* 
 
 : A Tali, 
 

 
 
 

 HISTORY 
 
 OF THE 
 
 / 
 
 UNITED STATES OF AMERICA; 
 
 <+ 
 
 FROM 
 
 THE DISCOVERY OF THE CONTINENT 
 
 BY CHRISTOPHER COLUMBUS, 
 
 TO THE PRESENT TIME: 
 
 4 
 
 ii 
 
 EMBRACING AN ACCOUNT OF THE 
 
 ABORIGINAL TRIBES, THEIR ORIGIN. POPULATION, EMPLOYMENTS, ARTS, 
 DRESS, RELIGION, GOVERNMENT, &c. 
 
 TOGETHER WITH SKETCHES OF THE 
 DISCOVERIES AND SETTLEMENTS MADE BY DIFFERS!*? NA "'ON3 
 
 THE PROGRESS OF THE COLONIES THEIR WARS THE R&VOLU^ON WHIOH 'I ED, YO'^THF/R, 
 
 INDEPENDENCE ; AND THE SUCCESSIVE ADMINISTRATIONS OF'vr/fejHNGTioN, ADAStsl , i 
 
 JEFFKRSON, MADISON, MONROE, AND J. Q. ADAMS THE WHOLE INTERSPERSED 
 
 WITH NOTICES AT THE DIFFERENT ERAS OF THE PROGRESS OF MANNERS, 
 
 RELIGION TRADE AND COMMERCE AGRICULTURE ARTS AND 
 
 MANUFACTURES POPULATION AND EDUCATION. 
 
 BYjCHARLES A. GOODRICH. 
 
 ACCOMPANIED WITH A MAP OP THE UNITED STATES, AND 
 ILLUSTRATED BY FORTY-RIGHT F.NGRAVJNOS. 
 
 HARTFORD: 
 PUBLISHED BY H. F. SUMNER & CO. 
 
 Stereotyped by Conner & Cooke, New York. 
 
 1833. 
 

 ' 
 Grit 
 
 \ 
 
 * 
 
 Entered acfijoidiog ^act^of Congress, in the year 1832, by CHARLES A. GOODRICH, iu the 
 Clerk's' Office of the District Court of Connecticut 
 
 EDUCATION DEPf* 
 
PREFACE. 
 
 THE basis of the following work was first published ten 
 years since. At that time, it was presented to the public 
 with much diffidence. Unexpectedly, it was received with 
 uncommon favour ; and, through the above space of time, 
 it has been continued to be issued from the press, by several 
 thousands, almost every year. The circumstances under 
 which it was originally published, prevented the author from 
 revising a single line of it, after the first edition ; although, 
 at successive periods, some additions were made to the work, 
 corresponding to th lapse of events. 
 
 But, at length, existing obstacles having teen removed, 
 the author has devoted some months to a thorough and care- 
 ful revision of it. -Besides correcting not a few errors, he 
 has endeavoured to supply important deficiencies, especially 
 in the earlier and later portions of the work, by which he 
 has added more than one hundred and fifty pages to its 
 original size. 
 
 He has retained the plan, originally adopted, from a con- 
 viction of its general excellence, and in this he has been 
 strengthened by the sanction which has been given to the 
 work by a generous, but discerning public. For the benefit 
 of the reader, who may not at once understand the plan of 
 the volume, _the following brief explanation is added : The 
 
\) PREFACE. 
 
 principal object of dividing the History into periods is to- 
 old the memory, by presenting certain marked eras, from 
 which the whole subject of dates may be readily and dis- 
 tinctly viewed. 
 
 Two sizes of type are employed. The matter in larger 
 type is designed to give a brief outline of the history of 
 the United States, and may be read in connexion. The 
 matter in smaller type is to be regarded rather in the light 
 of notes, which, without studying exact regularity, are 
 thrown in as they may subserve the purposes of illustra- 
 tion and completeness in the delineation of events ; or, as 
 they may contribute to support the interest, and establish 
 the recollections of the reader. 
 
CONTENTS. 
 
 INTRODUCTION, 11 
 
 GENERAL DIVISION, 13 
 
 PERIOD I. 
 DISCOVERIES, 16 
 
 Sec. 1. The existence of a Western Continent, by whom first made 
 known, page 16. Sec. 2. Voyage of Columbus, 17. Sec. 3. Discovery of 
 Newfoundland by the Cabots, 32. Sec. 4. Voyage of Verrazanq, 32. Sec. 
 5. Of Cartier, who discovered the St. Lawrence, 33. Sec. 6. Discovery of 
 the Mississippi by Soto, 34. Sec. 7. Expedition of Raleigh, 35. Sec. 8. 
 Discovery of Cape Cod by Gosnold, 36. NOTES. Sec. 9. State of the coun- 
 try, 30. Sec. 10. Aborigines, 37. Sec. 11. Reflections, 42. 
 
 PERIOD II. 
 SETTLEMENTS, 44 
 
 Sec. 1. Unsuccessful attempts to settle North America, 44. See. 2. Set- 
 tlement of Jamestown, 45. Sec. 3. Account of London and Plymouth 
 companies, 45. Sec. 4. Expedition under Newport adventures of CapL 
 Smith. 46. Sec. 5. Calamities of the colony at Jamestown, 53. Sec. 6. 
 New charter granted to the London company, 54. Sec. 7. Expedition un- 
 der Lord De la War, 54. Sec. 8. Distress of the colony at Janv^town and 
 manner of relief, 55. Sec. 9. Settlement at Albany an.-l New-York by the 
 Dutch, 56. Sec. 10. Voyage of Capt. John Smith to New-England 57. 
 Sec. 11. Establishment of a government in Virginia, 57. Sec. 12. Settle- 
 ment of New-England by the Puritans, 58. Sec. 13. Patent of the Duke 
 of Lenox and others, 64. Sec. 14. Treaty of the Puritans with Masassoit, 
 64. Sec. 15. Alteration of the Virginia government, 65. Sec. 16. Distress- 
 ing calamity which befel the Virginia colony, 66. Sec. 17. Distress of the 
 Plymouth colony, 67. Sec. 18. First settlements in New Hampshire, 67. 
 Sec. 19. Dissolution of the London company, 67. Sec. 20. Patent to tna 
 Plymouth colony, 68. Sec. 21. Colony of Massachusetts Bay, 69. Sec. 
 22. Massachusetts Bay Company incorporated, 69. Sec. 23. Government 
 and patent of the plantation transferred to America, 70. Sec. 24. Patent 
 to Lord Baltimore of Maryland, 71. Sec. 25. First settlement in Mary- 
 land, 72. Sec. 26. First house erected in Connecticut, 72. Sec. 27. Set- 
 tlement of Windsor, Wcthersfield, and Hartford. 73. Sec. 2. Patent to 
 Lords Say, Seal, and Brooke, 75. Sec. 29. Settlement, of Rhode Island, 
 76. Sec. 30. Pequot war, 77. Sec. 31. Settlement of New Haven, 80. 
 Sec. 32. Adoption of a constitution by the colony of Connecticut, 81. 
 Sec. 33. By New Haven, 81. Sec. 34. Grant of the province of Maine to 
 1* 
 
Vl CONTENTS. 
 
 Gorges, and formation of a government, 82. Sec. 35. Union of the coio- 
 nies of Massachusetts, Plymouth, Connecticut, and New Haven, 82. ' 
 Sec. 36. Charter of incorporation to the colony of Connecticut, 84. Sec. 
 3f. The Dutch at Manhatten subdued by the English, 84. Sec. 38. First 
 settlement of New Jersey, 85. Sec. 39. Administration of Governor Car- 
 teret, 86. Sec. 40. First settlement in Delaware, 86. Sec. 41. Commission 
 of Carr, Cartwright, &c. in New England, 87. Sec. 42. Settlement of 
 Carolina, 87. Sec. 43. Philip's war, 89. Sec. 44. Administration of An- 
 dross. 95. Sec. 45. Insurrection in Virginia, 96. Sec. 46. Union of East 
 and West Jersey, 98. Sec. 47. Settlement of a controversy about the Pro- 
 vince of Maine, 99. Sec. 48. Separation of New Hampshire from Massa- 
 chusetts, 100. Sec. 49. Settlement of Pennsylvania, 101. Sec. 50. For- 
 feiture of the charters of Massachusetts, &c. 102. NOTES. Sec. 51. Man- 
 ners of the Colonists, 104. Sec. 52. Religion, 106. Sec. 53. Trade and 
 commerce, 109. Sec. 54. Agriculture, 110. Sec. 55. Arts and manufactures, 
 111. Sec. 56. Population, 112. Sec. 57. Education, 113. Sec. 58. Re- 
 flections, 114. 
 
 PERIOD III. 
 WARS OF WILLIAM, ANNE, AND GEORGE II. - - - 117 
 
 Sec. 1. Accession of William to the throne of England, and proceedings 
 of the colonies in consequence of it, 117. Sec. 2. Disturbances in Caroli- 
 na, 119. Sec. 3. Salem witchcraft, 120. Sec. 4. King William's war, 
 124. Sec. 5. Expedition under Sir W T illiam Phipps, with an account of his 
 life, 125. Sec. 6. Dissatisfaction of the Five Nations, 131. Sec. 7. Medi- 
 tated blow against the colonies under Frontenac, 132 Treaty of Ryswick, 
 133 Story of Mrs. Dustan. 134. Sec. 8. Queen Anne's War, 136. Sec. 
 9. Severity of the war falls upon New England, 137 Capture of Mr. 
 Williams, 137. Sec. 10. Expedition against Port Royal, 138. Sec. 11. 
 Attempt upon Canada, 139. Sec. 12. Reduction of Port Royal, 139. Sec. 
 13. Distresses of the frontier settlements, 140. Sec. 14. Effects of the war 
 in the south, 140. Sec. 15. War with the Apalachian Indians, 141. Sec. 
 
 16. Expedition of the French and Spaniards, against Carolina, 142. Sec. 
 
 17. Settlements in N9rth Carolina, 143. Sec. 18. Treaty of Utrecht, 144. 
 Sec. 19. Continued distress of the Carolinians, 144. Sec. 20. Change of 
 the government of Carolina, 145. Sec. 21. Eastern Indian war, 146. Sec. 
 22. Settlement of Georgia, 146 Story of Queen Mary Bosomworth, 147. 
 Sec. 23. Expedition of Oglethorpe against St. Augustine, 150. Sec. 24. In- 
 vasion of Georgia by the Spaniards. 151. Sec. 26. War of George II. 152. 
 Capture of Louisburg, 152. Sec. 27. Design upon Cape Breton by the 
 French, 155. Sec. 28. Treaty of Aix la Chapelle, 156. NOTES. Sec. 29. 
 Manners of the Colonists, W,. Sec. 30. Religion, 157. Sec. 31. Trade and 
 commerce, 158. Sec. 32. Agriculture, 159. Sec. 33. Arts and manufac- 
 tures, 160. Sec. 34. Population, 160. Sec. 35. Education, 161. Sec. 36. 
 Reflections, 162. 
 
 PERIOD IV. 
 FRENCH AND INDIAN WAR, 163 
 
 Sec. 1. Impoverishment of the colonies on the return of peace, 163. 
 Sec. 2. French and Indian War, 164. Causes of it, 165. Sec. 3. Expedi- 
 tion of George Washington, 166. Sec. 4. Affair of Fort Necessity, 166. 
 Sec. 5. Union of the colonies, 168. Sec. 6. Campaign of 1755, 169. Sec. 
 T. Expedition against Nova Scotia, 169. Sec. 8. Braddock's defeat, 170. 
 
 mpa 
 
 ry, 176. Sec. 14. Change in the British ministry, 173. Sec. 15. Expedi- 
 tions proposed, 178. Sec. 16. Louisburg, 178. Sec. 17. Ticonderoga, 179. 
 Sec. 18. Fort Du Quesne, 181. Sec. 19. Treaty with the Indians, 181. 
 Sec, 20. Campaign of '59, 182. Sec. 21. Ticonderoga, 182. Sec. 22. Niagara, 
 
CONTENTS. V 
 
 182. Sec. 23. Attack upon Quebec, 183. Sec. 24. Death of W9lfe, 188- 
 Story of Capt. Ochterlony, 187. Sec. 25. Expedition of Monsieur Levi, 
 190. Sec. 26. Surrender of Canada to the English, 190. Sec. 28. Suffer- 
 ings of the southern colonies by means of the Cherokees, 191. Sec. 29, 
 Peace declared, 192. NOTES. Sec. 30. Manners of the colonists, 192. 
 Sec. 31. Religion, 193. Sec. 32. Trade and commerce, 193. Sec. 33. Agri- 
 culture, 194. Sec. 34. Arts and manufactures, 194. Sec. 35. Population, 
 194. Sec. 36. Education, 194. Sec. 37. Reflections, 194. 
 
 PERIOD V. 
 WAR OF THE REVOLUTION, 196 
 
 Sec. 1. First blood shed in the war of the Revolution, 196. Sec. 2. 
 Causes of the Revolution, 196. Sec. 3. Oppressions of the cplonies and 
 their attachment to the mother country, 197. Sec. 4. Taxation for the 
 purpose of revenue, 198. Sec. 5. Opposition to this measure, 198. Sec. 6. 
 Stump Act, 199. Sec. 7. Indignation in America on account of it, 200. 
 Sec. 8. First general meeting of the colonies, 202. Sec. 9. Proceedings 
 on the day the stamp act came into operation, 203. Sec. 10. Sons of Liber- 
 ty, an account of, 204. Sec. 11. Repeal of the stamp act, 205. Sec. 12. 
 Satisfaction of the colonies, 208. Sec. 13. A second plan for taxing Ame- 
 rica, 208. Sec. 14. Other acts, 209. Sec. 15. Alarm of the colonies, 209. 
 Sec. 16. Arrival of English troops, 210. Sec. 17. Petition of parliament to 
 have persons guilty of treason in America brought to England and tried 
 there, 211. Sec. 18. Abolition of all duties excepting on tea, 212. Sec. 19. 
 Affray on the evening of the fifth of March, 212. Sec. 20. Destruction of 
 the British armed schooner Gaspee, 213. Sec. 21. Committees of corres- 
 pondence and inquiry, 213. Sec. 22. Destruction of tea, 214. Sec. 23. 
 Boston Port-Bill, 216. Sec. 24. Non-importation act, 216. Sec. 25. Con- 
 gress of 1774, 217. Sec. 26. Assembly of Massachusetts, 220. Sec. 27. 
 Conciliatory bill of Lord Chatham, 220. Sec. 28. Battle of Lexington, 
 221. Sec. 29. Effect's of this battle, 222. Sec. 30. Reduction of Ticonde- 
 roga and Crown Point, 222. Sec. 31. Battle of Bunker's Hill, 223. Sec. 
 32. Appointment of Washington as commander in chief, 224. Sec. 33. 
 Arrival of Washington at Cambridge, 228. Sec. 34. Expedition against 
 Canada, 228. Sec. 35. Siege of Quebec, 229 Death of Montgomery, 
 230. Sec. 36. Affairs in Virginia, 230. Sec. 37. Evacuation of Boston by 
 the British, 231. SFC. 38. Attack of the fort on Sullivan's Island, 232 
 Story of Sergeant Jasper, 233. Sec. 39. Motion for independence, 235. 
 Sec. 40. Appointment of a committee to draft a declaration of indepen- 
 dence, 237. Sec. 41. Fourth of July, 1776, 238. Sec. 42. Removal of the 
 army from Boston to New York, 241. Sec. 43. Arrival of Adm.iral Lord 
 Howe from England with reinforcements near New York, 241. Sec. 44. 
 Attempt to settle difficulties, 241. Sec. 45. Battle on Long Island, 242. 
 Sec. 46. Evacuation of New York, 242. Sec. 47. Proposal of Lord Howe 
 to settle difficulties, 243. Sec. 48. General Washington and army at Har- 
 lem, &c. 244. Sec. 49. Battle at White Plains, 245. Sec. 50. Reduction of 
 Forts Washington and Lee, 245. Sec. 51. Retreat of Washington through 
 New Jersey, 246. Sec. 51. Articles of confederation between the states, 
 247. Sec. 52. Battle of Trenton, 249. Sec. 53. Victory of Princeton, 249. 
 Sec. 54. Winter quarters at Morristown, 250. Sec. 55. Opening of the 
 campaign of 1777, 250. Sec. 56. Battle of Brandy wine, 251. Sec. 57. Oc- 
 cupation of Philadelphia by the British, 252. Sec. 58. Battle of German- 
 town, 252. Sec. 59. Invasion of the states by Burgoyne, 254. Sec. 60. 
 Investment and capture of Ticonderoga, -254. Sec. 61. Battle of Benningr 
 ton, 255. Sec. 62. Surrender of Burgoyne, 255 adventures of the Baroness 
 de Reidesel, 257. Sec. 63. Treaty with France, 267. Sec. 64. Winter of 
 1777, 268. Sec. 65. Evacuation of Philadelphia by the British, 269. Sec. 
 66. Arrival of a French fleet, 269. Sec. 67. Siege ajid capture of Savan- 
 nah, 270 Colonel White, t>71. Sec. 68. Campaign of 1779, 272 Infamous 
 conduct of Governor Tryon, 273. Sec. 69. Reduction of Stony Point, 
 274. Sec. 70. War with the Six Nations. 275. Sec. 71. Depreciation of 
 bills of credit, 276. Sec. 72. Reduction of Charleston, 278. Sec. 73. Af 
 
CONTENTS. 
 
 fairs in the south, 279 Story of General Wadsworth, 280. Sec. 74. Battle 
 of Camden, 287. Sec. 75. Prospects of the Americans brighten, 288. 
 Sec. 76. Bloody affair at Connecticut Farms, 289. Sec. 77. Distress of the 
 American army, 289. Sec. 79. Arrival of a French squadron, 290. Sec. 
 80. Conspiracy of Arnold and Andre, 290. Sec. 81. Attempt to seize Ar- 
 nold, 293 Story of Champe, 294. Sec. 82. Revolt of American troops, 
 298. Sec. 83. Infamous conduct of Arnold in Virginia, 299. Sec. 84. Af- 
 fairs in the south, 300. Sec. 85. Battle of the Cowpens, 300. Sec. 88. En- 
 gagement at Guilford court-house, 301. Sec. 89. Battle of Camden, 302. 
 Sec. 92. Battle of Eutaw Springs, 304. Sec. 97. Battle of Yorktown, 307. 
 Sec. 100. Arnold's expedition against New London, 310. Sec. 104. Cessa- 
 tion of hostilities peace, 312. Sec. 105. American army disbanded, 312. 
 Sec. 106. Washington's farewell to his officers, 313. Sec. 107. His resig- 
 nation, 313. Sec. 103. Retirement to Mount Vernon, 314. NOTES. Sec. 
 109. Manners, 314. Sec. 110. Religion, 315. Sec. 111. Trade and com- 
 merce, 316. Sec. 112. Agriculture, 3l7. Sec. 113. Arts and manufacture?, 
 317. Sec. 114. Population, 317. Sec. 115. Education, 318 Sec. 116. Re- 
 flections, 318. 
 
 PERIOD VI. 
 FEDERAL CONSTITUTION, 320 
 
 Sec. 1. Incompetency of the confederation, 320. Sec. 2. Public debt- 
 Loss of credit, 320. Sec. 3. Causes tending to a change of government, 
 321. Sec. 4. Shay's insurrection, 322. Sec. 5. Convention of the states 
 proposed, 323. Sec. 6. Meeting of the convention, 324. Sec. 8. Proceed- 
 ings of it, 326. Sec. 9. Adoption of the Federal Constitution, 328 abstract 
 of it, 329. Sec. 10. Ratification of it by the states, 331. Sec. 11. Wash- 
 ington first president, 332. NOTES, &c. 332. 
 
 PERIOD VII. 
 WASHINGTON'S ADMINISTRATION, ' - 337 
 
 Sec. 1. Inauguration of Washington, 337. Sec. 2. Organization of the 
 government, 333. Sec. 3. Amendment of the Constitution. 340. Sec. 4. 
 Establishment of the Judiciary, 340. Sec. 5. Salaries, 340. -Sec. 6. Public 
 thanksgiving, 341. Sec. 8. Washington's tour through New England, 
 341. Sec. 9. Meeting of Congress Report of Hamilton on maintaining 
 public credit, 342. Sec. 10. Foreign and domestic debt, 342. Sec. 11. Seat 
 of government, 344. Sec. 12. Vermont admitted into the union, 344. 
 Sec. 13. Tax on domestic spirits, 345. Sec. 14. National bank, 346. Sec. 
 15. Northwestern Indian war, 347. Sec. 17. Representatives apportioned, 
 348. Sec. 18. Defeat of St. Clair, 349. Sec. 19. Army increased, 349. 
 Sec. 20. Increase of party spirit, 350. Sec. 21. Kentucky admitted into the 
 union, 350. Sec. 22. Indian war prosecuted with vigour, 351. Sec. 23. 
 Attack upon Hamilton, 352. Sec. 24. Washington re-elected, 353. Sec, 
 25. Attempt to terminate the Indian war, 353. Sec. 26. W T ar declared by 
 France against England and Holland Proclamation of neutrality by the 
 president, 353. Sec. 27. New French minister, Genel, &c. 355. Sec. 29. 
 Proposed expedition against Algiers, 357. Sec. 30. Prohibition of the slave 
 trade, 357. Sec. 31. Jay's treaty, 358. Sec. 32. Victory over the Indians 
 by General Wayne, 359. Sec. 33. Insurrection in Pennsylvania, 360. Sec. 
 Sr>. Ratification of Jay's treaty, 360. Sec. 36. Treaties with Algiers with 
 the Miamis with Spain, 361. Sec. 37. Tennessee admitted into the union, 
 361. Sec. 39. Washington retires to private life, 363. Sec. 40. Mr. Adams 
 elected president, 3S4. NOTES, &c. 364. 
 
 PERIOD VIII. 
 ADAMS' ADMINISTRATION, 369 
 
 Sec. 1. Inauguration of Adams condition of the country, 369. Sec. 2. 
 Hostilities meditated by France, 370. Sec. 3. Failure of the American 
 
CONTENTS. X 
 
 envoys to settle difficulties, 371. Sec. 4. Measures of defence Washington 
 appointed commander in chief, 372. Sec. 5. Pacific overtures from France 
 Treaty of peace, 372. Sec. 6. Death of Washington, 373. Sec. 7. Seat 
 of government removed, 374. Sec. 8. Causes of Mr. Adam's unpopularity, 
 375. Sec. 9. Mr. Jefferson elected president, 376. NOTES, &c. 377. 
 
 PERIOD IX. 
 JEFFERSON'S ADMINISTRATION, 380 
 
 Sec. 1. Inauguration of Jefferson, 380. Sec. 2. Numerous removals from 
 office, 381. Sec. 3. Repeal of internal taxes New arrangement of the Ju- 
 diciary, 331. Sec. 4. Ohio admitted into the union, 382. Sec. 5. Death of 
 Hamilton, 383. Sec. 6. Re-election of Mr. Jefferson, 383. Sec. 7. History 
 of the war with Tripoli, 383. Sec. 8. Michigan becomes a distinct terri- 
 torial government, 386. Sec. 9. Revolutionary project of Burr, 386. See, 
 10. Hostilities between France and England Effect on the United States, 
 387. Sec. 11. British orders in council, 388. Sec. 12. Berlin decree, 388. 
 Sec. 13. British retaliatory orders in council, 389. Sec. 14. Attack upon 
 the American frigate Chesapeake, 389. Sec. 15. President's proclamation 
 upon this negotiation upon the subject, 391. Sec. 16. Congress convened 
 by proclamation, 392. Sec. 17. British orders in council, 392. Sec. 18, 
 Measure of defence Embargo, 393. Sec. 19. Milan decree, 393. Sec. 20. 
 Controversy between the British and American minister, 393. Sec. 21. 
 Non-intercourse, 394. Sec. 22. Mr. Madison elected president, 395. NOTES, 
 &C. 395. 
 
 PERIOD X. 
 MADISON'S ADMINISTRATION, 398 
 
 Sec. 1. Inauguration of Madison state of the country, 398. Sec. 2. 
 Conditional renewed intercourse with Great Britain, 399. Sec. 3. Insult of 
 the British minister, 400. Sec. 4. Rambouillet decree, 400. Sec. 5. Pro- 
 ceedings of congress, 400. Sec. 6. Revocation of Berlin and Milan decrees, 
 401. Sec. 7. Attack upon the American frigate President, 401. Sec. 8. 
 Congress assembled by proclamation Defensive measures, 402. Sec. 9, 
 Battle of Tippecanoe, 403. Sec. 10. Louisiana admitted into the union, 
 40:3. Sec. 11. Embargo, 405. Sec. 12. Declaration of war, 405. Sec. 13. 
 Military preparations, 407. Sec. 14. Surrender of Detroit, 408. Sec. 15. 
 Capture of the Guerriere, 413. Sec. 16. Of the Alert, 413. Sec. 17. Distri- 
 bution of the American army, 414. Sec. 18. Attack on Queenstown, 414. 
 Sec. 19. Capture of the Frolic, 416. Sec. 20. Of the Macedonian, 417. 
 Sec. 21. Of the Java, 418. Sec. 22. Review of the campaign of 1812,418. 
 Sec. 23. Location of the American forces, 421. Sec. 24. Bloody affair at 
 Frenehtown, 421. Sec. 24. Capture of the Peacock, 423. Sec. 25. Mr. 
 Madison re-elected, 424. Sec. 26. Proposed mediation of the Emperor of 
 Russia, 424. Sec. 27. Capture of York, 424. Sec. 28. Siege of Fort Meigs, 
 425. Sec. 29. Blockade of the Chesapeake, &c. 427. Sec. 30. Loss of the 
 Chesapeake, 427. Sec. 31. Loss of the Argus, 428. Sec. 32. Capture of tho 
 Boxer, 429. Sec. 33. Victory on Lake Erie, 429. Sec. 34. Capture of De- 
 troitBattle at the Moravian Village Death of Tecumseh, 430. Sec. 35. 
 Invasion of Canada, 432. Sec. 37. Departure of commissioners to Europe. 
 435. Sec. 38. War with the Creeks, 436. Sec. 39. Progress of this war and 
 conclusion, 436. Sec. 40. Military measures of the 15th Congress, 439. 
 Sec. 41. Loss of the Essex, 4 ID. Sec. 42. Capture of the Reindeer. 445. 
 Sec. 43 and 44. Movements of Wilkinson, 445. Sec. 46. Battle of Chip- 
 pewa, 447. Sec. 47. Battle of Bridgewater, 447. Sec. 48. Siege of Fort 
 Erie, 418. Sec. 49. Capture of Washington, 449. Sec. 50. Attack on Bal- 
 timore, 450. Sec. 51. Victory on Lake Champlain, 451. Sec. 52. Hartford 
 Convention, 453. Sec. 53. Measures proposed by that convention, 455. 
 bee. 54. Battle of New Orleans, -157. Sec. 55. Treaty with England, 458 
 bee. 56. Treaty with Algiers, 459. Sec. 58. Commercial convention with 
 Ureat Britain, 460. Sec. 59. Naval engagements, 461. Sec. 60. National 
 
CONTENTS. 
 
 Bank, 462. Sec. 61. Valedictory of Mr. Madison, 463. Sec. 62. Indiana 
 admitted into the union, 464. Sec. 63. Mr. Monroe elected president, 
 464. NOTES, &c. 465. 
 
 PERIOD XL 
 MONROE'S ADMINISTRATION, 467 
 
 Sec. 1. Inauguration of Monroe State of the country, 467. Sec. 2. For- 
 mation of the cabinet Letter of Gen. Jackson, 469. Sec. 3. Eastern tour 
 of the president, 471. Sec. 4. Prosperous state of the country, &c. 472. 
 Sec. 5. Mississippi admitted into the union, 472. Sec. 6. Suppression of 
 piracies of Amelia island, 473. Sec. 7. Compensation of members of con- 
 gress Repeal of internal duties Provision for indigent officers and sol- 
 diers, 474. Sec. 8. Illinois admitted into the union, 475. Sec. 9. Southern 
 tour of the president, 476. Sec. 10. Treaty with Sweden, 476. Sec. 11. 
 Seminole war, 477. Sec. 12. Convention with Great Britain, 482. Sec. 
 13. Cession of Florida to the United States. 483. Sec. 14. Arkansas 
 Territory organized, 484. Sec. 15. Second Southern tour of the president, 
 484. Sec. 16. Alabama admitted into the union, 484. Sec. 17. Maine ad- 
 mitted into the union, 485. Sec. 19. Re-election of Mr. Monroe, 486. 
 Sec. 20. Missouri admitted into the union, 486. Sec. 21. Apportionment 
 of representatives Relief of revolutionary soldiers, 488. Sec. 22. Territo- 
 rial government organized for Florida, 489. Sec. 23. Measures for the sup- 
 pression of piracy in the West Indies, 490. Sec. 25. Prosperous condition 
 of the country Remarks upon the cause of liberty in Greece South 
 American governments, 491. Sec. 26. Debate on the cause of Greece, 495. 
 Sec. 27. Abolition of imprisonment for debt Tariff, 496. Sec. 28. Visit 
 of La Fayette, 496. Sec. 29. View of foreign and domestic relations, 499. 
 Sec. 30. Debate on the occupation of the Oregon, &c. 501. Sec. 31. Cha- 
 racter of Mr. Monroe's administration, 502. Sec. 32. Presidential election- 
 John Q,uincy Adams chosen, 502. 
 
 PERIOD XII. 
 ADAMS' ADMINISTRATION, 504 
 
 Sec. 1. Inauguration of Adams, 504. Sec. 2. Organization 9f the cabi- 
 net, 505v Sec. 3. Controversy between Georgia and the United States, 
 r>06. Sec. 4. Suspension of Capt. Porter by a court-martial, 508. Sec. 5. 
 Disastrous effects of speculation, 509. Sec. 7. Proposed amendment of 
 the constitution, 510. Sec. 8. Congress of Panama Commissioners ap- 
 pointed to it, 511. Sec. 9. Surviving officers of the revolution, 513. Sec. 
 11. Death of Adams and Jefferson, 514. Sec. 12. Flattering view of the 
 foreign and domestic affairs of the nation, 518. Sec. 13. Revision of the 
 tariff, 520. Sec. 14. Presidential election General Jackson chosen, 521. 
 NOTESJ &c. 522. 
 
 CHRONOLOGICAL LIST, 537 
 
INTRODUCTION. 
 
 IT is the remark of a distinguished writer, " that the per- 
 fection of a science consists in its tendency to promote the. 
 advancement of public and private virtue, while, at the same 
 time, it supplies such a degree of amusement, as to supersede 
 the necessity of recurring to frivolous pursuits for relaxa- 
 tion." Estimated in this view, the importance of history in 
 general cannot be doubted. It conveys instruction, in rela- 
 tion to all the important interests of man, while the perusal of 
 it invigorates the mind, and prepares it for renewed exertions. 
 
 But, more particularly, it sets before us striking instances 
 of virtue, enterprise, courage, generosity, patriotism ; and, 
 by a natural principle of emulation, incites us to copy such 
 noble examples. History also presents us with pictures of 
 the vicious, ultimately overtaken by misery, and shame, and 
 thus solemnly warns us against vice. 
 
 History, to use the words of Professor Tytler, is the 
 school of politics. That is, it opens the hidden springs of 
 human affairs ; the causes of the rise, grandeur, revolu- 
 tions, and fall of empires ; it points out the influence which 
 the manners of a people exert upon a government, and the 
 influence which that government reciprocally exerts upon 
 the manners of a people; it illustrates the blessings of 
 political union, and the miseries of faction; the dangers, 
 on the one hand, of unbridled liberty, and, on the other, the 
 mischiefs of despotic power. 
 
 History displays the dealings of God with mankind. It 
 calls upon us often to regard with awe his darker judgments, 
 and again it awakens the liveliest emotions of gratitude, for 
 his kind and benignant dispensations. It cultivates a sense of 
 dependance o^ him ; strengthens our confidence in his bene- 
 volence ; and impresses us with a conviction of his justice. 
 
X INTRODUCTION. 
 
 Besides these advantages, the study of history, if properly 
 conducted, offers others, of inferior importance, indeed, but 
 still they are not to be disregarded. It chastens the imagi- 
 nation ; improves the taste ; furnishes matter for conversa- 
 tion and reflection ; enlarges the range of thought ; strength- 
 ens and disciplines the mind. 
 
 To the above uses of history, in general, it may be added 
 in relation to the particular history of our own country, 
 that it has peculiar claims upon every American citizen to 
 be well studied, as a knowledge of it is necessary to a faith- 
 ful discharge of public duties, which, in this free country, 
 may devolve upon him. Besides, it presents more powerful 
 incentives to virtue, patriotisan, and religion, than the his- 
 tory of any other nation on the globe. It is a strong but 
 just remark of a writer, " that the only desire of greatness, 
 which our children can draw from the history of their an- 
 cestors, is to be greatly good." For, here is presented to 
 them few, if any, demoralizing examples of bold and crimi- 
 nal ambition. The history of the. United States presents 
 but one well authenticated example of a traitor to his coun- 
 try; while it furnishes an illustrious phalanx of men, in 
 the various walks of life warriors, statesmen, and divines 
 Who, for their courage and fortitude, their wisdom and pa- 
 triotism, their piety and benevolence, deserve the foremost 
 rank among the worthies, who have been the ornaments of 
 our race, and the blessings of mankind. With such exam- 
 ples before him, the youth, in the days of his manhood, will 
 be led to shield our land, so far as his influence is concerned, 
 from national and individual wickedness, by following after 
 those who have cultivated national and personal virtue. By 
 .this means, in connexion with others, we may ever hope to 
 have a generation on the stage, who will watch with ceaseless 
 vigilance the ark of our political liberties, and contribute, by 
 the uprightness and integrity of their lives, as well to the 
 permanency of our institutions, as to the happiness of our 
 country. 
 
GENERAL DIVISION. 
 
 THE History of the United States of America 
 may be divided into Twelve Periods, each dis- 
 tinguished by some striking characteristic, or re- 
 markable circumstance. 
 
 The FIRST PERIOD will extend from the Dis- 
 covery of America , by Columbus, 1492, to the first 
 permanent English settlement in America, at 
 Jamestown, Virginia, 1607, and is distinguished 
 for DISCOVERIES. 
 
 Obs. Previous to the discovery of America in 1492, the 
 inhabitants of Europe, Asia, and Africa, were of course ig- 
 norant of its existence. But soon after this event, several 
 expeditions were fitted out, and came to make discoveries, 
 in what was then called the " New World." Accordingly, 
 between 1492 and 1607, the principal countries lying along 
 the eastern coast of North America, were discovered, and 
 more or less explored. As our history, during this period, 
 embraces little more than accounts of these expeditions, we 
 characterize it as remarkable for discoveries. 
 
 The SECOND PERIOD will extend from the 
 Settlement of Jamestown, 1607, to the accession 
 of William and Mary to the throne of England, 
 1689, and is distinguished for SETTLEMENTS. 
 
 Obs. During this period our history is principally occu- 
 pied in detailing the various settlements, which were either 
 effected, or attempted, within the boundaries of the United 
 States. It includes, indeed, wars with the natives dis- 
 putes between proprietors of lands and colonies the forma- 
 tion of governments, &c. &c. ; but these are circumstances 
 which pertain to, and form a part of, the settlement of new 
 
14 GENERAL DIVISION. 
 
 ^countries., ^ this; period embraces the settlement of most 
 'pf t Uie ori&iniit k *kt3te$ in the union, viz. Massachusetts, in- 
 cluding MainX Connecticut, Rhode Island, New-Hamp- 
 shirk! " N^W-Jlforfc, /New-Jersey, Pennsylvania, Maryland, 
 . ' Delaware, Norrfi *and' -South Carolina, and Virginia, it is 
 therefore characterized as remarkable for settlements. 
 
 The THIRD PERIOD will extend from the ac- 
 cession of William and Mary to the throne of 
 England, 1689, to the declaration of the war by 
 England against France, called " the French and 
 Indian War," 1756, and is remarkable for the 
 three wars of KING WILLIAM, QUEEN ANNE, and 
 GEORGE II. 
 
 Obs. So long as the colonies remained attached to the 
 English crown, they became involved, of course, in the wars 
 of the mother country. Three times during this period, 
 was war proclaimed between England and France ; and, 
 as the French had possession of Canada, and were leagued 
 with several powerful tribes of Indians, as often did the 
 colonies become the theatre of their hostile operations. 
 This period is therefore most remarkable for these three 
 wars. 
 
 The FOURTH PERIOD will extend from the 
 Declaration of war by England against France, 
 1756, to the commencement of hostilities by 
 Great Britain against the American Colonies, in 
 the battle of Lexington, 1775, and is distinguish- 
 ed for the FRENCH and INDIAN WAR. 
 
 The FIFTH PERIOD will extend from the Eat- 
 tie of Lexington, 1775, to the disbanding of the 
 American Army at West Point, New-York, 1783, 
 and is distinguished for the WAR OF THE REVO- 
 LUTION. 
 
 The SIXTH PERIOD will extend from the Dis- 
 banding of the Army, 1783, to the Inauguration 
 of George Washington, as President of the United 
 States, under the Federal Constitution, 1789, and 
 is distinguished for the FORMATION AND ESTAB 
 
 LISHMENT OF THE FEDERAL CONSTITUTION. 
 
GENERAL DIVISION. 15 
 
 The SEVENTH PERIOD wilt cpjjenfl from the 
 Inauguration of President Wask'tfogioni 1789 / : t6 
 the Inauguration of John Adams, ; as -President, of 
 the United States, 1797. 'Thifi^ertod' is 'Sistin- 
 guished for WASHINGTON'S ADMINISTRATION. 
 
 The EIGHTH PERIOD will extend from the 
 Inauguration of President Adams, 1797, to the 
 Inauguration of Thomas Jefferson, as President 
 of the United States, 1801. This period is dis- 
 tinguished for ADAMS' ADMINISTRATION. 
 
 The NINTH PERIOD will extend from the In- 
 auguration of President Jefferson, 1801, to the In- 
 auguration of James Madison, as President of 
 the United States, 1809. This period is distin- 
 guished for JEFFERSON'S ADMINISTRATION. 
 
 The TENTH PERIOD will extend from the In- 
 auguration of President Madison, 1809, to the In- 
 auguration of James Monroe, as President of the 
 United States, 1817. This period is distinguish- 
 ed for MADISON'S ADMINISTRATION, and the late 
 WAR WITH GREAT BRITAIN. 
 
 The ELEVENTH PERIOD will extend from the 
 Inauguration of President Monroe, 1817, to the 
 Inauguration of John Q,uincy Adams, as Presi- 
 dent of the United States, 1825. This period is 
 distinguished for MONROE'S ADMINISTRATION. 
 
 The TWELFTH PERIOD will extend from the 
 Inauguration of President Adams, 1825, to the 
 Inauguration of Andrew Jackson, as President 
 of the United States, 1829. This period is dis- 
 tinguished for ADAMS' ADMINISTRATION. 
 
STATES 
 
 PERIOD I. 
 
 DISTINGUISHED FOR DISCOVERIES. 
 
 Extending from the Discovery of San Salvador, 
 by Columbus, 1492, to the first permanent Eng- 
 lish settlement at Jamestown, Virginia, 1607. 
 
 Sec. 1. The honor of first making known to 
 the inhabitants of Europe, the existence of a 
 Western Continent, belongs to Spain, as a nation, 
 and to Christopher Columbus, a native of Genoa, 
 as an individual. 
 
 After the discovery of America by Columbus, other na- 
 tions laid claim to this honor ; and thus attempted to deprive 
 the Genoese navigator, as well as the Spanish nation, of the 
 merit to which they were justly entitled. 
 
 The only nations, however, who appear to have had even 
 the semblance for such a claim, were the Welsh and Nor- 
 wegians. 
 
 By the former, it was maintained, that the continent was 
 discovered by Madoc, son of Owen Gwynneth, who, re- 
 turning to his country, again sailed for the land he had dis- 
 covered, about the year 1170, taking with him ten ships, 
 arid 300 men, for the purpose of founding a colony. Of the 
 fate of this expedition, nothing was ever known. As it is 
 well established, however, that the first voyage of Madoc 
 was not a long one, it is justly inferred, that the lan<j, to 
 which he was leading his colony, could not have been more 
 westerly, than the islands in the Atlantic, situated about half 
 way between the Eastern and Western Continents, now 
 known by the name of the Azores. 
 
 The pretensions of the Norwegians were founded upon 
 the discovery of an unknown land, some time in the eleventh 
 century, by one Biron, or Biorn, an Icelander. During a 
 
DISCOVERIES. 17 
 
 voyage to Iceland, which, with Greenland, had heen dis- 
 covered and settled at an earlier date, Biron was driven 
 southeast by a storm, and fell in with a country, to which, 
 from its abounding with vines, he gave the name of Vine- 
 land. In his account of this voyage, the description given 
 of the appearance of the sun, in the country discovered, 
 would seem to indicate, that it lay in latitude about 44. 
 The fruits found there bore a resemblance to those now 
 found in Newfoundland, or the country about the Gulf of 
 St. Lawrence. Upon these uncertain data, the Norwegi- 
 ans founded their claims to a priority in the discovery of 
 America ; but, on Biron's return, his discovery appears to 
 have excited little interest among his countrymen ; and to 
 have slept in forgetfulness, until ,after Col ambus had es- - 
 tablished the existence of a Western -World. 
 
 Sec. 2. The voyage of Columbus, which led to 
 the foregoing important discovery, and of which 
 Ferdinand and Isabella, the sovereigns of the 
 united thrones of Castile and Arragon, were 
 patrons, was commenced on the 3d of August, 
 1492 ; at which time, the Genoese navigator sail- 
 ed from Palos, an inconsiderable seaport in 
 Spain, with a fleet, consisting of three small 
 vessels, manned by ninety seamen. On the 
 morning of the 12th of October following, he fell 
 in with an island, called by the natives Gua- 
 nahani ; but to which he gave the name of 
 San Salvador. This island, known on English 
 maps by the name of Cat Island, belongs to the 
 great cluster of the Lucayos, or Bahama Islands. 
 During the same voyage, he discovered several 
 other islands, among which were the important 
 onqs of Cuba and Hispaniola. 
 
 Columbus, whose discovery of the above islands led the 
 way to a know edge of the existence of a Western Conti- 
 nent, was born in the city of Genoa, about the year 1435 or 
 1436. His father was a reputable and meritorious man; 
 by occupation, a wool-comber, long resident in the city of 
 Genoa. Columbus was the eldest of four children, having 
 two brothers, Bartholomew and Diego, and one sister. 
 2* 
 
18 PERIOD i. 1492 TO 1607. 
 
 His early education was limited ; but he diligently im- 
 proved all the advantages, which the means of his father 
 enabled him to enjoy. After spending a short time at the 
 university of Pavia, he returned to his father, whom he as- 
 sisted in wool-combing. 
 
 His enterprising disposition, however, prompted him to 
 more active employment ; and, at the age of fourteen years, 
 we find him entering upon a sea-faring life. He first en- 
 
 ,j_ listed into the service of a hardy sea captain of the name 
 of Colombo, a distant relation*; but, some time after, entered 
 on board the fleet of a nephew to the old Genoese captain 
 
 ^ just mentioned. 
 
 His new commander was a corsair, so terrible for his 
 deeds against the infidels, that the Moorish mothers used 
 to frighten their unruly children with his name. " This 
 bolcl rpver," observes the distinguished biographer* of Co- 
 lumbus, ""having heard of four Venetian galleys richly la- 
 den, on their return voyage from Flanders, intercepted them 
 with his squadron, on the Portuguese coast, between Lis- 
 bon and Cape St. Vincent. A desperate engagement took 
 place; the vessels grappled each other, and the crews 
 fought hand to hand, and from ship to ship. The battle 
 lasted from morning until evening, with great carnage on 
 both sides. The vessel on board which Columbus was, 
 was engaged with a huge Venetian galley. They threw 
 hand grenades and other fiery missiles, and the galley was 
 wrapped in flames. The vessels were fastened together by 
 chains and grappling irons, and could not be separated \ 
 both were involved in one conflagration, and soon became 
 a mere blazing mass. The crews threw themselves into 
 the sea ; Columbus seized an oar, which was floating within 
 reach ; and, being an expert swimmer, attained the shore, 
 though two full leagues distant." 
 
 He now repaired to Lisbon. He was at this time about 
 34 years of age ; a tall, well formed, vigorous man ; enter- 
 prising in his disposition, and uncommonly dignified in his 
 manners. Taking up his residence, for a time, at Lisbon, 
 he became acquainted with, and married the daughter of a 
 
 j distinguished navigator, the former governor of Porto Santo, 
 an island in the vicinity of Madeira, about 700 miles south- 
 west from Lisbon. 
 
 The father of his wife being dead, Columbus resided 
 
 * Irving's Columbus, to which the author is indebted for the principal 
 facts in this biographical sketch of this extraordinary man. 
 
DISCOVERIES. 19 
 
 with his mother-in-law, who gave him the privilege of ex- 
 amining the papers, charts, journals, and memorandums, of 
 her deceased husband. These made Columbus acquainted -? * 
 with many important facts and suggestions, touching the 
 great enterprise, in which the Portuguese were, at that 
 time, engaged, viz. the discovery of a passage to the East 
 Indies, by doubling the southern extremity of Africa. 
 
 To a mind inquisitive and enterprising like that of Co- 
 lumbus, this subject was invested with the deepest interest 
 and importance ; and the more he read and reflected upon 
 the figure of the earth, the stronger was his belief, not 
 merely that a western passage to India was practicable ; 
 but that whoever should be sufficiently enterprising to navi- 
 gate the Atlantic, by sailing due west, must meet with a 
 large body of land, which might be an extension of the 
 continent of India, designed to balance the lands lying in 
 the eastern hemisphere. 
 
 In this latter opinion, he was strengthened by various dis- 
 coveries in the Atlantic : such as pieces of carved wood ; 
 trunks of huge pine-trees, &c., which had been noticed, af- 
 ter long westerly winds ; but, especially, by the well es- 
 tablished fact, that the bodies of two men had been cast 
 upon one of the Azore islands, whose features differed from 
 those of any known race of people. 
 
 Having matured the plan of a voyage, with the above ob- 
 ject in view, he first offered to sail under the patronage of 
 the Portuguese ; but, being disappointed in this application, 
 and despairing of assistance from Henry VII. of England, 
 to whom he had sent his brother Bartholomew, but who, 
 being captured, did riot reach England for some time, he re- 
 paired to Genoa, and offered to sail under the auspices of that 
 republic. Finding, however, his native state not in a situation 
 favorable to .such an undertaking, he next repaired to Spain. 
 
 By what route, or by what means, Columbus reached 
 Spain, is uncertain. The first trace we have of him, in 
 this country, is as a stranger, on foot, and in humble guise, 
 stopping at the gate of the convent of Santa Maria de Rabi- 
 da, not far from the little seaport of Palos, and asking of 
 the porter a little bread and water for a child his son Die- 
 go, whom his deceased wife had left to him. While re- 
 ceiving this humble refreshment, the prior of the convent, 
 happening ft) pass by, was struck with the appearance of 
 the stranger, and observing from his air and accent that ho 
 was a foreigner, entered into conversation with him, and 
 soon learned the particulars of his story. 
 
20 PERIOD i. 1492 TO 1607. 
 
 The prior was a man of extensive information, and enter- 
 ed warmly into the views and plans of Columbus. Through 
 his influence, the enterprising navigator was, at length, 
 enabled to lay his plans before Ferdinand and Isabella, then 
 on the united thrones of Castile and Arragon. 
 
 These sovereigns were, at this time, engaged in the con- 
 quest of the Moors. For a time, they were too much occu- 
 pied to give to his views that consideration which they re- 
 quired ; and when, at length, they were sufficiently at 
 leisure to order commissioners to enter into an arrangement 
 with Columbus, his terms were deemed so extravagant, that 
 all negotiation was broken off 
 
 A friend to Columbus, who was satisfied of the practica- 
 bility of his plans, arid who knew, that, mortified and dis- 
 gusted, he was already on his way out of the kingdom, 
 hastily repaired to the queen, and to her represented the 
 great disgrace which would come upon the crown, if the 
 proposal of Columbus was rejected. He stated his liberal 
 offer to bear an eighth of the expense, and informed her, 
 that all the requisites for this great enterprise consisted but 
 of two vessels, and about three thousand crowns. For a 
 time, the queen hesitated, but, at length, with an enthusiasm 
 worthy of herself, and of the cause, exclaimed, " I undertake 
 the enterprise, for my own crown of Castile; and will 
 pledge my private jewels to raise the necessary funds." A 
 messenger was now immediate!^ dispatched, to recall Co- 
 lumbus. Fortunately, he overtook him, before he had left 
 the kingdom. Thus summoned back, he returned to court; 
 soon after which an arrangement, satisfactory to himself, 
 was effected with the sovereigns the necessary funds were 
 advanced, and a fleet, consisting of three small vessels, was, 
 at no distant time, in a state of readiness for the voyage. 
 Two of these were light barks, called caravals, -not superior 
 to river and coasting craft of more modern days. These 
 were open, without deck in the centre, but built up high at 
 the prow and stern, with forecastles and cabins for the ac- 
 commodation of the crew. The names of these vessels 
 were the Pinta and Nina. The ship of Columbus was 
 decked, and of larger dimensions. She was called the San- 
 ta Maria. On board this fleet were ninety mariners, to- 
 f ether with various private adventurers in all, one hun- 
 red and twenty persons. 
 
 On Friday, the 3d of August, 1492, early in the morning, 
 the squadron of Columbus set sail from Palos, steering in a 
 southwesterly direction for the Canary islands, from whence 
 
Columbus petitioning Ferdinand and Isabella. 
 P. 20. 
 
 Landing of Columbus P* 22 
 
DISCOVERIES. 21 
 
 it was his intention to strike due west. At these islands 
 he was detained for the space of three weeks, in conse- 
 quence of an accident which befell the rudder of the Pinta. 
 Sailing thence, they stretched due west, for the unknown 
 parts of the Atlantic. This was an interesting period of 
 their voyage. " On losing sight of this last trace of land, 
 the hearts of the crews failed them. They seemed literally 
 to have taken leave of the world. Behind them was every 
 thing dear to the heart of man ; country, family, friends, life 
 itself: before them every thing was chaos, mystery, and 
 peril. In the perturbation of the moment, they despaired of 
 ever more seeing their homes. Many of the rugged sea- 
 men shed tears, and some broke into loud lamentations. 
 The admiral tried in every way to soothe their distress, and 
 to inspire them with his own glorious anticipations." 
 
 Passing over many interesting incidents in their outward 
 voyage the storms and tempests which they encountered 
 the delusive appearances of land their hopes and their 
 fears their high wrought excitement, and then their deep 
 dejection the murmurs, and even mutinous spirit of the 
 crew, and the happy expedients of Columbus to raise their 
 courage, and to keep burning within them the spirit of the 
 enterprise we arrive at the llth of October, at which time 
 the indications of land were so strong, that, at night, Colum- 
 bus ordered a double watch, on the forecastle of each vessel, 
 and promised to the first discoverer of the long-looked for 
 land, a doublet of velvet, in addition to the pension of thirty 
 crowns, which had been offered by Ferdinand and Isabella. 
 
 " The greatest animation now prevailed throughout the 
 ships ; not an eye was closed that night. As evening dark- 
 ened, Columbus took his station on the top of the castle or 
 cabin, on the high poop of his vessel. However he might 
 carry a cheerful and confident countenance during the day, 
 it was to him a time of the most painful anxiety ; and now, 
 when he was wrapped by the shades of night from observa- 
 tion, he maintained an intense and unremitting watch, rang- 
 ing his eye along the dusky horizon, in search of the most 
 vague indication of land. Suddenly, about ten o'clock, he 
 thought he beheld a light glimmering at a distance. Fear- 
 ing that his eager hopes might deceive him, he called to 
 Pedro Gutierrez, gentleman of the king's bedchamber, and 
 demanded whether he saw a light in that direction ; the lat- 
 ter replied in the affirmative. Columbus, yet doubtful 
 -whether it might not be some delusion of the fancy, called 
 Roderigo Sanchez, of Segovia, and made the inquiry. By 
 
22 PERIOD i. 1492 TO 1607. 
 
 the time the latter had ascended the round house, the light 
 had disappeared. They saw it once or twice afterwards, in 
 sudden and passing gleams, as if it were a torch in the bark 
 of a fisherman, rising and sinking with the waves, or in the 
 hand of some person on shore, borne up and down as he 
 walked from house to house. So transient and uncertain, 
 were these gleams, that few attached any importance to 
 them. Columbus, however, considered them as certain 
 signs of land, and moreover, that the land was inhabited. 
 
 " They continued their course, until two in the morning 
 when a gun from the Pinta gave the joyful signal of land, 
 It was fir st descried by a mariner, named Roderigo de Fria- 
 na ; but the reward was afterwards adjudged to the admiral, 
 for having previously perceived the light. The land was 
 now clearly seen about two leagues distant, whereupon 
 they took in sail, and laid to, waiting impatiently for the 
 dawn. 
 
 " The thoughts and feelings of Columbus, in this little 
 space of time, must have been tumultuous and intense. At 
 length, in spite of every difficulty and danger, he had ac- 
 complished his object. The great mystery of the ocean 
 was revealed ; his theory, which had been the scoff even 
 of sages, was triumphantly established ; he had secured to 
 himself a glory, which must be as durable as the world 
 itself." 
 
 The morning at length arrived, October 12th, and before 
 the delighted Spaniards lay a level and beautiful island, 
 several leagues in extent, of great freshness and verdure, 
 and covered with trees like a continual orchard. 
 
 Columbus, in a rich dress, and with a drawn sword, soon 
 
 er landed with his men, with whom, having kneeled and 
 kissed the ground with tears of joy, he took formal posses- 
 sion of the island, in the name of Queen Isabella, his patron. 
 On landing, the Spaniards were surprised to find a race of 
 people, quite unlike any that they had ever seen before. 
 They were of a dusky, copper color naked beardless, 
 with long black hair, floating on their shoulders, or bound 
 in tresses round their heads. The natives were still more 
 surprised at the sight of the Spaniards, whom they consider- 
 ed as the children of the sun, their idol. The ships they 
 looked upon as animals, with eyes of lightning, and voices 
 of thunder. 
 
 Having spent some time in an examination of this island, 
 he proceeded to visit several others, not far distant; and at 
 length, on the 28th of October, came in sight of the impor- 
 
* 
 
 DISCOVERIES. 23 
 
 tant island of Cuba, and not long after fell in with the isl- 
 and of Hispaniola, or San Domingo. 
 
 While engaged in these discoveries, Columbus had the 
 mortification to be deserted by the Pinta. Her commander, 
 Pinzon, had been for some time impatient of control, and 
 was evidently desirous of prosecuting the enterprise in his 
 own name. Indignant at the insubordination of Pinzon, 
 and his evident wish to deprive him of his just honors, Co- 
 lumbus at first determined to pursue him ; but, upon further 
 reflection, deeming it uncertain whether he should find him, 
 he relinquished the purpose. 
 
 Not long after the discovery of Hispaniola, Columbus 
 had the misfortune to be shipwrecked, with the entire loss 
 of his vessel, the Santa Maria. This he felt the more se- 
 verely, as the accident was the result of unfaithfulness on 
 the part of the person to whom he had given the helm in 
 charge, while he sought a few hours rest, after long watch- 
 ing' and fatigue. Shortly after Columbus had retired, the 
 steersman gave the command of the helm to a boy, and him- 
 self lay down to sleep, as did the rest of the crew. A 
 treacherous current soon bore the vessel upon a reef, from 
 which it was impossible to liberate her. Columbus and 
 his men took refuge on board the Nina, until morning, when 
 they were landed, and encamped upon the shore. 
 
 The situation of the navigator was now exceedingly pain- 
 ful and perplexing. His ablest ship was no more the Pinta 
 had deserted him, and he was now left to attempt a danger- 
 ous voyage to Spain, with one small and crowded vessel. 
 It was a fortunate circumstance, that the natives were found 
 to be cordial, and warmly to second the project, at length 
 suggested, of a part of the crew remaining on the island, 
 while the admiral returned to Spain. 
 
 This being determined upon, a rude, but comfortable for- 
 tress, called La Navidad, was constructed from the wreck 
 of the Santa Maria. Thirty-nine of the most able and ex- 
 emplary of the crew were selected, from among those who 
 volunteered to remain. For these, Columbus drew up such 
 regulations, and imparted such advice, as seemed to him 
 best calculated to insure their peace and unanimity ; which 
 having done, on the 4th of January, 1493, he set sail on his 
 return to Spain. 
 
 Shortly after the commencement of the -voyage, much to 
 their joy, *the Pinta was discovered bearing down upon 
 them. On meeting, Pinzon pretended that his desertion 
 was unintentional, having been driven by adverse winds to 
 
24 PERIOD i. 1492 TO 1607. 
 
 a distance, from which he knew not the way to return. 
 Subsequent information proved this story to be untrue, 
 and fastened upon him the guilt of a willful desertion, from 
 selfish and mercenary motives. The discovery of the Pinta, 
 however, was a fortunate occurrence, as the vessel in which 
 Columbus sailed was small and feeble. 
 
 They now proceeded on their return voyage in company. 
 For a time, nothing- worthy of special notice occurred ; but 
 when, at length, they were within a few hundred miles of 
 Spain, a tempest of no ordinary violence came on, and con- 
 tinued to increase in fury for several days. During its con- 
 tinuance, the vessels were separated, and the crew of each 
 supposed their companions had found a watery grave. 
 
 Columbus was not given to despondency ; but the vio- 
 lence and long continuance of the tempest terrified and con- 
 founded him. The history of his discovery the secret of 
 the new world, depended, as he had reason to believe, upon 
 his own feeble bark, and one surge of the ocean might bury 
 it for ever in oblivion. " In the midst of these gloomy ap- 
 prehensions, an expedient suggested itself to him, by which, 
 though he and his ship should perish, the glory of his 
 achievement might survive to his name, and its advantages 
 be secured to his sovereigns. He wrote on parchment a brief 
 account of his voyage and discovery, and of his having taken 
 possession of the newly found lands, in the name of their 
 Catholic majesties. This he sealed, and directed to the king 
 and queen, and superscribed also a promise of a thousand du- 
 cats to whoever should deliver the packet unopened. He then 
 wrapped it in a waxed cloth, which he placed in the centre 
 of a cake of wax, and inclosing the whole in a large barrel, 
 threw it into the sea, leaving his crew to suppose that he 
 was performing some religious vow. Lest this memorial 
 should never reach land, he inclosed a copy in a similar 
 manner, and placed it upon the poop, so that, should the ca- 
 raval be swallowed up by the waves, the barrel might float 
 off and survive. 
 
 It was the will of Heaven, however, that the bark of Co- 
 lumbus should outride this storm, and the knowledge of his 
 important discovery be preserved to Europe. He was at 
 length able to put into a harbor of Portugal, from which, 
 sailing once more, he entered the harbor of Palos, from 
 whence he had sailed on the third of August, in the prece- 
 ding year, having taken not quite seven months and a half 
 to accomplish this most momentous of all maritime enter- 
 prises. 
 
DISCOVERIES. 25 
 
 The reception which Columbus met with at Palos, was 
 such as might be expected. The whole community broke 
 forth into transports of joy. For a time, all business was 
 suspended, and the people gave themselves up to general 
 exultation, and to the celebration of the success of the enter- 
 prise, in a grand procession, and public thanksgiving to 
 God. 
 
 It is related, that in the evening of the very day on which 
 Columbus entered the port of Palos, and while the inhabit- 
 ants were rejoicing at his safe return, the Pinta entered the 
 harbor. She had been separated from Columbus, as we 
 have related, and took refuge, for a time, in the Bay of Bis- 
 cay. From this point, Pinzon, calculating upon the loss of 
 the Nina, addressed a letter to Ferdinand and Isabella, an- 
 nouncing his return, and communicating to them the intel- 
 ligence of the discovery of a new world, the credit of which 
 he took to himself. But, now, on his arrival, he beheld the 
 vessel of the admiral riding at anchor, and learned, to his in- 
 expressible mortification, that honors were paying to Colum- 
 bus, which his selfish soul was appropriating to himself. 
 Secretly leaving his vessel, he hastened to his house, where, 
 in seclusion, he not long after died, " the victim of humilia- 
 tion and remorse." 
 
 The honors paid to Columbus by the people of Palos, 
 were the harbingers of still higher honors which awaited 
 him at the court of Spain. At Barcelona, at that time the 
 residence of the Spanish court, he was welcomed in a man- 
 ner comparable to a Roman triumph. Both sovereigns and 
 people, the elevated and the humble, united to do him honor. 
 
 Having spent some time in Spain, enjoying the confidence 
 of Ferdinand and Isabella, and in the reception of all the 
 hospitality and kindness which they and their subjects could 
 show him, Columbus, at their suggestion, made preparations 
 for a second voyage." Liberality now marked their conduct 
 in his outfit, as much as parsimony had in his first voyage. 
 On the 25th of September, he was sailing from the bay of 
 Cadiz, at the head of a squadron of seventeen vessels of va- 
 rious burden, on board of which were not less than fifteen 
 hundred souls. 
 
 We shall pass over the incidents of this voyage, excepting 
 only to say, that in the course of it, the fleet fell in with the 
 Caribbee, or West India islands. On the -27th of Novem- 
 ber, 1493, they anchored opposite the harbor of La Navi- 
 dad. As it was now evening, they " cast anchor about a 
 league from the land, not danrig to enter in the dark, on 
 3 
 
- 
 26 PERIOD i. 1492 TO 1607. 
 
 account of the dangerous reefs. It was too late in the night 
 to distinguish objects. Impatient to satisfy his doubts, 
 therefore, he ordered two cannon to be fired. The report 
 echoed along the shore, but there was no reply from the fort. 
 Every eye was now directed to catch the gleam of some 
 signal light ; every ear listened to hear some friendly shout; 
 but there was neither light, nor shout, nor any other sign 
 of life : all was darkness and death-like silence." 
 
 The reasons for this silence were, at length, explained. 
 It appeared, that after the departure of Columbus, on his re- 
 turn to Spain, the colony had fallen into dissensions among 
 themselves ; had separated from one another ; had given 
 themselves up to indolence and licentiousness ; some had 
 died of sickness, others in a quarrel between themselves, 
 and that the remnant, together with the Indians in the 
 neighborhood, had been assailed by Caonabo, a fierce and 
 warlike chief in the interior, who had vanquished both 
 burnt the village of the Indians, destroyed the fortress of 
 the Spaniards, the latter of whom, together with great num- 
 bers of the former, they had killed. The region, so beauti- 
 ful at the time Columbus departed, now wore the marks of 
 desolation, and served to confirm the story told by the sur- 
 viving Indians of what had taken place. 
 
 The objections to repairing the ruins of La Navidad were 
 so serious, that Columbus concluded to select another spot 
 upon which to commence a settlement. At the distance of 
 about ten leagues to the east, an advantageous situation was 
 discovered, and here was commenced the building of a place, 
 which, in honor of the queen of Spain, was called Isabella 
 
 For a time, matters went on prosperously at the new set- 
 tlement. A part of the fleet was dispatched to Spain, and 
 Columbus made an excursion into the interior, where he 
 erected a fortress, which he named St. Thomas. When 
 completed, he gave it in coramand to Pedro Margarite, with 
 whom he left a garrison of fifty-six men. On his return to 
 Isabella from building this fort, he found the affairs of the 
 colony not as peaceful as when he left it. Discontentment 
 made its appearance among some. Provisions were less 
 plenty, and not a few began to be feeble and sick. To all 
 these evils, Columbus applied the best remedy in his power. 
 Having settled matters somewhat to his satisfaction, he pro- 
 ceeded on an expedition to the east of Cuba. During this 
 voyage, he discovered the island of Jamaica ; and, at length, 
 returned again to Isabella. 
 
 During his absence, untoward events transpired. Mar- 
 
DISCOVERIES. 27 
 
 garite, who had the charge of the fortress of St. Thomas, 
 had been ordered to explore the surrounding country. In 
 obedience to these orders, he left Alonzo de Ojeda, with a 
 small party, to garrison the fort. But, forgetful of his in- 
 structions, he and his men abandoned themselves to great 
 excesses among several tribes of Indians whom they visited. 
 Tidings of these excesses reaching Don Diego, the brother 
 of Columbus, who had the superintendence of affairs at Isa- 
 bella, during the absence of the admiral, the former wrote 
 to Margarite a letter of reproof. Upon this, the latter, 
 abandoning his command, repaired to Isabella, where, 
 seizing an unoccupied vessel, he sailed with several of the 
 disaffected of the colony for Spain. 
 
 Caonabo, the chief who had destroyed the fortress of La 
 Navidad, hearing of the departure of Margarite, assembled 
 ten thousand of his warriors, with the design of surprising 
 Ojeda in the fortress of St. Thomas. 
 
 Ojeda, however, was not to be taken by surprise. The 
 fortress was in a state of preparation ; and, although he had 
 . but fifty men, he maintained his post for the space of thirty 
 days, with little loss to himself, but to the destruction of .. 
 many of the bravest warriors of Caonabo. At length, find- / 
 ing its reduction impossible, the haughty chief retired with 
 Vis men, filled with admiration of the prowess and achieve- 
 ments of Ojeda. 
 
 The return of Columbus was a fortunate event, both for 
 his own honor and the welfare of the colony. Ojeda now 
 proposed to Columbus a plan for taking Caonabo, to which 
 the former acceded, although he deemed it wild and hazard- 
 ous. 
 
 In fulfillment of his plan, Ojeda selected ten bold and hardy 
 followers, well armed and well mounted, with whom he ' 
 traversed the forests to the territories of Caonabo, a distance 
 of sixty leagues. Having found the chief, Ojeda proposed 
 to him to repair to Isabella, for the purpose of making a 
 treaty with Columbus, offering him, in consideration of such 
 a treaty, the bell of the chapel of Isabella the wonder of 
 the island, in the view of the Indians, who had heard its 
 sound. 
 
 The chief at length consented to go ; but when the time 
 of departure arrived, he had collected a powerful force of 
 warriors to accompany him. In the course of their march, 
 they halted near a river. In this Ojeda proposed to Caona- 
 bo that they should bathe. The latter consenting, they 
 went into the water, at some distance from the Indians ; 
 
28 PERIOD i.- 1492 TO 1607. 
 
 and, on coming out, Ojeda invited the chief to get up behind 
 him. This well pleased the chief, who, when mounted, had 
 put upon his feet, by way of ornament and honor, as Ojeda 
 pretended, a set of manacles of polished steel, but the real 
 purpose of which was to secure him safely upon the horse. 
 Thus mounted, Ojeda, with his men also mounted, per- 
 formed, in the view of the Indians, several feats of horseman- 
 ship ; and, as they circled round at a distance from the In- 
 dians, on a given signal, the party of horsemen, with their 
 prisoner, fled into the forests, through which passing with 
 great expedition, they escaped, and at lengih arrived at Isa- 
 
 While these things were transacting in the new world, 
 Margarite and other malcontents arrived in Spain, and were 
 loud in their complaints against Columbus. Although not 
 satisfied with the justice of these complaints, Ferdinand and 
 Isabella deemed it expedient to dispatch a commission to 
 inquire into the state of the colony. The person thus com- 
 missioned bore the name of Aguado. On his arrival at Isa- 
 bella, transcending his orders, he treated Columbus with 
 great rudeness ; and, by every possible means, endeavored 
 to procure testimony which might be used to his prejudice 
 in the court of Spain. 
 
 Finding in what manner Aguado was proceeding, and 
 the injury which his reputation might receive, if he were 
 suffered to return to Spain alone, Columbus determined to ac- 
 company him. On the 10th of March, 1496, they embarked 
 in two caravals. At this time, Caonabo was taken on board 
 the vessel of Columbus, for the purpose of undergoing a trial 
 in Spain, for his conduct in relation to the murder of the 
 Spaniards ; but in the course of the voyage, this unfortunate 
 chief expired. On the 1 1th of June the vessels anchored in 
 the bay of Cadiz. 
 
 The enemies of Columbus had in a measure successfully 
 attacked his popularity ; and, on his arrival in Spain, he 
 found the former enthusiasm and zeal, in respect to his dis- 
 coveries, somewhat diminished ; yet he was still treated 
 with kindness by Ferdinand and Isabella. After experien- 
 cing much delay, he was permitted to fit out another expe- 
 dition, consisting of six vessels, and on the 30th of May, 
 1498, he left Spain on his third voyage. In the course of 
 this voyage, pursuing a different route from those of his 
 former voyages, on the 31st of July, he fell in with an isl- 
 and, which he named Trinidad; and, on the following day, 
 August 1st, 1498, for the first time obtained a view of the 
 
DISCOVERIES. f- 
 
 main continent, near the mouth of the Oronoco\ 
 this time, he appears to have been ignorant that th\ 
 question was any thing more than an island. 
 
 From this point, he hastened his voyage towards Isabella, 
 where he arrived on the 30th of August, at this time worn 
 down by fever, gout, and incessant watchfulness. He in- 
 dulged the hope, however, that the repose which he should 
 now enjoy would repair the waste which his constitution 
 had undergone; but he was destined to meet with new trou- 
 bles, and from a quarter, too, 1 <? had little reason to expect. 
 
 During his absence, a defection had taken place, headed 
 by one Roldan, a man under the greatest obligations to Co- 
 lumbus, but who now aspired to usurp the reins of authori- 
 ty from Don Diego, the brother of Columbus, the governor 
 of the island. 
 
 This rebellion Diego had attempted in vain to settle. On 
 the appearance of Columbus, a negotiation was entered into 
 with the rebels, and, for a time, affairs were apparently ad- 
 justed ; but the spirit of insubordination had taken deep root, 
 and numerous and bitter were the complaints against Co- 
 lumbus, which were from time to time forwarded to Spain. 
 
 In this unsettled state of affairs, Ferdinand and Isabella 
 incautiously issued letters to Bobadilla, an officer of the 
 royal household, commissioning him to repair to the new 
 world to redress all grievances, and at the same time fur- 
 nished him with blank letters, signed by themselves, to be 
 filled up in such manner, in relation to his nv" ion, as he 
 thought advisable. 
 
 With this unlimited commission in his hands, Bobadilla 
 arrived at San Domingo, on the 5th of August, 1500. Short- 
 ly after, this infamous man proceeded to arrest Columbus 
 and his brothers, whom, for a time, he imprisoned ; and, at , 
 length, crowned his arrogance and injustice by sending- -". 
 them to Spain in chains. 
 
 To the people of Spain, such a procedure was most un- 
 I expected, and a general burst of indignation proceeded from 
 'all quarters. On landing, Columbus dispatched a letter ex- 
 planatory of his conduct, to a lady in the confidence of Isa- 
 bella, who showed it to the latter, who was filled with min- 
 gled sympathy and indignation. 
 
 However Ferdinand might have secretly felt disposed to- 
 wards Columbus, observes the biographer of the latter, the 
 momentary tide of public feeling was not to be resisted. He 
 joined with his generous queen in her reprobation of the 
 treatment of the admiral, and both sovereigns hastened to 
 
50 PERIOD i. 1492 TO 1607. 
 
 give evidence to the world, that his imprisonment had been 
 without their authority, and contrary to their wishes. Or 
 ders were issued for the instant release of Columbus and 
 j his brothers Bobadilla was soon after recalled, and a man 
 c - . ~by the name of Ovando was appointed to succeed him. This 
 was doing- great injustice to Columbus, who had done 
 nothing to forfeit the confidence of his sovereigns, or his 
 title to his former command. He still shared the confidence 
 of Isabella, but the politic Ferdinand had objects in view, 
 which he found he could accomplish with more certainty by 
 other agents than by means of Columbus. 
 
 He was permitted, however, again to fit out an expedition 
 at the public expense j but was forbidden, in his voyage, to 
 touch at Hispaniola. On his arrival, hoAvever, on that coast, 
 the injury sustained by one of his vessels compelled him to 
 seek a shelter in the harbor. This request was refused by 
 the hard-hearted Ovando. 
 
 At this moment, a fleet was on the point of sailing for 
 Spain, on board of which were Bobadilla, Roldan, and 
 others of his inveterate enemies. Perceiving indications of 
 an approaching tempest, Columbus, notwithstanding the re- 
 fusal of Ovando, sent to him, informing him of the approach- 
 ing storm, and advising that the squadron bound for Spain 
 should wait until it was past. 
 
 This advice, however, was unheeded, and the fleet set 
 sail. " Within two days, the predictions of Columbus were 
 verified. One of those tremendous hurricanes which some- 
 times sweep those latitudes, had gradually gathered up. 
 The baleful appearance of the heavens, the wild look of the 
 ocean, the rising murmurs of the wind, all gave notice of 
 its approach. The fleet had scarcely reached the eastern 
 point of Hispaniola, when the tempest burst over it with 
 awful fury, involving everything in wreck and ruin. The 
 ship on board which were Bobadilla, Roldan, and a number 
 of the most inveterate enemies of Columbus, was swallowed 
 up, with all its crew, and with a large mass of gold, and the 
 principal part of the ill-gotten treasure gained by the mise- 
 ries of the Indians. Many of the ships were entirely lost ; 
 some returned to San Domingo in a shattered condition, 
 and only one was enabled to continue her voyage to Spain. 
 That one, according to Fernando Columbus, was the weak- 
 est of the fleet, and had on board four thousand pieces of 
 gold belonging to Columbus." 
 
 The little squadron of Columbus survived the tempest, 
 after which he continued his voyage. This proved to be 
 
DISCOVERIES. 
 
 one of the most eventful and distressing of all the 
 ever undertaken by this illustrious man. Our limits forbid 
 us to follow him. Having experienced every variety of 
 fortune, he at length returned to Spain, where he arrived, a 
 wreck of what he once was, on the 7th of November, 1504. 
 
 Here he had still reason to hope, that justice would be 
 done him ; but the death of Isabella, his patroness and un- 
 changing friend, which occurred within less than a month 
 after his arrival, overshadowed his prospects. For some 
 time he was confined by a painful illness at Seville ; but, at 
 length, was enabled to present himself at court. Here, 
 however, " he met with none of that distinguished attention, 
 that cordial kindness, that cherishing sympathy, which his 
 unparalleled services, and his recent sufferings, had merited. 
 Ferdinand received him with many professions of kindness, 
 but with those cold ineffectual smiles, which pass like win- 
 try sunshine over the countenance, and convey no warmth 
 to the heart." 
 
 At length, the final hour of Columbus arrived arrived, 
 tpo, without his having received from the hands of Ferdi- 
 nand, what gratitude, what justice, demanded. On the 20th 
 of May, 1506, he expired with great resignation. His last 
 words were, " In manus tuus, Domine, commendo spiritum 
 meum : " into thy hands, O Lord, I commend my spirit." 
 
 The body of Columbus was deposited in the convent of 
 St. Francisco, but was afterwards removed to a monastery 
 at Seville, where, for a time, it rested with the remains of 
 his son Diego. The bodies of both, however, were after- 
 wards removed to Hispaniola, and here again disinterred, 
 and conveyed to the Havana, in- the island of Cuba, where, 
 in peace, they now repose. 
 
 Not only was Columbus deprived of his merited honors 
 and rewards, while living, but even his name was neglected 
 to be given to the country which he discovered. This lat- 
 ter honor was borne away by Americus Vesputius, a Flo- 
 rentine, who, the year after Columbus had made the dis-_ 
 covery of the continent, followed in his track, and some time 
 after his return published such an account of his voyage, 
 as to lead to the belief, that he was the first discoverer of the 
 continent. 
 
 We shall conclude this notice of the great pioneer to this 
 western world, in the eloquent language of the author to 
 whom we have been indebted for the principal incidents in 
 the life of this illustrious man. " He (Columbus) died in 
 ignorance of the real grandeur of his discovery. Until his 
 
^n 
 
 32 PERIOD i. 1492 TO 1607. 
 
 last breath, k? ^.tertained the idea, that he had merely 
 opened a new way to the old resorts of opulent commerce, 
 and had discovered some of the wild regions of the east. 
 He supposed Hispaniola to be the ancient Ophir, which had 
 been visited by the ships of Solomon, and that Cuba and 
 Terra Firma were but remote parts of Asia. What visions 
 of glory would have broken upon his mind, could he have 
 known that he had indeed discovered a new continent, equal 
 to the whole of the old world in magnitude, and separated 
 by two vast oceans from all the earth hitherto known by ci- 
 vilized man ! And how would his magnanimous spirit have 
 been consoled, amidst the afflictions of age, and the cares of 
 penury, the neglect of a fickle public, and the injustice of 
 an ungrateful king, could he have anticipated the splendid 
 empires which were to spread over the beautiful world he 
 had discovered, and the nations, and tongues, and languages, 
 which were to fill its lands with his renown, and to revere 
 and bless his name to the latest posterity !" 
 
 Sec. 3. The discovery of Columbus naturally 
 excited the attention of the civilized nations of 
 Europe, and they became eager to share with 
 Spain the honors and advantages of further dis- 
 coveries in the new world. As early as May, 
 1497, John and Sebastian Cabot, father and son, 
 sailed, under the patronage of Henry VII., king 
 of England, on a voyage of discovery ; and, in 
 June following, fell in with the island of New- 
 foundland, which they called 'Prima Vista. 
 Soon after they discovered the smaller island of 
 St. John's, and the continent itself. On their re- 
 turn, they pursued a southerly course to Vir- 
 ginia, and, according to others, to the cape of 
 Florida. They returned without attempting a 
 settlement, but took possession of the country in 
 behalf of the crown of England. 
 
 John Cabot appears to have been a native of Venice, but 
 to have settled in England with his family some time previ- 
 ous to the above voyage. The commission granted to him 
 by Henry, which is the oldest American state paper of Eng- 
 land, bore date March 5th, 1496, although he did not sail 
 
DISCOVERIES. 33 
 
 until the year following. This squadron was allowed to 
 consist of six ships of the burden of two hundred tons; but, 
 for reasons not well understood, they sailed with but two 
 caravals, and three hundred men. These were freighted by 
 the merchants of London and Bristol. They have the 
 honor of making the first discovery of the continent, Co- 
 lumbus not falling in with it until 1498, during his third 
 voyage, as has already been related. The extent of this 
 voyage of the Cabots appears not to have been settled by 
 historians. Some writers suppose that they reached the 
 latitude of 67, while others make the limits of their voyage 
 the 45th and 38th degrees of north latitude. 
 
 Sec. 4. The French attempted no discoveries 
 on the American coast until 1524. This year, 
 John Verrazano, a Florentine, sailed under the 
 patronage of Francis I. of France, and in the 
 course of his voyage explored the coast from 30 
 to 50 of north latitude, and examined Florida 
 with considerable accuracy. 
 
 Historians differ in their account of this voyage of Ver- 
 razano. By some he is supposed to have first made the 
 American coast where the town of 'Savannah now stands. 
 Others place his approach in latitude 37, whence it is sup- 
 posed that he proceeded south to latitude 34, in the neigh- 
 borhood of Wilmington, North Carolina, where he landed. 
 Thence sailing southerly, as far as the 30th degree, he re- 
 sumed his northern course, touching, it is supposed, at 
 Sandy Hook, and afterwards at some of the islands off 
 Rhode Island, whence he proceeded northerly to the 50th 
 degree of north latitude, to Newfoundland. The following 
 year this enterprising navigator made another voyage to the 
 American coast, during which, by some- unknown disaster, 
 he was lost with all his crew. 
 
 Sec. 5. In 1534, James Cartier, under a com- 
 mission from the king of France, made a voyage 
 to America, in which he visited the island of 
 Newfoundland, and discovered the Gulf of St. 
 Lawrence. The following year, during a 
 second voyage, he proceeded up the Gulf of St. 
 Lawrence, to the Isle of Orleans, and thence as 
 
34 PERIOD i. 1492 TO 1607. 
 
 far as Montreal. At the former place, he spent 
 the winter, and in the spring returned to 
 France. 
 
 On his first voyage, Cartier sailed with two small ships, 
 and one hundred and twenty-two men. On the 10th of May 
 he made the island of Newfoundland, hut being prevented 
 by the ice from proceeding farther, he sailed southwardly. 
 .As soon, however, as the season would permit, he returned 
 to the north, and visited several harbors in Newfoundland 
 and Labrador. Proceeding northerly with the hope of 
 passing to China, he discovered and entered the Gulf of St. 
 Lawrence, but soon after was obliged, on account of unpro- 
 pitious weather, to return to France. During his second 
 voyage, he reached, as we have stated above, the island on 
 which Montreal stands. Here he found a large Indian set- 
 tlement, by the inhabitants of which he was well treated. 
 This Indian settlement was called Hochelaga. Cartier 
 gave it the name of Mount Royal, from a mountain in the 
 neighborhood. From this circumstance, the island and 
 city of Montreal derive their name. During the winter, 
 which he passed at the island of Orleans, many of his men 
 died of the scurvy, with which they had been afflicted for 
 some time. ^ 
 
 It may here be added, that, in 1540, Cartier again visited 
 America, with the intention of forming a settlement. He 
 built a fort at some distance from the Isle of Orleans ; but, 
 in the following spring, not having received anticipated sup- 
 plies, he set sail to return to France with his colony. At 
 Newfoundland he met with three ships and two hundred 
 persons, on their way to the new settlement. Cartier pro- 
 ceeded on his voyage to France. The other ships continued 
 their course to the fort which Cartier had left ; after passing 
 'a distressing winter, the whole party, abandoning the set- 
 tlement, in the spring returned to France. 
 
 Sec. 6. In the spring of 1541, six years from 
 the discovery of the river St, Lawrence, another 
 equally important river, the Mississippi, was dis- 
 covered. This honor belongs to Ferdinand de 
 Soto, a Spaniard, who, having projected the con- 
 quest of Florida from the natives, arrived from 
 Cuba, 1539, with a considerable force. He 
 traversed the country to a great distance, and in 
 
DISCOVERIES. 35 
 
 the spring of 1541, first discovered the Missis- 
 sippi, five or six hundred miles from its mouth. 
 
 The object of Soto in traversing so wide an extent of 
 country, appears to have been to search for gold. The sum- 
 mer and winter of 1539, he spent in Florida. In 1540, he 
 began his tour northeast, and having crossed the Altamaha, 
 Savannah, and Ogeehee rivers, he turned westerly, and 
 crossing the Alleganies, proceeded southwardly, as far as 
 Mobile and Pensacola. The winter of this year he spent 
 with the Chickasaws. The following spring, he made the 
 important discovery above mentioned. The following year, 
 he died on the banks of the Red river, soon after which the 
 remnant of his followers, who, at first, amounted to some 
 hundreds, constructed several small boats, and having sailed 
 down the Mississippi, returned to Cuba. 
 
 Sec. 7. In 1584, Sir Walter' Raleigh, under a 
 commission from Queen Elizabeth of England, 
 dispatched two small vessels, commanded by 
 Amidas and Barlow, to the American coast. On 
 their arrival, they entered Pamlico sound, now 
 in North Carolina, and thence proceeded to 
 Roanoake, an island near the mouth of Albe- 
 marle sound. Here they spent several weeks, in 
 trafficking with the natives, but effected no set- 
 tlement. On their return to England, they gave 
 so splendid a description of the beauty and fer- 
 tility of the country, that Elizabeth bestowed 
 upon it the name of Virginia, as a memorial that 
 the happy discovery had been made under a vir- 
 gin queen. 
 
 Previously to the above voyage, under the auspices of Sir 
 Walter Raleigh, two unfortunate attempts had been made 
 by his brother-in-law, Sir Humphrey Gilbert, to effect a set- 
 tlement in the new world. Both, however, proved ineffect- 
 ual, and during the last, while Sir Humphrey was return- 
 ing to England, his vessel was shipwrecked, and all on board 
 perished. Not discouraged by the unfortunate issue of the 
 enterprises of Gilbert, Raleigh fitted out an expedition, as we 
 have above stated, in 1584. The report brought back by 
 Amidas and Barlow induced Sir Walter, in 1585, to attempt 
 
36 PERIOD i. 1492 TO 1607. 
 
 a settlement at the island of Roanoake. This colony was, 
 in a short time, reduced to great distress ; and, in 1586, re- 
 turned with Sir Francis Drake to England. The following 
 year, however, another colony was sent out, consisting of 
 one hundred and fifty adventurers. These most unfortu- 
 nately were neglected, in respect to supplies ; and when, at 
 length, a vessel was dispatched to inquire into their state, 
 not a vestige of them remained. 
 
 Sec. 8. In 1602, Bartholomew Gosnold, in a 
 voyage from Falmouth to the northern part of 
 Virginia, discovered the promontory in Massa- 
 chusetts Bay, which, since his time, has been 
 known by the name of Cape Cod, from the cir- 
 cumstance of his taking a great number of cod- 
 fish at that place. 
 
 Gosnold was the first Englishman, who, abandoning the 
 circuitous route by the Canaries and West Indies, came in 
 a direct course to this part of the American continent. He 
 was but seven weeks in making the passage. After the 
 discovery of Cape Cod, coasting southwest, he discovered 
 two islands, one of which he named Martha's Vineyard, 
 and the other Elizabeth island. On the western part of this 
 latter island it was concluded to settle, and a fort and store- 
 house were accordingly erected ; but, before Gosnold left 
 the place, discontents arising among those w r ho were to form 
 the colony, it was thought expedient to abandon the settle- 
 ment and to return to England. The homeward voyage oc- 
 cupied but five weeks. 
 
 NOTES. 
 
 Sec. 9. As we are now about to enter upon a 
 period, which will exhibit our ancestors as in- 
 habitants of this new world, it will be interest- 
 ing to know, what was its aspect, when they 
 first set their feet upon its shores. 
 
 STATE OF THE COUNTRY. On the arrival of the first 
 'settlers, North America was almost one unbroken wilder- 
 ness. From the recesses of these forests were heard the 
 panther, the catamount, the bear, the wildcat, the wolf, and 
 other beasts of prey. From the thickets rushed the buffalo, 
 the elk, the moose, and the carrabo ; and, scattered on the 
 mountains and plains, were seen the stag and fallow deer. 
 
Indian Amusements. P> 38. 
 
 Indian women engaged in Agriculture. P 
 
DISCOVERIES, 37 
 
 Numerous flocks of the feathered tribe enlivened the air, and 
 multitudes of fish filled the rivers, or glided along the shores 
 The spontaneous productions of the soil, also, were found to 
 be various and abundant. In all parts of the land grew 
 grapes, which historians have likened to the ancient grape* 
 of EsHcoL In the south were found mulberries, plums, 
 melons, cucumbers, tobacco, corn, peas, beans, potatoes, 
 squashes, pompions, &c. Acorns, walnuts, chestnuts, wild 
 cherries, currants, strawberries, whortleberries, in the sea- 
 son of them, grew wild in every quarter of the country. 
 
 Sec. 10. ABORIGINES, The country was in- 
 habited by numerous tribes or clans of Indians. 
 Of their number, at the period the English set- 
 tled among them, no certain estimate has been 
 transmitted to us. They did not probably much 
 exceed 150,000 within the compass of the thir- 
 teen original states.* 
 
 In their physical character, the different In- 
 dian tribes, within the boundaries of the United 
 States, were nearly the same. Their persons 
 were tall, straight, and well proportioned. Their 
 skins were red, or of a copper brown ; their 
 eyes black, their hair long, black, and coarse. 
 In constitution, they were firm and vigorous, ca- 
 pable of sustaining great fatigue and hardship. 
 
 As to their general character, they were quick 
 of apprehension, and not wanting in genius. 
 At times, they were friendly, and even courteous. 
 In council, they were distinguished for gravity 
 and eloquence : in war, for bravery and address. 
 When provoked to anger, they were sullen and 
 retired ; and when determined upon revenge, no 
 danger would deter them ; neither absence nor 
 time could cool them. If captured by an enemy, 
 they never asked life, nor would they betray 
 emotions of fear, even in view of the tomahawk, 
 or of the kindling faggot. 
 
 * This is the estimate of Dr. Trumbull. 
 
38 PERIOD i. 1492 TO 1607. 
 
 They had no books, or written literature, except rude hie- 
 roglyphics ; and education among them was confined to the 
 arts of war, hunting, fishing, and the few manufactures which 
 existed among them, most of which every male was more 
 or less instructed in. Their language was rude, but sono- 
 rous, metaphorical, and energetic. It was well suited to the 
 purposes of public speaking ; and, when accompanied by 
 the impassioned gestures, and uttered with the deep guttural 
 tones of the savage, it is said to have had a singularly wild 
 and impressive effect. They had some few war songs, 
 which were little more than an unmeaning chorus ; but, it 
 is believed, they had no other compositions which were pre- 
 served. 
 
 Their arts and manufactures were confined to the con 
 struction of wigwams, bows and arrows, wampum, orna- 
 ments, stone hatchets, mortars for pounding corn, to the 
 dressing of skins, weaving of coarse mats from the bark of 
 trees, or a coarse sort of hemp, &c. 
 
 Their agriculture was small in extent, and the articles, 
 they cultivated were few in number, Corn, beans, peas, 
 potatoes, melons, and a few others of a similar kind, were all. 
 
 Their skill in medicine was confined to a few simple pre- 
 scriptions and operations. Both the cold and warm bath 
 were often applied, and a considerable number of plants were 
 used with success. For some diseases they knew no reme- 
 dy, in which case they resorted to their Powow, or priest, who 
 undertook the removal of the disease by means of sorcery. 
 
 It may be remarked, however, that the diseases to which 
 the Indians were liable, were few, compared with those 
 which prevail in civilized society. 
 
 The employments of the meji were principally hunting, 
 fishing, and war. The women dressed the food ; took 
 charge of the domestic concerns ; tilled their narrow and 
 scanty fields ; and performed almost all the drudgery con- 
 nected with their household affairs. 
 
 The amusements of the men were principally leaping, 
 shooting at marks, dancing, gaming, and hunting, in all of 
 which they made the most violent exertions. Their dances 
 were usually performed round a large fire. In their war 
 dances they sung or recited the feats which they or their 
 ancestors had achieved ; represented the manner in which 
 they were performed, and wrought themselves up to an in- 
 expressible degree of martial enthusiasm. The females oc- 
 casionally joined in some of these sports, but had none pe- 
 culiar to themselves. 
 
DISCOVERIES. 39 
 
 Their dress was various. In summer, they wore little 
 besides a covering about the waist; but in winter, they 
 clothed themselves in the skins of wild beasts. They were 
 exceedingly fond of ornaments. On days of show and fes- 
 tivity, their sachems wore mantles of deer-skin, embroidered 
 with white beads, or copper, or they were painted with va- 
 rious devices. Hideousness was the object aimed at in 
 painting themselves. A chain of fish-bones about the neck, 
 or the skin of a wildcat, was the sign of royalty. 
 
 For habitations, the Indians had weekwams, or wigwams, 
 as pronounced by the English. These originally consisted 
 of a strong pole, erected in the centre, around which, at the 
 distance of ten or twelve feet, other poles were driven ob- 
 liquely into the ground, and fastened to the centre pole at 
 the top. Their coverings were of mats, or barks of trees, 
 well adjusted as to render them dry and comfortable. 
 
 Their domestic untensils extended not beyond a hatchet of 
 stone, a few shells and sharp stones, which they used for 
 knives ; stone mortars for pounding corn, and some mats 
 and skins upon which they slept. They sat, and ate, and 
 lodged on the ground. With shells and stones they scalped 
 their enemies, dressed their game, cut their hair, &c. They 
 made nets of thread, twisted from the bark of Indian hemp, 
 or of the sinews of the moose and deer. For fish-hooks, 
 they used bones which were bent. 
 
 Their food was of the coarsest and simplest kind the 
 flesh, and even the entrails of all kinds of wild beasts and 
 birds ; and, in their proper season, green corn, beans, peas, 
 &c. &c., which they cultivated, and other fruits, which the 
 country spontaneously produced. Flesh and fish they 
 roasted on a stick, or broiled on the fire. In some instances, 
 they boiled their meat and corn, by putting hot stones in 
 water. Corn they parched, especially in the winter, and 
 upon this they lived, in the absence of other food. 
 
 The money of the Indians, called wampum, consisted of 
 small beads wrought from shells, and strung on belts, and 
 in chains. The wampum of the New-England Indians was 
 61ack, blue, and white. That of the Six Nations was of a 
 purple color. Six of the white beads, and three of black, or 
 blue, became of the value of a penny. A belt of wampum 
 was given as a token of friendship, or as a seal or confirma- 
 tion of a treaty. 
 
 There was little among them that could be called society. 
 
 ,'t when roused by some strong excitement, the men 
 
 were generally indolent, taciturn, and unsocial. The wo- 
 
40 PERIOD i. 1492 TO 1607. 
 
 men were too degraded and oppressed, to think of much be- 
 sides their toils. Removing-, too, as the seasons changed, 
 or as the game grew scarce, or as danger from a stronger 
 tribe threatened, there was- little opportunity for forming 
 those local attachments, and those social ties, which spring 
 from a long residence in a particular spot. Their language 
 also, though energetic, was too barren to serve the purposes 
 of familiar conversation. In order to be understood and 
 felt, it required the aid of strong and animated gesticulation, 
 which could take place only when great occasions excited 
 them. It seems, therefore, that they drew no considerable 
 part of their enjoyments from intercourse with one another. 
 Female beauty had little power over the men ; and all other 
 pleasures gave way to the strong impulses of public festivi- 
 ty, or burning captives, or seeking murderous revenge, or 
 the chase, or war, or glory. 
 
 War was the favorite employment of the savages of North 
 America. It roused them from the lethargy into which they 
 fell, when they ceased from the chase, and furnished them 
 an opportunity to distinguish themselves to achieve deeds 
 of glory, and taste the sweets of revenge. Their weapons 
 were bows and arrows, headed with flint or other hard 
 stones, which they discharged with great precision and 
 force. The southern Indians used targets made of bark ; 
 the Mohawks clothed themselves with skins, as a defence 
 against the arrows of their enemies. When they fought in 
 the open field, they rushed to the attack with incredible fury, 
 and, at the same time, uttered their appalling war whoop. 
 Those whom they had taken captive they often tortured, 
 with every variety of cruelty, and to their dying agonies 
 added every species of insult. If peace was concluded on, 
 the chiefs of the hostile tribes ratified the treaty by smoking 
 in succession the same pipe, called the calumet, or pipe of 
 peace. 
 
 The government of the Indians, in general, was an abso- 
 lute monarchy, though it differed in different tribes. The 
 will of the sachem was law. In matters of moment, he con- 
 sulted, however, his counsellors; but his decisions were 
 final. War and peace, among some tribes, seem to have 
 b$en determined on in a council formed of old men, distin- 
 guished by their exploits. When in council, they spoke at 
 pleasure, and always listened to the speaker with profound 
 and respectful silence. "When propositions for war or 
 peace were made, or treaties proposed to them, by the colo- 
 nial governors, they met the ambassadors in council, and, 
 
Indian Village. P. 39. 
 
I -b. . , ^ 
 
 DISCOVERIES. 41 
 
 at the end of each paragraph, or proposition, the principal 
 sachem delivered a short stick to one of his council, intima- 
 ting that it was his peculiar duty to remember that para- 
 graph. This was repeated, till every proposal was finish- 
 ed ; they then retired to deliberate among themselves. After 
 their deliberations were ended, the sachem, or some coun- 
 sellors to whom he had delegated this office, replied to every 
 paragraph in its turn, with an exactness scarcely exceeded 
 in the written correspondence of civilized powers. Each 
 man actually remembered what was committed to him, and, 
 with his assistance, the person who replied remembered the 
 whole." 
 
 The religious notions of the natives consisted of traditions, 
 mingled with many superstitions. Like the ancient Greeks, 
 Romans, Persians, Hindoos, &c., they believed in the ex- 
 istence of two gods, the one good, who was the superior, 
 and whom they styled the Great, or Good Spirit ; the other 
 evil. They worshipped both ; and of both formed images 
 of stone, to which they paid religious homage. Besides 
 these, they worshipped various other deities such as fire, 
 water, thunder any thing which they conceived to be su- 
 perior to themselves, and capable of doing them injury. 
 The manner of worship was to sing and dance round large 
 fires. Besides dancing, they offered prayers, and some- 
 times sweet scented powder. In Virginia, the Indians of-^ ' 
 fered blood, deer's suet, and tobacco. Of the creation and 
 the deluge tjiey had distinct traditions. 
 
 Marriage among them was generally a temporary con- \p 
 tract. The men chose their wives agreeable to fancy, and 1 ' 
 put them away at pleasure. Marriage was celebrated, 
 however, with some ceremony, and, in many instances, was 
 observed with fidelity; not unfrequently it was as lasting as 
 life. Polygamy was' common among them. 
 
 Their treatment of females was cruel and oppressive 
 They were considered by the men as slaves, and treated as ' 
 such. Those forms of decorum between the sexes, which 
 lay the foundation for the respectful and gallant courts 
 with which women are treated in civilized society, were un- 
 known among them. Of course, females were not only re- 
 quired to perform severe labor, but often felt the full weight 
 of the passions and caprices of the men. 
 
 The rites of burial among the Indians, varied but little 
 
 throughout the continent. They generally dug holes in the 
 
 ground, with sharpened stakes. In the bottom of the grave 
 
 were laid sticks, upon which the corpse, wrapped in skins 
 
 4* 
 
 J 
 
lo 
 
 42 PERIOD i. 1492 TO 1607. 
 
 and mats, was deposited. The arms, utensils, paints, and 
 ornaments of the deceased, were buried with him, and a 
 mound of earth raised over his grave. Among some tribes 
 in New-England, and among the Five Nations, the dead 
 were buried in a sitting posture, with their faces towards the 
 east. During the burial, they uttered the most lamentable 
 cries, and continued their mourning for several days. 
 
 The origin-ofthe Indians inhabiting the country, on the 
 arrival of the English colonists, is involved in much obscu- 
 rity, and several different answers have been given by 
 learned men to the inquiry, whence did they come to Ame- 
 rica ? The opinion best supported is, that they originated 
 in Asia, and that at some former period, not now to be as- 
 certained, they emigrated from that country to America, 
 over which, in succeeding years, their descendants spread. 
 This opinion is rendered the more probable by the fact, that 
 the figure, complexion, dress, manners, customs, &c. &c., 
 of the nations of both continents, are strikingly similar. 
 That they might have emigrated from the eastern continent 
 is evident, since in latitude 66 the two continents are not 
 more than forty miles distant from each other, and between 
 them are two islands less than twenty miles distant from 
 either shore. 
 
 REFLECTIONS. 
 
 Sec. 11. We shall find it pleasant and profitable,, occasion- 
 ally to pause in our history, and consider what instruction 
 may be drawn from the portion of it that has been pe- 
 rused. 
 
 In the story of Columbus, we are introduced to a man of 
 
 > genius, energy, and enterprise. We see him forming a 
 new, and, in that age, a mighty project; and having matured 
 his plan, we see him set himself vigorously about its execu- 
 tion. For a time, he is either treated as a visionary, or baf- 
 fled by opposition. But, neither discouraged nor dejected, 
 he steadily pursues his purpose, surmounts every obstacle, 
 and at length spreads his sails upon the unknown waters of 
 the Atlantic. A kind Providence auspiciously guides his 
 way, and crowns his enterprise with the unexpected dis- 
 covery of a new world. 
 
 While we admire the lofty qualities of Columbus, and 
 look with wonder at the consequences which have resulted 
 
 ffrom his discovery, let us emulate his decision, energy, and 
 perseverance. Many are the occasions in the present world, 
 on which it will be important to summon these to our aid ; 
 
DISCOVERIES. 
 
 43 
 
 and, by their means, many useful objects may be accomplish- 
 ed, which, without them, would be unattained. 
 
 But, while we thus press forward in the career of useful- 
 ness while we aim to accomplish for our fellow-men all 
 the amount of good in our power, let us moderate our ex- 
 pectations of reward here, by the consideration that Colum- 
 bus died the victim of ingratitude and disappointment. 
 
 Another consideration, of still deeper interest, is suggest- 
 ed by the story of Columbus. We who live to mark the 
 wonderful events which have flowed from his discovery, 
 within the short space of three centuries, cannot but advert 
 with awe to HIM, who attaches to the actions of a single in- 
 dividual, a train of consequences so stupendous and unex- 
 pected. How lightly soever, then, we may think of our 
 conduct, let us remember, that the invisible hand of Provi- j ? 
 dence may be connecting with our smallest actions the most 
 momentous results to ourselves and others. 
 
 With respect to Americus Vesputius, it may be observed, 
 that, although he deprived Columbus of the merited honor _ 
 of giving his name to the new w r orld, and gained this dis- 
 tinction for himself still, his name will ever remain stig- 
 matized, as having appropriated that to himself, which fairly 
 belonged to another. 
 
UNITED STATES. 
 
 PERIOD II. 
 
 DISTINGUISHED FOR SETTLEMENTS. 
 
 Extending from the first permanent English set- 
 tlement at Jamestown, Virginia. 1607, to the ac- 
 cession of William and Mary to the throne of 
 England, 1689. 
 
 Sec. l t Prior to the year 1607, a period of 115 
 years from the discovery of San Salvador by Co- 
 lumbus, several attempts, some of which we 
 have noticed, were made to effect settlements in 
 various, parts of North America, but none had 
 proved successful. 
 
 It may appear surprising, perhaps, that, among the attempts 
 "made to effect permanent settlements in the northern part of 
 the continent, through a lapse of so many years, not a single 
 ^ one should have succeeded. But it is to be remembered, 
 that they were undertaken upon individual responsibility, 
 with bad calculations, and intrusted, in most instances, to 
 men of mercenary views. But it may be asked, Why the 
 sovereigns of Europe should have so Jong neglected the 
 plantation of colonies in a country, in respect to which they 
 we.re, at first, so eager to make discoveries, and to obtain a 
 title? To this it may be replied, that the unsettled state of 
 the nations of Europe, for a long period, demanded all the 
 attention and resources of their respective sovereigns. 
 Henry VIII. of England was occupied with affairs con- 
 nected with his divorce, marriage, and the reformation. 
 Several of his successors also found sufficient employment 
 at home. The long and bloody wars between Charles V., 
 emperor of Germany, and Francis I., gave the court of 
 France ample occupation. Besides, no prince or statesman 
 
SETTLEMENTS. 45 
 
 in Europe appears to have foreseen the advantages of 
 planting- colonies in this northern continent. It presented 
 no mines of gold or silver, nor were its mountains covered 
 with spicery and balm. It was not conceivable, at that peri- 
 od, how numerous, hardy colonies, could give such strength, 
 opulence, and grandeur, to empires, as could never be de- 
 rived from the gold and rich productions of the southern re- 
 gions. One advantage, however, resulted to the nations of 
 Europe, and which for many years they enjoyed in com- 
 mon, viz. the fishery on the banks of Newfoundland. For 
 a time, it was prosecuted to an inconsiderable extent ; but, 
 at length, it ripened into a system, and became a source of 
 national emolument.* 
 
 Sec. 2. The year 1607 marks the era. when 
 the first permanent settlement was effected by 
 Europeans in North America. In the month of 
 May of this year, a colony from England, con- 
 sisting of one hundred and five persons, arrived 
 in Virginia; and, on a beautiful peninsula in 
 James jiver, began a settlement, which they 
 called Jamestown. 
 
 Sec. 3. This name was given to the above set- 
 tlement, in honor of James I. of England, who, 
 the year previously, had granted to two compa- 
 nies, called the London and Plymouth companies, 
 the lands in North America embraced between 
 the 34th and 45th degrees of north latitude the 
 southern part, called South Virginia, to the Lon- 
 don, and the northern, called North Virginia, to 
 the Plymouth company. 
 
 The London company consisted of Sir Thomas Gates, 
 Sir George Somers, Richard Hackluyt, Edward Maria 
 Wingfield, &c. These were authorized to make a settle- 
 ment at any place between the 34th and 41st degrees of 
 latitude, and in them was vested the right of property in the 
 land extending fifty miles each way from their place of ha- 
 bitation ; reaching one hundred miles into the country. The 
 Plymouth company consisted of Thomas Hanham, Raleigh 
 Gilbert, William Parker, George Popham, and others, prin- 
 
 * Trumbull. 
 
46 PERIOD II. 1607 TO 1689. 
 
 cipally inhabitants of Bristol, Plymouth, and the eastern 
 parts of England. To this company was granted the lands 
 between the 38th and 45th degrees of latitude. They were 
 vested with the right of property in lands to the same extent 
 as in the southern colony: neither company, however, were 
 to form settlements within one hundred miles of the other.* 
 
 &ec. 4. Under the auspices of the London 
 company, the first settlement in Virginia was 
 commenced. The expedition was commanded 
 by Capt. Christopher Newport, but the govern- 
 ment of the colony was framed in England, be- 
 fore it sailed. It was to consist of a council of 
 seven persons, with a president to be elected by 
 the council from their number. Who composed 
 it was unknown at the time the expedition 
 sailed, their names being carefully concealed in 
 a box, which was to be opened after their ar- 
 rival. 
 
 The original intention of the colony was to form a settle- 
 ment at Roanoake; but, being driven by a violent storm 
 north of that place, they discovered the entrance of Chesa- 
 peake bay, the capes of which they named Charles and 
 Henry. Entering this, they at length reached a convenient 
 spot upon which to commence a settlement. 
 
 The code of laws hitherto cautiously concealed, was now 
 promulgated, and, at the same time, the council appointed in 
 England was made known. It consisted of Bartholomew 
 Gosnold, John Smith, Edward Wingfield, Christopher New- 
 port, John Ratcliffe, John Martin, and George Kendall. Mr. 
 Wingfield was chosen president. 
 
 Among the most enterprising and useful members of this 
 colony, and one of its magistrates, was Capt. John Smith. 
 As he acted a distinguished part in the early history of the 
 colony of Virginia, a brief sketch of his life will be inter- 
 esting. 
 
 He was born in Willoughby, in Lincolnshire, England, 
 in 1579. From his earliest youth, he discovered a roving 
 arid romantic genius, and appeared irresistibly bent on ex- 
 travagant and daring enterprises. At the age of thirteen, 
 becoming tired of study, he disposed of his satchel and books, 
 
 * Pitkin. 
 
SETTLEMENTS. 47 
 
 with the intention of escaping to sea. But the death of his 
 father, just at that time, frustrated his plans for the present, 
 and threw him upon guardians, who, to repress the way- 
 wardness of his genius, confined him to a counting-room. 
 From a confinement so irksome, however, he contrived to 
 escape not long after; and, with ten shillings in his pocket, 
 entered the train of a youag nobleman, travelling to France. 
 
 On their arrival at Orleans, he received a discharge from 
 further attendance upon Lord Bertie, who advanced him 
 money to return to England. 
 
 Smith had no wish, however, to return. With the money 
 he had received, he visited Paris, from which he proceeded 
 to the Low Countries, where he enlisted into the service, as a 
 soldier. Having continued sometime in this capacity, he 
 was induced to accompany a gentleman to Scotland, who 
 promised to recommend him to the notice of King James. 
 Being disappointed, however, in this, he returned to Eng- 
 land, and visited the place of his birth. Not finding com- 
 pany there suited to his romantic turn, he erected a booth in 
 some wood, and, in the manner of a recluse, retired from 
 society, devoting himself to the study of military history and 
 tactics, diverting himself, at intervals, with his horse and 
 lance. 
 
 Recovering about this time a part of his father's estate, 
 which had been in dispute, he once more commenced tra- 
 velling, being at this time only seventeen years of age. His 
 first stage was Flanders, where, meeting with a French- 
 man, who pYetended to be heir to a noble family, he was 
 prevailed upon to accompany him to France. On their ar- 
 rival at St. Valory, in Picardy, by the connivance of the 
 shipmaster, the Frenchman and attendants robbed him of 
 his effects, and succeeded in making their escape. 
 
 Eager to pursue his travels, he endeavored to procure a 
 place on board a man of war. In one of his rambles, 
 searching for a ship that would receive him, he accidentally 
 met one of the villains concerned in robbing him. With- 
 out exchanging a word, they both instantly drew their 
 swords. The contest was severe ; but Smith succeeded in 
 wounding and disarming his antagonist, and obliged him 
 to confess his guilt. After this rencounter, having received 
 pecuniary assistance from an acquaintance, the Earl of 
 Ployer, he travelled along the French coast to Bayonne ; 
 and thence crossed to Marseilles, visiting and observing 
 every thing in his course, which had reference to naval or 
 military architecture. 
 
48 PERIOD ii. 1607 TO 1689. 
 
 At Marseilles, he embarked for Italy, in company with a 
 number of pilgrims. But here, also, new troubles awaited 
 him. During the voyage, a tempest arising, the ship w r as 
 forced into Toulon, after leaving which, contrary winds so 
 impeded their progress, that, in a fit of rage, the pilgrims, 
 imputing their ill fortune to the presence of a heretic, threw 
 him into the sea. 
 
 Being a good swimmer, he was enabled to reach the isl- 
 and of St. Mary, off Nice, at no great distance, where he was 
 taken on board a ship, in which, altering his course, he 
 sailed to Alexandria, in Egypt, and thence coasted the Le- 
 vant. Having spent some time in this region of country, 
 he sailed on his return ; and, on leaving the ship, received 
 about two thousand dollars, as his portion of a rich prize, 
 which had been taken during the voyage. 
 
 Smith landed at Antibes. He now travelled through Ita- 
 ly, crossed the Adriatic, and passed into Stiria, to the seat 
 of Ferdinand, Archduke of Austria. The emperor being 
 at that time at war w r ith the Turks, he entered his army, as 
 a volunteer. 
 
 By means of his valor and ingenuity, aided by his milita- 
 ry knowledge and experience, he soon distinguished him- 
 ^elf, and was advanced to the command of a company, con- 
 sisting of two hundred and fifty horsemen, in the regiment 
 of Count Meldrick, a nobleman of Transylvania. 
 
 The regiment in which he served was engaged in several 
 hazardous enterprises, in which Smith exhibited a bravery 
 admired by all the army, and when Meldrick left the impe- 
 rial service for that of his native prince, Smith followed. 
 
 At the siege of Regal he was destined to new adventures. 
 The Ottomans, deriding the slow advance of the Transylva- 
 nia army, the Lord Turbisha dispatched a messenger with 
 a challenge, that, for the diversion of the ladies of the place, 
 he would fight any captain of the Christian troops. 
 
 The honor of accepting this challenge was determined by 
 lot, and fell on Smith. At the time appointed, the two cham- 
 pions appeared in the field on horseback, and, in the presence 
 of the armies, and of the ladies of the insulting Ottoman, 
 rushed impetuously to the attack. A short, but desperate 
 conflict ensued, at the end of which Smith \vas seen bear- 
 ing the .head of the lifeless Turbisha in triumph to his ge- 
 neral. 
 
 The fall of the chief filled his friend, Crualgo, with in- 
 dignation, and roused him to avenge his death. Smith ac- 
 cordingly soon after received a challenge from him, which 
 
Building of Jamestown. P. 45. 
 
 Capt. John Smith defending himself from the 
 Indians. P. 51. 
 
SETTLEMENTS. 49 
 
 he did not hesitate to accept, and the two exasperated com- 
 batants, upon their chargers, fell with desperate fury upon 
 each other. Victory again followed the falchion of Smith, 
 who sent the Turk headlong to the ground. 
 
 It was now the turn of Smith to make the advance. He 
 dispatched a message, therefore, to the Turkish ladies, that 
 if they were desirous of more diversion of a similar kind, 
 they should be welcome to his head, in case their third cham- 
 pion could take it. 
 
 Bonamalgro tendered his services, and haughtily accept- 
 ed the Christian's challenge. When the day arrived, the 
 spectators assembled, and the combatants entered the field. 
 It was an hour of deep anxiety to all; as the horsemen ap- 
 proached, a deathless silence pervaded the multitude. A 
 blow from the sabre of the Turk brought Smith to the 
 ground ; and, for a moment, it seemed as if the deed of 
 death was done. Smith, however, was only stunned. He 
 rose like a lion, when he shakes the clew from his mane for 
 the fight, and vaulting into his saddle, made his falchion 
 " shed fast atonement for its first delay." It is hardly ne- 
 cessary to add, that the head of Bonamalgro was added to 
 the number. 
 
 / Smith was received with transports of joy by the prince 
 / of Transylvania, who, after the capture of the place, pre- 
 I sented him with his picture set in gold, granted him a pen- 
 sion of three hundred ducats a year, and conferred on him a 
 coat of arms, bearing three Turks' heads in a shield. 
 
 In a subsequent battle between the Transylvanian army 
 and a body of Turks and Tartars, the former was defeated, 
 with a loss of many killed and wounded. Among the 
 wounded was the gallant Smith. His dress bespoke his 
 consequence, and he was treated kindly. On his recovery 
 from his wounds, he was sold to the Basha Bogul, who 
 sent him as a present to his mistress at Constantinople, as- 
 suring her that he was a Bohemian nobleman, whom he 
 had conquered, and whom he now presented to her as her 
 slave. 
 
 The present proved more acceptable to the lady than her 
 lord intended. As she understood Italian, in that language 
 Smith informed her of his country and quality, and, by his 
 singular address and engaging manners, won the affection 
 of her heart. 
 
 Designing to secure him to herself, but fearing lest some 
 misfortune should befall him, she sent him to her brother, a 
 bashaw, on the borders of the sea of Asoph, with directioos 
 
 D 
 
50 PERIOD ii. 1607 TO 1689. 
 
 that he should be initiated into the manners and language, 
 s '' as well as the religion of the Tartars. 
 
 From the terms of her letter, her brother suspected her 
 
 design, and resolved to disappoint her. Immediately after 
 
 Smith's arrival, therefore, he ordered him to be stripped, his 
 
 head and beard.to be shaven, and with an iron collar about 
 
 1 his neck, and a dress of hair cloth, he was driven forth to 
 
 labor among some Christian slaves. 
 
 The circumstances of Smith were now peculiarly afflict- 
 ing. He could indulge no hope, except from the attachment 
 of his mistress ; but, as her distance was great, it was im- 
 probable that she would soon become acquainted with the 
 story of his misfortunes. 
 
 In the midst of his distress, an opportunity to escape pre- 
 sented itself, but under circumstances, which, to a person of 
 a less adventurous spirit, would have served only to heighten 
 this distress. His employment was thrashing, at the dis 
 tance of a league from the residence of the bashaw, who 
 daily visited him, but treated him with rigorous severity, 
 and, in fits of anger, even abused him with blows. This 
 last was treatment to which the independent spirit of Smith 
 could not submit. Watching a favorable opportunity, oi 
 an occasion of the tyrant's viSit, and when his attendants 
 were absent, he levelled his thrashing instrument at him, 
 and laid him in the dust. 
 
 He then hastily filled a bag with grain, and mounting the 
 bashaw's horse, put himself upon fortune. Directing his 
 course towards a desert, he entered its recesses, and continu- 
 ing to conceal himself in its obscurities for sever-al days, at 
 length made his escape. In sixteen days he arrived at 
 Exapolis, on the river Don, where, meeting with the Rus- 
 sian garrison, the commander treated him kindly, and gave 
 him letters of recommendation to other commanders in that 
 region. 
 
 He now travelled through a part of Russia and Poland, 
 and at length reached his friends in Transylvania. At 
 Leipsic, he enjoyed the pleasure of meeting his colonel, 
 Count Meldrick, and Sigismund, prince of Transylvania, 
 who presented him with fifteen hundred ducats. His for- 
 tune being thus in a measure repaired, he travelled through 
 Germany, France, and Spain, and having visited the king- 
 dom of Morocco, returned once more to England. 
 
 Such is a rapid view of the life of this interesting adven- 
 turer, down to his arrival in his native land. At this time, 
 the settlement of America was occupying the attention of 
 
SETTLEMENTS. 51 
 
 many distinguished men in England. The life of Smith, 
 united to his fondness for enterprises of danger and difficul- 
 ty, had prepared him to embark with zeal, in a project so 
 novel and sublime, as that of exploring the wilds of a ntwly 
 discovered continent. 
 
 He was soon attached to the expedition about to sail under 
 Newport, and was appointed one of the magistrates of the 
 colony sent over at that time. Before the arrival of the co- 
 lony, his colleagues in office becoming jealous of his influ- 
 ence, arrested him, on the absurd charge, that he designed 
 to murder the council, usurp the government, 'and make 
 himself king of Virginia. He was therefore rigorously 
 confined, during the remainder of the voyage. 
 
 On their arrival in the country, he was liberated, but could 
 not obtain a trial, although m the tone of conscious integri- 
 ty, he repeatedly demanded it. The infant colony was soon 
 involved in perplexity and danger. Notwithstanding Smith 
 had been calumniated, and his honor deeply wounded, his 
 was not the spirit to remain idle, when his services were 
 needed. Nobly disdaining revenge, he offered his assist- 
 ance, and, by his talents, experience, and indefatigable zeal, 
 furnished important aid to the infant colony. 
 
 Continuing to assert his innocence, and to demand a trial, 
 the time at length arrived, when his enemies could postpone 
 it no longer. After a fair hearing of the case, he was ho- 
 norably acquitted of the charges alleged against him, and 
 soon after took his seat in the council. 
 
 The affairs of the colony becoming more settled, the active 
 spirit of Smith prompted him to explore the neighboring 
 country. In an attempt to ascertain the source of Chicka- 
 homing river, he ascended in a barge as far as the stream 
 was uninterrupted. Designing to proceed still further, he 
 left the barge in the keeping of the crew, witH strict injunc- 
 tions On no account to leave her, and with two Englishmen 
 and two Indians left the party. But no sooner was he out 
 of view, than the crew, impatient of restraint, repaired on 
 board the barge, and proceeding some distance down the 
 stream, landed at a place, where a body of Indians lay in 
 ambush, by whom they were seized. 
 
 By means of the crew, the route of Smith was ascertain- 
 ed, and a party of Indians were immediately dispatched to 
 take him. On coming up with him, they fired, killed the 
 Englishmen, and wounded himself. With great presence 
 of mind, he now tied his Indian guide to his left arm, as 
 a shield from the enemies' arrows, while, with his mus- 
 
52 PERIOD ii. 1607 TO 1689. 
 
 ket, he dispatched three of the most forward of the assail- 
 ants. 
 
 In this manner, he continued to retreat towards his canoe, 
 while the Indians, struck with admiration of his bravery, fol- 
 lowed with respectful caution. Unfortunately, coming to a 
 sunken spot filled with mire, while engrossed with eying 
 his pursuers, he sunk so deep as to be unable to extricate 
 himself, and was forced to surrender. 
 
 Fruitful in expedients, to avert immediate death, he pre- 
 sented an ivory compass to the chief, whose attention was 
 arrested by the vibrations of the needle. Taking advantage 
 of the impression which he had thus made, partly by signs 
 and partly by language, he excited their wonder still more, 
 by telling them of its singular powers. 
 
 Their wonder, however, seemed soon to abate, and their 
 attention returned to their prisoner. He was now bound, 
 and tied to a tree, and the savages were preparing to direct 
 their arrows at his breast. At this instant the chief, holding 
 up the compass, they laid down their arms, and led him in 
 triumph to Powhatan, their king. 
 
 Powhatan and his council doomed him to death, as a man 
 whose courage and genius were peculiarly dangerous to the 
 , Indians. Preparations were accordingly made, and when 
 the time arrived, Smith was led out to execution. His head 
 was laid upon a stone, and a club presented to Powhatan, 
 who himself claimed the honor of becoming the executioner. 
 The savages in silence were circling round, and the giant 
 arm of Powhatan had already raised the club to strike the 
 fatal blow, when, to his astonishment, the young and beau- 
 tiful Pocahontas, his daughter, with a shriek of terror, 
 rushed from the throng, and threw herself upon the body of 
 Smith. At the same time, she cast an imploring look to- 
 wards her furious, but astonished father, and in all the elo- 
 quence of mute, but impassioned sorrow, besought his life. 
 
 The remainder of the scene was honorable to Powhatan. 
 The club of the chief was still uplifted, but a father's pity 
 had touched his heart, and the eye that had at first kindled 
 with wrath, was now fast losing its fierceness He looked 
 round as if to collect his fortitude, or perhaps to find an ex- 
 cuse for his weakness, in the pity of the attendants. A simi- 
 lar sympathy had melted the savage throng, and seemed to 
 join in the petition, which the weeping Pocahontas felt, but 
 durst not utter, " My father, let the prisoner live." Pow- 
 hatan raised his daughter, and the captive, scarcely yet as- 
 sured of safety, from the earth. 
 
Pochahontas saving Capt. Smith. P. 52 
 
 
 First Colonial Assembly in Virginia. P. 75 
 
SETTLEMENTS. 53 
 
 Shortly after, Powhatan dismissed Capt. Smith, with as- 
 surances of friendship, and the next morning, accompanied 
 with a guard of twelve men, he arrived safely at Jamesto\vn, 
 after a captivity of seven weeks.* 
 
 In 1609, circumstances having arisen to interrupt the 
 friendly dispositions of Powhatan towards the colony, he 
 plotted their entire destruction. His design was to attack 
 them unapprised, and to cut them off at a blow. 
 
 In a dark and stormy night, the heroic Pocahontas hast- 
 ened alone to Jamestown, and disclosed the inhuman plot of 
 her father. The colony were thus put on their guard, and 
 their ruin averted. 
 
 It may be interesting to add concerning Pocahontas, that 
 some time after this, she was married to an English gentle- 
 man of the name of Rolfe, with whom she visited England. 
 She embraced the Christian religion, and was baptized by 
 the name of Rebecca. She left one son, who had several 
 daughters, the descendants of whom inherited her lands in 
 Virginia, and are among the most respectable families in 
 that state. 
 
 . 5. The colony thus commenced, soon ex- 
 perienced a variety of calamities, incidental, per- 
 haps, to infant settlements, but not the less pain- 
 ful and discouraging. Inefficiency and a want 
 of harmony marked the proceedings of the coun- 
 cil. Provisions were scarce, and of a poor quali- 
 ty. The neighboring tribes of Indians became 
 jealous and hostile, and, more than all, sickness 
 spread among them, and carried a large propor- 
 tion of their number to an early grave. 
 
 By the "middle of July, they were so distressed with the 
 badness and scarcity of provisions, with sickness, labor, and 
 continual guarding against the enemy, that scarcely ten of 
 the whole company could walk, or even stand alone. By 
 the end of the month, fifty of their number were no more. 
 Among the dead, was that enterprising gentleman, Captain 
 Gosnold, the projector of the whole scheme of the plantation. 
 
 To increase their misfortunes, the president embezzled 
 the public stores, and attempted to run away with the com- 
 pany's bark, and to return to England. It was therefore 
 found necessary, for the common safety, to displace him. 
 
 * Burk's Virginia. 
 5* 
 
54 PERIOD ii. 1607 TO 1680. 
 
 Mr. Ratcliffe was elected to the presidency. But it very 
 soon appeared, that his abilities were by no means equal to 
 the exigencies of the company, and the whole weight of go- 
 vernment fell, therefore, on Capt. John Smith.* 
 
 The condition of the colony was, at length, somewhat im- 
 \ proved, and thek courage renewed, by the arrival of Capt. 
 Newport, (who had been dispatched to England,) with a 
 supply of provisions, and an additional number of men. 
 This number was not long after augmented, and a further 
 supply of necessaries received, by the arrival of Capt. Nel- 
 son, who had sailed in company with Newport, but who had 
 been separated from him during a storm, and for some time 
 was supposed to be lost. With these accessions, the colo- 
 nists now amounted to two hundred men. This number 
 was still further increased before the end of 1608, by the ar- 
 rival of seventy colonists, among whom were many persons 
 of distinction 
 
 Sec. 6. Early in the year 1609, the London 
 company, not having realized their anticipated 
 profit from their new establishment in America, 
 obtained from the king a new charter, with 
 more ample privileges. Under this charter, 
 Thomas West, otherwise called Lord De la War, 
 was appointed governor for life. 
 
 The company, under their new act of incorporation, was 
 styled, " The treasurer and company of adventurers and 
 planters for the first colony in Virginia." They were now 
 granted in absolute property, what had formerly been con- 
 veyed only in trust a territory extending from Point Com- 
 fort two hundred miles north and south, along the coast, and 
 throughout the land from sea to sea. 
 
 Sec. 7. Lord De la W^ar being appointed go- 
 vernor of the colony, but not being able to leave 
 England, immediately dispatched to America 
 nine ships, and five hundred men, under com- 
 mand of Sir Thomas Gates, his lieutenant, and 
 Sir George Summers, his admiral. Eight ot 
 these ships arrived in safety at Jamestown, in 
 the month of August, but that on board of which 
 
 * Trumbull. 
 
SETTLEMENTS. 55 
 
 was Sir Thomas and other officers, being wreck- 
 ed on the Bermudas, did not arrive till May of 
 the following year. 
 
 The ship, thus wrecked, contained one hundred and fifty 
 persons, the whole of whom were, for a time, in extreme 
 danger of being lost. For three days, they were obliged to j- 
 labor incessantly at the pump. The leak, however, still in- 
 creasing, it was attempted to run her on shore, but she 
 stranded, at the distance of three quarters of a mile from 
 land. By the help of the boats, however, the crew and pas- 
 sengers were all saved j and, having built two small vessels, 
 again set sail for Virginia, where they arrived at the time 
 stated above. 
 
 Sec. 8. At the time Sir Thomas and the other 
 officers arrived, the colony had become reduced 
 to circumstances of great depression. Capt. 
 Smith, in consequence of a severe accidental 
 wound, had sometime before returned to Eng- 
 land. His departure was followed by disastrous 
 consequences. Subordination and industry ceas- fe 
 ed ; the Indians became hostile, and refused the !"* / 
 usual supplies pf provisions. Famine ensued, and 
 to such extremities had they sunk, that the skins 
 of the horses were devoured, as were also the 
 bodies of Indians whom they had killed, and 
 even the remains of deceased friends. Of five 
 hundred persons, sixty only remained. At this 
 juncture, the shipwrecked from Bermuda arrived. 
 An immediate return to England was resolved 
 upon : and, with that intent, they embarked, but 
 just as they were leaving the mouth of the river, 
 Lord De la War fortunately appeared, with 
 supplies of men and provisions, and they were 
 persuaded to return. By means of his judicious 
 management, the condition of the colony soon 
 wore a better aspect, and for several years con- 
 tinued to prosper. 
 
 It was unfortunate, however, for the colony, that ill health 
 
56 PERIOD ii. 1607 TO 1689. 
 
 obliged Lord De la War, in March, 1611, to leave the ad- 
 ministration. He was succeeded by Sir Thomas Dale, who 
 arrived in May. Hitherto, no right of property in land had 
 ;.been established, but the produce of labor was deposited in 
 public stores, and shared in common. To remedy the indo- 
 lence and indifference, growing out of such a system, Sir 
 Thomas assigned to each inhabitant a lot of three acres as 
 his own, and a certain portion of time to cultivate it. The 
 advantages of this measure were soon so apparent, that an- 
 other assignment of fifty acres was made, and not long aftei 
 the plan of working in a common field was abandoned. 
 
 Sec. 9. In 1613, several Dutch merchants erect- 
 ed a fort on Hudson's river, where Albany now 
 stands, and a few trading houses on the island 
 of New-York, at that time called by the Indians 
 Manhattan. 
 
 Hudson's river derives its name from Henry Hudson, an 
 Englishman by birth, but, who, at the time of this discove 
 ry, was in the service of the Dutch East India Company. 
 Hudson left the Texel on the 20th of March, 1609, with the 
 design of penetrating to the East Indies, by sailing a north- 
 westward course. Failing in this, he proceeded along the 
 shores of Newfoundland, and thence southward as far as 
 Chesapeake and Delaware bays. The'nce returning north- 
 ward, he discovered and sailed up the river, which now 
 bears his name. 
 
 By virtue of this discovery, the Dutch laid claim to the 
 country, and the following year several Dutch merchants 
 sent ships to the river to open a trade with the natives. The 
 claim, thus set up by the Dutch, was denied by the court of 
 England, not on the ground that Hudson was not the first 
 to discover and enter the river, but that being an English 
 subject the right to the country belonged to them. 
 
 The Dutch, having planted themselves at Manhattan, were 
 visited the same year by Capt. Argal, of Virginia, with a 
 naval force, who demanded the surrender of the place to the 
 English crown, as properly constituting a part of Virginia. 
 The Dutch governor, finding- himself incapable of resist- 
 ance, submitted himself and his colony to the king of Eng- 
 land, and under him to the governor of Virginia. Not- 
 withstanding this surrender, the country still continued to 
 be called as before, New-Netherlands^ and the settlement, 
 the place where New- York now stands, New- Amsterdam. 
 
7/4 7 
 
 SETTLEMENTS. 
 
 
 These names they retained, till the final conquest of the 
 country by the English, in 1664. 
 
 Sec. 10. In 1614, Capt. John Smith sailed from 
 England with two ships to North Virginia. 
 During this voyage, he ranged the coast from 
 Penobscot to Cape Cod, and gave names to seve- 
 ral points of land, which now, for the first time, 
 were discovered. On his return home, having 
 formed a map of the country, he presented it to 
 Prince Charles, who, in the warmth of admira- 
 tion, declared that the country should be called 
 NEW-ENGLAND. Cape Ann was so called by the 
 prince, in filial respect to his mother. 
 
 Sec. 11. The year 1619 forms a memorable 
 epoch in the history of Virginia, a provincial le- 
 gislature being at this time introduced, in which 
 the colonists were represented by delegates cho- 
 sen by themselves. 
 
 This colonial assembly, the first legislature to which the 
 people of America sent representatives, was convoked by 
 Sir George Yeardly, the governor-general of the colony, 
 and met at Jamestown, on the 19th of June. Before this, 
 the colonists had been ruled rather as soldiers in garrison 
 by martial law, but now they were invested with the privi- 
 leges of freemen. They were divided into eleven corpora- 
 tions, each of which was represented in the assembly. 
 
 The following year the colony received a great accession 
 to their number. Eleven ships arrived, with twelve hun- 
 dred and sixty persons for settlement. Nearly one thousand 
 colonists were resident here before. In order to attach 
 them still more to the country, Sir Edwin Sandys, the 
 treasurer of the company, recommended to send over a num- 
 oer of young women of reputable character, to become wives 
 to the planters. Accordingly, ninety at this time came 
 over, and sixty the following year. These were sold to the 
 planters, at the price, at first, of one hundred, and, after- 
 wards, one hundred and fifty pounds of tobacco. Tobacco, 
 at this time, was worth three shillings per pound. Debts 
 incurred for the purchase of wives were recoverable before 
 any others. 
 
 Accessions to the colony, of a different character, were 
 
58 PERIOD ii; 1607 TO 1689. 
 
 also made about this time. By order of King James, one 
 hundred persons of profligate character, who had rendered 
 themselves obnoxious to government by their crimes, were 
 sent to the colony, by way of punishment. This, perhaps 
 designed for its benefit, as the exiles were chiefly employed 
 ? as laborers, was ultimately prejudicial to its prosperity. 
 
 During the year 1620, slave-holding \vas introduced into 
 the colony. A Dutch ship from Africa, touching at James- 
 town, landed twenty negroes for sale. These were purcha- 
 ' sed by the planters, and with these was introduced an evil 
 into the country, the sad effects of which are felt to the pre- 
 sent day. 
 
 Sec. 12. The year 1620 marks the era of the 
 first settling of New-England. On the 22d of 
 December of this year, a colony originally from 
 England, known by the name of Puritans, land- 
 ed at Plymouth, Massachusetts, and began the set- 
 tlement of that place. Although natives of Eng- 
 land, they were driven thence by the arm of per- 
 secutien, for urging a more thorough reformation 
 in the church of England. 
 
 They fled from England, first to Amsterdam, 
 in Holland, in 1607, with their pastor, the Rev. 
 Mr. Robinson. From Amsterdam, they soon af- 
 ter removed to Leyden, where they continued, 
 until they embarked for America. 
 
 Among the motives which influenced them to 
 remove to America, the prospect of enjoying " a 
 purer worship, and greater liberty of conscience," 
 was the principal. To secure these objects, they 
 were willing to become exiles from a civilized 
 country, and encounter' the dangers and priva- 
 tions, which might meet them in a wilderness. 
 
 The people who first settled New-England were princi 
 pally from the counties of Nottinghamshire, -Lancashire, 
 and Yorkshire, In these counties, there prevailed, about 
 the year 1602, an extensive revival of religion. The new 
 converts wishing to worship God in a manner more simple 
 than was observed in the established church, but not being 
 
( ' / // f *~y '< / 
 
 SETTLEMENTS. 59 
 
 allowed to do it, while they continued members of it, agreed 
 upon a separation from it ; and, for the sake of peace, and 
 more liberty of conscience, resolved upon a removal" to the 
 states of Holland, which, at that time, granted a free tolera- 
 tion to different denominations of protestants. 
 
 The leader of these emigrants, in the year 1607, was an 
 able and pious man, Mr. John Robinson, who, with his con- 
 gregation, having disposed of their property, prepared for 
 their removal, with a design to fix themselves at Amsterdam; 
 but now they found the ports and harbors carefully watched, 
 and the design of this congregation being suspected, strict 
 orders were given, that they should not be suffered to depart. 
 They were compelled to use the most secret methods, to 
 give extravagant fees to seamen, by whom, notwithstanding, 
 they were often betrayed. Twice they attempted to embark, 
 but were discovered and prevented. At another time, having 
 got on board a ship, with their effects, the ship-master sailed 
 a Jittle distance, and then returned, and delivered them to 
 the resentment of their enemies. The next year, they made 
 another attempt, in which, after the severest trials, they suc- 
 ceeded. Having engaged a ship belonging to Holland, for 
 their conveyance, they were going on board. By some 
 treachery, their enemies had been informed of their design, 
 and, at this juncture, a great number of armed men came 
 upon them. A part of the men were on board, without any 
 of their effecte ; ,the women and children were in a bark ap- 
 proaching the ship. The Dutch captain, apprehensive of 
 danger to himself, hoisted sail, and with a fair wind direct- 
 ed his course to Holland. The passengers used every ef- 
 fort to persuade him to return, but in vain. They saw their 
 wives and children fall into the hands of merciless enemies, 
 while unable to afford them any relief. They had none of 
 their effects, not even a change of clothes, on board. A vio- 
 lent storm came on, which raged seven days, without inter- 
 mission. By the violence of the storm, they were driven to 
 the coast of Norway. On a sudden, the sailors exclaimed, 
 'The ship has foundered; she sinks; she sinks!" The 
 seamen trembled in despair ; the pilgrims looked up to God, 
 and cried, " Yet, Lord, thou canst save. Yet, Lord, thoa 
 canst save." To the astonishment of all, the vessel soon be- 
 gan to rise rode out the storm, and, at length, reached its 
 destined port. After some time, all their friends who had 
 been left, arrived safely in Holland. 
 
 This congregation fixed their residence at Amsterdam. 
 But, in consequence of some unhappy disputes which then 
 
60 PERIOD ii. 1607 TO 1689. 
 
 agitated the other English churches in that city, they thought 
 
 7 it prudent to remove. Accordingly, they retired the next 
 year, and settled in the city of Ley den. Here they were 
 kindly received, and enjoyed a quiet habitation. As the 
 ,., flames of religious tyranny and persecution continued to 
 *' rage in England, many of their countrymen joined them ; 
 under the able ministry of their beloved pastor, they continu- 
 ed in great union and prosperity, and became a numerous, 
 congregation. 
 
 After remaining a number of years in Holland, this little 
 flock found their situation, on many accounts, unpleasant. 
 The immoralitie? of their neighbors were dangerous to the 
 rising generation ; the difficulties of procuring a comfortable 
 living induced not a few of their sons to enter the Dutch ar- 
 mies, and, at no distant day, there was reason to apprehend, 
 their posterity would become incorporated with the people 
 of the country, and their church become extinct. These 
 considerations, added to the more powerful motive, the hope 
 of laying a foundation for the extensive advancement of the 
 kingdom of Christ, in the western wilderness, induced them 
 to remove to America. ..Previous to their final determina- 
 tion, as their governing maxim always was, " In all thy 
 ways acknowledge God, and he shall direct thy paths," they 
 set apart a day for fasting and prayer, to seek direction 
 from God.* 
 
 Having decided to settle in Virginia, their next object was 
 to obtain a patent, which they at length effected, from the 
 London company. At the same time, they received from 
 King James an intimation, that they should not be molest- 
 ed, in respect to the enjoyment of their religion. They now 
 began to prepare themselves for their momentous enterprise. 
 For this purpose, they procured two vessels, the Speedwell 
 and the Mayflower. The Speedwell, of sixty tons, they 
 purchased in Holland, with the intention of keeping her for 
 their accommodation in America. The Mayflower, of one 
 hundred and eighty tons, they hired at London. 
 
 All things being in readiness for their departure from 
 Leyden, they kept a day of solemn humiliation and prayer. 
 On the 21st of July, the pilgrims went to Delfthaven, a place 
 about twenty miles from Leyden, and two miles from Rot- 
 terdam. Here they were to embark. To this port, they 
 were kindly attended by many of their brethren and friends 
 from Amsterdam, as well as from Leyden. One night was 
 
 * Robbing' New-England Fathers. 
 
Landing of the Pilgrims* P. 58. 
 
 Settlement at Dover. P. 67. 
 
SETTLEMENTS. 61 
 
 spent with little sleep, but " with friendly entertainment, and 
 Christian discourse, and real expressions of the purest love," 
 
 " The next day, the wind being fair, they went on board, 
 and their friends with them, where truly affecting was the 
 sight of that sad and mournful parting to hear what sighs 
 and sobs and prayers did sound among them, what tears did / / 
 gush from every eye, and pithy speeches pierced each other's ' 
 heart, that sundry of the Dutch strangers, that stood on the 
 key as spectators, could not refrain from tears. Yet com- 
 fortable and sweet it was, to see such lively and sweet ex- < 
 pressions of dear and unfeigned love." But the tide, which 
 waits for no man, now called them away. The moment / 
 was overwhelming. Their affectionate pastor fell on his 
 knees, to lead the devotions of the pilgrims for the last time. / " 
 With cheeks bedewed with tears, they commended them- 
 selves, and each other, most fervently to God. Then, with s 
 mutual embraces, and many prayers, they parted. To many ! | 
 it was a final parting on earth. A prosperous gale soon 
 bore them to Southampton. There they found the May- \ , 
 flower, come from London, with the rest of their company, 
 prepared to embark for America. Most welcome and joy- 
 ful was their meeting and mutual gratulation. 
 
 August 5th, 1620, the pilgrims embarked at Southampton 
 for the New World. Very soon, Mr. Reynolds, captain of 
 the Speedwell, complained that his vessel was so leaky, that 
 he durst not proceed. They were therefore constrained to 
 put in at Dartmouth. Having made such repairs as were 
 judged necessary, and sailed about one hundred leagues, 
 Reynolds again complained of the Speedwell, and they 
 went in at Plymouth. There the poor Speedwell was 
 searched, and condemned as not sea worthy. But the true""*" 
 cause, at least the principal cause, of her condemnation, was 
 the unfaithfulness and treachery of Reynolds and his crew, 
 who were very far from having the hearts of puritans or"/ 
 pilgrims. A part of her company were dismissed, and the 
 rest were taken on board the Mayflower. 
 
 With one hundred and one passengers, this vessel sailed 
 from Plymouth, September 6th, 1620. For a time, their 
 voyage was pleasant. A fine breeze wafted them forward, 
 and they had a fair prospect of speedily landing in the New 
 World. But not long after, they encountered fierce and 
 contrary winds. For a time, they were in the utmost 
 danger ; and, at length, held a consultation as to the expedi 
 ency of again shaping their course towards England. A 
 majority, however decided to pursue the voyage. For two 
 6 ' 
 
62 PERIOD ii. 1607 TO 1689. 
 
 months they were tossed and driven upon the tempestuous 
 ocean ; till, at length, on the ninth of November, they had 
 the happiness to descry the bleak and dreary shores of Cape 
 Cod. The part then discovered, was Sandy Point, called 
 Cape Malabar, in Chatham. But they were still remote 
 from the place which they had selected for a habitation. It 
 was their intention to settle near the mouth of the Hudson. 
 Toward that river they now bent their course. But the 
 wintry season, the stormy prospect, the " perilous shoals 
 and breakers" in their way, induced them to relinquish their 
 design, and seek the nearest resting place, where they might 
 hope for tolerable accommodations. They therefore turned 
 back, sailed round Race Point, and after two days, Nov. 
 1 1th, anchored in Cape Cod harbor, between Cape Cod and 
 Plymouth.* 
 
 Before landing, having devoutly given thanks to God for 
 their safe arrival, they formed themselves into a body politic, 
 forty-one signing a solemn contract, according to the pro- 
 visions of which they were to be governed. Mr. John Car- 
 ver was elected governor for one year. 
 
 " Government being thus established, sixteen men, well 
 armed, with a few others, were sent on shore the same day, 
 to fetch wood and make discoveries ; but they returned at 
 night, without having found any person or habitation. The 
 company, having rested on the Lord's day, disembarked on 
 Monday, the 13th of November; and soon after proceeded 
 to make further discovery of the country. On Wednesday, 
 the 15th, Miles Standish and sixteen armed men, in search- 
 ing for a convenient place for settlement, saw five or six In- 
 dians, whom they followed several miles, until night ; but, 
 not overtaking them, were constrained to lodge in the woods. 
 The next day they discovered heaps of earth, one of which 
 they dug open, but finding within implements of war, they 
 concluded these were Indian graves; and, therefore, repla- 
 cing what they had taken out, they left them inviolate. In 
 different heaps of sand they also found baskets of corn, a 
 quantity of which they carried, away in a great kettle, found 
 at the ruins of an Indian house. This providential discove- 
 ry gave them seed for a future harvest, and preserved the in- 
 fant colony from famine. Before the close of the month, 
 Mrs. Susannah White was delivered of a son, who was call- 
 ed Perigrine; and this was the first child of European ex- 
 traction, born in New-England. 
 
 * Dr. Parish. 
 
/ II 1 jlSTX^r^M ^rf. -f. ~j 
 
 ' fa 
 
 SETTLEMENTS. 63 
 
 " On the Gth of December, the shallop was sent out with 
 several of the principal men, Carver, Bradford, Winslow, 
 Standish, and others, and eight or ten seamen, to sail round 
 the bay, in search of a place for settlement. The next day 
 this company was divided ; and, while some travelled on 
 shore, others coasted in the shallop. Early on the morning 
 of the eighth, those on shore were surprised by a flight of 
 arrows from a party of Indians ; but on the discharge of the 
 English muskets, the Indians instantly disappeared. The 
 shallop, after imminent hazard from the loss of its rudder 
 and mast in a storm, and from shoals, which it narrowly es- 
 caped, reached a small island on the night of the eighth ; 
 and here the company the next day, which was the last day 
 of the week, reposed themselves, with pious gratitude for 
 their safety. On this island they kept the Christian sabbath. 
 The day following, they sounded the harbor, and found it fit 
 for shipping; went on shore and explored the adjacent land, 
 where they saw various cornfields and brooks; and judging 
 the situation to be convenient for a settlement, they returned 
 with the welcome intelligence to the ship. 
 
 "On the 15th they weighed anchor, and proceeded with the 
 ship for this nexvly discovered port, where they arrived on 
 the following day. On the 18th and 19th they went on shore 
 for discovery, but returned at night to the ship. On the 
 morning of the 20th, after imploring Divine guidance, they 
 went on shore ag*ain, to fix on some place for immediate set- 
 tlement. After viewing the country, they concluded to set- 
 tle on a high ground, facing the bay, where the land was 
 cleared, and the water was excellent. 
 
 " On Saturday, the 23d, as many of the company as could, 
 with convenience, went on shore and felled and carried tim- 
 ber to the spot designed for the erection of a building for 
 common use. On the Lord's day, the 24th, the people on 
 shore were alarmed by the cry of Indians, and expected an 
 assault : but they continued unmolested. On Monday, the 
 25th, they began to build the first house. A platform for 
 their ordnance demanding their earliest attention, they be- 
 gan one on the 28th, on a hill, which commanded an exten- 
 sive prospect of the plain beneath, of the expanding bay, and 
 of the distant ocean. 
 
 " In the afternoon they divided their whole company into 
 nineteen families ; measured out the ground and assigned to 
 every person by lot half a pole in breadth, and three poles in 
 length, for houses and gardens. Though most of the com- 
 pany were on board the ship on the Lord's day, Dec. 31st, 
 
64 PERIOD n. 1607 TO 1689. 
 
 yet some of them kept sabbath for the first time in their new 
 house. Here, therefore, is fixed the epoch of their settle- 
 ment, which, in grateful remembrance of the Christian 
 friends whom they found at the last town they left in their 
 native country, they called Plymouth. This was the founda- 
 tion of the first English town built in New-England."* 
 
 Sec. 13. In November, 1620, the same month 
 in which the puritans arrived on the American 
 coast, James I. issued a patent granting to the 
 Duke of Lenox, Ferdinando Gorges, and others, 
 styling themselves " The Council of Plymouth, in 
 the county of Devon, for planting and governing 
 New-England, in America," the territory be- 
 tween the 40th and 48th degrees of north lati- 
 tude, and extending through the main land from 
 sea to sea. 
 
 This territory had, until this time, been known by the 
 name of North Virginia ; but now it received the name of 
 New-England, by royal authority. The patent thus issued 
 to the Council of Plymouth, was the foundation of all the 
 subsequent grants, under which the colonies of New-Eng- 
 land were settled. 
 
 Sec. 14. In March, 1621, the colony of Ply- 
 mouth, through Gov. Carver, entered into a league 
 of friendship, commerce, and mutual defence, with 
 Masassoit, the great sachem of the neighboring 
 Indians. This treaty, which was strictly ob- 
 served, until the breaking out of Philip's war, (a 
 period of more than fifty years,) gave general 
 peace to the colony, and laid the foundation for 
 their intimate and amicable correspondence with 
 the neighboring Indian tribes. 
 
 The person chiefly instrumental in bringing this event to 
 pass, was Samoset, a sagamore, or chief of the country, ly- 
 ing at the distance of about five days' journey. He was the 
 first visitant of the colony at Plymouth, and greatly surpri- 
 sed the inhabitants, by calling out as he entered their vil- 
 lage, "Welcome, Englishmen! welcome, Englishmen!" 
 
 * Holmes' Annals. 
 
SETTLEMENTS. 65 
 
 He had conversed with the English fishermen, who had 
 come to the eastern coast, and had learned some of the lan- 
 guage. He informed the colony that the place where they '' 
 were settled, was called by the Indians Patuxet ; that five 
 years before, a plague had swept off all the natives from the 
 place, so that there was neither man, woman, nor child re- 
 maining. Providence had thus singularly prepared the 
 way for the colonies to take possession of the land, without 
 molesting a single owner. 
 
 Samoset, having been treated with hospitality by these 
 strangers, was disposed to cultivate a further acquaintance 
 with them ; and on his third visit was accompanied by 
 Squanto, a native of the country, who had been carried 
 away in 1614, by one Hunt, and sold into Spain, but had 
 been taken to London, whence he had returned to America. 
 
 They informed the English that Masassoit, the greatest 
 sachem of the neighboring Indians, was near, with a guard 
 of sixty men. Mutual distrust prevented, for some time, any / 
 advances from either side. But Squanto, who was at length 
 sent to Masassjoit, returned, saying that the sachem wished 
 the English to send some one to confer with him. Mr. Ed- 
 ward Winslow was accordingly sent, bearing suitable pre- 
 sents to the chief. These proving acceptable, Masassoit 
 left Mr. Winslow in the custody of his men as a hostage, 
 and ventured to the English, by whom he was hospitably j~- 
 entcrtained, apjd with whom he concluded the treaty already 
 noticed. 
 
 Sec. 15. In 1621, the colony of Virginia received 
 from the London company, through Sir Francis 
 Wyat, who, at this time, arrived as governor, a 
 more perfect constitution and form of govern- 
 ment. The powers of this government were 
 vested in a governor and two councils. One of 
 these was called the council of state, to advise ( 
 and assist the governor. This council was to 
 be appointed and removed by the company. The 
 other was called the general assembly, consist- 
 ing of the council of state, and two burgesses, 
 or representatives, deputed from each town, hun- 
 dred, or plantation. This assembly met annu- 
 ally, and were intrusted with the business of 
 
; 
 
 66 PERIOD ii. 1607 TO 1689. 
 
 framing laws for the colony, the governor having 
 a negative upon their proceedings. No laws 
 were valid until ratified by a court of the compa- 
 ny in England. 
 
 Sec. 16. In 1622, the Virginia colony, which 
 for some time had enjoyed great prosperity, and 
 had received frequent accessions, experienced a 
 stroke which proved nearly fatal. The successor 
 of Powhatan, who was of a proud, revengeful 
 spirit, and extremely hostile to the colony, con- 
 certed a plan to cut them off at a blow. On 
 the 22d of March, it was so far put in execution, 
 that three hundred and forty-seven of the colony, 
 men, women, and children, were butchered al- 
 most in the same instant. 
 
 The chief by whom this massacre was planned, and un- 
 der whom it was executed, was Opecancanough, the succes- 
 sor of Powhatan, but a deadly foe to the English. The 
 whole Indian population in the surrounding country had 
 been enlisted by this artful chief, and yet they visited the 
 English settlements, and even purchased arms and borrow- 
 ed boats, to enable them to accomplish their savage purpose. 
 " On the evening before the fatal day, they brought them 
 presents of game ; and the next morning came freely among 
 them, behaving as usual. Suddenly, precisely at mid-day, 
 the blow fell, at the same instant, upon the unsuspecting 
 settlers ; and three hundred and forty-seven men, women, 
 _ " and children, were victims to savage treachery and cruelty. 
 The massacre would have been more extensive, had not a 
 domesticated Indian, residing in one of the villages, reveal- 
 ed the plot to his master, whom he had been solicited to 
 murder. Information was instantly given to some of the 
 nearest settlements, and just in time to save them from the 
 calamity which fell upon the others. The horrid spectacle 
 before them roused the English from repose to vengeance. 
 A vindictive and exterminating war succeeded. The whites 
 were victorious, destroying many of their enemies, and 
 obliging the remainder to retire far into the wilderness. 
 But their own number melted away before the miseries of 
 war ; their settlements were reduced from eighty to eight, 
 and famine again visited them with its afflicting scourge. 
 
SETTLEMENTS. 67 
 
 In 1624, out of nine thousand persons, who had been sent 
 from England, but eighteen hundred existed in the colony."* 
 
 Sec. 17. While the Virginians were mourning 
 their losses, the Plymouth colony began to expe- 
 rience the distresses of famine. By the time 
 their planting was finished in 1623, they were 
 destitute of bread and corn. The most gloomy 
 anticipations were indulged, but, by a remarka- 
 ble and well attested interference of Divine Pro- 
 vidence, they were delivered. 
 
 From the third week in May to the middle of July, there 
 was no rain. Their corn, for which they had made their 
 utmost exertions, withered under the heat of a scorching 
 sun, and the greater part of it appeared irrecoverably lost. 
 The Indians, seeing their prospects, observed that they 
 would soon be subdued by famine, when they should find 
 them an easy prey. A public fast was appointed, and ob- 
 served with great solemnity. The morning and most of 
 the day was clear and hot, but towards evening, the clouds 
 collected, and, like the gracious influences of God, the rain 
 descended in moderate, yet copious showers. This revived 
 their expiring crop, and produced a plentiful harvest. Af- 
 ter which they observed a day of public thanksgiving, the / 
 origin of the annual thanksgiving which is now observed 
 in New-England. f 
 
 Sec. 18. In 1623, a number of persons from 
 England were sent to America by Ferdinando 
 Gorges, to form settlements on lands which had 
 been granted to them by the council of Plymouth, 
 between the Merrimac and Sagadahok, and ex- 
 tending from the ocean west to the rivers of 
 Canada. These settlers arriving in the river Pis- 
 cataqua, began two settlements, one at the mouth, 
 called Little Harbour ; the other still higher up 
 the river, at Cocheco, afterwards called Dover. 
 These were the first settlements in NEW-HAMP- 
 SHIRE. 
 
 Sec. 19. In 1624, the London Company, which 
 
 History of United States. t Robbins' New-England Fathers. 
 
68 PERIOD ii. 1607 TO 1689. 
 
 had settled Virginia, was dissolved by an act of 
 King James I. under pretext of the calamities 
 which had befallen the colony, and the dissen- 
 sions which had agitated the company. Their 
 charter was taken away, and the government of 
 the colony assumed by the crown. The king 
 himself appointed the governor, in whom, with 
 twelve counsellors, the powers of government 
 were vested. 
 
 The London Company, thus dissolved, consisted i>l gen- 
 tlemen of noble and disinterested views, who had eijnefided 
 more than one hundred thousand pounds of their lurtunes, 
 in this first attempt to plant an English colony in America ; 
 and more than nine thousand persons had been sent from 
 the mother country to people this new settlement. At the 
 time of the dissolution of the company, scarcely two thou- 
 sand persons survived. 
 
 Charles I. succeeding James I. in 1625, brought 
 the Virginia colony more immediately under the 
 direction of the crown. Under this administra- 
 tion, the colony suffered much for many years, 
 from the severe and arbitrary restraints imposed 
 upon it by the king, through the governor and 
 council. 
 
 Sec. 20. It has been stated, that the lands, upon 
 which the Plymouth colony settled, were grant- 
 ed by the crown to " the Council of Plymouth," 
 in England, in November, 1620. This was the 
 same month that the puritans had arrived in the 
 country, (Sec. 13.) Being apprised of this grant, 
 the colony, in 1626, began to take measures to 
 purchase these lands. The negotiations for this 
 purpose ended the next year in a patent, which 
 the company granted them for one thousand 
 eight hundred pounds sterling, with ample pow- 
 ers of government. 
 
 The government of the colony was at first formed and 
 
'^ / 
 
 SETTLEMENTS. 69 
 
 conducted according to a voluntary compact, entered into 
 before landing, (Sec. 12.) Till the year 1624, it consisted 
 of a governor and one assistant only. From this period, 
 five were annually chosen, the governor having a double 
 vote. The number of assistants was afterwards increased 
 to seven. The laws of the colony were enacted, and the af- 
 fairs of government conducted, by these officers, for near 
 twenty years. In 1639, the towns in this colony, for the 
 first time, sent deputies. The colony continued distinct near 
 seventy years, until 1691, when, by charter of William and 
 Mary, it was united to the colony of Massachusetts, and the 
 Province of Maine. 
 
 Sec. 21. In 1628, the foundation was laid for 
 another colony in New-England, by the name 
 of the Colony of Massachusetts Bay. At this 
 time, several enterprising men purchased of the 
 Council of Plymouth the territory, which consti- 
 tuted the above colony. The same year, the 
 purchasers sent out Mr. John Endicot, with about 
 a hundred adventurers, to commence a settle- 
 ment. This they did at Salem, at that time call- 
 ed by the Indians, Naumkeak. 
 
 The territory included in the colony of Massachusetts 
 Bay, extended three miles north of the Merrimac river, and 
 three miles south of Charles river, and east and west from 
 the Atlantic to the South Sea. 
 
 The settlement of Massachusetts Bay, like the colony of 
 Plymouth, was commenced by non-conformists, for the pur- 
 pose of enjoying greater religious liberty, in matters of wor- 
 ship and discipline. Among the most active in this enter- 
 prise was Mr. Endicot, already mentioned, and Mr. White, 
 a pious and active minister of Dorchester, in England. 
 
 Sec. 22. The following year, 1629, the Massa- 
 chusetts Company was confirmed by King Charles 
 in their title to the soil ; and, at the same time, re- 
 ceived the powers of civil government. They were 
 incorporated by the name of " the Governor and 
 Company of Massachusetts Bay, in New-Eng- 
 land.'' Soon after, a form of government for the 
 
70 PERIOD ii. 1607 TO 1689. 
 
 new colony was settled. Mr. Endicot, already 
 in the colony, was appointed governor. 
 
 On the appointment of Mr. Endicot as governor, an ex- 
 pedition was fitted out, for the purpose of giving- an impulse 
 to the oolony. Five ships were provided, which, being la- 
 den with cattle and other necessaries, sailed from England, 
 with nearly three hundred planters, and arrived at Salem in 
 June. They found the settlement in prosperous circum- 
 stances 5 yet, not being themselves pleased with the situa- 
 tion of Salem, two hundred of them removed, and settled at 
 a place, which they called Charlestown. 
 
 Sec-. 23. In the month of August of the same 
 year, it was determined by the company in 
 England, that the government and the patent of 
 the plantation should be transferred from Lon- 
 don to Massachusetts Bay. At the same time, a 
 new election of officers for the colony took place. 
 John Winthrop was chosen governor, and Tho- 
 mas Dudley deputy governor. Soon after their 
 appointment, they sailed with a large company, 
 some of whom settled at Charlestown, others at 
 Boston, and in towns adjacent. 
 
 On the arrival of Gov. Winthrop, in June, who continued 
 from that time to his death, the head and father of the colo- 
 ny, he found the plantation in a distressed and suffering 
 state. In the preceding autumn, the colony contained about 
 three hundred inhabitants. Eighty of these had died, and a 
 great part of the survivors were in a weak and sickly state. 
 Their supply of corn was not sufficient for more than a fort- 
 night, and their other provisions were nearly exhausted. In 
 addition to these evils, they were informed, that a combina- 
 tion of the various tribes of Indians was forming for the ut- 
 ter extirpation of the colony. Their strength was weak- 
 ness, but their confidence was in God, and they were not for- 
 saken. Many of the planters, who arrived this summer, af- 
 ter long voyages, were in a sickly state, and disease con- 
 tinued to rage through the season. By the close of the 
 year, the number of deaths exceeded two hundred. Among 
 these were several of the principal persons in the colony. 
 Mr. Higginson, the venerable minister of Salem, spent about 
 a year with that parent church, and was removed to the 
 
SETTLEMENTS. 71 
 
 church in glory. His excellent colleague, Mr. Skelton, did 
 not long survive him. Mr. Jackson, one of the assistants, 
 and his lady, who was a great patroness of the settlement, 
 died soon after their arrival. Of the latter, an early histo- 
 rian observes, " She left an earthly paradise in the family of 
 an earldom, to encounter the sorrows of a wilderness, for 
 the entertainments of a pure worship in the house of God ; 
 and then immediately left that wilderness for the heavenly 
 paradise." 
 
 The succeeding winter commenced in December with 
 great severity. Few of the houses which had been erected 
 were comfortable, and the most of them were miserable co- 
 verings. Unused to such severities of climate, the poor 
 people suffered severely from the cold. Many were frozen 
 to death. The inconveniences of their accommodations in- 
 creased the diseases, which continued to prevail among 
 them. But their constancy had not yet been brought to the 
 last trial. During the continuance of the severe season, their, 
 stock of provisions began to fail. Those who wanted were 
 supplied by those who possessed, as long as any remained. 
 A. poor man came to the governor to complain, and was in- 
 formed, that the last bread of his house was in the oven. 
 Many subsisted 'upon shell-fish, ground-nuts, and acorns, 
 which at that season could not have been procured, but with 
 the utmost difficulty. In consideration of their perilous con- 
 dition, the sixth day of February was appointed for a day of 
 public fasting and prayer, to seek deliverance from God. 
 On the fifth of February, the day before the appointed fast, 
 the ship Lion, which had been sent to England for supplies, 
 arrived, laden with provisions. She had a stormy passage, 
 and rode amidst heavy drifts of ice, after entering the har- 
 bor. These provisions were distributed among the people, 
 according to their necessities, and their appointed fast was 
 exchanged for a day of general thanksgiving.* 
 
 Sec. 24. In 1623, Charles I. completed a patent 
 to Coecilius Calvert, otherwise called Lord Balti- 
 more, which had been designed for his father, by 
 which was conveyed to him a tract of country 
 on the Chesapeake Bay, which, in honor of Hen- 
 rietta Maria, daughter of Henry the Great of 
 France, he named MARYLAND. 
 
 * Robbins' New-England Fathers. 
 
72 PERIOD ii. 1607 TO 1689. 
 
 George Calvert, the father, having* embraced the Roman 
 Catholic religion, found his situation in England so un- 
 pleasant, that, for the sake of enjoying his religious opinions 
 in peace, made a visit to America, and having explored the 
 territory above mentioned, returned to England, for the pur- 
 pose of procuring a patent of it. Before it was completed he 
 died, and the patent was made out to his son, Cecil. By 
 this patent, the latter came into possession of the country, 
 from the Potomac to the 40th degree of north latitude 
 This grant covered the land which had long before been 
 granted to Virginia, as what was now granted to Lord Bal- 
 timore was in part subsequently given to William Penn. In 
 consequence of these arbitrary acts of the crown, long and 
 obstinate contentions arose between the descendants of Penn 
 and Lord Baltimore. 
 
 Sec. 25. In 1633, Lord Baltimore appointed his 
 brother, Leonard Calvert, governor of the pro- 
 vince, who, with about two hundred planters, 
 mostly Roman Catholics, left England near the 
 close of this year, and arriving in 1634, at the 
 mouth of the river Potomac, purchased of the In- 
 dians Yoamaco, a considerable village, where 
 they formed a settlement, to which they gave 
 the name of St. Mary. 
 
 Sec. 26. In 1633, the first house was erected in 
 Connecticut. This was a trading house at Wind- 
 sor, the materials of which a party of Plymouth 
 adventurers transported in a vessel up Connecti- 
 cut river. 
 
 The first discoveries made of this part of New-England 
 were of its principal river, and the fine meadows lying upon 
 its banks. Whether the Dutch at New-Netherlands, or the 
 people of New-Plymouth, were the first discoverers of the 
 river, is not certain. Both the English and Dutch claimed 
 this honor, and both purchased and made a settlement of the 
 lands upon it, nearly at the same time. 
 
 In 1631, Waquimacut, a sachem upon the river Connec- 
 ticut, made a journey to Plymouth and Boston, earnestly 
 soliciting the governors of each of the colonies to send men, 
 to make settlements upon the river. He represented the ex- 
 ceeding fruitfulness of the country, and promised that he 
 
First house erected in Connecticut. P. 72. 
 
 John Holmes passing the Dutch fort at Hartford, 
 P. 73. 
 
SETTLEMENTS. 73 
 
 would supply the English, if they would make a settlement 
 there, with corn annually, and give them eighty beaver 
 skins. He urged, that two men might be sent to view the 
 country. Had this invitation been accepted, it might have 
 prevented the Dutch claim to any part of the lands upon the 
 river, and opened an extensive trade, in hemp, furs, and 
 deer skins, with all the Indians upon it, and far into Canada. 
 
 The governor of Massachusetts treated the sachem and 
 his company with generosity, but paid no further attention 
 to his proposal. Mr. Winslow, the governor of Plymouth, 
 judging it worthy of attention, himself made a journey to 
 Connecticut, discovered the river, and the lands adjacent. 
 
 Two years from this time, the people of Plymouth began 
 to make preparations for erecting a trading-house, and es- 
 tablishing a small company upon the river. In the mean 
 time, the Dutch having heard of the intended enterprise of 
 the people of Plymouth, sent a party to the river, who erect- 
 ed a fort, where the^city of Hartford is now situated. 
 
 Having aflength.prepared the frame of a house, William 
 Holmes, who commanded the Plymouth expedition, pro- 
 ceeded in a vessel with his party for Connecticut. He had 
 a commission from the governor of Plymouth, and a chosen 
 company to accomplish his design. When he came into 
 the river, he found that the Dutch had got in before him, 
 made a light fort, and planted two pieces of cannon. This 
 was erected at the place since called Hartford. The Dutch 
 forbid Holmes going up the river, stood by their cannon, and 
 ordered him to strike his colors, or they would fire upon 
 him. But he was a man of spirit, assured them that he had 
 a commission from the governor of Plymouth to go up the 
 river, and that he must obey his orders. They poured out 
 their threats, but he proceeded, and landing on the west side 
 of the river, erected his house below the mouth of the little 
 river in Windsor. The house was covered with the utmost 
 dispatch, and fortified with palisades. The Dutch, consider- 
 ing them as intruders, sent, the next year, a band of seventy 
 men to drive them from the country, but finding them strong- 
 ly posted, they relinquished the design.* 
 
 Sec. 27. In the autumn of 1635, a company, 
 consisting of sixty men, women, and children, 
 from the settlements of Newtown and Water- 
 town, in Massachusetts, commenced their journey 
 
 * Trumbull. 
 
* 
 
 74 PERIOD n. 1607 TO 16S9. 
 
 through the wilderness to Connecticut river. On 
 their arrival, they settled at Windsor, Wethers- 
 field, and Hartford. 
 
 They commenced their journey on the 15th of October. 
 A wide wilderness spread before them. With incredible 
 difficulty they made their way through swamps and rivers, 
 over hills and mountains. So long were they on their jour- 
 ney, and so much time was spent in passing the river, and 
 in getting over their cattle, that, after all their exertions, 
 winter came upon them before they were prepared. This 
 was an occasion of great distress and damage to the plant- 
 ers. By the 15th of November, Connecticut river was fro- 
 zen over, and the snow was so deep, and the season so tem- 
 pestuous, that a considerable number of the cattle, which 
 had been driven from Massachusetts, could not be brought 
 across the river. The people had so little time to prepare 
 their huts and houses, and to erect sheds and shelters for 
 their cattle, that the sufferings of man and beast were ex- 
 treme. It being impracticable to transport much provision 
 or furniture through a pathless wilderness, they were put 
 on board several small vessels, which were either cast away 
 or did not arrive. Several vessels were wrecked on the 
 coasts of New-England, by the violence of the storms. Two 
 shallops, laden with goods from Boston for Connecticut, 
 were cast away, and the men, with every thing on board, 
 lost. A vessel with six of the Connecticut people on board, 
 which sailed from the river for Boston, early in November, 
 was about the middle of the month cast away in Manamet 
 Bay. The men got on shore, and after wandering ten days 
 in deep snow and a severe season, without meeting any hu- 
 man being, arrived, nearly spent with cold and fatigue, at 
 New-Plymouth. 
 
 About the first of December, provisions generally failed in 
 the settlements on the river, and famine and death looked 
 the inhabitants in the face. Some of them, driven by hun- 
 ger, attempted their way, in this severe season, through the 
 wilderness from Connecticut to Massachusetts. Of thirteen, 
 . in one company, who made this attempt, one, in passing the 
 rivers, fell through the ice, and was drowned. The other 
 twelve were ten days on their journey, and would all have 
 perished, had it not been for the assistance of the Indians. 
 Such was the general distress early in December, that a con- 
 siderable part of the new settlers were obliged to abandon 
 their habitations. Seventy persons, men, women, and chil- 
 
SETTLEMENTS. 75 
 
 dren, determined to go down the river 'to meet their pro- 
 visions, as the only expedient to preserve their lives. Not 
 meeting with the vessels which they expected, they all went 
 on board the Rebecca, a vessel of about sixty tons. This, 
 two days before, was frozen in twenty miles up the river ; 
 but by the falling of a small rain, together with the tide, the 
 ice became so broken that she was enabled to get out. She 
 ran, however, upon the bar, and the people were forced to 
 unlade her to get her off. She was reladed, and in five days 
 reached Boston. 
 
 The people who kept their stations on the river, suffered 
 in an extreme degree. After all the help they were able to 
 obtain, by hunting and from the Indians, they were obliged 
 to subsist on acorns, malt, and grains. Numbers of cattle, 
 which could not be got over the river before winter, lived 
 through without any thing but what they found in the woods 
 and meadows. They wintered as well, or better, than those 
 which were brought over, and for which all the provision 
 possible was made. 'However, a great number of cattle 
 perished. The Windsor people lost in this single article 
 about two hundred pounds sterling. Their other losses 
 were very considerable.* 
 
 Sec. 28. During the same year, 1635, in which 
 the above towns were settled in Connecticut, 
 John Winthrop, son of the governor of Massachu- 
 setts, arrived from England, with a commission 
 as governor of Connecticut, under Lord Say and 
 Seal, and Lord Brooke, to whom the council of 
 Plymouth had sold, in March, 1631, a patent of 
 the territory. 
 
 This patent included that part of New-England which 
 extends from Narraganset river 120 miles on a straight 
 line, near the shore, towards the southwest, as the coast lies 
 towards Virginia, and within that breadth, from the Atlantic 
 Ocean and the South Sea. This is the original patent for 
 Connecticut. 
 
 >oon after Winthrop's arrival at Boston, he dispatched a 
 bark of thirty tons with twenty men, to take possession of 
 Connecticut river, and to build a fort at its mouth. This 
 was accordingly erected, and called Saybrook fort. A few 
 days after their arrival, a Dutch vessel, from New-Nether- 
 
 * Trunibull. 
 
v 
 
 76 PERIOD ii. 1607 TO 1689. 
 
 lands, appeared, to take possession of the river ; out, as the 
 English had already mounted two cannon, their landing was 
 prevented. 
 
 The next June, 1636, the Rev. Messrs. Hooker and Stone, 
 with a number of settlers, from Dorchester and Watertown, 
 > removed to Connecticut. With no guide but a compass, 
 they made their way one hundred miles over mountains, 
 through swamps and rivers. Their journey, which was on 
 foot, lasted a fortnight, during which they lived upon the milk 
 of their cows. They dro\>e one hundred and sixty cattle. 
 This party chiefly settled at Hartford. Mr. Hooker and 
 Mr. Stone became the pastors of the church in that place, 
 and were both eminent as men and ministers. The death 
 of Mr. Hooker occurred in 1647. About the time of his 
 departure, a friend, standing by, said, " Sir, you are going 
 to receive the reward of all your labors." He replied, 
 " Brother, I am going to receive mercy} 1 Mr. Stone died 
 in 1663. 
 
 Sec. 29. This year, 1636, Roger Williams, 
 having been banished from the colony of Massa- 
 chusetts in 1634, removed with his family to 
 Mooshawsic, and began a plantation, which he 
 called Providence. From this, we date the set- 
 tlement of RHODE ISLAND. 
 
 Mr. Williams, who thus commenced the settlement of 
 Rhode Island, came from England in 1631; and, having 
 resided a short time at Plymouth, removed to Salem, in Mas- 
 sachusetts, and became the pastor of the church in that place. 
 During his connexion with the people of Salem, he promul- 
 gated opinions which were contrary to those prevalent at 
 that day in the colonies, and among them, " that the civil 
 magistrate is bound to afford equal protection to every de- 
 nomination of Christians/' On account of this doctrine, he 
 was sentenced to depart out of the territory. At first, he 
 repaired to Seeconk, where he procured a grant of land 
 1 from the Indians. " Being informed, however, by the go- 
 vernor of Plymouth, that the land was within the limits of 
 that colony, he proceeded to Mooshawsic, where, in 1636, 
 with those friends who followed him, he began a plantation. 
 He purchased the land of the Indians, and, in grateful ac- 
 knowledgment of the kindness of heaven, he called the place 
 Providence. Acting in conformity with the wise and liberal 
 principle, for avowing and maintaining which, he had su 
 
Emigration of Roger Williams. P. 76. 
 
 Attack on the Pequot Fort. P. 79. 
 

SETTLEMENTS. 77 
 
 fered banishment, he allowed entire freedom of conscience 
 to all who came within his borders. And to him must be 
 given the glory of having first set a practical example of the 
 equal toleration of all religious sects, in the same political 
 community. His labors were not confined to his civilized 
 brethren. He labored to enlighten, improve, and conciliate 
 the savages. He learned their language, travelled among 
 them, and gained the entire confidence of their chiefs. He 
 had often the happiness, by his influence over them, of sa- 
 ving from injury the colony which had proclaimed him an 
 outlaw, and driven him into the wilderness. 7 '* 
 
 In 1638, William Coddington and seventeen others being 
 persecuted for their religious tenets in Massachusetts, fol-* 1 1 
 lowed Mr. Williams to Providence. By his advice, they 
 purchased of the Indians the island Aquetneck, and began 
 a settlement on the northern part of it. Others followed the 
 next summer, and commenced another settlement on the 
 southwestern side -dividing the island into two townships, 
 Portsmoiith and Newport. They formed themselves into a 
 boxly politic, and elected Mr. Coddington chief magistrate. 
 
 In 1640, the inhabitants of Providence agreed upon a 
 forrn of government. Rhode Island, so called from a fanci- 
 ed resemblance to the ancient island of Rhodes, soon began 
 to be extensively settled, both on account of its natural fer- , . 
 tility, and also on account of the religious freedom allowed ^i 
 to all denominations. 
 
 In 1644, Roger Williams visited England, as agent of 
 the settlers, and obtained of the Earl of Warwick, one of 
 the Plymouth Company, a free charter of incorporation for 
 Providence and Rhode Island plantations. 
 
 In 1663, a royal charter was granted to them, by Charles 
 II. This charter constituted an assembly,, consisting of a 
 governor, deputy governor, and ten assistants, with the re- 
 presentatives from the several towns, all to t5e chosen by the 
 freemen. 
 
 Sec. 30. The year 1637 is remarkable in the 
 history of Connecticut, for the war with the Pe- 
 quots, a tribe of Indians, whose principal settle- 
 ment was on a hill, in the present town of Groton. 
 
 Prior to this time, the Pequots had frequently annoyed 
 the infant colony, and in several instances had killed some 
 of its inhabitants. *. In March of this year, the commander of 
 
 * History of the United States. 
 7* 
 
78 PERIOD ii. 1607 TO 1689. 
 
 Saybrook fort, with twelve men, was attacked by them, ana 
 three of his party killed. In April, another portion of this 
 tribe assaulted the people of Wethersfield, as they were go- 
 ing to their fields to labor, and killed six men and three wo-* 
 men. Two girls were taken captive by them, and twenty 
 cows were killed. 
 
 In this perilous state of the colony, a court was summon- 
 ed at Hartford, May 1. After mature deliberation, it was 
 determined that war should be commenced against the Pe- 
 quots. 
 
 Ninety men, nearly half the fencible men of the colony, 
 were ordered to be raised ; forty-two from Hartford ; thirty 
 from Windsor ; and eighteen from Wethersfield. 
 
 On the assembling of this force at Hartford, the Rev. Mr. 
 Hooker, previously to their marching, addressed them in the 
 following manner : 
 
 " Fellow-soldiers, countrymen, and companions, you are 
 this day assembled by the special providence of God; you 
 are not collected by wild fancy, nor ferocious passions. It 
 is not a tumultuous assembly, whose actions are abortive, or, 
 if successful, produce only theft, rapine, rape, and murder ; 
 crimes inconsistent with nature's light, inconsistent with a 
 soldier's valor. You, my dear hearts, were selected from 
 your neighbors, by the godly fathers of the land, for your 
 known courage, to execute such a work. 
 
 " Your cause is the cause of heaven; the enemy have 
 blasphemed your God, and slain his servants ; you are only 
 - the ministers of his justice. I do not pretend that your ene- 
 mies are careless or indifferent : no, their hatred is infla- 
 med, their lips thirst for blood ; they would devour you, 
 and all the people of God : but, my brave soldiers, their 
 guilt has reached the clouds ; they are ripe for destruction ; 
 their cruelty is notorious ; and cruelty and cowardice are 
 always united. 
 
 " There is nothing, therefore, to prevent your certain vic- 
 tory, but their ^limble feet, their impenetrable swamps and 
 woods ; from these your small numbers will entice them, or 
 your courage drive them. I now put the question Who 
 would not fight in such a cause ? fight witk undaunted bold- 
 ness ? Do you wish for more encouragement ? more I give 
 you. Riches waken the soldier's sword ; and though you 
 will not obtain silver and gold, on the field of victory, you 
 will secure what is infinitely more precious ; you will se- 
 cure the liberties, the privileges, and the lives of Christ's 
 Church, in this new world* 
 
SETTLEMENTS. 79 
 
 "You will procure safety for your affectionate wives, 
 safety for your prattling, harmless, smiling- babes ; you will 
 secure all the blessings enjoyed by the people of God in the 
 ordinances of the gospel. Distinguished was the honor 
 conferred upon David, for fighting the battles of the Lord ; 
 this honor, O ye courageous soldiers of God, is now pre- 
 pared for you. You will now execute his vengeance on the 
 heathen ; you will bind their kings in chains, and their no- 
 bles in fetters of iron. But perhaps some one may fear that 
 a fatal arrow may deprive him of this honor. 
 
 " Let every faithful soldier of Jesus Christ be assured, that 
 if any servant be taken away, it is merely because the honors 
 of this world are too narrow for his reward ; an everlasting 
 crown is set upon his head ; because the rewards of this life 
 are insufficient. March, then,- with Christian courage, in 
 the strength of the Lord; march with faith in his divine 
 promises, and soon your swords shall find your enemies; 
 soon they shall, fall like leaves of the forest under your feet." 
 
 With these troops, together with seventy river and Mo- 
 hegan Indians, Capt. Mason, to whom the command of the 
 expedition was given, dropped down the river Connecticut, 
 to Saybrook. Here a plan of operations was formed. On the 
 26th of May, about the dawn of day, Capt. Mason surprised 
 Mystic, one of the principal forts of the enemy, in the pre- 
 sent town of Stonington. On their near approach to the 
 fort, a dog barked, and an Indian, who now discovered them, 
 cried out, " O wanux ! O wanux !" Englishmen, English- 
 men. 
 
 The troops instantly pressed forward, and fired. The de- 
 struction of the enemy soon became terrible, but they rallied 
 at length, and made a manly resistance. After a severe and 
 protracted conflict, Capt. Mason and his troops being nearly 
 exhausted, and victory still doubtful, he cried out to his men, 
 toe must burn them ! 
 
 At the same instant, seizing a firebrand, he applied it to a 
 wigwam. The flames spread rapidly on every side ; a.nd 
 as the sun rose upon the scene, it showed the work of de- 
 struction to be complete. Seventy wigwams were in ruins, 
 and between five and six hundred Indians lay bleeding on 
 the ground, or smouldering in the ashes. 
 
 But, though the victory was complete, the troops were 
 now in great distress. Besides two killed, sixteen of their 
 number were wounded. .Their surgeon, medicines, and 
 provisions, were on board some vessels, on their way to Pe- 
 quot harbor, now New-London. While consulting what 
 
80 PERIOD ii. 1607 TO 1689. 
 
 should be done in this emergency, how great was their joy 
 to descry their vessels standing directly towards the harbor, 
 under a prosperous wind ! 
 
 Soon after, a detachment of nearly two hundred men, from 
 Massachusetts and Plymouth, arrived to assist Connecticut 
 in prosecuting the war. 
 
 Sassacus, the great sachem of the Pequots, and his war- 
 riors, were so appalled at the destruction of Mystic, that 
 they fled towards Hudson's river. The troops pursued 
 them as far as a great swamp, in Fairfield, where another 
 action took place, in which the Indians were entirely van- 
 quished. 
 
 This was followed by a treaty with the remaining Pe- 
 quots, about two hundred in number, agreeably to which 
 they were divided among the Narragansetts and Mohegans. 
 
 Thus terminated a conflict, which, for a time, was emi- 
 nently distressing to the colonies. This event of peace was 
 celebrated throughout New-England, by a day of thanks- 
 giving and praise. 
 
 Sec. 31. The expedition against the Pequots 
 made the English acquainted with Quinnapiak, 
 or Neic-Haven ; and the next year, 1638, led to 
 the settlement of that town. This, and the ad- 
 joining towns, soon after settled, went by the 
 name of the COLONY OF NEW-HAVEN. 
 
 Among the founders of this colony, which was the fourth 
 in New-England, was Mr. John Davenport, for some time 
 a distinguished minister in London. To avoid the indigna- 
 tion of the persecuting Archbishop Laud, in 1633, he fled to 
 Holland. Hearing, while in exile, of the prosperity of the 
 New-England settlements, he meditated a removal to Ame- 
 rica. On his return to England, Mr. Theophilus Eaton, an 
 eminent merchant in London, with Mr. Hopkins, afterwards 
 governor of Connecticut, and several others, determined to 
 accompany him. They arrived in Boston in June, 1637. 
 
 This company were inclined to commence a new planta 
 tion, and lay the foundation of a separate colony. Though 
 the most advantageous offers Avere made them by the govern- 
 ment of Massachusetts, to choose any place within their ju- 
 risdiction, they preferred a place without the limits of the 
 existing colonies. They accordingly fixed upon New-Ha- 
 ven for the place of their future habitation, and on the 
 fcth of April, they kept their first sabbath in the place, 
 
SETTLEMENTS. 81 
 
 under a large oak tree, where Mr. Davenport preached to 
 them. 
 
 Sec. 32. The following year, January 14, 1639, ' 
 the three towns on Connecticut river, Windsor, 
 Hartford, and Wethersfield, finding themselves 
 without the limits of the Massachusetts patent, 
 met, and formed themselves into a distinct com- 
 monwealth, and adopted a constitution. 
 
 This constitution, which has been much admired, and 
 which, for more than a century and a half, underwent little 
 alteration, ordained that there should annually be two gene- 
 ral assemblies, one in April, the other in September. In 
 April, the officers of government were to be elected by the 
 freemen, and to consist of a governor, deputy governor, and 
 five or six assistants. The towns were to send deputies to 
 the general assemblies. Under this constitution, the first 
 governor was John Haynes, and Roger Ludlovv the first de- 
 puty governor. 
 
 Sec. 33. The example of the colony of Con- 
 necticut, in forming a constitution, was followed 
 the next June, by the colony of New-Haven. 
 Roth constitutions were essentially alike. 
 
 In October following the government was organized, 
 when Mr. Eaton was chosen governor. To this office he 
 was annually elected, till his death, in 1657. No one of 
 the New-England colonies was so much distinguished for 
 good order and internal tranquillity, as the colony of New- 
 Haven. Her principal men were distinguished for their J 
 wisdom and integrity, and directed the affairs of the colony {c 
 with so much prudence, that she was seldom disturbed by 
 divisions within, or by aggressions from the Indians from 
 without. 
 
 Having been bred to mercantile employments, the first 
 settlers were inclined to engage in the pursuits of commerce. 
 With this view, they fixed their settlement at a port selected 
 for that purpose. In these pursuits, they sustained many 
 severe losses ; particularly in the loss of a new ship, of 150 
 tons, freighted with a valuable cargo, and manned with sea- 
 men and passengers from many of the best families in the 
 colony, which foundered at sea, in the year 1647. This se- 
 vere loss discouraged, for a time, their commercial pursuits, 
 
82 PERIOD II. 1607 TO 1689. 
 
 and engaged their attention more particularly in the em- 
 ployments of agriculture. 
 
 Sec. 34. This same year, 1639, Sir Ferdinando 
 Gorges obtained of the crown a distinct charter, 
 in confirmation of his own grant (Sec. 18) of all 
 the lands from Piscataqua to Sagadahoc, styled 
 the PROVINCE OF MAINE. He formed a system of 
 government for the province, and incorporated a 
 city near the mountain Agamenticus, in York, 
 by the name of Georgeana; but neither the 
 province nor city flourished. In 1652, the pro- 
 vince was taken under the jurisdiction of Mas- 
 sachusetts, by the request of the people of 
 Maine. 
 
 It would exceed our limits to examine the different grants 
 of territory, which were made at different times, of .the state 
 of Maine. In 1652, at the time the province was taken un- 
 der the jurisdiction of Massachusetts, it was made a county 
 by the name of Yorkshire. It had the privilege of sending 
 deputies to the general court at Boston. Massachusetts laid 
 claim to the province, as lying within her charter of 1628, 
 and, after various controversies, the territory was incorpora- 
 ted with her in 1691. In 1786, 1787, 1802, and 1816, ef- 
 forts were made by a portion of the people of Maine to be- 
 come separate from Massachusetts proper, but to this a ma- 
 jority of the inhabitants were averse. In 1818, however, 
 this measure was effected; and, on the 3d of March, 1820, 
 the district of Maine, by an act of congress, became an in- 
 dependent state. 
 
 Sec. 35. The next event of importance in our 
 history, is the union of the colonies of Massachu- 
 setts, Plymouth, Connecticut, and New-Haven, 
 by the name of THE UNITED COLONIES OF NEW- 
 ENGLAND. The articles of this confederation, 
 which had been agitated for three years, were 
 signed May 19th, 1643. 
 
 To this union the colonies were strongly urged, 
 by a sense of common danger from the Indians, 
 (a general combination of whom was expected,) 
 
SETTLEMENTS. 83 
 
 
 
 and by the claims and encroachments of the 
 Dutch, at Manhattan, New- York. 
 
 By these articles of union, each colony retained its dis- 
 tinct and separate government. No two colonies might he 
 united into one, nor any colony he received into the confede- 
 racy, without the consent of the whole. Each colony was 
 to elect two commissioners, who should meet annually, and 
 at other times, if necessary, and should determine "all affairs 
 of war and peace, of leagues, aids, charges, and numbers of 
 men for war," &c. Upon nonce that any colony was inva- 
 ded, the rest were immediately to dispatch assistance. 
 
 This union subsisted more than forty years, until the 
 charters of the colonies were either taken away, or suspend- 
 ed, by James II. and his commissioners. 
 
 In 1648, Rhode Island petitioned to be admitted to this 
 confederacy, but was denied, unless she would be incorpo- 
 rated with Plymouth, 'and lose her separate existence. This 
 she refused, and was consequently excluded. 
 
 The" effects of this union on the New-England colonies 
 were, in a high degree, salutary. On the completion of it, 
 several Indian sachems, among whom were the chiefs of 
 the Narraganset and Mohegan tribes, came in, and submit- 
 ted to the English government. The colonies also became 
 formidable, by means of it, to the Dutch. This union was 
 also made subservient to the civil and religious improvement 
 of the Indians. 
 
 Prior to this period, Mr. Mayhew and the devoted Elliot 
 had made considerable progress towards civilizing the In- 
 dians, and converting them to Christianity. They had learn- 
 ed the Indian language, and had preached to the Indians 
 in their own tongue. 
 
 Upon a report in England of what these men had done, 
 a society was formed for propagating the gospel among the 
 Indians, which sent over books, money, &c. to be distribiv 
 ted by the Commissioners of the United Colonies. 
 
 The Indians at first made a great opposition -to christiani- 
 ty ; and such was their aversion to it, that had they not 
 been overawed by. the United Colonies, it is probable they 
 would have put to death those among them who embraced 
 it Such, however, were the ardor, energy, and ability, of 
 Messrs. Mayhew and Elliot, aided by the countenance and 
 support of government, and blessed by Providence, that, in 
 1660, there were ten towns of converted Indians in Massa- 
 chusetts. In 1695, there were not less than three thousand 
 
84 PERIOD ii. 1607 TO 1689. 
 
 adult Indian converts in the islands of Martha's Vineyard 
 and Nantucket. 
 
 Sec. 36. 1662. The colony of Connecticut, 
 having petitioned King Charles II. through Go- 
 vernor Winthrop, for a charter of incorporation, 
 his majesty granted their request, and issued his 
 letters patent, April 2d, constituting them a body 
 corporate and politic, by the name of The Go- 
 vernor and Company of the English Colony of 
 Connecticut, in New-England, in America. 
 
 The territory granted to Lord Say and Seal, and Lord 
 Brooke, in 1631 and confirmed by this charter to Connecti- 
 cut, was bounded east by Narraganset riter ; south by Long 
 Island sound ; north by Massachusetts ; and extended west 
 to the Pacific Ocean. 
 
 The charter of Connecticut ordained that there should be 
 a governor, deputy governor, and twelve assistants, to be 
 chosen annually. The charter instituted two general as- 
 semblies for each year, to consist of the above officers, and 
 deputies from the towns ; the former to compose the upper, 
 and the deputies the lower house. The government under 
 the charter was essentially the same with that which the 
 people had themselves adopted, in 1639, and continued to be 
 the constitution of the colony and state of Connecticut, until 
 the year 1818. 
 
 This charter included the colony of New-Haven ; but not 
 being agreeable to that colony, it did not unite with Con- 
 necticut, until two years after. The granting of a charter 
 to Connecticut was followed the next year, 1G63, by a simi- 
 lar grant to Rhode Island and Providence plantations, as 
 already noticed. 
 
 Sec. 37. In 1664, Charles II. granted to his 
 brother, the Duke of York and Albany, the ter- 
 ritory included in the several colonies of New- 
 York, New- Jersey, and Delaware. The same 
 year the latter dispatched an expedition, under 
 command of Col. Richard Nichols, to the Dutch 
 colony at Manhattan, which had for many years 
 denied the right of the English to control it. 
 This expedition arrived at Manhattan in August 
 
SETTLEMENTS. 85 
 
 of this year, and demanded a surrender of the 
 territory to his English majesty. The Dutch 
 governor, being unprepared for defence, complied 
 with the demand, and the whole country passed 
 into the hands of the English. In honor of the 
 duke, the two principal Dutch settlements were 
 now named New-York and Albany. 
 
 The first settlement of the Dutch at Manhattan, in 1613, 
 and their surrender to the English, the same year, have al- 
 ready been noticed, (Sec. 9.) Soon after, however, they re- 
 volted, and the claims of the English being neglected, they 
 continued to manage for themselves, until the above year, 
 1664. 
 
 On entering the harbor, Stuyvesant, the Dutch governor, 
 sent a letter to Nichols, to desire the reason of his approach. 
 To this letter, Nichols replied, the next day, by a summons 
 to surrender. Stuyvesant, determining on a defence, refused 
 to surrender; but, at length, finding himself without the 
 means of resistance, and that many of the people were desi- 
 rous of passing under the jurisdiction of the English, he 
 surrendered the government into the hands of Col. Nichols, 
 who promised to secure to the governor and inhabitants their 
 liberties and estates, with all the privileges of English sub- 
 jects. The administration of Nichols continued for three 
 years, and was marked by great integrity and moderation. 
 Upon his return to England, in 1667, he was succeeded 
 by Col. Lovelace, who administered the government with 
 equal moderation. 
 
 Sec. 38. A short time previous to the surrender 
 of the Dutch, the Duke of York conveyed to Lord 
 Berkley and Sir George Carteret, the territory of 
 New-Jersey. This name was given it in com 
 pliment to Carteret, who had been governor of 
 the Isle of Jersey, in the English channel. Soon 
 after the grant 3 but before it was known, three 
 persons from Long Island purchased of the na- 
 tives a tract, which was called Elizabethtown 
 grant, and a settlement was begun at Elizabeth- 
 town. Other towns were soon settled by emi- 
 grants from the colonies and from Europe. In 
 8 
 
86 PERIOD ii. 1607 TO 1689. 
 
 consequence of these opposite claims to the ter- 
 ritory, much discord prevailed between the pro- 
 prietors and the inhabitants. 
 
 The first settlement within the limits of New-Jersey was 
 made by the Danes, about the year 1624, at a place called 
 Bergen. Some Dutch families also, about the same time, 
 planted themselves on the Jersey side, near New- York. In 
 1626, a colony of Swedes and Finns purchased land on both 
 sides of the river Delaware, and formed a settlement on its 
 western bank. In 1640, the English began a plantation at 
 Elsingburgh, on its eastern bank. But this was soon after 
 broken up by the Swedes, with the assistance of the Dutch 
 from Manhattan. From this time, until 1655, the Swedes 
 held possession of the country on both sides of the Dela- 
 ware, when the Dutch governor, Stuyvesant, subdued them. 
 The Dutch now held possession until 1664, when the terri- 
 tory passed into the hands of the English. 
 
 Sec. 39. The next year, 1665, Philip Carteret, 
 who had been appointed governor by the pro- 
 prietors, arrived at Elizabethtown, which he 
 made the seat of government. He administered 
 the government according to a constitution, 
 which the proprietors had formed. 
 
 This constitution ordained a free assembly, consisting of 
 a governor, council, and representatives, the latter to be cho- 
 sen by each town. The legislative power resided in the as- 
 sembly ; the executive, in the governor and council. 
 
 Sec. 40. DELAWARE was also included in the 
 grant to the Duke of York. At this time, it was 
 in the hands of the Dutch, but an expedition was 
 sent against it under Sir Robert Carr, to whom 
 it surrendered, Oct. 1, 1664. soon after which, it 
 was put under the authority of the English go- 
 vernor of New-York. 
 
 Delaware was first settled in 1627, by a number of Swedes 
 and Finns, who, at the instance of Gustavus Adolphus, king 
 of Sweden, emigrated to America. They landed at Cape 
 Henlopen, which, on account of its beauty, they called 
 Paradise Point; the Delaware they named Svved^land 
 Stream. 
 
SETTLEMENTS. 87 
 
 The Dutch at New-Netherlands laid claim, however, to 
 the territory, and mutual contests subsisted for a long time 
 between them and the Swedes. After several times chang- 
 ing 1 masters, the territory finally surrendered to the Dutch, 
 who held possession of it at the time of the English expedi- 
 tion against it under Carr, in 1664. It was now considered 
 a part of New- York. In 1682, however, the Duke of York 
 sold the town of New Castle, and the country twelve miles 
 around it, tq William Penn, and some time after the territo- 
 ry between New Castle and Cape Henlopen. These tracts, 
 then known by the name of " Territories," constitute the 
 present state of Delaware. Until 1703, they were governed 
 as a part of Pennsylvania ; but, at this time, they had liber- 
 ty from the proprietor to form a separate and distinct as- 
 sembly. 
 
 Sec. 41. After the reduction of New- York by 
 Col. Nichols, (Sec. 37,) he, with Sir Robert Carr, 
 George Cartwright, and Samuel Maverick, pro- 
 ceeded to New-England, under a commission 
 from King Charles, " to hear and determine com- 
 plaints and appeals, in all causes, as well milita- 
 ry as criminal and civil," within New-England, 
 and to proceed in all things for settling the peace 
 and security of the country. 
 
 The conduct of these commissioners was ex- 
 ceedingly arbitrary and offensive to the colonies. 
 Under pretext of executing their commission, 
 they received complaints against the colonies 
 from the Indians ; required persons, against the 
 consent of the people, to be admitted to the pri- 
 vileges of freemen, to church membership, and 
 full communion ; heard and decided in causes 
 which had already been determined by the esta- 
 blished courts; and gave protection to criminals. 
 After involving the colonies in great embarrass- 
 ment and expense, they were at length recalled, 
 and the country saved from impending ruin. 
 
 Sec. 42. In the year 1663, the tract of country 
 extending from the 36th degree of north latitude 
 
88 PERIOD ii. 1607 TO 1689. 
 
 to the river St. Matheo, was erected into a pro- 
 vince by the name of CAROLINA, so called in honor 
 of Charles IX., king of France, under whose pa- 
 tronage the coast had been discovered in 1563. 
 
 This tract was conveyed, by charter of Charles 
 II., king of England, at this time, to Lord Cla- 
 rendon, and seven others, who were made abso- 
 lute proprietors of the territory, and invested with 
 ample powers to settle and govern it. Two years 
 after, the charter was confirmed and enlarged, so 
 as to embrace the whole territory, now divided 
 into the two Carolinas, Georgia, and the Flo- 
 ridas. 
 
 As early as 1650, a settlement was begun in Albemarle 
 county, by planters from Virginia, and emigrants from other 
 places. This settlement was placed by the proprietors un- 
 der the superintendence of Sir William Berkley, governor 
 of Virginia, who was instructed to visit it, and to appoint a 
 governor and council of six for it. 
 
 The attention of the proprietors was next turned to the 
 country south of Cape Fear, which they erected into a coun- 
 ty by the name of Clarendon. This county was settled in 
 1665, by emigrants from the island of Barbadoes. Sir John 
 Yeamans, who was from that island, was appointed govern- 
 or, and a separate government granted, similar to that of 
 Albemarle. 
 
 In 1669, another settlement was made still further south, 
 at Port Royal, under the direction of William Sayle, who 
 was appointed the first governor. The name of this county 
 was Carteret. Thus three distinct governments were form- 
 ed in Carolina. 
 
 In 1671, Gov. Sayle, dissatisfied with the situation of Port 
 Royal, removed to the northward, and took possession of a 
 neck of land between Ashley and Cooper's river. Here 
 was laid the foundation of a town called Charlestown. 
 Nine years after, however, the inhabitants removed to " the 
 Oyster Point," where Charleston, the present capital of 
 South Carolina, was begun. The place which they left 
 went by the name of " the Old Town." 
 
 In consequence of the unhealthiness of the climate, Go- 
 vernor Sayle died shortly after his removal to Old Charles- 
 ton, upon which this colony was annexed to the g 
 
SETTLEMENTS. 89 
 
 of that of Clarendon, under Governor Yeamans, and the 
 three governments were reduced to two. 
 
 During the administration of Governor Sayle, a constitu- 
 tion, prepared, at the request of the proprietors, by the cele- 
 brated Mr. Locke, was attempted to be put in force. 
 
 By this constitution, a president of a palatine court, to con- 
 sist of the proprietors, was to be chosen for life. An he- 
 reditary nobility was to be established, consisting of land- 
 graves and caciques. A parliament, chosen once in two 
 years* was to be held, consisting of the proprietors, of the 
 nobility, and of representatives from each district. All were 
 to meet in one apartment, and to have an equal voice. No 
 business, however, could be proposed in parliament, until it 
 had been debated in a grand council, to consist of the go- 
 vernor, nobility, and deputies of proprietors. 
 
 This constitution it was found impossible to reduce to 
 practice. Great opposition was made to it ; and in Albe- 
 marle an insurrection was occasioned by an attempt to en- 
 force it. It was therefore at length abandoned, and the for- 
 mer proprietary government restored. This latter sort of 
 government continued from 1669 to 1729, when the proprie- 
 tors surrendered their title and interest to the king of Eng- 
 land. The province was now divided into North and South 
 Carolina, and their governors and councils were appointed 
 by the cro\vn. 
 
 Sec. 43. This year, 1675, began the memorable 
 war in New-England, with the Indians, called 
 King Philip's war ; by which the peace of the 
 colonies was greatly disturbed, and their exist- 
 ence for a time seriously endangered. 
 
 For several years previous to the opening of the war, the 
 Indians had regarded the English with increasing jealousy. 
 They saw them growing in numbers, and rapidly extending 
 their settlements. At the same time, their own hunting 
 grounds were visibly narrowing, and their power and privi- 
 leges sensibly decreasing. The prospect before them, was 
 humbling to the haughty descendants of the original lords 
 of the soil. 
 
 The principal exciter of the Indians, at this time, against 
 the English, was Philip, sachem of the Wampanoags, grand- 
 son and successor of Masassoit, who, fifty years before, had 
 made a treaty with the colony of Plymouth. Philip's resi- 
 dence was at Mount Hope, Bristol, Rhode Island. 
 
90 PERIOD ii. 1607 TO 1689. 
 
 The immediate cause of the war was the execution of three 
 Indians by the English, whom Philip had excited to mur- 
 der one Sausaman, an Indian missionary. Sausamari, be- 
 ing friendly to the English, had informed them that Philip, 
 with several tribes, was plotting their destruction. 
 
 The execution of these Indians roused the anger of 
 Plfllip, who immediately armed his men, and commenced 
 hostilities. Their first attack was made June 24th, upon 
 the people of Swanzey, in Plymouth colony, as they were 
 returning home from public worship, on a day of humilia- 
 tion and prayer, under the apprehension of the approaching 
 war. Eight or nine persons were killed. 
 
 The country was immediately alarmed, and the troops of 
 the colony flew to the defence of Swanzey. On the 28th, a 
 company of horse and a company of foot, with one hundred 
 and ten volunteers from Boston, joined the Plymouth forces 
 at Swanzey. The next morning an attack was made upon 
 some of Philip's men, who were pursued, and five or six of 
 them killed. This resolute conduct of the English made a 
 deep impression on the enemy. Philip, with his forces, left 
 Mount Hope the same night marking his route, however, 
 with the burning of houses, and the scalping of the defence- 
 less inhabitants. 
 
 It being known that the Narragansets favored the cause 
 of Philip, he having sent his women and children to them 
 for protection, the Massachusetts forces, under Capt. Hutch- 
 inson, proceeded forthwith into their country, either to renew 
 a treaty with them, or to give them battle. Fortunately, a 
 treaty was concluded, and the troops returned. 
 
 On the 17th of July, news arrived that Philip, with his 
 warriors, was in a swamp at Pocasset, now Tiverton. The 
 Massachusetts and Plymouth forces immediately marched 
 to that place, and the next day resolutely charged the enemy 
 in their recesses. As the troops entered the swamp, the In- 
 dians continued to retire. The English in vain pursued, 
 till the approach of night, when the commander ordered a 
 retreat. Many of the English were killed, and the enemy 
 seemed to take courage. 
 
 It being impossible to encounter the Indians with advan- 
 tage in the swamps, it was determined to starve them out j 
 but Philip, apprehending their design, contrived to escape 
 with his forces. 
 
 He now fled to the Nipmucks, a tribe in Worcester 
 Bounty, Massachusetts, whom he induced to assist him. 
 This tribe had already commenced hostilities against the 
 
SETTLEMENTS. 91 
 
 English ; but, in the hope of reclaiming them, the govern- 
 or and council sent Captains Wheeler and Hutchinson to 
 treat with them. But the Indians, having intimation of 
 their coming, lurked in ambush for them, fired upon them 
 as they approached, killed eight men, and mortally wounded 
 eight more, of whom Capt. 'Hutchinson was one. 
 
 The remainder of the English fled to Quaboag, Brook- 
 field. The Indians, however, closely pursued them into the 
 town, and burnt every house excepting one, in which the 
 inhabitants had taken refuge. This house at length they 
 surrounded. " For two days they continued to pour a storm 
 of musket balls upon it, and although countless numbers 
 pierced through the walls, but one person was killed. With 
 long poles, they next thrust against it brands and rags dip- 
 ped in brimstone ; they shot arrows of fire ; they loaded a 
 cart with flax and tow, and with long poles fastened toge- 
 ther, they pushed it against the house. Destruction seemed 
 inevitable. The house was kindling, and the savages stood 
 ready to destroy the first that should open the door to es-^V 
 cape. At this awful moment, a torrent of rain descended, 
 and suddenly extinguished the kindling flames." 
 
 August 4th, Major Willard came to their relief, raised the 
 siege, and destroyed a considerable number of the assailants. 
 
 During the month of September, Hadley, Deerfield, and 
 Northfield, on Connecticut river, were attacked ; several of 
 the inhabitants were killed, and many buildings consumed. 
 On the 18th, Capt. Lathrop, with several teams, and eighty 
 young men, the flower of the county of Essex, were sent to 
 Deerfield to transport a quantity of grain to Hadley. On 
 their return, stopping to gather grapes at Muddy Brook, they 
 were suddenly attacked by near eight hundred Indians. Re- 
 sistance was in vain, and seventy of these young men fell 
 before the merciless enemy, and were buried in one grave. 
 Capt. Mosely, who was at Deerfield, hearing the report of 
 the guns, hastened to the spot, and, with a few men, attack- 
 ed the Indians, killed ninety-six, and wounded forty, losing 
 himself but t\vo men. 
 
 Early in October, the Springfield Indians, who had hith- 
 erto been friendly to the English, concerted a plan, with the 
 hostile tribes, to burn that town. Having, under cover of 
 night, received two or three hundred of Philip's men into 
 their fort, with the assistance of these, they set fire to tha 
 town.- The plot, however, was discovered so seasonably, 
 that troops arrived from Westfield in time to save the town, 
 excepting thirty-two houses, already consumed. 
 
92 PERIOD ii. 1607 TO 1689. 
 
 Soon after hostilities were commenced by Philip, the Tar- 
 Tenteens began their depredations in New-Hampshire, and 
 the Province of Maine. They robbed the boats and plun- 
 dered the houses of the English. In September, they fell 
 on Saco, Scarborough, and Kittery, killed between twenty 
 and thirty of the inhabitants, and consigned their houses, 
 barns, and mills, to the flames. 
 
 Elated with these successes, they next advanced towards 
 
 Piscataqua, committing the same outrages at Oyster river, 
 
 , 'V Salmon Falls, Dover, and Exeter. Before winter, sixty of 
 
 "* >he English, in that quarter, were killed, and nearly as many 
 
 buildings consumed. 
 
 The Indians in those parts, however, had real ground of 
 complaint. Some seamen, hearing it reported that Indian 
 children could swim by instinct, overset the canoe of Squan- 
 do, sachem of the Saco Indians, in which were his squaw 
 and infant child. This act Squando could not overlook, es- 
 pecially as some time after the child died, and, as the sachem 
 believed, on acco.unt of some injury that it then received. 
 ,-^ Besides this, several Indians had been enticed on board a 
 k {) vessel, carried off, and sold into slavery. To redress these 
 wrongs, the Indians commenced hostilities. 
 
 Notwithstanding the Narragansets' had pledged them- 
 selves by their treaty, not to engage in the war against the 
 English, it was discovered that they were taking .part with 
 the enemy. " It was deemed necessary, therefore, for the 
 safety of the colonies, early to check that powerful tribe, 
 v' Accordingly, Gov. Winslow, of Plymouth, with about one 
 thousand eight hundred troops from Massachusetts and Con- 
 necticut, and one hundred and sixty friendly Indians, com- 
 menced their march from Pettysquamscot, on the 19th of 
 December, 1675, through a deep snow, towards the enemy, 
 who were in a swamp about fifteen miles distant. .V 
 
 The army arrived at the swamp at one in the afternoon. 
 Some Indians at the edge of the swamp were fired upon, but 
 fled. The whole army now entered and pursued the In- 
 dians to their fortress. 
 
 This stood on a rising ground, in the middle of the 
 swamp. It was a work of great strength and labor, being 
 composed of palisades, and surrounded by a hedge about 
 sixteen feet in thickness. 
 
 One entrance only led to the fort, through the surround- 
 ing thicket. Upon this the English providentially fell ; 
 and without waiting to form, rushed impetuously towards 
 the fort. The English captains- entered first. The resist- 
 
Surrender of the Dutch at Manhattan. P. 85. 
 
 Indians attacking the house at Brookfield. P> 91 
 
SETTLEMENTS. 93 
 
 ance of the Indians was gallant and warlike. Captains y f 
 Johnson and Davenport, with many of their men, fell at the 
 entrance. At length, the English gave back, and were 
 obliged to retreat out of the fort, 
 
 At this crisis, the army being on the point of a fatal re- 
 pulse, some Connecticut men, on the opposite side of the 
 fort, discovered a place destitute of palisades ; they instantly 
 sprang into the fort, fell upon the rear of the Indians, and, 
 aided by the rest of the army, after a desperate conflict, 
 achieved a complete victory. Six hundred wigwams were 
 now set on fire. The scene was awful. Deep volumes of 
 smoke rolled up to heaven, mingling with the dying shrieks 
 of mothers and infants, while the aged and infirm were con- | 2 
 suming in the flames. 
 
 Even at this distant period, we cannot recall this scene 
 without pain, and can justify this severity of our ancestors, 
 only by admitting its necessity for self-preservation. 
 
 The Indians in the fort were estimated at four thousand ; 
 ofthe.se, seven hundred warriors were killed, and three hun- 
 dred died of their wounds; three hundred were taken prison- 
 ers, and as many women and children. The rest, except 
 such as were consumed, fled. 
 
 The victory of the English, complete as it was, was pur- 
 chased with blood. Six brave captains fell ; eighty of the 
 troops were killed or mortally wounded ; and one hundred 
 and fifty were wounded, who recovered. 
 
 From this defeat, the Indians never recovered. They 
 were not yet, however, effectually subdued. During the 
 winter, they still continued to murder and burn. The towns 
 of Lancaster, Medfield, Weymouth, Groton, Springfield, 
 Northampton, Sudbury, and Marlborough, in Massachu- 
 setts, and of Warwick and Providence, in Rhode Island, 
 were assaulted, and some of them partly, and others wholly, 
 destroyed. In March, Captain Pierce, with fifty English, 
 and twenty friendly Indians, were attacked, and every Eng- 
 lishman, and most of the Indians, were slain. In April, 
 Capt. Wadsworth, marching with fifty men to the relief of 
 Sudbury, was surrounded, and all either killed on the spot, 
 or reserved for long and distressing tortures. 
 
 The success of the Indians, during the winter, had been 
 great ; but on the return of spring the tide turned against 
 them. The Narraganset country was scoured, and many 
 of the natives were killed, among whom was Canonchet, 
 their chief sachem. 
 
 On the 12th of August, 1676, the finishing stroke was 
 
94 PERIOD ii. 1607 TO 1689. 
 
 given to the war in the United Colonies, by the death of 
 Philip. After his flight from Mount Hope, he had attempt- 
 ed to rouse the Mohawks against the English. To effect 
 his purpose, he killed, at several times, some of that tribe, 
 and laid it to the English. But his iniquity was discovered, 
 and he was obliged hastily to flee. He returned at length to 
 Mount Hope. 
 
 Tidings of his return were brought to Captain Church, a 
 man who had been of eminent service in this war, and who 
 was better able than any other person to provide against the 
 wiles of the enemy. Capt. Church immediately proceeded 
 to the place of Philip's concealment, near Mount Hope, ac- 
 companied by a small body of men. On his arrival, which 
 was in the night, he placed his men in ambushes round the 
 swamp, charging them not to move till daylight, that they 
 might distinguish Philip, should he attempt to escape. Such 
 was his confidence of success, that taking Major Sa.ndford 
 by the hand, he said, " It is scarcely possible that Philip 
 should escape," At that instant, a bullet whistled over 
 their heads, and a volley followed. 
 
 The firing proceeded from Philip and his men, who were 
 in view. Perceiving his peril, the savage chief desperately 
 snatched his powder horn and gun, and ran fiercely towards 
 the spot where an Englishman and Indian lay concealed. 
 The Englishman levelled his gun, but it missed fire: the 
 Indian fired, and shot Philip through the heart. 
 
 Capt. Church ordered him to be beheaded, and quartered. 
 The Indian who executed this order, pronounced the war- 
 rior's epitaph : " You have been one very great man. You 
 have made many a man afraid of you. But so big as you 
 be, I will now chop you to pieces." 
 
 Thus fell a savage hero and patriot of whose transcen- 
 dant abilities our history furnishes melancholy evidence. 
 The advantage of civilized education, and a wider theatre 
 of action, might have made the name of Philip of Mount 
 Hope, as memorable as that of Alexander, or Cesar. 
 
 After the death of Philip, the war continued in the pro- 
 vince of Maine, till the spring of 1678. But westward, the 
 Indians having lost their chiefs, wigwams, and provisions, 
 and perceiving further contest vain, came in singly, by tens, 
 and hundreds, and submitted to the English. 
 
 Thus closed a melancholy period in the annals of New- 
 England history ; during which, six hundred men, the 
 flower of her strength, had fallen : twelve or thirteen towns 
 had been destroyed, and six hundred dwelling houses con- 
 
SETTLEMENTS. . 95 
 
 sumed. Every eleventh family was houseless, and every 
 eleventh soldier had sunk to his grave. So costly was the 
 inheritance which our fathers have transmitted to us. 
 
 Sec. 44. The grant of the territory of New- 
 York, by Charles II., to li brother the Duke of 
 York, in 1664, has already, i.een noticed, (Sec. 37,) 
 as also its capture from the Dutch, the same year. 
 In 1673, a war commencing between England 
 and Holland, the latter sent a small fleet to New- 
 York, and the town immediately surrendered. 
 
 The following year, 1674, the war terminated, 
 and a treaty was concluded between England and 
 Holland. By this treaty New- York was restored 
 to the English. To prevent controversy about 
 his title to the territory, the Duke of York took out 
 a new patent, and appointed Sir Edmund And- 
 ross governor, who entered upon the duties of his 
 appointment, in October of the same year. 
 
 The administration of Andross, however, was 
 arbitrary and severe. He admitted the people to 
 t\o share in legislation, but ruled them by laws, to 
 which they had never given their assent. 
 
 Connecticut also experienced the weight of his oppres- 
 sion and despotism. That part of her territory west of 
 Connecticut river, although long before granted to the co- 
 lony of Connecticut, \vas included in the grant to the Duke 
 of York. By virtue of this grant, Andross now claimed 
 jurisdiction over the territory, and in July, 1675, made an 
 attempt with an armed force to take possession of Saybrook 
 Fort. 
 
 The governor and council of Connecticut, having notice 
 of his coming, sent Capt. Bull to defend the fort. On the 
 arrival of Andross at the mouth of the river, after making 
 a show of force, he invited Capt. Bull to a conference. 
 This was granted ; but no sooner had he landed, than he 
 attempted to read his commission, and the duke's patent 
 This Capt. Bull firmly and positively forbid, and Sir Ed- 
 mund, finding the colony determined, at all events, no{ to 
 submit to his government, relinquished. his design, and 
 sailed for Long Island. 
 
96 PERIOD ii. 1607 TO 1689. 
 
 Sec. 45. But the colonies had other troubles to 
 experience, and other enemies to combat. In 1676, 
 while the Indian war was still going on, com- 
 plaints were made in England against the colo 
 nies, for violating the acts of trade. These acU 
 imposed oppressive customs upon certain commo- 
 dities, if imported from any country besides Eng- 
 2 land, or if transported from one colony to ano- 
 ther. The acts were considered by the colonies 
 as unjust, impolitic, and cruel. For several years 
 they paid little attention to them, and his ma- 
 jesty at length required, that agents should be 
 sent to England to answer in behalf of the colo- 
 nies for these violations. 
 
 By the acts of trade, none of the colonies suffer- 
 ed more than Virginia and Maryland, their ope- 
 ration being greatly to lessen the profits on their 
 tobacco trade, from which a great portion of their 
 wealth was derived. In addition to these suffer- 
 ings, the colony of Virginia, in violation of charter- 
 ed rights, was divided, and conveyed away in pro- 
 prietary grants. Not only uncultivated woodlands 
 were thus conveyed, but also plantations, which 
 had long been possessed, and improved according 
 to law and charter. 
 
 The Virginians complained, petitioned, remon- 
 stratedbut without effect. Agents were sent to 
 England, to lay their grievances at the foot of the 
 throne, but agents were unsuccessful. At length, 
 their oppression became insupportable, and the 
 discontent of the people broke out into open in- 
 ""Lsurrection. 
 
 ' At the head of this insurrection was placed one Natha- 
 niel Bacon, an Englishman, who, soon after his arrival, 
 had been appointed a member of the council. He was a 
 young man of commanding person, and great energy and 
 enterprise. 
 
SETTLEMENTS. 97 
 
 The colony, at this time, was engaged in war with the 
 Susquehannah Indians. Bacon despatched a messenger to 
 Governor Berkley, requesting a commission to go against 
 the Indians. This commission the governor refused, and, 
 at the same time, ordered Bacon to dismiss his men, and, 
 on penalty of being declared a rebel, to appear before him- 
 self and the council. Exasperated by such treatment, Ba- 
 con, without disbanding the rest of his men, proceeded in a 
 sloop with forty of them, to Jamestown. Here a quarrel 
 ensued, and Berkley illegally suspended him from the 
 council. Bacon departed in a rage, with his sloop and men, 
 but the governor pursued him, and adopted such measures 
 that he was taken, and brought to Jamestown. 
 
 Finding that he had dismissed Bacon from the council 
 illegally, he now admitted him again, and treated him 
 kindly. Soon after, Bacon renewed his importunity for a 
 commission against the Indians. Being unable to effect 
 his purpose, he left Jamestown privately, but soon appeared 
 again 1 with six hundred volunteers, and demanded of the 
 assembly, then sitting, the required commission. Being 
 overawed, the assembly advised the governor to grant it. 
 But soon after Bacon had departed, the governor, by the 
 same advice, issued a proclamation, denouncing him as a 
 rebel. 
 
 Hearing what the governor had done, Bacon, instead of 
 marching against the Indians, returned to Jamestown, 
 wreaking his vengeance upon all who opposed him. Go- 
 vernor Berkley fled across the bay to Accomack, but the 
 spirit of rebellion had gone before him. He therefore 
 found himself unable to resist Bacon, who now ranged the 
 country at pleasure. 
 
 At length, the governor, with a small force, under com- 
 mand of Major Robert Beverly, crossed the bay to oppose 
 the malecontents. Civil war had now commenced. James- 
 town was burnt by Bacon's followers ; various parts of the 
 colony were pillaged, and the wives of those that adhered 
 to the governor's party were carried to the camp of the 
 insurgents. 
 
 In the midst of these commotions, it pleased the Supreme 
 Ruler to withdraw Bacon by a natural death. The male- 
 contents, thus left to recover their reason, now began to 
 disperse. Two of Bacon's generals surrendered, and were 
 pardoned, and the people quietly returned to their homes. 
 
 Upon this, Berkley resumed the government, and peace 
 was restored. This rebellion formed an era of some note 
 9 
 
98 PERIOD ii. 1007 TO 1689. 
 
 in the history of Virginia, and its unhappy effects were felt 
 for thirty years. During its continuance, husbandry was 
 almost entirely neglected, and such havock was made 
 among all kinds of cattle, that the people were threatened 
 with distressing famine. Sir William Berkley, after hav- 
 ing been forty years governor of Virginia, returned to Eng- 
 land, where he soon after died. 
 
 Three years after, 1679, Lord Culpepper was sent over 
 as governor, with certain laws prepared in conformity to 
 the wishes of the ministry of England, and designed to be 
 enacted by the assembly in Virginia. One of those laws 
 provided for raising a revenue for the support of govern- 
 ^ ment. It made the duties perpetual, and placed them under 
 
 tthe direction of his majesty. Out of the duties, Culpepper 
 dishonestly took as his salary, two thousand pounds, and 
 one hundred and sixty more for house rent. 
 
 On presenting these laws to the assembly, Culpepper in- 
 formed them that in case they were passed, he had instruc- 
 tions to offer pardon to all who had been concerned in Ba- 
 con's rebellion ; but if not, he had commissions to try and 
 hang them as rebels, and a regiment of soldiers on the spot 
 to support him. The assembly, thus threatened, passed 
 the laws, 
 
 Sec. 46. In the year 1676, the province of New- 
 Jersey was divided into East and West Jersey, and 
 continued thus divided until 1702, when the pro- 
 prietors surrendered the government to the crown, 
 under Queen Anrie, upon which, the two pro- 
 vinces were united into one. 
 
 The two proprietors of New-Jersey were Lord Berkley, 
 and Sir George Carteret. In 1674, Lord Berkley made a 
 conveyance of his half to John Fenwick, in trust for Ed- 
 ward Billinge, and his assigns. Billinge, being in debt, 
 presented his interest in the province to his creditors, Wil- 
 liam Jones, and others, being appointed trustees to dispose 
 of the lands. 
 
 In the division which thus took place, Carteret took 
 East Jersey, the government of which he retained ; and the 
 trustees of Billinge, West Jersey. The Duke of York, 
 though he had conveyed away his powers of government, 
 when he sold the province to Berkley and Carteret, in 
 1664, unjustly claimed West Jersey, as a dependency ol 
 New-york. 
 
SETTLEMENT^' ;. \ '.''''/'.''.*& \ '\ 
 
 Until 1680, this dependency was maintained, when the 
 Duke of York, after much solicitation, relinquished his 
 claim, and restored to the proprietors the right granted by 
 his patent of 1664. In 1682, Carteret, disgusted with the 
 people, sold his right to East Jersey to William Penn, and 
 others, who immediately sold one half of it to the Earl of 
 Perth, and his associates. Robert Barclay, the celebrated 
 author of " the Apology for the Quakers," was the next 
 year made governor of East Jersey. 
 
 In 1686, both the Jerseys and New- York were annexed 
 to New-England, and continued so till the accession of 
 William and Mary to the throne of England, in 1689. " A 
 government under the proprietors of both the Jerseys, had 
 become extremely disagreeable to the inhabitants; who, 
 from various causes, become so uneasy, that the proprie- 
 tors surrendered the government of East and West Jersey 
 to the crown in 1702, which Queen Anne very readily ac- 
 cepted." 
 
 " The two provinces were now united into one, and Lord 
 Cornbury was appointed governor over the united colony, 
 and received his commission and instructions from the 
 queen. 
 
 " The freemen chose the house of representatives, con- 
 sisting of twenty-four members, but the governor and coun- 
 cil, consisting of twelve members, were appointed by the 
 crown. New- York and New-Jersey had, till the year 
 1738, a common governor; but at this time a separate go- 
 vernor was appointed over the latter province." 
 
 Sec. 47. In 1677, a controversy which had sub- 
 sisted for some time between the colony of Massa- 
 chusetts and the heirs of Sir Ferdinando Gorges, 
 relative to the province of Maine, was settled in 
 England, and the colony adjudged to Gorges' 
 heirs. Upon this, Massachusetts purchased the title 
 for one thousand two hundred pounds sterling, 
 and the territory from that time till 1820, was a 
 part of Massachusetts. 
 
 Both the colony of Massachusetts, and the heirs of Gorges, 
 claimed the province of Maine ; the former by virtue of her 
 patent of 1628, (Sec. 21.) which was construed as includ- 
 ing that territory ; the claim of the latter was founded upon 
 a charter granted to Gorges, in 1639. (Sec. 34.) 
 
PERIOD u. 1607 TO 1689. 
 
 Sec. 48. Two years after this adjustment, viz, 
 in 1679, a commission was made out, by order 
 of Charles II., for the separation of New-Hamp- 
 shire from the jurisdiction of Massachusetts, and 
 its erection into a royal province. The form of 
 government sent over by the king, ordained a 
 president and council to govern the province, 
 with an assembly, &c. The assembly to be cho- 
 sen by the people ; the president and council to be 
 appointed by the crown. 
 
 In 1629, the Plymouth company granted to John Mason 
 the territory called New-Hampshire. About the year 
 1640, the settlements now being considerable, the patent 
 holders agreed to assign their right of jurisdiction to Mas- 
 sachusetts. The colony of New-Hampshire, therefore, re- 
 mained under the government of Massachusetts, until it 
 was separated by the king's commission, in 1679. 
 
 The first legislative assembly, under the above commis- 
 sion, was convened March 16, 1680, when the colony of 
 New-Hampshire was declared to be independent of Massa- 
 chusetts. This separation, however, was disagreeable to 
 most of the people ; for near forty years they had enjoyed 
 under Massachusetts the privilege of choosing their own 
 rulers, and had derived great peace and harmony from an 
 impartial government. Nor did this province long enjoy 
 tranquillity. Mason, grandson of the Mason to whom New- 
 Hampshire , had been originally granted, came over the 
 next year, and demanded, by virtue of his claims to the 
 soil, a seat in the council. This being granted, he soon 
 after returned to England, and surrendered -a part of his 
 claims to the king, and mortgaged the remainder to Ed- 
 ward Cranfield, who was appointed lieutenant governor, 
 rnd shortly after repaired to New-Hampshire. 
 
 It is necessary to add, that the Rev. Mr. Wheelright and 
 others, in 1629, the same year that the grant was madeto 
 Mason by the Plymouth company, bought of the Indians a 
 large tract of land in New-Hampshire. The same land 
 was, therefore, claimed under both these grants, and the 
 foundation thus laid of serious disputes in the colony. 
 
 Cranfield, finding it for his interest to favor the claim of 
 Mason to the province, soon called upon the inhabitants to 
 take their leases under him. Suits were instituted against 
 
SETTLEMENTS. ;. \ \ ', '/ ;' 
 
 all the landholders who neglected this cal'. and the jurors 
 being- selected by Cranfield, and interested in the result, 
 uniformly gave judgment against them. 
 
 Under these oppressions, the people despatched an agent, 
 with complaints to his majesty, against the governor. After 
 a hearing by the lords of trade, the iniquitous conduct of 
 Cranfield was represented to the king, who recalled him. 
 
 It may be proper to add, that the above controversy about 
 the claims of Mason continued long to disturb the peace of 
 the province, and was not finally terminated until the death 
 of Samuel Allen, in 1715, to whom the heirs of Mason had 
 sold their claim for seven hundred and fifty pounds ; upon 
 his demise, no one appeared to renew the claims, and the 
 question dropped. 
 
 Sec. 49, In 1681, King Charles II. granted to 
 William Penn, son of Admiral Penn, in consider- 
 ation of debts due the latter, for services done to 
 the crown, the territory of PENNSYLVANIA, so call- 
 ed after Penn himself. 
 
 This patent encroached on the territory of Lord Baltimore 
 in Maryland, one whole degree, or sixty-nine miles and a 
 half; and on the north, nearly three hundred miles, across 
 the whole territory conveyed to Connecticut in 1631,* and 
 confirmed by the royal charter of 1662. Hence arose con- 
 tentions between the colonies of Pennsylvania and Connec- 
 ticut, about boundaries, that were not settled till a century 
 after. Within a short time from the date of the grant by 
 King Charles to Penn, two other conveyances were made to 
 him by the Duke of York. One was a bill of sale of New- 
 Castle, and a territory of twelve miles around it. The other 
 was a bill granting a tract south of the former, as far as 
 Cape Henlopen. These two deeds embraced the whole 
 state of Delaware. At this time, Delaware was divided 
 into three counties, which, in 1662, were annexed to Penn- 
 sylvania, although they had a separate assembly, in which 
 the governor of Pennsylvania presided. 
 
 The patent of King Charles to Penn provided for the 
 king's sovereignty, and for obedience to British acts, re- 
 garding commerce. It gave power to the proprietor to as- 
 semble the freemen, or their delegates, as he should judge 
 
 "See Sec. 36. where the boundaries of the territory granted to Conner 
 ticut are given. 
 
 9* 
 
IDS PERIOD-II. 1607 TO 1689. 
 
 most convenient, for levying moneys and enacting laws, 
 not contrary to the laws of England. 
 
 In May, 1681, Penn sent one Markham, with*, few 
 others, to take possession, and prepare for a settlement. The 
 next year, Penn published a form of government, by which 
 the supreme power was lodged in a general assembly, to 
 consist of a governor, council, and house of delegates. The 
 council and house to be chosen by the freemen. The pro- 
 prietor and governor to preside, and to have a treble voice 
 in the council, which was to consist of seventy-two mem- 
 bers. 
 
 It was also agreed, that every person of good moral cha- 
 racter, professing his faith in Christ, should be a freeman, 
 and capable of holding any office ; and that none who be- 
 lieved in one God, should be molested in his religion, or be 
 compelled to attend, or maintain religious worship. 
 
 In October, Penn, with two thousand planters, mostly 
 Quakers, arrived at New-Castle. In December, he con- 
 voked an assembly ; but so few delegates appearing, he or- 
 dered, that instead of seventy-two, three members only 
 should constitute the council, and nine the house of as- 
 sembly. 
 
 Penn now entered into a treaty with the Indians, of whom 
 he purchased large tracts of territory ; at the same time, he 
 commenced the city of Philadelphia, which, in one year, 
 increased to a hundred houses and cottages. 
 
 Pennsylvania had a more rapid and prosperous settle- 
 ment than any of the other colonies. This was doubtless 
 owing partly to its healthful climate and fruitful soil, partly 
 to the fact, that the great obstacles of settlement had been 
 overcome by the other colonies, and partly to the religious 
 tolerance, mildness, and equity, which characterized its 
 laws, and their administration. 
 
 In 1683, Penn, at the request of the freemen, granted 
 them a new charter, by which eighteen persons were to form 
 the council, and thirty-six the assembly. The next year, 
 Penn himself returned to England. 
 
 The lasting prosperity of Pennsylvania, the foundation 
 of which must be traced to his wisdom and benevolence, is 
 an eloquent eulogium upon his character. 
 
 Sec. 50. In the year 1684, June 18, an event, 
 highly interesting to the colony of Massachusetts 
 took place in England. This was a decision 
 in the high court of chancery, that she had for 
 
SETTLEMENTS. 103 
 
 feited her charter, and that henceforth her govern- 
 ment should be placed in the hands of the king. 
 
 The person chiefly instrumental in bringing about this 
 event, was Edmund Randolph, a man who had long been 
 the enemy of the colonies, and who, for several years, had 
 
 filled the ears of the king with complaints against them,_ | 
 
 for violating the acts of trade. 
 
 To answer to these complaints, Massachusetts repeatedly 
 incurred the expense of sending agents to England, and of 
 maintaining them there ; but his majesty would accept of 
 no conditions, short of a surrender of her charter. As 
 she would not make this surrender voluntarily, it was vio- 
 lently wrested from her. 
 
 Before King Charles had time to adjust the af- 
 fairs of the colony, he died, and was succeeded 
 by James II. Soon after his accession, similar 
 proceedings took place against the other colonies. 
 Rhode-Island submitted, and gave up her charter. 
 Plymouth sent a copy of her charter to the king, 
 with a humble petition that he would restore it. 
 Connecticut voted an address to his majesty, in 
 which she prayed him to recall the writ that had 
 been filed against her. and requested the continu- 
 ance of her charter. 
 
 The petitions arid remonstrances of the colo- 
 nies were, however, of no avail. Both the heart 
 and hand of the king were manifestly against 
 them. After all their hardships and dangers in . 
 settling a wilderness, they had no other prospect 
 before them than the destruction of their dearest 
 rights, and no better security of life, liberty, and 
 property, than the capricious will of a tyrant. 
 
 In pursuance of this cruel policy towards the 
 colonies, two years after the charter of Massachu- 
 setts was vacated, King James commissioned and 
 sent out Sir Edmund Andross as governor of all 
 New-England, Plymouth excepted. He arrived at 
 Boston, Dec. 20, 1686. 
 
104 PERIOD ii. 1607 TO 1689. 
 
 The commencement of his administration was 
 comparatively auspicious. In a few months, how- 
 ever, the fair prospect was changed. Among 
 other arbitrary acts, restraints were laid upon the 
 freedom of the press, and marriage contracts. 
 The liberty to worship in the congregational 
 way was threatened, and the fees of all officers of 
 government were exorbitantly and oppressively 
 enhanced. 
 
 In October, Sir Edmund, and suite, with a guard of about 
 sixty regular troops, went to Hartford, where the assembly 
 of Connecticut was in session. He entered the house of 
 the assembly, demanded the charter of Connecticut, and 
 declared the colonial government to be dissolved. 
 
 Extremely reluctant to surrender the charter, the assem- 
 bly intentionally protracted its debates till evening, when 
 the charter was brought in, and laid on the table. Upon a 
 preconcerted signal, the lights were at once extinguished, 
 and a Capt. Wadsworth, seizing the charter, hastened away 
 under cover of night, and secreted it in the hollow of an 
 oak. The candles, which had been extinguished, were soon 
 relighted without disorder ; but the charter had disappear- 
 ed. Sir Edmund, however, assumed the government, and 
 the records of the colony were closed. 
 
 The condition of the New-England colonies 
 was now distressing, and as the administration of 
 Andross was becoming still more severe and op- 
 pressive, the future seemed not to promise allevi- 
 ation. But Providence was invisibly preparing 
 the way for their relief. Nov. 5th, 1688, Wil- 
 liam, Prince of Orange, who married Mary, daugh- 
 ter of James II., landed at Torbay, in England, 
 and, compelling James II. to leave the kingdom, 
 assumed the crown, being proclaimed Feb. 16th, 
 1689, to the general joy of the nation. 
 
 NOTES. 
 
 Sec. 51. MANNERS OP THE COLONISTS. In the co- 
 lonies of North America, at the close of this period, 
 
( / T / ^w/i*u*? at- <y 
 
 . 
 SETTLEMENTS. 105 
 
 three varieties of character might be distinguish- 
 ed. In New-England, the strict puritanical notions 
 of the people wrought a correspondent austerity 
 upon the manners of society. Placing implicit 
 faith in the Scriptures, they moulded their govern- \\ 
 ment, and shaped private character and morals, 
 upon a severe and literal construction of them, i n 
 They were devout patriotic industrious and 
 public spirited ; and though of a grave, reflecting 
 exterior, they often showed that shrewd inquisi- 
 tiveness and keen relish of a jest, which are still 
 characteristic of the New-Englanders. 
 
 The laws of the colonies throw some light on the views 
 and manners of the people. As examples, in 1639, the 
 drinking of healths was prohibited by law in Massachusetts. 1 
 In 1651, the legislature of that colony prohibited all persons 
 whose " estate did not exceed two hundred pounds, from 
 wearing any gold or silver lace, or any bone lace above two 
 shillings per yard." The law authorized the selectmen to 
 take notice of the costliness and fashion of the " apparel of 
 the people, especially in the wearing of ribands and groat 
 boots." The New-Haven colony, in 1639, resolved that 
 they would be governed by the rules of Scripture ; and that 
 church members only should act in the civil affairs of the ~~t 
 plantation. 
 
 In 1647, the colony of Connecticut expressed their disap- 
 probation of the use of tobacco, by an act of assembly, in 
 which it was ordered, " that no person under the age of 
 twenty years, nor any other that hath already accustomed 
 himself to the use thereof, shall take any tobacco, until he 
 shall have brought a certificate, from under the hand of 
 some, who are approved for knowledge and skill in physic, 
 that it is useful for him ; and also, that he hath received a 
 license from the court for the same. All others, who had 
 addicted themselves to the use of tobacco, were, by the same f 
 court, prohibited taking it in any company, or at their labors, / 
 or on their travels, unless they were ten miles at least from 
 any house, or more than once a day, though not in company, 
 on pain of a fine of sixpence for each time ; to be proved by. 
 orie substantial witness. The constable in each town to make 
 presentment of such transgressions to the particular court, 
 aud upon conviction, the fine to be paid without gainsaying." 
 
106 PERIOD ii.- 1607 TO 1689. 
 
 In the Colony of New-York, during this period, the man- 
 ners of the colonists were strictly Dutch with no other 
 modifications than the privations of a new country, and the 
 few English among them, necessarily effected. The same 
 steadfast pursuit of wealth ; the same plodding industry; 
 the same dress, air, and physiognomy, which are given as 
 characteristic of Holland, were equally characteristic gfthe 
 inhabitants of New- Amsterdam. 
 
 In Virginia, the manners of the colonists were 
 those of the less rigid English, rendered still more 
 free and voluptuous by the influence of a softer 
 climate and a more prolific soil. 
 
 Stith says of the first settlers of this colony, that some emi- 
 grated "to escape a worse fate at home ;" others, it is said, 
 sought to repair fortunes by emigration, which had been 
 ruined by excess. Many persons, however, of high charac- 
 ter, were among the emigrants, and amidst the licentious- 
 ness of the Virginia colony were found, at the close of this 
 period, the seeds of that frankness, hospitality, taste, and re- 
 finement, which distinguish the people of the south at this 
 day. 
 
 Other national peculiarities might be noticed, as those of 
 the Finns in Delaware, those of the Quakers in Pennsylva- 
 nia, &c. ; but, at this period, they were too limited to require 
 a distinct notice in our work. 
 
 Sec. 52. RELIGION. The colony of Virginia, from 
 its earliest existence, was exclusively devoted to 
 the Church of England. 
 
 For several years, its unsettled state prevented that atten- 
 tion to a religious establishment, which afterwards the sub- 
 ject received. At the expiration of thirteen years from the 
 founding of the colony, there were but eleven parishes, and 
 five ministers ; the inhabitants of the colony did not, at this 
 time, however, much exceed two thousand persons. 
 
 In 1621, the colony received a large accession to its num. 
 bers, and the governor and council were instructed " to take 
 into special regard the service of Almighty God, and the 
 observance of his divine laws ; and that the people should 
 be trained up in true religion and virtue." At the same 
 time, the Virginia Company ordered a hundred acres of 
 land, in each of the boroughs, to be laid off for a glebe, and 
 two hundred pounds sterling to be raised, as a standing and 
 
SETTLEMENTS. 107 
 
 certain revenue, out of the profits of each parish, to make a 
 living : this stipend was thus settled that the minister shall 
 receive yearly five hundred pounds of tobacco, and sixteen 
 barrels of corn ; which were collectively estimated at two 
 hundred pounds sterling. In 1642, the assembly passed a 
 law prohibiting all, but those who had been ordained by 
 English bishops, from preaching. 
 
 In 1650, during the time of Governor Berkley, the pa- 
 rishes of the colony were further regulated, the religion of 
 the church of England was confirmed and established, and I 
 provision made for the support of the ministers. The main- ; 
 tenance of a minister was put at sixteen thousand pounds of 
 tobacco, which, as valued at that time, at ten shillings per 
 hundred, was about eighty pounds sterling. But in addition 
 to this, he had a dwelling-house and glebe ; also, four hun- 
 dred pounds of tobacco, or forty shillings, for a funeral ser- 
 mon, and two hundred pounds of tobacco, or twenty shillings, 
 for performing marriage by license, or five shillings when 
 the banns were proclaimed. The tobacco destined for the 
 minister was brought to him, well packed in hogsheads, pre- 
 pared for shipping. To raise this crop, twelve negroes were 
 necessary. 
 
 The special object of the New-England planters, in set- 
 tling the country, was the enjoyment of their religious 
 opinions, and the free exercise of religious worship, with- / 
 out molestation. Early attention was, therefore, paid to the 
 gathering of churches, and the regulation of religion. They 
 were Calvinists in doctrine, and Congregational in discipline. 
 
 Each church maintained its right to govern itself. They 
 held to the validity of JPresbyterian ordination, and the ex- 
 pediency of synods on great occasions. From the com- 
 mencement, they used ecclesiastical councils, convoked by 
 particular churches for advice, but not for the judicial de- 
 termination of controversies. 
 
 In each of the churches there was a pastor, teacher, ru- 
 ling elder, and deacons. The pastor's office consisted prin- 
 cipally in exhortation ; upon the teacher devolved the busi- 
 ness of explaining and defending the doctrines of christiani- \ 
 ty. The business of the ruling elder was to assist the 
 pastor in the government of the church. 
 
 Early provision was made for the support of the ministry. 
 On the arrival of the colonists of Massachusetts Bay, at 
 Charlestown, before landing, a court of assistants was held, 
 and the first question proposed was, How shall the ministers 
 be maintained? The court ordered that houses be built. 
 
108 PERIOD ii. 1607 TO 1689. 
 
 and salaries be raised for them at the public charge. Their 
 iwo ministers, Mr. Phillips and Mr. Wilson, were granted 
 a salary the former thirty pounds per annum, and the lat- 
 ter twenty pounds, until the arrival of his wife. 
 
 After the settlement of the several colonies, all persons 
 were obliged by law to contribute to the support of the 
 church. Special care was taken that all persons should at- 
 tend public worship. In Connecticut the law obliged them 
 to be present on the Lord's day on all days of public fast- 
 ing and thanksgiving, appointed by civil authority, on pen- 
 alty of five shillings for every instance of neglect. 
 
 By the year 1642, twenty-two years from the landing oi 
 the pilgrims at Plymouth, there had been settled in New- 
 England, seventy-seven ministers, who were driven from 
 the parent country, fifty towns and villages had been plant- 
 ed, and thirty or forty churches gathered. 
 
 In 1637, the first synod convened in America, sat at New- 
 town, Massachusetts, and was composed of all the teaching 
 elders in the country, and messengers of the several churches. 
 Magistrates also were present, and spoke as they thought fit. 
 The object of calling this synod was to inquire into the 
 opinions of one Ann Hutchinson, a very extraordinary wo- 
 man, who held public lectures in Boston, and taught doc- 
 trines considered heretical. The whole colony was agita- 
 ted and divided into parties. The synod, after a session of 
 three weeks, condemned eighty-two erroneous opinions 
 which had become disseminated in New-England. 
 
 The Dutch Reformed Church was introduced 
 into New- York with the first settlers, and was 
 generally embraced by the Dutch population of 
 that colony. 
 
 The Roman Catholics first came to America in 
 1632 ; they settled in Maryland, and now consti- 
 tute a respectable and numerous portion of the 
 inhabitants of that state. 
 
 The first Baptist church in America was form- 
 ed at Providence in 1639, under the celebrated Ro- 
 ger Williams. . Their sentiments spreading into 
 Massachusetts, in 1651, the general court pass- 
 ed a law against them, inflicting banishment for 
 persisting in the promulgation of their doctrines. 
 
SETTLEMENTS. 109 
 
 In 1656, the Quakers, making their appearance 
 in Massachusetts, the legislature of that colony 
 passed severe laws against them.' 
 
 No master of a vessel was allowed to bring any one of 
 this sect into its jurisdiction, on penalty of one hundred 
 pounds. Other still severer penalties were inflicted upon 
 them in 1657, such as cutting their ears, and boring their c 
 tongues with a hot iron, &c: They were at length banished (, 
 on pain of death, and for refusing to go, were executed in 
 1659. 
 
 Without intending to justify these severities toward the 
 Baptists, Quakers, and other sectaries, it is still proper to 
 state, as some apology for them, that the conduct of the lead- 
 ers of these sects was often calculated, and no doubt design- 
 sed, to provoke persecution. They sought improper occa- 
 sions to inculcate their peculiar tenets departed unneces- 
 sarily from the decencies of social intercourse, and rudely .J 
 inveighed against established and cherished opinions. In 
 this way, the peace of the colonies was disturbed, and that 
 unanimity of religious sentiment, which had hitherto exist- 
 ed, was broken. Our forefathers sought to avert these 
 evils by the arm of civil power; not yet having learnt that 
 persecution is a ready way to propagate the sentiments of 
 the persecuted. 
 
 In the year 1646, a synod met at Cambridge, which, by 
 adjournment, protracted its session to 1648, when it dis- 
 solved. This synod composed and adopted the " Cam- 
 bridge Platform," and recommended it, together with the 
 Westminster Confession of Faith, to the general court and 
 to the churches. In this synod were present the ministers 
 and churches of Connecticut, and New-Haven, who united 
 in the form of discipline which it recommended. This, in 
 connexion with the ecclesiastical laws, was the religious 
 constitution of Connecticut, until the compilation of the 
 Saybrook Platform, a period of about sixty years. 
 
 Sec. 53. TRADE AND COMMERCE. The colonies, 
 during this period, had little other trade than 
 with England, though the West-India trade had 
 begun, and there was some commerce with Cana- 
 da, and a few ports on the European continent. 
 The colonies imported from England all their 
 merchandise ; and exported thither tobacco, pel- 
 10 
 
110 PERIOD ii. 1607 TO 1689. 
 
 try, and at length some beef, pork, grain, anl 
 fish. The importations from England, however, 
 much exceeded the exports thither. 
 
 During the first thirty years of the colony of Virginia, 
 their exports were confined to tobacco. But the price of it 
 fell, at length, from three shillings and sixpence per pound, 
 to twenty shillings per hundred, in consequence of which, 
 a trade was opened with the frontier Indians, and the Five 
 Nations. The skins of the deer, elk, and buffalo, and the 
 furs of the otter, hare, fox, rmiskrat, and beaver, were pro- 
 cured for rum, hatchets, blankets, &c. These skins and 
 furs were exported to England. English grain and Indian 
 corn were also exported to a considerable extent. Although 
 the Virginians owned a few vessels, the greater part of the 
 trade was carried on by English vessels, during this pe- 
 riod. They brought to the colony English manufactures, 
 and took tobacco, furs, skins, grain, tar, pitch, &c. in re- 
 turn. The Virginians also carried on some trade with 
 Canada. 
 
 The principal article of export from New-England, du- 
 ring this period, was peltry, which was procured of the 
 Indians, for goods of small value. In 1639, a fishing trade 
 was begun at Cape Anne, and in 1641, three hundred thou- 
 sand codfish were sent to market. 
 
 The first vessel directly from the West Indies was a 
 Dutch ship of 160 tons, which arrived at Marblehead, 1635. 
 The first American vessel that went to the West Indies was 
 a pinnace of thirty tons, in 1636. The ship Desire of Sa- 
 lem made a voyage in 1638 to New-Providence and Tor- 
 tuga, and returned laden with cotton, tobacco, salt, and ne- 
 groes. This was the first introduction of African slaves 
 into New-England. The first importation of indigo, and 
 sugar, from the West Indies, mentioned in our accounts, 
 was made in 1639. In 1642, a Dutch ship exchanged a car- 
 go of salt for plank and pipe staves, the exports of lumber 
 from 'New-England. The next year, eleven ships sailed 
 for the West Indies with lumber. 
 
 In 1678, the annual exports of the New- York colony, be- 
 sides beef, pork, tobacco, and peltry, were about sixty thou- 
 sand bushels of wheat. About ten or fifteen vessels, on an 
 average of one hundred tons, English and colonial, traded 
 to this colony in a year. 
 
 Sec. 54. AGRICULTURE. Early attention was 
 
, SETTLEMENTS. Ill 
 
 paid to agriculture. The first business of the set- 
 tlers, was to clear the forests, and supply them- 
 selves with food from the soil. But the fertility 
 of the earth taught them soon to look to agricul- 
 ture as a source of wealth, as well as of subsist- 
 ence. It therefore became the leading object of 
 industry in the colonies. 
 
 The method adopted by the first settlers to clear the land 
 was very slow and laborious, compared with the present 
 modes. They used generally to cut down the trees and 
 dig up the stumps, before tillage. 
 
 Tobacco was early cultivated in Virginia, and soon be- 
 gan to be exported. "The year after the colony landed, the 
 people gathered corn of their own planting, the seed of 
 which they received of the Indians. Vineyards were at- 
 tempted, and experienced vinedressers were sent over for 
 the purpose of taking care of them. Flax, hemp, barley, 
 &c., were cultivated to a considerable extent. Rye was first 
 raised in Massachusetts, in 1633. Ploughs were early in- 
 troduced into the country. 
 
 The first neat cattle, ever brought into New-England, 
 were introduced by Mr. Winslow, in 1624 In 1629, one 
 hundred and forty head of cattle, some horses, sheep, and 
 goats, were brought to Massachusetts Bay. In a few years 
 they became so numerous as to supply all the wants of the 
 inhabitants. In 1623, the cattle in Virginia had increased 
 to above one thousand head. 
 
 New- York raised considerable beef and pork for expor- 
 tation, and in 1678, they exported sixty thousand bushels 
 of wheat. 
 
 Sec. 55. ARTS AND MANUFACTURES. The colo- 
 nists, during this period, being chiefly occupied 
 in gaining a subsistence, and in protecting them- 
 selves against their enemies, had occasion for 
 few articles beyond the necessaries and comforts 
 of life. Arts and manufactures could, therefore, 
 receive but little encouragement, beyond the con- 
 struction of such articles, and even those were 
 principally imported. 
 
 In 1620, one hundred and fifty persons came from Eng- 
 
112 PERIOD ii, 1607 TO 1689. 
 
 land to Virginia to carry on the manufacture of silks, iron, 
 
 ?otash, tar, pitch, glass, salt, &c., but they did not succeed, 
 n 1673, Chalmer says of New-England, " There be five 
 iron works which cast no guns no house in New-England 
 has above twenty rooms not twenty in Boston have ten 
 rooms each a dancing school was set up here, but put 
 down a fencing school is allowed. There be no musi- 
 cians by trade. All cordage, sail-cloth, and mats, come 
 from England no cloth made there worth four shillings 
 per yard no alum, no copperas, no salt, made by their sun." 
 The first buildings of the settlers were made of logs and 
 thatched, or were built of stone. Brick and framed houses 
 were soon built in the larger towns, and afterwards in the 
 villages. The frames and brick were, however, in some 
 instances, imported. The first mill in New-England was 
 a wind-mill, near Watertown, but it was taken down in 
 1632, and placed in the vicinity of Boston. Water-mills 
 began to be erected the next year. The first attempt to 
 build water-craft, in New-England, was at Plymouth, in 
 1626. A house carpenter sawed their largest boat into two 
 parts, and lengthened it five or six feet, built a deck, and 
 rigged it into a convenient vessel, which did service for 
 seven years. The first vessel, built in Massachusetts, was 
 a bark in 1631, called The Blessing of the Bay. In 1633, 
 a ship of sixty tons was built at Medford. In 1636, one of 
 one hundred and twenty tons was built at Marblehead. In 
 1641, a ship of three hundred tons was launched at Salem, 
 and one of one hundred and sixty tons at Boston. From 
 this time ship building rapidly extended in the northern 
 colonies. 
 
 The first printing in New-England, was done in 1639, 
 by one Day. The proprietor of the press, was clergy- 
 man, by the name of Glover, who died on his passage to 
 America. The first thing printed was the Freeman's Oath, 
 the second an almanack, and the third an edition of the 
 Psalms. No other printing press was established in Ame- 
 rica, during this period. John Elliot, the celebrated mis- 
 sionary, having translated the Bible into the Indian lan- 
 guage, had it printed at Cambridge in 1664. 
 
 The mode of travelling considerable distances was on 
 foot or on horseback, there being no carriages for that pur- 
 pose, and the roads from one village to another being only 
 narrow foot-paths, through forests. 
 
 Sec. 56. POPULATION. We may estimate the po 
 
SETTLEMENTS. 113 
 
 pulation of the English American colonies at the 
 close of this period at about 200,000. 
 
 It is impossible to ascertain very exactly the population 
 of the American colonies at the close of this period. The 
 estimates made by writers are vague, and often contradict- 
 ory. The estimate of Dr. Humphries in 1701, Avhich 
 seems as well entitled to credit as any other, is as follows : 
 
 Souls. 
 
 Massachusetts, 70,000 
 
 Connecticut, 30,000 
 
 Rhode Island, 10,000 
 
 New-Hampshire, 10,000 
 
 New-England, 120,000 
 
 Mid. andS. colonies, 142,000 
 
 Total, 262,000 
 
 Souls. 
 
 New- York, 30,000 
 
 Jerseys, 15,000 
 
 Pennsylvania, 20,000 
 
 Maryland, 25,000 
 
 Virginia, 40,000 
 
 North Carolina, 5,000 
 
 South Carolina, 7,000 
 
 142,000 
 
 Making a deduction from this account, so as to bring the 
 estimate to the close of our period, we state the whole white 
 population of the English American colonies, in 1689, at 
 about two hundred thousand. 
 
 Sec. 57. EDUCATION. In New-England, schools 
 were founded, at the outset of the colonies, for 
 the education of all classes : In the southern co- 
 lonies, provisions for the education of the higher 
 classes only were attempted during this period. 
 
 Scarcely had the American colonists opened the forests, 
 and constructed habitations, before they directed their atten- 
 tion to the object of education. 
 
 Previously to 1619, the King of England authorized the 
 collection of moneys, throughout the kingdom, to 1 " erect a 
 college in Virginia, for the education of Indian children ; 
 one thousand five hundred pounds were collected for this 
 purpose, and flznrico was selected as a suitable place for 
 the seminary. The same year, the Virginia company 
 granted ten thousand acres of land for the projected univer- 
 sity. This donation, while it embraced the original object, 
 was intended also for the foundation of a seminary of learn- 
 ing for English scholars. 
 
 In addition to a college, the colonists, in 1621, instituted a 
 school at Charles' city for the benefit of all the colony, which 
 
114 PERIOD u. 1607 TO 1689. 
 
 they called the East India School. For the maintenance of 
 the master and usher, one thousand acres of land were ap- 
 ropriated, with five servants and an overseer. From this 
 school, pupils were to be transferred to the college at Hen- 
 rico, when the latter should be sufficiently endowed. These 
 establishments in Virginia, however, failed of success, and 
 in 1692, their funds were given to William nd Mary's col- 
 lege, which we shall notice hereafter. 
 
 Still more attentive to education were the northern colo- 
 nies. In 1630, a general court of Massachusetts Bay ap- 
 propriated the sum of four hundred pounds towards the com- 
 mencement of a college. In 1637, the college was located 
 at Newtown, which, not long after, was called Cambridge, 
 in memory of Cambridge, in England, where many of the 
 colonists had received their education. Mr. John Harvard, 
 a worthy minister, dying at Charlestown about this time, 
 bequeathed nearly eight hundred pounds to the college, in 
 consideration of which legacy, it was called after him. In 
 1642, was held the first commencement, at which nine were 
 graduated. 
 
 To this institution, the plantations of Connecticut and 
 New-Haven, so long as they remained unable to support a 
 similar one at home, contributed funds from the public purse; 
 and sent to it such of their youth as they wished to be edu- 
 cated. Private subscriptions were also made from the uni- 
 ted colonies, to aid the institution. 
 
 Great attention was also paid by all the colonies to the 
 subject of common schools. As a specimen of the arrange- 
 ments common to the New-England'colonies, we may notice 
 those of Connecticut. By her first code, in 1639, only six 
 years from the time the first house was erected within the 
 colony, it was ordered that every town, consisting of fifty 
 families, should maintain a good school, in which reading 
 and writing should be well taught, and that in every county 
 town a good grammar school should be instituted. Large 
 tracts of land were appropriated by the legislature as a per- 
 manent support of these schools, and the selectmen of every 
 town were required to see that all heads of families instruct- 
 ed their children and servants to read the English tongue 
 well. 
 
 REFLECTIONS. 
 
 Sec. 58. At the commencement of this period, our history 
 presented us with a continent, over whose surface an inter- 
 minable wilderness had for ages cast its deep and solemn 
 
' SETTLEMENTS. 115 
 
 shade. If we approach the shore, and look through the 
 gloom that gathers over it, the scenes which strike the eye 
 are Indians at their war dance, or perhaps flames curling 
 round some expiring captive, or wild beasts mangling their 
 prey. 
 
 Passing from this point of time to the close of our period, 
 a space of eighty-two years, the prospect is greatly changed. 
 We now see smiling fields and cheerful villages in the place 
 of dismal forests ; instead of beasts of prey, we see grazing 
 herds ; instead of the kindling faggot, we witness the wor- 
 ship of Jesus Christ; arid instead of the appalling war 
 whoop, we listen to the grateful songs of David. In the 
 beautiful words of scripture, the wilderness has begun to 
 blossom as the rose, and the desert is becoming vocal with 
 the praises of God. 
 
 But how is it that a change so wonderful has been brought 
 to pass 1 We have indeed seen the hardy spirit of enterprise 
 leaving the luxuries of Europe, and plunging into the forests 
 of America. But we have also seen our forefathers strug- 
 gling with difficulties, and often trembling on the very brink 
 of ruin. We have seen them amidst Indian war, desolating 
 famine, and pestilence ; and we have wondered, after the 
 storm has passed, to see them rise with renovated strength, 
 and seem to gather power and advantage from circumstan 
 ces calculated to overwhelm them. 
 
 Admitting, then, the extraordinary energy, wisdom, en- 
 terprise, and hardihood, of the first settlers of America, still 
 we are driven to the admission of a benign providence work- 
 ing in their favor, and mysteriously establishing their 
 strength and security, by exercising them for years with 
 danger, trial, and misfortune. 
 
 Nor are these the only considerations which excite our 
 admiration, in regard to the first settlers of North America. 
 Although, in the eloquent words of Mr. Walsh, " It was 
 their peculiar lot, at one and the same time, to clear and cul- 
 tivate a wilderness ; to erect habitations and procure suste- 
 nance ; to struggle with a new and rigorous climate ; to 
 bear up against all the bitter recollections inseparable from 
 distant and lonely exile ; to defend their liberties from the 
 jealous tyranny and bigotry of the mother country ; to be 
 perpetually assailed by a savage foe, the most subtle and the 
 most formidable of any people on the face of the earth :" 
 still, they looked forward to the welfare of future genera- 
 tions j laid broad and deep foundations for religious institu- 
 tions made the most careful provisions for learning, and 
 
116 % PERIOD ii. 1607 TO 1689. 
 
 enacted wholesome laws, the benefit of which is distinctly 
 felt to this day. 
 
 It may be further remarked, that history shows the influ- 
 ence of the manners of a people upon their government, and 
 the reciprocal influence of government upon the manners of 
 a people. The history of this period furnishes striking ex- 
 amples of this. In Virginia, the free and licentious man- 
 ners of society produce a government unsteady and capri- 
 cious. This government re-acts upon their manners, and 
 aids rather than checks their licentiousness. On the con- 
 trary, in New-England, the severe puritanical manners of 
 the people produce a rigid, energetic government, and the 
 government returns its puritanical influence back upon the 
 manners of the people. 
 
UNITED STATES. 
 
 PERIOD III. 
 
 DISTINGUISHED FOR THE WARS OF KING WILLIAM 
 Q.UEEN ANNE, AND GEORGE II. 
 
 Extending from the accession of William and Mary 
 to the throne of England, 1689, to the Declaration 
 of the War by England against France^ 1756. 
 called " the French and Indian War" 
 
 Sec. 1. The news of William's accession to the 
 throne of England, filled the colonies with ecsta- 
 cy. Under the sudden impulse of their feelings, 
 the inhabitants of Boston seized Sir Edmund 
 Andross, with about fifty of his associates, and 
 put them in close confinement, where they lay, 
 until ordered to England, to answer for male- 
 administration. Connecticut and Rhode Island 
 immediately resumed their charters, and were 
 permitted by his majesty to re-establish their for- 
 mer governments. Massachusetts soon after ob- 
 tained a new charter, in some respects less fa- 
 vorable to the colony, but in others, more so, 
 than its former one. 
 
 Andross had formerly been governor of New- 
 York, under the duke of York, in which province 
 his administration had been distinguished for 
 measures both arbitrary and severe. Subsequent 
 governors, under the duke, and after he came 
 to the throne, had generally pursued a similar 
 
118 PERIOD in. 1689 TO 1756. 
 
 course. The discontents of the people had been 
 gradually increasing, and they were ready for 
 revolution, when the above intelligence of the pro- 
 ceedings at Boston arrived. A revolution soon 
 commenced, and, although attended by unhappy 
 events, issued in the restoration of the rights of 
 the people, and the formation of a constitution, 
 which laid the foundation of their provincial code. 
 
 From the reduction of New- York, in .1664, to 1683, the 
 people had no share in the government. In 1681, the coun- 
 cil court of assizes, and corporation, had solicited the Duke 
 of York to permit the people to choose their own rulers. 
 Accordingly, the next year, Thomas Dongan, a papist, was 
 appointed governor, with instructions to call an assembly, 
 to consist of a council of ten, and of eighteen representatives, 
 elected by the freeholders. 
 
 On the accession of the Duke of York to the throne, un- 
 der the title of James II., he refused to confirm to the people 
 the privileges granted them when he was duke. No as- 
 sembly was permitted to be convened ; printing presses were 
 prohibited, and the more important provincial offices were 
 conferred on papists. 
 
 Such was the state of things, when intelligence of the 
 seizure of Andross arrived. This gave a spring to the 
 general dissatisfaction, which burst forth into open resist- 
 ance to the existing administration. 
 
 One Jacob Leisler, with several others, immediately took 
 possession of the fort. Governor Dongan had just embark- 
 ed for England, leaving the administration of the govern- 
 ment, during his absence, to Charles Nicholson, at that time 
 his deputy. Nicholson and his officers made what opposi- 
 tion to Leisler they were able, but he having been joined by 
 six militia captains, and four hundred and seventy men, 
 Nicholson absconded. Upon this, Leisler assumed the su- 
 preme command. 
 
 This assumption of Leisler was far from being pleasant 
 to the council and magistrates, at the head of whom were 
 Col. Bays rd and the mayor. Finding it impossible, how- 
 ever, to succeed against Leisler in New- York, they retired 
 to Albany, and there employed their influence to foment 
 opposition. Both Leisler, in New- York, and the people at 
 Albany, held their respective garrisons in the name of Will- 
 
THREE WARS OF WM. III.... ANNE.. ..GEO. II. Ii9 
 
 iam and Mary, but neither would submit to the authority 
 of the other. 
 
 In this state of things, a letter from the Lords Carmathen 
 and Halifax, arrived, directed, " To Francis Nicholson, 
 Eso., or in his absence, to such as, for the time being, take 
 care for preserving the peace and administering the laws," 
 &c. Accompanying this letter, was another of a subsequent 
 date, vesting Nicholson with the chief command. 
 
 As Nicholson had absconded, Leisler construed the letter 
 as directed to himself, and from that time assumed the title 
 and authority of lieutenant governor. The southern part 
 of New- York generally submitted to him ; but Albany re- 
 fusing subjection, Milborn, his son-in-law, was sent to reduce 
 them. In his first attempt he failed ; but during the ensuing 
 spring, 1690, he took possession of the fort, and the inhabi- 
 tants submitted. 
 
 On the 19th of March, 1691, Col. Slaughter arrived at 
 New- York, in the capacity of the king's governor. Nichol- 
 son and Bayard, who had been imprisoned by Leisler, were 
 released. The latter was obliged to abandon the fort, and 
 with Milborn, his son-in-law, was apprehended, tried for 
 high treason, and condemned. Their immediate execution 
 was urged by the people ; but the governor, fearful of con- 
 sequences, chose to defer it. To effect their purpose, an 
 invitation was given him by the citizens to a sumptuous 
 least, and while his reason was drowned in intoxication, a 
 warrant for their execution was presented to him and sign- 
 ed. Before he recovered his senses, the prisoners were no 
 more. 
 
 Measures so violent greatly agitated the existing parties, 
 but in the end, the revolution which had taken place, re- 
 stored the rights of Englishmen to the colony. Governor 
 Slaughter convoked an assembly, who formed a constitution. 
 This constitution, among other provisions, secured trials by 
 jury, freedom from taxation, except by the consent of the 
 assembly, and toleration to all denominations of Christians, 
 excepting Roman Catholics. 
 
 Sec. 2. While these troubles were distressing 
 the colonies of the north, that of Carolina, in the 
 south, was far from being in a state of tranquillity. 
 Dissensions early arose in that colony respecting 
 the proprietary government,- under which they 
 still continued. On the one hand, a part of the 
 
120 PERIOD in. 1689 TO 1756. 
 
 ^ people insisted upon implicit obedience to all the 
 laws and regulations of the proprietors in Eng- 
 land : while another part contended, on the 
 other hand, that no such obedience was due. 
 Both parties being ardent and determinded, the 
 conflict between them was violent, and greatly 
 prolonged, to the serious injury of the colony. 
 
 In addition to these dissensions, others arose 
 between the English settlers and a colony of 
 French Protestants who had planted themselves 
 in the county of Craven : to whom the English 
 denied nearly every civil privilege, and especial- 
 ly the right of representation in the assembly. 
 
 In view of these accumulating troubles, John 
 Archdale, one of the proprietors, was sent to 
 America in 1695, with full powers to redress 
 grievances, and, if possible, to adjust existing dif- 
 ferences. 
 
 Archdale was received with cordiality, and by 
 his singular wisdom and address, was so happy 
 as to accomplish the purposes of his mission, ex- 
 y cept that he was unable fully to secure the rights 
 and liberties of the French refugees. Not long af- 
 ter, however, the prejudices of the English against 
 them abated, and they became incorporated with 
 the freemen of the colony. 
 
 Sec. 3. About this period, 1692, commenced in 
 Danvers, then a part of Salem, Massachusetts, a 
 singular infatuation on the supposed prevalence 
 of witchcraft. In a short time, this infatuation 
 pervaded several parts of New-England, produc- 
 ing in its progress, the greatest distress in private 
 families, and disorder and tumult throughout the 
 country. 
 
 The first suspicion of witchcraft in New-England, and 
 in the United States, began at Spring-field, Massachusetts, 
 
Death of King Philip. P. 94, 
 
 Punishment of Witchcraft. P. 121 
 
THREE WARS OF WM. III.. .. ANNE. ...GEO..-I*. 121 
 
 as early as 1645. Several persons, about that time, were 
 accused, tried, and executed in Massachusetts ; one at 
 Charlestown, one at Dorchester, one at Cambridge, and one 
 at Boston. For almost thirty years afterwards the subject 
 rested. But in 1687 or 1688, it was revived in Boston ; 
 four of the children of John Goodwin uniting in accusing 
 a poor Irish woman with bewitching them. Unhappily 
 the accusation was regarded with attention, and the woman 
 was tried and executed. 
 
 Near the close of February, 1692, the subject was again 
 revived, in consequence of several children in Danvers, Sa- 
 lem, beginning to act in a peculiar and unaccountable man- 
 ner. Their strange conduct* continuing for several days, 
 their friends betook themselves to fasting and prayer. Du- 
 ring religious exercises it \\as found that the children were 
 generally decent and still : but after service was ended, they 
 renewed their former inexplicable conduct. This was 
 deemed sufficient evidence, that they were labouring under 
 the influence of witchcraft. 
 
 At the expiration of some days, the children began to 
 accuse several persons in the neighborhood of bewitching 
 them. Unfortunately they were credited, and the suspected 
 authors of the spell, were seized and imprisoned. 
 
 From this date, the awful mania rapidly spread into the 
 neighboring country, and soon appeared in various parts 
 of Essex, Middlesex, and Suffolk. Persons at Andover, 
 Ipswich, Gloucester, Boston, and several other places, were 
 accused by their neighbors anet-others. 
 
 For some time, the victims were selected only from the 
 lower classes. But, at length, the accusations fell upon 
 persons of the most respectable rank. In August, Mr. 
 George Boroughs, some time minister in Salem, was ac- 
 
 * The manner in which those who were supposed to be afflicted with 
 this malady were exercised, is thus described by Cotton Mather in his 
 Magnalia. "Sometimes they were deaf, sometimes dumb, sometimes 
 blind, and often all this at once. Their tongues would be drawn down 
 their throats, and then pulled out upon their chins to a prodigious length. 
 Their mouths were forced open to such a wideness that their jaws went 
 out of joint ; and anon would clap together again with a force like that of 
 a spring lock ; and the like would happen to their shoulder-blades, and 
 their elbows, and thc^r hand-wrists, and several of their joints. Some- 
 times they would be benumbed, and be drawn violently together, and pre- 
 Bently stretched out and drawn back. They complained that they were 
 cut with knives and struck with blows, and the prints of the wounds were 
 seen upon them." We cannot believe that all this actually took place ; 
 probably the persons were singularly affected, and the excited fancies of 
 those who looked on, added the rest of the picture. 
 11 
 
122 PERIOD in. 1689 TO 1756. 
 
 cused, brought to trial, and condemned. Accusations were 
 also brought against Mr. English, a respectable merchant 
 in Salem, and his wife ; against Messrs. Dudley and John 
 Bradstreet, sons of the then late governor Bradstreet ; 
 against the wife of Mr. Hale, and the lady of Sir William 
 Phipps. 
 
 The evil had now become awfully alarming. One man, 
 named Giles Corey, had been pressed to death for refusing 
 to put himself on a trial by jury ; and nineteen persons had 
 been executed, more than one third of whom were members 
 of the church. One hundred and fifty were in prison, and 
 two hundred were accused. 
 
 At length the inquiry was anxiously suggested, where 
 will this accumulating mischief and misery end ? A con- 
 viction began to spread that the proceedings had been rash 
 and indefensible. A special court was held on the subject, 
 and fifty who were brought to trial, were acquitted, except 
 ing three, who were afterwards reprieved by the governor. 
 These events were followed by a general release of those 
 who had been imprisoned. " Thus the cloud," says the late 
 President Dwight, " which had so long hung over the colo- 
 ny, slowly and sullenly retired ; and like the darkness ot 
 Egypt, was, to the great joy of the distressed inhabitants, 
 succeeded by serenity and sunshine."* 
 
 We, who live to look back upon this scene, are wont to 
 contemplate, with wonder, the seeming madness and infa- 
 tuation, not of the weak, illiterate, and unprincipled ; but of 
 men of sense, education, and fervent piety. Let us consi- 
 der, however, that at this period, the actual existence of 
 witchcraft was taken for granted, and that doubts respecting 
 it were deemed little less than heresy. The learned Bax- 
 ter, who lived at this time in England, where the same no- 
 tions on this subject prevailed, pronounced the disbeliever 
 in witchcraft, an " obdurate Sadducee ;" and Sir Matthew 
 Hale, one of the brightest ornaments of the English bench, 
 repeatedly tried and condemned those as criminals, who 
 were accused of witchcraft. 
 
 The human mind is prone to superstition, and more or 
 less of it prevails in every country, even in those which are 
 civilized and refined, and upon which divine revelation sheds 
 its light. In the case of the people in Essex^where this 
 delusion chiefly prevailed, there were circumstances exist- 
 ing which did not exist in England. They nad lived for 
 
 * Dwight's Travels. 
 
THREE WARS OF WM. III. .. ."ANNE.. ..GEO. II. 123 
 
 some years among the savages, had heard their narratives 
 of Hobbamocko, or the devil, of his frequent appearance to 
 them, of their conversations with him, and of his sometimes 
 carrying them off Every village was the theatre of some 
 such scenes, and stories of mystery and wonder, heightened 
 by imagination, went the rounds during their winter even- 
 ings, confirmed their opinions, roused their admiration, and 
 furnished materials for approaching terrors. 
 
 The circumstances attending the first strange appearan- 
 ces were also unfortunate, and powerfully tended to give 
 them currency. The family of a minister, who was him- 
 self credulous, and with whom an Indian and his wife lived, 
 were first affected. The opinions of the Indians were 
 deemed important, as they wete supposed to be adepts in 
 the science of witchcraft. Added to this, the physician of 
 the village concurred in the opinion, and the fact was there- 
 fore no longer to be doubted. The attention of the public 
 mind was immediately roused, and as others seemed to be 
 exercised in a similar manner, the way was prepared for 
 the delusion to spread. Children of not more than twelve 
 years of age were permitted to give their testimony;. Indi- 
 ans were called to tell their stories of wonder, and women 
 their nocturnal frights. For a time the counsels of age 
 were unheard ; wisdom was confounded, and .religion si- 
 lenced. 
 
 If, however, the uniform protestations of those who were 
 executed, or the confessions of numbers who had been ac- 
 cusers, or the conviction of error on the part of those who 
 were leaders in these awful scenes, be credited, we shall be 
 satisfied that the whole originated in folly and delusion. ' 
 All who were executed, excepting the first, protested their 
 innocence with their dying breath, when a confession would 
 have saved their lives. Years afterwards, those who had 
 been accusers, when admitted to the church, acknowledged 
 their delusion, and asked " pardon for having brought the 
 guilt of innocent blood on the land." 
 
 Even juries, who had been concerned in the trial and 
 condemnation of some of these unfortunate sufferers, re- 
 canted their errors. " We do signify," to use the language 
 of a jury subsequently conscious of their wrong, "our deep 
 sense,of, and sorrow for, our errors in acting on such evi- 
 dence ; we pray that we may be considered candidly and 
 aright, by the living sufferers, as being then, under the 
 power of a general and strong delusion." In one instance 
 at least, a church, that of Danvers, which had excommuni- 
 
124 PERIOD in. 1689 TO 1756. 
 
 cated a person on suspicion of witchcraft, and who was 
 hung, four years afterwards, recalled the sentence, " that it 
 might not stand against her to all generations." 
 
 In conclusion it may he remarked, that no people on earth 
 are now more enlightened on this subject than are the peo- 
 ple of America. Nothing of a similar kind has since ex- 
 isted, and probably never will exist. Stories of wonder, 
 founded upon ancient tradition, or upon a midnight adven- 
 ture, sometimes awe the village circle on a winter's night, 
 but the succeeding day chases away every ghost, and lulls 
 every fear. It becomes the present generation to advert 
 with gratitude to their freedom from those delusions which 
 distressed and agitated their ancestors, rather than to bestow 
 invectives upon them, since they could plead in palliation 
 of their error the spirit of the age in which they lived. 
 
 Sec. 4. Scarcely were the colonies relieved 
 from the oppression of king James, before they 
 were visited with troubles of a nature still more 
 distressing. The revolution, which followed the 
 accession of William and Mary, had indeed res- 
 tored their liberties, but it involved them in a war 
 both with the French and Indians, which contin- 
 ued from 1690, to the peace of Ryswick, in 1697, 
 commonly called " King William's War. v 
 
 King James, on leaving England, fled to France. Louis 
 XIV., king of France, attempting to support him, kindled 
 the flame of war between his own country and England. 
 The subjects of Louis, in Canada, of course directed their 
 arms against the colonies of New-England and New-York, 
 and instigated the Indians to join them in their hostilities. 
 
 Count Frontenac, a brave and enterprising of- 
 ficer, was now the governor of Canada. Inflam- 
 ed with the resentment which had kindled in 
 the bosom of his master, Louis XIV. of France, 
 against William, for his treatment of Jarnes, he 
 fitted out three expeditions, in the dead of winter, 
 against the American colonies one against New- 
 York, a second against New-Hampshire, and a 
 third against the province of Maine. Each of 
 these parties, in the execution of their* orders, 
 

Burning of Schenectady. P. 125. 
 
 Torture of Captives taken in King William's War. 
 P. 133. 
 
THREE WARS OF WM. III.... ANNE.. ..GEO. II. 125 
 
 marked their progress with plunder, fire, and 
 death. 
 
 The party destined against New- York, consisting of alxnit 
 three hundred men, in February, fell upon Schenectady, a 
 village on the Mohawk. The season was cold, and the 
 snow so deep, that it was deemed impossible for an enemy 
 to approach. The attack was made in the dead of the night, 
 while the inhabitants were in a profound sleep. Not a sen- 
 tinel was awake to announce the approaching danger. Care 
 had been taken, by a division of the enemy, to attack almost 
 every house in the same moment, When the preparations 
 were ready, on a preconcerted signal, the appalling war 
 whoop was begun ; houses were broken open and set on 
 fire ; men and women were dragged from their beds, and, 
 with their sleeping infants, were inhumanly murdered. 
 Sixty persons perished in the massacre, thirty were made 
 prisoners, while the rest of the inhabitants, mostly naked, 
 rled through a deep snow, either suffering extremely, or 
 perishing in the cold. 
 
 The second party, directing their course to New-Hamp- 
 shire, burned Salmon Falls, killing thirty of the bravest 
 men, and carrying fifty-four of the inhabitants into a misera- 
 ble captivity. 
 
 The third party, proceeding from Quebec, destroyed the 
 settlement of Casco, in Maine, and killed and captured one 
 hundred people. 
 
 Sec. 5. Roused by these proceedings of the 
 French, the colony of Massachusetts resolved to 
 attack the enemy in turn. .Accordingly an expe- 
 dition consisting of seven vessels, arm eight hun- 
 dred men, under command of Sir William Phipps, 
 sailed for the reduction of Port Royal, in Nova 
 Scotia, which was easily and speedily effected. 
 
 A second expedition, under the same comman- 
 der, was soon after resolved upon by the colonies 
 of New- York, Connecticut, and Massachusetts, 
 united, for the reduction of Montreal and Gluebec. 
 A combination of unfortunate circumstances, 
 however, defeated the design, and the expedition, 
 after encountering numerous hardships and dis- 
 asters, returned. 
 IT 
 
126 PERIOD in. 1689 TO 1765. 
 
 The plan was, for the troops of New-York and Connecti- 
 cut, consisting of about two thousand, to penetrate into Ca- 
 nada, by Lake Champlain, and to attack Montreal, at the 
 same time that the naval armament, consisting of between 
 thirty and forty vessels, with a similar number of men, 
 should invest Quebec. The troops destined for Montreal 
 not being supplied, either with boats or provisions, sufficient 
 for crossing the lake, were obliged to return. The naval 
 expedition did not reach Quebec until October. After 
 spending several days in consultation, the landing of the 
 troops was effected, and they began their march for the 
 town. At the same time the ships were drawn up; but the 
 attack, both by land and water, was alike unsuccessful. 
 The troops were soon after re-embarked, and the weather, 
 proving tempestuous, scattered the fleet, and terminated the 
 expedition. 
 
 The success of the expedition had been so confidently cal- 
 culated upon, that provision had not been made for the pay- 
 ment of the troops ; there was danger, therefore, of a muti- 
 ny. In this extremity, Massachusetts issued bills of credit, 
 as a substitute for money : the first emission of the kind in 
 the American colonies. 
 
 Sir William Phipps, to whom the above expeditions were 
 entrusted, was a native of New-England. The extraordina- 
 ry incidents of his life will serve to exhibit the powerful spi- 
 rit of personal enterprise which the peculiar circumstances 
 of the colonies called forth. 
 
 The place of his birth, which happened in 1G50, was a 
 small plantation, on the river Kennebeck, at that time near- 
 ly the limit of the English settlements on the east. His fa- 
 ther was a gun-smith, who had a family of twenty-six chil- 
 dren by one wife, twenty-one of whom were sons, of which 
 William was nearly the youngest. His father dying while 
 he was quite a lad, he lived with his mother until his 
 eighteenth year, during which time he was chiefly con- 
 cerned in the care of sheep. Contrary to the wishes of his 
 friends, he now indented himself as an apprentice to a ship- 
 carpenter, for four years, in which time he became master 
 of his art. Upon the expiration of his service, he went to 
 Boston, where he followed his trade about a year, duritig 
 which he learned to read and write, and in which time he 
 was respectably married. 
 
 Failing of that success in his trade, which his enterpri- 
 sing genius coveted, he turned his attention to the sea, and 
 during his first voyage, hearing of a Spanish wreck neai 
 
THREE WARS OP WM. III.... ANNE.... GEO. II. 127 
 
 the Bahamas, he directed his course thither, but obtained 
 from it only sufficient to furnish himself for a voyage to 
 England. On his arrival in that country, he heard of an- 
 other Spanish wreck, in which was lost an immense trea- 
 sure ; but the precise spot of which was as yet undiscover- 
 ed. Being sanguine in the belief, that he should be more 
 successful than those who had preceded him, in their at- 
 tempts to discover it, he solicited the patronage of several 
 persons in office, through whose influence he was appoint- 
 ed to the Algier Rose, an English frigate of eighteen guns, 
 and ninety-five men, in which, some time after, he sailed in 
 quest of the wreck. 
 
 It often happens that Divine Providence, previously to 
 crowning a man's exertions with success, involves him for 
 a season in difficulties, and tries him with disappointments. 
 This was strikingly verified in the case of Capt. Phipps. 
 Not meeting with the success, which he had promised his 
 crew, they at length became mutinous, and on a sudden 
 rushed upon him, while on the quarter deck, with drawn 
 swords, and demanded of him, as the only condition of life, 
 that he should join them in escaping to the South Seas, to 
 engage in piracy. Although entirely unarmed, he stood 
 firm and collected until he had fixed his plan, and then, with 
 a courage bordering on rashness, rushed in upon their point- 
 ed swords, dealing his blows so judiciously, that he felled 
 numbers to the deck, and so awed the rest, that they con.- 
 sented to yield. At another time, finding it necessary to 
 careen his vessel, he put into a desolate Spanish island, near 
 to a rock, from which a temporary bridge was extended to 
 the ship. Mutiny was secretly working among his crew. 
 While preparations were making by the carpenter for re- 
 pairing the vessel, ninety of his men left her, and retired 
 into the adjoining wood, under pretence of diversion, but in 
 reality for mutinous purposes. Here a plan was formed, 
 which was to seize Capt. Phipps, and the nine or ten men 
 who were known to be friendly to him, and to abandon 
 them to their fate on the island. 
 
 Apprehensive that the carpenter might be necessary on 
 their voyage, they sent to him, then at work on the vessel, 
 arra requested that he would come to them. On his arrival, 
 he was apprised of their design, and threatened with death 
 should he not second their views. The carpenter, being an / 
 honest man, requested a half hour to think upon the pro- b 
 posal, and returning to the ship, accompanied by a spy from 
 the mutineers, resumed his work. On a sudden, feigning 
 
128 PERIOD in. 1689 TO 1756. 
 
 himself severely distressed with pain, he excused himself, 
 while he should hasten to the captain, who was below, for 
 a dram. In few words, while the dram was getting, he 
 discovered the plot to Capt. Phipps, and sought his advice. 
 The captain bid him go back to the rogues, sign their arti- 
 cles, and leave the rest to him. No sooner had the carpen- 
 ter gone, than Capt. Phipps summoned the men on board, of 
 whom the gunner was one, and having briefly stated the 
 plan in agitation, demanded of them, \vhether they would 
 share his fortune ; to which they unanimously agreed. All 
 their provisions were on shore in a tent, round which seve- 
 ral guns had been planted, to defend them from the Span- 
 iards, should any chance to pass that way. These guns, 
 Capt. Phipps ordered his men to charge, and silently to 
 turn in the direction of the mutineers, while he should pull 
 up the bridge, and with the assistance of two or three others, 
 bring the guns on board to bear on every side of the tent. 
 
 Scarcely were these preparations ended, when the muti- 
 neers, flushed with their anticipated success, made their ap- 
 pearance. On their nearer approach, Capt. Phipps bade 
 them advance at their peril ; at the same time, directing his 
 men to fire, should a single one come forward. Awed by 
 his decision, and the deathlike preparations visible, they 
 paused ; upon which, Capt. Phipps informed them that their 
 plot was discovered, and that he was determined to leave 
 them to that fate, which they had designed for him, and those 
 of the crew who were too virtuous to second their villanous 
 purposes. At the same time, he directed the bridge to be 
 let down, and the provisions to be brought on board; while 
 some of the men should stand with matches at the guns, 
 with orders to fire, should a single mutineer advance. This 
 unexpected reverse, and especially the prospect of a certain, 
 but lingering death, on a desolate shore, had the effect to 
 subdue the mutineers, who now, on their knees, besought 
 his pardon, and promised obedience to his orders. Un- 
 willing, however, to trust them, Capt. Phipps tied their arms 
 one after another ; and when all were on board, immediate- 
 ly weighed anchor, and sailed for Jamaica, where he dis- 
 missed them. From this place, having shipped another 
 crew, he sailed for Hispaniola, intending to proceed in 
 search of the Spanish wreck 5 but his crew proving unfit, he 
 returned to England. 
 
 Through the assistance of the Duke of Albemarle, and 
 other persons of quality, he was furnished with another 
 ship and a tender, with which he sailed for fjprt de la Plata, 
 
THREE WARS OF WM. III. ... ANNE. ...GEO. II. 129 
 
 where after completing his preparations, he proceeded in 
 search of the wreck. Having for a long time fruitlessly 
 sought the object of his voyage, in the neighborhood of a 
 reef of rocks called the Boilers, further search was about 
 being abandoned, when, as one of the boats was returning 
 to the ship across the reef, one of the men looking over the 
 side, spied as he thought a sea feather, growing out of a 
 rock ; whereupon an Indian diver was directed to descend 
 and fetch it up. But what were their surprise and joy, on 
 his return, to learn that he had discovered several guns, 
 lying on the bottom of the deep. A second descent of the 
 Indian increased their joy still more, for on his rising, he 
 was bearing in his hand a sovi, as they called it, or a mass 
 of silver, of the value of several hundred pounds sterling. 
 Tidings of the discovery were immediately conveyed to 
 Capt. Phipps, who, with his men, repaired to the spot, and 
 upon leaving the place, carried with him thirty-two tons of 
 silver bullion, besides a large quantity of gold, pearls, and 
 jewels, over which the billows had been rolling for more 
 than half a century. On his arrival in London, the pro- 
 perty thus rescued was valued at nearly three hundred 
 thousand pounds sterling; yet of this sum such was his , 
 exemplary honesty and liberality, that partly by fulfilling 
 his assurances to his seamen, and partly by conscientiously 
 paying over to his employers all their dues, he had left to 
 himself less than sixteen thousand pounds. As a reward 
 to his fidelity, however, he received a large present from 
 the Duke of Albemarle, and upon a representation of his 
 enterprise to the king, his majesty conferred upon him the 
 honor of knighthood. Liberal offers were made to him by 
 the commissioners of the navy to continue in England, but 
 ho had too great an attachment for his native country to 
 think of a permanent residence in any other land than that 
 of New-England. 
 
 James II. was at this time on the throne of England, by 
 whom the colonies in America had been deprived of their 
 charters, and under whose governors they were severely 
 suffering from arbitrary laws, and excessive exactions. 
 Pleased with Phipps, the king gave him an opportunity to 
 ask of his majesty what he pleased ; upon which, forget- 
 ting personal aggrandizement, he besought for New-Eng- 
 land, that her lost privileges might be restored to her. 
 This was too great a boon to be granted, and the king re- 
 plied, " any thing but that. 31 His next request was, that 
 he might be appointed high sheriff of the country, hoping 
 
130 PERIOD in. -1689 TO 1756. 
 
 that by means of his deputies in that office, he might sup- 
 ply the country with conscientious juries " which was the 
 only method," says Mather, " that the New-Englandef 
 had left them to secure any thing that was dear unto them 
 
 Havingjfcit some expense obtained his request, after an 
 absence opfeve years, he arrived in his native country ; but 
 the king's government found means not only to set aside 
 his commission as high sheriff, but also to raise against 
 him such a tide of opposition, that he had nearly been as- 
 sassinated before his own door. Finding affairs in so un- 
 settled a state, and his own situation uncomfortable, he, not 
 long after, took another voyage to England. Soon after 
 his arrival in that country, James abdicated the throne, and 
 the Prince of Orange ascended it. This event was the 
 harbinger of better things to New-England. Having ten- 
 dered his services to William, and rejected with disdain 
 the government of New-England, proffered to him about 
 this time by the abdicated king t he hastened his return to 
 America, hoping now to be of some service to his country. 
 In the unsettled state of the colonie^his wisdom and influ- 
 ence were of great importance, and contributed not a little 
 to forward the revolution, which issued in freeing the co- 
 lonies from the tyranny of James and his ministers. 
 
 The latter part of the life of Sir William Phipps is ren- 
 -., dered doubly interesting, by his openly espousing the cause 
 -J of religion. At the age of forty, he was publicly baptized 
 in one of the churches of Boston, and received into her 
 communion. In an address on that occasion, in conclu- 
 sion, he observed, " I have had proffers of baptism else- 
 where made to me, but I resolved rather to defer it, until I 
 could enjoy it in the communion of these churches. 1 have 
 had awful impressions from the words of the Lord Jesus, 
 ' Whosoever shall be ashamed of me, and of my word, of 
 him shall the Son of Man be ashamed.' When God had 
 blessed me with something of the world, I had no trouble 
 so great as this, lest it should not be in mercy ; and I trem- 
 bled at nothing more than being put off with a portion here. 
 That I may be sure of better things, I now offer myself 
 unto the communion of the faithful." ' 
 
 King William's war breaking out at this time, he sailed 
 upon the expedition against Port Royal and Quebec, rela- 
 ted above. In the following year he received a commis- 
 sion, as captain general and governor-in-chief over the pro- 
 vince of Massachusetts Bay. No appointment could have 
 been more acceptable to the people. He came to the go 
 
THREE WARS OF WM. III.... ANNE... .GEO. II. 131 
 
 vernment however in unsettled times and, though his ad- 
 ministration was marked by disinterestedness and liberali- 
 ty, it was his fortune, as it is the fortune of all in high 
 stations, to have enemies. Too restless to remain at ease, 
 they, at length, preferred charges against him to the king, 
 who, though satisfied of his fidelity, considering it expo- 
 dient to inquire into the case, directed Sir William ,to ap- 
 pear in England. In obedience to the royal command, he 
 took leave of Boston, in Nov., 1694, attended with every 
 demonstration of respect from the people, and with addres- 
 ses to their majesties, that he might be continued in his 
 present respectable and useful station. 
 
 On his arrival in England, the cloud, which had hung 
 over him, was fast dispelling, and the prospect flattering of 
 his speedy return to his government, uninjured by the ac- 
 cusation of prejudice and calumny. But Providence had 
 now accomplished its designs in respect to him. He was 
 suddenly attacked by a malignant disease, which termina- 
 ted his life, in February, to the great grief of all who were 
 acquainted with the ge/ierosity and patriotism, integrity, 
 and piety, that distinguished him. 
 
 The life of such a man is always replete with instruc- 
 tion. It reveals to those in the humbler walks of life, the 
 means by which they may not only arrive at distinction, 
 but to that which is of far higher importance an extended 
 sphere of usefulness in church and state. Enterprise, ex- 
 ertion, integrity, will accomplish every thing.* 
 
 Sec. 6. The failure of the expedition to Quebec 
 was humbling to New-England, and, productive 
 of other unhappy consequences. The Indian tribes, 
 Mohawks. Oneidas, Senecas, Ondagos, and De- 
 lawares, called the Five Nations, settled along the 
 banks of the Susquehannah, and in the adjacent 
 country, who were in alliance with Great Bri- 
 tain, and had long been a safeguard to the colo- 
 nies against the French, became dissatisfied. 
 They blamed the English for their inactivity, 
 and manifested a disposition to make peace with 
 the French. 
 
 To restore the confidence of the Indian allies, Major P. 
 * Mather's Magnolia. 
 
132 PERIOD in. 1689 TO 1756. 
 
 Schuyler, the next year, 1691, with three thousand men, 
 nearly half Mohawks and Schakook Indians, made an at- 
 tack on the French settlements, north of Lake Champlain. 
 De Callieres, governor of Montreal, was waiting to oppose 
 him. After a severe encounter, Schuyler made good his 
 retreat, having killed thirteen officers and three hundred 
 men. 
 
 New- York found great security against the encroach- 
 ments of the French, in the Five Nations, who now carried 
 on a vigorous war, along the river St. Lawrence, from Mon- 
 treal to Quebec. 
 
 But the eastern portion of the country," particularly New r - 
 Hampshire, suffered exceedingly; the storm falling with 
 the greatest severity upon them. Both Connecticut and 
 Massachusetts raised troops for their defence ; but such 
 was the danger and distress of the colony of New-Hamp- 
 shire, that the inhabitants were upon the point of abandon- 
 ing the province. 
 
 The winter of 1696 was unusually severe. Never had 
 the country sustained such losses in commerce, nor had 
 provisions, in any period of the war, been more scarce or 
 borne a higher price. 
 
 Sec. 7. In the midst of these distresses, the coun- 
 try was threatened with a blow, which it seem- 
 ed impossible that it should sustain. The Mar- 
 quis Nesmond, an officer of high reputation, was 
 despatched from France, with ten ships of the 
 line, a galliot, and two frigates. Count Frontenac, 
 from Canada, was expected to join him at Penob- 
 scot, with one thousand five hundred men. With 
 this force, they were to make a descent on Bos- 
 ton ; to range the coast of Newfoundland, and 
 burn the shipping, which should fall in their 
 way. To finish their work of destruction, they 
 were to take New- York, whence the troops, un- 
 der Frontenac, were to return to Canada, through 
 the country, wasting and destroying the regions 
 through which they should pass. But De Nes- 
 mond sailed too late for the accomplishment ot 
 his purpose. On his arrival on the coast, not be- 
 
Mr. Dustan saving his Family. P. 134, 
 
 Murder of Mrs. Williams. P. 138. 
 
THREE WARS OF WM. III.... ANNE.. ..GEO. II. 133 
 
 ing able to join Frontenac, in season, the expe- 
 dition failed, and the colonies were saved. At 
 length, Dec. 10, 1697, a treaty was concluded be- 
 tween France and England, at Ryswick, in Ger- 
 many, by which it was agreed, in general terms, 
 that a mutual restitution should be made of all 
 the countries, forts, and colonies, taken by each 
 party during the war. 
 
 King William's war, which was thus terminated, had 
 been marked by atrocities on the part of the French and 
 Indians, until then, unknown in the history of the colonies. 
 Women, soon expecting to become mothers, were generally 
 ripped up, and their unborn offspring inhumanly dashed 
 against a stone or tree. Infants, when they became trou- 
 blesome, were dispatched in the same manner. Or, to add 
 to the anguish of a mother, her babe was sometimes lacer- 
 ated with a scourge, or nearly strangled under water, and 
 then presented to her to quiet. If unable soon to succeed 
 in this, it was too effectually quieted by the hatchet, or left 
 behind to become the prey of prowling beasts. Some of the 
 captives were roasted alive; others received deep wounds 
 in the fleshy parts of their bodies, into which sticks on fire 
 were thrust, until tormented out of life, they expired. In 
 one instance, an infant was tied to the corpse of its mother, 
 and left to perish, vainly endeavoring to draw nourishment 
 from her bosom. 
 
 Great were the sufferings of those whose condition was < j\ 
 the best. They were subjected to the hardships of travel- 
 ling without shoes, without clothes, and often without food, 
 amidst frost, and rain, and snow, by night and by day, 
 through pathless deserts, and through gloomy swamps. 
 No kindness was shown them, and no pity felt for them. 
 If they fainted under their burden, or only remitted for a , , 
 moment their toil, they received from their inhuman con- 
 ductors the severest chastisement, or expired by means of 
 a blow from the tomahawk. Such were some of the cala- 
 mities which our ancestors endured in the defence of the 
 country, which they have transmitted to us with so much 
 honor. 
 
 The details of individual sufferings, which occurred du- 
 ring this war, were they faithfully recorded, would excite 
 the sympathies of the most unfeeling bosom. One instance 
 only can we relate. 
 
 12 
 
I A 
 
 PERIOD in. 1689 TO 175 
 
 In an attack by a body of Indians on Haverhill, New- 
 Hampshire, in the winter of 1697, the concluding year of 
 the war^a party of the assailants, burning with savage ani- 
 mosity, approached the house of a Mr. Dustan. Upon the 
 first alarm, he flew from a neighboring field to his family, 
 with the hope of hurrying them to a place of safety. Seven 
 of his children he directed to flee, while he himself went to 
 assist his wife, who was confined to the bed with an infant, 
 a week old. But before she could leave her bed, the savages 
 arrived. 
 
 In despair of rendering her assistance, Mr. Dustan flew 
 to the door, mounted his horse, and determined in his own 
 mind, to snatch up and save the child which he loved the 
 best. He followed in pursuit of his little flock, but, upon 
 coming up to them, he found it impossible to make a selec- 
 tion. The eye of the parent could see no one of the num- 
 ber that he could abandon to the knife of the savage. He 
 determined, therefore, to meet his fate with them ; to defend 
 and sa-ve them from their pursuers, or die by their side. 
 
 A body of Indians soon came up with him, and, from 
 short distances, fired upon him and his little company 
 For more than a mile he continued to retreat, placing him 
 self between his children and the fire of the savages ; and 
 returning their shots with great spirit and success. A* 
 length, he saw them all safely lodged from their bloody 
 pursuers, in a distant house. 
 
 It is not easy to find a nobler instance of fortitude ant 
 courage, inspired by affection, than is exhibited in this in 
 stance. Let us ever cultivate the influence of those ties of 
 kindred, which are capable of giving so generous and ele- 
 vated a direction to our actions. 
 
 As Mr. Dustan quitted his house, a party of Indians en- 
 tered it. Mrs. Dustan was in bed ; but they ordered her 
 to rise, and, before she could completely dress herself, 
 obliged her and the nurse, who had vainly endeavored to 
 escape with the infant, to quit the house, which they plun- 
 dered and set on fire. 
 
 In these distressing circumstances Mrs. Dustan began 
 her march, with other captives, into the wilderness. The 
 air was keen, and their path led alternately through snow 
 and deep mud ; and her savage conductors delighted rather 
 in the infliction of torment, than the alleviation of distress. 
 
 The company had proceeded but a short distance, when 
 an Indian, thinking the infant an incumbrance, took it from 
 the nurse's arms, and violently terminated its life. Such 
 
\ 
 THREE WARS OF WM. III. ... ANNE. ...GEO. II. 135 
 
 of the other captives as began to be weary, and incapable 
 of proceeding, the Indians killed with their tomahawks.- 
 Feeble as Mrs. Dustan was, both she and her nurse sus- 
 tained with wonderful energy, the fatigue and misery at- 
 tending a journey of one hundred and fifty miles. 
 
 On their arrival at the place of their destination, they 
 found the wigwam of the savage, who claimed them as his 
 personal property, to be inhabited by twelve Indians. In 
 the ensuing April, this family set out with their captives, 
 for an Indian settlement still more remote. The captives 
 were informed that, on their arrival at the settlement, they 
 must submit to be stripped, scourged, and run the gauntlet, 
 between two files of Indians. This information carried dis- 
 tress to the minds of the captive women, and led them 
 promptly to devise some means of escape. 
 
 Early in the morning of the 31st, Mrs. Dustan, awaking 
 her nurse and another fellow-prisoner, they dispatched ten 
 of the twelve Indians while asleep. The other two escaped. 
 The women then pursued their difficult and toilsome jour- 
 ney through the wilderness, and at length arrived in safety 
 at Haverhill. Subsequently, they visited Boston, and re- 
 ceived, at the hand of the general^ court, a handsome con- 
 sideration for their extraordinary sufferings and heroic con- 
 duct. 
 
 " Whether all their sufferings," says Dr. Dwight, to 
 whom we are indebted for this interesting story, " and all 
 the danger of suffering anew, justified this slaughter, may 
 probably be questioned by the exact moralist. Precedents 
 innumerable, and of high authority, may indeed be urged in 
 behalf of these captives;, but the moralist will equally ques- 
 tion the rectitude of these. Few persons, however, agoni- 
 zing as Mrs. Dustan did, under the evils which she had al- 
 ready suffered, and in the full apprehension of those which 
 she was destined to suffer, would have been able to act the 
 part of nice casuists; and fewer still, perhaps, would have 
 exercised her intrepidity. That she herself approved of the 
 conduct, which was applauded by the magistrates and di- 
 vines of the day, in the cool hours of deliberation, cannot be 
 doubted. The truth is, the season of Indian invasion, burn- 
 ing, butchering, captivity, threatening, and torture, is an un- 
 fortunate time for nice investigation, and critical morali- 
 zing. A wife, who had just seen her house burnt, her in- 
 fant dashed against a tree, and her C9mpanions coldly mur- 
 dered one by one ; who supposed her husband and her re? 
 maining children to have shared the same fate ; who was 
 
13$ PERIOD in. 16S9 TO 1756. 
 
 threatened with torture, and indecency more painful than 
 torture ; and who did not entertain a doubt that the threat- 
 ening would be fulfilled ; would probably feel no necessity, 
 when she found it in her power to dispatch the authors of 
 her sufferings, of asking questions cencerning any thing, 
 but the success of the enterprise. 
 
 " But whatever may be thought of the rectitude of her con- 
 duct, that of her husband is in every view honorable. A 
 finer succession of scenes for the pencil was hardly ever pre- 
 sented to the eye, than is furnished by the efforts of this gal- 
 lant man, with their interesting appendages. The artist 
 must be destitute indeed of talents, who could not engross 
 every heart, as well as every eye, by exhibitions of this hus- 
 band and father, flying to rescue his wife, her infant, and 
 her nurse, from the approaching horde of savages ; attempt- 
 ing on his horse to select from his flying family the child 
 which he was the least able to spare, and unable to make 
 the selection ; facing in their rear the horde of hell-hounds ; 
 alternately and sternly retreating behind his inestimable 
 charge, and fronting the enemy again ; receiving and re- 
 turning their fire ; and presenting himself equally as a bar- 
 rier against murderers, and a shelter to the flight of inno- 
 cence and anguish. In the back ground of some or other 
 of these pictures, might be exhibited, with powerful impres- 
 sion, the kindled dwelling ; the sickly mother ; the terrified 
 nurse, with the new-born infant in her arms ; and the furi- 
 ous natives surrounding them, driving them forward, and 
 displaying the trophies of savage victory, and the insolence 
 of savage triumph." 
 
 Sec. 8. Scarcely had the colonies recovered from 
 the wounds and impovrishment of king William's 
 war, which ended in 1697, before they were again 
 involved in the horrors of another war with the 
 French, Indians, and Spaniards, commonly cal- 
 led " Queen Anne's War? which continued from 
 1702, to the peace of Utrecht, March 31st, 1713. 
 
 By the treaty of Ryswick, it was in general terms agreed, 
 that France and England should mutually restore to each 
 other all conquests made during the war. But the rights 
 and pretensions of either monarch to certain places in Hud- 
 son's Bay, &c. were left to be ascertained and determined at 
 some future day, by commissioners. 
 
 The evil consequences of leaving boundaries thus unset' 
 
THREE WARS OP WM. III.. .. ANNE. ...GEO. II. 137 
 
 tied, were soon perceived. Disputes arose, which, min- 
 gling with other differences of still greater importance, led 
 England to declare war against France and Spain, May 
 4th, 1702. 
 
 Sec. 9. The whole weight of the war in Ame- 
 rica, unexpectedly fell on New-England. The 
 geographical position of New- York particu- 
 larly exposed that colony to a combined attack 
 from the lakes and sea ; hut just before the com- 
 mencement of hostilities, a treaty of neutrality 
 was concluded between the Five Nations and the 
 French governor in Canada. The local situation 
 of the Five Nations, bordering on the frontiers 
 of New-York, prevented the French from molest- 
 ing that colony ; Massachusetts and New-Hamp- 
 shire were thus left to bear the chief calamities 
 of the war. 
 
 The declaration of war was immediately fol- 
 lowed by incursions of French and Indians from 
 Canada into these colonies, who seized every 
 opportunity of annoying the inhabitants, by de- 
 predation and outrage. 
 
 On Tuesday, Feb. 29th, 1704, at daybreak, a party of 
 French and Indians, three hundred in number, under com- 
 mand of the infamous Hextel De Rouville, feel upon Deer- 
 field, Mass. Unhappily, not only the inhabitants, but even 
 the watch, were asleep. They soon made themselves mas- 
 ters of the house, in which the garrison was kept. Pro- 
 ceeding thence to the house of Mr. Williams, the clergyman, 
 they forced the doors, and entered the room where he was 
 sleeping. 
 
 Awaked by the noise, Mr. Williams seized his pistol, and 
 snapped it at the Indian, who first approached, but it missed 
 fire. Mr. Williams was now seized, disarmed, bound, and 
 kept standing, without his clothes, in the intense cold, nearly 
 an hour. 
 
 His house was next plundered, and two of his children, 
 
 together with a black female servant, were butchered before 
 
 his eyes. The savages, at length, suffered his wife and five 
 
 children to put on their clothes, after which, he was himself 
 
 12* 
 
138 PERIOD in. 1689 TO 1756. 
 
 allowed to dress, and prepare for a long- and melancholy 
 march. 
 
 The whole town around them was now on fire. Every 
 house, but the one next to Mr. Williams', was consumed. 
 Having now completed their work of destruction, in burn- 
 ing the town, and killing forty-seven persons, the enemy 
 hastily retreated, taking with them one hundred of the in- 
 habitants, among whom were Mr. Williams and his family. 
 
 The first night after their departure from Deerfield, the 
 savages murdered Mr. Williams' servant ; and, on the day 
 succeeding, finding Mrs. Williams unable to keep pace with 
 the rest, plunged a hatchet into her head. She had recent- 
 ly borne an infant, and was not yet recovered. But her hus- 
 band was not permitted to assist her. He himself was lame, 
 bound, insulted, threatened, and nearly famished but what 
 were personal sufferings like these, and even greater than 
 these, to the sight of a wife under circumstances so tender, in- 
 humanly butchered before his eyes ! Before the journey 
 was ended, seventeen others shared the melancholy fate of 
 Mrs. Williams. 
 
 On their arrival in Canada, it may be added, Mr. Williams 
 was treated with civility by the French. At the end of two 
 years, he was redeemed with fifty-seven others, and returned 
 to Deerfield, where, after twelve years labor in the gospel, 
 he entered into his rest. 
 
 Sec. 10. In the spring of 1707, Massachusetts, 
 Rhode-Island, and New-Hampshire, fitted out an 
 expedition against Port Royal, in Nova Scotia. 
 The expedition, consisting of one thousand men, 
 sailed fromNantucket in twenty-three transports, 
 under convoy of the Deptfort man of war, and 
 the Province galley. After a short voyage, they 
 arrived at Port Royal ; but March, the comman- 
 der of the expedition, though a hrave man, feeing 
 unfit to lead in an enterprise so difficult, little 
 was done, beyond burning a few houses, and kil- 
 ling a few cattle. 
 
 While this unfortunate expedition was on foot, the fron- 
 tiers were kept in constant alarm. Oyster River, Exeter, 
 Kingston, and Dover, in New-Hampshire, Berwick, York, 
 Wells, and Casco, in Maine, were attacked, and considera- 
 bly damaged bv the enemy. 
 
THREE WARS OF WM. III.. .. ANNE. ...GEO. II. 139 
 
 Sec. 11. The colonies were now resolved on ano- 
 ther attempt upon Canada. In 1708, Massachu- 
 setts petitioned Queen Anne for assistance, and 
 she promised to send five regiments of regular 
 troops. These, with twelve hundred men raised 
 in Massachusetts and Rhode Island, were to sail 
 from Boston to Quebec. 
 
 A second division of one thousand eight hun- 
 dred men, from colonies south of Rhode Island, 
 were to march against Montreal, by way of Cham- 
 plain ; but this project also failed, the land troops 
 returning, after penetrating to Wood Creek, in 
 consequence of learning that the naval arma- 
 ment, promised from England, had been direct- 
 ed to Portugal. 
 
 Sec. 12. The patience of the colonies was not 
 yet exhausted. Another application was made to 
 the Queen, and in July, 1710, Col. Nicholson came 
 over with five frigates and a bomb ketch, for the 
 purpose of reducing Port Royal. In this expedi- 
 tion, he was joined by five regiments of troops 
 from New-England. 
 
 The armament^ consisting of the above frigates, 
 and between twenty and thirty transports, belong- 
 ing to the colonies, sailed from Boston, Septem- 
 ber 18th. On the 24th, it reached Port Royal, 
 which surrendered October 5th, and in honor 
 of Queen Anne, was called Annapolis. 
 
 Animated with his success, Nicholson soon after sailed 
 for England, to solicit another expedition against Canada. 
 Contrary to the expectations of the colonies,~the ministry 
 acceded to the proposal, and orders were issued to the nor- 
 thern colonies to get ready their quotas of men. 
 
 Sixteen days after these orders arrived, a fleet of men 
 of war and transports, under command of Sir Hovenden 
 Walker, with seven regiments of the Duke of Marlborough's 
 troops, and a battalion of marines, under Brigadier General 
 Hill, sailed into Boston. But the fleet had neither provisions 
 
140 PERIOD in. 1689 TO 1756. 
 
 nor pilots. Aided, however, by the prompt and active ex- 
 ertions of the colonies, on the 30th 01 July, the fleet, con- 
 sisting of fifteen men of war, forty transports, and six store 
 ships, with nearly seven thousand men, sailed from Boston 
 for Canada. 
 
 Shortly after the departure of the fleet, General Nicholson 
 proceeded from Albany towards Canada, at the head of four 
 thousand men, from the colonies of Connecticut, New- York, 
 and New-Jersey. 
 
 ,.. 2 The fleet arrived in the St. Lawrence, August 14th. In 
 ^proceeding up the river, through the unskilfulness of the 
 pilots, and by contrary winds, it was in imminent dangef of 
 entire destruction. On the 22d, about midnight, the seamen 
 discovered that they were driven on the north shore, among 
 islands and rocks. Eight or nine of the British transports, 
 on board of which were about one thousand seven hundred 
 officers and soldiers, were cast away, and nearly one thou- 
 sand men were lost. Upon this disaster, no further at- 
 tempts were made to prosecute the expedition. The fleet 
 sailed directly for England, and the provincial troops re- 
 turned home. Gen. Nicholson, who had advanced to Lake 
 George, hearing of the miscarriage of the expedition on the 
 St. Lawrence, returned with the land forces, and abandoned 
 the enterprise. 
 
 The failure of this expedition was unjustly imputed, by 
 the mother country, wholly to New-England; nor did the 
 colonies receive any credit for their vigorous exertions in 
 raising men, and fitting out the fleet. The expedition was 
 not, however, without a beneficial effect, as it probably 
 prevented Annapolis from falling into the hands of the 
 enemy. 
 
 Sec. 13. The spring of 1712 opened with new 
 depredations of the enemy upon the frontier set- 
 tlements. Oyster River, Exeter, York, Wells, &c., 
 were again attacked and plundered. Many inha- 
 bitants in different parts of the country were mur- 
 dered, although, in some portions of the colonies, 
 one half of the militia were constantly on duty. 
 
 Sec. 14. The northern colonies were not alone 
 in the distresses of Q,ueen Anne's war. Carolina, 
 then the southern frontier of the American colonies, 
 had her full share in its expenses and sufferings. 
 
THREE WARS OF WM. III.... ANNE. ...GEO. II. 141 
 
 Before official intelligence had been received of 
 the declaration of war by England against France 
 and Spain, in 1702,- although war had actually 
 been declared, Gov. Moore, of the southern settle- 
 ments in Carolina, proposed to the assembly of 
 the colony an expedition against the Spanish set- 
 tlement of St. Augustine, Florida. 
 
 Although assured of its easy conquest, and of 
 being amply rewarded by its treasures of gold 
 and silver, numbers of the more considerate in 
 the assembly were opposed to the expedition. A 
 majority, however, being in favour of it, two thou- 
 sand pounds were voted, and one thousand i wo 
 hundred men were raised, of whom one - alf 
 were Indians ; but the expedition entirely failed. 
 
 With the forces above named, and some merchant ves- 
 sels, impressed as transports, Gov. Moore sailed for St. Au- 
 gustine. The design was for Col. Daniel, an enterprising 
 officer, to proceed by the inland passage, and to attack the 
 town by land, with a party of militia and Indians ; while 
 Moore was to proceed by sea, and take possession of the 
 harbor. Daniel advanced against the town, entered, and 
 plundered it, before the governor's arrival. The Spaniards, 
 however, retired to the castle, with their principal riches, 
 and with provisions for four months. . 
 
 The governor, on his arrival, could effect nothing for 
 want of artillery. In this emergency, Daniel was dispatch- 
 ed to Jamaica for cannon, mortars, &c. During his ab- 
 sence, two large Spanish ships appearing off the harbor, 
 Gov. Moore hastily raised the siege, abandoned his ship- 
 ping, and made a precipitate retreat into Carolina. Colonel 
 Daftrel, having no intelligence that the siege had been rais- 
 ed, on his return, stood in for the harbor, and narrowly es- 
 caped the ships of the enemy. In consequence of this rash 
 and unfortunate enterprise, the colony was loaded with a 
 debt of six thousand pounds, which gave rise to the first pa- 
 per currency in Carolina, and was the means of filling the 
 colony with dissension and tumult. 
 
 Sec. 15. The failure of this expedition was soon 
 after in a measure, compensated by a successful 
 
142 PERIOD in. 1689 TO 1756. 
 
 war with the Apalachian Indians, who, in con- 
 sequence of their connexion with the Spaniards, 
 became insolent and hostile. Gov. Moore, with a 
 body of white men and Indian allies, marched 
 into the heart of their country, and compelled 
 them to submit to the English. 
 
 All the towns of the tribes between the rivers Altamaha 
 and Savannah, were burnt, and between six hundred and 
 eight hundred Indians were made prisoners. 
 
 Sec. 16. Although this enterprise was success- 
 ful, new dangers soon threatened the colony. Its 
 invasion was attempted, 1707, by the French and 
 Spaniards, in order to annex Carolina to Florida. 
 The expedition, headed by Le Feboure, consist- 
 ed of a French frigate, and four armed sloops, 
 having about eight hundred men on board. Ow- 
 ing to the prompt and vigorous measures of John- 
 son, who had superseded Moore as governor, the 
 enemy were repulsed, and the threatened cala- 
 mity averted. 
 
 No sooner was the intended invasion ramoured abroad, 
 than preparations were commenced to repel the enemy. 
 The militia were mustered and trained, and the fortifications 
 of Charleston and other places repaired. These preparations 
 were scarcely completed, before the fleet of the enemy ap- 
 peared. Some time elapsed, however, before they crossed 
 the bar, which enabled the governor to alarm the surround- 
 ing country, and to call in great numbers of the militia. 
 
 At length, with a fair wind, the enemy passed the bar, 
 and sent a summons to the governor to surrender. Four 
 hours were allowed him to return his answer. But the go- 
 vernor informed the messenger that he did not wish one 
 minute. On the reception of this answer, the enemy seem- 
 ed to hesitate, and attempted nothing that day. 
 
 The day succeeding, a party of the enemy, landing on 
 James Island, burnt a village by the river's side. Another 
 party of one hundred and sixty landed at Wando Neck. 
 The next day, both these parties were dislodged ; the latter 
 party being surprised, and nearly all killed or taken pri- 
 soners. 
 
THREE WARS OF WM. III.... ANNE.. ..GEO. II. 143 
 
 This success so animated the Carolinians, that it was de- 
 termined to attack the enemy by sea. This was attempted 
 with a force of six vessels, under command of William 
 Rhet. but on the appearance of Rhet, the enemy weighed 
 anchor, and precipitately fled. 
 
 Some days succeeding- this, Monsieur Arbuset appeared 
 on the coast with a ship of force, and landed a number of 
 men at Sewee Bay. Rhet sailed out against him, and, at the 
 same time, Capt. Fenwick crossed the river, and marched 
 to attack the enemy by land. After a brisk engagemen 
 Fenwick took the enemy on land, prisoners, and Rhet suc- 
 ceeded in capturing the ship. 
 
 Sec. 17. In 1710, a large number of Palatines, 
 inhabitants of a Palatinate, a small territory in 
 Germany, whose governor or prince is called a 
 Palatine, arrived and settled on the Roanoke, in 
 Albemarle and Bath counties, within the bounda- 
 ries of North Carolina. These were a great acces- 
 sion to the strength and numbers othe colony, 
 which, although of sixty years standing, was ex- 
 ceedingly small. 
 
 The same year, near three thousand of the same people 
 came to New- York. Some settled in that city and built the 
 old Lutheran church; others settled on Livingston's ma- 
 nor. Some went into Pennsylvania, and at subsequent pe- 
 riods, were followed by many thousands of their countrymen. 
 
 Two years after the above settlers arrived in 
 Carolina, and during Queen* Anne's war, a plot 
 was laid by the Corees and Tuscaroras, with other 
 Indian tribes, to massacre the whole number,. 
 This plot was soon so far put in execution, that 
 one hundred and seven settlers were butchered 
 in their houses, in a single night, information 
 of their distress was speedily sent to Charleston ; 
 soon after which, Col. Barnwell, with six hun- 
 dred militia and three hundred and fifty friendly 
 Indians, explored their way through the inter- 
 vening wilderness, and came to their relief. On 
 has arrival, Col. B. surprised the Tuscaroras 5 kill- 
 
144 PERIOD in. 1689 TO 1756. 
 
 ed three hundred of them, and made one hun- 
 dred prisoners. 
 
 The surviving Indians fled to a town which had heen 
 fortified by the tribe ; but here they were again attacked by 
 Barnwell, who killed great numbers of them, and compel- 
 led the remainder to sue for peace. It is estimated that the 
 Tuscaroras,, in this war, lost one thousand of their number. 
 The remainder of the tribe, early after the war, abandoned 
 the country, and became united with the Five Nations, which 
 since that time, have been called the Six Nations. 
 
 Sec. 18. The next year, March 31st, 1713, a trea- 
 ty of peace was concluded at Utrecht, between 
 England and France. This relieved the apprehen- 
 sions of the northern part of the country, and put 
 a welcome period to an expensive and distressing 
 war. After the peace was known in America, 
 the eastern Indians sent in a flag, and desired 
 peace. The governor of Massachusetts, with 
 his council, and with that of New-Hampshire, 
 met them at Portsmouth, received their submis- 
 sion, and entered into terms of pacification. 
 
 By the above treaty between England and France, New- 
 foundland and Nova Scotia were ceded to Great Britain. 
 [t was also stipulated, that " the subjects of France, inhabit- 
 ing Canada, and other places, shall hereafter give no hin- 
 derance or molestation to the Five Nations, nor to the other 
 nations of Indians who are friends to Great Britain." By 
 the treaty, also, the French relinquished all claim to the 
 Five Nations, and to all parts of their territories, and as far 
 as respected themselves, entitled the British crown to the 
 sovereignty of the country. 
 
 Sec. 19. The termination of Queen Anne's war 
 gave peace to the northern colonies, but the con- 
 test with the Indians for some time continued to 
 distress the Carolinians. 
 
 Scarcely had the people recovered from the above war 
 with the Corees and Tuscaroras, before they were threat- 
 ened with a calamity still greater and more general. The 
 Yamosees, a powerful tribe of Indians, with all the Indian 
 
THREE WARS OP WM. III.... ANNE.. ..<GEO. II. 145 
 
 tribes from Florida to Cape Fear river, formed a conspiracy 
 for the total extirpation of the Carolinians. The 15th of 
 April, 1715, was fixed upon as the day of general destruc- 
 tion. Owing, however, to the wisdom, dispatch, and firm 
 ness of Governor Craven, and the blessing of Providence, 
 the calamity was in a measure averted, and the colonies 
 saved, though at the expense, during the war, of near four 
 hundred of the inhabitants. The Yamosees were expel- 
 led the province, and took refuge among the Spaniards in 
 Florida. 
 
 Sec. 20. In 1710, the government of Carolina, 
 which till now had been proprietary, was chang- 
 ed, the charter was declared by the king's privy 
 council to have been forfeited, and the colony, 
 from this time, was taken under the royal protec- 
 tion, under which it continued till the American 
 revolution. 
 
 The people had long been disgusted with the management 
 of the proprietors, and were resolved, at all hazards, to exe- 
 cute their own laws, and defend the rights of the province. 
 A subscription to this effect was drawn up, and generally 
 signed. 
 
 On the meeting of the assembly, a committee was sen* 
 with this subscription to. the governor, Robert Johnson, re- 
 questing him to accept the government of the province, un- 
 der the king, instead of the proprietors. 
 
 Upon his refusal, the assembly chose Col. James Moore 
 governor, under the crown, and on the 21st of December, 
 1719, the convention and militia marched to Charleston fort, 
 and proclaimed Moore governor in his Majesty's name. 
 
 The Carolinians, having assumed the government, in be- 
 half of the king, referred their complaints to the royal ear. 
 On a full hearing of the case, the privy council adjudged 
 that the proprietors had forfeited their charter. From this 
 time, therefore, the colony, as stated above, was taken un- 
 der the royal protection, under which it continued till the 
 American revolution. 
 
 This change was followed, in 1729, by another nearly 
 as important. This was an agreement between the propri- 
 etors and the crown, that the former should surrender to 
 the crown their right and interest both to the government 
 and soil, for the sum of seventeen thousand five hundred 
 pounds sterling. This agreement being carried into effect, 
 13 
 
146 PERIOD in. 1689 TO 1756. 
 
 the province was divided into North and South Carolina", 
 each province having a distinct governor under the crown 
 of England. 
 
 Sec. 21. It has been stated that peace was con- 
 cluded by Massachusetts and New-Hampshire, 
 with the eastern Indians, soon after the pacifica- 
 tion at Utrecht, in 1713. This peace however 
 was of short duration, dissatisfaction arising on 
 the part of the Indians, because of the encroach- 
 ments of the English on their lands, and because 
 trading houses were not erected for the purchase 
 of their commodities. 
 
 The governor of Massachusetts promised them 
 redress; but the general court not carrying his 
 stipulations into execution, the Indians became 
 irritated, and, at the same time, being excited by 
 the French Jesuits, were roused to war, which, 
 in July, 1722, became general, and continued to 
 distress the eastern settlements until 1725. 
 
 The tribes engaged in the war, were the Norridgewocks, 
 Penobscots, St. Francois, Cape Sable, and St. John Indians, 
 In June, 1725, hostilities ceased, soon after which a treaty 
 was signed by the Indians, and was afterwards ratified by 
 commissioners from Massachusetts, New-Hampshire, and 
 Nova Scotia. This treaty was greatly applauded, and un- 
 der it, owing to the more pacific feelings of the Indians, ana 
 the more faithful observance of its stipulations by the Eng- 
 lish, the colonies experienced unusual tranquillity for a long 
 time. 
 
 Sec. 22. The settlement of GEORGIA was begun 
 in 1733, and was named after King George II. of 
 England, who was then on the throne. In the 
 settlement of Georgia, two objects were princi- 
 pally in view the relief of indigent inhabitants 
 of Great Britain and Ireland, and the greater se- 
 curity of the Carolinas. 
 
 The charter was granted to twenty-one persons, under 
 the title of trustees, and passed the seals June 9th, 1732. 
 
l-HREE WARS OP WM. III.... ANNE. ...GEO. II. 147 
 
 The first settlers, one hundred and sixteen in number, em- 
 barked from England, in November of the same year, un- 
 der General Oglethorpe. They landed at Charleston, 
 whence they repaired to Savannah river, and commenced 
 the town of that name. 
 
 The colony did not flourish for many years. In their 
 regulations for its management, the trustees enacted that 
 all lands granted by them to settlers should revert back, in 
 case of the failure of male succession; although certain 
 privileges were to be allowed to widows and daughters. 
 At the same time, all trade with the Indians was prohibited, 
 unless by virtue of special license. The use of negroes, 
 and the importation of rum, were absolutely forbidden. 
 
 Although the trustees were actuated by the purest mo- 
 tives by principles of humanity, and a regard to the health 
 and morals of the inhabitants, this system of regulations 
 was unfitted to the condition of the poor settlers, and was 
 highly injurious to their increase and prosperity. 
 
 Emigrants, however, continued to arrive. The first ad- 
 venturers, being poor and unenterprising, a more active and 
 efficient race was desirable. To induce such to settle in the 
 colony, eleven towns were laid out in shares of fifty acres 
 each ; one of which was offered to each new settler. Upon 
 this, large numbers of Swiss, Scotch, and Germans, became 
 adventurers to the colony. Within three years from the 
 first settlement, one thousand four hundred planters had 
 arrived. 
 
 To aid the colony, parliament made several grants of 
 money | individuals also gave considerable sums for the 
 same purpose ; owing, however, to the impolitic regula- 
 tions of the trustees, the colony maintained only a feeble 
 existence. 
 
 Oglethorpe and his party arrived on the banks of the 
 Savannah, on the first of February. For several days, the 
 people were employed in erecting a fortification, and in 
 felling the woods, while the general marked out the town. 
 The first house was begun on the ninth, and the town, 
 after the Indian name of the river, was called Savannah. 
 The fort being completed, the guns mounted, and the colo- 
 ny put in a sfate of safety, the next object of Oglethorpe's 
 attention was to treat with the Indians, for a share of their 
 possessions. In his intercourse with the Indians, he was 
 
 really assisted by an Indian woman, whom he found at 
 avannah, by the name of Mary Musgrove. She had re- 
 sided among the English, in another part of the country, 
 
148 PERIOD in. I6S9 TO 175(5. 
 
 and was well acquainted with their language. She was of 
 great use therefore to Gen. Oglethorpe as an interpreter, 
 for which service he gave her a hundred pounds a year. 
 
 Among those who came over with Gen. Oglethorpe, was 
 a man by the name of Thomas Bosom worth, who was the- 
 * chaplain of the colony. Soon after his arrival at Savannah, 
 he married the above mentioned Mary Musgrove. Un- 
 happily, Bosomworth was at heart a bad man, though by 
 profession a minister of the gospel. He was distinguished 
 - for his pride and love of riches and influence. At the same 
 time, he was artful and intriguing; yet on account of his- 
 profession, he was, for a time, mueh respected by the In- 
 dians. At one of the great councils of the Indians, this- 
 artful man induced the chiefs to crown Ma late he, one of 
 the greatest among them, emperor of all the Creeks. After 
 this, he made his wife call herself the eldest sister of Ma- 
 latche, and she told the Indians, that one of her grandfa- 
 thers had been made king by the Great Spirit, over all the 
 Greeks. The Indians believed what Mary told them, for 
 they had become very proud of her since Gen. Oglethorpe 
 
 I taken so much notice of her, and had been so kind to 
 7 her, and they acknowledged her for their queen. They 
 caliecl a great meeting of the chiefs, and Mary made them 
 Q a long talk. She told them, that the whites were their 
 enemies, ana had done them much injury that they were 
 getting away the lands of the Indians, and would soon 
 drive them from all their possessions. Said she, " we musfe 
 assert our rights we must arm ourselves against them 
 we must drive them from our territories. Let us call forth 
 our warriors I will head them. Stand by me r and the 
 houses which they have erected shall smoke in ruins.' 4 
 The spirit of Queen Mary was contagious. Every chief 
 present declared himself ready to defend her to the last 
 drop of his blood. 
 
 After due preparation, the warriors were called forth. 
 They had painted themselves afresh, and sharpened anew 
 their tomahawks for the battle. Their march was now 
 commenced. Queen Mary, attended by her infamous hus- 
 band, the real author and instigator of all their discontent,, 
 headed the savage throng. Before they reached Savannah, 
 their approach was announced. The people were justly 
 alarmed. They were few in number, and though they haa 
 a fortification and cannon, they had no good reason to hope, 
 that they should be able to ward off the deadly blow, which 
 was aimed against them. 
 
 : 
 
, THREE WARS OP WM. III..,. ANNE.. ..GEO. II. 149 
 
 By this time, the savages were in sight of Savannah. 
 At this critical moment, an Englishman, by the name of 
 Noble Jones, a bold and daring man, rode forth, with a few 
 spirited men on horseback, to meet them. As he ap- 
 proached them, he exclaimed in a voice like thunder, 
 " Ground your arms ! ground your arms ! not an armed 
 Indian shall set his foot in this town." Awe-struck at his 
 lofty tone, and perceiving him and his companions ready 
 to dash in among them, they paused, and soon after laid 
 down their arms. Bosomworth and his queen were now 
 summoned to march into the city the Indian chiefs were 
 also allowed to enter, but without their arms. On reach- 
 ing the parade ground, the thunder of fifteen cannon, fired 
 at the same moment, told them what they might expect, 
 should they persist in their hostile designs. The Indians 
 were now marched to the house of the president of the 
 council in Savannah. Bosomworth was required to leave 
 the Indians, while the president had a friendly talk with them. 
 
 In his address to them, he assured them of the kindness 
 of the English, and demanded what they meant by coming 
 in this warlike manner. In reply, they told the president 
 that they had heard that Mary was to be sent over the great 
 waters, and they had come to learn why they were to lose 
 their queen. Finding that the Indians had been deceived, 
 and that Bosomworth was the author of all the trouble, 
 and that he had even intended to get possession of the ma- 
 gazine, and to destroy the whites, the council directed him 
 to be seized, and thrown into prison. This step, Mary re- 
 sented with great spirit. Hushing forth among the Indians, 
 she openly cursed Gen. Oglethorpe, although he had raised 
 her from poverty and distress, and declared that the whole 
 world should know, that the ground she trod upon was her 
 own. The warlike spirit of the Indians, being thus likely 
 to be renewed, it was thought advisable to imprison Mary 
 also. This was accordingly done. At the same time, to 
 appease the Indians, a sumptuous feast was made for the 
 chiefs by the president, who during the better state of feel- 
 ing, which seemed to prevail, took occasion to explain to 
 them the wickedness of Bosomworth, and how, by false- 
 hood and cunning, he had led them to believe that Mary 
 was really their queen a descendant of one of their great 
 chiefs. " Brothers," said he, " this is not true Queen 
 Mary is no other than Mary Musgrove, whom I found poor, 
 and who has been made the dupe of the artful Bosomworth, 
 and you, brothers, the dupes of both." 
 13* 
 
150 PERIOD in. 1689 TO 1756. 
 
 The aspect of things was now pleasant. The Indians 
 were beginning to be satisfied of the villany of Bosom- 
 worth, and of the real character of Mary; but, at this mo 
 ment, the door was thrown open, and to the surprise of all, 
 Mary burst into the room. She had made her escape from 
 prison, and learning Avhat was going on, she rushed for- 
 ward with the fury of a tigress. " Seize your arms !" ex- 
 claimed she, "seize your arms! remember your promise, 
 and defend your queen." The sight of their queen seemed 
 to bring back, in a moment, all the original ardor of the 
 enterprise. In an instant, every chief seized his toma- 
 hawk, and sprang from the ground to rally, at the call oi 
 their queen. 
 
 At this moment, Capt. Jones, who was present, perceiv 
 ing the danger of the president and the other whites, drew 
 his sword, and demanded peacB. The majesty of his coun- 
 tenance the fire of his eye the glittering of his sword, 
 told Queen Mary what she might expect, should she at- 
 tempt to raise any higher the feverish spirits of her sub- 
 jects. The Indians cast an eye towards her, as if to in- 
 quire what they should do. Her countenance fell. Per- 
 ceiving his advantage, Jones stepped forward, and in the 
 presence of the Indians seized Mary, and conducted her 
 back to prison. 
 
 A short imprisonment so far humbled both Bosomworth 
 and Mary, that each wrote a letter, confessing what they 
 had done, and promising, if released, that they would con- 
 duct with more propriety in future. The people kindly 
 forgave them both, and they left the city. But they did 
 not perform their promise. Bosomwortn again tried to 
 make Mary queen, and to get possession of three large 
 islands called Ossalaw, Sapelo, and St. Catharine's. He 
 pretended, that they had been given to him by the Indians. 
 Finding, however, that he could not sustain his claim, he 
 went over to England with Mary, and there instituted a 
 lawsuit for their recovery. At length, having obtained St. 
 Catharine's island, by a judgment of the court, he return- 
 ed with his wife, and took up his residence on that island. 
 Here Mary died ; some time after which Bosomworth mar- 
 ried one of his own servants, who did not survive him. At 
 length, he finished his own inglorious life, and was buried 
 between his two wives upon the island, which had cost him 
 so much trouble. 
 
 Sec. 23. Upon the declaration of war by Eng- 
 
, THREE WARS OF WM. III.... ANNE. ...GEO. II. 151 
 
 land against Spain, Oglethorpe was appointed, 
 1740, to the chief command in South Carolina and 
 Georgia. Soon after his appointment, he pro- 
 jected an expedition against St. Augustine. Aided 
 by Virginia and Carolina, he marched at the 
 head of more than two thousand men, for Florida, 
 and after taking two small Spanish forts, Diego, 
 and Moosa, he sat down before St. Augustine. 
 Capt. Price, with several twenty gun ships, as- 
 sisted by sea; but after all their exertions, the H, 
 general was forced to raise the siege, and return ' 
 with considerable loss. 
 
 Sec. 24. Two years after, 1742, the Spaniards 
 invaded Georgfti, in turn. A Spanish armament, 
 consisting of thirty-two sail, with three thousand 
 men, under command of Don Manuel de Monte- 
 ano, sailed from St. Augustine, and arrived in the 
 river Altamaha. The expedition, although fitted 
 out at great expense, failed of accomplishing its 
 object. 
 
 General Oglethorpe was, at this time, at Fort Simon*. 
 Finding himself unable to retain possession of it, having 
 but about seven hundred men, he spiked his cannon, and, 
 destroying his military stores, retreated to his head-quarters 
 at Frederica. 
 
 On the first prospect of an invasion, Gen. Oglethorpe had 
 applied to the governor of South Carolina for assistance, 
 but the Carolinians, fearing for the safety of their own ter- 
 ritory, and not approving of Gen. Oglethorpe's management 
 in his late expedition against St. Augustine, declined fui- 
 nishing troops, but voted supplies. 
 
 In this state of danger and perplexity, the general resort- ~~- 
 ed to stratagem. A French soldier belonging to his army 
 had deserted to the enemy. Fearing the consequences of 
 their learning his weakness, he devised a plan by which to - 
 destroy the credit of any information that the deserter might 
 give. 
 
 With this view, he wrote a letter to the French deserter 
 in the Spanish camp, addressing him as if he were a spy of 
 the English, This letter he bribed a Spanish captive to de 
 
152 PERIOD in. 1689 TO 1756. 
 
 liver, jn which he directed the deserter to state to the Span- 
 iards, that he was in a weak and defenceless condition, and 
 to urge them on to an attack. 
 
 Should he not be able, however, to persuade them to this, 
 he wished him to induce them to continue three days 
 longer at their quarters, in which time, he expected two 
 thousand men, and six British men of war, from Carolina. 
 The above letter, as was intended, was delivered to the Span- 
 ish general, instead of the deserter, who immediately put 
 the latter in irons. 
 
 A council of war was called, and while deliberating upon 
 the measures which should be taken, three supply ships, 
 which had been voted by Carolina, appeared in sight. 
 Imagining these to be the men of war alluded to in the let 
 ter, the Spaniards, in great haste, fired the fort, and embark- 
 ed, leaving behind them several cannon, and a quantity of 
 provisions. By this artful, but unjustifiable expedient, the 
 .country was relieved of its invaders, and Georgia, and proba- 
 bly a great part of South Carolina, saved from ruin. 
 
 Sec. 25. In 1752, the colony, continuing in a 
 languishing condition, although parliament had 
 at different times given them nearly one hundred 
 thousand pounds, and many complaints having 
 "been made against the system of regulations 
 adopted by the trustees, they surrendered their 
 charter to the crown, upon which the government 
 became regal. In 1755, a general court was esta- 
 blished. 
 
 Sec. 26. March 29th, 1744, Great Britain, under 
 George II., declared war against France and Spain. 
 The most important event of this war, in Ameri 
 ca, was the capture of Louisburg from the French, 
 by the New-England colonies, under command of 
 Sir William Pepperell. 
 
 After the peace of Utrecht, in 1713, the French hadbuiit 
 Louisburg, on the island of Cape Breton, as a security 10 
 their navigation and fishery, and had fortified it at an ex- 
 pense of five millions and a half of dollars. The fortifica- 
 tions consisted of a rampart of stone, nearly thirty-six feet m 
 height, and a ditch eighty feet wide. There were six bas- 
 tions, and three batteries, with embrasures for one hundred 
 
tHREE WARS OF WM. II I....ANNE....GEO. II. 153 
 
 and forty-eight cannon, and six mortars. On an island, at 
 the entrance of the harbor, was another battery of thirty 
 cannon, carrying twenty-eight pounds shot; and at the bot- 
 tom of the harbor, opposite the entrance, was situated the 
 royal battery of twenty-eight forty-two pounders, and two 
 eighteen pounders. The entrance of the town, on the land 
 side, was at the west, over a draw-bridge, near which was a 
 circular battery, mounting sixteen guns of twenty-four 
 pounds shot. These works had been twenty-five years in 
 building, and though not entirely completed, were of such 
 strength, that the place was sometimes called the " Gibraltar 
 of America." 
 
 The acquisition of this place was deemed emi- 
 nently important to New-England, since, while in 
 possession of the French, it had furnished a safe 
 and convenient retreat to such privateers as dis- 
 turbed and captured the inhabitants of the colo- 
 nies employed in the fisheries. 
 
 Impressed with the necessity of measures to secure this 
 fortress, Gov. Shirley, of Massachusetts, had solicited the as- 
 sistance of the British ministry, for the acquisition of Cape 
 Breton. Early in January, 1745, before receiving an an 
 swer to his letters to England, he communicated to the ge- 
 neral court, under an oath of secrecy, a plan which he had 
 formed, for an attack on Louisburg. To this plan strong 
 objections were urged, and the proposal of the governor was 
 at first rejected : but upon reconsideration, it was carried by 
 a majority of a single voice. Circulars were immediately 
 addressed to the colonies, as far south as Pennsylvania, re- 
 questing their assistance, and that an embargo might be laid 
 on all their ports. The New-England colonies only, how- 
 ever, were concerned in the expedition. Of the forces rais- 
 ed, Massachusetts furnished three thousand two hundred and 
 fifty ; Connecticut five hundred and sixteen ; Rhode Island 
 and New-Hampshire, each three hundred. The naval force 
 consisted of twelve ships and vessels. In two months the 
 army was enlisted, victualled, and equipped for service. 
 
 On the twenty-third of March, an express boat, which had 
 been sent to Com. Warren, in the West Indies, to invite his 
 co-operaiion, returned to Boston, with advices from him, 
 that as the contemplated expedition was a colonial affair, 
 without orders from England, he must excuse himself from 
 any concern in the enterprise. This intelligence was pocu- 
 
154 PERIOD in. 1689 T^ 1765. 
 
 liarly unwelcome, but the governor and general concealing 1 
 the tenor of the advice, the army was embarked, and the 
 next morning the fleet sailed. On the fourth of April, the 
 fleet and army arrived in safety at Canso, where they were 
 joined by the troops from New-Hampshire, and soon after, 
 by those from Connecticut. 
 
 Most unexpectedly to the general, Com. Warren, with his 
 fleet, arrived at Canso, having, soon after his advices by the 
 express boat to Gov. Shirley, received orders to repair to 
 North America, and to concert measures with the governor 
 for his majesty's service. Hearing that the fleet had sailed 
 for Canso, he proceeded direcily for that port. Great was 
 the joy which pervaded the whole fleet and camp, on the ar 
 rival of this important auxiliary force. After a short con- 
 sultation with Gen. Pepperell, Corn. Warren sailed to wruise 
 before Louisburg, and, not long after, was followed by the 
 fleet and army, which, on the thirtieth of April, arrived in 
 Chapearouge bay. The enemy were, until this moment, in 
 profound ignorance that any attack was meditated against 
 them. 
 
 The sight of the transports gave the alarm to the French, 
 and a detachment was sent to oppose the landing of the 
 troops. But, while the general diverted the attention of the 
 enemy by a feint at one place, he was landing his men at 
 another. 
 
 The next morning, four hundred of the English marched 
 round behind the hills to the north-east harbor, setting fire 
 to all the houses and stores, till they came within a mile of 
 the royal battery. The conflagration of the stores, in which 
 was a considerable quantity of tar, concealed the English 
 troops, at the same time that it increased the alarm of the 
 French so greatly, that they precipitately abandoned the 
 royal battery. Upon their flight, the English took posses- 
 sion of it, and by means of a well directed fire from it, seri- 
 ously damaged the town. 
 
 The main body of the army now commenced the siege. 
 For fourteen nights they were occupied in drawing cannon' 
 towards the town, over a morass, in which oxen and horses 
 could not be used. Incredible was the toil ; but what could 
 not men accomplish, who had been accustomed to draw the 
 pines of the forests for masts 1 By the 20th of May, seve- 
 ral fascine batteries had been erected, one of which mount- 
 ed five' forty-two pounders. On opening these batteries, 
 they did great execution. 
 
 Jn the mean time, Com. Warren captured the Vigilant, 
 
THREE WARS OF WM. III.... ANNE... .GEO. II. 155 
 
 a French ship of seventy-four grins, and with her five hun- 
 dred and sixty men, together with great quantities of milita- 
 ry stores. This capture was of great consequence, as it not 
 only increased the English force, and added to their milita- 
 ry supplies, hut as it seriously lessened the strength of the 
 enemy. Shortly after this capture, the number of the Eng- 
 lish fleet was considerably augmented by the arrival of se- 
 veral men of war. A combined attack by sea and land was 
 now determined on, and fixed for the 18th of June. 
 
 Previously to the arrival of this additional naval force, 
 much had been accomplished towards the reduction of the 
 place. The inland battery had been silenced; the western 
 gate of the town was beaten down, and a breach effected in 
 the wall ; the circular battery of sixteen guns was nearly 
 ruined, and the western flank of the king's bastion was 
 nearly demolished. 
 
 Such being the injured state of the works, and perceiving- 
 preparations making for a joint assault, to sustain which 
 little prospect remained, on the fifteenth the enemy desired 
 a cessation of hostilities, and on the seventeenth of June, 
 after a siege of forty-nine days, the city of Louisburg, and 
 the island of Cape Breton, were surrendered to his Britannic 
 majesty. > . 
 
 Thus successfully terminated a daring expedition, which / 
 had been undertaken without the knowledge of the mother 
 country. The acquisition of the fortress of Louisburg was 
 as useful and important to the colonies, and to the British 
 empire, as its reduction was surprising to that empire and 
 mortifying to the court of France. 
 
 Besides the stores and prizes which fell into the hands of 
 the English, which were estimated at little less than a mil- 
 lion sterling, security was given to the colonies in their 
 fisheries ; Nova Scotia was preserved, and the trade ar" 1 
 fisheries of France nearly ruined. 
 
 Sec. 27. The capture of Louisburg roused the 
 court of France to seek revenge. Under the Duke 
 D'Anville, a nobleman of great courage, an ar- 
 mament was sent to America, 1746, consisting of 
 forty ships of war, fifty-six transports, with three 
 thousand five hundred men, and forty thousand 
 stands of arms for the use of the French and In- 
 dians in Canada. The object of this expedition 
 was to recover possession of Cape Breton, and to 
 
156 PERIOD in. 1689 TO 1756, 
 
 attack the colonies. A merciful Providence, how- 
 ever averted the blow, and by delaying the fleet, 
 and afterwards disabling it in a storm, blasted 
 the hopes of the enemy. 
 
 Great was the consternation of the colonies, when the 
 news arrived that the French fleet was near the American 
 coast, and greatly increased, on learning that no English 
 fleet was in quest of it. 
 
 Several ships of this formidable French fleet were dam- 
 aged by storms ; others were lost, and one forced to rerurn 
 to Brest, on account of a malignant disease among her crew. 
 Two or three only of the ships, with a few of the trans- 
 ports, arrived at Chebucto, now Halifax. Here the admiral 
 died, through mortification ; or, as some say, by poison. 
 The vice-admiral came to a similar tragical death by run- 
 ning himself through the body. That part of the fleet that 
 arrived sailed with a view to attack Annapolis, but a storm 
 scattered them, and prevented the accomplishment of this 
 object. 
 
 . Sec. 28. In April, 1748, preliminaries of peace 
 were signed between France and England, at 
 Aix la Chapelle, soon after which, hostilities ceas- 
 ed. The definitive treaty was signed in October. 
 Prisoners on all sides were to be released with- 
 out ransom, and all conquests made during the 
 war, were to be mutually restored. 
 
 NOTES. 
 
 Sec. 29. MANNERS OF THE COLONISTS. The 
 colonies were now peopled with inhabitants, by 
 far the greater part of whom were born and edu- 
 cated in America. And although the first settlers 
 were collected from most, or all, the countries of 
 Europe, and emigrants from -various nations con- 
 tinued to flock to America, still we may observe, du- 
 ring this period, a gradual assimilation of national 
 manners and character. The peculiarities of each 
 class became less distinct by intercourse with the 
 others, and every succeeding generation seemed 
 
Siege of Louisburg. P. 155. 
 
 Surrender of the Royal Battery at Louisburg. 
 P. 155. 
 
THREE WARS OP WM. III.... ANNE. ...GEO. II. 157 
 
 to exhibit, less strikingly, those traits which 
 distinguished the preceding. 
 
 Although this is true with respect to the American colo 
 nies generally, there were some exceptions. Some vil- 
 lages, or territories, being settled exclusively by emigrants 
 speaking a different language from that generally spoken 
 as the Germans, for example or entertaining some pe- 
 culiar religious notions as the Quakers still preserved 
 their own peculiar manners. 
 
 But, in attempting to ascribe some general character to 
 the people of the colonies during this period, we might 
 consider them, as during our second period, on the whole, 
 exhibiting three varieties ] viz. the rigid puritan English of 
 the north the Dutch in New- York and the luxurious 
 English of the south. The austerity of the north was, 
 however, much relaxed. The elegant varieties of life, which 
 before had been prohibited, were tolerated, and the refine- 
 ments of polished society appeared among the higher 
 classes. The strong lines of Dutch manners in New- York 
 were slowly disappearing, under an English government, 
 and by means of the settlement of English among them. 
 The manners of the south were assuming an aspect of more 
 refinement, particularly among the higher classes but 
 showed little other change. 
 
 Sec. 30. RELIGION. During this period, the 
 spirit of religious bigotry and intolerance may - L 
 be observed to have abated in a very considerable ~ 
 degree. The conduct of those sects, which had 
 called forth those severe and unjustifiable re- 
 strictions upon the freedom of religious worship, - 
 had become less offensive and exceptionable ; 
 and at the close of this period, religious perse- 
 cution had ceased in all the colonies, and the 
 rights of conscience were generally recognized. 
 
 In 1692, the Mennonites were introduced into Pennsyl- 
 vania, and settled at Germantown. Their increase, how- 
 ever, has been small. 
 
 In 1719, the Tinkers, or General Baptists, arrived at 
 Philadelphia, and dispersed themselves into several parts 
 of Pennsylvania. 
 
 In 1741, the Moravians were introduced into America, 
 14 
 
-*7 
 
 158 PERIOD in. 1689 TO 1756. 
 
 by Count Zinzendorf, and settled at Bethlehem, Pennsyl 
 vania. Regularity, industry, ingenuity, and economy, are 
 characteristic of this people. They have considerably in- 
 creased, and are a respectable body of Christians. 
 
 The German Lutherans were first introduced into the 
 American colonies during this period, and settled princi 
 pally in Pennsylvania and New- York. 
 
 Episcopacy was considerably extended during this pe- 
 riod. In 1693, it was introduced into New- York ; into 
 New-Jersey and Rhode Island in 1702; into South Caro- 
 lina in 1703, bylaw; in Connecticut in 1704. 
 
 In 1708, the Saybrook Platform was formed by a Synod 
 composed of congregational ministers, under authority of 
 the legislature of Connecticut. 
 
 About the year 1737, a revival of religion very extensive- 
 ly prevailed in New-England. At this time, great numbers 
 united themselves to the church, and testified by their con- 
 duct through life the genuineness of their profession. 
 
 The celebrated Whitfield came to America about the year 
 1740, and produced great religious excitement by his singu- 
 lar powers of pulpit eloquence. He did not found any pecu- 
 liar sect in this country, although he gave rise to that of 
 the Calvinistic Methodists in England. 
 
 31. TRADE AND COMMERCE. Although 
 the trade of the colonies began to feel the re- 
 strictions imposed upon it by the mother country, 
 still it steadily increased during this period. 
 
 From the very commencement of the colonies, the mother 
 country was not without her jealousies, respecting their in- 
 crease in population, trade, and manufactures. Inquiries 
 on these points were instituted, and opportunities sought to 
 keep in check the spirit of colonial enterprise. Laws were 
 enacted from time to time, designed and calculated not only 
 to make the colonies depend on the mother country for her 
 manufactures, but also to limit their trade and commerce, 
 and keep them in safe subjection to England. 
 
 As illustrating this course of policy, we may notice seve- 
 ral laws of parliament. In 1732, an act was passed, pro- 
 hibiting " the exportation of hats out of the plantations of 
 America, and to restrain the number of apprentices taken 
 by hat makers." So also the act of 1750, prohibited, on 
 penalty of two hundred pounds, "the erection of any mill 
 for slitting, or rolling of iron, or any plating forge to work 
 
THREE WARS OF WM. III.... ANNE.. ..GEO. II. 159 
 
 with a lilt hammer ; or any furnace for making steel, in any 
 of the colonies." At the same time, encouragement was 
 given to export pig and bar iron to England for her manu- 
 factories. In like manner was prohibited the exportation 
 from one province to another by water, and even the car- 
 riage by land, on horseback, or in a cart, of all wools and 
 woollen goo'ds of the produce of America. The colonies 
 were also compelled by law to procure many articles from 
 England, which they could have purchased twenty per cent, 
 cheaper in other markets. 
 
 But, notwithstanding these restrictions, trade and com- 
 merce gradually and steadily increased. To England, the 
 colonies exported lumber of all sorts, hemp, flax, pitch, tar, 
 oil, rosin, copper ore, pig and bar iron, whale fins, tobacco, 
 rice, fish, indigo, flax seed, beeswax, raw silk, &c. They also 
 built many vessels, which were sold in the mother country. 
 
 But the importation of goods from England, in conse- 
 quence of the course pursued by the British government, 
 was still much greater than the amount of the exports to 
 England. In 1728, Sir William Keith stated that the colo- 
 nies then consumed one sixth part of all the woollen manu- 
 factures exported from Great Britain, and more than double 
 that value in linen and calicoes ; also great quantities of 
 English manufactured silks, small wares, household furni- 
 ture, trinkets, and a very considerable value in East India 
 goods. From 1739 to 1756, this importation of goods from 
 England, amounted to one million of pounds sterling annu- 
 ally, on an average. 
 
 But, if the amount of imports from Great Britain was thus 
 more than the colonies exported thither, they would fall in 
 debt to England. How did they pay this balance of trade 
 against them ? It was done by gold and silver obtained 
 chiefly from the West India settlements, to which they ex- 
 ported lumber, fish of an inferior quality, beef, pork, but- 
 ter, horses, poultry, and other live stock, an inferior kind 
 of tobacco, corn, cider, apples, cabbages, onions, &c. They 
 built also many small vessels, which found a ready market. 
 
 The cod and whale fisheries were becoming considerable ; 
 they were principally carried on by New-England. The 
 codfish were sold in Spain, France, 'England, the West In- 
 dies, &c. ; and the money obtained for them aided the colo- 
 nies in paying the balance of trade against them in England. 
 
 iSec. 32. AGRICULTURE. Agriculture, during 
 this period, was greatly improved and extended. 
 
160 PERIOD IH.--1689 TO 1756. 
 
 Immense tracts of forests were cleared, and more 
 enlightened modes of husbandry were introdu- 
 ced. The number of articles produced by agri- 
 culture was also increased. 
 
 The colonies now not only raised a sufficient supply 01 
 food for their own use, but their exports became great. 
 Wheat and other English grain were the principal pro- 
 ducts of the middle colonies; grain, beef, pork, horses, but- 
 ter, cheese, &c. were the chief products of the northern co- 
 lonies ; tobacco, wheat, and rice, were the principal pro- 
 ducts of the south. 
 
 In the south, also, large numbers of swine ran wild in the 
 forests, living upon mast. These were taken, salted down, 
 and exported to a considerable extent. 
 
 Sec. 33. ARTS AND MANUFACTURES. Under 
 the head of commerce, we have noticed the 
 obstacles interposed by Great Britain, to the 
 progress of arts and manufactures. Notwith- 
 standing these, however, the coarser kinds of 
 cutlery, some coarse cloths, both linen and 
 'woollen, hats, paper, shoes, household furni- 
 ture, farming utensils, &c. were manufactured 
 to a considerable extent ; not sufficient, however, 
 to supply the inhabitants. All these manufac- 
 tories were on a small scale ; cloths were made 
 in some families, for their own consumption. 
 
 The art of printing made considerable progress during 
 this period. A newspaper, the first in North America, call- 
 ed The BostonWeekly News-Letter, was established in 1704. 
 Before the close of this period, ten other were established 
 four in New-England ; two in New-York ; two in Penn- 
 sylvania ; one in South Carolina; and one in Maryland. 
 The number of bcfoks published was also considerable, al- 
 though they were executed in a coarse style, and were gene- 
 rally books of devotion, or for the purposes of education. 
 
 Sec. 34. POPULATION. At the expiration of 
 our second period, we estimated the population 
 of the English colonies in America at 200,000 
 souls. About the close of our third period, 
 
New-Hampshire, 30,000 
 Massachusetts Bay, 220,000 
 R. Island andProvi- > 05 QQQ 
 dence Plantations, \ ' 
 Connecticut, 100,000 
 
 New-York, 
 The Jerseys, 
 Pennsylvania, 
 Maryland, 
 Virginia, 
 North Carolina, 
 South Carolina, 
 Georgia, 
 
 New-England, 385,000 
 Mid. and S. Colonies, 661,000 
 
 Total, 1,046,000 
 
 THREE WARS OF WM. III.... ANNE... .GEO. II. 161 
 
 Franklin calculated that there were then one 
 million or upwards, and that scarce 80,000 had 
 been brought over sea. 
 
 This estimate of the population of America very nearly 
 accords with an estimate made in London from " authentic 
 authorities," May, 1755, which is as follows : 
 
 100,000 
 60,000 
 
 250,000 
 85,000 
 85,000 
 45,000 
 30,000 
 6,000 
 
 661,000 
 
 Sec. 35. EDUCATION. The southern colonies 
 continued to treat the subject of education dif- 
 ferently from the northern colonies, in this re- 
 spect ; in the north, one of the first objects of 
 legislation was to provide for the education of 
 all classes ; in the south, the education of the 
 higher classes only was an -object of public at- 
 tention. 
 
 The first public institution for the purposes of education, 
 which succeeded in the south, was that of William and 
 Mary College, in Virginia, established in 1692, by the sove-- 
 reigns whose names it bears. 
 
 Yale College, in Connecticut, was commenced in 1700 
 eleven of the principal ministers in the neighboring towns, 
 who had been appointed to adopt such measures as they 
 should deem expedient, on the subject of ^a college agree- 
 ing to found one in the colony. The next year, the legisla- 
 ture granted them a charter. The college was begun at 
 Saybrook, where was held the first commencement, in 1702. 
 In 1717, it was removed to New-Haven, where it became 
 permanently established. It was named after the Hon. 
 Elihu Yale, governor of the East India Company, who was 
 its principal benefactor. 
 
 The college at Princeton, New-Jersey, called " Nassau 
 14* 
 
162 PERIOD in. 1689 TO 1756. 
 
 Hall," was first founded by charter from John Hamilton, 
 Esq., president of the council, about the year 1738, and was 
 enlarged by Gov. Belcher, in 1747. 
 
 REFLECTIONS. 
 
 Sec. 36. The history of this period presents the North 
 American colonies to our view, at the same time that they 
 were visited with cruel and desolating wars, still advancing 
 in population, extending their commerce, forming new set- 
 tlements, enlarging the boundaries of their territory, and 
 laying wider and deeper the foundations of a future nation. 
 -*- And, while we look back, with admiration, upon the hardy 
 spirit which carried our ancestors through scenes so trying, 
 and enabled them to reap prosperity from the crimsoned 
 fields of battle and bloodshed, let us be thankful that our lot 
 is cast in a happier day ; and that instead of sharing in the 
 perils of feeble colonies, we enjoy the protection and privi- 
 leges of a free and powerful nation. 
 
 In addition to the reflections subjoined to the account 
 which we have given of the " Salem witchcraft," we may 
 add another, respecting the danger of popular delusion. 
 In that portion of our history, we see a kind of madness 
 rising up, and soon stretching its influence over a whole 
 community. And such, too, is the pervading power of the 
 spell, that the wise and ignorant, the good and bad, are alike 
 subject to its control, and, for the time, alike incapable of 
 judging, or reasoning aright. Now, whenever we see a 
 community divided into parties, and agitated by some gene- 
 ral excitement when we feel ourselves borne along on one 
 side or the other, by the popular tide, let us inquire whether 
 we are not acting under the influence of a delusion, which a 
 few years, perhaps a few months, or days, may dispel and 
 expose. Nor, at such a time, let us regard our sincerity, or 
 our consciousness of integrity, or the seeming clearrfess and 
 certainty of our reasonings, as furnishing an absolute as- 
 surance that, after all, we do not mistake, and that our'oppo- 
 nents are not right. 
 
 Another reflection of seme importance, and one that may 
 serve to guard us against censuring, too severely, the wise 
 and good, is suggested by this account of the " Salem witch- 
 craft." It is this, that the best men are liable to err. We 
 should not, therefore, condemn, nor should we withhold 
 our charity from those who fall into occasional error, pro- 
 vided their characters are, in other respects, such as to lay 
 claim to our good opinion. 
 
UNITED STATES. 
 
 PERIOD IV. 
 
 DISTINGUISHED FOR THE FRENCH AND INDIAN WAR. 
 
 Extending from the Declaration of War by Eng- 
 land against France, 1756, to the Commencement 
 of Hostilities by Great Britain against the Ame- 
 rican Colonies, in the Battle of Lexington, 1775. 
 
 Sec. 1. The war, which ended in the treaty of 
 Aix la Chapelle, in 1748, had been highly injuri- 
 ous to the general prosperity of his Majesty's Co- 
 lonies in America; and the return of peace found 
 them in a state of impoverishment and distress. 
 Great losses had been sustained in their com- 
 merce, and many of their vessels had been seized 
 on the coast by privateers. Bills of credit to the 
 amount .of several millions, had .been issued to 
 carry on the war, which they were now unable 
 to redeem, and the losses of men in various ex- 
 peditions against the enemy, had seriously retard- 
 ed the increase of population. 
 
 The expenses of the northern colonies, including New- 
 England and New- York, during the war, were estimated 
 at not less than one million pounds sterling. Massachusetts 
 alone is said to have paid half this sum, and to have ex- 
 pended nearly four hundred thousand pounds, in the expe- 
 dition against Cape Breton. The expenses of Carolina, 
 for the war in that quarter, were not less in proportion. 
 
 To supply the deficiency of money, bills of credit were 
 issued to the amount of several millions. The bills issued 
 by Massachusetts during two or three years of the war, 
 
bf 
 
 y 
 
 164 PERIOD iv. 1756 TO 1775. 
 
 amounted to between two and three millions currency; 
 while at the time of their emission, five or six hundred 
 pounds were equal to only one hundred pounds sterling. 
 Before the complete redemption of these bills, says Dr. 
 Trumbull, in those colonies, where their credit was best 
 supported, the depreciation was nearly twenty for one, 
 
 The losses sustained by the colonies, in the fall of many 
 of their bravest men, during this and the last Indian war, 
 were severely felt. From 1722 to 1749, a period of twen 
 ty-seven years, the losses of Massachusetts and New-Hamp- 
 shire equalled the whole increase of their numbers; whereas, 
 in the natural course of population, their numbers would 
 have more than doubled. 
 
 Such, in few words, was the general state of 
 the colonies, at the close of this war. The return 
 of peace was hailed as the harbinger of better 
 days, and the enterprising spirit of the people 
 soon exerted itself to repair the losses, which had 
 "been sustained. Commerce, therefore, again 
 flourished ; population increased ; settlements 
 were extended ; and the publick credit revived. 
 
 Sec. 2. Scarcely, however, had the colonies 
 time to reap the benefits of peace, before the pros- 
 pect was clouded, and the sound of approaching 
 war filled the land with general anxiety and 
 distress. After an interval of only about eight 
 years, from 1748 to May 18th, 1756, Great Britain, 
 under George II., formally declared war against 
 France, which declaration was reciprocated on 
 the ninth of June, by a similar declaration on 
 the part of France, under Louis XV., against 
 Great Britain. 
 
 The general cause, leading to this war, com- 
 monly called the " French and Indian ivar" was 
 the alleged encroachments of the French, upon 
 the frontiers of the colonies in America, belong- 
 ing to the English rown. 
 
 These encroachments were made upon Nova Scotia in 
 the east, which had been ceded to Great Britain by the 
 
FRENCH AND INDIAN WAR. 165 
 
 12th article of the treaty of Utrecht, but to a considerable 
 part of which the French laid claim, and, in several places, 
 were erecting fortifications. In the north and west, they 
 were settling and fortifying Crown Point, and, in the west, 
 were riot only attempting to complete a line of forts from 
 the head of the St. Lawrence to the Mississippi, but were 
 encroaching far on Virginia. 
 
 The circumstances wldch served to open the war, 
 was the alleged intrusion of the Ohio Company 
 upon the territory of the French. This company 
 consisted of a number of influential men, from 
 London and Virginia, who had obtained a char- 
 ter grant of six hundred thousand acres of land, 
 on and near the river Ohio, for the purpose of car- 
 rying on the fur trade with the Indians, and of 
 settling the country. 
 
 The governor of Canada had early intelligence 
 of the transactions of this company. Fearing 
 that their plan would deprive the French of the ad- 
 vantages of the fur trade, and prevent communi- 
 cations between Canada and Louisiana, he wrote 
 to the governor of New-York and Pennsylvania, 
 claiming the country east of the Ohio to the Alle- 
 ganies, and forbidding the further encroachments 
 of the English traders. 
 
 As yet, the Pennsylvanians had principally managed the 
 trade with the Indians. Bat, being now about to be de- 
 prived of it, by the Ohio Company, who were opening a 
 road to the Potomac, they excited the fears of the Indians, 
 lest their lands should be taken from them, and gave early 
 intelligence to the French, of the designs and transactions 
 of the company. 
 
 The French governor soon manifested his hostile deter- 
 mination, by seizing several of the English traders, and 
 carrying them to a French port on the south of Lake Erie. 
 The Twightwees, a tribe of Indians in Ohio, near Miami 
 river, among whom the English had been trading, resented 
 the seizure, and, by way of retaliation, took several French 
 traders, and sent them to Pennsylvania. 
 
 In the mean time, a communication was open- 
 
166 PERIOD iv. 1756 TO 1775. 
 
 ed along the French Creek and Allegany river, 
 between Fort Presqu' He, on Lake Erie, and the 
 Ohio ; and French troops were stationed at con- 
 venient distances, secured by temporary fortifica- 
 tions. 
 
 The Ohio Company, thus threatened with the 
 destruction of their trade, were now loud in their 
 complaints. Dinwiddie, lieutenant governor of Vir- 
 ginia, to whom these complaints were addressed, 
 laid the subject before the assembly, which or- 
 dered a messenger to be dispatched to the French 
 commandant on the Ohio, to demand the reasons 
 of his hostile conduct, and to summon the French 
 to evacuate their forts in that region. 
 
 Sec. 3. The person entrusted with this service 
 was George Washington, who at the early age 
 of twenty-one, thus stepped forth in the publick 
 cause, and began that line of services, which end- 
 ed in the independence of his country. 
 
 The service to which Washington was now 
 appointed, was both difficult and dangerous; the 
 place of his destination being above four hundred 
 miles distant, two hundred of which lay through 
 a trackless desert inhabited by Indians. He ar- 
 rived in safety, however, and delivered a letter 
 from Gov. Dinwiddie to the commandant. Hav- 
 ing received a written answer, and secretly ta- 
 ken the dimensions of the fort, he returned. The 
 reply of the commandant to Gov. Dinwiddie was, 
 that he had taken possession of the country, un- 
 der the direction of the governor-general of Can- 
 ada, to whom he would transmit his letter, and 
 whose orders only he would obey. 
 
 Sec. 4. The British ministry, on being made 
 acquainted with the claims, conduct, and deter- 
 mination of the French, without a formal decla- 
 
FRENCH AND INDIAN WAR. 167 
 
 ration of war, instructed the Virginians to resist 
 their encroachments by force of arms. Accord- 
 ingly, a regiment was raised in Virginia, which 
 was joined by an independent company from 
 South Carolina, and with this force Washington, 
 who was appointed to command the expedition, 
 and was now raised from the rank of major to 
 that of colonel, marched early in April, 1754, to- 
 wards the Great Meadows, lying within the dis- 
 puted territories, for the purpose of expelling the 
 French. The enterprise of Washington and his 
 troops was highly creditable to them, but the 
 French forces being considerably superior, he 
 was obliged to capitulate^ with the privilege, 
 however, of returning with his troops to Virginia, 
 
 On his arrival at the Great Meadows, he learned that, the 
 French had dispossessed some Virginians of a fortification, 
 which the latter were erecting for the Ohio Company, at 
 the confluence of the Allegany and Monongahela, and 
 were engaged in completing it, for their own use. He also 
 learned, that a detachment from that place, then on its march 
 towards the Great Meadows, had encamped for the night, 
 in a low and retired situation. 
 
 Under the guidance of some friendly Indians, and under 
 cover of a dark and rainy night, this party he surprised 
 and captured. Having erected, at the Great Meadows, a 
 small stockade fort, afterwards called Fort Necessity, he 
 proceeded with his troops, reinforced by troops from New- 
 York, and others from South Carolina, to nearly four hun- 
 dred men, towards the French fort, Du Gluesne, now Pitts- 
 burg, with the intention of dislodging the enemy. Hearing, 
 however, that the enemy were approaching, he judged it 
 prudent to retire to Fort Necessity. Here the enemy, one 
 thousand five hundred strong, under the command of M. de 
 Villiers, soon appeared, and commenced a furious attack on 
 the fort. After an engagement of several hours, de Villiers 
 demanded a parley, and offered terms of capitulation. These 
 terms were rejected ; but during the night, July 4th, articles 
 were signed, by which Washington was permitted, upon 
 surrendering the fort, to march with his troops, unmolested, 
 to Virginia. 
 
168 PERIOD iv. 1756 TO 1775. 
 
 Such was the "beginning of open hostilities, 
 which were succeeded hy a series of other hos- 
 tilities characterized by the spirit and manner of 
 war, although the formal declaration of war was 
 not made until 1756, two years after, as already 
 mentioned. 
 
 *. Sec. 5. The British ministry, perceiving war 
 to be inevitable, recommended to the British co- 
 lonies in America, to unite in some scheme for 
 their common defence. Accordingly, a conven- 
 tion of delegates from Massachusetts, New- 
 Hampshire, Rhode Island, Connecticut, Pennsyl- 
 vania, Maryland, with the lieutenant governor 
 and council of New-York, was held at Albany, 
 this year, 1754, and a plan of union adopted, re- 
 sembling, in several of its features, the present 
 constitution of the United States. 
 
 But the plan met with the approbation, neither 
 of the provincial assemblies, nor the king's council. 
 By the former, it was rejected, because it gave 
 too much power to the crown ; and by the latter, 
 because it gave too much power to the people. 
 
 According" to this plan, a grand council was to be formed, 
 of members chosen by the provincial assemblies, and sent 
 from all the colonies; which council, with a governor gene- 
 ral, appointed by the crown, and having a negative voice, 
 should be empowered to make general laws, to raise money 
 in all the colonies for their defence, to call forth troops, re- 
 gulate trade, lay duties, &c. &c. 
 
 The plan, thus matured, was approved and signed, on the 
 fourth of July, the day that Washington surrendered Fort 
 Necessity, and twenty-two years before the declaration of 
 Independence, by all the delegates, excepting those from 
 Connecticut, who objected to the negative voice of the gover- 
 nor general. 
 
 One circumstance, in the history of this plan, deserves 
 here to be recorded, as evincing the dawning spirit of the 
 revolution. Although the plan was rejected by the provin- 
 cial assemblies, they declared, without reserve, that if it 
 
FRENCH AND INDIAN WAR. 169 
 
 were adopted, they would undertake to defend themselves 
 from the French, without any assistance from Great Britain. 
 They required, but to be left to employ their supplies in 
 their own way, to effect their security and predominance. 
 
 The mother country was too jealous to trust such powers 
 with the Americans ; but she proposed another plan, de- 
 signed to lay a foundation for the perpetual dependence 
 and slavery of the colonies. This plan was, that the go- 
 vernors, with one, or more of their council, should form 
 convention to concert measures for the general defence, to 
 erect fortifications, raise men, &c. &c. with power to draw 
 upon the British treasury, to defray all charges ; which 
 charges should be reimbursed by taxes upon the colonies, 
 imposed by acts of parliament. But to allow the British 
 government the right of taxation to lay the colonies under 
 the obligations of a debt to be thus liquidated to subject 
 themselves to the rapacity of king's collectors, we scarcely 
 need say, was a proposal which met with universal disap- 
 probation. 
 
 Sec. 6. Early in the spring of 1755, preparations 
 were made, by the colonies, for vigorous exertions 
 against the enemy. Four expeditions were plan- 
 ned. One against the French in Nova Scotia ; a se- 
 cond against the French on the Ohio; a third against 
 Crown Point; and a fourth against Niagara. 
 
 Sec. 7. The expedition against Nova Scotia, 
 consisting of three thousand men, chiefly from 
 Massachusetts, was led by Gen. Monckton and 
 Gen. Winslow. With these troops, they sailed 
 from Boston, May 20th, and on the 1st of June, 
 arrived at Chignecto, on the bay of Fundy. After 
 being joined by three hundred British troops, and 
 a small train of artillery, they proceeded against 
 fort Beau Sejour, which, after four days invest- 
 ment, surrendered. The name of the fort was 
 now changed to that of Cumberland. From this 
 place Gen. Monckton proceeded further into the 
 country, took other forts in possession of the 
 French, and disarmed the inhabitants. By this 
 successful expedition, the English possessed them- 
 

 170 PERIOD iv. 1756 TO 1775. 
 
 selves of the whole country of Nova Scotia, a part 
 of which, as already noticed, the French claimed ; 
 its tranquillity was restored, and upon a per- 
 manent basis. 
 
 In this whole expedition, the English took but twenty 
 men. Large quantities of provisions and military stores 
 fell into their hands, with a number of valuable cannon. 
 
 The French force in Nova Scotia being subdued, a diffi- 
 cult question occurred, respecting the disposal to be made 
 of the inhabitants. Fearing that they might join the French 
 in Canada, whom they had before furnished with intelli- 
 gence, quarters, and provisions, it was determined to dis- 
 perse them among the English colonies. Under this order, 
 one thousand nine hundred were thus dispersed. 
 
 Sec. 8. The expedition against the French, on 
 the Ohio, was led by Gen. Braddock, a British 
 officer, who commenced his march from Virginia, 
 in June, with about two thousand men. Ap- 
 prehensive that Fort du Quesne, against which 
 he was proceeding, might be reinforced, Brad- 
 dock, with one thousand two hundred selected 
 troops, hastened his march, leaving Col. Dunbar 
 to follow more slowly, with the other troops, 
 and the heavy baggage. 
 
 On the 8th of July, Braddock had advanced 
 sixty miles forward of Col. Dunbar, and within 
 twelve or fourteen miles of Fort du Q,uesne. 
 Here he was advised by his officers to proceed 
 with caution, and was earnestly entreated by Col. 
 Washington, his aid, to permit him to precede 
 the army, and guard against surprise. Too 
 haughty and self-confident to receive advice, Brad- 
 dock, without any knowledge of the condition 
 of the enemy, continued to press towards the fort. 
 About twelve o'clock, July 9th, when within seven 
 miles of the fort, he was suddenly attacked by 
 a body of French and Indians. Although the 
 enemy did not exceed five hundred, yet, after an 
 
 
FRENCH AND INDIAN WAR. 171 
 
 action of three hours, Braddock, under whom 
 five horses had been killed, was mortally wounded, 
 and his troops defeated. The loss of the English 
 army was sixty-four out of eighty-five officers, 
 and nearly half the privates. 
 
 This unfortunate defeat of Gen. Braddock is to be as- 
 cribed to his imprudence, and too daring intrepidity. Had 
 he attended to those precautions which were recommended 
 to him, he would not have been thus ambuscaded ; or had 
 he wisely retreated from a concealed enemy, and scoured 
 the thicket with his cannon, the melancholy catastrophe 
 might have been avoided. But, obstinately riveted to the 
 spot on which he was first attacked, he vainly continued 
 his attempt to form his men in regular order, although, by 
 this means, a surer prey to the enemy, until being himself 
 wounded, he could no longer be accessary to the destruction 
 of human life. 
 
 A remarkable fact in the history of this affair remains to 
 be told. Gen. Braddock held the provincial troops in great 
 contempt. Consequently, he kept the Virginians, and 
 other provincials, who were in the action, in the rear. 
 Yet, although equally exposed with the rest, far from be- 
 ing affected with the fears that disordered the regular 
 troops, they stood firm and unbroken, and under Colonel 
 Washington, covered the retreat of the regulars, and saved 
 them from total destruction. 
 
 The retreat of the army, after Braddock was wounded, 
 was precipitate. No pause was made until the rear divi- 
 sion was met. This division, on its junction with the other, 
 was seized with the same spirit of flight with the retreating, 
 and both divisions proceeded to Fort Cumberland, a dis- 
 tance of nearly one hundred and twenty miles from the 
 place of action. 
 
 Had the troops, even here, recovered their spirits and re- 
 turned, success might still have crowned the expedition. 
 At least, the army might have rendered the most important 
 service to the cause, by preventing the devastations and in- 
 human murders, perpetrated by the French and Indians, 
 during the summer, on the western borders of Virginia and 
 Pennsylvania. But, instead of adopting a course so salu- 
 tary and important, Col. Dunbar, leaving the sick and 
 wounded at Cumberland, marched with his troops to Phi- 
 ladelphia. 
 
172 PERIOD iv. 1756 TO 1775. 
 
 Sec. 9. The expedition against Crown Point 
 was led by Gen. William Johnson, a member of 
 the council of New York, and although it failed 
 as to its main object, yet its results diffused ex- 
 ultation through the American colonies, and dis- 
 pelled the gloom which followed Braddock's de- 
 feat. 
 
 The army under Johnson, arrived at the south 
 end of Lake George, the latter part of August 
 While here, intelligence was received that a body 
 of the enemy, two thousand in number, had land- 
 ed at southbay, now Whitehall, under command 
 of Baron Dieskau, and were marching towards 
 Fort Edward, for the purpose of destroying the pro- 
 visions and military stores there. 
 
 At a council of war held on the morning of 
 Sept. 8th, it was resolved to detach a party to in- 
 tercept the French and save the fort. This party 
 consisted of twelve hundred men, commanded by 
 Col. Ephraim Williams, of Deerfield, Massachu- 
 setts. Unfortunately, this detachment was surpri- 
 sed by Dieskau, who was lying in ambush for 
 them. After a most signal slaughter, in which Col. 
 Williams and Hendrick, a renowned Mohawk 
 sachem, and many other officers fell, the detach- 
 ment was obliged to retreat. 
 
 The firing was heard in the camp of Johnson, 
 and as it seemed to approach nearer and nearer, 
 it was naturally conjectured that the English 
 troops were repulsed. The best preparations 
 which the time allowed, were made to receive 
 the advancing foe. Dieskau with his troops soon 
 appeared, and commenced a spirited attack. They 
 were received, however, with so much intrepidity 
 the cannon and musquetry did so much execu- 
 tion among their ranks, that the enemy retired 
 
FRENCH AND INDIAN WAR. 
 
 .- q 
 
 in great disorder, having experienced a signal de- 
 feat. The loss of the French was not less than 
 seven hundred killed and three hundred wounded ; 
 this loss was rendered still more severe to the 
 French by a mortal wound which Dieskau him^ 
 self received, and in consequence of which he fell 
 into the hands of the English. The loss of the En- 
 glish did nut much exceed two hundred. 
 
 Few events of no greater magnitude, leave 
 stronger impressions, than resulted from the battle 
 of Lake George. Following as it did the discom- 
 fiture of Braddock, it served to restore the honour 
 * of the British arms, and the tone of the publick 
 mind. 
 
 At the time it was meditated to send a detachment under 
 Col. Williams, to intercept Dieskau, the number of men 
 proposed was mentioned to Hendrick, the Mohawk chief, 
 and his opinion asked. He replied, " If they are to fight, 
 they are too few. If they are to be killed, they are too 
 many.'.' The number was accordingly increased. Gen. 
 Johnson proposed also to divide the detachment into three 
 parties. Upon this Hendrick took three sticks, and put- 
 ting them together, said to him, " Put these together, and 
 you cannot break them ; take them one by one, and you 
 will break them easily." The hint succeeded, and Hen- 
 drick's sticks saved many of the party, and probably the 
 whole army from destruction.* 
 
 Early in the action, Gen. Johnson was wounded, and 
 Gen. Lyman succeeded to the command, which he held 
 through the day. To this gentleman's gallant exertions, 
 the success of the day, under Providence, was chiefly to be 
 ascribed. Yet it is remarkable, that Gen. Johnson made 
 no mention of Gen. Lyman in his official letter, announc- 
 ing the intelligence of the victory. The ambition of John- 
 son was too great, and his avarice too greedy, to acknow- 
 ledge the merits of a rival. Gen. Johnson was created a 
 baronet, and parliament voted him five thousand pounds 
 sterling, in consideration of his 'success. The reward of 
 Gen. Lyman was the esteem and honor of the people among 
 whom he lived. 
 
 * Dwight's Travels. 
 15* 
 
PERIOD iv. 1756 TO 1775. 
 
 Among the wounded of the French, as already stated, 
 was the Baron Dieskau. He had received a ball through 
 his leg, and being unable to follow his retreating army, 
 was found by an Englisn soldier, resting upon the stump 
 of a tree, with scarcely an attendant. Dieskau, apprehen- 
 sive for his safety, was feeling for his watch, in order to 
 give it to the soldier, when the man, suspecting that he was 
 feeling for a pistol, levelled his gun, and wounded him in 
 the hips. He was carried to the camp, and treated with 
 great kindness. From the camp he was taken to Albany 
 and New- York, whence, some time after, he sailed for Eng- 
 land, where he died. He was a superior officer, possessed 
 of honorable feelings, and adorned with highly polished 
 manners. One stain, however, attaches to his character. *t 
 Before his engagement with Col. Williams' corps, he gave 8 
 orders to his troops neither to give nor take quarter. 
 
 Sec. 10. % The expedition against Niagara was 
 committed to Gov. Shirley of Massachusetts, 
 whose force amounted to two thousand five hun- 
 dred men. But the season was too far advanced, 
 before his preparations were completed, to effect 
 any thing of importance. After proceeding to Os- 
 wego, on Lake Ontario, the army being poorly 
 supplied with provisions, and the rainy season ap- 
 proaching, the expedition was abandoned, and the 
 troops returned to Albany. Thus ended the cam- 
 paign of 1755. 
 
 Sec. 11. In the spring of the ensuing year, 1756, 
 Gov. Shirley was succeeded by Gen. Abercrombie, 
 who was appointed to command, until the ar- 
 rival of the earl of London, commander in chief 
 of all his majesty's forces in America. 
 
 The hostilities of the two preceding years had 
 been carried on without any formal proclamation 
 of war ; but this year, June 9th, as already sta- 
 ted, war was declared by Great Britain against 
 France, and soon after, by France against Great 
 Britain, in turn. 
 
 The plan of operations for the campaign of '56 
 
= 
 
 FRENCH AND INDIAN WAR. 175 
 
 embraced the attack of Niagara and Crown Point, 
 which were still in possession of the French, 
 Both these places were of great importance ; 
 the former being the connecting link in the line 
 of fortifications between Canada and Louisiana ; 
 and the latter commanding Lake Champlain, and 
 guarding the only passage, at that time, into Ca- 
 nada. But important as were these posts, the 
 reduction of neither was this year accomplish- 
 ed, nor even attempted, owing, chiefly, to the 
 great delays of those who held the chief com- 
 and. 
 
 Troops were raised for the expedition against Crown 
 Point, amounting to seven thousand, the command of whom 
 was assigned to Maj. Gen. Winslow, of Massachusetts. 
 But his march was delayed by obstacles ascribed to the 
 improvidence of Abercrombie. 
 
 After the mortal wound received by Dieskau^ 
 at the battle of Lake George, the Marquis de Mont- 
 calm, an able and enterprising officer, succeeded 
 to the command of the French forces. In the 
 month of August this officer, with eight thousand 
 regulars. Canadians and Indians, invested the fort 
 at Oswego, on the south side of Lake Ontario 
 one of the most important posts held by the En- 
 glish in America, and in a few days took it. On 
 the receipt of this intelligence, Lord Loudon, who 
 had arrived in Albany, and entered upon the 
 command, dispatched orders to Gen. Winslow, 
 on his march towards Crown Point, not to pro- 
 ceed. 
 
 The fall of the fort at Os \vego was most unfortunate for 
 the English, and their loss of men made prisoners, and 
 munitions of war, peculiarly severe. By the capture of this 
 post, the enemy obtained the entire command of the lakes 
 Ontario and Erie, and of the whole country of the Five 
 Nations. Sixteen hundred men were made prisoners, and 
 one hundred and twenty pieces of cannon were taken, with 
 
176 PERIOD iv. 1756 TO 1775. 
 
 fourteen mortars, two sloops of war, and two hundred boats 
 and batteaux. 
 
 After this disastrous event, all offensive opera- 
 tions were immediately relinquished, although it 
 was then three months to the time of the usual de- 
 campment of the army. Thus through the in 
 activity of a man, whose leading trait was inde- 
 tision, not one object of the campaign was gained, 
 nor one purpose accomplished, either honourable 
 or important. 
 
 Sec. 12. Notwithstanding the failure of the 
 campaign of this season, the British Parliament 
 made great preparations to prosecute the war 
 the succeeding year, 1757. In July, an armament 
 of eleven ships of the line and fifty transports, 
 with more than six thousand troops ; arrived at 
 Halifax, destined for the reduction of Louisburg. 
 The Colonies had been raising men for an ex- 
 pedition against Ticonderoga and Crown Point. 
 Great was their mortification and disappoint- 
 ment, when they learned from the orders of Lord 
 Loudon, that these troops were to be employed 
 against Louisburg. Such inconstancy and fluc- 
 tuation appeared beneath the dignity of the com- 
 mander in chief. But they were obliged to sub- 
 mit, 'and Lord Loudon proceeded to join the arma- 
 ment at Halifax. 
 
 So dilatory were their measures, however, that 
 before they were ready to sail, Louisburg was 
 reinforced by a fleet of seventeen sail, and with 
 troops to make it nine thousand strong. On the 
 reception of this intelligence, it was deemed in- 
 expedient to proceed, and the expedition was 
 abandoned. 
 
 Sec. 13. While weakness and indecision were 
 marking the counsels of the English, the French 
 
FRENCH AND INDIAN WAR. 177 
 
 continued to urge on their victories. Montcalm, 
 still commander of the French in the nortji, finding 
 the troops withdrawn from Halifax, for the re- 
 duction of Louisburg, seized the occasion to make 
 a descent on Fort William Henry, situated on the 
 north shore of Lake George. The garrison of 
 the fort consisted of three thousand men. With 
 a force of nine thousand men, Montcalm laid 
 siege to it. After a gallant defence of six days, 
 the garrison surrendered, thus giving to Mont- 
 calm the command of the lake, and of the west- 
 ern frontier. 
 
 The spirited and protracted defence of the fort, against 
 such numbers, reflects the highest honor upon its brave 
 Tommander, Col. Munroe. Six days was the enemy kept 
 -it bay, with unabated resolution, in full expectation of as- 
 sistance from Gen. Webb, who lay at Fort Edward, only 
 fifteen miles distant, with an army of four thousand men. 
 
 The character of Gen-. Webb continues sullied, by his 
 unpardonable indifference to the perilous situation of his ... , 
 brethren in arms, at Fort William Henry. It deserves to 
 be known, that Sir William Johnson, after very importu- 
 nate solicitations, obtained leave of General Webb to march 
 with as many as would volunteer in the service, to the relief 
 of Munroe. 
 
 At the beat of the drums, the provincials, almost to a 
 man, sallied forth, and were soon ready and eager for the 
 inarch. After being under arms almost all day, what were 
 their feelings when Sir William, returning from head- 
 quarters, informed them. that General Webb had forbidden 
 them to march ! 
 
 The soldiers were inexpressibly mortified and enraged, 
 and their commander did himself no common honor in the 
 tears he shed, as he turned from his troops, and retired to 
 his tent. 
 
 The defence of Fort William Henry was so gallant, that 
 Col. Munroe, with his troops, was admitted to an honorable 
 capitulation. The capitulation, however, was most shame- 
 fully broken. While the troops were marching out at the 
 fate of the fort, the Indians attached to Montcalm's party 
 ragged the men from their ranks, and with all the inhu- 
 manity of savage feeling, plundered them of their baggage, 
 
178 PERIOD iv. 1756 TO 1775. 
 
 and butchered them in cold blood. Out of a New-Hamp- 
 shire corps of two hundred, eighty were missing. 
 
 It is said 'that efforts were made by the French to restrain 
 the barbarians, but the truth of the assertion may well be 
 doubted, when it is considered that Montcalm's force was at 
 least seven thousand French, and yet these barbarians were 
 not restrained. 
 
 Sec. 14. In 1758, most fortunately for the ho- 
 nour of the British arms, and for the salvation of 
 the colonies, a change took place in the ministry 
 of England. The celebrated Pitt, Lord Chatham, 
 now placed at the head of the administration, 
 breathed a new soul into the British councils, 
 and revived the energies of the colonies, weakened 
 and exhausted by a series of ill-contrived and un- 
 fortunate expeditions. The tide of success now 
 turned in favour of the English, who continu- 
 ed, with some few exceptions, to achieve one 
 victory after another, until the whole of Canada 
 surrendered to the British arms. 
 
 Pitt, upon coming into office, addressed a cir- 
 cular to the colonial governors, in which he as- 
 sured them of the determination of the ministry 
 to send a large force to America, and called upon 
 them to raise as many troops as the number of 
 inhabitants would allow. The colonies were 
 prompt and liberal in furnishing the requisite sup- 
 plies. Massachusetts, Connecticut, and New- 
 Hampshire, unitedly, raised fifteen thousand men. 
 who were ready to take the field in May. 
 
 See. 15. Three expeditions were proposed the 
 first against Louisburg ; the second against Ticon- 
 deroga ; the third against Fort Du Q,uesne.* 
 
 Sec. 16. On the expedition against Louisburg^ 
 Admiral Boscawen sailed from Halifax, May 28th, 
 with a fleet of twenty ships of the line, eighteen 
 
 * Pronounced Du Kane. 
 
FRENCH AND INDIAN WAR. 179 
 
 frigates, and an army of fourteen thousand men, 
 under the command of Brig. Gen. Amherst, next 
 to whom in command was Gen. Wolfe. On the 
 26th of July, after a vigorous resistance, this for- 
 tress was surrendered, and with it five thousand 
 seven hundred and thirty-seven prisoners of war, 
 and one hundred and twenty cannon, besides 
 which the enemy lost five ships of the line and 
 four frigates. At the same time, Isle Royal, St. 
 Johns, with Cape Breton, feirinto the hands of 
 the English, who now became masters of the coast 
 from the St. Lawrence to Nova Scotia. 
 
 The surrender of this fortress was a more signal loss to 
 France, than any which she had sustained since the com 
 mencement of the war. It greatly obstructed her commu- 
 nications with Canada, and was powerfully instrumental in 
 hastening the subjugation of that country to the British 
 crown. 
 
 Sec. 17. The expedition against Ticonderoga 
 was conducted by Gen. Abercrombie, commander 
 in chief in America, Lord Loudon having returned 
 to England. An army of sixteen thousand men, 
 nine thousand of whom were provincials, followed 
 his standard, besides a formidable train of ar- 
 tillery. 
 
 Having passed Lake George, the army pro- 
 ceeded with great difficulty towards the fortress. 
 Unfortunately, Gen, Abercrombie trusted to 
 others, who were incompetent to the task, to re- 
 connoitre the ground and intrenchments of the 
 enemy, and, without a knowledge of the strength 
 of the places, or of the proper points of attack, is- 
 sued his orders to attempt the lines without bring- 
 ing up a single piece of artillery. 
 
 The army advanced to the charge with the 
 greatest intrepidity, and for more than four hours 
 maintained the attack with incredible obstinacy. 
 
180 PERIOD iv. 1756 TO 1775. 
 
 After the loss of nearly two thousand in killed 
 and wounded, the troops were summoned away. 
 The retreat was as unhappy, as the attack had 
 been precipitate and ill advised. Not a doubt 
 > can rationally exist, that had the siege been pro- 
 secuted with prudence and vigour, the reduction 
 of the place would have been easily accomplish- 
 ed, without so great a waste of human life, as 
 the garrison amounted to but little more than 
 three thousand men. 
 
 The passage of Abercrombie across Lake George, on 
 his way with his army to Ticonderoga, was effected by 
 means of one thousand and thirty-five boats. The splen- 
 dor of the military parade on the occasion was eminently 
 imposing, and deserves to be recorded. A late writer, Dr. 
 Dwight, thus describes it. 
 
 " The morning was remarkably bright and beautiful 
 and the fleet moved with exact regularity to the sound of 
 fine martial music. The ensigns waved and glittered in 
 the sun-beams, and the anticipation of future triumph shone 
 in every eye. Above, beneath, around, the scenery was 
 that of enchantment. Rarely has the sun, since that lumi- 
 nary was first lighted up in the heavens, dawned on such 
 a complication of beauty and magmficence." How greatly 
 did all the parade which was displayed, and all the antici- 
 pation which was indulged, add to the mortification of the 
 defeat which followed ! 
 
 After his repulse, Gen. Abercrombie retired to 
 his former quarters on Lake George. Here, anx- 
 ious in any way to repair the mischief and dis- 
 grace of defeat, he consented, at the solicitation 
 of Col. Bradstreet, to detach him with three thou- 
 sand men, against Fort Frontenac, on the north- 
 west side of the outlet of Lake Ontario. With 
 these troops, mostly provincial, Bradstreet sailed 
 down the Ontario, landed within a mile of the fort, 
 opened his batteries, and, in two days, forced this 
 important fortress to surrender. Nine armed ves- 
 sels, sixty cannon, sixteen mortars, and a vast 
 


 Battle of Oswcgv. P. 175. 
 
 Abercrombie s Army crossing Lake George. P, 18U 
 
FRENCH AND INDIAN WAR. 181 
 
 quantity of ammunition, (fee. &c. fell iruo his 
 hands. 
 
 /Sec. 18. To dispossess the French at Fort Du 
 Quesne, the bulwark of their dominion over the 
 western regions, was a third expedition contem- 
 plated this year. This enterprise was entrusted 
 to Gen. Forbes, who left Philadelphia in July, 
 but did not arrive at Du Uuesne till late in 
 November. The force collected for the attack 
 amounted to eight thousand effective men. An 
 attack, however, was needless, the fort having 
 been deserted by the garrison the evening before 
 the arrival of the army. On taking quiet pos- 
 session of the place, Forbes, in honour of Mr. Pitt, 
 called it Pittsburg. 
 
 Notwithstanding the defeat of Ticonderoga, 
 the campaign closed with honour to the colonies, 
 and to the nation in general. The successes of 
 the year prepared the way for the st.tl greate 
 achievements of the ensuing year. 
 
 Sec. 19. Another event of this year concurred 
 in bringing to pass the fortunati issues of the 
 next. This was a treaty of peace and friendship 
 with the Indian nations inhabiting between the 
 Apalachian mountains, the Alleganies, and the 
 lakes. This treaty was concluded at Easton, 
 sixty miles from Philadelphia. 
 
 The managers of the treaty on the part of Great Britain* 
 were the governors of Pennsylvania and New-Jersey, Sir 
 William Johnson, four members of the council of PennsyU 
 vania, six members of assembly, and two agents from, New- 
 Jersey. 
 
 The tribes represented on this occasion, and with which 
 the treaty was made, were the Mohawks, Oneidas, Onon- 
 dagoes, Cayugas, Senecas, Tuscaroras, Nariticoques, and 
 Conays, the Tuteloes, Chugnuts, Dela wares, Lnamies, Mi- 
 nisinks, Mohicans, and Wappingers. The whole number 
 16 
 
182 PERIOD iv. 1756 TO 1775. 
 
 of Indians, including women and children, present, amount- 
 ed to five hundred. 
 
 Sec. 20. The campaign of 1759 had for its ob- 
 ject the entire conquest of Canada. For this 
 purpose, it was determined, that three powerful 
 armies should enter Canada by different routes, 
 and attack, at nearly the same time, all the strong 
 holds of the French in that country. These were 
 Ticonderoga and Crown Point, Niagara and Que- 
 bec. # 
 
 Sec. 21. General Amherst, who had succeeded 
 Abercrombie as commander in chief, led one di- 
 vision against Ticonderoga, which he reached July 
 22d. This fortress soon surrendered, the prin- 
 cipal part of the garrison having retired to Crown 
 Point. Having strengthened Ticonderoga, the 
 army next proceeded against this latter place, 
 and took quiet possession of it, the enemy having 
 fled before their arrival. 
 
 The French retired to the Isle aux Noix, situated at the 
 northern extremity of Lake Champlain, where they were 
 strongly encamped, with a force of three thousand five 
 hundred men, and a powerful artillery. Gen. Amherst 
 designed to follow up his successes against them in that 
 quarter, but the want of a suitable naval armament prevented. 
 
 Sec. 22. The second division of the army, com 
 manded by Gen. Prideaux, was destined against 
 Niagara, at which place they arrived July 6th, 
 without loss or opposition. The place was im- 
 mediately invested : on the 24th of the month, a 
 general battle took place, which decided the fate 
 of Niagara, and placed it in the hands of the 
 English. 
 
 Four days previous to this battle, that able and distin 
 guished officer, General Prideaux, was killed by the burst- 
 ing of a cohorn. The command devolved on Sir William 
 Johnson, who successfully put in execution the plans of his 
 lamented predecessor. 
 
 
FRENCH AND INDIAN WAR. 183 
 
 Sec. 23. While the English troops were achiev- 
 ing these important victories in Upper Canada, 
 Gen. Wolfe was prosecuting the most important 
 enterprise of the campaign, viz. the reduction of 
 Quebec. Embarking at Louisburg with eight 
 thousand men, under convoy of Admirals Saun- 
 ders and Holmes, he landed with his troops in 
 June, on the island of Orleans, a little below 
 Quebec. 
 
 A^er several attempts to reduce the place, 
 which proved unsuccessful, Wolfe conceived the 
 project of ascending with his troops, a precipice 
 of from 150 to 200 feet, by which he would reach 
 the plains of Abraham, lying south and west of 
 the city, and thus gain access to the enemy, in a 
 less fortified spot. 
 
 This ascent he effected with his army, and ere 
 Montcalm, the French general, was aware of it, 
 the army had formed on the heights of Abraham, 
 and were prepared for battle.' 
 
 Here, on the morning of the 13th of September, 
 Wolfe met the French army under Montcalm, and 
 after a severe and bloody contest, in which both 
 these brave commanders fell, victory decided in 
 favour of the English. A thousand prisoners 
 were taken, and a thousand of the enemy were 
 killed. The loss of the English, in killed and 
 wounded, did not exceed six hundred. Five days 
 after, the city capitulated ; the inhabitants were 
 to enjoy their civil and religious rights, and re- 
 main neutral during the war. The city was 
 garrisoned under the command of Gen. Murray. 
 
 Determined from the first to take the place, impregnable 
 as it was accounted, the measures of Gen. Wolfe were sin- 
 gularly bold, and apparently repugnant to all the maxima 
 of war. His attention was first drawn to Point Levi, on 
 the southern bank of the St. Lawrence, upon which, after 
 
184 PERIOD iv. 1756 TO 1775, 
 
 taking possession of it, he erected batteries. By means of 
 these, he destroyed many houses, but from this point it was 
 soon apparent that little impression could be made upon the 
 fortifications of the town. 
 
 Finding it impracticable thus to accomplish his purpose, 
 Wolfe next decided on more daring measures. For the 
 purpose of drawing Montcalm to a general battle, Wolfe, 
 with his troops, crossed the river Montmorenci, and attack- 
 ed the enemy in their entrenchments. Owing, however, to 
 the grounding of some of the boats which conveyed the 
 troops, a part of the detachment did not land so soon as the 
 others. The corps that first landed, without waiting to 
 form, rushed forward, impetuously, towards the enemy's 
 entrenchments. But their courage proved their ruin. A 
 close and well directed fire from the enemy cut them down 
 in great numbers. 
 
 Montcalm's party had now landed, and were drawn up 
 on the beach in order. But it was near night, a thunder 
 storm was approaching, and the tide was rapidly setting in. 
 Fearing the consequences of delay, Wolfe ordered a retreat 
 across the Montmorenci, and returned to his quarters on 
 the Isle of Orleans. In this rencounter, his loss amounted 
 to near six hundred of the flower of his army. 
 
 The difficulties of effecting the conquest of Quebec now 
 pressed upon Wolfe with all their force. But he knew the 
 importance of taking this strongest hold he knew the ex- 
 pectations of his countrymen he well knew that no mili- 
 tary conduct could shine that was not gilded with success. 
 
 Disappointed thus far, and worn down with fatigue and 
 watching, General Wolfe fell violently sick. Scarcely had 
 he recovered, before he proceeded to put in execution a 
 plan which had been matured on his sick bed. This was 
 to proceed up the river gain the heights of Abraham, and 
 draw Montcahri to a general engagement. 
 
 Accordingly, the troops were transported up the river 
 about nine miles. On the 12th of Sept., one hour after 
 midnight, Wolfe and his troops left the ships, and in boats 
 silently dropped down the current, intending to land a 
 league above Cape Diamond, and there ascend the bank 
 leading to the station he wished to gain. Owing, however, 
 to the rapidity of the river, they fell below the intended 
 place, and landed a mile, or a mile and a half, above the 
 city. 
 
 The operation was a critical one, as they had to navigate, 
 in silence, down a rapid stream, and to find a right place 
 
Army under Gen. Wolfe ascending to the Plains oj 
 Abraham. P. 185. 
 
 Death of Gen. Wolfe. P. 186. 
 
186 PERIOD iv. 1756 TO 1775. 
 
 he prepared to fight. Between nine and ten o'clock, the 
 two armies, about equal in numbers, met face to face. 
 
 The battle now commenced. Inattentive to the fire of a 
 body of Canadians and Indians, one thousand five hundred 
 of whom Montcalrn had stationed in the cornfields and 
 bushes, Wolfe directed his troops to reserve their fire for 
 the main body of the French, now rapidly advancing. On 
 their approach within forty yards, the English opened their 
 fire, and the destruction became immense. 
 
 The French fought bravely, but their ranks became dis- 
 ordered, and, notwithstanding the repeated efforts of their 
 officers to form them, and to renew the attack, they were so 
 successfully pushed by the British bayonet, and hewn down 
 by the Highland broadsword, that their discomfiture was 
 complete. 
 
 During the action, Montcalm was on the French left, and 
 Wolfe on the English right, and here they both fell in the 
 critical moment that decided the victory. Early in the bat- 
 tle, Wolfe received a ball in his wrist, but binding his hand- 
 kerchief around it, he continued to encourage his men. 
 Shortly after, another ball penetrated his groin ; but this 
 wound, although much more severe, he concealed, and con- 
 tinued to urge on the contest, till a third bullet pierced his 
 breast. He was now obliged, though reluctantly, to be car- 
 ried to the rear of the line. 
 
 Gen. Monckton succeeded to the command, but was im- 
 mediately wounded, and conveyed away. In this critical 
 state of the action, the command devolved on Gen. Town- 
 shend. Gen. Montcalm, fighting in front of his battalion, re- 
 ceived a mortal wound about the same time, and Gen. Jen- 
 nezergus, his second in command, fell near his side. 
 
 Wolfe died in the field, before the battle was ended; but 
 he lived long enough to know that the victory was his. 
 While leaning on the shoulder of a lieutenant, who kneeled 
 to support him, he was seized with the agonies of death : 
 at this moment was heard the distant sound, " They fly 
 they fly." The hero raised his drooping head, and eagerly 
 asked, " Who fly ?" Being told that it was the French 
 " Then," he replied, " I die happy," and expired. 
 
 " This death," says Professor Silliman, " has furnished a 
 grand and pathetic subject for the painter, the poet, and the 
 historian, and, undoubtedly, considered as a specimen of 
 mere military glory, it is one of the most sublime that the 
 annals of war afford." 
 
 Montcalm was every way worthy of being the competitor 
 
FRENCH AND INDIAN WAR. 187 
 
 of Wolfe. In talents, in military skill, in personal courage, 
 he was not his inferior. Nor was his death much less sub- 
 lime. He lived to be carried to the city, where his last mo- 
 ments were employed in writing, with his own hand, a let- 
 ter to the English general, recommending the French pri- 
 soners to his care and humanity. When informed that his 
 wound was mortal, he replied, " I shall not then live to see 
 the surrender of Quebec." 
 
 The following interesting particulars relating to the dan- 
 gers and sufferings of two officers of the English army, du- 
 ring the battle, we shall be excused for inserting, notwith- 
 standing their length. 
 
 " Captain Ochterlony and Ensign Peyton, belonged to the 
 regiment of Brigadier-General Monckton. They were near- 
 ly of an age, which did not exceed thirty ; the first was a 
 North-Briton, the other a native of Ireland. Both were 
 agreeable in person, and were connected together by the 
 ties of mutual friendship and esteem. On the day that pre- 
 ceded the battle, Captain Ochterlony had fought a duel with 
 a German officer, in which, though he wounded and dis- 
 armed his nntagonist, yet he himself received a dangerous 
 hurt under the right arm, in consequence of which his 
 friends insisted on his remaining in camp during the action 
 of next day; but his spirit was too great to comply with 
 this remonstrance. He declared that it should never be said 
 that a scratch, received in a private rencounter, had prevent- 
 ed him from doing his duty, when his country required his 
 service; and he took the field with a fusil in his hand, 
 though he \vas hardly able to carry his arms. In leading 
 up his men to the enemy's entrenchment, he was shot 
 through the lungs with a musket ball, an accident which 
 obliged him to part with his fusil, but he still continued ad- 
 vancing, until, by loss of blood, he became too weak to pro- 
 ceed farther. About the same time, Mr. Peyton was lamed 
 by a shot, which shattered the small bone of his left leg. 
 The soldiers, in their* retreat, earnestly begged, with tears 
 in their eyes, that Captain Ochterlony would allow them to 
 carry him and the ensign off the field. But he was so bi- 
 gotted to a severe point of honor, that he would not quit the 
 ground, though he desired they would take care of his en- 
 sign. Mr. Peyton, with a generous disdain, rejected their 
 good offices, declaring that henvould not leave his captain 
 in such a situation ; and, in a little time, they remained sole 
 survivors on that part of the field. 
 
 " Captain Ochterlony-sat down by his friend, and as they 
 
188 PERIOD iv. 1756 TO 1775. 
 
 expected nothing but immediate death, they took leave of 
 each other ; yet they were not altogether abandoned by the 
 hope of being protected as prisoners ; for the captain, see- 
 ing a French soldier, with two Indians, approach, started up, 
 and accosting them in the French language, which he spoke 
 perfectly well, expressed his expectation that they would 
 treat him and his companion as officers, prisoners, and gen- 
 tlemen. The two Indians seemed to be entirely under the 
 conduct of the Frenchman, who, coming up to Mr. Peyton, 
 as he sat on the ground, snatched his laced hat from his 
 head, and robbed the captain of his watch and money. This 
 outrage was a signal to the Indians for murder and pillage. 
 One of them, clubbing his firelock, struck at him behind, 
 with a view to knock him down, but the blow missing his 
 head, took place upon his shoulder. At the same instant, 
 the other Indian poured his shot into the breast of this un- 
 fortunate young gentleman, who cried out, ' O Peyton ! the 
 villain has shot me.' Not yet satiated with cruelty, the bar- 
 barian sprung upon him, and stabbed him in the belly with 
 his scalping knife. The captain having parted with his 
 fusil, had no weapon for his defence, as none of the officers 
 wore swords in the action. The three ruffians, finding him 
 still alive, endeavored to strangle him with his own sash ; 
 and he was now upon his knees, struggling against them 
 with surprising exertion. Mr. Peyton, at this juncture, 
 having a double-barrelled musket in his hand, and seeing 
 the distress of his friend, fired at one of the Indians, who 
 dropped dead on the spot. The other, thinking the ensign 
 would be an easy prey, advanced towards him, and Mr. 
 Peyton, having taken good aim, at the distance of four yards, 
 discharged his piece the second time, but it seemed to take 
 no effect. The savage fired in his turn, and wounded the 
 ensign in the shoulder ; then rushing upon him, thrust his 
 bayonet through his body ; he repeated the blow, which 
 Mr. Peyton, attempting to parry, received another wound in 
 his left hand ; nevertheless, he seized the Indian's musket 
 with the same hand, pulled him forwards, and with his 
 right, drawing a dagger which hung by his side, plunged it 
 in the barbarian's side. A violent struggle ensued; but at 
 length Mr. Peyton was uppermost, and, with repeated 
 strokes of his dagger, killed his antagonist outright. Here 
 he was seized with an unaccountable emotion of curiosity, 
 to know whether or not his shot had taken effect on the body 
 of the Indian; he accordingly turned him up, and stripping 
 off his blanket, perceived that the ball had penetrated quite 
 
FRENCH AND INDIAN WAR. 189 
 
 through the cavity of the breast. Having thus obtained a 
 dear bought victory, he started up on one leg, and saw Cap- 
 tain Ochterlony standing at the distance of sixty yards, close 
 by the enemy's breast-work, with the French soldier attend- 
 ing him. Mr. Peyton then called aloud, ' Captain Ochter- 
 lony, I am glad to see you have at last got under protection. 
 Beware of that villain, who is more barbarous than the sa- 
 vages. God bless you, my dear captain. I see a party of 
 Indians coming this way, and expect to be murdered imme- 
 diately.' 
 
 " A number of these barbarians had for some time 
 been employed on the left, in scalping and pillaging the 
 dying and the dead that were left upon the field of battle ; 
 and above thirty of them were in full march lo destroy Mr. 
 Peyton. This gentleman knew he had no mercy to ex- 
 pect ; for, should his life be spared for the present, they 
 would have afterwards insisted upon sacrificing him to the 
 manes of their brethren whom he had slain ; and in that 
 case he would have been put to death by the most excrucia- 
 ting tortures. Full of this idea, he snatched up his musket, 
 and, notwithstanding his broken leg, ran above forty yards, 
 without halting; and feeling himself now totally disabled, 
 and incapable of proceeding one step further, he loaded his 
 piece, and presented it to the two foremost Indians, who stood 
 aloof waiting to be joined by their fellows; while the French, 
 from their breast-works, kept up a continual fire of cannon 
 and small arms upon this poor, solitary, maimed gentleman. r-i ' 
 In this uncomfortable situation he stood, when he discerned 
 at a distance a Highland officer, with a party of his men, 
 skirting the plain towards the field of battle. He forthwith 
 waved his hand in signal of distress, and being perceived 
 by the officer, he detached three of his men to his assistance. 
 These brave fellows hastened to him through the midst of J~~ 
 a terrible fire, and one of them bore him ofF on his shoulders. 
 The Highland officer was Captain Macdonald, of Colonel 
 Frazier's battalion, who, understanding that a young gen- 
 tleman, his kinsman, had dropped on the field of battle, had 
 put himself at the head of this party, with which he pene- 
 trated to the middle of the field, drove a considerable number 
 of the French and Indians before him, and finding his rela- 
 tion still unscalped, carried him off in triumph. Poor Capi. 
 Ochterlony was conveyed to Quebec, where, in a few days, 
 he died of his wounds. After the reduction of that place, 
 the French surgeons who attended him, declared, that in all 
 probability, he would have recovered of the two shots he 
 
190 PERIOD iv. 1756 TO 1775. 
 
 had received in his breast, had he not been mortally wound- 
 ed in the belly by the Indian's scalping knife. 
 
 " As this very remarkable scene was acted in sight of 
 both armies, General Townshend, in the sequel, expostu- 
 lated with the French officers upon the inhumanity of keep- 
 ing up such a severe fire against two wounded gentlemen, 
 who were disabled, and destitute of all hope of escaping. 
 They answered, that the fire was not made by the reg'ulars, 
 but by the Canadians and savages, whom it was not in the 
 power of discipline to restrain."* 
 
 Sec. 24. The capture of Quebec, which soon 
 followed, important as it was, did not immediately 
 terminate the war. The French in Canada had 
 still a powerful army, and some naval force, 
 above the city. 
 
 Sec. 25. In the ensuing spring, 1760, Monsieur 
 Levi approached Quebec, from Montreal, assisted 
 by six frigates, for the purpose of recovering it 
 from the English. Gen. Murray, who command- 
 ed the English garrison, marched to meet him, 
 with only three thousand men, and, on the 28th 
 of April, after a bloody battle, fought at Sillsery, 
 three miles above the city, the English army was 
 defeated, with the loss of one thousand men, the 
 French having lost more than double that number. 
 
 The English retreated to Quebec, to which the 
 French now laid siege. About the middle ol 
 May, an English squadron arrived with reinforce- 
 ments, soon after which, the French fleet was 
 taken and destroyed, and the siege was raised. 
 
 Sec. 26. The attention of the English command- 
 er in chief ; Gen. Amherst, was now directed to 
 the reduction of Montreal, the last fortress of con- 
 sequence in the possession of the French. To ef- 
 fect this, he. detached Col. Haviland, with a well 
 disciplined army, to proceed to Lake George, 
 Crown Point, and Lake Champlain ; Gen. Mur- 
 
 * Silliman's Tour, from Smollet. 
 
FRENCH AND INDIAN WAR. 191 
 
 ray was ordered from Quebec, with such forces as 
 could be spared from the garrison, while Gen. Am- 
 herst himself proceeded with ten thousand men, 
 by Lake Ontario, down the river St. Lawrence. 
 
 Generals Amherst and Murray arrived at Mon- 
 treal the same day, Sept. 6th, and were joined by 
 Haviland, on the day succeeding. While prepar- 
 ing to lay siege to the place, the commander of 
 Montreal, M. de Vaudreuil, perceiving that resist- 
 ance would be ineffectual, demanded a capitula- 
 tion. On tHe 8th, Montreal, Detroit, Michilimack- 
 inac, and all the other places within the govern- 
 ment of Canada, were surrendered to his Britan- 
 nic Majesty. 
 
 Sec. 27. Thus ended a war which, from the 
 first hostilities, had continued six years, and du- 
 ring which much distress had been experienced, 
 and many thousand valuable lives lost. Great 
 and universal was the joy that spread through the 
 colonies, at the successful termination of a contest, 
 so long and severe, and public thanksgivings 
 were generally appointed, to ascribe due honour 
 to HIM who had preserved to the colonies their 
 existence and liberties. 
 
 Sec. 28. While the troops were employed in 
 the conquest of Canada, the colonies of Virginia 
 and South Carolina suffered invasion and out- 
 rage from the Cherokees, a powerful tribe of sa- 
 vages on the West. But in 1761, they were sig- 
 nally defeated by Col. Grant, and compelled to 
 sue for peace. 
 
 Intelligence being communicated to Gen. Amherst of the 
 danger of these colonies, he despatched Gen. Montgomery, 
 with one thousand two hundred men, for their protection 
 and relief. 
 
 Being joined by the forces of the province of Carolina 
 on his arrival, he immediately proceeded into the country 
 
192 PERIOD iv. 1756 TO 1775. 
 
 of the Cherokees, plundering and destroying their villages 
 and magazines of corn. In revenge, the savages besieged 
 Fort Loudon, on the confines of Virginia, which was oblig- 
 ed, by reason of famine, to capitulate. The capitulation 
 was, however, broken, and the troops, while on their march 
 to Virginia, were assaulted, numbers of them killed, and 
 the rest taken captive. 
 
 The next year, 1761, Gen. Montgomery being obliged 
 to return, Col. Grant was sent to continue the war. With 
 an army of near two thousand six hundred men, he began 
 his march towards the enemies country. On the fourth 
 day the army fell in with a body of savages, and after a 
 strongly contested battle, put them to flight. Following up 
 this victory, Col. Grant proceeded to destroy their maga- 
 zines, burn their corn fields, and consume their settlements, 
 until, having effectually routed them, he returned with his 
 troops. Soon after this, the Cherokee chiefs came in, and 
 a peace was concluded. 
 
 Sec. 29. The conquest of Canada having been 
 achieved in 1763, a definitive treaty, the prelimi- 
 naries of which had been settled the year before, 
 was signed at Paris, and soon after ratified by 
 the kings of England and France ; by which all 
 Nova Scotia, Canada, the Isle of Cape Breton, and 
 all other islands in the gulf and river St. Law- 
 rence, were ceded to the British crown. 
 
 NOTES. 
 
 Sec. 30. MANNERS OF THE COLONISTS. The 
 change in respect to manners in the colonies, du- 
 ring this period, consisted chiefly in a gradual 
 wearing away of national distinctions and pecu- 
 liarities, and a tendency to a still greater unity 
 and assimilation of character. The rapid increase 
 of wealth, and the frequency of intercourse with 
 Europe, began to introduce among the colonies 
 the tastes, and fashions, and luxuries of European 
 countries. But the introduction of them produ- 
 ced little enervation .of character among the peo- 
 ple of America. Such an effect was counteracted 
 
FRENCH AND INDIAN WAR. 193 
 
 by the bloody but successful war with the French 
 and Indians, and the boundless prosperity which 
 seemed to open to the country, and call forth its 
 energies. Instead, therefore, of a growing weak- 
 ness in the colonies, we perceive a more vigor- 
 ous spirit of commercial enterprise pervading the 
 country ; a consciousness of political importance 
 becoming confirmed ; and a deep and ardent love 
 of civil liberty breathing over the land. 
 
 Sec. 31. RELIGION. The only religious sect in- 
 troduced into America, during this period, was 
 that of the Shakers, or Shaking Quakers, who ar- 
 rived from England in 1774, and settled at Niska- 
 yuna, near Albany. 
 
 Although the spirit of religious intolerance had disappear 
 ed from the colonies, and the puritanical severity of the north 
 had become much softened, yet, until the commencement of 
 the French and Indian war, the religious character of the 
 colonies had remained essentially the same. But during this 
 war, infidelity was extensively introduced into the army, by 
 means of the foreign English officers and soldiers who were 
 sent into the country. From the army, it spread itself into 
 society, and produced a considerable relaxation of morals, 
 and a looser adherence to correct principle. 
 
 Sec. 32. TRADE AND COMMERCE. During this 
 period, trade and commerce made great advances, 
 the annual amount of imports from Great Britain 
 was about two and a half millions of pounds 
 sterling, from 1756 to 1771 ; from 1771 to 1773, it 
 was three millions and a half annually, on an 
 average. The annual amount of exports of the 
 colonies to Great Britain and elsewhere, was about 
 four million pounds sterling, at tke close of this 
 period. The articles of export, and the nature of 
 the trade of the colonies, were essentially the same 
 as stated in the notes to Period III. 
 
 In 1769, the number of ships employed by Great Britain 
 and the colonies, in the trade with the colonies, was one thow- 
 17 
 
194 PERIOD iv. 1756 TO 1775. 
 
 sand and seventy-eight, manned by twenty-eight thousand 
 nine hundred and ten seamen. 
 
 The whale and other fisheries in the colonies had hecome 
 of great importance. In 1775, there were employed in the 
 fishery generally, and in carrying the fish to market from 
 New-England, one thousand four hundred and fifty vessels of 
 all descriptions, of one hundred thousand tons burthen, and 
 eleven thousand fishermen and seamen. 
 
 Sec. 33. AGRICULTURE. During this period, a 
 gradual progress was made in agriculture, but it 
 does not need any specific notice. 
 
 Sec. 34. ARTS AND MANUFACTURES. Great Bri- 
 tain still continued to oppose the progress of arts 
 and manufactures in the colonies, and, therefore, 
 there was but a moderate advance of these in- 
 terests, during this period. 
 
 Sec. 35. POPULATION. At the close of this pe- 
 riod, the white and black population of the colo- 
 nies did not vary greatly from three millions. 
 
 Sec. 36. EDUCATION. In the year 1769, the col- 
 lege at Hanover, New-Hampshire, was founded, 
 and called Dartmouth College, in honour of the 
 Earl of Dartmouth, who was one of its principal 
 benefactors. 
 
 In 1770, the University in Rhode Island, called 
 Brown University, was established at Providence. 
 It was incorporated in 1764, and first located at 
 Warren. At this place the first commencement 
 was held, 1769. 
 
 REFLECTIONS. 
 
 Sec. 37. The preceding short period of our history pre- 
 sents several interesting subjects of reflection. The Ame- 
 rican colonies became the theatre of a bloody conflict, at- 
 tended by all the appalling features of savage war. Al- 
 though feebly supported by England, and embarrassed by 
 the want of political union, they surmounted every obstacle, 
 and compelled the French, their enemies, to depart from 
 their shores for ever. 
 
 But no sooner was this conflict ended, than they began 
 
FRENCH AND INDIAN WAR. 195 
 
 to feel, with added weight, the hand of British oppression. 
 Not humbled, however, by injustice, nor crushed by seve- , 
 rides, they vigorously put forth their strength in commerce, 
 trade, and agriculture. They spread innumerable sails 
 upon the ocean ; they converted forests into meadows and 
 wheat fields ; established seminaries of learning ; founded 
 cities ; and built churches to God. 
 
 Nay, more we see that those very steps, which were 
 taken by the mother country to cripple the American colo- 
 nies, were so ordered as to add to their strength. By leav- 
 ing them to bear the war of 1756 almost alone, she showed 
 them that they could not expect defence from her ; she 
 taught them the necessity of relying upon their own ener- 
 gies ; gave them an opportunity to learri the art of war, 
 and to ascertain their own strength. 
 
 The long line of British acts, designed to crush the co- 
 lonies, and to keep them in humble subjection, passed, as 
 they were, in wilful ignorance of the feelings and power of _ 
 America, awakened the spirit of the revolution, and laid 
 the foundation of a great nation. 
 
 What a lesson may tyranny gather from this ! And how 
 thankful should we 1 e, that a just Providence is above, who 
 regards the affairs of men who turns aside the trampling- 
 heel of oppression, and causes the blood wrung out by ty- 
 ranny to cry from the ground, and to call forth the spirit of 
 liberty ! 
 
UNITED STATES. 
 
 PERIOD V. 
 
 DISTINGUISHED FOR THE WAR OF THE REVOLUTION. 
 
 Extending from the commencement of hostilities 
 by Great Britain, against the American colo- 
 nies, in the battle of Lexington, 1775, to the dis- 
 banding of the American army, at West Point) 
 1783. 
 
 Sec. 1. On the 19th of April, 1775, was shed at 
 Lexington, Massachusetts, the first blood in the 
 war of the revolution a war, which terminated 
 in the separation of the American colonies from 
 Great Britain, and in their change from this hum- 
 ble character and condition, to that of free and 
 independent States. 
 
 Sec. 2. The causes, which led the colonies to 
 take up arms against the mother country, deserve 
 a distinct recital in this portion of our history, as 
 they will clearly show the justice, the wisdom, 
 and the necessity of those acts of resistance, to 
 which, at that trying period, resort was had. 
 
 " The independence of America," it has been 
 observed, "was found by those, who sought it 
 not." When the Fathers of this country left 
 Great Britain, they had no intention of establish- 
 ing a government independent of that of Eng- 
 land. On the contrary, they came out as colonists, 
 and expected still to acknowledge allegiance to 
 
Battle of Lexingtjn. P. li;G. 
 
 Destruction of Tea in Boston Harbor. P. 2 i(>. 
 
REVOLUTION. 197 
 
 the mother country. For many years, when they ] 
 spoke, or wrote, or thought of England, it was 
 under the filial and affectionate idea of "home." 
 "And even at the commencement of the contro- 
 versy wilh Great Britain," if we credit those 
 who lived at that time, " there existed no desire, 
 nor intention, of becoming independent." 
 
 Testimony with respect to the filial disposition of the co- 
 lonies towards the mother country abounds. " I profess," 
 said Pownal, who had been governor and commander-in- 
 chief of Massachusetts Bay governor of South Carolina, 
 &c. &c. 
 
 " I profess," said he, in 1765, " an affection for the colo- 
 nies, because, having lived among their people, in a private, 
 as well as public character, I know them I know that in ^~ - 
 their private social relations, there is not a more friendly, % 
 and in their political one, a more zealously loyal people in " ^ 
 all his majesty's dominions. They would sacrifice their 
 dearest interest for the honor of their mother country. 1 ' ^ 
 have a right to say this, because experience has given me . ^ 
 a practical knowledge, and this impression of them. They j 
 have no other idea of this country than as their home ; 
 they have no other word by which to express it, and till 
 of late, it has been constantly expressed by the name of 
 home." 
 
 To the same effect is the testimony of Dr. Franklin. 
 "Scotland," said he, in 1768, "has had its rebellions; Ire- 
 land has had its rebellions; England its plots against the 
 reigning family ; but America is free from this reproach ;" 
 41 No people were ever known more truly loyal: the pro- 
 testant succession in the house of Hanover was their idol." 
 
 Sec. 3. For these feelings of affection for the 
 mother country, the colonies deserve the highest 
 encomium. Causes existed, which might have 
 justified a less degree of attachment, and were cal- 
 culated to produce it. These were the oppression 
 and losses which they endured ; the shackles im- 
 posed upon them ; the restraints upon their com- 
 merce ; the parsimony with which aid was ad- 
 ministered by the mother country ; the maleadmi- 
 17* 
 
198 PERIOD v. 1775 TO 1783. 
 
 nistration the peculation and arbitrary conduct 
 of the royal governors these things were suffi- 
 cient, and more than sufficient, to stifle every feel 
 ing of affection, and shake the last remains of theii 
 allegiance. 
 
 Yet through all this oppressive subordination 
 through the calamities of war through the at- 
 tempt to wrest from them their charters, and their 
 dearest rights they could say, and did say, " Eng- 
 land, with all thy faults, I love thee still." 
 
 Nor is it probable that these friendly dispositions 
 of the colonies would at this time have been with- 
 drawn, had not Great Britain interrupted them by 
 a grievous change of policy towards the inhabi- 
 tants touching the subject of revenue and taxation. 
 
 Sec. 4 Before the peace of '63, this subject had 
 been wisely let alone. The colonies had been 
 permitted to tax themselves, without the interfer- 
 ence of the parliament. Till this period, it had 
 sufficed for the mother country so to control their 
 commerce, as to monopolize its benefits to herself. 
 But from and after this period, the ancient system 
 was set aside, and a different and oppressive po- 
 licy adopted. The first act, the ayowed purpose 
 of which was a revenue from the colonies, passed 
 the parliament, Sept. 29th, 1764, the preamble to 
 which began thus " Whereas, it is just and ne- 
 cessary that a revenue be raised in America, for 
 defraying the expenses of defending, protecting, 
 and securing the same, we the commons," &c. 
 The act then proceeds to lay a duty on " clayed 
 sugar, indigo, coffee, &c. &c. being the produce of 
 a colony not under the dominion of his majesty." 
 
 Sec. 5. This act the colonies could not approve. 
 They could not approve of it, because it recogni- 
 zed the existence of a right to tax them a right 
 
REVOLUTION. 199 
 
 not founded in justice, and which since their ex- 
 istence, nearly one hundred and fifty years, had, 
 until now, seldom been named. But the colonies 
 could submit to it, although unpleasant and un- 
 just, nor would this act alone have led to perma- 
 nent disaffection, had it not been followed by 
 other acts, still more unjust and oppressive. 
 
 On the subject of the right of the British parliament to 
 tax the colonies, it was asserted in the mother country, 
 ** to be essential to the unity, and of course to the prosperi- 
 ty, of the empire, that the British parliament should have a 
 right of taxation over every part of the royal dominions." 
 In the colonies, it was contended, "that taxation and re- 
 presentation were inseparable, and that they could not be 
 safe, if their property might be taken from them, without 
 their consent." This claim of the right of taxation on the 
 one side, and the denial of it on the other, was the very 
 hinge on which the revolution turned. 
 
 Sec. 6. In accordance with the policy to be ob- 
 served towards America, the next yearj 1765, the 
 famous stamp act passed both houses of parlia- 
 ment. This ordained that instruments of writ- 
 ing, such as deeds, bonds, notes, &c. among the 
 colonies, should be null and void, unless executed 
 on stamped paper, for which a duty should be paid 
 to the crown. 
 
 When this bill was brought in, the ministers, and parti- 
 cularly Charles Townshond, exclaimed: 
 
 " These Americans, our own children, planted by our 
 care, nourished by our indulgence, protected by our arms, 
 until they are grown to a good degree of strength and opu- 
 lence 5 will they now turn their backs upon us, and grudge 
 to contribute their mite to relieve us from the heavy load 
 which overwhelms us ? f> 
 
 Col. Barre caught the words, and, with a vehemence be- 
 coming a soldier, rose and said : 
 
 " Planted by your care ! No ! your oppression planted 
 them in America; they fled from your tyranny into a then_ 
 uncultivated land, where they were exposed to almost all 
 the hardships to which human nature is liable, and among 
 others, to the savage cruelty of the enemy of the country, 
 
/ 
 
 200 PERIOD v. 1775 TO 1783. 
 
 a people, the most subtle, and, I take upon me to say, the 
 most truly terrible of any people that ever inhabited any 
 part of God's earth; and yet actuated by principles of true 
 English liberty, they met all these hardships with pleasure, 
 ^compared with those they suffered in their own country, 
 t _ from the hands of those that should have been their friends. 
 
 " They nourished by your indulgence ! They grew by 
 your neglect ; as soon as you began to care about them, 
 that care was exercised in sending persons to rule over 
 them, in one department and another, who were, perhaps, 
 the deputies of the deputies of some members of this house, 
 sent to spy out their liberty, to misrepresent their actions, 
 and to prey upon them : men, whose behaviour, on many 
 occasions, has caused the blood of these sons of liberty to 
 recoil within them : men, promoted to the highest seats of 
 justice, some of whom, to my knowledge, were glad, by 
 going to foreign countries, to escape the vengeance of the 
 laws in their own. 
 
 " They protected by your arms ! They have nobly taken 
 up arms in your defence, have exerted their valor amidst 
 their constant and laborious industry, for the defence of a 
 country whose frontiers, while drenched in blood, its inte- 
 rior parts have yielded for your enlargement the little sa- 
 vings of their frugality and the fruits of their toils. And be- 
 lieve me, remember, I this day told you so, that the same 
 spirit which actuated that people at first, will continue with 
 them still." 
 
 The night after this act passed, Doctor Franklin, who 
 was then in London, wrote to Charles Thompson, after- 
 wards secretary of the Continental Congress, " The sun of 
 liberty is set ; \he Americans must light the lamps of indus- 
 try and economy" To which Mr. Thompson answered, 
 s^ "Be assured we shall light torches quite of another sort" 
 thus predicting the convulsions which were about to 
 follow. 
 
 'Sec. 7. On the arrival of the news of the stamp 
 act in America, a general indignation spread 
 through the country, and resolutions were passed 
 against the act, by most of the colonial assemblies. 
 
 " The assembly of Virginia was the first public body that 
 met, after the news of the act reached America. Towards 
 the close of the session, the following resolutions were in- 
 troduced into the house of burgesses, by Patrick Henry, 
 
REVOLUTION. 201 
 
 a lawyer, at that time a young man, but highly distin- 
 guished for the strength of his intellect, and the power of 
 his eloquence. 
 
 Resolved, that the first adventurers and settlers of this 
 his majesty's colony and dominions of Virginia, brought 
 with them, and transmitted to their posterity, and all others 
 his majesty's subjects, since inhabiting in this his majesty's 
 colony, all the privileges and immunities that have at any 
 time been held, enjoyed, and possessed, by the people of 
 Great Britain. 
 
 Resolved, that by the two royal charters, granted by King 
 James I, the colonists aforesaid are entitled to all privileges 
 of faithful, liege, and natural born subjects, to all int 
 and purposes, as if they had been abiding and born within 
 the realms of England. 
 
 Resolved, that his majesty's most liege people of this his 
 most ancient colony, have enjoyed the right of being thus 
 governed by their own authority, in the article of taxes and 
 internal police, and that the same have never been forfeited, 
 nor any other way yielded up, but have been constantly re- 
 cognized by the king and people of Great Britain. 
 
 Resolved, therefore, that the general assembly of this co- 
 lony, together with his majesty, or his substitutes, have, in 
 their respective capacity, the only exclusive right and pow- 
 er to lay taxes and impositions upon the inhabitants of the 
 colony ; and that any attempts to vest such power in any 
 person or persons whatever, other than the general assembly 
 aforesaid, is illegal, unconstitutional, and unjust ; and has 
 a manifest tendency to destroy British as well as American 
 freedom. 
 
 The debate on these resolutions was animated, and even 
 violent. Nothing like them had ever transpired in Ameri- 
 ca. They evinced a settled purpose of resistance ; and 
 conveyed to the ministry of Great Britain a lesson, which 
 had they read with unprejudiced minds, might have saved 
 them the fruitless struggle of a seven years war. There 
 were those, in the house of burgesses, who strongly op- 
 posed the resolutions : but the bold and powerful eloquence 
 of Henry bore them down, and carried the resolutions 
 through. In the heat of the debate, he boldly asserted, that 
 the king had acted the part of a tyrant; and alluding to the 
 fate of other tyrants, he exclaimed, <; Ca3sar had his Brutus, 
 Charles I. his Cromwell, and George III." here pausing 
 a moment till the cry of " treason, treason," resounding from 
 several parts of the house, had ended he added " may 
 
S02 PERIOD v. 1775 TO 1783. 
 
 profit by their example ; if this be treason, make the most 
 of it." 
 
 No sooner had the above resolutions passed, than copies 
 of them were forwarded to the other provinces. They 
 were received with enthusiasm by a justly indignant people, 
 among whom they served to raise still higher the feelings 
 of opposition, which pervaded the country. 
 
 Sec. 8. In June, Massachusetts recommended 
 a colonial congress, to consult for the general safe- 
 ty. The recommendation was well received by 
 most of the colonies, and in October, twenty-eight 
 members assembled in New-York, where they 
 remonstrated against the stamp act, and petition- 
 .ed its repeal. At the same time, also, they drew 
 up a declaration of rights, in which taxation and 
 representation were declared to be inseparable. 
 
 This patriotic movement, on the part of the colony of 
 Massachusetts, was made prior to any intelligence of the pro- 
 ceedings of Virginia, and was in accordance with the spirit 
 of liberty, which early manifested itself in that province. 
 
 Three commissioners were appointed by Massachusetts 
 to attend the proposed congress, and a circular was address- 
 ed to each of the colonies, Jo appoint commissioners, for the 
 same purpose. To this proposal, eight colonies acceded, 
 viz. Rhode-Island, Connecticut, New- York, New-Jersey, 
 Pennsylvania, Delaware, Maryland, and South Carolina 
 commissioners from each of which met those from Massa- 
 chusetts at New- York, on the first Tuesday of October, 
 1765. This was the-first general meeting of the colonies. 
 Timothy Ruggles, a commissioner from Massachusetts, 
 was chosen president. 
 
 In their declaration, they acknowledged their allegiance 
 to his majesty, and their willingness to render due honor to 
 the rightful authority of parliament; but they claimed that 
 they had interests, -rights, and liberties, as the natural born 
 subjects of his majesty, and that, as they could not be repre- 
 in parliament, that body had no right to impose taxes 
 
 i them, without their consent. They declared the stamp 
 act, and other acts of parliament, to have a manifest tenden- 
 cy to subvert the rights and liberties of the colonists. 
 
 This congress adjourned on the 25th of October, and theii 
 proceedings were approved by all the members, except Mr 
 
 AjMBented 
 i the 
 act, an 
 
REVOLUTION. 203 
 
 Ruggles of Massachusetts, and Mr. Ogden of New-Jersey, 
 both of whom left New- York without signing- the address 
 and petitions. The petitioners from South Carolina and 
 Connecticut were limited by their instructions to make report 
 to their respective legislatures, and the committee of New- 
 York, who had been admitted as members, had no autho- 
 rity to apply to the king or parliament. The address and 
 petition were, therefore signed by commissioners from six 
 of the colonies only. The proceedings of the congress 
 were, however, afterwards sanctioned not only by the as- 
 semblies of South Carolina, Connecticut, and New- York, 
 but of the colonies not therein represented.* 
 
 Sec. 9. The stamp act came into operation on 
 the first day of November. But on that day, not 
 a single sheet of all the hales of stamps, which 
 had been sent from England, could have been 
 found in the colonies of New-England, New-York, 
 New-Jersey, Pennsylvania, Maryland, and the two 
 Carolinas. They had either been committed to 
 the .flames, had been reshipped to England, or 
 were safely guarded by the opposition, into whose 
 hands they had fallen. A general suspension, or 
 rather, a total cessation of all business, which 
 required stamped paper, was the consequence. 
 The printers of newspapers only, observes an 
 historian, continued their occupation ; alleging 
 for excuse, that if they had done otherwise, the 
 people would have given them such an admoni- 
 tion, as they little coveted. None would receive 
 the gazettes coming from Canada, as they were 
 printed on stamped paper. The courts of justice 
 were shut ; even marriages were no longer cele- 
 brated ; and, in a word, an absolute stagnation 
 in all the relations of social life was established. 
 
 It \vould scarcely be possible, by means of language, to 
 convey an adequate idea of the strong feelings of opposi- 
 tion to this most odious act, which *pervaded the friends of 
 
 * Pitkins' Political and Civil History of the United States. 
 
204 PERIOD in. 1775 TO 1783. 
 
 liberty in America. As might be expected, these feelings 
 were manifested in various riotous proceedings, which 
 scarcely admit of a full justification. 
 
 As early as the middle of August, on the morning of one 
 day, there were discovered two effigies hanging on the 
 branch of an old elm, in the southern part of Boston, one 
 of which was designed to represent a stamp officer the 
 other a jack-boot, out of which rose a horned head, which 
 appeared to look around. 
 
 The novelty of the spectacle soon attracted a multitude 
 to the spot, which continued to increase all day. Towards 
 evening, the effigies were taken down, placed on a bier, and 
 ,,,- carried in funeral procession through several streets a 
 host following, and shouting, "liberty and property for- 
 ever ! no stamps !" At length, arriving in front of a house, 
 owned by one Oliver, which they supposed intended for a 
 stamp office, they demolished it to its very foundations. 
 
 From this, they proceeded to his dwelling, and finding 
 Oliver had fled, they destroyed his fences, broke open the 
 doors of his dwelling, and greatly injured his furniture. 
 On the following day, apprehensive of a second visit from 
 this lawless multitude, Oliver gave public notice, that he had 
 forwarded to England his resignation as a stamp officer. 
 This becoming known to the populace, which had assem- 
 bled to renew the last night's assault, they gave three cheers 
 to Oliver, and departed without doing farther damage. 
 
 The opposition of people in other places, was manifested 
 by out-breakings of a similar kind. 
 
 At Portsmouth, in New-Hampshire, public notice was 
 given to the friends of liberty to attend her funeral. A cof- 
 fin was prepared, upon which the word Liberty was inscri- 
 bed in large letters. This was carried to the grave with 
 funeral ceremony minute guns were fired during the 
 march of the procession. At the place of interment, an 
 ,. oration was pronounced, in which, it being hinted that Lib- 
 erty, thus entombed, might yet revive, the coffin was taken 
 up," and the word revived added to the word Liberty. This 
 done, the tone of the bells was instantly changed to a merry 
 peal. 
 
 Sec. 10. About this time associations were 
 
 formed in all the colonies, under the title of So?isof 
 
 Liberty, the object of which was, by every prac- 
 
 y ticable means, to oppose the unjust and arbitrary 
 
REVOLUTION. 
 
 205 
 
 measures of the British government. Added to 
 this, societies were formed, including females as 
 well as males, the members of which resolved 
 to forego aU the luxuries of life, rather than be 
 indebted to the commerce of England. 
 
 These societies denied themselves, observes an historian,* 
 the use of any foreign articles of clothing; carding, spin- 
 ning and weaving became the daily employment of women 
 of fashion ; sheep were forbidden to be used as food, lest 
 there should not be found a sufficient supply of wool ; and 
 to be dressed in a suit of home-spun was to possess the su- 
 rest means of popular distinction. And so true were these 
 societies to their mutual compact, that the British merchants 
 and manufacturers soon began to feel the necessity of uni- 
 ting with the colonies, in petitioning parliament for a repeal 
 of the obnoxious law. Artificers and manufacturers in 
 England were left without employment, and thrown upon 
 the charities of the public ; for even at that early day, this 
 class of people were in a great measure dependent on the 
 colonial consumption for their support. The warehouses 
 of the merchants were, for the same reason, filled with un- 
 saleable goods; and the table of the minister was soon 
 loaded with petitions and remonstrances from all the large 
 towns in the kingdom. 
 
 Sec. 11. Fortunately for the interests both of the 
 colonies and of Great Britain, a change took place 
 about this time in the administration of Eng- 
 land, by which several of the friends of America 
 came into power. The Marquis of Rockingham 
 was appointed first Lord of the Treasury, in the 
 room of Lord Grenville, and the Duke of Grafton 
 and Gen. Con way Secretaries of State. To this 
 new ministry, it was obvious, that measures 
 must be taken either to repeal the odious statute, 
 or to make America submit by force of arms. 
 It was deemed the wiser course to repeal the 
 statute ; and accordingly a motion was made in 
 parliament to that effect. The debate on the ques- 
 
 * Allen's American Revolution. 
 
 18 
 
206 PERIOD v. 1775 TO 1783. 
 
 tion of repeal was long and angry. It was, at 
 length, however, carried ; but only by accompany- 
 ing the repealing act by one called the declaratory 
 act, the language of which was, that parliament 
 have, and of right ought to have, power to Mud the 
 colonies in all cases whatsoever. 
 
 On the meeting of parliament, Jan. 7th, 1766, his majesty 
 in his speech spoke of the ahove opposition of the colonies 
 to the stamp act, in pointed terms of reprehension. On the 
 motion for an address to the king, Mr. Pitt, the independ- 
 ent and invariable friend of liberty and equal rights, was 
 the first to offer his sentiments on the state of affairs. " It is 
 a long time, Mr. Speaker," said he, " since I have attended 
 in parliament ; when the resolution was taken in this house 
 to tax America, I was ill in bed. If I could have endured 
 to have been carried in my bed, so great was the agitation 
 of my mind for the consequences, I would have solicited 
 some kind hand to have laid me down on this floor to have 
 borne my testimony against it. It is my opinion that this 
 kingdom has NO RIGHT to lay a tax upon the colonies." 
 
 Upon concluding his speech, a silence of some minutes 
 succeeded. No one appeared inclined to take the part ot 
 the late minister, or to rouse the lion, which lay basking in 
 the eye of the great commoner who had just sat down. 
 At length, Mr. Grenville rose to reply. After declaring 
 the tumult in America to border upon rebellion, and insist- 
 ing upon the constitutional right of parliament to tax the 
 colonies, he concluded as follows : " Ungrateful people 'of 
 America! The nation has run itself into an immense debt 
 to give them protection; bounties have been extended to 
 them ; in their favor the act of navigation, that palladium 
 of the British commerce, has been relaxed : and now that 
 they are called upon to contribute a small share towards 
 the public expense, they renounce your authority, insult 
 your officers, and break out, I might almost say, into open 
 rebellion." 
 
 Mr. Grenville had scarcely taken his seat, when Mr. 
 Pitt rose to reply but the rules of the house forbidding 
 him to speak twice on the same motion, he was called to 
 order, and in obedience to the call, was resuming his seat, 
 when the loud and repeated cry of " Go on," induced him 
 once more to take the floor. In the course of his speech, 
 he said, " We are told America is obstinate America is 
 
REVOLUTION. 207 
 
 in open rebellion. Sir, I rejoice that America has resisted ; 
 three millions of people so dead to all the feelings of liber- 
 ty, as voluntarily to submit to be slaves, would have been fit 
 instruments to make slaves of all the rest. I am no courtier 
 of America. I maintain that parliament has a right to 
 bind, to restrain America. Our legislative power over the 
 colonies is sovereign and supreme. ' When, 3 asks the ho- 
 norable gentleman 'were the colonies emancipated?' At 
 what time, say I in answer, were they made slaves? I speak 
 from accurate knowledge when I say that the profits to 
 Great Britain from the trade of the colonies, through all 
 its branches, is two millions per annum. This is the fund 
 which carried you triumphantly through the war ; this is 
 the price America pays you for her protection ; and shall 
 a miserable financier come with a boast that he can fetch a 
 pepper-corn into the exchequer, at the loss of millions to 
 the nation ? 
 
 *' I know the valor of your troops I know the skill of 
 your officers I know the force of this country ; but in 
 such a cause your success would be hazardous. America, 
 if she fell, would fall like the strong man: she would em- 
 brace the pillars of the state, and pull down the constitution 
 with her. Is this your boasted peace ? not to sheathe the 
 sword in the scabbard, but to sheathe it in the bowels of 
 your countrymen ? The Americans have been wronged 
 they have been driven to madness by injustice ! Will you 
 punish them for the madness you have occasioned ? No : 
 let this country be the first to resume its prudence and tem- 
 per; I will pledge myself for the colonies, that on their 
 part, animosity and resentment will cease. Upon the whole, 
 I will beg leave to tell the house in few words what is real- 
 ly my opinion : It is, that the stamp act be repealed, abso- 
 lutely, totally, and immediately." 
 
 On the 22d of February, General Conway introduced a 
 motion to repeal this act. The debate lasted until three 
 o'clock in the morning, and never was there a debate which 
 excited more warmth of interest, or more vehemence of 
 opposition The lobbies of the house were crowded with 
 the manufacturers and traders of the kingdom, whose anx- 
 ious countenances plainly showed that their fates hung 
 upon the issue. A division at length being called for, two 
 hundred and seventy-five rose in support of the motion, and 
 one hundred and sixty-seven against it. 
 
 On learning this vote, the transports of the people were 
 ungovernable. Impressed with the conviction that they 
 
208 PERIOD v. 1775 TO 1783. 
 
 owed their deliverance to Mr. Pitt, their gratitude knew no 
 bounds : when he appeared at the door, in the language of 
 Burke, " they jumped upon him, like children on a long ab- 
 sent father. They clung to him as captives about their re- 
 deemer. All England joined in his applause." In the 
 house of peers, the opposition to the motion was still more 
 obstinate. Some of the dukes, and the whole bench of bish- 
 ops, were for forcing the American's to submit, with fire and 
 sword. Opposition, however, was, at length, wearied out, 
 and the motion to repeal was carried by a majority of thir- 
 ty-four, a compromise having been made by introducing the 
 above declaratory act. 
 
 Sec. 12. The satisfaction of the colonies on 
 the repeal of the stamp act was sincere and uni- 
 versal. Elevated with the idea of having removed 
 an odious and oppressive "burden, and believing, 
 notwithstanding the declaratory act of parliament, 
 that the right of taxing the colonies was at length 
 surrendered, better feelings were indulged; com- 
 mercial intercourse was revived, and larger im- 
 portations of goods were made than ever. 
 
 On the meeting of the house of representatives of Massa- 
 chusetts, a vote of gratitude to the king, and of thanks to 
 Mr. Pitt, the Duke of Grafton, and others, was passed by 
 that body. By the house of burgesses ir Virginia, it was 
 resolved to erect a statue in honor of the king, and an obe- 
 lisk in honor of all those, whether of the house of peers or 
 of the commons, who had distinguished themselves in favor 
 of the rights of the colonies. 
 
 Sec. 13. In July, 1766, the administration of 
 the Marquis of Rockingham was dissolved, and 
 a new one formed, under the direction of Mr. Pitt, 
 at this time created Earl of Chatham. Unfortu 
 nately, it was composed of men of different po- 
 litical principles, and attached to different parties. 
 Among the members of the new cabinet, hostile 
 to America, was Charles Townshend, Chancellor 
 of the Exchequer. Influenced by Lord Grenville, 
 this latter minister, in the year 1767, introduced 
 
REVOLUTION. 209 
 
 into parliament a second plan for taxing Ameri- 
 ca, viz. by imposing duties on glass, paper, paste- 
 board, painter's colors, and tea. 
 
 Sec. 14. During the discussion of this bill, Mr. 
 Pitt was confined by indisposition, and hence, 
 unable to raise his voice against it. Without 
 much opposition, it passed both houses ; and on 
 the 29th of June, received the royal assent. At 
 the same time, were passed two other acts ; the 
 one establishing a new board of custom-house 
 officers in America ; and the other restraining 
 the legislature of the province of New-York from 
 passing- any act whatever^ until they should fur- 
 nish the king's troops with several required ar- 
 ticles. 
 
 Sec. 15. These three acts reached America at 
 the same time, and again excited universal alarm. 
 The first and second were particularly odious. 
 The new duties, it was perceived, were only a 
 new mode of drawing money from the colonies, 
 and the same strong opposition to the measure 
 was exhibited, which had prevailed against the 
 stamp act. Several of the colonies, through their 
 colonial assemblies, expressed their just abhor- 
 rence of these enactments, and their determina- 
 tion never to submit to them. 
 
 Soon after the establishment of the new board of custom- 
 house officers, at Boston, under the above act, a fit occasion 
 presented itself, for an expression of the public indignation. 
 This was the arrival at that port, in May, 1668, of the sloop 
 Liberty, belonging to Mr. Hancock, and laden with wines 
 from Madeira. 
 
 During the night, most of her cargo was unladen, and 
 put into stores ; on the following day, the sloop was entered 
 at the custom-house, with a few pipes only. A discovery 
 being made of these facts, by the custom-house officers, the 
 vessel was seized, and by their order removed along side of 
 the Romney, a ship of war, then in harbor. The conduct 
 18* 
 

 210 PERIOD v. 1775 TO 1783. 
 
 of the custom-house officers, in this transaction, roused the 
 indignant feelings of the Bostonians, who unwarrantably 
 attacked the houses of the officers, and even assaulted their 
 persons. No prosecutions, however, could be sustained, from 
 the excited state of public feeling. Finding themselves no 
 longer safe in the town, the officers prudently sought pro- 
 tection on board the Romney, and subsequently retired to 
 Castle William. 
 
 Sec. 16. The public excitement was soon after 
 increased by the arrival in the harbor of two re- 
 giments of troops, under the command of Colonel 
 Dalrymple. These were designed to assist the 
 civil magistrates in the preservation of peace, and 
 the custom-house officers in the execution of their 
 functions. 
 
 On the day after its arrival, the fleet was brought to an- 
 chor near Castle William. Having taken a station, which 
 commanded the town, the troops, under cover of the cannon 
 of the ships, landed without molestation, and to the number 
 of upwards of 700 men, marched with muskets charged, 
 bayonets fixed, martial music, and the usual military parade, 
 on to the common. In the evening, the select men of Bos- 
 ton were required to quarter the two regiments in the town, 
 but they absolutely refused. A temporary shelter, however, 
 in Fanueil Hall, was permitted to one regiment, that was 
 without its camp equipage. The next day, the state house, 
 by order of the governor, was opened for the reception of the 
 soldiers ; and after the quarters were settled, two field pieces, 
 with the main guard, were stationed just in its front. Every 
 thing was calculated to excite the indignation of the inhabi- 
 tants. The lower floor of the state house, which had been 
 used by gentlemen and merchants as an exchange, the re- 
 presentatives' chamber, the court-house, Fanueil-Hall 
 places with which were intimately associated ideas of jus- 
 tice and freedom, as well as of convenience and utility were 
 now filled with regular soldiers. Guards were placed at the 
 doors of the state house, through which the council must 
 pass, in going to their own chamber. The common was 
 covered with tents. Soldiers were constantly marching 
 and counter marching to relieve the guards. The sentinels 
 challenged the inhabitants as they passed. The Lord's day 
 was profaned, and the devotion of the sanctuary disturbed 
 
REVOLUTION. 211 
 
 by the sound of drums and other military music. There 
 was every appearance of a garrisoned town.* 
 
 Sec. 17. In Feb., 1769, both houses of parlia- 
 ment went a step beyond all that had preceded, 
 in an address to the king, requesting him to give 
 orders to the governor of Massachusetts the spi- 
 rited conduct of which province was particularly 
 obnoxious to the ministry to take notice of such 
 as might be guilty of treason, that they might be 
 sent to England and tried there. 
 
 A measure more odious to the people -of Ame- 
 rica, or more hostile to the British constitution, 
 could not be named, than for a man to be torn 
 from his country, to be tried by a jury of stran- 
 gers. 
 
 The house of burgesses of Virginia met soon after the 
 official accounts of this address were received, and, in a few 
 days, passed several spirited resolutions, expressing " their 
 exclusive right to tax their constituents, and denying the 
 right of his majesty to remove an offender out of the country 
 for trial." The next day, the royal governor of that colony- 
 sent for the house of burgesses, and addressed them laconi- 
 cally as follows : " Mr. Speaker, and gentlemen of the house 
 of burgesses, I have heard of your resolves, and augur ill 
 of their effects. You have made it my duty to dissolve you, 
 and you are accordingly dissolved !" The assembly of 
 North Carolina passed similar resolutions, and were dis- 
 solved by their governor, in a similar manner. 
 
 In May following, the assembly of Massachusetts con- 
 vened, but refused to transact any business, while the state 
 house was surrounded by an armed force. This force, 
 however, the governor would not remove, but adjourned the 
 assembly to Cambridge. At this place, the assembly pass- 
 ed resolutions expressing their belief, that the maintenance 
 of a standing army in the colony, in time of peace, was an 
 infringement of the natural rights of the people. They 
 refused to make any of the appropriations of money desired 
 by the governor, in consequence of which he prorogued 
 them. In August, the governor (Bernard) was recalled, and 
 the government devolved upon Lieutenant Governor Hutch- 
 inson. 
 
 * Holmes' American Annals. 
 
212 PERIOD v. 1775 TO 1783. 
 
 Sec. 18. During the session of parliament in 
 1770, the Duke of Grafton, first lord of the trea- 
 sury, resigned, and was succeeded in that office 
 toy the afterwards celebrated Lord North. In 
 March, this latter gentleman introduced a bill, 
 abolishing all duties imposed by the act of 1767 
 on all the articles, except tea. This partial sus- 
 pension of the duties served to soften the feeling 
 of the Americans in a degree ; but the exception 
 in relation to tea, it was quite apparent, was 
 designed as a salvo to the national honor, and an 
 evidence which the British ministry were unwill- 
 ing to relinquish of the right of parliament to tax 
 the colonies. 
 
 Sec. 19. While affairs were thus situated, an 
 event occurred, which produced great excitement 
 in America, particularly in Massachusetts. This 
 was an affray, on the evening of the fifth of March, 
 1770, between some of the citizens of Boston, and 
 a number of his majesty's soldiers, who had been 
 sent from Halifax, and were now stationed at the 
 custom house. Several of the inhabitants were 
 killed, and others severely wounded. 
 
 The quarrel commenced on the 2d of March, at Gray's 
 rope walk, between a soldier, and a man employed at the 
 rope walk. The provocation was given hy the citizen, 
 and a scuffle ensued, in which the soldier was beaten. On 
 the 5th of the month, the soldiers, while under arms, were 
 pressed upon and insulted, and dared to fire. One of them, 
 who had received a blow, fired at the aggressor, and a sin- 
 gle discharge from six others succeeded. Three of the ci- 
 tizens were killed, and five dangerously wounded. The 
 town was instantly thrown into the greatest commotion, the 
 bells were rung, and the general cry was " to arms." In 
 a short time, several thousands of the citizens had assem- 
 bled, and a dreadful scene of blood must have ensued, but 
 for the promise of Governor Hutchinson, that the affair 
 should be settled to their satisfaction in the morning. Capt. 
 Preston, who commanded the soldiers, was committed with 
 
REVOLUTION. 213 
 
 them to prison. Upon their trial, the captain and six sol- 
 diers were acquitted ; two were convicted of manslaughter. 
 For several subsequent years, the evening of the day on 
 which this outrage was committed was commemorated by 
 the citizens of Boston, and the event gave occasion to ad- 
 dresses the most warm and patriotic, which served to wa- 
 ken up and increase the spirit of the revolution. 
 
 Sec. 20. During the summer of 1772, another 
 event occurred, which presented a fresh obstacle 
 to a reconciliation between America and the mo- 
 ther country. This was the destruction by the 
 people of Rhode Island of a British armed schoon- 
 er called Gaspee, which had been stationed in that 
 colony to assist the board of custom in the execu- 
 tion of the revenue and trade laws. 
 
 The destruction of this vessel grew out of an odious re- 
 quisition of her commander, upon the masters of packets, 
 navigating the bay, to lower their colors, on passing the 
 schooner. 
 
 On the 9th of June, as the Providence packet was sail- 
 ing into the harbor of Newport, her captain was ordered 
 to lower his colors. He refused, and a shot was fired at 
 him from the schooner, which immediately made sail in 
 chase. By a dexterous management, on the part of the 
 master of the packet, he led the schooner on a shoal, where 
 she grounded, and remained fast. At night, it was deter- 
 mined by a number of fishermen, and others, headed by se- 
 veral respectable merchants of Providence, that so good an 
 opportunity of revenge should not be lost ; and they ac- 
 cordingly manned a number of whale boats, in which they 
 proceeded to the schooner, made themselves masters of her, 
 and then set her on fire. When the knowledge of this 
 event came to the governor, a reward of Jive hundred pounds 
 was offered by proclamation, for the discovery of the offen- 
 ders, and the royal pardon to those who would confess 
 their guilt. Commissioners were appointed also to inves- 
 tigate the offence, and bring the perpetrators to justice. 
 But the commissioners, after remaining some time in ses- 
 sion, reported that they could obtain no evidence, and thus 
 the affair terminated. 
 
 Sec. 21. In 1773, an important measure was 
 
214 PERIOD v. 1775 TO 1783. 
 
 adopted by most of the colonies, viz. the appoint- 
 ment of committees of correspondence and inquiry^ 
 in various parts of their respective territories, by 
 means of which a confidential and invaluable in- 
 terchange of opinions was kept up between the 
 colonies, and great unity of sentiment was pro- 
 moted. 
 
 This measure had its origin in Massachusetts, in which 
 colony meetings were called to express their views of the 
 oppressive acts of the British parliament, and especially of 
 an act, by which a salary was voted to the royal governor 
 of Massachusetts by parliament, and the people of that co- 
 lony required to pay it. In these meetings, the town of 
 Boston took the lead. A committee was appointed to ad- 
 dress the several towns in the colony, and to urge upon 
 them the importance of an unanimous expression of their 
 feelings, with regard to the conduct of the British ministry. 
 
 The proceedings of the assembly, and of the towns in 
 Massachusetts, were communicated to the house of burgesses 
 in Virginia, in March, 1773, upon which that body passed 
 the following resolution : 
 
 Resolved, that a standing committee of correspondence 
 and inquiry be appointed, to consist of eleven persons, to 
 wit : the honorable Peyton Randolph, Esq., Robert Carter 
 Nicholas, Richard Bland, Richard Henry Lee, Benjamin 
 Harrison, Edmund Pendleton, Patrick Henry, Dudley Diggs, 
 Dabney Carr, Archibald Gary, and Thomas Jefferson, 
 Esqrs., any six of whom to be a committee, whose business 
 it shall be to obtain the most early and authentic intelli- 
 gence of such acts and resolutions of the British parlia- 
 ment, or proceedings of administration, as may relate to or 
 affect the British colonies ; and to keep up and maintain a 
 correspondence and communication with our sister colo- 
 nies, respecting these important considerations, and the re- 
 sult of their proceedings from time to time to lay before the 
 house. 
 
 Upon the recommendation of Virginia, similar commit- 
 tees of correspondence and inquiry were appointed by the 
 different colonial assemblies, and a confidential interchange 
 of opinions was thus kept up between the colonies. 
 
 Sec. 22. During these transactions in America, 
 a plan was devised by the British ministry to in- 
 
 
REVOLUTION. 215 
 
 troduce tea into the colonies. For some time, 
 little of that article had been imported into the 
 country, from a determination of the people not 
 to submit to the payment of the duty upon it. 
 In consequence of this, the teas of the East India 
 company had greatly accumulated in their ware- 
 houses. To enable them to export their teas to 
 America, the British minister introduced a bill in- 
 to parliament, allowing the company to export 
 thjir teas into America with a drawback of all 
 th'j duties paid in England. As this would make 
 tfo-s tea cheaper in America than in Great Britain, 
 it was presumed that the Americans would pay 
 tho small duty upon it, which was only three 
 pence. In this, however, the parliament mistook. 
 Not a single penny by way of duty was paid 
 upon it, nor a single pound of it consumed. 
 
 On the passage of this bill, the company made a ship- 
 ment of large quantities of tea to Charleston, Philadelphia, 
 New- York, and Boston. Before its arrival, the resolution 
 had been formed by the inhabitants of those places, that if 
 possible it should not even be landed. The cargo destined 
 for Charleston was indeed landed and stored; but was not 
 permitted to be offered for sale. The vessels, which brought 
 tea to Philadelphia, and New- York, were compelled to re- 
 turn to England, without even having made an entry at the 
 custom-house. 
 
 It was designed by the leading patriots of Boston to make 
 a similar disposition of the cargoes, which were expected 
 at that place ; but, on their arrival, the consignees were 
 found to be the relations, or friends of the governor, and 
 they could not be induced to resign their trust. Several 
 town meetings were held on the subject, and spirited reso- 
 lutions passed, that no considerations would induce the in- 
 habitants to permit the landing of the tea. Orders were at 
 the same. time given to the captains to obtain clearances at 
 the custom-house, without the usual entries ; but this the 
 collector pertinaciously refused. 
 
 It was in this state of things that the citizens of Boston 
 in assembled to determine what measures to adopt. 
 
 . 
 
216 PERIOD v. 1775 TO 1783. 
 
 While the discussions were going on, a captain of a vessel 
 was dispatched to the governor to request a passport. At 
 .ength, he retuj^wed, to say that the governor refused. The 
 meeting was.4vmediately dissolved. A secret plan had 
 been formed^o mingle the tea with the waters of the ocean. 
 Three different parties soon after sallied out, in the cos- 
 tume of Mohawk Indians, and precipitately made their way 
 to the wharves. At the same time, the citizens were seen 
 in crowds directing their course to the same place, to be- 
 come spectators of a scene, as novel, as the enterprise was 
 bold. Without noise, without the tumult usual on similar 
 occasions, the tea was taken from the vessel by the con 
 spirators, and expeditiously offered as an oblation "to the 
 watery god." 
 
 Sec. 23. Intelligence of these proceedings was, 
 on the 7th of March, 1774, communicated, in 
 in a np&6sage from the throne, to both houses of 
 parliament. The excitement was peculiarly 
 strong. In the spirit of revenge against Massa- 
 chusetts, and particularly against Boston, which 
 was considered as/ the chief seat of rebellion, a 
 bill was brought forward, called the "Boston port 
 bill" by which the port of Boston was precluded 
 from the privilege of landing or discharging, or 
 of loading and shipping goods, wares, and mer- 
 cha^idise. 
 
 A second bill, which passed at this time, 
 sentially altered the charter of the province, 
 king the -intment of the council, justices, 
 judges, &c. dependent upon the crown, or its 
 agent. A third soon followed, authorizing and 
 directing the governor to send any person in- 
 dicted for murder, or any other capital offence, 
 to another colony, or to Great Britain, for trial. 
 
 Sec. 24. On the arrival of these acts, the town 
 of Boston passed the following vote : "That it is 
 the opinion of this town, that, if the other colo- 
 nies come into a joint resolution to stop all im- 
 portation from Great Britain and the West Indies, 
 

 REVOLUTION. 217 
 
 till the act for blocking up this harbour be re- 
 pealed, the same will prove the salvation of North 
 America and her liberties." Copies pf this vote 
 were transmitted to rach of the colonies. 
 
 As an expression of their sympathy with the 
 people of Boston in their distress, the house of 
 burgesses in Virginia ordered that the day, on 
 which the Boston port bill was to take effect, 
 "Hould be observed as a day of fasting and prayer. 
 
 Obs. The words Whigs and Tories were, about this 
 time, introduced as the distinguishing names of parties. 
 By the former, was meant those who favored the cause of 
 Boston, and were zealous in supporting the colonies against 
 the parliament; by the latter, was meant* the favorers of 
 Great Britain. 
 
 Sec. 25. Daring these transactions in Massa- 
 chusetts, measures had been taken to convene a 
 Continental Congress. On the 4th of Sept., 1774, 
 deputies from eleven colonies* met at Philadel- 
 phia, and elected Peyton Randolph, the then 
 late speaker of the Virginia Assembly,, president, 
 and Charles Thompson, Secretary. After consi- 
 derable debate, it was agreed that each colony 
 should have one equal vote. 
 ... Having settled the manner of voting, the con- 
 "gress proceeded to the discharge of the high trust 
 i committed to them. They agreed -jipon a decla- 
 | {ration of their rights, recommended the non-im- 
 portation of British goods into the 'country, and 
 the non-exportation of American produce to Great 
 Britain, so long as their grievances were unre- 
 I dressed voted an address to his Majesty and 
 i' likewise one to the people of Great Britain, and 
 5 another to the French inhabitants of Canada. 
 
 This congress, having finished their business 
 n less than eight weeks, dissolved themselves, af- 
 ter recommending another congress to be con- 
 19 
 
218 
 
 PERIOD v. 1775 TO 1783. 
 
 vened on tfre 10th of May ensuing, unless the 
 redress of their grievances should be previously 
 obtained. 
 
 Although the power of this congress was only 
 advisory, their resolutions were approved, not 
 only by the people, but also by the authorities, 
 whether established, or provisional, and exerted 
 a commanding influence in consummating that 
 union among the colonies, which had been in- 
 creasing with their grievances. 
 
 The following are the names of members com- 
 posing the congress of 1774. 
 
 New-Hampshire. 
 John Sullivan, 
 Nathaniel Fulsom. 
 
 Massachusetts, 
 James Bowdoin, 
 Thomas Gushing, 
 Samuel Adams, 
 John Adams, 
 Robert T. Paine. 
 
 Rhode-Island 
 Stephen Hopkins, 
 Samuel Ward. 
 
 Connecticut. 
 Eliphalet Dyer, 
 Roger Sherman, 
 Silas Deane. 
 
 New- York. 
 James Duane, 
 Henry Wisner, 
 John Jay, 
 Philip Livingston, 
 Isaac Low, 
 John Alsop, 
 William Floyd. 
 
 New-Jersey. 
 James Kinsey, 
 William Livingston, 
 John De Hart, 
 Stephen Crane, 
 Richard Smith. 
 
 Pennsylvania. 
 Joseph Galloway, 
 Charles Humphreys, 
 Samuel Rhoads, 
 George Ross, 
 John Morton, 
 Thomas Mifflin, 
 Edward Biddle, 
 John Dickenson. 
 
 Delaware. 
 Caesar Rodney, 
 Thomas M'Kean, 
 George Read. 
 
 Maryland. 
 
 Robert Goldsborough, 
 Thomas Jefferson, 
 William Paca, 
 Samuel Chase, 
 Matthew Tilghman 
 Virginia. 
 Peyton Randolph, 
 Richard Henry Lee 
 Georg-e Washington 
 Patrick Henry, 
 Richard Bland, 
 Benjamin Harrison, 
 Edmund Pendleton. 
 
 North-Carolina. 
 William Hooper, 
 Joseph Hughes, 
 
Richard Caswell. 
 
 Sou th- Ca rolina. 
 Henry Middleton, 
 
 REVOLUTION. 219 
 
 Thomas Lynch, 
 Christopher Gadsden, 
 Edward Rutledge. 
 
 John Rutledge, 
 
 The congress which thus terminated its session, has 
 justly been celebrated, from that time to the present, and 
 'its celebrity will continue, while wisdom finds admirers, 
 and patriotism is regarded with veneration. The tone and 
 temper of their various resolutions, the style of their ad- 
 dresses, and the composition of the several public papers, 
 contributed, in every particular, to excite the admiration of 
 the world. Born and tdiu'iited in the wilds of a new world, 
 unpractised in the arts of polity, most of them inexperien- 
 ced in the arduous duties of legislation, differing in religion, 
 manners, customs, and habits, as they did in their views of 
 the nature of their connexion with Great Britain ; that 
 such an assembly, so constituted, should display so much 
 wisdom, sagacity, foresight, and knowledge of the world : 
 such skill in argument ; such force of reasoning ; such 
 firmness and soundness of judgment; so profound an ac 
 quaintance with the rights of men ; such genuine patriot- 
 ism ; and above all, such unexampled union of opinion, 
 was indeed a political phenomenon to which history has 
 furnished no parallel.* Both at home and abroad they 
 were spoken of in terms of the highest admiration. Abroad, 
 the Earl of Chatham, in one of his brilliant speeches, re- 
 marked of them : " History, my lords, has been my favorite 
 study, and in the celebrated writings of antiquity, have I 
 often admired the patriotism of Greece and Rome ; but, my 
 lords, 1 must declare, and avow, that in the master states 
 of s the world, I know not the people, or senate, who, in 
 such a complication of diiHcult circumstances, can stand in 
 preference to the delegates of America assembled in gene- 
 ral congress at Philadelphia." At home, they were cele- 
 brated by a native and popular bard,f in an equally eleva- 
 ted strain : 
 
 Now meet the fathers of this western clime ; 
 
 Nor names more noble graced the rolls of fame, 
 When Spartan firmness braved the wrecks of time, 
 
 Or Latian virtue fann'd the heroic flame. 
 
 Not deeper thought the immortal sage inspired, 
 
 On Solon's lips when Grecian senates hung ; 
 Not manlier eloquence the bosom fired, 
 
 When genius thundered from the Athenian tongue. 
 
 * Allen. t M'Fingal. 
 
220 PERIOD v. 1775 TO 1783. 
 
 Sec. 26. An assembly was ordered by Gov. 
 Gage, of Massachusetts, to convene Oct. 5th ; but 
 before that period arrived, judging their meeting 
 inexpedient, he counteracted the write of convo- 
 cation, by a proclamation. The assembly, how- 
 ever, to the number of ninety, met at Salem, 
 where the governor not attending, they adjourn- 
 ed to Concord. Here they chose John Hancock 
 president, and, after adjourning to Cambridge, 
 drew up 'a plan for the immediate defence of the 
 province, by enlisting men, appointing general 
 officers, &c. 
 
 , In November, this provincial congress met again, and 
 resolved to get in readiness twelve thousand men to act in 
 any emergency ; and that one fourth part of the militia 
 should be enlisted as minute-men. At the same time, a re- 
 quest was forwarded to Connecticut, New-Hampshire, and 
 Rhode Island, jointly to increase this army to twenty thou- 
 sand men. 
 
 Sec. 27. Early the next year, Jan. 7th, 1775, 
 Lord Chatham, Mr. Pitt, after a long retirement, 
 resumed his seat in the house of lords, and in- 
 troduced a conciliatory bill, the object of which 
 was, to settle the troubles in America. But the 
 efforts of this venerable and peace-making man 
 wholly failed, the bill being rejected by a majo- 
 rity of sixty-four to thirty-two, without even the 
 compliment of lying on the table. 
 
 The rejection of this bill was followed the next day by 
 the introduction of a bill, which finally passed, to restrain 
 the trade of the New-England provinces, and to forbid their 
 fishing on the banks of Newfoundland. Soon after, re- 
 strictions were imposed upon the middle and southern co- 
 lonies, with the exception of New- York, Delaware, and 
 North Carolina. This bill, designed to promote disunion 
 among the colonies, happily failed of its object. 
 
 Thus we have given a succinct account of the 
 system of measures adopted by the ministry of 
 
REVOLUTION. 221 
 
 England toward the American colonies after the 
 peace of '63 measures most unfeeling and unjust ; 
 but which no petitions, however respectful, and 
 no remonstrances, however loud, could change. 
 Satisfied of this, justice permitted the people, and 
 self-respect and self-preservation loudly summon- 
 ed them, to resist by force. 
 
 Sec. 28. The crisis, therefore, had now arri- 
 ved, the signal of war was given, and the blood 
 shed at Lexington opened the scene. 
 
 Gen. Gage, the king's governor of Massachu- 
 setts, learning that a large quantity of military 
 stores had been deposited by the provincials, at 
 Concord, detached Lieut. Col. Smith, and Major 
 Pitcairn, with eight hundred grenadiers, to des- 
 troy them. On their arrival at Lexington, on the 
 morning of the 19th of April, 1775, seventy of the 
 militia, who had hastily assembled upon an alarm, 
 were under arms, on the parade. Eight of these 
 were, without provocation, killed, and several 
 wounded. 
 
 The greatest precaution was taken by Governor Gage, 
 to prevent the intelligence of this expedition from reaching 
 the country. Officers were dispersed along the road to 
 intercept expresses, who might be sent from Boston. But 
 the precaution proved ineffectual. The alarm was given, 
 and was rapidly spread by means of church bells, guns, 
 and volleys. 
 
 The slaughter of the militia at Lexington was extremely 
 wanton. Major Pitcairn, the British commander, on see- 
 ing them on the parade, rode up to them, and, with a loud 
 voice, cried out, " disperse, disperse, you rebels 5 throw 
 down your arms and disperse." The sturdy yeomanry not 
 immediately obeying his orders, he approached nearer, 
 discharged his pistol, and ordered his soldiers to fire. 
 
 From Lexington, the detachment proceeded to Concord, 
 and destroyed ihe stores. After killing- several of the mili- 
 tia, who came forth to oppose them, they retreated to Lex- 
 ington with some loss, the Americans firing upon them 
 from behind walls, hedges, and buildings. 
 19* 
 
222 PERIOD v. 1775 TO 1783. 
 
 Fortunately for the British, here Lord Percy met them 
 with a reinforcement of nine hundred men, some marines, 
 and two field-piece^. Still annoyed by the provincials, they 
 continued their retreat to Bunker's Hill, in Charlestown, 
 and the day following crossed over to Boston. The Bri- 
 tish lost, in killed and wounded, during their absence, two 
 hundred and seventy-three. The loss of the Americans 
 amounted to eighty-eight killed, wounded, and missing. 
 
 Sec. 29. Such was the affair at Lexington, 
 the first action that opened the war of the revo- 
 lution. The issue of it filled the English officers 
 with indignation : they could not endure that an 
 undisciplined multitude, that "a flock of Yankees" 
 as they contemptuously named the Americans, 
 should have forced them to turn their backs. On 
 the other hand, the result of the day immeasura- 
 bly increased the courage of the Americans. 
 The tidings spread ; the voice of war rung 
 through the land, and the preparations were eve- 
 ry where commenced to carry it forward. 
 
 The provincial congress of Massachusetts, be- 
 ing in session at this time, dispatched a minute 
 account of the affair at Lexington to Great Bri- 
 tain, with depositions to prove that the British 
 troops were the aggressors. In conclusion, they 
 used this emphatic language : "Appealing to Hea- 
 ven for the justice of our cause, we determine to 
 die, or be free" 
 
 The congress, at the same time, resolved that 
 a levy should be made in the province of thirteen 
 thousand six hundred men. This force being 
 raised, was soon after joined by troops from New- 
 Hampshire, Connecticut, and Rhode Island, and 
 an army of thirty thousand men assembled in the 
 environs of Boston. 
 
 Sec. 30. As the war had now begun, and was 
 likely to proceed, it was deemed important to se- 
 
REVOLUTION. 223 
 
 cure the fortresses of Ticonderoga and Crown 
 Point. Accordingly, a number of volunteers from 
 Connecticut and Vermont, under command of 
 Col. Ethan Allen, and Col. Benedict Arnold, 
 marched against Ticonderoga, and on the 10th 
 of May, took it by surprise, the garrison being 
 asleep. The fortress of Crown Point surrender- 
 ed shortly after. 
 
 On the arrival of Allen at Ticonderoga, he demanded 
 the fort. "By what authority?" asked the commander. 
 " I demand it," said Allen, "in the name of the Great Je- 
 hovah, and of the Continental Congress." The summons 
 was instantly obeyed, and the fort was, with its valuable 
 stores, surrendered. 
 
 Sec. 31. The taking of Ticonderoga and 
 Crown Point was soon followed by the memora- 
 ble Battle of Bunker's Hill, as it is usually called, 
 or of Breed's Hill, a high eminence in Charles- 
 town, within cannon-shot of Boston, where the 
 battle was actually fought, June 17th. 
 
 The evening preceding, a detachment of one thousand 
 Americans were ordered to make an intrenchment on Bun- 
 ker's Hill ; but, by some mistake, they proceeded to Breed's 
 Hill, and by the dawn of day, had thrown up a redoubt 
 eight rods square, and four feet high. 
 
 On discovering- this redoubt in the morning, the British 
 commenced a severe cannonade upon it, from several ships 
 and floating batteries, and from a fortification on Copp's 
 Hill, in Boston, which was continued until afternoon. 
 The Americans, however, never intermitted their work for 
 a moment, and during the forenoon, lost but a single man. 
 
 Between twelve and one o'clock, three thousand Bri- 
 tish, under command of Major Gen. Howe, and Brigadier 
 Gen. Pigot, crossed Charles River, with an intention to 
 dislodge the Americans. 
 
 As they advanced, the British commenced firing at some 
 distance from the redoubt ; but the Americans reserved their 
 fire, until the enemy were within twelve rods. They then 
 opened, and the carnage was terrible. The British re- 
 treated in precipitate confusion. They were, however, 
 rallied by their officers, being, in some instances, pushed 
 
224 PERIOD v. 1775 TO 1783. 
 
 on by their swords, and were again led to the attack. The 
 Americans now suffered them to approach within six rods, 
 when their fire mowed them down in heaps, and again 
 they fled. Unfortunately for the Americans, their ammu- 
 nition here failed; and, on the third charge of the British, 
 they were obliged to retire, after having obstinately resist- 
 ed even longer than prudence admitted. The British lost 
 in this engagement two hundred and twenty-six killed, 
 among whom was Major Pitcairn, who first lighted the 
 torch of war at Lexington, and eight hundred and twenty- 
 eight wounded. The Americans lost one hundred and 
 thirty-nine killed, and of wounded and missing there were 
 three hundred and fourteen. Among the killed was the 
 lamented Gen. Warren. 
 
 The horrors of this scene were greatly increased by the 
 conflagration of Charlestown, effected, during the heat oi 
 j. the battle, by the orders of Gen. Gage. By this wanton act 
 of barbarity, two thousand people were deprived of their ha- 
 bitations, and property to the amount of one hundred and 
 twenty thousand pounds sterling, perished in the flames. 
 "Wanton, however, as the burning of Charlestown was, it 
 wonderfully enhanced the dreadful magnificence of the day. 
 To the volleys of musketry and the roar of cannon ; to the 
 shouts of the fighting and the groans of the dying ; to the 
 dark and awful atmosphere of smoke, enveloping the whole 
 peninsula, and illumined in every quarter by the streams 
 of fire from the various instruments of death ; the confla- 
 gration of six hundred buildings added a gloomy and ama- 
 zing grandeur. In the midst of this waving lake of flame, 
 the lofty steeple, converted into a blazing pyramid, towered 
 and trembled over the vast pyre, and finished the scene oi 
 desolation." 
 
 To the Americans, the consequences of this battle were 
 those of a decided victory. They learned that their ene- 
 mies were not invulnerable. At the same time, they learn- 
 ed the importance of stricter discipline, and greater prepara- 
 tions. As the result of the battle spread, the national pulse 
 beat still higher, and the arm of opposition was braced still 
 more firmly. 
 
 ticc. 32. The second continental congress met 
 at Philadelphia, on the 10th of May. As military 
 opposition to Great Britain was now resolved up 
 on by the colonies, and had actually commenced, 
 it became necessary to fix upon a proper person 
 
Col. Allen, demanding the Surrender of Ticondcropa 
 P. 223. 
 
 Baltic of Bunker Hill. 
 
REVOLUTION. 225 
 
 to conduct that opposition. The person unani- 
 mously selected by congress was George Wash- 
 ington, a member of their body, from Virginia. 
 
 The honor of having suggested and advocated the choice 
 of this illustrious man, is justly ascribed to the elder Presi- 
 dent Adams, at that time a member of the continental con- 
 gress. The army was at this time at Cambridge, Massa- 
 chusetts, under Gen. Ward. As yet, it had not been adopt- 
 ed by the country ; but this measure was deemed eminently 
 important, since* until it was adopted, it could be considered 
 in no other light, than a band of armed rebels. The atten- 
 tion of not a few in congress had been turned towards this 
 interesting- subject, and upon the decision, as to a command- 
 er in chief, it was perceived the success of the American 
 people, in their struggle for liberty, might depend. The 
 southern and middle stales, warm and rapid in their zeal, 
 for the most part, were jealous of New-England, because 
 they felt that the real physical force, was Jiere. What, then, 
 was to be done? All New-England adored Gen. Ward; 
 he had been in the French war, and had come out laden 
 with laurels. He was a scholar and a gentleman. All the 
 qualifications seemed to cluster in him ; and it was confi- 
 dently believed the army could not receive any commander 
 over him. What, then, was to be done ? Difficulties thick- 
 ened at every step. The struggle was to be long and bloody. 
 Without union, all was lost. Union was strength. The 
 country, and the whole country, must come in. One pul- 
 sation must break through all hearts. The cause was one, 
 and the arm must be one. The members had talked, deba- 
 ted, considered, and guessed, and yet the decisive step had 
 not been taken. At length, Mr. Adams came to his conclu- 
 sion, and the manner of developing it was nearly as follows: 
 He was walking one morning before congress hall, appa- 
 rently in deep thought, when his cousin, Samuel Adams, 
 carne up to him, and said, " What is the topic with you this 
 morning, cousin ?" " Oh, the army, the army," he replied. 
 14 1 am determined what to do about the army at Cambridge," 
 he continued; "I am determined to go into the hall this 
 morning, and enter on a full detail of the state of the colo- 
 nies, in order to show the absolute need of taking some de- 
 cisive steps. My whole aim will be to induce congress to 
 appoint a day for adopting the army, as the legal army of 
 these United Colonies of North America ; and then to hint 
 at my election of a commander in chief" " Well," said 
 
226 PERIOD v. 1775 TO 1783. 
 
 Samuel Adams, " I like that, cousin John ; but on whom 
 have you fixed as this commander ?" " I'll tell you, George 
 Washington, of Virginia, a member of this house." " Oh," 
 replied Samuel Adams, quickly, " that will never do, never, 
 never." " It must do, it shall do," said John Adams, " and 
 for these reasons : the southern and middle states are loth 
 to enter heartily into the cause, and their arguments are po- 
 tent ; they see that New-England holds the physical power 
 in her hands, and they fear the result. A New-England 
 army, a New-England commander, with New-England 
 perseverance, all united, appal them. For this cause they 
 hang back. Now, the only way is, to allay their fears, and 
 give them nothing to complain of; and this can be done in 
 no other way but by appointing a southern chief over this 
 force. Then all will feel secure; then all will rush to the 
 standard. This policy will blend us in one mass, and that 
 mass will be resistless." At this, Samuel Adarns seemed 
 greatly moved. They talked over the preliminary circum- 
 stances, and John asked his cousin to second his motion. 
 
 Mr. Adams went in, took the floor, and put forth all his 
 strength in the delineations he had prepared, all aiming at 
 the adoption of the army. He was ready to own the army, 
 appoint a commander, vote supplies, and proceed to business. 
 After his speech, some doubted, some objected, and some 
 feared. His warmth mounted with the occasion, and to all 
 these doubts and hesitations he replied, " Gentlemen, if this 
 congress will not adopt this army, before ten moons have 
 set, New-England will have a congress of her own, which 
 will adopt it, and she, she will undertake the struggle aljone; 
 yes, with a strong arm and a clear conscience, will front 
 the foa alone." "This had the desired effect. They saw 
 New-England was not playing, and was not to be played 
 with ; they agreed to appoint a day. 
 
 The day was fixed. It carne. Mr. Adams went in, took 
 the floor, urged the measure, and, after debate, it passed. 
 The next thing was to get a lawful commander for this law- 
 ful army, with supplies, &c. All looked to Mr. Adams, on 
 this occasion ; and he was ready. He took the floor, and 
 went into a minute delineation of the character of General 
 Ward, bestowing on him the epithets which, then, belonged 
 to no one else. At the end of this eulogy, he said, " but 
 this is not the man I have chosen." He then went into a 
 delineation of the character of a commander in chief, such 
 as was required by the peculiar situation of the colonies at 
 that juncture ; and after he had presented the qualifications 
 
REVOLUTION. 227 
 
 in his strongest language, and given the reasons for the 
 nomination he was about to make, he said, " Gentlemen, I 
 know these qualifications are high, but we all know they 
 are needful at this crisis, in this chief. Does any one say 
 that they are not to be obtained in the country? I reply, 
 they are, they reside in one of our own body, and he is the 
 person whom I now nominate, GEORGE WASHINGTON, of 
 Virginia." 
 
 Washington, who sat on Mr. Adams' right hand, was 
 looking him intently in the face, to watch the name he was 
 about to announce; and not expecting it would be his own, 
 he sprung from his seat the moment he heard it, and rushed 
 into an adi >'ning room, as quickly as though moved by a 
 shock of eU- .-tricky. 
 
 Mr. Adams had asked his cousin Samuel to move for an 
 adjournment as soon as the nomination was made, in order 
 to give the members time to deliberate in private. They did 
 deliberate, and the result is before the world. 
 
 General Washington, in his reply to the president of con- 
 gress, who announced to him his appointment, after consent- 
 ing to enter upon the momentous duty assigned him, add- 
 ed : " But lest some unlucky event should happen unfa- 
 vorable to my reputation, I beg it may be remembered, by 
 every gentleman in the room, that I this day declare, with 
 the utmost sincerity, I do not think myself equal to the com- 
 mand I am honored with. 
 
 " As to pay, sir, I beg leave to assure the congress, that 
 as no pecuniary consideration could have tempted me to ac- 
 cept this arduous employment, at the expense of my domes- 
 tic ease and happiness, I do not wish to make any profit 
 from it. I will keep an exact account of my expenses. 
 Those, I doubt not, they will discharge, and that is all I de- 
 sire."* 
 
 A special commission was drawn up and presented to 
 him, as commander in chief of the American forces ; on pre- 
 senting it, congress unanimously adopted this resolution: 
 "that they would maintain and assist him, and adhere to 
 him with their lives and fortunes, in the cause of American 
 liberty." 
 
 * The whole sum which, in the course of the war, passed through his 
 hands, amounted only to fourteen thousand four hundred and seventy-nine 
 pounds sterling. After Gen. Washington's elevation to the presidency, he 
 continued to send to the comptrollers of the treasury an annual account of 
 his expenses, which, in some years, amounted to thirty-one thousand dol- 
 lars. As the salary fixed by law for that office was no more than twenty- 
 five thousand dollars, the excess he paid out of his private funds. 
 
228 PERIOD v. 1775 TO 1783, 
 
 Following the appointment of Gen. Washington, was the 
 appointment of four major generals, Artemas Ward, Charles 
 Lee, Philip Schuyler, and Israel Putnam ; and eight briga- 
 dier generals, Seth Porneroy, Richard Montgomery, David 
 Wooster, William Heath, Joseph Spencer, John Thomas, 
 John. Sullivan, and Nathaniel Greene. 
 
 Sec. 33. Gen. Washington, on his arrival at 
 " ^ Cambridge, on the second of July, was received 
 ) with joyful acclamations by the American army. 
 He found it, consisting of 14,000 men, stretched 
 from Roxbury to Cambridge, and thence to Mys- 
 tic river, a distance of twelve miles. The Bri- 
 tish forces occupied Bunker and Breed's hill, and 
 Boston Neck. 
 
 The attention of the commander in chief was immediate- 
 ly directed to the strength and situation of the enemy, and to 
 the introduction of system and union into the army, the want 
 of which pervaded every department. This was a delicate 
 and difficult attempt, but the wisdom and firmness of Wash- 
 ington removed every obstacle, and at length brought even 
 ' independent freemen, in a good degree, to the control of mili- 
 tary discipline. 
 
 Sec. 34. While Washington was employed in 
 organizing his army, and preparing for future 
 operations, an important expedition was planned 
 against Canada, the charge of which was assign- 
 ed to Gens. Schuyler and Montgomery. On the 
 10th of September, one thousand American troops 
 landed at St. Johns, the first British post in Cana- 
 da, (one hundred and fifteen miles north of Ticon- 
 deroga,) but found it advisable to retire to the Isle 
 aux Noix, twelve miles south of St. Johns. Here 
 the health of Gen. Schuyler obliging him to re- 
 turn to Ticonderoga, the command devolved on 
 Gen. Montgomery. This enterprising officer, in 
 a few days, returned to the investment of St 
 Johns, and on the 3d of November, received tba 
 surrender of this important post. 
 
Burning of Charlestown. P. 224. 
 
 Death of Gen. Montgomery. P. 230. 
 
REVOLUTION. . 229 
 
 On the surrender of St. Johns, five hundred regulars and 
 one hundred Canadians became prisoners to the provincials. 
 There were also taken thirty-nine pieces of cannon, seven 
 mortars, and five hundred stands of arms. 
 
 Gen. Montgomery next proceeded against Mon- 
 treal, which, without resistance, capitulated. 
 From Montreal he rapidly proceeded towards 
 Quebec. 
 
 Before his arrival, however, Col. Arnold, who 
 had been dispatched by Gen. Washington with 
 one thousand American troops from Cambridge, 
 had reached Quebec, by the way of Kennebeck, 
 a river of Maine, had ascended the heights of 
 Abraham, where the brave Wolfe ascended be- 
 fore him ; but had found it necessary to retire to 
 a place twenty miles above Quebec, where he 
 was waiting for the arrival of Montgomery. 
 
 Seldom was there an expedition attempted during the 
 American war, in which more hardship was endured, or 
 more untiring perseverance manifested, than in this of Ar- 
 nold's. In ascending the Kennebeck, his troops were con- 
 stantly obliged to work against an impetuous current, and 
 often to haul their batteaux up rapid currents and over dan- 
 gerous falls. Nor was their march through the country, 
 by an unexplored route of three hundred miles, less difficult 
 or dangerous. They had swamps and woods, mountains 
 and precipices, alternately to surpass. Added to their other 
 trials, their provisions failed, and, to support life, they were 
 obliged to eat their dogs, cartouch boxes, clothes, and shoes. 
 While at the distance of one hundred miles from human 
 habitations, they divided their whole store, about four pints 
 of flour to a man. At thirty miles distance, they had baked 
 and eaten their last pitiful morsel. Yet the courage and 
 fortitude of these men continued unshaken. They were 
 suffering in their country's cause, were toiling for wives 
 and children, were contending for the rights and blessings 
 of freedom. After thirty-one days of incessant toil through 
 a hideous wilderness, they reached the habitations of men. 
 
 #ec. 35. Montgomery, having effected a junction 
 with Arnold, commenced the siege of Quebec. 
 20 
 
230 PERIOD v. 1775 TO 1783. 
 
 On the 5th of December, after continuing the 
 siege nearly a month to little purpose, the bold 
 plan was adopted of attempting the place by 
 scaling the walls. Two attacks were made, at the 
 same time, in different quarters of the town, by 
 Montgomery and Arnold. The attempt, however, 
 proved unsuccessful, and, to the great loss and 
 grief of America, fatal to the brave Montgomery. 
 He fell while attempting to force a barrier, and 
 with him fell two distinguished officers, Capt. 
 M'Pherson, his aid, and Capt. Cheeseman. 
 
 After this repulse, Arnold retired about three 
 miles from Quebec, where he continued encamp- 
 ed through a rigorous winter. On the return of 
 spring, 1776, finding his forces inadequate to the 
 reduction of Quebec, and not being reinforced, 
 he retired. By the 18th of June, the Americans, 
 having been compelled to relinquish one post af- 
 ter another, had wholly evacuated Canada. 
 
 The garrison of Quebec consisted, at the time of the 
 above attack, of about one thousand five hundred men ; the 
 American forces were near eight hundred. The loss of 
 the Americans in killed and wounded was about one hun- 
 dred, and three hundred were taken prisoners. 
 
 The death of General Montgomery was deeply lamented 
 both in Europe and America. " The most powerful speak- 
 ers in the British parliament displayed their eloquence, ir| 
 praising his virtues and lamenting his fall." Congress di- 
 rected a monument to be erected to his memory, expressive 
 of their sense of his high patriotism and heroic conduct. 
 
 Sec. 36. During this year, 1775, Virginia, through 
 the indiscretion of Lord Dunmore, the royal gover 
 nor, was involved in difficulties little short ot 
 those to which the inhabitants of Massachusetts 
 were subjected. From the earliest stages of the 
 controversy with Great Britain, the Virginians 
 had been in the foremost rank of opposition ; and, 
 
REVOLUTION. 231 
 
 in common with other provinces, had taken mea- 
 sures for defence. 
 
 These measures for defence, the royal governor, 
 regarding with an eye of suspicion, attempted to 
 thwart, by the removal of guns and ammunition, 
 which had been stored by the people in a maga- 
 zine. The conduct of the governor roused the 
 inhabitants, and occasioned intemperate expres- 
 sions of resentment. Apprehending personal 
 danger, Lord Dunmore retired on board the Fo wey 
 man of war, from which he issued his procla- 
 mations, instituting martial law, and proffering 
 freedom to such slaves, as would leave their mas- 
 ters, and repair to the royal standard. Here, also, 
 by degrees, he equipped and armed a number of 
 vessels, and, upon being refused provisions by 
 the provincials, from on shore, he proceeded to 
 reduce the town of Norfolk to ashes. The loss 
 was estimated at three hundred thousand pounds 
 sterling. Nearly six thousand persons were de- 
 prived of their habitations. 
 
 In like manner, the royal governors of North and South 
 Carolina thought it prudent to retire, and seek safety on 
 board men of war. Royal government generally termina- 
 ted this year throughout the country, the king's governors, 
 for the most part, abdicating their governments, and taking 
 refuge on board the English shipping. 
 
 Sec. 37. Early in the spring of 1776, Gen. Wash- 
 ington contemplated the expulsion of the British 
 army from Boston, by direct assault. In a coun- 
 cil of war, it was deemed expedient, however, 
 rather to take possession of, and fortify Dorches- 
 ter Heights, which commanded the harbor and 
 British shipping. The night of the 4th of March 
 was selected for the attempt. Accordingly, in the 
 evening a covering party of eight hundred, fol- 
 lowed by a working party of twelve hundred. 
 
232 PERIOD in. 1775 TO 1783. 
 
 with intrenching tools, took possession of the 
 Heights, unobserved by the enemy. 
 
 Here betaking themselves to work with so much 
 activity, by morning they had constructed fortifi- 
 cations, which completely sheltered them. The 
 surprise of the British cannot easily be conceived. 
 The English admiral, after examining the works, 
 declared that, if the Americans were not dislodg- 
 ed from their position, his vessels could no longer 
 remain in safety in the harbor. It was deter- 
 mined, therefore, by the British, to evacuate Bos- 
 ton, which they now did ; and on the 17th, the 
 British troops, under command of Lord William 
 Howe, successor of Gen. Gage, sailed for Halifax. 
 General Washington, to the great joy of the in- 
 habitants, army, and nation, immediately march- 
 ed into the town. 
 
 The rear guard of the British was scarcely out of the 
 town, when Washington entered it on the other side, with 
 colors displayed, drums beating, and all the forms of vic- 
 tory and triumph. He was received by the inhabitants, 
 with demonstrations of joy and gratitude. Sixteen months 
 had the people suffered the distresses of hunger,* and the 
 outrages of an insolent soldiery. 
 
 The town presented a melancholy spectacle, at the time 
 the army of Washington entered. One thousand five hun- 
 dred loyalists, with their families, had just departed on 
 board the British fleet, tearing themselves from home and 
 friends, for the love of the royal cause. Churches were 
 strapped of pews and benches for fuel, shops were opened 
 and rifled of goods to clothe the army, and houses had been 
 pillaged by an unfeeling soldiery. 
 
 Sec. 38. While affairs were proceeding thus in 
 the north, an attempt was made, in June and 
 
 * Provisions had been so scarce in Boston, that a pound of fresh fish 
 was twelve pence sterling, a goose eight shillings and four pence, a turkey 
 twelve shillings and six pence, a duck eight shillings and two pence, hens 
 two shillings and one penny per pound. A sheep cost thirty-five shillings 
 sterling, apples thirty-three shillings and four pence per bushel. Fire 
 - wood forty-one shillings and eight pence per cord, and finally was not to 
 be procured at any price. 
 
} 
 
 REVOLUTION. 233 
 
 July, to destroy the fort on Sullivan's Island, near 
 Charleston, S. C., by Gen. Clinton and Sir Peter 
 Parker. After an action of upwards of ten hours, 
 the British were obliged to retire, having their 
 ships greatly injured, and with the loss of two 
 hundred killed and wounded. The loss of the 
 Americans was but ten killed, and twenty-two 
 wounded. 
 
 The fort was commanded by Col. Moultrie, whose gar- 
 rison consisted of but three hundred and seventy-five regu- 
 lar troops, and a few militia. On the fort was mounted 
 twenty-six cannon of eighteen and nine pounders. The 
 British force consisted of two fifty gun ships, and four fri- 
 gates, each of twenty-eight guns, besides several smaller 
 vessels, with three thousand troops on board. By this re- 
 pulse of the British, the southern states obtained a respite 
 from the calamities of war for two years and a half. 
 
 Among the American troops who resisted the British, in 
 their attack on Fort Moultrie, was a Sergeant Jasper, whose 
 name has been given to one of the counties in Georgia, in 
 commemoration of his gallant deeds, and who deserves an 
 honorable notice in every history of his country. In the 
 warmest part of the contest, the flag staff* was severed by a 
 cannon ball, and the flag fell to the bottom of the ditch, on / 
 the outside of the works. This accident was considered, 
 by the anxious inhabitants in Charleston, as putting an end 
 to the contest, by striking the American flag- to the enemy. 
 The moment Jasper made the discovery, that the flag had 
 fallen, he jumped from one of the embrasures, and took up 
 the flag, which he tied to a post, and replaced it on the pa- 
 rapet, where he supported it until another flag staff was 
 procured. 
 
 The subsequent activity and enterprise of this patriot in- 
 duced Col. Moultrie to give him a sort of roving commis- 
 sion, to go and come at pleasure, confident that he was al- 
 ways usefully employed. He was privileged to select such 
 men from the regiment as he should choose, to accompany 
 him in his enterprises. His parties consisted generally of 
 five or six, and he often returned with prisoners, before 
 Moultrie was apprised of his absence. Jasper was distin- 
 guished for his humane treatment, when an enemy fell into 
 his power. His ambition appears to have been limited to 
 the characteristics of bravery, humanity, and usefulness l<* 
 20* 
 
234 PERIOD v. 1775 TO 1783, 
 
 the cause in which he was engaged. By his cunning and 
 enterprise, he often succeeded in the capture of those who 
 were lying in ambush for him. He entered the British 
 lines, and remained several days in Savannah, in disguise, 
 and, after informing himself of their strength and inten- 
 tions, returned to the American camp, with useful informa- 
 tion to his commanding officer. 
 
 In one of these excursions, an instance of bravery and 
 humanity is recorded, by the biographer of General Marion, 
 which could not be credited, if it was not well attested. 
 While he was examining the British camp at Ebenezer, all 
 the sympathy of his heart was awakened by the distresses 
 of a Mrs. Jones, whose husband, an American by birth, 
 had taken the king's protection, and been confined in irons 
 for deserting the royal cause, after he had taken the oath of 
 allegiance. Her well founded belief was, that nothing short 
 of the life of her husband would atone for the offence with 
 which he was charged. Anticipating the awful scene of a 
 beloved husband expiring on the gibbet, had excited inex- 
 pressible emotions of grief and distraction. Jasper secretly 
 consulted with his companion, Serjeant Newton, whose 
 feelings for the distressed female and her child were equal- 
 ly excited with his own, upon the practicability of releasing 
 Jones from his impending fate. Though they were unable 
 to suggest a plan of operation, they were determined to 
 watch for the most favorable opportunity, and make the 
 effort. 
 
 The departure of Jones and several others, all in irons, 
 to Savannah, for trial, under a guard, consisting of a ser- 
 jeant, corporal, and eight men, was ordered upon the suc- 
 ceeding morning. Within two miles of Savannah, about 
 thirty yards from the main road, is a spring of fine water, 
 surrounded .by a deep and thick underwood, where travel- 
 lers often halt to refresh themselves with a cool draught 
 from this pure fountain. Jasper and his companion select- 
 ed this spot as the most favorable for their enterprise. 
 They accordingly passed the guard, and concealed them- 
 selves near the spring. 
 
 When the enemy came up, they halted, and two of the 
 guard only remained with the prisoners, while the others 
 leaned their guns against trees in a careless manner, and 
 went to the spring. Jasper and Newton sprung from their 
 place of concealment, seized two of the muskets, and shot 
 the sentinels. The possession of all the arms placed the 
 enemy in their power, and compelled them to surrender 
 
REVOLUTION. 235 
 
 The irons were taken off from the prisoners, and arms put 
 into their hands. The whole party arrived at Perrysburg, 
 the next morning 1 , and joined the American camp. There 
 are but few instances upon record where personal exertions, 
 even for self-preservation from certain prospects of death, 
 would have induced a resort to an act so desperate of exe- 
 cution; how much more laudable was this, where the 
 spring to action was roused by the lamentations of a female 
 unknown to the adventurers ! 
 
 Subsequently to the gallant defence at Sullivan's Island, 
 Col. Moultrie's regiment was presented with a stand of co- 
 lors by Mrs. Elliot, which she had richly embroidered with 
 her own hands ; and, as a reward of Jasper's particular 
 merits, Governor Rutledge presented him with a very 
 handsome sword. During the assault against Savannah, 
 two officers had been killed and one wounded, endeavoring 
 to plant these colors upon the enemy's parapet of the Spring- 
 hill redoubt. Just before the retreat was ordered, Jasper 
 endeavored to replace them upon the works, and while he 
 was in the act, received a mortal wound and fell into the 
 ditch. When a retreat was ordered, he recollected the 
 honorable condition upon which the donor presented the 
 colors to his regiment, and among the last acts of his life, 
 succeeded in bringing them off 
 
 Major Horry called to see him soon after the retreat, to 
 whom, it is said, he made the following communication. 
 " I have got my furlough. That sword was presented to 
 me by Governor Rutledge, for my services in the defence 
 of Fort Moult rie. Give it to my father, and tell him I have 
 worn it with honor. If he should weep, tell him his son 
 died in the hope of a better life. Tell Mrs. Elliot that I 
 lost my life, supporting the colors which she presented to 
 our regiment. If you should ever see Jones, his wife and 
 son, tell them that Jasper is gone, but that the remembrance 
 of the battle, which he fought for them, brought a secret 
 joy to his heart when it was about to stop its motion for- 
 ever." He expired a few minutes after closing this sen- 
 tence.* 
 
 Sec. 39. During these transactions in the south, 
 the continental congress was in session, intently 
 observing the aspect of things, and deeply revol- 
 ving the probable issue of the present important 
 
 * M'Call's Georgia, Vol. II. 
 
236 PERIOD v. 1775 TO 1783. 
 
 contest. The idea of independence had now 
 -Zi, been broached among the people, and the way 
 was, in a measure, prepared to bring the subject 
 before congress. 
 
 Accordingly, on the 8th of June, Richard Henry 
 2 Lee, one of the deputies from Virginia, rose and 
 made a motion to declare America free and in- 
 dependent. 
 
 Mr. Lee addressed the house on this motion, and con- 
 cluded as follows : " Why then do we longer delay, why 
 still deliberate ? Let this most happy day give birth to the 
 American republic. Let her arise, not tp devastate and 
 conquer, but to re-establish the reign of peace and of the 
 laws. The eyes of Europe are fixed upon us ; she de- 
 
 ji. mands of us a living example of freedom, that may con- 
 trast, by the felicity of the citizens, with the ever increasing 
 tyranny which desolates her polluted shores. She invites 
 us to prepare an asylum, where the unhappy may find so- 
 lace, and the persecuted repose. She entreats us to culti- 
 vate a propitious soil, where that generous plant, which 
 
 ^ first sprang up and grew in England, but is now withered 
 by the poisonous blasts of Scottish tyranny, may revive and 
 flourish, sheltering under its salubrious and interminable 
 shade, all the unfortunate of the human race, 
 
 " This is the end presaged by so many omens, by our first 
 victories, by the present ardor and union, by the flight of 
 Howe,* and the pestilence which broke out amongst Dun- 
 more's people,! by the very winds which baffled the enemy's 
 fleets and transports, and that terrible tempest which in- 
 gulfed seven hundred vessels upon the coast of New- 
 foundland. If we are not this day wanting in our duty to 
 our country, the names of the American legislators will be 
 placed, by posterity, at the side of those of Theseus, of Ly- 
 curgus, of Romulus, of Numa, of the three Williams of 
 Nassau, and of all those whose memory has been, and will 
 be, for ever dear to virtuous men and good citizens." 
 
 * Alluding to the evacuation of Boston by the British, under Howe, 
 page 232. 
 
 t Lord Dunmore, the royal governor of Virginia, retired to the Fowey 
 man of war, as noticed page 231, on board of which, and the other ves- 
 sels of his squadron, a pestilential malady broke out. which carried off 
 great numbers of the crowd, both white and black, which had thronged 
 the vessels. 
 
'^24/v 
 
 REVOLUTION. 237 
 
 Sec. 40. The resolution of Mr. Lee, so eloquent- 
 ly supported by him, was still further discussed 
 on the 11th of June. On this last day it was post- 
 poned for further consideration to the first day 
 of July ; and at the same time it was voted that 
 a committee be appointed to propose a DECLARA- 
 TION to the effect of the resolution. This com- 
 mittee was elected by ballot on the following day, 
 and consisted of Thomas Jefferson, John Adams, 
 Benjamin Franklin, Roger Sherman, and Robert 
 R. Livingston. 
 
 It is usual, when committees are elected by ballot, that 
 their numbers are arranged in order, according- to the num- 
 ber of votes which each has received. Mr. Jefferson, there- 
 fore, probably received the highest, and Mr. Adams the next 
 highest number of votes. The difference is said to have 
 been but a single vote. 
 
 Mr. Jefferson and Mr. Adams, standing thus at the head. 
 of the committee, were requested by the other members, 
 to act as a sub-committee to prepare the draft; and Mr. 
 Jefferson drew up the paper. The original draft as brought 
 by him from his study, with interlineations in the hand- 
 writing of Dr. Franklin, and others in that of Mr. Adams, 
 was in Mr. Jefferson's possession at the time of his death. 
 The merit of this paper is Mr. Jefferson's ; some changes 
 were made in it on the suggestion of other members of the 
 committee, and others by congress, while it was under dis- 
 cussion. But none of them altered the tone, the frame, the 
 arrangement, or the general character of the instrument. 
 As a composition, the declaration is Mr. Jefferson's. It is 
 the production of his mind, and the high honor of it belongs 
 to him clearly and absolutely. 
 
 While Mr. Jefferson was the author of the declaration 
 itself, Mr. Adams was its great supporter on the floor of 
 congress. This was the unequivocal testimony of Mr. 
 Jefferson. " John Adams," said he, on one occasion, " was 
 our Colossus on the floor ; not graceful, not elegant, not al- 
 ways fluent in his public addresses, he yet came out with a 
 power, both of thought and of expression, that moved us 
 from our seats." And at another time he said, "John 
 Adams was the pillar of its support on the floor of con- 
 
Y. 
 
 238 ;/ PERIOD v. 1775 TO 1783. 
 
 < 
 
 gress ; its ablest advocate and defender against the multi- 
 farious assaults which were made against it." 
 
 Sec. 41. On the arrival of the day assigned, the 
 subject was resumed, and on the kth of July, 1776, 
 upon the report of Thomas Jefferson, John Adams, 
 Benjamin Franklin, Roger Sherman, and Philip 
 Livingston, the thirteen confederate colonies dis- 
 solved their allegiance to the British crown, and 
 declared themselves Free and Independent, under 
 the name of the Thirteen United States of America. 
 
 After specifically enumerating the wrongs received, and 
 declaring these to he sufficient grounds for a separation, 
 they solemnly and deliberately proceeded to the act of se- 
 paration, in the words following : 
 
 " We, therefore, the representatives of the United States 
 of America, in general congress assembled, appealing to 
 the Supreme Judge of the world for the rectitude of our 
 intentions, and by authority of the good people of these co- 
 lonies, solemnly publish and declare, That these united 
 colonies are, and of right ought to be, free and independent 
 states; that they are absolved from all allegiance to the 
 British crown ; and that all political connection between 
 them and the state of Great Britain is, and ought to be, to- 
 tally dissolved ; and that as free and independent states, 
 they have full power to levy war, conclude peace, contract 
 alliances, establish commerce, and to do all other acts and 
 things, which independent states may of right do. And for 
 the support of this declaration, with a firm reliance on the 
 protection of Divine Providence, we mutually pledge to each 
 other our lives, our fortunes, and our sacred honor." 
 
 This declaration was directed to be engrossed, and on the 
 2d of August, 1776, was signed by all the members then 
 present, and by some who were not members on the 4th of 
 July. The following are the members who signed this 
 memorable instrument:* 
 
 * A signature to the declaration of independence, without reference to 
 general views, was, to each individual, a personal consideration of the 
 most momentous import. It would be regarded in England as treason, 
 and expose any man to the halter or the block. The signers well knew 
 the responsibility of their station ; they well knew the fate, which awaited 
 themselves, should their experiment fail. They came, therefore, to the 
 question of a declaration of independence, like men who had counted the 
 cost j prepared to rejoice, without any unholy triumph, should God smile 
 
REVOLUTION. 
 
 John Hancock, President, from Massachusetts. 
 
 239 
 
 New-Hampshire. 
 Josiah Bartlett, 
 William Whipple, 
 Matthew Thornton. 
 
 Massachusetts. 
 Samuel Adams, 
 John Adams, 
 Robert Treat Paine, 
 Elbridge Gerry. 
 
 Rhode-Island. 
 Stephen Hopkins, 
 William Ellery. 
 
 Connecticut. 
 Roger Sherman, 
 Samuel Huntingdon, 
 William Williams, 
 Oliver Wolcott. 
 
 New- York. 
 William Floyd, 
 Philip Livingston, 
 Francis Lewis, 
 Lewis Morris. 
 
 New-Jersey. 
 Richard Stockton, 
 John Witherspoon, 
 Francis Hopkinson, 
 John Hart, 
 Abraham Clark. 
 
 Pennsylvania. 
 Robert Morris, 
 Benjamin Rush, 
 Benjamin Franklin, 
 John Morton, 
 
 James Smith, 
 George Taylor, 
 James Wilson, 
 George Ross. 
 
 Delaware. 
 Caesar Rodney, 
 George Read. 
 
 Maryland. 
 Samuel Chase, 
 William Paca, 
 Thomas Ston'e, 
 Charles Carroll of Carrollton. 
 
 Virginia. 
 George Wythe, 
 Richard Henry Lee, 
 Thomas Jefferson, 
 Benjamin Harrison, 
 Thomas Nelson, Jun. 
 Thomas Lighfoot Lee, 
 Carter Braxton. 
 
 North Carolina. 
 William Hooper, 
 Joseph Hewes, 
 John Penn. 
 
 South Carolina. 
 Edward Rutledge, 
 Thomas Hayward, Jun. 
 Thomas Lynch, Jun. 
 Arthur Middleton. 
 Georgia. 
 
 Button Gwinnett, 
 Lyman Hall, 
 George Walton.* 
 
 George Clymer, 
 
 upon the transaction ; prepared also, if defeat should follow, to lead in 
 the way to martyrdom. The only signature, on the original document, 
 which exhibits indications of a trembling hand, is that of Stephen Hop- 
 kins, who had been afflicted with the palsy. In this work of treason, 
 John Hancock led the way, as president of the congress, and by the force 
 with which he wrote, he seems to have determined that his name should 
 never be erased. The pen, with which these signatures were made, has 
 been preserved, and is now in the cabinet of the Massachusetts Historical 
 Society. 
 
 * The longevity of these signers of the declaration of independence is 
 worthy of notice. They were fifty-six in number ; and the average length 
 of their lives was about sixty-five years. Four of the number attained to 
 
240 PERIOD v. 1775 TO 1783. 
 
 This declaiation was received by the people with trans- 
 ports of joy. Public rejoicings took place in various parts 
 of the union. In New- York, the statue of George III. 
 was taken down, and the lead, of which it was composed, 
 was converted into musket balls. In Boston, the garrison 
 was drawn up in King's street, which from that moment, 
 took the name of State street, and thirteen salutes, by thir- 
 teen detachments, into which the troops were formed, were 
 fired ; the bells of the town were rung, in token of felicita- 
 tion, and the evening concluded with the tearing in pieces, 
 and burning, the ensigns of royalty lions, sceptres, and 
 crowns. 
 
 In Virginia, the exultation exceeded description. On 
 
 the age of ninety years and upwards ; fourteen exceeded eighty years ; 
 and twenty-three, as one in two and a half, reached threescore years and 
 ten. The longevity of the New-England delegation was still more re- 
 markable. Their number was fourteen, the average of whose lives was 
 seventy-five years. Who will affirm that the unusual age to which the 
 signers, as a body, attained, was not a reward bestowed upon them, for 
 their fidelity to their country, and the trust which they in general reposed 
 in the overruling providence of God. Who can doubt the kindness of 
 that Providence to the American people, in thus prolonging the lives of 
 these men, till the principles for which they had contended, through a 
 long series of years, had been acknowledged, and a government been found- 
 ed upon them ? 
 
 Of this venerable body, but a single one survives, (Charles Carroll of Car- 
 rollton, 1832.) The others now are no more. " They are no more, as in 
 1776. bold and fearless advocates of independence. They are dead. But 
 how little is there of the great and good which can die. To their country 
 they yet live, and live forever. They live in all that perpetuates the re- 
 membrance of men on earth; in the recorded proofs of their own great 
 actions, in the offspring of their own great interest, in the deep engraved 
 lines of public gratitude, and in the respect and homage of mankind. 
 They live in their example ; and they live emphatically, and will live, in 
 the influence which their lives and efforts, their principles and opinions, 
 now exercise and will continue to exercise on the affairs of men, not only 
 in our own country, but throughout the civilized world." 
 
 " It remains to us to cherish their memorv, and emulate their virtues, 
 
 ., thing 
 
 Wo cannot recur too often, nor dwell too long, upon the lives and charac- 
 ters of such men ; for our own will take something of their form and im- 
 pression from those on which they rest. If we inhale the moral atmos- 
 phere in which they moved, we must feel its purifying and invigorating 
 influence. If we raise our thoughts to their elevation, our minds will be 
 expanded and ennobled, in beholding the immeasurable distance beneath 
 and around us. Can we breathe the pure mountain air, and not be re- 
 freshed ? can we walk abroad amidst the beautiful and the grand works 
 of creation, and feel no kindling of devotion T' 
 
 (Preface to Author's Lives of the Signers to the Declaration of Inde- 
 pendence.') 
 
REVOLUTION. 241 
 
 learning the measures of congress, the Virginia convention 
 immediately decreed, that the name of the king should be 
 suppressed in all public prayers. They ordained that the ^ j 
 great seal of the commonwealth should represent Virtue as 
 the tutelary genius of the province, robed in drapery of an 
 Amazon, resting one hand upon her lance, and holding 
 with the other a sword, trampling upon tyranny, under the 
 figure of a prostrate man, having near him a crown, fallen 
 from his head, and bearing in one hand a broken chain, 
 and in the other a scourge. At the foot was charactered 
 the word Virginia, and round the effigy of Virtue was in- 
 scribed : Sic semper tyrannis. The reverse, represented 
 a group of figures; in the middle stood Liberty, with her f\ 
 wand and cap; on one side was Ceres, with a horn of plen- 
 ty in the right hand, and a sheaf of wheat in the left ; upon 
 the other appeared Eternity, with the globe and the phoenix. 
 At the foot were found these words Deus nobis h(Bc otia 
 fecit. 
 
 Sec. 42. Soon after the evacution of Boston by 
 the British troops, Washington, believing that the 
 possession of New-York would be with them a 
 favourite object, determined to make it the head 
 quarters of his army, and thereby prevent their 
 occupation of it, if such a step had been contem- 
 plated. Accordingly, he soon removed to that 
 city with the principal part of his troops. 
 
 Sec. 43. On the 10th of June, Gen. William 
 Howe, with the army which had evacuated Bos- 
 ton, arrived from Halifax, off Sandy Hook. Here 
 he was soon after joined by his brother, Admiral 
 Lord Howe, from England, with a reinforcement. 
 Their combined forces amounted to twenty-four 
 thousand. On the 2d of August, they landed 
 near the Narrows, nine miles from the city. 
 
 Sec. 44. Previous to the commencement of hos- 
 tilities, Admiral and Gen. Howe communicated 
 to Washington, that they were commissioned to 
 settle all difficulties, between Great Britain and 
 the colonies. But, not addressing Washington 
 21 
 
242 PERIOD v. -1775 TO 1783. 
 
 by the title due to his rank, he thought proper 
 to decline receiving their communication. It ap- 
 peared, however, that the power of these com- 
 missioners extended little farther than, in the 
 language of their instructions, "to grant pardons 
 to such as deserve mercy." 
 
 Sec. 45. The American army, in and near New- 
 York, amounted to seventeen thousand two hun- 
 dred and twenty-five men, a part of whom were 
 encamped near Brooklyn, on Long-Island. On 
 the 27th of August,, this body of the Americans, 
 under command of Brigadier Gen. Sullivan, were 
 attacked by the British, under Sir Henry Clinton, 
 Percy, and Cornwallis, and were defeated, with 
 the loss of upwards of a thousand men,* while 
 the loss of the British amounted to less than 
 four hundred. Gen. Sullivan, and Brigadier Gen- 
 erals Lord Stirling and Woodhull, fell into the 
 hands of the British as prisoners. 
 
 In the heat of the engagement, Gen. Washington had 
 crossed over to Brooklyn from New- York, and on seeing 
 some of his best troops slaughtered, or taken, he uttered, it 
 is said, an exclamation of anguish. But deep as his an- 
 guish was, and much as he wished to succor his troops, 
 prudence forhad the calling in of his forces from New-York 
 as they would by no means have sufficed to render his army 
 equal to that of the English. 
 
 Sec. 46. After the repulse at Brooklyn, percei- 
 ving the occupation of his position on Long Island 
 to be of no probable importance, Washington 
 withdrew his troops to New- York, and soon af- 
 ter evacuated the city, upon which, on the 15th 
 of September, the British entered it. 
 
 Seldom, if ever, was a retreat conducted with more abi 
 
 * Authorities differ as to the loss of the Americans in the battle. Gen. 
 Washington did not admit that the loss exceeded 1000 men ; but it is 
 thought that in the estimate he included only regular troops. Some make 
 the loss a little short of 2000. 
 
REVOLUTION. 243 
 
 lity and prudence, or under more favorable auspices, than 
 that of the American troops from Long Island. The ne- 
 cessary preparations having been made, on the 29th of Au- 
 gust, at eight in the evening, the troops began to move in 
 the greatest silence. But they were not on board their ves- 
 sels before eleven. A violent northeast wind, and the ebb 
 tide, which rendered the current very rapid, prevented the 
 passage. The time pressed, however. Fortunately, the 
 wind suddenly veered to the northwest. They immediately 
 made sail,. and landed in New- York. Providence appeared 
 to have watched over the Americans. About two o'clock 
 in the morning, a thick fog, and at this season of the year 
 extraordinary, covered all Long-Island, whereas the air was 
 perfectly clear on the side of New-York. Notwithstand- 
 ing the entreaties of his officers, Washington remained the 
 last upon the shore. It was not till the next morning, when 
 the sun was already high, and the fog dispelled, that the 
 English perceived the Americans had abandoned their camp, 
 and were sheltered from pursuit. 
 
 Sec. 47. Shortly after the disasters on Long 
 Island, the British general, Lord Howe, indulging 
 the hope that the Americans were now sufficient- 
 ly humbled to accept of conditions from England, 
 made overtures to congress for this purpose, and 
 desired that a committee from that body might 
 be appointed to meet him, at Staten Island. In 
 a spirit of amity, congress proceeded to the ap- 
 pointment of commissioners, who met Lord Howe 
 accordingly; but the interview was soon closed 
 the British general not receiving the commission- 
 ers in the only character in which they would 
 treat with him viz. as the representatives of inde- 
 pendent states. 
 
 When the subject of appointing commissioners came 
 before congress, the proposition was debated for several 
 days, and was strongly opposed by several of the most dis- 
 tinguished members. It vas at length, however, acceded 
 to, and John Adams, Dr. Franklin, and Mr. Rutledge, were 
 appointed. Lord Howe sent as a hostage, one of his prin- 
 cipal officers ; but the three commissioners, to show their 
 confidence in themselves and their cause, waived the secu- 
 
 
244 PERIOD- v.- 1775 TO 1783. 
 
 rity to be derived from such a pledge, and took him with 
 them. They repaired to the British head quarters on Sta- 
 ten Island, opposite Amboy, and were conducted to the com- 
 mander through an army of twenty thousand men, arrang- 
 ed on purpose to make the most imposing show, so as to 
 impress the minds of the commissioners with a notion ol 
 the immense power of the nation with which they were 
 waging war. They were, however, too well aware of the 
 design with which this display was made, to indulge their 
 enemies by showing any sign of amazement or uneasiness. 
 
 Lord Howe received them with great courtesy ; and af- 
 ter compliments of civility, he told them that though he 
 could not treat with them, as a committee of congress, yet 
 as his powers enabled him to confer and consult with any 
 private gentlemen of influence in the colonies on the means 
 of restoring peace, he was glad of this opportunity of con- 
 ferring with them, on this subject, if they thought them 
 selves at liberty to confer with him in that character. The 
 committee observed, that as they came to hear, he might 
 consider them in what light he pleased, and communicate 
 any proposition he might be authorized to make, but that 
 they could consider themselves in no other character except 
 that in which they were placed by order of congress. " You 
 may view me in any light you please," said Mr. Adams, 
 " except in that of a British subject." 
 
 Lord Howe then entered into a discourse of considerable 
 length, in which the commissioners could perceive no ex- 
 plicit proposition, except one, viz. that the colonies should 
 return to their allegiance and obedience to the government 
 of Great Britain. The committee gave it as their opinion 
 that a return to the dominion of Great Britain was not now 
 to be expected, and added their reasons at large; on which 
 Lord Howe put an end to the conference. 
 
 Sec. 48. On retiring from New- York, Gen. Wash- 
 ington, with his army, occupied for a short time 
 the heights of Harlem, and several statibns in 
 that neighborhood. 
 
 On the 16th of September, the day after the British took 
 possession of New- York, a considerable body of the enemy 
 appearing in the plains between the two camps, the gene- 
 ral ordered Colonel Knowlton, with a corps of rangers, 
 and Major Leitch, with three companies of a Virginia re- 
 giment, to get in their rear, while he amused them by 
 
Bravery oj Sergeant Jasper. P. 233. 
 
 Washington crossing the Delaware* P. 249. 
 

 REVOLUTION. 245 
 
 making apparent dispositions to attack their front. Th 
 plan succeeded. A skirmish ensued, in which the Ameri- 
 cans charged the enemy with great intrepidity, and gained 
 considerable advantage ; but the principal benefit of this 
 action was its influence in reviving the depressed spirits of 
 the whole army. Major Leitch, who very gallantly led on 
 the detachment, was soon brought off the ground, mortally- 
 wounded ; and not long afterward, Colonel Knowlton fell, 
 bravely fighting at the head of his troops. The Americans 
 in this conflict engaged a battalion of light infantry* another 
 of Highlanders, and three companies of Hessian riflemen ; 
 and lost about fifty men killed and wounded. The loss of 
 the enemy was more than double that number.* 
 
 Sec. 49. Finding his position at Harlem and 
 its vicinity untenable, Washington broke up his 
 camp, and retired with a part of his forces to 
 White Plains. Here, on the 28th of October, he 
 was attacked by the British and Hessians, un- 
 der Generals Howe, Clinton, Knyphausen, and 
 De Heister. A partial engagement ensued, and 
 several hundreds fell on both sides ; but neither 
 party could claim any decided advantage. 
 
 Shortly after, a strong British reinforcement 
 arriving, under Lord Percy, Washington, deeming 
 his position unsafe, left it on the night of the 30th, 
 and retired with his forces to North Castle, about 
 five miles from White Plains. Leaving about 
 7500, under command of Gen. Lee, Washington 
 crossed the North river, and took post in the 
 neighborhood of fort Lee. 
 
 Sec. 50. The British general failing to draw 
 Washington to a general engagement, next turn- 
 ed his attention to the reduction of forts Washing- 
 ton and Lee, which had been garrisoned for the 
 purpose of preserving the command of the Hudson 
 river. On the 16th of November, the former of 
 these forts was attacked by the British, The 
 
 * Holmes' Annals. 
 21* 
 
PERIOD v. 1775 TO i783, 
 
 defence of the fort by the hr;-/e <'<>. ; .g;aw 
 
 was spirited, hut, fit. length he was obh;"-/] to 
 capitulate and with the forr, to r hi?, 
 
 J hetween ;i 
 r m the IHth. the |{riti--.h an 
 
 ".fl to thf fort, f/;f;. 
 
 I.HOD in 
 
 , hut r'i.?'^:rt?j.iniri vould 
 
 be entirely unequal, Uie fort 
 
 urj^fir Mi 
 
 MI, who hfirj ?j.t thi-'. t.'un'- taken . 
 ark, on \.\\t\ Mouth iide of t.h<: ['aasaic. 
 
 AVv hiH t.f 
 
 it foe, V\ off rell : v/iek, 
 
 on the KariUin, an'l Lord r'orn walli? 1 , o<i th'-. 
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 ') frr^rn Urunrtwiek I 9fl : f'rof/i 
 
 Prinrr-.t.oii to TretttQU 
 
 I'enn?',ylvania Mifjr-. of th'. h f l'h' 
 
 uit ' viU) HO rnueh rapjflit,y ; th. 
 
 ny palliti 
 
 ii within f.i.^fjt. y.n'J ihot of t], 
 the Othet huiMin^ t.; 
 
 'f ' 
 
 . t,f l},t- 
 
 -, f'ir^. Wa*nim/t.r>ri fin' ) with 
 
 th" /',. .hfn xjOOO m 
 
 k with fh ':[;;) ir, r. 
 
 , 
 
 ly amo 
 
 poorly [<'], ;iri'J wf.re eXpOfwl 'iiuit.ry, ' 
 
 , withon 1 
 
 tfi'-r/j ' / of h", ?:';> :-.firi. ;jn'l in th<-, rni'Jsl 
 
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 AfJ'J'-.'l o thi-., I 
 
 in Ncw-Jerflcy 
 
It I V <>l. TH.N. '.' I , 
 
 in the A iiK-riVan rau.sr, \\.-ir.-ii.-iiiMiii" -ides, nnd making 
 
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 nl' i In- pnlilic. s!ili-iy ! i i.-;laicy was an object ofinliui 
 
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 <l iill.iir:'. on Ihc p.-irl of \incri<-;i, wns MniH for- 
 hiddhi!', Ihc c(nlinciil;il ron^ross, 80 1'nr In.in 
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 eventually Crown lln-ir ruirrpri: ..-.-., rulmly occu 
 p'n-l LhemselVCB in draw in- 1 ; up various articles of 
 rnn/'ci/mi/iiHi and jx-rprl ii.il union hclwccn the 
 
 surh articles were .obviously necessary, that, 
 
 MM' lino, of distinction ltd wn-n UK: powers of ihr 
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 adly (lelined. In HUH way, only, would rolli 
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 <d i he union he preserved, 
 
 Ac<-ordii,-| y , ,-ueh articles w.-n; now dij^-strd. 
 Jind at the .-.iltin;-; of eon-re, ;, Oct. /ll.h, I77(), 
 
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 medlatel) sent to n.e ... . , h , 
 
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 248 PERIOD v. 1775 TO 1783. 
 
 each state for approbation. The principal arti- 
 cles of confederation were the following : 
 
 " They all and each obligate themselves to contribute for 
 the common defence, and for the maintenance of their li- 
 berties. 
 
 " Each particular state preserved the exclusive right of 
 regulating its internal government, and of framing laws in 
 all matters, not included in the articles of confederation, 
 and which would not be prejudicial to it. 
 
 "No particular state was either to send, or to receive 
 ambassadors, enter into negotiations, contract engagements, 
 form alliances, or make war, except in the case of sudden 
 attack, with any king, prince, or power whatsoever, with- 
 out the consent of the United States. 
 
 " No individual, holding any magistracy, office, or corrf- 
 mission, whatsoever, from the United States, or from any 
 of them, was allowed to accept of any presents, or any of 
 fice or title of any kind whatsoever, from any foreign king, 
 prince, or potentate. . 
 
 " No assembly was to confer titles of nobility. 
 
 " No state was to make alliances or treaties of what kind 
 soever, with another, without the consent of all. 
 
 " Each particular state had authority to maintain, in peace 
 as well as war, the number of armed ships and of land 
 .troops, judged necessary, by the general assembly of all the 
 states, and no more. 
 
 " There shall be a public treasury for the service of the 
 confederation, to be replenished by the particular contribu- 
 tions of each state ; the same to be proportioned according 
 to the number of inhabitants^ of every age, sex, or condition, 
 with the exception of Indians. 
 
 " A general congress was to be convoked every year, on 
 the first Monday of November, to be composed of deputies 
 from all the states ; it was invested with all the powers that 
 belonged to the sovereigns of other nations." These powers 
 were exactly enumerated. 
 
 " Every individual holding any office, and either wages, 
 salary, or emolument whatsoever, was thereby excluded 
 from congress. 
 
 " There was to be a council of state composed of one de- 
 puty from each province, nominated annually by his col* 
 leagues, of the same state, and in case these should not 
 agree, by the general congress." Each state was to have 
 but one vote. 
 
REVOLUTION. 249 
 
 " During the session, as well as the recess of the general 
 congress, the council of state was to be charged with the 
 management of the public affairs of the confederation, al- 
 ways restricting itself, however, within the limits prescri- 
 bed by the laws, and particularly by the articles of the con- 
 federation itself." 
 
 Sec. 52. Fortunately for Washington, about this 
 time he received reinforcements of militia and 
 regular troops, which, together with his previous 
 forces, gave him an army of about 7000 effective 
 men. But this number being soon to be reduced 
 by the retirement of a large body of militia, 
 whose period of enlistment would close with the 
 year, Washington formed the bold resolution of 
 recrossing the Delaware, and of attacking the 
 British at Trenton. This plan was carried into 
 effect on the night of the 25th of December, and 
 on the following day Hessian prisoners to the 
 amount of one thousand were taken by the 
 Americans, with the loss of scarcely a man on 
 their side. This was a brilliant achievement, 
 and served to arouse the desponding hopes of 
 America. 
 
 The American troops detached for this service arrived, 
 in the dusk of the evening, at the bank of the river. The 
 passage of the river by the troops and the artillery, it was 
 expected, would be effected before midnight. But this was 
 found to be impracticable. The cold was so intense, and 
 the river so obstructed with floating ice, that the landing of 
 the artillery, was not accomplished until four in the morn- 
 ing. An immediate and precipitate march was made to- 
 wards Trenton, with the hope of reaching it before day. 
 But a thick fog setting jn, and a mist, mingled with sleet, 
 so retarded their march, that they did not reach Trenton 
 until eight o'clock, yet, at this late hour, the Hessians had 
 no suspicion of the approach of the enemy. 
 
 Sec. 53. Justly elated with the success at Tren- 
 ton, Washington soon after proceeded to Prince- 
 ton, where, on the first of January, he attacked 
 
250 PERIOD v. 1775 TO 1783. 
 
 a party of British, of whom upwards of one hun- 
 dred were killed, and the remainder, amounting 
 to about three hundred, 'were made prisoners. 
 The loss of the Americans was less than that of 
 the British ; but in that number were several va- 
 luable officers, and among them the brave Gen- 
 eral Mercer. 
 
 Sec. 54. Soon after the above victories, Wash- 
 .ington retired (January 6th, 1777) to winter quar- 
 ters, at Morristown, where his army were near- 
 ly all inoculated with the small pox, that dis- 
 ease having appeared among the troops, and ren- 
 dering such a measure necessary. The disease 
 proved mortal but in few instances, nor was 
 there a day in which the soldiers could not, if 
 called upon, have fought the enemy 
 
 Sec. 55. On the opening of the campaign of 
 1777, the army of Washington, although congress 
 had offered to recruits bounties in land, and greater 
 wages, amounted to little more than seven thou- 
 sand men. Towards the latter end of May, Wash- 
 ington quitted his winter encampment at Morris- 
 town, and, about the same time, the royal army 
 moved from Brunswick, which they had occupi- 
 ed during the winter. Much shifting of the ar- 
 mies followed, but no definite plan of operation 
 had apparently been settled by either. 
 
 Previous to this, however, General Howe sent a detach- 
 ment of two thousand men, -under command of Gen. Try on, 
 Gen. Agnew, arid Sir William Erskine, to destroy some 
 stores and provisions deposited at Danbury, in Connecticut. 
 Meeting with no resistance, they reached Danbury on the 
 26th of April, and destroyed one thousand eight hundred 
 barrels of beef and pork, and eight hundred of flour, two 
 thousand bushels of grain, clothing for a regiment, one 
 hundred hogsheads of rum, and one thousand seven hun- 
 dred and ninety tents. Besides the destruction of these ar- 
 ticles, the enemy wantonly burned eighteen houses with 
 
REVOLUTION. 251 
 
 their furniture, murdered three unoffending inhabitants, 
 and threw them into the flames. 
 
 Generals Sullivan, Wooster, and Arnold, happening' to 
 be in the neighborhood, hastily collected about six hundred 
 militia, with whom they marched in pursuit, in a heavy 
 rain, as far as Bethel, about two miles from Danbury. On 
 the morning of the 27th of April, the troops were divided, 
 Gen. Wooster, with about three hundred men, falling in the 
 rear of the enemy, while Arnold took post in front, at 
 Ridgefield. 
 
 Gen. Wooster proceeded to attack the enemy, in which 
 engagement he was mortally wounded, and from which his 
 troops were compelled to retire. At Ridgefield, Arnold 
 warmly received the enemy on their retreat, and although 
 repulsed, returned to the attack the next day on their march 
 to the Sound. Finding themselves continually annoyed by 
 the resolute and courageous yeomanry of the country 
 through which they passed, they hastened to embark on 
 board their ships, in which they sailed for New- York. 
 Their killed, wounded, and missing, amountecj. to about 
 one hundred and seventy ; the loss of the Americans was 
 not admitted to exceed one hundred. Gen. Wooster, now 
 in his seventieth year, lingered with his wounds until the 
 2d of May. Congress resolved that a monument should be 
 erected to his memory. To Gen. Arnold they presented a 
 horse, properly caparisoned, as a reward for his gallantry 
 on the occasion. 
 
 Sec. 56. At length the British General Howe, 
 leaving New-Jersey, embarked at Sandy Hook, 
 with sixteen thousand men, and sailed for the 
 Chesapeake. On the 14th of August, he landed 
 his troops, at the head of Elk river, in Maryland. 
 
 It being now obvious that his design was the 
 occupation of Philadelphia, Washington immedi- 
 ately put the American army in motion, towards 
 that place, to prevent, if possible, its falling into 
 the hands of the enemy. 
 
 The two armies met at Brandywine, Dela 
 ware, on the llth of September, and after an en- 
 agement, which continued nearly all day, the 
 Americans were compelled to retire. 
 
 i 
 
252 PERIOD v. 177 TO 1783. 
 
 The loss of the Americans in this action was estimated 
 at three hundred killed, and six hundred wounded. Be- 
 tween three and four hundred, principally the wounded, 
 were made prisoners. The loss of the British was stated 
 at less than one hundred killed, and four hundred wounded. 
 
 In this battle several foreign officers greatly distinguish- 
 ed themselves. Among these was the heroic Lafayette, 
 who unfortunately, while endeavoring to rally some fugi- 
 tives, was wounded in the leg. 
 
 On the night following the battle, the Americans retired 
 to Chester, and the next day to Philadelphia. Not consi- 
 dering the battle of Brandywine as decisive, congress, 
 which was -setting in Philadelphia, recommended to the 
 commander-in-chief to risk another engagement ; prepara- 
 tions for which- were accordingly made. Washington re- 
 passed the Schuylkill, and met the enemy at Goshen, Sept. 
 16th. But a violent shower of rain occurring, as the ad- 
 vanced guards began to skirmish, the powder in the car- 
 tridge boxes of the Americans became wet, and the com- 
 mander was compelled to withdraw his troops. 
 
 Sec. 57. An easy access to Philadelphia was 
 now presented to the enemy, and on the 26th, 
 Howe entered the place without molestation 
 The principal part of the British army was sta 
 tioned at Germantown, six miles from Philadel 
 phia. Congress adjourned to Lancaster, and 
 Washington encamped at eighteen miles distance 
 from Germantown. 
 
 Sec. 58. Immediately after the occupation ot 
 Philadelphia, the attention of Gen. Howe was 
 drawn to the reduction of some forts on the Del- 
 aware, which rendered the navigation of that 
 river unsafe to the British. Accordingly, a part 
 of the royal army was detached for that purpose. 
 Washington seized the opportunity to attack the 
 remainder at Germantown. 
 
 This attack was made Oct. 4th, but after a se- 
 vere action, the Americans were repulsed with 
 a loss of double that of the British. The loss of 
 the Americans was two hundred killed, six him- 
 
REVOLUTION. 253 
 
 dred wounded, and four hundred prisoners ; that 
 of the British was about one hundred killed and 
 five hundred wounded. 
 
 After this action, the British removed to Phil- 
 adelphia, where they continued long inactive. 
 Washington retreated to Skippack creek, eleven 
 miles from Germantown, and there encamped. 
 
 Great was the chagrin of Washington, on account of the 
 repulse at Germantown, which was much increased by the 
 auspicious commencement of the battle, and the flattering 
 prospect of a speedy and complete victory. The ultimate 
 failure of the Americans was attributed to the inexperience 
 of a part of the troops, and to embarrassments arising from 
 a fog which increased the darkness of the night. Congress, 
 however, expressed their approbation oT Washington's plan 
 of attack, and highly applauded the courage and firmness 
 of the troops. 
 
 Sec. 59. While such was the progress of mili- 
 tary operations in the middle states, important 
 events were taking place in the north. It has 
 already been noticed, (Sec. 34, 35,) that in May, 
 1775, Ticonderoga and Crown Point had been 
 taken by surprise, by Colonels Allen and Ar- 
 nold ; that in the ensuing fall. Gen. Montgomery 
 had reduced the fort of St. John's, captured Mon- 
 treal, and made an ineffectual, though desperate 
 assault upon Quebec. 
 
 On the return of spring, the American army gra- 
 dually retired up the St.. Lawrence, and after a " 
 loss of one post and another, in June, 1776, en- 
 tirely evacuated Canada. 
 
 In the spring of 1777, it was settled in England 
 that an invasion of the states should be attempt- 
 ed from the north, and a communication formed 
 between Canada and New- York. Could such 
 a plan have been executed, it would obviously 
 have precluded intercourse between New-Eng- 
 land and the more southern states. 
 
254 PERIOD v. 1775 TO 1783. 
 
 The execution o"f the plan was committed to 
 Gen. Burgoyne, who left Canada with seven thou- 
 sand troops, besides a powerful train of artillery, 
 and several tribes of In'dians.* 
 
 Sec. 60. On the 1st of July, Burgoyne landed 
 and invested Ticonderoga. The American garri- 
 son here amounted to three thousand men, under 
 command of Gen. St. Glair, an officer of high 
 standing. 
 
 Deeming this force inadequate to maintain the 
 post, especially as Burgoyne had taken posses- 
 sion of Mount Defiance, which commanded Ti- 
 conderoga, and not having provisions to sustain 
 the army for more than twenty days, St. Clair 
 perceived no safety for the garrison but in a pre- 
 cipitate flight. Accordingly, on the night of the 
 5th, Ticonderoga was abandoned. By a circui- 
 tous march, St. Clair, continued to retreat, first in- 
 to Vermont, although closely pursued, and thence 
 to Hudson river, where, after having lost dne 
 hundred and twenty pieces of artillery, with a 
 quantity of military stores, he joined General 
 Schuyler, commanding the main army of the 
 north. After this junction, the whole army 
 continued to retire to Saratoga and Stillwater, 
 and at length took post on Van Shaick's Island 
 in the mouth of the Mohawk, on the 18th of Au 
 gust. 
 
 After the taking of Ticonderoga, Gen. Bur 
 goyne, with the great body of his troops, proceed 
 ed up the lake, and destroyed the American flo 
 tilla, and a considerable quantity of baggage and 
 stores, which had been deposited at Skeensbo 
 
 * The number of Indian warriors, employed by the British in the revo- 
 lutionary war, has been estimated at about twelve thousand. See Mass 
 Hist. Col. vol. 10, p. 123, where the several tribes are specified, with the 
 number of warriors each tribe furnished. 
 
REVOLUTION. 255 
 
 rough. Having halted at this place for nearly 
 three weeks, he proceeded to Fort Edward, on 
 the Hudson, where he did not arrive until July 
 30th, his way having been obstructed by Schuy- 
 ler's army, which felled 'a great number of trees 
 across the road, and demolished the bridges, 
 while on their retreat. 
 
 Sec. 61. While Gen. Burgoyne lay at Fort Ed- 
 ward, a detachment of his army, consisting of 
 five hundred English and one hundred Indians, 
 tinder Col. Baum, who had been sent to seize a 
 magazine of stores at Bennington, in Vermont, 
 was totally defeated, and Col. Baum slain, by a 
 party of Vermont troops called Green Mountain 
 Boys, and a detachment of New-Hampshire mi- 
 litia, under command of Gen. Stark. 
 
 Baum, on his arrival near Bennington, learning that the 
 Americans were strongly entrenched at that place, halted, 
 and despatched a messenger to Gen. Burgoyne, for a rein- 
 forcement. 
 
 Gen. Stark, now on his march with a body of New- 
 Hampshire militia, to join Gen. Schuyler, receiving intelli- 
 gence of Baum's approach, altered his movement, and col- 
 lected his force at Bennington. 
 
 Before the expected reinforcement could arrive, General 
 Stark, having added to his New-Hampshire corps a body 
 of Vermont militia, determined to attack Batfm in his en- 
 trenchments. Accordingly, on the 16th of August, an at- 
 tack was made, which resulted in the flight of Baum's de- 
 tachment, at the moment in which the reinforcement of 
 troops, despatched by Gen. Burgoyne, arrived. With the 
 assistance of these, the battle was now renewed, but ended 
 in the discomfiture of the British forces, and with a loss, on 
 their part, of about seven hundred in killed and wounded. 
 The loss of the Americans was about one hundred. 
 
 Sec. 62. The battle at Bennington greatly re- 
 vived the courage of the Americans, and as great- 
 ly disappointed the hopes of Gen. Burgoyne, as 
 it served materially to embarrass and retard his 
 movements. 
 

 256 PERIOD v. 1775 TO 1783 
 
 The situation of this general, at tfris time, 
 was seriously perplexing, being greatly in want 
 of provisions, and the course of wisdom and 
 prudence being not a little difficult to determine. 
 To retreat was to abandon the object of his ex- 
 pedition ; to advance seemed replete with diffi- 
 culty and danger. This latter step, however, 
 at length, appeared the most judicious. 
 
 Accordingly, on the 13th and 14th of Septem- 
 ber, he passed the Hudson, and advanced upon 
 Saratoga and Still water. On the 17th, his 
 army came nearly in contact with that of the 
 American, now commanded by Gen. Gates, who 
 had succeeded Schuyler, August 21 ; some skir- 
 mishing ensued, without bringing on a general 
 battle. 
 
 Two days after, the two armies met, and a 
 most obstinate, though indecisive engagement, 
 ensued, in which the Americans lost, in killed 
 and wounded, between three and four hundred, 
 and the British about six hundred. 
 
 On the 7th of October, the battle was renew- 
 ed, by a movement of Gen. Burgoyne towards 
 the left of the Americans, by which he hoped to 
 effect his retreat to the lakes. The battle was 
 extremely severe ; and darkness only put an end 
 to the effusion of blood. 
 
 During the night which succeeded, an attempt 
 was made by the royal army to retreat to Fort 
 Edward. While preparing to march, intelli- 
 gence was received that this fort was already in 
 possession of the Americans. No avenue to 
 escape now appeared open. Worn down with 
 constant toil and watching, and having ascer- 
 tained that he had but three days' provisions, a 
 council of war was called, which unanimously 
 
AEVOLUTION. 257 
 
 resolved to capitulate to Gen. Gates. Prelimi- 
 naries were soon after settled, and the army, 
 consisting of five thousand seven hundred effect- 
 ive men, surrendered prisoners of war on the 
 17th of October. 
 
 Gen. Gates, immediately after the victory, de- 
 spatched Col. Wilkinson, to carry the happy 
 tidings to Congress. On being introduced into 
 the hall of congress, he said, " The whole Bri- 
 tish army has laid down arms at Saratoga : our 
 sons, full of vigor and courage, expect your or- 
 ders : it is for your wisdom to decide where the 
 country may still have need of their services." 
 
 Among the romantic incidents of real life, few surpass 
 the adventures of the Baroness de Reidesel and Lady Har- 
 riet Ackland, two ladies who had followed the fortunes of 
 their husbands, the Baron de Reidesel and Major Ackland, 
 officers in the army of Gen. Burgoyne, the latter of whom 
 was wounded in the battle of the 9th of October. 
 
 On the 7th of October, says the Baroness de Reidesel, our 
 misfortunes began. I was at breakfast with my husband, 
 and heard that something- was intended. On the* same day, 
 I expected Generals Burgoyne, Phillips, and Fraser, to 
 dine with us. I saw a great movement among the troops ; 
 my husband told me it was merely a reconnoisance, which 
 gave me no concern, as it often happened. I walked out 
 of the house, and met several Indians in their war dresses, 
 with guns in their hands. When I asked where they were 
 going, they cried cut, War! War! meaning that they 
 were going to battle. This filled me with apprehension ; 
 and I had scarcely got home, before I heard the reports of 
 cannon and musketry, which grew louder by degrees, till 
 at last the noise became excessive. 
 
 About four o'clock in the afternoon, instead of the guests 
 whom I expected, Gen. Fraser was brought on a litter, 
 mortally wounded. The table, which was already set, was 
 removed, and a bed placed in its stead, for the wounded ge- 
 neral. I sat trembling in a corner ; the noise grew louder, 
 and the alarm increased; the thought that my husband 
 might be brought in wounded, in the same manner, was 
 terrible to me, and distressed me exceedingly. General 
 22* 
 
258 PERIOD v. 1775 TO 1783. 
 
 Fraser said to the surgeon, " Tell me if my wound is mor- 
 tal ; do not flatter me." The ball had passed through his 
 body, and, unhappily for the general, he had eaten a very 
 hearty breakfast, by which the stomach was distended, and 
 the ball, as the surgeon said, had passed through it. 
 
 I heard him often exclaim, with a sigh, " OH FATAL AM- 
 BITION ! POOR GENERAL BURGOYNE ! OH MY POOR 
 WIFE !" He was asked if he had any request to make, to 
 which he replied: " IF GENERAL BURGOYNE WOULD PER- 
 MIT IT, HE SHOULD LIKE TO BE BURIED AT SIX O'CLOCK 
 IN THE EVENING, ON THE TOP OF A MOUNTAIN, IN A RE- 
 DOUBT, WHICH HAD BEEN BUILT THERE." I did HOt 
 
 know which way to turn ; all the other rooms were full of 
 sick. Towards evening, I saw my husband coming ; then 
 I forgot all my sorrows, and thanked God that he was 
 spared to me. He and his aid-de-camp ate, in great haste, 
 with me, behind the house. We had been told, that we had 
 the advantage of the enemy ; but the sorrowful faces I be- 
 held told a different tale ; and, before my husband went 
 away, he took me one side, and said every thing was go- 
 ing very bad ; that I must keep myself in readiness to leave 
 the place, but not to mention it to any one. I made the 
 pretence that I would move, the next morning, into my 
 new house, and had every thing packed up ready. 
 
 Lady H. Ackland had a tent, not far from our house, in 
 which she slept, and the rest of the day she was in the 
 camp. All of a sudden, a man came to tell her,, that her 
 husband was mortally wounded, and taken prisoner ; on 
 hearing this, she became very miser-able ; we comforted 
 her, by telling her, that the wound was only slight, and, at 
 the same time, advised her to go over to her husband, to do 
 which she would certainly obtain permission, and then she 
 could attend him herself. She was a charming woman, 
 and very fond of him. I spent much of the night in com- 
 forting her, and then went again to my children, whom I 
 had put to bed. I could not go to sleep, as I had General 
 Fraser, and all the other wounded gentlemen, in my room ; 
 and I was sadly afraid my children would awake, and by 
 their crying, disturb the dying man, in his last moments, 
 who often addressed me, and apologized "for the trouble 
 he gave me." 
 
 About three o'clock in the morning, I was told that he 
 could not hold out much longer ; I had desired to be in 
 formed of the near approach of this sad crisis, and I then 
 wrapped up my children in their clothes, and went with 
 
REVOLUTION. 259 
 
 them into the room below. About eight o'clock in the 
 morning, he died. After he was laid out, and his corpse 
 wrapped up in a sheet, we came again into the room, and 
 had this sorrowful sight before us the whole day ; and, to 
 add to the melancholy scene, almost every moment, some 
 officer of my acquaintance was brought in wounded. The 
 cannonade commenced again ; a retreat was spoken of, but 
 not the smallest motion was made towards it. About four 
 o'clock in the afternoon, I saw the house, which had just 
 been built for me, in flames, and the enemy not far off 
 We knew that General Burgoyne would not refuse the last 
 request of General Fraser, though, by his acceding to it, 
 an unnecessary delay was occasioned, by which the incon- 
 venience of the army was increased. 
 
 At six o'clock the corpse was brought out, and we saw 
 all the generals attend it to the mountain ; the chaplain, Mr. 
 Brudenell, performed the funeral service, rendered unusu- 
 ally solemn and awful, from its being accompanied by con- 
 stant peals from the enemy's artillery. Many cannon balls 
 flew close by me, but I had my eyes directed towards the 
 mountain, where my husband was standing, amidst the fire 
 of the enemy, and, of course, I could not think of my own 
 danger. 
 
 General Gates afterwards said, that if he had known it 
 had been a funeral, he would not have permitted it to be 
 fired on. 
 
 As soon as the funeral service was finished, and the grave 
 of General Fraser was closed, an order was issued that the 
 army should retreat. My calash was prepared, but I would 
 not consent to go before the troops. Major Harnange, al- 
 though suffering from his wounds, crept from his bed, as he 
 did not wish to remain-in the hospital, which was left with 
 a flag of truce. When Gen. Reidesel saw me in the midst 
 of danger, he ordered my women and children to be brought 
 into the calash, and intimated to me to depart, without de- 
 lay. I still prayed to remain ; but my husband, knowing 
 my weak side, said, " well, then, your children must go, 
 that, at least, they may be safe from danger." I then agreed 
 to enter the calash with them, and we set off at eight o'clock. 
 The retreat was ordered to be conducted with the greatest 
 silence. Many fires were lighted, and several tents left 
 standing. We travelled continually during the night. 
 
 At six o'clock in the morning, we halted, which excited 
 the surprise of all. General Burgoyne had the cannon 
 ranged and prepared for battle. The 'delay seemed to dis- 
 
260 PERIOD v. 1775 TO 1783. 
 
 please every body ; for, if we could only have made another 
 good march, we should have been in safety. My husband, 
 quite exhausted with fatigue, came into my calash, and 
 slept for three hours. During that time, Captain Wilde 
 brought me a bag full of bank notes, and Captain Geisman 
 his elegant watch, a ring, and a purse full of money, which 
 they requested me to take care of, and which I promised to 
 do to the utmost of my power. We again marched, but 
 had scarcely proceeded an hour before we halted, as the 
 enemy was in sight. It proved to be only a reconnoitering 
 party of two hundred men, who might easily have been 
 made prisoners, if Gen. Burgoyne had given proper orders 
 on the occasion. 
 
 About evening we arrived at Saratoga ; my dress was 
 wet through and through with rain, and, in that state, I had 
 to remain the whole night, having no place to change it ; I 
 however got close to a large fire, and at last lay down on 
 some straw. At this moment, Gen. Phillips came to me, 
 and I asked him why we had not continued our retreat, as 
 my husband had promised to cover it, and bring the army 
 through ? " Poor dear woman," said he, " I wonder how, 
 drenched as you are, you have still the courage to persevere, 
 and venture farther in this kind of weather. I wish," con- 
 tinued he, " you was our commanding general. General 
 Burgoyne is tired, and means to halt here to-night, and give 
 us our supper." 
 
 On the morning of the 9th, at ten o'clock, Gen. Burgoyne 
 ordered the retreat to be continued, and caused the handsome 
 houses and mills of Gen. Schuyler to be burnt j we marched, 
 however, but a short distance, and then halted. The great- 
 est misery at this time prevailed in the army, and more than 
 thirty officers came to me, for whom tea and coffee were 
 prepared, and with whom I shared all my provisions, with 
 which my calash was in general well supplied ; for I had 
 a cook who was an excellent caterer, and who often, in the 
 night, crossed small rivers, and foraged on the inhabitants, 
 bringing in with him sheep, small pigs, and poultry, for 
 which he often forgot to pay, though he received good pay 
 from me, as long as I had any, and he was, ultimately, 
 handsomely rewarded. Our provisions now failed us, for 
 want of proper conduct in the commissary's department, 
 and I began to despair. 
 
 About two o'clock in the afternoon, we again heard a 
 firing of cannon and small arms ; instantly all was in alarm, 
 and every thing in motion My husband told me to go to 
 
REVOLUTION. 261 
 
 a house not far off. I immediately seated myself in my ca- 
 lash, with my children, and drove off; but, scarcely had we 
 reached it, before I discovered five or six armed men, on the 
 other side of the Hudson. Instinctively I threw my chil- 
 dren down in the calash, and concealed myself with them. 
 At that moment the fellows fired, and wounded an already- 
 wounded English soldier, who was behind me. Poor fel- 
 low ! I pitied him exceedingly, but, at that moment, had no 
 power or means to relieve him. A terrible cannonade was. 
 commenced by the enemy, which was directed against the 
 house in which I sought to obtain shelter for myself and 
 children, under the mistaken idea that all the generals were 
 in it. Alas ! it contained none but wounded and women ; 
 we were at last obliged to resort to the cellar for refuge, 
 and, in one corner of this, I remained the whole day, my 
 children sleeping on the earth, with their heads in my lap ; 
 and in the same situation I passed a sleepless night. Eleven 
 cannon balls passed through the house, and we could dis- 
 tinctly hear them roll away. One poor soldier, who was 
 lying on a table, for the purpose of having his leg amputa- 
 ted, was struck by a shot, which carried away his other leg. 
 His comrades had left him, and, when we went to his as- 
 sistance, we found him in a corner of the room, into which 
 he had crept, more dead than alive, scarcely breathing. My 
 reflections on the danger to which my husband was exposed, 
 now agonized me exceedingly, and the thoughts of my chil- 
 dren, and the necessity of struggling for their preservation, 
 alone sustained me. 
 
 I now occupied myself through the day in attending to 
 the wounded ; I made them tea and coffee, and often shared 
 my dinner with them, for which they offered me a thousand 
 expressions of gratitude. One day a Canadian officer came 
 to our cellar, who had hardly the power of holding himself 
 upright, and we concluded he was dying for want of nour- 
 ishment. I was happy in offering him my dinner, which 
 strengthened him, and procured me his friendship. I now 
 undertook the care of Major Bloomfield, another aid-de- 
 camp of General Phillips, who had received a musket ball 
 through both cheeks, which, in its course, had knocked out 
 several of his teeth, and cut his tongue. He could hold 
 nothing in his mouth ; the matter which ran from his 
 wound almost choked him, and he was not able to take any 
 nourishment, except a little soup or something liquid. We 
 had some Rhenish wine ; and, in the hope that the acidity 
 of it would cleanse the wound, I gave him a bottle of it ; he 
 
262 PERIOD v. 1775 TO 1783. 
 
 took a little now and then, and with such effect, that his 
 cure soon followed ; and thus I added another to my stock 
 of friends, and derived a satisfaction, which, in the midst of 
 sufferings, served to tranquillize me, and diminish their 
 acuteness. 
 
 One day, Gen. Phillips accompanied my husband, at the 
 risk of their lives, on a visit to us, who, after having wit- 
 nessed our situation, said to him, " I would not, for ten thou- 
 sand guineas, come again to this place ; my heart is almost 
 broken." 
 
 In this horrid situation we remained six days. A cessa- 
 tion of hostilities was now spoken of, and eventually took 
 place ; a convention was afterwards agreed upon ; but one 
 day a message was sent to my husband, who had visited 
 me, and was reposing in my bed, to attend a council of war, 
 where it was proposed to break the convention, but, to my 
 great joy, the majority'were for adhering to it. On the 16th, 
 however, my husband had to repair to his post, and I to my 
 cellar. This day fresh beef was served out to the officers, 
 who, until now, had only had salt provisions, which was 
 very bad for their wounds. 
 
 On the 17th of October, the convention was completed; 
 General Burgoyne and the other generals waited on General 
 Gates, the American commander. The troops laid down 
 their arms, and gave themselves up prisoners of war ; and 
 now, the good woman, who had supplied us with water, at 
 the hazard of her life, received the reward of her services ; 
 each of us threw a handful of money into her apron, and 
 she got altogether about twenty guineas. At such a mo- 
 ment as this, how susceptible is the heart of feelings of 
 gratitude ! ^ 
 
 My husband sent a message to me, to come over to him 
 with my children. I seated myself once more in my dear 
 calash, and then rode through the American camp. As I 
 passed on, I observed (and this was a great consolation to 
 me) that no one eyed me with looks of resentment ; but that 
 they all greeted us, and even showed compassion in their 
 countenances, at the sight of a woman with small children. 
 I was, I confess, afraid to go over to the enemy, as it was 
 quite a new situation to me. When I drew near the tents, 
 a handsome man approached and met me, took my children 
 from the calash, and hugged and kissed them, which affected 
 me almost to tears. " You tremble," said he, addressing 
 himself to me ; " be not afraid." " No," I answered, " you 
 geem so kind and tender to my children, it inspnes me with 
 
REVOLUTION. 263 
 
 courage." He now led me to the tent of Gen. Gates, where 
 I found Generals Burgoyne and Phillips, who were on a 
 friendly footing with the former. Burgoyne said to me, 
 " Never mind, your sorrows have now an end." I answer- 
 ed him, that I should be reprehensible to have any cares, as 
 he had none, and I was pleased to see him on such a 
 friendly footing with General Gates. All the generals re- 
 mained to dine with General Gates. 
 
 The same gentleman who received me so kindly, now 
 came and said to me, " You will be very much embarrassed 
 to eat with all these gentlemen ; come ivith your children to 
 my tent ; there I will prepare for you a frugal dinner, and 
 give it with a free will. 11 I said, " You ARE CERTAINLY A 
 HUSBAND AND A FATHER, you have shown me so much kind- 
 ness." I now found that he was GENERAL SCHUYLER. He 
 treated me with excellent smoked tongue, beef steaks, pota- 
 toes, and good bread and butter. Never could I have wished 
 to eat a better dinner. I was content. I saw all around 
 me were so likewise ; and, what was better than all, my hus- 
 band was out of danger. 
 
 When we had dined, he told me his residence was at Al- 
 bany, and that Gen. Burgoyne intended to honor him as his 
 guest, and invited myself and children to do likewise. I 
 asked my husband how I should act j he told me to accept 
 the invitation. As it was two days' journey there, he ad- 
 vised me to go to a place, which was about three hours' 
 ride distant. Gen. Schuyler had the politeness to send with 
 me a French officer, a very agreeable man, who commanded 
 the reconnoitering party of which I have before spoken ; 
 and when he had escorted me to the house, where I was to 
 remain, he turned back agairiN In the house I found a 
 French surgeon, who had under his care a Brunswick offi- 
 cer, who was mortally wounded, and died some days after- 
 wards. 
 
 The Frenchman boasted much of the care he took of his 
 patient, and perhaps was skilful enough as a surgeon, but 
 otherwise was a mere simpleton. He was rejoiced when 
 he found I could speak his language, and he began to ad- 
 dress many empty and impertinent speeches to me ; he said, 
 among other things, he could not believe that I was a gene- 
 ral's wife, as he was certain a woman of such rank Avould 
 not follow her husband. He wished me to remain with him, 
 as he said it was better to be with the conquerors than the 
 conquered. I was shocked at his impudence, but dared not 
 show the contempt I felt for him, because it would Deprive 
 
264 PERIOD v. 1775 TO 1783. 
 
 me of a place of safety. Towards evening, he begged me 
 to take a part of his chamber. I told him I was determined 
 to remain in the room with the wounded officers; whereup- 
 on he attempted to pay me some stupid compliments. At 
 this moment the door opened, and my husband, with his aid- 
 de-camp, entered. I then said, " Here, sir, is my husband ;" 
 and at the same time eyed him with scorn, whereupon he re- 
 tired abashed ; nevertheless, he was so polite as to offer his 
 chamber to us. 
 
 Some days after this we arrived at Albany, where we so 
 often wished ourselves, but we did not enter it as we expect- 
 ed we should, victors ! We were received by the good Gen. 
 Schuyler, his wife, and daughters, not as enemies, but kind 
 friends ; and they treated us with the most marked atten- 
 tion and politeness, as they did General Burgoyne, who had 
 caused General Schuyler' s beautifully finished house to be 
 burnt. In fact, they behaved like persons of exalted rninds, 
 who determined to bury all recollection of their own inju- 
 ries, in the contemplation of our misfortunes. Gen. Bur- 
 goyne was struck with Gen. Schuyler's generosity, and said 
 to him, " You show me great kindness, although I have done 
 you much injury." " That was the fate of war" replied the 
 brave man ; " let us say no more about it."** 
 
 The fortunes of Lady Harriet Ackland were not less in- 
 teresting than those of the Baroness de Reidesel, just reci- 
 ted. This lady, says Gen. Burgoyne, in his " State of the 
 Expedition from Canada," had accompanied her husband to 
 Canada, in the beginning of the year 1776. In the course 
 of that campaign, she traversed a vast space of country, in 
 different extremities of the season, and with difficulties, of 
 which an European traveller cannot easily conceive. 
 
 In the opening of the campaign, in 1777, she was restrain- 
 ed from offering herself to a share of the fatigue and hazard 
 expected before Ticonderoga, by the positive injunctions of 
 her husband. The day after the conquest of the place he 
 was badly wounded, and she crossed Lake Champlain to 
 join him. 
 
 As soon as he recovered, Lady Harriet proceeded to fol- 
 low his fortunes through the campaign j and at Fort Ed- 
 ward, or at the next camp, she acquired a two wheel tumbril, 
 which had been constructed by the artificers of the artillery, 
 something similar to the carriage used for the mail, upon 
 the great roads in England. Major Ackland commanded 
 
 * Wilkinson's Memoirs, from the Memoirs of the Baroness de Reidesel. 
 
REVOLUTION. 265 
 
 the British grenadiers, which were attached to Gen. Fra- 
 ser's corps; and consequently were always the most advan- 
 ced part of the army. They were often so much on the 
 alert, that no person slept out of his clothes. One of their 
 temporary encampments, a tent in which the Major and 
 Lady Harriet were asleep, suddenly took fire. An orderly 
 sergeant of grenadiers, with great hazard of suffocation, 
 dragged out the first person he caught hold of. It proved 
 to be the major. It happened that, in the same instant, she 
 had, unknowing what she did, and perhaps not perfectly 
 awaked, providentially made her escape, by creeping under 
 the walls of the tent. The first object she saw, upon the 
 recovery of her senses, was the major on the other side, and 
 in the same instant, again in the fire in search of her. The 
 sergeant again saved him, but not without the major's be- 
 ing very severely burnt in his face, and different parts of 
 his body. Every thing they had with them in the tent was 
 consumed. 
 
 This accident happened a little time before the army, 
 crossed the Hudson, 13th Sept. It neither altered the reso- 
 lution or cheerfulness of Lady Harriet ; and she continued 
 her progress, a partaker of the fatigues of the advanced 
 corps. 
 
 The next call upon her fortitude was of a different na-r 
 lure, and more distressing, as of longer suspense. On the 
 morning of the 19th of September, the grenadiers being 
 liable to action at every step, she had been directed by the 
 major to follow the route of the artillery and baggage, which 
 were not exposed. At the time the action began, she found 
 herself near an uninhabited hut, where she alighted. When 
 it was found the action was becoming general, the surgeon 
 of the hospital took possession of the same place, as the 
 most convenient for the first care of the wounded. Thus 
 was this lady in the hearing of one continued fire of cannon 
 and musketry for four hours together, with the presump- 
 tion, from the post of her husband, at the head of the grena- 
 diers, that he was in the most exposed part of the action. 
 She had three female companions, the Baroness of Reidesel, 
 and the wives of two British officers, Major Hanage and 
 Lieutenant Reynell ; but, in the event, their presence served 
 but little for comfort. Major Hanage was soon brought to 
 the surgeon very badly wounded ; and a little time after, 
 came intelligence that Lieut. Reynell was shot dead. Ima- 
 gination will want no help to figure the state of the whole 
 group. 
 
 23 
 
266 PERIOD v. 1775 TO 1783. 
 
 From the date of that action to the 7th of October, Lady 
 Harriet, with her usual serenity, stood prepared for new 
 trials ; and it was her lot that their severity increased with 
 their number. She was again exposed to the hearing of 
 the whole action, and, at last, received the word of her in- 
 dividual misfortune, mixed with the intelligence of the ge- 
 neral calamity ; the troops were defeated, and Major Ack- 
 land, desperately wounded, was a prisoner. 
 
 The day of the 8th was passed by Lady Harriet and her 
 companions in uncommon anxiety ; not a tent nor a shed 
 being standing, except what belonged to the hospital, their 
 refuge was among the wounded and the dying. 
 
 " When the army was upon the point of moving, I re- 
 ceived a message from Lady Harriet, submitting to my de- 
 cision a proposal, and expressing an earnest solicitude to 
 execute it, if not interfering with my design, of passing to 
 the camp of the enemy, and requesting General Gates' per- 
 mission to attend her husband. 
 
 " Though I was ready to believe, for I had experienced, 
 that patience and fortitude in a supreme degree, were to be 
 found, as well as every other virtue, under the most tender 
 forms, I was astonished at the proposal. After so long an 
 agitation, exhausted not only for want of rest, but absolutely 
 want of food, drenched in rain for twelve hours together, 
 that a woman should be capable of such an undertaking, as 
 delivering herself to the enemy, probably in the night, and 
 uncertain of what hands she might first fall into, appeared 
 an effort above human nature. The assurance I was en- 
 abled to give was small indeed. I had not even a cup of 
 wine to offer ; but I was told she found from some kind and 
 fortunate hand, a little rum and dirty water. All I could 
 furnish to her was an open boat, and a few lines, written 
 upon dirty and wet paper, to General Gates, recommending 
 her to his protection." 
 
 This letter was as follows: 
 
 SIR, Lady Harriet Ackland, a lady of the first distinc- 
 tion by family, rank, and personal virtues, is under such 
 concern on account of Major Ackland, her husband, wound- 
 ed and a prisoner in your hands, that I cannot refuse her 
 request to commit her to your protection. 
 
 Whatever general impropriety there may be in persons, 
 acting in your situation and mine, to solicit favors, I cannot 
 see the uncommon pre-eminence in every female grace and 
 
REVOLUTION. 267 
 
 exaltation of character in this lady, and her very hard for- 
 tune, without testifying that your attention to her will lay 
 me under obligations. 
 
 n/-/ Q 1 777 * am ' ^ ir ' 
 
 uci, y, i//. -\T- -i j- 
 
 M r ' rn . D<f Your obedient servant, 
 
 , Cr. Lrdtes. T T, 
 
 J. BURGOYNE. 
 
 With this letter did this woman, who was of the most 
 tender and delicate frame, habituated to all the soft elegan- 
 cies and refined enjoyments, that attend high birth and for- 
 tune, and far advanced in a state in which the tenderest 
 cares, always due to the sex, become indispensably neces- 
 sary, in an open boat leave the camp of Burgoyne with a 
 flag of truce for that of the enemy. The night was advan- 
 ced before the boat reached the shore. Lady Harriet was 
 immediately conveyed into the apartment of Major Henry 
 Dearborn, since major general, who commanded the guard 
 at that place, and every attention was paid her which her 
 rank and situation demanded, and which circumstances per- 
 mitted. Early in the morning, she was permitted to pro- 
 ceed in the boat to the camp, where Gen. Gates, whose gal- 
 lantry will not be denied, stood ready to receive her, with 
 due respect and courtesy. Having ascertained that Major 
 Ackland had set out for Albany, Lady Harriet proceeded, 
 by permission, to join him. Some time after, Major Ack- 
 land effected his exchange, and returned to England. The 
 catastrophe of this tale is affecting. Ackland, after his re- 
 turn to England, procured a regiment, and at a dinner of 
 military men, where the courage of the Americans was 
 made a question, took the negative side with his usual de- 
 cision. He was opposed, warmth ensued, and he gave the 
 lie direct to a Lieutenant Lloyd, fought him, and was shot 
 through the head. Lady Harriet lost her senses, and con- 
 tinued deranged two years; after which she married Mr. 
 Brudenell, who accompanied her from Gen. Burgoyne's 
 camp, when she sought her wounded husband on Hudson 
 river. 
 
 Sec. 63. It would be difficult to describe the 
 transports of joy, which the news of the surren- 
 der of Burgoyne excited among the Americans. 
 They now began to look forward to the future 
 with sanguine hopes, and eagerly expected the 
 acknowledgment of their country's independence 
 
268 PERIOD v. 1775 TO 1783. 
 
 by France and other European powers. The 
 capitulation of Gen. Burgoyne, at Saratoga, was 
 soon followed by an acknowledgment of the in- 
 dependence of America at the court of France,* 
 and the conclusion of a formal treaty of alliance 
 and commerce between the two countries an 
 event highly auspicious to the interests of Ame- 
 rica. The treaty was signed Feb. 6th " nei- 
 ther of the contracting powers to make war or 
 peace, without the formal consent of the other." 
 
 For more than a year, commissioners from congress, at 
 the head of whom was Dr. Franklin, had resided at the 
 court of France, urging the above important measure. But 
 the success of the American struggle was yet too doubtful, 
 for that country to embroil herself in a war with Great 
 Britain. The capture of the British army at Saratoga seem- 
 ed to increase the probability that the American arms would 
 finally triumph, and decided France to espouse her cause. 
 
 Sec. 64. Upon the conclusion of the campaign 
 of 1777, the British army retired to Avinter quar- 
 ters in Philadelphia, and the American army at 
 Yalley Forge, on the Schuylkill, fifteen miles 
 from Philadelphia. 
 
 Scarcely were the American troops established in their 
 encampment, which consisted of huts, before they were in 
 danger of a famine. The adjacent country was nearly ex- 
 hausted, and that which it might have spared, the inhabi- 
 tants concealed in the woods. At this time, also, bills of 
 credit had fallen to one fourth of their nominal value, so 
 that one hundred dollars, in paper, would command no more 
 than twenty-five dollars, in specie. In addition to these 
 scenes of perplexity and suffering, the army was nearly 
 destitute of comfortable clothing. Many, for want of shoes, 
 walked barefoot on the frozen ground ; few, if any, had 
 blankets for the night. Great numbers sickened. Near 
 three thousand at a time were incapable of bearing arms. 
 While the defenders of the country were thus suffering and 
 
 * Holland acknowledged the independence of the United States in 1782; 
 Sweden in February, 1783 ; Denmark in the same month; Spain in March; 
 Russia in July. 
 
REVOLUTION. 269 
 
 perishing-, the royal army was enjoying all the convenien- 
 ces which an opulent city afforded. 
 
 Sec. 65. On the alliance of America with 
 France, it was resolved in Great Britain imme- 
 diately to evacuate Philadelphia, and to concen- 
 trate the royal force in the city of New- York. 
 In pursuance of this resolution, the royal army, 
 on the 18th of June, passed the Delaware into 
 New -Jersey, and continued their retreat to New- 
 York. 
 
 < General Washington, penetrating their design, had al- 
 ready sent forward a detachment to aid the New-Jersey 
 militia, in impeding the progress of the enemy. With the 
 main body of his army, he now crossed the Delaware in 
 pursuit. June 28th, the two armies were engaged at Mon- 
 mouth, sixty-four miles from Philadelphia, and after a se- 
 vere contest, in which the Americans, upon the whole, ob- 
 tained the advantage, were separated only by night. Gen. 
 Washington and his army reposed on the field of battle, 
 intending to renew the attack in the morning. But the 
 British general, during the night, made good his retreat 
 towards New- York. 
 
 The sufferings of both armies during this engagement, 
 from the heat of the day, were unparalleled in the history 
 of the revolutionary war. No less than fifty-nine Britisn 
 soldiers perished from heat, and several of the Americans 
 died through the same cause. The tongues of many of 
 the soldiers were so swollen, that it was impossible to re- 
 tain them in the mouth. The loss of the Americans was 
 eight officers, and sixty-one privates killed, and about one 
 hundred and sixty wounded , that of the British, in killed, 
 wounded, and missing, was three hundred and fifty-eight 
 men, including officers. One hundred were taken prison- 
 ers, and one thousand deserted during the march. 
 
 Sec. 66. On the 1st of July, Count D'Estaing 
 arrived at Newport, R. I., from France, with 
 twelve ships of the line and six frigates, to act 
 in concert with the Americans in an attempt on 
 Rhode Island, which had been in possession of 
 the British since December, 1776. 
 23* 
 
270 PERIOD v. 1775 TO 1783. 
 
 Hearing of this expedition, Admiral Howe followed 
 D'Estaing, and arrived in sight of Rhode Island, the day 
 after the French fleet had entered the harbor of Newport. 
 On the appearance of Howe, the French admiral, instead 
 of co-operating with the Americans, sailed out to give him 
 battle. A storm, however, arising, separated the fleets. 
 D'Estaing entered Boston to repair. Howe, after the storm, 
 returned to Rhode Island, and landed Sir Henry Clinton, 
 with four thousand troops; but, fortunately, the Americans 
 had raised the siege of Newport the day before, and left the 
 island. Sir Henry Clinton soon after sailed again for New- 
 York. 
 
 Sec. 67. Hitherto the conquest of the states 
 had been attempted, "by proceeding from north 
 to south ; but that order, towards the close of 
 this year, began to be inverted, and the southern 
 states became the principal theatre on which 
 the British conducted their offensive operations. 
 
 Georgia, being one of the weakest of the 
 southern states, was marked out as the first ob- 
 ject of attack, in that quarter of the union. 
 
 In November, Col. Campbell was despatched 
 from New- York by Gov. Clinton, with a force of 
 two thousand men, against Savannah, the capi- 
 tal of that state. This expedition proved suc- 
 cessful, and Savannah, and with it the state of 
 Georgia itself, fell into the power of the Eng- 
 lish. 
 
 On the arrival of Campbell and his troops at Savannah, 
 he was opposed by Gen. Howe, the American officer, to 
 whom was intrusted the defence of Georgia. His force, 
 consisting of only 600 continentals, and a few hundred mi- 
 litia, was inadequate, however, to resist the enemy. After 
 an engagement, in which the Americans killed upwards of 
 one hundred, and took about four hundred and fifty prison- 
 ers, with several cannon, and large quantities of military 
 stores, the capital surrendered. 
 
 In the succeeding year, 1779, Count D'Estaing, who, af- 
 ter repairing his fleet at Boston, had sailed for the West 
 Indies, returned with a design to co-operate with the Ame- 
 ricans against the common enemy. In Sept. he arrived 
 
REVOLUTION. 271 
 
 upon the coast of Georgia so unexpectedly, that the Expe- 
 riment, a man of war of fifty guns, and three frigates, fell 
 into his hands. As soon as his arrival was known, Gen. 
 Lincoln marched with the army under his command, and 
 some militia of South Carolina and Georgia, to co-operate 
 with him in the reduction of Savannah. Before Lincoln 
 arrived, D'Estaing demanded the surrender of the town. 
 This demand, General Prevost, the English commander, 
 requested a day to consider, which was incautiously grant- 
 ed. Before the day expired, a reinforcement of eight hun- 
 dred men joined the standard of Prevost from Beaufort, 
 whereupon he bid defiance to D'Estaing. On the arrival 
 of Lincoln, it was determined to lay siege to the place. 
 Much time was spent in preparation, but in an assault un- 
 der D'Estaing and Lincoln, the Americans suffered so se- 
 verely, both as to their number, and in their works, that it 
 was deemed expedient to abandon the project. Count D'Es- 
 taing re-embarked his troops, and left the continent. 
 
 While the siege of Savannah was pending, one of the 
 most extraordinary enterprises ever related in history, one, 
 indeed, \vhich nothing, but the respectability of the testi- 
 mony, could have prevented our considering as marvellous, 
 occurred. It was an enterprise conceived and executed by 
 Colonel John White, of. the Georgia line. A Captain 
 French, of Delancey's first battalion, was posted with one 
 hundred men, British regulars, on the Ogeechee river, 
 about twenty-five miles from Savannah. There lay also at 
 the same place five armed vessels, the largest mounting four- 
 teen guns, and having on board altogether forty-one men. 
 Col. White, with Captain Etholm, three soldiers, and his 
 own servant, approached this post, on the evening of the 
 30th of September, kindled a number of fires, arranging 
 them in the manner of a large camp, and summoned 
 French to surrender, he and his comrades in the mean 
 time riding about in various directions, and giving orders 
 in a loud voice, as if performing the duties of the staff, to 
 a large army. French, not doubting the reality of what 
 he saw, and anxious to spare the effusion of blood, which 
 a contest with a force so superior would produce, surren- 
 dered the whole detachment, together with the crews of the 
 five vessels, amounting in all to one hundred and forty-one 
 men, and one hundred and thirty stands of arms ! 
 
 Col. White had still, however, a very difficult game to 
 play ; it was necessary to keep up the delusion of Captain 
 French, until the prisoners should be secured ; and with 
 
272 PERIOD v. 1775 TO 1/83. 
 
 this view, he pretended that the animosity of his troops 
 was so ungovernable, that a little stratagem would be ne- 
 cessary to save the prisoners from their fury, and that he 
 should therefore commit them to the care of three guides, 
 with orders to conduct them to a place of safety. With 
 many thanks for the colonel's humanity, French accepted 
 the proposition, and marched off at a quick pace, under the 
 direction of three guides, fearful, at every step, that the 
 rage of White's troops would burst upon them, in defiance 
 of his humane attempts to restrain them. White, as soon 
 as they were out of sight, employed himself in collecting 
 the militia of the neighbourhood, with whom he overtook 
 his prisoners, and they were conducted in safety for twenty- 
 rive miles, to an American fort* 
 
 Sec. 68. The Campaign of 1779 was distin- 
 guished for nothing splendid, or decisive, on the 
 part either of America or England. 
 
 The British seemed to have aimed at little 
 more than to distress, plunder, and consume, it 
 having "been, early in the year, adopted as a prin- 
 ciple upon which to proceed, " to render the co- 
 lonies of as little avail as possible to their new 
 connections." 
 
 Actuated by these motives, an expedition was 
 fitted out from New-York for Virginia, which, 
 in a predatory incursion, took possession of large 
 naval stores, magazines of provisions, and great 
 quantities of tobacco. After enriching them- 
 selves with various kinds of booty, and burning 
 several places, they returned to New-York. 
 
 Soon after this expedition to Virginia, a simi- 
 lar one, under the command of the infamous 
 Gov. Tryon, was projected against the maritime 
 parts of Connecticut. During this expedition, 
 New-Haven was plundered ; East-Haven, Fair- 
 field, Nor walk, and Green's Farms, were wan- 
 tonly burnt. 
 
 In an account of the devastations made by the English 
 * Allen's Revolution. 
 
REVOLUTION. 273 
 
 in this expedition, which was transmitted to congress, it ap- 
 peared that at Fairfield there were burnt two houses of 
 public worship, fifteen dwelling houses, eleven barns, and 
 several stores. At Norwalk, two houses of public worship, 
 eighty dwelling houses, sixty-seven barns, twenty-two 
 stores, seventeen shops, four mills, and five vessels. In ad- 
 dition to this wanton destruction of property, various were 
 the acts of brutality, rapine, and cruelty, committed on aged 
 persons, w r omen, and prisoners. At New-Haven, an aged 
 citizen, who labored under a natural inability of speech, 
 had his tongue cut out by one of the royal army. At Fair- 
 field, the deserted houses of the inhabitants were entered ; 
 desks, trunks, closets, and chests, were broken open, and 
 robbed of every thing valuable. Women were insulted, 
 abused, and threatened, while their apparel was taken from 
 them. Even an infant was robbed of its clothes, while a 
 bayonet was pointed at the breast of its mother. 
 
 About this time General Putnam, who had been station- 
 ed with a respectable force at Reading, in Connecticut, then 
 on a visit to his out-post, at Horse Neck, was attacked by 
 Governor Tryon, with one thousand five hundred men. 
 Putnam had only a picket of one hundred and fifty men, 
 and two field pieces, without horses or drag-ropes. He 
 however placed his cannon on the high ground, near the 
 meeting house, and continued to pour in upon the advan- 
 cing foe, until the enemy's horse appeared upon a charge. 
 The general now hastily ordered his men to retreat to a 
 neighboring swa p, inaccessible to horse, while he him- 
 self put spurs to his steed, and plunged down the precipice 
 at the church. 
 
 This is so steep, as to have artificial stairs, composed of 
 nearly one hundred stone steps, for the accommodation of 
 worshippers ascending to the sanctuary. On the arrival of ( 
 the dragoons at the brow of the hill, they paused, thinking 
 it too dangerous to follow the steps of the adventurous hero. 
 Before any could go round the hill and descend, Putnam 
 had escaped, uninjured by the many balls which were fired 
 at him in his descent ; but one touched him, and that only 
 passed through his hat. He proceeded to Stamford, where, 
 having strengthened his picket with some militia, he bold- f"? 
 ly faced about and pursued Gov. Tryon on his return.* 
 
 While the British were proceeding in these desolating > 
 operations, Gen. Washington was loudly called upon, by 
 the suffering inhabitants, for continental troops to resist 
 
 * Ramsay. 
 
274 PERIOD v. 1775 TO 1783. 
 
 them; but his circumstances permitted him to spare but 
 few. Had he listened to their calls, and divided his army 
 conformably to the wishes of the invaded citizens, he would 
 have exposed his whole force to ruin. Choosing rather to 
 Dear the reproaches which were by some heaped upon him, 
 than to hazard the loss of every thing, he kept his army 
 concentrated on both sides of the North River, at some dis- 
 tance from New- York, to prevent, if possible, the British 
 from, possessing themselves of West Point, sixty miles 
 north of New-York, a post which they eagerly coveted, 
 and the possession of which would have given them incal- 
 culable advantage over that part of the country. 
 
 8ec. 69. The exertions of the Americans, du- 
 ring this campaign, were still more feeble than 
 those of the enemy. Scarcely an expedition 
 was planned which merits any notice, and, with 
 the exception of the reduction of Stoney Point, 
 forty miles north of New-York, on the Hudson, 
 scarcely any thing was accomplished of impor- 
 tance. The reduction of this place, July 15th, 
 was one of the boldest enterprises which occur- 
 red in the history of the war. 
 
 At this time, Stoney Point was in the condition of a real 
 fortress ; it was furnished with a select garrison of more 
 than six hundred men, and had stores in abundance, and 
 defensive preparations which were formidable. 
 
 Fortified as it was, Gen. Washington ventured an at- 
 tempt to reduce it. The enterprise was committed to Gen. 
 Wayne, who, with a strong detachment of active infantry, 
 set out towards the place, at noon. His march of fourteen 
 miles, over high mountains, through deep morasses, and 
 difficult defiles, was accomplished by eight o'clock in the 
 evening. 
 
 At the distance of a mile from the Point, Gen. Wayne 
 lalted, and formed his men into two columns, putting him- 
 F.elf at the head of the right. Both columns were directed 
 to march in order and silence, with unloaded muskets and 
 fixed bayonets. At midnight they arrived under the walls 
 of the fort, - "An unexpected obstacle now presented itself: 
 .he deep morass, which covered the works, was at this time, 
 overflowed by tbfe tide. The English opened a tremendous 
 fire of musketry and of cannon loaded with grape shot : 
 
REVOLUTION, 275 
 
 but neither the inundated morass, nor a double palisade, 
 nor the storm of fire that was poured upon them, could ar- 
 rest the impetuosity of the Americans ; they opened their 
 way with the bayonet, prostrated whatever opposed them, 
 scaled the fort, and the two columns met in the centre of 
 the works. The English lost upwards of six hundred men 
 in killed and prisoners. The conquerors abstained from 
 pillage, and from all disorder ; a conduct the more worthy, 
 as they had still present in mind, the ravages and butcher- 
 ies which their enemies had so recently committed in Vir- 
 ginia and Connecticut. Humanity imparted new efful- 
 gence to the victory which valor 'had obtained."* 
 
 Sec. 70. Another expedition, planned and exe- 
 cuted this year, entitled to some notice, was one 
 under Gen. Sullivan, against the Six Nations, 
 which, with the exception of the Oneidas, had 
 been induced, by the English, to take up arms 
 against America. 
 
 At the head of between four and five thousand 
 men, Gen. Sullivan marched into the country, 
 up the Susquehannah, and attacked the Indians, 
 in well constructed fortifications. The resist- 
 ance of the savages was warlike. Being over- 
 powered, however, they were obliged to flee. 
 Gen. Sullivan, according to his instructions, pro- 
 ceeded to lay waste their country. Forty villa- 
 ges were consumed, and one hundred and sixty 
 thousand bushels of corn were destroyed. 
 
 Sec. 71. It has already been stated, that the 
 campaign of 1779 was remarkable for the fee- 
 ble exertions of the Americans. Among the 
 causes which contributed to lessen their activity, 
 the failure of the French fleet, in every scheme 
 undertaken for their benefit, was no inconsider- 
 able one. America had expected much from an 
 alliance with France, and looked to the French 
 
 fleet under D'Estaing, to hasten the downfall 
 
 
 
 * Botta. 
 
276 PERIOD v. 1775 TO 1783. 
 
 of British power in the country. But when 
 they perceived nothing equal to their expecta- 
 tion accomplished, they became despondent, and 
 exertion was enfeebled. 
 
 But another, and a still more powerful cause 
 of these feeble exertions, on the part of the 
 Americans, was the daily depreciation of their 
 bills of credit. 
 
 As the contest between England and America originated 
 in the subject of taxation, it was early perceived, by the 
 continental congress, that the imposition of taxes, adequate 
 to the exigencies of war, even if practicable, would be im- 
 politic. The only expedient, therefore, in their power to 
 adopt, was the emission of bills of credit, representing spe- 
 cie, under a public engagement ultimately to redeem those 
 bills, by an exchange of gold or silver. 
 
 Accordingly, in June, 1775, on the resolution to raise an 
 army, congress issued bills of credit, to the amount of two 
 millions of dollars. This emission was followed, the next 
 month, by the issue of another million. For their redemp- 
 tion, the confederated colonies were pledged each colony 
 to provide means to pay its proportion, by the year 1779. 
 
 In the early periods of the war, the enthusiasm of the 
 people for liberty made them comparatively indifferent to 
 property. The cause was popular, and the public credit 
 good. Bills of credit, therefore, by common consent, ra- 
 pidly circulated, and calculations about private interest 
 were, in a great measure, suspended. 
 
 It was obvious, however, that there was a point, beyond 
 which the credit of these bills would not extend. At the 
 expiration of eighteen months from their first emission, 
 when about twenty millions had been issued, they began to 
 depreciate. At first, the diminution of their value was 
 scarcely perceptible, but from that time it daily increased. 
 
 Desirous of arresting the growing depreciation, congress 
 at length resorted to loans and taxes. But loans were dif- 
 ficult to negotiate, and taxes, in several of the states, could 
 not be collected. Pressed with the necessities of an army, 
 congress found themselves obliged to continue to issue 
 bills, after they had begun to depreciate, and to pay that 
 depreciation, by increasing the sums emitted. By the year 
 1780, the amount in circulation was the overwhelming sum 
 of two hundred millions. 
 
REVOLUTION. 277 
 
 The progress of this depreciation is worthy of notice. 
 Towards the close of 1777, the depreciation was two or 
 three for one; in '78, five or six for one; in '79, twenty- 
 seven or twenty-eight for one ; in '80, fifty or sixty for one, 
 in the first four or five months. From this date, the circu- 
 lation of these bills was limited, but where they passed, 
 they soon depreciated to one hundred and fifty for one, and 
 finally, several hundreds for one. 
 
 Several causes contributed to sink the value of the conti- 
 nental currency. The excess of its quantity at first begat 
 a natural depreciation. This was increased by the enemy, 
 who counterfeited the bills, and spread their forgeries 
 through the states. Public agents, who received a com- 
 mission to the amount of their purchases, felt it to be their 
 interest to give a high price for all commodities. These 
 causes, co-operating with the decline of public confidence, 
 and the return of more selfish feelings, rapidly increased 
 the depreciation, until bills of credit, or what has been com- 
 monly called, " continental currency," became of little or 
 no value. 
 
 The evils which resulted from this system were im- 
 mense. Under it, it became extremely difficult to raise an 
 army, and to provide necessaries for its subsistence. At 
 the same time, it originated discontents among the officers 
 and soldiers, since their pay, in this depreciated currency, 
 was inadequate to the support of their families at home. 
 " Four months pay, of a private, would not procure his fa- 
 mily a single bushel of wheat, and the pay of a colonel 
 would not purchase oats for his horse." Under circum- 
 stances like these, it reflects the highest honor upon Wash- 
 ington, that his wisdom and prudence should have been 
 able to keep an army together. 
 
 In addition to these evils, which fell so heavily upon the 
 army, others, not less deplorable, fell upon the community. 
 In order to prevent the growing depreciation of their bills, 
 congress directed that they should be a legal tender. But 
 this, while it did not much retard the regular diminution 
 of their value, was the source of immeasurable injustice 
 and distress. 
 
 The aged, who had retired to enjoy the fruits of their in- 
 dustry, found their substance but a scanty pittance. The 
 widow was compelled to take a shilling, where a pound 
 was her due, and the orphan was obliged to discharge an 
 executor on the payment of sixpence on the pound. In 
 24 
 
278 PERIOD v. 1775 TO 1783. 
 
 many Instances, the earnings of a long life were, in a few 
 years, reduced to a trifling sum. 
 
 Had congress foreseen these evils, they would have 
 guarded against them. But it was a day of poverty and 
 experiment. They designed no injustice. They had 
 placed before them the freedom of the country from the 
 yoke of British dominion, and if, in their zeal to effect it, 
 they sometimes erred, the sufferings which resulted from 
 their ignorance have been a thousand times compensated, 
 by the subsequent enjoyments of a free and independent 
 people. 
 
 i- Sec. 72. Towards the close of the year 1779, 
 Sir Henry Clinton, committing the English gar 
 rison of New- York to Gen. Kniphausen, em- 
 barked with a force of between seven and eight 
 thousand men, for the reduction of Charleston, 
 South Carolina, which important object he ac- 
 complished on the 12th of May, 1780. 
 \ After a tempestuous voyage of some weeks, in which se- 
 veral transports were lost, the army arrived at Savannah, 
 whence they sailed on their destined purpose. On the 2d 
 of April, 1780, Gen. Clinton opened his batteries agains. 
 Charleston. Gen. Lincoln, at this time, commanded the 
 American forces of the south. Urged by the inhabitants, 
 on the approach of the enemy, to continue in Charleston, 
 and assist in repelling the attack, he consented to remain, 
 and, with Gov. Rutledge, industriously forwarded prepara- 
 tions for defence. 
 
 Notwithstanding these preparations, the batteries of the 
 enemy soon obtained a decided superiority over those of 
 the town, and left but little reason to the besieged to hope 
 that they should be able to defend the place. A council of 
 war, held on the 21st, agreed that a retreat would probably be 
 impracticable, and advised that offers of capitulation should 
 be made to Gen. Clinton, which might admit of the army's 
 withdrawing, and afford security to the persons and pro- 
 perty of the inhabitants. 
 
 On the proposal of these terms, they were rejected. Hos- 
 tilities were now renewed by the garrison, and returned 
 with unusual ardor by the British. On the 1 1th of May, 
 finding the longer defence of the place impracticable, a 
 number of citizens addressed Gen. Lincoln, advising him 
 to capitulate. Acquiescing in the measure, painful as it 
 
REVOLUTION. 279 
 
 was, Gen. Lincoln again presented terms of capitulation, 
 which being- accepted, the American army, amounting to 
 5000, together with the inhabitants of the place, and four 
 hundred pieces of artillery, were surrendered to the British. 
 The loss on both sides, during the siege, was nearly 
 equal. Of the royal troops, seventy-six were killed, and 
 one hundred and eighty-nine wounded. Of the Americans, 
 eighty-nine were killed, and one hundred and forty wound- 
 ed. By the articles of capitulation, the garrison was to 
 march out of town, and to deposit their arms in front of the 
 works, but, as a mark of humiliation, which, eighteen 
 months afterwards, was remembered and retaliated on Lord 
 Cornwallis at Yorktown, the drums were not to beat a 
 British march, nor the colors to be uncased. 
 
 Sec. 73. Shortly after the surrender of Charles- 
 ton, Sir Henry Clinton, leaving four thousand 
 men for the southern service, under Lord Corn- 
 wallis, returned to New- York. British garri- 
 sons were now posted in different parts of the 
 state of South Carolina, to awe the inhabitants, 
 and to secure their submission to the British 
 government. 
 
 The spirit of freedom, however, still remained 
 with the people, nor was it easy to subdue that 
 spirit, how much soever it might be temporarily 
 repressed, by royal and oppressive menace. 
 
 Notwithstanding the efforts of his majesty's 
 servants to preserve quietness, the month of July 
 did not pass by in peace. General Sumpter, a 
 man ardently attached to the cause of liberty, 
 in several engagements in South Carolina, with 
 the English and their partizans, gained great 
 advantages over them, and in one instance, re- 
 duced a regiment the prince of Wales' from 
 two hundred and seventy-eight to nine. 
 
 While Sumpter was thus keeping up the spi- 
 rits of the people by a succession of gallant ex 
 ploits, a respectable force was advancing through 
 
"w* 
 
 280 PERIOD v. 1775 TO 1783. 
 
 the middle states, for the relief of their southern 
 brethren. 
 
 We shall interrupt the thread of our history to relate the 
 personal adventures of Maj. Gen. Wadsworth, in the district 
 of Maine, during- the spring of this year, 1780. He had 
 been sent by the legislature of Massachusetts, to command 
 in that part of the country. Having attended to the objects 
 of his mission during the summer of '79, and the principal 
 part of the succeeding winter, he dismissed his troops to- 
 wards the end of February, and began to prepare for his 
 return to Boston. He had been accompanied during this 
 time by Mrs. Wadsworth, and a friend of hers, Miss Fen- 
 no, of that place. 
 
 His preparations, however, were discovered by a disaf- 
 fected inhabitant in the neighborhood, who gave intelli- 
 gence to the commander of the British fort at Bagaduce, 
 and assured him that the general might easily be made a 
 prisoner. No time was lost. Twenty-five soldiers, with 
 the proper officers, were soon embarked on board a vessel, 
 in which they proceeded to an inlet, four miles from the 
 general's quarters. Here they landed under cover of night, 
 and lying concealed till near midnight, they proceeded on 
 their destined purpose. 
 
 The nature of the ground was such as to conceal them, 
 until they had arrived at the house. The sentinel, being 
 surprised, sprung into the kitchen door, and was followed 
 by a volley from the assailants, and by some of the assail- 
 ants themselves. Another party blew in the windows of 
 the general's bed-room, whilst a third party, forcing the 
 windows of Miss Fenno, rushed into her apartment. 
 
 The general's room being barred, he determined to make 
 / what resistance he was able. Accordingly, as the assail- 
 ants approached his apartment, he repeatedly discharged 
 his pistols, a blunderbuss, and fusee. At length a ball from 
 the kitchen broke his arm, and terminated the contest. 
 
 The party, apprehensive of danger, now retired in haste, 
 taking with them the wounded general, but leaving his 
 wife and Miss Fenno, to emotions the most intense. After 
 proceeding with some difficulty near a mile, General Wads- 
 worth was put on a horse, behind a mounted soldier, and 
 being warned that silence alone would ensure his safety, 
 the party at length reached the vessel, which immediately 
 sailed for the fort. 
 
 Near the close of the day the party arrived with their 
 
REVOLUTION. 281 
 
 charge. General Wadsworth landed amidst the shouts of 
 a multitude, which had assembled to see the man, who had 
 justly excited their admiration, by his enterprises in that 
 quarter, and, under a guard, was conducted to the officers' 
 guard room. Here his wounds were dressed ; a room in 
 the officers' barracks was assigned him, and through the 
 civility of General Campbell, the commandant of the fort, 
 who often visited him, his situation was rendered as com- 
 fortable as could be expected. 
 
 General Wadsworth, however, was a prisoner and alone, 
 Nothing could supply the place of freedom, to which a 
 spirit like his constantly aspired, or of domestic happiness, 
 which, though a soldier of the most ardent stamp, he well 
 knew how to appreciate. Added to this, his wound, during 
 the first two weeks, had become so inflamed as to confine 
 him entirely to his room. 
 
 At the expiration of this time, he had the happiness to 
 hear from his wife by means of an officer, bearing a flag of 
 truce, who at his request had been despatched by General 
 Campbell with a letter to her, and another to the governor 
 of Massachusetts. The intelligence he received from Mrs. 
 Wadsworth, of her safety, and especially of that of his little 
 son, who he supposed had been killed the night he was 
 taken prisoner was peculiarly gratifying. So far from 
 having been injured, his son had slept amidst all the 
 horrors of the scene, and only knew of the transactions of 
 the dreadful night, by the devastations he saw around him 
 in the morning. 
 
 At the end of five weeks, when his wounds were nearly 
 healed, the general requested the customary privilege of a 
 parole. . Circumstances, however, existed, which rendered 
 , it necessary to deny him, and he acquiesced. About this 
 time Mrs. Wadsworth and Miss Fenno, under protection of 
 a passport from General Campbell, visited him. The visit 
 lasted ten days, to their mutual satisfaction. 
 
 In the mean time, orders respecting him had arrived 
 from the commanding general at New- York. Of the tenor 
 
 1 of these orders, General Wadsworth was ignorant, but their 
 unpropitious nature was indicated by the change of conduct 
 and countenance in some of the officers. Miss Fenno had 
 accidentally learned their import, but she caiefully con- 
 cealed her knowledge, until the moment of her departure, 
 when, to prevent suspicion, she barely said, " General 
 Wadsworth, take care of yourself." From the servants, 
 24* 
 
 
282 PERIOD v. 1775 TO 1783. 
 
 not long after, he learned that instead of being exchanged, 
 he was to be sent to England. 
 
 In the course of some days, Major Benjamin Burton, a 
 brave officer, was conveyed as a prisoner to Bagaduce, and 
 lodged in the same room with General Wadsvvorth. He 
 confirmed the report of the servants respecting the trans- 
 portation of the general to England, and learned, not long 
 after, that he himself was destined to a similar fate. The 
 monitory caution of Miss Fenno was now explained, and 
 the general plainly saw the importance of attending to it. 
 These officers were not long in deciding that they would 
 not cross the Atlantic ; and though scarcely a ray of hope 
 presented itself to encourage them, they nevertheless re- 
 solved to attempt to escape. 
 
 Bagaduce, on which the fort stands, is a peninsula of 
 moderate extent, washed by considerable waters on every 
 side, except the sandy beach which connects it with the 
 main land on the west. The fort stands on the middle of 
 the peninsula. The prisoners were confined in a grated 
 room in the officers' barracks. The walls of the fort, ex- 
 clusively of the depth of the ditch surrounding it, were 
 twenty feet high, with frasing on the top, and chevaux-de- 
 frise below. Sentinels were stationed in every place in 
 and about the fortress, where their presence could be sup- 
 posed to be necessary. Escape, therefore, seemed almost 
 impracticable. 
 
 After several plans proposed by -the prisoners for their 
 escape, they settled at length upon the following. As the 
 room in which they were confined was ceiled with boards, 
 they determined to cut off one of these so as to admit their 
 entrance. After passing through, they proposed to creep 
 along one of the joists to which these boards were nailed, 
 and thus to pass over the room adjoining it, which belonged 
 to the officers, until they should come to the middle entry, 
 and then by a blanket, which was to be taken with them, 
 to let themselves down in this entry. In case of being ob- 
 served, they agreed upon several stratagems to be employ- 
 ed, in order that their attempt might be~crowned with suc- 
 cess. 
 
 In agreement with this plan, after the sentinel had taken 
 the required precaution in regard to the prisoners, and seen 
 them in bed, Gen. Wads worth arose, and attempted to make 
 the necessary incision into the board with his knife. But 
 he found the attempt useless, and hazardous, since it could 
 be done neither with the necessary expedition, nor without 
 
REVOLUTION. 283 
 
 noise. This part of the design was therefore abandoned 
 He, however, soon found means, through the agency of a 
 soldier, who was his barber, to procure a gimblet, without 
 exciting a suspicion as to the purpose for which he intend- 
 ed it. 
 
 On the succeeding night, they made the attempt with their 
 gimblet, but this also occasioned too much noise. They re- 
 solved next to make the experiment in the day time ; and 
 although two sentinels, in walking the entry, every moment 
 or two passed by their door, which had a glass window in 
 tt] and although they were exposed every hour to the in- 
 trusion of their servants, or of the officers of the fort, they 
 succeeded in perforating the ceiling from time to time. The 
 stratagem was simply this. As the sentinels were in the 
 habit of pacing the entry backwards and forwards, the pri- 
 soners \vould commence the same tour in their own room, 
 being careful to keep time with them, and both to pass at 
 the same instant by the glass door ; but as the sentinels had 
 to go twice the length the prisoners had, this afforded an 
 opportunity for one of the latter to be engaged with the gim- 
 blet in the mean time, and then to join his companion as the 
 sentinels came back. 
 
 In this manner a sufficient number of holes were bored 
 in the course of three weeks. The small spaces between 
 the holes were cut with a pen-knife, except one at each 
 corner, in order to hold the piece in its proper place, till 
 they were ready finally to remove it. The wounds in the 
 mean time were covered over with a paste made of chewed 
 bread, resembling the color of the board, and the dust was 
 carefully swept from the floor. All this was done without 
 suspicion from any quarter. 
 
 Their conveyance to New- York, or Halifax, and thence 
 to England, was understood to be by a privateer, which was 
 then on a cruise, but was soon expected to return. Their 
 attention of course was arrested by every thing which they 
 heard relative to this vessel, and they made every unsuspi- 
 cious inquiry in their power, concerning the situation of 
 the fort, the posting of the sentinels, and similar subjects. 
 The information thus obtained, enabled Gen. Wadsworth, 
 \vho had previously some knowledge of the place, to form a 
 correct view of the whole ground. 
 
 Ducing this time they made what little preparations they 
 were able, as to provisions and other things, that related to 
 their intended escape. At the end of three weeks they were 
 all ready. The privateer was daily expected to return, 
 
284 PERIOD v. 1775 TO 1783. 
 
 which would disconcert all their purposes, and they wished 
 nothing more than such an opportunity as a dark and rainy 
 night would afford, in order to their deliverance. During 
 a whole week no such opportunity offered, and, together 
 with this fact, some circumstances, tending to excite a belief 
 that their design was suspected, occurred, and rendered their 
 anxiety extreme. 
 
 At length the favorable occasion was presented A storm 
 on the 18th of June brought on an unusual degree of dark- 
 ness and rain. At about eleven o'clock the prisoners re- 
 tired apparently to rest, while the sentinel was looking 
 through the glass door. No sooner, however, were their 
 lights extinguished, than they arose ; their first object was 
 to cut the corners of the board, through which they were to 
 make their escape. An hour was spent in accomplishing 
 this purpose, and as it was attended with considerable noise, 
 it was not done without danger. 
 
 Burton first passed through the aperture. His size ren- 
 dered it a difficult attempt. The general, although smaller, 
 found even greater difficulty, from the weakness of his arm. 
 But the urgency of the case induced him to put forth every 
 effort. By means of a chair,, on which he stood, and a 
 blanket fastened with a skewer put through the hole, he 
 raised himself through. The noise made by these attempts, 
 and even the cackling of the fowls that roosted above the 
 rooms, were unheeded, being drowned by the torrents of 
 rain pouring incessantly on the roof of the building. 
 
 By agreement, when Burton had reached the middle en- 
 try, he was to wait for the general; the latter, however, 
 when he had gained the place, was unable to find him, but 
 judging from appearances that he had escaped through the 
 door, he followed on. Passing partly round the building in 
 order to gain the western side, he felt his way directly un- 
 der the eves, lest he should strike against some person, an 
 event to which he was exposed, in consequence of the extreme 
 darkness. From this point he made his way towards the 
 neighboring wall of the fort, but was unable to climb the 
 bank until he had found out an oblique path. 
 
 Just as he had gained the place on the north bastion, 
 where Burton and himself had agreed to cross the wall, the 
 guard house door, on the opposite side of the fort, was 
 thrown open, and the words, " Relief, turn out," were dis- 
 tinctly sounded. At this instant he heard a scrambling in 
 a contrary direction, which he knew must be made by his 
 companion. This was a critical moment. The general 
 
REVOLUTION. 285 
 
 \vas m danger of being trod on by the guard, as they came 
 around on the top of the wall, and he barely prevented this 
 catastrophe, by getting himself and his wet blanket upon 
 the fraising, which was the outward margin of the wall. 
 
 After the guard had passed on, by means of his blanket, 
 fastened round a picket of the fraising, he let himself down 
 as near the ground as the length of the blanket would ad- 
 mit, and then let go his hold, and fell without injury. 
 Having made several movements with great silence, in or- 
 der to clear himself from the works connected with the fort, 
 he at length found himself descending the declivity of the 
 hill, into the open field. All this was done, not without ex- 
 treme difficulty, owing to the lameness of his arm. No in- 
 dications appeared, that he was as yet discovered. 
 
 As the rain and darkness continued, he groped his way 
 to an old guard house on the shore of the back cove. At 
 this building he and his companion had agreed to meet, 
 should they have been previously separated. Burton, LOW- 
 ever, after a long search, was not to be found. According- 
 ly, the general prepared to cross the cove, and happily suc- 
 ceeded, as the time was that of low water. It was now 
 about two o'clock in the morning, and he had proceeded a 
 mile and a half from the fort. His course lay up a sloping 
 acclivity, which at the time happened to be overspread with 
 trees, a circumstance that greatly impeded his progress. 
 He proceeded a mile over the ground, till he reached the 
 summit, where he found a road, which, however, he soon 
 left for the woods, in order to make his way to the river. 
 Here the day dawned, and he heard the reveille beat at the 
 fort. At sun-rise he reached the eastern shore of the Pe- 
 nobscot. Choosing, however, not to cross the river at that 
 place, he continued his way still higher up at the foot of 
 the bank, passing near the water, so as to have his steps 
 washed by the tide. By this means he hoped to be secure 
 from the blood-hounds kept at the fort. Having reached a 
 place at a distance of seven miles from the fort, where it was 
 necessary for him to cross the river, and where he found a 
 canoe lying on the shore, he concluded to rest for a time, 
 and dry his clothes. While in this situation, what was his 
 joy to descry his friend Burton approaching him, in the very 
 track which he himself had taken. 
 
 The major, after having passed through the hole in the 
 ceiling, immediately made his way into the second entry, 
 and concluding that his friend would be unable to pass 
 through the hole, for want of assistance in the room, thought 
 
286 PERIOD v. 1775 TO 1783. 
 
 it best to complete his escape alone. He met with little dif- 
 ficulty till the door of the guard room was suddenly opened, 
 and supposing that a discovery had taken place, he imme- 
 diately leaped from the wall ; fortunately receiving no in- 
 jury, though his life was singularly exposed by the leap, he 
 easily escaped into the open ground. 
 
 Mistaking the ground he should have taken, Burton sud- 
 denly found himself near a sentinel, who was one of a picket 
 jjuard, stationed not far from the isthmus. As, however, he 
 was not perceived, he found means silently to withdraw 
 from his unwelcome neighbor, and entering the water on 
 the side of the isthmus next the river, he passed over to the 
 opposite side above the picket. This undertaking was ha- 
 zardous in the extreme, and cost him an hour's excessive 
 toil. Chilled and exhausted, he then took his way through 
 the forest, which the general had taken before, and by this 
 means rejoined him. 
 
 The two friends entered the canoe, and as they were in 
 the expectation of being pursued by the enemy, they pro- 
 posed to cross the river obliquely. While executing this 
 project, a barge belonging to the British came in sight, at 
 some distance. Circumstances, however, favored the con- 
 cealment of the officers, and by hard rowing they landed 
 out of reach of their pursuers. For greater safety they 
 abandoned the shore, and directed their course through the 
 forests, towards the head of St. George's river. A compass 
 which Burton had fortunately retained, was their guide. 
 Though greatly incommoded by showers, heat, and the ob- 
 structions of a forest, they travelled twenty-five miles by 
 sun-set. 
 
 They made less progress, however, the next day ; and 
 on the third day, General Wadsworth, from soreness, lame- 
 ness, and fatigue, proposed to stop where he was, until his 
 friend, by proceeding onward to the nearest settlement, could 
 bring him relief. To this plan, however, Burton strenuous- 
 ly objected. They then both proposed to refresh themselves 
 with a little sleep. This they did in the heat of the day, 
 and found the effect so beneficial, that they were invigora- 
 ted to pursue their journey, which they finished at 6 o'clock, 
 P. M., by reaching the settlements towards which they had 
 directed their course. The inhabitants flocked around 
 them with the strongest expressions of joy, and having 
 formed themselves into a guard for their protection, con- 
 ducted these officers to an inn, not far from the place Ayhere 
 the general was taken prisoner. Parties of the enemy were 
 
REVOLUTION. 287 
 
 lurking round in order to way-lay them, and they were 
 saved from falling again into their hands, only by the de- 
 fence which was so generously afforded them. Burton 
 soon reached his family. General Wadsworth set out for 
 Portland, where he expected to find Mrs. Wadsworth ; but 
 she and Miss Fenno had sailed for Boston, before his ar- 
 rival. 
 
 He immediately proceeded to join them at that place. On 
 his arrival, he found that they had suffered much from the 
 want of money and friends, besides being nearly shipwreck- 
 ed on their way. The past, however, was forgotten, in the 
 felicities of the present, and in gratitude to a kind Provi- 
 dence, through which they had escaped perils both by sea 
 and land.* 
 
 Sec. 74. The southern army, now placed un- 
 der the command of Gates, the hero of Saratoga, 
 Gen. Lincoln having been superseded, amounted 
 to four thousand ; hut of these, scarcely one thou- 
 sand were regular troops, the rest consisting of 
 militia, from North Carolina, Maryland, and Vir- 
 ginia. 
 
 As this army approached South Carolina, Lord 
 Rawdon, who commanded on the frontier, under 
 Lord Cornwallis, concentrated the royal forces, 
 two thousand in number, at Camden, one hun- 
 dred and twenty miles northwest from Charles- 
 ton. Here Cornwallis, on learning the move- 
 ments of the Americans, joined him. 
 
 On the morning of the 16th of August, the two 
 armies met, and a severe and general action en- 
 sued, in which, through the unpardonable failure 
 of the militia, the British gained a decided ad- 
 vantage. 
 
 At the first onset, a large body of the Virginia militia, 
 under a charge of the British infantry with fixed bayonets, 
 threw down their arms, and fled. A considerable part of 
 the North Carolina militia followed their unworthy exam- 
 ple. But the continental troops evinced the most unyielding 
 * 
 
 * Dwight's Travels. 
 
288 PERIOD v. 1775 TO 1783. 
 
 firmness, and pressed forward with unusual ardor. Never 
 did men acquit themselves more honorably. They submit- 
 ted only when forsaken by their brethren in arms, and 
 when overpowered by numbers. 
 
 in this battle, the brave Baron de Kalb, second in com- 
 mand, at the head of the Marylanders, fell, covered with 
 wounds, which he survived only a few days. De Kalb was 
 a German by birth, and had formerly served in the armies 
 of the French. In consideration of his distinguished merit, 
 as an officer and soldier, congress resolved that a monu 
 ment should be erected to his memory at Annapolis. 
 
 The battle of Camden was exceedingly bloody. The 
 field of battle, the road and swamps, for some distance, were 
 covered with wounded and slain. The number of Ameri- 
 cans killed, although not certain, probably amounted to be- 
 tween six and seven hundred, and the wounded and prison- 
 ers to one thousand three hundred, or one thousand four 
 hundred. The British stated their loss to be only three 
 hundred and twenty-four, in killed and wounded ; but it was 
 probably much greater. 
 
 Sec. 75. " The disaster of the army, under 
 General Gates, overspread, at first, the face of 
 American affairs, with a dismal gloom ; but the 
 day of prosperity to the United States began, as 
 will appear in the sequel, from that moment, to 
 dawn. 
 
 " Their prospects brightened, while those of 
 their enemies were obscured by disgrace, broken 
 by defeat, and, at last, covered with ruin. Elated 
 with their victories, the conquerors grew more 
 insolent and rapacious, while the real friends 
 of independence became resolute and deter 
 mined." 
 
 Sec. 76. While the campaign of 1780 was thus 
 filled up with important events in the southern 
 department, it passed away, in the northern 
 states, in successive disappointments, and reitera- 
 ted distresses. 
 
 In June, a body of five thousand of the enemy, 
 under Gen.Kniphausen, entered New Jersey, and. 
 
Meeting of Arnold and Andre. P.291. 
 
 Capture of Andre. P. 291 
 
REVOLUTION. 289 
 
 in addition to plundering the country, wantonly 
 burnt several villages. 
 
 On the arrival of this body at Connecticut Farms, a small 
 settlement containing about a dozen houses and a church, 
 they burnt the whole. At this place there resided a pres- 
 byterian minister, by the name of Caldwell, who had taken* 
 a conspicuous part in the cause of freedom, and who had, 
 of course, incurred the deep displeasure of Gen. Kniphau- 
 sen. Supposing, however, that the general's resentment 
 would be confined to him, and that his family would be safe, 
 on the approach of the enemy he hastily withdrew, leaving 
 his wife and children to their mercy. Col. Drayton had 
 previously withdrawn the militia from the place, that there 
 might be no pretext for enormities ; but the British soldiers, 
 in the American war, did not wait for pretexts to be cruel. 
 Mrs. Caldwell was shot in the midst of her children, by a 
 villain, who walked up to the window of the room in which 
 she was sitting, and took deliberate aim with his musket. 
 This atrocious act was attempted to be excused as an acci- 
 dent, as a random shot ; but the attempt at palliation served 
 only to increase the crime. 
 
 Sec. 77. Besides these predatory incursions, by 
 which the inhabitants suffered alarm, distress, 
 and destruction of property, they suffered greatly, 
 also, from the constantly diminishing value of 
 their paper currency, and from unfavorable crops. 
 
 The situation of Gen. Washington, often during the war 
 embarrassing, had been distressing through the winter, in 
 his encampment ^it Morristown. The cold was more in- 
 tense than it had ever been known to be before in this cli- 
 mate, within the memory of the oldest, -inhabitant. The 
 winter, to this day, bears the distinctive epithet of the hard 
 winter. The army suffered extremely, and often had Wash- 
 ington the prospect before him of being obliged to break up 
 his encampment, and disband his soldiers. 
 
 The return of spring brought little alleviation to their 
 distress. Great disorder pervaded the departments for sup- 
 plying the army. Abuses crept in, frauds were practised, 
 and notwithstanding the poverty of the country, economy, 
 on the part of the commissioners, was exiled. 
 
 In May, a committee from congress visited the army, and 
 reported to that body an account of the distresses and dis- 
 orders conspicuously prevalent. In particular, they stated, 
 25 
 
290 PERIOD v. 1775 TO 1783. 
 
 " that the army was unpaid for five months ; that it seldom 
 had more than six days' provisions in advance, and was, on 
 several occasions, for sundry successive days, without meat; 
 that the medical department had neither sugar, coffee, tea, 
 chocolate, wine, nor spirituous liquors of any kind ; and 
 that every department of the army was without money, and 
 had not even the shadow of credit left." 
 
 Sec. 78. But under all this tide of evils, there 
 appeared no disposition, in public bodies, to pur- 
 chase their relief by concession. They seemed, 
 on the contrary, to rise in the midst of their dis- 
 tresses, and to gain firmness and strength by the 
 pressure of calamity. 
 
 Sec. 79. Fortunately for the Americans, as it 
 seemed, M. de Ternay arrived at Rhode Island 
 July 10th, from France, with a squadron of seven 
 sail of the line, five frigates, and five smaller 
 armed vessels, with several transports, and six 
 thousand men, all under command of Lieutenant 
 General Count de Rochambeau. Great was the 
 joy excited by this event, and high raised expec- 
 tations were indulged from the assistance of so 
 powerful a force against the enemy. But the 
 British fleet, in our waters, was still superior, 
 and that of the French, and the French army, 
 were for a considerable time incapacitated from 
 co-operating with the Americans, by being block- 
 ed up at Rhode Island. 
 
 The arrival of the French fleet at Newport, was greeted 
 by the citizens with every demonstration of joy. The town 
 was illuminated, and congratulatory addresses were ex- 
 changed. As a symbol of friendship and affection for the 
 allies, Gen. Washington recommended to the American of- 
 ficers, to wear black and white cockades, the ground to be 
 of the first color, and the relief of the second. 
 
 Sec. 80. The fortress of West Point, on the 
 Hudson, sixty miles north of New- York, and its 
 importance to the Americans, has already been 
 
REVOLUTION. 291 
 
 noticed. Of this fortress, Gen. Arnold had soli- 
 cited and obtained the command. Soon after as- 
 suming the command, Arnold entered into nego- 
 tiations with Sir Henry Clinton, to make such a 
 disposition of the forces in the fortress, as that the 
 latter might easily take possession of it by sur- 
 prise. Fortunately for America, this base plot 
 was seasonably discovered to prevent the ruin- 
 ous consequences that must have followed. Ar- 
 nold, however, escaped to the enemy, loaded 
 with infamy and disgrace. Andre, the agent of 
 the British in this negotiation, was taken, and 
 justly expiated his crime on the gallows, as a spy. / 
 
 Major Andre, at this time adjutant general of the British 
 army, was an officer extremely young hut high-minded, 
 brave, and accomplished. He was transported in a vessel 
 called the Vulture, up the North river, as near to West 
 Point as was practicable, without exciting suspicion. On 
 the 21st of September, at night, a boat was sent from the 
 shore, to bring him. On its return, Arnold met him at the 
 beach, without the posts of either army. Their business 
 was not finished, till too near the dawn of day for Andre 
 to return to the Vulture. He, therefore, lay concealed with- 
 in the American lines. During the day, the Vulture found 
 it necessary to change her position, and Andre, not being 
 able now to get on board, was compelled to attempt his re- 
 turn to New- York by land. 
 
 Having changed his military dress for a plain coat, and 
 receiving a passport from Arnold, under the assumed name 
 of John Anderson, he passed the guards and outposts, with- 
 out suspicion. On his arrival at Tarrytown, a village thirty 
 miles north of New- York, in the vicinity of the first Bri- 
 tish posts, he was met by three militia soldiers John 
 Pauldingf, David Williams, and Isaac Van Wert. He 
 showed them his passport, and they suffered him to conti- 
 nue his route. Immediately after this, one of these three 
 men, thinking that he perceived something singular in the 
 person of the traveller, called him back. Andre asked them 
 where they were from ? *' From down below," they replied, 
 intending to say, from New- York. Too frank to suspect . 
 a snare, Andre immediately answered, " And so am I " 
 
292 PERIOD v. 1775 TO 1783. 
 
 Upon this, they arrested him, when he declared himself 
 to be a British officer, and offered them his watch, and all 
 the gold he had with him, to be released. These soldiers 
 were poor and obscure, bat they were not to be bribed. Re- 
 solutely refusing- his offers, they conducted him to Lieute- 
 nant Col. Jameson, their commanding officer. 
 
 Jameson injudiciously permitted Andre, still calling him- 
 self Anderson, to write to Arnold, who immediately escap- 
 ed on board the Vulture, and took refuge in New- York. 
 
 Washington, on his way to head quarters, from Connec- 
 ticut where he had been to confer with Count de Rocham- 
 beau providentially happened to be at West Point, just at 
 this time. After taking measures to insure the safety of 
 the fort, he appointed a board, of which Gen. Greene was 
 president, to decide upon the condition and punishment of 
 Andre. 
 
 After a patient hearing of the case, September 29th, in 
 which every feeling of kindness, liberality, and generous 
 sympathy, was strongly evinced, the board, upon his own 
 confession, unanimously pronounced Andre a spy, and de- 
 clared, that agreeably to the laws and usages of nations, he 
 ought to suffer death. 
 
 Major Andre had many friends in the American army, 
 and even Washington would have spared him, had duty to 
 his country permitted. Every possible effort was made by 
 Sir Henry Clinton in his favor, but it was deemed impor- 
 tant that the decision of the board of war should be car- 
 ried into execution. When Major Andre was apprised of 
 the sentence of death, he made a last appeal, in a letter to 
 Washington, that he might be shot, rather than die on a 
 gibbet. 
 
 " Buoyed above the terror of death," said he, " by the 
 consciousness of a life devoted to honorable pursuits, and 
 stained with no action that can give me remorse, I trust 
 that the request I make to your excellency at this serious 
 period, and which is to soften my last moments, will not be 
 rejected. Sympathy towards a soldier will surely induce 
 your excellency, and a military friend, to adapt the mode of 
 my death to the feelings of a man of honor. Let me hope, 
 sir, that if aught in my character impresses you with es- 
 teem towards me, as a victim of policy and resentment, I 
 shall experience the operation of those feelings in your 
 breast, by being informed that I am not to die on a gibbet." 
 
 This letter of Andre roused the sympathies of Washing* 
 ton, and had he only been concerned, the prisoner would 
 
REVOLUTION. 293 
 
 have been pardoned and released. But the interests of his 
 country were at stake, and the sternness of justice demanded 
 that private feelings should be sacrificed. Upon consulting 
 his officers, on the propriety of Major Andre's request, to 
 receive the death of a soldier, to be shot, it was deemed 
 necessary to deny it, and to make him an example. On the 
 2d of October, this unfortunate young man expired on the 
 gallows, while foes and friends universally lamented his 
 untimely end. 
 
 As a reward to Paulding, Williams, and Van Wert, for 
 their virtuous and patriotic conduct, congress voted to each 
 of them an annuity of two hundred dollars, and a silver 
 medal, on one side of which, was a shield with this inscrip- 
 tion " fidelity," and on the other, the following motto, 
 "mnc.it amor patriot 1 the love of country conquers. 
 
 Arnold, the miserable wretch, whose machinations led to 
 the melancholy fate Andre experienced, escaped to New- 
 York, where, as the price of his dishonor, he received the 
 commission of brigadier general, and the sum of ten thou- 
 sand pounds sterling. This last boon was the grand secret 
 of Arnold's fall from virtue ; his vanity and extravagance 
 had led him into expenses which it was neither in the pow- 
 er nor will of congress to support. He had involved him- 
 self in debt, from which he saw no hope of extricating 
 himself; and his honor, therefore, was bartered for British 
 gold. 
 
 Sec. 81. General Washington, having learned 
 whither Arnold had fled, deemed it possible still 
 to take him, and to hring him to the just reward 
 of his treachery. To accomplish an object so 
 desirable, and, at the same time, in so doing, to 
 save Andre, Washington devised a plan, which, 
 although it ultimately failed, evinced the capa- 
 city of his mind, and his unwearied ardor for 
 his country's good. 
 
 Having matured the plan, Washington sent to Major Lee 
 to repair to head quarters, at Tappan, on the Hudson. " I 
 have sent for you," said Gen. Washington, " in the expec- 
 tation that you have some one in your corps, who is willing 
 to undertake a delicate and hazardous project. Whoever 
 comes forward will confer great obligation upon me per- 
 sonally, and, in behalf of the United States, I will reward 
 
294 PERIOD v. 1775 TO 1783. 
 
 him amply. No time is to be lost ; he must proceed, if 
 possible, to-night. I intend to seize Arnold, and save 
 Andre." 
 
 Major Lee named a serjeant major of his corps, by the 
 name of Champe a native of Virginia, a man full of bone 
 and muscle with a countenance grave, thoughtful, and 
 taciturn of tried courage, and inflexible perseverance. 
 
 Champe was sent for by Major Lee, and the plan pro- 
 posed. This was for him to desert to escape to New- 
 York to appear friendly to the enemy to watch Arnold, 
 and, upon some fit opportunity, with the assistance of some 
 one whom Champe could trust, to seize him, and conduct 
 him to a place on the river, appointed, where boats should 
 be in readiness to bear them away. 
 
 Champe listened to the plan attentively but, with the 
 spirit of a man of honor and integrity, replied " that it 
 was not danger nor difficulty, that deterred him from im- 
 mediately accepting the proposal, but the ignominy of de- 
 sertion, and the hypocrisy of enlisting with the enemy /" 
 
 To these objections, Lee replied, that although he would 
 appear to desert, yet as he obeyed the call of his commander 
 in chief, his departure could not be considered as criminal, 
 and that, if he suffered in reputation, for a time, the matter 
 would one day be explained to his credit. As to the second 
 objection, it was urged, that to bring such a man as Arnold 
 to justice loaded with guilt as he was and to save Andre 
 so young so accomplished so beloved to achieve so 
 much good in the cause of his country was more than suf- 
 ficient to balance a wrong, existing only in appearance. 
 
 The objections of Champe were at length surmounted. 
 and he accepted the service. It was now eleven o'clock at 
 night. With his instructions in his pocket, the sergeant 
 returned to camp, and, taking his cloak, valise, and orderly 
 book, drew his horse from the picket and mounted, putting 
 himself upon fortune. 
 
 Scarcely had half an hour elapsed, before Capt. Carnes, 
 the officer of the day, waited upon Lee, who was vainly at- 
 tempting to rest, and informed him, that one of the patrol 
 had fallen in with a dragoon, who, being challenged, put 
 spurs to his horse and escaped. Lee, hoping to conceal the 
 flight of Champe, or at least to delay pursuit, complained 
 of fatigue, and told the captain that the patrol had probably 
 mistaken a countryman for a dragoon. Carnes, however, 
 was not thus to be quieted ; and he withdrew to assemble 
 his corps. On examination, it was found that Champe was 
 
REVOLUTION. 295 
 
 absent. The captain now returned, and acquainted Lee 
 with the discovery, adding-, that he had detached a party to 
 pursue the deserter, and begged the major's written orders. 
 
 After making as much delay as practicable, without ex- 
 citing suspicion, Lee delivers his orders in which he di- 
 rected the party to take Champe if possible. " Bring him 
 alive," said he, "that he may suffer in the presence of the 
 army ; but kill him if he resists, or if he escapes after be- 
 ing taken." 
 
 A shower of rain fell soon after Champe's departure, 
 which enabled the pursuing dragoons to take the trail of his 
 horse, his shoes, in common with those of the horses of 
 the army, being made in a peculiar form, and each having 
 a private mark, which was to be seen in the path. 
 
 Middleton, the leader of the pursuing party, left the camp 
 a few minutes past twelve, so that Champe had the start of 
 but little more than an hour a period by far shorter than 
 had been contemplated. During the night, the dragoons 
 were often delayed in the necessary halts to examine the 
 road; but, on the coming of morning, the impression of the 
 horse's shoes was so apparent, that they pressed on with, 
 rapidity. Some miles above Bergen, a village three miles 
 north of New- York, on the opposite side of the Hudson, on 
 ascending a hill, Champe was descried, not more than half 
 a mile distant. Fortunately, Champe descried his pursuers 
 at the same moment, and, conjecturing their object, put 
 spurs to his horse, with the hope of escape. 
 
 By taking a different road, Champe was, for a time, lost 
 sight of but, on approaching the river, he was again des- 
 cried. Aware of his danger, he now lashed his valise, 
 containing his clothes and orderly book, to his shoulders, 
 and prepared himself to plunge into the river, if necessary. 
 
 Swift w r as his flight, and swift the pursuit. Middleton 
 and his party were within a few hundred yaids, wheu 
 Champe threw himself from his horse and plunged into 
 the river, calling aloud upon some British galleys, at no 
 great distance, for help. A boat was instantly despatched 
 to the sergeant's assistance, and a fire commenced upon 
 the pursuers. Champe was taken on board, and soon af- 
 ter carried to New- York, with a letter from the captain of 
 the galley, stating the past scene, all of which he had wit 
 nessed. 
 
 The pursuers having recovered the sergeant's horse and 
 cloak, returned to camp, where they arrived about three 
 o'clock the next day. On their appearance with the well 
 
c 
 ,. / 
 
 296 PERIOD v. 1775 TO 1783. 
 
 known horse, the soldiers made the air resound with the 
 acclamations that the scoundrel was killed. The agony 
 of Lee, for a moment, was past description, lest the faithful, 
 
 ? honorable, intrepid Champe, had fallen. But the truth soon 
 relieved his fears, and he repaired to Washington to impart 
 to him the success, thus far, of his plan. 
 
 Soon after the arrival of Champe in New- York, he was 
 sent to Sir Henry Clinton, who treated him kindly, but de- 
 tained him more than an hour in asking him questions, to 
 answer some of which, without exciting suspicion, required 
 all the art the sergeant was master of. He succeeded, how- 
 ^~ ever, and Sir Henry gave him a couple of guineas, and re- 
 commended him to Arnold, who was wishing to procure 
 American recruits. Arnold received him kindly, and pro- 
 
 n posed to him to join his legion ; Champe, however, express- 
 ed his wish to retire from war ; but assured the general, that 
 if he should change his mind, he would enlist. 
 
 Champe found means to communicate to Lee an account 
 of his adventures ; but, unfortunately, he could not succeed 
 in taking Arnold, as was wished, before the execution of 
 Andre. Ten days before Champe brought his project to 
 a conclusion, Lee received from him his final communica- 
 tion, appointing the third subsequent night for a party of 
 dragoons to meet him at Hoboken, opposite New-York, 
 when he hoped to deliver Arnold to the officers. 
 
 Champe had enlisted into Arnold's legion, from which 
 time he had every opportunity he could wish, to attend to 
 the habits of the general. He discovered that it was his 
 custom to return home about twelve every night, and that, 
 previously to going to bed, he always visited the garden. 
 During this visit, the conspirators were to seize him, and, 
 being prepared with a gag, they were to apply the same 
 instantly. 
 
 Adjoining the house in which Arnold resided, and in 
 which it was designed to seize and gag him, Champe had 
 taken off several of the palings and replaced them, so that 
 with ease, and without noise, he could readily open his way 
 to the adjoining alley. Into this alley he intended to con- 
 vey his prisoner, aided by his companion, one of two asso- 
 ciates, who had been introduced by the friend, to whom 
 Champe had been originally made known by letter from 
 the commander in chief, and with whose aid and counsel, 
 he had so far conducted the enterprise. His other associ- 
 ate was, with the boat, prepared at one of the wharves on 
 the Hudson river, to receive the party, 
 
REVOLUTION. 297 
 
 Champe and his friend intended to place themselves each 
 under Arnold's shoulder, and thus to bear him through the 
 most unfrequented alleys and streets to the boat, represent- 
 ing Arnold, in case of being questioned, as a drunken sol- 
 dier, whom they were conveying to the guard-house. 
 
 When arrived at the boat, the difficulties would be all 
 surmounted, there being no danger nor obstacle in passing 
 to the Jersey shore. These particulars, as soon as made 
 known to Lee, were communicated to the commander in 
 chief, who was highly gratified with the much desired in- 
 telligence. He desired Major Lee to meet Champe, and 
 to take care that Arnold should not be hurt. 
 
 The day arrived, and Lee, with a party of accoutered 
 horses, (one for Arnold, one for the sergeant, and the third 
 for his associate, who was to assist in securing Arnold,) left 
 the camp, never doubting the success of the enterprise, from 
 the tenor of the last received communication. The party 
 reached Hoboken about midnight, where they were con- 
 cealed in the adjoining wood Lee, with three dragoons, 
 stationing himself near the shore of the river. Hour after 
 hour passed, but no boat approached. 
 
 At length the day broke, and the major retired to his 
 party, and, with his led horses, returned to the camp, where 
 he proceeded to head quarters to inform the general of the 
 much lamented disappointment, as mortifying, as inexplica- 
 ble. Washington, having perused Champe's plan and com- 
 munication, had indulged the presumption, that, at length, 
 the object of his keen and constant pursuit was sure of ex- 
 ecution, and did not dissemble the joy which such a convic- 
 tion produced. He was chagrined at the issue, and appre- 
 hended that his faithful sergeant must ^ave been detected 
 in the last scene of his tedious and difficult enterprise. 
 
 In a few days, Lee received an anonymous letter from 
 C 4 hampe's patron and friend, informing him, that on the 
 day preceding the night fixed for the execution of the plot, 
 Arnold had removed his quarters to another part of the 
 town, to superintend the embarkation of troops, preparing, 
 as was rumored, for an expedition to be directed by him- 
 self; and that the American legion, consisting chiefly of 
 American deserters, had been transferred from their bar- 
 racks to one of the transports, it being apprehended that if 
 left on shore, until the expedition was ready, many of them 
 might desert. 
 
 Thus it happened that John Champe, instead of crossing 
 the Hudson that night v was safely deposited on board one 
 
298 PERIOD v. 1775 TO 1783. 
 
 of the fleet of transports, from whence he never departed, 
 until the troops under Arnold landed in Virginia. Nor was 
 he able to escape from the British army, until after the 
 junction of Lord Cornwallis at Petersburg, when he de- 
 serted ; and, proceeding high up into Virginia, he passed 
 into North Carolina, near the Saura towns, and, keeping 
 in the friendly districts of that state, safely joined the army 
 soon after it had passed the Congaree, in pursuit of Lord 
 Rawdon. 
 
 His appearance excited extreme surprise among his for- 
 mer comrades, which was not a little increased, when they 
 saw the cordial reception he met with from the late major, 
 now Lieutenant Col. Lee. His whole story was soon 
 known to the corps, which reproduced the love and re- 
 spect of officers and soldiers, heretofore invariably enter- 
 tained for the sergeant, heightened by universal admiration 
 of his late daring and arduous attempt. 
 
 Champe was introduced to Gen. Greene, who very cheer- 
 fully complied with the promise made by the commander 
 in chief, so far as in his power; and, having provided the 
 sergeant with a good horse and money for his journey, sent 
 him to Gen. Washington, who munificently anticipated eve 
 ry desire of the sergeant, and presented him with a dis- 
 charge from further service, lest he might, in the vicissi- 
 tudes of war, fall into the hands of the enemy, when, if 
 recognized, he was sure to die on a gibbet. 
 
 We shall only add, respecting the after life of this inter- 
 esting adventurer, that when Gen. Washington was called 
 by President Adams, in 1798, to the command of the army, 
 prepared to defend the country against French hostility, he 
 sent to Lieutenant Col. Lee, to inquire for Champe, being 
 determined to bring him into the field at the head of a com- 
 pany of infantry. Lee sent to Loudon county, Virginia, 
 where Champe settled after his discharge from the army ; 
 when he learned, that the gallant soldier had removed to 
 Kentucky, where he soon after died.* 
 
 Sec. 82. The year 1781 opened with an event 
 extremely afflicting to General Washington, and 
 which, for a time, seriously endangered the Ame- 
 rican army. This was the revolt of the whole 
 Pennsylvania line of troops, at Morristown, to 
 the number of one thousand three hundred. The 
 
 * Lee's Memoirs. 
 
REVOLUTION. 299 
 
 cause of this mutiny was want of pay, clothing, 
 and provisions. Upon examination of the grie- 
 vances of the troops, by a committee from con- 
 gress, their complaints were considered to be 
 founded in justice. Upon their being redressed, 
 the troops, whose time of service had expired, 
 returned home, and the rest cheerfully repaired 
 again to camp. 
 
 Gen. Wayne, who commanded these troops, and who 
 \vas greatly respected by them, used every exertion to quiet 
 them, but in vain. In the ardor of remonstrance with them, 
 he cocked his pistol, and turned towards them. Instantly, 
 an hundred bayonets were directed towards him, and the 
 men cried out, " we love you, we respect you ; but you are 
 a dead man, if you fire. Do not mistake us ; we are not 
 going to the enemy. On the contrary, were they now to 
 come out, you should see us fight under your orders, with 
 as much resolution and alacrity as ever." 
 
 Leaving the camp, the mutineers proceeded in a body to 
 Princeton. Thither, Sir Henry Clinton, who had heard of 
 the revolt, sent agents to induce them to come over to the 
 British, with the promise of large rewards. 
 
 But these soldiers loved their country's cause too well to 
 listen to proposals so reproachful. They were suffering 
 privations which could no longer be sustained ; but they 
 spurned, with disdain, the offer of the enemy. They also 
 seized the agents of the British, and nobly delivered them 
 up to Gen. Wayne to be treated as spies. 
 
 Sec. 83. In the midst of these troubles, arising 
 from discontents of the troops, news arrived of 
 great depredations in Virginia, by Arnold, who 
 had left New-York for the south, with one thou- 
 sand six hundred men, and a number of armed 
 vessels. Extensive outrages were committed by 
 these troops in that part of the country. Large 
 quantities of tobacco, salt, rum, &c., were destroy- 
 ed. In this manner did Arnold show the change 
 of spirit which had taken place in his breast, 
 and hib fidelity to his new engagements. 
 
300 PERIOD v. 1775 TO 1783. 
 
 Upon receiving news of these depredations, at 
 the request of General Washington, a French 
 squadron, from Rhode Island, was sent to cut off 
 Arnold's retreat. Ten of his vessels were de- 
 stroyed, and a forty-four gun ship was captured. 
 Shortly aft r this, an engagement took place off 
 the Capes of Virginia, between the French and 
 English squadrons, which terminated so far to 
 the advantage of the English, that Arnold was 
 saved from imminent danger of falling into the 
 hands of his exasperated countrymen. 
 
 Sec. 84.* After the unfortunate battle at Cam- 
 den, August 16th, 1780, congress thought proper 
 to remove Gen. Gates, and to appoint Gen. Greene 
 in his place. In December, 1780, Greene assumed 
 the command. The army at this time was re- 
 duced to two thousand men, more than half of 
 whom were militia, and all were miserably fed 
 and clothed. 
 
 With this force, Gen. Greene took the field, 
 agaiast a superior regular force, flushed with 
 succa^ive victories through a whole campaign. 
 Soon after taking the command, he divided his 
 force, and. with one part, sent Gen. Morgan to 
 the western extremity of South Carolina. 
 
 At this time, Lord Cornwallis was nearly pre- 
 pared to invade North Carolina. Unwilling to 
 leave such an enemy as Morgan in the rear, he 
 dispatched Col. Tarleton to engage Gen. Morgan, 
 and " to push him to the utmost." 
 
 Sec. 85. January 17th, 1781, these two de- 
 tachments met, when was fought the spirited bat- 
 tle of the Cowpens, in which the American arms 
 signally triumphed. 
 
 In this memorable battle, the British lost upwards of one 
 hundred killed, among 1 whom were ten commissioned offi- 
 cers, and two hundred wounded. More than five hundred 
 
Escape of Sergeant Champe. P. 295 
 
 Murder of Col. Lcdyard. P. 103. 
 
REVOLUTION. 301 
 
 prisoners fell into the hands of the Americans, besides two 
 pieces of artillery, twelve standards, eight hundred muskets, 
 thirty-five* baggage wagons, and one hundred dragoon 
 horses ; the loss of the Americans was no more than twelve 
 killed, and sixty wounded. 
 
 The victory of .the Cowpens must be reckoned as one of 
 the most brilliant achieved during the revolutionary war. 
 The force of Morgan hardly amounted to five hundred, while 
 that of his adversary exceeded one thousand. Morgan's 
 brigade were principally militia, while Tarleton command- 
 ed the flower of the British army. 
 
 Sec. 86. Upon receiving the intelligence of 
 Tarleton's defeat, Cornwallis abandoned the in- 
 vasion of North Carolina for the present, and 
 marched in pursuit of Gen. Morgan. 
 
 Greene, suspecting his intentions, hastened 
 with his army to join Morgan. This junction 
 was at length effected, at Guilford Court-House, 
 after a fatiguing march, in which Cornwallis 
 nearly overtook him, and was prevented only by 
 the obstruction of a river. 
 
 After his junction with Morgan, Gen. Greene, 
 with his troops and baggage, crossed the river 
 Dan, and entered Virginia, again narrowly esca- 
 ping the British, who were in close pursuit. 
 
 Sec. 87. Satisfied with having driven Greene 
 from North Carolina, Cornwallis retired to Hills- 
 borough, where, erecting the royal standard, he 
 issued his proclamation, inviting the loyalists to 
 join him. Many accepted his invitation. At the 
 same time, he dispatched Tarleton, with four 
 hundred and fifty men, to secure the countenance 
 of a body of loyalists, collected between the 
 Hawe and Deep rivers. 
 
 Sec. 88. Apprehensive of Tarleton's success, 
 
 Gen. Greene, on the 18th of February, recrossed 
 
 the Dan into Carolina, and dispatched Generals 
 
 Pickens and Lee to watch the movements of the 
 
 26 
 
302 PERIOD v. 1775 TO 1783. 
 
 enemy. These officers were unable to bring 
 Tarleton to an engagement. General Greene, 
 having now received a reinforcement, making 
 his army four thousand five hundred strong, con- 
 centrated his forces, and directed his march to- 
 wards Guilford Court-House, whither Lord Corn- 
 wallis had retired. 
 
 Here, on the 8th of March, a general engage- 
 ment took place, in which victory, after alter- 
 nately passing to the banners of each army, final 
 ly decided in favor of the British. 
 
 The British loss, in this battle, exceeded five hundred in 
 killed and wounded, among whom were several of the most 
 distinguished officers. The American loss was about four 
 hundred, in killed and wounded, of which more than three 
 fourths fell upon the continentals. Though the numerical 
 fo'rce of Gen. Greene nearly doubled that of Cornwallis, yet, 
 when we consider the difference between these forces, the 
 shameful conduct of the North Carolina militia, who fled 
 at the first fire, the desertion of the second Maryland regi- 
 ment, and that a body of reserve was not brought into ac- 
 tion, it will appear, that our numbers, actually engaged, but 
 little exceeded that of the enemy. 
 
 Sec. 89. Notwithstanding the issue of the above 
 battle, Gen. Greene took the bold resolution of 
 leading back his forces to South Carolina, and of 
 attacking the enemy's strong post at Camden, in 
 that state. Accordingly, on the 9th of April, he 
 put his troops in motion, and on the 20th, en- 
 camped at Logtown. within sight of the ene- 
 mies' works. Lord Rawdon, at this time, held 
 the command at Camden, and had a force of 
 only nine hundred men. The army of General 
 Greene a detachment having been made for 
 another expedition under Gen. Lee amounted 
 scarcely to twelve hundred men of all classes. 
 
 On the 25th, Lord Rawdon drew out his forces, 
 and the two armies engaged. For a season, vie- 
 
REVOLUTION. 303 
 
 tory seemed inclined to the Americans, but, in 
 the issue, Gen. Greene found himself obliged to 
 retreat. 
 
 The American loss, in killed, wounded, and missing, was 
 two hundred and sixty-eight; the English loss was nearly 
 equal. The failure of the victory, in this battle, was not at- 
 tributable, as in some cases, to the flight of the militia, 
 when danger had scarcely begun ; but General Greene ex- 
 perienced the mortification of seeing a regiment of veterans 
 give way loan inferior force, when every circumstance was 
 in their favor the very regiment, too, which, at the battle 
 of the Cowpens, behaved with such heroic bravery. 
 
 Sec. 90. Although the British arms gained the 
 victory of Camden, the result of the whole was 
 favorable to the American cause. Gen. Lee, with 
 a detachment dispatched for that purpose, while 
 Greene was marching against Camden, took pos- 
 session of an important post at Mottes, near the 
 confluence of the Congaree and Santee rivers. 
 This auspicious event was followed by the evacu- 
 ation of Camden by Lord Rawdon, and of the 
 whole line of British posts, with the exception 
 of Ninety-Six and Charleston. 
 
 Sec. 91. Ninety-Six, one hundred and forty- 
 seven miles northwest from Charleston, was gar- 
 risoned by five hundred and sixty men. Against 
 this post, after the battle of Camden, Gen. Greene 
 took up his march, and, on the 22d of May, sat 
 down before it. Soon after the siege of it had 
 been commenced, intelligence arrived that Lord 
 Rawdon had been reinforced by troops from Ire- 
 land, and was on his march, with two thousand 
 men, for its relief. Greene now determined up- 
 on an assault, but in this he failed, with a loss 
 of one hundred and fifty men. 
 
 Soon after his arrival at Ninety-Six, Lord Raw- 
 don deemed it expedient to evacuate this post. 
 Retiring himself- to Charleston, his army en- 
 
304 PERIOD v. 1775 TO 1783 
 
 camped at the Eutaw Springs, forty miles from 
 Charleston. 
 
 Sec. 92. Gen. Greene, having retired to the 
 high hills of Santee, to spend the hot and sickly 
 season, in September approached the enemy at 
 the Eutaw Springs. *On the morning of the 8th, 
 he advanced upon him, and the battle between 
 I the two armies became general. The contest 
 was sustained with equal bravery on both sides; 
 victory seemed to decide in favor of neither. 
 
 The British lost, in killed, wounded, and prisoners, about 
 one thousand one hundred. The loss of the Americans 
 was five hundred and fifty-five. 
 
 Sec. 93. The battle of the Eutaw Springs was 
 the last general action that took place in South 
 Carolina, and nearly finished the war in that 
 quarter. The enemy now retired to Charleston. 
 
 Thus closed the campaign of 1781, in South Carolina. 
 Few commanders have ever had greater difficulties to: en- 
 counter than Gen. Greene; and few have ever, with the 
 same means, accomplished so much. Though never so de- 
 cisively victorious, yet the battles which he fought, either 
 from necessity or choice, were always so well managed as 
 to result to his advantage. 
 
 Not unmindful of his eminent services, congress present- 
 ed him with a British standard, and a gold medal, emble- 
 matical of the action at the Eutaw Springs, which restored 
 a sister state to the American union. 
 
 Sec. 94. After the battle of Guilford, between 
 Greene and Cornwallis, noticed above, the latter, 
 leaving South Carolina in charge of Lord Raw- 
 don, commenced his march towards Petersburg, 
 in Virginia, where he arrived on the 20th of 
 May. Having received several reinforcements, 
 he found himself with an army of eight thou- 
 sand, and indulged the pleasing anticipations 
 that Virginia would soon be made to yield to his 
 arms. 
 
 
REVOLUTION. 305 
 
 Early in the spring, Gen. Washington had de- 
 tached the Marquis de Lafyette, with three 
 thousand men, to co-operate with the French 
 fleet, in Virginia, in the capture of Arnold, who 
 was committing depredations in that state. On 
 the failure of this expedition, Lafayette march- 
 ed back as far as the head of Elk river. Here 
 he received orders to return to Virginia, to op- 
 pose the British. On his return, hearing of the 
 advance of Cornwallis towards Petersburg, 
 twenty miles below Richmond, he hastened his 
 march to prevent, if possible, the junction of 
 Cornwallis, with a reinforcement, under General 
 Phillips. In this, however, he failed. 
 
 The junction being effected at Petersburg, 
 Cornwallis moved towards James' river, which 
 he crossed, with the intention of forcing the 
 marquis to a battle. 
 
 Prudence forbad the marquis risking an en- 
 gagement, with an enemy of more than twice 
 his force. He therefore retreated, ajad, not- 
 withstanding the uncommon efforts of his lord- 
 ship to prevent it, he effected a junction with 
 General Wayne, who had been dispatched by 
 Washington, with eight hundred Pennsylvania 
 militia, to his assistance. After this reinforce- 
 ment, the disproportion between himself and his 
 adversary was still too great to permit him to 
 think of battle. He continued his retreat, there- 
 fore, displaying, in all his manoeuvres, the high- 
 est prudence. 
 
 Sec. 95. While these things were transpiring 
 in Virginia, matters of high moment seemed to 
 be in agitation in the north, which, not long af- 
 ter, were fully developed. 
 
 Early in May, 1781, a plan of the whole cam- 
 26* 
 
306 PERIOD v. 1775 TO 1783. 
 
 paign had been arranged by Gen. Washington, 
 in consultation, at Wethersfield, Connecticut, 
 with Generals Knox and Du Portail, on the part 
 of the Americans, and Count de Rochambeau, on 
 the part of France. The grand project of the 
 season was to lay siege to New-York, in concert 
 with a French fleet, expected on the coast in 
 August. 
 
 In the prosecution of this plan, the French 
 troops were marched from Rhode Island, and 
 joined Gen. Washington, who had concentrated 
 his forces at Kingsbridge, fifteen miles above 
 New-York. All things were preparing for a 
 vigorous siege, and, towards this strongest hold 
 of the enemy, the eyes of all were intently di- 
 rected. 
 
 In this posture of things, letters addressed to 
 Gen. Washington, informed him that the ex- 
 pected French fleet, under the Count de Grasse, 
 would soon arrive in the Chesapeake, and that 
 this, instead of New-York, was the place of its 
 destination. 
 
 Disappointed in not having the co-operation 
 of such a force ; disappointed also in not receiv- 
 ing the full quota of militia, which had been or- 
 dered from New-England and New- Jersey ; and, 
 moreover, learning that Clinton had been rein- 
 forced in New- York, by the arrival of three thou- 
 sand Germans ; Washington was induced to 
 change the plan of operations, and to direct his 
 attention to Cornwallis, who, from pursuing the 
 Marquis de Lafayette, had retired to Yorktown, 
 near the mouth of York river, and had fortified 
 that place. 
 
 Sec. 96. Having decided upon this measure, 
 on the 19th of July he drew off his forces, and 
 
REVOLUTION. 307 
 
 commenced his march, at the same time strong- 
 ly impressing Clinton, by every art in his pow- 
 er, that an attack would soon be made upon 
 New- York. So successfully was this deception 
 practised, that Washington was some distance 
 on his way towards Virginia, before Clinton sus- 
 pected that his object was any other than to ~_ & 
 draw him from New-York, to fight him in the 
 field, with superior forces. 
 
 Having halted at Philadelphia a few days, the 
 army continued its march to the head of Elk 
 river, whence it embarked for Williamsburg, 
 then the head quarters of the Marquis de Lafay- 
 ette, where it arrived September 25th. 
 
 Gen. Washington and Count de Rochambeau 
 preceded the troops ten days, and, to their 
 great joy, found that the Count de Grasse had 
 entered the Capes on the 30th of the preceding 
 month, with twenty-eight sail, and three thou- 
 sand troops. 
 
 On the arrival of these two generals at Wil- 
 liamsburg, a vessel was in readiness to convey 
 them on board the Ville de Paris, the flag-ship of 
 the Count de Grasse, where a council was held, 
 to determine on future operations. 
 
 Sec. 97. These things being settled, the com- 
 bined armies, amounting to twelve thousand 
 men, moved upon Yorktown and Gloucester, 
 September 30th, and the Count de Grasse, with 
 his fleet, proceeded up to the mouth of York 
 river, to prevent Cornwallis either from retreat- 
 ing, or receiving assistance. 
 
 Yorktown is a small village on the south side of York 
 river, whose southern banks are high, and in whose waters 
 a ship of the line may ride in safety. Gloucester Point is 
 a piece of land on the opposite shore, projecting far into the 
 river. Both these posts were occupied by Cornwallis 
 
308 PERIOD v. 1775 TO 1783. 
 
 the main body of the army being at York, under the im- 
 mediate command of his lordship, and a detachment of six 
 hundred at Gloucester Point, under Lieut. Col. Tarleton. 
 
 On the 6th of October, Washington's heavy 
 ordnance, (fee., arrived, and the siege was com- 
 menced in form. Seldom, if ever, during the 
 revolutionary struggle, did the American com- 
 mander in chief, or his troops, appear before the 
 enemy with more cool determination, or pursue 
 him with more persevering ardor, than at the 
 siege of Yorktown. With the fall of Cornwal- 
 lis, it was perceived that the hopes of Great Bri- 
 tain, successfully to maintain the contest, must 
 nearly expire ; with this in prospect, there was 
 no wavering of purpose, and no intermission of 
 toil. 
 
 On the 19th of October, the memorable victory 
 over Cornwallis was achieved, and his whole 
 army was surrendered, amounting to more than 
 seven thousand prisoners of war, together with 
 a park of artillery of one hundred and sixty pieces, 
 the greater part of which were brass. 
 
 Articles of capitulation being- mutually signed and ratifi- 
 ed, Gen. Lincoln was appointed, by the commander in chief, 
 to receive the submission of the royal army, in the same 
 manner in which, eighteen months before, Cornwallis had 
 received that of the Americans at Charleston. 
 
 The spectacle is represented as having been impressive 
 and affecting. The road through which the captive army 
 marched was lined with spectators, French and American, 
 On one side the commander in chief, surrounded with his 
 suite, and the American staff, took his station ; on the other 
 side, opposite to him, was the Count de Rochambeau, in the 
 like manner attended. 
 
 The captive army approached, moving slowly in column, 
 with grace and precision. Universal silence was observed 
 amidst the vast concourse, and the utmost decency prevail- 
 ed; exhibiting an awful sense of the vicissitudes of human 
 life, mingled with commiseration for the unhappy. 
 
 Every eye was now turned, searching for the British 
 
REVOLUTION. 309 
 
 commander in chief, anxious to look at the man, heretofore 
 so much the object of their dread. All were disappointed. 
 Cornwallis, unable to bear up against the humiliation of 
 marching at the head of his garrison, constituted General 
 O'Hara his representative, on the occasion. 
 
 The post of Gloucester, falling with that of York, was 
 delivered up the same day, by Lieut. Col. Tarleton. 
 
 At the termination of the siege, the besieging army 
 amounted to sixteen thousand. The British force was pui 
 down at seven thousand one hundred and seven, of which 
 only four thousand and seven rank and file are stated to have 
 been fit for duty. 
 
 Sec. 98. Five days after the surrender of Corn 
 wallis, Sir Henry Clinton made his appearance 
 off the Capes of Virginia, with a reinforcement 
 of seven thousand men ; but, receiving intelli- 
 gence of his lordship's fate, he returned to New- 
 York. 
 
 Cornwallis, in his dispatches to Sir Henry, more than 
 hinted that his fall had been produced by a too firm reliance 
 on promises, that no pains were taken to fulfil. Clinton 
 had promised Cornwallis that this auxiliary force should 
 leave New- York on the 5th of October, but, for reasons never 
 explained, it did not sail until the 19th, the very day that 
 decided the fate of the army. 
 
 Sec. 99. Nothing could exceed the joy of the 
 American people, at this great and important vic- 
 tory over Lord Cornwallis. Exultation broke 
 forth from one extremity of the country to the 
 other. The remembrance of the past gave place 
 in all minds to the most brilliant hopes. It was 
 confidently anticipated, that the affair of York- 
 town would rapidly hasten the acknowledgment 
 of American independence an event for which 
 the people had been toiling and bleeding through 
 so many campaigns. 
 
 In all parts of the United Slates, solemn festivals and re- 
 joicings celebrated the triumph of American fortune. The 
 names of Washington, Rochambeau, De Grasse, and La- 
 fayette, resounded every where. To the unanimous ac- 
 
310 PERIOD V.1775 TO 1783. 
 
 claim of the people, congress joined the authority of its re- 
 solves. It addressed thanks to the generals, officers, and 
 soldiers presented British colors ordered the erection of 
 a marble column and went into procession to church, to 
 render public thanksgiving to God for the recent victory. 
 The 30th of December was appointed as a day of national 
 thanksgiving. 
 
 Sec. 100. While the combined armies were 
 advancing to the siege of Yorktown, an excur- 
 sion was made from New-York, by Gen. Ar- 
 nold, against New-London, in his native state. 
 The object of this expedition seerns to have been, 
 to draw away a part of the American forces; 
 Sir Henry Clinton knowing but too well, that if 
 they were left at liberty to push the siege of 
 Yorktown, the blockaded army must inevitably 
 surrender. 
 
 This expedition was signalized by the great- 
 est atrocities. Fort Trumbull, on the west, and 
 Fort Griswold, on the east side of the river 
 Thames, below New-London, were taken, and 
 the greater part of that town was burnt. 
 
 At Fort Trumbull, little or no resistance was made ; but 
 Fort Griswold was defended, for a time, with great bravery 
 and resolution After the* fort was carried, a British offi- 
 cer entering, ^-uired who commanded. Col. Ledyard an- 
 swered, " I difi, but you do now" at the same time pre- 
 senting his sword. The officer immediately plunged the 
 sword into his bosom. A general massacre now took place, 
 as well of those who surrendered as of those who resisted, 
 which continued until nearly all the garrison were either 
 killed or wounded. Sixty dwelling houses, and eighty-four 
 stores, in New-London, were reduced to ashes. 
 
 Sec. 101. The fall of Cornwallis may be con- 
 sidered as substantially closing the war. A few 
 posts of importance were still held by the British 
 New-York, Charleston, and Savannah but all 
 other parts of the country, which they had pos- 
 sessed, were recovered into the power of con- 
 
REVOLUTION. 311 
 
 gress. A few skirmishes alone indicated the 
 continuance of war. 
 
 A part of the French army, soon after the cap- 
 ture of Cornwallis, re-embarked, and Count de 
 Grasse sailed for the West Indies. Count Ro- 
 chambeau cantoned his army for the winter, 
 1782, in Virginia, and the main body of the 
 Americans returned, by the way of the Chesa- 
 peake, to their former position on the Hudson. 
 
 Sec. 102. From the 12th of December, 1781, to 
 the 4th of March, 1782, motion after motion was 
 made in the British parliament, for putting an 
 end to the war in America. On this latter day, 
 the commons resolved, " that the house would 
 consider as enemies to his majesty, and to the 
 country, all those who should advise, or attempt, 
 the farther prosecution of offensive w T ar, on the 
 continent of North America." 
 
 Sec. 103. On the same day, the command of 
 his majesty's forces in America was taken from 
 Sir Henry Clinton, and given to Sir Guy Carle 
 ton, who was instructed to promote the wishes 
 of Great Britain, for an accommodation with the 
 United States. 
 
 In accordance with these instru(%j(Ts, Sir Guy 
 Carleton endeavored to open a correspondence 
 with congress, and with this view sent to Gen. 
 Washington to solicit a passport for his secretary. 
 But this was refused, since congress would enter 
 into no negotiations but in concert with his most 
 Christian Majesty. 
 
 Sec. 104. The French court, on receiving intel- 
 ligence of the surrender of Cornwallis, pressed 
 upon congress the appointment of commissioners 
 for negotiating peace with Great Britain. Ac- 
 cordingly, John Adams, Benjamin Franklin, John 
 
312 PERIOD v.- -1775 TO 1783. 
 
 Jay, and Henry Laurens, were appointed. These 
 commissioners met Mr. Fitzherbert and Mr. Os- 
 wald, on the part of Great Britain, at Paris, and 
 provisional articles of peace between the two 
 countries were signed, November 30th, 1782. The 
 definitive treaty was signed on the 30th of Sep- 
 tember, 1783. 
 
 Although the definitive treaty was not signed 
 until September, there had been no act of hos- 
 tility between the two armies, and a state ot 
 peace had actually existed from the commence- 
 ment of the year 1783. A formal proclamation 
 of the cessation of hostilities was made through 
 the army on the 19th of April, Savannah was 
 evacuated in July, New- York in November, and 
 Charleston in the following month. 
 
 Sec. 105. The third of November was fixed 
 upon by congress, for disbanding the army of the 
 United States. On the day previous, Washington 
 issued his farewell orders, and bid an affection- 
 ate adieu to the soldiers, who had fought and 
 bled by his side. 
 
 After mentioning the trying times through which he had ; 
 passed, and the unexampled patience which, under every , 
 circumstance of suffering, his army had evinced, he passed 
 to the glorious prospects opening before them and their 
 country and then bade them adieu in the following words: 1 
 *' Being now to conclude these his last public orders, to take 
 his ultimate leave in a short time of the military character, 
 and to bid a final adieu to the armies he has so long had 
 the honor to command, he can only again offer in their be- 
 half, his recommendations to their grateful country, and his 
 prayer to the God of armies. 
 
 " May ample justice be done them here, and may the 
 choicest favor, both here and hereafter, attend those, who, 
 under the divine auspices, have secured innumerable bless- 
 ings for others ! With these wishes, and this benediction, 
 the commander in chief is about to retire from service. The 
 
REVOLUTION. 3l3 
 
 curtain of separation will soon be drawn, and the military 
 scene to him will be closed for ever." 
 
 Sec. 106. Soon after taking leave of the army, 
 Gen. Washington was called to the still more 
 painful hour of separation from his officers, 
 greatly endeared to him by a long series of com- 
 mon sufferings and dangers. 
 
 The officers having- previously assembled in New-York 
 for the purpose, General Washington now joined them, and 
 calling for a glass of wine, thus addressed them : " With a 
 heart full of love and gratitude, I now take my leave of you. 
 I most devoutly wish that your latter days may be as pros- 
 perous and happy, as your former ones have been glorious 
 and honorable." 
 
 Having thus affectionately addressed them, he now took 
 each by the hand and bade him farewell. Followed by them 
 to the side of the Hudson, he entered a barge, and, while 
 tears rolled down his cheeks, he turned towards the com- 
 panions of his glory, and bade them a silent adieu. 
 
 Sec. 107. December 23, Washington appeared 
 in the hall of congress, and resigned to them the 
 commission which they had given him, as com- 
 mander in chief of the armies of the United 
 States. 
 
 After having spoken of the accomplishment of his wishes 
 and exertions, in the independence of his country, and com- 
 mended his officers and soldiers to congress, he concluded 
 as follows : 
 
 " I consider it an indispensable duty to close the last so- 
 lemn act of my official life, by commending the interests of 
 our dearest country to the protection of Almighty God, and 
 those who have the superintendence of them to his holy 
 keeping. 
 
 "Having now finished the work assigned me, I retire 
 from the great theatre of action; and, bidding an affection- 
 ate farewell to this august body, under whose orders I have 
 long acted, I here offer my commission, and take my leave 
 of all the employments of public life." 
 
 Ver. 10S. Upon accepting his commission, con- 
 gress, through their president, expressed in glow- 
 ing language to Washington, their high sense of 
 27 
 
 
314 PERIOD v, -1775 TO 1783. 
 
 his wisdom and energy, in conducting the war 
 to so happy a termination, and invoked the 
 choicest blessings upon his future life. 
 
 President Mifflin concluded as follows : " We join you in 
 commending the interest of our dearest country to the pro- 
 tection of Almighty God, beseeching I^IM to dispose the 
 hearts and minds of its citizens to improve the opportunity 
 afforded them of becoming a happy and respectable nation. 
 And for YOU, we address to HIM our earnest prayers, that 
 a life so beloved, may be fostered with all His care ; that 
 your days may be as happy as they have been illustrious; 
 and that HE will finally give you that reward which this 
 world cannot give," 
 
 A profound silence now pervaded the assem- 
 bly. The grandeur of the scene, the recollection 
 of the past, the felicity of the present, and the 
 hopes of the future, crowded fast upon all, while 
 they united in invoking blessings upon the man, 
 who, under God, had achieved so much, and who 
 now, in the character of a mere citizen, was 
 hastening to a long desired repose at his seat, at 
 Mount Yernon, in Yirginia. 
 
 NOTES. 
 
 Sec. 109. MANNERS. At the commencement of 
 the revolution, the colonists of America were a 
 mass of husbandmen, merchants, mechanics, and 
 fishermen, who were occupied in the ordinary 
 avocations of their respective callings, and were 
 entitled to the appellation of a sober, honest, and 
 industrious set of people. Being, however, under 
 the control of a country, whose jealousies were 
 early and strongly enlisted against them, and 
 which, therefore, was eager to repress every at- 
 tempt, on their part, to rise, they had compara- 
 tively little scope or encouragement for exertion 
 and enterprise. 
 
 But, when the struggle for independence be- 
 
REVOLUTION. 315 
 
 gan, the case was altered. New fields for exer- 
 tion were opened, and new and still stronger im- 
 pulses actuated their bosoms. A great change 
 was suddenly wrought in the American people, 
 and a vast expansion of character took place. 
 Those who were before only known in the hum- 
 ble sphere of peaceful occupation, soon shone 
 forth in the cabinet or in the field, fully qualified 
 to cope with the trained generals and statesmen 
 of Europe. 
 
 But ; although the revolution caused such an 
 expansion of character in the American people, 
 and called forth the most striking patriotism 
 among all classes, it introduced, at the same 
 time, greater looseness of manners and morals. 
 An army always carries deep vices in its train, 
 and communicates its corruption to society 
 around it. Besides this, the failure of public 
 credit so far put it out of the power of individuals 
 to perform private engagements, that the breach 
 of them became common, and, at length, was 
 scarcely disgraceful. That high sense of integ- 
 rity, which had extensively existed before, was 
 thus exchanged for more loose and slippery no- 
 tions of honesty and honor. 
 
 On the whole, says Dr. Ramsay, who wrote soon after the 
 close of this period, "the literary, political, and military ta- 
 lents of the United States, have been improved by the revo- 
 lution, but their moral character is inferior to what it for- 
 merly was. So great is the change for the worse," conti- 
 nues he, " that the friends of public order are loudly called 
 upon to exert their utmost abilities, in extirpating the vicious 
 principles and habits which have taken deep root during the 
 late convulsions." 
 
 Sec. 110. RELIGION. During the revolution, 
 the colonies being all united in one cause a 
 congress being assembled from all parts of Ame- 
 

 
 316 PERIOD v. 1775 TO 1783. 
 
 rica and moie frequent intercourse between 
 different parts of the country being promoted by 
 the shifting of the armies local prejudices and 
 sectarian asperities were obliterated; religious 
 controversy was suspended ; and bigotry soften- 
 ed. That spirit of intolerance, which had 
 marked some portions of the country, was near 
 ly done away. 
 
 But, for these advantages, the revolution 
 brought with it great disadvantages to religion 
 in general. The atheistical philosophy, which 
 had been spread over France, and which would 
 involve the whole subject of religion in the 
 gloomy mists of scepticism which acknow- 
 ledges no distinction between right and wrong, 
 and considers a future existence as a dream, that 
 may or may not be realized was thickly sown 
 in the American army, by the French ; and, 
 uniting with the infidelity, which before had 
 taken root in the country, produced a serious 
 declension in the tone of religious feelings, 
 among the American people. 
 
 In addition to this, religious institutions, during the war, 
 were much neglected ; churches were demolished, or con- 
 verted into barracks; public worship was often suspended; 
 and the clergy suffered severely, from the reduction of their 
 salaries, caused by the depreciation of the circulating me- 
 dium. 
 
 Sec. 111. TRADE AND COMMERCE. During the 
 war of the revolution, the commerce of the Uni- 
 ted States was interrupted, not only with Great 
 Britain, but, in a great measure, with the rest 
 of the world. The greater part of the shipping, 
 belonging to the country, was destroyed by 
 the enemy, or perished by a natural process of 
 decay. 
 
 Our coasts were so lined with British cruisers, as to ren- 
 
REVOLUTION. 317 
 
 der navigation too hazardous to be pursued to any consider- 
 able extent. Some privateers, however, were fitted out, 
 which succeeded in capturing several valuable prizes, on 
 board of which were arms, and other munitions of war. 
 During the last three years of the war, an illicit trade to 
 Spanish America was carried on, but it was extremely li- 
 mited. 
 
 Sec. 112. AGRICULTURE. Agriculture was 
 greatly interrupted during this period, by the 
 withdrawing of laborers to the camp by the 
 want of encouragement furnished by exporta- 
 tion, and by the distractions which disturbed all 
 the occupations of society. 
 
 The arrny often suffered for the means of subsistence, 
 and the officers were sometimes forced to compel the inha- 
 bitants to furnish the soldiers food, in sufficient quantities 
 to prevent their suffering. 
 
 Sec. 113. ARTS AND MANUFACTURES. The trade 
 with England, during this period, being inter- 
 rupted by the war, the people of the United 
 States were compelled to manufacture for them- 
 selves. Encouragement was given to all neces- 
 sary manufactures, and the zeal, ingenuity, and 
 industry of the peopl-e, furnished the country 
 with articles of prime necessity, and, in a mea- 
 sure, supplied the place of a foreign market. 
 Such was the progress in arts and manufactures, 
 during the period, that, after the return of peace, 
 when an uninterrupted intercourse with England 
 was again opened, some articles, which before 
 were imported altogether, were found so well 
 and so abundantly manufactured at home, that 
 their importation was stopped. 
 
 Sec. 114. POPULATION. The increase of the 
 people of the United States, during this period, 
 was small. Few, if any, emigrants arrived in 
 the country. Many of the inhabitants were 
 slain in battle, and thousands of that class call- 
 27* 
 
318 PERIOD v. 1775 TO 1783. 
 
 ed tories, left the land, who never returned. 
 Perhaps we may fairly estimate the inhabitants 
 of the country, about the close of this period, 
 1784, at three millions two hundred and fifty 
 thousand. 
 
 Sec. 115. EDUCATION. The interests of edu- 
 cation suffered in common with other kindred 
 interests, during the war. In several colleges, 
 the course of instruction was, for a season, sus- 
 pended ; the hall was exchanged by the stu- 
 dents for the camp, and the gown for the sword 
 and epaulet. 
 
 Towards the conclusion of the war, two colleges were 
 founded one in Maryland, in 1782, by the name of Wash- 
 ington college; the other, in 1783, in Pennsylvania, which 
 received the name of Dickinson college. The writer, 
 whom we have quoted above, estimates the whole number 
 of colleges and academies in the United States, at the close 
 of this period, at thirty-six. 
 
 REFLECTIONS. 
 
 Sec. 116. The American revolution is doubtless the most 
 interesting event in the pages of modern history. Changes 
 equally great, and convulsions equally violent, have often 
 taken place; and the history of man tells us of many in- 
 stances, in which oppression, urged beyond endurance, has 
 called forth the spirit of successful and triumphant resist 
 ance. But, in the event before us, we see feeble colonies, 
 without an army without a navy without an established 
 government without a revenue without munitions of war 
 without fortifications boldly stepping forth to meet tne 
 veteran armies of a proud, powerful, and vindictive enemy. 
 -We see these colonies, amidst want, poverty, and misfor- 
 tune supported by the pervading spirit of liberty, and 
 guided by the good hand of Heaven for nearly eight years 
 sustaining the weight of a cruel conflict, upon their owr 
 soil. We see them at length victorious ; their enemies 
 sullenly retire from their shores, and these humble colo- 
 nies stand forth enrolled on the page of history a free, 
 sovereign, and independent nation. Nor is this all. We 
 see a wise government springing up from the blood that 
 
REVOLUTION. 319 
 
 was spilt, and, down to our own time, shedding the choicest 
 political blessings upon several millions of people ! 
 
 What nation can dwell with more just satisfaction upon 
 its annals, than ours ? Almost all others trace their found- 
 ation to some ambitious and bloody conqueror, who sought 
 only, by enslaving others, to aggrandize himself. Our 
 independence was won by the people, who fought for the 
 natural rights of man. Other nations have left their an- 
 nals stained with the crimes of their people and princes ; 
 ours shines with the glowing traces of patriotism, constan- 
 cy, and courage, amidst every rank of life, and every grade 
 of office. 
 
 Whenever we advert to this portion of our history, and 
 review it, as we well may with patriotic interest, let us not 
 forget the gratitude we owe, as well to those who " fought, 
 and bled, and died" for us, as to that benignant Providence, 
 who stayed the proud waves of British tyranny. 
 
 Let us also gather political wisdom from the American 
 revolution. It has taught the world, emphatically, that op- 
 pression tends to weaken and destroy the power of the op- 
 pressor; that a people united in the cause of liberty are in- 
 vincible by those who would enslave them ; and that Hea- 
 ven will ever frown upon the cause of injustice, and ulti- 
 mately grant success to those who oppose it. 
 
UNITED STATES. 
 
 PERIOD VI. 
 
 DISTINGUISHED FOR THE FORMATION AND ESTABLISH- 
 MENT OF THE FEDERAL CONSTITUTION. 
 
 Extending from the disbanding of the army, 1783. 
 to the inauguration of George Washington, as 
 president of the United States, under the Federal 
 Constitution, 1789. 
 
 Sec. 1. During the war of the revolution, the 
 American people had been looking forward to a 
 state of peace, independence, and self-govern- 
 ment, as almost necessarily ensuring every pos- 
 sible blessing. A short time after its termina- 
 tion, however, it was apparent that something, 
 not yet possessed, was necessary, to realize the 
 private and public prosperity that had been an- 
 ticipated. After a short struggle so to adminis- 
 ter the existing system of government, as to make 
 it competent to the great objects, for which it 
 was instituted, became obvious it that some other 
 system must be substituted, or a general wreck 
 of all that had been gained would ensue. 
 
 Sec. 2. At the close of the war, the debts* of 
 
 * These debts were of two kinds, foreign and domestic. The foreign 
 debt amounted to near eight millions of dollars, and was due to indivi- 
 duals in France to the crown of France to lenders in Holland and 
 Spain. The domestic debt amounted to somewhat more than thirty-four 
 millions of dollars, and was due to persons who held loan office certificates 
 to the officers and soldiers of the revolutionary anny, &c. 
 
FEDERAL CONSTITUTION. 321 
 
 the union were computed to amount to more than 
 forty millions of dollars. By the articles of con- 
 federation and union between the states, con- 
 gress had power to declare war, and borrow 
 money, or issue bills of credit to carry it on ; 
 but it had not the ability to discharge debts, in- 
 curred by the war. Congress could recommend 
 to the individual states to raise money for that 
 purpose, but at this point, its power terminated. 
 
 Soon after the war, the attention of that body 
 was drawn to this subject ; the payment of the 
 national debt being a matter of justice to credi- 
 tors, as well as of vital importance to the preser- 
 vation of the union. It was proposed, therefore, 
 to the states, that they should grant to congress 
 the power of laying a duty of five per cent, on 
 all foreign goods, which should be imported, and 
 that the revenue arising thence should be applied 
 to the diminution of the public debt, until it was 
 extinguished. 
 
 To this proposal, most of the states assented, 
 and passed an act granting, the p6wer. But 
 Rhode Island, apprehensive that such a grant 
 would lessen the advantages of her trade, de- 
 clined passing an act for that purpose. Subse- 
 quently, New-York joined in the opposition, and 
 rendered all prospect of raising a revenue, in 
 this way, hopeless. 
 
 The consequence was, that even the interest 
 of the public debt remained unpaid. Certifi- 
 cates of public debt lost their credit, and many 
 of the officers and soldiers of the late army, who 
 were poor, were compelled to sell these certifi- _JL^ 
 cates at excessive reductions. 
 
 Sec. 3. While the friends of the national go- 
 vernment were making unavailing efforts to fix 
 
322 PERIOD VT. 1783 TO 1789. 
 
 upon a permanent revenue, which might enable 
 it to preserve the national faith, other causes, he- 
 sides thej&crss of confidence in the confederation, 
 concurred to hasten a radical change in the poli- 
 tical system of the United States. 
 
 Among these causes, the principal was the 
 evil resulting from the restrictions of Great Bri- 
 tain, laid on the trade of the United States with 
 the West Indies ; the ports of those islands he- 
 ing shut against the vessels of the United States, 
 and enormous duties imposed on our most valu- 
 able exports. 
 
 Had congress possessed the power, a remedy 
 might have been found, in passing similar acts 
 against Great Britain ; but this power had not 
 been delegated by the states to the congress. 
 That thirteen independent sovereignties, always 
 jealous of one another, would separately concur 
 in any proper measures to compel Great Britain 
 to relax, was not to be expected. The impor- 
 tance of an enlargement of the powers of con- 
 gress was thus rendered still more obvious. 
 
 Sec. 4. During this enfeebled and disorganized 
 state of the general government, attempts were 
 made, in some of the states, to maintain their 
 credit, and to satisfy their creditors. The at- 
 tempt of Massachusetts to affect this, by means 
 of a heavy tax, produced an open insurrection 
 among the people. In some parts of the state, 
 the people convened in tumultuous assemblies- 
 obstructed the sitting of courts, and, finally, took 
 arms in opposition to the laws of the state. The 
 prudent measures of Gov. Bowdoin and his coun- 
 cil, seconded by an armed force, under Gen. Lin- 
 coln, in the winter of 1786, gradually subdued the 
 
FEDERAL CONSTITUTION. 323 
 
 spirit of opposition, and restored the autnority of 
 the laws. 
 
 This rising of the people of Pvtassachusetts is usually 
 I styled Shaijs insurrection, from one Daniel Shays, a cap- 
 i tain in the revolutionary army, who headed the insurgents. 
 In August, 1786, fifteen hundred insurgents assembled at 
 Northampton, took possession of the court-house, and pre- 
 vented the session of the court. Similar outrages occurred 
 | at Worcester, Concord, Taunton, and Springfield. In New- 
 ; Hampshire, also, a body of men arose in September, and sur- 
 rounding the general assembly, sitting at Exeter, held them 
 prisoners for several hours. 
 
 In this state of civil commotion, a body of troops, to the 
 
 ;: number of four thousand, was ordered out by Massachusetts, 
 
 to support the judicial courts, and suppress the insurrection. 
 
 I This force was put under the command of General Lincoln. 
 
 Another body of troops was collected by General Shepherd, 
 
 near Springfield. After some skirmishing, the insurgents 
 
 (were dispersed 5 several were taken prisoners and condemn- 
 ed, but were ultimately pardoned. 
 Sec. 5. The period seemed to have arrived, 
 I? when it was to be decided whether the general 
 government was to be supported or abandoned 
 whether the glorious objects of the revolution- 
 i ary struggle should be realized or lost. 
 
 In January, 1786, the legislature of Virginia 
 
 j adopted a resolution to appoint commissioners, 
 
 who were to meet such others as might be ap- 
 
 I' pointed by the other states, to take into consi- 
 
 I deration the subject of trade, and to provide for 
 
 j a uniform system of commercial relations, &c. 
 
 This resolution, ultimately, led to a proposition 
 
 for a general convention to consider the state of 
 
 the union. 
 
 But five states were represented in the con- 
 r vention, proposed by Virginia, which met at An- 
 napolis. In consideration of the small number 
 J of states represented, the convention, without 
 j coming to any specific resolution on the particu- 
 
324 
 
 PERIOD vi. 1783 TO 1789. 
 
 lar subjects referred to them, adjourned to meet 
 in Philadelphia, the succeeding May. Previous- 
 ly to adjournment, it recommended to the seve- 
 ral states, to appoint delegates for that meeting, 
 and to give them power to revise the federal 
 system. 
 
 Sec. 6. Agreeably to the above recommenda- 
 tion, the several states of the union, excepting 
 Rhode Island, appointed commissioners, who 
 convened at Philadelphia, and proceeded to the 
 important business of their appointment. 
 
 Of this body George Washington, one of the 
 delegates from Virginia, was unanimously elect- 
 ed president. The convention proceeded with 
 closed doors to discuss the interesting subjects 
 submitted to their consideration. 
 
 The following is a list of the members of this convention 
 
 New-Hampshire. 
 John Langdon, 
 Nicholas Oilman. 
 
 Massachusetts; 
 Elbridge Gerry, 
 Nathaniel Gorham, 
 Rufus King, 
 Caleb Strong. 
 
 Connecticut. 
 Wm. Samuel Johnson, 
 Roger Sherman, 
 Oliver Ellsworth. 
 
 New- York. 
 Robert Yates, 
 Alexander Hamilton, 
 John Lansing, Jr. 
 
 New- Jersey 
 Wm. Livingston, 
 Havid Brearley, 
 Win. C. Houston, 
 Wm. Patterson, 
 Joaatlian Dayton. 
 
 Pennsylvania. 
 
 Benjami n Franklin, 
 Thomas Mifnin, 
 Robert Morris, 
 George Clyrner, 
 Thomas Fitzsirnons, 
 Jared Ingersol, 
 James Wilson, 
 Gouverneur Morris. 
 
 Delaware. 
 George Read, 
 Gunning Bedford, Jr. 
 John Dickinson, 
 Richard Basset, 
 Jacob Broom. 
 
 Maryland. 
 James M'Henry, 
 Daniel of St. Thomas Jeni- 
 fer, 
 
 Daniel Carrol], 
 John Francis Mercer, 
 Luther Martin. 
 
FEDERAL CONSTITUTION. 325 
 
 Virginia. 
 
 George Washington, 
 Edmund Randolph, 
 John Blair, 
 James Madison, Jr. 
 George Mason, 
 George Wythe, 
 James M'Clurg, 
 
 North Carolina. 
 Alexander Martin, 
 Wm. R. Davie, 
 Wm. Blount, 
 
 Richard D. Spaight, 
 Hugh Williamson. 
 
 South Carolina. 
 John Rutledge, 
 Charles C. Pinckney, 
 Charles Pinckney. 
 Pierce Butler. 
 
 Georgia. 
 Wm. Few, 
 Abraham Baldwin, 
 Wm. Pierce, 
 Wm. Houston. 
 
 " The meeting of this august assembly marks a new era 
 in the political annals of the United States. Men most emi- 
 nent for talents and wisdom had been selected, and were met 
 to form a system of government, for a vast empire. Such 
 an assemblage, for such an object, the world had never be- 
 fore witnessed. The result of their deliberations, on which 
 the happiness of so many millions depended, was looked for 
 with extreme solicitude. 
 
 " From the peculiar situation of the states, the difficulties 
 in forming a new system of general government were in- 
 deed of no ordinary magnitude. Since the peace of 1783, 
 political and commercial jealousies had arisen among the 
 states; and to these was added a difference in their extent, 
 wealth, and population, as well as in the habits, religion, 
 and education of the inhabitants. These together present- 
 ed obstacles, apparently insurmountable. Nothing, indeed, 
 but a spirit of mutual concession and compromise could 
 have overcome these obstacles, and effected so fortunate a 
 result."* 
 
 Sec. 7. The first and most important question 
 which presented itself to this convention, was, 
 whether the then present system should be 
 amended, or a new one formed. By the resolve 
 of congress, as well as the instructions of some 
 of the states, they were met " for the sole and ex- 
 press purpose of revising the articles of confede- 
 ration." The defects of the old government 
 were so radical and apparent, that it was deter- 
 mined by a majority to form an entire new one. 
 
 * Pitkin. 
 28 
 
326 PERIOD vi. 1783 TO 1789. 
 
 Sec. 8. On the great principles, which should 
 form the basis -of the constitution, not much dif- 
 ference of opinion prevailed. But, in reducing 
 those principles to practical details, less harmony 
 was to be expected. Such, indeed, was the dif- 
 ference of opinion, that, more than once, there 
 was reason to fear, that the convention would 
 rise, without effecting the object for which it 
 was formed. 
 
 While the convention was nearly unanimous, that the 
 new government should consist of three departments, viz., 
 an executive, legislative, and judicial, there was no small 
 difference of opinion, as to the relative weight of the states 
 in these departments, and the powers with which each de- 
 partment should be invested. 
 
 Having decided, that the legislative branch of the govern- 
 ment should consist of a house of representatives and a 
 senate, an interesting question arose, as to the votes of the 
 states in these branches. This was a question between the 
 great and small states, and it created long and violent de- 
 bates, particularly with respect to the representation or vote 
 of the states, in the senate, or second legislative branch. 
 At length, the small states consented that the right of suf- 
 frage in the house should be in proportion to the whole num- 
 ber of white or other free citizens in each, including those 
 bound to service for a term of years, and three fifths of all 
 other persons. 
 
 But, then, while they yielded this point, they insisted on 
 an equal vote in the senate. But to this the larger states 
 would not agree, and on this question the states remained 
 for a time about equally divided, six states, viz., Massachu- 
 setts, Pennsylvania, Virginia, North Carolina, South Caro- 
 lina, and Georgia, being of the opinion, that the right of suf- 
 frage in the senate should be the same as in the house; 
 while Connecticut, New- York, New-Jersey, Delaware, and 
 Maryland, were opposed. 
 
 On the 29th of June, the question was a second time 
 brought forward, in the following manner, viz. That in 
 (he second branch each state should hare an equal vote. The 
 debate on this question was extended to the second of July, 
 when the vote was taken, and the motion lost, five states 
 being in favor of it, viz. Connecticut, New- York, New-Jer- 
 sey, Delaware, and Maryland ; and five against it, viz., Mas* 
 
FEDERAL CONSTITUTION. 327 
 
 sachusetts, Pennsylvania, Virginia, North Carolina, and 
 South Carolina. The vote of Georgia was divided. 
 
 The convention had now reached a point beyond which 
 it seemed impossible amicably to proceed. Neither party 
 appeared inclined to recede from the position it had taken, 
 and the great objects for which the convention had assem- 
 bled, were apparently to be lost. 
 
 At this interesting crisis, Dr. Franklin, a member of the 
 convention from Pennsylvania, rose in his place, and thus 
 addressed the president : 
 
 "Mr. President The small progress we have made, af- 
 ter four or five weeks close attendance and continual rea- 
 sonings with each other, our different sentiments, on almos* 
 every question, several of the last producing as many noes 
 as ayes, is, methinks, a melancholy proof of the imperfection 
 of the human understanding. We indeed seem to feel our 
 own want of political wisdom, since we have been running 
 all about in search of it. We have gone back to ancient his- 
 tory for models of government, and examined the different 
 forms of those republics, which, having been originally 
 formed with the seeds of their own dissolution, now no 
 longer exist ; and we have viewed modern states all around 
 Europe, but find none of their constitutions suitable to our 
 circumstances. In this situation of this assembly, groping, 
 as it were, in the dark, to find political truth, and scarce able 
 to distinguish it, when presented to us, how has it happen- 
 ed, sir, that we have not hitherto once thought of humbly 
 applying to the Father of Lights to illuminate our under- j 
 standings? In the beginning of the contest with Britain, ' 
 when we were sensible of danger, we had daily prayer in 
 this room for divine protection. Our prayers, sir, were j 
 heard ; and they were graciously answered. All of us 
 who were engaged in the struggle, must have observed fre- 
 quent instances of a superintending Providence in our favor. 
 To that kind Providence we owe this happy opportunity of > 
 consulting in peace, on the means of establishing our future 
 national felicity. And have we how forgotten that powerful 
 Iriend ? or do we imagine that we no longer need its assist- 
 ance ? I have lived, sir, a long time ; and the longer I live, 
 the more convincing proof I see of this truth, that God go- 
 verns the affairs of men. And if a sparrow cannot fall to 
 the ground without his notice, is it probable that an empire , 
 can rise without his aid? We have been assured, sir, in 
 the sacred writings, that except the ' Lord build the house, 
 they labor in vain that build it.' I firmly believe this ; and / 
 
328 PERIOD vi.~ 1783 TO 1789. 
 
 I also believe, that without his concurring aid, we shall suc- 
 ceed in this political building no better than the builders of 
 Babel: we shall be divided by our little partial local inter- 
 ests; our projects will be confounded, and we ourselves shall 
 become a reproach and a by-word to future ages. And what 
 is worse, mankind may hereafter, from tnis important in- 
 stance, despair of establishing government oy human wis- 
 dom, and leave it to chance, war, or conquest. 
 
 " I therefore beg leave to move, that henceforth prayers, 
 imploring the assistance of Heaven, and iis r^essings on our 
 deliberations, be held in this assembly every morning be- 
 fore we proceed to business ; and that one or more of the 
 clergy of this city be requested to officiate in that service." 
 
 This suggestion, it need scarcely be saio, was favorably- 
 received by the convention, and from thai time the gui- 
 dance of divine wisdom was daily sought. As might be 
 expected, greater harmony prevailed the spirit of conces- 
 sion pervaded the convention a motion was made for the 
 appointment of a committee to take into consideration both 
 branches of the legislature. This motion prevailing, a 
 committee was accordingly chosen by ballot, consisting of 
 one from each state, and the convention adjourned for three 
 days. 
 
 On the meeting of the convention, the above committee 
 reported the following propositions: 
 
 I. That in the first branch of the legislature each of the 
 states, now in the Union, be allowed one member for every 
 forty thousand inhabitants of the description reported in 
 the seventh resolution of the committee of the whole house 
 that each state not containing that number shall be al- 
 lowed one member that all bills for raising and appropri- 
 ating money, and for fixing the salaries of me officers of 
 the government of the United States, shall originate in the 
 first branch of the legislature, and shall not be altered or 
 amended by the second branch and that no money shall 
 be drawn from the public treasury, but in pursuance of ap- 
 propriation to be originated in the first brancn. 
 
 II. That in the second branch of the legislature, each 
 state shall have pne vote. 
 
 These propositions being adopted, the convention pro- 
 ceeded to organize the legislative, and other departments ot 
 the government. 
 
 Sec. 9. At length, on the 17th of September, 
 1787, the convention having adopted and ,sign- 
 
FEDERAL CONSTITUTION. 329 
 
 d* the federal constitution, presented it to con- 
 gress, which body soon after sent it to the several 
 states for their consideration. 
 
 An abstract of this constitution, with its several subse- 
 quent amendments, follows : it is extracted from Mr. Web- 
 ster's Elements of Useful Knowledge. 
 
 Of the legislature. " The legislative power of the Uni- 
 ted States is vested in a congress, consisting of two houses 
 or branches, a senate, and a house of representatives. The 
 members of the house of representatives are chosen once 
 in two years, by the persons who are qualified to vote for 
 members of the most numerous branches of the legislature, 
 in each state. To be entitled to a seat in this house, a 
 person must have attained to the age of twenty-five years, 
 been a citizen of the United States for seven years, and be 
 an inhabitant of the state in which he is chosen. 
 
 Of the senate. " The senate consists of two senators 
 from each state, chosen by the legislature for six years. 
 The senate is divided into three classes, the seats of one of 
 which are vacated every second year. If a vacancy hap- 
 pens, during the recess of the legislature, the executive of 
 the state makes a temporary appointment of a senator, un- 
 til the next meeting of the legislature. A senator must 
 have attained to the age of thirty years, been a citizen of 
 the United States nine years, and be an inhabitant of the 
 state for which he is chosen. 
 
 Of the powers of the two houses. " The house of repre- 
 sentatives choose their own speaker and other officers, and 
 have the exclusive power of impeaching public officers, 
 and originating bills for raising a revenue. The vice pre- 
 sident of the United States is president of the senate ; but 
 the other officers are chosen by the senate. The senate 
 tries all impeachments; each house determines the validi- 
 ty of the elections and qualifications of its own members, 
 forms its own rules, and. keeps a journal of its proceedings. 
 The members are privileged from arrest, while attending 
 on the session, going to, or returning from the same, ex- 
 cept for treason, felony, or breach of the peace. 
 
 Of the powers of congress. " The congress of the Uni- 
 
 * The members compris ; ng this convention amounted to fifty-five 
 thirty-five only of whom signed the constitution. Of the remaining six- 
 teen, a few had previously withdrawn from the convention, on the ground, 
 that in their view their powers extended only to revising the articles of 
 confederation. Others had retired, having been obliged Irom particular 
 business to leave the convention. 
 28* 
 
330 PERIOD vi. 1783 TO 1789. 
 
 ted States have power to make and enforce all laws, which 
 are necessary for the general welfare a.s to lay and col- 
 lect taxes, imposts, and excises ; borrow money, regulate 
 commerce, establish uniform rules of naturalization, coin 
 money, establish post-roads and post-offices, promote the 
 arts and sciences, institute tribunals inferior to the supreme 
 court, define and punish piracy, declare war, and make re- 
 prisals, raise and support armies, provide a navy, regulate 
 the militia, and to make all laws necessary to carry these 
 powers into effect. 
 
 Of restrictions. " No bill of attainder, or retrospective 
 law, shall be passed; the Writ of habeas corpus cannot be 
 suspended, except in cases of rebellion or invasion ; no di- 
 rect tax can be laid, except according to a census of the in- 
 habitants ; no duty can be laid on exports, no money can 
 be drawn from the treasury, unless appropriated by law ; 
 no title of nobility can be granted, nor can any public offi- 
 cer, without the consent of co-Tigress, accept of any present 
 or title from any foreign prince or state. The states are 
 restrained from emitting bills of credit, from making any 
 thing but gold or silver a tender for debts, and from pass- 
 ing any law impairing private contracts. 
 
 Of the executive. " The executive power of the United 
 States is vested in a president, who holds his office for four 
 years. To qualify a man for president, he must have been 
 a citizen at the adoption of the constitution, or must be a 
 native of the United States ; he must have attained to the 
 age of thirty-five years, and been fourteen years a resident 
 within the United States. The president and vice-presi- 
 dent are chosen by electors designated in such a manner 
 as the legislature of each state shall direct. The number 
 of electors, in each state, is equal to the whole number of 
 senators and representatives. 
 
 Oj the powers of the president. " The president of the 
 United States is commander-in-chief of the army and navy, 
 and of the militia when in actual service. He grants re- 
 prieves and pardons ; nominates, and, with the consent of 
 the senate, appoints ambassadors, judges, and other officers; 
 and, with the advice and consent of the senate, forms trea- 
 ties, provided two thirds of the senate agree. He fills va- 
 cancies in offices which happen during the recess of the 
 senate. He convenes the congress on extraordinary occa- 
 sions, receives foreign ministers, gives information to con- 
 gress of the state of public affairs, and in general, takes 
 care that the laws be faithfully executed. 
 
FEDERAL CONSTITUTION. 331 
 
 Of the judiciary. " The judiciary of the United States 
 consists of one supreme court, and such inferior courts as 
 the congress shall ordain. The judges are to hold their 
 offices during good behavior, and their salaries cannot be 
 diminished during their continuance in office. The judi- 
 cial power of these courts extends to all cases in law and 
 equity, arising under the constitution, or laws of the United 
 States, and under treaties; to cases of public ministers and 
 consuls; to all cases of admiralty and maritime jurisdic- 
 tion ; to controversies between the states, and in which the 
 United States are a party; between citizens of different 
 states ; between a state and a citizen of another state, and 
 between citizens of the same state, claiming under grants 
 of different states; and to causes between one of the states 
 or an American citizen, and a foreign state or citizen. 
 
 Of rights and immunities. " In all criminal trials, ex- 
 cept impeachment, the trial by jury is guarantied to the 
 accused. Treason is restricted to the simple acts of levy- 
 ing war against the United States, and adhering to their 
 enemies, giving them aid and comfort; and no person can 
 be convicted, but by two witnesses to the same act, or by 
 confession in open court. A conviction of treason is not 
 followed by a corruption of blood, to disinherit the heirs of 
 the criminal, nor by a forfeiture of estate, except during the 
 life of the offender. The citizens of each state are entitled 
 to all privileges and immunities of citizens in the several 
 states. Congress may admit new states into the union, and 
 the national compact guaranties, to each state, a republican 
 form of government, together with protection from foreign 
 invasion and domestic violence." 
 
 Sec. 10. By a resolution of the convention, it 
 was recommended that assemblies should be 
 called, in the different states, to discuss the me- 
 rits of the constitution, and either accept or re- 
 ject it ; and, that as soon as nine states should 
 nave ratified it, it should be, carried into operation 
 by congress. 
 
 To decide the interesting question, respecting 
 the adoption or rejection of the new constitution, 
 the best talents of the several states were as- 
 sembled in their respective conventions. The 
 fate of the constitution could, for a time, be 
 
332 PERIOD vi. 1783 TO 1789. 
 
 scarcely conjectured, so equally were the parties , 
 balanced. But, at length, the conventions of 
 eleven states* assented to, and ratified the con- i 
 stitution. 
 
 Sec. 11. From the moment it was settled that i 
 this new arrangement, in their political system, 
 was to take place, the attention of all classes of 
 people, as well anti-federalists as federalists, jj 
 (for, by these names, the parties for and against I 
 the new constitution were called,) was directed 
 to General Washington, as the first president of 
 the United States. Accordingly, on the open- 
 ing of the votes, for president, at New- York, 
 March 3d, 1789, by delegates from eleven states, 
 it was found that he was unanimously elected 
 to that office, and that John Adams was elected 
 vice-president. 
 
 NOTES. 
 
 Sec. 12. MANNERS. The war of the revolu- 
 tion, as was observed in our notes on the last 
 period, seriously affected the morals and man- 
 ners of the people of the United States. The 
 peace of 1783, however, tended, in a measure, to 
 restore things to their former state. Those so- 
 ber habits, for which the country was previous- 
 ly distinguished, began to return ; business as- 
 sumed a more regular and equitable character ; 
 the tumultuous passions, roused by the war, 
 subsided ; and men of wisdom and worth be- 
 gan to acquire their proper influence. 
 
 The change wrought in the manners of the 
 people, during the revolution, began, in this pe- 
 riod, to appear. National peculiarities wore 
 away still more ; local prejudices were farther 
 
 * North Carolina and Rhode Island refused their assent at this time, 
 but afterwards acceded to it: the former, November, 1789; the latter, 
 May, 1790. 
 
FEDERAL CONSTITUTION. 333 
 
 corrected, and a greater assimilation of the yet 
 discordant materials, of which the population of 
 the United States was composed, took place. 
 
 Sec. 13. RELIGION. Meth odism was introduced 
 into the United States, during this period, under 
 the direction of John Wesley, in England. 
 This denomination increased rapidly in the mid- 
 dle states, and, in 1789, they amounted to about 
 fifty thousand. 
 
 During- this period, also, the infidelity, which we have 
 noticed, seems to have lost ground. Public worship was 
 more punctually attended, than during the war, and the 
 cause of religion began again to flourish. 
 
 Sec. 14. TRADE AND COMMERCE. The com- 
 merce of the United States, during the war of 
 the revolution, as already, stated, was nearly 
 destroyed ; but, on the return of peace, it re- 
 vived. An excessive importation of goods im- 
 mediately took place from England. In 1784, 
 the imports, from England alone, amounted to 
 eighteen millions of dollars, and in 1785, to 
 twelve millions making, in those two years, 
 thirty millions of dollars, while the exports of 
 the United States to England were only between 
 eight and nine millions. 
 
 On the average of six years posterior to the war, the ex- 
 tent of this period, the imports from Great Britain into the 
 United States, were two millions one hundred and nine- 
 teen thousand eight hundred and thirty-seven pounds ster- 
 ling ; the exports nine hundred and eight thousand six hun- 
 dred and thirty-six pounds sterling, leaving an annual bal- 
 ance of five millions three hundred and twenty-nine thou- 
 sand two hundred and eighty-four dollars, in favor of Great 
 Britain. 
 
 The commercial intercourse of the United States with 
 other countries was less extensive than with England, yet 
 it was not inconsiderable. From France and her depen- 
 dencies, the United States imported, in 1787, to the amount 
 of about two millions five hundred thousand dollars, and 
 
334 PERIOD vi. 1783 v To 1789. 
 
 exported to the same, to the value of five millions of dol 
 lars. 
 
 The trade of the United States with China commenced 
 soon after the close of the revolutionary war. The first 
 American vessel that went on a trading voyage to China, 
 sailed from New- York, on the 22d of February, 1784, and 
 returned on the llth of May, 1785. In 1789, there were 
 fifteen American vessels at Canton, being a greater number 
 than from any other nation, except Great Britain. 
 
 During this period, also, the Americans commenced the 
 long and hazardous trading voyages to the North West Coast 
 of America. The first of the kind, undertaken from the 
 United States, was from Boston, in 1788, in a ship com- 
 manded by Capt. Kendrick. The trade afforded great 
 profits, at first, and since 1788 has been carried on from the 
 United States to a considerable extent. 
 
 The whale fishery, which, during the war, was suspend- 
 ed, revived on the return of peace. From 1787 to 1789, 
 both inclusive, ninety-one vessels were employed from the 
 United States, with one thousand six hundred and eleven 
 seamen. Nearly eight thousand barrels of spermaceti oil 
 were annually taken, and about thirteen thousand barrels of 
 whale oil. 
 
 Small quantities of cotton were first exported from the 
 United States about the year 1784. It was raised in Georgia. 
 
 Sec. 15. AGRICULTURE. Agriculture revived at 
 the close of the war, and, in a few years, the 
 exports of produce raised in the United States 
 were again considerable. Attention began to be 
 paid to the culture of cotton, in the southern 
 states, about the year 1783, and it soon became 
 a staple of thot, part of the country. About the 
 same time, agricultural societies began to be 
 formed in the country. 
 
 Sec. 16. ARTS AND MANUFACTURES. The exces- 
 sive importation of merchandize from Great Bri- 
 tain, during this period much of which was 
 sold at low prices checked the progress of manu- 
 factures in the United States, which had been 
 extensively begun, during the war of the revo- 
 lution. Iron works, however, for the construe- 
 
FEDERAL CONSTITUTION. 335 
 
 tion of axes, ironing of carriages, and the making ' 
 of machinery, &c. &c., were still kept up in all 
 parts of the United States. Some coarse woollen 
 and linen cloths, cabinet furniture, and the more 
 bulky and simple utensils for domestic use, &c, 
 &c., were manufactured in New-England. 
 
 Sec. 17. POPULATION. The population of the 
 United States, at the close of this period, was 
 nearly four millions. 
 
 Sec. 18. EDUCATION. Several colleges were 
 stablished during this period one in Maryland, 
 at Annapolis, called St. John's college; a second, 
 in 1785, at Abington, in the same state, by the 
 Methodists, called Cokesbury college ; a third, in 
 the city of New-York ; and a fourth, in Lancas- 
 ter, Pennsylvania, in 1787 the former, by the 
 name of Columbia college, and the latter, by that 
 of Franklin college. The North Carolina uni- 
 versity was incorporated in 1789. 
 
 The subject of education, during this period, 
 seems to have attracted public attention through- 
 out the United States, and permanent institu- 
 tions, for the instruction of youth, were either 
 planned or established, in every section of the 
 country. 
 
 REFLECTIONS. 
 
 Sec,. 19. The history of the world furnishes no parallel to 
 the history of the United States, during this short period. 
 At the commencement of it, they had but just^ emerged from 
 a long and distressing- war, which had nearly exhausted 
 the country, and imposed an accumulated debt upon the na- 
 tion. They were united by a confederation inadequate to 
 the purposes of government ; they had just disbanded an ar- 
 my, which was unpaid, and dissatisfied j and, more than all, 
 they were untried in the art of self-government. 
 
 In circumstances like these, it would not have been 
 strange had the people fallen into dissensions and anarchy, 
 or had some bold, ambitious spirit arisen, and fastened tha 
 
336 PERIOD vi. 1783 TO 1789. 
 
 yoke of monarchy upon them. But a happier destiny 
 awaited them. In this hour of peril, -the same Providence, 
 that had guided them thus far, still watched over them, and, 
 as victory was granted them in the hour of battle, so wisdom 
 was now vouchsafed in a day of peace. Those master spi- 
 rits of the revolution, some of whom had recently retired 
 from the camp to the enjoyment of civil life, were now call- 
 ed to devise the means of securing the independence which 
 they had won. Perhaps they exhibited to the world a no 
 less striking spectacle as the framers of our excellent con- 
 stitution, than as victors over the arms of Britain. 
 
 
UNITED STATES. 
 
 PERIOD VII. 
 
 DISTINGUISHED BY WASHINGTON'S ADMINISTRATION. 
 
 
 Extending from the inauguration of President 
 Washington, 1789, to the inauguration of John 
 Adams, as president of the United States, 1797. 
 
 Sec. 1. On the 30th of April, 1789, Gen. Wash- 
 ington, in the presence of the first congress un- 
 der the federal constitution, and before an im- 
 mense concourse of spectators, was inducted into 
 the office of president of the United States, by 
 taking the oath prescribed by the constitution. 
 
 Intelligence of his election was communicated to Wash- 
 ington, while on his farm in Virginia. On his way to New- 
 York, to enter upon the duties of his station, he received, in 
 almost every place through which he passed, the highest 
 expressions of affection and respect that a grateful people 
 could pay. 
 
 At Trenton, his reception was peculiarly interesting. 
 The inhabitants of that village had not forgotten the memo- 
 rable scenes of December, 1776. 
 
 On the bridge, over the creek, where the progress of the 
 enemy was arrested, twelve years before, the ladies of Tren- 
 ton erected a triumphal arch, ornamented with flowers, on 
 the front of which was inscribed, " the defenders of the 
 mothers will be the protectors of the daughters." He was 
 here met by the ladies, attended by their little daughters, 
 who, as he passed, literally strewed his way with flowers, 
 as they sung the following ode : 
 
 " Welcome, mighty chief, once more, 
 Welcome to this grateful shore : 
 29. 
 
MI /a* ' ' 
 
 V ' /^t^-^i^+^ 
 338 PERIOD vii. 1789 TO 1797. 
 
 Now no mercenary foe 
 
 Aims again the fatal blow, 
 
 Aims at thee the fatal blow. * 
 
 " Virgins fair, and matrons grave, 
 Those your conquering arms did save, 
 Build for thee triumphal bowers ; 
 Strew, ye fair, his way with flowers, 
 Strew your hero's way with flowers." 
 
 Soon after his arrival in New- York, a day was assigned 
 for his taking the oath of office. On the morning of that 
 day, public prayers were offered in all the churches. At 
 noon, a pfocession was formed, which escorted Washing- 
 ton, dressed on the occasion wholly in American manufac- 
 tures, to Federal Hall. Here the oath prescribed by the 
 constitution was administered to him, by the chancellor of 
 the state of New- York. 
 
 The ceremonies of the inauguration being concluded, 
 Washington entered the senate chamber, and delivered his 
 first speech. In this, after expressing the reluctance with 
 which he obeyed the call of his countrymen, from repose 
 and retirement, so ardently coveted, after a series of milita- 
 ry toils, and the diffidence with which he entered upon an 
 office, so full of responsibility, he proceeded thus : 
 
 " It will be peculiarly improper to omit, in this first offi- 
 cial act, my fervent supplications to that Almighty Being, 
 who rules over the universe ; who presides in the councils 
 of nations." 
 
 Immediately after his inaugural address, he, with the 
 members of both houses, attended divine service at St. Paul's 
 chapel. Thus, in the commencement of his administration, 
 did Washington, by every suitable means, acknowledge his 
 sense of personal .dependence upon divine wisdom, to guide 
 with discretion the affairs of a nation committed to his care ; 
 thus did he set an example worthy of imitation by all who 
 are elevated to places of authority and responsibility. 
 
 Sec. 2. Business of importance, in relation to 
 the organization and support of the new govern- 
 ment, now pressed upon the attention of the 
 president, and of congress. A revenue was to 
 be provided ; the departments of government 
 were to be arranged and filled ; a judiciary was 
 to be established, and its officers appointed ; and 
 
WASHINGTON'S ADMINISTRATION. 339 
 
 provision was to be made for the support of pub- 
 lic credit. 
 
 After a long discussion, congress agreed to 
 raise a revenue for the support of government, by 
 impost and tonnage duties. Having next fixed 
 upon, and arranged the several departments of 
 the government, the president, whose duty it 
 was, proceeded to nominate the proper persons 
 to fill them. In performing this service, he ap- 
 pears to have been actuated, simply, by a regard 
 to the best good of the country. 
 
 Mr. Jefferson was selected for the department 
 of state ; Col. Hamilton was appointed secretary 
 of the treasury ; Gen. Knox, secretary of war ; 
 and Edmund Randolph, attorney general. At 
 the head of the judiciary was placed John Jay, 
 and with him were appointed John Rutledge, 
 Jarnes Wilson, William Gushing, Robert Harri- 
 son, and John Blair. 
 
 In the course of establishing the executive departments, 
 viz. those of war and of foreign affairs and of the treasury, 
 an important subject of inquiry arose, in what manner or by 
 whom these important officers could be removed from of- 
 fice. In the house of representatives, some were of opinion 
 that they could not be removed, without impeachment. The 
 principal question, however, on which congress were di- 
 vided, was, whether they were removable by the president 
 alone, or by the president, in concurrence with the senate. 
 A majority, however, in both houses, at length, decided, 
 that this power was in the president alone. In the house, 
 the majority in favor of this construction was twelve. 
 
 But notwithstanding the question was settled in this 
 manner, there were strong objections to placing a power in 
 the hands of an individual, which might be greatly abused; 
 since it was apparent that the president might, from whim, 
 or caprice, or favoritism, remove a meritorious officer, to 
 the great injury of the public good. But to this it was well 
 replied by Mr. Madison : " The danger consists in this ; 
 the president can displace from office a man whose merits 
 require that he should be continued in it. What will be 
 
340 PERIOD vii. 1789 TO 1797. 
 
 the motives which the president can feel for such an abuse 
 of his power, and the restraints to operate to prevent it ? 
 In the first place, he will he impeachable by this house be- 
 fore the senate for such an act of maladministration ; for I 
 contend, that the wanton removal of meritorious officers 
 would subject him to impeachment and removal from his 
 own high trust." 
 
 Sec. 3. During this session of congress, several 
 new articles were proposed to be added to the 
 constitution, by way of amendment, and to be 
 submitted to the several states for their appro- 
 bation. 
 
 After a long and animated discussion of the 
 subject, twelve new articles were agreed upon, 
 and submitted to the respective state legisla- 
 tures ; ten of which were approved by three 
 fourths of them, and were thus added to the 
 constitution. * 
 
 Sec. 4. It was also during this session, that a 
 national judiciary was established. This con- 
 sisted of a supreme court, circuit, and district 
 courts. The district courts were to consist of 
 one judge in each state. The states were di- 
 vided into circuits, in each of which, one of the 
 judges of the supreme court and the district 
 judge of the state in which the court was held, 
 constituted the circuit courts. To this court ap- 
 peals were made from the district courts, but in 
 certain cases it had original jurisdiction. The 
 .supreme court was composed of a chief justice 
 and five associate judges, and was to hold two 
 sessions annually at the seat of government. 
 John Jay was appointed chief justice, and Ed- 
 ward Randolph, attorney general. 
 
 Sec. 5. Next was settled the important ques- 
 tion relating to the salaries of the officers of go- 
 vernment. The salary of the president was 
 
WASHINGTON'S ADMINISTRATION. 341 
 
 fixed at twenty-five thousand dollars a year, and 
 that of the vice-president at five thousand. The 
 representatives received six dollars per day, and 
 six dollars for every twenty miles travel, and 
 the senate seven dollars per day, and the same 
 for travel. To each of the heads of departments 
 was allowed a salary of three thousand five 
 hundred dollars ; to the chief justice of the su- 
 preme court four thousand dollars, and the as- 
 sociate judges three thousand five hundred. 
 
 Sec. 6. Before the adjournment of congress, 
 deeply impressed with a sense of the divine 
 goodness, that body requested the president to 
 recommend to the people a day of public thanks- If 
 giving and prayer, in which they should united- 
 ly acknowledge with grateful hearts the many 
 and signal favors of Almighty God, especially 
 by affording them an opportunity peaceably to 
 establish a constitution of government for their 
 safety and happiness. 
 
 Sec. 7. On the 29th of September, the first ses- 
 sion of congress closed. It "was among their 
 concluding acts, to direct the secretary of the 
 treasury to prepare a plan for adequately pro- 
 viding for the support of the public credit, and 
 to report the same at their next meeting. 
 
 Sec. 8. During the recess of congress, Wash- 
 ington made % tour into New-England. Pass- 
 ing through Connecticut and Massachusetts, and 
 into New-Hampshire, as far as Portsmouth, he 
 returned by a different route to New-York. 
 
 With this excursion, the president had much reason to 
 be gratified. To observe the progress of society, the im- 
 provements in agriculture, commerce, and manufactures, 
 and the temper, circumstances, and dispositions of the peo- 
 ple while it could not fail to please an intelligent and be- 
 nevolent mind, was, in all respects, worthy of the chief 
 29* 
 
342 PERIOD vii. 1789 TO 1797. 
 
 magistrate of the nation. He was every where received 
 with expressions of the purest affection, and could not fail 
 to rejoice in the virtue, religion, happiness, and prosperity 
 of the people, at the head of whose government he was 
 placed. 
 
 Sec. 9. The second session of the first con- 
 gress commenced, January 8th, 1790. In obe- 
 dience to the resolution of the former congress, 
 the secretary of the treasury, Mr. Hamilton, 
 made his report on the subject of maintaining 
 the public credit. 
 
 In this report, he strongly recommended to' 
 congress, as the only mode, in his opinion, in 
 which the public credit would be supported : 
 
 1. That provision be made for the full dis- 
 charge of the foreign debt, according to the pre- 
 cise terms of the contract. 
 
 2. That provision be made for the payment 
 of the domestic debt, in a similar manner. 
 
 3. That the debts of the several states, created 
 for the purpose of carrying on the war, be as- 
 sumed by the general government. 
 
 The public dejbt of the United States was estimated hy 
 the secretary, at this time, at more than fifty-four millions 
 of dollars. Of this sum, the foreign debt, principally due 
 to France and the Hollanders, constituted eleven millions 
 and a half of interest ; and the domestic liquidated debt, in- 
 cluding about thirteen millions of arrears of interest, more 
 than forty millions ; and the unliquidated debt two millions. 
 The secretary recommended the assumption of the debts ol 
 \ the several states to be paid equally with those of the 
 Union, as a measure of sound policy and substantial jus- 
 tice. These were estimated at twenty-five millions of dol- 
 lars. 
 
 Sec. 10. The proposal for making adequate 
 provision for the foreign debt was met, cordially 
 and unanimously ; but, respecting the full dis- 
 charge of the domestic debt, and the assumption 
 of the state debts, much division prevailed in 
 
343 
 
 After a spirited and protracted debate 
 on these subjects, the recommendation of the se- 
 cretary prevailed, and bills conformable thereto 
 passed, by a small majority. 
 
 The division of sentiment among the members of con- 
 gress, in relation to the full, or only a partial payment of 
 the domestic debt, arose from this. A considerable propor- 
 tion of the original holders of public securities had found 
 it necessary to sell them, at a reduced price even as low 
 as two or three shillings on the pound. These securities 
 had been purchased by speculators, with the expectation of 
 ultimately receiving the full amount. Under these cir- 
 cumstances, it was contended by some, that congress would 
 perform their duty, should they pay to all holders of pub- 
 lic securities only the reduced market price. Others ad- 
 vocated a discrimination between the present holders of 
 securities, and those to whom the debt was originally due, 
 &c. &c. 
 
 In his report, Mr. Hamilton ably examined these several 
 points, and strongly maintained the justice of paying to all 
 holders of securities, without discrimination, the full value 
 of what appeared on the face of their certificates. This, he 
 contended, justice demanded, and for this, the public faith 
 was pledged, 
 
 By the opposers of the bill, which related to the assump- 
 tion of the state debts, the constitutional authority of the 
 federal government for this purpose was questioned ; and 
 the policy and justice of the measure controverted. 
 
 To cancel the several debts which congress 
 thus undertook to discharge, the proceeds of pub- 
 lic lands, lying in the western territory, were 
 directed to be applied, together with the surplus 
 revenue, and a loan of two millions of dollars, 
 which the president was authorized to borrow, 
 at an interest of five per cent. 
 
 This measure laid the foundation of public 
 credit upon such a basis, that government paper 
 soon rose from two shillings and six pence to 
 twenty shillings on the pound, and, indeed, for 
 a short time, was above par. Individuals, who 
 
344 PERIOD vii. 1789 TO 1797. 
 
 had purchased certificates of public debt low, 
 realized immense fortunes. A general spring 
 was given to the affairs of the nation. A spirit 
 of enterprise, of agriculture, and commerce, 
 universally prevailed, and the foundation was 
 thus laid for that unrivalled prosperity which 
 the United States, in subsequent years, en 
 joyed. 
 
 Sec. 11. During this session of congress, a bib 
 was passed, fixing the seat of government for ten 
 years at Philadelphia, and, from and after that 
 time, permanently at Washington, on the Po- 
 tomac. 
 
 Sec. 12. On the 4th of March, 1791, VERMONT, 
 by consent of congress, became one of the United 
 States. 
 
 The tract of country, which is now known by the name 
 of Vermont, was settled at a much later period than any 
 other of the eastern states. The governments of New- York 
 and Massachusetts made large grants of territory in the di- 
 rection of Vermont ; but it was not until 1724, that any ac- 
 tual possession was taken of land, within the present boun- 
 daries of the state. In that year, Fort Durance was built, 
 by the officers of Massachusetts, on Connecticut river. On 
 the other side of the state, the French advanced up Lake 
 Champlain, and, in 1731, built Crown Point, and began a 
 settlement on the eastern shore of the lake. 
 
 Vermont being supposed to fall within the limits of New- 
 Hampshire, that government made large grants of land to 
 settlers, even west of Connecticut river. New- York, how- 
 ever, conceived herself to have a better right to the territo- 
 ry, in consequence of the grant of Charles II. to his brother, 
 the Duke of York. These states being thus at issue, the 
 case was submitted to the English crown, which decided in 
 favor of New- York, and confirmed its jurisdiction, as far as 
 Connecticut river. In this decision, New-Hampshire ac- 
 quiesced; but New-York persisting in its claims to land 
 east of the river, actions of ejectment were instituted in the 
 courts at Albany, which resulted in favor of the New- York 
 title. The settlers, however, determined to resist the offi- 
 cers of justice, and under Ethan Allen, associated together 
 
345 
 
 to oppose the New'York militia, which were called out to 
 enforce the laws. 
 
 On the commencement of the revolution, the people of 
 Vermont were placed in an embarrassing situation. They 
 had not even a form of government. The jurisdiction of 
 New- York being disclaimed, and allegiance to the British 
 crown refused, every thing was effected by voluntary agree- 
 ment. In January, 1 777, a convention met and proclaimed 
 that the district before known by the name of the New- 
 Hampshire grants, was of right a free and independent ju- 
 risdiction, and should be henceforth called New Connecticut, 
 alias Vermont. The convention proceeded to make known 
 their proceedings to congress, and petitioned to be admitted 
 into the confederacy. To this, New- York objected, and, 
 for a time, prevailed. Other difficulties arose with New- 
 Hampshire and Massachusetts, each of which laid claim 
 to land within the present boundaries of the state. At the 
 peace of 1783, Vermont found herself a sovereign and inde- 
 pendent state de facto, united with no confederation, and 
 therefore unembarrassed by the debts that weighed down 
 the other states. New- York still claimed jurisdiction over 
 the state, but was unable to enforce it, and the state govern- 
 ment was administered as regularly as in any of the other 
 states. After the formation of the federal constitution, Ver- 
 mont again requested admission into the union. The op- 
 position of New- York was still strong, but in 1789 was 
 finally withdrawn, upon the consent of Vermont to pay her 
 the sum of thirty thousand dollars. Thus terminated a con- 
 troversy, which had been carried on with animosity, and 
 with injury to both parties, for twenty-six years. A conven- 
 tion was immediately called, by which it was resolved to 
 join the federal union. Upon application to congress, their 
 consent was readily given, and on the 4th of March, 1791, 
 Vermont was added to the United States. 
 
 Sec. 13. At the time that congress assumed the 
 state debts, during their second session, the secre- 
 tary of the treasury had recommended a tax on 
 domestic spirits, to enable them to pay the inte- 
 rest. The discussion of the bill having been 
 postponed to the third session, was early in that 
 session taken up. The tax, contemplated by. 
 the bill, was opposed with great vehemence, by 
 a majority of southern and western members, on 
 
346 PERIOD vii. 1789 TO 1797. 
 
 the ground that it was unnecessary and unequal, 
 and would be particularly burdensome upon 
 those parts of the union, which could not, with- 
 out very great expense, procure foreign ardent 
 spirits. Instead of this tax, these members pro- 
 posed an increased duty on imported articles ge- 
 nerally, a particular duty on molasses, a direct 
 tax, or a tax on salaries, &c. &c. After giving 
 rise to an angry and protracted debate, the bill 
 passed, by a majority of thirty-five to twenty- 
 one. 
 
 Sec. 14. The secretary next appeared with a 
 recommendation for a national bank. A bill, 
 conforming to his plan, being sent down from 
 the senate, was permitted to progress, unmolest- 
 ed, in the house of representatives, to the third 
 reading. On the final reading, an unexpected 
 opposition appeared against it, on the ground 
 that banking systems were useless ; that the pro- 
 posed bill was defective ; but, especially, that 
 congress was not vested, by the constitution, 
 with the competent power to establish a nation- 
 al bank. 
 
 These several objections were met by the sup 
 porters of the bill, with much strength of argu- 
 ment. After a debate of great length, support- 
 ed with tne ardor excited by the importance of 
 the subject, the bill was carried in the affirma- 
 tive, by a majority of nineteen voices. 
 
 A bill which had been agitated with so much warmth, in 
 the house of representatives, the executive was now called 
 upon to examine with reference to its sanction or rejection. 
 The president required the opinions of the cabinet in wri- 
 ting. The secretary of state, Mr. Jefferson, and the attor- 
 ney general, Mr. Randolph, considered the bill as decided- 
 ly unconstitutional. The secretary of the treasury, Mr. 
 Hamilton, with equal decision, maintained the opposite 
 opinion. A deliberate investigation of the -subject satisfied 
 
347 
 
 the president, both of the constitutionality and'utility of the 
 bill, upon which he gave it his signature. 
 
 The capital stock of the bank was ten millions of dollars, 
 two millions to be subscribed for the benefit of the United 
 States, and the residue by individuals. One fourth of the 
 sums subscribed by individuals was to be paid in gold and 
 silver, and three fourths in the public debt. By the act of in- 
 corporation, it was to be a bank of discount as well as de- 
 posit, and its bills, which were payable in gold and silver on 
 demand, were made receivable in all payments to the Uni- 
 ted States. The bank was located at Philadelphia, with 
 power in the directors, to establish offices of discount and 
 deposit only wherever they should think fit, within the Uni- 
 ted States. 
 
 The duration of the charter was limited to the 4th of 
 May, 1811 ; and the faith of the United States was pledged, 
 that during that period, no other bank should be establish- 
 ed under their authority. One of the fundamental articles 
 of the incorporation was, that no loan should be made to the 
 United States, for more than one hundred thousand dollars, 
 or to any particular state, for more than fifty thousand, or to 
 any foreign prince, or state, unless previously authorized 
 by a law of the United States. The books were opened for 
 subscriptions in July, 1791, and a much larger sum subscri- 
 bed than was allowed by the charter ; and the bank went 
 into successful operation.* 
 
 The bill which had now passed, with those relating to 
 the finances of the country, the assumption of the state debts, 
 the funding of the national debt, &c., contributed greatly to 
 the complete organization of those distinct and visible par- 
 ties, which, in their long and ardent conflict for power, have 
 since shaken the United States to their centre. 
 
 Sec. 15. While matters of high importance 
 were occupying the attention, and party strife 
 and conflicting interests were filling the counsels 
 of congress with agitation, an Indian war open- 
 ed on the northwestern frontier of the states. 
 Pacific arrangements had been attempted by the 
 president with the hostile tribes, without effect 
 On the failure of these, an offensive expedition 
 was planned against the tribes northwest of the 
 Ohio. 
 
 * Pitkin. 
 
348 PERIOD vii. 1789 TO 1797. 
 
 The command of the troops, consisting of 
 three hundred regulars, and about one thousand 
 two hundred Pennsylvania and Kentucky mi- 
 litia, was given to Gen. Harmar, a veteran- offi- 
 cer of the revolution. His instructions required 
 him, if possible, to bring the Indians to an en- 
 gagement ; but, in any event, to destroy their 
 settlements on the waters of the Scioto, a river 
 falling into the Ohio, and the Wabash, in the In- 
 diana territory. In this expedition, Harmar suc- 
 ceeded in destroying some villages, and a quan- 
 tity of grain, belonging to the Indians ; but in 
 an engagement with them, near Chilicothe, he 
 was routed with considerable loss. 
 
 Upon the failure of Gen. Harmar, Major Gene- 
 ral Arthur St. Clair was appointed to succeed him. 
 Under the authority of an act of congress, the 
 president caused a body of levies to be raised for 
 six months, for the Indian service. 
 
 Sec. 16. Having arranged the northwestern ex- 
 pedition, directing St. Clair to destroy the Indian 
 villages on the Miami, and to drive the savages 
 from the Ohio, the president commenced a tour 
 through the southern states, similar to that which 
 he had made through the northern and central 
 parts of the union, in 1789. 
 
 The same expressions of respect and affection awaited 
 him, in every stage of his tour, which had been so zealous- 
 ly accorded to him in the north. Here, also, he enjoyed 
 the high satisfaction of witnessing the most happy effects, 
 resulting from the administration of that government over 
 which he presided. 
 
 Sec. 17. On the 24th of October, 1791, the se- 
 cond congress commenced its first session. Among 
 the subjects that early engaged their attention, 
 was a bill " for apportioning representatives 
 among the people of the several states, accord- 
 
349 
 
 ing to the first census." After much discussion, 
 concerning the ratio that should be adopted, be- 
 tween representation and population, congress 
 finally fixed it at one representative to each state, 
 for every thirty-three thousand inhabitants. 
 
 The first bill fixed the ratio at one representative for every 
 thirty thousand inhabitants ; but to this bill the senate would 
 not agree. A second bill was introduced, providing one re- 
 presentative for every thirty thousand, and dividing eight 
 representatives among those states which had the greatest 
 fractions. This bill the president returned to the house, 
 whence it originated, as unconstitutional, as by it, eight 
 states would send more representatives than their popula- 
 tion allowed. 
 
 Sec. 18. In December, intelligence was received 
 by the president, that the army under Gen. St. 
 Clair, in battle with the Indians, near the Mi- 
 ami, in Ohio, had been totally defeated on the 
 4th of the preceding month. 
 
 The army of St. Clair amounted to near one thousand five 
 hundred men. The Indian force consisted of nearly the 
 same number. Of the loss of the Indians, no estimate could 
 be formed : but the loss of the Americans was unusually 
 severe; thirty-eight commissioned officers were killed in 
 the field, and five hundred and ninety-three non-commis- 
 sioned officers and privates were slain and missing. Be- 
 tween two and three hundred officers and privates were 
 wounded, many of whom afterwards died. This result of 
 the expedition was as unexpected as unfortunate; but no 
 want either of ability, zeal, or intrepidity, was ascribed, by 
 a committee of congress, appointed to examine the causes of 
 its failure, to the commander of the expedition. 
 
 Sec. 19. Upon the news of St. Clair's defeat, a 
 bill was introduced into congress for raising three 
 additional regiments of infantry, and a squadron 
 of cavalry, to serve for three years, if not sooner 
 discharged. This bill, although finally carried, 
 met with an opposition more warm and pointed, 
 from the opposers of the administration, than any 
 which had before been agitated in the house. 
 30 
 
350 PERIOD vii. 1789 TO 1797. 
 
 By those who opposed the bill, it was urged, that the war 
 with the Indians was unjust ; that militia would answ r er as 
 well, and even hetter, than regular troops, and would be 
 less expensive to support ; that adequate funds could not be 
 provided i and, more than all, that this addition of one regi- 
 ment to the army after another, gave fearful intimation of 
 monarchical designs, on the part of those who administered 
 the government. 
 
 On the other hand, the advocates of the bill contended, 
 that the war was a war of self-defence ; that between the 
 years 1783 and 1790, not less than one thousand five hun- 
 dred inhabitants of Kentucky, or emigrants to that country, 
 and probably double that number, had been massacred by 
 the Indians ; and that repeated efforts had been made by 
 the government to obtain a peace, notwithstanding which, 
 the butcheries of the savages still continued in their most 
 appalling forms. 
 
 Sec. 20. On the 8th of May, 1792, congress ad- 
 journed to the first Monday in November. The 
 asperity which, on more than one occasion, had 
 discovered itself in the course of debate, was a 
 certain index of the growing exasperation of 
 parties. With their adjournment, the conflict- 
 ing feelings of members in a measure subsided ; 
 the opposition, however, to the administration, 
 had become fixed. It was carried into retire- 
 ment was infused by members into their con- 
 stituents, and a party was thus formed through- 
 out the nation, hostile to the plans of government 
 adopted by Washington, and his friends in the 
 cabinet. 
 
 &ec. 1. On the first of June, 1792, KENTUCKY, 
 by act of congress, was admitted into the union 
 as a state. 
 
 The country, now called Kentucky, was well known to 
 the Indian traders, many years before its settlement. By 
 whom it was first explored, is a matter of uncertainty, and 
 has given rise to controversy. In 1752, a map was pub- 
 lished by Lewis Evans, of the country on the Ohio and 
 Kentucky rivers ; and it seems that one James Macbride, 
 
351 
 
 with others, visited this region in 1754. No further at- 
 tempt \vas made to explore the country until 1767, when 
 John Finley of North Carolina, travelled over the ground 
 on the Kentucky river, called by the Indians, " the dark 
 and bloody ground." On returning to Carolina, Finley 
 communicated his discoveries to Col. Daniel Boone, who, 
 in 1769, with some others, undertook to explore the country. 
 After a long and fatiguing march, they discovered the beau- 
 tiful valley of Kentucky. Col. Boone continued an inhabi- 
 tant of this wilderness until 1771, when he returned to his 
 family for the purpose of removing them, and forming a 
 settlement in the new country. In 1773, having made the 
 necessary preparations, he set out again with five families 
 and forty men, from Powell's Valley, and after various im- 
 pediments, reached the Kentucky river, in March, 1775, 
 where he commenced a settlement. 
 
 In the years 1778, 1779, and 1780, a considerable num- 
 ber of persons emigrated to Kentucky ; yet, in this latter 
 year, after an unusually severe winter, the inhabitants were 
 so distressed that they came to the determination of aban- 
 doning the country for ever. They were fortunately divert- 
 ed from this step, by the arrival of emigrants. During the 
 revolutionary war they suffered severely from the Indians, 
 incited by the British government. In 1778, Gen. Clarke 
 overcame the Indians, and laid waste their villages. From 
 this time the inhabitants began to feel more secure, and the 
 settlements were extended. In 1779, the legislature of Vir- 
 ginia, within whose limits this region lay, erected it into a 
 county. In 1782, a supreme court, with an attorney gene- 
 ral, was established within the district. In the years 1783, 
 1784, and 1785, the district was laid out into counties, and 
 a great part of the country surveyed and patented. In 1785, 
 an attempt was made to form an independent slate ; but a 
 majority of the inhabitants being opposed to the measurte, 
 it was delayed until December, 1790, when it became a se- 
 parate state. 
 
 In 1792, as stated above, it was admitted into the union. 
 The growth of Kentucky has been rapid, and she has ob- 
 tained a respectable rank and influence among her sister 
 states. 
 
 Sec. 22. During the recess of congress, prepa- 
 rations were hastened by the president, for a 
 vigorous prosecution of the war with the Indi- 
 ans ; but such small inducements were present- 
 
352 PERIOD vii. 1789 TO 1797. 
 
 ed to engage in the service, that a sufficient num- 
 ber of recruits could not be raised to authorize 
 an expedition against them the present year. 
 As the clamor against the war, by the opposers 
 of the administration, was still loud, the presi- 
 dent deemed it advisable, while preparations for 
 hostilities were advancing, to make another ef- 
 fort at negotiation with the unfriendly Indians. 
 The charge of this business was committed to 
 Col. Harden and Maj. Freeman, two brave offi- 
 cers, and valuable men, who were murdered by 
 the savages. 
 
 Sec. 23. On the opening of the next congress, 
 in November, a motion was made to reduce the 
 military establishment, but it did not prevail. 
 The debate on this subject was peculiarly ear- 
 nest, and the danger of standing armies was 
 powerfully urged. This motion, designed as a 
 reflection upon the executive, was followed by 
 several resolutions, introduced by Mr. Giles, tend- 
 ing to criminate the secretary of the treasury, 
 Mr. Hamilton, of misconduct, in relation to cer- 
 tain loans, negotiated under his direction. 
 
 In three distinct reports, sent to the house, 
 the secretary offered every required explanation, 
 and ably defended himself against the attacks 
 of the opposition. Mr. Giles, and some others, 
 however, were not satisfied : other resolutions 
 were, therefore, offered, which, although re- 
 jected, were designed to fix upon the secretary 
 the reputation of an ambitious man, aiming at 
 the acquisition of dangerous power. 
 
 During these discussions, vehement attacks were made 
 upon the secretary, in the public prints. Hints also were 
 suggested against the president himself; and although ho 
 was not openly accused of being the head of the federal 
 party, of favoring their cause, or designing to subvert the 
 
353 
 
 liberties of his country, yet it was apparent that such sus- 
 picions were entertained of him. 
 
 On the 3d of March, 1793, a constitutional 
 period was put to the existence of this congress. 
 The members separated with obvious symptoms 
 of irritation; and it was not to be doubted that 
 their efforts would be extended to communicate 
 to their constituents the feelings which agitated 
 their bosoms. 
 
 Sec. 24. The time had now arrived, 1793, when 
 the electors of the states were again called upon 
 to choose a chief magistrate of the union. Wash- 
 ington had determined to withhold himself from 
 being again elected to the presidency, and to re- 
 tire from the cares of political life. Various con- 
 siderations, however, prevented the declaration 
 of his wishes, and he was again unanimously 
 elected to the chair of state. Mr. Adams was 
 re-elected vice-president. 
 
 Sec. 25. Through the unceasing endeavors of 
 the president to terminate the Indian war, a 
 treaty had been negotiated with the Indians, on 
 the Wabash ; and through the intervention of the 
 Six Nations, those of the Miamis had consented 
 to a conference during the ensuing spring. Of- 
 fensive operations were, therefore, suspended, al- 
 though the recruiting service was industriously 
 urged, and assiduous attention was paid to the 
 discipline and preparation of the troops. 
 
 Sec. 26. The Indian war, though of real im- 
 portance, was becoming an object of secondary 
 consideration. The revolution in France was 
 now progressing, and began so to affect our re- 
 lation with that country, as to require an exer- 
 tion of all the wisdom and firmness of the go- 
 vernment. Early in April, also, information was 
 30* 
 
354 PERIOD vii. 1789 TO 1797. 
 
 received of the declaration of war by France, 
 against England and Holland. 
 
 This event excited the deepest interest in the 
 United States. A large majority of the people, 
 grateful for the aid that France had given us in 
 our revolution, and. devoted to the cause of lib- 
 erty, were united in fervent wishes for the suc- 
 cess of the French Republic.* At the same time, 
 the prejudices against Great Britain, which had 
 taken deep root during the revolution, now sprung 
 forth afresh, and the voice of many was heard, 
 urging the propriety of the United States mak- 
 ing a common cause with France against Great 
 Britain. 
 
 A pressing occurrence had called Washing- 
 ton to Mount Vernon. when intelligence arrived 
 of the rupture between France and England. 
 Hastening his return to Philadelphia, he sum- 
 moned the attention of his cabinet to several 
 questions, respecting the course of conduct pro- 
 per for the United States to observe in relation 
 to the belligerents. 
 
 Although sensible of the prejudices existing 
 in the country against Great Britain, and of the 
 friendly disposition which prevailed towards 
 
 * The revolution in France commenced about the year 1789. It seems 
 to have been hastened, or brought on, by the new ideas of freedom, which 
 had been imbibed by the French army in the United States, and thence 
 disseminated among the people of France, for a long time oppressed and 
 degraded by a despotic government. Unfortunately, the revolution fell 
 into the hands of selfish and unprincipled men, who, in 1793, executed 
 their king, Louis XVI., and, soon after, his family, and murdered or im- 
 prisoned those who were suspected of hostility to their views, and involved 
 France in a scene of guilt and bloodshed, which cannot be contem- 
 plated without horror. In the first stages of this revolution, the friends of 
 liberty throughout the world were full- of hopes for a melioration of the 
 political condition of France ; but these hopes were soon blasted by the 
 sanguinary steps adopted by the revolutionists. Had they been men go- c 
 verned by reason and religion, instead of unbridled ambition ; actuated 
 by a philanthropic regard to the good of the people, instead of a selfish thirst V 
 of i>ower: France to this day might have enjoyed the blessings of a free <,,. 
 government. 
 
WASHINGTON'S ADMINISTRATION. 355 
 
 France, it was the unanimous opinion of the 
 cabinet, that a strict neutrality should be ob- 
 served by the United States towards the con- 
 tending powers. The council was also unani- 
 mous, that a minister from the French Republic 
 should be received, should one be sent. 
 
 In accordance with the advice of his cabinet, 
 the president issued his proclamation of neutra- 
 lity, on the 22d of April, 1793. This proclama- 
 tion, being without legislative sanction, soon be- 
 came the subject of loud invective. The oppo- 
 sition party, through the press, pronounced it 
 " a royal edict," an assumption of power on the 
 part of the president, and a proof of his monar- 
 chical disposition. They denounced the conduct 
 of the executive as dishonorable, and an act of 
 neutrality, as high ingratitude towards France, 
 the firm and magnanimous ally, of the United 
 States, which had assisted in achieving the lib- 
 erties of the country. 
 
 Sec. 27. In this state of things, the Republic 
 of France recalled the minister of the crown, 
 and appointed Mr. Genet to succeed him. His 
 mission had for its object the enlisting of Ame- 
 rica in the cause of France, against Great Bri- 
 tain. Flattered by the manner in which he was 
 received by the people, as well as by their pro- 
 fessions of attachment to his country, Mr. Genet 
 early anticipated the accomplishment of his ob- 
 ject. Presuming too much upon this attachment, 
 he was led into a series of acts infringing the 
 neutralitjrproclaimed by the president. He also 
 attempted to rouse the people against the govern- 
 ment, because it did not second all his views. 
 At length, on the advice of his cabinet, the pre- 
 sident solicited of the French Republic the recall 
 
0- 
 
 356 PERIOD vii. 1789 TO 1797. 
 
 of Mr. Genet, and the appointment of some one 
 to succeed him. Monsieur Fauchet was appoint- 
 ed, and was instructed to assure the American 
 government, that France totally disapproved of 
 the conduct of his predecessor. 
 
 Mr. Genet, on his arrival in the country, landed at 
 Charleston, S. C. He was received by the governor ol 
 that state, and by the citizens, with a flow of enthusiastic 
 feeling, equalled only by that which had been evinced to- 
 wards his nation at the conquest of Yorktown. 
 
 Soon after landing at Charleston, he began to authorize 
 the fitting and arming of vessels, in that port, enlisting 
 men, and giving commissions to cruise and commit hosti- 
 lities against nations with which the United States were at 
 peace. Vessels captured by these cruisers were brought 
 into port, and the consuls of France, under the authority 
 of Genet, not yet recognized as a minister by the American 
 government, assumed the power of holding courts of ad- 
 miralty on them, of trying and condemning them, and of 
 authorizing their sale. Upon a complaint of the British 
 minister, Mr. Hammond, the American cabinet unanimous- 
 ly condemned those proceedings, and agreed that the effi- 
 cacy of the laws should be tried against those citizens who 
 had been concerned in them. Prosecutions were accord- 
 ingly ordered and actually commenced. 
 
 The decisions and conduct of the cabinet gave great um- 
 brage to Genet, who had now been accredited as the minis- 
 ter of France. In his communications to the secretary of 
 state, his dissatisfaction was expressed in strong terms, and 
 the executive charged with holding opinions and adopting 
 a course diametrically opposed to the views and wishes of 
 the American people. In language highly offensive and 
 reprehensible, he demanded that those persons under arrest, 
 by order of the government of the United States, should be 
 released, " on the ground that they were acting under the 
 authority of France, and defending the glorious cause of 
 liberty in common with her children." And at length, he 
 incautiously avowed the purpose, should his demands not 
 be complied with, of appealing from the president to the 
 people. 
 
 The language and conduct of Genet made a deep impres- 
 sion on the officers of the administration ; but happily, they 
 preserved, in all their communications with that gentleman, 
 
357 
 
 a becoming dignity, and continued to express a high re- 
 spect and affection for his nation, and an earnest desire to 
 promote its interests. 
 
 On the meeting of congress, December, 1793, the procla- 
 mation of neutrality was approved by them, as well as the 
 conduct of the government towards Mr. Genet. 
 
 Finding on most questions, arising between the French 
 minister and the government of the United States, a wide 
 and an increasing difference of views, and perceiving no 
 beneficial effects resulting from his continuance in that cha- 
 racter, the cabinet unanimously advised his recall. 
 
 Sec. 28. 1794. On the last day of December, 
 1793, Mr. Jefferson, the secretary of state, re- 
 signed his office, and was succeeded by Edmund 
 Randolph, the then attorney general. This lat- 
 ter office was filled by William Bradford, a gen- 
 tleman of considerable eminence in Pennsylva- 
 nia. 
 
 Sec. 29. During the session of congress this 
 year, a resolution passed to provide a naval force 
 adequate to the protection of the commerce of 
 the United States, against the Algerine corsairs. 
 The force proposed was to consist of six frigates, 
 four of forty-four, and two of thirty-six guns. 
 
 This measure was founded upon the communications of 
 the president, from which it appeared that the prospect of 
 being able to negotiate a treaty of peace with the dey of 
 Algiers was doubtful ; that eleven American merchant ves- 
 sels, and upwards of one hundred citizens, had been cap- 
 tured by them ; and that farther preparations were making 
 for a renewed attack upon unprotected vessels, belonging to 
 the United States. 
 
 Sec. 30. During this session of congress, a law 
 passed, prohibiting the carrying on of the slave 
 trade from the American ports. 
 
 England had been actively engaged in the slave trade 
 nearly fifty years, when the first settlement was effected in 
 Virginia. Slavery was early introduced into the American 
 colonies. The first slaves, about twenty in number, were 
 brought to Virginia, in 1619, by a Dutch ship. The im- 
 
358 PERIOD vii. 1789 TO 1796. 
 
 portation of them gradually increased, and although prin- 
 cipally bought by the southern planters, slaves were soon 
 found, in great numbers, in all the colonies. In 1784, they 
 amounted to six hundred thousand. In 1790, to six hun- 
 dred and ninety-seven thousand six hundred and ninety-six. 
 
 A disgust towards this inhuman traffic appeared very 
 early in the colonies ; but it was countenanced and patron- 
 ized by the English government, and thus introduced into, 
 and fastened upon the country, without the power, on the 
 part of the colonies, to arrest it. 
 
 In Massachusetts, in 1645, a law was made, "prohibiting 
 the buying and selling of slaves, except those taken in law- 
 ful war, or reduced to servitude by their crimes." In 1703, 
 the same colony imposed a heavy duty on every negro im- 
 ported, and in a subsequent law on the subject, they called 
 the practice, " the unnatural and unaccountable custom oj 
 enslaving mankind." In Virginia, as early as 1699, at- 
 tempts were made to repress the importation of slaves, by 
 heavy duties. These, and other acts, show that the North 
 American provinces would, if left to themselves, have put 
 an end to the importation of slaves before the era of their 
 independence. 
 
 In 1778, Virginia abolished the traffic by law ; Connec- 
 ticut, Rhode Island, Pennsylvania, and Massachusetts pro- 
 hibited it before the year 1789. The continental congress 
 passed a resolution against the purchase of slaves, imported 
 from Africa, and exhorted the colonies to abandon the trade 
 altogether. The third congress of the United States, as 
 stated above, prohibited the trade, by law. Thus we see, 
 in the United States, a very early and settled aversion to 
 the slave trade manifesting itself, and before European na- 
 tions had consented to relinquish it, several of the states 
 had utterly prohibited it. 
 
 Sec. 31. At this session, also, several measures 
 were adopted in anticipation of a war with 
 Great Britain, growing out of her commercial 
 restriction, which bore heavy, and operated most 
 unjustly upon the United States. Bills were 
 passed for laying an embargo for thirty days 
 for erecting fortifications for organizing the 
 militia, and increasing the standing army. As 
 an adjustment of differences, however, seemed 
 
359 
 
 desirable, Mr. Jay was appointed envoy extraor- 
 dinary to the court of St. James, and succeeded 
 in negotiating a treaty with Great Britain the 
 following year. 
 
 Among the offensive acts of the government of Great Bri- 
 tain, was an order of June, 1793, prohibiting the exportation 
 of corn to France, and authorizing the capture of neutral 
 vessels carrying it thither. Under this order, many Ameri- 
 can vessels were captured, and carried into England. In 
 November following, additional instructions were given by 
 the British cabinet, to ships of war and privateers, to bring 
 into port, for trial, all ships laden with goods from France, 
 or her colonies, and such as were carrying provisions, or 
 other supplies, to either. To these causes of complaint, 
 Great Britain had added another, viz. neglecting to deliver 
 up the western posts according to treaty. 
 
 While measures were taking, in anticipation of war, the 
 president received advices from England, that the order of 
 November had been considerably modified ; that most of the 
 merchant vessels which had been carried into port for trial, 
 would be released; and that a disposition for peace with the 
 United States existed in the British cabinet. 
 
 These advices opened to the president the prospect of re- 
 storing a good understanding between the two nations, and 
 induced him immediately to nominate an envoy to settle ex- 
 isting differences, and to negotiate commercial arrange- 
 ments. The nomination of Mr. Jay was approved, in the 
 senate, by a majority of ten. 
 
 To those opposed to the administration, no step could have 
 been more unexpected or disagreeable, than this decisive 
 measure of the president. Prejudices against Great Britain 
 had risen to their height, and hostilities against her were 
 loudly demanded, as both just and necessary. It was not 
 singular, therefore, that for this act, the president should re- 
 ceive the severest censures of the opposition party, nor that 
 all who favored his efforts for peace should be included in 
 the general denunciation. 
 
 Sec. 32. The suspension of hostilities against 
 the Indians in the northwest, in consequence of 
 their consenting to a conference in the spring of 
 1791, has already been noticed. This effort to 
 conclude a treaty with them failing, General 
 
360 PERIOD vii. 1789 TO 1797. 
 
 Wayne, who had succeeded Gen. St. Clair, enga- 
 ged the Indians, August 20th, 1794, on the banks 
 of the Miami, and gained a complete victory over 
 them. 
 
 The American troops engaged in this battle did not ex- 
 ceed nine hundred; the Indians amounted to two thousand. 
 In this decisive engagement, Gen. Wayne lost one hundred 
 and seven in killed and wounded, including officers. After 
 the battle, he proceeded to lay waste the whole Indian coun- 
 try. By means of this victory over the Miamis, a general 
 war with the Six Nations, and all the tribes northwest of the 
 Ohio, was prevented. 
 
 Sec. 33. This year, 1794, was distinguished by 
 an insurrection in Pennsylvania, growing out of 
 laws enacted by congress, in 1791, laying duties 
 on spirits distilled within the United States, and 
 upon stills. In August, the president issued his 
 proclamation, commanding the insurgents to dis- 
 perse. This not having the desired effect, a re- 
 spectable body of militia was ordered out, under 
 Gov. Lee, of Maryland, on whose approach the 
 insurgents laid down their arms, solicited the 
 clemency of the government, and promised future 
 submission to the laws. 
 
 From the time that duties were laid upon spirits distilled 
 within the United States, &c., combinations were formed, in 
 the four western counties of Pennsylvania, to prevent their 
 collection. Numerous meetings were held at different times 
 and places, at which resolutions were passed, and, in seve- 
 ral instances, violences were committed upon the officers of 
 the revenue. Eighteen of the insurgents were taken, and 
 tried for treason, but not convicted. 
 
 Sec. 34. 1795. January 1st, Col. Hamilton re- 
 signed the office of secretary of the treasury, and 
 was succeeded by Oliver Wolcott, of Connecticut. 
 Nearly at the same time, Timothy Pickering suc- 
 ceeded Gen. Knox, in the department of war. 
 
 Sec. 35. In 'June, Mr. Jay, having succeeded in 
 negotiating a treaty with Great Britain, the 
 
WASHINGTON'S ADMINISTRATION. 361 
 
 senate was convened to consider its merits. Af- 
 ter an elaborate discussion of it, that body ad- 
 vised to its ratification by a majority of twenty 
 to ten. Notwithstanding the great opposition to 
 it that prevailed among the enemies of Great 
 Britain, the president gave it his signature. Con- 
 trary to the predictions of many in the country, 
 the treaty settled existing difficulties between 
 the two nations, prevented a war, which previ- 
 ously seemed fast approaching, and proved of 
 great advantage to the United States. 
 
 The treaty, when published, found one party prepared for 
 its condemnation, while the other was not ready for its de- 
 fence. Time was necessary for a judicious and careful con- 
 sideration of its merits. 
 
 In the populous cities, meetings were immediately called, 
 and resolutions and addresses forwarded to the president 
 requesting him to withhold his assent. Upon the president, 
 however, these had no other effect, than to induce him to 
 weigh still more carefully the merits of the treaty. When, 
 at length, he was satisfied of its utility, he signed it, al- 
 though he thereby incurred the censures of a numerous por- 
 j tion of the citizens. 
 
 Sec. 36. In the course of the following autumn, 
 treaties were concluded with the dey of Algiers, 
 and with the Miamis in the west. By the former 
 > ir ' treaty, American citizens, in captivity in Algiers, 
 3 were liberated ; and by the latter, the western 
 'U frontiers of the United States were secured from 
 B d savage invasion. A treaty with Spain soon af- 
 jter followed, by which the claims of the United 
 re- 1 States, on the important points of boundary, and 
 ndjthe navigation of the Mississippi, were fully con- 
 lit I ceded. 
 
 OOl 8ec. 37. On the 1st of June, 1796, TENNESSEE 
 i was admitted, by act of congress, into the union 
 in as a state. 
 
 Ufl Tennessee derives its name from its principal river. This 
 
 31 
 
362 PERIOD vii. 1789 TO 1797. 
 
 name, in the language of the Indians, signifies a curved 
 spoon, the curvature, to their imaginations, resembling that 
 of the river Tennessee. 
 
 The territory of Tennessee was granted, in 1664, hy 
 Charles II. to the Earl of Clarendon, and others, being in- 
 cluded in the limits of the Carolinas. About the beginning 
 of the next century, Carolina was divided into two provinces, 
 and Tennessee fell to the lot of the northern province. Near 
 the year 1754, fifty families were settled on the Cumberland 
 river, where Nashville now stands ; but they were dis- 
 lodged by the savages soon after. In 1765, a number of 
 emigrants settled themselves beyond the present limits of 
 North Carolina, and were the first of the colonists of Ten- 
 nessee. By the year 1773, the inhabitants had considera- 
 bly increased. When the constitution of North Carolina 
 was formed, in 1776, that district sent deputies to the meet- 
 ing. In the year 1780, a small colony of about forty fami- 
 lies, under the direction of James Robertson, crossed the 
 mountains, and settled on the Cumberland river, where they 
 founded Nashville. In 1785, the inhabitants of Tennessee, 
 feeling the inconveniences of a government so remote a& 
 that in the capital of North Carolina, endeavored to form an 
 independent one, to which they intended to give the name 
 of the " State of Franklin ;" but differing among themselves, 
 the scheme for the time was abandoned. In 1789, the le- 
 gislature of North Carolina passed an act, ceding the terri- 
 tory, on certain conditions, to the United States. Congress, 
 in the following year, accepted the cession, and by another 
 act, passed on the 26th of May, 1790, provided for its go- 
 vernment under the title of " The territory of the United 
 States, south of the Ohio." In 1796, congress passed an 
 act enabling the people to form a state constitution, which 
 having been adopted and approved, Tennessee was acknow- 
 ledged as a sovereign state in the union. 
 
 Sec. 38. On the meeting of congress in 1796, 
 resolutions were passed to carry into effect the 
 treaties negotiated the preceding year. On the 
 subject of the treaty with Great Britain, the live- 
 liest sensibility still prevailed. After a spirited 
 and protracted debate of seven weeks, on the sub- 
 ject of making the necessary arrangements for 
 this treaty, resolutions to that effect passed the 
 house by a majority of only three. 
 
 il 
 
363 
 
 Sec. 39. As the time for a new election of the 
 chief magistrate of the union approached, Gen. 
 Washington signified his intention to retire from 
 public life. Wishing to terminate his political 
 course with an act suitable to his own character, 
 and permanently useful to his countrymen, he 
 published a valedictory address to the people of 
 the United States, fraught with maxims of the 
 highest political importance, and with sentiments 
 of the warmest affection for his country 
 
 Among- the topics of paramount importance to the nation, 
 upon which the father of his country most eloquently des- 
 canted, in his farewell address, the union of the states was 
 one which seemed to lie near his heart. 
 
 "The unity of government," said he, "which constitutes 
 you one people, is now dear to you. It is justly so; for it 
 is a main pillar in the edifice of your real independence; 
 the support of your tranquillity at home ; your peace abroad; 
 of your safety; of your prosperity ; of that very liberty which 
 you so highly prize. But, as it is easy to foresee that, from 
 Different causes and from different quarters, much pains 
 will be taken, many artifices employed, to weaken in your 
 minds the conviction of this truth; as this is the point of 
 your political fortress, against which the batteries of internal 
 and external enemies will be most constantly and actively 
 (though often covertly and insidiously) directed, it is of infi- 
 nite moment that you should properly estimate the immense 
 value of your national union to your collective and indi- 
 vidual happiness ; that you should cherish a cordial, habitu- 
 al, and immoveable attachment to it, accustoming yourselves 
 to think and speak of it as of the palladium of your political 
 safety and prosperity ; watching for its preservation with 
 jealous anxiety; discountenancing whatever may suggest 
 even a suspicion that it can in any event be abandoned; and 
 indignantly frowning upon the first dawning of every at- 
 tempt to alienate any portion of our country from the rest, 
 or to enfeeble the sacred ties which now link together the 
 various parts." 
 
 ' In conclusion, this great and good man bore his solemn 
 .estimony to the importance of religion and morality, as in- 
 ( imately connected with political prosperity: "Of all the 
 iispositions and habits which lead to political prosperity," 
 
364 VERIOD vii. 1789 TO 1797 
 
 he observed, " religion and morality are indispensable sup- 
 ports. In vain would that man claim the tribute of patriot 
 ism, who should labor to subvert these great pillars of hu- 
 man happiness, these firmest props of the duties of men and 
 citizens. The mere politician, equally with the pious man, 
 ought to respect and cherish them a volume could not 
 trace all their connections with private and public felicity. 
 Let it simply be asked, where is the security for property, 
 for reputation, for life, if the sense of religious obligations 
 desert the oaths which are the instruments of investigation 
 in courts of justice? and let us with caution indulge the 
 supposition, that morality can be maintained without reli- 
 gion. Whatever may be conceded to the influence of re- 
 fined education on minds of peculiar structure, reason and 
 experience both forbid us to expect that national morality 
 can prevail in exclusion of religious principle." 
 
 Sec. 40. In February, 1797, the votes for his 
 successor were opened, and counted in the pre- 
 sence of both houses of congress. The highest 
 number appearing in favor of Mr. Adams, he was 
 declared to be elected president of the United 
 States, for the four years ensuing, commencing 
 on the 4th of March. Mr. Jefferson succeeded 
 Mr. Adams in the vice-presidency. 
 
 NOTES. 
 
 Sec. 41. MANNERS. We can remark, during 
 this period, no very distinct change in the man- 
 ners of the people of the United States, except 
 that the introduction of French philosophy seems 
 to have affected, in some degree, the sober habits 
 and strict morality of the people, which, although 
 relaxed by the war, had now begun to resum< 
 their influence. 
 
 Sec. 42. RELIGION. At the close of the pre- 
 ceding period, we observed that religion had re- 
 vived, in a degree, from the injuries it suffered 
 during the revolutionary war ; and we might 
 have expected, that under the auspices of a wise 
 
365 
 
 and settled government, conducted by a practi^ 
 cal Christian, like Washington, it would have ac- 
 quired a still more commanding influence. Such, 
 however, was not the fact. 
 
 As the people of the United States heartily 
 espoused the cause of the revolution in France, 
 and sympathized with that people, in their strug- 
 gle for freedom, it was hut too natural, that the 
 sentiments of the revolutionists, on other than 
 political subjects, should be imbibed. As the 
 French revolutionists were almost universally 
 deists, or atheists, these sentiments were exten- 
 sively spread over the United States. 
 
 For a time, the boldness of the enterprises, the splendor 
 of the victories, and the importance of the conquests, achieved 
 by the French republic, promoted the extension of French 
 infidelity in the United States. " Most eyes," says Dr. 
 Dwight, " were disabled from seeing the nature of the pur- 
 poses, which the revolutionists had in view, and of the cha- 
 racters which were exhibited on this singular stage. In 
 the agitation and amaztnent excited in all men, few retain- 
 ed so steady optics as to discern, without confusion, the ne- 
 cessary consequences of this stupendous shock." 
 
 Infidelity was also greatly extended, at this time, by. the 
 writings of Paine, Godwin, and others, which were indus- 
 triously circulated through the country.* The perspicuous 
 and simple style of Paine, his keen powers of ridicule, di- 
 rected again.it the Bible, and above all, the gratitude which 
 multitudes felt for the aid his pen had given to our revolu- 
 tion, contributed to impart to him a peculiarly powerful in- 
 fluence. His vicious life, however, and the horrible enor- 
 mities committed by the French revolutionists, gave such a 
 fearful comment upon their principles, as at length, in a great 
 measure, to bring them into discredit, and to arrest their 
 growing influence. 
 
 Sec. 43. TRADE AND COMMERCE. These flou- 
 rished, during this period, beyond all former ex- 
 
 * Godwin's Political Justice, and Paine's Age of Reason, powerfully 
 urged on the tide of infidelity. An enormous edition of the latter publica- 
 tion was printed ii France, and sent *r America, to be sold for* a few 
 pence only ; and \\ here it could not be sold, it was given away. 
 31* 
 
366 PERIOD vii. 1789 TO 1797. 
 
 ample. In 1797, the exports of the United States 
 of all kinds, amounted to fifty-six millions eight 
 hundred and fifty thousand two hundred and 
 six dollars. The imports amounted to seventy- 
 five millions three hundred and seventy-nine 
 thousand four hundred and six dollars. Our ves- 
 sels visited every part of the world, and brought 
 wealth and luxuries from every country. 
 
 Sec. 44. AGRICULTURE. Aside from the im- 
 portance of agriculture, as furnishing us with 
 the greatest portion of our food, it began now 
 to derive greater consequence, as furnishing ma- 
 terials for our manufactures, and, still more, as 
 contributing largely to our exports. In 1796, it 
 was estimated that three fourths of the inhabit- 
 ants of the United States, if not a greater pro- 
 portion, were employed in agricultural pursuits. 
 
 Sec. 45. ARTS AND MANUFACTURES. During this 
 period, manufactures attracted the attention of 
 government. Mr. Hamilton, secretary of the 
 treasury, made a report to congress, on the sub- 
 ject, in which he set forth their importance to 
 the country, and urged the policy of aiding them. 
 Since that time, the revenue laws have been 
 framed, with the view to the encouragement of 
 manufactures, and their promotion has been con- 
 sidered as a part of the settled policy of the Uni- 
 ted States. Although the flourishing state of 
 commerce commanded the attention, and ab- 
 sorbed the capital of the country, in some de- 
 gree, to the exclusion of other objects, still manu- 
 factures made considerable progress. 
 
 Sec. 46. POPULATION. The inhabitants of the 
 United States, at the close of this period, amount- 
 ed to about five millions. 
 
 Sec. 47. EDUCATION. The adoption of the fede- 
 
WASHINGTON'S ADMINISTRATION. 367 
 
 ral constitution placed the political affairs of the. 
 United States on a permanent basis, and since 
 that period, learning has flourished. 
 
 In 1791, the university of Vermont was established at 
 Burlington ; Williams' College, Massachusetts, in 1793 ; 
 Union College, at Schenectady, New- York, and Greenville 
 College, Tennessee, in 1794; Bowdoin College, at Bruns 
 wick, in Maine, 1796. An historical society was formed 
 in Massachusetts, in 1791, and incorporated in 1794. It 
 has published twelve volumes of documents, designed to il- 
 lustrate the past and present state of the country. 
 
 REFLECTIONS. 
 
 Sec. 48. A short time since, we were occupied in consi- 
 dering the United States struggling for independence, under 
 Washington, as a leader of their armies. Under his gui- 
 dance, we saw them triumph, and become a free nation. 
 We have also seen them, with Washington at the head of 
 the convention, forming our excellent constitution. We now 
 see them, with Washington their chief magistrate, taking 
 their place among the sovereignties of the earth, and launch- 
 ing forth on the full tide of successful experiment. 
 
 Under Washington, as our leader, we won our independ- 
 ence ; formed our constitution ; established our government. 
 And what reward does he ask for services like these ? Does 
 he ask a diadem 1 Does he lay his hand upon our national 
 treasury? Does he claim to be emperor of the nation that 
 had risen up under his auspices? No although " first in 
 war, first in peace, first in the hearts of his countrymen," 
 he sublimely retires to the peaceful occupations of rural life, 
 content with the honor of having been instrumental in 
 achieving the independence, and securing the happiness of 
 his country. 
 
 Tfiere is no parallel in history to this ! By the side of 
 Washington, Alexander is degraded to a selfish destroye? 
 of his race ; Cesar becomes the dazzled votary of power ; 
 and Bonaparte, a baffled aspirant to universal dominion. 
 
 Washington has been the theme of eulogy in every nation, 
 M His military successes," it has been well said, "were more 
 solid than brilliant, and judgment, rather than enthusiasm, 
 regulated his conduct in battle. In the midst of the inevita- 
 ble disorder of camps, and the excesses inseparable from 
 civil war, humanity always found a refuge in his tent. In 
 
ouo PERIOD vii. 1789 TO 1797. 
 
 P the morning of triumph, and in the darkness of adversity, 
 he was alike serene ; at all times tranquil as wisdom, and 
 simple as virtue. After the acknowledgment of American 
 independence, when the unanimous suffrages of a free peo- 
 ple called him to administer their government, his adminis- 
 tration, partaking of his character, was mild and firm at 
 home; noble and prudent abroad."* 
 
 
 Inchiquin's Letters. 
 
 
 
UNITED STATES. 
 
 PERIOD VIII. 
 
 DISTINGUISHED FOR ADAMS 7 ADMINISTRATION. 
 
 Extending from the inauguration of President 
 Adams, 1797, to the inauguration of Thomas 
 Jefferson, as president of the United States, 
 1801. 
 
 Sec. 1. On the 4th of March, 1797, Mr. Adams, 
 in the presence of the senate, of the officers of 
 the general and state governments, and a numer- 
 ous concourse of spectators, took the oath of of- 
 fice, as president of the United States. 
 
 The condition of the country, at the close of 
 Washington's administration, and the commence- 
 ment of Mr. Adams', was greatly improved from 
 that of 1789, the period at which the former en- 
 tered, upon his office. 
 
 At home, a sound credit had been established; an im- 
 mense floating debt had been funded in a manner perfectly 
 satisfactory to the creditors, and an ample revenue had 
 been provided. Those difficulties, which a system of in- 
 ternal taxation, on its first introduction, is doomed to en- 
 counter, were completely removed ; and the authority of the 
 government was firmly established. 
 
 Funds for the gradual payment of the debt had been pro- 
 vided ; a considerable part of it had actually been discharg- 
 ed ; and that system which is now operating its entire ex- 
 tinction, had been matured and adopted. The agricultural 
 and commercial wealth of the nation had increased beyond 
 all former example. The numerous tribes of Indians, on 
 
PERIOD VIII. 1797 TO 1801. 
 
 e west, had been taught by arms and by justice, to res- 
 et the United States, and to continue in peace. 
 Abroad, the differences with Spain had been accommo- 
 dated. The free navigation of the Mississippi had been 
 acquired, with the use of New-Orleans, as a place of depo- 
 sit for three years, and afterwards, until some equivalent 
 place should be designated. 
 
 Those causes of mutual exasperation, which had threat- 
 ened to involve the United States in a war with the great 
 est maritime and commercial power in the world, had been 
 removed ; and the military posts which had been occupied 
 within their territory, from their existence as a nation, had 
 been evacuated. Treaties had been formed with Algiers 
 and Tripoli, and no captures appear to have been made by 
 Tunis ; so that the Mediterranean was opened to American 
 vessels. 
 
 This bright prospect was, indeed, in part, shaded by the 
 discontents of France. But the causes of these discontents, 
 it had been impossible to avoid, without surrendering the 
 right of self-government. Such was the situation of the 
 United States at the close of Washington's, and the com- 
 mencement of Adams' administration. 
 
 Sec. 2. Just before Washington retired from 
 office, learning that France meditated hostilities 
 against the United States, by way of depreda- 
 tions on her West India commerce, he had re- 
 called Mr. Monroe, then minister to that court, 
 and despatched Gen. C. C. Pinckney, minister 
 plenipotentiary, to adjust existing differences. 
 
 Immediately upon succeeding to the presiden- 
 cy, Mr. Adams received intelligence that the 
 French Republic had announced to Gen. Pinck- 
 ney its determination, " not to receive another 
 minister from the United States, until after the 
 redress of grievances," &c. 
 
 On the receipt of this intelligence, the presi- 
 dent issued his proclamation to convene congress 
 on the 15th of June. In his speech on that oc- 
 casion, having stated the indignity offered the 
 United States by France, in refusing to receive 
 
371 
 
 her minister, the president, in the tone of a 
 high-minded and independent American, urged 
 congress " to repel this indignity of the French 
 government, by a course, which shall convince 
 that government and the world, that we are 
 not a degraded people, humiliated under a colo- 
 njal spirit of fear and a sense of inferiority, fit- 
 ted to be the miserable instruments of foreign 
 influence, and regardless of national honor, cha- 
 racter, and interest." 
 
 Notwithstanding this language, the president 
 fctill retained a desire for peace. Upon his re- 
 commendation, three envoys extraordinary, C. 
 C. Pinckney, Elbridge Gerry, arid John Mar- 
 shall, were appointed to the French Republic, to 
 carry into effect the pacific dispositions of the 
 United States. 
 
 #ec. 3. For a considerable time, no certain 
 intelligence reached the country respecting the 
 negotiations at Paris. At length, in the winter 
 of 1798, letters were received from the Ameri- 
 can envoys, indicating an unfavorable state of 
 things'; and in the spring, despatches arrived, 
 which announced the total failure of the mis- 
 sion. 
 
 Before the French government would acknowledge the 
 envoys, money, by way of tribute, was demanded in expli- 
 cit terms of the United States. This being refused, an at- 
 tempt was next made to excite the fears of the American 
 ministers for their country and themselves. The immense 
 power of France was painted in glowing colors, the humi- 
 liation of the house of Austria was stated, and the conquest 
 of Britain was confidently anticipated. In the friendship 
 of France alone, they were told, could America look for 
 safety. 
 
 During these transactions, occasion was repeatedly taken 
 to insult the American government ; open war was con- 
 tinued to be urged by the cruisers of France on American 
 commerce ; and the flag of the United States was a suffi- 
 
372 PERIOD viii. 1797 TO 1801. 
 
 cient justification for the capture and condemnation of any 
 vessel over which it waved. 
 
 Sec. 4. Perceiving further negotiations to be 
 in vain, congress now proceeded to the adoption 
 of vigorous measures for 'retaliating injuries, 
 which had "been sustained, and for repelling 
 still greater injuries, which were threatened. 
 Amongst these measures was the augmentation 
 of the regular army. 
 
 A regiment of artillerists and engineers was added to the 
 permanent establishment, and the president was authorized 
 to raise twelve additional regiments of infantry, and one 
 regiment of cavalry. He was also authorized to appoint 
 officers for a provisional army, and to receive and organize 
 volunteer corps. 
 
 By the unanimous consent of the senate, Gen 
 Washington was appointed lieutenant general 
 and commander-in-chief of all the armies raised, 
 or to be raised, in the United States. 
 
 Sec. 5. While preparations were thus making 
 for war, indirect pacific overtures were commu- 
 nicated by the French government to the presi 
 dent, and a willingness expressed to accommo- 
 date existing differences, on reasonable terms. 
 
 Solicitous to restore that harmony and good 
 understanding, which had formerly existed be- 
 tween the two countries, the president listened 
 to these overtures, and appointed three envoys, 
 Oliver Ellsworth, chief justice of the United 
 States, Patrick Henry,* then late governor of 
 Virginia, and William Vans Murray, minister at 
 the Hague, to discuss and settle, by treaty, all 
 controversies between the United States and 
 France. 
 
 On the arrival of these envoys at Paris, they 
 
 * Before the time of embarkation, Mr. Henry died, and Governor 
 Davie of North Carolina was appointed in his room. 
 
Burial of Gen. Fraser. P. 259. 
 
 Putnam's Escape at Horse-Neck. P. 273. 
 

ADAMS' ADMINISTRATION. 373 
 
 found the government in the hands of Bonaparte, 
 who had not been concerned in the transactions 
 which had disturbed the peace of the two coun- 
 tries. Negotiations were commenced, which 
 terminated in a treaty of peace, September 30th, 
 1800, soon after which, the provisional army in 
 America was, by order of congress, disbnnded. 
 
 Sec. 6. On the 14th of December, 17y9, Gen. 
 Washington expired at his seat, at Mount Ver- 
 non, in Virginia, leaving a nation to mourn his 
 loss, and to embalm his memory with their 
 tears. 
 
 The disease of which Gen. Washington died, was an in- 
 flammatory affection of the windpipe, occasioned by an*ex- 
 posure to a light rain, while attending, the day before, to 
 some improvements on his estate. -7 
 
 The disease at its commencement was violent, and medi- 
 cal skill was applied in vain. Respiration became more 
 and more contracted and imperfect, until half past eleven 
 o'clock on Saturday night, when, retaining the full posses- 
 sion of his intellect, he expired without a groan. 
 
 Believing at the commencement of his complaint, that its 
 conclusion* would be mortal, he economized his time in ar- 
 ranging, with the utmost serenity, those few concerns, which 
 required his attention. To his physician, he expressed his 
 :onviction that he was dying; ."but," said he, " / am not 
 ^fraid to die." 
 
 On Wednesday, the 18th of December, his body was de- 
 posited in the family vault, attended with military honors, 
 ind suitable religious services. 
 
 On the arrival of the news of his death at Philadelphia, 
 Monday, congress immediately adjourned. On the day 
 succeeding, resolutions were adopted expressive of the grief 
 of the members, and a committee was appointed to devise a 
 mode, by which the national feelings should be expressed. 
 
 On the melancholy occasion, the senate addressed to the 
 president, a letter in which they say, " Permit us, sir, to 
 mingle our tears with yours. On this occasion, it is man- 
 ly to weep. To lose such a man, at such a crisis, is no 
 common calamity to the world. Our country mourns a 
 father. The Almighty Disposer of events has taken from 
 as our greatest benefactor and ornament. It becomes us to 
 32 
 
374 PERIOD viii. 1797 TO 1801. 
 
 submit with reverence to Him, who rnaketh darkness his 
 pavilion. 
 
 " With patriotic pride, we review the life of Washington, 
 and compare him with those of other countries who have 
 been pre-eminent in favor. Ancient and modern names 
 are diminished before him. Greatness and guilt have too 
 often been allied ; but his fame is whiter than it is brilliant. 
 The destroyers of nations stood abashed at the majesty of 
 his virtues. It reproved the intemperance of their ambi- 
 tion, and darkened the splendor of victory. 
 
 " The scene is closed ; and we are no longer anxious lest 
 misfortune should sully his glory. He has travelled on to 
 the end of his journey, and carried with him an increasing- 
 weight of honor. He has deposited it safely where mis- 
 fortune cannot tarnish it ; where malice cannot blast it. 
 Favored of Heaven, he departed without exhibiting the 
 weakness of humanity ; magnanimous in death, the dark- 
 ness of the grave could not obscure his brightness." 
 
 The committee, appointed to devise some mode by which 
 to express the national feelings, recommended that a marble 
 monument be erected by the United States, at the city of 
 Washington, to commemorate the great events of Wash- 
 ington's military and political life; that a funeral oration 
 be delivered by a member of congress ; that the president 
 be requested to write a letter of condolence to Mrs. Wash- 
 ington ; and that it be recommended to the citizens of the 
 United States, to wear crape on the left arm for thirty days. 
 
 These resolutions passed both houses unanimously. The 
 whole nation appeared in mourning. The funeral proces- 
 sion at the city of Washington was grand and solemn, and 
 the eloquent oration, delivered on the occasion by General 
 Henry Lee, was heard with profound attention, and with 
 deep interest. 
 
 Throughout the United States, similar marks of affliction 
 were exhibited. Funeral orations were delivered, and the 
 best talents devoted to an expression of grief, at the loss of 
 " the man, first in war, first in peace, and first in the hearts 
 of his fellow-citizens." 
 
 Sec. 7. In 1800, agreeably to a resolution pass- 
 ed in congress in 1790, the seat of government 
 was transferred from Philadelphia to the city of 
 Washington, in the District of Columbia. 
 
 The District of Columbia is a territory of ten miles 
 square. It is about three hundred miles from the sea, at 
 
375 
 
 the head of tide water on the Potomac, which runs through 
 it diagonally, near the centre, tt was ceded, in 1790, to 
 the United States, by Maryland and Virginia, and it is 
 under the immediate government of congress. 
 
 Sec. 8. On the 4th of March, 1801, Mr. Adams' 
 term of office as president would expire. Be- 
 fore the arrival of the time for a new election, 
 it had been pretty certainly predicted, that he 
 could not be re-elected. His administration, 
 through the whole course of it, had been the 
 subject of much popular clamor, especially by 
 the democratic party. But the measures, which 
 most excited the opposition of that party, and 
 which were most successfully employed to de- 
 stroy the popularity of Mr. Adams' administra- 
 tion, and to place the government in other hands, 
 were several laws passed during his presidency, 
 among which were the " Alien" and " Sedition" 
 laws. 
 
 By the " alien law" the president was authorized to 
 order any alien, whom " he should judge dangerous to the 
 peace and safety of the United States, &c., to depart out of 
 the territory, within such time" as he should judge proper, 
 upon penalty of being " imprisoned for a term not exceed- 
 ing three years," &c. 
 
 The design of the " sedition law" so called, was to punish 
 the abuse of speech, and of the press. It imposed a heavy 
 pecuniary fine, and imprisonment for a term of years, upon 
 such as should combine or conspire together to oppose any 
 measure of government ; upon such as should write, print, 
 utter, publish, &c., " any false, scandalous, and malicious 
 writing against the government of the United States, or 
 either house of the congress of the United States, or the pre- 
 sident," &c. 
 
 These acts, together with others for raising a 
 standing army, and imposing a direct tax and 
 internal duties, with other causes, so increased 
 the opposition to Mr. Adams' administration, as 
 to prevent his re-election, and greatly to weaken 
 
376 PERIOD viii. 1797 TO 1801. 
 
 the strength of that party to whom he owed his 
 elevation to the presidency. 
 
 Sec. 9. The strife of parties, during the term 
 of electioneering, was spirited. On canvassing 
 the votes of the electors for president, it was 
 found that Mr. Jefferson and Mr. Burr had each 
 seventy-three votes, Mr. Adams sixty-five, and C. 
 C. Pinrkney sixty-four. As the constitution pro- 
 vided that the person having the greatest num- 
 ber of votes should be president, and Mr. Jeffer- 
 son and Mr. Burr having an equal number, it 
 became the duty of the house of representatives, 
 voting by states, to decide between these two 
 gentlemen. 
 
 The ballot was taken for several days in sue 
 cession. February, 1801, before a choice was 
 made. The federalists generally supported Mr. 
 Burr ; the democratic party Mr. Jefferson. At 
 length, after much political heat and party ani- 
 mosity, the choice fell upon the latter, who was 
 declared to be elected president of the United 
 States for four years, commencing March 4th, 
 1801. Mr. Burr was elected vice president. 
 
 As this was the first time that the election of president 
 had come before congress, since the adoption of the consti- 
 tution, a deep interest was taken in the subject. This inte- 
 rest was heightened by the excited state of parties, into 
 which congress itself, and the people of the United States, 
 were divided. The mode of proceeding to the election of 
 president, therefore, was settled in due form, and solemnity. 
 Among other rules, it was settled, that after the balloting had 
 commenced, the house should not adjourn, until a choice 
 was made ; that the doors of the house should be closed, 
 during the balloting, except against the officers of the house ; 
 that in balloting the representatives of the respective states 
 should be so seated, that the delegation of each state should 
 be together. The representatives of each state were to bal- 
 lot among themselves duplicates of these ballots were to 
 be made, and placed in two ballot boxes. When all the 
 
377 
 
 states had thus voted, the ballot boxes were to be carried by ' 
 the sergeant at arms to two separate tables. The ballots 
 were then to be counted by tellers, eight in number, at each 
 table. When counted, the reports were to be announced 
 from each table ; if these reports agreed, they were to be ac- 
 cepted, as the true votes of the states ; if they differed, a new 
 balloting was to be made. 
 
 On Wednesday, the llth of February, the votes from the 
 several electoral colleges were counted in the senate cham- 
 ber, in presence of both houses ; and the result was declared 
 by the president to be, no choice Mr. Jefferson and Mr. 
 Burr having each an equal number of votes. 
 
 The question therefore devolving upon the house of repre- 
 sentatives, that body returned to their chamber, where seats 
 had been previously prepared for the members of the senate 
 A call of the members of the house, arranged according to 
 states, was then made ; upon which, it appeared that every 
 member was present, except General Sumpter, who was un- 
 well, and unable to attend. Mr. Nicholson, of Maryland, 
 was also unwell, but attended, and had a bed prepared for 
 him in one of the committee rooms, to which place the ballot 
 box was carried to him, by the tellers, on the part of the 
 state. 
 
 The first ballot was eight states for Mr. Jefferson, six for 
 Mr. Burr*, and two divided ; which result continued to be 
 the same after balloting thirty-five times. The thirty-sixth 
 ballot determined the question. 
 
 This important decision took place at twelve o'clock on 
 the 17th of February, when there appeared for Mr. Jeffer- 
 son ten states ; for Mr. Burr four states ; and the remaining 
 two were blank ballots. The states which voted for Mr. 
 Jefferson were, Georgia, North Carolina, Tennessee, Ken- 
 tucky, Virginia, Maryland, Pennsylvania, New-Jersey, New- 
 York, and Vermont. The states for Mr. Burr were, New- 
 Hampshire, Massachusetts, Connecticut, and Rhode Island. 
 The blank states were Delaware and South Carolina 
 
 NOTES. 
 
 Sec. 10. MANNERS. The manners of the peo- 
 ple of the United States underwent no marked ] 
 change during this period. 
 
 Sec. 11. RELIGION. Although infidelity does 
 not seem to have made much progress in the 
 32* 
 
H^*t/' /C ** 
 
 378 PERIOD vin.^1797 TO 1801. 
 
 United States, during this period, it was evident 
 that it had taken deep root in many minds. 
 
 Infidels, however, were less confident, and less ready to 
 avow their sentiments. They stood abashed before the 
 world, at the fearful and blood-chilling horrors which their 
 principles had poured out upon France. Their doctrines 
 were, at the same time, powerfully refuted by the ablest men 
 both in England and America. At length, they ceased to 
 make proselytes, spoke favorably of the Christian religion, 
 generally admitted that it was absolutely necessary to good 
 government ; and error, with regard to religion, assumed a 
 new form. 
 
 Towards the close of this period, a revival of religion 
 commenced in New-England, and seems to have been the 
 beginning of that series of revivals which have since over- 
 spread the United States. Some sects which had before 
 regarded " revivals of religion" with suspicion or aversion, 
 became convinced of their utility, and began to promote 
 them. 
 
 Sec. 12. TRADE AND COMMERCE. Trade and 
 commerce were still prosperous, and the remarks 
 made in respect to them, under period VII., ap- 
 ply to them during this period. 
 
 The exports, in 1801, were ninety-three millions twenty 
 thousand five hundred and seventy-three dollars ; the im- 
 ports, one hundred and eleven millions three hundred and 
 sixty-three thousand five hundred and eleven dollars. 
 
 Sec. 13. AGRICULTURE. Agriculture still con- 
 tinued to flourish. 
 
 Sec. 14. ARTS AND MANUFACTURES. The gene- 
 ral remarks on the .preceding period, relative to 
 this subject, apply, without material alteration, 
 to this period. 
 
 Sec. 15. POPULATION. The number of inhabit- 
 ants, at the close of this period, was not far from 
 five millions five hundred thousand. 
 
 Sec. 16. EDUCATION. We have nothing parti- 
 cular to observe in relation to education. Public 
 and private schools, however, were multiplied, 
 
ADAMS' ADMINISTRATION. 379 
 
 as the people increased, and as new settlements 
 were made. 
 
 In 1798, a college was founded at Lexington, Kentucky, 
 called the Transylvania University. Middlebury College, 
 in Vermont, was founded in 1800. At the commencement 
 of the 18th century, there was, in New-England, but one 
 college completely founded, but now there were six; in 
 the colonies south of Connecticut, there was only one, but 
 now there were fifteen or sixteen. 
 
UNITED STATES. 
 
 PERIOD IX. 
 
 DISTINGUISHED FOR JEFFERSON'S ADMINISTRATION 
 
 Extending from the inauguration of President 
 Jefferson, 1801, to the inauguration of James 
 Madison, as president of the United States, 1809. 
 
 Sec. 1. On the 4th of March, 1801, Mr. Jeffer- 
 son, agreeably to the constitution, was regularly 
 inducted into the office of president of the Uni- 
 ted States. 
 
 At the time of his inauguration, Mr. Jefferson delivered 
 an address, expressive of his political opinions, and the prin- 
 ciples by which he designed to shape his administration. 
 These were, " Equal and exact justice to all men, of what- 
 ever state or persuasion, religious or political: peace, com- 
 merce, and honest friendship, with all nations, entangling 
 alliances with none : the support of the state governments 
 in all their rights, as the most competent administration for 
 our domestic concerns, and the surest bulwarks against anti- 
 republican tendencies : the preservation of the general go- 
 vernment in its whole constitutional vigor, as the sheet an- 
 chor of our peace at home, and safety abroad : a jealous 
 care of the right of election by the people, a mild and safe 
 corrective of abuses which are lopped by the sword of revo- 
 lution where peaceable remedies are unprovided : absolute 
 acquiescence in the decisions of the majority, the vital prin- 
 ciple of republics, from which is no appeal but to force, the 
 vital principle and immediate parent of despotisms : a well 
 disciplined militia, our best reliance in peace, and for the 
 first moments of war, till regulars may relieve them : the 
 supremacy of the civil over the military authority : econo- 
 my in the public expense, that labor may be lightly bur 
 
381 
 
 thened : the honest payment of our debts, and sacred pre- 
 servation of the public faith : encouragement of agriculture, 
 and of commerce as its handmaid : the diffusion of infor- 
 mation, and arraignment of all abuses at the bar of public 
 reason : freedom of religion : freedom of the press : and 
 freedom of person, under the protection of the habeas cor- 
 pus and trial by juries impartially selected. These prin- 
 ciples," added Mr. Jefferson, " should be the creed of our 
 political faith ; and should we wander from them in mo- 
 ments of error or of alarm, let us hasten to retrace our steps, 
 and to regain the road which alone leads to peace, liberty, 
 and safety. " 
 
 Sec. 2. The commencement of Mr. Jefferson's 
 administration was marked by a removal, from 
 responsible and lucrative offices, of a great por- 
 tion of those whose political opinions were op- 
 posed to his own, on the ground, that most of the 
 offices, at the disposal of the government, had 
 been exclusively bestowed on the adherents of 
 the opposite party. 
 
 In a reply to a remonstrance of the merchants of New- 
 Haven, against the removal from office of a federal collector 
 of that port, and the appointment of a gentleman of opposite 
 politics, the president formally assigned this as the reason 
 of the course he pursued: 
 
 " It would have been to me," said he, in that reply, " a 
 circumstance of great relief, had I found a moderate partici- 
 pation of office in the hands of the majority, (the democratic 
 party.) I would gladly have left to time and accident to 
 raise them to their just share. But their total exclusion 
 calls for prompter correctives. I shall correct the proce- 
 dure ; ut that done, return with joy to that state of things, 
 when the only question concerning a candidate shall be, Is 
 he honest ? Is he capable ? Is he faithful to the constitu- 
 tion?" 
 
 Sec. 3. Congress met on the 8th of December. 
 In his speech at the opening of the session, the 
 president recommended the abolition of the in- 
 ternal taxes ; the repeal of the act passed to- 
 wards the close of Mr. Adams' administration, 
 reorganizing the United States courts, and erect- 
 
PERIOD IX. 1801 TO 1809. 
 
 ing sixteen new judges ; and an enlargement of 
 the rights of naturalization. The debates on 
 these several topics, in both houses of congress, 
 were extended to great length, and displayed 
 much eloquence, argument, and warmth. The 
 recommendation of the president, notwithstand- 
 ing the opposition, prevailed, and bills in accord- 
 ance therewith were passed. 
 
 The internal taxes, from the time of their establishment, 
 had been extremely unpopular with the party which had 
 elevated Mr. Jefferson to the presidency. It was a favorite 
 measure, therefore, of his, to procure their abolition. 
 
 The national judicial establishment originally consisted 
 of a supreme court, with six judges, who twice a year made 
 a tour of the United States in three circuits. Under this ar- 
 rangement, great inconveniences were experienced by the 
 court, the bar, and the suitors. The new arrangement in 
 the judicial system, and the increase of judges at the close 
 of Mr. Adams' term, had excited, in a large portion of the 
 citizens, the hope of a more prompt and impartial adminis- 
 tration of justice. To that portion of the community, the 
 repealing act was a painful disappointment. 
 
 .Sec. 4. In 1802, OHIO was admitted, by act of 
 congress, as an independent state, into the union. 
 
 The state of Ohio derived its name from the river Ohio, 
 which sweeps the southeastern border of the state. 
 
 Until 1787, it was inhabited only by Indians, a few Mo 
 ravians, and trespassers on lands belonging to the public. 
 By virtue of her charter, the territory was claimed by Vir- 
 
 Sinia, and held by her, although the original charter of 
 onnecticut, extending west to the Pacific Ocean, included 
 a great part of it. 
 
 In 1781, the legislature of Virginia ceded to the United 
 States all her rights to the territory northwest of the river 
 Ohio, excepting some few military tracts. In 1788, the 
 first settlement was begun at Marietta, under Gen. Rufus 
 Putnam, from New-England. It had been, the year before, 
 erected into one district, including the present territories of 
 Michigan, Illinois, and Indiana. 
 
 Until 1795, the settlement of Ohio was retarded by con- 
 stant wars with the Indians. But at that time, a general 
 peace with the different tribes being effected by Gen. Wayne, 
 
383 
 
 under Washington, the population of the territory rapidly 
 increased by emigrations from Europe, and still more from 
 New-England. 
 
 Sec. 5. In July, 1804, occurred the death of 
 Gen. Alexander Hamilton, who fell in a duel 
 fought with Aaron Burr, vice-president of the 
 United States. 
 
 Col. Burr had addressed a letter to Gen. Hamilton, in 
 which he demanded a denial or acknowledgment, on the 
 part of the latter, of certain offensive expressions, contained 
 in a public paper. Hamilton, declining to give either, was 
 challenged by Burr. Although r vi-rse, from principle, to 
 this mode of settling personal controversies, in an evil mo- 
 ment, Hamilton, actuated by a false sense of honor, accepted 
 the challenge, and on meeting his enemy, fell by means of 
 his first fire. Among his personal and political friends, his 
 death caused a deep sensation. The people of New- York 
 city, in which he resided, paid him extraordinary honors. 
 Few men Have shone with greater brilliancy in our coun- 
 try ; few have been gifted with a more powerful eloquence, 
 or have been more justly respected for their talents or at- 
 tainments. 
 
 $ec. 6. Mr. Jefferson's first term of office end- 
 Ing this year, a new election took place, at which 
 he was re-chosen president, and on the 4th of 
 March again took the oath of office. George 
 Clinton, of New-York, was elected vice-president. 
 
 Sec. 7. During the year which commenced the 
 second of Mr. Jefferson's presidency, a war which 
 had been continued for several years between 
 the United States and Tripoli, was concluded, and 
 a treaty of peace negotiated by Colonel Lear, be- 
 tween the two countries, by which the Tripoli- 
 tan and American prisoners were exchanged, and 
 the sum of sixty thousand dollars given to the 
 pacha. 
 
 The history of this war deserves a place is these pages. 
 The commerce of the United States had been long annoyed 
 by the Tripolitan cruisers many merchantmen had been 
 taken, and their crews imprisoned and cruelly treated. 
 
384 PERIOD ix. 1801 TO 1809. 
 
 As early as 1803, a squadron under Com. Preble had 
 been sent to the Mediterranean, to protect the American 
 commerce, and to bring the corsairs tasubmission. During 
 the same year, Capt. Bainbridge, rH|he Philadelphia, join- 
 ed Com. Preble, and in chasing a cruiser into the harbor of 
 Tripoli, grounded his vessel, and he and his crew were ta- 
 ken prisoners. 
 
 Shortly after the surrender of the Philadelphia, the Tri- 
 politans got her afloat, and warped her into the outward har- 
 
 \ bor. In this situation, Lieutenant, afterwards Commodore, 
 Decatur, conceived the bold plan of attempting to set her on 
 fire. He had the day before captured a small xebec, laden 
 with fruit and oil, which was bound to Tripoli ; and having 
 on board the Enterprise, which he commanded, an old pilot, 
 who understood the Tripolitan language, he suggested his 
 plan to Commodore Preble, who approved of it. He would 
 accept of only twenty men, although a much greater num- 
 ber volunteered, and but one officer, Mr. Morris, a midship- 
 man. With these men, concealed in the bottom of the xe- 
 bec, on the approach of night, he sailed for the Philadelphia, 
 taking with him the old pilot. On approaching the frigate, 
 the xebec was hailed, when the pilot answered, that he had 
 lost his cable and anchor, and begged permission to make 
 fast to the frigate, until the morning. This the crew re- 
 fused, but said he might make fast to their stern hawser, 
 until they sent a boat to the admiral for leave. 
 
 As the boat put off for the shore, Lieutenant Decatur, 
 with his brave companions, leaped on board the frigate, 
 and in a few minutes swept the deck of every Tripolitan. 
 Of fifty, not one reached the shore. The frigate was now 
 set on fire, and while the flames rose, to spread consterna- 
 tion among the Tripolitans, they served to lighten the he- 
 roic Decatur and his band back in safety to the American 
 squadron. Of the party, not one was killed, and but one 
 wounded. This was a seaman, who saved the life of his 
 commander. In the first desperate struggle on board the 
 Philadelphia, Decatur was disarmed, and fell. A sabre 
 
 tf was already lifted to strike the fatal blow, when this sea- 
 
 %man, observing the perilous situation of his officer, reached 
 forward, and received the blow of the sabre on his arm. 
 
 In consequence of the burning of the Philadelphia, the 
 sufferings of Commodore Bainbridge and his crew, as well 
 as those of other Americans in captivity at Tripoli, were 
 greatly increased. The accounts of their sufferings, trans- 
 mitted to the United States, excited the sympathy of all 
 
JEFFERSON'S ADMINISTRATION. 385 
 
 classes, and a general cry for exertions to effect their deli- 
 verance was heard from all parts of the union. 
 
 It happened, that some time before this, the then reign- 
 ing bashaw of Tripoli, Jussuf, third son of the late bashaw, 
 had murdered his father and eldest brother, and proposed 
 to murder the second, in order to possess himself of the 
 throne. But the latter, Hamet Caramelli, made his escape, 
 and Jussuf, without farther opposition, usurped the govern- 
 ment. 
 
 Hamet took refuge in Egypt, where he was kindly treat- 
 ed by the beys. Here he was, on the arrival of an accre- 
 dited agent of the United States, General Eaton, who re- 
 vived his almost expiring hopes of regaining his rightful 
 kingdom. 
 
 General Eaton had been consul for the United States up 
 the Mediterranean, and was returning home when he heard 
 of the situation of Hamet. Conceiving a plan of liberat- 
 ing the Americans in captivity at Tripoli, by means of the 
 assistance df Hamet, and, at the same time, of restoring 
 this exile to his throne, he advised with Hamet, who readi- 
 ly listened to the project, and gave his co-operation. 
 
 A convention was accordingly entered into between Gen. 
 Eaton, on the part of the United States, and Hamet, by which 
 the latter stipulated much in favor of the Americans, and 
 was promised to be restored to his throne. 
 
 With a small force, consisting of seamen from the Ame- 
 rican squadron, the followers of Hamet, and some Egyptian ^ 
 troops, Gen. Eaton and Hamet, with incredible toil and suf- 
 fering, passed the desert of Barca, and took possession of 
 Derne, the capital of a large province belonging to the 
 kingdom of Tripoli. The forces of Eaton were now so 
 much increased, and the cause of Hamet had become so po- 
 pular, that the prospect was flattering of his being able to 
 reduce the city of Tripoli, and of effecting the liberation o f 
 the captives without ransom. 
 
 The success of Eaton struck the usurper Jussuf with 
 terror. Trembling for his fate in this juncture, he propo- 
 sed to Mr. Lear, the consul-general of America, then in the 
 Mediterranean, to enter into negotiation. Mr. Lear, who 
 was authorized to enter into negotiation, accepted the pro- 
 posal, although he knew of the success of Eaton and Ha- 
 met, and a treaty ensued. Eaton and Hamet were conse- 
 quently arrested in the prosecution of their purpose, and 
 the unfortunate exile failed of his promised restoration to 
 the throne. 
 
 33 
 
386 i-riRioD ix. 1801 TO 1809. 
 
 In 1805, Harriet visited the United States, with the ex- 
 pectation of obtaining some remuneration for his services 
 from America, and for her failure in fulfilling her stipula- 
 tions to him by Gen. Eaton. A proposition to this effect 
 was brought before congress, but after much discussion was 
 rejected. 
 
 Sec. 8. During this year, 1805, MICHIGAN be- 
 came a distinct territorial government of the 
 United States. 
 
 The Michigan territory, when first discovered by the 
 whites, was inhabited by the Hurons, a tribe of Indians, 
 many of whom were converted to Christianity by the Jesuit 
 missionaries in 1^18. About the year 1670, the Hurons 
 were defeated nhd dispersed by the Six Nations, about 
 which time, the. French took possession of the territory, 
 and built a fort at Detroit, and another at Michillimackinac. 
 Little, however, was done by the French to settle the 
 country. 
 
 At the peace of 1763, the territory was ceded by the 
 French to Great Britain, and by the latter to the United 
 States in 1783. Until 1787, it remained in the same state 
 of nature, without a government, or any considerable set- 
 tlements; but at this time, the several states which had 
 claims upon it, ceded them to the United States, and a ter- 
 ritorial government was instituted over all the territory, 
 northwest of the Ohio. 
 
 This territory remained under one government until 
 1800, when the present state of Ohio was detached, and 
 made a distinct government. This was followed, in 1801, 
 by a farther separation of Indiana and Illinois ; and, in 
 1805, Michigan was also detached, and was erected into a 
 distinct territorial government. Gen. Hull was appointed 
 by Mr. Jefferson the first governor. 
 
 Sec. 9. In the autumn of 1806, a project was 
 detected, at the head of which was Col. Burr, 
 for revolutionizing the territory west of the Al- 
 leganies, and of establishing an independent 
 empire there, of which New-Orleans was to be 
 the capital, and himself the chief. Towards the 
 accomplishment of this scheme, which, it after- 
 wards appeared, had been some time in contem- 
 plation, the skilful cunning and intrigue of Col. 
 
387 
 
 Burr were directed. Happily, however, govern- 
 ment, being apprised of his designs, arrested him, 
 while as yet he had few adherents, and before 
 his standard was raised. He was brought to 
 trial at Richmond, on a charge of treason com- _ 
 mitted within the district of Virginia ; but no 
 overt act being proved against him in that state, 
 he was released. 
 
 In addition to this project, Col. Burr had formed another, 
 which, in case of failure in the first, might be carried on 
 independently of it: this was an attack on Mexico, and 
 the establishment of an empire there. " A third object was 
 provided, merely ostensible, to wit, the settlement of the pre- 
 tended purchase of a tract of country on the Washita, claim- 
 ed by a Baron Bastrop. This was to serve as a pretext for 
 all his preparations, an allurement for such followers as 
 really wished to acquire settlements in that country, and a 
 cover under which to retreat in the event of a final discom- 
 fiture of both branches of his real designs." 
 
 " He found at once that the attachment of the western coun- 
 try to the present union was not to be shaken ; that its dis- 
 solution could not be effected with the consent of the inha- 
 bitants; and that his resources were inadequate, as yet, 
 to effect it by force. He determined, therefore, to seize 
 New- Or leans, plunder the bank there, possess himself of the 
 military and navai stores, and proceed on his expedition to 
 Mexico." 
 
 " lie collected, therefore, from all quarters, where him- 
 sel r or his agents possessed influence, all the ardent, rest- 
 less, desperate, disaffected persons, who were for an enter- 
 
 prise analogous to their characters. He also seduced good,_^V 
 well-meaning citizens, some by assurances that he possess- \ 
 ed the confidence of the government, and was acting under 
 its secret patronage : and others by offers of land in Bas- 
 trop's claim in the Washita."* 
 
 Sec. 10. L806. To understand the subsequent 
 political history of the United States, and those 
 measures of government, which were taken in re- 
 lation to foreign powers, it is necessary to glance 
 at the state of the European nations, at this pe- 
 
 * President's Message to Congress, July 21, 1807. 
 
388 PERIOD ix. 1801 TO 1809. 
 
 riod particularly that of England and France 
 These two countries were now at war with eaoii 
 other, and in their controversies had involved 
 most of the continental powers. Towards the 
 belligerents, America was endeavoring to main- 
 tain a neutrality, and peaceably to continue a 
 commerce with them. It was hardly to be ex 
 pected, however, that jealousies would not arise 
 between the contending powers in relation to 
 the conduct of America, and that events would 
 not occur, calculated to injure her commerce, and 
 disturb her peace. 
 
 In addition to these circumstances, a contro- 
 versy had long existed, and continued to exist, 
 between the United States and Great Britain, in 
 respect to the right of searching neutral ships, 
 and impressing seamen. Great Britain claimed 
 it as among her prerogatives to take her native 
 born subjects, wherever found, for her navy, and 
 of searching American vessels for that purpose. 
 As yet, no adjustment of this controversy had 
 been effected. Notwithstanding the remon 
 strances of the American government, the offi- 
 cers of the British navy not unfrequently seized 
 native born British subjects, who had voluntarily 
 enlisted on board our vessels. They also im- 
 pressed into the British service some thousands 
 of American seamen. 
 
 Sec. 11. May 16th, 1806, the British govern- 
 ment issued an order in council, declaring the 
 ports and rivers from the Elbe, a river in Ger- 
 many, to Brest, a town of France, to be in a 
 state of blockade. By this order, American ves- 
 sels, trading to these and intervening ports, were 
 liable to seizure and condemnation. 
 
 Sec. 12. In the ensuing November, 1806, Bona- 
 
JEFFERSON'S ADMINISTRATION. 389 
 
 parte issued his celebrated decree at Berlin, 
 called the " Berlin decree" by which all the 
 British islands were declared to be in a state ol 
 blockade, and all intercourse with them was 
 prohibited. This decree violated the treaty be- 
 tween the United States and France, and the 
 law of nations. 
 
 The following are the principal articles of that decree, 
 which related to the obstruction of American commerce : 
 
 1. The British islands are in a state of blockade. 
 
 2. All commerce and correspondence with them is pro- 
 hibited. 
 
 3. No vessel coming directly from England, or her co- 
 lonies, or having been there since the publication of this de- 
 cree, shall be admitted into any port. 
 
 Sec. 13. This decree of Bonaparte at Berlin, 
 was in part retaliated by the British govern- 
 ment, in an order of council, issued January 7th, 
 1807, by which all coasting trade with France 
 was prohibited. 
 
 " Whereas the French government has issued certain 
 orders, which purport to prohibit the commerce of all neu- 
 tral nations with his majesty's dominions," &c. " his ma- 
 jesty is pleased to order, that no vessel shall be permitted to 
 trade from one port to another, both which ports shall be- 
 long to, or be in possession of, France or her allies, or shall 
 be so far under their control as that British vessels may 
 not freely trade thereat," &c., on pain of capture and con- 
 demnation. 
 
 Sec. 14. While measures were thus taking by 
 France and England, whose tendency was to 
 injure American commerce, and to involve her 
 in a controversy with both, an event occurred, 
 which filled the American people with indigna- 
 tion, and called for immediate executive notice. 
 This was an attack upon the American frigate 
 Chesapeake, Commodore Barron, off the capes 
 of Virginia, by the British frigate Leopard of 
 fifty guns. The attack was occasioned by the 
 33* 
 
390 PERIOD ix. 1801 TO 1809. 
 
 refusal of Commodore Barren to surrender se- 
 veral seamen, who had deserted from the Bri- 
 tish armed ship Melarnpus, a short time previ- 
 ous, and had voluntarily enlisted on board the 
 Chesapeake. After crippling the American fri- 
 gate, which made no resistance, the commander 
 of the Leopard took from her the seamen in 
 question, two of whom had been proved to be 
 American citizens. 
 
 The persons who deserted from the Melarnpus, then lying 
 in Hampton roads, were William Ware, Daniel Martin, 
 John Strachan, John Little, and Ambrose Watts. Within 
 a month from their escape from the Melampus, the first 
 three of these deserters offered themselves for enlistment, 
 and were received on board the Chesapeake, then at Nor- 
 folk, Virginia, preparing for sea. 
 
 The British consul at Norfolk, being apprized of this cir- 
 cumstance, wrote a letter to the American naval officer, re- 
 questing these men to be returned. With this request the 
 officer refusing to comply, the British agent lost no time in 
 endeavoring to procure an order from government for their 
 surrender. In consequence of this application, the secretary 
 of the navy ordered an examination into the characters and 
 claims of the men in question. The required examination 
 resulted in proof that Ware, Martin, and Strachan, were 
 natives of America. The two former had protections, or 
 notarial certificates of their being American citizens. Stra- 
 chan had no protection, but asserted that he lost it previous- 
 ly to his escape. Such being the circumstances of the men, 
 the government refused to surrender them. 
 
 On the 22d of June, the Chesapeake writhed anchor and 
 proceeded to sea. She passed the British ships Bellona 
 and Melampus, lying in Lynnhaven bay, whose appear- 
 ance was friendly. There were two other ships that lay 
 off Cape Henry, one of which, the Leopard. Captain Hum- 
 phreys, weighed anchor, and in a few hours came along 
 side the Chesapeake. 
 
 A British officer immediately came on board, and de- 
 manded the deserters. To this, Capt. Barren replied, that 
 he did not know of any being there, and that his duty for- 
 bade him to allow of any muster of his crew, except by their 
 own officers. 
 
391 
 
 During- this interview, Barrqn, noticed some proceedings 
 of a hostile nature on board the adverse ship, but he could 
 not be persuaded, that any thing but menace was intended 
 by them. After the British officer departed, he gave orders 
 to clear his gun deck, and after some time, he directed his 
 men to their quarters, secretly, and without beat of drum ; 
 still, however, without any serious apprehensions of an at- 
 tack. 
 
 Before these orders could be executed, the Leopard com- 
 menced a heavy fire. This fire unfortunately was very 
 destructive. In about thirty minutes, the hull, rigging, and 
 spars of the Chesapeake, were greatly damaged, three men 
 were killed and sixteen wounded; among the latter was 
 the captain himself. Such was the previous disorder, that 
 during this time, the utmost exertions were insufficient to 
 prepare the ship for action, and the captain thought proper 
 to strike his colors. 
 
 The British captain refused to accept the surrender of 
 the Chesapeake, but took from her crew, Ware, Martin, 
 and Strachan, the three men formerly demanded as deser- 
 ters, and a fourth, John Wilson, claimed as a runaway from 
 a merchant ship. 
 
 Sec. 15. Such was the agitation of the public 
 mind, in consequence of this outrage committed 
 on the Chesapeake, that the president conceived 
 himsejf required to notice the transaction, and 
 by some decisive public act, to show how deep- 
 ly Amon -a conceived herself to be wounded. 
 Accordingly, on the 2d of July, the president 
 issued his proclamation, ordering all British 
 armed vessels to leave the waters of the United 
 States, and forbidding them to enter, until satis- 
 faction for the attack on the Chesapeake should 
 be made by the British government. 
 
 Mr. Monroe was at this time the minister of 
 the United States, at the court of St. James. 
 Early in September, he received the instructions 
 of the American government, pertaining to the 
 attack on the Chesapeake, and was required to 
 demand reparation for that attack, and, as an 
 
tf ) $#&* wy* , 
 
 392 PERIOD ix. 1801 TO 1809. 
 
 essential part of that reparation, security 
 against future impressments from American 
 ships. The British minister, Mr. Canning, how- 
 ever, protested against' conjoining the general 
 question concerning the impressment of persons 
 from neutral merchant ships, with the particu- 
 lar affray between the Leopard and the Chesa 
 peake. 
 
 As Mr. Monroe was not authorized to treat 
 these subjects separately, further negotiation 
 between these two ministers was suspended, 
 and Mr. Rose was appointed, by the British go- 
 vernment, as a special minister to the United 
 States, empowered to treat concerning the par- 
 ticular injury complained of, but not to discuss 
 the general question of impressing persons from 
 merchant ships. 
 
 Sec. 16. While such measures were taking in 
 England, in relation to the affair of the Chesa- 
 peake, congress, which had been summoned be- 
 fore the regular time, by proclamation of th$ 
 president, met on the 27th of October. 
 
 In his message to congress at this time, the president en- 
 tered fully into the state of our relations with Great Britain 
 informed them of a treaty which had been negotiated 
 with the British government, by Messrs. Monroe and Pin^k- 
 ney, but which he had rejected, principally because, it 
 made no sufficient provision op the subject of impressments 
 stated the affair of the attack on the Chesapeake his 
 proclamation to British armed vessels to quit the waters of 
 the United States his instructions to the American minis- 
 ter at London, in relation to reparation expected from the 
 British government, and his expectation of speedily hear- 
 ing from England the result of the measures which had 
 been taken. 
 
 Sec. 17. On the llth of November, were is- 
 sued at London, the celebrated British Orders in 
 Council, retaliatory upon the French government 
 
JEFFERSON'S ADMINISTRATION. 393 
 
 for the Berlin decree of November, 1806. By 
 the-se orders in council, France and her allies, 
 all nations at war with Great Britain, and all 
 places from which the British flag is excluded, 
 were declared to be under the same restrictions 
 in point of trade and navigation, as if the same 
 were in a state of blockade. 
 
 Sec. 18. Before the arrival of Mr. Rose, con- 
 gress was sedulously employed in considering 
 the state of the nation, and in making provision 
 for putting the country in a posture of defence. 
 Acts passed, appropriating one million of dollars 
 to be employed by the president in equipping 
 one hundred thousand of the national militia ; 
 eight hundred and fifty-two thousand five hun- 
 dred dollars for building one hundred and eighty- 
 eight gun-boats; one million of dollars for build- 
 ing, repairing, and completing fortifications, and 
 for raising six thousand six hundred men, in- 
 fantry, riflemen, artillery, and dragoons, as an 
 addition to the standing army. On the 22d of 
 December, an act passed, laying an embargo on 
 all vessels within the jurisdiction of the United 
 States. 
 
 Sec. 19. On the 17th of December, Bonaparte, 
 by way of retaliating the British orders in coun- 
 cil, issued a decree, called " the Milan decree" de- 
 claring every vessel denationalized, which shall 
 have submitted to a search by a British ship ; 
 and every vessel a good prize, which shall sail 
 to or from Great Britain, or any of its colonies, 
 or countries, occupied by British troops. 
 
 Sec. 20. Mr. Rose arrived in America on the 
 25th of December. The American minister was 
 soon after informed, that he, Mr. Rose, was ex- 
 pressly forbidden by his government to make 
 
394 PERIOD ix. 1801 TO 1809. 
 
 any proposal, touching the great subject of com- 
 plaint, so long as the president's proclamation of 
 July 2d 3 excluding British armed vessels from 
 the waters of the United States, should be in 
 force. 
 
 For a time, the president refused to annul this 
 proclamation, till the atonement was not only 
 solemnly offered, but formally accepted ; but, in 
 order to elude this difficulty, he finally agreed to 
 revoke his proclamation, on the day of the date 
 of the act, or treaty, by which reparation should 
 be made for the recent violence. This conces- 
 sion, however, was built on two conditions: 
 first, the terms of reparation which the minister 
 was charged to offer, must be previously made 
 known ; and, secondly, they must be such as by 
 the president should be accounted satisfactory. 
 
 But as the British minister declined to offer, 
 or even to mention, the redress of which he was 
 une bearer, till the American proclamation was 
 recalled, and the president deeming its recall 
 inexpedient, the controversy, for the present, 
 closed. 
 
 The controversy respecting the Chesapeake was finally 
 adjusted in November, 1811, at which time the British mi- 
 nister communicated to the secretary of state, that the attack 
 on the Chesapeake was unauthorized by his majesty's go- 
 vernment ; that the officer, at that time in command on the 
 American coast, had been recalled; that the men taken 
 from the Chesapeake should be restored ; and that suitable 
 pecuniary provision should be made for those who suffered 
 in the attack, and for the families of the seamen that fell. 
 To these propositions the president acceded. 
 
 Sec. 21. The difficulties with France and Eng- 
 land, regarding commerce, still continuing, and 
 the existing embargo having failed to coerce 
 these powers, as was anticipated, into an ac- 
 knowledgment of our rights, a more complete 
 
395 
 
 stop to our intercourse with them was deemed 
 advisable by congress. Accordingly, on the 1st 
 of March, congress interdicted, by law, all trade 
 and intercourse with France and England. 
 
 Sec. 22. Mr. Jefferson's second term of office 
 expired on the 3d of March. Having previously 
 declined a re-election, James Madison was cho- 
 sen president, and George Clinton vice-president. 
 
 NOTES. 
 
 Sec. 23. MANNERS. The bitterness of party 
 spirit, which had now raged in the United States 
 for some years, began to have a visible effect 
 upon society. It interrupted, to no small extent, 
 the general harmony, and even restrained the in- 
 tercourse of friends and neighborhoods. The 
 strife for power, also introduced a disposition to 
 intrigue ; political cunning became fashionable, 
 and political duplicity lost much of its deformity. 
 These things necessarily affected the state of 
 manners. They withdrew the finger of deri- 
 sion, which used to point at meanness of all 
 kinds, and blunted that love of honor, and man- 
 liness of conduct, which existed before. Cun- 
 ning began to take the place of wisdom ; pro- 
 fessions answered instead of deeds ; and duplici- 
 ty stalked forth with the boldness of integrity. 
 
 Sec. 24. RELIGION. Powerful revivals of reli- 
 gion pervaded the country, during this period, 
 and tended strongly to prevent open infidelity 
 and to check the tide of pollution, which was 
 invisibly spread over the land, 
 
 Sec. 25. TRADE AND COMMERCE. Trade and 
 commerce made great advances about the year 
 1803. The European powers being involved in 
 war, and the United States remaining neutral, 
 
396 PERIOD ix. 1801 TO 1809. 
 
 our vessels carried to Europe, not only the pro- 
 duce of our own country, but also the produce 
 of other countries. This is usually called the 
 carrying trade, and was very profitable to the 
 country. 
 
 In 1805, 6, and 7, our average annual exports amounted 
 to one hundred and two millions five hundred and sixty- 
 seven thousand four hundred and fifty-four dollars, of which 
 forty-four millions eight hundred and sixty-three thousand five 
 hundred and seventeen dollars, were for domestic produce; 
 and fifty-seven millions seven hundred and one thousand 
 nine hundred and thirty-seven dollars, for foreign produce. 
 The annual average of imports during these three years, 
 amounted to about one hundred and forty millions of dol- 
 lars ; a large proportion of the articles forming this amount, 
 were re-exported to the West Indies, South America, and 
 elsewhere. 
 
 After the year 1807, the commercial restrictions laid by 
 France and England, began to curtail our trade; and the em- 
 bargo, imposed at the close of the same year, by our govern- 
 ment, interrupted it still more essentially. 
 
 Sec. 26. AGRICULTURE. Agriculture, during a 
 part of this period, received great encouragement 
 from our foreign trade. Europe being involved 
 in contentions, the people had little leisure there 
 to cultivate the soil ; they were therefore suppli- 
 ed from other countries, and the United States 
 furnished them with a great amount, and were 
 thence deriving great profits, when the commer- 
 cial restrictions interrupted the trade. 
 
 The first merino sheep were introduced into the country, 
 in 1802, by Robert R. Livingston, and the same year, a 
 greater number, one hundred, by General Humphreys, then 
 late minister to Spain. Great attention was paid to the 
 breeding of them, and they are now numerous in the United 
 States. 
 
 Sec. 27. ARTS AND MANUFACTURES. Arts and 
 manufactures still progressed. 
 
 Sec. 28. POPULATION. The population of the 
 
397 
 
 United States, at the close of Mr. Jefferson's ad- 
 ministration, was about seven millions. 
 
 Sec. 29. EDUCATION. The enlightened views 
 respecting the importance of general informa- 
 tion, entertained before, continued to prevail. 
 New literary and scientific publications were 
 commenced; more enlightened methods of in- 
 struction were adopted ; academies were mul T 
 tiplied ; colleges founded ; and theological semi- 
 naries liberally endowed. 
 
 A theological seminary was founded at Andover, Massa- 
 chusetts, in 1808. The amount, which has been contribut- 
 ed for its permanent use, and which was given by six fami- 
 lies, is more than three hundred thousand dollars. This 
 sum includes the permanent fund, library, and public build- 
 ings. In 1822, the officers were four professors, and the 
 number of students, one hundred and thirty-two. The li- 
 brary contains about five thousand volumes. A majority 
 of the students are supported, in whole or in part, by cha- 
 rity. 
 
 34 
 
UNITED STATES. 
 
 PERIOD X. 
 
 DISTINGUISHED FOR MADISON 5 S ADMINISTRATION, 
 AND THE LATE WAR WITH GREAT BRITAIN, 
 
 Extending from the inauguration of President 
 Madison , 1809, to the inauguration of Ja?ne$ 
 Monroe, as president of the United States, 1817 
 
 Sec. 1. On the 4th of March, 1809, Mr. Madison 
 was inducted into the office of president of the 
 United States, according to the form prescribed 
 by the constitution. 
 
 The situation of the United States, on the ac- 
 cession of Mr. Madison to the presidency, was in 
 several respects gloomy and critical. The two 
 great powers of Europe, France and England, 
 were still at war, and were continuing to array 
 against each other the most violent commercial 
 edicts, both in contravention of the laws of na- 
 tions, anpl of their own solemn treaties ; and cal- 
 culated to injure and destroy the commerce of na 
 tions, desirous of preserving a neutrality. Ame- 
 rica was also farther suffering under the restric- 
 tions of commerce, imposed by her own govern- 
 ment. Every effort to secure the due observance 
 of her rights, from the contending powers, had 
 hitherto failed, and the sad alternative was pre- 
 senting itself to the American people, either to 
 suffer the evils growing out of foreign and do- 
 
399 
 
 mestic restrictions, or to take up arms, and risk 
 the consequence of a war with the belligerents. 
 
 Sec. 2. Previously to the adjournment of the 
 last congress, under Mr. Jefferson, an act passed, 
 as already noticed, 1st of March, repealing the 
 then existing embargo, and interdicting commer- 
 cial intercourse with France and Great Britain. 
 Should either of these powers, however, revoke 
 their edicts, the president was authorized to re- 
 new the intercourse. 
 
 April 18th, the British minister, Mr. Erskine, 
 informed the secretary of state, Mr. Smith, that 
 his majesty's government, considering the non- 
 intercourse act, passed March 1st, as having 
 produced an equality in the relations of the two 
 belligerent powers with respect to the United 
 States, would be willing to rescind the orders 
 in council of January and November, 1807, so- 
 far as it respected the United States, provided 
 the president would issue a proclamation for the 
 renewal of intercourse with Great Britain. This 
 proposal was readily accepted. The British 
 minister, in consequence of this acceptance, stat- 
 ed himself authorized to declare that the above 
 orders in council would be withdrawn, as it re- 
 spected the United States, on the succeeding 10th 
 of June. A proclamation by the president soon 
 after followed, renewing the intercourse with 
 Great Britain, from and after that time. 
 
 This event produced the highest satisfaction 
 throughout the country ; but was speedily fol- 
 lowed by a disappointment as great. The Bri- 
 tish government denied the authority of Mr. Ers- 
 kine to enter into any such stipulations, and re- 
 fused its ratification. On learning this refusal, 
 the president issued his proclamation, August 
 
400 PERIOD x. 1809 TO 1817. 
 
 10th, renewing the non-intercourse with Great 
 Britain. 
 
 Sec. 3. Early in September, Mr. Jackson ar- 
 rived at Washington, as successor of Mr. Ers- 
 kine. A correspondence was soon commenced 
 between this minister and the secretary of state, 
 which, after continuing several weeks, without 
 adjusting any differences between the two coun- 
 tries, was suddenly closed, by the president, on 
 account of an alledged insult on the part of Mr. 
 Jackson. 
 
 In the course of correspondence with the secretary, Mr. 
 Jackson had repeatedly asserted that the American execu- 
 tive could not hut know, from the powers exhibited hy Mr. 
 Erskine, that in the ahove stipulations he had transcended 
 those powers, and was therefore acting without the autho- 
 rity of his government. This was deemed by the execu- 
 tive equivalent to a declaration, that the American govern- 
 ment did know that Mr. Erskine was exceeding his powers. 
 The British minister denied the legitimacy of such an in- 
 ference but the executive, regarding his language as re- 
 flecting upon the honor and integrity of the American 
 government, closed the correspondence soon after which, 
 Mr. Jackson was recalled, but without the censure of his 
 government. 
 
 Sec. 4. 1810. On the 23d of March, Bonaparte 
 issued a decree, usually called the " Rambouillet 
 decree," designed to retaliate the act of congress, 
 passed March 1st, 1809, which forbade French 
 vessels entering the ports of the United States. 
 By the above decree, all American vessels and 
 cargoes, arriving in any of the ports of France, 
 or of countries occupied by French troops, were 
 ordered to be seized and condemned. 
 
 Sec. 5. On the 1st of May, congress passed an 
 act, excluding British and French armed vessels 
 from the waters of the United States ; but, at 
 the same time, providing, that in case either of 
 the above nations should modify its edicts before 
 
401 
 
 the third of March, 1811, so that they should 
 cease to violate neutral commerce, of which fact 
 the president was to give notice by proclamation, 
 and the other nation should not, within three 
 months after, pursue a similar step, commercial 
 intercourse with the former might be renewed, 
 but not with the latter. 
 
 Sec. 6. In consequence of this act of the Ame- 
 rican government, the French minister, the 
 Duke of Cadore, at Paris, informed the Ameri- 
 can minister, Mr. Armstrong, then in France, 
 that the Berlin and Milan decrees were revoked, 
 and that, Jrom and after the 1st of November, 
 they would cease to have effeert. But, at the 
 same time, it was subjoined, that it was " un- 
 derstood, that, in consequence of this declara- 
 tion, the English shall revoke their orders in 
 council," &c. About the same time, it was an- 
 nounced that the Rambouillet decree had also 
 been rescinded. 
 
 Although the condition subjoined to the Duke 
 of Cadore's declaration rendered it doubtful 
 whether the Berlin and Milan decrees would in 
 fact cease to take effect, after the 1st of Novem- 
 ber, the president issued his proclamation on 
 the 2d of that month, declaring that those de- 
 crees were revoked, and that intercourse be- 
 tween the United States and France might be 
 renewed. 
 
 Sec. 7. While the affairs of America, in rela- 
 tion to the belligerents, were in this posture, an 
 unhappy engagement took place, May, 1811, 
 between the American frigate President, com- 
 manded by Captain Rodgers, and a British sloop 
 of war, the Little Belt, commanded by Captain 
 Bingham. The attack was commenced by the 
 34* 
 
402 PERIOD x. 1809 TO 1817. 
 
 latter vessel, without provocation, and, in the 
 rencontre, suffered greatly in her men and rig- 
 ging. 
 
 A court of inquiry was ordered on the conduct of Capt. 
 Rodgers, which decided that it had been satisfactorily proved 
 ^ 5 to the court, that Capt. Rodgers hailed the Little Belt first 
 mL that his hail was not satisfactorily answered that the 
 Little Belt fired the first gun and that it was without pre- 
 vious provocation, or justifiable cause, &c. &c. 
 
 Sec. 8. Congress was assembled by proclama- 
 tion on the 5th of November. In his message, 
 at the opening of the session, the president in- 
 dicated the expectation of hostilities with Great 
 Britain at no distant period, since her orders in 
 council, instead of being withdrawn, were, when 
 least to have been expected, put into more rigor- 
 ous execution. 
 
 " I must now add," continues the president, in his mes- 
 sage, " that the period has arrived, which claims from the 
 legislative guardians of the national rights, a system of more, 
 ample provision for maintaining them." " With" such 
 s full " evidence of the hostile inflexibility" of Great Britain, 
 "in trampling on rights which no independent nation can 
 relinquish, congress will feel the duty of putting the Uni- 
 ted States into an armour and an attitude demanded by the 
 crisis, and corresponding with the national spirit and ex- 
 pectations." 
 
 On the 29th, the committee on foreign rela- 
 tions presented their report, in which, adopting 
 the language of the president's message, they 
 strongly recommended, " That the United States 
 be immediately put into an armour and attitude 
 demanded by the crisis, and corresponding with 
 the national spirit and expectations." Bills 
 agreeable to this recommendation passed con- 
 gress, preparatory to a state of hostilities, among 
 Which was one for raising twenty-five thousand 
 men. 
 
403 
 
 . 8. In December, the president communi- 
 cated to congress an official account of the bat- 
 tle of " Tippecanoe" near a branch of the Wa- 
 bash fought November 7th, between an army 
 under Gen. Harrison, governor of the Indiana 
 Territory, and a large body of Indians, in which 
 the latter were defeated. 
 
 The attack was commenced by the Indians, about four 
 o'clock in the morning, while the army of Harrison were 
 in a measure unprepared. But, notwithstanding this dis- 
 advantage, after a hard fought action, the Indians were re- 
 pulsed with a loss of nearly seventy killed, and upwards of 
 a hundred wounded. The loss of the Americans was se- / 
 vere, being, according to official return, one hundred and 
 eighty-eight in killed and wounded. 
 
 Sec. 10. During the following year, 1812, 
 LOUISIANA was admitted into the union as a so- 
 vereign state. 
 
 Until the year 1811, Louisiana comprehended that vast 
 tract of country, which was ceded to the United States by 
 France, in 1803. At that time, however, the Territory of 
 Orleans, which was then a distinct territorial government, 
 assumed the name of Louisiana, and was admitted the fol- 
 lowing year as a state into the Union ; since which time, 
 the remaining portion of original Louisiana has received 
 distinct denominations. 
 
 Louisiana was first discovered in 1541, by Ferdinand de 
 Soto. In 1683, Monsieur de la Salle, an enterprising v 
 Frenchman, sailed up the Mississippi a considerable dis- 
 tance, and named the country Louisiana, in honor of Louis 
 XIV. A French settlement was begun in 1699, by M. 
 d'Ibberville, in Lower Louisiana, near the mouth of the 
 river Perdido. The progress of the colony was slow. In 
 1712, although twenty-five hundred emigrants had arrived, 
 cnly four hundred whites and twenty negroes were alive. 
 
 About this time, the French government made a grant of 
 the country to M. de Crozat for a term of ten years; but 
 after five years he relinquished his patent to the Mississip- 
 pi company. In the same year, 1717, the city of Orleans 
 was founded. 
 
 By the treaty of 1763, all Louisiana east of the Mississip- 
 pi was ceded to England, together with Mobile, and all tho 
 
404 PERIOD x. 1809 TO 1817. 
 
 possessions of France in that quarter. About the same 
 time, the possessions of France west of the Mississippi were 
 secretly ceded to Spain. After the cession to Great Britain, 
 that part of the territory which lay west of the Mississippi 
 received the name of West Florida. On the breaking out 
 of the revolutionary war, Spain, after considerable hesita- 
 tion, took part with the United States, incited, probably, by 
 the hope of regaining- her possessions east of the Mississip- 
 pi. In 1779, Galvoy, the governor of Louisiana, took pos- 
 session of Baton Rouge; and the other settlements of the 
 English in Florida surrendered successively. By the trea- 
 ty of 1783, the Mississippi was made the western boundary 
 of the United States from its source to the 31st degree ot 
 latitude, and following this line to the St. Mary's. By a 
 treaty of the same date, the Floridas were ceded to Spain 
 without any specific boundaries. This omission led to a 
 controversy between the United States and Spain, which 
 nearly terminated in hostilities. By a treaty with Spain, 
 however, in 1795, boundary lines were amicably settled, 
 and New-Orleans was grantedlo American citizens as a 
 place of deposit for their effects for three years and longer, 
 unless some other place of equal importance should be as- 
 signed. No other place being assigned within that time, 
 New-Orleans continued to be used as before. 
 
 In 1800, a secret treaty was signed at Paris, by the ple- 
 nipotentiaries of France and Spain, by which Louisiana 
 was guarantied to France, and, in 1801, the cession was 
 actually made. At the same time, the Spanish intendant of 
 Louisiana was instructed to make arrangements to deliver 
 the country to the French commissioners. In violation of 
 the treaty of Spain with the United States, the intendant, 
 by his proclamation of October, 1802, forbade American 
 citizens any longer to deposit merchandize in the port of 
 New-Orleans. Upon receiving intelligence of this prohi- 
 bition, great sensibility prevailed in congress, and a propo- 
 sition was made to occupy the place by force ; but after an 
 animated discussion the project was relinquished, and ne- 
 gotiations with France were commenced by Mr. Jefferson, 
 for the purchase of the whole country of Louisiana, which- 
 ended in an agreement to that effect, signed at Paris, April 
 30th, 1803, by which the United States were to pay to 
 France fifteen millions of dollars. Early in December, 
 1803, the commissioners of Spain delivered possession to 
 France; and on the 20th of the same month, the authori- 
 ties of France duly transferred the country to the United 
 
405 
 
 States. Congress had provided for this event, and under 
 their act, William C. C. Claiborne was appointed governor. 
 By an act of March, 1804, that part of the ceded country 
 which lay south of the parallel of thirty-three degrees was 
 separated from the rest, and called the Territory of Orleans. 
 In 1811, this district was erected into a state, and in 1812, 
 was admitted into the union by the name of Louisiana. 
 
 Sec. 11. On the 3d of April, 1812, congress 
 passed an act laying an embargo for ninety days, 
 on all vessels within the jurisdiction of the Uni- 
 ted States, agreeably to a recommendation of the 
 president. This measure, it was understood, 
 was preparatory to a war with Great Britain, 
 whicfr the executive would soon urge upon con- 
 gress to declare. 
 
 Sec. 12. On the 4th of June, 1812, a bill de- 
 claring war against Great Britain, passed the 
 house of representatives, by a majority of seven- 
 ty-nine to forty-nine. After a discussion of this 
 bill in the senate till the 17th, it passed that 
 body also, by a majority of nineteen to thirteen, 
 and the succeeding day, 18th,* received the sig- 
 nature of the president. 
 
 * The following are the orders in council, French decrees, and the con> 
 sequent acts of the American government, with their respective dates, pre- 
 sented in one view : 
 
 1806, May 16th, British blockade from the Elbe to Brest. 
 " Nov. 21st, Berlin decree. 
 
 1807, Jan. 6th, British order in council, prohibiting the coasting trade.' 
 " Nov. llth, The celebrated British orders in council. 
 
 " Dec. 17th, Milan decree. 
 
 " Dec. 22d, American embargo. 
 
 1809, March 1st, Non-intercourse with Great Britain and France, esta- 
 
 blished by congress. 
 " April 10th, Mr. Erskine's negotiation, which opened the trade 
 
 with England. 
 " June 19th, Non-intercourse with Great Britain 
 
 1810, March 18th, Rambouiilet decree. 
 
 " May 1st, Act of congress conditionally opening the trade with 
 
 England and France. 
 " Nov. 2d, President's proclamation, declaring the French decrees to 
 
 be rescinded. 
 
 1812, April 4th, American embargo. 
 
 ' " June 18th, Declaration of wax by the United States against Great 
 Britain. 
 
406 , PERIOD x. 1809 TO 1817. 
 
 The principal grounds of war, set forth in a 
 
 message of the president to congress, June 1st, 
 
 and farther explained by the committee on 
 
 foreign relations, in their report on the subject 
 
 ' -.of the message, were summarily The impress- 
 
 5ment of American seamen by the British ; the 
 blockade of her enemy's ports, supported by no 
 adequate force, in consequence of which, the 
 American commerce had been plundered in 
 every sea, and the great staples of the country 
 cut off from their legitimate markets ; and the 
 British orders in council. 
 
 On these grounds, the president urged the declaration of 
 war. In unison with the recommendation of the president, 
 the committee on foreign relations concluded their report as 
 follows : 
 
 " Your committee, believing that the freehorn sons of 
 America are worthy to enjoy the liberty which their fathers 
 purchased at the price of much blood and treasure, and see 
 ing by the measures adopted by Great Britain, a course 
 commenced and persisted in, which might lead to a loss of 
 
 h national character and independence, feel no hesitation in 
 advising resistance by force, in which the Americans of the 
 present day will prove to the enemy, and the world, that we 
 have not only inherited that liberty which our fathers gave 
 us, but also the will and power to maintain it. Relying on 
 the patriotism of the nation, and confidently trusting that the 
 Lord of Hosts will go with us to battle in a righteous cause, 
 and crown our efforts with success, your committee recom- 
 mend an immediate appeal to arms}' 
 
 Against this declaration of war, the minority in the house 
 of representatives, among which were found the principal 
 part of the delegation from New-England, in an address to 
 their constituents, solemnly protested, on the ground that 
 the wrongs of which the United States complained, although 
 in some respects grievous, were not of a nature, in the pre- 
 sent state of the world, to justify war, or such as war would 
 be likely to remedy. On the subject of impressment, they 
 urged, that the question between the two countries had once 
 been honorably and satisfactorily settled, in the treaty nego- 
 tiated with the British court by Messrs. Monroe and Pinck- 
 ney, and although that treaty had not been ratified by Mr, 
 
MADISON'S ADMINISTRATION. 407 
 
 Jefferson, the arrangements might probably again be made. 
 In relation to the second cause of war the blockade of her 
 enemy's ports without an adequate force the minority re- 
 plied, that this was not designed to injure the commerce of 
 the United States, but was retaliatory upon France, which 
 had taken the lead in aggressions upon neutral rights. In 
 addition, it was said, that, as the repeal of the French de^ 
 crees had been officially announced, it was to be expected 
 that a revocation of the orders in council would soon follow. 
 
 In conclusion of the protest, the minority spoke as follows: 
 
 " The undersigned cannot refrain from asking, what are 
 the United States to gain by this war ? v Will the gratifica- 
 tion of some privateersman compensate the nation>for that 
 sweep of our legitimate commerce by the extended marine 
 of our enemy, which this desperate act invites? Will Ca- 
 nada compensate the middle states for New- York ; or the 
 western states for New-Orleans? Let us not be deceived. 
 A war of invasion may invite a retort of invasion. When 
 we visit the peaceable, and to us innocent, colonies of Great 
 Britain, with the horrors of war, can we be assured that our 
 own coast will not be visited with like horrors ? 
 
 " At a crisis of the world, such as the present, and under 
 impressions such as these, the undersigned could not con- 
 sider the war into which the United States have in secret 
 been precipitated, as necessary, or required by any moral 
 duty, or any political expediency." 
 
 As a difference of views respecting the war, which had 
 now been declared, prevailed in congress, so the country 
 generally was divided into two opposite parties respecting 
 it. The friends of the administration universally commend- 
 ing, and its opposers as extensively censuring and condemn- 
 ing the measure. By the former, the war was strenuously 
 urged to be unavoidable and just; by the latter, with equal 
 decision, it was pronounced to be impolitic, unnecessary, 
 and unjust. 
 
 Sec. 13. The military establishments of the 
 United States, upon the declaration of war, were 
 extremely defective. Acts of congress permitted 
 the enlistment of twenty-five thousand men, but 
 few enlisted. The president was authorized to 
 raise fifty thousand volunteers, and to call out one 
 hundred thousand militia, for the purpose of de- 
 fending the seacoast and the frontiers. But the 
 
408 PERIOD x. 1809 TO 1817. 
 
 want of proper officers was now felt, as the 
 ablest revolutionary heroes had paid the debt of 
 nature. Such was the situation of things, at 
 the commencement of hostilities. 
 
 Sec. 14. On the 16th of August, General Hull, 
 governor of Michigan, who had been sent, at the 
 dead of about two thousand five hundred men, 
 to Detroit, with a view to putting an end to In- 
 hian hostilities in that country, surrendered his 
 arrny to the British general, Brock, without a 
 battle, and with it the fort of Detroit, together 
 with all other forts and garrisons of the United 
 States, within the district under his command. 
 
 Some time before the declaration of war, the army of Hull, 
 destined for Detroit, with the above object in view, was col- 
 lected at Dayton, in Ohio. About the middle of June, or- 
 ders having- been received from the government to proceed 
 to Detroit, the army left Dayton, and passing through Stan- 
 ton and Urbana, proceeded from the latter place to the Ra- 
 pids of the Miami, a distance of one hundred and twenty . 
 miles. In this march, they were obliged to remove nume- i 
 rous obstructions, and to make their own road ; yet they 
 reached the Rapids on the 30th of June. 
 
 On the twenty-sixth, four days previous to reaching the 
 Rapids, Hull had received, by express, a. letter from the sec- .* 
 retary of war, written on the morning of the 18th, the very 
 day on which war was declared. Yet, that letter contained 
 no tidings of the actual declaration of war ; but only certain 
 expressions, from which it might be gathered, that war 
 would soon be declared. 
 
 For the purpose of relieving his army, and facilitating 
 their march, a vessel was hired to convey to Detroit the 
 sick, and a considerable part of the baggage. Most unfor- 
 tunately, this vessel, on board of which was a lieutenant and 
 thirty men, fell into the hands of the British, near Maiden, 
 they having received intelligence of the declaration of war 
 several days before it reached Hull. Among other articles 
 taken by the British, was a trunk of public papers, by means 
 of which they were made acquainted with the number, and 
 condition, and objects of the army. 
 
 On the 2d of July, Gen. Hull received a letter, forwarded 
 
409 
 
 by mail, from the secretary, conveying to him the intelli- 
 gence of the declaration of war. 
 
 On the 5th of July, the army reached Detroit, where they 
 rested for some days, from a wearisome march through the 
 wilderness, the fatigues of which they had sustained with 
 exemplary patience. 
 
 On the 9th of July, Gen. Hull received a letter from Mr. 
 Eustis, the secretary of war, saying, that "should the force 
 under your command be equal to the enterprise, and con- 
 sistent with the safety of your posts, you will take pos- 
 session of Maiden,* and extend your conquests as circum- 
 stances will allow." 
 
 In reply on the same day, Hull stated to the government, 
 that he did not think his force equal to the reduction of 
 Maiden. On the tenth, he made a similar communication; 
 at the same time urging the importance of the reduction of 
 Maiden, saying that this fortress must be secured, or his 
 army would soon be without provisions. 
 
 Notwithstanding he had thus communicated to the go- 
 vernment the insufficiency of his force, for any effective 
 operation as early as the 12th of July, he crossed into Ca- 
 nada ; and, taking post at Sandwich, issued from that place 
 a proclamation, in which he boasted of a force adequate to 
 breaking down all opposition. 
 
 The army continued at Sandwich, while detachments 
 were sent abroad, for the purpose of reconoitering the ad- 
 jacent country, and collecting provisions. On the 15th of 
 July, a party of Americans, under Col. Cass, attacked a 
 party of British who were stationed to guard a bridge over 
 the river Aux Canards, four miles from Maiden. In this 
 attack, the Americans we r e successful ; but soon after 
 abandoned the bridge, by order of the general, and return- 
 ed to the camp. 
 
 On the first of August, intelligence was received by the 
 American general of the fall of the fortress at Mackinaw, 
 on the 17th of July. The garrison, at this place, consisted 
 of but fifty-six men, under the command of Lieutenant 
 Hanks of the artillery. The enemy amounted to more 
 
 * The fortress of Maiden is situated on the river Detroit, near its en- 
 trance into Lake Erie. It was at this time garrisoned with six hundred 
 men, and was considered the strong hold of the British, in the province of 
 Upper Canada. The importance of taking possession of this fortress 
 arose from the fact, that while the British held it, they could at any time 
 land detachments on the oppos te American bank, along which passed the 
 road from Ohio to Detroit, and thus intercept supplies for the American 
 army. 
 
 35 
 
410 PERIOD x. 1809 TO 1817. 
 
 than one thousand. Until the moment of a demand to sur 
 render, no intelligence had been received by the garrisoi? 
 of the declaration of war. This event justly filled HuL' 
 with surprise and consternation, as he had now no means 
 of checking the incursions of the restless hordes of north 
 ern savages. 
 
 On the 5th of August, a council of war was held to de- 
 liberate upon the expediency of attacking the fortress or 
 Maiden. But, as the artillery had not arrived, it was de- 
 cided to wait two days, and- then to proceed with or with- 
 out it, as the case might be. 
 
 In the mean time, however, communications were re- 
 ceived from Generals Porter and Hall, who commanded on 
 the Niagara frontier, that the enemy were leaving their 
 posts, in that quarter, and were concentrating their forces 
 at Maiden. At the same time, Hull was informed, that he 
 could not depend upon assistance from C4eneral Dearborn, 
 the commander-in-chief, although the latter had been di- 
 rected by the government to invade Canada from Niagara, 
 and co-operate with Hull. Under all the aspects of the 
 case, although his delayed artillery had arrived, Hull is- 
 sued orders, on the afternoon of the seventh, for his army 
 to return to Detroit. 
 
 An order to the officers and army so unexpected as this 
 at a moment, when they were anticipating a glorious vic- 
 tory, and the honors due from it was like a thunder-bolt 
 upon them. The murmurs of the volunteers and regular 
 troops were loud. They upbraided their commander with 
 pusillanimity, and even treachery ; and it was with diffi- 
 culty they could be restrained by their own officers, in 
 whom they confided. The disappointment, and vexation 
 which ensued can be better imagined than described ; all 
 confidence in their leader was evidently at an end; if trea- 
 cherous, he might deliver them up to be massacred; and it 
 was evident he was deficient in the skill and ability neces- 
 sary to command. It was with much reluctance this gal- 
 lant little army was compelled to abandon, almost in dis- 
 grace, the flattering hopes which they thought themselves 
 on the point of realizing. 
 
 On the 8th of August, the American army recrossed the 
 river, and again took post at Detroit. 
 
 On the fourteenth, a British force, under command of Ge- 
 neral Brock took a position opposite Detroit, where they 
 proceeded to erect batteries. On the fifteenth, Brock sent 
 a flag bearing a summons to the American general to sur- 
 
411 
 
 lender. The summons concluded in these words : " It is 
 far from my inclination to join in a war of extermination; 
 out you must be aware, that the numerous body of Indians, 
 who have attached themselves to my troops, will be beyond 
 my control the moment the contest commences." 
 
 To this summons, an answer was returned, that the fort 
 would be defended to the last extremity. The British im- 
 mediately opened their batteries, and continued to throw 
 shells, during- a great part of the night. The fire was re- 
 turned, but with little effect, on either side. In the morn- 
 ing, it was discovered, that tho British were landing their 
 troops at Spring Wells, under cover of their ships. To 
 prevent the landing from the fort, was a matter impossible; 
 the town lying between it, and the river. But if Hull had 
 not neglected the advice of his officers, he might have ef- 
 fectually prevented it, by erecting batteries on the bank, 
 where they would be compelled to debark. A strange fa- 
 tality seemed to attend this unfortunate man. The enemy 
 having landed, about ten o'clock advanced towards the fort, 
 in close column, and twelve deep. From the position of the 
 fort, the enemy were enabled to approach within two hun- 
 dred yards, before its guns could be brought to bear, being 
 thus far sheltered by the town. The American force was, 
 hoAvever, judiciously disposed to prevent their advance. 
 
 All was now silent expectation, and the hearts of the Ame- 
 ricans were beating high, in anticipation of successful re- 
 sistance. But, at this moment, what were the surprise and 
 mortification of the Americans, at hearing orders to retire 
 to the fort ! And no sooner were they in their fort, than 
 they were directed to stack their arms immediately after 
 which a white flag was suspended from the walls, in token 
 of submission. A British officer rode up to ascertain the 
 cause, for this surrender was no less unexpected to the as- 
 sailants. A capitulation was agreed to, without even sti- 
 pulating the terms. Words are wanting to express the 
 feelings of the Americans, on this occasion ; they consider- 
 ed themselves basely betrayed, in thus surrendering to an 
 inferior force, without firing a gun, when they were firmly 
 convinced that that force was in their power. They had 
 provisions for at least fifteen days, and were provided with 
 all the requisite munitions of war. They were compelled, 
 thus humiliated, to march out, and to surrender themselves 
 prisoners at discretion. The British took immediate pos- 
 session of the fort, with all the public property it contained; 
 amongst which there were forty barrels of powder, four 
 
412 PERIOD x. 1809 TO 1817. 
 
 hundred rounds of fixed twenty-four pound shot, one hun- 
 dred thousand ball cartridges, two thousand five hundred 
 stand of arms, twenty-five pieces of iron cannon, and eight 
 of brass, the greater number of which had been captured by 
 the Americans during the revolutionary war. 
 
 The whole territory, and all the forts and garrisons of the 
 United States, within the district of the general, were also 
 formally surrendered : and the detachments under Colonels 
 Cass and M'Arthur-, as well as the party under Capt. Brush, 
 were included in the capitulation.* Orders had been dis- 
 patched the evening before, for the detachment under Cass 
 and M' Arthur to return, and they had approached almost 
 sufficiently near to discover the movements of the enemy, 
 whilst their accidental situation might enable them to ren- 
 der the most material service during the attack. They 
 were surprised at the s-ilence which, prevailed, when every 
 moment was expected to announce the conflict : and thai 
 surprise was changed into rage, when they learned the ca- 
 pitulation. A British officer was dispatched to the river 
 Raisin, to convey the intelligence to Capt. Brush, who at 
 first gave no credit to so improbable a tale, and actually put 
 the officer in confinement. The melancholy story was, 
 however, soon confirmed by some Americans, who had es- 
 caped. Captain Brush indignantly refused to submit to the 
 capitulation, declaring that Hull had no right to include 
 him, and determined to return to the state of Ohio. He 
 first deliberated whether he should destroy the public stores, 
 which he had in his possession, and which he could not 
 carry away ; but, reflecting that this might be used as a 
 pretext for harsh treatment to his countrymen, he resolved 
 to abandon them. The greater part of the volunteers and 
 militia were permitted to return home ; but the regulars, 
 together with the general, were taken to Cana.ia. 
 
 In his official dispatch, Gen. Hull labored to free his con- 
 duct from censure, by bringing into view the inferiority of 
 his force, compared with that of the enemy his not exceed- 
 ing eight hundred effective men ; that of the enemy amount- 
 ing to thirteen hundred, of whom seven hundred were In- 
 dians ; and also the dangers which threatened him from 
 numerous western tribes of Indians, who were swarming in 
 
 * The detachment under Colonels Cass and M'Arthur, here alluded 
 to, consisted of three hundred and fifty men. They had been dispatched 
 for the purpose of assisting Captain Brush to make, his way in safety to 
 Detroit, with supplies for the army, which had been forwarded by Gov. 
 Meigs, of Ohio, under the direction of that officer. 
 
MADISON'S ADMINISTRATION. 413 
 
 the neighboring woods, and who were ready, in case of his 
 defeat, to rush to the indiscriminate slaughter of the Ameri- 
 cans. 
 
 Whether the views which induced this surrender of Hull 
 were in reality justly founded or not, the public mind was 
 altogether unprepared for an occurrence so disastrous and 
 mortifying. 
 
 Not long after, Gen. Hull was exchanged for thirty Bri- 
 tish prisoners. Neither the government nor the people 
 were satisfied with his excuses. The affair was solemnly 
 investigated by a court martial. He was charged with trea- 
 son, cowardice, and unofficer-like conduct. On the first 
 charge, the court declined giving an opinion ; on the two 
 last, he was sentenced to death ; but was recommended to 
 mercy, in consequence of his revolutionary services, and his 
 advanced age. The sentence was remitted by the presi- 
 dent ; but his name was ordered to be struck from the rolls 
 of the army.* 
 
 Sec. 15. On the 19th of August, three days af- 
 ter the unfortunate surrender of Detroit, that se- 
 ries of splendid naval achievements, for which 
 this war was distinguished, was commenced by 
 Capt. Isaac Hull, of the United States' frigate 
 Constitution, who captured the British frigate 
 Guerriere, commanded by Capt. Dacres. 
 
 The American frigate was superior in force only by a 
 few guns, but the difference bore no comparison to the dis- 
 parity of the conflict. The loss of the Constitution was 
 seven killed, and seven wounded, while that on board the 
 Guerriere was fifteen killed, and sixty-three wounded j 
 among the latter was Capt. Dacres. The Constitution sus- 
 tained so little injury, that she was ready for action the Suc- 
 ceeding day ; but the British frigate was so much damaged, 
 that she was set on tire and burnt. 
 
 Sec. 16. On the 13th of August, another naval 
 victory was achieved the United States' frigate 
 Essex, Capt. Porter, falling in with and captur- 
 ing the British sloop of war Alert, after an ac- 
 tion of only eight minutes. 
 
 This engagement took place off the grand bank of New- 
 
 * Brackenrulge's History of the War. 
 35* 
 
414 PERIOD x. 1809 TO 1817. 
 
 foundland. A single broadside from the American frigate 
 so completely riddled the sloop, that, on striking her co- 
 lours, although she had but three men wounded, she had 
 seven feet of water in her hold. The frigate suffered not 
 the slightest injury. 
 
 Sec. 17. Upon the declaration of war, the at- 
 tention of the American commander in chief, 
 Gen. Dearborn, was turned towards the invasion 
 of Canada, for which eight or ten thousand men, 
 and considerable military stores, were collected, 
 at different points along the Canada line. Skil- 
 ful officers of the navy were also dispatched, for 
 the purpose of arming vessels on Lake Erie, On- 
 tario, and Champlain, if possible to gain the as- 
 cendancy there, and to aid the operations of the 
 American forces. 
 
 The American troops were distributed into 
 three divisions one under General Harrison, 
 called the North Western army ; a second under 
 Gen. Stephen Van Rensselaer, at Lewistown, 
 called the army of the Centre ; and a third under 
 the commander in chief, Gen. Dearborn, in the 
 neighborhood of Plattsburg and Greenbush, call- 
 ed the army of the North. 
 
 Sec. 18. Early on the morning of the 13th of 
 October, 1812, a detachment of about one thou- 
 sand men, from the army of the centre, crossed 
 the river Niagara, and attacked the British on 
 dueenstown heights. This detachment, under 
 the command of Col. Solomon Van Rensselaer, 
 succeeded in dislodging the enemy ; but, not be- 
 ing reinforced by the militia from the American 
 side, as was expected, they were ultimately re- 
 pulsed, and were obliged to surrender. The 
 British general, Brock, was killed during the en- 
 gagement. 
 
 The forces designated to storm the heights, were divided 
 
MADISON'S ADMINISTRATION. 415 
 
 into two columns ; one of three hundred militia, under Col. 
 Van Rensselaer ; the other of three hundred regulars, un- 
 der Col. Christie. These were to be followed by Col. Fen- 
 wick's artillery, and afterwards the residue of the troops. 
 
 Much embarrassment was experienced by the boats from 
 the eddies, as well as by the shot of the enemy, in crossing 
 the river. Col. Van Rensselaer leading the van, landed 
 first, with one hundred men. Scarcely had he leaped from 
 the boat, when he received four severe wounds, and, as it 
 was then supposed, mortal. 
 
 The command now devolved upon Capt. Wool, the senior 
 officer of the regular troops, who himself also was wounded 
 by a ball, which, striking him sideways, passed through 
 both his thighs. Not entirely disabled, he repaired to Van 
 Rensselaer, and volunteered for any service which might re- 
 lieve the troops of the latter, whose situation was now ex- 
 tremely critical. Col. Vnn Rensselaer directed the storm- 
 ing of the British battery, upon the heights. Wool imme- 
 diately conducted his force silently and circuitously, leaving 
 the battery to his right, until he had passed it, and attained 
 an eminence which commanded it. The British rinding 
 that resistance would be in vain, left it to the Americans, 
 and retreated down the heights of Queenstown. 
 
 Elated with their success, the Americans had fallen into 
 disorder, when they again beheld their foe advancing. 
 The intrepid Brock was at their head, with a reinforcement 
 of about three hundred men from Fort George. An officer 
 raised a white flag, in token of surrender ; Wool indignant- 
 ly pulled it down. To keep the enemy at bay, until he 
 could form his men, he dispatched a body of sixty men, who 
 advanced, but retreated without firing a gurj. The British 
 followed, and drove the Americans to the brink of the pre- 
 cipice. One soldier was about to descend; Wool ordered 
 him to be shot ; but as the musket was levelled, he return- 
 ed. Thus prohibiting either surrender or retreat, and being 
 ably seconded by his officers, Wool rallied, and led on his 
 troops to the attack. The British, in their turn, gave way, 
 and retreated down the hill. Brock attempted to rally them 
 amidst a galling fire from the Americans; but in the at- 
 tempt, this brave and gallant foe was mortally wounded. 
 His party no longer attempted resistance, but fled in disorder. 
 
 Gen. Van Rensselaer now crossed over, for the purpose 
 of fortifying the heights, preparatory to another attack, 
 should the repulsed enemy be reinforced. This duty he 
 assigned to Lieut. Totten, an able engineer. 
 
416 PERIOD x. 1809 TO 1817. 
 
 But the fortune of the day was not yet decided. At three 
 o'clock in the afternoon, the enemy, being reinforced by se- 
 veral hundred Chippewa Indians, rallied, and again advan- 
 ced, but were a third time repulsed. At this moment, Gen. 
 Van Rensselaer, perceiving the militia on the opposite side 
 embarking but slowly, hastily recrossed the river, to accele- 
 rate their movements. But what was his chagrin, on reach- 
 ing the American side, to hear more than twelve hundred 
 of the militia positively refuse to embark. The sight of the 
 engagement had cooled that ardor which, previously to the 
 attack, the commander in chief could scarcely restrain. 
 While their countrymen were nobly struggling for victory, 
 they could remain idle spectators of the scene. All that a 
 brave, resolute, and benevolent commander could do, Gen. 
 Van Rensselaer did he urged, entreated, commanded, but 
 it was all in vain. Eight hundred British soldiers, from 
 Fort George, now hove in sight, and pressed on to renew 
 the attack. The Americans, for a time, continued to strug- 
 gle against this force, but were finally obliged to surrender 
 themselves prisoners of war. 
 
 The number of American troops killed amounted to about 
 sixty, and about one hundred were wounded. Those that 
 surrendered themselves prisoners of war, including the 
 wounded, were about seven hundred. The loss of the Bri- 
 tish is unknown, but it must have been severe. 
 
 Although the issue of this battle was unfortunate, seldom 
 has American valor shone more conspicuously, or a victory 
 been relinquished with more reluctance. Had but a small 
 part of the " idle men" passed over at the critical moment, 
 when urged by their brave commander, revolutionary his- 
 tory can tell of few nobler achievements than this would 
 have been. 
 
 Sec. 19. On the 17th of October, another naval 
 victory was achieved over an enemy decidedly 
 superior in force, and under circumstances the 
 most favorable to him. This was the capture 
 of the brig Frolic, of twenty-two guns, by the 
 sloop of war Wasp. 
 
 Captain Jones had returned from France two weeks after 
 the declaration of war, and on the 13th of October, again 
 put to sea. On the 17th, he fell in with six merchant ships, 
 under convoy of a brig, and two ships, armed with sixteen 
 guns each. The brig, '.Yhich proved to be the Frolic, 
 
MADISON'S ADMINISTRATION. 417 
 
 Capt. Whinyates, dropped behind, while the others made 
 sail. At half past eleven, the action began by the enemy's 
 cannon and musketry. In five minutes, the main-top-mast 
 was shot away, and falling down with the main-top-sail yard 
 across the larboard fore and fore-top-sail, rendered her head 
 yards unmanageable, during the rest of the action. In two 
 minutes more, her gaff, and mizen top-galiant-mast were 
 shot away. The sea being exceedingly rough, the muzzles 
 of the Wasp's guns were sometimes under water. 
 
 The English fired as their vessel rose, so that their shot 
 was either thrown away, or touched only the rigging of the 
 Americans ; the Wasp, on the contrary, fired as she sunk, 
 and every time struck the hull of her antagonist. The 
 fire of the Frolic was soon slackened, and Capt. Jones de- 
 termined to board her. As the crew leaped on board the 
 enemy's vessel, their surprise can scarcely be imagined, as 
 they found no person on deck, except three officers and the 
 seaman at the wheel. The deck was slippery with blood, 
 and presented a scene of havoc and ruin. The officers now 
 threw down their swords in submission, and Lieut. Biddle, 
 of the Wasp, leaped into the rigging, to haul down the co- 
 lors, which were still flying. Thus, in forty-three minutes, 
 ended one of the most bloody conflicts recorded in naval 
 history. The loss, on board the Frolic, was thirty killed, 
 and fifty wounded ; on board the Wasp, five were killed, and 
 live slightly wounded. The Wasp and Frolic were both 
 captured the same day, by a British seventy-four, the Poic- 
 tiers, Capt. Beresford. 
 
 Sec. 20. The above splendid achievement of 
 Capt. Jones was followed on the 25th of October 
 by another not much less splendid and decisive, 
 by Commodore Decatur, of the frigate United 
 States, of forty-four guns, who captured the Ma- 
 cedonian off the Western Isles, a frigate of the 
 largest class, mounting forty-nine guns, and man- 
 ned with three hundred men. 
 
 In this action, which continued an hour and a half, the 
 Macedonian lost thirty-six killed, and sixty-eight wounded : 
 on board the United States, seven only were killed, and five 
 wounded. The British frigate lost her main-mast, main- 
 top-mast, and main-yard, and was injured in her hull. The 
 United States suffered so little, that a return to port was 
 unnecessary. 
 
418 PERIOD x. 1809 TO 1817. 
 
 An act of generosity and benevolence on the part of our 
 brave tars, of this victorious frigate, deserves to be honor- 
 ably recorded. The carpenter, who was unfortunately kill- 
 ed in the conflict with the Macedonian, had left three small 
 
 ,/ children to the care of a worthless mother. When the 
 circumstance became known to the brave seaman, they 
 instantly made a contribution among themselves, to the 
 amount of eight hundred dollars, and placed it in safe hands, 
 
 -. to be appropriated to the education and /maintenance of the 
 unhappy orphans. 
 
 Sec. 21. December 29th, a second naval victory 
 was achieved by the Constitution, at this time 
 commanded by Com. Bainbridge, over the Java, 
 a British frigate of thirty-eight guns, but carry- 
 ing forty-nine, with four hundred men, com- 
 manded by Capt. Lambert, who was mortally 
 wounded. 
 
 This action was fought off St. Salvador, and continued 
 nearly two hours, when the Java struck, having lost sixty 
 killed and one hundred and twenty wounded. The Con- 
 stitution had nine men killed, and twenty-five wounded. 
 On the 1st of January, the commander, finding his prize 
 incapable of being brought in, was obliged to burn her. 
 
 Sec. 22. Thus ended the year 1812. With 
 the exception of the naval victories already 
 mentioned, and some others of the same kind, 
 equally honorable to America, nothing impor- 
 tant was achieved. Neither of the armies des- 
 tined for the invasion of Canada had obtained 
 any decisive advantage, or were in possession of 
 any post in that territory. Further prepara- 
 tions, however, were making for its conquest. 
 Naval armaments were collecting on the lakes; 
 and the soldiers in their winter quarters, were 
 looking forward to " battles fought and victories 
 won." 
 
 To fill up the minute history of the campaign of 1812, 
 it may be stated, in this place, that the call for assistance, 
 on the part of Gen. Hull, was answered by the people of 
 

 419 
 
 Ohio and Kentucky, who raised ten thousand volunteers, 
 a considerable part of which were on the march for De- 
 troit, when intelligence of the surrender of that post reach- 
 ed them. Instead of repressing the ardor of these brave 
 and patriotic men, the above intelligence stimulated them 
 to higher zeal in the cause in which they had embarked. 
 
 On the 24th of September, William Henry Harrison, at 
 that time governor of the Indiana territory, was appointed 
 by congress to the command of the whole western forces. 
 He was at this time at the river St. Mary's, with two thou- 
 sand troops. Another division, equal in number, under Ge- 
 neral Winchester, had reached fort Defiance ; but, being in 
 want of provisions, were obliged to be relieved by Harri- 
 son and his troops, who marched from St. Mary's for that 
 purpose. A junction having been formed, the whole force 
 again took post at St. Mary's. 
 
 About this time, the Indians in Indiana territory, mani- 
 festing a hostile spirit, Governor Shelby of Kentucky issued 
 an address, calling for the assistance of mounted volunteers 
 for the defence of Indiana and Illinois. This call was 
 promptly answered, and by the 2d of October, more than 
 2000 had assembled at Vincennes. These troops were 
 placed under the command of General Hopkins. On the 
 10th they took post at Fort Harrison on the Wabash. 
 
 Deeming it important, for the safety of both the above 
 territories, to destroy several towns, belonging to the Kick- 
 apoo Indians, the troops set forth for this purpose. Gene- 
 ral Hopkins, however, proving himself unable to repress 
 the spirit of insubordination, \vhich broke forth among the 
 volunteers, the expedition was necessarily abandoned. 
 
 In November, another expedition, undertaken by the same 
 officers, was conducted with better success. With 1000 men, 
 he destroyed on the 19th of November the Prophet's town, 
 and the Kickapoo village. 
 
 The issue of the expedition, under General Van Rensse- 
 laer, on the morning of the 14th of October, against the Bri- 
 tish at Queenstown, has already been noticed. Early in 
 November, this general, having resigned his command, was 
 succeeded by Gen. Alexander Smyth, who, affecting to be- 
 lieve that a happier destiny would crown a similar expe- 
 dition conducted by himself, issued an inflated address to 
 the "men of New- York," announcing his intention of plant- 
 ing the standard of America in a few days on the shores 
 of Canada, and inviting them to " come, on" and participate 
 in the glory which must attend the enterprise. His force 
 
420 PERIOD x. 1809 TO 1817. 
 
 . was increased by those who obeyed his call, and that of 
 General Portei, who was associated with him, and was to 
 command the volunteers, to 4500 men. " The morning of 
 the 28th of November was assigned as the time for cross- 
 ing. So tardy were the movements of the troops, that un- 
 til afternoon, the first division was not ready to leave the 
 American shore. The enemy appeared in force on the op- 
 posite bank. A council of officers decided, that it was in- 
 expedient, at that time, to cross ; and the troops were or- 
 dered to debark. They were disappointed and dissatisfied; 
 but their clamor was appeased by the assurance that ano- 
 ther attempt would speedily be made. 
 
 " The next day, they received orders to be in readiness 
 to embark on the first of December. But their first disap- 
 pointment had sensibly damped their ardor. At the ap- 
 pointed hour, the boats were not ready to move, and when 
 ready but 1500 men were found willing to cross. A coun- 
 cil of war decided unanimously against proceeding, and 
 again the troops were ordered to debark. The plan of in- 
 vading Canada was abandoned for the season. The blame 
 of these failures was attributed by the soldiers to their com- 
 mander ; and so highly were they exasperated, that for se- 
 veral days his life was in danger from their fury. 
 
 " The army of the north, under the immediate command 
 of General Dearborn, was stationed at Greenbush, near Al- 
 bany, and at Plattsburg, on Lake Champlain. From the 
 latter post, a detachment marched a short distance into Ca- 
 nada, surprised a small body of British and Indians, and 
 destroyed a considerable quantity of public stores. Other 
 movements were anxiously expected by the people ; but af- 
 ter the misfortunes at Detroit and Niagara, the general 
 deemed it inexpedient to engage in any important enter- 
 prise. 
 
 "Thus ended the campaign of 1812. Although on many 
 occasions extraordinary gallantry had been displayed, yet 
 nothing to purpose was accomplished, and the losses sus- 
 tained were numerous and heavy. They who approved of 
 the declaration of war, felt disappointed, mortified, and de- 
 jected. They attributed most of the misfortunes of the coun- 
 try to the conduct of the federalists, whom they accused of 
 endeavoring to prevent enlistments into the army, and of 
 maintaining the most pernicious doctrines in relation to the 
 militia. The federalists, on the other hand, attributed these 
 repeated failures to the imbecility of the administration, and 
 to the unwise selection of military officers. They assumed 
 
 

 MADISON'S ADMINISTRATION. 421 
 
 a bolder tone of censure, and evinced a more determined 
 spirit of opposition."* 
 
 Sec. 23. The military operations of the campaign 
 of 1813 were considerably diversified, extending: 
 along the whole northern frontier of the United 
 States. The location of the several divisions of 
 the American forces was as follows : The army of 
 the west, under Gen. Harrison, was placed near 
 the head of Lake Erie ; the army of the centre, 
 under Gen. Dearborn, between the Lakes Onta- 
 rio and Erie ; and the army of the north, under 
 Gen. Hampton, on the shores of Lake Cham- 
 plain. The British forces in Canada were under 
 the general superintendence of Sir George Pro- 
 vost, under whom Colonels Proctor and Vincent 
 had in charge the defence of the Upper Pro- 
 vinces ; while the care of the Lower Provinces 
 were committed to the care of Gen. Sheaffe. 
 
 Sec. 24. The head-quarters of Gen. Harrison, 
 on the commencement of winter, were at Frank- 
 linton, in Ohio. The plan of this general had 
 for its object to concentrate a considerable force 
 at the Rapids, whence he designed to make an 
 attack upon Detroit, which was still in the pos 
 session of the British. In the mean while, Gen. 
 Winchester continued at Fort Defiance, with 
 about 800 men, chiefly from the most respectable 
 families in Kentucky. Early in January, inti- 
 mations were received from the inhabitants of 
 the village of Frenchtown, which is situated on 
 the river Raisin, twenty-six miles from Detroit, 
 that a large body of British and Indians were 
 about to concentrate at that place. Exposed as 
 they must be from the presence of a ferocious 
 enemy, they sought protection from the Ameri- 
 
 * History of the United States. 
 36 
 
422 PERIOD x. 1809 TO 1817. 
 
 can general. Contrary to the general plan of 
 the commander in chief, Winchester resolved to 
 send a force to their relief, and accordingly de- 
 tached a body of men, with orders to wait at 
 Presque Isle, until joined by the main body. 
 
 On reaching the latter place, it was ascertain- 
 ed that a party of British and Indians had al- 
 ready taken possession of Frenchtown. The 
 resolution was immediately taken to attack 
 them, without waiting for the arrival of Win- 
 chester. In this attack, the Americans were suc- 
 cessful, and having driven the enemy from the 
 place, they encamped on the spot, where they re- 
 mained until the twentieth, when they were 
 joined by General Winchester. The American 
 force now exceeded 750 men.* Here, on the 
 morning of January 22d, the Americans were 
 suddenly attacked by a combined force of British 
 and Indians, under Gen. Proctor. Unfortunate- 
 ly, the Americans were signally routed many of 
 them were killed, and x not far from five hundred 
 were taken prisoners, among whom was Gen. 
 Winchester. After the surrender, nearly all the 
 American prisoners were inhumanly butchered 
 by the savages, although Proctor had pledged his 
 honor, that their lives and private property 
 should be secure. 
 
 Scarcely had the Americans surrendered, than, contrary 
 to express stipulations, the swords of the officers were taken 
 from them, and many of them were stripped almost naked, 
 and robbed. The dead also were stripped and scalped, 
 while the tomahawk put an end at once to such of the 
 wounded as were unable to rise. The prisoners who now 
 remained, with but few exceptions, instead of being guarded 
 by British soldiers, were delivered to the charge of the In- 
 
 * Historians do not agree as to the number of American troops. Dr. 
 Holmes states the number at 1100. The force of Proctor consisted, ac- 
 cording to this author, of 300 British troops, and 600 Indians. 
 
MADISON'S ADMINISTRATION. 423 
 
 dians, to be conducted in the rear of the army to Maiden. 
 But few of them, however, ever reached the British garri- 
 son, being either inhumanly murdered by the Indians at the 
 time, or reserved to be roasted at the stake, or to be ransom- 
 ed at an exorbitant charge. 
 
 By this bloody tragedy, all Kentucky, observes an histo- 
 rian,* was literally in mourning; for the soldiers thus massa- 
 cred, tortured, burnt, or denied the common rites of sepul- 
 ture, were of the most respectable families of the state ; many 
 of them young men of fortune and property, with numerous 
 friends and relatives. The remains of these brave youth 
 lay on the ground, beat by the storms of heaven, and ex- 
 posed to the beasts of the forest, until the ensuing autumn, 
 when their friends and relations vemured to gather up their 
 bleaching bones, and consigned them to the tomb. 
 
 A few days after the above catastrophe, Gen. Harrison 
 dispatched a surgeon, by the name of M'Keehan, for the 
 purpose of attending the wounded, and with money to pro- 
 vide such things as they might need. The surgeon, not- 
 withstanding his flag, his sacred errand, and an open letter 
 to any British officer, stating the object of his mission, was 
 actually wounded and robbed, then dragged to Maiden, 
 whence he was taken to Quebec. After the sufferings of 
 several months, dragged from place to place, from dungeon 
 to dungeon, sufferings which could hardly occur on the banks 
 of the Niger, he at length reached home, with a constitution 
 totally impaired. 
 
 Sec. 24. On the 23d of January, the day fol- 
 lowing the memorable action of Frenchtown, an 
 engagement took place between the Hornet, 
 Capt. James Lawrence, and the British sloop of 
 war Peacock, Captain William Peake, off South 
 America. This action lasted but fifteen minutes, 
 when the Peacock struck. 
 
 On surrendering, a signal of distress was discovered on 
 board the Peacock. She had been so much damaged, that, 
 already, she had six feet of water in her hold, and was sink- 
 ing fast. Boats were immediately dispatched for the wound- 
 ed, and every measure taken, which was practicable, to 
 keep her afloat until the crew could be removed. Her guns 
 were thrown overboard, the shot holes were plugged, and a 
 
 * Brackenridge. 
 
424 PERIOD x. 1809 TO 1817. 
 
 part of the Hornet's crew, at the imminent hazard of their 
 lives, labored incessantly to rescue the vanquished. The 
 utmost efforts of these generous men were, however, vain | 
 the conquered vessel sunk in the midst of them, carrying 
 down nine of her own crew, and three of the Americans. 
 With a generosity becoming them, the crew of the Hornet 
 divided their clothing with the prisoners, who were left des- 
 titute by the sinking ship. In the action, the Hornet re- 
 ceived but a slight injury. The killed and wounded, on 
 board the Peacock, were supposed to exceed fifty. 
 
 Sec. 25. On the 4th of March, 1813, Mr. Madison 
 entered upon his second term of office, as presi- 
 dent of the United States, having been re-elected 
 by a considerable majority, over De Witt Clin- 
 ton, of New-York, who was supported by the 
 federal electors. George Clinton was elected 
 vice-president : he died, however, soon after, and 
 Elbridge Gerry succeeded him. 
 
 Sec. 26. It having been communicated to the 
 American government, that the emperor of Rus- 
 sia was desirous of seeing an end put to the hos- 
 tilities between Great Britain and America, and 
 had offered to mediate between the two coun- 
 tries, Messrs. Albert Gallatin, James A. Bayard, 
 and John Quincy Adams, were, early in the 
 spring, 1813, appointed commissioners to Rus- 
 sia, to meet such commissioners as should be 
 sent by the British court, and were empowered 
 to negotiate a treaty of peace and commerce 
 with Great Britain. 
 
 Sec. 27. About the middle of April, Gen. Pike, 
 by order of Gen. Dearborn, embarked with 1700 
 men on board a flotilla, under command of Com- 
 modore Chauncey, from Sacket's Harbor, for the 
 purpose of attacking York, the capital of Upper 
 Canada, the great depository of British military 
 stores, whence the western posts were supplied, 
 On the 27th, an attack was successfully made, 
 
MADISON'S ADMINISTRATION. 425 
 
 and York fell into the hands of the Americans, 
 with all its stores. 
 
 The command of the troops, one thousand seven hun- 
 dred, detached for this purpose, was given to General Pike, 
 at his own request. On the 25th, the fleet under Commo- 
 dore Chauncey moved down the lake, with the troops, and; 
 on the 27th, arrived at the place of debarkation, about two 
 miles westward from York, and one and a half from the 
 enemy's works. The British, consisting of about seven 
 hundred and fifty regulars, and five hundred Indians, under 
 General Sheaffe, attempted to oppose the landing, but were 
 thrown into disorder, and fled to their garrison. 
 
 General Pike, having formed his men, proceeded towards 
 the enemy's Fortifications. On their near approach to the 
 barracks, about sixty rods from the garrison, an explosion 
 of a magazine took place, previously prepared for the pur- 
 pose, which killed about one hundred of the Americans, 
 among whom was the gallant Pike. 
 
 Pike lived to direct his troops, for a moment thrown into 
 disorder, " to move on." This they now did under Colonel 
 Pearce ; and, proceeding towards the town, took possession 
 of the barracks. On approaching it, they were met by the 
 officers of the Canada militia, with offers of capitulation. 
 At four o'clock the troops entered the town. 
 
 The loss of the British, in killed, wounded, and prisoners, 
 amounted to seven hundred and fifty ; the Americans lost, 
 in killed and wounded, about three hundred. 
 
 Sec. 28. The news of the unfortunate occur- 
 rence at Frenchtown (Sec. 24.) reached Gen. Har- 
 rison, while on his march with reinforcements 
 to Gen. Winchester. Finding a further advance 
 of no importance, he took post at the Rapids, 
 where he constructed a fort, which, in honor of 
 the governor of Ohio, he named Fort Meigs. 
 Here, on the first of May, he was besieged by 
 Gen, Proctor, with a force of 1000 regulars and 
 militia, and 1200 Indians. For nine days, the 
 siege was urged with great zeal ; but finding 
 the capture of the place impracticable, on the 
 9th, Proctor raised the siege, and retreated to Mai- 
 den. Gen. Harrison returned to Franklinton in 
 36* 
 

 426 PERIOD x. 1809 TO 1817. 
 
 Ohio, leaving the fort under the care of General 
 Clay. 
 
 When, at length, it was ascertained that the British were! 
 actually approaching to the siege of Fort Meigs, an express 
 was sent to hasten the march of 1200 militia from Ken- 
 tucky, who were approaching, under the command of Gen. 
 Clay. 
 
 On the third day of the siege, and not until then, a flag 
 was sent to the fort, and, for the first time, an officer sum- 
 moned the place to surrender. The officer bearing the 
 flag informed General Harrison, that the force of the Bri- 
 tish was so much superior to the garrison in the fort, that it 
 would be impossible for the latter long to resist, and that it 
 was the path of wisdom to surrender, while as yet the Bri- 
 tish commander had the power to restrain the Indians from 
 a general massacre. To this Harrison replied, that while 
 he had the honor to command an American fort, it should 
 never be surrendered to a British force, supported and urged 
 on by savage allies. 
 
 The siege now went on, and the firing was warmly 
 maintained, on both sides. So determined were the Indians 
 to succeed in their efforts to subdue the Americans, that 
 they even ascended trees, adjoining the fort, from which 
 they fired into it, and killed and wounded several. 
 
 On the 5th, it was announced that the troops under Gen. 
 Clay were only a few miles distant. Orders were imme- 
 diately dispatched from Harrison to him, to detach 800 of 
 his men, who should cross the river, for the purpose of de- 
 stroying the batteries, which the enemy had erected on that 
 side ; while a sortie should be made from the post, upon 
 those who were on this side. 
 
 The simultaneous attack was well planned, and nobly 
 accomplished. The batteries were taken, and the British 
 and their Indian allies were compelled to flee, while the 
 spirited Kentuckians, under their valiant leader, Col. Dud- 
 ley, pursued them. Unfortunately for the latter, in their 
 pursuit they came upon an ambush formed by a large body 
 of Indians, under the celebrated Tecumseh, which body 
 arrived just in season to surprise the now elated Kentucki- 
 ans, the slaughter of whom was so terrible, that scarcely 
 one hundred and fifty of the detachment of Dudley escaped, 
 and even this valiant soldier was mortally wounded. 
 
 During the three following days, a cessation of hostilities 
 took place, and prisoners were exchanged. On the ninth, 
 
MADISON'S ADMINISTRATION. 427 
 
 preparations were made to renew the siege; but, suddenly, 
 the British general ordered it to be raised, and with his 
 whole force retired. 
 
 Sec. 29. During the remainder of the spring, 
 the war continued along the Canada line, and on 
 some parts of the sea board ; but nothing impor- 
 tant was achieved by either power. The Chesa- 
 peake Bay was blockaded by the British, and pre- 
 datory excursions, by their troops, were made at 
 Havre de Grace, Georgetown, &c. Several vil- 
 lages were burnt, and much property plundered 
 and destroyed. To the north of the Chesapeake, 
 the coast was not exempt from the effects of the 
 war. A strict blockade was kept up at New- 
 York. The American frigates United States and 
 Macedonian, and the sloop Hornet, attempted 
 to sail on a cruise from that port, about the be- 
 ginning of May, but were prevented. In ano- 
 ther attempt, they were chased into New-London 
 larbor, where they were blockaded by a fleet 
 under Com. Hardy, for many months. Fort 
 George, in Canada, was taken by the Americans. 
 Sacket's Harbor was attacked by one thousand 
 British, who were repulsed with considerable 
 loss. 
 
 Sec. 30. On the first of June, the American 
 navy experienced no inconsiderable loss, in the 
 capture of the Chesapeake, by the British frigate 
 Shannon, off Boston harbor a loss the more se- 
 verely felt, as on board of her fell several brave 
 officers, among whom was her commander, the 
 distinguished and lamented Capt. Lawrence. 
 
 Capt. Lawrence had been but recently promoted to the 
 command of the Chesapeake. On his arrival at Boston, 
 to take charge of her, he was informed that a British fri- 
 gate was lying off the harbor, apparently inviting an at- 
 tack. Prompted by the ardor which pervaded the service, 
 he resolved to meet the enemy, without sufficiently examin 
 
428 
 
 PERIOD X. 1809 TO 1817. 
 
 ing his strength. With a crew, chiefly enlisted for the oc- 
 casion, as that of the Chesapeake had mostly been discharg- 
 ed, on the first of June, he sailed out of the harbor. 
 
 The Shannon, observing the Chesapeake put to sea, im- 
 mediately followed. At half past five, the two ships engaged. 
 By the first broadside, the sailing master of the Chesa- 
 peake was killed, and Lieut. Ballard mortally wounded ; 
 Lieut. Brown and Capt. Lawrence were severely wounded 
 at the same time. A second, and third broadside, besides 
 adding to the destruction of her officers, so disabled the 
 Chesapeake in her rigging, that her quarter fell on the 
 Shannon's anchor. This accident may be considered as 
 deciding the contest ; an opportunity was given the enemy 
 to rake the Chesapeake, and, toward the close of the action, 
 to board her. Capt. Lawrence, though severely wounded, 
 still kept the deck. In the act of summoning the boarders, 
 a musket ball entered his body, and brought him down. As 
 he was carried below, he issued a last heroic order, " Don't 
 give up the ship ;" but it was too late to retrieve what was 
 lost ; the British boarders leaped into the vessel, and after 
 a short but bloody struggle, hoisted the British flag. 
 
 In this sanguinary conflict, twenty-three of the enemy 
 were killed, and fifty wounded ; on board the Chesapeake, 
 about seventy were killed, and eighty-three wounded. 
 
 Sec. 31. The tide of fortune seemed now, for 
 a short time, to turn in favor of Great Britain. 
 On the 14th of August, the Argus, of eighteen 
 guns, another of our national vessels, was cap- 
 tured by the Pelican of twenty guns. 
 
 The Argus had been employed to carry out Mr. Craw- 
 ford, as minister to France. After landing him, she pro- 
 ceeded to cruise in the British channel, and, for two months, 
 greatly annoyed the British shipping. At length, that go- 
 vernment was induced to send several vessels in pursuit of 
 her. On the 14th of August, the Pelican, a sloop of war, 
 of superior force, discovered her, and bore down to action. 
 At the first broadside Captain Allen fell severely wounded, 
 but remained on deck for some time, when it was necessary 
 to carry him below. After a hard fought action, the Ar- 
 gus was obliged to surrender, with a loss of six killed and 
 seventeen wounded. On board the Pelican there were but 
 three killed and five wounded. Captain Allen died soon 
 after, in England, and was interred with the honors of war. 
 
429 
 
 Sec. 32. After the loss of the Chesapeake and 
 Argus, victory again returned to the side of Ame- 
 rica. On the 5th of September following, the 
 British brig Boxer surrendered to the Enterprise, 
 after an engagement of little more than half an 
 hour. 
 
 The Enterprise sailed from Portsmouth on the 1st, and 
 was on the fifth descried by the Boxer, which immediately 
 gave chase. After the action had continued for fifteen 
 minutes, the Enterprise ranged ahead, and raked her ene- 
 my so powerfully, that in twenty minutes the firing ceased, 
 and the cry of quarter was heard. The Enterprise had 
 one killed, and thirteen wounded ; but that one was her 
 lamented commander, Lieutenant Burrows. He fell at the 
 commencement of the action, but continued to cheer his 
 crew, averring that the flag should never be struck. When 
 the sword of the enemy was presented to him, he exclaimed, 
 " I die contented." The British loss was more considera- 
 ble. Among their killed was Captain Blythe. These two 
 commanders, both in the morning of life, were interred be- 
 side each other, at Portland, with military honors. 
 
 Sec. 33. During these occurrences on the sea 
 board, important preparations had been made 
 for decisive measures to the westward, and the 
 general attention was now turned, with great 
 anxiety, towards the movements of the north- 
 western army, and the fleet under command of 
 Commodore Perry, on Lake Erie. 
 
 This anxiety, not long after, was, in a mea- 
 sure, dispelled, by a decisive victory of the Ame- 
 rican fleet over that of the British, on Lake 
 Erie, achieved, after a long and desperate con- 
 flict, on the 10th of September. 
 
 The American squadron consisted of nine vessels, carry- 
 ing fifty-four guns; that of the British, of six vessels, and 
 sixty-three guns. The line of battle was formed at eleven, 
 and at a quarter before twelve, the enemy's flag ship, Queen 
 Charlotte, opened a tremendous fire upon the Lawrence, 
 the flag ship of Commodore Perry, which was sustained 
 by the latter ten minutes before she could bring her carron- 
 
430 PERIOD x. 1809 TO 1817. 
 
 ades to bear. At length, she bore up and engaged the ene 
 my, making signals to the remainder of the squadron to 
 hasten to her support. Unfortunately, the wind was too 
 light to admit of a compliance with the order, and she was 
 compelled to contend, for two hours, with two ships of 
 equal force. By this time, the brig had become unmanage- 
 able, and her crew, excepting four or five, were either kill- 
 ed or wounded. 
 
 , While thus surrounded with death, and destruction still 
 pouring in upon him, Perry left the brig, now only a wreck, 
 in an open boat, and heroically waving his sword, passed 
 unhurt to the Niagara of twenty guns. The wind now rose. 
 Ordering every canvas to be spread, he bore down upon 
 the enemy : passing the enemy's vessels, Detroit, Queen 
 Charlotte, and Lady Prevost, on the one side, and the Chip- 
 pewa, and Little Belt, on the other, into each of which he 
 poured a broadside he at length engaged the Lady Pre- 
 vost, which received so heavy a fire as to compel her men 
 to retire below. 
 
 The remainder of the American squadron, now, one after 
 another, arrived, and following the example of their intre- 
 pid leader, closed in with the enemy, and the battle became 
 general. 
 
 Three hours finished the contest, and enabled Perry to 
 announce to General Harrison the capture of the whole 
 squadron, which he did in this modest, laconic, and empha- 
 tic style : " We have met the enemy, and they are ours." 
 
 The loss in the contest was great in proportion to the 
 numbers engaged. The Americans had twenty-seven kill- 
 ed arid ninety-six wounded. But the British loss was still 
 greater, being about two hundred in killed and wounded. 
 The prisoners amounted to six hundred, exceeding the 
 whole number of* Americans engaged in the action. 
 
 Sec. 34. The Americans being now masters of 
 Lake Erie, a passage to the territory which had 
 been surrendered by Gen. Hull was open to 
 them. With a view of making a descent upon 
 Maiden and Detroit, Gen. Harrison called on a 
 portion tff the Ohio militia, which, together with 
 4000 Kentuckians, under Governor Shelbj^ and 
 his own regular troops, constituted his force, for 
 the above object.' On the 27th of September, 
 
431 
 
 the troops were received on board the fleet, and 
 on the same day reached Maiden. But to their 
 surprise, they found that fortress and the public 
 storehouses burned. 
 
 On the following day, the Americans marched 
 in pursuit of Proctor and his troops ; and on the 
 29th entered, and took possession of Detroit. 
 
 Leaving Detroit on the second of October, Har- 
 rison and Shelby proceeded with 3500 men, se- 
 lected for the purpose ; and, on the fifth, reach- 
 ed the place of Proctor's encampment, which 
 was the Moravian village, on the Thames, about 
 eighty miles from Detroit. * The American troops 
 were immediately formed in the order of battle, 
 and the armies engaged with the most deter- 
 mined courage. In this contest, the celebrated 
 Tecumseh was slain. Upon his fall, the Indians 
 immediately fled. This led to the defeat of the 
 whole British force, which surrendered, except 
 about two hundred dragoons, which, with Proc- 
 tor at their head, were enabled to escape. 
 
 Of the British, nineteen regulars were killed, fifty wound- 
 ed, and six hundred made prisoners. The Indians left one 
 hundred and twenty on the field. The loss of the Ameri- 
 cans was upwards of fifty, in killed and wounded. On this 
 field of battle, the latter had the pleasure to retake six brass 
 field pieces, which had been surrendered by Hull ; on two 
 of which were inscribed the words, " Surrendered by Bur- 
 goyne, at Saratoga." 
 
 Tecumseh, who fell in this battle, was in several respects 
 the most celebrated Indian warrior which ever raised an 
 arm against the Americans. " He had been in almost 
 every engagement with the whites, since Harmer's defeat, 
 although at his death he scarcely exceeded forty years of 
 age. Tecumseh had received the stamp of greatness from 
 the hand of nature, and had his lot been cast in a different 
 state of society, he would have shone one of the most dis- 
 tinguished of men. He was endowed with a powerful 
 mind, with the soul of a hero. There was an uncommon 
 
432 PERIOD x. 1809 TO 1817. 
 
 dignity in his countenance and manners ; by the former, he 
 could easily be discovered, even after death, among the rest 
 of the slain, for he wore no insignia of distinction. When 
 girded with a silk sash, and told by General Proctor that 
 he was made a brigadier in the British service, for his con- 
 duct at Brownstown and Magagua, he returned the present 
 with respectful contempt. Born with no title to command, 
 but his native greatness, every tribe yielded submission to 
 him at once, and no one ever disputed his precedence. Sub- 
 tle and fierce in war, he was possessed of uncommon elo- 
 quence his speeches might bear a comparison with those 
 of the most celebrated orators of Greece and Rome. His 
 invective was terrible, as may be seen in the reproaches 
 which he applied to Proctor, a few days before his death, 
 in a speech which was found among the papers of the Bri- 
 tish officers. His form was uncommonly elegant; his sta- 
 ture about six feet, his limbs perfectly proportioned. He 
 was honorably interred by the victors, by whom he was 
 held in much respect, as an inveterate, but magnanimous 
 enemy."* 
 
 Sec. 35. The fall of Detroit put an end to the 
 Indian war in that quarter, and gave security 
 to the frontiers. Gen. Harrison now dismissed 
 a greater part of his volunteers, and having 
 stationed Gen. Cass at Detroit, with about one 
 thousand men, proceeded, according to his in- 
 structions, with the remainder of his forces, to 
 Buffalo, to join the army of the centre. 
 
 Sec. 36. The result of the operations of the 
 north-west, and the victory on Lake Erie, pre- 
 pared the way to attempt a more effectual in- 
 vasion of Canada. 
 
 Gen. Dearborn having some time before this 
 retired from the service. Gen. Wilkinson was 
 appointed to succeed him as command er-in-chief, 
 and arrived at Sacket's Harbor, on the 20th of 
 August. The chief object of his instructions 
 was the capture of Kingston, although the re- 
 
 * Brackcnridge. 
 

Burning of the frigate Philadelphia by Decatur. 
 P 384. 
 
 Death of Tecumseh, P. 431. 
 
433 
 
 duction of Canada, by an attack upon Montreal, 
 was the ulterior object of the campaign. 
 
 The forces destined for the accomplishment 
 of these purposes were an army of five thou- 
 sand, at Fort George ; two thousand under Gen. 
 Lew iei ,, at Sacket's Harbor ; four thousand at 
 Plattsburg, under the command of Gen. Hamp- 
 ton, which latter, proceeding by the way of 
 Champlain, were to form a junction with the 
 main body, at some place on the river St. Law- 
 rence ; and, finally, the victorious troops of Gen, 
 Harrison, which were expected to arrive in sea- 
 son to furnish important assistance. 
 
 On the* fifth of September, Gen. Armstrong, 
 who had recently been appointed secretary of 
 war, arrived at Sacket's Harbor, to aid in the 
 above project. The plan of attacking Kingston 
 was now abandoned, and it was .determined to 
 proceed immediately to Montreal. Unexpected 
 difficulties, however, occurred, which prevented 
 the execution of the plan, and the American 
 force under Wilkinson retired into winter quar- 
 ters, at French Mills. The forces of Gen. Hamp- 
 ton, after penetrating the country some distance 
 to join Wilkinson, retired again to Plattsburg. 
 The forces of Gen. Harrison were not ready to 
 join the expedition, until the troops had gone 
 into winter quarters. 
 
 The forces of Gen. Wilkinson were concentrated, previ- 
 ous to embarkation, at Grenadier Island, between Sacket's 
 Harbor and Kingston, 180 miles from Montreal, reckoned 
 by the river. Owing to tempestuous weather, the fleet was 
 detained some days after the troops were on board; but 
 finally set sail on the 30th. On the 6th of November, hav- 
 ing arrived within a few miles of the British Fort Prcscott, 
 and finding that it commanded the river, Gen. Wilkinson 
 .ordered the fixed ammunition to be landed, in order to its 
 oeing transported with greater security to a point below 
 37 
 
434 PERIOD x. 1809 TO 1817. 
 
 the fort, there to meet the flotilla under command of Gen, 
 Brown, which was to attempt the passage, under cover of 
 night. At the same time, also, the troops were landed, and 
 were ordered to proceed to the same point, under command 
 of Gen. Boyd. 
 
 Notwithstanding the precautions of Gen. Brown, and the 
 advantage of night, during which he passed the fort, he 
 suffered a heavy cannonade. But fortunately, he brought 
 the whole flotilla, consisting of 300 boats, in safety to the 
 appointed place of rendezvous ; where, also, the troops ar- 
 rived at 10 o'clock the following day. 
 
 The British governor, now perceiving that Kingston was 
 not the object of the American army, as was at first conjec- 
 tured, ordered a corps of observation from that place, where 
 his troops were concentrated, to follow the movements of 
 Wilkinson's army. 
 
 By this force, the Americans were seriously annoyed, 
 and also by British militia, which assembled in considera- 
 ble numbers, at the narrow parts of the river. On the 7th, 
 Gen. Macomb, with a select corps of 1200, was dispatched 
 to disperse the militia collected on the shores. On the 8th, 
 he was reinforced by Gen. Brown. On the 10th, having ar- 
 rived at a long and dangerous rapid, the troops, excepting a 
 number sufficient to navigate the boats, were ordered to pro- 
 ceed down the river by land ; the troops under Gen. Brown 
 to precede, at some distance, and to be followed by the main 
 body, under Gen. Boyd. 
 
 On the 1 1th, the troops and flotilla having arrived at Wil- 
 liamsburg, just as they were about to proceed, a powerful 
 body of the enemy, 2000 in number, were discovered ap- 
 proaching in the rear. Wilkinson, being too much indis- 
 posed to take the command, appointed Gen. Boyd to attack 
 them, in which his tropps were assisted by the brigades ot 
 Generals Covington ptnd Swartwout. 
 
 For three hours, the action was bravely sustained by the 
 opposing forces. Both parties, in the issue, claimed the 
 victory; but neither could, in truth, be said to be entitled to 
 it the British' returning to their encampment, and the 
 Americans to their boats. In this engagement, the loss of 
 the latter was 339, of whom 102 were killed. Gen. Coving- 
 ton was mortally wounded, and died two days after. The 
 British loss was 180. 
 
 A few days previous to the battle, as Gen. Harrison had 
 not arrived, Wilkinson dispatched orders to Gen. Hampton 
 to meet him, with his army, at St. Regis. On the 12th, a 
 
435 
 
 communication was returned from Hampton, in which he 
 declined a compliance with the above orders, on the ground, 
 that the provisions of Wilkinson were not adequate to the 
 wants of both armies, and that it would be impossible to 
 transport provisions from Platt,sburg. 
 
 On the receipt of this intelligence, a council of war was 
 summoned by Wilkinson, by which it was decided to aban- 
 don the attack on Montreal, and to go into winter quarters 
 at French Mills. 
 
 Shortly after, Gen. Hampton, learning that the contem- 
 plated expedition against Montreal was abandoned, himself 
 paused in his advance towards Montreal, by the way of 
 Chateaugay, and returned to Plattsburg, where he establish- 
 ed his winter quarters. Soon after, his health failing, he 
 resigned his commission, and was succeeded in command 
 by Gen. Izard. 
 
 Thus ended a campaign, which gave rise to a 
 dissatisfaction, proportioned to the high expecta- 
 tions that had been indulged of its success. Pub- 
 lic opinion was much divided as to the causes of 
 its failure, and as to the parties to whom the 
 blame was properly to be attached. 
 
 Sec. 37. The proposal of the emperor of Rus- 
 sia to mediate between the United States and 
 Great Britain, with reference to an amicable ad- 
 justment of their differences, and the appoint- 
 ment of Messrs. Gallatin, Adams, and Bayard, as 
 commissioners under that proposal, have bega. 
 mentioned, (Sec. 26.) This proposal, however, 
 Great Britain thought expedient to decline; but 
 the prince regent offered a direct negotiation, 
 either at London or Gottenburg. The offer was 
 no sooner communicated to our government, than 
 accepted, and Messrs. Henry Clay and Jonathan 
 Russel were appointed, in addition to the com- 
 missioners already in Europe, and soon after 
 sailed for Gottenburg. Lord Gambier, Henry 
 Goulbourn, and William Adams, were appoint- 
 ed, on the part of the court of St. James, to meet 
 
436 PERIOD x. 1809 TO 1817. 
 
 them. The place of their meeting was first fixed 
 at Gottenburg, but subsequently was changed to 
 Ghent, in Flanders, where the commissioners as 
 sembled in August. 
 
 Sec. 38. No sooner had the northern armies 
 gone into winter quarters, as above mentioned, 
 than the public attention was strongly attracted 
 to interesting events at the south, growing out 
 of a war with the Creek Indians, which the lat- 
 ter had declared against the United States. The 
 motives to this war were twofold. First, a de- 
 sire on the part of a considerable number of the 
 Creeks, to abandon the modes of civilization and 
 improvement, which the nation was fast adopt- 
 ing, under the influence of benevolent citizens 
 of the United States, and the government itself, 
 and to return to their former savage life. Se- 
 condly, the reception of arms and presents from 
 the British government, made with a view to en- 
 listing them against the United States in the war 
 in which the former were now engaged with 
 the latter. 
 
 The discontentment of the wavering part of the Creeks 
 had been much increased, and their hostile spirit inflamed, 
 through the influence of the celebrated Tecumseh, who, in 
 
 1812, had made them a visit, at which time he passed 
 through the nation, with a view to persuade them to shake 
 off the oppressions of civilized life, and to return to their 
 former more independent and unshackled mode of living. 
 By means of the eloquence of this savage Demosthenes, the 
 party hostile to the United States was much increased a 
 civil war commenced and a vexatious border warfare was 
 begun upon the whites. 
 
 Sec. 39. The war, at length, declared against 
 the United States by the Creeks, proved exceed- 
 ingly sanguinary in its progress, during the year 
 
 1813, and until the close of the summer of 1814, 
 when Gen. Jackson, who conducted it, on the 
 
MADISON'S ADMINISTRATION. 437 
 
 part of the Americans, having in several ren- 
 counters much reduced them, and finally and 
 signally defeated them, in the battle of Tohope- 
 ka, or Horse-Shoe-Bend, concluded a treaty with 
 them, August 9th, on conditions advantageous to 
 the United States. Having accomplished this 
 service, Gen. Jackson returned to Tennessee, and 
 was soon after appointed to succeed Gen. Wil- 
 kinson in the command of the forces at New-Or- 
 leans. 
 
 The commencement of hostilities by the Creeks was an 
 attack upon Fort Mimms, on the 30th of August, 1813. 
 About noon, the garrison of the fort was surprised by about 
 600 Indians. At first, the American troops stood upon 
 their defence, and repulsed the savages ; but, on being ha- 
 rangued by their chief, Weatherford, they returned with 
 augmented fury drove the besieged into the houses, and 
 set them on fire. A shocking massacre ensued. Not one 
 was spared by the savage monsters ; and but a few effected 
 their escape. Only seventeen, out of 300 men, women, and 
 children, who had taken refuge in the fort from adjoining 
 settlements, were left to convey the melancholy tidings to 
 the surrounding inhabitants. 
 
 On the receipt of this disastrous intelligence, 2000 men 
 from Tennessee, under Gen. Jackson, and 500 under Gen. 
 Coffee, immediately marched to the country of the Creeks. 
 On the 2d of November, Gen. Jackson detached Gen. Coffee, 
 with 900 mounted cavalry and mounted riflemen, from his 
 head-quarters, the Ten Islands, on the Coosa river, to attack 
 a body of Creeks at Tallushatches. This attack was made 
 on the morning of the 3d, and resulted in the repulse of the 
 Indians, who lost in killed 200, and 84 were taken prisoners. 
 The killed and wounded of the Americans were 46. 
 
 On the 7th, a friendly Indian conveyed intelligence to 
 Gen. Jackson, that a party of friendly Creeks were besieged 
 by a body of hostile Creeks at Talladega, 30 miles below 
 the camp. With a body of 1200 men, he immediately 
 marched to their relief; and on his arrival, although the 
 resistance of the Indians, amounting to near 1000 men, was 
 bold and determined, he gave them a signal defeat, with the 
 loss of near 300 slain. The loss of the Americans were 
 fifteen killed, and eighty-five wounded. 
 37*" 
 
438 PERIOD x. 1809 TO 1817. 
 
 Subsequently, the Creeks suffered severely in the de- 
 struction of the Hillabee towns, (November 18th,) by a de- 
 tachment under Gen. White. Of 300 inhabitants found 
 here, 60 were killed, and the remainder taken prisoners. 
 
 On the 29th of the same month, they were more signally 
 defeated at Autossee, by 950 Georgia militia, and 400 
 friendly Indians, under Gen. Floyd. During this engage- 
 ment, 400 houses were burned, and 200 warriors were 
 slain, among whom were the kings of Autossee and Talla- 
 see. The American loss in killed and wounded was fifty 
 -T-among the latter was Gen. Floyd. 
 
 On the 23d of December, Gen. Claibt>rne, at the head of 
 the Mississippi volunteers, achieved an important victory 
 over the Creeks, under their prophet Weatherford, at Ecca- 
 nachaca, on Alabama river. 
 
 In January, 1814, Gen. Jackson was reinforced by 800 
 volunteers, designed to supply the place of the Tennessee 
 militia, whose term of service having expired, had returned 
 home. With this force he successfully attacked and defeated 
 the Creeks, during the month, at Emucfau and Enota- 
 chopco. 
 
 Notwithstanding these repeated defeats and serious losses, 
 the Creeks remained unsubdued.. Still determined not to 
 yield, they commenced fortifying the bend of Tallapoosa 
 river, called by them Tohopeka, but by the Americans, 
 Horse-Shoe-Bend. Their principal work consisted of a 
 breast work, from five to eight feet high, across the penin- 
 sula, by means of which nearly one hundred acres of land 
 were rendered admirably secure. Through this breast 
 work a double row of port-holes were so artfully arranged. 
 that whoever assailed it, must be exposed to a double and 
 cross fire from the Indians, who lay behind, to the number 
 of 1000. 
 
 Against this fortified refuge of the infatuated Creeks, 
 Gen. Jackson, having gathered up his forces, proceeded on 
 the 24th of March. On the night of the 26th, he encamped 
 within six miles of the bend. On the 27th, he detached 
 Gen. Coffee, with a competent number of men, to pass the 
 river, at a ford three miles below the bend, for the purpose 
 of preventing the Indians effecting their escape, if inclined, 
 by crossing the river. 
 
 With the remainder of his force, Gen. Jackson now ad- 
 vanced to the front of the breastwork, and at half past tea 
 planted his artillery on a small eminence, at only a mode- 
 rate distance. 
 
MADISON s ADMINISTRATION. 439 
 
 Affairs being now arranged, the artillery opened a tre- 
 mendous fire upon the breastwork, while Gen. Coffee, 
 with his force below, continued to advance towards an In- 
 dian village, which stood at the extremity of the peninsula. 
 A well directed fire across the river, which here is but 
 about one hundred yards wide, drove the Indian inhabit- 
 ants from their houses up to the fortifications. 
 
 At length, finding all his arrangements complete, and 
 the favorite moment arrived, Gen. Jackson led on his now 
 animated troops to the charge. For a short time, an ob- 
 stinate contest was maintained at the breastwork muzzle 
 to muzzle through the port-holes when the Americans 
 succeeded in gaining the opposite side of the works. A 
 mournful scene of slaughter ensued. In a short time, the 
 Indians were routed, and the whole plain was strewed with 
 the dead. Five hundred and fifty-seven were found, and a 
 large number were drowned in attempting to escape by the 
 river. Three hundred women and children were taken 
 prisoners. The loss of the Americans was twenty-six 
 killed, and one hundred and seven wounded. Eighteen 
 friendly Chero'kees were killed, and thirty-six wounded, 
 and five friendly Creeks were killed and eleven wounded. 
 
 This signal defeat of the Creeks put an end to the war. 
 Shortly after, the remnant of the nation sent in their sub- 
 mission. Among these was the prophet and leader, Wea- 
 therford. In bold and impressive language, he said : " 1 
 am in your pow r er. Do with me what you please. I have 
 done the white people all the harm I could. I have fought 
 them, and fought them bravely. There was a time, when 
 I had a choice ; I have none now even hope is ended. 
 Once, I could animate my warriors ; but I cannot animate 
 the dead. They can no longer hear my voice ; their bones 
 are at Tallushatches, Talladega, Emucfau, and Tohope- 
 ka. While there was a chance of success, I never suppli- 
 cated peace ; but my people are gone, and I now ask it for 
 my nation and myself." 
 
 On the 9th of August, a treaty was made with them by 
 Gen. Jackson. They agreed to yield a portion of their 
 territory as indemnity for the expenses of the war to al- 
 low the opening of roads through their lands to admit the 
 whites to the free navigation of their rivers and to take 
 no more bribes from the British. 
 
 Sec. 40. On the 2d of December, the fifteenth 
 congress commenced its second session. The 
 
440 PERIOD x. 1809 TO 1817. 
 
 principal objects to which its attention was di- 
 rected were the enactment of restriction laws, 
 (embargo and non-importation acts) the subse- 
 quent repeal of these acts the offer of the un- 
 precedented bounty of one hundred and twenty- 
 four dollars to all soldiers who should enlist for 
 five years or during the war and an appropria- 
 tion of half a million of dollars to construct one or 
 more floating steam batteries. 
 
 An extra session of congress had been held, extending 
 from May 24th to August 2d, the same year. The principal 
 business of this session was the providing of means to re- 
 plenish the treasury. This it was at length decided to ac- 
 complish by a system of internal duties ; and accordingly 
 laws were passed laying taxes on lands, houses, distilled 
 liquors, refined sugars, retailers' licenses, carriages, &c. 
 From this source the sum of five millions and a half of dol- 
 lars were expected to flow into the treasury ; in addition to 
 which, a loan of seven mmions and a half was authorized. 
 
 Early in the regular session of 1813 1814, an embargo 
 was laid upon all American vessels, with a design to de- 
 prive the enemy's ships on the coast of supplies, and to se- 
 cure more effectually the American shipping from intro- 
 ducing British manufactures. Against such measures the 
 opposers of the war were loud in their complaints, on the 
 ground that they were needless, and highly injurious to the 
 prosperity of the country. Although these acts passed, in 
 the month of April following, owing to important changes 
 in the relative state of the belligerent nations of Europe, 
 they were repealed. 
 
 Sec. 41. The spring of 1814 was distinguish- 
 ed for the loss of the American frigate Essex, 
 Commodore David Porter, which was captured 
 on the 28th of March, in the bay of Valparaiso, 
 South America, by a superior British force. 
 
 Commodore Porter had been cruising in the Pacific for 
 nearly a year, in the course of which, he had captured se- 
 veral British armed whale ships. Some of these were 
 equipped as American cruisers and store ships ; and the 
 Atlantic, now called the Essex Junior, of twenty guns and 
 sixty men, was assigned to Lieut. Dovvnes. The prizes 
 
MADISON'S ADMINISTRATION. 441 
 
 which were to be laid up, were convoyed by this officer to 
 Valparaiso. On his return, he brought intelligence to 
 Commodore Porter that a British squadron, consisting of 
 one frigate, and two sloops of war, and a store ship of 
 twenty guns, had sailed in quest of the Essex. The com- 
 modore took measures, immediately, to repair his vessel, 
 which, having accomplished, on the 12th of December, 
 1813, he sailed for Valparaiso, in company with the Essex 
 Junior. 
 
 " It was not long after the arrival of Commodore Porter 
 at Valparaiso, when Commodore Hillyar appeared there in 
 the Phcebe frigate, accompanied by the Cherub sloop of 
 war. These vessels had been equipped for the purpose of 
 meeting the Essex, w r ith picked crews, in prime order, and 
 hoisted flags bearing the motto, "God -and our country, 
 British sailors' best rights : traitors offend' them." This 
 was in allusion to Porter's celebrated motto, " Free trade 
 and sailors' rights ;" he now hoisted at his mizen, " God, 
 our country, and liberty : tyrants offend them." On enter- 
 ing the harbor, the British commodore fell foul of the Es- 
 sex, in such a situation as to be placed completely in the 
 power of the latter ; the forbearance of Commodore Porter 
 was acknowledged by the English commander, .and he 
 passed his word and honor to observe the same regard to 
 the neutrality of the port. 
 
 " The British vessels soon after stood out, and cruised off 
 the port about six weeks, rigorously blockading the Essex. 
 Their united force amounted to eighty-one guns and about 
 five hundred men, about double that of the Essex ; but the 
 circumstance of this force being divided in two ships, ren- 
 dered the disparity still greater; and was by no means 
 counterbalanced by the Essex Junior. Commodore Porter 
 being prevented by this great disparity of force, from en' 
 gaging, made repeated attempts to draw the Pheebe into 
 action singly, either by manoeuvring or sending formal 
 challenges ; but Commodore Hillyar carefully avoided the 
 coming to action alone. The American commander, hear- 
 ing that an additional British force was on its way, and 
 having discovered that his vessel could outsail those of the 
 British, determined to sail out, and, while the enemy was 
 in chase, enable the Essex Junior to escape to a place of 
 rendezvous previously appointed. 
 
 " On the twenty-eighth of March, the wind coming on to 
 blow fresh from the southward ; the Essex parted her star- 
 board cable, and dragged her larboard anchor to sea. Ncrl 
 
442 PERIOD x. 1809 TO 1817. 
 
 a moment was lost in getting sail on the ship, as it was de- 
 termined to seize this moment to escape. In endeavoring 
 to pass to the windward of the enemy, a squall struck the 
 American vessel, just as she was doubling the point, which 
 carried away her main-top-mast; both ships immediately 
 gave chase, and being unable to escape in his crippled state, 
 the commodore endeavored to put back into the harbor; 
 but finding this impracticable, he ran into a small bay, and 
 anchored within pistot shot of the shore ; where, from a 
 supposition that the enemy would continue to respect the 
 neutrality of the port, he thought himself secure. He soon 
 found, however, by the manner in which they approached, 
 that he was mistaken. With all possible dispatch, there- 
 fore, he prepared his ship for action, and endeavored to get 
 a spring on his cable, which he could not accomplish before 
 the enemy commenced the attack, at fifty-four minutes past 
 three. 
 
 " At first, the Phrebe placed herself on his stern, and the 
 Cherub on his larboard bow ; but the latter soon finding 
 herself exposed to a hot fire, changed her position, and with 
 her consort, kept up a raking fire under his stern. The 
 American, being unable to bring his broadside to bear on 
 the enemy, his spring cables having been three times shot 
 away, was obliged, therefore, to rely for defence against this 
 tremendous attack, on three long twelve pounders, which 
 he ran out of the stern ports ; which were worked with 
 such bravery and skill, as in half an hour to do so much in- 
 jury to the enemy, as to compel them to haul off and repair. 
 
 " It was evident that Com. Hillyar meant to risk nothing 
 from the daring courage of the Americans ; all his manoeu- 
 vres were deliberate and wary ; his antagonist was in his 
 power, and his only concern was to succeed, with as little 
 loss to himself as possible. The situation of the Essex was 
 most vexatious to our brave countrymen ; many of them 
 Avere already killed and wounded, and from the crippled 
 state of their ship, they were unable to bring her guns to 
 bear upon the enemy. Her gallant crew were not dis- 
 heartened ; aroused to desperation, they expressed their de- 
 fiance to the enemy, and their determination to hold out to 
 the last. 
 
 " The enemy having repaired, now placed himself, with 
 both ships on the starboard quarter of the Essex, where none 
 of her guns could be brought to bear ; the commodore saw 
 no hope but in getting under way; the flying-jib was the 
 only sail he could set this he caused to be hoisted, cut his 
 
443 
 
 cable, and ran down on both ships, with the intention of lay- 
 ing the Phoebe on board. For a short time, he was enabled 
 to close with the enemy, and the firing was tremendous ; 
 the decks of the Essex were strewed with dead, and her 
 cockpit filled with the wounded ; she had been several times 
 on fire, and was, in fact, a perfect wreck. At this moment, 
 
 feeble hope arose, that she might still be saved, in conse- 
 quence of the Cherub being compelled to haul off on account 
 of her crippled state ; she, however, kept up her fire at a dis- 
 tance, with her long guns. The Essex was unable, how- 
 ever, to take advantage of the circumstance, as the Phoebe 
 ?dged off, and also kept up, at a distance, a destructive fire ; 
 he former being totally bereft of her sails, could not bring 
 tier to close quarters. 
 
 " Commodore Porter finding the greater part of his crew 
 disabled, at last gave up all hope, and attempted to run his 
 vessel on shore, the wind at that moment favouring his de- 
 sign ; but it suddenly changed, drove her close upon the 
 Phoebe, exposing her to a raking fire. The ship was total- 
 y unmanageable, but as she drifted \vith her head to the 
 enemy, Commodore Porter again seized a faint hope of be- 
 ing able to board. At this moment, Lieutenant Downes 
 came on board, to receive orders, expecting that his com- 
 mander would soon be a prisoner. His services could be 
 of no avail in. the present deplorable state of the Essex, and 
 finding from the enemy's putting up his helm, that the last 
 attempt at boarding would not succeed, Downes was direct- 
 ed to repair to his ship, to be prepared for defending and 
 destroying her, in case of attack. 
 
 "The slaughter on board the Essex now became horrible, 
 ihe enemy continuing to rake her while she was unable to 
 bring a single gun to bear. Siill her commander refused to 
 yield while a ray of hope appeared. Every expedient that 
 i fertile and inventive genius could suggest, was resorted to, 
 in the forlorn hope, that he might be able, by some lucky 
 chance, to escape from the grasp of the foe. A hawser was 
 ent to the sheet anchor, and the anchor cut from the bows, 
 o bring the ship's head around. This succeeded; the 
 roadside of the Essex was again brought to bear ; and as 
 he enemy was much crippled, and unable to hold his own, 
 ihe commodore thought she might drift out of gnnshot, be- 
 bre he discovered that the Essex had anchored ; but, alas ! 
 his last expedient failed; the hawser parted, and with it 
 vent the last lingering hope of the Essex. 
 
 "At this moment her situation was awful beyond descrip- 
 
444 PERIOD x. 1809 TO 1817. 
 
 tion. She was on fire both before and aft, the flames were 
 bursting up her hatchway, a quantity of powder exploded 
 below, and word was given that the fire was near her maga- 
 zine. Thus surrounded by horrors, without any chance of 
 saving his ship, he turned his attention to the saving as 
 many of his gallant companions as he could ; the distance 
 to the shore not exceeding three quarters of a mile, he hoped 
 that many of them would save themselves before the ship 
 blew up. His boats being cut up, they could only hope to 
 escape by swimming ; by some, this was effected ; but the 
 greater part of his generous crew resolved to stay by the 
 ship, and share the fate of their commander. 
 
 " They now labored to extinguish the flames, and succeed- 
 ed ; after this, they again repaired to their guns, but their 
 strength had been so much exhausted, that this effort was 
 in vain. Commodore Porter summoned a consultation of 
 the officers of the divisions, when, to his astonishment, only 
 one acting lieutenant, Stephen Decatur M'Night, appeared. 
 The accounts from every part of the ship were deplorable 
 indeed ; she was in imminent danger of sinking, and so 
 crowded with the wounded, that even her birthdeck could 
 hold no more, and several were killed under the surgeon's 
 hands. In the mean time, the enemy, at a secure distance, 
 continued his fire ; the water having become smooth, he 
 struck the hull of the Essex at every shot. At last, de- 
 spairing of saving his ship, the commodore was compelled, at 
 twenty minutes past six, to give the painful orders to strike 
 the colors. The enemy, probably not seeing that this had 
 taken place, continued to fire for ten minutes after, and Por- 
 ter was about to give orders that the colors should again be 
 hoisted, under a belief that the enemy intended to give no 
 quarters, when the firing ceased. The loss on board the 
 Essex was fifty-eight killed, thirty-nine wounded severely, 
 twenty-seven slightly, and thirty-one missing. The loss on 
 board the British vessels was five killed, and ten wounded; 
 but they were both much cut up in their hulls and rigging; 
 the Phosbe could scarcely be kept afloat, until she anchored 
 in the port of Valparaiso next morning. 
 
 "Commodore Porter was paroled, and permitted to return 
 to the United States in the Essex Junior, which was convert- 
 ed into a cartel for the purpose. On arriving off the port of 
 New- York, the vessel was detained by the Saturn razee, and, 
 to the disgrace of the British navy, already dishonored by 
 the base attack upon this gallant officer, lie was compelled to 
 give up his parole, and declare himself a prisoner of war ; 
 
MADISON'S ADMINISTRATION. 445 
 
 and, as such, he informed the British officer, that he would 
 attempt his escape. In consequence of this threat, the Essex 
 Junior was ordered to remain under the lee of the Saturn ; 
 but the next morning, Commodore Porter put off in his boat, 
 though thirty miles from shore, and notwithstanding the 
 pursuit by those of the Saturn, arrived safely in New- York."* 
 
 Sec. 42. Two naval engagements took place 
 about this time, both of which resulted in favor 
 of the American flag. The first of these was 
 between the United States' sloop of war Peacock, 
 and the British brig Epervier, April 29th; and 
 the second, June 28th, between the sloop Wasp, 
 which, after capturing seven merchantmen, fell 
 in with and captured the English brig Reindeer. 
 
 The action between the first two mentioned vessels lasted 
 but forty-five minutes. During its continuance, the Eper- 
 vier had eight men killed, and fifteen wounded. The Pea- 
 cock escaped with but a single man killed, and with only 
 two wounded. This engagement took place in lat. 27 47' 
 north, and long. 30 9 X . 
 
 The action between the Wasp and Reindeer was but 
 eighteen minutes ; yet the destruction of life was much 
 greater. The latter vessel lost her commander, Captain 
 Planners, and twenty-seven men killed, and forty-two 
 wounded. Twice the British attempted to board the Wasp, 
 but were as often repulsed. At length, the American tars 
 boarded the Reindeer, and tore down her colors. The loss 
 of the latter, in killed and wounded, was twenty-six. Their 
 prize was so much injured, that, on the following day, she 
 was burned. 
 
 Sec. 43. Gen. Wilkinson continued encamped 
 with his army at French Mills, whither he had 
 retired in November, 1813, until February, 1814, 
 when, by order of the secretary of war, he de- 
 tached 2000 troops, under Gen. Brown, to protect 
 the Niagara frontier ; soon after which, destroy- 
 ing his barracks, he retired with the residue of 
 his forces to Plattsburg. 
 
 * Brackenridge. 
 38 
 
446 PERIOD x. 1809 TO 1817. 
 
 The British, apprised of this movement, detached a large 
 force, under Col. Scott, which destroyed the public stores, 
 with the arsenal of the Americans, at Malone, which had 
 belonged to the cantonment of French Mills ; but, on hear- 
 ing of the approach of a large American force, they hastily 
 retreated. 
 
 Sec. 44. The movements of Gen. Wilkinson 
 indicating a disposition to attempt the invasion 
 of Canada, a detachment of 2000 British, under 
 Major Hancock, was ordered to take post, and 
 fortify themselves at La Colle Mill, near the river 
 Sorel, to defeat the above object. With a view 
 of dislodging this party, Wilkinson, at the head 
 of 4000 men, crossed the Canada lines, on the 
 30th of March. On the following day, he com- 
 menced a cannonade upon the works of the ene- 
 my ; but finding it impracticable to make an 
 impression on this strong building, he retired 
 with his forces, having lost in the affray up- 
 wards of one hundred and forty in killed and 
 wounded. 
 
 The unfortunate issue of this movement, and the equally 
 unfortunate termination of the last campaign, brought Gen. 
 Wilkinson into such discredit with the American public, 
 that, yielding to the general opinion, the administration sus- 
 pended him from the command, in which he was succeeded 
 by Gen. Izard. At a subsequent day, Wilkinson was tried 
 before a court martial at Troy, by which he was acquitted, 
 but not without hesitation. 
 
 Sec. 45. For three months following the above 
 movement, the armies of both nations continued 
 inactive. On the part of the British, the war 
 seemed to languish, the nation at home being oc- 
 cupied with events which were transpiring in 
 Europe of a most extraordinary character. But 
 when, at length, the emperor of France had ab- 
 dicated his empire, and Louis XVIII. was seated 
 upon his legitimate throne, England was at liber 
 
447 
 
 ty to direct against America the immense force 
 which she had employed in her continental 
 wars. Accordingly, at this time, the British 
 forces were augmented by 14,000 veteran troops, 
 which had fought under Wellington ; and, at 
 the same time, a strong naval force was dis- 
 patched to blockade the American coast, and 
 ravage our maritime towns. 
 
 Sec. 46. It has been already noticed, that Gen. 
 Brown was detached by Wilkinson, with 2000 
 troops, from French Mills, (Sec. 43,) to proceed to 
 the Niagara frontier. For a time, he stopped at 
 Sacket's Harbor ; but, at length, proceeded with 
 his army to Buffalo. By the addition of Tow- 
 son's artillery, and a corps of volunteers, his force 
 was augmented to 3500 effective men. 
 
 On the 2d and 3d of July, he crossed the river 
 Niagara, and took possession of the British Fort 
 Erie, which surrendered without resistance. At 
 a few miles distant, in a strong position, at 
 Chippewa, was intrenched an equal number of 
 British troops, under command of General Riall. 
 On the 4th, Gen. Brown approached these works. 
 On the following day, the two armies met, in 
 the open field. The contest was obstinate and 
 bloody ; but, at length, the Americans proved 
 victorious, while the British retired with the 
 loss of 514 men. The loss of the Americans was 
 32S. 
 
 Sec. 47. Immediately after this defeat, General 
 Riall retired to Burlington Heights. Here, Lieut. 
 General Drummond, with a large force, joined 
 him, and, assuming the command, led back the 
 army towards the American camp. On the 25th, 
 the two armies met at Bridgewater, near the 
 cataract of Niagara, and a most desperate en- 
 
 
448 PERIOD x. 1809 TO 1817. 
 
 gagement ensued, about sunset, and lasted till 
 midnight. At length, the Americans were left 
 in quiet possession of the field. 
 
 The battle of Bridge water, or Niagara, was one of the 
 most bloody conflicts recorded in modern warfare. The 
 British force engaged fell something short of 5000 men, in- 
 cluding 1500 militia and Indians. The force of the Ame- 
 ricans was by one third less. The total loss of the British 
 was 878. Generals Drummond and Riall were among the 
 wounded. The Americans lost, in killed, Avounded, and 
 missing, 860. Among the killed, were eleven officers, and 
 among the wounded, fifty-six. Both Generals Brown and 
 Scott were among the latter. On receiving his wound, 
 Gen. Brown directed Gen. Ripley to assume the command. 
 Unfortunately, the Americans having no means to remove 
 the British artillery which had been captured, were obliged 
 to leave it on the field. On being apprised of this, the 
 British forthwith returned, and took their artillery again in 
 charge. Owing to this circumstance, the British officers 
 had the hardihood, in their dispatches to government, to 
 claim the victory. 
 
 Sec. 48. Gen. Ripley, finding his numbers too 
 much reduced to withstand a force so greatly 
 his superior, deemed it prudent to return to Fort 
 Erie. On the 4th of August, this fort was in- 
 vested by General Drummond, with 5000 men ; 
 and for 49 days the siege was pressed with great 
 zeal ; but, at length, the British general was 
 obliged to retire, without having accomplished 
 his object. 
 
 The American force was at this time reduced to 1600 
 men. On the 5th Gen. Gaines arrived at Erie from Sack- 
 et's Harbor, and took the command. On the 15th, a large 
 British force advanced in three columns under Cols. Drum- 
 mond, Fischer, and Scott, against the fort, but were re- 
 pulsed with the signal loss of 57 killed, 319 wounded, and 
 539 missing. Among the killed were Cols. Drummond 
 and Scott. 
 
 For some time following this rencontre, both armies were 
 inactive. But, at length, the distressed state of the besieged 
 Americans in the fort attracting the attention of govern- 
 
MADISON'S ADMINISTRATION. 449 
 
 ment, a force of 5000 under Gen. Izard was ordered from 
 Plattsburg to proceed to their relief. 
 
 On the 17th of September, Gen. Brown, who had re- 
 covered from his wounds, and had resumed the command 
 of the fort, ordered a sortie, in which the Americans were 
 so successful, that Gen. Drummond was obliged to raise 
 the siege, and to retire with the loss of a great quantity of 
 artillery and ammunition, and of 1000 men, which were 
 his number of killed, wounded, and prisoners. 
 
 Shortly after, the troops under Gen. Izard arriving, the 
 Americans were able to commence offensive operations. 
 They, therefore, leaving only a moderate garrison in the 
 fort, now advanced towards Chippewa, where Drummond 
 had taken post. Near this place a partial battle occurred 
 on the 20th of October, in which the Americans so far 
 gained the advantage as to cause the enemy to retire. 
 
 Sec. 49. While these events were transpiring 
 in the north, the public attention was irresisti- 
 bly drawn to the movements of the enemy, on 
 the sea-board. About the middle of August, be- 
 tween fifty and sixty British sail arrived in the 
 Chesapeake, with troops destined for the attack 
 of Washington, the capital of the United States. 
 On the 23d of August, six thousand British 
 troops, commanded by Gen. Ross, forced their way 
 to that place, and burnt the capitol, president's 
 house, and executive offices. Having thus ac- 
 complished an object highly disgraceful to the 
 British arms, and wantonly burned public 
 buildings, the ornament and pride of the nation, 
 the destruction of which could not hasten the 
 termination of the war on the 25th they re- 
 tired, and, by rapid marches, regained their 
 shipping, having lost, during the expedition, 
 nearly one thousand men. 
 
 The troops, under Gen. Ross, were landed at Benedict, 
 on the Patuxent, forty-seven miles from Washington. On 
 the 21st, they moved toward Nottingham, and, the follow- 
 ing day, reached Marlborough. A British flotilla, com- 
 manded by Cockburn, consisting of lanches and barges, 
 38* 
 
450 PERIOD x. 1809 TO 1817. 
 
 ascended the river at the same time, keeping- on the right 
 flank of the army. The day following, on approaching 
 the American flotilla of Commodore Barney, which had 
 taken refuge high up the river, twelve miles from Wash- 
 ington, some sailors left on board the flotilla for the pur- 
 pose, should it be necessary, set fire to it, and fled. 
 
 On the arrival of the British army at Bladensburg, six 
 miles from Washington, Gen. Winder, commander of the 
 American forces, chiefly militia collected for the occasion, 
 ordered them to engage the enemy. The principal part 01 
 the militia, however, fled, at the opening of the contest. 
 Commodore Barney, with a few eighteen pounders, and 
 about four hundred men, made a gallant resistance; but 
 being overpowered by numbers, and himself wounded, he 
 and a part of his brave band were compelled to surrender 
 themselves prisoners of war. 
 
 From Bladensburg, Gen. Ross urged his march to Wash- 
 ington, where he arrived at about 8 o'clock in the evening. 
 Having stationed his main body at the distance of a mile 
 and a half from the capitol, he entered the city, at the head 
 of about seven hundred men, soon after which, he issued 
 his orders for the conflagration of the public buildings. 
 With the capitol were consumed its valuable libraries, and 
 all the furniture, and articles of taste and value, in that and 
 in the other buildings. The great bridge across the Poto 
 mack was burnt, together with an elegant hotel, and othei 
 private buildings. 
 
 Sec. 50. The capture of Washington was fol- 
 lowed, September 12th, by an attack on Balti- 
 more, in which the American forces, militia, and 
 inhabitants of Baltimore, made a gallant de 
 fence. Being, however, overpowered by a su- 
 perior force, they were compelled to retreat; 
 but they fought so valiantly, that the attempt 
 to gain possession of the city was abandoned 
 by the enemy, who, during the night of Tues- 
 day, 13th, retired to their shipping, having lost 
 among their killed, Gen. Ross, the commander- 
 in-chief of the British troops. 
 
 The British army, after the capture of Washington, hav- 
 ing re-embarked on board the fleet in the Patuxent, Ad- 
 
MADISON'S ADMINISTRATION. 451 
 
 miral Cochrane moved down that river, and proceeded up 
 the Chesapeake. On the morning of the 1 1th of Septem- 
 ber, he appeared at the mouth of the Patapsco, fourteen 
 miles from Baltimore, with a fleet of ships of war and trans- 
 ports, amounting to fifty sail. 
 
 On the next day, 12th, land forces, to the number of six 
 thousand, were landed at North Point, and, under the com- 
 mand of Gen. Ross, commenced their march towards the 
 city. In anticipation of the landing of the troops, General 
 Strieker was dispatched with three thousand two hundred 
 men from Baltimore, to keep the enemy in check. 
 
 On the 12th, a battle was fought by the two armies. 
 Early in the engagement, a considerable part of General 
 Strieker's troops retreated in confusion, leaving him scarce- 
 ly one thousand four hundred men, to whom was opposed 
 the whole body of the enemy. An incessant fire was con- 
 tinued from half past two o'clock, till a little before four, 
 when Gen. Strieker, finding the contest unequal, and that 
 the enemy outflanked him, retreated upon his reserve, 
 which was effected in good order. 
 
 The loss of the Americans, in killed and wounded, 
 amounted to one hundred and sixty-three, among whom 
 were some of the most respectable citizens of Baltimore. 
 
 The enemy made his appearance, the next morning, in 
 front of the American entrenchments, at a distance of two 
 miles from the city, showing an intention of renewing the 
 attack. 
 
 In the mean time, an attack was made on Fort M'Henry, 
 from frigates, bombs, and rocket vessels, which continued 
 through the day, and the greater part of the night, doing, 
 however, but little damage. 
 
 In the course of the night of Tuesday, Admiral Cochrane 
 held a communication with the commander of the land 
 forces, and the enterprise of taking the city being deemed 
 impracticable, the troops were re-embarked, and the next 
 day, the fleet descended the bay, to the great joy of the re- 
 leased inhabitants. 
 
 Sec. 51. The joy experienced in all parts of 
 the United States, on account of the brave de- 
 fence of Baltimore, had scarcely subsided, when 
 intelligence was received of the signal success 
 of the Americans at Plattsburg, and on Lake 
 Champlain. The army of Sir George Prevost, 
 
452 PERIOD x. 1809 TO 1817. 
 
 amounting to fourteen thousand men, was com- 
 pelled by Gen. Macomb to retire from the for- 
 mer, and the enemy's squadron, commanded by 
 Commodore Downie, was captured by Commo- 
 dore Macdonough on the latter. 
 
 Towards the close of the winter of 1814, General Wil- 
 kinson, with his army, removed from their winter-quarters 
 at French Mills, and took station at Plattsburg. General 
 Wilkinson leaving the command of the army, Gen. Izard 
 succeeded him at this place. By September, the troops at 
 Plattsburg were diminished, by detachments withdrawn to 
 other stations, to one thousand five hundred men. 
 
 In this state of the forces, it was announced that Sir 
 George Prevost, governor general of Canada, with an army 
 of fourteen thousand men, completely equipped, and ac- 
 companied by a numerous train of artillery, was about mak- 
 ing a descent on Plattsburg. 
 
 At this time, both the Americans and British had a re- 
 spectable naval force on Lake Champlain ; but that of the 
 latter was considerably the superior, amounting to ninety- 
 five guns, and one thousand and fifty men, while the Ame- 
 rican squadron carried but eighty-six guns, and eight hun- 
 dred and twenty-six men. 
 
 On the llth of September, while the American fleet was 
 lying off Plattsburg, the British squadron was observed 
 bearing down upon it in order of battle. 
 
 Com. Macdonough, ordering his vessels cleared for ac- 
 tion, gallantly received the enemy. An engagement en- 
 sued, which lasted two hours and twenty minutes. By this 
 time, the enemy was silenced, and one frigate, one brig, 
 and two sloops of war, fell into the hands of the Americans. 
 Several British galleys were sunk, and a few others escap- 
 ed. The loss of the Americans was fifty-two killed, and 
 fifty-eight wounded ; of the British, eighty-four killed, and 
 one hundred and ten wounded. 
 
 Previously to this eventful day, Sir George Prevost, with 
 his army, arrived in the vicinity of Plattsburg. In antici- 
 pation of this event, Gen. Macomb made every preparation, 
 which time and means allowed, and called in to his assist- 
 ance considerable numbers of the militia. 
 
 In the sight of these two armies, the rival squadrons com- 
 menced their contest. And, as if their engagement had 
 been a preconcerted signal ; and as if to raise still higher 
 
MADISON'S ADMINISTRATION. 453 
 
 the solemn grandeur of the scene; Sir George Prevost now 
 led up his forces against the American works, and began 
 throwing upon them, shells, balls, and rockets. 
 
 At the same time, the Americans opened a severe and 
 destructive fire from their forts. Before sunset, the tempo- 
 rary batteries of Sir George Prevost were all silenced, and 
 every attempt of the enemy to cross from Plattsburg to the 
 American works* was repelled. At nine o'clock, perceiv- 
 ing the attainment of his object impracticable, the British 
 general hastily withdrew his forces, diminished by killed, 
 wounded, and deserted, two thousand five hundred. At 
 the same time, he abandoned vast quantities of military 
 stores, and left the inhabitants of Plattsburg to take care of 
 the sick and wounded of his army, and the " star-spangled 
 banner" to wave in triumph over the waters of Cham- 
 plain. 
 
 Sec. 52. It has been already noticed, that the 
 New-England representatives in congress, as 
 well as a great portion of the people in that sec- 
 tion of the country, were early and strongly op- 
 posed to the war with Great Britain. During 
 the progress of the war. this opposition continued, 
 and became confirmed. Enlistments of troops 
 into the army from this quarter were, therefore, 
 fewer than under other circumstances might 
 have been expected. Dissentions also arose be- 
 tween the general and state governments re- 
 specting the command of the militia, called out 
 by order of the former, to defend the sea-board. 
 Great dissatisfaction prevailed, from an appre- 
 hension that the affairs of the general govern- 
 ment were mismanaged, and, to many, it ap- 
 peared that a crisis was forming, which, unless 
 seasonably provided against, might involve the 
 country in ruin. 
 
 Such apprehensions for the political safety 
 
 
 * The village of Plattsburg is situated on the northeast side of the 
 small river Saranac, near its entrance into the lake, and the American 
 works are directly opj>osite. 
 
454 PERIOD x. 1809 TO 1817. 
 
 extensively prevailing throughout New-England 
 it was deemed important, by not a few distin- 
 guished and patriotic citizens, to take measures 
 to remove public grievances, and to provide 
 against anticipated evils. 
 
 Accordingly, on the 8th of October, 1814, at 
 an extra session of the Massachusetts legisla- 
 ture, a committee, to whom was referred the 
 speech of the governor, (Strong,) in the conclu- 
 sion of their report, recommended the appoint- 
 ment of " delegates to meet and confer with 
 delegates from the states of New-England, or 
 any of them, upon the subjects of their public 
 grievances and , concerns" " and also to take 
 measures, if they shall think proper, for procur- 
 ing a convention of delegates from all the Uni- 
 ted States, in order to revise the constitution 
 thereof, and more effectually to secure the sup- 
 port and attachment of all the people, by pla- 
 cing all upon the basis of fair representation." 
 
 This resolution met with a spirited opposition 
 from a respectable minority, both in the senate 
 and house of representatives but finally pass- 
 ed. Delegates were accordingly chosen. This 
 example was followed by Rhode-Island and 
 Connecticut. Vermont refused, and New-Hamp- 
 shire neglected to send. 
 
 On the 15th of December, these delegates, 
 together with two elected by counties in New- 
 Hampshire, and one similarly elected in Ver- 
 mont, met at Hartford. After a session of near 
 three weeks, they published a report, in which, 
 after dwelling upon the public grievances felt 
 by the New-England states particularly, and by 
 the country at large, in no small degree, they 
 proceeded to suggest several alterations of the 
 
MADISON'S ADMINISTRATION. 455 
 
 federal constitution, with a view to their adop- 
 tion by the respective states of the Union. 
 
 These alterations consisted of seven articles : -first, that 
 representatives and direct taxes shall be apportioned to the 
 number of free persons ; secondly, that no new state shall 
 be admitted into the union, without the concurrence of two 
 thirds of both houses ; thirdly, that congress shall not have 
 power to lay an embargo for more than sixty days ; fourth- 
 ly, that congress shall not interdict commercial intercourse, 
 without the concurrence of two thirds of both houses; 
 fifthly, that war shall not be declared without the concur- 
 rence of a similar majority ; sixthly, that no person who 
 shall be hereafter naturalized, shall be eligible as a member 
 of the senate or house of representatives, or hold any civil 
 office under the authority of the United States; and, seventh- 
 ly, that no person shall be elected twice to the presidency, 
 nor the president be elected from the same state two terms 
 in succession. 
 
 Sec. 53. The report of the convention conclud- 
 ed with a resolution, providing for the calling of 
 another convention, should the United States " re- 
 fuse their consent to some arrangement whereby 
 the New England States, separately, or in con- 
 cert, might be empowered to assume upon them- 
 selves the defence of their territory against the 
 enemy," appropriating a reasonable proportion 
 of the public taxes for this purpose ; or, " should 
 peace not be concluded, and the defence of the 
 New-England States be neglected, as it has been 
 since the commencement of the war." 
 
 The conclusion of a treaty of peace with Great Britain, 
 not long after, being announced, another convention was nof 
 called; and, on the submission of the above amendments of 
 the constitution to the several states, they were rejected. 
 
 No act of the federal party has been so bitterly reprehend- 
 ed by their opponents, as the formation of the Hartford Con- 
 vention. It is represented by them, as a treasonable com- 
 bination of ambitious individuals, who, taking advantage of 
 the embarrassments of the national administration, arising 
 out of the war, sought to sever the union ; and were only 
 deterred from an open attempt to accomplish their purpose, 
 
-I 
 
 456 PERIOD x. 1809 TO 1817. 
 
 by the unexpected conclusion of a treaty of peace with 
 Great Britain, which disembarrassed the administration, 
 and swept away all grounds upon which to prosecute their 
 designs. 
 
 In defence of the convention, it is urged, that the indivi- 
 du Is who composed it, assembled in obedience to legisla- 
 tive appointment ; and be the formation of a convention right 
 or wrong, they, as individuals, were not responsible for it. 
 That the calling of the convention was right, is urged on 
 the following grounds : at the period of its formation, the 
 situation of the country was such as gave serious grounds 
 of alarm to reflecting men ; the war operations had been 
 singularly disastrous; the recruiting service languished; 
 the national treasury was almost pennyless ; the national 
 credit was shaken, and loans were effected at a ruinous dis- 
 count ; the New-England seaboard was left exposed to the 
 enemy and instead of securing the confidence of the peo- 
 ple of the eastern states, by filling the military and civil offi- 
 ces under the general government, with men of known ta- 
 lents and character, the administration committed the inter- 
 ests of the nation, at a critical period, to men contemned by 
 a vast majority of the people in those states. 
 
 The public mind, in view of this state of things, was ex- 
 cited to a pitch bordering on insurrection ; and as their re- 
 presentation in congress was unheard, they looked with 
 earnest importunity to their state legislatures. What could 
 be done? From the earliest dates of its history, the le- 
 gislatures of New-England had been accustomed to call 
 conventions, at periods of common danger, to confer upon 
 the public welfare. It was natural at this moment to re- 
 sort to the same course; and instead of favoring the sus- 
 picion of treasonable intentions, by the character of the men 
 selected to form this convention, the age, gravity, and es- 
 tablished reputation of the greater part of the members of 
 it are a fair refutation of such suspicions. There are no 
 clear proofs to support the charge of treasonable designs, on 
 the part of the convention ; on the contrary, their designs, 
 which are the only fair test of their motives, and the only 
 just grounds upon which to form its character, and which 
 are before the world in their report, and their secret journal, 
 triumphantly refute such a charge. And it is further main- 
 tained, that the actual operation of the proceedings of the 
 convention was, instead of rousing opposition to the gene- 
 ral government, to soothe the public apprehensions, and 
 ouiet that restless anxiety which pervaded the country. 
 
457 
 
 Sec. 54. As early as the month of September, 
 indications of no dubious character were given, 
 that notwithstanding the negotiations pending 
 between the Americans and British commission- 
 ers at Ghent, serious preparations were making 
 for an inv.asion of Louisiana. About December 
 5th, certain intelligence was received that a Bri- 
 tish fleet, consisting of sixty sail, was off the 
 coast to the east of the Mississippi. In the course 
 of the month, fifteen thousand troops were land- 
 ed, under the command of Sir Edward Packen- 
 ham, and, on the 8th of January, they attacked 
 the Americans, amounting to about six thousand, 
 chiefly militia, in their iritrenchments, before 
 New-Orleans. After an engagement of more 
 than an hour, the enemy, having lost their com- 
 mander in chief, and Maj. Gen. Gibbs, and hav- 
 ing been cut to pieces in an almost unexampled 
 degree, fled in confusion, leaving their dead and 
 wounded on the field of battle. 
 
 On the receipt of intelligence that the enemy were off 
 the coast of the Mississippi, Com. Patterson despatched five 
 gun boats to watch their motions. These boats being un- 
 fortunately captured, the enemy were left to choose their 
 point of attack, entirely unmolested. 
 
 A part of the British forces were landed on the 22d of 
 December, and several engagements took place between 
 them and the Americans, some miles from New-Orleans, 
 but nothing decisive was effected on either side. 
 
 During these preliminary engagements, General Jackson, 
 now commanding at New-Orleans, had been diligently em- 
 ployed in preparations to defend the place. His front was 
 a straight line of one thousand yards, defended by upwards 
 of three thousand infantry and artillerists. The ditch con- 
 tained five feet of water, and his front, from having been 
 flooded by opening the levees, and by frequent rains, was 
 rendered sHppery and muddy. Eight distinct batteries were 
 judiciously disposed, mounting in all twelve guns of differ- 
 ent calibers. On the opposite side of the river was a strong 
 battery of fifteen guns. 
 39 
 
458 PERIOD x. 1809 TO 1817. 
 
 On the morning of the 8th of January, General Packen- 
 ham brought up his forces, amounting to twelve thousand 
 men, to the attack. The British deliberately advanced in 
 solid columns, over an even plain, in front of the American 
 intrenchments, the men carrying, besides their muskets, 
 fascines, and some of them ladders. 
 
 A solemn silence now prevailed through the American 
 lines, until the enemy approached within reach of the bat- 
 teries, which at that moment opened an incessant and de- 
 structive cannonade. The enemy, notwithstanding, con- 
 tinued to advance, closing up their ranks as fast as they 
 were opened by the fire of the Americans. 
 
 At length, they came within reach of the musketry and 
 rifles. The extended American line now unitedly present- 
 ed one sheet of fire, and poured in upon the British columns, 
 an unceasing tide of death. Hundreds fell at every dis- 
 charge, and by columns were swept away. 
 
 Being unable to stand the shock, the British became dis- 
 ordered and fled. In an attempt to rally them, Gen. Pack- 
 eriham was killed. Generals Gibbs and Kean succeeded 
 in pushing forward their columns a second time, but the 
 second approach was still more fatal than the first. The 
 fires again rolled from the American batteries, and from 
 thousands of muskets. The advancing columns again 
 broke and fled ; a few platoons only reached the edge of 
 the ditch, there to meet a more, certain destruction. In a 
 third but unavailing attempt to lead up their troops, Gens. 
 Gibbs and Kean were severely wounded, the former mortally. 
 
 The field of battle now exhibited a scene of extended 
 carnage. Seven hundred brave soldiers were sleeping in 
 death, and one thousand four hundred were wounded. Five 
 hundred were made prisoners making a loss to the Bri- 
 tish, on this memorable day, of near three thousand men. 
 The Americans lost in the engagement only seven killed, 
 and six wounded. 
 
 The enemy now sullenly retired, and on the night of the 
 18th, evacuated their camp, and, with great secrecy, em- 
 barked on board their shipping. 
 
 Sec. 55. The news of the victory at New-Oi 
 leans spread with haste through the Unil 
 States, and soon after was followed by the sti] 
 more welcome tidings of a treaty of peac 
 which was signed at Ghent, on the 24th of De- 
 
/C/t-vc* 
 
 "' 
 
 cember, 1814. On the 17th of February, this 
 treaty was ratified by the president and senate. 
 
 Upon the subjects for which the war had been professed- 
 ly declared, the treaty, thus concluded, was silent. It pro- 
 vided only for the suspension of hostilities the exchange 
 of prisoners the restoration of territories and possessions 
 obtained by the contending powers, during the war the ad- 
 justment of unsettled boundaries and for a combined effort 
 to effect the entire abolition of traffic in slaves. 
 
 But whatever diversity of opinion had prevailed about 
 the justice or policy of the war or now prevailed about 
 the merits of the treaty all parties welcomed the return of 
 peace. The soldier -gladly exchanged the toils of the camp 
 for the rest of his home ; the mariner once more spread his 
 canvass to the wind, and, fearless of molestation, joyfully 
 stretched his way on the ocean ; and the yeomanry of the 
 land, unaccustomed to the din of arms, gladly returned to 
 their wonted care of the field and the flock. 
 
 Sec. 56. The treaty with England was follow- 
 ed, on the 30th of June, 1815, by a treaty with 
 the dey of Algiers, concluded at Algiers at that 
 time, by William Shaler and Com. Stephen De- 
 catur, agents for the United States. 
 
 The war, which thus ended by treaty, was commenced by 
 the dey himself, as early as the year 1812. At that time, 
 the American consul, Mr. Lear, was suddenly ordered to 
 depart from Algiers, on account of the arrival of a cargo of 
 naval and military stores, for the regency of Algiers, in 
 fulfilment of treaty stipulations, which the dey alleged were 
 not such in quantity or quality as he expected. At the same 
 time, depredations were commenced upon our commerce. 
 Several American vessels were captured and condemned, 
 and their crews subjected to slavery. 
 
 Upon a representation of the case, by the president, to 
 congress, that body formally declared war against the dey 
 in March. Soon after, an American squadron sailed for the 
 Mediterranean, captured an Algerine brig, and a forty-four 
 gun frigate : and, at length, appeared before Algiers. 
 
 The respectability of the American force, added to the 
 two important victories already achieved, had prepared the 
 way for the American commissioners to dictate a treaty, 
 upon such a basis as they pleased. Accordingly, the mo- 
 
460 PERIOD x. 1809 TO 1817. 
 
 del of a treaty was sent to the dey, who signed it. By this 
 treaty, the United States were exempted from paying tribute 
 in future; captured property was to be restored by the dey; 
 prisoners to be delivered up without ransom, &c. &c. 
 
 Sec. 57. By the ninth article of the treaty be- 
 tween the United States and Great Britain, it 
 was stipulated by the former, that measures 
 should be immediately taken to establish a peace 
 with the several tribes of Indians, which had 
 been engaged in hostilities against the United 
 States. Such measures were accordingly taken, 
 and, in his message, December, 1815, the presi- 
 dent communicated to congress, that a renewal 
 of treaties had readily been acceded to by seve- 
 ral tribes, and that other more distant tribes 
 would probably follow their example, upon pro- 
 per explanations. 
 
 Sec. 58. The treaty with Great Britain, which 
 ended the war, left the subject of commercial in- 
 tercourse between the two nations to future ne- 
 gotiation. In the summer following the close of 
 the war, plenipotentiaries, respectively appoint- 
 ed by the two countries for that purpose, met at 
 London, and, on the 3d of July, signed <J a con- 
 vention, by which to regulate the commerce be- 
 tween the territories of the United States, and of 
 his Britannic majesty." 
 
 This convention provided for a reciprocal liberty of com- 
 merce between the two countries for an equalization oi 
 duties on importations and exportations from either country 
 to the other and for the admission of American vessels to 
 the principal settlements of the British dominions in the 
 East Indies, viz. Madras, Calcutta, Bombay, &c. Of this 
 convention, the. president spoke in terms of approbation, in 
 his message to congress ; but by a large portion of the com- 
 munity it was received with coldness, from an apprehension 
 that it would operate unfavorably to America, and would 
 seriously abridge her commerce. The convention was to 
 be binding only for four years. 
 
y! * BISON'S ADMINISTRATION. 461 
 
 Sec. 59. By the second article of the treaty 
 with Great Britain, it was agreed, that all ves- 
 sels, taken by either power, within twelve days 
 from the exchange of ratifications, between 
 twenty-three degrees and fifty degrees of north 
 latitude, should be considered lawful prizes. 
 A longer period was stipulated for more distant 
 latitudes. Within the time limited by this arti- 
 cle, several actions took place, and several ves- 
 sels of various descriptions were captured by 
 each of the belligerents. The frigate President 
 was taken January 15th, 1815, by a British 
 squadron ; the British ships Cyane, Levant, and 
 Penguin, were captured by the Americans. 
 
 In consequence of the continued blockade of Commodore 
 Decatur's squadron at New-London, that officer was trans- 
 ferred to the President, then at New- York. Soon after ta- 
 king command of her, a cruise was contemplated by the 
 commodore, in conjunction with the Peacock, Hornet, and 
 Tom Bowline, Thinking it more safe to venture out sing- 
 ly, the commodore appointed a place of rendezvous for the 
 vessels, and set sail in the President. Through the care- 
 lessness of the pilot, his vessel, in passing out, struck upon 
 the bar, where she lay for two hours tossing about, by 
 which her ballast was deranged, and her trim for sailing 
 lost. Trusting to the excellence of his vessel, however, and 
 not being able to return to port, the commodore put out 
 to sea. 
 
 At daylight, he fell in with a British squadron, consisting 
 of the Endymion, Tenedos, and Pomone frigates, with the 
 Majestic razee. In spite of every exertion, they gained 
 upon him ; at length, the Endymion came within reach, and 
 opened her fire. Commodore Decatur determined to en- 
 gage her before the other vessels should come up. This he 
 now did, and in a short time completely silenced her. By 
 this time, the rest of the squadron had arrived ; being un- 
 willing to sacrifice his men in a useless contest, on receiv- 
 ing the fire of the nearest frigate, he surrendered. Com- 
 modore Decatur was taken on board the Endymion, and al- 
 though she was only a wreck, he was required to surrender 
 his sword to the officer of that vessel. To this th<*. -v irit ^ 
 39* 
 
462 PERIOD x. 1809 TO 1817. 
 
 Decatur could not submit, and he indignantly refused to 
 relinquish it to any one, but to the commander of the 
 squadron. 
 
 The Cyane, a frigate of thirty-four guns, and the Levant, 
 a sloop of eighteen thirty pound carronades, were taken by 
 the Constitution, about the same time. 
 
 The Peacock, Hornet, and Tom Bowline, left New- York 
 a few days, after the sailing of the President, without having 
 heard of her capture. On the 23d of January, the Hornet 
 parted company, and directed her course towards Tristan 
 d' Acunha, the place of rendezvous. On the 23d of March, 
 she descried the British brig Penguin, of eighteen guns and 
 a twelve pound carronade, to the southward and eastward 
 of the island. Captain Biddle hove to, while the Penguin 
 bore down. At forty minutes past one, the British brig 
 opened her fire. After fifteen minutes, the Penguin gradu- 
 ally neared the Hornet, with an intention to board, the cap- 
 tain having given orders for that purpose. At this time, he 
 was killed by a grape shot. Her lieutenant then bore her 
 up, and running her bowsprit between the main and mizen 
 rigging of the Hornet, gave orders to board. His men, 
 however, perceiving the crew of the Hornet ready to receive 
 them, refused to follow him. At this moment, the heavy 
 swells of the sea lifted the Hornet ahead. The commander 
 of the Penguin called out that he had surrendered, and Cap- 
 tain Biddle ordered his men to cease firing. 
 
 Immediately after this, an officer of the Hornet called to 
 Captain Biddle. that a man in the enemy's shrouds was ta- 
 king aim at him. Before he could change his position, a 
 musket ball struck him in the neck, and wounded him se- 
 verely. Two marines immediately levelled their pieces, 
 and killed the wretch before he had brought his gun from 
 his shoulder. The crew of the Hornet, indignant at this 
 outrage, demanded to give the enemy a fresh broadside, and 
 the vessel had nearly wore round for the purpose, before 
 Captain Biddle could restrain the justly exasperated crew. 
 The loss of the Penguin was fourteen in killed, and twenty- 
 eight wounded. The Hornet had one killed and eleven 
 wounded. The former vessel was so seriously injured, that 
 Captain Biddle sunk her. 
 
 Sec. 60. The attention of congress, during their 
 session in 181516, was called to a bill, which 
 had for its object the incorporation of a national 
 In the discussion which followed, much 
 
463 
 
 diversity of opinion was found to prevail, not 
 only as to the constitutional power of congress 
 to establish such an institution, but also as to 
 the principles upon which it should be modelled. 
 After weeks of animated debate, a bill, incorpo- 
 rating the ''Bank of the United States," with a 
 capital of thirty-five millions of dollars, passed, 
 and on Wednesday, April 10th, received the sig- 
 nature of the president, 
 
 Of the stock of the bank, seven millions were to be sub- 
 scribed by the United States, the remaining twenty-eight 
 by individuals. The affairs of the corporation were to be 
 managed by twenty-five directors, five of whom were to be 
 chosen by the president, with the advice and consent of the 
 senate ; the remainder to be elected by the stockholders, at 
 the banking house in Philadelphia. The charter of the 
 bank is to continue in force until the 3d of March, 1836. 
 
 Sec. 61. The summer of 1816 passed away, 
 without being marked by any events of pecu- 
 liar moment. The country appeared to be gra- 
 dually recovering from the embarrassments in- 
 duced by the war, and that asperity of feeling, 
 which had agitated the different political parties 
 in the United States, was visibly wearing away. 
 Congress met in December. In the conclusion 
 of his message, at the opening of the session, 
 Mr. Madison, anticipating the speedy arrival of 
 the day, when he should retire from the presi- 
 dency, took occasion to express his attachment 
 for his country, and his wishes for her future 
 peace and prosperity: 
 
 " I can indulge the proud reflection," said he, " that the 
 American people have reached in safety and success, their 
 fortieth year, as an independent nation ; that for nearly an 
 entire generation, they have had experience of their pre- 
 sent constitution, the offspring of their undisturbed delibera- 
 tions and of their free choice ; that they have found it to 
 bear the trials of adverse as well as prosperous circum- 
 stances, to contain in its combination of the federate and 
 
464 PERIOD x. 1809 TO 1817. 
 
 elective principles, a reconcilement of public strength with 
 individual liberty, of national power, for the defence of na- 
 tional rights, with a security against wars of injustice, of 
 ambition, or of vain glory, in the fundamental provision 
 which subjects all questions of war to the will of the nation 
 itself, which is to pay its costs, and feel its calamities. Nor 
 is it less a peculiar felicity of this constitution, so dear to 
 us all, that it is found to be capable, without losing its vital 
 energies, of expanding itself over a spacious territory, with 
 the increase and expansion of the community, for whose 
 benefit it was established." 
 
 Sec. 62. In December, 1816, INDIANA became 
 an independent state, and was received into the 
 union. 
 
 Detached places in Indiana were settled by the French, 
 upwards of a century ago. The exact period, at which the 
 first settlement was made, is uncertain. 
 
 In 1763, the territory was ceded by France to England. 
 By the treaty of Greenville in 1795, the United States ob- 
 tained of the Indians several small grants of land within 
 this territory; and, in subsequent years, still more exten- 
 sive tracts. During the war with England, which broke 
 out in 1812, Indiana was the scene of many Indian depre- 
 dations, and of many unusually severe battles, between the 
 hostile tribes, and the troops of the United States. Until 
 1801, Indiana formed a part of the great north-western ter- 
 ritory, but, at that date, it was erected into a territorial go- 
 vernment, with the usual powers and privileges. In De- 
 cember, 1815, the inhabitants amounting to sixty thousand, 
 the legislature petitioned congress for admission into the 
 union, and the privilege of forming a state constitution. A 
 bill for this purpose passed congress, in April, 1816 ; a con- 
 vention of delegates met in conformity to it, by which a 
 constitution was adopted, and Indiana became an indepen- 
 dent state, and a member of the union, in December follow- 
 ing. 
 
 Sec. 63. 1817. On Wednesday, February 12th, 
 the votes for Mr. Madison's successor were 
 counted in the presence of both houses of con- 
 gress, when it appeared that James Monroe was 
 elected president, and Daniel D. Tompkins 
 vice-president of the United States, for the four 
 
465 
 
 years from and after the fourth of the ensuing 
 March. 
 
 NOTES. 
 
 Sec. 64. MANNERS. The only noticeable change 
 of manners, which seems to have taken place 
 during this period, arose from the spirit of pe- 
 cuniary speculation, which pervaded the country 
 during the war. Money was borrowed with 
 facility, and fortunes were often made in a day. 
 Extravagance and profligacy were, to some ex- 
 tent, the consequence. The return of peace, 
 and the extensive misfortunes which fell upon 
 every part of the community, counteracted these 
 vices, and restored more sober and industrious 
 habits. 
 
 Sec. 65. RELIGION. During this period, ex- 
 tensive revivals of religion prevailed, and liberal 
 and expanded plans were devised and com- 
 menced for the promotion of Christianity. Se- \ 1 
 veral theological institutions were founded, mis- 
 sionary and Bible societies were established, 
 and a great call for ministers of the gospel was 
 heard. 
 
 Sec. 66. TRADE AND COMMERCE. During this 
 period, trade and commerce were crippled by 
 foreign restrictions, our own acts of non-inter- 
 course, and, at length, by the war with Eng- 
 land. During this war our carrying trade was 
 destroyed, nor was it restored by the peace of 
 1815. 
 
 On the return of peace, immense importations 
 were made from England, the country being des- 
 titute of English merchandise. The market 
 was soon glutted, prices fell, and extensive bank- 
 ruptcies were the consequence. 
 
 Sec. 67. AGRICULTURE. Agriculture, during 
 
466 PERIOD x. 1809 TO 1817. 
 
 this period, cannot be said to have made great 
 advances. 
 
 An excessive disposition in the people for trade and spe- 
 culation, drew off the attention of the more intelligent and 
 active part of the community, and directed much of the ca- 
 pital of the country to other objects. Upon the return of 
 peace, however, when mercantile distresses overspread the 
 land, agriculture was again resorted to, as one of the. surest 
 means of obtaining a livelihood. Men of capital, too, turn- 
 ed their attention to farming; agricultural societies were 
 established in all parts of the country; more enlightened 
 methods of culture were introduced, and agriculture became 
 not only one of the most profitable, but one of the most po- 
 pular objects of pursuit. 
 
 Sec. 68. ARTS AND MANUFACTURES. During 
 the war which occurred in this period, the in- 
 tercourse with England, and other places, being 
 stopped, the country was soon destitute of those 
 articles which had been supplied by English 
 manufactories. Accordingly, the people began 
 to manufacture for themselves. Extensive 
 manufacturing establishments were started for 
 almost every sort of merchandise. Such was 
 their success at the outset, that an immense ca- 
 pital was soon invested in them, and the coun- 
 try began to be supplied with almost every 
 species of manufacture from our own establish- 
 ments. After the peace, the country being in- 
 undated with British goods, these establishments 
 suffered the severest embarrassments, and many 
 of them were entirely broken down. A consi- 
 derable portion of them, however, were main- 
 tained, and continued to flourish. 
 
 Sec. 69. POPULATION. At the expiration of 
 Mr. Madison's term of office, in 1817, the number 
 of inhabitants in the United States was about 
 nine millions five hundred thousand. 
 
 Sec. 70. EDUCATION. The pecuniary embar- 
 
MADISON'S ADMINISTRATION. 467 
 
 rassments experienced throughout the country, 
 during the latter part of this period, sensibly 
 affected some institutions devoted 10 science and 
 benevolence, especially those which depend, in 
 part, upon the yearly contributions of the pa- 
 trons of learning and religion, for the means of 
 support. In several of the higher seminaries, 
 the number of students was for a time dimi- 
 nished. Nevertheless, parochial schools, acade- j 
 mies, and colleges, upon the whole, continued to 
 increase, and to qualify many for the common 
 and higher professions of life. 
 
 A theological institution was established at Princeton, 
 New- Jersey, in 1812, by the general assembly of the 
 Presbyterian Church. In 1821, the theological seminary 
 of the Associate Reformed Church, in New- York, was 
 united to that of Princeton, and its library, consisting of four 
 thousand volumes, which cost seventeen thousand dollars, 
 was transferred to the latter place. This seminary has 
 three professors, and in 1821 had seventy -three students. 
 
 During the same year, Hamilton- College was incorpo- 
 rated at Clinton, New- York ; it has been liberally patron- 
 ised by the legislature, and by individuals. 
 
 In 1812 the American Antiquarian Society was incorpo- 
 rated by the legislature of Massachusetts. The American j j 
 Board of Commissioners for Foreign Missions was incorpo- / 
 rated. Five missionaries were ordained at Salem, Massa- 
 chusetts, with a. view of preaching the gospel in Asia. 
 These were the first missionaries from America destined 
 to foreign parts. In 1814, the Medical Institution of Yale 
 College was opened. During this year also, the American 
 Tract Society, and the Massachusetts Baptist Education 
 Society, were instituted. In 1816, the American Bible 
 Society was formed at New- York. 
 
UNITED STATES. 
 
 PERIOD XL 
 
 Extending from the inauguration of President 
 Monroe, 1817, to March, 1825. 
 
 Sec. 1. On the 4th of March, 1817, Mr. Monroe 
 took the oath prescribed by the constitution, 
 and entered upon the duties of president of the 
 United States. 
 
 The condition of the country, on the accession of Mr. 
 Monroe to the presidency, was in several respects more 
 prosperous and happy, than on the accession of his prede- 
 cessor. Not only had war ceased, and the political aspe- 
 rity excited by it given place to better feelings, but efforts 
 were made, in every section of the union, to revive those 
 plans of business which the war had nearly annihilated. 
 The country had suffered too much, however, to regain 
 immediately its former prosperity. Commerce was far 
 from being flourishing; a considerable part of the legiti- 
 mate trade was in the hands of foreigners; many ships 
 were lying unemployed, and the ship-building in many 
 ports had nearly ceased. The manufacturing establish- 
 ments, which had not been entirely broken down, were 
 sustaining a precarious existence. Foreign merchandise 
 was inundating the country ; and the specie, borrowed in 
 Europe for the national bank, at an excessive premium, as 
 well as that which was previously in the country, was ra- 
 pidly leaving it to pay the balance of trade against us.* In 
 
 * The bank of the United States commenced the importation of specie 
 in 1817, and introduced into the country seven millions three hundred 
 and eleven thousand seven hundred and fifty dollars, at an expense of 
 more than half a million of dollars. As fast as this specie arrived, it was 
 
MONROE'S ADMINISTRATION. 469 
 
 his inaugural address, however, the president spoke in ani- 
 mating terms of the happy state of the country, and of its 
 prospects of regaining, at no distant period, that measure 
 of prosperity, which, in former years, it had enjoyed. 
 
 Sec. 2. The senate having been convened at 
 the same time, a cabinet was formed under the 
 new administration. The department of state 
 was intrusted to Mr. Adams. Mr. Crawford was 
 continued in the treasury. Mr. Calhoun was 
 appointed secretary of war, and Smith Thomp- 
 son was placed over the department of the navy. 
 
 In the above nominations the president appears to have 
 strictly adhered to certain principles, which he had pre- 
 scribed for himself in a correspondence with Gen. Jackson, 
 who had written to Mr. Monroe an advisary letter touch- 
 ing this important presidential prerogative. 
 
 In the above letter to Mr. Monroe, dated Nov. 12, 1816, 
 the general remarks : " Your happiness and the nations 
 velfare, materially depend on the selections, which are 
 made, to fill the heads of departments. Every thing de- 
 pends on the selection of your ministry. In every instance 
 party, and party feeling, should be avoided. Now is the 
 time to exterminate that monster called party spirit. By- 
 selecting characters conspicuous for probity, virtue, capaci- 
 ty, and firmness, without regard to party, you will go far 
 to, if not entirely, eradicate those feelings which, on for- 
 mer occasions, threw so many obstacles in the way of go- 
 vernment, and perhaps have the pleasure and honor of 
 uniting a people heretofore politically divided. The chief 
 magistrate of a great and powerful nation should never in- 
 dulge in party feelings ; his conduct should be liberal and 
 disinterested, always bearing in mind that he acts for the 
 whole, and not a part of the community. By this course 
 you will exalt the national character, and acquire for your- 
 
 Yeshippcd to Europe, to pay the balance of trade against the United 
 States, or sent to India or China to purchase merchandise. With this 
 specie went a large portion of that which was in the country at the close 
 of the war. The exportation of specie from the United States to China 
 alone, in three years, amounted to above seventeen millions of dollars. 
 Viz. : 181G-17, $4.572,000 
 
 17-18, 5,300,000 
 
 18-19, . 7,414,000 
 
 $17,286,000 
 40 
 
; 
 
 470 PERIOD xi. 1817 TO 1825. 
 
 self a name as imperishable as monumental bruss. Con 
 suit no party in your choice. Pursue the dictates of that 
 unerring judgment which has so long and so often bene- 
 fited the country, and rendered conspicuous its rulers." 
 
 The advice thus confidentially imparted to Mr. Monroe 
 was acknowledged by the latter to be salutary, but he deem- 
 ed the time not to have arrived when the object could be 
 fully accomplished. " I agree with you decidedly," he 
 says, "that the chief magistrate of the country ought not 
 to be the head of a party, but of the nation itself. In de- 
 ciding, however, how a new administration is to be formed, 
 many considerations claim attention, as on a proper esti- 
 mate of them much may depend of the success of that ad- 
 ministration, and even of the republican cause. We have 
 heretofore been divided into two great parties; the contest 
 between them has never ceased from its commencement to 
 the present time, nor do I think it can be said now to have 
 ceased. To give effect to a free government, and secure it 
 from future danger, ought not its decided friends, who stood 
 firm, to be principally relied on? Would not the associa- 
 tion of any of their opponents in the administration, itself 
 wound their feelings, or at least of very many of them, to 
 the injury of the republican cause ? Might it not be con- 
 sidered by the other party as an offer of compromise with 
 them, and have a tendency to revive that party, on its for- 
 mer principles ? My impression is, that the administration 
 should rest strongly on the republican party, indulging to- 
 wards the other a spirit of moderation, and evincing a de- 
 sire to discriminate between its members, and to bring the 
 whole into the republican fold, as quietly as possible. The 
 first object is to save the cause, which can be done by those 
 who are devoted to it, only, and of course by keeping them 
 together ; or in other words by not disgusting, by too hasty 
 an act of liberality to the other party, thereby breaking the 
 generous spirit of the republican party, and keeping alive 
 that of the federal. The second is to prevent the reorgani- 
 zation and revival of the federal party ; which, if my hypo- 
 thesis is true, that the existence of party is not necessary to 
 a free government, and the other opinion which I have ad- 
 vanced is well founded, that the great body of the federal 
 party are republican, will not be found impracticable. To 
 accomplish both objects, and thereby exterminate all party 
 divisions in our country, and give new strength and stabi- 
 lity to our government, is a great undertaking, and not 
 easily executed. I agree perfectly with you in the grand 
 
MONROE'S ADMINISTRATION. 471 
 
 object, that moderation should be shown to the federal party, 
 and even a generous policy adopted towards it j the only 
 difference between us seems to be, how far shall that spirit 
 be indulged in the outset. 
 
 " In the formation of an administration, it appears to me 
 that the representative principle ought to be respected, in a 
 certain degree, at least that a head of a department, there 
 being four, should be taken from the four great sections of 
 the union, the east, the middle, the south, and the west. 
 This principle should not always be adhered to ; great 
 emergencies and transcendent talents, would always justify 
 a departure from it, but it would produce a good effect, to 
 attend to it when practicable. Each part of the union would 
 be gratified by it, and the knowledge of local details and 
 means, which would thereby be brought into the cabinet, 
 would be useful. I am in no wise compromitted, in res- 
 pect to any one, but free to act according to my judgment." 
 Sec. 3. In the summer and autumn following 
 his inauguration, the president made a tour 
 through the northern and eastern states of the 
 union. 
 
 The objects of this tour were connected with the national 
 interests. Congress had appropriated large sums of money 
 for the fortification of the sea coast, and inland frontiers, for 
 the establishment of naval docks, and for increasing the 
 navy. The superintendence of these works belonged to 
 the president. Solicitous to discharge his duty in reference 
 to them with judgment, fidelity, and economy, he was in- 
 duced to visit the most important points along the sea coast, 
 and in the interior, from a conviction of being better able to 
 direct in reference to them, with the knowledge derived 
 from personal observation, than by means of information 
 communicated to him by others. He left Washington on 
 the first of June, accompanied by Gen. Joseph C. Swift, chief 
 engineer of the United States, and his private secretary, Mr. 
 Mason. Passing through Baltimore, Philadelphia, New- 
 York, New-Haven, Hartford, New-London, and Providence, 
 he arrived in Boston, in which place and its vicinity ht; 
 spent several days. 
 
 On leaving Boston, he continued eastward to Portland, 
 through Salem, Newburyport, and Portsmouth : and thence 
 directed his course westward to Plattsburg, in the state of 
 New- York. In his route thither, he passed through Dover, 
 Concord, and Hanover, in New-Hampshire, and through 
 
472 PERIOD XL 1817 TO 1825. 
 
 Windsor and Burlington, in Vermont. The important post 
 of Plattsburg occupied his close attention for several days. 
 From this latter place he continued westward to Ogdens- 
 burg, Sacket's Harbor, and Detroit. Having now effected 
 the leading objects of his tour, he commenced his return to 
 the seat of government, through the interior of Ohio. At 
 the close of the day, September 17th, he entered Washing-- 
 ton, after having been absent more than three months, arid 
 having travelled three thousand miles. In the course of 
 his tour, the president examined the various fortifications 
 on the sea board, and in the interior, visited public build- 
 ings and institutions devoted to the purposes of literature, 
 the arts, and general benevolence. Although nndesirous of 
 attracting public attention on a tour whose object was the 
 good of his country, he was met by a respectable deputation 
 from the various places through which -it was understood he 
 would pass, and in lively and patriotic addresses was wel- 
 comed to their hospitality. 
 
 Sec. 4. Congress met on the 1st of December. 
 In his message at the opening of the session, the 
 president stated that the national credit was at- 
 taining a high elevation ; that preparations for 
 the defence of the country were progressing, un- 
 der a well digested system ; that arrangements 
 had been made wilh Great Britain to reduce the 
 naval force of the two countries on the western 
 lakes ; and that it was agreed that each country 
 should keep possession of the islands which be- 
 longed to it before the war ; and that the foreign 
 relations of the country continued to be pacific. 
 The message concluded with recommending the 
 surviving officers and soldiers of the revolution- 
 ary army to the special notice of congress, and 
 the repeal of the internal duties, on the ground 
 that the state of the treasury rendered their longer 
 continuance unnecessary. 
 
 Sec. 5. On the llth, the state of MISSISSIPPI was 
 acknowledged by congress as sovereign and in- 
 dependent, and was admitted to the union. 
 
 The first European who visited the present state of Mis- 
 
473 
 
 sissippi, appears to have been Ferdinand de Soto, a native 
 of Badajoz, in Spain, who landed on the coast of Florida on 
 the 25th of May, 1539. He spent three years in the coun- 
 try searching for gold, hut at length died, and was buried on 
 the banks of the Mississippi, May, 1542. 
 
 In 1683, M. de Salle descended the Mississippi, and 
 gave the name of Louisiana to the country. In consequence 
 of this, the French claimed to have jurisdiction over it. In 
 1716, they formed a settlement at the Natchez, and built a 
 fort, which they named Rosalie. Other settlements were 
 effected in subsequent years. The French settlements 
 were, however, seriously disturbed by the Indians, particu- 
 larly by the Natchez, once the most powerful of all the 
 southern tribes. 
 
 The French retained an acknowledged title to the coun- 
 try on the east side of the Mississippi, until the treaty of 
 1763, when they ceded their possessions, east of that river, 
 to the English. By the treaty of 1783, Great Britain re- 
 linquished the Floridas to Spain, without specific bounda- 
 ries ; and at the same time ceded to the United States all 
 the country north of 'the thirty-first degree of latitude. The 
 Spaniards retained possession of the Natchez and the ports 
 north of the thirty-first degree, until 1798, when they finally 
 abandoned them to the United States. 
 
 In the year 1800, the territory between the Mississippi 
 and the western boundary of Georgia, was erected into a 
 distinct territorial government. By treaty at Fort Adam, 
 in 1801, the Choctaw Indians relinquished to the United 
 States a large body of land, and other cessions have since 
 been made. On the 1st of March, 1817, congress authori- 
 zed the people of the western part of Mississippi territory 
 to form a constitution and state government. A convention 
 met in July, 1817, by which a constitution was formed, and 
 in December following, Mississippi was admitted into the 
 union as a separate state. 
 
 Sec. 6. In the course of the same month, an 
 expedition which had been set on foot by a 
 number of adventurers from different countries, 
 against East and West Florida, was terminated 
 by the troops of the United States. These ad- 
 venturers claimed to be acting under the autho- 
 rity of some of the South American colonies, and 
 had formed an establishment at Amelia Island 
 
 40* 
 
474 PERIOD XL 1817 TO 1825. 
 
 a Spanish province, then the subject of negotia- 
 tion between the United States and Spain. 
 Their avowed object being an invasion of the 
 Floridas, and of course an invasion of a part of 
 the United States, the American government 
 deemed itself authorized, without designing any 
 hostility to Spain, to take possession of Amelia 
 Island, their head-quarters. 
 
 A similar establishment had previously been formed at 
 Galvezton, a small island on the coast of the Texas, claimed 
 by the United States. From both of these places privateers 
 vvfire fitted out, which greatly annoyed our regular com- 
 merce. Prizes were sent in, and by a pretended court of 
 admiralty, condemned and sold. Slaves, in great numbers, 
 were shipped through these islands to the United States, 
 and through the same channel extensive clandestine impor- 
 tations of goods were made. Justly apprehending the re- 
 sults of these establishments, if suffered to proceed unmo- 
 lested, the executive took early measures to suppress them. 
 Accordingly, a naval force, with the necessary troops, was 
 dispatched, under command of Captains Henly and Bank- 
 head, to whom Amelia Island was surrendered, on the 24th 
 of December, without the effusion of blood. The suppres- 
 sion of Galvezton followed soon after. 
 
 Sec. 7. Several bills of importance passed con- 
 gress, during their session, in the winter of 1817, 
 1818 ; a bill allowing to the members of the 
 senate and house of representatives, the sum of 
 eight dollars per day, during their attendance ; 
 a second, in compliance with the recommenda- 
 tion of the president, abolishing the internal du- 
 ties ; and a third, providing, upon the same re- 
 commendation, for the indigent officers and sol- 
 diers of the revolutionary army. 
 
 The compensation bill, as it was called, excited much 
 sensation throughout the nation, on the ground that the sum 
 was unnecessarily enhanced, and gave occasion to long 
 and animated debates on the floor of the house of representa- 
 tives. By a portion of the representatives, strenuous efforts 
 were made to fix the per diem allowance at six dollars, 
 
MONROE'S ADMINISTRATION. 475 
 
 while others attempted to raise it to nine or ten. After a 
 protracted discussion of the subject, it was fixed at eight 
 dollars. 
 
 Against the repeal of the internal duties, few objections 
 were urged. The recommendation of the president to re- 
 peal them was anticipated, and on taking the vote in the 
 house of representatives, one hundred and sixty were found 
 in favor of the bill, and but five voices against it. 
 
 In calling the attention of congress to the happy situation 
 of the United States, the president, in his message, adverted, 
 with much sensibility, to the surviving officers and soldiers 
 of the revolutionary army, who, by their services, had laid 
 the foundation of American glory. Most of those who sur- 
 vived the achievement of our independence, said he, hav 
 paid the debt of nature. Among the survivors there^are 
 some who are reduced to indigence, and even to real dis- 
 tress. These men have a claim on the gratitude of their 
 country, and it will do honor to their country to provide for 
 them. The lapse of a few more years, and the opportunity 
 will be lost for ever, as they will all have gone to the grave. 
 In compliance with this recommendation, a bill was intro- 
 duced into congress, which, after some amendments, passed, 
 granting to indigent officers of the revolutionary army the 
 sum of twenty dollars per month, during life ; and of eight 
 dollars per month, during life, to indigent non-commission- 
 ed officers and privates. 
 
 Sec. 8. In April, 1818, ILLINOIS adopted a state 
 constitution, and in December following was 
 admitted as a member of the union. 
 
 Illinois derives its name from its principal river, which, 
 in the language of the Indians, signifies, the river of men. 
 The first settlements, like those of Indiana, were made by 
 the French, and were the consequence of the adventurous 
 enterprises of M. de la Salle, in search of the Mississippi. 
 The first settlements were- the villages of Kaskaskia and 
 Cahokia. In the beginning of the eighteenth century, the 
 settlements of Illinois \vere represented to have been in a 
 flourishing condition. But subsequently they in a great 
 measure declined. 
 
 From the beginning to the middle of the eighteenth cen- 
 tury, little was heard of the settlements of the French on 
 the banks of the Illinois. About 1749, the French began 
 to fortify the Wabash and Illinois, in order to resist the 
 British. In 1762, all the country to the east of the Missis- 
 
476 PERIOD xi.~ 1817 TO 1825. 
 
 sippi was ceded to the latter power, and consequently Ilh 
 nois passed under the British dominion. At the peace ot 
 1783, Great Britain renounced its claims of sovereignty over 
 this country, as well as over the United States. Virginia, 
 however, and some other states, claimed the whole country 
 north and west of the Ohio ; but at the instance of con- 
 gress, a cession of these claims was made to the general 
 government. Illinois remained a part of Indiana until 1809, 
 when a distinct territorial government was established for it. 
 In 1818, the people formed a constitution, and it is now one 
 of the United States. 
 
 See. 9. Early after the conclusion of this session 
 of congress, the president, in pursuance of his de- 
 termination to visit such parts of the United 
 States as were most exposed to the naval and 
 military forces of an enemy, prepared to survey 
 the Chesapeake hay, and the country lying on 
 its extensive shores. 
 
 In the month of May, he left Washington, accompanied 
 by the secretary of war, and the secretary of the navy, with 
 other gentlemen of distinction. On his arrival at Annapo- 
 lis, the president and his suite minutely examined the waters 
 contiguous, in reference to their fitness for a naval depot. 
 Embarking at this place on board a vessel, he farther ex- 
 amined the coast, and thence proceeded to Norfolk. Having 
 at length accomplished the principal object of his tour, in 
 the examination of the Chesapeake bay, he returned to 
 Washington, June 17th, through the interior of Virginia. 1 * 
 The respectful and affectionate demonstrations of .attach- 
 ment paid to him during his northern tour, were rerfewed* 
 in this. 
 
 Sec. 10. On the 27th of May, 1818, a treaty, 
 concluded with Sweden, at Stockholm, on the 
 4th of September, 1816, "by Mr. llussel, minister 
 plenipotentiary to that court, was ratified by the 
 president and senate, on the part of the United 
 States. The same was ratified by the king of 
 Sweden on the 24th of the following July. 
 
 This treaty provided for maintaining peace and friend- 
 ship between the two countries reciprocal liberty of com- 
 merce equalization of duties, &c. &c. The treaty was to 
 
477 
 
 continue in force for eight years from the exchange of rati- 
 fications. 
 
 Sec. 11. During the year 1818, a war was car- 
 ried on between the Seminole Indians and the 
 United States, which terminated in the complete 
 discomfiture of the former. 
 
 The history of this war is rendered the more interesting 
 by the conspicuous part which the hero of New-Orleans 
 bore in it, and the decisive, though novel measures, whith 
 he adopted in prosecuting it. 
 
 The Indians, denominated Seminole Indians, inhabited a 
 tract of country, partly within the limits of the United States, 
 but a greater part of which lies within the boundaries of 
 the Floridas. They originally consisted of fugitives from 
 the northern tribt-s, resident within the limits of the United 
 States. After the treaty of 1814 with the Creek Indians, a 
 considerable addition was made to these fugitives from the 
 Creeks, numbers of whom, being dissatisfied with the pro- 
 visions of that treaty, withdrew to the Seminoles, carrying 
 with them feelings of hostility against the United States. 
 These feelings seem to have been much strengthened by 
 foreign emissaries, who had taken up their residence among 
 them for the purposes of trade, among whom, as the most 
 conspicuous, were two Englishmen, Alexander Arbuthnot 
 and Robert C. Ambrister. Many outrages were perpetra- 
 ted, from time to time, by the Indians, upon the border in- 
 habitants, and several murders, under aggravated circum- 
 ^fMMes, were committed. Moreover, with a demand by 
 H|Kp' Gaines, the United States' officer in that quarter, 
 to deliver up the offenders, the Indians refused to comply, 
 Alleging that the first and greatest aggressions had pro- 
 ceeded from the whites. In consequence of this refusal, 
 Gen. Gaines was instructed, by the secretary of war, to re- 
 move, at his discretion, such Indians as were still on the 
 lands ceded to the United States by the Creeks in 1814. 
 
 Pursuant to this discretionary authority, Gen. Gaines de- 
 tached a party of near three hundred men, under command 
 of Major Twiggs, to take an Indian village called Fowl 
 Town, about fourteen miles from Fort Scott, and near the 
 Florida line. In executing this order, one man and one 
 woman were killed, and two women made prisoners. A 
 few days after, as a second detachment were on a visit to 
 the town, to obtain property, they were fired upon, and a 
 skirmish ensued, in which several on both sides were killed 
 
478 PERIOD XL 1817 TO 1825. 
 
 and wounded. Shortly after this event, Lieutenant Scott, 
 with a detachment of forty men, seven women, and some 
 children, ascending the Appalachicola with supplies for 
 the garrison at Fort Scott, were attacked, and the whole 
 party killed, excepting six men, who made their escape, and 
 a woman who was taken prisoner. 
 
 From this time, the war became serious. The Indians, 
 in considerable numbers, were embodied, and an open attack 
 was made on Fort Scott, to which General Gaines, with 
 about six hundred regular soldiers, was for a time confined. 
 Information of this state of things being communicated to 
 the department of war, General Jackson was ordered, Dec. 
 26, to take the field, and directed, if he should deem the force 
 with General Gaines, amounting to one thousand and eight 
 hundred men, insufficient to cope with the enemy, " to call 
 on the executives of the adjacent states for such an additional 
 militia force as he might deem requisite." On the receipt 
 of this order, General Jackson prepared to comply; but 
 instead of calling upon the executives of the neighboring 
 states, especially upon the governor of Tennessee, who 
 lived near his residence, he addressed a circular to the 
 patriots of West Tennessee, inviting one thousand of 
 them to join his standard.* 
 
 At the same time he wrote to the governor of Tennessee, 
 M'Minn, informing him ot the appeal he had made to the 
 men whom he had led to victory on the plains of Talledega, 
 Emuckfau, and Tohopeko, and added, " should the appeal 
 prove inefficacious, I will embrace the earliest opportunity 
 of making the requisition on you for a like number of 
 drafted rnilitia. ;! The call of General Jackson was prompt- 
 ly obeyed, and the thousand volunteers, officered by the 
 general,! or by the volunteers themselves, were ordered to 
 Fort Scott. 
 
 * The apology offered by General Jackson for not calling upon the go- 
 vernor of Tennessee was, that at the time the order was issued, for him to 
 take the field, the governor was either at Knoxville, or in the Cherokee 
 nation; and that to have waited the result of the usual process of draft- 
 ing, would have produced the two evils of much loss of valuable time, and 
 the raising of a force reluctant in disposition, and inefficient in character 
 and equipment. 
 
 t It has been denied that GeneralJackson appointed the officers of tl 
 volunteer corps. " It is true," however, says his defence, (see Mies' ~ 
 gister, Vol. 16, p. 52.) " that he appealed to the officers who had gallantly 
 fought with him in the wilderness of the Creek nation, and on the plaii 
 of New-Orleans, and again roused them to the defence of their frontier 
 But their appointments to command were, in all cases, made by the choic 
 of the men whom they (the officers to whom General Jackson had 
 pealed) brought into the field." 
 
MONROE'S ADMINISTRATION. 470 
 
 Before taking up his march, he wrote, Jan. 12th, to the 
 secretary of war, apprising him of the appeal he had made 
 to the Tennesseeans, assigning as his reason for such a step, 
 that he deemed the force with General Gaines, one thousand 
 eight hundred, insufficient, and "that the greater portion 
 of this number were drafted militia from Georgia, who 
 might apply for their discharge at the expiration of three 
 months from the time they were mustered," about the time 
 he should probably reach Fort Scott. To this communi- 
 cation the secretary replied " I have the honor to acquaint 
 you of the entire approbation of the president, of all the 
 measures which you have adopted to terminate the rupture 
 with the Indians." 
 
 With these troops, and a number of friendly Creeks, un- 
 der Gen. M'Intosh, raised by General Gaines, Jackson 
 entered upon the Seminole war. 
 
 As a considerable number of these Indians dwelt in Flo- 
 rida, it became necessary to pursue the enemy thither. 
 Anticipating the necessity of this measure, the secretary 
 of war issued an order to General Gaines, while he was in 
 command, to pursue them into Florida if necessary, " and 
 to attack them within its limits, unless they should shelter 
 themselves under a Spanish fort. In this last event you 
 will immediately notify this department." 
 
 Deeming it necessary for the subjugation of the Semi- 
 noles, to enter Florida, General Jackson marched upon St. 
 Marks, a feeble Spanish garrison, in which some Indians 
 had taken refuge. Of this garrison, General Jackson 
 quietly took possession, and occupied it as an American 
 post.* At St. Marks was found Alexander Arbuthnot, who 
 was taken prisoner, and put in confinement. At the same 
 time were taken two Indian chiefs, one of whom pretended 
 to possess the spirit of prophecy; they were hung without 
 trial.f St. Marks being garrisoned by American troops, 
 
 * This disobedience of the orders which had been given to General 
 Gaines, not to attack a Spanish fort, but to notify the secretary of war, 
 should any Indians take shelter under one, was defended by General Jack- 
 son, on the ground, that orders issued to one officer could not be construed 
 as orders to his successor without a special reference to the first : that his 
 orders were general and discretionary : and that the circumstances con- 
 templated by the orders to General Gaines never existed. The Indians 
 not being found under the guns of a Spanish fort, but sheltered within 
 its walls. 
 
 t In the defence of General Jackson, already alluded to, it is stated that 
 Francis, the* prophet, had long been a dire and dangerous foe to the United 
 States, that he had a brigadier's commission from Great Britain, and by 
 his superstitious influence instigated his brethren to deeds of rapine and 
 
480 
 
 PERIOD xi. 1817 TO 1825. 
 
 the afmy marched to Suwaney river, on which they found 
 a large Indian village, which was consumed, after which 
 the army returned to St. Marks, bringing with them Ro- 
 bert C. Ambrister, who had been taken prisoner on their 
 march to Suwaney. During the halt of the army for a few 
 days at St. Marks, a general court martial was called, upon 
 whose result General Jackson issued the following general 
 order. " At a special court martial, commenced on the 26th 
 instant at St. Marks, and continued until the night of the 
 28th, of which brevet Major General E. P. Gaines was 
 president, was tried A. Arbuthnot, on the following charges 
 and specifications, viz : 
 *2 " Charge 1st, Exciting and stirring up the Creek Indians 
 ^ ' to war against the United States and her citizens, he, A. 
 \ Arbuthnot, being a subject of Great Britain, with whom the 
 United States are at peace. 
 
 " Charge 2d, Acting as a spy; aiding, abetting, and com- 
 forting the enemy, and supplying them with the means of 
 war. 
 
 " Charge 3d, Exciting the Indians to murder and destroy 
 William Hambly and Edmund Doyle, confiscate their pro- 
 perty, and causing their arrest, with a view to their con- 
 demnation to death, and the seizure of their property, they 
 being citizens of Spain, on account of their active and. zeal- 
 ous exertions to maintain peace between Spain, the United 
 States, and the Indians. 
 
 " To which charges the prisoner pleaded not guilty, 
 
 " The court, after mature deliberation on the evidence ad- 
 duced, find the prisoner, A. Arbuthnot, guilty of the firs.t 
 charge, and guilty of the second charge, leaving out the 
 words 'acting as a spy;' and, after mature reflection, sen- 
 tence him, A. Arbuthnot, to be suspended fiy the neck until 
 he is dead + 
 
 " Was also tried, Robert C. Ambrister, on the following 
 charges, viz. 
 
 44 Charge 1st, Aiding, abetting, and comforting the en- 
 
 temy, and supplying them with the means of war, he being 
 a subject of Great Britain, who are at peace with the 
 United States, and late an officer in the British colonial ma- 
 rines. 
 
 4 ' Charge 2d, Leading and commanding the lower 
 
 massacre. The other chief had headed the party, who, in cold blood, mur- 
 dered Scott and his unhappy companions, while ascending the Appalachi- 
 cola. These considerations the General deemed sufficient to justify the 
 summary course adopted in respect to them. 
 
MONROE'S ADMINISTRATION. 481 
 
 Creek Indians in carrying on a war against the United 
 States. 
 
 " To which charges the prisoner pleaded as follows : to 
 the first charge not guilty, to the second charge guilty, and 
 justification." 
 
 " The court, on examination of evidence, and on mature 
 deliberation, find the prisoner, Robert C. Ambrister, guilty 
 of the first and second charges, and do therefore sentence 
 him to suffer death by being shot. The members request- 
 ing a reconsideration of the vote on this sentence, and it 
 being had, they sentence the prisoner to receive fifty stripes 
 on his bare back, and be confined with a ball and chain, to 
 hard labor, for twelve calendar months. The commanding 
 general approves the finding and sentence of the court, in 
 the case of A. Arbuthnot, and approves the finding and first 
 sentence of the court in the case of Robert C. Ambrister, 
 and disapproves the reconsideration of the sentence of the 
 honorable court in this case. 
 
 " It appears from the evidence and pleading of the pri- 
 soner, that he did lead and command within the territory 
 of Spain, (being a subject of Great Britain,) the Indians in 
 war against the United States, those nations being at peace. 
 It is an established principle of the laws of nations, that 
 any individual of a nation making war against the citizens 
 of any other nation, they being at peace, forfeits his alle- 
 giance, and becomes an outlaw and pirate. This is the 
 case of Robert C. Ambrister, clearly shown by the evidence 
 adduced. 
 
 "The commanding general orders that brevet Major A. 
 C. D. Fanning, of the corps of artillery, will have between 
 the hours of eight and nine o'clock, A. M., A. Arbuthnot sus- 
 pended by the neck with a rope, until he is dead, and Robert 
 C. Ambrister to be shot to death, agreeably to the sentence 
 of the court." 
 
 From St. Marks, General Jackson addressed communica- 
 tions to the secretary of war, informing him that the Indian 
 forces had been divided and scattered, and that his presence 
 in that country could be no longer necessary ; and that he 
 should soon leave St. Marks for Fort Gadsden, where, after 
 making all necessary arrangements to scour the country, he 
 should retire. Information, however, was given him, some 
 days after, that the governor of Pensacola was favoring" 
 the Indians. On learning this, General Jackson, with his 
 forces, took up his march for the capital of that province, 
 before which, after a march of twenty days, he appeared. 
 
482 PERIOD XL 1817 TO 1825. 
 
 This place was taken with scarce the show of resistance. - 
 The governor had escaped to Barancas, a fort six miles 
 distant, to which place the army soon marched. The for- 
 tress was invested on the 25th of May, and a demand be- 
 ing made for its surrender, and refused, an attack upon it was 
 made, both by sea and land, and, after a bombardment and 
 cannonading of the place, for two days, the garrison sur- 
 rendered as prisoners of war, and the officers of the govern- 
 ment, civil and military, were transported, agreeably to the 
 terms of capitulation, to Havana. A new government was 
 established for the province, the pOAvers of 'which were vest- 
 ed partly in military officers, and partly in citizens of the 
 province. General Jackson now announced to the secretary 
 that the Seminole war was closed, and returned to' his resi- 
 dence at Nashville. Some time after, the American execu- 
 tive, deeming the longer possession of the Spanish forts un- 
 necessary to the peace of the country, and inconsistent with 
 good faith to Spain, directed them to be restored, and accom- 
 panied the restoration with the reasons which had led to 
 their occupation. 
 
 The measures adopted by General Jackson in the prose- 
 cution of this war particularly his appeal to the people of 
 West Tennessee his conduct in relation to the trial and 
 execution of Arbuthnot and Ambrister and his occupation 
 of St. Marks and Pensacola excited strong sensations in 
 the bosoms of a considerable portion of the American peo- 
 ple. During the session of congress 'in the winter of 1818 
 1819, these subjects were "extensively and eloquently de- 
 bated. By the military committee of the house, a report 
 was presented censuring the conduct of General Jackson ; 
 but, after an elaborate examination of the case, the house, 
 by a majority of one hundred and eight, to sixty-two, re- 
 fused its concurrence. Towards the close of the session a 
 report unfavorable to General Jackson was also brought 
 forward in the senate, but no vote of censure or resolution 
 was attached, and no discussion of its merits was had. 
 
 Sec. 12. On the 28th of January, 1819, a con- 
 vention between Great Britain and the United 
 States, concluded at London, October 20th, 1818, 
 and ratified by the Prince Regent on the 2d of 
 November following, was ratified by the presi- 
 dent of the United States. 
 
 By the first article of this convention, the citizens of the 
 
MONROE'S ADMINISTRATION. 483 
 
 United States have Jberty, in common with the subjects of 
 Great Britain, to take fish on the southern, western, and 
 northern coast of Newfoundland, &c. The second article 
 establishes the northern boundaries of the United States 
 from the Lake of the Woods, to the Stoney Mountains. By 
 the fourth article, the commercial convention between the 
 two countries, concluded at London, in 1815, is extended 
 for the term of ten years longer, &c. &c. 
 
 Sec. 13. On the 22d of February, following, a 
 treaty was concluded at Washington, by John 
 Quincy Adams, and Luis de Onis, by which East 
 and West Florida, with all the Islands adjacent, 
 &c. were ceded by Spain to the United States. 
 
 By this treaty the western boundary between the United 
 States and Spain was settled. A sum not exceeding five mil- 
 lions of dollars is to be paid by the United States out of the 
 proceeds of sales of lands in Florida, or in stock, or money, 
 to citizens of the United States, on account of Spanish spoli- 
 ations and injuries. To liquidate the claims, a board was 
 to be constituted by the government of the United States, of 
 American citizens, to consist of three commissioners, who 
 should report within three years. 
 
 Such were the essential provisions of the above treaty, 
 which was ratified by the president and senate on the 24th, 
 under a, full confidence that it would, within six months, 
 the time stipulated, be ratified by his Catholic Majesty. 
 His majesty, however, declined the ratification, on the ground 
 that the American government had attempted to alter one 
 of the principal articles*of the treaty by a declaration which 
 the minister of the United States had been ordered to pre- 
 sent, on the exchange of ratifications; and also on the ground 
 that the government of the United States had recently tole- 
 rated or protected an expedition from the United States 
 against the province of Texas. 
 
 In a message to congress, the president satisfactorily ex- 
 plained these subjects, and submitted to their consideration 
 whether it would not be proper for the United States to 
 carry the treaty into effect on her part, in the same manner 
 as if it had been ratified by Spain, claiming on their part 
 all its advantage, and yielding to Spain those secured to her. 
 A bill, authorizing the president to take possession of Florida, 
 was introduced into the house, but the subject was postponed 
 to the consideration of the next congress. In October, 1820, 
 
484 PERIOD XL 1817 TO 1825. 
 
 the king of Spain gave the treaty his signature. On the 
 19th of February following, 1821, the president, with the 
 advice of the senate, finally* ratified the treaty. Formal pos- 
 session of the territory was given to General Jackson, as the 
 commissioner of the United States, in the month of July 
 following. 
 
 Sec. 14. On the 2d of March, 1819, the govern- 
 ment of the ARKANSAS Territory was organized 
 by an act of congress. 
 
 The earliest settlement, within the limits of the territory 
 of Arkansas, was made by the Chevalier de Tonte, in 1685, 
 at the Indian village of Arkansas, situated on the river of 
 that name. Emigrants from Canada afterwards arrived, 
 but the progress of settlement was slow. Upon the cession 
 of Louisiana to the United States, the ceded territory was 
 divided into two parts, the territory of Orleans, lying south 
 of latitude thirty degrees, and the district of Louisiana, 
 comprehending all the tract of country between the Missis- 
 sippi and the Pacific Ocean. In March, 1805, the latter 
 country was denominated the Territory of Louisiana. In 
 1812, this territory was constituted a territorial government, 
 by the name of the Territory of Missouri. In March, 
 1189, the inhabitants of the northern parts were formed into 
 a distinct district, by the name of Missouri, and soon aftei 
 the southern was formed into a territorial government by 
 the name of Arkansas. In December, 1819, an election 
 for a delegate to congress was held for the first time. 
 
 Sec. 15. During the following summer, 1819, 
 the president visited the southern section of the 
 country, having in view the same great national 
 interests, which had prompted him in his previous 
 tour to the north. 
 
 In this tour the president visited Charleston, Savannah, 
 and Augusta ; from this latter place he proceeded to Nash- 
 ville, through the Cherokee nation, and thence to Louis- 
 ville and Lexington, Kentucky, whence he returned to the 
 seat of government, early in August. 
 
 Sec. 16. On the 14th of December following, a 
 resolution passed congress, admitting ALABAMA 
 into the union, on an equal footing with the origi* 
 nal states, 
 
485 
 
 Alabama, though recently settled, appears to have been 
 visited by Ferdinand de Soto, in 1539. Some scattered set- 
 tlements were made within the present state of Mississippi 
 before the American revolution, but Alabama continued the 
 hunting ground of savages, until a much later period. 
 
 After the peace of 1783, Georgia laid claim to this terri- 
 tory, and exercised jurisdiction over it, until the beginning 1 
 of the present century. In 1795, an act passed the legisla- 
 ture of Georgia, by which twenty-five millions of acres of 
 its western territory were sold to companies for five hun- 
 dred thousand dollars, and the purchase money was paid 
 into their treasury. The purchasers of these lands soon 
 after sold them at advanced prices. The sale of the territory 
 excited a warm opposition in Georgia, and at a subsequent 
 meeting of the legislature, the transaction was impeached, 
 on the ground of bribery, corruption, and unconstitutionality. 
 The records respecting the sale were ordered to be burnt, 
 and the five hundred thousand dollars to be refunded to the 
 purchasers. Those who had acquired titles of the original 
 purchasers instituted suits in the federal courts. 
 
 In 1802, however, Georgia ceded to the United States all 
 her western territory, for one million two hundred and fifty 
 thousand dollars. On this event, the purchasers of the 
 Yazoo land petitioned congress for redress and compensa- 
 tion. After considerable opposition, an act passed for reim- 
 bursing them with funded stock, called ihe Mississippi stock. 
 In 1800, the territory which now forms the states of Missis- 
 sippi and Alabama, was erected into a territorial govern- 
 ment. In 1817, Mississippi territory was divided, and the 
 western portion of it was authorized to form a state consti- 
 tution. The eastern portion was then formed into a terri- 
 torial government, and received the name of Alabama. In 
 July, 1819, a convention of delegates met at Hunts ville, and 
 adopted a state constitution, which being approved by con- 
 gress in December following, the state was declared to be 
 henceforth one of the United States. 
 
 Sec. 17. In the ensuing year, March 3d, 1820, 
 MAINE became an independent state, and a mem- 
 ber of the federal union. 
 
 The separation of the District of Maine from Massachu- 
 setts, and its erection into an independent state, had been 
 frequently attempted without success. In October, 1785, a 
 convention met at Portland, for the purpose of considering 
 the subject. In the succeeding year, the question was sub- 
 41* 
 
486 PERIOD XL 1817 TO 1825. 
 
 mitted to the people of Maine, to be decided in town meet- 
 ings, when it was found that a majority of freemen were 
 against the measure. The subject was renewed in 1802, 
 when a majority appeared averse to a separation. In 1819, 
 an act passed the general court of Massachusetts, for ascer- 
 taining the wishes of the people ; in conformity to which, a 
 vote was taken in all the towns. A large majority were 
 found in favour of a separation. A convention was called, 
 and a constitution adopted, which being approved, Massa- 
 chusetts and Maine amicably separated, the latter taking her 
 proper rank, as one of the United States. 
 
 Sec. 18. On the 3d of March, 1821, the sixteenth 
 congress closed its second session. Few sub- 
 jects of importance were discussed, and but little 
 done for the advancement o'f public interest, or 
 the promotion of private prosperity. Acts were 
 passed to admit Missouri into the union condi- 
 tionally ; to reduce the military peace establish- 
 ment to four regiments of artillery, and seven 
 regiments of infantry, with their proper officers ; 
 and to carry into further execution the provisions 
 of treaties with Spain and Great Britain. 
 
 Sec. 19. On the 5th, Mr. Monroe, who had 
 been re-elected to the presidency, took the usual 
 oath of office. The re-election of Monroe was 
 nearly unanimous. Mr. Tompkins was again 
 elected vice-president. 
 
 Sec. 20. August 10th, 1821, the president, by 
 his proclamation, declared MISSOURI to be an 
 independent state, and that it was admitted into 
 the federal union. 
 
 The first permanent settlements in Missouri, appear to 
 have been made at St. Genevieve and New-Bourbon, which 
 were founded soon after the peace of 1663. In the suc- 
 ceeding year, St. Louis, the capital of the state, was com- 
 menced. In 1762, Louisiana, and Missouri of course, were 
 secretly ceded by France to Spain ; but the latter did not 
 attempt to take possession of the country until some years 
 after. 
 
487 
 
 Missouri remained in possession of Spain, through the 
 vtdi of the revolution, until the cession of Louisiana to 
 France, in 1801, by which latter power it was ceded to the 
 United States in 1803. 
 
 Upon the cession of Louisiana to the United States, the 
 district which now forms the state of Louisiana, was sepa- 
 rated from the territory, and made a distinct government, 
 by the name of the territory of Orleans. In 1811, the ter- 
 ritory of Orleans became a state, by the name of Louisiana. 
 The remaining part of the original province of Louisiana, 
 extending to the Pacific, was erected into a territorial go- 
 vernment, and called Missouri. In 1818-19, application 
 was made to congress, by the people of this territory, to 
 form a state constitution. A bill was accordingly intro- 
 duced for the purpose, a provision of which forbade slavery 
 or involuntary servitude. The bill with this provision*^ 
 passed the house of representatives, but was rejected in the 
 senate, and, in consequence of this disagreement, the mea- 
 sure, for the time, failed. In the session of 1819-20 the 
 bill was revived j and, after long and animated debates, a 
 compromise was effected, by which slavery was to be tole- 
 rated in Missouri, and forbidden in all that part of Louisi- 
 ana, as ceded by France, lying north of 36 30 X north lati- 
 tude, except so much as was included within the limits of 
 the state. In the mean time the people of Missouri had 
 formed a state constitution. When this constitution was 
 presented to congress, in 1820-21, a provision in it, which 
 required the legislature to pass laws " to prevent free ne- 
 groes and mulattoes from coming to, and settling in the 
 state," was strenuously opposed, on the ground that it vio- 
 lated the rights of such persons of that description as were 
 citizens of any of the United States. The contest occupied 
 a great part of the session, and it was finally determined, by 
 a small majority, that Missouri should be admitted, upon 
 the fundamental condition, that the contested clause should 
 not be construed to authorize the passage of any laws, ex- 
 eluding citizens of other states from enjoying the privileges 
 to which they are entitled by the constitution of the United 
 States. It was also provided, that if the legislature of Mis- 
 souri should, by a solemn public act, previously to the 4th 
 Monday of November, 1821, declare the assent of the state 
 to this fundamental condition, the president should issue his 
 proclamation, declaring the admission complete. On the 
 24th of June, 1821, the legislature of Missouri assented to 
 the fundamental condition; and, on the 10th of August fol- 
 
488 PERIOD XL 1817 TO 1825. 
 
 lowing, the president's proclamation was issued, declaring 
 the admission complete.* 
 
 Sec. 21. The first session of the seventeenth 
 congress commenced on the 3d of December. 
 The affairs of the nation were generally prosper- 
 ous, and there seemed to "be no obstacle in the 
 way of wise and prudent measures. A spirit of 
 Jealousy, however, obtruded itself upon their de- 
 liberations, by which some beneficial measures 
 were defeated, and the business of the session 
 was unnecessarily delayed and neglected. Seve- 
 ral acts of importance, however, were passed, 
 concerning navigation and commerce ; relieving 
 still further the indigent veterans of the revolu- 
 tion ; and fixing the ratio, between population 
 and representation, at one representative for 
 every forty thousand inhabitants. 
 
 The constitution has not limited the number, but has only 
 provided that no more than one shall be sent for thirty thou- 
 sand inhabitants. Public opinion seems generally to have 
 decided that a numerous representation is, an evil, by which 
 not only the business of the nation is neglected in the con- 
 flicts of individual opinions, but the people are subjected to 
 an unnecessary expense. The congress that signed the 
 Declaration of Independence consisted but of fifty-six mem- 
 bers ; and no deliberative assembly excelled them in in- 
 dustry and public virtue. The congress that formed the 
 confederation consisted of forty-eight ; that which formed 
 the constitution consisted of only thirty-nine, and the first 
 congress under that constitution, of but sixty-five. After 
 the first census, the appointment being one for every thirty- 
 three thousand inhabitants, the house consisted of one hun- 
 dred and five representatives. The same apportionment 
 being continued under the second census, there were one 
 hundred and forty-one representatives. The apportion- 
 ment, under the third census, allowed one for thirty-five 
 thousand ; and the house consisted of one hundred and 
 eighty-seven members. The ratio fixed upon by the con- 
 gress of 1822-3, was one for forty thousand ; and the num- 
 ber of representatives was two hundred and twelve. 
 * American Atlas Philadelohia. 
 
MONROE'S ADMINISTRATION. 489 
 
 Sec. 22. During the above session of congress, 
 March 31, 1822, a territorial government was es- 
 tablished for FLORIDA. 
 
 The name of Florida was formerly given to an immense 
 region of country discovered by Cabot in 1497. The first 
 visitant to the actual territory of Florida was Ponce de 
 Leon, who landed on Easter day, 1512. Navigators from 
 several countries visited it, and various European sovereigns 
 attempted to appropriate the country to themselves. 
 
 Spain, however, held possession of it until 1763, when it 
 was ceded to Great Britain. In May, 1781, Don Galvez 
 captured Pensacola, and soon afterwards completed the 
 conquest of the whole of West Florida, which remained in 
 possession of Spain, until 1783, when Great Britain relin- 
 quished both provinces of Florida to Spain. 
 
 By the treaty of France, in 1803, which ceded Louisiana 
 to the United States, it was declared to be ceded, with the 
 same extent that it had in the hands of Spain, when ceded 
 to France. By virtue of this declaration, the United States 
 claimed the country west of the Perdido river, and, in 1811, 
 took possession of it, except jhe town and fort of Mobile, 
 which were surrendered the following- year. In 1814, a 
 British expedition having been fitted out against the United 
 States, from Pensacola, General Jackson took possession of 
 the town ; but, having no authority to hold it, returned to 
 Mobile. The Seminole Indians, with whom the United 
 States wf.i at war, residing partly within the limits of 
 Florida, and making their incursions thence without re- 
 straint from the Spaniards, it became necessary to cross the 
 territorial line to chastise them, Subsequently, General 
 Jackson took possession of Fort St. Marks and Pensacola, 
 which the American troops held till November, 1818, when 
 they were restored to Spain. In 1819, a transfer of the 
 whole province was made by treaty to the United States, 
 and, after many vexatious delays, the treaty was ratified by 
 Spain in October, 1820, and finally by the United States 
 in the month of February, 1821. Possession was delivered 
 to General Jackson, as commissioner of the United States, 
 in July, 1821. 
 
 Sec. 23. The second session of the seventeenth 
 congress commenced at Washington on the 2d 
 of December. In his message, at the opening 
 of the session, the president informed congress 
 
490 PERIOD XL 1817 TO 1825. 
 
 that in June a convention of navigation and 
 commerce, resting essentially on a basis of re- 
 ciprocal and equal advantage to the two coun- 
 tries, had been concluded between France and 
 the United States ; that the prohibition, which 
 had been imposed on the commerce between 
 the United States and the British colonies in 
 the West Indies and on this continent, had been 
 removed, and that the ports of those colonies had 
 been opened to the vessels of the United States, 
 by an act of the British parliament. 
 
 In a second message, a few days subsequently, 
 the president introduced to the notice of con- 
 gress the interesting subject of the " multiplied 
 outrages and depredations recently committed 
 on our seamen and commerce, by pirates, in the 
 West Indies and Gulf of Mexico," and recom- 
 mended the immediate organization of an effi- 
 cient force to suppress them. A bill was accord- 
 ingly introduced, authorizing the president to 
 provide such a force, and to despatch it imme- 
 diately to the protection of our persecuted sea- 
 men. 
 
 The president had mentioned the subject of piracy in his 
 first message ; but he was prompted early after to make it 
 the subject of a special communication, in consequence of 
 intelligence that Captain Allen, of the Alligator, a brave 
 and meritorious officer, had fallen, in the neighborhood of 
 Matanzas, by the hands of these ruthless barbarians, while at- 
 tempting, in discharge of his duty, to rescue an unprotected 
 merchant ship which had fallen into their power. Imme- 
 diately after the passage of the above bill, Commodore Por- 
 ter was appointed to this service, and soon after hoisting 
 his broad pendant on .board the Peacock, stretched his way, 
 with a respectable force, to chastise these miscreants thai 
 regard no law, and that feel no mercy. 
 
 Sec. 24. The second session of the seventeentl 
 congress closed on the 3d of March, 1823. Littl< 
 
491 
 
 business of national importance had been trans- 
 acted. 
 
 Sec. 25. On the 1st of December following, 
 being the day established by the constitution, 
 the eighteenth congress commenced its first ses- 
 sion. In his message, at the opening of the 
 session, the president spoke in animated terms 
 of the prosperous condition of the country, and 
 of the amicable state of our relations with foreign 
 countries. 
 
 The message represented the public finances to be even 
 more prosperous than had been anticipated ; that the state 
 of the army, in its organization and discipline, had been 
 gradually improving for several years, and had attained a 
 high degree of perfection ; that the proposed fortifications 
 of the country were rapidly progressing to a state of com- 
 pletion, and that the military academy at West Point had \ " 
 already attained a high degree of perfection, both in its dis- 
 cipline and instruction. In relation to the efforts of the ex- 
 ecutive to stop the depredations of pirates on the national 
 commerce, the president stated, that, in the West Indies, 
 and the Gulf of Mexico, the naval force had been aug- 
 mented, according to the provisions of congress. ** This 
 armament," said he, " has been eminently successful in the 
 accomplishment of its object. The piracies, by which our 
 commerce in the neighborhood of the island of Cuba had 
 been afflicted, have been repressed, and the confidence of 
 the merchants in a great measure restored." 
 
 In the present struggle of the Greeks for liberty, the J- 
 Americans have felt a lively interest. In allusion to this I 
 interesting subject, the message contained the following lan- 
 guage language to which every American would cor- 
 dially subscribe: "A strong hope has been long enter- 
 tained, founded on the heroic struggle of the Greeks, that 
 they would succeed in their contest, and resume their equal 
 station among the nations of the earth. It is believed that 
 the whole civilized world takes a deep interest in their wel- 
 fare. Although no power has declared in their favor, yet 
 none, according to our information, has taken part against 
 them. Their cause and their name have protected them 
 from dangers, which might ere this have overwhelmed any 
 other people. The ordinary calculations of interest, and 
 
492 PERIOD XL 1817 TO 1825. 
 
 of acquisition, with a view to aggrandizement, which mingle 
 so much in the transactions of nations, seem to have had no 
 effect in regard to them. From the facts which have come 
 to our knowledge, there is good cause to believe that their 
 enemy has lost, forever, all dominion over them that 
 Greece will again hecome an independent nation. That she 
 may obtain that rank, is the object of our most ardent 
 
 , wishes." 
 
 At the previous session of congress, the president had 
 communicated the important fact, in relation to Spain and 
 Portugal, that a great effort was making in those countries 
 to improve the condition of the people, and that it appeared 
 to be conducted with unusual moderation. The result, how- 
 ever, was widely different from what had been anticipated. 
 Instead of an emancipation from their oppressions, their 
 bondage, through the interference of foreign powers, had 
 become doubly severe, and strong indications were per- 
 ceived of an intention on the part of the " Holy Alliance," 
 to extend their "political system" to Mexico and South 
 
 \ America. But on this topic the executive observed, " the 
 citizens of the United States cherish sentiments the most 
 friendly in favor of the liberty and happiness of their fellow 
 men on that side of the Atlantic. In the wars of the 
 European powers, in matters relating to themselves, we 
 have never taken any part, nor does it comport with our 
 policy so to do. It is only when our rights are invaded, or 
 seriously menaced, that we resent injuries, or make prepa- 
 ration for our defence. With the movements in this hemis- 
 phere, we are, of necessity, more immediately connected, 
 and by causes which must be obvious to all enlightened and 
 impartial observers. The political system of the allied 
 powers is essentially different, in this respect, from that of 
 America. This difference proceeds from that which ex- 
 ists in their respective governments. And to the defence 
 of our own, which has been achieved by the loss of so much 
 blood and treasure, and matured by the wisdom of their 
 most enlightened citizens, and under which we have enjoyed 
 unexampled felicity, this whole nation is devoted. We owe 
 it, therefore, to candor, and to the amicable relations exist- 
 ing between the United States and those powers, to declare, 
 that we should consider any attempt on their part to extend 
 their system to any portion of this hemisphere, as dangerous 
 to our peace and safety. With existing colonies or depenc' 
 encies of any European power, we have not interfered, anc 
 shall not interfere. But with the governments who have 
 
493^ 
 
 declared their independence and maintained it, and whose , 
 independence we have, on great consideration and on just 
 principles, acknowledged, we could not view any interpo- 
 sition for the purpose of oppressing them, or controlling, in 
 any other manner, their destiny, by any European power, 
 in any other light than as the manifestation of an unfriendly 
 disposition towards the United States. In the war between - 
 those new governments and Spain, we declared our neu- 
 trality at the time of their recognition, and to this we have 
 adhered, and shall continue to adhere, provided no change 
 shall occur, which, in the judgment of the competent au- 
 thority of this government, shall make a corresponding 
 change on the part of the United States indispensable to 
 their security. 
 
 " The late events in Spain and Portugal show that Eu- 
 rope is still unsettled. Of this important fact, no stronger 
 proof can be adduced, than that the allied powers should 
 have thought it proper, on any principles satisfactory to 
 themselves, to have interposed, by force, in the internal con- 
 cerns of Spain. To what extent such interposition may be 
 
 more so than the United States. Our policy, in regard to 
 Europe, which was adopted at an early stage of the wars 
 which have so long agitated that quarter of the globe, 
 nevertheless, remains the same ; which is, not to interfere 
 in the internal concerns of any of its powers; to consider 
 the government dc facto as the legitimate government for 
 us ; to cultivate friendly relations with it, and to preserve 
 those relations by a frank, firm, and manly policy, meeting 
 in all instances the just claims of every power, submitting to 
 injuries from none. But, in regard to these continents, 
 circumstances are eminently and conspicuously different. 
 It is impossible that the allied powers should extend their 
 political system to any portion of either continent, without 
 endangering our peace and happiness ; nor can any one 
 believe that our southern brethren, if left to themselves, 
 would adopt it of their own accord. It is equally impos- 
 sible, therefore, that we should behold such interposition, in 
 any form, with indifference. If we look to the comparative 
 strength and resources of Spain and those new govern- 
 ments, and their distance from each other, it must be obvious 
 that she can never subdue them. It is still the true policy 
 of the United States to leave the parties to themselves, in 
 42 
 
494 PERIOD XL 1817 TO 1825. 
 
 the hope that other powers will pursue the same course.' 
 This language, so just, so patriotic, so independent, it 
 scarcely needs be added, received the approbation of the 
 whole American people, and called forth the warmest eulo- 
 gium of the friends of rational liberty in Europe. The 
 independent stand, thus taken by the American nation, has, 
 thus far, had the effect upon the nations in question, to re- 
 press those aggressions upon our southern brethren, which, 
 there is too much evidence not to believe, were designed. 
 
 On the present state of the country, the president held 
 the following strong and eloquent language : " If we com- 
 pare the present condition of our union with its actual state 
 at the close of our revolution, the history of the world fur- 
 nishes no example of a progress in improvement, in all the 
 important circumstances which constitute the happiness of 
 a nation, which bears any resemblance to it. At the first 
 epoch, our population did not exceed three millions. By 
 the last census, it amounted to about ten millions, and, what 
 is more extraordinary, it is almost altogether native; for 
 the emigration from other countries has^ been inconsidera- 
 ble. At the first epoch, half the territory within our ac- 
 knowledged limits was uninhabited and a wilderness 
 Since then new territory has been acquired, of vast extent, 
 comprising within it many rivers, particularly the Missis- 
 sippi, the navigation of which to the ocean was of the 
 highest importance to the original states. Over this terri- 
 tory our population has expanded in every direction, and 
 new states have been established, almost equal, in number, 
 to those which formed the first bond of our union. This 
 expansion of our population, and accession of new states to 
 our union, have had the happiest effect on all its higher 
 interests. That it has eminently augmented our resources, 
 and added to our strength and respectability, as a power, is 
 , admitted by all. But it is not in these important circum- 
 stances only, that this happy effect is felt. It is manifest, 
 that, by enlarging the basis of our system, and increasing 
 the number of states, the system itself has been greatly 
 strengthened in both its branches. Consolidation and dis- 
 union have thereby been rendered equally impracticable. 
 Each government, confiding in its own strength, has less 
 to apprehend from the other ; and, in consequence, each 
 enjoying a greater freedom of action, is rendered more e 
 ficient for all the purposes for which it was instituted." 
 
 Sec. 26 In his message to congress, at the 
 
 ; 
 
MONROE'S ADMINISTRATION. 495 
 
 opening of the session, the president, having al- 
 luded to the struggle of the Greeks for liberty, 
 and having expressed, as the organ of public sen- 
 timent, the sympathy of the nation in their be- 
 half, a resolution was presented to the house of 
 representatives, by a member, providing for the 
 expenses incident to the appointment of an agent, 
 or commissioner to Greece, whenever the presi- 
 dent should deem such appointment expedient. 
 Although congress did not deem it expedient to 
 adopt the resolution, it being indefinitely post- 
 poned, it served to call forth the warmest expres- 
 sions of regard, on the floor of congress, for that 
 oppressed people, and to elicit the attachment of 
 the country to the principles of rational liberty. 
 
 " In offering- the resolution, Mr. Webster stated, it was 
 far from being his wish, in any manner, to commit the 
 house, in this or any of the political contests of Europe ; 
 but the president of the United States having, in his mes- 
 sage to congress, not only expressed a belief that the Greek 
 nation, in its present struggle with its opposers, had the 
 good wishes of the whole civilized world, but also advanc- 
 ed the opinion that the Turkish dominion over that country- 
 was lost forever; he thought that, if such were the fact, it 
 was important that congress should act upon the subject. 
 The main object in view was to obtain from this house an 
 expression responsive to the sentiment of the message, in 
 reference to the sacrifices and sufferings of that heroic peo- 
 ple sacrifices and sufferings, which ought to excite the 
 sympathy of every liberal minded man in Europe, as well 
 as in this country. But, whatever might be the case with 
 other nations, we, certainly ought^pot to be restrained from 
 expressing, -with freedom, \vhat are our views in relation 
 to the Greek cause, so far as may be done without commit- 
 ting ourselves in the contest. And he really did hope that 
 we should show to the world, that there is, at least, one 
 government which does entertain a proper view of that 
 barbarous despotism, which, under the eyes of Europe, has 
 been permitted, by a system of the foulest atrocity, to at- 
 tempt to crush an interesting Christian nation. 
 
 " In most of our large towns and literary institutions, 
 
496 PERIOD XL 1S17 TO 1825. 
 
 meetings were held in reference to this subject, and reso- 
 lutions adopted, expressive of sentiments alike honorable to 
 our citizens as members of a free community, and as friends 
 of humanity. They spoke a language worthy of the cause 
 which called them forth, and such as the circumstances of 
 the age require. They are a proof, too, of the existence 
 and the energy of that principle in the American people, 
 which removes them farther from the supporters of legiti- 
 macy than the breadth of the Atlantic, and is a safer bul- 
 wark than its billows." 
 
 To this.it may be added, that, at "a subsequent period, 
 large contributions were made throughout the country, and 
 forwarded to the constituted authorities of Greece, to aid 
 them in achieving the liberties of that interesting people. 
 
 Sec. 27. Ori the 27th of May, 1824, the eigh- 
 teenth con gresa closed its first session. Among 
 the most ir jj^tant bills which were passed, 
 was one for abolishing imprisonment for debt ; 
 and a second establishing a tariff of duties on 
 imports into the country. 
 
 Each of these bills caused much debate in the national 
 legislature, and excited no small solicitude among those 
 classes of citizens whose interests were likely to be most 
 affected by them. The bill for abolishing imprisonment 
 for debt was necessarily qualified and guarded, giving no 
 immunity to fraud, and containing the requisite checks to 
 shield its benefits from abuse. The bill for a revision oi 
 the tariff occupied the house of representatives for ten 
 weeks, and was at length passed only by a majority of five. 
 On the occasion of its final decision, only two members, 
 out of two hundred and thirteen, were absent. 
 
 Sec. 28. In the course of the summer an event 
 occurred, which caused the highest sensations 
 of joy throughout the union ; this was the ar- 
 rival of the Marquis de Lafayette, the friend and 
 ally of the Americans, during the former war 
 with Great Britain, and who eminently contri- 
 buted, by his fortune, influence, skill, and bra- 
 very, to achieve the glorious objects of their re- 
 volutionary struggle 
 
Battle of Plattsburg* P. 452. 
 
 Landing of La Fayette atNew-Yortc. P. 497. 
 
MONROE'S ADMINISTRATION. 497 
 
 Sometime previously to his arrival, the marquis had ex- 
 pressed his intention of again visiting the United States. 
 This being known, Jan. 7th, 1824, congress authorized the 
 president " to offer him a public ship for his accommoda- 
 tion, and to assure him, in the name of the people of this 
 great republic, that they cherished for him a grateful and 
 affectionate attachment." In the following June, the legis- 
 lature of Massachusetts authorized the governor of that 
 commonwealth to make such arrangements for the honora- 
 ble reception of the marquis as comported with the dignity 
 of the state. In other parts of the country, early measures 
 were adopted to receive with honor the man who had acted 
 so disinterested a part towards the United States, and 
 whose life had been devoted to the cause of rational liberty. 
 
 The delicacy of the marquis prevented his accepting the 
 invitation of government to t a k e passage in a public ship; 
 but he soon after embarked on board a private vessel. 
 
 The time of his embarkation being known, the prayers 
 of millions were offered for his safety from the dangers of 
 the ocean. At length intelligence of his arrival was an- 
 nounced, and was received by every proper demonstration 
 
 of joy- 
 He landed at New- York, on the 16th of August, accom- 
 panied by his son and M. L. Vasseur, his secretary, and 
 was welcomed by thousands to the land where, more than 
 forty years before, he had displayed a disinterestedness, a 
 benevolence, a heroism, nearly unparalleled in the annals 
 of time. 
 
 " From New- York, Lafayette passed through the coun- 
 try to Boston, constantly receiving the most enthusiastic 
 congratulations of the people. Not only at every place 
 where he stopped, but as he passed along the road, thou- 
 sands came to catch a glimpse of him, and bid 'Welcome, 
 Lafayette.' Having visited most of the principal towns in 
 Massachusetts, New-Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Con- 
 necticut, he returned again to New-York. During this 
 tour, it is impossible to convey in general terms an ade- 
 quate idea of the excitement into which the country was 
 thrown. Committees were constantly arriving from dis- 
 tant towns at the places where he stopped, to solicit the 
 honor of receiving him, and to know on what day and at 
 what hour his arrival might be expected. In some instan- 
 ces, gentlemen, residing at a distance from his roue, di- 
 rected the news of his approach to be sent them by ex- 
 presses. Meantime the general was so obliging as to allow 
 42* 
 
198 PERIOD XL 1817 TO 1825. 
 
 himself to be transported with the utmost rapidity from place 
 to place, often travelling most of the night, so as not to dis- 
 appoint the anxious expectations of the people. From New- 
 York the general went to Philadelphia, Baltimore, Wash- 
 ington, &c., constantly receiving from the people the same 
 cordial welcome, and witnessing the same demonstrations 
 of joy, wherever he went. 
 
 " But the feelings of the nation demanded that something 
 
 , -, more should be done for Gen eral Lafayette than could be 
 
 "^ expressed by acclamation alone. His love of liberty had 
 
 been the means of depriving him of a great proportion of 
 
 his fortune. When, during our revolution, the country 
 
 O was so exnaus ted as to be unable to clothe or feed her little 
 
 army, Lafayette not only gave all his pay to government, 
 
 but advanced money, which never was refunded ; so that, 
 
 in addition to the debt of gratitude, the nation owed him 
 
 for advancements made during her necessities. It was the 
 
 exercise of the same leading principle, (the love of liberty,) 
 
 which occasioned the confiscation of his estates in France, 
 
 when the jacobin faction controlled the kingdom. 
 
 " Under every consideration, the nation was bound to show 
 Lafayette, and the world, that, in the prosperity of his 
 adopted country, his former services were remembered with 
 too much gratitude to be passed over without some perma- 
 nent mark of national beneficence. 
 
 " The president of the United States, therefore, in his mes- 
 sage to congress recommended, in appropriate terms, the 
 subject to that body, upon which a committee was raised to 
 consider the services of General Lafayette, and to report 
 on the expediency of making him at least a partial remu- 
 neration. 
 
 " At a subsequent day, that committee reported a bill ap- 
 propriating the sum of two hundred thousand dollars, and 
 a complete township of land. This bill was, at length, 
 passed, and when the intelligence of its passage was con- 
 veyed to Lafayette, he returned his warmest acknowledg- 
 ments both to congress and to the nation, for the munificent 
 favor which they had conferred upon him. 
 
 " The visit of Lafayette to the United States occupied about 
 a year ; during which he visited each of the 24 states, and 
 was every where hailed as a father. When the time arriv- 
 ed which he had fixed as the termination of his visit, it was 
 thought most fitting that his departure from the country 
 should take place from the capital. A frigate was prepared 
 at that place, and named, in compliment to him, the Bran- 
 
MONROE'S ADMINISTRATION. 499 
 
 dyvvine, to transport him to his native country. The few 
 weeks spent upon the invitation of the president, as the 
 guest of the nation, in the national palace, were appropriat- 
 ed to taking leave of those venerable men who had shared 
 with him both in establishing the independence of the coun- 
 try, and in receiving all the appropriate honors which the 
 people could bestow. He had previously visited and taken 
 leave of the venerable Adams ; he now, in succession, took 
 leave of the other ex-presidents ; the illustrious author of 
 the Declaration of Independence ; the able supporter and 
 advocate of the federal constitution ; and the soldier of the 
 revolution who had shed his blood in the same cause with 
 Lafayette. 
 
 " These preliminary visits being paid, he now prepared for 
 his departure. The 7th of September, which was the day 
 appointed for that purpose, the civil authorities of the dis- 
 trict of Columbia assembled at the president's house to take 
 leave of him. About noon he entered the great hall, where 
 he was addressed by the president in terms manly, patriotic, 
 and affectionate. In a similar manner Lafayette replied, con- 
 cluding as follows : ' God bless you, sir, and all who sur- 
 round us. God bless the American people, each of their 
 states, and the federal government. Accept this patriotic 
 farewell of an overflowing heart; such will be its last throb 
 when it ceases to beat.' 
 
 " Then taking an affectionate leave of each individual 
 present, the general left the hospitable mansion of the presi- 
 dent. He was attended to the vessel by the whole popula- 
 tion of the district. All business was suspended, and the 
 vast multitude which lined the shores, witnessed his em- 
 barkation with a deep silence, highly indicative of the feel- 
 ings that the American people cherished towards Lafay- 
 ette. In passing Mount Vernon, he landed to pay a fare- 
 well visit to the tomb of Washington, whence, re-embark- 
 ing, a prosperous voyage soon safely landed him on his own 
 paternal soil."* 
 
 9. The second session of the eighteenth 
 congress began on the 6th of December, 1824 ; 
 on which occasion the president represented the 
 country to be highly prosperous and happy, both 
 in respect to its internal condition and foreign 
 relations. 
 
 Annual Register. 
 
500 PERIOD xi. 1817 TO 1825. 
 
 "Our relations with foreign powers," said he, "are of a 
 friendly character, although certain interesting differences 
 remain unsettled. Our revenue, under the mild system of 
 impost and tonnage, continues to be adequate to all the pur- 
 poses of government. Our agriculture, commerce, manu- 
 factures, and navigation, flourish. Our fortifications are ad- 
 vancing, in the degree authorized by existing appropria 
 tions, to maturity, and due progress is made in the augment 
 ation of the navy to the limit prescribed by law." 
 
 The president also stated that the convention of naviga- 
 tion and commerce concluded between the United States 
 and France in 1822, still continued; that our commercial 
 intercourse with the British dominions in Europe and the 
 East Indies, resting on the basis of reciprocity, which had 
 been arranged by a convention in 1815, was confirmed and 
 continued for ten years, by treaty in 1818; but that the 
 trade with the British colonies in the West Indies had not 
 as yet been settled to the satisfaction of the executive; 
 that our commerce with Sweden had been placed on a foot- 
 ing of perfect reciprocity, by treaty, and with Russia, the 
 Netherlands, Prussia, and the free Hanseatic cities, the 
 dukedom of Oldenburg, and Sardinia, by internal 'regula- 
 tions on each side, founded on mutual agreement between 
 the respective governments ; and that the great and extra- 
 ordinary changes which had happened in Spain and Portu- 
 gal within the last two years, had not seriously affected the 
 friendly relations subsisting between them and the United 
 States ; although they had presented obstacles to the adjust- 
 ment of the particular subjects of discussion which have 
 . arisen with each. With the remaining powers of Europe, 
 with those on the coast of Barbary, and with all the new 
 South American states, our relations were moreover stated 
 to be of a friendly character. The country has ministers 
 plenipotentiary residing with the republics of Colombia and 
 Chili, and have received ministers of the same rank from 
 Colombia, Guatimala, Buenos Ayres, and Mexico, and a 
 charge d'affairs from the independent government of Brazil. 
 
 In relation to the state of the maritime force of the coun- 
 try, the message represented the squadron in the Mediter- 
 ranean to have been maintained, and to have afforded to our 
 commerce the necessary protection in that sea ; that the 
 force in the Gulf of Mexico, and the neighboring seas, for 
 the suppression of piracy, had also been continued ; but that 
 such were the atrocities of the pirates in that quarter, it 
 was important to increase, rather than to diminish, our force 
 
501 
 
 On the 1'acific our commerce has mucji increased, and on 
 that coast, as well as on that sea, the United States have 
 many important stations, which require attention and pro- 
 tection. 
 
 " From the view above presented," the president conti- 
 nued, " it is manifest that the situation of the United States 
 is, in the highest degree, prosperous and happy. There is 
 no object which, as a people, we can desire, which we do 
 not possess, or which is not within our reach. Blessed with 
 governments the hapniest which the world ever knew, with 
 no distinct orders in society, or divided interests in any por- 
 tion of the vast territory over which their dominion extends, 
 we have every motive to cling together which can animate 
 a virtuous and enlightened people. The great object is to 
 preserve these blessings, and to hand them down to our latest 
 posterity. Our experience ought to satisfy us that our pro- 
 gress, under the most correct and provident policy, will not 
 be exempt from danger. Our institutions form an important 
 epoch in the history of the civilized world. On their preser- 
 vation, and in their utmost purity, every thing will depend. 
 Extending as our interests do to every part of the inhabited 
 globe, and to every sea, to which our citizens are carried by 
 their industry and enterprise, to which they are invited by 
 the wants of others, and have a right to go, we must either 
 protect them in the enjoyment of their rights, or abandon 
 them, in certain events, to waste and desolation. Our atti- 
 tude is highly interesting, as relates to other powers, and 
 particularly to our southern neighbors. We have duties to 
 perform with respect to all, to which we must be faithful. 
 To every kind of danger we should pay the most vigilant 
 and unceasing attention; remove the cause where it maybe 
 practicable, and be prepared to meet it when inevitable." 
 
 Sec. 30. The second session of the eighteenth 
 congress closed on the 3d of March, 1825, being 
 limited by the constitution to that period. Among 
 the most interesting subjects which occupied its 
 attention during the session, were the occupation 
 of the Oregon on the North West coast, and the 
 suppression of piracy. The bill respecting the 
 former, however, was lost in the senate ; being in- 
 definitely laid on the table ; while that respecting 
 piracy passed ; which, however, does little more 
 
*1r * 
 502 PERIOD XL 1817 TO 1825. 
 
 than to authorize the building of ten additional 
 ships of war. 
 
 The bill authorizing the occupation of the Oregon was 
 passed by the house of representatives, but had previously 
 been so amended as to provide only for a military occupa- 
 tion of the mouth of the river. This amendment was adopt- 
 ed, for the purpose of avoiding a violation of the treaty with 
 Great Britain, which provides that the boundary line on that 
 frontier shall remain unsettled ten years. 
 
 On the subject of piracy, the president, in a message to the 
 senate, suggested three expedients ; one, by the pursuit of 
 the offenders to the settled, as well as unsettled, parts of the 
 island from whence they issue ; another, by reprisal on the 
 inhabitants; and a third, by a blockade of the ports of those 
 islands. These suggestions gave rise to a bill in the senate, 
 which embraced the several expedients proposed in the mes- 
 sage, and which, for some weeks, was a prominent topic of 
 debate. The opposers of the bill contended that it intro- 
 duces a new principle into the rights of nations, and that a 
 resort to the measure proposed by it would be in effect a 
 declaration of war with Spain. This objection was antici- 
 pated by the president, and obviated by him, on the ground 
 that the Spanish authorities are utterly incapable of sup- 
 pressing the practice in question. The discussion of the 
 subject has led to a disclosure of facts, which, in respect 
 to its atrocities and the numbers concerned in it, exceed 
 even conjecture, and which have forced conviction upon all, 
 that something, and something efficient, must speedily be 
 done. 
 
 Sec. 3L The administration of Mr. Monroe 
 closed on the 3d of March. During his presiden- 
 cy, the country enjoyed a uniform state of peace 
 and prosperity. By his prudent management of 
 the national affairs, both foreign and domestic, he 
 eminently contributed to the honor and happi- 
 ness of millions, and retired from office, enjoy- 
 ing the respect, and affection, and gratitude of all 
 who were able duly to appreciate the blessings 
 of having a wise ruler. 
 
 Sec. 32. The electors of a successor to Mr. Mon- 
 roe having failed to make a choice, the election 
 
503 
 
 devolved on the house of representatives. On 
 the 9th of February, 1825, that body proceeded 
 to the discharge of this duty, when John Q,uincy 
 Adams, of Massachusetts, was elected president 
 of the United States, for the four years from and 
 after the 4th of the ensuing March. John C. Cal- 
 houn, of South Carolina, had been chosen vice- 
 president, by the electoral colleges. 
 
 The subject of a successor to Mr. Monroe, was early in- 
 troduced to the notice of the public, and the excitement the 
 several parties in the United States was both fostered and of 
 increased by the newspapers and public journals of the day. 
 Besides Mr. Adams, Mr. Crawford, secretary of the trea- 
 sury, Mr. Clay, speaker of the house of representatives, and 
 General Jackson, a senator, were candidates for the office ; 
 each of whom had their respective friends in the country, 
 and among the legislatures of the states, nearly all of which 
 by a public vote declared in favor of some one of the can- 
 didates. On counting the votes of the electors, it appeared 
 that 84 were in favor of Mr. Adams, 99 for General Jack- 
 son, 41 for Mr. Crawford, and 37 for Mr. Clay. Notwith- 
 standing General Jackson had the greatest number of votes 
 from the electoral colleges, the house of representatives, 
 voting by states, elected Mr. Adams. The result of the bal- 
 loting was, for Mr. Adams, 13 states ; for Mr. Jackson, 7 
 states ; for Mr. Crawford, 4 states. By the constitution, 
 only the three highest on the list could be candidates for the 
 office in the house of representatives. Mr. Clay therefore 
 was not voted for; but is supposed by his influence to have 
 determined the question in favor of Mr. Adams, in opposi- 
 tion to Mr. Crawford, who had been nominated by a caucus 
 at Washington ; and to General Jackson, who had received 
 the highest vote by the electors 
 
UNITED STATES. 
 
 PERIOD XII. 
 
 DISTINGUISHED FOR ADAMS 5 ADMINISTRATION. 
 
 1. On the 4th of March, Mr. Adams, in trm 
 presence of the senate, house of representatives, 
 heads of department, foreign ministers, and a nu- 
 merous assemblage of citizens and strangers. 
 took the oath prescribed by the constitution, and 
 entered upon the duties of president of the United 
 States. 
 
 On the occasion of his inauguration, Mr. Adams, in com- 
 pliance with usage, delivered an address, in which he un- 
 
 * folded the principles by which he should be guided in the 
 fulfilment of the duties of his office. Among other things 
 he said, " our political creed is, without a dissenting voice 
 that can be heard, that the will of the people is the source, 
 and the happiness of the people the end, of all legitimate 
 government upon earth That the best security for the bene- 
 
 licence, and the best guaranty against the abuse of power, 
 consist in the freedom, the purity, and the frequency of 
 popular elections That the general government of the 
 union, and the separate governments of these states, are all 
 sovereignties of limited powers ; fellow-servants of the same 
 masters, uncontrolled within their respective spheres, uncon- 
 trollable by encroachments upon each other That the 
 firmest security of peace is the preparation, during peace, 
 of the defences of war That a rigorous economy, and ac- 
 countability of public expenditures, should guard against the 
 aggravation, and alleviate, when possible, the burden of 
 taxation That the military should be kept in strict subor- 
 dination to the civil power That the freedom of the press 
 and of religious opinion should be inviolate That the policy 
 
ADAMS' ADMINISTRATION. 505 
 
 of our country is peace, and the ark of our salvation union, 
 are articles upon which we are all agreed." 
 
 Sec. 2. On the day of Mr. Adams' induction 
 into office, the senate was convened by the exe- 
 cutive, for the purpose of confirming nominations 
 to office under the new administration. Henry 
 Clay, of Kentucky, was appointed secretary of 
 state ; Richard Rush, of Pennsylvania, secretary 
 of the treasury ; and James Barbour, of Virgi- 
 nia, secretary of war. 
 
 The new administration had scarcely entered upon its 
 operations, before it was apparent that it was destined to 
 meet with a systematic and organized opposition. Those 
 who arrayed themselves against the administration, without 
 reference to its measures, urged, as reasons for their hos- 
 tility, that Mr. Adams' election was the result of a bargain 
 between Mr. Clay and himself; and his election of Mr. 
 Clay, as secretary of state, was relied upon as conclusive 
 proof of the bargain; that he was elected against the ex- 
 pressed will of the people ; and that congress, "by not 
 taking General Jackson, the candidate having the highest 
 number of votes, had violated the constitution, and disobey / 
 ed their constituents. 
 
 Those who were friendly to the administration, or dis- 
 posed to judge of it by its acts, replied to these objections, 
 that Mr. Clay, as a representative, was obligecjUo decide be- 
 tween three candidates for the presidency, and that his vote 
 was in accordance with all his previous declarations; that 
 Mr. Crawford was virtually withdrawn from the list of can- 
 didates by his ill health, and that, in respect to the remain- 
 ing two, Mr. Clay had always expressed himself decidedly 
 in favor of the character and qualifications of Mr. Adams, 
 which rendered it impossible for him to vote for General 
 Tackson without the most gross inconsistency. Besides, the 
 experience, the learning, the talents, the diplomatic skill of "^ 
 Mr. Adams, decidedly entitled him to the office in preference 
 to any other candidate. As to the election of Mr. Clay to 
 be secretary of state, this was vindicated on the ground 
 that his situation as speaker of the house, and his long and 
 intimate acquaintance with our national affairs, made him 
 the most prominent candidate for that station. The refusal 
 of this appointment by Mr. Clay, it was urged, would have * 
 argued an improper distrust of his own character and of ~ " L 
 43 
 
506 PERIOD xii. 1825 TO 1829. 
 
 public opinion, and would have in a measure confirmed the 
 suspicion of an improper alliance between h?mself and Mr. 
 Adams. 
 
 Of the other objections urged by the opponents of the ad- 
 ministration, it is sufficient in this place to say, that they 
 were answered by the same zeal, and, to the minds of the 
 supporters of the administration, with even more force than 
 that with which they had been offered. It is but justice to 
 add, that the charge of a bargain between Mr. Adams and 
 Mr. Clay has not been satisfactorily supported. On the con- 
 trary,, it seems now to be generally admitted, that no alliance 
 had been formed between these gentlemen 'previously to the 
 election which issued in Mr. Adams' accession. 
 
 Sec. 3. About this time a controversy arose be- 
 tween the national government and the execu- 
 tive of Georgia, in relation to certain lands held 
 by the Creek nation, but which that state claim- 
 ed as belonging to herself. In the progress of 
 this controversy so much warmth was manifested, 
 both by Georgia and some of the neighboring 
 states, that much anxiety was felt by persons in 
 different parts of the Union as to the consequences. 
 The prompt and vigilant measures of the na- 
 tronal executive, however, sanctioned as they 
 ultimately were by congress, settled the contro- 
 versy without disturbing the peace of the Union. 
 
 This controversy grew out of a compact between the 
 general government and the state of Georgia, in 1802. 
 By that compact the United States agreed, in consideration 
 of H Georgia relinquishing her claim to the Mississippi terri- 
 tory, to extinguish, at the national expense, the Indian title 
 to the lands occupied by them in Georgia, " whenever it 
 could be peaceably done, upon reasonable terms." Since 
 making that agreement, the general government had ex- 
 tinguished the Indian title to about fifteen millions of acres, 
 and had conveyed the same to the state of Georgia. There 
 still remained in that state exceeding nine millions of acres, 
 in possession of Indians, of which about five millions be- 
 longed to the Cherokees, and the remainder to the Creek 
 nation. 
 
 Shortly before the termination of Mr. Monroe's adminis- 
 
507 
 
 tration, an effort had been made to effect a treaty with the 
 Creeks for their portion of the above lands. The Creeks, 
 however, having become more civilized, refused to alienate 
 their territory, and had even passed a law making it a capital 
 offence to sell any more land. No solicitations of the commis- 
 sioners appointed to purchase their lands, could induce them 
 to consent, and, the council breaking up, a majority of the 
 chiefs took their departure. A few, however, who thought 
 differently, remained, and were induced to make a treaty, 
 by which all the lands of the Creek tribes in Georgia and 
 Alabama were ceded to the United States. This treaty was 
 made the 12th Feb. 1825, and was transmitted to the senate, 
 and sanctioned by that body on the 3d of March, the last 
 day of the session, without that examination of the circum- 
 stances which it would have had, had it been transmitted at 
 an earlier period of the session. 
 
 When the news of the ratification of this treaty arrived 
 among the Creeks, it produced great excitement. M'Intosh, 
 the leader and chief of the party that assented to it, and an- 
 other chief, were killed, and the treaty rejected. 
 
 In the mean time the governor of Georgia, acting upon 
 the assumption that the treaty was valid, made provision to 
 have the lands surveyed, and distributed among the citizens 
 by lottery. To the Creeks the conduct of Gov. Troup was 
 especially obnoxious, and, a war being likely to be the con- 
 sequence of measures pursued, the president directed Gen. 
 Gaines to repair to the country of the Creeks to give them 
 the necessary protection, and directed Gov. Troup to sus- 
 pend his contemplated measures until the meeting of .con- 
 gress. 
 
 Efforts, however, continued to be made to settle this dif- 
 ficulty upon amicable terms; and at length, after a long ne- 
 gotiation with a deputation from the Creek nation at Wash- 
 ington, the old treaty was declared to be void, and a new'one 
 formed, by which the Creeks were to retain all their lands 
 in Alabama, and to receive $217,000, and a perpetual an- 
 nuity of $20,000 for their Georgia territory. To the M'ln- 
 tosh party the United States agreed to pay $100,000, pro- 
 vided the party amounted to 3000 ; and so in proportion for 
 a smaller number. Moreover a tract of land beyond the 
 Mississippi was to be provided for the accommodation of 
 such as wished to remove, and the expense of removal and 
 the first year's subsistence to be borne by the United 
 States. 
 
 This treaty the senate ratified by a vote of 30 to 7. On 
 
508 PERIOD xii. 1825 TO 1829. 
 
 the passage of the bill making appropriation to carry into 
 effect the new treaty, the vote in the house of representatives 
 stood 167 to 10. To the passage of the bill the Georgia de- 
 legation offered a protest, which was suffered to be entered 
 on the journal of the house by a vote of 82 to 61. 
 
 The unanimity with which the conduct of the executive, 
 in the settlement of this intricate and unpleasant controversy, 
 was approved by congress, was as unexpected as it was 
 satisfactory to the people in every part of the country, ex- 
 cept in the state of Georgia, where strong and excited feel 
 ings powerfully tended to prevent a fair and impartial con 
 sideration of the question. 
 
 Sec. 4. During the recess of Congress, an in- 
 quiry was instituted into the official conduct of 
 Captains Porter and Stewart, which resulted in 
 the suspension of the former from the service for 
 six months, and the honourable acquittal of the 
 latter. 
 
 Captain Porter had been recalled from his command in 
 the West Indies by Mr. Monroe, shortly before the termi- 
 nation of his administration, on account of his landing ai 
 Foxardo, a Spanish settlement, and compelling the authori- 
 ties of that place to apologize for their misconduct towards 
 one of the officers of his squadron. The circumstances at- 
 tending this affair induced Mr. Monroe not only to recall 
 Capt. Porter, but to 'appoint a court of inquiry. This court 
 met at Washington, May, 1825. During its session a con- 
 troversy arose between the accused and the court, which 
 resulted in the withdrawal of Capt. Porter from the court, 
 and a publication by him of its proceedings, with his rea- 
 son's for withdrawing. The court, however, proceeded in 
 its inquiries, and, reporting its opinion to the president, a 
 court martial was ordered to try Capt. Porter on two 
 charges ; the first for violating his instructions, and com- 
 mitting acts of hostility against the subjects of Spain by 
 landing at Foxardo, and the other for insubordinate and 
 unbecoming conduct, growing out of his controversy with 
 the court of inquiry. Of these charges the court martial, 
 which met in July, found him guilty, and sentenced him to 
 a suspension of six months. Soon after, Capt. Porter with- 
 drew from the service of the United States, and was ap- 
 pointed to the command of the Mexican squadron. 
 
 The charges against Capt. Stewart were such as to touch 
 
509 
 
 his fame as an officer and a man of honour ; but the court, 
 after a minute and deliberate investigation, acquitted him of 
 any charge, and accompanied the acquittal with a high com- 
 pliment to his conduct while in the Pacific. , 
 
 Sec. 5. The year 1825 was characterized by a 
 spirit of speculation, which manifested itself not 
 only throughout the United States, but also in 
 Europe, and which ended in the embarrassment 
 and ruin of thousands both here and in other 
 countries. 
 
 The principal article of speculation was cotton, which 
 rose in a few weeks from Qd. to IQd. sterling. This in- 
 crease of price was partly owing to the small quantity then 
 in the English market, but more to a spirit of commercial 
 gambling, which had infected the whole commercial com- 
 munity. Coffee- spices, and other West India produce, also 
 rose with great rapidity. Stocks, both public and private, 
 exceeded all former prices. In a short time, however, the 
 fictitious wealth, which the expansions of the bubbles had 
 created, suddenly disappeared, and the ruin of thousands 
 followed. In England, more extensive bankruptcies occur- 
 red than had been known for many years, occasioning an 
 universal alarm and distrust. The public funds fell ra- 
 pidly. Many of the most eminent banking houses stopped 
 payment, and the ministry were called upon to devise mea- 
 sures for present relief to the intense pecuniary distress. 
 The effects of these failures extended to other countries, and, 
 though not equal in degree, were felt on the continent and 
 in the United States. 
 
 Sec. 6. On the 5th of December, in conformity 
 with the provisions of the constitution, the two 
 houses of congress assembled in their respective 
 chambers, and commenced the first session of the 
 nineteenth Congress. 
 
 In his message at this time, the president stated that our 
 foreign relations had undergone no material alteration since 
 the adjournment of the preceding congress, although im- 
 portant changes had taken place in the commercial system 
 of Great Britain, the effects of which, however, were not 
 yet fully developed. The domestic state of the country was 
 represented to be flourishing, and its finances even more fa- 
 
 43* 
 
510 PERIOD xii. 1825 TO 1829. 
 
 vorable than had been anticipated by the secretary of th^ 
 treasury. 
 
 Sec. 7. Shortly after the opening of the ses- 
 sion, propositions were introduced into both 
 houses to amend that part of the constitution, 
 which provides for the election of the executive. 
 In the discussion of this subject, a considerable 
 portion of the session was occupied ; great 
 warmth was manifested by the respective par- 
 ties, but no plan could be devised to which a 
 majority would give its sanction. 
 
 This subject was brought forward the first week of the 
 session, in the house, by Mr. M'Duffie, of S. C., in the 
 shape of a resolution to amend the constitution by establish- 
 ing a uniform mode of electing the president and vice- 
 president by districts, and declaring the sense of the house 
 in favour of preventing the election from devolving on con- 
 gress. Subsequently, this proposition was modified by the 
 mover as follows: That the constitution should be so 
 amended as to prevent the election of president and vice- 
 president from devolving upon the house of representa- 
 J tives. 2dly. That a uniform system of voting by districts 
 in each state, equal in number to the senators and repre- 
 sentatives of that state, ought to be established, and that each 
 district should send one. 3dly. That a select committee be 
 appointed to report a joint resolution embracing these objects. 
 These resolutions were urged with great vehemence by 
 those who were opposed to the election of Mr. Adams. The 
 debate on both sides was animated, and sometimes angry 
 and personal. After a discussion of the subject for seven 
 weeks, Mr. Webster, of Massachusetts, moved to discharge 
 the committee from any further consideration of the subject. 
 This was acceded to ; and the previous question being or- 
 dered, to prevent further debate, the decision of the house 
 was taken upon the resolutions. On the first, which took 
 the election from congress, the house divided, 123 in the 
 affirmative, andj54 in the negative. The second resolution, 
 in favour of the districting system, was rejected by a vote of 
 101 to 91. The subject was then referred to a select com- 
 mittee of 24, one from each state, which, at the close of the ses- 
 sion, reported that they had not been able to agree upon any 
 plan to prevent the election from devolving upon congress. 
 
511 
 
 In the senate, early in the session, a resolution was offer- 
 ed, providing for the same subject by a direct vote of the 
 people in districts. This resolution was referred to a com- 
 mittee, which, on the 19th of January, made a report on the 
 subject, accompanied by a long resolution, embracing the 
 amendment proposed. Great ability was displayed in draw- 
 ing up this report : but the subject was not taken up in the 
 senate, and was finally lost sight of in the other more in- 
 teresting topics which were soon made the object of its at- 
 tentions. 
 
 The obvious effect of the above attempt to amend the con- 
 stitution was to excite the feelings of the members, and to 
 call forth that angry spirit which had been so improperly 
 manifested at the late election of the executive. It served 
 to array the respective parties still more against each other, 
 and to consolidate the already organized opposition to the' 
 administration. 
 
 Sec. 8. Another subject, which occupied much 
 of the attention of congress, was the acceptance 
 by the president of the invitation to send com- 
 missioners to the congress of Panama, and the 
 nomination of Richard C. Anderson and John 
 Sargeant as ministers on the part of the United 
 States, and William B. Rochester, of New-York, 
 as secretary. These nominations were at length 
 confirmed by the senate, and the necessary ap- 
 propriations made by the house ; not, however, 
 without a long and angry debate, in which many 
 reflections were cast upon the executive on ac- 
 count, as it was deemed, of its hasty acceptance 
 of the above invitation. 
 
 The congress at Panama had for its object the cementing 
 of the friendly relations of all the independent states of 
 America, and was designed also to serve as a common 
 council in the conflicting state of things in South America, 
 and as an umpire in their differences. Th% plan of such a 
 congress was first introduced into a treaty between Peru 
 arid Colombia in 1822. In the three succeeding years, the 
 same subject was had in view in treaties concluded between 
 Colombia, Chili, Guatimala, and Mexico ; and the Isthmus 
 of Panama was designated as the place of the meeting of 
 
; TIM t?> 
 
 512 PERIOD xii.- -1825 TO 1829. 
 
 this great American congress. To this congress an invi- 
 tation was given, by several of the above states, to the 
 United States to send commissioners. Before the meeting 
 of the federal congress, the invitation had been accepted by 
 the president, and, on the meeting of that body, the above 
 nomination of ministers was made. The message of the 
 president to the senate, with the documents touching this 
 subject, was referred to the committee on foreign rela- 
 tions; where it remained till January 16th, when a report 
 was made condemning the mission, and ending with a reso- 
 lution declaring it to be inexpedient to send ministers to 
 Panama. This resolution was negatived after several at- 
 tempts to amend it, and the nomination made by the presi- 
 dent of the above ministers confirmed. Here it was expect 
 ed the subject, at least so far as the senate was concerned, 
 would end. A few days after, however, a resolution was 
 offered, the import of which was, that the president was 
 not constitutionally competent to accept the invitation from 
 the governments of the new republics to send ministers to 
 the Panama congress. The resolution, however, was laid 
 
 - upon the. table by a vote of 23 to 21. 
 
 In this debate Mr. Randolph took occasion, in his desul- 
 tory manner, to stigmatize the secretary of state for his vote 
 in the late presidential election, in such terms as induced 
 that gentleman to demand an explanation of the offensive 
 epithets. Any explanation Mr. Randolph pertinaciously re- 
 fused, when called upon by Mr. Clay ; and, on the 8th ot 
 April a meeting took place between them, which, after two 
 ineffectual fires, resulted in the reconciliation of the parties. 
 Much regret prevailed throughout the country that Mr. Clay, 
 
 ] occupying so high and responsible a station, should have felt 
 himself compelled to resort to a mode of settling a contro- 
 versy so revolting to reason, and so unjustifiable in the view 
 of sound morality a mode which at all times gives a most 
 unreasonable advantage to the offender, and, in the present 
 instance, put at hazard the life of a man who has talents 
 which must command respect, and which may be most use- 
 fully employed for his country. 
 
 In the house of representatives, the committee on foreign 
 relations reported in favor of the expediency of sending mi- 
 nisters, and offered a resolution to make the necessary ap- 
 propriations. On the 3d of April this resolution was taken 
 into consideration, but it was not until the 21st, and after 
 encountering great opposition, that it passed by a vote oi 
 133 to 61. 
 
ADAMS' ADMINISTRATION. 513 
 
 The house having thus assented to the policy of the mis- 
 sion by making- the appropriation, measures were taken to 
 carry it into effect ; and orders were transmitted to Mr. An- 
 derson, who was then in Colombia, to attend the congress 
 which was to hold its first meeting in the month of June. / 
 In his way to Panama, however, a malignant fever, by which 
 he was attacked, proved fatal to him. After the decision of 
 congress, it was found too late for Mr. Sargeant to reach 
 Panama in season to attend the first meeting of the members 
 of the mission, and accordingly the United States were not 
 represented. 
 
 On the 22d of June, the representatives of Peru, Mexico, 
 Central America, and Colombia, met, and commenced their 
 deliberations. Upper Peru and Chili were not represented. 
 Diplomatic agents from England and the Netherlands, 
 though these governments had not been invited, were pre- 
 sent, but were not permitted to attend upon the deliberations 
 of the congress. 
 
 The body continued in session until the 15th of July, 
 having concluded between themselves, as belligerents, a. 
 treaty of friendship and perpetual confederation, offensive 
 and defensive, to which all other American powers might 
 accede within the year. The next meeting was ordered to 
 be held at Tacubaya, a village near Mexico, in the month of 
 February, 1827. 
 
 Sec. 9. During this session of congress, a bill 
 was introduced making provision for the survi- 
 ving officers of the revolution. After an anima- 
 ted discussion of the subject, the bill was virtu- 
 ally lost by being recommitted, by a vote of 90 
 to 85, for the purpose of ascertaining the number 
 of revolutionary officers who ought to be provi- 
 ded for by law, and the amount necessary to 
 make such provision. 
 
 A general wish, no doubt, prevailed in the country to do "/ 
 these heroes of the revolution justice. The visit of Lafay- 
 ette had excited a strong feeling in their favor. As he pass- 
 ed through the country, and met the companions of his */.' 
 former toils and glory, a disposition seemed to prevail to re- / * 
 compense them for their sufferings and privations ; and con- 
 gress met under the influence of a general belief that some 
 provision would be made for their declining years or at least 
 
514 PERIOD xii. ls/^5 TO 1829. 
 
 an ample remuneration for the depreciation of the currency 
 in which they had been paid. 
 
 Sec. 10. On the 22d of May, 1826, congress 
 closed its session. It was a long one, but ex- 
 cepting the sanction given to the Panama mis- 
 sion, nothing of great public interest was accom- 
 plished. 
 
 Sec. 11. On the 4th of July occurred the 50th 
 anniverary of American independence, which 
 was celebrated throughout the union with many 
 demonstrations of joy. This day, rendered me- 
 morable by the event which it celebrated, was 
 made still more memorable, in the annals of 
 American history, by the death of the two vene- 
 rable ex-presidents, ADAMS and JEFFERSON. 
 
 . The public services which these eminent men rendered 
 ^ their country, through a long series of years, will be a suf- 
 ^ ficient apology for introducing in this place a biographical 
 Jsketch of each. 
 
 JOHN ADAMS was born in Braintree, now Quincy, on 
 the 19th of October, 1735, and was descended from the first 
 English emigrants to- Massachusetts. He entered Harvard 
 University in 1751, \yhere he graduated in 1755. Whether 
 he was distinguished at college, or shared its first honors, 
 is not now certainly known. After he left college, Mr. 
 Adams engaged in a grammar school at Worcester, where 
 he commenced the study of law. Being admitted to the 
 bar in 1758, he commenced business in his profession at 
 Braintree, his native town. His success was so rap : d, and 
 his reputation so great, that, in 1766, he removed to Boston, 
 where he continued to attend the neighboring circuits, and 
 was occasionally called to remote parts of the province. In 
 1770, he undertook the defence of the British officers and 
 soldiers, who were indicted for the massacre on the memo- 
 rable 5th of March, of that year. The same year he was 
 elected one of the representatives of the town of Boston, in 
 the legislature of the province, which connected him more 
 intimately with the great leaders of the popular party, and 
 enlisted his feelings more ardently in public affairs, which 
 at this time were assuming a very serious aspect. The 
 popularity he lost in advocating the cause of Capt. Preston 
 
ADAMS' ADMINISTRATION. 515 
 
 and the British soldiers, he soon regained by his zeal and 
 spirited conduct in support of the popular cause. And such 
 was his increasing reputation as a patriot and politician, that 
 he was appointed by the assembly one of its representatives 
 to the continental congress, held in Philadelphia, in 1774. 
 Mr. Adams took an active part in its deliberations, and the 
 important measures it adopted. He was a member of the 
 committee which prepared the declaration of the rights of 
 the colonies, and likewise of that which reported the address 
 to the king. He was a member of the congress the next, 
 year, and made the motion- to appoint George Washington 
 the commander in chief of the forces to be raised in defence 
 of American liberty. He continued in congress in 1776, 
 when he was one of the committee appointed to prepare a 
 declaration of independence, and he and Thomas Jefferson 
 were named as a sub-committee to prepare a draft. Mr. 
 Jefferson was the draftsman of the declaration, but Mr. 
 Adams was its boldest and ablest defender. 
 
 In the course of this year, 1776, Mr. Adams, Dr. Frank- 
 lin, and Ed ward Rutledge, were appointed commissioners to 
 treat with Lord Howe for a pacification. The following 
 year, 1777, he was appointed by congress a commissioner 
 to the court of France, in the place of Silas Dean. In 1779 
 he returned from Europe ; and the next year he was ap- 
 pointed a member of the convention whic-h framed the con- 
 stitution of Massachusetts; and he drafted a considerable 
 part of it. Before the close of the year 1780, he was sent 
 to Europe again, as commissioner to negotiate a general 
 peace, and remained in Europe until 1788. He was the 
 first minister of the United States at the court of Great Bri- 
 tain ; and whilst residing there, in 1787, he published his 
 Defence of the American Constitutions. On his return to 
 tfie United States, in 1788, he was chosen the first vice-presi- 
 dent, which situation he held during the eight years of 
 Washington's administration, when he succeeded the father 
 of his country in the presidential chair. Mr. Adams was 
 succeeded by Mr. Jefferson in 1801, and retired to private life. 
 
 From this time Mr. Adams lived as became a great and 
 wise man. His correspondence and writings were exten- 
 sive, and highly interesting ; although perhaps some of 
 them are not entirely free from the peculiar bias of his feel- 
 ings. In 1820, at the advanced age of 85 years, he was 
 once more withdrawn from retirement, being first chosen 
 an elector of president and vice-president, and then elected 
 a member of the convention to revise the constitution of 
 
516 PERIOD xii. 1825 TO 1829. 
 
 Massachusetts. He was unanimously chosen president of 
 the convention, but declined. Mr. Adams died on the 4th 
 of July, 1826, the fiftieth anniversary, and the national jubi- 
 lee of his country, and whilst all his fellow-citizens were as- 
 sembled, commemorating that great and glorious event, with 
 which his name is inseparably and honorably associated. 
 
 THOMAS JEFFERSON was born on the 2d of April, 
 O. S., 1743, at Shadwell, in the county of Albemarle, in the 
 state of Virginia, but a short distance from Monticello. His 
 father, Peter Jefferson, was one of the commissioners for 
 establishing the boundary line between Virginia and North 
 Carolina, and he left his son a large estate. The Jefferson 
 family was among the earliest settlers in Virginia. Thomas 
 Jefferson was educated at the college of William and Mary, 
 and received the highest honors of that institution. After 
 leaving college, he entered upon the study of the law, under 
 the tuition of George Wythe, the first lawyer and advocate 
 in the state. Soon after he came of age, he was appointed 
 justice of the peace, and this was followed by an election to 
 a seat in the house of burgesses. In June, 1775, he was 
 elected a member of the continental congress, in the place 
 of Peyton Randolph, who had resigned his seat in conse- 
 quence of ill health. He continued a member, and one of 
 the brightest ornaments of this august body, until 1777. 
 
 In 1776, he was one of a committee appointed to prepare 
 the declaration of independence. The committee were ap- 
 pointed by ballot, and consisted of Thomas Jefferson, John 
 Adams, Benjamin Franklin, Roger Sherman, and Robert 
 R. Livingston. Mr. Jefferson and Mr. Adams, the two first 
 on the committee, were named as a sub-committee to pre- 
 pare the draft. It was written by Mr. Jefferson, and first 
 submitted to Mr. Adams, who says that he made no altera- 
 tions. It was then submitted to the whole committee, and 
 some alterations were made by Franklin, and others of the 
 committee. Some parts of it were omitted by congress after 
 it was reported, and some slight alterations made; but its 
 tone, spirit, and arrangement, remained the same as when 
 reported. In 1777, Mr. Jefferson left congress, and during 
 that and the following year he was employed, in conjunction 
 with George Wythe and Edmund Pendleton, in revising 
 the laws of Virginia. Mr. Jefferson is entitled to the prin- 
 cipal merit of securing the rights of conscience, and esta- 
 blishing religious liberty in Virginia. No part of the con- 
 duct of Mr. Jefferson made him more enemies, or brougho 
 on him more censure, than his exertions in favor of religious 
 
517 
 
 freedom ; and perhaps in no other particular were his ef- 
 forts more extensively useful. 
 
 In 1779, Mr. Jefferson succeeded Patrick Henry as go- 
 vernor of Virginia, and was in that station when the stato 
 was invaded by the British. In 1783, he was again elected 
 a member of the continental congress, and took his seat in 
 that body ; and in May, 1784, he was commissioned as mi- 
 nister plenipotentiary, with Franklin, John Adams, Jay, and 
 Laurens, to negotiate treaties with several European powers. 
 In 1785, he was appointed resident minister at the French 
 court, and remained in France until October, 1789, when, 
 having obtained leave of congress, he returned home, just at 
 the commencement of the tremendous revolution in that 
 country, which agitated all Europe. On his return home, 
 when the new government was going into operation, he was 
 named, by President Washington, secretary of state. Mr. 
 Jefferson's great ability as a writer, his extensive attain- 
 ments, and perfect knowledge of European politics, as well 
 as those of his own country, peculiarly qualified him for 
 this situation, and justly procured him the reputation of one 
 of the most distinguished statesmen of the age. He con- 
 tinued in the office of secretary of state until December, 
 1793, when he resigned, and remained in retirement for se- 
 veral years. In 1797, when John Adams was elected pre- 
 sident, Mr. Jefferson was chosen vice-president, and to fa- 
 cilitate the discharge of the duties of president of the senate, 
 he composed his Manual of Parliamentary Practice. In 
 1801, there having been no choice by the electors, he was 
 chosen president of the United States by the house of repre- 
 sentatives, after an alarming and memorable contest. The 
 most important measure of his administration was the ac- 
 quisition of the immense territory of Louisiana by purchase, 
 which alone cannot fail of rendering it illustrious to the latest 
 posterity. 
 
 Although the opposition to his administration was violent 
 beyond any example, yet such was the change in public sen- 
 timent, that, at the expiration of his first term, he was re- 
 elected with an expression of public opinion approaching to 
 unanimity. In 1809, this illustrious prtriot retired from 
 political life, carrying with him the respect and affections of 
 a large portion of his fellow-citizens. Eat in retirement he 
 did not, and indeed could not, abstract himself from public 
 objects, and the interests of his beloved country. His exten- 
 sive correspondence contributed to diffuse his sentiments, as 
 much perhaps as he was enabled to do at any other period of 
 
518 PERIOD xii. 1825 TO 1829. 
 
 his life. Mr. Jefferson's talent at epistolary composition 
 was peculiarly happy, and perhaps unrivalled. But his 
 correspondence and other literary employments did not oc- 
 cupy his whole attention. At this advanced period of life, 
 his active mind, always intent on promoting the best inte- 
 rests of his race, led him to engage in a work of great and 
 lasting utility. We allude to the establishment of the uni- 
 versity of Virginia, of which he was rector and visiter, and 
 which occupied a large share of his attention during the last 
 years of his life. All his useful and great labors on earth 
 being finished, his end seemed to be approaching. He 
 viewed it with calmness and serenity, and seemed to mani- 
 fest some .uneasiness in waiting for his departure. He 
 however had one wish, which was granted him. This 
 cannot be expressed so well as in the language of one of his 
 eulogists :* " That day was at hand which he had helped to 
 make immortal. One wish, one hope if it were not pre- 
 sumptuous beat in his fainting breast. Could it be so 
 
 ., might it please God he would desire once more to see the 
 sun once more to look abroad on the scene around him, on 
 the great day of liberty, Heaven in. its mercy fulfilled thai 
 prayer. He saw that sun he enjtfyed its sacred light he 
 thanked God for this mercy, and bowed his aged head to 
 
 " the grave." He expired at Monticello, at one o'clock in the 
 afternoon, on the 4th of July, 1826, the half century anniver- 
 sary of that day, which is first in the annals of his country, 
 and in his own fame. 
 
 Sec. 12. The second session of the nineteenth 
 congress commenced on the fourth of December, 
 1826. The message of the president on the fol- 
 lowing day contained a minute and flattering 
 detail of the concerns of the nation, both foreign 
 and domestic. 
 
 During this session several subjects were presented to 
 the consideration of the national legislature, a rapid view 
 of which will be given in this place. 
 
 The first of these related to the West India trade. For 
 a time this trade had been interrupted, and negociations 
 with the British government had been suspended on the 
 following point, viz. : that the produce of the United States 
 should be admitted into the West Indies, on the same terms 
 with that of the Canadas. This point Mr. Gallatin, at this 
 * Webster's Address. 
 
ADAMS' ADMINISTRATION. 519 
 
 time representing the American government at the court 
 of St. James', was authorized to relinquish. But the Bri- 
 tish minister, Mr. Canning, replied, that all further nego- 
 ciations on the subject would be useless. This being com- 
 municated to congress, the subject was referred, both in the 
 senate and house of representatives, to their respective 
 committees on commerce, which united in recommending 
 a bill prohibiting all intercourse with the colonies, either 
 in British or other vessels, until the trade should be placed 
 on a footing of reciprocity. Owing, however, to some 
 disagreement between the houses, neither bill became a 
 law, and here the subject ended until the administration of 
 1829 appointed a new minister, with instructions to renew 
 the negotiations. This was done, and the trade has been 
 partially restored ; but with concessions on the part of the 
 Americans, which are considered by the opposers of the 
 administration to be both humbling and indefensible. 
 
 Another subject of much interest discussed by the con- 
 gress of 1826 was the duty on woollens, laid by the tariff 
 of 1824, which was found to have failed to afford the ex- 
 pected protection to American manufactures, in consequence 
 of an almost total repeal on the part of Great Britain of their 
 duty on the raw material. Hence, a bill was introduced 
 by the committee on manufactures for an increase of the 
 duty on wool and woollens, with a view to afford the encou- 
 ragement originally intended. After a protracted discus- 
 sion, the bill passed the house on the 9th Of February, 1827; 
 ayes 106, noes 95. In the senate it was laid on the table, 
 on the 28th of February, by the casting vote of the vice- 
 president. 
 
 The above failure of the woollens bill induced the Penn- 
 sylvania society for the promotion of manufactures, to take 
 measures for a general convention of the friends of the Ame- 
 rican system, at Harrisburg, on the 30th of July, 1827,. to 
 deliberate on the measures proper to be taken to encourage 
 domestic industry. This convention consisted of one hun- 
 dred members from thirteen states, including all .north and 
 east of Virginia, inclusive, excepting the state of Maine, 
 and the states of Kentucky and Ohio. This convention 
 agreed on a memorial to congress, praying an increase of 
 duties on woollen manufactures, and the raw material ; 
 also, on the manufactures of hemp, flax, and cotton, and on 
 iron, steel, and distilled spirits. 
 
 The convention of Harrisburg being viewed with great 
 jealousy by the south, a counter convention was summoned 
 29 
 
520 PERIOD xii. 1825 TO 1829. 
 
 at Columbia, in South Carolina, at which the governor ci 
 the state presided, and hy which the power of congress to 
 impose duties to protect domestic industry was denied, and 
 the policy reprobated in the most unqualified terms. 
 
 Sec. 13. On the 4th of December, 1827, the 
 first meeting of the twentieth congress com- 
 menced. The revision of the tariff, with a view 
 to afford adequate protection to American manu- 
 factures, was hy far the most interesting subject 
 which presented itself to the deliberations of the 
 legislature at this session. On the 22d of April, 
 a bill for that purpose passed the house of re- 
 presentatives, and on the 13th of May the senate, 
 which, however, was by no means conformable 
 to the wishes of the advocates of the protecting 
 system. 
 
 In his annual report to the house, at the commencement 
 , of the session, the secretary of the treasury, in a labored 
 discussion, maintained a system of protecting duties to be 
 essential to the prosperity and independence of the nation. 
 The subject was referred in the house to the committee on 
 manufactures. The chairman of that committee was Mr. 
 Mallory, of Vermont, an able and zealous advocate for the 
 - protecting system. A majority of the committee was opposed 
 to it, and a bill, such as the majority directed, was presented 
 to the house on the 31st of January. In regard to wool- 
 lens, the duty on the manufacture compared to that on the 
 raw material, placed the manufacturer in a worse situation 
 than under the tariff of 1824, and seemed likely to destroy 
 the establishments, and with them the production of the raw 
 material. 
 
 Pending the discussion of this bill, meetings were held 
 in various parts of the United States to express the views 
 of different classes of the community upon the subject. 
 To the principle of protection the south was universally 
 opposed, and generally importing merchants throughout 
 the country. In the east, north, and west, the farmers, 
 manufacturers, and mechanics, supported the principle of 
 protection, but were opposed to many of the leading features 
 of the bill. 
 
 On the final passage of the bill, the ayes in the house 
 were 105, noes 94. In the senate, ayes 26, noes 21. To 
 
521 
 
 the country at large the measure gave little satisfaction, 
 and those for whose benefit it was professedly enacted, pre- 
 dicting its short continuance, slowly and cautiously adapted 
 their business with a view to avail themselves of its provi- 
 sions. 
 
 Sec. 14. During the year 1828, the approach- 
 ing presidential election was the all engrossing 
 topic of political discussion. The two candi- 
 dates were Mr. Adams and General Jackson. 
 Their claims to the presidency were urged by 
 their respective parties by a zeal which led to j 
 the most unwarrantable scrutiny of private life, 
 and an unjustifiable attack upon private charac- 
 ter. The result of the contest was a large ma- 
 jority in the electoral colleges for General Jack- 
 son; 178 being for him, and only 83 for Mr. 
 Adams. 
 
 The administration of Mr. Adams, /r lrt ' lts Ver 7 com- 
 mencement, met with a powerful ^sition. The circum- 
 stance of his not having >r-, c {f cted V P eo ple, united 
 to the small majority .y*'<* he was elected to hig office 
 in confess 2 lhicient to c * 11 fo .^ h oud complaints, on 
 the nart -' opponents, and to justify, in their view, a 
 ov i c Jim usual watchfulness over his administration 
 ..i l eat pains were early taken to render him and his mea- 
 sures unpopular. The charge of a corrupt bargain be- 
 tween I he president and secretary of state continued to be 
 pertinaciously adhered to, and to be republished from mouth 
 to mouth. The Panama mission was represented as a 
 measure weak and injudicious, and the failure to obtain a 
 participation in the British West India trade was averred 
 to be in consequence of culpable mismanagement. Besides 
 it was charged upon his administration that it was waste- - 
 ml and extravagant. 
 
 Whatever might be the injustice of these accusations, 
 and of a host of others, they were published abroad with 
 the manifest design of preventing Mr. Adams' re-election 
 With what effect they were urged, the election of 1829 re- 
 vealed. On canvassing the votes of the electoral colleges 
 it was apparent that the friends of General Jackson had 
 obtained as triumphant a victory, as those of the existing 
 administration had experienced a mortifying defeat 
 44* 
 
522 PERIOD xii. 1825 TO 1829. 
 
 It has been well observed, and with the remarks of the 
 writer we quote, we conclude, " That the events attending 
 the political change of 1829, evince that when a prize of 
 such magnitude as the presidency of the United States is 
 set up, free to be contended for by all their citizens, the 
 struggle will be arduous. All the human passions will be 
 called into operation ; the character of the means will not 
 be regarded, provided they conduce to the end. In other 
 nations, struggles for the supreme power have ever been 
 attended with bloodshed. In this, the same passions ope- 
 rating, the virtue and intelligence of the people, with the 
 most alarming examples in their own hemisphere before 
 them, have hitherto stopped short of the last resort ; whe- 
 ther, with the increasing magnitude of the object, this will 
 continue to be the case, is as yet problematical, and depen- 
 dant upon the good sense, virtue, and moderation, of the 
 American people." 
 
 NOTES. 
 
 15. MANNERS. Two centuries have elaps- 
 ed since tn^^rst settlements were commenced in 
 the United State* =^ T K ur0 peans, yet the people 
 have not acquired that u^r orm characterj W hich 
 belongs to ancient nations, U P . , vhom time and 
 the stability of institutions have im p , te(1 & 
 ticular and individual character. Althou, 
 tial changes have occurred, which have been n^ 
 ticed in the progress of this work, yet, so far down 
 as the present time, the essential variations which 
 have taken place are few. The general physi- 
 ognomy is nearly as varied as the origin of the 
 population is different. 
 
 A marked distinction undoubtedly exists between the in- 
 habitants of the commercial and maritime towns and the 
 villages of the country. The former, in a more considera- 
 ble degree, as to luxury and vice, resemble the great towns 
 of Europe. Those of the country, who lead an agricultu- 
 ral life, preserve much of the simplicity, with something of 
 the roughness, of former days ; but they enjoy all that hap- 
 piness which proceeds from the exercise of the social vir- 
 tues in their primitive purity. Their affections are con- 
 stant; felicity crowns the conjugal union; parental authori- 
 

 4 
 
 523 
 
 ty is sacred ; infidelity on the part of the wife is almost un- / -< 
 known ; crime is rare, mendicity and theft uncommon. 
 
 The people generally are .enterprising, industrious, per- 
 severing, and submissive to government. They are also ^ 
 intelligent, brave, active, and benevolent, and possess a 
 strength and agility of body which are seldom united in 
 so great a degree. With somewhat of the appearance of 
 apathy, and under a sober exterior, strong feelings, and a 
 capacity for the most lively sallies, are concealed. As the 
 benefits of education are extensively diffused, the ingenuity 
 and intelligence of the people have been displayed to ad- i 
 vantage, if not in the higher walks of literature, yet in the 
 useful branches of knowledge, and in the arts which mul- 
 tiply the comforts of life. 
 
 From the perfect freedom and equality which are possess- 
 ed, and the interest taken in political discussions, a tenden- 
 cy to dissoluteness in our manners is undoubtedly to be 
 perceived ; but the barrier created by education will, it is 
 hoped, keep in check the unwelcome tide. In the amuse- 
 ments of the people, there are evidently some changes for 
 the better, indicating more correct ideas of humanity and 
 taste. Upon the whole, the manners of the people of the 
 United States, especially among the more cultivated classes, 
 are, probably, a medium between an honest bluntness on 
 the one hand, and a sickly delicacy on the other, or be- 
 tween a low and the highest degree of refinement. The 
 latter, indeed, is not to be expected in a country where there 
 is no court, and no hereditary nobility, whose leisure and 
 inclination might lead them to substitute the affected and 
 burdensome politeness of courtries for the present manly 
 ease of freemen. 
 
 6 - RELIGION. The principal religious 
 are Prestfi^S?' at P resent > m tne United States, , 
 tists, Friend^ t a nd Congregationalists, Bap- ]/ 
 The two first of th&su^alians, and Methodists. 
 twenty-five hundred con&^y, have more than 
 of Baptist congregations excels: the 
 the Friends have five hundred, an 
 Hans about three hundred. The 
 are numerous. 
 
 For the effectual employment of those who wish to b( 
 
-.-.,- .r, t . , 
 
 PERIOD xii. 1825 TO 1829. 
 
 gaged in the Christian ministry and in missions, peculiar 
 facilities have been devised; and the plans of benevolence, 
 mentioned under the last period, have been continued and 
 greatly augmented. The American Board of Commission- 
 ers for Foreign Missions, the American Bible Society, the 
 A.merican Education Society, together with a society for the 
 colonization of free blacks in Africa, have risen in respec- 
 tability and resources. Missionaries in considerable num- 
 bers are sent, not only into vacant and destitute parts of our 
 own country, to the south and west, and among the Indi- 
 ans ; but also to Southern Asia, to Palestine, and to the Is 
 lands of the Pacific Ocean. 
 
 It is not to be disguised that much irreligion and vice, and 
 some opposition to the above named objects, prevail, and that 
 a spirit of infidelity exists, though in a form more concealed 
 than formerly, and under more decent names. Nor does it 
 become us to deny, that in a time of so much religious ac- 
 tion and religious news, by which attention is occupied, 
 there is danger of a superficial acquaintance with the doc- 
 trines of the Bible, among the mass of professors. Yet, 
 whatever may be the danger from this source, we are per- 
 suaded that such exertions are altogether congenial with ths 
 precepts of the gospel, and will in the end produce a vastly 
 counterbalancing good. The exigencies of the church, and 
 of the times, require precisely such a spirit of benevolent en- 
 terprise, to be increased, we trust, with the growth of the 
 nation. 
 
 The attention, which is now paid to biblical learning, and 
 to a more systematic instruction in theology, by those who 
 are to become Christian teachers, forms an era in the his- 
 tory of religion, in this country. This will be a means^r- 
 due time, of counteracting that tendency to religioug pro- 
 pation, and to a superficial doctrinal knowledosu. Indeed, 
 fessing Christians, which have been p?ory studies begin 
 the good consequences of such r^nd the call for a learn- 
 
 , to be felt in other respects, PV IOUS ministry is doubly in- 
 ed and efficient, as we 11 * 1 ls . a component part of religion,, 
 creasing. Moral 1 ': und tne increased means of Christian' 
 has taken do- noticed, form a striking contrast to the ef- 
 instruct-<- proceed from a dearth of the spirit and of the 
 fefct?oi God, m less favored parts of the 'country It is 
 .'orthy of notice, also, that some vigorous attempts have 
 een made, by means of the association of individuls in 
 
 various places, to prevent the progress of vice, and, of course 
 
' 
 
 to promote the interests of Christian virtue. Intemperance, 
 which is the most alarming symptom of the times, has, by 
 this means, received a partial, though, it must be confessed, 
 inadequate restraint. 
 
 Sec. 17. TRADE AND COMMERCE. The com- 
 merce of the United States consists, principally, 
 in the exchange of agricultural produce for the 
 manufactures of other parts of me world, and 
 the productions of the tropical climates. The 
 principal articles of domestic produce, exported, 
 are cotton, wheat flour, biscuit, tobacco, lumber, 
 rice, pot and pearl ashes, Indian corn and meal, 
 dried and pickled fish, beef, rye, pork, &c. 
 
 Of these, cotton* is the most considerable article, and has 
 increased, regularly, from one hundred thousand pounds, 
 the amount exported in 1790, to more than 264 millions of 
 pounds, in 18-29, the value of which was 26 millions of dol- 
 lars. Next to cotton, wheat flour, and biscuit, are exported 
 in the greatest quantities. Tobacco and rice are on the de- 
 cline, the attention of planters being directed to the more 
 profitable cultivation of cotton. 
 
 Of these exports, New-England and New- York are the 
 great carriers. To them belong nearly two thirds of all 
 the shipping of the United States. The states south of the 
 Potomac own only one eight part. Our staple articles are 
 principally the growth of the southern states, and are car- 
 ried coast wise, from the southern to the middle states, 
 whence they are sent to foreign countries, almost entirely, 
 in ships owned by northern merchants, and navigated by 
 northern seamen. In 1820, there were about seventy thou- 
 sand persons, in the United States, engaged in commerce, 
 of which thirteen thousand, or nearly one sixth, belonged 
 
 
 
 * The greater attention to the cultivation of cotton is to be ascribed to 
 the invention of a machine for cleaning upland cotton from its seeds. 
 For this machine we arc indebted to Mr. Whitney, of New-Haven, Con- 
 necticut. Before the invention of this machine, it was so difficult to 
 cleanse cotton, that the cultivation of it was extremely limited. It is now- 
 cultivated, to great extent, in the states south of Virginia, and Kentucky. 
 The wheat and flour exported are raised, principally, in the middle and 
 western states; tobacco in Maryland, Virginia, and North Carolina; lum- 
 ber is chiefly from the forests of Maine, New-Hampshire, and the low 
 countries of the Carolinas and Georgia. Rice is mostly raised in the C&- 
 rolinas, Georgia, and Louisiana, &c. 
 
PERIOD xii. 1825 TO 1829. 
 
 to Massachusetts alone. Nearly half of the whole number 
 belonged to the New-England states, and New-York. 
 
 The exports from the United States are sent to various 
 countries, but the British dominions always receive the larg- 
 est portion of our domestic produce, particularly cotton. 
 The Spanish, Portuguese, and French dominions, have usu- 
 ally received the most, next to the British. During the pe- 
 riod in which the United States enjoyed the carrying trade, 
 that is, from 1796 to 1807, when the wars, which succeeded 
 the French revolution, existed, and during which the Uni- 
 ted States was the principal neutral power, the nations for 
 which she carried embraced nearly all Europe ; but those 
 for which she carried the most were the Dutch, French, and 
 Spaniards. Since the return of peace, in 1815, the nations 
 of Europe have been chiefly their own carriers. Of course, 
 the foreign produce, exported from this country, has been 
 small, compared with its amount from 1802 to 1812. In 
 the year ending the 30th of September, 1822, the total value 
 of exports from the United States was seventy-two millions 
 one hundred and sixty thousand two hundred and eighty- 
 one dollars. Of this sum, but about twenty-two millions 
 were foreign exports, leaving nearly fifty millions for do- 
 mestic exports. Almost half of the domestic exports were 
 sent to England, Scotland, and Ireland. During the same 
 year, the total value of imports was eighty-three millions 
 two hundred and forty-one thousand five hundred and forty- 
 one dollars, of which thirty-two millions were from Eng- 
 land alone.* 
 
 The goods received in return for exports, arc, generally, 
 the manufactures of those countries to which the exports 
 are carried. From Great Britain are imported vast quan- 
 tities of woollen and cotton goods, and manufactures of iron, 
 steel, brass, copper, glass, earthen ware, silk, &c. From 
 China we receive tea and silk ; from Russia iron and hemp. 
 Coffee comes frorr the colonies of the European powers in 
 America, and the East Indies ; sugar from the East and 
 West Indies; rum from the British and Danish West 
 Indies. Wines are, principally, from France, Spain, Por- 
 tugal, Madeira, and the Canary Isles ; brandy from France, 
 Spain, Italy, &c. Notwithstanding the large amount of 
 cotton, tobacco, lumber, &c. sent to Great Britain, yet the 
 
 * The total value of imports into the United States during the year 
 ending the 30th of Sept., 1830, exceeded 70,000,000 of dollars. The va- 
 lue of exports exceeded 73,000,000. Of these latter, 14,000,000 were of 
 foreign produce, and 59,000,000 of domestic. 
 
ADAMS' ADMINISTRATION. 527 
 
 balance with that country is, and always has been, against 
 us. It is also against us in respect to China, Russia, Swe- 
 den, Denmark, and France, because these countries, from 
 which we import largely, have occasion for very little of 
 our surplus produce. 
 
 As to the tonnage of the United States, it may be observed, 
 that it annually increased from 1790, at which time it was 
 nearly half a million, to the year 1810, when it arrived at 
 its maximum, and amounted to more than one million and 
 four hundred thousand tons ; an amount far greater than 
 that of any other nation in the world, except Great Britain. 
 In 1819, the tonnage employed in the coasting trade amount- 
 ed to nearly six hundred thousand tons, having increased 
 in thirty years more than five fold. 
 
 The tonnage employed in the fisheries has not progressed 
 with the same rapidity. During the revolutionary war, 
 the fisheries were destroyed, and for many years afterwards 
 they did not regain their original importance. To en- 
 courage them, congress, in 1792, granted a bounty to the 
 owners and seamen employed in the bank, or cod fisheries, 
 and, in 1814, this bounty was considerably increased. Du- 
 ring the late war, our fishermen suffered heavy losses, but, 
 since the return of peace, they have resumed their occu- 
 pations, and the fisheries are now in a more flourishing 
 state than they have been at any period since the declaration 
 of our independence, In 1818, there belonged to New 
 Bedford and Nantucket seventy-two vessels, engaged in 
 the whale fishery, whose aggregate tonnage was about 
 seventeen thousand tons. This number has since increased. 
 Massachusetts is the principal -state concerned in this 
 fishery. No state south of New- York ever owned a single 
 vessel employed in the whale fishery. 
 
 Nearly connected with commerce is the revenue of the 
 country. This has almost entirely arisen, ever since the 
 establishment of the present government, from duties paid 
 on tonnage, and on foreign goods imported into the United 
 States. Internal duties and direct taxes have, occasionally, 
 been resorted to, as was the case during the administration 
 of Mr. Adams, and during the late war, but upon these, the 
 government ordinarily place no dependence. Several mil- 
 lions of dollars are annually received from the sale of pub- 
 lic lands, and the sum is yearly increasing. In 1815, th 
 revenue was much greater than it had been at any former 
 period, owing to the immense importations of foreign goods 
 into the country. It continued to decrease, however until 
 
.^ 
 
 528 PERIOD xii. 1825 TO 1829. 
 
 1821, since which time it has been again slowly rising. It 
 may now be estimated, in ordinary years, at about twenty 
 millions of dollars. 
 
 It will not be foreign to this article to add a few remarks 
 upon the public debt. This debt was contracted in support 
 of the war of independence. In 1791, it amounted to about 
 seventy-five millions of dollars. From this date to the year 
 1812, owing to the great prosperity of the country, the debt 
 was gradually diminished to about one half. But, on the 
 recurrence of war, it again increased, and, in 1816, amount- 
 ed to one hundred and twenty-three millions. It has been 
 since diminishing, and, on the first of January, 1823, was 
 about ninety millions of dollars.* 
 
 Sec. 18. AGRICULTURE. Until within a few 
 years, agriculture, as a science, received but little 
 attention in the United States. Few, if any, 
 valuable improvements were attempted. In- 
 
 I difference and uncommon apathy seem to have 
 pervaded society. A new era, however, has re- 
 cently commenced, and agriculture, both as a 
 science and an art, is receiving much of that 
 attention which its acknowledged importance 
 demands. It is beginning to be regarded, as it 
 should be, not only as the basis of subsistence 
 and population, but as the parent of individual 
 and national opulence. 
 
 Men of enlightened minds, and of distin- 
 guished wealth, are, in many parts of the coun- 
 try, devoting themselves to the study of the art, 
 and to new and useful experiments. Agricultural 
 societies abound ; at the head of which may be 
 seen some of the most scientific and practical 
 men, combining their powers in favor of agri- 
 culture, for the collection and diffusion of in- 
 formation, and for the excitement of industry 
 and emulation. The exhibitions which annually 
 take place, in almost every county, of cattle, and 
 
 * The public debt, it is expected, will be entirely extinguished before 
 the close of the vear 1833. 
 
529 
 
 > 
 
 of the productions of the soil, the learned and 
 often eloquent addresses, which these exhibitions 
 call forth, have a strong tendency to awaken 
 the attention of our countrymen to a pursuit 
 more favorable to health, virtue, and peace, than 
 any other. 
 
 The proportion of the inhabitants of the United States, 
 devoted to agricultural pursuits, is large. By the census of 
 1820, it appears that this proportion is more than one fifth 
 of the whole population, or two millions. Tins number in- 
 cludes only those who are thus engaged by actual occu- 
 pation, children and females generally being excluded. It 
 embraces, therefore, about two thirds of all the males over 
 ten years of age. The slave holding states are the most 
 agricultural, the proportion being usually from one quarter 
 to one third of the whole population, while in the other 
 states it generally falls below one fifth. 
 
 Of the several states, New- York has the greatest number 
 engaged in agriculture; Virginia next; and next to those 
 states, North Carolina, South Carolina, Pennsylvania, Ken- 
 tucky, Ohio, Tennessee, and Georgia, in order. But the 
 proportion of those devoted to agriculture, in the respective 
 states, to their population, is different. Louisiana has the 
 greatest proportion, or about thirty-five per cent. ; South 
 Carolina has thirty-two ; Georgia and Mississippi, each 
 twenty-nine ; North Carolina twenty-seven ; while New- 
 York has but eighteen, and Pennsylvania but thirteen per 
 cent. No state in the union has so small a proportion as 
 Massachusetts. 
 
 Sec. 19. ARTS AND MANUFACTURES. The man- 
 ufacturing establishments in the United States 
 are considerably various and numerous ; and 
 though less prosperous than during the late war, 
 are gradually rising from the depression which 
 they experienced immediately after the return 
 of peace, in consequence of the excessive im- 
 portations of foreign goods, which were then 
 made. 
 
 By the friends of these establishments vigorous efforts 
 are making to induce congress to increase the duties on 
 certain articles, now extensively imported, with reference 
 45 
 
530 PERIOD xii. 1825 TO 1829. 
 
 to their being manufactured at home, and thereby giving 
 more encouragement to those of our citizens who have in- 
 vested their capital in establishments of this kind. A strong 
 opposition, however, to an increase of the duties on foreign 
 goods has appeared, particularly in the south, on the ground 
 that to foster manufacturing establishments, considerably 
 beyond the encouragement given them by the existing tariff 
 must be at the expense of commerce, revenue, and general 
 prosperity. What will be the issue of the above efforts, 
 time only will disclose. 
 
 The number of persons employed in manufactures in the 
 United States, as appears by the census of 1820, is three 
 hundred and forty-nine thousand two hundred and forty- 
 seven. Rhode-Island has a greater proportion of popula- 
 tion engaged in manufactures than any other state, and 
 next in order are Massachusetts and Connecticut. Penn- 
 sylvania and New-Jersey, also rank high as manufacturing- 
 states. 
 
 Sec. 20. The population of the United States, 
 according to the census of 1830, was twelve mil- 
 lions eight hundred and fifty-six thousand one 
 hundred and sixty-five. Of this number, two 
 millions ten thousand four hundred and thirty- 
 six were slaves. 
 
 The following observations, respecting the population of 
 the country, have been found to be true by a late respectable 
 writer:* 1. That the inhabitants of the United States double 
 in about twenty-five years. 2. That taking the whole Uni- 
 ted States together, the whites increase faster than the 
 blacks; but that in the states in which the blacks are very 
 numerous, they have almost uniformly increased faster than 
 the whites, in those states. In Maryland, Virginia, North 
 Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, Tennessee, and Ken- 
 tucky, the blacks, for the last thirty years, have increased 
 much faster than the whites. In North Carolina and Ten- 
 nessee, they have increased more than as fast again, and in 
 South Carolina, during the last ten years, they have in- 
 creased three times as fast. In the northern states, on the 
 contrary, the black population is almost stationary, and in 
 Maine, New-Hampshire, and Rhode Island, it is diminish- 
 ing. 3. That in all our great cities, the females are more 
 
 * S. E. Morse, who has recently published a valuable geography, to 
 which the author is indebted for many important facts in these notes. 
 
531 
 
 numerous than the males, while in the whole United States 
 the reverse is true. The average of all the cities gives 
 nearly one hundred and nine females to one hundred nJJML 
 whereas, in the whole United States, the average of females 
 is but ninety-seven to one hundred males. 
 
 Sec. 21. EDUCATION. The education of youth, 
 which is so essential to the well being of socie- 
 ty, and intimately connected with the political 
 prosperity of a republican government, has re- 
 ceived, as has been noticed in the progress of 
 this work, considerable attention in the. United 
 States, in every period since their settlement. 
 The present state of our primary and higher 
 schools, of our colleges, universities, and other 
 establishments of education, is more flourishing 
 than at any former period; their number is an- 
 nually increasing, and a more liberal spirit, in 
 respect to ttieir endowment, is prevailing. 
 
 In all the New-England states, excepting Rhode Island, 
 common schools are supported by law. In tRis latter state, 
 however, academies are established in all the principal 
 towns, and private schools are extensively maintained 
 during the winter months. In the new state of Maine, a 
 sum, exceeding one hundred thousand dollars, is raised by 
 tax, and appropriated to the support of a school master for 
 every two hundred inhabitants. The number of school 
 houses is estimated at fifteen hundred. 
 
 In Connecticut the common schools are supported by a 
 fund, arising from the sale of lands in Ohio, which formerly 
 belonged to the state. This fund amounted in May, 1821, 
 to one million and seven hundred thousand dollars, the year- 
 ly income of which, together with twelve thousand dollars 
 of the public taxes, is annually devoted to the maintenance 
 of common school masters, in every town in the state. The 
 amount paid to the towns from this fund, in 1818, was more 
 than seventy thousand dollars, a greater sum by twenty-two 
 thousand dollars than the whole state tax amounted to in 
 the year preceding. 
 
 A common school fund exists, also, in the state of New- 
 York. In 1822, it consisted of more than one million one 
 hundred thousand dollars, and twenty-five thousand acres 
 
532 PERIOD xii. 1825 TO 1829. 
 
 of land. The sum which this fund annually yields, is nearly 
 eighty thousand dollars, and it assists to give instruction to 
 nine tenths of the children of that populous state, between 
 the ages of five and fifteen years. Besides the common 
 schools and colleges, there are nearly fifty incorporated 
 academies. There is also a literary fund of nearly one hun- 
 dred thousand dollars, the interest of which is annually dis- 
 tributed to the several colleges and academies of the state. 
 
 In Virginia, a literary fund has recently been created by 
 the legislature, consisting of moneys received from the Uni- 
 ted States, for military services during the late war. It 
 amounted, in December, 1818, to about one million and one 
 hundred thousand dollars, to which is yet to be added a 
 balance due from the United States. The interest of this 
 sum, with the addition of fines, forfeitures, &c., which have 
 also been appropriated to the same object, will, in the opinion 
 of the directors, yield an annual income of nearly ninety 
 thousand dollars. Of this sum, forty-five thousand dollars 
 annually have been appropriated to the support of primary 
 schools, and fifteen thousand dollars to the endowment of a 
 university. 
 
 Until within a few years, the subject of education has re- 
 ceived but little attention in North Carolina. Much zeal, 
 however, has recently been displayed in the establishment of 
 academies and schools. Previously to 1804, there were but 
 two academies in the state ; there are now fifty, and the 
 number is still increasing. 
 
 In South Carolina, academies are numerous ; the legisla- 
 ture annually appropriates thirty thousand dollars for the 
 support of free schools. In 1817, the state of Georgia gave 
 one hundred thousand dollars for the same object. In the 
 states of Alabama, Ohio, and Illinois, provision has been 
 made, by the United States, for the education of youth, one 
 section, or a thirty-sixth part of every township, being grant- 
 ed by the act of congress that admitted these states to the 
 union, for the support of common schools ; and in addition, 
 one, and in some states, two townships, for the support of a 
 college. Till recently, education has been much neglected 
 in Louisiana, and many of the inhabitants are unable either 
 to read or write. Lately, the attention of the government 
 has been directed to this subject, and schools and higher 
 seminaries of learning are established in various parts of 
 the state. 
 
 Several universities and colleges have been added to the 
 literary institutions in the United States, within a few years. 
 
ADAMS' ADMINISTRATION. 533 
 
 Of universities, two have recently commenced operations in 
 the state of Ohio, one at Athens, on the Hockhocking, by 
 the name of the Ohio University ; the other at Oxford, near 
 the southwest corner of the state, by the name of the Miami 
 University. The former of these has two townships of 
 land, or forty-six thousand acres, and an annual income of 
 two thousand three hundred dollars ; the latter has one 
 township, which yields about two thousand dollars. 
 
 Besides these, there is a flourishing college at Cincin- 
 nati, which was incorporated in 1819. and which has funds 
 amounting to thirty thou ;md dollars. A medical college 
 is connected with it. Worthington college was incorpora- 
 ted during the same year. In 1818, Transylvania univer- 
 sity, in Lexington, Kentucky, was re-organized, and placed 
 upon a more liberal foundation. The number of students 
 now exceeds three hundred. A college was established in 
 1819 at Danville, about thirty miles southwest from Lex- 
 ington. 
 
 A university has recently been commenced at Charlottes- 
 ville, in Albemarle county, Virginia. The plan contem- 
 plates ten professorships ; and the buildings, consisting of 
 ten pavilions for the professors, five hotels for dieting the 
 students, with one hundred and four dormitories, sufficient 
 for two hundred and eight students, are already finished, in 
 an elegant style of architecture. A college has gone into 
 operation in the District of Columbia. It is situated three 
 miles from the capitol. A Baptist Theological Seminary 
 is connected with the institution. Besides these institutions, 
 there are several others, viz. a charity school at Bangor, 
 Maine, whose object is to prepare young men for the mi- 
 nistry, in a shorter time than is usual at other seminaries ; 
 a Baptist literary and theological seminary at Waterville, 
 on the Kennebeck ; and one at New-York, belonging to 
 the Protestant Episcopal Church. A Theological institu- 
 tion has also been established at Auburn, New- York, by 
 the Presbyterians. Several others are in contemplation in 
 the country. 
 
 The foregoing facts, in relation to the state of our com- 
 mon and higher institutions of learning, no" American, in 
 whose bosom glows the spirit of the patriot, will regard 
 with indifference. Like the light of heaven, science cheers, 
 beautifies, and adorns. To its influence are we indebted for 
 much of the civil and religious freedom which we enjoy, 
 and intimately connected with its progress are the future 
 honor and happiness of our country. An intelligent people 
 45* 
 
534 PERIOD xii. 1825 TO 1829. 
 
 will select intelligent rulers, and intelligent rulers will ma- 
 nage safely the government confided to their trust. " There 
 is scarcely one instance brough:," says Bacon, " of a dis- 
 astrous government, where learned men have been seated at 
 the helm." 
 
 The general diffusion of knowledge tends also to make 
 peaceable citizens. " It causes men," in the language of a 
 periodical work of our own country, " to have just views of 
 the nature, value, and relations of things, the purposes of 
 life, the tendency of actions, to be guided by purer motives, 
 to form nobler resolutions, and to press forward to more de- 
 sirable attainments. Knowledge smooths down the rough- 
 ness, and tames the native ferocity of man." Our ancestors 
 knew these things; they were aware of the importance of 
 knowledge among the people to the strength of the social 
 and political fabric, which they were commencing ; they, 
 therefore, when they laid the foundations of their dwellings, 
 almost simultaneously laid the foundations of pur common 
 and higher seminaries of learning. 
 
 A steady, though too slow an advance, has been making 
 in relation to science, through the whole period of our his- 
 tory. The importance of it is more generally admitted, and 
 greater favor is shown towards those institutions which are 
 devoted to its cultivation. Far distant be the day, when the 
 prevalence of ignorance shall expose us to anarchy, and 
 leave us to become the victims of some ambitious, turbulent, 
 faithless spirit, who may rise to wield the sword of despot- 
 ism. On the contrary, may knowledge continue to increase, 
 and with it that love of justice, virtue, and religion, which, 
 under the blessing of heaven, will make our beloved country 
 perpetually the seat of peace and freedom. 
 
 REFLECTIONS. 
 
 Sec. 22. Upon concluding this history of our country, we 
 can scarcely refrain from asking, who of our ancestors anti- 
 cipated results from their toils, so stupendous as those which 
 we behold ? Who of them predicted, while they were laying 
 up the pines of the forest for a shelter, that they were com- 
 mencing an empire, which, within two centuries, would 
 extend thousands of miles, and embrace, within its bosom, 
 ten millions of the human race? Who then thought of 
 cities, with their busy population, a thousand miles from the 
 waters of the Atlantic ? or of fleets, on inland seas, pro- 
 ceeding to, and returning from distant voyages ? or of navies 
 pouring forth their thunder and their flame ? Such results 
 
535 
 
 entered not into sober calculation, and were beyond even 
 the dreams of fancy. Yet two centuries have brought 
 them to pass. 
 
 The branch which our fathers planted, under the foster- 
 ing care of heaven, rose, extended, invigorated. It acquired 
 stability by oppression, and gathered imnortuiice from the 
 efforts which were made to crush it. In the progress of 
 our history, we have seen the American people, while sus- 
 taining only the character of colonists, and struggling with 
 the discouragements and difficulties of new settlements, 
 maintaining at their own expense, and bringing to prosper- 
 ous conclusion, wars, which a selfish and jealous mother 
 country, by her pride and imprudence, had occasioned. We 
 have seen these colonies, amidst all the oppressions which 
 they experienced, through exactions, and calumnies, loss of 
 charters, and one abridgment of liberty after another, still 
 maintaining their loyalty nill indulging the feelings, and 
 adopting the language of affection, until justice and patriot- 
 ism and religion, bid them rise to assert those rights, which 
 the God of nature designed for all his rational offspring. 
 
 Through a long and trying war, in which inexoerience 
 had to contend with discipline, and poverty with wealth, we 
 see them pledging their fortunes, liberties, and lives, to one 
 another, and to the astonishment of the world, accomplish- 
 ing their emancipation. And when emancipated, and trans- 
 formed into an independent nation, we see them calmly 
 betaking themselves to the organization of a government, 
 under a constitution as wise as it was singular, and whose 
 excellency and competency the experience of more than 
 thirty years has confirmed. Simultaneously with these 
 events, what extensiye conquests have been made on the 
 wilderness ! Deserts have put on beauty and fruitfulness 
 and a way been constantly extending towards the waters o 
 the Pacific, for the advance of civilization and religion. 
 
 Had we the spirit of prophecy, in respect to the future 
 condition of America, this would not be the place to indulge 
 it. No nation, however, ever possessed, in a higher degree, 
 the means of national prosperity. Our territory is ample 
 our soil fertile our climate propitious our citizens enter- 
 prising, brave, and persevering. A sea coast of three thou- 
 sand miles inland seas, numerous canals, facilitate foreign 
 and domestic trade. Being free and independent of other 
 nations, we can frame our laws, and fashion our institutions, 
 as experience and an enlightened policy snail dictate. Our 
 universities and colleges are yearly qualifying numbers for 
 
536 PERIOD xii. 1825 TO 1829. 
 
 the higher professions of life, while our academies and 
 schools are diffusing intelligence, to an unparalleled extent, 
 among our virtuous yeomanry. The Bible and the insti- 
 tutions of Christianity are with us, and ar;- presenting to 
 us all the blessings which religion can impart. Thus cir- 
 cumstanced, what should prevent our country from ad 
 vancing to that eminence of national happiness, beyond 
 which national happiness cannot extend? "Manufactures 
 may here rise busy commerce, inland and foreign, dis- 
 tribute our surplus produce, augment our capital, give ener- 
 gy to industry, improvement to roads, patronage to arts and 
 sciences, vigor to schools, and universality to the institutions 
 of religion ; reconciling civil liberty with efficient govern- 
 ment ; extended population with concentrated action ; and 
 unparalleled wealth with sobriety and morality." 
 
 Let but the spirit, the practical wisdom, the religious in-' 
 tegrity of the first planters of our soil, prevail among 
 rulers and subjects let God be acknowledged, by giving 
 that place to his word and institutions which they claim 
 and all these blessings are ours. We sliall enjoy peace 
 with nations abroad, and tranquillity at home. As years 
 revolve, the tide of our national prosperity will flow broader 
 and deeper. In the beautiful language of inspiration 
 " our sons will be as plants grown up in their youth, and 
 our daughters as corner stones, polished after the similitude 
 of a palace. Our garners will be full, including all man- 
 ner of stores, our sheep will bring forth by thousands and 
 ten thousands ; our oxen will be strong to labor, and there 
 will be no breaking in, or going out, or complaining in our 
 streets. Happy is that people that is in such a case, yea, 
 happy is that people whose God is the Lord." 
 
CHRONOLOGICAL LIST 
 
 
 OFFICERS BELONGING TO SIX SUCCESSIVE ADMINISTRATIONS. 
 
 FIRST ADMINISTRATION ; 1789 to 1797 ; 8 years. 
 
 GEOROB WASHINGTON, 
 John Adams, 
 
 Thomas Jefferson, 
 Edmund Randolph, 
 Timothy Pickering 
 
 Alexander Hamilton, 
 Oliver Wolcott, 
 
 Henry Knox, 
 Timothy Pickering, 
 James M 'Henry, 
 
 Samuel Osgood, 
 Timothy Pickering, 
 Joseph Habersham, 
 
 Edmund Randolph. 
 William Bradford, 
 Charles Lee, 
 
 Virginia, April 30, 1789. President 
 Massachusetts, do. 1789. Vice-President 
 
 Appointed. 
 
 Virginia, Sept. 26, 1789. ) 
 
 do. Jan. 2, 1794. > Secretaries of State, 
 
 Pennsylvania, Dec. 10, 1795. ) 
 
 New- York, Sept. 11, 1789. { Secretaries of the 
 
 Connecticut, Feb. 3> 1795. $ Treasury. 
 
 Massachusetts, Sept. 12, 17 ^9. ) 
 
 Pennsylvania, Jan. 2, 1795. > Secretaries of War. 
 
 Maryland, Jan. 27, 1796. ) 
 
 Massachusetts, Sept. 26, 1789. ) 
 
 Pennsylvania, Nov. 7, 1791. > Post Masters Genera 
 
 Georgia, Feb. 25, 1795. } 
 
 Virginia, Sept. 26, 1789. ) 
 
 Pennsylvania, Jan. 27, 1794. [ Attorneys General 
 
 Virginia, Dec. 10, 1795. ) 
 
 Speakers of the House of Representatives. 
 
 Frederick A. Muhlenberg, 
 Jonathan Trumbull, 
 Frederick A. Muhlenberg, 
 Jonathan Dayton, 
 
 Pennsylvania, 
 Connecticut, 
 Pennsylvania, 
 New-Jersey, 
 
 1st Congress 
 2d do. 
 3d do. 
 4th do. 
 
 1789. 
 '1791. 
 1793. 
 1795. 
 
 SECOND ADMINISTRATION ; 1797 to 1801 ; 4 years. 
 JOHN ADAMS, Massachusetts, March 4, 1797. President 
 
 Thomas Jefferson, Virginia, do. 1797. Vice-President 
 
 Appointed. 
 
 Timothy Pickering, Penn. (.continued in office,) > ^, Mar - lcia nf KtatA 
 
 John Marshall, Virginia, May 13, 1800. S Se 
 
 American Almanac. 
 
538 FEDERAL GOVERNMENT 1797 TO 1817. 
 
 Oliver Wolcott, 
 Samuel Dexter, 
 
 James M'Henry, 
 Sanglel Dexter, 
 Roger Griswold, 
 
 George Cabot, * 
 Benjamin Stoddert, 
 
 Joseph Habersham, 
 Charles Lee, 
 
 Conn. (continued in office,) ) Secretaries of the 
 Massachusetts, Dec. 31, 1800. \ Treasury 
 
 Md. (continued in office,) ) 
 
 Massachusetts, May 13, 1800. } Secretaries of War. 
 
 Connecticut, Feb. 3, 1801. ) 
 
 Massachusetts, May 3, 1798. ) c prrpt ar -. p<s nf thp vr avv 
 Maryland, May 21, 1798. \ Secretanes of tne Nav ? 
 
 Georgia, (continued in office,) Post Master General. 
 Virginia, (continued in office,) Attorney General. 
 
 Speakers of the House of Representatives. 
 
 Jonathan , ayton, 
 Theodore Sedgwick, 
 
 New- Jersey, 
 Massachusetts, 
 
 5th Congress. 
 6th do. 
 
 1797. 
 1799. 
 
 THIRD ADMINISTRATION; 1801 to 1809 ; 8 years. 
 
 THOMAS JEFFERSON, 
 
 Aaron Burr, 
 George Clinton, 
 
 James Madison, 
 
 Samuel Dexter, 
 Albert Gallatin, 
 
 Henry Dearborn, 
 
 Benjamin Stoddert, 
 Robert Smith,t 
 
 Joseph Habersham, 
 Gideon Granger, 
 
 Levi Lincoln, 
 John Breckenridge, 
 Caesar A. Rodney, 
 
 Virginia, March 4, 1801. 
 
 New- York, do. 1801. > 
 New- York, do. 1805. \ 
 
 Appointed. 
 Virginia, March 5, 1801. 
 
 Mass. (continued in office,) ) 
 Pennsylvania, Jan. 26, 1802. \ 
 
 Massachusetts, March 5, 1801. 
 
 Maryland, (continued in office, ) 
 Maryland, Jan. 26, 1802. \ 
 
 Georgia, (continued in office,) / 
 Connecticut, Jan. 26, 1802. \ 
 
 Massachusetts, March 5, 1801. ) 
 Kentucky, Dec. 23, 1805. > 
 Delaware, Jan. 20, 1807. ) 
 
 President. 
 Vice-Presidents. 
 
 Secretary of State. 
 
 Secretaries of the 
 Treasury. 
 
 Secretary of War. 
 Secretaries of the Navy. 
 
 Post Masters General. 
 Attorneys General 
 
 Speakers of the House of Representatives. 
 
 Nathaniel Macon, 
 Joseph B. Varnum, 
 Nathaniel Macon, 
 Joseph B. Varnum, 
 
 North Carolina, 
 Massachusetts, 
 North Carolina, 
 Massachusetts, 
 
 7th Congress, 
 8th do. 
 
 9th 
 10th 
 
 do. 
 do. 
 
 1801. 
 1803. 
 1805. 
 1807. 
 
 JAMES MADISON, 
 
 George Clinton, 
 Elbridge Gerry, 
 
 FOURTH ADMINISTRATION ; 1809 to 1817; 8 years. 
 
 Virginia, March 4, 1809. President. 
 
 N. Y. 1809, (d. April 20, 1812.) ) ... p . , 
 Mass. 1813, (d. Nov. 23, 1814.) \ Vice-Presidents, 
 
 Appointed. 
 
 Robert Smith, Maryland, March 6, 1809. ) 
 
 James Monroe, Virginia, Nov. 25, 1811. \ Secretaries of State. 
 
 James Monroe,! Virginia, Feb. 28, 1815. ) 
 
 * Mr. Cabot declined the appointment. The Navy Department was established in 1798. 
 
 t Robert Smith was appointed Attorney General, and Jacob Crowninshield, of Massa- 
 chusetts, Secretary of the Navy, on the 2d of March, 1S05, but they both declined these 
 appointments ; and Mr. Smith continued in the office of Secretary of the Navy, till the 
 end of Mr. Jefferson's administration. 
 
 J James Monroe was recommissioned, having for some time acted as Secretary of "Wa* 
 
FEDERAL GOVERNMENT 1817 TO 1829. 539 
 
 Albert Gallatin, 
 George W. Campbell, 
 Alexander J. Dallas, 
 
 William Bust is, 
 John Armstrong, 
 James Monroe, 
 William H. Crawford, 
 
 Paul Hamilton, 
 William Jones, 
 Benj. W. Crowninshield, 
 
 Gideon Granger, 
 Return J. Meigs, 
 
 Caesar A. Rodney, 
 William Pinkney, 
 Richard Rush, 
 
 Pennsylvania 
 
 Massachusetts, 
 New-York, 
 Virginia, 
 Georgia, 
 
 Oct. 
 
 1814. 
 
 March 7, 1809. } 
 Jan. 13, 1813. f 
 Sept. 27, 1814. ( 
 March 2, 1815. ) 
 
 South Carolina, March 7, 1809. 
 
 Pennsylvania, 
 Massachusetts, 
 
 Jan. 12, 1813. } Secretaries of the Navj 
 Dec. 19, 1814. } 
 
 Conn. 
 Ohio, 
 
 ""asKijia i PM < G - eraj - 
 
 Delaware, (continued in office,) ) 
 
 Maryland, Dec. 11, 1811. > Attorneys General. 
 
 Pennsylvania, Feb. 10, 1814. } 
 
 Speakers of the House of Representatives. 
 
 Joseph B. Varnum, 
 Henry Clay, 
 Henry Clay, 
 Langdon Cheves, 
 Henry Clay, 
 
 Massachusetts, 
 Kentucky, 
 Kentucky, 
 South Carolina, 
 Kentucky, 
 
 llth Congress, 
 12th do. ' 
 
 13th 
 14th 
 
 do. 
 do. 
 
 1809. 
 
 1811. 
 U812. 
 } 1814. 
 
 1815. 
 
 FIFTH ADMINISTRATION ; 1817 to 1825 ; 8 years. 
 
 JAMES MONROE, 
 Daniel D. Tompkins, 
 
 John Q. Adams, 
 William H. Crawford, 
 
 Isaac Shelby,* 
 John C. Calhoun, 
 
 Benj. W. Crowninshield, 
 Smith Thompson, 
 Samuel L. Southard, 
 
 Return J. Meigs, 
 John M'Lean, 
 
 Richard Rush, 
 William Win, 
 
 Virginia, March 4, 1817. President. 
 
 New-York, do. 1817. Vice-President 
 
 Appointed. 
 
 Massachusetts, March 5, 1817. Secretary of State. 
 
 Georgia, March 5, 1817. Secretary of the Treas. 
 
 Kentucky, March 5. 1817. ) 
 
 South Carolina, Dec. 16, 1817. $ 
 
 Mass. (continued in office,) ] 
 New-York, Nov. 30, 1818. 
 
 New-Jersey, Dec. 9, 1823. > 
 
 Ohio, 
 Ohio, 
 
 (continued in office.) 
 Dec. 9,1823. 
 
 Secretaries of the Navy 
 Post Masters General. 
 
 Penn. (continued in office,) ( 
 Virginia, Dec. 16, 1817. 
 
 Henry Clay, 
 
 Jchn W. Taylor, 
 Philip P. Bai-bour, 
 Henry Clay, 
 
 Speakers of the House of Representatives. 
 15th Congress, 
 
 Kentucky, 
 
 Kentucky, 
 
 New-York, 
 
 Virginia, 
 
 Kentucky, 
 
 16th 
 
 17th 
 18th 
 
 do. 
 
 do. 
 do. 
 
 1817. 
 S 1819. 
 P1820. 
 
 1821. 
 
 1S23. 
 
 SIXTH ADMINISTRATION ; 1825 to 1829 ; 4 years. 
 
 JOHN Q. ADAMS, Massachusetts, March 4, 1825. President 
 
 John C. Calhoun, South Carolina, do. 1825. Vice-President. 
 
 Appointed. 
 
 Henry Clay, Kentucky, March 8, 1825. Secretary of State. 
 
 * Isaac Shelby declined the appointment. 
 
540 FEDERAL 
 
 Rjchard Rush, 
 
 James Barbour, 
 Peter B. Porter, 
 
 Samuel L. Southard, 
 John M'Lean, 
 WiUiam Wirt, 
 
 GOVERNMENT 1825 TO 1829. 
 
 Pennsylvania, March 7, 1825. Sec'y of the Treasury 
 Secretaries of War. 
 Secretary of the Navy. 
 Post Master General. 
 Attorney General 
 
 Virginia, 
 New-York, 
 
 do. 1825. ; 
 May 26, 1828. \ 
 
 N. Jersey, (continued in office,) 
 Ohio, (continued in office,) 
 Virginia, (continued in office,) 
 
 Speakers of the House of Representatives. 
 
 John W. Taylor, 
 Andrew Stevenson, 
 
 New-York, 
 Virginia, 
 
 19th Congress, 
 20th do. 
 
 1827. 
 
 1827. 
 
 NOTE. The dates of the appointments of the principal executive officers, in the severa 
 administrations, above exhibited, are the times when the several nominations, made by 
 the presidents, were confirmed by the senate, as stated in the " Journal of the Executive 
 Proceedings of the Senate of the United States." 
 
 
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