifty regulars, and two hundred and fifty volun teers, under the direction of General Wadsworth and Colonel Stranahan. These, Scott, assisted by the judgment of Captain Totten, drew up in a strong and commanding situation. The object in view was not only to receive the enemy, but to cover the ferry, in expectation of being reinforced by the whole of the militia at Lewistown. The interval of rest was but short. The first gun which broke the silence of the morning, had also roused the British garrison of Fort George, eight miles below. Their troops were instantly put in motion. The Indians, who had been concen trated in the neighborhood, sprang into activity. In a short time, five hundred of these forest warriors joined the British light companies previously engaged. A new battle ensued. The Americans received the enemy with firmness, and drove them back in total rout. Colonel Chrystie, who had then 10 LIFE OF GENERAL 'SCOTT returned to the Canada shore, states, that he there found Lieu. tenant-Colonel Scott leading and animating his troops, with a gallantry which could not be too highly extolled. The protection of the ferry being the main purpose, and the Indians in the wood presenting no object for a charge, the Americans resumed their original position, and there main tained it valiantly against several successive attacks, till the British reinforcements arrived from Fort George. In one of these affairs, the advanced pickets of the American line were suddenly driven in by superior numbers, and a general mas sacre seemed inevitable. At this critical moment, Scott, who had been in the rear, showing how to unspike a captured can non, hastily returned, and by great exertions brought his line, Scott unspiking a captured Cannon. in the act of giving way, to the right-about. His brilliant example produced a sudden revulsion of feeling. They caught the spirit of their leader. With a unanimous burst of enthu siasm, the line suddenly rallied from right to left, threw itself forward upon the enemy, putting him to a precipitate flight, strewing the ground with the dead and the wounded. In this manner successive conflicts were kept up, till the main A. SPEECH ON THE FIELD OF BATTLE. 11 body of the British reinforcements arrived. This was a column ight hundred and fifty strong, under the command of Major- General Sheaffe. During the action, which had now so long proceeded with credit to the American troops, the militia who had crossed the river, and were engaged with Wadsworth and Stranahan, had fought well, and shared both the dangers and the successes of the day. At this crisis, however, when the result of the battle depended entirely upon reinforcements, information was brought to Scott and those engaged, that the militia on the American shore refused to cross ! General Van Rensselaer rode among them, in all directions, urging the men by every consideration to pass, but in vain. Not a regiment nor a company could be induced to move ! A panic had seized them ; but even had it been otherwise, they could not have crossed, as but a few crippled boats remained to take them over* Severe was the mortification of this disaster to the brave men engaged, and mournful the result ! At this period, the British force was estimated, regulars, militia, and Indians, at not less than thirteen hundred, while the Americans were reduced to less than three hundred. Re treat was as hopeless as succor ; for there were no boats on the Canada shore, and the militia on the other side refused to give them aid. Scott took his position on the ground they then occupied, resolved to abide the shock, and think of surrender only when battle was impossible. He mounted a log in front of his much-diminished band : " The enemy's balls," said he> " begin to thin our ranks. His numbers are overwhelming. In a moment the shock must come, and there is no retreat. We are in the beginning of a national war. Hull's surrender is to be redeemed. Let us then die, arms in hand. Our country demands the sacrifice. The example will not be lost. The blood of the slain will make heroes of the living. Those who follow will avenge our fall and their country's wrongs. WHO dare to stand ?" " ALL !" was the answer^ ing cry. In the mean while, the British, under the command of Major- General Sheaffe, manoeuvred with great caution, and even FLAG OF TRUCE. 13 hesitation, conscious of the vigorous resistance already made, and determined fully to reconnoitre. They found it difficult to believe that so small a body of men was the whole force they had to contend with, and supposed it rather an outpost than an army. At length the attack began. The Americans for a time maintained their resolution, but finally began to give way. When nearly surrounded, they let themselves (by holding on to limbs and bushes) down the precipice to the river. Resist ance was now ended, and after a brief consultation, it was determined to send a flag to the enemy, with a proposition to capitulate. Several persons were successively sent, but nei ther answer nor messenger returned ; they were all shot down, or captured by the Indians. At length, Scott determined that he himself would make another attempt. He prepared a flag of truce a white handkerchief fastened upon his sword and accompanied by Captains Totten and Gibson, went forth, on a forlorn hope, to seek a parley. Keeping close to the water's edge, and under cover of the precipice as much as possible, they descended along the river. They were exposed to a con tinual random fire from the Indians, until they turned up an easy slope to gain the road from the village to the heights. They had just attained this road, when they were met by two Indians, who sprang upon them. It was in vain that Scott declared his purpose, and claimed the protection of his flag. They attempted to wrench it from his hands, and at the same instant Totten and Gibson drew their swords. The Indians had just discharged their rifles at the American officers, and were on the point of using their knives and hatchets, when a British officer, accompanied by some men, rushed forward and prevented a further combat. The three American officers were conducted into the pres ence of General Sheaffe ; terms of capitulation were agreed on, and Scott surrendered his whole force with the honors of war. To his intense chagrin and mortification, the number of prisoners was soon swelled by several hundreds of mili tia, who had crossed to the Canada shore, and in the confusion of the moment, had concealed themselves under the rocks higher up the river, and were not in the slightest degree engaged in THE " TALL AMERICAN." 15 the action of the day. Throughout this scene of various action, of mistake and misfortune, of success and disaster, Lieutenant- Colonel Scott, says an accurate account, was distinguished for great exertions. He was in full-dress uniform, and his tall stature made him a conspicuous mark. He was singled out by the Indians, but remained unhurt. He was urged to change his dress. " No," said he, smiling, " I will die in my robes." At the same moment Captain Lawrence fell by his side, as it was supposed, mortally wounded. SCOTT ATTACKED BY THE INDIANS. AFTER the surrender, the prisoners were escorted to the village now called Niagara, at the mouth of the river, where the officers were lodged in an inn, aud placed under guard. The sentinel had received orders to suffer no prisoner to pass out, but not otherwise to restrain their motions. In a little while, a message came that some one wished to speak with the "tall American." Scott passed through several doors into the entry. He was surprised to find in his visiters the same two Indians, hideously painted as in battle, who had sprung upon him while he was bearing the flag of truce. The elder, tall and strong, was the distinguished chief known by the name of CAPTAIN JACOBS. The other was a young man of fine figure, and only inferior in muscular development. In broken English, and by gestures, the prisoner was questioned as to his shot- marks : the Indians severally holding up their fingers to indi cate the times their rifles had been levelled at him. Jacobs grew warm, and seized Scott by the arm to turn him round to see his back. Indignant at this manual liberty, the American threw the savage from him, exclaiming, " Off, villain ! You fired like a squaw!" "We kill you now!" was the angry reply, loosening from their girdles at the same instant knives and tomahawks. There was no call for help; none could 16 LIFE OF GENERAL SCOTT have arrived in time; and flight would have been, in the opinion of such soldiers as Scott, dastardly. In a corner of the entry, under the staircase, stood the swords of the American officers, which, according to the customs of war, they had been desired to lay aside on their arrival. A long sabre, in a heavy steel scabbard, as readily drawn as grasped, lay on the outside of the stack. A spring swiftly to the rear, and another back upon the foe, brought the American, with blade hung in air, to an attitude of defiance. A second lost a quiver or an error of the eye, would have ended this story, and left no fur ther room to the biographer of the "tall American." Of one ef his assailants Scott was absolutely sure ; but that he would fall by the hands of the other before the sword could be again poised, seemed equally certain. He had the advantage of position standing on the defensive, in a narrow entry, just within the foot of the staircase. It was a pass that could not be turned. The savages were held without, in the wider space, near the front door, but manoeuvring like tigers to close upon their prey. The parties were thus terribly grouped, when a British officer, entering from the street, and seeing what impended, cried, " The guard!" and at the same moment seized Jacobs by the arm, and put a pistol to the head of his companion. Scott held his blade ready to descend in aid of his gallant deliverer, now turned upon by his foes. The sentinels obeyed the call they had heard, and came in, with bayonets forward. The Indians were marched off, muttering imprecations on all white men, and all the laws of war. The younger of these Indian chiefs was the son of the celebrated Brant, of the Revolutionary war, whose life has recently been given to the public by the late Col. Wm. L. Stone. The officer who so opportunely entered, on a visit of courtesy, was Captain Coffin, then in the staff of General SheafFe, and now of high rank in the British army. This adventure he frequent ly narrated, both in New York and on the other side of the Atlantic. The exasperation of the Indians against Colonel Scott was occasioned by the number of their people killed on Queenstown Heights ; and their excitement was so great, that while he re- 18 LIFE OF GENERAL SCOTT. mained at Niagara he could not leave his inn, even to dine with Sir Roger Sheaffe, without a British escort. CAPTURED IRISHMEN. SCOTl's INTERFERENCE IN THEIR BEHALF. THEIR JOYFUL INTERVIEW WITH HIM. THE battle of Queenstown closed with the surrender of Scott and his small force to the greatly superior numbers under the command of General Sheaffe. These prisoners were sent to Quebec, thence in a cartel to Boston, and soon after Scott was exchanged. When the prisoners were about to sail from Quebec, Scott, being in the cabin of the transport, heard a bustle upon deck, and hastened up. There he found a party of British officers in the act of mustering the prisoners, and separating from the rest such as, by confession or the accent of the voice, were judged to be Irishmen. The object was to send them, in a frigate then alongside, to England, to be tried and executed for the crime of high treason, they being taken in arms against their native allegiance ! Twenty-three had been thus set apart when Scott reached the deck, and there were at least forty more of the same birth in the detachment. They were all in deep affliction, at what they regarded as the certain prospect of a shameful death. Many were adopted citizens of the United States, and several had left families in the land of their adoption. The moment Scott ascertained the object of the British officers, acting under the express orders of the governor-general, Sir George Provost, he commanded his men to answer no more questions, in order that no other se lection should be made by the test of speech. He commanded them to remain absolutely silent, and they strictly obeyed. This was done, in spite of the threats of the British officers, and not another man was separated from his companions. Scott was repeatedly commanded to go below, and high alter cations ensued. He addressed the party selected, and explain- 20 LIFE OF GENERAL SCOTT. ed to them fully the reciprocal obligations of allegiance and protection, assuring them, that the United States would not fail to avenge their gallant and faithful soldiers ; and finally pledged himself, in the most solemn manner, that retaliation, and, if necessary, a refusal to give quarter in battle, sJiould follow the execution of any one of the party. In the midst of this animated harangue he was frequently interrupted by the British officers, but, though unarmed, could not be si lenced. The Irishmen were put in irons on board the frigate, and sent to England. When Scott landed in Boston, he proceeded to Washington, and was duly exchanged. He immediately related to the president the scene which had occurred at Quebec, and was by him instructed to make a full report of the whole transaction, in writing, to the secretary of war. This was done on the 13th January, 1813. As this letter is an important and authentic portion of the history of the discussion which subsequently ensued, in regard to the rights of naturalized citizens under the code of inter- national law, we insert it in this place. Lieutencml-Colvnel Scott to the Secretary of War. SIR I think it rny duty to lay before the department that. on the arrival at Quebec of the American prisoners of wai surrendered at Queenstown, they were mustered and examined by British officers appointed to that duty, and every native-born of the United Kingdoms of Great Britain and Ireland sequester. ed. and sent on 'board a ship of war then in the harbor. The vessel in a few days thereafter sailed for Brig-land, with these O ' persons on board. Between fifteen and twenty persons were thus taken from us, natives of Ireland, several of whom were known by their platoon officers to be naturalized citizens of the United States, and others to have been long residents within the same. One in particular, whose name has escaped me, besides having complied with all the conditions of our naturalization laws, was represented by his officers to have left a wife and five children, all of them born within the state of New York. INTERESTING INCIDENTS. 21 I distinctly understood, as well from the officers who came on board the prison-ship for the above purposes, as from others with whom I remonstrated on this subject, that it was the de termination of the British government, as expressed through Sir George Provost, to punish every man whom it might sub ject to its power, found in arms against the British king con trary to his native allegiance. I have the honor to be, sir, Your most obedient servant, W. SCOTT, Lieut.-Col. U. S. 2d artillery. At the instance of Scott, this Report was, the same day, sent to both houses of Congress. It was also by him pressed on the attention of many members in each house. The result was the early passage of the " Act vesting the President of the United States with the power of retaliation ;" ordered to a third reading, Feb. 27th, and passed March 3d, 1813. Two months after this, (May 27th, 1813,). in the battle and capture of Fort George, Scott took a great number of prisoners. True to his pledge given at Quebec, he, as adjutant-general, (chief of the staff,) immediately selected twenty-three of the number to be confined in the interior of the United States, there to abide the fate of the twenty-three imprisoned and sent to England by the British officers. In making the selection, he was careful not to include a single Irishman, in order that Irishmen might not be sacrificed for Irishmen. This step led, on both sides, to the confinement as hostages, of many other men and officers, all of whom were, of course, dependent for their lives on the fate of the original twenty-three. In July, 1815, when peace had been some months concluded, and Scott (then a major-general) was passing along on the East River side of the city of New York, he was attracted by loud cheers and bustle on one of the piers. He approached the scene, and great was his delight to find, that it was the cheers of his old Irish friends, in whose behalf he had inter fered at Quebec, and who had, that moment, landed in triumph, after a confinement of more than two years in English prisons ! 22 LIFE OF GENERAL SCOTT. He was quickly recognised by them, hailed as their deliverer, and nearly crushed by their warm-hearted embraces ! Twenty - one were present, two having died natural deaths. Scott had not then recovered from the wounds he had re ceived in the bloody battle of the Niagara, and was about to embark on a voyage to Europe. Yet, in conformity with the promises of friendship he had made these men, he found time to write to the departments at Washington, and solicit for them their patents for land bounties, and their long arrearages of pay. He was successful, and they were at length restored both to their adopted country and their promised rewards. Several of these brave sons of Ireland are yet alive, and can testify to the truth of this narrative. They, in common with hundreds of their countrymen taken prisoners in the same war, fighting the battles of liberty, have good reason to believe that they owe their liberties, if not their lives, to the solicitations, spirit, and zeal, of Winfield Scott ! CAPTURE OF FORT GEORGE IN MAY, 1813, AND EVENTS OF THK CAMPAIGNS OF THAT YEAR. IN May, 1813, Colonel Scott joined the army, at Fort Niagara, under the command of Major-General Dearborn, in the capacity of Adjutant-General, or Chief of the Staff. On the British side of the Niagara was a peninsula, of which Fort George was the defence. This position General Dearborn determined to carry. He was then at the head of four or five thousand men, and was co-operated with by Com modore Chauncey and his naval force. Arrangements were made for an attack on the morning of the 27th of May. At 3 A. M. the fleet weighed anchor, and before four, the troops were all on board the boats. The embarkation was made three miles east of our Fort Niagara. It was made in six di visions of boats. In the first was Colonel Scott, who led the advanced guard, or forlorn hope, a service to which he had 24 LIFE OF GENERAL SCOTT. specially volunteered. In the second was Colonel Moses Porter, with the field train. Then followed the brigades of Generals Boyd, Winder, Chandler, and a reserve under Col. A. Macomb. In the mean time, Commodore Chauncey had directed his schooners to anchor close in shore, so near as to cover the landing of the troops, and sweep by their fire the woods and plain wherever the enemy might make his appearance. Captain Perry, a friend of Scott's, had joined Commodore Chauncey, from Erie, on the evening of the 25th, and gaU lantly volunteered his services in superintending the debarka tion of the troops. It was an operation of nicety, in conse quence of the wind, the current, a hea*vy surf, and the early commenced fire of the enemy. He was present wherever he could be useful, under showers of musketry. He accompanied the advanced guard through the surf, and rendered special services, of which General Scott has since spoken in the highest terms of commendation. It was the budding forth of that professional skill, and that brave and generous conduct, which soon bloomed out in the glory which now surrounds the name of the hero of Lake Erie. Colonel Scott effected his landing, on the British shore of Lake Ontario, at nine o'clock in the morning, in good order, at half a mile from the village of Newark, now Niagara, and the same distance west of the mouth of the river, He formed his line on the beach, covered by an irregular bank, which served as a partial shield against the enemy's fire. This bank, which was from seven to twelve feet in height, he had to scale against the bayonets of the foe, who had drawn up his force, some fifteen hundred men, immediately on its brow. In the first attempt to ascend, the enemy pushed back the as sailants. General Dearborn, who was still in the commo dore's ship, seeing with his glass Scott fall backward upon the beach, burst into tears, exclaiming, "He is lost ! He is killed !' Scott's fall was, however, momentary. Recovering himself, and rallying his men, he reascended the bank, knock ing up the enemy's bayonets, and took a position at the edge of a ravine, a little way in advance. A sharp action of abou 26 LIFE OF GENERAL SCOTT. twenty minutes in length ensued. It was short and desperate, ending in the total rout of the enemy at every point. Meanwhile, Porter with his artillery, and Boyd with a part of his brigade, had landed in the rear of the advance guard, and slightly participated in the close of the action. Scott pursued the rout as far as the village, where he was joined by the 6th regiment of infantry, under the command of Colonel James Miller. As the column was passing Fort George, in pursuit, Scott learned from some prisoners caught running out, that the garrison were about to abandon and blow up the place. Two companies were instantly dispatched from the head of his column to save the work, its guns, and stores. At the dis tance of some eighty paces from the fort, one of its magazines exploded. Scott was struck by a piece of timber, thrown from his horse, and much hurt. He nevertheless caused the gate to be forced, and was the first to enter. With his own hand he took down the British flag, then waving over the works. Being reminded by his prisoners of the danger he in curred from explosion, he directed Captains Hindman and Stockton to snatch away the matches, which had been applied by the retreating garrison to two other small magazines. The fort had been rendered untenable by the American batteries on the opposite shore, and its capture was but the work of a few minutes. This accomplished, Scott remounted, and was soon at the head of his column, in hot pursuit. This pursuit was continued for five miles, until, at length, he was recalled by General Boyd in person. He had already disregarded two successive orders to the same effect, sent by General Lewis, saying to the aids-de-camp who came to him, (one of them Lieutenant, now General, Worth, and the other Major Vande- renter,) " Your General does not know that I have the enemy within my power; in seventy minutes, I shall capture his whole force." In point of fact, Scott was already in the midst of the British stragglers, with their main body full in sight. He would not have been overtaken by Boyd, but that he had waited fifteen minutes for Colonel Burn, his senior office, who 28 LIFE OF GENERAL SCOTT. had consented to serve under him. This last colonel had just crossed the river from the Five-Mile Meadow, in the rear of the main body of the enemy, with one troop of horse, and was then waiting the landing of another now more than half way over. This force constituted the precise additional force which was wanted by Scott to make good the assurances he Porter complaining of Scott's long f/e?s. had sent to General Lewis. With the recall of Scott from the pursuit of the enemy ended the battle and capture of Fort George. The American loss was less than that of the enemy, and one of the objects set forth in the plan of the campaign was decidedly accomplished. This engagement was not without some incidents, which may serve to illustrate both the character of Scott, and the STRIKING INCIDENTS. 29 gallantry of the American army. Scott, as we have narrated, had turned from the head of his column to enter Fort George, and seize the British flag. Just behind him was Colonel Moses Porter, of the artillery. On entering the fort, and finding Scott there, Porter exclaimed " Confound your long legs, Scott, you have got in before me." After the capture of Scott, the year before, at Queenstown, he was supping with General Sheaffe, and a number of British officers, when one of them, a colonel, asked him if he had ever seen the neighboring Falls. Scott replied, " Yes, from the American side." To this the other sarcastically replied, " You must have the glory of a successful fight before you can view the cataract in all its grandeur," meaning from the Canada shore. Scott rejoined, " If it be your intention to in sult me, sir, honor should have prompted you first to return me my sword !" General Sheaffe promptly rebuked the British colonel, and the matter was dropped. At the battle of Fort George, among the earliest prisoners taken by the Americans was the same British colonel, badly wounded. Scott politely borrowed the prisoner's horse, not boing able to bring his own in the boats, and gave orders that the prisoner should be treated with all possible attention and kindness. That evening, after the pursuit, and as often as subsequent events permitted, Scott called on the British colonel. He returned him the horse, and carefully provided for all his wants. Indeed, he obtained permission for him to return to England on his parole, at a time when the belligerents had begun to refuse such favors, as well as all exchanges. At the first of these visits the prisoner delicately remarked, " I have long owed you an apology, sir. You have overwhelmed me with kindnesses. You can now, at your leisure, view the Falls in all their glory." It is such acts of magnanimity as these which reflect honor on human nature. Were they more frequent, the rough brow of war would be smoothed to smiles, and the field of battle be as remarkable for the beautiful in character as for the glorious in action. Colonel Scott and Lieutenant-Colonel Harvey were, in the 30 L.IFE OF GENERAL SCOT1. campaign of 1813, the adjutant-generals of the opposing armies in Upper Canada. Both being always in front, they very generally found themselves pitted against each other in the battle-field. Their staff positions also made them the organs of their respective armies, by letters and by personal inter views, under flags of truce. In that official intercourse they cordially united to soften down the asperities of war to pro vide for the general wants of prisoners, to appoint exchanges and to obtain paroles, and to the devising of means for enforcing the laws of civilized war on the Indian allies of the two armies. It was also through them that letters and money passed from one army into the hands of the prisoners of the other. Thus it happened that sentiments of high respect between the parties were soon ripened into personal friendship, leading (for both were remarkable in stature) to mutual recognition and salutes, when advancing to close combat. If their chivalry went not as far as that of the French officer at the battle of Fontenoi, who, standing in front of his troops, exclaimed, " Gentlemen of the English guards, give us your fire !" yet there was not wanting a touch of the romantic in their meetings. Once, when reconnoitring and skirmishing, Scott contrived, as he thought, to cut off his daring opponent from the possibility of retreat. In an instant, an American rifle was levelled up- on him. Scott struck up the deadly weapon, crying " Hold ! he is our prisoner." But Harvey, by a sudden turn and desperate leap of his horse, broke through the skirmishers, and escaped under a shower of balls, to reappear in the following campaign, a formidable opponent of his enemy and friend in the fields of Chippewa and Niagara. In July of the same year, Col. Scott was promoted to the command of a double regiment, (20 companies,) at which time he resigned the office of Adjutant-General, as it no longer conferred additional rank. In September an expedition was proposed against Burlington Heights, at the head of Lake Ontario, reported to be the depot of a large quantity of pro visions and other British stores. In this expedition he volun teered to command the land troops, and was taken on board the fleet by Commodore Chauncey. Burlington Heights were 32 LIFE OF GENERAL SCOTT. visited, but neither enemy nor stores were found there. On the return, it was determined to make a descent upon York, (now Toronto.) Accordingly, a landing of the soldiers and marines was effected, under the command of Colonel Scott. The barracks and public storehouses were burnt. Large de pots of provisions and clothing were taken, together with eleven armed boats, arid a considerable quantity of ammunition, and several pieces of cannon. At the close of this summer a campaign was devised, having for its object the capture of Kingston and of Montreal. Scott joined the army at Ogdensburgh, on the 6th of November. Wilkinson was then just about to pass the heavy fort (Welling ton) opposite, the fire of which Scott had the honor to receive in the leading and largest boat of the American flotilla. The passage of this fort was one of the striking incidents of the late war. It was a clear November night, and at the season of the Indian summer. No breeze ruffled the surface of the broad St. Lawrence, and when at the hour of eleven the moon rose above the horizon, the scene appeared more appro priate for the converse of angel spirits than for the clang of arms and the horrors of war. At about that hour, the American army, numbering seven thousand men, with muffled oars, was slowly descending the river, when a gun from Fort Wellington announced that their purpose was known to the enemy. The whole fort was imme diately lit up by the blaze of artillery, and the huge mortars vomited forth their volumes of fire. The balls from the heavy cannon passed through the air with impetuous fury, and screamed, as if impatient to accomplish their work of deatli while the shells from the mortars described graceful curves, which were easily traced in the air by their burning fuzes. The whole army, however, passed the fort without serious loss. The following day Scott was appointed to the command of a tine battalion, in the corps d'elite., under Colonel Macomb. In the descent of the St. Lawrence, he commanded the advance- guard of the army ; hence he was not present at the action of the llth of November, at Chrysler's Farm, fifteen miles in the rear. 34 LIFE OF GENERAL SCOTT. At the moment of that battle, Scott, with seven hundred men, was engaged with Colonel Dennis and an equal force, in passing Hoophole Creek, just above Cornwall. He ef fected the passage under the fire of the British force, routed them, captured many prisoners, and pursued the fugitives till night. Being always in advance, he had the day before landed near Fort Matilda, which commanded the narrowest point on the whole length of the St. Lawrence. There he had a sharp en counter with the enemy, took an officer and some men prison ers, and gained possession of the fort. At commencing the descent of the St. Lawrence, Wilkin son had proclaimed that he came to " conquer," but the indecisive action of " Chrysler's Farm," in which a portion only of the army was engaged, was the only event connected with the general movement of the expedition which looked like a resolute determination, or a positive energy, toward* decisive action. Even in that action the troops were limited, by the orders of the commander-in-chief, to defensive opera tions. It was, therefore, attended with no important results. FORMATION OF THE CAMP OF INSTRUCTION AT BUFFALO. OPEN ING OF THE CAMPAIGN OF 1814. , THE campaign of 1813 closed in disaster and disgrace. The hopes of the nation, which had been excited by the bril- liant achievements with which it opened, sank to despair, when the army, after sustaining a partial defeat, made an abrupt and hasty retreat. The military spirit of the army was lost. New levies of troops were to be made, and the spirit of daring, of confidence, and energy, was to be created before they could take the field. To accomplish these objects, Colonel Scott passed a part of the winter, subsequent to the events on the St. Lawrence, at CAMP OF INSTRUCTION AT BUFFALO. 35 Albany. There he was engaged in preparing the materiel for the next campaign, and, by instructions from the president, in arranging high politico-military questions, with the patriotic Governor Tompkins. On the 9th of March, 1814, Colonel Scott was promoted to the rank of Brigadier-General, and immediately joined Major- General Brown, then marching with the army from the French Mills towards the Niagara frontier. On the 24th inst., General Brown set out for Sacketts Harbor, expressly for the purpose, as he said, of leaving it to Scott to establish a camp of instruction, and to prepare the troops, as they arrived, for opening the campaign. Scott instructing the Officers. These troops were placed in the camp of instruction at Buf falo, where for more than three months they were drilled in all the evolutions and tactics necessary to give them the most accurate and thorough discipline. The modern French system was adopted. All the officers, without regard to rank, were 36 LIFE OF GENERAL SCOTT. first rigorously drilled by the commanding general, in small squads. These officers then instructed the rank and file in squads, under his eye. Companies were next formed, and subjected to the same process ; then battalions ; and, finally, these again were instructed by General Scott in person. When these details were all learned, the troops were carried by him through the evolutions of the line, (the movement of armies,) with the same strict attention to science and the wants of the field. In the camp of instruction at Buffalo the army, from con stant drill, acquired its organization, exact discipline, and habits of hardihood, and of cheerful obedience. Officers and men were taught the proper distribution of duties between each other, between the different corps, and the different ser vices. From the formation of a column of attack to the pre sentation of a salute, and from the movement in echelon to the exchange of the minutest courtesies, they learned alike the substance and the form of those duties of the camp and the field, which are developed in the array and the action of war. PASSAGE OF THE NIAGARA. 1814. EARLY in the morning of the 3d of July, Scott's brigade, with the artillery corps of Major Hindman, crossed the river, and landed below Fort Erie, while Ripley's brigade landed above. Scott led the van, crossing in a boat with Colonel Camp, who had volunteered his services, and was on shore be- fore the enemy's picket fired a gun. Fort Erie soon sur- rendered, and preparations were immediately made to advance, and attack the army of General Riall at Chippewa. On the morning of the 4th, Scott's brigade, several hours in advance, moved towards Chippewa. For sixteen miles he had a running fight with the Marquis of Tweedale, who com manded the British 100th regiment, till at dusk the latter was driven across Chippewa River, and joined the main body of 38 LIFE OF GENERAL SCOTT. the British army under General Riall. The Marquis has since said, that he could not account for the ardor of the pur- suit until he recollected the fact that it was the American great anniversary. That night, Scott took up a position above Street's Creek, two miles from the British camp below Chippewa. The in- terval between these creeks was a plain, on which was fought the battle of Chippewa. BATTLE OF CHIPPEWA. THE positions of Riall and of Scott on the morning of -the 5th may be easily understood. On the east side was the Niagara River, and near it the road to Chippewa. On the west was a heavy wood. Between these, running from the wood to the river, were two streams, the principal of which was the Chippewa. The other was the small creek above, called Street's. Behind, and below the Chippewa, lay the army of General Riall, with a heavy battery on one side and a blockhouse on the other. Scott's brigade had rested for the night on and above Street's Creek. Over these streams the road to Chippewa passed on bridges, the one over Street's near the Americans, and the other over the Chippewa near the British. This was the position of the respective parties on the morning of the 5th, when General Brown was expecting to attack the British, and they in turn determined to anticipate it, by a sortie from the lines of Chippewa. It was a long day in summer ; the earth was dry and dusty, and the sun bright and hot, when the best troops of Britain and America met, as in tournaments of old, to test their skill, their firmness, and heir courage, on the banks of the Niagara. The day began with the skirmishes of light troops. The British militia and Indians occupied the wood on the American left, and about noon annoyed the American pickets placed on that flank. General Porter, with volunteers, militia, and some friendly Indians of the Six Nations, soon engaged them, and, 40 LIFE OF GENERAL SCOTT. after some skirmishing, drove them through the wood, back upon Chippewa. Here the British irregulars, finding that their main army under General Riall was advancing, rallied, and in turn attacked Porter, compelling his command to give way. In spite of his own efforts and personal gallantry, these light troops broke and fled, at sight of the formidable array of Riall. It was now about four o'clock. General Brown was then in the wood with Porter; when a cloud of dust arose towards the bridge of Chippewa, and a firing was heard. This ap prized him that the British army was advancing. At this very moment, General Scott, in ignorance of the British ad vance, was moving his brigade towards the plain, simply for the purpose of drill. Near the bridge over Street's Creek he met General Brown, who said " The enemy is advancing. You will have a fight." Beyond this brief remark, Scott re ceived no further orders during the day. General Brown passed to the rear, to put Ripley's brigade in motion, and to reassemble the light troops behind Street's Creek. * It was not till he arrived at the bridge, over Street's Creek, two hundred yards to the right of his camp of the night before, that Scott saw the enemy. The army of Riall had crossed the bridge over the Chippewa, and displayed itself on the plain before de scribed. It was composed of the 100th regiment, under Lieu tenant-Colonel the Marquis of Tweedale ; the 1st or Royal Scots, under Lieutenant-Colonel Gordon ; a portion of the 8th or King's regiment; a detachment of the Royal Artillery ; a detachment of the Royal 19th Light Dragoons; and a portion of Canada militia and Indians. The main body of these troops were among the best in the British army. This force was supported by a heavy battery of nine pieces, within point-blank range of the American troops. Under the fire of this battery the corps of Scott passed the bridge in per fect order, but with some loss. His first and second battalions, under Majors Leavenworth and M'Neil, after crossing, formed a line to the front, which brought them opposed respectively to the left and centre of the enemy. The third battalion under Major Jesup obliqued in column to the left, and advanced to 42 LIFE OF GENERAL SCOTT. attack the right of the enemy, which extended into the wood. Captain Towson with his artillery was stationed on the right, resting in the Chippewa road. General Scott soon perceived that, although there were no intervals in the British line, yet their right wing outflanked his left. To remedy this difficulty caused the movement of Jesup, and the interval between the battalions of Leavenworth and M'Neil on the plain, was greatly enlarged. These evolutions were executed rapidly, and with great precision, under the fire of both musketry and artillery. The instant that Leavenworth and M'NeiFs battalions were thrown into oblique positions, both armies rapidly advancing, Scott galloped to our battery on the right, and called out to Towson " Captain, more to the left ; the enemy is there !" Towson, on foot, and enveloped in smoke, could not see that the enemy's line had advanced inside the range of his last dis charge. The gallant Captain than whom no man in the army possessed a greater prowess instantly changed the di rection of his two remaining guns more to the left, and gave the final destructive fire, a second or two before the conflict of bayonets on that flank. The action soon became general. Major Jesup now in the wood, and out of view, engaged, and held in check the enemy's right wing. The plain widened on that flank, and the enemy's main line continued to advance. Jesup having thus held in check one battalion in the wood, the engagement there gave the enemy a new right flank upon the plain. General Scott, who had continued alternately to advance, halt, and fire, found himself not more than eighty paces from the enemy. The enemy having a new flank, Scott took advantage of the en larged interval between Leavenworth and M'Neil, to throw the left flank of M'Neil's battalion forward on its right, so that it stood obliquely to the enemy's charge and flanking him a little on his new right. At this moment Scott called aloud to M'Neil's battalion, which had not a recruit in it, " The enemy say, that we are good at long shot, but cannot stand the cold iron! I call upon the Eleventh instantly to give the lie to that slander! Charge!" This movement was executed 44 LIFE OF GENERAL SCOTT. with decisive effect. A corresponding charge was also made by Leavenworth, who held an oblique position on our right. These charges were sustained by the flank fire of Towson's artillery on the right, and quickly put the enemy to rout. The British army broke, and fled in confusion. In the mean while, and nearly at the same time, Major Jesup, commanding the left flank battalion, finding himself pressed in front and flank, ordered his men to " support arms and advance." This order was promptly obeyed amidst a deadly and destructive fire. Having gained a more secure position, he returned upon the enemy so severe a fire as caused them to retire. Thus was the whole British line fairly routed, in a field action, on an open plain. They fled to their intrench- ments beyond the Chippewa, hotly pursued by Scott to the dis- tance of half musket-shot of Chippewa Bridge. He took many prisoners, leaving the plain behind strewed with the dead and wounded of both nations. The battle of Chippewa was an exciting and in some degree poetic scene. It was fought at the close of a long, bright sum- mer's day. On one side rolled the rapids of the deep Niagara, on the other was seen the verdure of the northern forest. The plain on which the hostile forces met was level and smooth, as if prepared for the meeting of the warriors of ancient knight hood. The best troops of England wheeled into it over Chip pewa Bridge, and the regiments of America, cool and disciplined, marched to meet them in combat. The sun shone down, and brilliant arms flashed in his beams. Each movement of the troops was distinct. As the battle deepened, fine bands of music mingled their melody, in sudden bursts, with the roar of artillery and the moans of the wounded. The battle ended, and many were the dead upon that dusty plain, whose last groans had expired with the last rays of the setting sun. Darkness came on, and wearied with battle and thirsty with heat, each army retired to its camp. The dead woke not from their bloody beds, and the living sank to rest. The wounded and his watcher, the sentinel and the stars, alone kept the vigils of the night. ADVANCE OF THE ARMY. 45 In the British official account of this battle, the American force is represented as numerically superior. The fact was the reverse. The British force amounted to about 2100 men, and the American to 1900. The total killed and wounded of the British troops was 503, and the Americans lost 327. AMERICAN ARMY CROSSES THE CHIPPEWA. BATTLE OF NIAG ARA. SCOTT WOUNDED AND DISABLED. THE army of the north had scarcely rested from its labors at Chippewa, when it was called to the still more sanguinary field of Niagara. The second day after the battle of the 5th, the American troops forced their way over Chippewa River. In this, Scott's brigade led, and the enemy retreated before him. In the afternoon of the 25th of July, amidst general relaxa tion, General Brown received a note from a colonel of militia, whose regiment occupied two or three posts on the American side of the Niagara, stating in the most precise terms, that the enemy had thrown a thousand men across from Queenstown to Lewistown, nine miles below the Chippewa, for some object not exactly understood. Brown conjectured that there was an intention to capture our magazines at Schlosser, and to inter cept supplies coming down from Buffalo. In order to recall him from this object, Brown immediately determined to threaten the forts at the mouth of the Niagara. In less than twenty minutes Scott's command was put in motion for that purpose. His force consisted of four small battalions, under Colonel Brady, and Majors Jesup, Leavenworth, and M'Neil ; Captain Towson's artillery, and Captain Harris's detachment of regular and volunteer cavalry ; in all amounting to thirteen hundred men. There was not time to call in the guards which belonged to those corps. About two miles from the camp, and just above the Falls, Scott discovered a few British officers, mounted, who, as it turned out, were in advance to reconnoitre. He soon learned 46 LIFE OF GENERAL SCOTT. that the enemy was in some little force below, and only inter cepted from the view by a narrow wood. In this situation, Scott for a moment reflected on what course should be pursued. He was instructed to march rapidly on the forts, under positive information, (given as we have narrated to General Brown,) that Riall had, three hours before, thrown half his force across the Niagara. Reflecting that the whole had been beaten on the 5th inst., he lost no time in reconnoi tring, but dashed forward to disperse what he thought was the remnant of the British army opposed to him. After dispatching Assistant Adjutant-General Jones to Gen eral Brown with the information that the enemy was in front, he proceeded to pass the wood, just below Forsythe's House. There he was greatly astonished to find, directly in front, drawn up in order of battle, on Lundy's Lane, a larger force even than that he had encountered at Chippewa twenty days before ! The position he was in was extremely critical. To stand fast was out of the question, being already under a heavy fire of the enemy's artillery and musketry. To retreat was equally hazardous ; for there is always, in such a case, the probability of confusion, and, at this time, the danger of creating a panic in the reserve, then supposed to be coming up, and which had not been in the previous battle. Scott saw that no measure but one of boldness would succeed. He therefore determined to maintain the battle against superior numbers and position till the reserve came up, thus giving General Riall the idea that the whole American army was at hand. This would prevent him from profiting by his numeri cal strength to attack our flanks and rear. He would thus lose the initial, a matter of no small importance in military enterprises. The scheme succeeded. For a long time the enemy was kept on the defensive, till the American reserve had come up and entered into the action. In the mean while Scott had sent back to General Brown. Lieutenant Douglass, as well as Major Jones, to report the condition of affairs. The first was to report that the remnant of Riall's army was manoeuvring to protect the detachment thrown over the Niagara ; the second was to inform the gen- :'. BATTLE OF NIAGARA. 47 ral, that so far from being diminished, the British army was actually reinforced, and thus to hasten up the reserve. The battle began about forty minutes before sunset, and, like its predecessor at Chippewa, was the closing drama of a long and warm summer's day. Like that too, it signalized among the affairs of men a spot which in the world of nature had been rendered illustrious by one of the great and glorious works of God. When the battle was about to begin, just as the setting sun sent his red beams from the west, they fell upon the spray, which continually goes up, like incense, from the deep, dashing torrent of Niagara. The bright light was divided into its primal hues, and a rainbow rose from the waters, encircling the head of the advancing column ! In a more superstitious age, such a sign would have been regarded, like the Roman auguries, as a precursor of victory. Even now, this bow of promise furnished the inspiration of hope, with the colors of beauty. The line which now opened its fire upon Scott, at the dis tance of one hundred and fifty paces, was already eighteen hundred strong. It was well posted in Lundy's Lane, a ridge nearly at right angles with the Niagara River, a little below the cataract. Its left was on the road parallel to the river, with a space covered with brushwood, of some two hundred yards, between. Scott observing this interval, soon ordered Major Jesup, sustained by Colonel Brady, to take advantage of it, and, concealed by the bushes and twilight, to turn the enemy's left. The other battalions had been before promptly deployed into line, and the action joined by it (Brady on the right) and Towson's artillery. The small detachments of cavalry on both sides were held in reserve. The enemy, find ing after some time that he outflanked us on the left, threw for ward a battalion to take us in flank and rear. Scott, although with inferior numbers, caused this movement to be promptly met and repelled by Major M'Neil's battalion, but with great loss on both sides. At the same moment, the action in front was desperately contested by Brady, now in line, and by Leavenworth and Towson. Major Jesup had succeeded in his movement. He had taken Major-General Riall, and several 48 LIFE OF GENERAL SCOTT. other officers, prisoners, and then gallantly charged back, (cutting off a portion of the enemy's left wing,) reappearing, and resuming his position in line. The battle which had commenced before sunset continued into the night. Twilight had gone, and it was now nine o'clock. The enemy's right had been beaten back from its flank assault with great loss. His left was turned and cut off. His ceptre alone remained firm. It was posted on a ridge, and supported by nine pieces of artillery. Three battalions of Drummond's reinforcements had al ready arrived, and a fourth was only a few miles behind. Such was the state of the field, when Major-General Brown arrived, a little in advance of our reserve. He insisted on having all the particulars, reported to him previously by the detached staff-officers mentioned, explained and confirmed to him by the lips of Scott. At this point, General Brown in his official report takes up the narrative, from his own personal observation. We select a few extracts in continuance of the history. After speaking of Scott's brigade, and its position in the first part of the battle, he says " Apprehending that these corps were much exhausted, and knowing that they had suffered se verely, I determined to interpose a new line with the advancing troops, and thus disengage General Scott, and hold his brigade in reserve. Orders were accordingly given to General Ripley. The enemy's artillery at this moment occupied a hill, which gave him great advantages, and was the key to the whole position. It was supported by a line of infantry. To secure the victory, it was necessary to carry this artillery and seize the height. This duty was assigned to Colonel Miller. " He (Colonel Miller) advanced steadily and gallantly to his object, and carried the height and the cannon. General Rip- ley brought up the 23d, which had faltered, to his support, and the enemy disappeared from before them. * * * * The enemy rallying his forces, and as is believed, having received rein forcements, now attempted to drive us from our position and regain his artillery. Our line was unshaken and the enemy repulsed. Two other attempts, having the same object, had BATTLE OF NIAGARA. 49 the same issue. General Scott was again engaged in repelling the former of these ; and the last I saw of him on the field of battle, he was near the head of his column, and giving to its march a direction that would have placed him on the enemy's right. ******* Having been for some time wounded, and be ing a good deal exhausted by loss of blood, it became my wish to devolve the command on General Scott, and retire from the field, but, on inquiry, I had the misfortune to learn that he was disabled by wounds ; I therefore kept my post, and had the satisfaction to see the enemy's last effort repulsed." The crisis of this engagement was the moment when the enemy's battery, which from its position commanded the field of action, was stormed by Miller's regiment. This charge was one of the finest achievements of the American army. General Brown said to the gallant Miller "Sir, can you take that battery ?" " I WILL TRY," was the reply of the bluff soldier a phrase now become familiar to all American lips. Scott, who was perfectly acquainted with the ground, conducted Miller, in the darkness of the night, some distance, till he had the right direction. He then returned to re new the attack in front, in order to favor the movement of Miller. The enemy's battery being taken, and the ridge previously occupied by the enemy being gained, the American army changed position. It was now drawn up nearly at right angles to the lane, with its back to the river. Scott was on the right, Ripley in the centre, and Porter, with the militia, on the left. In this new position, the American line generally acted on the defensive. The British desired to recover the ground they had lost, and made several assaults. These were as often repulsed, but the enemy would again rally and return to the charge. It was in one of these contests General Brown had last seen Scott. About that time, the latter had twice formed small portions of his brigade into column, advanced, charged the British line, also advancing, pierced it, and compelled it to fall back. In such a battle, with such impetuous courage, Scott was necessarily exposed to all the dangers of the field. 4 BATTLE OF NIAGARA. 51 Two horses were killed under him. In the midst of the action, he was wounded in the side. At eleven o'clock in the night, he was disabled by a wound from a musket-ball through the left shoulder. His aid, Lieutenant Worth, and his brigade- major, Smith, were also both severely wounded. The contest closed by the possession of the field of battle by the Americans, and the capture of the enemy's cannon. The world has seen mightier armies moved over more me morable fields, and followed by louder notes of the far- resound ing trumpet of fame ; but a bloodier scene for those engaged, a severer trial of courage and of discipline, or one whose action was more closely associated with the sublime and beau tiful in nature, the world has not seen. The armies were drawn out near the shores of that rapid river whose current mingles lake with lake. Hard by, was that CATARACT whose world of waters rushes over the precipice, and, rushing, roars into the gulf below ! The ceaseless spray rises up, like in cense to the eternal Father ! The beams of sun, and moon, and stars, fall ceaselessly on that spray, and are sent back in many-colored hues to the source of light ! So was it when, wheeling into the field of battle, the slant beams of the setting sun, returning from the spray, encircled the advancing column with rainbow colors ! The sun went down, to many an eye, no more to rise on earth ! With the darkness came the greater rage of battle charge after charge was made. For a time the faint beams of the moon struggled with the smoke, and gave a little light to the combatants ; but it was but little. The moon itself became obscured, and no light, save the rapid flashes of musket and cannon, pierced the heavy clouds. The fight raged in the darkness of the night. From the height on the ridge, the battery of the enemy still poured its deadly fire. It was then that the gallant Miller said, " I will try." It was then that Scott piloted his column through darkness to Lundy's Lane. It was then that brave regiment charged to the cannon's mouth. The battery was taken. The victory rests with the American army. 52 LIFE OF GENERAL SCOTT. It was midnight. The battle is ended. The army, faint and weary, drags itself from the bloody plain. The well sink to their couch to dream of homes far away ! The wounded groan in their painful hospitals. The dead rest till the last trumpet shall summon them to the last array ! The warrior, with his garments rolled in blood, has left the scene of strug gles, pains, and death ! Some kind friend may have sought him, whether alive or dead j but the war-drum had ceased to beat ; the artillery ceased to roll ; and now the solemn, sono rous fall of Niagara is to the dead their requiem, and to the living their song of glory ! The battle of Niagara has been, by mistake or accident, commonly called in the United States, the battle of Bridge- water. In the official report of the British general it was called the battle of Lundy's Lane. It has been usage, how ever, to call a battle, or other important event, from the most remarkable object near the scene of action. Fought, as this battle was, near that mighty cataract which makes one of the wonders of nature, on either side of the Atlantic ; fought too with a courage and a constancy worthy of such an associa tion, why should it not be named from those loud, sounding waters ? Let it then be called, THE BATTLE OF NIAGARA. Let the memory of the dead, and the fame of the living, roll on with those waters to the distant future ! The American loss was 860 ; that of the British 878. SCOTT S JOURNEY FROM NIAGARA TO PHILADELPHIA. IS RE CEIVED AT PRINCETON. WE last saw Scott on the field of Niagara. He was borne from that scene of glory, to the care of nurses and surgeons, a wounded and suffering soldier. He had been wounded, as we have narrated, first by a spent ball, in the side, and next by a musket-ball which passed directly through the left shoulder. The last was a wound in its nature serious and 54 LIFE OF GENERAL SCOTT. painful. His recovery was, for a month, very doubtful. He lay, in great agony, at Buffalo and Williamsville. He was then removed to the house of his kind friend, Mr. Brisbane, in Batavia, and as soon as his health was sufficiently restored, he departed by easy journeys for Philadelphia, for the purpose of placing himself under the care of those distinguished surgeons, Drs. Physick and Chapman. At the classic and memorable ground of PrinSeton, an in cident occurred, alike adapted to cheer the heart of the dis abled soldier, and give propriety and freshness to his reception on the spot, where the muse of history has not disdained to dwell in the humble abodes of philosophy. The annual commencement at the College of New Jersey (Nassau Hall) happened to occur on the day Scott reached Princeton. Upon quitting the carriage, he was supported to a bed, intending, by easy stages, to reach Philadelphia that night. It was soon whispered about, that General Scott had entered the town. The faculty of the college immediately sent a deputation to the hotel to invite his at- tendance at the church. He suffered himself to be carried thither. Pale and meager, his left shoulder swollen and bandaged, his arm in a sling, and his furred surtout flung over his person, the invalid with difficulty ascended the stage where the exercises were performed. There, the president, trustees, and other dignitaries of the college, were waiting his slow approach, amidst learning, beauty, and fashion, collected from far and near. The hands and kerchiefs of the ladies, as well as the voices of men, in cluding hundreds of enthusiastic students, were in constant exercise. The rafters of the old edifice rang and re-echoed with applause. In Nassau Hall, it is customary to select the most graceful and elegant speaker to deliver the valedictory address On this day, the orator was Bloomfield M'llvaine, Esq. His theme was, " The public duties of a good citizen in peace and war" a subject well adapted to the then situation of the country, and not improper at any time. Towards the close of his oration, the speaker turned to Scott, and in the most 56 LIFE OF GENERAL SCOTT. graceful and extemporaneous oratory, made him the personifi cation of the civic and heroic virtues. Nothing could have been more happily adapted to the person and the subject. The sympathies of the audience burst forth in applause, alike to the young and disabled general who was personified, and to the eloquent and enthusiastic student whose ready genius had paid so just and beautiful a tribute. PUBLIC HONORS PAID TO GENERAL SCOTT. THE war of 1812 being now ended, and Scott having passed from the battle-field to the domestic fireside, it is fit we should here review some of the promotions, compliments, and honors, which his country and countrymen, at various times, bestowed upon him, for his gallant and successful conduct. Scott entered the army in 1808, at twenty-two years of age. In 1814, when only twenty-eight, he had ascended to the high est military rank, that of major-general, which is attainable in the United States. In a very short time also, he was dis tinguished by honors and memorials, from various civil bodies and public authorities, such as have been seldom conferred upon one person, and upon one so young perhaps never. The testimonials of legislative bodies, and of men engaged in civil and peaceful duties, to the merit and services of Scott, were not less strong than those which emanated from the ex ecutive and the military functionaries. Near the close of the war, Congress passed a veto of thanks, in which Scott was not only specifically complimented for his skill and gallantry, in the conflicts of Chippewa and Niagara, but for his uniform good conduct throughout the war a compli ment paid by Congress to no other officer. Resolution of Congress approved Nov. 3d, 1814. " Resolved, that the President of the United States be re quested to cause a gold medal to be struck, with suitable em- . 1814. BATTIUB8 OF (CHEIPPIBWA 58 LIFE OF GENERAL SCOTT. blems and devices, and presented to Major-General Scott, in testimony of the high sense entertained by Congress of his dis tinguished services, in the successive conflicts of Chippewa and Niagara, and of his uniform gallantry and good conduct in sustaining the reputation of the arms of the United States." The medal thus ordered by Congress, was presented by President Monroe, accompanied by the following address. Executive Mansion, February 26, 1825 ; } in the presence of the Cabinet, and of > many other distinguished persons. ) President Monroe's Address. " General Scott Your conduct in the late war merited and obtained, in a high degree, the approbation of Congress and your country. In the battles of Chippewa and Niagara, in Upper Canada, in the campaign of 1814, your daring enter prise and gallantry in action were eminently conspicuous. " In rendering justice to you, I recur with pleasure to the report made of those actions by the military commander, the most competent judge of your merit. In the battle of Chippe- wa, he says, you are entitled to the highest praise your coun try can bestow ; and that we are indebted to you, more than to any other person, for the victory obtained in it. " In the battle of Niagara you commenced the action, and your gallantry in several severe encounters, until disabled by severe wounds, was equally distinguished. As a testimonial of the high sense entertained by Congress of your merit in those actions, I have the pleasure to present you this medal." The medal is a beautiful specimen of the numismatic art. It is large and of massive gold. The drawing shows both faces of the medal and its exact dimensions. The portrait of the general, in relievo, is true to life. The inscription on the re verse face, as shown in the drawing, is surrounded with a wreath of palm and laurel, entwined about a serpent formed into a circle emblem of youth and immortality, or youth crowned with victory. It is a cherished memorial of national gratitude. There is an incident connected with this medal which we SINGULAR INCIDENT. 59 cannot forbear to relate. It is not an item of general history, and yet cannot fail to be interesting to the general reader. It illustrates a great principle of human action. It indi cates how deeply the feeling of reverence for distinguished and brilliant services sinks into the heart, and how pure that feeling may remain when other and kindred virtues have yielded to temptation. This medal was deposited by General Scott, many years since, for safe keeping, in the City Bank of New York. Some time after, the bank was entered by false keys, and robbed of bullion and other funds to the large amount of two hundred and fifty thousand dollars. The first clerk, on entering the day after the robbery, dis covered that the safe had been forced, and soon ascertained the extent of the loss. On examining the trunk in which the medal was deposited, he found, to his surprise and delight, that the medal was safe, though every dollar of the bullion deposit ed with it had been taken. The matter was inexplicable to the officers of the bank. The robber had burst open the trunk, stripped it of its valuable contents, opened the case which en closed the medal, and yet left that large piece of massive gold behind. No motive could be discovered for such an act. The robber was finally arrested, the funds recovered, and the law satisfied by a full term of service in the state prison. At a subsequent period, in passing down the Hudson River, on board a steamboat, General Scott's purse was abstracted from his pocket. The fact being made known to the chief of the police, the money was soon discovered and restored. It was during the progress of this investigation that the burglar who had robbed the City Bank reproached his confederates with their want of honorable bearing. He said, " that when he took the money from the City Bank he saw and well knew the value of the medal, but scorned to take from the soldier what had been given by the gratitude of his country." This incident is a curious phenomenon in the operations of the human mind. A man who made theft and robbery his profession, and felt no compunctions in seizing the property of others, groped his way with a dark laniern, through vaults 60 LIFE OF GENERAL SCOTT. and narrow passes, until at length he reached the object of his hopes. He broke the locks, and by his dim light discovered bags of gold. He seized them with avidity. In his search he discovered the medal of a patriot soldier. One current of virtuous feeling had not been corrupted. He replaced the treas ure, and rejoiced that he yet loved his country and honored her defenders. 1 cannot take that Medal. In February, 1816, both houses of the Virginia legislature passed unanimously a vote of thanks to General Scott, for his uniform good conduct in the war. At the same time the gov ernor was directed to procure a suitable sword, with proper emblems and devices, and have the same presented to him as a memorial of their high estimation of his conduct. Resolutions of the Virginia Legislature. " Resolved unanimously, by the Senate and House of Dele gates of the Commonwealth of Virginia, in general assembly PUBLIC HONORS PAID TO GENERAL SCOTT. 61 convened, that the governor be, and he is hereby requested, to present the thanks of this general assembly to Major-General WINFIELD SCOTT, a native citizen of this state, for his uniform good conduct in sustaining the military reputation of the United States, in every conflict or engagement in which he was pres ent during the late war with England, but more especially ia the successive engagements of Chippewa and Niagara. " Resolved, also unanimously, that the governor be, and he is hereby requested, to cause a suitable sword, with proper em blems and devices thereon, to be presented to Major-General SCOTT, as a mark of the high opinion this assembly entertains of his gallantry and distinguished services, in the battles of Chippewa and Niagara. " Resolved, also unanimously, that the governor be, and he is hereby requested, to forward to MAJOR-GENERAL SCOTT a copy of these resolutions, and to present, through him, the thanks of this assembly to his gallant associates in arms, during the campaign of 1814. "Unanimously agreed to in both houses, February 12, 1816. WM. MUMFORD, C. H. D." About the same time with the passage of the resolutions we have recited, by the State of Virginia, others were passed of similar import, by the Legislature of the State of New York, along whose western frontier a large portion of Scott's public services had been rendered. The legislature empowered his Excellency DANIEL D. TOMPKINS, then governor of that state, to present General Scott its thanks for his services, and a sword, which was done. The presentation took place on what is called in New York Evacuation Day. The following account of the proceedings has a more than common interest, by the peculiar aptness of the addresses made. 62 LIVE Or GENERAL SCOTT. In the City Hall of New York ; Anniversary, Nov. ) 25th, 1816, of the Evacuation of the City by the V British troops, at the end of the Revolutionary War. } Governor Tompkins's Address to Major-General Scott. " SIR I avail myself of an anniversary commemorative of the exploits of our forefathers, to perform the pleasing duty ot proclaiming the gratitude of the people of this state to those descendants of the heroes of the Revolution, whose services in the late war have contributed so mainly to perpetuate the in dependence which our venerated ancestors achieved, and to advance the glory of the American nation. " In adverting, sir, to your claims of distinction, it would be sufficient to say, that on all occasions you have displayed the highest military accomplishments, the most ardent attachment to the rights and honor of your country, and the most intrepid exertions in their support. A rapid and unprecedented suc cession of promotions at an early age, has been the well- earned fruit of your talents. The distinguished notice by your government is the best encomiumT on your character, and the highest reward to which the virtuous and the great aspire. " But, sir, your military career is replete with splendid events. Without descending into too much minuteness, I may briefly refer to your exploits in the most interesting portion of the American continent. The shores of Niagara, from Erie to Ontario, are inscribed with your name, and with the names of your brave companions. The defeat of the enemy at Fort George will not be forgotten. The memorable conflict on the plains of Chippewa, and the appalling night-battle on the Heights of Niagara, are events which have added new celebrity to the spots where they happened, heightening the majesty of the stupendous cataract, by combining with its natural, all the force of the moral sublime. The admirers of the great in nature, from all quarters of the globe, will forever visit the theatre of your achievements. They will bear to their distant homes the idea of this mighty display of nature, and will as- SCOTT VISITS EUROPE. 63 sociate with it the deeds of you and your brothers in arms. And so long as the beautiful and sublime shall be objects of admiration among men ; so long as the whelming waters of Erie shall be tumbled into the awful depths of Niagara, so long shall the splendid actions in which you have had so con spicuous a share, endure in the memory of man. " Accept, sir, the sword presented to you by the people of this state, as a pledge of their affection and gratitude for your distinguished services ; and may the remainder of your life be as serene and happy, as your early days have been useful and glorious." GENERAL SCOTT VISITS EUROPE. SOON after the close of the war, General Scott visited Europe by order of the government, both for the restoration of his health, and professional improvement. He was confidentially intrusted with diplomatic functions, to ascertain the temper and views of certain courts, respecting revolutionary struggles then com menced in the Spanish provinces of America, and the appre hended designs of Great Britain upon the Island of Cuba, both at that time subjects of no little solicitude to the cabinet at Washington. On his return to the United States he was assigned to the command of the seaboard. His head-quarters were in the City of New York. In that city, and near it, at Elizabethtown, New Jersey, and in the same command, with the exception of two years at the west, he resided during the next twenty years. In March, 1817, he was married to Miss Maria Mayo, of Rich mond, Virginia. They have several daughters, but no living son. After the return of General Scott from Europe, little oc curred in his life beyond the ordinary duties of the command ing general of division, until the Black-Hawk campaign of 1932. 64 LIFE OF GENERAL SCOTT. BLACK-HAWK WAR. INCIDENTS AND SCENES CONNECTED WITH IT. THE North American Indians, if not possessed of strong local attachments, have ever manifested a warm and almost sacred regard for the graves of their ancestors. When passing by, they strew handfuls of earth upon them. They part from these tombs with bitter regret, when necessity makes them wanderers from their native land ; and when generations have passed away, even remote descendants return to revisit and honor the spot where their dead have been laid. The principal village of the Sacs and Foxes, for a long pe riod of time, was on the beautiful river peninsula between Rock River and the Mississippi, and near their junction. Here, in the midst of a wilderness of beauty seldom equalled, on a" soil so rich that the Indian women found little difficulty in planting and gathering their corn, a band of the Sacs resided, as late as 1830. Their chief, known as BLACK-HAWK, had been born on that ground. Annually they had planted their corn. They loved the rolling waters of Rock River. They loved the lovely island near its mouth ; and they loved, as the white man loves, scenes where, from youth to age, they had beheld the splendors of nature ; and they loved that ancient vil lage spot which by repeated burials had become the mournful graveyard of the nation. By a treaty made with the chiefs of the Sacs, these lands east of the Mississippi were ceded to the whites; but it was also provided, that so long as they belonged to the United States, the Indians should have the privilege of living and hunt ing upon them. The United States also guarantied the Indians against any intrusion of the white settlers. Trespasses, how ever, did occur, by whites, in violation of the laws of Congress, and these acts, unrestrained by the United States government, were the exciting causes of the jealousy, irritation, and ulti mate hostility of the Indians. In 1829, the United States put up to public sale, and it was sold, a portion of the Sac village, which was bought by an Indian trader. Black-Hawk, the Sac chief, became irritated, but was advised, that if the Indians had not sold the lands, and would remain quiet, they would be BLACK-HAWK WAR. 65 undisturbed. On the idea that the Indians had not sold their village, he determined to remain. In the spring of 1831 the Indian squaws had planted their corn as usual, when it was ploughed up by the whites, and the trespasses against the Indians continued. Black-Hawk then gave notice to the whites, that they must remove from his village. On the 19th of May, 1831, a memorial was presented to the governor of Illinois, by eight of the settlers, representing that the Indians had threatened them, and were committing de predations on the whites. On the 26th of May, the governor of Illinois writes, that he had called out seven hundred mili tia to remove a band of Sac Indians. On the 28th of May, he writes the same to General Gaines. On the 29th of May, Gaines replies that he had ordered six companies of the United States troops from Jefferson Barracks to Rock Island, and four other companies from Prairie du Chien, the object of which was to repel invasion and secure the frontier. On the 30th of May, the United States troops reached Fort Armstrong. A conference held with the Indian chiefs there proved unavailing. General Gaines then called on the governor of Illinois for an additional force, and on the 25th of June, Governor Reynolds and General Joseph Duncan, with 1600 mounted militiamen, reached Rock River. On the morning of the 26th General Gaines took possession of the Sac village, without firing a gun or meeting an Indian. The Indian party had crossed the Mississippi, with their women and children, the night previous. On the 30th of June, General Gaines and Governor Rey nolds concluded a treaty of capitulation, by which this band of the Sacs agreed to live west of the Mississippi. In April, 1832, Black-Hawk's band, in violation of this treaty, recrossed to the east side of the Mississippi, for the pur pose, as they said, of joining the Winnebagoes above, and raising a crop of corn and beans with them. General Atkin son, then in command of the United States troops at Fort Arm strong, twice by express, informed Black-Hawk, that if he did not return peaceably he would be forced back. The Indians refused to be driven back, and at the same time determined not to make the first attack. 66 LIFE OF GENERAL SCOTT. Black-Hawk, finding that the tribes of the Northwest would not join his standard, had resolved to recross the Mississippi. They were encamped at Kish-wa-cokee, when the event oc curred which brought the opposing forces into actual conflict. The Illinois mounted militia had proceeded to Dixon's Ferry, a point on Rock River half way between Rock Island and the Indian encampment. From this point Major Stillman, with about two hundred and seventy-five mounted volunteers, pro ceeded on a scouting expedition to Sycamore Creek, thirty miles further up the river. Hearing that these men were ap proaching, Black-Hawk sent three young men to meet them with a white flag. These young men were met by the whites, and one of them taken prisoner and killed. Of a party of five Indians who followed the former one, with pacific intentions, two were also killed. The volunteers pursued till the whole force had crossed Sycamore Creek. Here, on the 14th of May, they met the warriors of Black-Hawk advancing to avenge their companions, were thrown into confusion, recross- ed the creek, and after the loss of twelve killed, were totally routed. The Indian success in this engagement encouraged them, while it alarmed the people of Illinois. On the 15th of May, Governor Reynolds issued his proclamation, calling out two thousand more militia, to meet at Hennepin on the 10th of June. From this time, during three months, a succession of actions took place between the whites and the Indians, with various success. The banks of the beautiful Rock River, of the Wis consin, and even of the Mississippi, were stained with the blood of the red and the white man. Women and children were not spared, and more than one Indian squaw fell in battle. It is related, that at one place a ball broke the arm of a little child clinging to its mother's breast, and pierced her heart ; while the child, taken up by a kind American officer, was healed and lived ! Starvation as well as war pursued the broken and flying Indians, whose place of refuge on the Wisconsin had been discovered, and they driven from it. A portion of them, including a number of women and children, attempted to go BLACK-HAWK WAR. 67 down the Mississippi, but they were overtaken, and most of them captured or killed. The main body, under Black-Hawk, directed their course to the Mississippi, near the mouth of the Iowa River. Here they were overtaken, on the banks of the Mississippi, by General Atkinson, with an army of regulars and militia. They were The dead Indian mother and her child. defeated and dispersed in the battle called Bad Axe, with the loss of many killed and prisoners. Black-Hawk himself escaped, but was soon after taken and delivered up, on the 27th of August, to General Street the Indian agent, by an act of treachery on the pan of two of his followers. Thus terminated what is called the BLACK-HAWK WAR, up on which various opinions have been expressed, but of which the results were what they invariably have been in all contests between the Indians and the whites. The Indians were dis possessed, of their lands. They retreated yet further towards the setting sun, leaving th blood of warriors and the tears of- gg LIFE OF GENERAL SCOTT. women to water the grass which grew upon the graves of their ancestors. The whites occupy their ancient fields, dig up with inquisitive hands the bones of the dead, replant the soil with the rich and verdant maize, build among them other, more beautiful, and far more magnificent towns j build other tombs, and bury other dead ; point their spires, like their hopes, to the blue summits of the skies, and fill the circled earth with the resounding fame of arts and arms ! In the beginning of July, 1832, Scott embarked at Buffalo, with a body of nearly one thousand troops, in four steamboats, for Chicago. The purpose was to reach Illinois as speedily as possible, and there co-operate with the United States forces under General Atkinson, and the Illinois mounted militia, in the campaign against the Indians. This purpose was counter acted by one of those sudden, severe, and solemn dispensations of Providence, which arrests the best-concerted schemes, startles the strongest intellect, admonishes man of his weakness, and demonstrates, in wonderful ways, the power of God ! The ASIATIC CHOLERA was this dispensation. A native of oriental countries, it was long supposed to be confined to Hindostan and the neighboring regions. But in 1831, it spon taneously, and without any observed cause, burst from its former limits, and, like an avalanche, fell with fearful force upon Northern Europe. Crossing from Asia into Russia, it was stopped neither by lines of latitude, nor by the cold snows of Scandinavia. It entered Moscow, proceeded to St. Peters burg, ravaged Hungary, and visited nearly all the populous and renowned cities of Germany. Before it reached either England or France, two hundred thousand persons had already been slain ! Over rivers and over lakes, over prairies and over forests, it wept with silent but fatal force. It crept along the low banks of streams, and it ascended with the morning mists the moun tain side. In the throngs of populous cities, and in the solitude of thick woods, it was still the same. It struck with the same unrelenting hand the rosy cheek of childhood, and the hoary locks of age. The human race stood before it, like the forest trees or orchard's fruit before the whirlwind ; the storm comes, ASIATIC CHOLERA. 69 and the trees fall, the limbs break, the shrubs bend, the fruit is scattered : the storra is passed, and the remaining trees stand surrounded by broken trunks and by fallen branches ! Such was the precise effect of the cholera of 1832, in the United States. No history can exaggerate the suddenness, the terror, or the irresistible force of its approach. Many, who might be expected to fall first, escaped, while many of the bravest died even from fear. This was the enemy, the conqueror of conquerors, which at tacked Scott's expedition up the lakes, and soon destroyed all its power or utility as a military corps. The Asiatic cholera, brought over the ocean in an emigrant ship, landed at Quebec in the beginning of June, 1832. Thence it proceeded immediately to Montreal, and thence up the St. Lawrence and the lakes with great rapidity. Scott had, as we have said, embarked at Buffalo for Chicago, in the beginning of July, with nearly a thousand men, in four steamboats. On the 8th of July, while on the bosom of the lake, the cholera broke out among the troops with great fa tality. The facts attending the presence of this plague among the troops of the northwest have been carefully recorded by the journals of the country, and they will illustrate, as forcibly as any which can be produced, its fatal nature. General Scott, his staff, and about two hundred and twenty men, embarked in the steamboat Sheldon Thompson, in which, on the 8th of July, the cholera broke out. The boat arrived on the 10th inst., in the night, at Chicago, and in a short time left there. In these half dozen days, out of two hundred and twenty men, one officer and fifty-one men died, and eighty were left sick at Chicago. In the steamboat Henry Clay embarked Col. Twiggs, with three companies of artillery, and two or three of infantry. The fate of these was even worse than that of those in the Sheldon. Even a greater mortality in proportion was ex perienced, and several of the most promising officers perished. The troops were landed near Fort Gratiot, at the lower end of Lake Huron, in the neighborhood of which they in a few days 70 LIFE OF GENERAL SCOTT. met with most extraordinary sufferings. We have before us two accounts of the scenes there, and both,.authentic statements of actual witnesses. One is written to the Journal of Commerce, apparently by an oificer. It says, July 10 " Our detachment, which consisted of about four hundred, has dwindled down to about one hundred and fifty, by pestilence and desertion. "The dead bodies of the deserters are literally strewed along the road between here and Detroit. No one dares give them relief, not even a cup of water. A person on his way from Detroit here, passed six lying groaning with the agonies of the cholera, under one tree, and saw one corpse, by the road-side, half eaten up by the hogs !" Mr. Norvell, of Detroit, writes thus to the editor of the Philadelphia Enquirer. " These troops, you will recollect, landed from the steam boat Henry Clay, below Fort Gratiot. A great number of them have been swept off by the disease. Nearly all the others have deserted. Of the deserters scattered all over the country, some have died in the woods, and their bodies have been devoured by the wolves. I use the language of a, gallant young officer. Others have taken their flight to the world of spirits, without a companion to close their eyes, or console the last moments of their existence. Their straggling survivors are occasionally seen marching, some of them know not whither, with their knapsacks on their backs, shunned by the terrified inhabitants as the source of a mortal pestilence." At Chicago, as before and after, General Scott exposed him self, though ill, by attending every officer and soldier taken sick. His conduct, in the continual care and effort for those under his charge, has been testified to by numbers of witnesses, themselves actors and observers in these scenes. Of the nine hundred and fifty men who left Buffalo, the number was in a short time so reduced, that no more than four hundred were left. Scott was detained by these melancholy occurrences, for several days, at Chicago. As soon as he was released, he left Colonel Eustis to follow with his reduced com- ASIATIC CHOLERA. 71 mand, and hastened across the prairies to join General Atkin son on the Mississippi. He found him at Prairie du Chien, on the 3d of August, the day after the battle of Bad Axe. Soldier dying with the Cholera. The fugitive Indians were soon brought in prisoners, both with the remainder of the Sac and Fox confederacy, which had remained rn a state of doubtful neutrality, and with the Win- nebago nation, which had covertly given aid to Black-Hawk's band. In the mean while, about the middle of August, the cholera broke out among the regulars of Atkinson's army, at Rock Island, whither Scott had descended from Fort Crawford, Prai rie du Chien. Here Scott was called upon to exercise his wonted kindness by attendance upon the sick and the dying. Night and day 72 LIFE OF GENERAL SCOTT. he visited and comforted them, himself always, when near it, laboring under some of the symptoms of the disease. Feeble in body, he was yet almost constantly in attendance on the afflicted. Great were his efforts to prevent the spread of the disease, and to overcome the symptoms of panic, scarcely less to be dreaded than the original calamity, which from time to time were exhibited. The mortality -was appalling, but at length, on the 8th of September, the infection disappeared. To Scott's humane and generous conduct, throughout this terrible battle with pestilence, both at Rock-Island and on the Lakes, we have the testimony of one who was an eye-witness, and whose situation made him in all respects disinterested. We shall quote his own words a language as reliable as that of official documents. He says that " the general's course of conduct on that occasion should establish for him a reputation not inferior to that which he has earned in the battle-field ; and should exhibit him not only as a warrior, but as a man not only as the hero of battles, but as the hero of humanity. It ia well known that the troops in that service suffered severely from the cholera, a disease frightful enough from its rapid and fatal effects, but which came among us the more so, from the known inexperience of our medical men, and from the general belief, at that time, in its contagiousness. Under such circum stances it was clearly the general's duty to give the best gen eral directions he could for proper attendance on the sick, and for preventing the spread of the disease. When he had done this, his duty was performed, and he might have left the rest to his medical officers. But such was not his course. HP thought he had other duties to perform, that his personal safety must be disregarded to visit the sick, to cheer the well, to en courage the attendants, to set an example to all, and to prevent a panic in a word, to save the lives of others at the risk of his own. All this he did faithfully, and when he could have had no other motive than that of doing good. Here was no glory to be acquired ; here were none of the excitements of the battle-field ; here was no shame to be avoided, or disgrace to be feared ; because his general arrangements and directions to those whose part it was to battle with sickness, had satisfied 74 LIFE OF GENERAL SCOTT. duty. His conduct then exhibited a trait in his charactei which made a strong impression on me, and which, in my opinion, justice requires should not be overlooked." This is the language of a calm and impartial observer, an intelligent officer of the army. It proves that the laurels of Niagara had bloomed again on {he banks of the Mississippi, but no longer with crimson flowers. They now appear in those soft and lovely hues which make them kindred with the kindest and gentlest of human emotions. Near the middle of September, the cholera having subsided, the negotiations commenced with the Indian tribes, for the final settlement of difficulties. The scene of negotiation was Rock Island. The commissioners on the part of the United States were General Scott and Governor Reynolds. There, for sev eral weeks, they received and entertained parties of the SACS FOXES, WINNEBAGOES, Sioux, and MENOMONIES all warlike.* nations, and often at war with one another. They now ap peared constrained into peace or neutrality by the presence of well-disciplined battalions mingling together in the wild and martial costume of their race. When the chiefs and warriors of the confederacy on ex traordinary occasions approached head-quarters, it was always with the loud tramp and shout, which seemed to be rather the clangor of war than the forms of ceremony. When a council was to meet, they came at a furious charge ; suddenly dis mounted, arranged themselves in order, and then, between lines of soldiers, entered the pavilion with the firmness of victors, but with all the deep solemnity of a funeral. Arrayed in scarlet hues, their national color, sometimes on foot and sometimes mounted, nothing could be more striking than the fine figures, arms, and costume of the men. Their wives and daughters, too, were better looking, better clothed and orna mented, than other Indian women, and generally sustained the reputation of virtue and modesty. Of these tribes, the SACS and FOXES, kindred and confederate clans, were the dandies and sometimes the Mamelukes of the forest. Though not very numerous, they are the first in war, the first in the chase, and the first in all that constitutes Indian 76 LIFE OF GENERAL SCOTT. wealth cattle, horses, and clothing. Among these there was a master spirit, the celebrated KE-O-KUCK, a Sac, then in the prime of life, tall, robust, manly, and who excelled all the sur rounding red-men in wisdom and eloquence in council, in the majestic graces of the Indian dance, and in bold adventure against the buffalo, the bear, and the hostile Sioux and Meno- mine. Yet this person was not by birth a chief, and therefore held no hereditary power. He rose to be head man of the na tion simply by his superior abilities. Becoming jealous of him, however, the tribe at one time deposed him. From this degra dation, which he bore with great patience and equanimity, he was not altogether restored at the time of the treaty of Rock- Island. He was at that time a kind of treasurer and keeper of the records for the nation. In consequence of his great merit and talent, General Scott prevailed upon the principal persons of the nation again to elevate him to the chieftaincy, from which he has not been again removed. - The scenes exhibited during these conferences, were of the deepest interest and the most picturesque kind. They were adapted rather to the pencil of a poet or a painter thdn to the grave records of history. The wild son of nature, scarcely more barbarous than those old Greek warriors whose names the song of Homer has borne from age to age on the wings of fame, here confronted the man of art and civilization, face to face, in warlike array, and in peaceful amusement. The song, the dance, the chase, the rolling drum and the whoop ing shout, the white soldier and the tawny maiden, were mingled together in this conference between the retreating representatives of barbarism and the advancing children of im provement. In the afternoons the scene was frequently enlivened by In- dian dances at head-quarters. These dances are generally pantomimes, remarkably descriptive of the achievements, events, and history of the individual or the tribe. They are exhibited by a large number of young warriors at the same time, to the music of rude instruments, and accompanied by occasional whoopings. The dancers are strictly attentive to time and order, rendering their voices accordant % the modu- 78 LIFE OF GENERAL SCOTT. lation of the hand. The figures are principally, the war, buffalo, and corn dances. The Sac chief Ke-o-kuck executed a pas seul, presenting a spirited account of a war expedition, which he had himself conducted against the Sioux. The spectator having only a slight intimation of the subject, had yet presented distinctly to his mind the whole sfory in its vivid details. He saw the dis tance overcome, the mountains and streams passed, the scouts of the enemy slain, the crooked, stealthy approach, the ambush laid, the terrible whoop and onslaught, and the victory which followed as the crowning triumph of the warrior. Sometimes these Indian dances were followed by cotillions, to the music of a military band, in which the American officers mixed, as partners and instructors of the Indians. The Indian ladies were too modest to engage in these amusements, but graced the scene with their presence, and testified their en joyment by cheers and laughter. Meanwhile, a guard of grenadiers looked on with quiet delight martial music sent forth its melody, fireworks sent up their red light and gleamed against the evening sky, shells and rockets burst in the air, the distant hills returned the echo, and these were mingled with the shrill shrieks of Indian applause. Refreshments were handed round nearly in the manner of our cities. Thus the white and the red man, the son of the forest and the pupil of cities, the aboriginal and the Anglo-Saxon, were mingled to gether in social amusements with strong and singular con trast. The conferences and treaty which followed were of high importance, both to the Indians and the United States. Gov ernor Reynolds being an eminent lawyer and a high political functionary, was requested to take the lead in the councils. He, however, declining, it devolved on General Scott to con duct the discussions. His speeches, and those of the Indian orators were ably and promptly interpreted and taken down at the time, by the secretary to the commissioners, the late tal ented and accomplished Captain Richard Bache, of the army. By him they were deposited in the archives of the war depart - ment. NEGOTIATIONS WITH THE INDIANS. 79 The interviews with the deputations of the Sioux and Meno- monies were interesting, although merely incidental to the war, which was now about to be terminated. But with the con federacy to which Black-Hawk belonged, as also with the Winnebagoes, their accomplices, the negotiations and their results were at once grave and important. Scott opened the council with a speech to the Sacs and Foxes. He paid a just compliment to Ke-o-kuck and certain other chiefs, for their prudence and patriotism in preventing the larger body of their people from rushing into a war, which Black-Hawk madly expected, with twelve hundred warriors, to carry to the shores of the lakes and the Ohio ! He adverted to the fact, that the Mississippi was passed and the invasion commenced, without it being known to the government or people of the United States, that any serious cause of complaint existed on the part of their red brethren. He declaimed against the crime of violating a solemn treaty of friendship, such as had long existed between the parties ; against the murders and desolations committed upon defenceless and unoffending settlers. He complimented Brigadier-General Atkinson and his troops on their vigorous pursuit and final defeat of the lawless invaders ; recalled the pains which had been taken for weeks after the battle, to hunt up the wounded, the women and children, to save them from imminent starvation ; and the extraordinary care, seen and ad mired by all, which had been bestowed on those pitiable cap tives. He contrasted these acts of humanity with the cruelties perpetrated on the other side ; and took care that the great superiority of Christianity and civilization should be perceived and felt by all who heard him. He next turned to the question of settlement, under the in- structions received by the commissioners, stated the cost of the war to the United States to be more than a million of dollars ; and claimed the right of holding, without further price, any reasonable portion of the enemy's country, then in the power of the conquerors ; and after laying down the principle of in- demnity in its utmost rigor, he concluded " But, as the great God above, alike the Father of the white and red man, often deals mildly with his children, even when they have grossly 80 LIFE OF GENERAL SCOTT. sinned against his holy law and their own best interests, so would the people of the United States, in the fulness of their power, imitate the Divine example, and temper justice with mercy, in dealing with their feeble brethren of the forest." These discussions finally ended in the consummation of treaties with these tribes, which secured to the United States immensely valuable tracts of land, while it also secured to the Indians peace and protection. In his transactions with several tribes of Indians, Scott had the good fortune to be regarded by them as a friend and a brother. He has since, in the East, been visited by both Ke- o-kuck and Black-Hawk ; and more recently, (in 1839,) has been most kindly received by the Winnebagoes, at their own homes in Wisconsin. In allusion to these transactions with the Indians, and to his generous services in ameliorating the horrors and sufferings produced by the cholera, the Secretary of War, General Cass, said, in reply to Scott's final report : " Allow me to congratulate you, sir, upon this fortunate con summation of your arduous duties, and to express my entire approbation of the whole course of your proceedings, during a series of difficulties requiring higher moral courage than the operations of an active campaign, under ordinary circumstan ces." The assertion of the secretary was entirely correct ; for there have not been wanting those who had defied, in the high hope of glory, all the death-dealing agents of the bloody battle : and yet, as if terror-stricken by some invisible power, have quietly sunk under the fears of pestilence. Those who knew best, have testified in this as in other actions, not only to the moral courage, but to that invaluable trait of character, a sa gacious presence of mind, in General Scott, which has borne him successfully through all the varied scenes of danger, of enterprise, and of high intellectual demand, either moral or physical, into which his active life has led him. NULLIFICATION IN SOUTH CAROLINA. 81 GENERAL SCOTT'S AGENCY. IN SUPPRESSING NULLIFICATION IN SOUTH CAROLINA. GENERAL SCOTT had scarcely returned from the scenes of Indian wars and Indian treaties in the West, when he was called to mingle in others on the Southern border, which threatened far more danger to the peace and safety of the American Union. He arrived at New York in October, 1832,, and had been with his family but a day or two, when he was ordered to Washington to receive a new mission and a new trust. After a conference with the president and cabinet, on the difficulties which had arisen in South Carolina, he was dispatched in that direction on a business of the greatest deli cacy and importance, and with powers requiring the exercise of the highest discretion. This difficulty was the attempt to nullify the revenue laws of the United States, by the action of a single state, South Caro lina. This theory, and the events which followed its assertion in that state, are commonly called " nullification." It is un necessary here to discuss any of the opinions held by various men and parties in the questions connected with a tariff of rev enue duties, or with the reserved rights of the states. It is necessary, however, to give the reader a candid statement of the facts and events in this singular portion of American his tory, in order that the precise situation of the country, when General Scott arrived at Charleston, its internal dangers, and the part he had in quieting those difficulties, may be fairly understood. In this, there is no need of inquiring into motives, and little chance of error ; for the parts of the several actors were performed in public, recorded by the public press, and sent upon the winds by the voices of a thousand witnesses. It was not so, however, with the part of General Scott ; for his duties were confidential. They were required to be performed with silence and delicacy. Hence, however much might de pend upon his discretion, the mere fact of its exercise afforded little that was tangible and expressive to the pen of history. Yet we shall see, that his position and conduct there exercised 4* 82 LIFE OP GENERAL SCOTT. a controlling influence over the event, and contributed mainly to the peaceful termination of the controversy. The excitement which terminated in what was called " nul lification," commenced in consequence of the passage of the tariff act of 1828. That act raised the revenue duties levied on the importation of foreign goods higher than any previous revenue act of the United States. It was passed avowedly for the protection of American industry. It was resisted by nearly all the representatives of the cotton-planting states, on the ground that it was injurious to their interests and contrary to the Constitution of the United States. They argued, that the greater the duties, the less the importations ; and that the less the importations, the less would be the exportations ; because foreign nations would have less ability to purchase. They deemed it unconstitutional, because they said it was unequal taxation. This was the substance of the argument by which a majority of the citizens of South Carolina arrived at a belief, that the tariff act was both injurious to them, and unconstitutional. On this belief, they proceeded to resist the act by public meetings and inflammatory resolves, and finally to advance and carry out the doctrines of nullification. The tariff act of 1828 was passed on the 15th of May of that year, and from that time henceforward for more than four years, a continual excitement was kept up in the extreme southern states, especially South Carolina and Georgia. In South Caro lina, however, the most ultra measures were proposed, and there the question was brought to a direct issue, and bloodshed even, only averted by the great caution of the public officers, and the milder temperament of Congress. The following address to the people of South Carolina, ex hibits the temppT of the public mind at that time. " What course is left us to pursue ? If we have the com mon pride of men, or the determination of freemen, we must resist the imposition of this tariff. We stand committed. To be stationary is impossible. We must either retrograde in dis honor and in shame, and receive the contempt and scorn of our brethren superadded to our wrongs, and their system of op- NULLIFICATION IN SOUTH CAROLINA. 83 pression strengthened by our toleration ; or we must ' by op posing, end them.' " In advising an attitude of open resistance to the laws of the Union, we deem it due to the occasion, and that we may not be misunderstood, distinctly but briefly to state, without argu ment, our constitutional faith. For it is not enough that im posts laid for the protection of domestic manufactures are oppressive, and transfer in their operation millions of our property to northern capitalists. If we have given our bond, let them take our blood. Those who resist these imposts must deem them unconstitutional, and the principle is abandoned by the payment of one cent as much as ten millions." Such were the strains by which South Carolina was called to believe herself deeply injured, her feelings outraged, and her rights violated. "But how," says the orator, "are we to interpose for the purpose of arresting the progress of the evil ?" To this he replies "A nullification, then, of the unauthorized act is the rightful remedy." Mr. JOHN C. CALHOUN, in a letter dated " Fort Hill, 30th of July, 1832," declared that nullification was a peaceful remedy, and necessary to the preservation of other powers. " The ungrounded fear," said he, " that the right of a state to interpose in order to protect her reserved powers against the encroachments of the general government, would lead to dis union, is rapidly vanishing, and as it disappears, it will be seen that so far from endangering, the right is essential to the preservation of our system, as essential as the right of suffrage itself. " Thus thinking, I have entire confidence that the time will come, when our doctrine, which has been so freely denounced as traitorous and rebellious, will be hailed as being the great conservative principle of our admirable system of government, and when those who have so firmly maintained it under so many trials, will be ranked among the great benefactors of the country." The doctrine of "state interposition" against the general government, is here defended as an essential right, and the future approbation of the people confidently expected. 84 LIFE OF GENERAL SCOTT. To understand the exact state of things in South Carolina, at that time, and the conflict likely to ensue between the ma- jority in the state supporting nullification by the state power, and the general government executing the laws, with a mi nority in South Carolina supporting it, we must review two or three other important movements. The doctrines of Mr. McDuffie, Major Hamilton, Mr. Cal- houn, and other leaders of the nullification party, were as strongly opposed by other distinguished men in South Carolina. JUDGE SMITH, formerly United States Senator, in an address to the people of Spartanburgh district, thus writes " To say you can resist the general government, and remain in the Union, and be at peace, is a perfect delusion, calculated only to hoodwink an honest community, until they shall have ad vanced too far to retrace their steps ; which they must do, and do with disgrace and humiliation, or enter upon a bloody con flict with the general government. For the general govern ment cannot bow its sovereignty to the mandates of South Carolina, while the Union is worth preserving. And be as sured, it will not bow to the mandate of any state, while the sovereign people believe that a confederated government is calculated to promote their peace, their honor, and their safety." It is seen that the political ideas inculcated in the extract last quoted, are directly opposed to those stated in the former extract from the letter of Mr. Calhoun. The latter assumes the supremacy of the UNION, the former that of the STATE, under the name of state interposition. Hence, in the contro versy which ensued, the party of the majority was known as the nullification party, and that of the minority as the Union party. The controversy between the two parties in South Carolina was even more excited than that between the state and the general government. This was the condition of things when, in October, 1832, the legislature passed an act providing for the " calling of a convention of the people" of that state. The object of this convention in the terms of the act, was " to take into consideration the several acts of the Congress of the United States, imposing duties on foreign im ports for the protection of domestic manufactures, or for other NULLIFICATION IN SOUTH CAROLINA. 85 unauthorized objects ; to determine on the character thereof, and to devise the means of redress.''' The convention elected according to this statute, assembled at Columbia, the seat of government, on the 19th of November, 1832. The convention being assembled, enacted an " ordi nance," whose title was " to provide for arresting the operation of certain acts of the Congress of the United States, purporting to be taxes laying duties and imposts on the importation of for eign commodities." On the final passage of the ordinance the word " nullify" was substituted for " arresting." This ordinance assumed to nullify the laws of the United States, to prevent the operation of the courts, and finally, to place all officers under oath to obey only the ordinance, and the laws made to give it effect. The 2d section pronounced the tariff acts of 1829 and 1832 " null, void, and no law, nor binding upon the state, its officers, or citizens." The 3d section declared it unlawful " for any of the consti tuted authorities, whether of the state or the United States, to enforce payment of the duties imposed by said acts, within the limits of the state." The 4th section ordered that no case of law or equity deci ded in that state, wherein was drawn in question the validity of that ordinance, or of any act of the legislature passed to give it effect, should be appealed to the supreme court of the United States, or regarded if appealed. Section 5th required that every one who held an office of honor, trust, or profit, civil or military, should take an oath to obey only this ordinance, and the laws'of the legislature passed in consequence of it. The 6th section declared, that if the general government should employ force to carry into effect its laws, or endeavor to coerce the state by shutting up its ports, that South Carolina would consider the Union dissolved, and would " proceed to organize a separate government." This was the state of things in South Carolina, and in the Union, when, on the 10th of December, 1832, General Jackson 86 LIFE OF GENERAL SCOTT. issued his PROCLAMATION, exhorting all persons to obey the laws, denouncing the ordinance of South Carolina, and giving a very clear exposition of the principles and powers of the gen eral government. This proclamation was written with great ability, and coming from the most popular man in the United States, exercising the functions of chief magistrate, and taking part with that LOVE OF UNION which, in all times and all cir cumstances, has been an element in American character, the proclamation was universally read, and almost universally re ceived with approbation and applause. The legislature of South Carolina answered in an appeal to the people of that state. Just before this point in history, General Scott had been called, in the exercise of his military functions, to perform a part, not very conspicuous to the public eye, but most import ant in its consequences to the Union and the future welfare of the republic. What part that was will be shown by the unim peachable testimony of authentic facts. On the 18th of November, 1832, a confidential order was issued from the war department to General Scott. The order, after expressing the President's solicitude as to affairs in South Carolina, a hope from the intelligence of the people, and a fear lest some rash attempt should be made against the forts of the United States in the harbor of Charleston, proceeds to say : " The possibility of such a measure furnishes sufficient rea son for guarding against it, and the President is therefore anx ious that the situation and means of defence of these fortifica tions, should be inspected by an officer of experience, who could also estimate and provide for any dangers to which they may be exposed. He *has full confidence in your judgment and discretion, and it is his wish that you repair immediately to Charleston, and examine every thing connected with the fortifications. You are at liberty to take such measures, either by strengthening these defences, or by reinforcing these gar risons with troops drawn from any other posts, as you may think prudence and a just precaution require. " Your duty will be one of great importance, and of great delicacy. You will consult fully and freely with the collector NULLIFICATION IN SOUTH CAROLINA. 87 of the port of Charleston, and with the district attorney of South Carolina, and you will take no step, except what relates to the immediate defence and security of the posts, without their order and concurrence. The execution of the laws will be enforced through the civil authority, and by the mode pointed out by the acts of Congress. Should, unfortunately, a crisis arise, when the ordinary power in the hands of the civil officers shall not be sufficient for this purpose, the President shall de termine the course to be taken and the measures adopted. Till, therefore, you are otherwise instructed, you will act in obedi ence to the legal requisitions of the proper civil officers of the United States. " I will thank you to communicate to me, freely and con fidentially, upon every topic on which you may deem it im portant for the government to receive information. " Very respectfully, Your obedient servant, LEWIS CASS." " Major-General Winfield Scott." General Scott arrived in Charleston on the 28th of Novem ber, just two days after the passage of the ordinance. All was excitement. He found the people of Charleston divided into two parties, nearly equal in point of numbers, and each exas perated towards the other. It was as important that he should not, by his presence or his acts, increase the excitement of the public mind, already too much inflamed, thus precipitating rash measures on the part of South Carolina, as it was that, in the last resort, he should maintain the supremacy of the laws held to be consti tutional by every department of the federal government, and alike binding on all the states. This duty he was resolved to execute at every hazard to himself, but with all possible cour tesy and kindness compatible with that paramount object. In this, his heart's warm feeling was, that the disaffected might be soothed, and South Carolina held in affectionate harmony with her sister states. If history be not silent on the events which then occurred, 88 LIFE OF GENERAL SCOTT. or on the part taken by distinguished citizens of South Carolina, still less should it omit a just testimony to the forbearance and prudence of the general and troops of the United States em ployed in so delicate and dangerous a service. The officers and men of the army and navy bore themselves with the meekness and solemnity proper to so grave and un usual a duty. In no instance did they indulge in any display^ except on the 22d of February. Then rockets blazing through the skies, and guns sounding over the waters, told that, as Americans, they remembered and blessed the anniversary of that day, which gave birth to the FATHER OF THE COUNTRY AND THE UNION ! On Other occasions, every individual in that service, though firm in his allegiance and resolved to do his duty, evinced by his deportment how painful that duty might become. Scott gave both the precept and the example. Many officers, like himself, had frequent occasion to visit the city. Boats' crews were constantly pass ing and repassing. It was agreed among the officers, and en joined on the men, to give way to everybody, and not even to resent an indignity, should one be offered ; but to look on Caro linians as their fellow-countrymen, whom all were anxious to reclaim from an unhappy delusion. These rules of forbear ance were absolutely necessary, because any soldier or sailor, in a drunken rencounter, might have brought on all the evils of a bloody affray. Just at the period of the utmost anxiety > when all hearts were anxious lest the morrow should bring forth civil conflict, a fire was seen from Fort Moultrie, at twilight, rising from Charleston, rapidly spreading, and threatening the city with destruction. General Scott happened to be the first who per ceived the conflagration, and with great promptness called for volunteers to hasten to the assistance of the inhabitants. All the officers and men were eager for the service, and, with the exception of a mere guard, all were dispatched in boats and without arms, to subdue the new and dreadful enemy. Each detachment was directed to report itself to some city officer, and to ask for employment. A detached officer preceded to explain the object of this sudden intrusion. Captain Ringgold of 90 LIFE OF GENERAL SCOTT, the army, since promoted, and subsequently slain on the battle field of Palo Alto, who commanded a detachment, rushed up to the intendant, (mayor,) and begged to be put to work. A citizen standing by, at once claimed his assistance to save a sugar- refinery, then in imminent danger. "Do you hear that?" said Captain Ringgold to his men : " we will go to the death for the sugar!" This was in allusion to the famous threat of Governor Hamilton, in respect to his importation of that article, before the boxes had arrived, that " they would go to the death for the sugar." It may be added, that the detachment in stantly repaired to the spot, and the refinery was saved. Nor was the good-humored quotation lost on the hundreds who heard it. The navy was not behind the army in this act of neighborly kindness. Both were early at the scene of distress. And all, after distinguishing themselves for zeal and energy, returned as sober and as orderly as they went, notwithstanding refresh ments had been profusely handed round by the citizens. It is not extravagant to say, that this timely movement, so well conceived and so handsomely executed, overcame much of the excitement and prejudice existing against the United States, here represented by their soldiers and sailors. These men threw themselves, unexpected and unarmed, in the midst of a population strongly excited against them, and by saving a city from fire, powerfully contributed to save the Union from the greater horrors of civil war. The effect was immediate on the spot, and was soon spread to other parts of the state. It was one of those acts better adapted to sooth the asperities of feeling, than would have been any degree of courage, or suc cess, in the forcible maintenance of the law. At this distance of time, the part performed by Scott may not seem of great importance. But he who thinks so should recollect, that history is obliged to trace the greatest events oftentimes to very small causes ; and that such a part as Scott's at Charleston, though having neither the crimson glare of bat tle, nor the extraordinary skill of some artful act of diplomacy, may nevertheless have been the hinge of a crisis, and therefore more important than many battles. It is the handling of a NULLIFICATION IN SOUTH CAROLINA. 91 delicate subject which makes it difficult, far more than "the settlement of a question of exact right or wrong. Of the part which Scott bore in the pacification of the South, we shall here give the words of Mr. Watkins Leigh, of Vir ginia, who stood high in the confidence of all parties, whose evidence is unimpeachable, and who had ample opportunities of observing all that was done. He says "I was at Charleston when he (Scott) arrived and as sumed the command, which he did without any parade or fuss. No one who had not an opportunity of observing on the spot the excitement that existed, can have an adequate conception of the delicacy of the trust. General Scott had a large acquaint ance with the people of Charleston ; he was their friend ; but his situation was such that many, the great majority of them, looked upon him as a public enemy. What his orders were, I cannot undertake to tell you, nor have I any means of knowing but from his conduct, which, I take it for granted, conformed with them. He thought, as I thought, that the first drop of blood shed in civil war, in civil war between the United States and one of the states, would prove an immedicable wound, which would end in a change of our institutions. He was resolved, if it was possible, to prevent a resort to arms ; and nothing could have been more judicious than his conduct. Far from being prone to take offence, he kept his temper under the strictest guard, and was most careful to avoid giving occa sion for offence ; yet he held himself ready to act, if it should become necessary, and he let that be distinctly understood. He sought the society of the leading nullifiers, and was in their society as much as they would let him be, but he took care never to say a word to them on the subject of political differ ences ; he treated them as a friend. From the beginning to the end, his conduct was as conciliatory as it was firm and sincere, evincing that he knew his duty, and was resolved to perform it, and yet that his principal object and purpose was peace. He was perfectly successful, when the least impru dence might have resulted in a serious collision." We subjoin extracts from a letter from Major-General Scott to a distinguished leader and friend, a member of the South f 92 LIFE OF GENERAL SCOTT. Carolina Legislature, then in session at Columbia, in order to show the spirit and temper in which he discharged the delicate duties assigned him. ".Savannah, Dec. 14th, 1832. " MY DEAR SIR, " You have an excellent memory to re mind me, after so long an interval, of my promise to visit you when next on a tour to the South, and I owe you an apology for not earlier acknowledging your kind letter. It was handed to me just as I was about to leave Charleston, and I have been since too constantly in motion (to Augusta, and back here) to allow me to write. " As to the ' speculations' at Columbia relative to ' the object of my visit to Charleston at this moment,' I can only say, that I am on that very tour, and about the very time, mentioned by me when I last had the pleasure of seeing you. On what evil days we have fallen, my good friend, when so common-place an event gives rise to conjecture or speculation ! I can truly assure you, that no one has felt more wretched than your hum ble correspondent, since an unhappy controversy began to as sume a serious aspect. I have always entertained a high ad miration for the history and- character of South Carolina, and accident or good fortune has thrown me into intimacy, and even friendship, with almost every leader of the two parties which now divide and agitate the state. Would to God they were again united, as during the late war, when her federalists vied with the republicans in the career of patriotism and glory, and when her legislature came powerfully to the aid of the Union. Well, the majority among you have taken a stand, and those days of general harmony may never return. What an awful position for South Carolina, as well as for the other states! * * * * * * * * * "I cannot follow out the long, dark shades of the picture that presents itself to my fears. I will hope, nevertheless, for the best. But I turn my eyes back, and, good God ! what do I behold ? Impatient South Carolina could not wait she has taken a leap, and is already a foreign nation ; and the great NULLIFICATION IN SOUTH CAROLINA. 93 names of Washington, Franklin, Jefferson, and Greene, no longer compatriot with yours, or those of Laurens, Moultrie, Pinck- ney, and Marion with mine ! " But the evil, supposing the separation to have been peace able, would not stop there. When one member shall withdraw, the whole arch of the Union will tumble in. Out of the bro ken fragments new combinations will arise. We should proba bly have, instead of one, three confederacies -a northern, south ern, and western reunion ; and transmontane Virginia, your native country, not belonging to the South, but torn off by the general West. I turn with horror from the picture I have only sketched. I have said it is dark ; let but one drop of blood be spilt upon the canvass, and it becomes ' one red.' " ' Lands intersected by a narrow frith Abhor each other. Mountains interposed Make enemies of nations, which had else, Like kindred drops, been mingled into one.' " But you and my other South Carolina friends have taken your respective sides, and I must follow out mine. " You have probably heard of the arrival of two or three companies at Charleston in the last six weeks, and you may hear that as many more have followed. There is nothing in consistent with the President's message in these movements. The intention simply is, that the forts in the harbor shall not be wrested from the United States. I believe it is not appre hended that the state authorities contemplate any attack, at least in the present condition of things, on these posts ; but I know it has been feared that some unauthorized multitude, under sudden excitement, might attempt to seize them. The President, I presume, will stand on the defensive thinking it better to discourage than to invite an attack better to prevent than to repel one, in order to gain time for wisdom' and modera tion to exert themselves in the capitol at Washington, and in the state-house at Columbia. From humane considerations like these, the posts in question have been, and probably will be, slightly reinforced. I state what I partly know, and what I partly conjecture, in order that the case which I see is pro vided for in one of your bills, may not be supposed to have 94 LIFE OF GENERAL SCOTT. actually occurred. If I were possessed of an important secret of the government, my honor certainly would not allow me to disclose it ^ but there is in the foregoing neither secrecy nor deception. My ruling wish is, that neither party take a rash step, that might put all healing powers at defiance. It is, doubtless, merely intended to hold the posts for the present. A few companies are incapable of effecting any further object. The engineer, also, is going on, steadily, but slowly, in erect ing the new work on the site of Fort Johnson, (long since pro jected for the defence of the harbor,) the foundation of which is but just laid. When finished, some years hence, I trust it may long be regarded, both by South Carolina and the other states, as one of the bulwarks of our common coast. There is nothing in this letter intended to be confidential, nor intended for the public press. When I commenced it I only designed giving utterance to private sentiments, unconnected with public events ; but my heart being filled with grief on account of the latter, my pen has run a little into that distress. Let us, however, hope for more cheering times. Yet, be this as it may, and whether our duties be several or common, I shall always have a place in my bosom for the private affec tions, and that I may ever stand in the old relation to you, is the sincere wish of your friend, WINFIELD SCOTT." With this letter we close the narrative of one of the most critical periods of American history. It has not been written to add to, or take from, the merit, the errors, or the part, of any one of the actors in those scenes. History is fable when it is not just. It may be a picture of fancy made beautiful by the pencil of flattery, or deformed by the pen of scandal, but it cannot be history, when truth is not the writer and justice the witness of its record. The veil of confidence yet rests upon many of Scott's acts and letters of this period. FLORIDA WAR. 95 FLORIDA WAR. ON the llth August, 1835, the United States mail carrier who left Tampa, Florida, was murdered about six miles from that place. The mangled body of the carrier was thrown into a pond, and the mail carried off. The murderers, though not taken, were ascertained to be Indians. At first, this was sup posed to be only an isolated outrage. But it was soon discov ered that the Seminole tribe of Indians, then resident in Florida, united with a few individuals of the Creek tribe, had become discontented, and determined on opposition to the whites ; that able chiefs were exciting them, and that murmurs of injustice perpetrated by the people of the United States against them, and of an indignant resistance to it, were heard among the small but independent tribes of Florida. In about three months more, this resistance and muttered indignation burst forth, in depredations against property, in 'plantations ravaged, in dwell ings burnt, and in murders committed ; in fine, with the deso lations and Horrors of an Indian war. In return, they were told that they should be swept from the earth ; but, if they had the courage to die with arms in their hands, " the white man would not deny them the privilege of sleeping out their death- sleep on the soil upon which he cannot endure their living presence." OSCEOLA, or Powell, one of the head chiefs of the Seminoles, is represented as the principal instigator of the war, and one of the boldest warriors engaged in it. His father was a white man, and his mother a Creek Indian ; but, among the Indians, the men take rank generally from their mothers. Osceola was therefore known as a Creek. But, like Ke-o-kuck, he inherited no title or command. He was raised to distinction by superior talents, courage, and ambition. Before the war, he was proud, gloomy, and insolent ; but on one occasion, in a talk with the agent, (General Thompson,) he burst into a par oxysm of passion, declared the country was theirs, that they wanted no agent, and that he (General Thompson) had better be off. For this h? was arrested, and confined. Afterwards 96 LIFE OF GENERAL SCOTT. he assumed penitence, appeared cheerful, signed the treaty, and was released, with many fair promises. Subsequent events proved that this appearance was but the acting of a part. On the 20th of January, 1836, General Scott was ordered to the command of the army of Florida. He saw the Secretary at War at four o'clock on the afternoon of that day. Being asked when he could set out for Florida, he replied, " that night." His instructions, however, could not be drawn up till the following day. On the 21st, it appeared probable that many of the Creeks would join the Seminoles, and General Scott received orders to proceed immediately to the theatre of hostilities and assume the command. Having reached Picolata, on the St. John's River, Scott issued his general orders on the 22d of February. He formed the army into three divisions. The troops on the west of the St. John's, under the gal- lant General Clinch, Were to constitute the right wing of the army. Those on the east of that river, under Brigadier-Gen eral Eustis, the left ; while those at Tampa Bay, under Colo" nel Lindsay, were to form the centre. These tAops were to be reinforced by volunteers from the neighboring states. It was after the middle of March, when General Scott, having made all his arrangements for the three divisions of the army, and they having been joined by the volunteers, the col umns of Clinch, Eustis, and Lindsay, respectively moved to wards the Wythlacoochee, in order to meet in what was sup posed to be the heart of the Indian country. It was then con fidently believed that the great body of the Indians were in the swamp, about the junction of the Wythlacoochee. The troops, however, moved through the country, without finding any other enemy than separate parties of the Semi noles, who from time to time were met, and who fought fiercely in their retreat. All the battles and the plans which had pre ceded this expedition, had evidently failed of either breaking the spirit of the Indians, or even of tracing them to their coverts and towns. The columns of Scott moved through the country which had been the scene of Dade's massacre, and of the battles with Clinch and Gaines, without having discovered the retreats FLORIDA WAR. 97 of the Indians, and, in fact, without having met any large body of them. On the 5th of April all the divisions of the army had arrived at Tampa Bay. Their arrival was hastened by both sickness and hunger. It had been found impossible to carry a large supply of provisions through a country where the men alone could scarcely advance, where horses were continually failing, and where climate rendered it dangerous to expose the men to unusual fatigue. Each had in turn hastened to Tampa. The expedition having failed in its main object the discovery and breaking up of the enemy's main or central stronghold Gen- eral Scott determined to scour the country with small detach ments and corps, in order, if possible, to uncover the Indian retreats. Five different corps were employed in this way. One was led by Scott himself, which, passing the battle-ground of Dade, crossed the Ocklewaha, and finally ascended in a steamboat from Volusia up the St. John's River. Another corps moved under the command of Clinch ; another under Eustis ; another under Colonel Smith, up Peas Creek ; a fifth moved under Major Reed, up the Wythlacoochee from its mouth ; and a sixth was commanded by Colonel Lindsay. None of these parties, however, met with any more important events than encountering small bodies of the enemy, and occasional skirmishes. When this campaign, whose entire period was scarcely one month, had terminated, the troops had already been attacked with severe sickness ; near four hundred were in the hospitals ; the provisions were totally inadequate to proceed farther, and for the first time it had been fully discovered, and proved, that the enemy to be pursued was lodged literally in wildernesses and swamps, to which the feet of civilized men had scarcely ever penetrated, and which were inaccessible to the common methods of approach by regular troops. Notwithstanding these facts, it is not very surprising, that many of the inhabit ants of Florida on the exposed frontier were alarmed, and freely censured the general, who, however brave, zealous, or inde fatigable, had nevertheless been unable to conquer the laws of nature, or resist the approaches of disease. 5 98 LIFE OF GENERAL SCOTT. On the 9th of July, General Scott gave up the command of the army, having been ordered to Washington under extraordi nary circumstances. He immediately obeyed the order, proceeded to Washington, and demanded a court of inquiry. On the 3d of October a court, composed of Major-General Macomb, and Brigadier- Generals Atkinson and Brady, was directed to assemble at Frederick, in Maryland, and to inquire into the conduct of General Scott, in the Florida and Creek campaigns. The decision of the court of inquiry was entirely in favor of General Scott. " The court, after a careful review of the great mass of tes timony taken in the foregoing investigation, (the Florida cam paign,) finds that Major-General Scott was amply clothed with authority to create the means of prosecuting the Seminole war to a successful issue ; but is of opinion that, at the time he was invested with the command, the season was too far advanced for him to collect, appoint, and put in motion his forces, until a day too late to accomplish the object. It appears that after using great diligence and energy, he was not in a condition to take the field and enter the enemy's strongholds before the 28th of March, and then without sufficient means for transporting the necessary supplies to enable him to remain there long enough to seek out the scattered forces of the enemy. " The court, therefore, ascribe the failure of the campaign to the want of time to operate, the insalubrity of the climate after the middle of April, the impervious swamps and ham mocks that abound in the country then occupied by the enemy, affording him cover and retreat at every step, and absence of all knowledge, by the general or any part of his forces, of the topography of the country, together with the difficulty of obtain ing, in time, the means of transporting supplies for the army. "The court is further of opinion, from the testimony of many officers of rank and intelligence who served in the cam paign, that Major-General Scott was zealous and indefatigable in the discharge of his duties, and that his plan of campaign was well devised, and prosecuted with energy, steadiness, and ability." FLORIDA WAR. 99 On the other charge, which was tried at the same time, of delay in opening and prosecuting the Creek campaign in 1836, the opinion of the court was as follows, viz : " Upon a careful examination of the abundant testimony taken in the foregoing case, the court is of opinion that no de lay, which it was practicable to have avoided, was made by Major-General Scott in opening the campaign against the Creek Indians. On the contrary, it appears that he took the earliest measures to provide arms, munitions, and provisions for his forces, who were found almost wholly destitute ; and as soon as arms could be put into the hands of the volunteers, they were, in succession, detached and placed in positions to prevent the enemy from retiring upon Florida, whence they could move against the main body of the enemy, as soon as equipped for offensive operations. " From the testimony of the Governor of Georgia, of Major- General Sanford, commander of the Georgia volunteers, and many other witnesses of high rank and standing who were acquainted with the topography of the country, and the position and strength of the enemy, the court is of opinion that the plan of campaign adopted by General Scott was well calculated to lead to successful results, and that it was prosecuted by him, as far as practicable, with zeal and ability, until recalled from the command." Such was the strong testimony which the court and the wit nesses bore to General Scott's zealous and 'judicious arrange ments in the campaigns of the south. At this time, looking back upon t.he events of those campaigns, with a clearer vision than could then be fixed on a cotemporaneous field of action, the truth and the justice of this judicial opinion are both mani fest and demonstrable. In the year 1837, when the House of Representatives was engaged in one of those debates on various and miscellaneous topics, which grow out of the management of public affairs, thf Hon. Richard Biddle, of Pennsylvania, took occasion to speak of General Scott, in connection with the Florida campaigns. Mr. Biddle said : " It would be recollected bv all, that after the war in Florida 100 LIFE OF GENERAL SCOTT. had assumed a formidable aspect, Major-General Scott was called to the command. An officer of his rank and standing was not likely to seek a service in which, amidst infinite toil and vexation, there would be no opportunity for the display of military talent on a scale at all commensurate with that in which his past fame had been acquired. Yet he entered on it with the alacrity, zeal, and devotion to duty by which he has ever been distinguished. "And here (Mr. B. said) he might be permitted to advert to the past history of this officer. " Sir, when the late General Brown, writing from the field of Chippewa, said that General Scott merited the highest praises which a grateful country could bestow, was there a single bosom throughout this wide republic that did not respond to the sentiment? I for one, at least, can never forget the thrill of enthusiasm, boy as I then was, which mingled with my own devout thankfulness to God, that the cloud which seemed to have settled on our arms was at length dispelled. On that plain it was established that Americans could be trained to meet and to beat, in the open field, without breastworks, the regulars of Britain. ********** " Sir, the result of that day was due not merely to the gal lantry of General Scott upon the field. It must in part be ascribed to the patient, anxious, and indefatigable drudgery, the consummate skill as a tactician, with which he had labored, night and day, at the camp near Buffalo, to prepare his brigade for the career on which it was about to enter. " After a brief interval he again led that brigade to the glo rious victory of Bridgewater. He bears now upon his body the wounds of that day. " It had ever been the characteristic of this officer to seek the post of danger, not to have it thrust upon him. In the years preceding that to which I have specially referred in 1812 and 1813 the eminent services he rendered were in positions which properly belonged to others, but into which he was led by irrepressible ardor and jealousy of honor. " Since the peace with Great Britain, the talents of General FLORIDA WAR. 101 Scott have ever been at the command of his country. His pen and his sword have alike been put in requisition to meet the varied exigencies of the service. " When the difficulties with the western Indians swelled up into importance, General Scott was dispatched to the scene of hostility. There rose up before him then, in the ravages of a frightful pestilence, a form of danger infinitely more appalling than the perils of the field. How he bore himself in this emergency how faithfully he became the nurse and the phy sician of those from whom terror and loathing had driven all other aid, cannot be forgotten by a just and grateful country.'' Mr. Biddle then continued in a defence of the conduct of General Scott in the Florida and Alabama campaigns, con cluding with the following eloquent peroration : " Mr. Chairman, I believe that a signal atonement to Gen eral Scott will, one day, be extorted from the justice of this House. We owe it to him ; but we owe it still more to the country. What officer can feel secure in the face of that great example of triumphant injustice ? Who can place before him self the anticipation of establishing higher claims upon the gratitude of the country than General Scott ? Yet he was sac rificed. His past services went for nothing. Sir, you may raise new regiments, and issue new commissions, but you can not, without such atonement, restore the high moral tone which befits the depositaries of the national honor. T fondly wish that the highest and the lowest in the country's service might be taught to regard this House as the jealous guardian of his rights, against caprice, or favoritism, or outrage, from whatever quarter. I would have him know that, in running up the national flag, at the very moment our daily labors commence, we do not go through an idle form. On whatever distant ser vice he may be sent whether urging his way amidst tumbling icebergs, towards the pole, or fainting in the unwholesome heats of Florida I would enable him, as he looks up to that flag, to gather hope and strength. It should impart to him a proud feeling of confidence and security. He should know that the same emblem of majesty and justice floats over the councils of the nation : and that in its untarnished lustre we 102 LIFE OF GENERAL SCOTT. have all a common interest and a common sympathy. Then, sir, and not before, will you have an army or a navy worthy to sustain and to perpetuate the glory of former days." SCOTT'S AGENCY IN QUELLING THE TROUBLES ON THE NIAGARA FRONTIER. IN the year 1837, Canada, which continues, in spite of the republican influences of the United States, under the govern ment of Great Britain, became the scene of great political excitement, and of warm resistance to the measures of its administration. Towards the close of that year insurgent movements broke out among the French population of the lower province, and the spirit of revolt was spread among the disaffected of Upper Canada. The border population of all nations take great interest in what occurs beyond the boundary line, and are disposed either to invade or sympathize with their neighbors, according to the events by which they are excited. When, therefore, the flame of insurrection was kindled in Canada, it was not arrested by a mere line of jurisdiction. It reached and agitated the frontier inhabitants of the United States, along the entire border from the hills of Vermont to the Huron of the northwest. On this frontier, the citizens enrolled themselves as Canada patriots or sympathizers, until, perhaps, one fourth of all the inhabitants capable of bearing arms were professed friends and abe/ttors of the Canada movement. Itiner ant refugees were seen everywhere organizing their friends, with a view to descents upon the Canadas. Thousands and thou sands met in lodges all along the border, oaths of secrecy were administered, principal leaders appointed, generals and staff- officers chosen, and, at least for Upper Canada, a provisional government formed. The President of the United States issued his proclamation enjoining all good citizens to observe the strictest neutrality towards the British provinces. It had but little effect. The arms in the hands of the citizens, and even those in the BURNING OF THE CAROLINE. 103 state arsenals within reach of the borders, were soon seized or purloined, thus affording equipments to the American Canada patriots. At length, a Mr. Van Rensselaer, with some hun dreds of followers, crossed from Schlosser, {a mile and a half above Niagara Falls,) and took possession of Navy Island, a small uninhabited spot within the British line, but near to our shore. At this time there could be little hope of going further, for the only outbreak in the opposite province had been crushed in a moment by the very people to whom it was pro posed to give independence and freedom. At this time also, besides some regular troops, seventeen-twentieths of the pro vincial militia were firm in their loyalty, well organized, well armed, and commanded by regular officers. This idle invasion, though unimportant to the Canadas, was not without consequences in history. It was followed by a very serious incident, which excited deep feeling in the United States, and was the subject of much diplomatic correspondence. Van Rensselaer, we have said, was stationed with a scanty and ill-provided band at Navy Island. Schlosser, as above stated, was a point on the American shore just opposite. A small steamer called the Caroline was engaged by Van Rens selaer to act as a ferry-boat between these two points. The very first night the Caroline commenced her voyages, the British fitted out an expedition from the opposite point, Chip- pewa. Instead of directing their attack, as they might have done, against Navy Island, within their own territory, and which they would probably have captured, they chose to violate our territory, by boarding the unarmed steamer fastened to the wharf at Schlosser. She happened to be full of idle people, including boys unconnected with Van Rensselaer, who had been attracted to the frontier by the rumor of war, and who had simply begged a night's lodgings. One citizen was killed, and several others wounded. The boat was cut loose, set on fire, and sent over the cataract, as was reported, and long believed by many, with several wounded Americans on board. When this occurred, a flame of excitement rose up throughout the interior of the United States. The sentiment of patriotism and the feeling of revenge were frequently mingled together. 104 LIFE OF GENERAL SCOTT. Orderly citizens seized upon the arms nearest at hand, and flocked to the frontier. Their numbers increased, and the peace of this country, and perhaps of all other civilized nations, was threatened, by the act of outrage committed on the Caro line. That vessel was destroyed December 29th, 1837. The news reached Washington January 4th. General Scott hap pened to be there. A cabinet council was called, and Scott was told that blood had been shed, and he must hasten to the frontier. Full powers were given him to call for militia, to put himself in communication with the United States district attorneys, marshals, and collectors, in order through them to enforce the act of neutrality, the good faith pledged to Great Britain by treaty, and, in short, to defend our own territory, if necessary, against invasion, or to maintain peace throughout the borders. No regular troops were at hand. All had been withdrawn for the Florida war. He had ordered up, in passing New York, small parties of unattached army recruits, and at Albany invited the able and patriotic governor (Marcy) to accompany him to the Niagara. The presence of the governor was highly valuable during the few days that he could remain. Being on the spot, he was ready to supply any number of volunteers, on the requisition of Scott, as they might be needed ; for it was not known that the violation of our territory at Schlosser might not be followed up by other outrages of the same kind. During the winter of 1838 and that of 1838-9, he was busy in exercising his influence for peace, and in quieting our dis turbed frontier. The troops, both regulars and volunteers, proved to be steady supporters of law and order, and were held everywhere ready, as posses, at the call of the United States marshals and collectors. Scott posted himself nowhere, but was by turns rapidlj everywhere, and always in the midst of the greater difficulties. In these winter campaigns against the trespassers of the bor ders, he passed frequently along the frontier, sometimes on the Detroit and sometimes on the north line of Vermont. His TREATIES BINDING ON EACH CITIZEN. 105 journeyings were made by land, and principally in the night ; oftentimes with the cold from ten to twenty degrees below the freezing point. Daylight he chiefly employed in organizing the means of counteraction by an extensive correspondence and the labors of direct pacification. He obtained, and pressed upon district attorneys, marshals, and collectors, information of the designs and movements of the patriots, and tendered to those civil functionaries the aid of the troops. In performance of his duty as a peacemaker, he addressed, on a line of eight hundred miles, immense gatherings of citizens, principally organized sympathizers, who had their arms at hand. In these addresses he declaimed with fervor, and they were often received with the loud applause of the audience. He handled every topic which could inspire shame in misdoers, or excite pride in the friends of the government and country. His speeches were made with popular illustrations and allusions, and addressed both to the knowledge and the sentiment of the people. He reminded them of the nature of a republic, which can have no foundation of permanency except in the general intelligence, virtue, respect, and obedience of its people ; that if, in the attempt to force on our unwilling neighbors inde pendence and free institutions, we had first to spurn and trample under foot treaty stipulations and laws made by our own repre sentatives, we should greatly hazard free institutions at home in the confidence and respect of our own people ; that no gov ernment can or ought to exist for a moment after losing the power of executing its obligations to foreign countries, and of enforcing its own laws at home ; that that power depended in a republic chiefly on the people themselves ; that we had a treaty with England, binding us to the strictest observance of amity, or all the duties of good neighborhood with adjoining provinces, and also an act of Congress for enforcing those sol. emn obligations ; that the treaty and the laws were as binding on the honor and the conscience of every American freeman, as if he had specially voted for each ; that this doctrine was of the very essence of a civilized republic, as the neglect of it could not fail to sink us into anarchy, barbarism, and universal contempt ; that an aggressive war, waged by a part of the 5* 106 LIFE OF GENERAL SCOTT. community, without just cause and without preparation, as is common among barbarian tribes, necessarily drags the non- consenting many along with the madness of the few, involving all alike in crime, disaster, and disgrace ; that a war, to be successful, must be very differently commenced ; and in these addresses he would often conclude : " Fellow-citizens, and I thank God, we have a common government as well as a common origin, I stand before you without troops and without arms, save the blade by my side. I am, therefore, within your power. Some of you have known me in other scenes, and all of you know that I am ready to do what my country and what duty demands. I tell you, then, except it be over my body, you shall not pass this line you shall not embark. ;: But the inquiry was everywhere heard, " What say you of the burning of the Caroline, and the murder of citizens at our own shore ?" In reply to these questions, General Scott always frankly admitted that these acts constituted a national outrage, and that they called for explanation and satisfaction ; but that this whole subject was in the hands of the President, the official organ of the country, specially chosen by the people for national pur poses ; that there was no doubt the President would make the proper demand, and failing to obtain satisfaction, would lay the whole matter before Congress the representative of the public will, and next to the people, the tribunal before which the ultimate appeal must be made. These harangues were applauded, and were generally very successful. Masses of patriots broke off and returned to their respective homes, declaring, that if Scott had been accompanied by an army they would not have listened, but persevered. The friends of order were also encouraged to come out in support of authority, and at length peace and quiet were restored. In the mean while, one of those incidents occurred which make history dramatic, and which illustrate how much depends on individual men arid single events. Many days- after the destruction of the " Caroline," another steamer, the " Barcelona," was cut out of the ice in Buffalo harbor, (Janu ary, 1838,) and taken down the Niagara river, to be offered, THE BARCELONA COMES UP THE RIVER. 107 as was known, to the patriots, who were still on Navy Island. "Scott wished to compel them to abandon their criminal enter prise. He also desired to have them, on returning within our jurisdiction, arrested by the marshal, who was always with him. For this purpose, he sent an agent to hire the Barcelona for the service of the United States, before the patriots could get the means to pay for her, or find sureties to indemnify the owners in case of capture or destruction by the British. He succeeded in all these objects. The Barcelona proceeded back to Buffalo, where Scott had immediate use for her on Lake Erie, yet navigable in all its length. The authorities on the Canada side tfere on the alert to destroy her. As the Barcelona slowly ascended against the current on our side of Grand Island, (belonging to the United States.) three armed British schooners, besides batteries on the land, were in positions, as the day before, to sink her as she came out from behind that island. On the 16th of January, Scott and Governor Marcy stood on the American shore opposite that point, watching events. The smoke of the approaching boat could be seen in the distance, and the purpose of the British was perfectly evident in all their movements. The batteries on our side were promptly put in position. The matches were lighted. All was ready to return the British fire. There was a crisis ! The day before this, when it was supposed the Navy Island people were coming up the same channel in other craft, and before it was known that the Barcelona had accepted his offered engagement, Scott wrote on his knee, and dispatched by an aid-de-camp, the following note. " To the Commanding Officer of the Armed British Vessels in the Niagara. " Head-quarters, Eastern Division U. ) S. Army, two miles below Black > Rock, January 15th, 1838. ) " Sir With his Excellency the Governor of New York, who has troops at hand, we are here to enforce the neutrality of the 108 LIFE OF GENERAL SCOTT. United States, and to protect our own soil or waters from viola tion. The proper civil officers are also present to arrest, if practicable, the leaders of the expedition on foot against Upper Canada. " Under these circumstances, it gives me pain to perceive the armed vessels, mentioned, anchored in our waters, with the probable intention to fire upon that expedition moving in the- same waters. " Unless the expedition should first attack in which case we shall interfere we shall be obliged to consider a discharge of shot or shell from or into our waters, from the armed schoon ers of her Majesty, as an act seriously comprorhiting the neu trality of the two nations. I hope, therefore, that no such unpleasant incident may occur. " I have the honor to remain, &c., &c. WINFIELD SCOTT." The same intimation was repeated and explained the next morning, January 16th, to a captain of the British army, who had occasion to wait upon Scott on other business, and who immediately returned. It was just then that the Barcelona moved up the current of the Niagara. The cannon on either shore were pointed, the matches lighted, and thousands stood in suspense. On the jutting pier of Black Rock, in view of all, stood the tall form of Scott, in full uniform, watching the approaching boat. On Scott's note and his personal assurances, alone depended the question of PEACE OR WAR. Happily, these assurances had their just effect. The Barcelona passed along. The British did not fire. The matches were extinguished ; the two nations, guided by wise counsels, resumed their usual way ; and war's wild alarms were hushed into the whispers of peace. Small a place as this incident may occupy in history, it was a critical moment in the affairs of nations. Had one British gun been fired, and much more, had the Barcelona been de stroyed, no authority or influence would have restrained our excited population. We should probably have had an unpre meditated war ; one of those calamities which nations have to 110 LIFE OF GENERAL SCOTT. endure for their sins, and which is without the consoling and self-supporting consciousness of a great moral right. It would have been war from an incident, and not a national controversy. War may be justified on moral grounds, when the thing in dispute is of small physical magnitude, but there must be a question of right at the bottom. Such was the case when Scott, on this same Niagara frontier, had, by glorious achievement, mingled his fame with the eternal voices of its cataract. Then, he was contending for those rights of man and of citizenship without which a nation could neither be independent, nor respect itself, nor be respected by the nations of the earth. Now, the dictate of right was peace, a peace which should leave the people of Great Britain and its colonies to settle their own domestic government in their own way, while our citizens were left undisturbed in their rights, and our shores untouched by the hand of aggression. Soon after this time, General Scott passed through Albany, when the legislature was in session, and received the attentions of a large number of public men and other citizens, without distinction of party. A public supper was given him, princi pally by members of the legislature, at which the lieutenant'- governor presided, and Governor Marcy was a guest. All vied in expressions of respect for, and confidence in, the gallant officer whom they had assembled to welcome to the capital. Among the toasts given on this occasion, maybe cited the following, as characteristic of the prevailing tone and spirit " WINFIELD SCOTT not less the scholar than the soldier, whose pen and sword have been wielded with equal skill in the defence of his country." " THE SOLDIER who has ever made the law of the land his supreme rule of action, and who, while he has always fulfilled its utmost requirements, has never, in a single instance, tran scended. its limits." " OUR GUEST the invincible champion of our rights, the triumphant vindicator of our laws." A similar entertainment was given on the following evening at another hotel, the Honorable Gulian C. Verplanck presiding. The feelings and confidence of his fellow-citizens were thus, SCOIT SENT TO THE CHEROKEE COUNTRY. Ill in various ways and in numerous quarters, manifested towards the man who was not merely a soldier, nor only a leader, but who was the servant of the laws, a faithful citizen, and the pacificator of troubled communities. SCOTT'S LABORS IN REMOVING THE CHEROKEES. FOR more than ten years, extending from 1828 to 1838, a controversy was maintained, in various forms, between the state of Georgia and the Cherokee tribe of Indians, most of whom were residents of Georgia, and between the United States and each of those parties. The subject of this controversy was the lands belonging to the Cherokees in the state of Georgia. As the white settlements advanced, the Indians were gradually enclosed. They had become cultivators of the soil. They held good farms. They had a yet greater attraction, in the discovery of gold within their territory that shining object, which had added new energy to the enterprise of settling the Western World, when as yet the ocean was a trackless waste, and the land an unsubdued wild. It is not surprising that these attractions were enough to allure the desires of the whites, and occasion efforts to drive the Indians from their lands. The only question was the justice of the means used to attain the end. On the 10th of April, 1838, General Scott received orders to take the command of the troops dispatched to the Cherokee country, and to assume the general direction of affairs in that quarter. Having concerted measures with the war department for the removal of the Cherokees, and for the protection of the neighboring citizens, he entered upon his painful field of labor with that conscientiousness, and that high regard to duty, which forms a distinguished characteristic of his public as well as private acts. On the 10th of May he issued an address to the Cherokee nation, having, two days before, reached the Cherokee agency in Tennessee. ADDRESS TO THE CHEROKEES. 113 Address. " Cherokees The President of the United States has sent me, with a powerful army, to cause you, in obedience to the treaty of 1835, to join that part of your people who are already established in prosperity on the other side of the Mississippi. Unhappily, the two years which were allowed for the purpose, you have suffered to pass away without following, and without making any preparation to follow, and now, or by the time that this solemn address shall reach your distant settlements, the emigration must be commenced in haste, but, I hope, without disorder. I have no power, by granting a farther delay, to correct the error that you have committed. The full moon of May is already on the wane, and before another shall have passed away, every Cherokee man, woman, and child, in those states, must be in motion to join their brethren in the far West. " My friends This is no sudden determination on the part of the President, whom you and I must now obey. By the treaty, the emigration was to have been completed on or before the 23d of this month, and the President has constantly kept you warned, during the two years allowed, through all his officers and agents in this country, that the treaty would be enforced. " I am come to carry out that determination. My troop? already occupy many positions in the country that you are to abandon, and thousands and thousands are approaching from every quarter, to render resistance and escape alike hopeless. All those troops, regular and militia, are your friends. Re ceive them and confide in them as such. Obey them when they tell you that you can remain no longer in this country. Soldiers are as kind-hearted as brave, and the desire of even one of us is to execute our painful duty in mercy. We are commanded by the President to act towards you in that spirit, and such is also the wish of the whole people of America. " Chiefs, head men, and 'warriors Will you then, by re sistance, compel us to resort to arms 1 God forbid ! Or will you, by flight, seek to hide yourselves in mountains and forests r and thus oblige us to hunt you down 1 Remember that, in 114 LIFE OF GENERAL SCOTT. pursuit, it may be impossible to avoid conflicts. The blood of the white man, or the blood of the red man, may be spilt, and if spilt, however accidentally, it may be impossible for the discreet and humane among you, or among us, to prevent a general war and carnage. Think of this, my Cherokee breth ren ! I am an old warrior, and have been present at many a scene of slaughter; but spare me, I beseech you, the horror of witnessing the destruction of the Cherokees. " Do not, I invite you, even wait for -the close approach of the troops ; but make such preparations for emigration as you can, and hasten to this place, to Ross's Landing, or to Gunter's Landing, where you will all be received in kindness by officers selected for the purpose. You will find food for all, and clothing for the destitute, at either of those places, and thence at your ease, and in comfort, be transported to your new homes ac cording to the terms of the treaty. " This is the address of a warrior to warriors. May his entreaties be kindly received, and may the God of both prosper the Americans and Cherokees, and preserve them long in peace and friendship with each other. " WINFIELD SCOTT." The Indians were soon brought into the military posts, where they were amply provided for. Thence they were escorted to emigrating depots as rapidly as was consistent with the collec tion of their personal effects, their health, and comfort. By tho middle of June the operations in Georgia had been so nearly completed, that orders were issued for the honorable discharge of the troops of that state. In Scott's order, high praise was bestowed on Brigadier-General Charles Floyd and the troops under his command, who were all of Georgia, for the hand some and humane manner in which their duties were per formed. Scott, hoping that the Cherokees in North Carolina, Ten nessee, and Alabama, might be encouraged to enrol themselves voluntarily, by the kind treatment shown to their brethren in Georgia, now sent Indian runners, who tendered their services, to those distant settlements ; and in the mean time suspended X. DROUGHT DRIES TIP THE RIVERS. 115 Further collections to the 20th of June. On the morning of the 13th, those Indians were found by the troops as entirely un prepared as the Georgian Cherokees had been ; yet, at the end of ten days, all but a few stragglers in the mountains were brought in, with their personal property. The volunteers were discharged before the 15th of July, and as rapidly as arrange ments could be made for their being mustered and paid> except a single company, retained a little longer for special service. More than a million of dollars was saved by the rapidity of these movements and discharges. With the exception of a few principal families, allowed to remain at their comfortable homes until called for, and some stragglers in the mountains, the whole body of the Cherokee nation had been collected for emigration before the middle of July, and without shedding one drop of blood. They were not without arms and fastnesses, nor with- out courage for the defence of their native homes. They were conquered by skilful movements, and yet more by generous kindness. All the volunteers, like the regulars, had caught the spirit of Scott's addresses and orders. It was a pleasant and edifying scene to see officers and men everywhere giving ready aid, in every difficulty and distress, to the helplessness of age and infancy. Tears were doubtless shed, and not alone by the Indian race. Scott's business up to this date had been simply militaryv To bring in the Indians, and to turn them over with guards, if needed, to the civil agent for Cherokee emigration, was the only duty assigned him by the government. That agent had already put in motion some three thousand for their Western destina tion. But now, the Hiwassee, the Tennessee, and the Arkan sas rivers had ceased to be navigable. A drought which had commenced in June, and which lasted to October, had already become distressing. In the next ten days, drinking-water for men and horses near the land route of emigration was not to be found, except at intervals of ten, or more frequently, of thirty miles. Scott, from humanity, and at the instance of the Chero- kees, took upon himself to stop the emigration until the return of the cool and healthy season. That determination was sub- sequently approved at Washington. 116 LIFE OF GENERAL SCOTT, All the principal Indians were first called to head-quarters, Scott spoke of the drought, stated his wish to suspend the movement to the West, the expense of delay, the extreme inconvenience to himself of remaining with them till autumn, the want also of the regular troops elsewhere, and the fear that their people might break and disperse, if not kept within the chain of posts and sentinels. Every chief instantly agreed to sign a solemn pledge, not only for himself but for his family and friends ; not only to prevent dispersion, but to send runners of their own, to bring in the stragglers and those concealed, who still remaine'd out. This written pledge was kept in good faith. Scott immediately sent off three regiments of regulars to the Canada frontiers and Florida, where he knew they were much needed. The other two were retained more to aid and protect than to guard the Indians. The Cherokees were now distributed into three large camps ; the principal, twelve miles by four, on high and rolling ground. on the Hiwassee, well shaded and abounding in springs and flowing rivulets. All necessary supplies were abundant and good, including medicines ; vaccination was introduced by the personal influence of Scott against the general prejudice ; dram-shops were put under the guard of troops, to prevent the sale of liquors ; and numerous Indian superiors were appointed to visit every family daily, and to report on their wants. All worked well. Scott established himself for long months at the agency, in the midst of the principal camp, charged with in numerable labors and cares for the good of his pupils ; for such they were, both by the relation they sustained to the United States, and the watching and instruction he gave them. The delegation, with Ross the principal chief, returned from Washington in July, when Scott received authority from the war department to transfer, by negotiation, the further emigra tion from the civil agent to the Cherokees themselves. The proposition was submitted to the nation, and adopted with joy. The same delegates were appointed to arrange the general terms with Scott. The cost of the movement, as in the previous arrangement, was to be paid out of the five millions of dollars 118 LITE OF GENERAL SCOTT. stipulated by the United States to be given in exchange with the new country West, for the one inhabited by the Cherokees. in the East. To Scott, the sum to be paid per capita, for the removal, as, proposed by the delegates, appeared much too high. The subject was referred back to the general council of the Chero kees, the largest they had ever held, who approved the new terms proposed by Scott. The same authority appointed a purveyor of supplies on the route, and the delegates specially charged with that duty proceeded to enroll their people into convenient parties for the road, with a conductor, sub-conductor,, and physician, for each, to collect wagons, horses, and every thing necessary for the movement, as soon as the season and rain might permit. Here was a wonderful change. A few months before, seven-tenths of the Cherokees threatened to. die in defence of their ancient homes. Now the only contest among the chiefs and parties was who shall first take the road to the far West. All were eager to lead or to follow. At length October came, with some slight showers of rain, and by the 16th of November the last detachment was ia motion. The sick and helpless only were left to proceed by steam on the rise of the rivers. Scott followed the line of emigration to Nashville, in order to help and cheer on the movement. He had intended to- proceed farther j but an express overtook him from Washing ton, with dispatches, saying that the Patriots were reorganized to the number of eighty thousand, and were getting ready to break into the Canadas at many points. He instantly departed in that direction. Stopping nowhere to accept the public hon ors tendered him, he arrived at Cleveland and Detroit at critical moments. Thence he passed down the frontier into Vermont, and completed the work we have described in the preceding chapter. He re-established peace, law, and order all along the disturbed frontier of Canada. In all this he had moved with almost the swift flight of the birds, and his work was completed in the brief space of their summer excursions. In this short season had Scott performed PARTING FROM THE HOME OF CHILDHOOD. 119 the work of Cherokee emigration, and returned to new and ar duous labors in an opposite region and a very different climate. Such sudden changes, and such rude exposures, are the sol dier's lot in pursuit of duty and in obedience to his country. In this brief story we have narrated the manner in which the Cherokees fifteen thousand in number were carried froni the homes of their fathers and the graves of their dead. That they left them in sadness, and looked to the uncertain future with dread and dark foreboding, none can doubt. However adventurous, far-searching, or curious may be the human mind when voluntarily pursuing its own objects, it cannot be forced from its ancient associations, without experiencing a shock similar to that which uproots the aged tree, breaking its deepest roots, snapping its tendrils, and blighting its softest verdure. This is a shock, too, which is felt the most in the most secluded retreats of the family. It touches the hearts which have grown in the shade, where few rays from the glaring light of the world have ever fallen. It would not be difficult to imagine some Indian woman, and perhaps an aged one, stopping alone by the rippling stream to hear the' murmur of waters she should hear no more to break a twig from trees whose shade she should enjoy no longer to linger round the lonely mound, which was henceforth to be the only memorial of her race to cast one last look on the summits of hills, to which, with the friends of her youth, she had often gazed in the glowing sunsets of summer. They fade now in the shades of evening, and she heaves the last sigh, drops her last tear, and hills, and woods, and murmuring streams, live for her only in the memory of the exile ! The remaining years of her life she spends in strange scenes, and looking intensely into the future, hopes, perhaps, for " Some safer world in depths of woods embraced, Some happier island in the watery waste, Where slaves once more their native land behold, No fiends torment, no Christians thirst for gold." Such scenes as these may be easily imagined, and it is scarcely possible they should not have occurred in any nation, savage or civilized, on leaving their native land. The ques- 120 LIFE OF GENERAL SCOTT. tion, however, remains, whether, in the plans of Providence, and their merciful development, the policy of the United States towards the Cherokees has not really been the true policy, and its effect for their ultimate good ? It is certain that they have received a rich and valuable territory, where, on the waters of the Arkansas, they yet cultivate lands where they have organized a civil government, and where they appear still to advance in numbers and prosperity. Should this continue to be their history, may they not hereafter become a State of aboriginal inhabitants, in a condition of civilization and Chris tianity ? If this should happily be the case, the Cherokee State will be a monument enduring through after ages of that wild and singular race, who seemed the children of the forest, defy ing the scrutiny of philosophy, and shunning the gaze of civil ized man. The lone mound will not be their only memorial, nor tradition their only story. They will live to enjoy the fruits of legal liberty, to extend the dominion of the arts, to rest in the shade of peace ; and, no longer hunters and war riors, adorn the realms of science, religion, and philosophy. But whatever may be thought of the act or the result of removing the Indians, no one can doubt that the part Scott had in that business was performed with a skill, a humanity, and a forbearance worthy of much admiration. In the National Intelligencer of that time there appeared an ar ticle from a responsible writer, describing the character of Scott's acts, narrated in this and the previous chapter. From that we take the following extract, as just as it is historically true : " The manner in which this gallant officer has acquitted himself within the last year upon our Canada frontier, and lately among the Cherokees, has excited the universal admira tion and gratitude of the whole nation. Owing to his great popularity in the North, his thorough knowledge of the laws of his own country, as well as those which govern nations, united to his discretion, his great tact and experience, he has saved the country from a ruinous war with Great Britain. And by his masterly skill and energy among the Cherokees, united to his noble generosity and humanity, he has not only effected what everybody supposed could not be done without AN ACCOUNT. OF RECENT EVENTS. 121 the most heart-rending scenes of butchery and bloodshed, but he has effected it by obtaining the esteem and confidence of the poor Cherokees themselves. They look upon him as a benefactor and friend, and one who has saved them from entire destruction. " All the Cherokees were collected for emigration without bloodshed or violence, and all would have been on their way to the West before the middle of July, had not humanity in duced General Scott to stop the movement until the 1st of September. Three thousand had been sent off in the first half of June by the superintendent, before the general took upon himself the responsibility of stopping the emigration, from feel ings which must do everlasting honor to his heart. " An approval of his course had been sent on by the War Department before his report, giving information that he had stopped the emigration, had reached the seat of government. " In the early part of January last, the President asked Con gress for enlarged powers, to enable him to maintain our neu tral obligations to England ; that is, to tranquillize the Canadian frontiers. " Before the bill passed Congress, General Scott had finished the work, and effected all its objects. These, too, he effected by flying from one end of the frontier to the other in the dead of winter, and during the severest and coldest period of it. " He returns to Washington, and is immediately ordered to the Cherokee nation, to take charge of the very difficult and hazardous task to his own fame of removing those savages from their native land. Some of his best friends regretted, most sincerely, that he had been ordered on this service ; and, knowing the disposition of the world to cavil and complain without cause, had great apprehensions that he would lose a portion of the popularity he had acquired by his distinguished success on the Canadian frontier. But, behold the manner in which this last work has been performed ! There is so much of noble generosity of character about Scott, independent of his skill and bravery as a soldier, that his life has really been one of romantic beauty and interest." The truth of this picture may be judged by the facts of this 6 122 LIFE OF GENERAL SCOTT. history. But whatever opinion may be formed on that point, there have been men of the most eminent intelligence, them selves disinterested and capable of judging, who have formed the same estimate of the character and acts of Scott. We subjoin the following testimony of the REV. DOCTOR CHANNING, in a work published in Boston : " To this distinguished man belongs the rare honor of uniting with military energy and daring, the spirit of a philanthropist. His exploits in the field, which placed him in the first rank of our soldiers, have been obscured by the purer and more lasting glory of a pacificator, and of a friend of mankind. In the whole history of the intercourse of civilized with barbarous or half-civilized communities, we doubt whether a brighter page can be found than that which records his agency in the removal of the Cherokees. As far as the wrongs done to this race can be atoned for, General Scott has made the expiation. " In his recent mission to the disturbed borders of our coun try, he has succeeded, not so much by policy as by the noble ness and generosity of his character, by moral influences, by the earnest conviction with which he has enforced on all with whom he has had to do, the obligations of patriotism, justice, humanity, and religion. It would not be easy to find among us a man who has won a purer fame ; and I am happy to offer this tribute, because I would do something, no matter how little, to hasten the time, when the spirit of Christian humanity shall be accounted an essential attribute and the brightest ornament of a public man." GENERAL SCOTT S AGENCY IN SETTLING THE MAINE BOUNDARY. FROM the land of the Cherokees and the scene of their exnV, General Scott hastened back to that northern frontier, which had so nearly become the theatre of war. He again visited and tranquillized the Canadian borders, from Detroit along almost the whole line to Northern Vermont. Here he learned SETTLEMENT OF THE MAINE BOUNDARY. 123 that hostile movements were on foot on both sides of what was then known as the DISPUTED TERRITORY. This was a territory on the borders of the state of Maine, the boundaries of which the United States and Great Britain had not been able exactly to ascertain, so as to determine satisfactorily the line between the two nations. Hearing of these difficulties and of this danger, and fearing that letters to him might be misdirected in consequence of the rapidity of his movements, Scott hastened immediately to Washington. He presented himself at the War Department a day and a half in advance of the mail from the Canada line. The condition of affairs on his arrival, was perilous to the peace, not merely of this country or of Great Britain, but of the civilized world ; for it can hardly be supposed that the two greatest commercial nations could come in conflict on every sea, and in almost every port of the globe, and yet not involve other nations, or that war would cease with the cessation of the immediate cause. The passion for war is contagious. The bystanders in the play of battles feel an instinctive impulse to share in the action. Their reason and their conscience can hardly restrain them from feeling, and even believing, that their interest, their honor, or their fame requires that they also should enter the arena of a bloody ambition, pursuing the re wards of conquest or the glory of victories. Hence it is that a war between leading nations, especially between the new and old systems of government, would, reasoning from experience and probabilities, result in one of those general and long- continued seasons of bloodshed, revolutions, and conquests, which have so often impoverished the substance, and corrupted the morals of nations. When Scott arrived at Washington, such a crisis seemed to be tangibly and visibly present. The President of the United States, Mr. Van Buren, just then announced to Congress, by special message, that " the peace of the two nations is daily and imminently endangered." The President also said, that in a certain event, he should feel himself bound to call out the militia to repel invasion, and he invited from Congress such action as it deemed expedient. So extraordinary was the dan- 124 LIFE OF GENERAL SCOTT. ger, that Congress adopted extraordinary measures. In five days, an act was passed authorizing the President, if he deemed best, to call out the militia for six months, to accept, if neces sary, the services of fifty thousand volunteers ; and appropria ting ten millions of dollars for these objects. Scott having arrived at Washington, had interviews with the President, with the Secretaries of State and War, and with the committees in Congress on foreign and military affairs. He assisted in drawing and urging the bills to put at the disposition of the Executive fifty thousand volunteers, and ten millions of dollars to meet exigencies. This being done, he immedi ately departed, and reached Augusta, the seat of governmqnt in Maine, in about eight days after his arrival at Washington. It turned out that had he been three days later, he would have found a war made to his hands. Passing through Boston, and having official business with Governor Everett, of Massachusetts, he repaired to the state- house, where that accomplished officer and scholar addressed him in substance as follows : " GENERAL : " I take great pleasure in introducing you to the members of the Executive Council of Massachusetts ; I need not say that you are already known to them by reputation. They are familiar with your fame as it is recorded in some of the arduous and honorable fields of the country's struggles. We rejoice in meeting you on this occasion, charged as you are with a most momentous mission by the President of the United States. We are sure you are intrusted with a duty most grateful to your feelings that of averting an appeal to arms. We place unlimited reliance on your spirit, energy, and discretion. Should you unhappily fail in your efforts, under the instructions of the President, to restore harmony, we know that you are equally prepared for a still more responsible duty. Should that event unhappily occur, I beg you to depend on the firm support of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts." His reception by the people and authorities of Maine at Augusta, the seat of government, was such as to increase his SETTLEMENT OF THE MAINE BOUNDARY. 125 power of harmonizing opposite feelings, by showing the strong sympathy between himself and the body of the people. On Thursday, March 7th 1839, General Scott met the citizens of Augusta, representatives and soldiers, in the Legislative Hall. A correspondent of the Portland Argus says : " The hall was full and the galleries were crowded. Many could not get places. The greeting of the general to the officers and soldiers introduced to him was peculiarly happy. In one of the representatives, Mr. Frost of Bethel, he recognised a fellow-soldier of the last war. They were both wounded in the same battle. The interview was enthusiastic. The gen eral seemed hardly willing to part with his hand. "After a half hour spent in these mutual interchanges of friendship, Mr. Allen of Bangor, in a few remarks, welcomed General Scott among us, to which welcoming he replied by thanking the audience for the hearty reception they had given him in the capitol of Maine, and by expressing his happiness at being enabled, face to face, to see so many of her sons and, should war come, he should be glad to be found shoulder to shoulder, breast to breast with such soldiers." When Major-General Scott arrived in Maine, it so happened, that he had with him an unanswered private letter from Sir John Harvey, *the governor of New Brunswick, written before the troubles on the borders of that province, and received at the far South. A reply to that friendly letter brought on at once a semi-official correspondence between the parties, which soon became brisk and public. Standing high in the confidence of his own government, and being above pique and petty advantages, all repugnance to wards the first step, which was required by the resolution that passed the Maine Legislature, towards preserving the peace of the borders, and the consequent peace of two great nations, on honorable terms, was soon conquered by the governor of New Brunswick. When this was done, Scott felt himself at liberty to appeal to the same generous sentiments on the part of the Maine authorities. The governor of Maine became satisfied that he might take tin second step, but thought lie could not withdraw the troops * The snmc Harvey mentioned on p. 3 ) o this work. 126 LIFE OF GENERAL SCOTT. from the disputed territory without the concurrence of the Legislature. With his approbation, Scott had now to urge his suit for peace and compromise with the members of the Legis lature. Both political parties had been equally excited against New Brunswick and Great Britain about the boundary ; but both were jealous and watchful of each other. Each had, within a few years, gained predominance, by the use of this foreign question, It was natural they should think, that a too ready yielding might be unpopular at home. It was therefore necessary that the members of these political parties in the Legislature should make a simultaneous movement. Scott had succeeded in reconciling the leading members of the domi nant party in Maine to the measures of their political friends at Washington ; he had succeeded in obtaining a friendly con cession from the Governor of New Brunswick ; and now he had the address to reconcile opposing parties in the Legislature. We have been told, and indeed the newspapers of the day show something of it, that this was a remarkably interesting scene. The details belong chiefly to that private history which public reports do not reach, and which rarely or never are developed till another generation. The resolutions of Maine were passed on the 20th instant. By that time Scott was prepared with his memorandum, signed by Sir John Harvey, and containing all that was necessary to establish peace. Governor Fairfield immediately added his signature. Copies were duly interchanged by General Scott. Tranquillity was restored on the borders, and the subject of peace and war transferred to the national authorities. The resolutions of the Maine Legislature were passed on the 20th of March, and on the 21st instant, General Scott sent his official communication to Sir John Harvey, which was the memorandum of what was assented to by the Governors of Maine and New Brunswick. To show the estimate which Sir John Hawey placed in the ability, integrity, and honest purposes of Gjneral Scott, we subjoin the following letter. SETTLEMENT OF THE MAINE BOUNDARY. 127 11 MY BEAR GENERAL SCOTT " Upon my return from closing the ses sion of the Provincial Legislature, I was gratified by the I'eceipt of your very satisfactory communication of the 21st instant. My reliance upon you, my dear general, has led me to give my willing assent to the proposition which you have made yourself the very acceptable means of conveying to me ; and I trust that as far as the province and the state respectively are concerned, an end will be put by it to all border disputes, and a way opened to an amicable adjustment of the national question involved. I shall hope to receive the confirmation of this arrangement on the part of the State of Maine at as early a period as may be practicable." The people of the United States, like Sir John Harvey, looked upon Scott as the PACIFICATOR, who had now made himself as much the friend of peace, as he once had been distinguished as the warrior of battles. It was but a short time after this transaction, that another distinguished man, of singular ability and great influence, had the honor of terminating this vexed question, of fixing, so that it could no longer be mistaken, our northern boundary, from the foot of the Rocky Mountains, by the Lake of the Woods, and down the St. Lawrence, and through this disputed territory to the Atlantic. Met in the same peaceful spirit y by the British minister, he was able to close these harassing difficulties, to quiet the disturbed minds of the people, and in this olive-branch, plucked from the midst of agitated waters, offer to the nations another evidence that a kindlier and better spirit had begun to govern human affairs. He had already been the strongest actor in forensic combats, the noblest orator of senate halls ; and the WASHINGTON TREATY, negotiated on the part of the United States l>y Daniel Webster, received the speedy confir mation of the Senalo. 128 LIFE OF GENERAL SCOTT. GENERAL SCOTT ORDERED TO MEXICO. the information reached Washington, in May, 1846, that the Mexican forces had crossed the Rio Grande, the President of the United States immediately communicated to General Scott his intention of sending him to the army to as sume the chief command. General Taylor had been placed in command of the troops, then in the presence of the enemy, on the recommendation of General Scott, who well knew that a proper occasion only was necessary for a development of those brilliant qualities of soldiership which have since render ed the name of Taylor so illustrious. Not wishing to assume the immediate command of the army, and thus snatch from his old companion in arms the glory he was about to acquire ; nor willing, at the same time, to decline a service corresponding to his rank, he suggested to the President, through the Secretary of War, that he be permitted during the summer months to collect and drill the troops destined for service in Mexico to collect the materiel of the army, and, after the wet season on the Rio Grande had passed, to join General Taylor with such additional forces as would secure with certainty the objects of the campaign, and at the same time respect the well-established military usage,, "that a junior of distinguished merit ought to be superse ded by a senior in rank, only by the addition of large rein forcements." The spirit in which these suggestions were re ceived by the President and Secretary of War, evinced a want of confidence in the plans proposed by General Scott ; and a fear lest the political effect of the measure might prove inju rious to the administration, was doubtless the main reason which caused the order to be countermanded. Smarting under a rebuke so little deserved, General Scott addressed a letter to the President, recapitulating the difficul ties that lay in the way of immediate action on the Rio Grande stated anew his plans for prosecuting the war and concluded by reminding the President, that no general, exercising the ORDERED TO MEXICO. 129 difficult function of a distant command, could feel secure with out the support and confidence of his government at home. He said, in terms, what General Taylor has so painfully real ized, " that the enemy in front is not half so much to be feared as an attack from the rear.'' The views of General Scott, set forth in this correspondence, have been realized by the events that have since transpired, and what seemed at the time to be but vague opinion has now become a matter of history. After the correspondence with, the War Department reached the banks of the Rio Grande, officers near General Taylor, and known to be his personal friends, addressed letters to the friends of General Scott, ex pressing the kindest feelings on the part of General Taylor, and the hope that the General might yet assume the command of the army. Being satisfied that his presence on the Rio Grande would not be unacceptable to General Taylor, he ad dressed a letter to the Secretary of War, early in September, requesting to be assigned to that command, to which request he received a rude and flat denial. About this time, as subsequently appeared by the statements of Senator Benton, the President decided to create the office of lieutenant-general, and thus supersede, not only the scar- marked hero of Chippewa and Niagara, but also to tear the fresh laurels of Palo Alto and Resaca de la Palma from the brow of the gallant Taylor. After this plan had been finally arranged, the President sent for General Scott, and confided to him the command of the army in Mexico, and gave to him the most solemn assurance of his confidence and support. The following order was from the Secretary of War : WAR DEPARTMENT, WASHINGTON, t November 23d, 1846. f Sm The President, several days since, communicated in person to yon his orders to repair to Mexico, to take the command of the forces there assembled, and particularly to organize and set on foot an expedition to operate on the Gulf coast, if, on arriving at the theatre of action, you shall deem it to be practicable. It is not proposed to control your operations by definite and positive instructions, but you are left to prosecute them as your judgment, under a full view of all the circumstances, shall dictate. The work is before you, and the means provided, or to be provided, for accom- 6* 130 LIFfc OF GENERAL SCOTT. plishing it, are committed to you, in the full confidence that you will use them to the best advantage. The objects which it is desirable to obtain have been indicated, and it is hoped that you will have the requisite force to accomplish them. Of this you must be the judge, when preparations are made, and the time for action arrived. Very respectfully, Your obedient servant, W. L. MARCY, GENERAL WINFIELD SCOTT. Secretary of War. General Scott immediately made all the arrangements to carry the plan into full effect. The requisite number of trans ports were to be provided, surf-boats for the landing of the troops constructed, a train of siege ordnance was to be collected and sent forward, and ten new regiments were to be added to the line of the army, at the earliest possible moment after the meeting of Congress. In a very few days all the preliminary arrangements were completed, and General Scott left Wash ington on the 24th November, in the full belief that he enjoyed .the confidence of the government, and that the conduct of the war, under general instructions, had been entirely confided to ihis discretion and judgment. .Immediately on the opening of Congress the project of cre ating a higher military grade was brought forward, and the friends of generals Scott and Taylor saw with alarm that a plan was snaturing by which they were both to be degraded to subordinate stations, and the entire direction of affairs in Mexico confided to other and untried hands. The friends of General Scott now saw that his apprehensions of an attack " from the rear," and which had been frankly expressed in his former letters, were indeed but too well founded ; and that notwith standing the assurance given on his departure from Washing ton for the army, of the full and cordial support of the govern ment, the -plan of wresting from him the command, at the earliest possible day, was then matured, and ready for speedy execution. In view of all the circumstances, it is, perhaps, not uncharitable to suppose that he was selected for that com mand, for the purpose of stirring up a spirit of rivalry between his friends and those of General Taylor, and thus affording a plausible pretext for superseding them both. SCOTT REACHES THE ARMY. 131 On the 30th of November General Scott sailed from New York, in the fullest confidence that the government was act ing in good faith, and that every means would be furnished him for the prosecution of the war. Little did he then sup pose, that before he could reach the theatre of active opera tions the government which had selected and sent him, would attempt to degrade him in the eyes of the world, by declaring, in effect, that he was unfit for the very place to which he had been so recently appointed. With the generous confidence of a brave soldier, who had often met the enemy in deadly conflict, he received through the President the plighted faith of the nation that all was right. The President saw him depart in the fulness of this confidence, and yet before he reached the army, the proposi tion to supersede him was already there. Yes, the very army into which he was to breathe the inspiration of hope which he was to train and prepare for the deadly conflicts that awaited them was informed, in advance, that the presi dent had no confidence in their commander-in-chief. General Scott reached the Rio Grande about the first of January. Early in the month it became evident that some of the principal arrangements for the attack on Vera Cruz were not likely to be carried out by the government. The bill for raising the ten additional regiments was lost sight of by the administration, in the desire to carry their favorite project of placing a political partisan at the head of the army ; and this bill, which ought to have been passed in the first week of the session, was not finally disposed of till a day or two before the adjournment. What was the condition of things in Mexico at this critical period ? Santa Anna, with a force of twenty-two thousand men, was at San Louis Potosi, a fortified city containing sixty thousand inhabitants, and about equally distant from Monterey, Vera Cruz, and Mexico. General Taylor was in the vicinity of Monterey, in the command of a force of about eighteen thousand men, occupy ing the long line from Saltillo to Camargo, and thence to the 132 LIFE OF GENERAL SCOTT. mouth of the Rio Grande, where General Scott had just ar rived with a small force, for the purpose of attacking Vera Cruz as soon as possible. He well knew that the vomit o makes its appearance there in the early spring, and that delay would be fatal. The transports, stores, and munitions, were begin ning to arrive. What was to be done ? Was the expedition against Vera Cruz to be abandoned, or was General Scott to go forward and do the best he could under circumstances so discouraging ? He adopted the latter alternative. He reviewed all the disposable forces within his command, and carefully weighed chances and probabilities. He forwarded to General Taylor a full plan of his proposed operations. By the capture and assassination of Lieutenant Ritchie, the bearer of these dispatches, the plans were fully disclosed to Santa Anna, and he became apprized that Vera Cruz was to be the main point of attack. At Vera Cruz, and its immediate vicinity, there were six or seven thousand men, and a much larger number could be collected from the adjoining country on a short no tice. Would Santa Anna break up his camp at San Louis Potosi, and march on Vera Cruz fill the city and castle with his best troops, and oppose the landing of General Scott with a selected army of forty thousand men ? Or, was he likely to abandon the town and castle to their fate, thus leaving open the road to Mexico, and march with his whole force against General Taylor, over a desert of 150 miles, with a certainty of having to encounter his enemy either in the defiles of the mountains or from behind the impregnable battlements of Monterey ? Under such circumstances it became the duty of General Scott so to divide the forces of the Rio Grande as would be most likely to meet any contingency that might 1 arise. He collected the regular infantry for these might be necessary to carry with the bayonet the fortified city and castle of Vera Cruz. He left within the limits of General Taylor's com mand, about ten thousand volunteers and several companies of the best artillery of the regular army. These General Tay lor might have concentrated at Monterey, arid General Scott suggested to him, in his instructions, to do so, if it became ne- SIEGE OF VERA CRUZ. 133 cessary. With this comparatively small force, General Tay lor not only maintained all the posts within his command, but with the one half of it achieved the memorable victory of Buena Vista. General Scott assigned twelve thousand men to the expedi tion against Vera Cruz, and had Santa Anna concentrated his forces at that point, the disparity of numbers would have been much greater than at Buena Vista. These remarks are not made for the purpose of comparing the skill, or the conduct, or the claims to public gratitude of the two distinguished generals who have so well fulfilled every trust reposed in them by their country ; but simply to show that in the disposition of the forces made by General Scott, he did not take a larger portion for his own command than the interests of the service impera tively demanded. The troops which were recalled from the upper Rio Grande halted for a few days at the mouth of the river, and were then taken on board transports, and joined others who had made their rendezvous at the island of Lobos, about 125 miles west and north of the city of Vera Cruz. The troops being thus collected, the whole armament proceeded to Antonia Lizardo. SIEGE AND CAPTURE OF VERA CRUZ. ON the morning of the 7th of March, General Scott, in a steamer, with Commodore Connor reconnoitred the city, for the purpose of selecting the best landing-place for the army. The spot selected was the shore west of the island of Sacri- ficios. The anchorage was too narrow for a large number of vessels, and on the morning of the 9th of March the troops were removed from the transports to the ships of war. The fleet then set sail General Scott in the steamship .Massachu setts, leading the van. As he passed through the squadron, his tall form, conspicuous on the deck, attracted the eyes of soldier and of sailor ; a cheer burst spontaneously forth, and from vessel to vessel was echoed, and answered through the 12 134 LIFE OF GENERAL SCOTT. line. The voices of veterans, and of new recruits of those who had been victorious at Monterey, and of those who hoped for victories in the future were mingled in loud acclamation for him, whose character inspired confidence, and whose ac tions were already embodied in the glorious history of their country ! Near Sacrificios the landing commenced . It must be observed at this point, that every man expected to be met at the land ing ; for such, in military judgment, should have been the course of the enemy, and such would have been the case had the landing been made at the point where the enemy expected it, and where his forces were collected. Preparations were therefore made for any possible contingency. Two steamers and five gunboats, arranged in line, covered the landing. Five thousand five hundred troops embarked in sixty-seven surf- boats. The signal-gun was fired. The seamen bent to their oars, and in a magnificent semicircle the boats swept rapidly towards the beach. Every man is anxious to be first. They plunge into the water before they reach the shore ! they rush through the sand-hills ! and with loud shouts they press for ward ! They wave the flag of their country in the land of the Aztecs ! Where are their comrades 1 They also soon em bark they hurry through the water they land in safety they rejoin their companions they return shout for shout, to friends in the vessels and friends on shore. Safely, but hur riedly, they then pass through this exciting crisis. In the meanwhile, the sun shines down in the brilliance of his light, the waters are but just ruffled by a breeze, while the deep waves are calm and the sky serene. Full in view lies the city of Vera Cruz, and near is the renowned castle of San Juan d'Ulloa ! The harbor is crowded with foreign vessels, and decks and rigging are filled with wondering spectators ! Never, says one, shall I forget the excitement of that scene ! The first division of troops had landed a little before sunset, the second and third followed in succession, and before ten o'clock the whole army (numbering twelve thousand men) was landed, without the slightest accident and without the loss of a single life ! im V y sst /* c *" ~ < ^ s^